MSU Freshmen Try to Adjust for a New Semester

Although many of their older counterparts seem to dread the beginning of the second semester, for the most-recent crop of freshman at Michigan State University, the second-half is a time to shine.

For freshman like Jeremy Barnum, a political science and criminal justice major, the second semester as an exercise in familiarity.

 “I already know what’s going on and how things run around here and I can get things done easier, more efficiently,” Barnum said. “I know the shortest ways to get to buildings on campus, so I can save time.”

 Barnum also believes this ease and familiarity will carry him through to the end of the year, despite a slightly heavier course-load.

 Jeremy Pollard, an animal science freshman, also notes a feeling of ease in his second semester at MSU, aided by his strengthened knowledge of campus itself.

 “I think I got it down and I know where everything is,” Pollard said. “The bus route’s a bit better, so everything’s going well.”

 Pollard also notes no real hesitance toward his 16 credits of class-time – a marked increase from the 12 he took last semester. But despite the more-intense course-load, Pollard blames his inexperience with scheduling protocols as an incoming freshman for his unintended lighter course load.

 “I missed some due-dates,” Pollard said. “I wanted to take more, but I couldn’t.”

 But even with the scheduling snafu, combined with the pandemonium of being an incoming freshman, Pollard has learned to embrace MSU.

 “I really like the campus, the people are really nice and the professors are pretty good,” Pollard said.

MSU Students talk Spartan Hockey

In a season which so far has included an off-ice brawl which sent sophomore defenseman A.J. Sturges to the hospital with a season-ending injury, an on-ice incident which led to season-ending suspensions of sophomore forward Corey Tropp and now-former Spartan forward Andrew Conboy, and one of the worst records since the team’s inception, Anthony Allen Pollreisz talks to MSU students about the state of the Spartan hockey program.

Student Super Bowl Picks

With the big game looming on Sunday, Anthony Allen Pollreisz asked students a simple question: Who’s going to win?

CATA in the Morning

A shot sequence taken during a busy Wednesday morning and afternoon on the MSU campus.

Students Struggle to Accept the New mail.msu.edu

Despite notable technical achievements and a better-organized, easier-to-navigate layout, Michigan State University’s troubled e-mail service, mail.msu.edu, is still not winning over many students.

Slow loading times, initial technical delays and a student-base committed to third-party e-mail applications and websites still causes unfavorability to linger within the minds of some on-campus e-mail users.

“I just really enjoy Hotmail better,” MSU freshman Lucas Gogliotti said, comparing Microsoft’s long-established and MSU’s newly-updated e-mail clients. “… I just feel more advanced on Hotmail, like I have the ‘one-up’ in e-mail as opposed to the people living in the Stone Age with mail.msu.edu.”

The university’s e-mail client received its first major upgrade in nearly six years, allowing for a new, streamlined visual look and an inbox size-expansion to 512 megabytes. But even with the university’s upgrades, mail.msu.edu still lags behind other commercial e-mail services like G-mail, which gives users over seven gigabytes of storage, an ability to forward MSU webmail messages to their G-mail account and near-constant stability.

An Exclusive Inverview with Anthony Allen Pollreisz

Michigan State News was able to secure an exclusive interview Thursday evening with writer, videographer, journalist, sports fan, college student, omnivore and all-around good guy Anthony Allen Pollreisz.

Pollreisz, who grew up in Soldotna, Alaska, is currently a journalism junior at Michigan State University, attempting to further accentuate his solid broadcast skills.

“I really didn’t want to do this interview, but, since you’re here, you might as well sit down with your notebook and start scribbling your freehand,” Pollreisz said in a clearly agitated state. “Just don’t expect me to give you a hug afterward, or anything like that.”

Pollreisz is a low-scale media-marvel in Alaska, producing many local school music recital webcasts and lending his play-by-play skills for high school sports radio broadcasts on various stations throughout the state.

Pollreisz is also a sought-after sports public address announcer in Alaska, working the microphone for multiple local high schools, the 2006 Arctic Winter Games hockey tournament and the Peninsula Oilers of the Alaska Baseball League.

“I’ve always liked the whole ‘talk into the microphone’ thing,” Pollreisz said. “Frankly, I’m just happy others seem to like what I do and that I get paid doing something I find enjoyable.”

Away from the microphone, Pollreisz’s second love is college hockey, and can be often seen at Munn Ice Arena during MSU hockey games screaming incomprehensibly at things. Pollreisz also enjoys college football, a good piece of chicken, long walks in the cold in the middle of the night and sleeping.

“I don’t like wearing pants, though,” Pollreisz said. “I like the freedom I encounter while wearing shorts – and yes, I realize it’s ‘cold’ outside.”

Pollreisz will write and produce media for the upstart Michigan State News blog throughout February.

Anthony Allen Pollreisz on Facebook –  Anthony Allen Pollreisz on Twitter –  Anthony Allen Pollreisz on YouTube