Today’s weather forecast is predicting snow showers in the morning which will give way to a mixture of rain and snow in the afternoon with temps nearly steady in the mid to upper 30s.
ELPD identifies person of interest in double homicide investigation
The East Lansing Police Department has released an update in its investigation of a double homicide that was prompted by human remains being found in a freezer in an East Lansing home.
The police have identified a person of interest and confirmed that the person is deceased, the release said. It did not name the individual.
The release stated that the processing of evidence and identification of the victims is still ongoing.
The investigation started after ELPD responded to a call on Nov. 7 on the 1500 block of Wintercrest Street. The call indicated that there was blood on the floor inside the residence, and upon searching the residence, a deceased individual was found inside a chest freezer along with the possible human remains of a second individual, according to the initial press release.
Anyone with information that may be of assistance is encouraged to contact ELPD.
On-campus Spanish living community to open next fall
The only student-led living and learning community (LLC) will open on Michigan State University’s campus in fall 2025. La Casa is available to anyone who is interested in Spanish and is set to open in a wing of Shaw Hall.
Four student co-chairs have been working since May to bring La Casa to life.
Social relations and policy and Spanish senior Abby Cooper holds the development chair in La Casa. She works at developing a plan for the following year and is working on housing.
Human resource and labor relations and Spanish senior Korey Deans said people of various proficiency levels are welcome, and there are multiple tiers to proficiency.
According to La Casa’s website, there is no requirement of prior Spanish experience, only an enthusiasm of learning the language.
Students must sign up for La Casa when they sign up for housing. Abby said sign-up works differently for incoming and returning students. Returning students can express their interest and sign up early next semester when on-campus housing is available. They will be automatically placed into Shaw Hall.
Incoming students will also have to sign up, but they will do it through the Live On website when they begin to look for freshman-year housing. Due to freshmen and sophomores being required to live on-campus, junior and senior standing students do not have as much opportunity to live in the dorms.
Abby said the LLC began with Jennifer Gansler, an advisor for the Spanish department. Korey said Jennifer reached out to find students to co-chair the LLC in April, and they have been working since to get the community up and running.
The four co-chairs said one of the many reasons they opted to participate in this LLC was to be more involved with campus life. International relations and Spanish sophomore Ana Dunfee said one of the reasons she decided to participate in La Casa was that she was trying to get involved in a community with people she resonated with.
MSU students practice Anishinaabe beadwork with professors
Students gathered Tuesday afternoon for a beading workshop for the final event of MSU’s Native American Heritage Month.
The event was hosted by American Indian and Indigenous Studies professors Ellie Mitchell and Blaire Morseau in the Urban Planning and Landscape Architecture building.
Ellie and Blaire taught students a traditional Anishinaabe technique for bead embroidery.
This beadwork is used on a variety of garments and jewelry: moccasins, medallions, keychains and necklaces among others.
Angie Sanchez, a doctoral student studying geography, environment and spatial sciences said beadwork is not only just an artistic expression, but also a social pastime for some Indigenous communities.
Beadwork has a long history in Indigenous cultures like the Anishinaabe. Ellie said the practice predates contact with settlers, with older forms of embroidery using beads drilled from shells or cedar berries and Caribou hair used for thread.
Ellie, who owns a bead shop in Grand Rapids, said beading is a form of expression for her culture and can be a meditative process.
After a month of working on programming for Native American Heritage Month, Blaire said this event serves as a way to decompress.
Ellie said she wants to hold more beading circles in the future but pointed toward a lack of administrative support as a roadblock. Ellie added she and Blaire provided all of the materials for the event, in addition to the initial planning.
Based on original reporting by Hannah Holycross, Anna Rossow and Anish Topiwala.
