The Senior Ambassador Program is a new, virtual learning program where students from the Social Science Scholars Program at MSU are matched with seniors in the East Lansing community to reduce loneliness and build strong, intergenerational relationships.

The students and seniors will participate in group activities and meet one-on-one for about an hour each week, all through Zoom video calls.

The operators of the program outlined that the end goal is for the isolated seniors to engage in really meaningful, positive activities and to feel more connected to the community, have better quality of life.

With the November general election under seven weeks away, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson discussed how voters can safely participate in the election in a press conference Wednesday.

While clerks are expected to see historic amounts of ballots cast despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the officials encouraged people to establish their plans for voting as soon as possible.

Absentee ballots will start being mailed Sept. 24 while early in-person voting begins on the same day.

Voters can go to their clerk’s office, fill their ballot out there and return it immediately. In-person voting precincts will be open Election Day, with safety protocols in place and poll workers equipped with PPE.

After threatening legal action against the city of East Lansing in a press conference a few weeks ago, Harbor Bay Real Estate, who leases units in Newman Lofts in downtown East Lansing, could be in legal trouble following a City Council meeting on Tuesday evening.

During the meeting an original tenant of Newman Lofts notified the council members that Harbor Bay Real Estate Advisors may seemingly be in violation of an agreement with the city which restricts Newman Lofts from leasing the apartments to residents who do not fall under the category of ages 55 and above.

To avoid an excessively heavy student population in downtown housing, the real estate management was required to dedicate a percentage of the project to age-restricted housing.

Harbor Bay Real Estate agreed to these restrictions in 2017, prior to the building’s development. Recently though, Harbor Bay has been attempting to have the age-restriction policy lifted up for the building due to the COVID-19 pandemic.