(!) Viewing your own posts by Jeff Kupperman on Monday, December 12, 2011 at 12:33 PM

By request, we've added a link to the "status" area in the left sidebar so that you can see all of your own posts in one long list.

(!) Kudos, and portfolios by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, December 08, 2011 at 10:16 PM

Congratulations to everyone on the hearing today -- lots of hard questions from the panel, but they were very impressed.

For the record, panel members today included:

Rep. Bill Rogers (Brighton)
Rep. Jeff Irwin (Ann Arbor)
John Bracey, Mich Council for the Arts
Karen Gagnon, MSHDA
Amy Banniga, MEDC
Andy Schor, MML

Also in the audience were:
Rep. Woodrow Stanley (Flint)
Tangie Jones, LiveWorkDetroit!

If you want to follow up with any of them, let us know and will give you their contact information.

Apologies to Sam Cleary, who was supposed to give a brief summary of his Business Incubation idea in the Economic Policy presentation, but was inadvertently skipped over.

UM students: You are no longer required to post to the site, but you are more than welcome to make further revisions to your proposals, based on what you heard from the panel today.

Also for UM students: A few notes on your final portfolios, due December 14:

Final portfolios should be uploaded to this site via the link above. Keep in mind that the portfolio is one of the major things we consider when deciding on a final grade, so be sure that you are thorough and highlight your best work this semester in the MSC. Details about the content of the portfolio are in the syllabus. Don't forget to include your own reflections and observations about what you saw and heard today in the hearing.

Please do your best to upload your portfolio to this site. Be be sure that the file size is less than 10MB, or it may not upload properly. Most of the time when people have trouble uploading, the problem is that the file is too big because there are some number of high-resolution photos included. The best thing to do if this is the case is to use Photoshop or other image editing software and reduce the resolution of the photo before importing it into Word (a resolution of around 1000 pixels for the longest dimension should be plenty clear). Usually this is done with a menu item called something like "adjust image size." If you can't do that, you might try uploading it to Flickr or Facebook or somewhere, and then just put the URL to the image in the document. If all else fails, you may email your portfolio to the four of us, but we'd really rather have it on the site where it is easy for us to find.

Finally, it helps us a lot if your portfolio filename includes your own name -- e.g., "Lossing_portfolio_362_f11.docx". Having a hundred files named "portfolio.docx" is a good way to drive us crazy.

(!) No platform for Community Revitalization and Social Entrepreneurship by Jeff Kupperman on Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 11:45 AM

After some deliberation, the topic coordinators for Community Revitalization and Social Entrepreneurship have decided that none of the top vote-getting proposals sufficiently fit the category of innovative ideas for revitalizing specific communities in Michigan other than Detroit or Ann Arbor. Therefore they have determined that there will be no platform for Community Revitalization and Social Entrepreneurship this term. Instead of presenting the platform proposals at the hearing, the topic coordinators will give a brief overview of the discussions in that topic area and some of the ideas that were raised that do fit the topic category.

(!) Notes about the December 8 hearing by Jeff Kupperman on Sunday, November 27, 2011 at 10:35 PM

As previously noted, you will be presenting the MSC platform before the Michigan House of Representatives Special Commission on Civic Engagement, 9:00 - noon on Thursday, December 8, in the House Appropriations Room of Michigan State Capitol building. Please plan to arrive no later than 8:45am; speakers and coordinators should arrive by 8:30. Lansing is about an hour from Ann Arbor by car, and you will need to arrange your own transportation there and back.

This is the culminating event for the MSC semester, and your best chance for your ideas to have a direct impact on lawmakers. Attendance is MANDATORY for all caucus members taking MSC as a university course, whether or not you are a topic coordinator, and whether or not you have authored a proposal in the platform.

The hearing will take place roughly as follows:

At 9:00, the chairpersons of the Michigan House of Representatives Special Commission on Civic Engagement will introduce the commission members and representatives from the various state agencies. We (Jay, David, Michael and Jeff) will then give a brief history of the MSC, and introduce the agenda for the hearings.

Topic coordinators will then be introduced. (Each coordinator will speak, with one of you taking the lead role.) The coordinators will give a 1-2 minute summary of the most prominent ideas and issues that were discussed in that topic. They also may mention any noteworthy proposals that did NOT make it into the platform.

