Swine Flu Will Excuse You

YPSILANTI, Mich.-Since the first reports of H1N1 swine flu back in April 2009, the world has been increasingly transfixed by the outbreak of a highly contagious and potentially lethal new type of influenza. According to the World Health Organization, swine flu has the potential for becoming a worldwide epidemic. It has urged national public health systems to be vigilant and watch out for flu outbreaks in demographic groups ranging from 25-45 years of age. This type of influenza is killing those who are in their prime unlike the common influenza virus. Closely associated with the age group, targeted by H1N1 swine flu, are college campuses. The rapid exchange of this highly contagious influenza between people, has urged Eastern Michigan University to look for ways to best accommodate its students.

Gregory A. Peoples, the Ombudsman at Eastern Michigan University (EMU) is in charge of advocating for fair processes and fair administration on behalf of students. Peoples position as Ombudsman also stands as the mediator of conflict between staff and students. “A bushel of students visited (the office) in late September(2009) requesting that there be a way for ill students to be excused from classes due to flu-like illness.” said Peoples. Along with their argument, Peoples said, “students presented information that explained how a continuous spread of illness would occur due to students being afraid of missing class, which could result in failure of that class.” The administration implemented the (absenteeism) policy due to the information presented.

Helping The Globe One Community At A Time

YPSILANTI, Mich. - The United States is going through an economic crisis in which Americans have noticed a trend. The trend associated with the economic crisis has families dropping drastically in social classes. There are white-collar workers being forced into blue-collar jobs. As a result, the people who are knocked out of those jobs are left to get minimum waged jobs or are unemployed. Within the last year, the news has religiously expressed the highest percentages of unemployment. The people within this trend include families living off state assistance. The Michigan Department of Human Services has experienced a great increase of families in need according to the http://www.michigan.gov/ site . The increase has caused MDHS to stretched.

(Photo Left: Sandra "Mama Sandra" Simmons and Charles Simmons taken by Afriika Boyd)

This problem has hit close to home for one Detroit native. Sandra “Mama Sandra” Simmons and husband Charles Simmons co-founded The Hush House Black Community Museum and Leadership Training Institute for Human Rights. Mama Sandra believes that a community should act as a family. This institution focuses on the current issues of society and works to solve them one-step at a time. According to their website, The Hush House offers leadership-training, programs for homeless and low-income families, space for the community meetings, and operates a community black world history museum according to it's Website. Mama Sandra has been an educator in higher education for more than 30 years.

Brittani Brown, a senior, and communications major at Eastern Michigan University met Mama Sandra during a Center for Multicultural Affairs event. Brown was amazed at Mama Sandra's unremarkable beauty. The conversation between the two started on the unmotivated African American student population on EMU’s campus and went global.“She really knows how to make you think smarter not harder, and I know that her efforts to stay involved in her community are not just to be glorified. She has a real sense of responsibility for her brothers and sisters” said Brown .Mama Sandra said “we have to learn how to use these skills again- skills of sharing and developing and to stop judging one and other.” Simmons has been helping families who have family members with felonies to start their own businesses by creating business plans. She is also currently working to connect the activist from the community not only in the Detroit area but also in other areas around the country  such as Illnois, Ohio, and Indiana.

Simmons has been ill on again and off again since the beginning of the fall but she is determine to finish what she has started and according to her husband he quotes her saying “not even pneumonia could keep me from helping the economy!”

"Each day lived is a day to serve."- Unknown

Howard University

WASHINGTON  D.C.-Howard University (1867) is an institution familiar to collegiate students of African American descent. Student who have shown interest in being apart of Black Greek Letter Organizations (BGLO) know Howard as the foundation to five of the nine BGLO that belong to an umbrella called the Divine 9.
(http://www.newsnet5.com/news/10832978/detail.html).

