Spartan Newsroom (https://news.jrn.msu.edu/author/brittanyw4/)
The Environmental Commission in Meridian Township met in April to discuss the regulation of activities on wetlands and recycling access in residential complexes.
Counselors, administrators and students in Okemos, Williamston and Haslett report an increase in anxiety issues among high school students across the state and are working hard to educate students about mental illness.
Meridian Township residents are taking the initiative to go the extra mile.
On March 27, more than 30 residents convened for “Gardening Native Plants” at the Meridian Township Service Center hosted by the Harris Nature Center that focused on giving residents the knowledge to bring native plants into their own gardens.
Within the next several weeks, Meridian Township will continue its goal of preserving its lands by orchestrating a controlled burn on 14 acres of the Davis Foster Land Preserve.
From reproductive rights to the expansion of healthcare for all, Planned Parenthood has been in the center of both discussions. The topic of reproductive rights has circulated through governments on a local, national and global level. The Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan services areas within Michigan and organize events to inform the community of all the work the organization does. The organization hosts events like Sex Trivia at The Riv in Lansing to educate people more on sex facts and how to have a healthy sexual lifestyle. Along with this, every April the organization holds the Action Summit where hundreds of people crowd in Lansing to join Planned Parenthood for a day of advocacy and education.
Waking up in the morning, the first thing many do is check phones for notifications, texts, calls, etc., but on February 27—all mid-Michigan Verizon customers including residents in Okemos and Haslett—were left in the dark.
According to the Lansing State Journal, the outage lasted through the day until around 6 p.m. “after a fiber optic cable to a third-party vendor’s network was cut.”
Essence Bell, a resident of Meridian Township and Michigan State student, was affected by the outage. “I am a design student and do a lot of work from my phone,” said Bell. “Not being able to use my phone is very nerve-wracking because how am I supposed to navigate through the day if I have important work to do.”
Global News published an eight-part series unveiling how technology affected Gen Z and how this new generation navigates through the world.
“It’s not an addiction; it’s an extension of themselves,” said MaryLeigh Bliss, chief content editor at Ypulse and a Gen Z research consultant, to the publication.
It’s so hard to say goodbye—to junk food. With many stressors of college life, from work to classes, there are so many doors open to just get a quick fix, of food that is. In Ingham and Clinton Counties, there are over 50,000 college students between Michigan State University and Lansing Community College, according to both institutions’ websites.
Within these college towns, there is constant easy access to fast food restaurants including McDonalds, Taco Bell, Chick-fil-A, etc., but the options for organic foods or even vegan options run short.
These limiting options don’t only affect these student’s physical and learning capabilities throughout the day, but their overall mental health.
In an era where health and women’s rights are at the forefront of topics involving politics, the two join in the discussion of women’s health, specifically—resources for low-income women and their health needs. The topic is taboo for some, but when asking Meridian Township residents their input on the matter, the experiences were similar. Jaiden Paris, a freshman MSU student, has been a resident for over a year, and said there is still work that needs to be done in providing proper health resources for all women. “I haven’t seen a lot of things around the community to support women at all,” said Paris. “So I think that there should be more groups, talks and resources openly available for the community.”
Some residents do not share the same sentiment, as senior business student Alexa Davis said she feels a lot has been done to support mental health and women’s health overall.
It’s so hard to say goodbye—to junk food. With many stressors of college life, from work to classes, there are so many doors open to just get a quick fix, of food that is. Over 50,000 college students live in Ingham County between Michigan State University and Lansing Community College, according to the institutions’ websites. In these college towns are constant, easy access to fast food restaurants including McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Chick-fil-A, etc. These options don’t only affect student physical and learning capabilities throughout the day, but their overall mental health.