Then, the topic coordinators will introduce the author(s) of each resolution that has PASSED into the platform. ("And now, Mark Goldfaden and Raashid Gupta will talk about a resolution to improve tourism in the Thumb area ...") The authors will then spend NO MORE THAN 3 MINUTES explaining the underlying problem, the specifics of their resolution, and a summary of what was learned in discussion. Be sure to include specific facts and statistics in here, and above all be prepared to thoughtfully answer questions in a reasonable, highly informed way. The author(s) of each resolution in the platform should prep a BRIEF (no more than 4 slides) powerpoint presentation for these, as well as a written copy of the resolution for the committee.

AUTHORS OF SERVICE PROPOSALS currently being enacted should similarly be prepared to give a very brief (1 minute) overview of the need for the action, the action itself, and progress to date.

AUTHORS OF RESOLUTIONS IN THE PLATFORM and ENACTED SERVICE PROPOSALS: Please send a copy of your presentation and the text of your speech to your TOPIC COORDINATORS as soon as possible, but no later than Sunday, December 4.

Remember that this is FORMAL TESTIMONY before the House of Representatives. Your name and testimony will be entered into the public record. This is not a demonstration or a show; these are elected officials genuinely interested in reaping the benefits of hard work by thoughtful, intelligent, informed people. They are taking a considerable chunk of time out of their day in a busy part of the year to hear what we have to say. You will need to be well prepared, which is why the topic coordinators will need copies of everything several days in advance. Dress, needless to say, is business attire.

ALSO:

As previously noted, it is possible to make final revisions to proposals in topics where the vote has ended. (We purposely restricted editing on published proposals as they went into voting, for fairness and to avoid confusion.) Authors of proposals in the platform should take special care to make sure that the proposals are complete and free of grammatical and spelling errors. You may also add or change wording for clarity. As mentioned earlier, authors of other proposals may want to revise as well, since all published proposals will become part of the MSC archive. To revise, authors and co-authors should follow the "edit" link next to the listing of their proposal.

(!) Economic Policy platform by Jeff Kupperman on Tuesday, November 22, 2011 at 10:00 AM

Based on the voting results and on recommendation of the topic coordinators, the platform for Economic Policy is as follows:

"Diversification of the Michigan Economy," by Rahul Bakshi

"Improving Michigan Student's Career Opportunities," by Steven Resnik

"Focusing on Bringing More Green Technology to Michigan," by Scott McElwee

On behalf of the coordinators, thanks to all who contributed to this topic area.

(!) What you should be doing now by Jeff Kupperman on Monday, November 21, 2011 at 9:40 AM

As we move into the final stages of the Fall 2011 Caucus, here is what you should be doing:

1) Service enactment and documentation: Everyone should be involved in one of the selected service projects, under the guidance of the project's author(s) and the Service coordinators. Be sure to photograph, video, and/or write reflections on what you did, and UPLOAD those items to the "attachments" section of the proposal. (Yes, this means attaching a file to a proposal someone else authored.)


2) Refinement of proposals in the platform: While all of the proposals in the platform are strong ideas, all can use some degree of refinement and elaboration. Proposals in areas where voting has ended can be commented upon and edited once again. Between now and the hearing, please spend time looking closely at all the proposals in the platform and making concrete suggestions to the authors. Comments on specific clauses (click the "speech bubbles" next to each clause) are usually the most useful. Authors, please check for new comments regularly and consider making changes or additions as appropriate. Instructions on preparing for the December 8 hearing will be posted here soon.

Below are some questions that have come up repeatedly in the hearings in the past, which you should use to help guide your revisions:

- Why are you proposing this to the legislature? In other words, what do you want the state government to do with this proposal?

- How much will it cost, how many people will be served, and how are you going to fund it? What is the "return on investment"?

- Why are you focusing on [Detroit, Ann Arbor, UM, etc.] in particular? What's in it for the rest of the state?

- What existing organizations, government officials, or relevant professionals in Michigan are addressing similar issues?

- Is there a bill on a similar topic currently being considered in the legislature? If so, what do you think of it?

- What stakeholders might be opposed to your proposal, and how will you address their concerns?


3) Thanksgiving break: You are not required to post. Have a good holiday!

