News

Last Saturday, hundreds of students graduated from Lansing Community College.  It was a time for celebration, but many of them are already in debt.  Some will go on to four-year universities, where they’ll probably have to borrow a lot more money.

Review teams that recommend whether a city or school district should be taken over by a state-appointed emergency manager don’t have to meet in public.

Protesters have disrupted a meeting in which a Michigan House committee approved a series of proposed election law changes, including one that would require a voter to present a photo ID or birth certificate when registering to vote.

Two versions of a proposed Lansing city budget go before Lansing Board of Water and Light commissioners today.

Earle first talks with Detroit News sports writer Tony Paul about the Detroit Tigers and their woes. Tom Markowski, also of the Detroit News, talks with Earle about Prep-Sports. 

Eaton Rapids is wondering how to respond to a recent rise in teen fighting.

The Michigan Catholic Conference is in federal court in an effort to reverse an Obama administration rule that requires employer health plans to cover contraception.

New teachers in Michigan still would get hybrid pensions under changes made to a teacher benefits bill.

It's a Spartanmag.com day! Earle first talks with Rico Beard to discuss the NBA playoffs and some Spartan news. Jim Comparoni also joins Earle to go in depth about Spartan football recruiting and the team overall. They also discuss men's basketball. 

A state House committee goes to work this morning on a plan that would force teachers and other school employees to pay more for their retirement benefits. Governor Rick Snyder and Republican leaders say that’s necessary to ensure the long-term solvency of the retirement system.

There are a lot of details to work out, but the bottom line for public school employees is, one way or the other, they will pay more for retirement benefits and retirement health care.

Governor Rick Snyder says overall, he supports the plan.

"(Be)'cause it's striking the right balance about taxpayer long-term liabilities and employees who have benefits."

“What’s going to happen next year?" asks retired teacher Thom Houseman.  "What more can they take from teachers next year?

About 2,500 Michigan Republicans gather in Detroit this weekend for their party’s spring convention.

More than a dozen Democratic Michigan House members have introduced legislation to repeal the state's "stand your ground" self-defense law after the fatal shooting of Florida teen Trayvon Martin.

Okemos high school boys basketball coach, Dan Stolz joins Earle to discuss his retirement. Swayne Stevens, MSU men's basketball assistant coach joins Earle to discuss the team and the NBA playoffs.

The panel discusses the state's recovery now in year three, a state lawmaker changing parties and Governor Snyder making more money.

The guest is James Ryan, a former Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court.

Rick Pluta, Zachary Gorchow and Kathy Barks Hoffman join senior capitol correspondent Tim Skubick.

The Lansing Symphony Orchestra played its final concert of the season last week at MSU’s Wharton Center.  Music director Timothy Muffitt took a few minutes to speak with WKAR’s Melissa Benmark about the lineup for next season. One of the concerts they talked about was built around the story of composer Antonin Dvorak’s visit to America.

A number of professional sports in America trace their roots to the school playground.  Basketball, baseball, football and even hockey.  But can you make a career out of skipping rope?  As it turns out...yes.

Adrienn Banhegyi began her jump rope career growing up in Hungary.  She won three world titles before auditioning for the acclaimed touring company, “Cirque du Soleil.”  She’ll perform with the company next week in East Lansing, when Cirque du Soleil presents its show “Quidam."

WKAR’s Kevin Lavery asked Banhegyi to explain the show’s storyline.

It’s up to the Michigan Court of Appeals now to determine whether voters will get to approve or reject the state’s emergency manager law.

The Michigan Senate has passed legislation that would end pensions for newly hired public school employees and switch them into a 401 (k)-style retirement plan.

The Capital Diamond Classic starts on Monday and Director Larry Cockroft joins Earle to discuss the details. The baseball discusion continues with the General Manager of the Lansing Lugnuts, Pat Day. Lastly, Matt Charboneau from the Detroit News joins Earle to discuss the Big Ten meetings which took place in Chicago.