(Above Photo: Taken By HU student Candice Smith)
The university has become an iconic gathering ground each year for BGLO participants, prospects and spectators. With a Homecoming event that attracts more than 5,000 thousand people each year said Jermaine Cloves a senior communications major he continues “ with so much history in place you would think they would keep up the upgrades. Homecoming includes a vast number of events for both Greeks and non-Greeks for the duration of about two weeks. It includes the following: a three on three-celebrity basketball tournament, an international showcase, gospel concert, comedy showcase, a fashion show, an R&B concert, a yard festival, homecoming parade and so much more. (http://bisonhomecoming.com/tickets.html)

After 142 years, this historically black college university (HBCU), Howard University is still enrolling thousands. Seeking and finding excellence has been the motivation of most students at the university according to Melanie Johnson, sophomore, secondary education major. She says “ I haven’t been here but two years but I enjoy homecoming, because it bangs each year." she continues "However, our school needs to divest some of this money into the repairs of our historic campus”.

The university is named after General Oliver Otis Howard, a Civil war hero as well as a former president of the university. Howard University was originally founded for the Education of African American clergyman in 1867. Its original name is as follows: Howard Normal school. The campus sits on about 258 Acers of land in the northwest side or Washington D.C. also known as an urban area.
The location around the campus is in poor condition and does not present any essence of prestige. The roads around the campus are filled with garbage, have various cracks and potholes. There are areas on campus that could be mistaken for land filled from the amount of debris present. Although the school has in the past generated many famous lawyer, actors an activist. The school it self is in need of some major upgrades.

A Fun Way to Save a Life.

YPSILANTI, Mich.-Cost of “medical” summer camp $1,000. Cost of Tug-a-Turtle $25 a team. Cost of possibly saving a kids life, by falling in Jell-O, priceless.

Tires kick back dust in the the unpaved parking area of Frog Island Park. As birds chirped, familiar hip hop and pop songs played loudly from a distance. The sweet smell of barbecue was in the air when entering the playing field.

(Photo Above : Jell-O being Mopped into the center for another round. Photo by Ashley M. Lewis)

Most of the park was a downward hill, the dew of the morning was still fresh on the grass therefore participants found it hard to stay off the ground. Big groups of similarly dressed students came into the park by the dozens. Some of the participants were adorned with ripped up T-shirts, tie dyed shorts and self-made sweatbands. Some of the participants had painted themselves and others looked as though they should have been female participants for the NFL. Except, there were no shoulder pads, just broad shouldered and wideback women wearing soccer cleats.

Participants formed a line up to an awkwardly planted picnic table. A large neon pink sign read “Turtle Tug Team sign-ups." Two non-participating women from the Delta Zeta sorority were checking off names, collecting money and signing people in. After an hour, everyone had signed in and various chitchatting was heard among the teams. Groups were starting to get rowdy for the tug of war challenge ahead of them.

Courtney Pronishen, another member of Delta Zeta sorority brought out a large megaphone and pushed the siren. The Ear-piercing noise echoed across the park.

She placed her hand above her hand and swayed them in a come-hither motion.

Pronishen yelled “Come on everyone, Lets get ready to begin turtle tug.”

She continued: “ On behalf of Delta Zeta, I would like to thank everyone for coming out on this humid Saturday morning, with your donation today, we will be able to send one lucky kid to a week of special needs summer camp in California.”

By mid-afternoon more than 10 teams had fallen in Jell-o, the losing team sat on the opposite side of the spectators, wrapped up in large beach towels and clearing Jell-o and grass off their faces.

Members of one team who had fallen, started hurling Jell-O onto the other participants who had not fallen in.

Helping to save a kid's life, is a real accomplishment, with a simple pull of a rope and a simple tumble into green Jell-O.

(Photo Below: Participants fall into Jell-O photo by Ashley M. Lewis)

Who I am

YPSILANTI, Mich.- Colorful is an adjective that can be used to describe myself entirely. Unfortunately, black has been ascribed to me.

We live in a world that is dawdling to change and masked with ignorance. In no way am I stating that I am innocent to this common trend. However, I am willing to identify the problem and find a solution because you can not solve anyone else’s problem until you fix your own.

(Above photo: taken by Annesia Gates.)