(!) Proposal construction extended through today (Sunday) by Jeff Kupperman on Sunday, November 20, 2011 at 11:25 AM

It seems that the power outage caught a few people off guard Friday night, so we've extended proposal construction in Community Revitalization & Social Entrepreneurship through today. (Voting has already started and will continue as scheduled.)

(!) Canned food drive announcement; MSC site unavailable Friday night by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 10:02 AM

1. Message from Brandon Geer, who is organizing the Food Drive:

"Please support the Michigan Student Caucus Canned Food Drive for Food Gatherers. We will be collecting cans in the lobby of Angell Hall from 12:30-2:30 on Thursday November 17th"

2. The MSC site will be unavailable from approximately 6pm Friday to 3am Saturday, for a scheduled electrical shutdown in the building that houses our server.

(!) Environment and Health platform by Jeff Kupperman on Sunday, November 13, 2011 at 9:09 AM

Based on the voting and on recommendation by the topic coordinators, the platform in Environment and Health will be as follows:

1. A combined resolution by Brent Petrone, Hannah Reiss, and Michael Chmielewski related to CPR training in schools and universities.

2. "Nutrition Mentorship Program for Elementary School Students," by Robert Kaplain and Jordan Auerbach

3. "Keep Michigan's Cigarette Tax at $2/pack ...." by Alison Pullman

Kudos to all who contributed to this topic area.

(!) "Blotting" by Jeff Kupperman on Wednesday, November 09, 2011 at 9:36 AM

We generally don't like to make direct suggestions for proposals, but since we've just entered the proposal-writing phase for the final topic area, Community Revitalization & Social Entrepreneurship, here's one example of an issue that would fit this category:

"Blotting" is a term for property owners who "soak up" adjacent abandoned properties and incorporate them into their own property. It's usually a good thing, because the abandoned property generally gets better care and goes back onto the tax rolls. But it's not always easy for property owners to buy property that has been abandoned and/or taken over by a municipality. What sort of legal or procedural changes could make this process easier and more attractive?

http://www.changinggears.info/2011/11/09/empty-places-its-not-squatting-its-blotting/

Note: this *might* be an issue for local governments rather than the state, but in the "Community..." topic area only, it's ok to make such proposals. Keep in mind that we're asking you to focus on somewhere other than Ann Arbor and Detroit.

(!) Human Development & Welfare Platform by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, November 03, 2011 at 9:37 PM

Based on the results of the voting and the recommendations of the topic coordinators, the platform for Human Development & Welfare is as follows:

1. "Sat/act preparatory class in Michigan public schools" - Glory Goodman

2. Arielle Lubman, Zena Kurtz, and Laura Sillman will work to combine their proposals about anti-bullying laws.

3. "Foreign Language Requirement" - Kayla Foust

Once again, kudos to all those who contributed to the discussions and ideas in this topic area.

(!) Room for Nov. 4 Town Hall meeting by Jeff Kupperman on Wednesday, November 02, 2011 at 3:44 PM

... is 1322 School of Ed building.

Tonight's 5:00pm Town Hall, again, is in room 2229.

(!) Arts & Culture Platform by Jeff Kupperman on Tuesday, November 01, 2011 at 8:28 PM

Based on the voting results and upon recommendation of the topic coordinators, "Film industry incentives in Michigan" and "Out-of-classroom experiences" have been entered into the platform in the topic of Arts & Culture.

Kudos to the authors and to everyone who contributed to that topic area.

(!) Service proposals chosen for enactment by Jeff Kupperman on Monday, October 31, 2011 at 10:16 PM

Based on the number of commitments received and the recommendations of the Service Coordinators, the following service proposals have been chosen for enactment:

Book Drive
Lights Off
Switch to ENERGY STAR Light Bulbs
Canned Food Drive
Send Letters to Soldiers
Meet an International Student Day

If you have not already committed to one of those proposals or are an author of one of them, please re-commit no later than this Thursday, November 3. Authors should then contact all who have committed to organize the enactment of the proposal. Enactment should occur during the month of November.

(If you are an author of one of the chosen proposals and are also committed to a different one, your authored proposal should be your priority.)

(!) Update: Room for Economic Policy Town Hall Meeting by Jeff Kupperman on Friday, October 28, 2011 at 4:29 PM

The room for the Economic Policy Town Hall Meeting (Wednesday, Nov. 2, 5-6pm), will be 2229 in the School of Education building.

