Central Michigan University Medical School Saginaw campus site prep underway

Environmental site preparation for the new Central Michigan University Medical campuses near Covenant HealthCare and St. Mary's of Michigan Hospital has begun, says Saginaw Development Director Odail Thorns. He said the city often conducts soil testing and remediation, required prior to construction by the Environmental Protection Agency, to prep property for development. Saginaw-based AKT Peerless, working with funds provided through a $1 million EPA grant, is conducting soil tests at two sites.

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CMU wrestling program nets MAC awards for Tom Borrelli, Ben Bennett

Central Michigan University wrestling coach Tom Borrelli was named the Mid-American Conference coach of the Year for the 12th time, while CMU junior Ben Bennett earned the MAC Wrestler of the Year award. The awards were selected  by the conference's six wrestling coaches. Borrelli led CMU to its 11th consecutive MAC title, using three true freshmen and six wrestlers appearing in their first conference tournament. It was CMU's 14th conference tourney title in the last 15 years.

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Supreme Court to hear Mt. Pleasant medical marijuana dispensary case

It didn’t come as a surprise to Isabella County Prosecutor Larry Burdick that the Michigan Supreme Court agreed to hear a case involving a Mt. Pleasant medical marijuana dispensary. Supreme Court justices announced Wednesday that they will decide whether people who legally use medical marijuana can sell it to others with cards. The court said it will review a major appeals court decision from last year that overturned an Isabella County judge’s ruling about the legality of medical marijuana dispensaries. The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled patient-to-patient sales of medical marijuana to be illegal, overturning Isabella County Chief Judge Paul Chamberlain’s December 2010 ruling that such sales were legal.

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Dave Heeke: CMU athletics looks to increase visibility

Central Michigan University’s Department of Intercollegiate Athletics strives to be a point of “Chippewa” pride for the University and the Mt. Pleasant community. Our aspirational statement of expectation and purpose has been for our student-athletes, coaches, and staff to create and maintain a “Championship Culture.” Being champions goes far beyond winning titles on the field of competition. Our Championship Culture is built on the core values of pride, integrity, opportunity, a commitment to team, and win with character. This culture envelopes everything we do in the classroom, in competition, in the community, and on campus. All 16 NCAA Division I sport programs that comprise Intercollegiate Athletics focus on academic success as a top priority.

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Hall of Fame Coach Retires From Women's Basketball

Four years was the time span that assistant women's basketball coach Kathy McGee promised head coach Sue Guevara when she came out of retirement in 2007 to join Guevara's coaching staff. Five years later, McGee is stepping away from coaching, as she has announced her departure from the Central Michigan basketball program at the end of April. "This decision has not been easy," said McGee. "I am leaving a great program that has a bright future ahead of it. I will definitely be leaving a part of me with it and the kids."

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Greeks start neighborhood cleaning partnership to beautify town, improve outreach

Greek life at Central Michigan University established a “Greeks Clean up the Streets” program designed to beautify the community and improve relations between Greek students and Mount Pleasant residents. Sigma Alpha Epsilon brother Jon Reusch, a Macomb senior, and Jeff Pickler, code enforcement officer for the city of Mount Pleasant, were responsible for setting up the group. Reusch said the main idea of the program is “to improve the image and increase positive awareness of what Greek life can do by providing a service for the community of Mount Pleasant.” Jeff Pickler, who has worked as the city’s code enforcement officer for more than 14 years, said “This isn’t a one-time litter pick-up. This is going to be an ongoing relationship with students and the community, and we’re very excited about it.”

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Mid-Michigan GM dealers plan upgrades

Mid-Michigan General Motors dealers are gearing up for substantial improvements to their facilities, mandated by the manufacturer to improve the experience of customers who are shopping for GM vehicles. Union Township planners OK’d improvements to the Graff Chevrolet dealership on Pickard Road, and Mt. Pleasant planners are scheduled to look at plans for similar improvements at the Shaheen Buick-GMC-Cadillac dealership on Mission Street later this month. “We’ve renovated three of the Graff stores already,” said Craig Stefanko, president of DCC Construction of Davison, the general contractor for the Graff project. He described a new front for the dealerships made of architectural composite metal panels. The Chevrolet stores are blue, accented with silver.

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