“Sustainability is the program for the moment or almost a fad at many universities, but we’ve taken a different approach,” says Poston. “We’re looking for significant and sustainable changes in the way we do business.”
“We’re constantly looking at alternative energy sources like a new shallow geothermal system for our nursing building addition that will help us conserve steam,” says Poston. “And we’re exploring a variety of wind, solar and nuclear options to help us meet our renewable energy goals.”
Poston says the buildings going up on campus these days are all LEED-certifiable at various levels.
“We don’t certify all of them because it costs money to do that, but we do certify a few as we go.”
Poston is always working on MSU’s transportation fleet.
“The flex-fuel and hybrid vehicles are very popular with our staff,” says Poston. “And we’re keeping our eye on the development of electric vehicles to see if we can add some of those to our fleet.
“We’re also looking at a car sharing program, and we’ve expanded our bicycle shop on campus for people to rent when they’re on campus.”
“The alumni association is the original social network,” says Westerman. “We talk a lot about the importance of Facebook and Twitter, but in reality it’s still about those face-to-face connections.
“In the old days, social media was a tailgate party when people would come back to campus for Homecoming or a football game and they would talk face-to-face and the instant connection was a long-distance telephone call. Now our networks are incredibly diverse, but it still comes back to MSU and the relationships you develop here.”
Westerman says one of the things that makes MSU unique and the alumni association special is the network of nearly a half million Spartans around the world.
“If you call a Spartan and say you’re a Spartan, they’ll take your phone call.”
Westerman is passionate about MSU and its impact on the world.
“The real magic about MSU is our world grant mission to make the world a better place,” says Westerman. “MSU touches people in so many ways, and it’s such a positive for our state that MSU is around and involved.
“I think the next big idea will be envisioned in Spartan hearts, designed in Spartan minds, built by Spartan hands, and the next great chapter in the American dream will be written at Michigan State University!”
From MSU News on Impact Radio: A student business incubator and an entrepreneurship certificate program will help anchor MSU ENet, a new program connecting university and community resources into an innovation ecosystem for entrepreneurs.
“It’s not just for students, but for anyone in the community,” says program director Bryan Ritchie, a professor in MSU’s James Madison College and co-director of the Michigan Center for Innovation and Economic Prosperity. “This program itself is entrepreneurial. We don’t have a new center –– we are linking existing centers, courses, faculty and students into a flat organizational structure and network, connecting MSU and community service providers and firms into a just-in-time access point.”
Students also now can seek funding up to $5,000 to take such experiential learning from idea to prototype, thanks in large measure to a $600,000 endowment from the Gerstacker Foundation.
Simon often says that being green is in MSU’s DNA. This fall, MSU launches a specialization in sustainability studies that will bring together students from various majors and backgrounds.
“We don’t see sustainability as a separate set of skills that you put as a separate major,” Simon says. “But if we can grow the number of students who understand these issues at a very complex level and then can use their deep content knowledge to be able to think about those issues in their employment context and in their community, we believe they have a better chance of finding those complex solutions.
“Part of what we have done in all of our programs is try to imbue cutting edge science and to put that in the context of how best to implement public policy and you have to put the two of those together in order to address sustainability,” Simon says.
“Students today have to live with the consequences of the world we’ve created; they really do understand that,” says Simon. “And they don’t see those consequences necessarily as ones that create prosperity.
“The evolution to digital marketing and public relations was very natural,” says Mehraban. “We’re packaging information differently because people are getting their information differently.”
Ingenex delivers marketing solutions for a digital world by focusing producing results through social media marketing, web design, SEO, SEM, internet marketing, digital public relations, and web analytics.
The New Media Driver’s License course “is for any student who wants to learn to be digitally savvy,” says Mehraban. “We’re empowering students to get jobs or become more valuable at their current jobs because they can put these skills to use for companies right away.”
“We provide career services to 420,000 MSU alumni,” Hill says. “We’re there when Spartans are looking for help on resumes, cover letter critiques, effective interviewing tips, or help connecting with networks or companies.