(!) Town Hall meetings Nov. 2 and 4 by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, October 27, 2011 at 8:13 PM

There will be THREE Town Hall meetings next week, two for Community Revitalization & Social Entrepreneurship and one for Economic Policy. Two of them will be on Nov. 2 (almost back to back), and the third will be Nov. 4. All will take place in the School of Education building. These will be the last town hall meetings of the semester.


Wednesday, Nov. 2, 3:00-4:30pm, room 1315

Community Revitalization & Social Entrepreneurship Town Hall with Dan Gilmartin, CEO/President at the Michigan Municipal League. Through his work with communities, Dan is recognized as a national leader in the fields of urban revitalization, placemaking, local government reform and transportation policy.


Wednesday, Nov. 2, 5:00-6:00pm, room TBA

Economic Policy Town Hall with Lauren Foukes, Head of Urban Revitalization Circle, Social Venture Fund. Lauren is the Head of the Urban Revitalization Circle for the Social Venture Fund, a student-led social venture fund at the Ross School of Business that invests in and supports innovative companies that place social impact at the heart of their business models. Lauren is a second-year MBA student focusing on Finance and Entrepreneurship. Lauren has a strong interest in the role that entrepreneurs play in revitalizing urban communities. Prior to coming to Ross, Lauren worked in both the private sector and nonprofit sector. In the private sector, Lauren worked in brand management at Kraft Foods where she was a brand team member for Kraft’s flagship cheese brands. In the nonprofit sector, Lauren worked as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer in low-income communities of Chicago providing small business consulting services to under-served entrepreneurs. Lauren also spent time learning about developing countries through seven months of teaching English to elementary aged children in rural Ecuador. Lauren graduated with a BBA from the University of Michigan.


Friday, November 4, 4:00-5:30pm

A second Community Revitalization & Social Entrepreneurship Town Hall, this time with Arnold Weinfeld, Director of Public Policy and Federal Affairs at the Michigan Municipal League. He is responsible for the planning and development of new programs, services, publications, and outreach strategies to support the League’s broad policy initiatives and related programming.

(!) Office Hours by Michael Fahy on Wednesday, October 26, 2011 at 11:24 AM

Additional Office Hours this week

Friday (Oct 28) 10:00 AM - Noon

ICS Office (Located at 516 School of Education Building, basement level on south side of the building).

An advance email indicating your intention to come would be appreciated but is not required.

Michael Fahy

(!) Office hours this week by Michael Fahy on Sunday, October 23, 2011 at 2:50 PM

Office Hours by Michael Fahy on Wednesday, October 12, 2011 at 2:20 PM

For those of you wanting to meet (questions, feedback, etc.) I will be holding office hours at the ICS office (Basement, School of Education Building).

Tuesday, October 25, 9:00 - 11:00 AM

I will also offer hours later in the week, at a time yet to be announced.

For those of you coming with questions regarding your performance, I strongly recommend reviewing the Course Syllabus beforehand.

(!) COMMIT TO SERVICE PROPOSALS BY OCTOBER 26 by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, October 20, 2011 at 10:06 AM

Between today and next Wednesday, October 26, everyone should commit to at least one service proposal other than the one you have authored yourself. Shortly thereafter, the service proposals with the most commitments (and which meet all the criteria for appropriateness) will be chosen for actual enactment, and at that point those people who are not already committed to a chosen proposal will be asked to recommit.

***Committing means that you are willing to actually carry out the proposed action sometime during the second half of the semester, if enough other people commit. So please make your choice carefully.***

To commit, pull up the text of the proposal and follow the "commit/view commitments" link near the top. When you commit, please say a few words about why you have selected that particular proposal.

(!) Note on Service proposals by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 6:59 PM

Just a thought for everyone about service proposals (which need to be posted by the 19th): Think beyond what normally comes to mind as "community service" and include ideas that aim to increase awareness or dialog around an issue -- a debate, a public display, a roundtable.... In other words, things that might lead to people learning or participating in something that they wouldn't ordinarily do.

