Today’s weather forecast is predicting considerable cloudiness with a high of 48 degrees and a low of 33 degrees.

Spartan Spirit Shop temporarily suspends in-person graduate gear sales

For those graduating this spring, bachelor’s graduation gear went on sale last Monday, March 20. As of now, graduation gear is available for purchase online only through the Spartan Spirit Shop website.

According to the website, pick-up has been temporarily suspended. Alternative locations for bachelor’s and master’s graduation gear will be at the Kellogg Center from April 5 to 7 and April 17 to 19 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. In the meantime, gear is available for shipment.

According to Spartan Spirit Shop employee Abby Hand, exclusively online ordering comes after Grad Fest. Grad Fest is typically held at the MSU Union, which is the primary Spartan Spirit Shop location. Because of the Union’s closure, the event was canceled for the semester.

Everything you need to know about water quality on MSU’s campus

From complaints of hair turning orange to an overall dislike for the “metallic” after-taste, some students wonder if the water on Michigan State University’s campus is safe to use.

Upon moving to campus, some students might discover that the water conditions differ greatly from that of their home communities.

Agribusiness management sophomore Lilley Koby lived in Hubbard Hall for transitional housing and said the water smelled metallic and didn’t seem safe to drink.

Koby said she dyed her hair blonde and after one week of using campus water, her hair was turning red.

IPF Communications and Learning Manager Fred Woodhams is aware of these complaints from students but wants them to know that the water on campus is in fact safe.

Woodhams said that he and the IPF department recognize that students at MSU come from all parts of Michigan and all different parts of the country, meaning they come from areas that may condition their water to a different standard than MSU does.

Manager of East Lansing Meridian and Sewer Authority, Joel Martinez, said the water they supply to Brody Neighborhood is just as filtered as the MSU system, if not more, since their water system removes more than just iron, but calcium and magnesium as well.

When it comes to the taste of the water, many students aren’t attuned to the metallic taste many have said the water has, leading many to resort to plastic water bottles as their primary drinking source.

To reduce the number of students using plastic water bottles, Woodhams said the IPF has installed more than 200 filtered water bottle stations across campus so that students and staff can fill up reusable water bottles with freshly filtered water.

For students who are worried about the water impacting their hair color or skin health, Woodhams said he recommends students install a filtered shower head for their space to filter out the minerals in the water.

But Martinez said MSU’s water is “not unsafe in any way,” even if the taste is a little unpleasant.

MSU Dairy Farms offers days for students to de-stress by petting cows

Michigan State University students have experienced unique stressors during the spring semester. MSU’s Dairy Teaching and Resource Center is looking to help soothe this by welcoming the public to spend quality time with their cows and calves.

The center is inviting students to “de-stress by petting MSU cows and calves” on Friday, April 21 and Friday, May 19 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

MSU Dairy Farm Manager Jim Good said the purpose of this event is for people to de-stress by forming a connection with the animals. Following the mass shooting on MSU’s campus, the MSU farms came together to host a similar petting event, which Good said inspired them to keep the program going at the cattle farm.

Good said he saw the positive effects that petting the cattle had during the last event.

Several East Lansing local businesses sponsored the event, providing food and beverages to those who came out to the farms. Good said he anticipates that this will continue into future events.

The MSU Dairy farms are open to the public throughout the year, but Good said that this is a “special hands-on” opportunity to interact with the MSU cows and cattle.

For those interested the farm is located at 4075 College Road in East Lansing.

Based on original reporting by Siya Modi, Ellie Young, Hannah Holycross and Jaden Beard.