Arts & Entertainment
Ashley Kern, CEO of SightLine in Hancock

More small businesses embrace artificial intelligence

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ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SMALL BUSINESS: About one-quarter of small businesses surveyed in the state use AI for tasks such as marketing, data analysis and business operations. MSU and Central Michigan experts point out ethical issues.We hear from a company in Hancock that provides services to Michigan Tech and Grand Valley State, an Ann Arbor company that helps clients reduce food waste and the Small Business Association. For news and business sections. By Theo Scheer. FOR IRON MOUNTAIN, MARQUETTE, SAULT STE. MARIE, CORP!, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, DETROIT, CADILLAC, CLARE COUNTY, CRAWFORD COUNTY AND ALL POINTS.

Education
Ericka Jackson is Wayne State University’s director of undergraduate admissions.

Admission guarantee for students with 3.0 GPA boosts applications to public universities

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GUARANTEED ADMISSION: Ten of Michigan’s 15 public universities now admit any in-state student graduating high school with a 3.0 or higher GPA, a change intended to make the application process easier that is already credited with an increase in applications at some campuses. The Michigan Assured Admission Pact, or MAAP is part of an effort to raise enrollments. We see the impact at Oakland and Wayne State and hear from the Michigan Association of State Universities. Opting out of the program are U-M, MSU, Grand Valley, Western and Michigan Tech. By Owen McCarthy. FOR DETROIT, BIG RAPIDS, IRON MOUNTAIN, SAULT STE. MARIE, MIDLAND, GREENVILLE, BAY MILLS, ST. IGNACE, HOLLAND AND ALL POINTS.

Education
Rep. Matt Koleszar, D-Plymouth, supports more state oversight of homeschooling.

Proposed homeschooling registration sparks protests

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HOME SCHOOL SAFETY: A state Education Department proposal to require homeschooling parents to register their children is sparking protests. The department says the change is intended to protect the safety of those students, but homeschool advocates counter that it’s a ploy to funnel more state aid to public schools and an intrusion on family privacy. We hear from homeschool promoters, including two from Grand Traverse County, and lawmakers from Plymouth and Livonia. By Liz Nass. FOR TRAVERSE CITY, LEELANAU, DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.

Business & Economy
10 largest grants awarded this year to nonprofits for programs to help low-income residents join the job market. Source: Department of Labor and Economic Growth.

State grants to community nonprofits aim to help job seekers succeed

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REENTRY GRANTS: Nonprofits based in Saginaw, Holland and Grand Rapids are among those receiving state grants worth $14.4 million for programs to help ex-inmates find and retain jobs. We talk to those two groups, the director of the Department of Labor and Economic Growth and an organization advocating more alternatives to incarceration. References to Montcalm, Alpena, Iron, Cheboygan, Marquette, Oakland, Midland, Chippewa, Wayne and Monroe counties. By Theo Scheer. FOR HOLLAND, MIDLAND, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, CORP! GREENVILLE, WKTV, IRON MOUNTAIN, SAULT STE. MARIE, MIDLAND, CHEBOYGAN, DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.

Arts & Entertainment
Bullfrogs Ballet students in North Macedonia bow at the end of a performance

Dance groups leap into environmental communication

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DANCE & ENVIRONMENT: The MSU Theatre Department and a North Macedonian ballet company are collaborating on the Ripple Effect, a project that addresses environmental issues that both North Macedonians and Michigan residents face, like water and industrial pollution. For news and entertainment sections. By Reese Carlson. FOR LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.

Arts & Entertainment
Genevieve Fox, far right, and other journalists tour the Carmeuse Lime Manufacturing Plant in River Rogue, and hear Simone Sagovic, the project manager at the Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition, speak about health problems of people living nearby.

Reporting on the environment is a tough job

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ENVIRONMENTAL FESTIVAL: The Great Lakes Environmental Festival will take place in Manistee in April. We talked to environmental journalist Genevieve Fox, who will speak at the festival and the University of Detroit Mercy professor who organized the event. By Clara Lincolnhol. FOR LUDINGTON, PLANET DETROIT, DETROIT, MICHIGAN FARM NEWS AND ALL POINTS.

Business & Economy

Schools use incentives, state programs to recruit, retain teachers

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TEACHER INCENTIVES: Signing bonuses aren’t limited to pro athletes. Some school districts, hard-pressed to find enough teachers, are paying them too. There are other new recruitment incentives and initiatives underway across the state. The governor touts them too. We hear about ones in the Cheboygan and Jackson school districts and the Lenawee and Ingham intermediate school districts. By Owen McCarthy. FOR CHEBOYGAN, ADRIAN, BLISSFIELD, LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.

Campus News
Rep. Emily Dievendorf, D-Lansing, has proposed a bill of rights for homeless Michigan residents

Steep challenges face homeless students, experts say

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STUDENT HOMELESSNESS: Homeless students often slip under the radar, and their plight draws insufficient attention from college administrators and others, advocates say. We learn about what Northern Michigan University is doing to address the problem, hear from the Michigan Association of State Universities and talk to a Lansing lawmaker who is pushing to establish a bill of rights for homeless Michigan residents. By Elijah Taub. FOR MARQUETTE, LANSING CITY PULSE, SAULT STE. MARIE, IRON MOUNTAIN, ST. IGNACE AND ALL POINTS.

Arts & Entertainment
Daniel Hurley is the chief executive officer of the Michigan Association of State Universities.

Humanities, arts, take hit as enrollments drop

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HUMANITIES CUTS: Some public universities are cutting or restructuring humanities, arts and world language courses because of declining student interest. We talk to the Michigan Association of State Universities and learn about the situation at Oakland University, Central Michigan and Ferris State. By Anish Topiwala. FOR DETROIT, MARQUETTE, SAULT STE MARIE, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, WKTV, MIDLAND, LANSING CITY PULSE, IRON MOUNTAIN, BIG RAPIDS AND ALL POINTS.