(!) Town Hall Meeting for Arts & Culture, Tuesday Oct. 18 7pm by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 12:51 PM

Kay Seasar and Lee Doyle will be featured guests on October 18th at 7 PM in the School of Education: Room 1315 - Whitney Auditorium. They plan to discuss Michigan's film industry and incentive business, while also talking about ways we could improve the arts and culture of the state of Michigan.

Kay Seasar is Ann Arbor Area Film Office's point person. Kay has been working with the film industry since 2008, and has helped procure props,
locations, housing, hotel rooms, and more (http://filmoffice.visitannarbor.org/contactus).

Lee Doyle is the Director of the University of Michigan Film Office. Director Doyle is in charge of location management and logistics with
filming on the University of Michigan campus.

See this article for more information on Seasar and Doyle
(http://www.concentratemedia.com/features/annarborfilmindustry0102.aspx)

(!) Midterm meeting tonight by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 7:30 AM

As previously noted, our midterm meeting is tonight at 6pm in Schorling Auditorium in the School of Education (same place as orientation).

Please come to the meeting with questions, or if you prefer, you may email us questions and we will be sure to cover them.

(!) Office Hours by Michael Fahy on Wednesday, October 12, 2011 at 2:20 PM

For those of you wishing to avail yourselves of office hours (questions, consultation, feedback) I will available for you at the ICS office:

Thursday (Oct 13) 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Friday (Oct 14) 9:00 - 11:00 AM

The ICS office is located at 516 School of Education, which is located in the basement on south side of the building.

An email indicating your intention to come would be appreciated, but is not required.

Michael

(!) Michigan Student Caucus Lansing Meeting has been scheduled! by JMcDowell on Tuesday, October 11, 2011 at 4:52 PM

The Michigan Legislature's Committee on Civic Engagement has scheduled its hearing with the Michigan Student Caucus for Thursday, December 8, 2011 from 9 am until noon! The Honorable Representative Bill Rogers (R-Brighton) will be chairing the Committee. The Committee will meet in the Appropriations room in the Capital Building.

Mark your calendars!

(!) Arts & Culture proposal schedule extended by Jeff Kupperman on Tuesday, October 11, 2011 at 10:10 AM

In order to accommodate a town hall meeting for Arts & Culture tentatively scheduled for the evening of Oct. 18 (yes, we realize that is the end of fall study break, but that's the only time the topic coordinators could schedule), the schedule for Arts & Culture has been extended: Proposal construction will now end Oct. 20, and voting will end Oct. 28.

Please double-check the schedule in other topic areas; voting in Justice ends today.

(!) Voting reminders by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, October 06, 2011 at 9:53 AM

A couple reminders about voting (currently in progress in the Justice & Equity topic area):

1. Before you vote, be sure to set your voting WEIGHTS, found under the "weights" tab in the left column of this site. Your vote will be multiplied by the weight you give to that topic area -- the higher the number, the more your vote will count. In other words, you need to decide how much of your influence you want to give to each topic's vote.

2. Even more importantly, voting itself is only part of the decision-making process. It's crucial that you not only cast your vote, but that you use the discussion area attached to the voting page to talk about the relative merits of the proposals, and advocate for the one(s) you think should be in the MSC platform. The more you do that, the more you are likely to get an excellent platform that truly represents the interests of students in Michigan. Keep in mind, too, that you can change your vote right up to midnight on the last day of the voting phase, so it's worth keeping the discussion going, no matter what the current results look like.

(!) Midterm Meeting Oct. 13, 6pm by Jeff Kupperman on Wednesday, October 05, 2011 at 9:12 AM

UPDATE: Please do not contact us if you cannot attend the meeting. For your own sake, we strongly encourage you to attend, but we will not penalize you specifically for not attending.

--

Please mark your calendars: we will have the MSC mid-term meeting Thursday, October 13, 6:00-7:30pm, in Schorling Auditorium in the School of Education (same place as orientation).

This will be a chance to review requirements and tasks for the remainder of the term, hear comments and suggestions by all of the instructors, and to get your questions answered in detail.

Attendance is STRONGLY ENCOURAGED, especially for those who want to make the best possible contribution to the MSC (and thereby increase the likelihood of getting a good grade). Please come ready to share a question you have or a challenge you have been struggling with. We will answer questions about course requirements as needed, but we're even more interested in issues you have encountered in relation to proposal ideas and the overall MSC platform.

