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Ventures - Spring 2011
In This Issue
Research at the Child Development Labs
Sergeant at Arms and Philanthropist Recognized
IRA Rollover Extended
Signs of Learning
Quick Links

Social Science Alumni Association Annual Meeting!

 

 The 2011 CSSAA

Annual Meeting

will take place on

Saturday, May 21

from 8:30 AM to 1:00 PM

in the Music Building

on the MSU campus


- Hear a presentation from Outstanding Teacher -  Sociologist Toby Ten Eyck


- Enjoy a performance from MSU Music students


- Vote on board members


- Join the CSSAA and other alumni for lunch

 

For more info, contact

Vicki Essenmacher

at [email protected] or

toll free at 1-866-496-6656.

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Greetings! 

 

Greetings from the campus of Michigan State University! In February, we hosted more than 700 Social Science students and alumni on campus to interview with the Michigan Department of Human Services (DHS). DHS is hiring 500 new case workers to replace retiring employees and improve child welfare, child protective services, and foster care in the state.

 

In addition to preparing students for their future careers, it is also important that we continue to cultivate our faculty's successful research initiatives and recognize their vibrant in-class contributions. We are pleased to announce the appointment of two new chairs.  Jodie O'Gorman has been appointed Chair of the Department of Anthropology. Walter Hawthorne has been named Chair of the Department of History. To read the rest of the Message from the Dean, click here.

Research at the Child Development Labs
 

An undergraduate student testing a child on letter recognition

Children touching their toes.  Teachers asking kids to identify letters.  Toddlers playing with blocks.  At first glance, you may not think that academic research is occurring here at the MSU Child Development Laboratories (CDL). But you would be wrong.  Take a closer look and you will see a microphone hanging down in the middle of the room and cameras recording the young children at play.

 

The Department of Human Development and Family Studies in the College of Social Science has been operating the CDL for over 80 years. To read more about research at the MSU CDL, click here.

Sergeant at Arms of U.S. House of Representatives and Social Work Philanthropist Recognized

 

Two extraordinary Social Science alumni were recognized by the MSU Alumni Association last October.
Award Recipient Bill Livingood with Ed McGarrell and Dean Marietta Baba 
 

Bill Livingood, recipient of the MSU Distinguished Alumni Award, served for over 33 years with the U.S. Secret Service. In 1995, he was sworn in as Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. House of Representatives. In this role, Livingood can be seen on national television when he introduces the President during State of the Union addresses.

 

Social Work alumna Marcie Schalon received the MSU Philanthropist Award. Marcie and her late husband Ed made many generous contributions to MSU and to a host of charitable organizations throughout Michigan.

To read more about the MSU Alumni Association award recipients, click here.

IRA Rollover puts Endowments into Action

The Pension Protection Act of 2006 allows a donor, age 70.5 or older, to direct a distribution from a traditional or Roth IRA to a qualified charity with a limit of $100,000 per year. The charity immediately benefits from the gift, and the donor is able to make a simple transfer producing an instant impact with no state or federal income tax consequences.

The IRA Rollover timing was right for alumni James and Malinda Waltz. James was a History professor and administrator for 40 years at Albion College and Eastern Michigan University. Malinda taught at the junior high and high school levels and applied her home economics education to raising three sons and volunteering for a broad array of activities. Both are dedicated to fostering education and knew creating scholarships in their respective MSU departments were aligned with that goal. To read more about the James and Malinda Waltz, click here.
Signs of Learning
 

Portrait of Kalli Decker in the Child Development LabsNo one is more excited about the introduction of infants to the MSU Child Development Laboratories (CDL) than Kalli Decker (BS Family & Community Services 2008).

 

As a Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS) doctoral student, Decker has done most of her research in parent-child communication and has studied infant signing - simple hand gestures that children can use before they learn to talk - online through interviews, surveys, and parent diaries. When the CDL welcomes infants later this year, she'll have the opportunity to directly observe infants in the earliest stages of language development. 

 

 
Give Now
We encourage alumni to recall and renew their Michigan State University ties by donating to the College of Social Science. These gifts not only contribute to our ability to positively impact the lives of students but also assist in the preservation of high quality education for future Spartans.

 

Show your support for Michigan State University by making your contribution with our safe and secure online gift processing system. MSU's online gift processing system is an easy, fast, safe and cost-effective way to make an impact on the MSU College of Social Science.
 

If you have any questions or would like additional information about giving, please contact Sarah Blom toll free at 866-276-2425, or at [email protected].

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