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59th Annual Winter Arts and Crafts show supports community, local artists

The University Activities Board, or UAB, hosted the 59th annual Winter Arts and Crafts show at the MSU Union this past weekend.

This year saw 125 vendors spread across the MSU Union selling everything from paintings to jewelry to soaps. Some vendors have been coming to the show for over 40 years. UAB Assistant Director Sara Stratilatov said that this is the first year the show is in full force since the start of the pandemic, and she loves seeing the community come together for this event.

It was an opportunity for local artists to sell their work ahead of the holiday season and a fundraiser for the UAB.

The UAB is very intentional with their vendor selection, Stratilatov said. They want to honor those who have been coming for years but they also must offer a variety of choices.

Biochemistry junior Nikita Nel came to the show looking for jewelry and Christmas gifts. She came to the event last year and wanting to come back.

“It’s good to definitely support local businesses and help them get more customers,” Nel said. “Also, you just get to find some things you may have not like known about and find cool stuff to like spread to your family.”

Rose Stevens, an East Lansing resident, came to the show for the first time this year. She said its a fun event for women to visit together.

Stevens said that she plans to come again in future years since she was so successful with her purchases. She has had to make trips back to her car to drop things off after buying them.

It helps support local artists, the UAB and MSU, she said.

Incoming students denied on-campus housing for spring semester

The MSU Housing Assignments Office sent a message to 95 incoming students telling them that they would not be provided housing in the dorms for spring semester on Nov. 17.

Prior to receiving the message, incoming students who wished to live on campus filled out interest forms. Although 70% of those students were given on-campus housing, the other 30% were told there was not enough space for them in on-campus housing and were given off-campus housing resources. Additionally, due to residence hall organization, the university was able to provide housing to all women students, but not men.

Associate Director for Communications in Residence Education and Housing Services Bethany Balks said the issue came down to an unexpectedly large number of spring-admitted students.

This comes after the reinstatement of MSU’s new two-year live-on requirement, which requires freshmen and sophomores to live in the dorms. When alerted that their kids would not be provided housing, many parents took to the MSU Class of 2026 Facebook group to express frustration over the fact that MSU’s new policy had seemingly backfired.

In response to these complaints, the university sent out another email telling these students that they could still choose to live on campus for the fall of 2023.

Balks said the high number of students has been a trend since the pandemic. Many Big Ten schools, she said, have experienced higher numbers of students who wish to live on campus. As a result, housing has been meeting with admissions to determine what adjustments need to be made to the system.

Black students in politics inspired by Bolden’s appointment to Michigan Supreme Court

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced that she will appoint Michigan Rep. Kyra Harris Bolden as a Michigan Supreme Court justice. Bolden will be the first Black woman on the Michigan Supreme Court and will replace retiring former Chief Justice Bridget McCormack.

The expected appointment of Bolden reflects similarities to the election of former President Barack Obama and the recent appointment of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court — an expanding change that is shaping the discourse and ideas of the political sphere, political theory and constitutional democracy junior Joshua Dorcely said.

Social relations and policy junior Drue Bender found Bolden’s appointment inspiring and gave her hope as a Black woman in politics.

Bolden has prioritized criminal justice reform while serving in the Michigan House of Representatives since 2018.

Bender advises politically passionate students to not be scared to work in the field, although it may be intimidating.

Based on original reporting by Hannah Woehlre, Amalia Medina and Ashley Zhou.