(!) Town Hall tomorrow; Voting; Service by Jeff Kupperman on Monday, October 03, 2011 at 11:42 AM

A reminder: The Town Hall Meeting for Human Development and Welfare is TUESDAY --TOMORROW -- October 4, 7:00-8:30pm, in room 2229 in the School of Education. Caitlin Hanley, from Teach for America is the featured guest. Please be sure to come with YOUR ideas and questions -- the aim is to have a real dialog, not to listen to a lecture.

Stay tuned for information about an Arts & Culture town hall soon.

Also: Today is the last day for publishing proposals in the Justice and Equity topic area. After midnight tonight, the topic area will go into the voting phase, and it will not be possible to publish more proposals in this area. If you have been editing a proposal and are finished, please make sure you have hit the "publish" button.

Finally: Proposal construction has begun in Arts & Culture, and also in Service. Service is a particular challenge because your proposal has to be do-able in a short amount of time, but please remember that Service activities must involve more than contributing to an existing organization in a standard way. Please think beyond the usual forms of "community service," and be creative about ways you can help improve Michigan now, including things like increasing awareness or understanding about an issue, or fostering communication among people who might not otherwise talk with each other. To help spark ideas, you might want to take a look at this list of community service organizations, put together by the UM Ginsberg Center: http://ginsberg.umich.edu/students/service-opportunities. While simply volunteering for one of these organizations is not enough for an MSC service activity, you definitely MAY work with an organization to do something new.

(!) Consultations Part Deux by JMcDowell on Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 8:07 PM

I am happy to see that many of you writing proposals are taking the consultation with real people seriously. But the concept is for each proposal writer to contact and talk to a professional in the field. Please do your best to contact someone in a business, government organization, or NGO, about your proposal. Remember, "People are just a Google away. "

(!) Justice & Equity Town Hall: Tuesday 6pm by Jeff Kupperman on Monday, September 26, 2011 at 11:49 AM

UPDATE: The town hall will take place in room 2340 in the School of Education. Due to scheduling issues, Richard Bernstein will be appearing via Skype.

Please consider this event (and all town hall meetings) to be a chance to try out your ideas with an expert in the topic area. (It can even count as one of your consultations, if it seems appropriate.) So come ready to discuss your proposal and actively participate in the conversation.

------

A Town Hall Meeting for the Justice & Equity has been scheduled for Tuesday -- tomorrow -- at 6:00pm. Attorney and law professor Richard Bernstein will be the featured guest.

(!) Forbidden, Permitted, and Required by Jeff Kupperman on Sunday, September 25, 2011 at 3:30 PM

Pardon me for getting all professorly on you, but I want to say a few words that may help you frame your proposal ideas.

When it comes down to it, laws (or any kind of rules, for that matter) can only do three types of things: they can establish what is FORBIDDEN, what is PERMITTED, and what is REQUIRED (or some combination of those).

There is a natural tendency, when thinking about ways to improve people's lives, to focus on making things FORBIDDEN or REQUIRED, and so it's not surprising that the majority of ideas so far fall into one of those categories. But actually, it is often the laws that change what is PERMITTED that are the most powerful -- think of the first two articles of the Bill of Rights, for example.

There are also practical issues: laws that forbid or require can be difficult and costly to implement or enforce, and there will always be people who try to circumvent them, especially when the laws are about personal behavior (see the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution).

So here's my suggestion: rather than starting by asking, "What should people be doing?" (to be healthier or better educated or happier or whatever), ask, "What barriers are keeping people from being healthier or better educated or happier etc., and what could the state do to reduce those barriers?" If you follow that question in your area of interest, you may find yourself with some truly creative solutions for our state.

Lecture over -- thanks for listening.

(!) Consultations by JMcDowell on Friday, September 23, 2011 at 7:56 AM

Please remember that consultations need to be conversations with real people. References to websites are not enough. We want you to contact experts in the field and talk with them about your proposal.

(!) A reminder about sharing and borrowing ideas by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, September 22, 2011 at 11:20 AM

In the MSC you should feel strongly encouraged to adapt, improve, and build upon ideas of others, both within and outside the Caucus. When bringing up a topic for brainstorming or crafting a proposal, you can, and should, reference related ideas that have come up in past MSC sessions, in brainstorming, in the state legislature, and elsewhere. When you do so, however, it is crucial that at MINIMUM you give proper credit to the person or group who expressed the idea first. (Failing to do, in fact, can be considered plagiarism and can have serious consequences.)