“We do one-to-one career counseling and help you develop your career search strategy – essentially anything you’d go to a career coach for, and we do it for free for all of our alumni.”
Hill and his team have identified four key affiliations that help people land jobs.
“Number one is friends and family followed by university affiliations, shared work experiences and board and community work associations.”
Hill’s key job search tips start with following one’s passion.
“That will take care of a lot of ills if you can get into a position that you love,” Hill says. “And you have to network. That means connecting with people who have shared interests who are more likely to help you out.”
“TED stands for technology, entertainment and design,” says Yakubova. “TED brings together a variety of poeple to share their inspring stories and offers a platform for ideas worth sharing.”
“Growing up in Flint I’ve seen the city boom and bust, and we need to break that cycle and get on a track that’s more sustainable that can last not just for 10 or 20 years but for generations,” Walling says.
“Urban sustainability is not just about a hike in the woods,” Walling says. “It really is about how you make life better for people. You have to come up with ways to create green space and access to nature but also develop projects in a way that are appropriate for the ecology and the local ecosystem.
“But at the end of the day, people still have to have an opportunity to earn a living. You have to balance all those things as we create an agenda that’s long term.”
Urban farming is part of Walling’s agenda for the greening of Flint, too.
“The local food supply connects residents’ interests with community gardening and brings an entrepreneurial spirit to people,” Walling says. “It’s another way to respect the earth and the environment while simultaneously providing Flint residents with economic opportunities.”
“Brand is the focal point of communicating who you are and what matters to you, and it’s the way you narrow down that communication so that you can really get a fine point on it so people can understand who you are,” says Swain.
“It’s not what you think you are; it’s what everyone thinks you are.”
Swain says MSU has had a brand for a long time; now the university is trying to communicate it clearly in a way that people can grasp quickly and easily.
“Spartan Sagas is taking our people and featuring them and really digging into the stories of how our students, faculty, staff and alumni are contributing in ways big and small making a difference in the world,” Swain says.
“Spartans have so much enthusiasm and identify so strongly with the institution, and we really want to let that bloom and take off.”
From MSUPRSSA: MSU Head Servant and Spartan Podcast creator Scott Westerman talks about the state of social media in 2010 and what PR people should know about how to use it in their profession. He also offers his advice for PR students about to enter the industry and encourages us all to join the MSU Alumni Association!
The radio program is collaborative effort between MSU and WJR and is heard Fridays from 7 to 8 p.m. on WJR (760 AM). The show explores a broad range of issues related to sustainability. Topics range from the construction of “green” buildings to the development of energy-efficient automobiles to the creation of the biofuels that will help power autos and buildings of the future.
“We thoughtfully consider such critical issues as land use, water quality, alternative energy, biotechnology and organic agriculture,” Heinze said. “We talk with experts who have varying perspectives on these issues, and our listeners form their own judgments based on what they hear.
The partnership expanded in February 2009 to include MLive.com.
“The Internet has evolved so much from something people were doing just to be there to a huge revenue driver for most companies,” says Vartoogian. “And in many cases it’s now the core of how they do business and generate revenue from their customers.”
Social media gives people and companies a democratized view of the Internet where they can easily publish content.
“Social media today is very much like where the Internet was back in the late ‘90’s,” Vartoogian says. “Most organizations are thinking about just being on Facebook to be there because they know enough about it to know they’re supposed to be there.
“We see the future of social media being more on the application development side. More rich experiences will engage people in a more effective way than the conversation that takes place today.”
The transition to mobile will continue to evolve.
“You’ll always need a desktop to do things like long term research,” Vartoogian says. “But I think over the years we’ll start to see a shift in how our mobile devices interact with more traditional computing devices.”
“Universities are very special in that when we work on the campus in the years ahead to continue to improve the value of a Michigan State education and the value of Michigan State to the state of Michigan, the nation and the world; that rebounds positively to the benefit of the graduates,” says President Simon.
“And what the graduates do anywhere in the world to make a difference, not simply by the amount of money they make, but in that historic land grant – now world grant – spirit to use their talents to assure that cutting-edge knowledge is supplied to the world’s wicked problems is what makes a difference in their work and in their community, and in the way in which they think about their responsibilities to the next generation.
