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***This is part of a series of articles compiling useful resources and information for new graduate students. Some of the information in this series will be relevant for anybody new to MSU, including undergraduates, postdocs, faculty and staff. The topical areas range from settling into East Lansing and Michigan, getting to know which services can be found on campus to administrative steps and information needed throughout a graduate program at MSU. For the full series, see this playlist dedicated to (international) graduate students.***
 
Health Insurance
As an international student, you need to have health insurance. MSU will automatically enrol you in the Blue Care Network health insurance. There are only very few circumstances in which you can waive the health insurance coverage. This insurance can be used for pretty much anything except for dental and vision care.
Dental insurance is covered through Delta Dental and can be purchased in two enrolment periods (July-October for a Fall semester start and November-February for a Spring semester start). Depending on your employment type at MSU, you probably qualify for a reduced fee (i.e. MSU will pay half of the cost of coverage).
Vision insurance can be purchased any time of the year through Vision Service Plan.
I’d strongly recommend going to the Health Insurance information session organized by OISS to get a good explanation of how health insurance and the health care system work in the US. Here, I am listing just a few important words in American health insurances.
Deductible: Amount you must pay before your insurance “kicks in”. This is not applied to all services and is a yearly amount to be reached before the insurance covers the services (you may be left with Co-pays or Co-insurance payments).
Co-Pay: A fixed amount you pay for specific services. E.g. for visits to a specialist.
Co-Insurance: Your share of the cost of covered services, calculated as a percentage. This only applies to some services.
Out-of-pocket maximum: Amount to be reached beyond which the insurance pays 100% of covered services (deductible, co-pays and co-insurance payments all count towards the out-of-pocket maximum).
You can contact both OISS or the Blue Care Network representative at Olin Health Center if you have specific questions. Make sure to look at your member guide also.
Health Care Services
MSU has its own health services. The main health centre is Olin Health Center on the northern end of campus, though there are also some neighbourhood clinics dotted around campus. Students have 3 free visits at Olin per year. After that you will have to pay a Co-pay for your visits. Make sure to bring your student ID and insurance card. The doctors there can also refer you to a specialist if needed. And there is an in-house laboratory (in the basement) in case you need any blood work or other tests done. You can also get a free flu shot (i.e. vaccination) there.
There are 3 main access points to health care depending on the severity of your condition – Primary Care, Urgent Care, and the Emergency Room. See this resource for when to go where. If you are unsure where to go or need other immediate advice also after hours, there is a 24/7 phone nurse available.
Appointments, reminders for check-ups, test results, contact forms to directly communicate with your doctor, online payment for services rendered and more can be found in your online Health Portal (MyMSUHealth).
Mental Health
There are several mental health services available on MSU’s campus (free for students) as well as independently off-campus that are covered by your Blue Care Network insurance.
The Counselling and Psychiatric Services (CAPS) located at Olin Health Center offer up to 8 free visits per year for all students. They offer drop-in, mini sessions (10-15 minutes) called CAPS Connect at different locations on campus too. CAPS also organizes several support groups, including one dedicated to international students.
If you are employed by MSU (as a Graduate Research Assistant or Teaching Assistant) you are eligible to use the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). EAP offers short-term counselling services and can also refer you to counsellors outside of MSU if you are looking for more long-term/ regular support. Their services are usually limited to 6 sessions per “issue”.
There is a regular offering of mental health or wellness courses/ workshops offered through Health4You. A popular one is “Breaking free from the monkey mind” or workshops on mindfulness, stress management or emotional eating to name but a few. The exact workshops offered continuously change, so keep an eye out for e-mails from the Graduate School and check the Health4You website or sign up to their newsletter for updates.
A note on mental health…
Life gets messy sometimes and we all struggle on occasion. If you have a mental health concern, or just need someone to talk to about dealing with stress, your adjustment here, relationships (at work or in your private life), etc. PLEASE make use of the mental health services provided. In the US, there is much less of a stigma attached to seeking help for mental health issues and it is more openly talked about than in some other countries. You do not need to be in crisis in order to benefit from counselling. Note that all services are confidential.

You can find a full list of all workshops from the MSU Libraries here. SeptemberStable Links Workshop (Online)September 7, 2021, 10am -12pm

This workshop will take place on ZOOM, and registered attendees will receive an email the day before the scheduled workshop containing the meeting ID and password.  Questions can be emailed to leekrist@msu.edu.
Although many understand the value of sharing online library resources such as e-journal articles, e-book chapters, or streaming media in D2L or other course-related materials, the process for doing so is not intuitive or transparent. To complicate matters, copyright compliance and licensing agreements require the use of appropriate stable links for integration of proprietary content in a course. This Stable Links for Electronic Resources workshop will guide participants through the process of integrating journal articles, e-book chapters, or streaming media into their course(s). Instructions for creating stable links in various platforms will be provided and participants will gain hands-on experience in successfully integrating stable links into D2L and other course-related materials.