Furthermore, if in your own proposal you wish to use an idea expressed by another current MSC participant, it is common courtesy to invite that person to collaborate with you. It is your responsibility to have thoroughly explored the topic, participated in brainstorming, and researched existing legislation before making your own proposal.

Your goal, of course, is to come out the best platform possible, and maintaining an open, honest, and courteous competition of ideas is the way to achieve this goal.

(!) Justice and Equity by JMcDowell on Sunday, September 18, 2011 at 12:19 PM

Proposal construction is now open in Justice and Equity. (Don't expect a reminder for each topic.)

(!) Human Development and Welfare Town Hall Oct 4 by Jeff Kupperman on Thursday, September 15, 2011 at 4:02 PM

A Town Hall Meeting for the topic of Human Development and Welfare has been scheduled for Tuesday, October 4, 7:00-8:30pm, in room 2229 in the School of Education.

The featured guest will be Caitlin Hanley, a Recruitment Manager for Teach for America and 2007 graduate of the University of Michigan. Prior to her current position, Caitlin taught 4th grade for two years in San Jose, California.

All MSC members and the public are invited to attend; EDUC 362 students should keep in mind that attendance is required at at least two town hall meetings during the semester. Summary notes by the topic coordinators will be posted in the "Experts" area for those who cannot attend.

Town hall meetings for Justice & Equity and Arts & Culture are in the works.

(!) Brainstorming going on now in Justice & Equity, Arts & Culture, and Service by Jeff Kupperman on Monday, September 12, 2011 at 10:35 AM

We won't be posting reminders about every point on the schedule, but since we're just getting started, please note:

- Brainstorming has started in the Arts & Culture section, while continuing in Justice & Equity.

- Brainstorming for Service is (and has been) open. Keep in mind that MSC service activities should, in a large or small way, make life better for people (and especially students) in Michigan. Therefore, a good way to start is to explore and discuss the challenges and needs of communities across Michigan, and from there come up with creative ways that MSC members can help meet those challenges.

EDUC 362 students should also keep in mind that the MSC is in full swing, and you should be making thoughtful contributions to the caucus nearly every day.

(!) MSC activity is under way by Jeff Kupperman on Wednesday, September 07, 2011 at 11:35 PM

... starting with brainstorming in the "Justice and Equity" topic.

Meanwhile, here is a list of topic coordinators. Don't hesitate to contact them directly with questions or to ask for guidance; to find their email addresses, look them up under the "users" tab.

Justice and equity
Matt Kovner, Ben Weiner, Alex Kohn

Arts and culture
Adam Bosse, David Lakin

Human development and welfare
Callie Robins, Sarah Sincoff, Matt Miller

Environment and health
Robert Cohen, Zach Jenis, Brad Jeddis

Economic policy
Jason Rak, Kevin Zussman, Steven Resnik

Community revitalization & social entrepreneurship
Romina Reversi, Scott McElwee

Service
David Lakin, Steven Resnik

Hearing coordinators
Devin Weiss, Scott Schubiner

(!) Mandatory MSC Fall 2011 Meeting by Jeff Kupperman on Friday, August 26, 2011 at 8:15 AM

There will be a MANDATORY orientation session for UM-Ann Arbor EDU 362, Michigan Student Caucus (Professors Lossing, McDowell and Kupperman) at Schorling Auditorium in the School of Education on Wednesday, September 7, 6:00-8:00pm.

Returning students should anticipate staying an additional fifteen minutes or so.

Registration permissions for those on the waitlist will be given automatically if and when there are openings, in order of waitlisted date and time across all sections. If you are on the waitlist, you are welcome to attend the orientation and see if there are openings, but we cannot promise overrides.

Technical notes:

At the moment, you'll need the Firefox or Safari browser to be able to access all site capabilities (we strongly recommend Firefox for all platforms). Until further announcement, assigning weights to topics and the "drag and drop" features used while editing proposals do not work in Internet Explorer. We are working on the issue and hope to resolve it soon.

Technical update: A problem has been found in Safari as well. When you upload media files, Safari will not refresh the page properly. For the time being, if you must use Safari, you may need to click on a tab again to refresh. We are aware of the problem and are looking for a fix.

