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FAME program supports foster youth alumni at MSU and beyond

For students who are alumni of the foster care system, amenities viewed by most as a given can become points of stress during a person’s transition to college. Founded in 2007, MSU’s Fostering Academics, Mentoring Excellence program, or FAME, aims to ease this transition.

The program provides support and resources to students who are former foster youth, have experienced homelessness or are otherwise independent. FAME coordinator Chiquita Whittington said the program provides members with support networks that traditional students would typically receive from their parents.

Whittington said that of the 350 students eligible for FAME, around 30 to 40 students participate during any given semester. Students can engage however they wish, meaning they can pick and choose the support they receive, Whittington said.

While FAME offers social events, mentoring and life skills training, Whittington said the program’s most popular service is the Care Closet, a regularly replenished stock of school supplies, personal care items and snacks available to members. Another popular resource is the semester survival kit, which can be customized to each student’s needs based on a wish list they complete.

Additionally, FAME’s mentoring program pairs members up with local volunteers to provide social, emotional, and professional support during their time on campus.

MSU offers introductory course to indigenous language Kichwa

This school year, MSU is offering an introductory course in Kichwa, an indigenous language spoken by Quechua people primarily in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador and Colombia.

Teaching the class is Fulbright foreign language teaching assistant Micaela Jerez, who’s from Ecuador. Jerez previously worked alongside the Ecuadorian SKY (Sumak Kawsay Yachay) Foundation teaching English to local children and university students.

Spoken by an estimated eight million people worldwide, Quechua, the language family that contains Kichwa, has been declared by UNESCO as potentially vulnerable on account of its dwindling number of speakers across parts of Ecuador.

Jerez said that in Ecuador, interest in Kichwa has declined as families have chosen to send their children to schools where they are instructed in Spanish rather than Kichwa.

Spartan Family Sensory Room: A place for everyone to enjoy Spartan sports

Four years ago, Anthony Ianni, former MSU basketball player and the first Division 1 basketball player to be identified as on the autism spectrum, proposed the idea of a ‘sensory room’ to Breslin Center Administration.

Last Tuesday, The Spartan Family Sensory Room was unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Ianni, Interim President Teresa Woodruff, basketball head coach Tom Izzo, along with other faculty and community members.

Ianni said five years ago the parent of a child at his yearly basketball clinic for kids with autism and disabilities told him they could not take their child to events at the Breslin Center due to a lack of accommodations for sensory needs. This was a key motivator for Ianni in pushing for a sensory room to be built at the Breslin Center.

The equipment and furniture for the sensory room came from the Fredi The PizzaMan Foundation. The foundation, which was started by local business owner, Fredi Bello and his wife, strives to “spread autism awareness, autism acceptance and equip sensory rooms in all schools and community centers in the State of Michigan,” according to their website.

Breslin Center Operations and Event Manager Ryan Curtis said the implementation of the sensory room is a step forward in carrying out MSU’s 2030 Strategic Plan.

Based on original reporting by Emilio Perez Ibarguen and Owen McCarthy.