“And that rebounds as they do that work around the world very positively back to Michigan State in building reputation and value. So it’s a unique proposition and one we take very seriously and we’re very excited because we think the 2010 graduates are prepared to make that difference.”
President Simon says the Big Ten has been transparent about its potential expansion.
“If you think about the academic characteristics of the Big Ten and our pride in being a conference with institutions, all of which have global reputations and are viewed by the public as among the best institutions in the country, that’s something that we’re really proud of,” President Simon says. “And in every communication we’ve issued as a conference, we’ve made it clear that that’s something that we intend to hang on to very tightly in the future.
“I must underscore that not doing anything is an option. We’re in a stage where we’re carefully looking at alternatives. Since there are a limited number of Division I institutions in the country who fall into the general academic profile of the Big Ten institutions, anyone can figure out the possible pool of institutions that we might consider and then you can eliminate some by geography.”
Taylor is finishing up his book titled Third City.
“The first city is where most Americans feel they reside, and the second city in our research is the community not always visible in the mainstream,” Taylor says. “And the third city is the combination of the underground and the underworld.”
Taylor is realistic but optimistic about the future of his hometown of Detroit.
“Public safety is the main problem facing Detroit,” says Taylor. “The city will not become attractive until there is a reduction in crime and violence, and Detroit has been held hostage by crime.”
Taylor says we are a diverse nation and we need to embrace that fact.
“Young people are making change already; this generation does not have the baggage that my generation has,” Taylor says. “They’re still young and impressionable and looking at leadership that is polarized and divisive. Even if we don’t agree with each other, we need to be civil and respectful of other people’s views and opinions.”
“We lost Mr. Quello on my birthday this year when he was 95,” says Reid. “He always made time for everyone and made everyone he was around feel better. And he impacted the communications industry as much or more as anyone in history.”
“For a while people joked that NAB stood for ‘nothing about broadcasting,’ but now it’s become ‘national association of broadercasting,” Reid says. “The theme this year was ‘where content comes to life,’ and the on-demand nature of the media we consume will continue to grow.”
Impact Radio is in its 22nd year, and Reid tells of WDBM’s plans to debut the station’s HD2 service later this year.
“Most people are familiar with word of mouth; I’m talking about world of mouth,” Qualman says. “Word of mouth has been a pretty efficient way to get marketing out cheaply.
“But with world of mouth when you think about posting something on Twitter that immediately goes to a hundred million folks and the communication doesn’t get changed over time like in a kids’ game of telephone, in a social media world those messages are passed along digitally and are less likely to have their meaning changed.
Qualman says the main message of Socialnomics is that we should all have fun and common sense and that we should have plenty of both in the social media world.
“In social media you need to do rather than deliberate,” says Qualman. “You need to fail forward, fail fast and fail better. You’re not going to get it right the first time so make sure you get out there and just learn better and fail better.”
Westerman adds that today’s MSU Alumni Association is the perfect way to stay connected to the Spartan magic that helped us get where we are today.
“Every MSU Spartan’s life has been fundamentally changed based upon his or her relationship with MSU. “That relationship doesn’t have to end at graduation.”
Westerman is the father of Spartan Podcast; thanks, Scott!
The facility is named in honor of Eli and Edythe Broad, longtime supporters of the university who provided the lead gift for the museum. The Broads’ gift of $28 million, with $21 million designated for construction of the building and $7 million to be used for acquisitions, exhibitions and operations, was the catalyst for the world-class project.
“Mr. Broad has spoken of the importance of knowing the art of one’s time so we may know ourselves better,” said MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon. “And he and Edythe have made it something we look forward to doing – entering a vibrant space filled with visual delights to ponder and explore. This Zaha Hadid design will send the message we want – that great art deserves great architecture.”
From Greening of the Great Lakes on Impact Radio: Fred Poston is MSU’s vice president for finance and operations and treasurer. Poston leads MSU’s sustainability initiatives.
Hear the Conversation 32:07 – 18.4 mb mp3