About the Michigan Student Caucus

The Michigan Student Caucus represents students throughout Michigan to the Michigan State Legislature. Since 2001, thousands of students across Michigan have participated in online deliberation, negotiation and voting leading to the construction of a political platform that is presented in formal testimony to the House Commission on Civic Engagement.

The Michigan Student Caucus is not affiliated with any political party or organization. The MSC is open to any Michigan resident (permanent or temporary) who is a student. For information about the program, please contact our faculty advisor at The University of Michigan, Jeff Kupperman.

Twice each year, MSC participants, including hundreds of high school and college students from around Michigan, present testimony about the MSC platform before the Michigan House of Representatives' Special Commission on Civic Engagement.

The following documents may be useful to you in getting started:

• The MSC archives from Winter 2011, Fall 2010, Winter 2010, Fall 2009, Winter 2009, Fall 2008 and Winter 2008. (You'll need to join the archived sites separately to view content.)
• The Winter 2011 platform (258 K, PDF format).
• The Fall 2010 platform (400 K, Powerpoint format).
• The Fall 2009 platform (123 K, PDF format).
• The Winter 2009 platform (200 K, PDF format).
• The Fall 2008 platform (200 K, PDF format).
• The Winter 2008 platform (160 K, PDF format).
• The Fall 2007 platform (198 K, PDF format).
• The 2005-2006 platform.
• The 2006-2007 platform.
• Students taking this course for college credit at UM-Ann Arbor may download the Fall 2011 syllabus for EDUC 362.
• Here is a presentation that was used during the orientation session to introduce the program (Google Docs).

Committee schedule:

The committee schedule will occur along the following schedule (topics schedule subject to change):

Justice & Equity (Justice): Open brainstorming for resolutions begins on September 7, 2011 and ends on September 20, 2011; resolution construction begins on September 18, 2011 and ends on October 3, 2011; voting on submitted resolutions begins on October 4, 2011 and ends on October 11, 2011.

Arts & Culture (Arts): Open brainstorming for resolutions begins on September 12, 2011 and ends on September 29, 2011; resolution construction begins on September 30, 2011 and ends on October 20, 2011; voting on submitted resolutions begins on October 21, 2011 and ends on October 28, 2011.

Human Development & Welfare (Human Dev): Open brainstorming for resolutions begins on September 25, 2011 and ends on October 9, 2011; resolution construction begins on October 8, 2011 and ends on October 23, 2011; voting on submitted resolutions begins on October 24, 2011 and ends on November 2, 2011.

Environment & Health (Env & Health): Open brainstorming for resolutions begins on October 7, 2011 and ends on October 17, 2011; resolution construction begins on October 18, 2011 and ends on November 2, 2011; voting on submitted resolutions begins on November 3, 2011 and ends on November 10, 2011.

Economic Policy (Econ Policy): Open brainstorming for resolutions begins on October 19, 2011 and ends on October 27, 2011; resolution construction begins on October 28, 2011 and ends on November 12, 2011; voting on submitted resolutions begins on November 13, 2011 and ends on November 20, 2011.

Community Revitalization & Social Entrepreneurship (Community): Open brainstorming for resolutions begins on November 1, 2011 and ends on November 7, 2011; resolution construction begins on November 8, 2011 and ends on November 20, 2011; voting on submitted resolutions begins on November 19, 2011 and ends on November 24, 2011.

Service schedule:

The service schedule will occur along the following schedule (schedule subject to change):

Fall 2011 (Service): Open brainstorming for service projects begins on September 7, 2011 and ends on October 1, 2011; construction of service proposals begins on October 2, 2011 and ends on October 19, 2011; participants may commit to a service project beginning on October 20, 2011 through October 27, 2011. Service projects will take place between October 27, 2011 and the end of the session, based on the dates identified in each adopted project. (Projects must be approved by the service chair and faculty advisors.)

Special events, such as expert chats, will take place regularly. Please check the latest news in the "updates" area.

All MSC participants are, of course, strongly encouraged to attend our hearings in Lansing, usually in December and April (dates TBA). Participants earning college credit in EDUC 362 (University of Michigan-Ann Arbor) or EDT 532 (University of Michigan-Flint) are expected to attend per course requirements.