Stable Links Workshop (Online)September 15, 2021, 1pm-3pm

This workshop will take place on ZOOM, and registered attendees will receive an email the day before the scheduled workshop containing the meeting ID and password.  Questions can be emailed to leekrist@msu.edu.
Although many understand the value of sharing online library resources such as e-journal articles, e-book chapters, or streaming media in D2L or other course-related materials, the process for doing so is not intuitive or transparent. To complicate matters, copyright compliance and licensing agreements require the use of appropriate stable links for integration of proprietary content in a course. This Stable Links for Electronic Resources workshop will guide participants through the process of integrating journal articles, e-book chapters, or streaming media into their course(s). Instructions for creating stable links in various platforms will be provided and participants will gain hands-on experience in successfully integrating stable links into D2L and other course-related materials.EndNote and EndNote OnlineSeptember 21, 2021, 11am-1pm

A virtual version of our basic introduction to EndNote and EndNote Online.  Learn how to:
   * Import references from MSU's online catalog and article databases
   * Format citations and bibliographies in a Word document
   * Use EndNote Online to create groups and share references with other users
This workshop will be held over Zoom. After registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email with the workshop URL and password, and a reminder email the day before.
**It is recommended that you install the EndNote software prior to the workshop. For more information, visit http://libguides.lib.msu.edu/endnote or contact us at endnote@lib.msu.edu.Learn QGIS: Making a Color Shaded Map in QGIS (in person and online)September 22, 2021, 4pm-5pm

Learn the basics of QGIS, the free open source geospatial software—this workshop will demonstrate how to make a choropleth (color shaded) map and place graduated symbols representing data on it, load shape-files and .csv table files into QGIS, join data to spatial information and edit features.
This workshop will be held in person at the Digital Scholarship Lab computer lab (on the 2nd floor of the west wing of the library) and online via Zoom.OctoberEndNote Q&A SessionOctober 7 2021, 9am-11am

Have questions about using EndNote? Join one of our instructors for a virtual office hours-style session to get answers on how to do specific tasks using EndNote or EndNote Online.
*Note: this will not be an introduction to using EndNote. Please visit https://libguides.lib.msu.edu/endnote for available training opportunities.
This workshop will be held over Zoom. After registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email with the workshop URL and password, and a reminder email the day before.EndNote and EndNote OnlineOctober 18, 2021, 1pm-3pm


A basic introduction to EndNote and EndNote Online.  Learn how to:
   * Import references from MSU's online catalog and article databases
   * Format citations and bibliographies in a Word document
   * Use EndNote Online to create groups and share references with other users
For more information about this popular program, visit http://libguides.lib.msu.edu/endnote
*Previous experience searching article databases available from the MSU Libraries is highly recommended.
For more information, please contact us at endnote@lib.msu.edu.NovemberMSU GIS Research and Teaching Meet UpNovember 5, 2021, 2pm-4pmVisit with other MSU community members who are using GIS in their teaching, research and other work. We will be discussing any issues, projects and topics that community members want to bring to the meet up. Questions about new GIS products, GIS method questions, and strategies for teaching GIS are all possible topics of conversation. The goal of this event is to break through the usual disciplinary and departmental boundaries to have a lively conversation about GIS at MSU. EndNote Q&A SessionNovember 12, 2021, 1pm-2pm

Have questions about using EndNote? Join one of our instructors for a virtual office hours-style session to get answers on how to do specific tasks using EndNote or EndNote Online.
*Note: this will not be an introduction to using EndNote. Please visit https://libguides.lib.msu.edu/endnote for available training opportunities.
This workshop will be held over Zoom. After registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email with the workshop URL and password, and a reminder email the day before.

Nominations for the AT&T Faculty-Staff Awards Competition are now open! The awards recognize innovative instructional technology within credit-bearing courses at MSU. This past year has required many instructors to utilize instructional technology in more frequent and groundbreaking ways, so they deserve to be celebrated! Faculty, instructors, and teaching assistants are eligible to apply. Awards will be given for the following categories:
 

Online: Instructors who use technology to enhance effective teaching practices in online courses.

 

Hybrid: Instructors who provide at least 50% of instruction with online experiences in hybrid courses.

 

Best Technology-Enabled Innovation: Instructors who enhance in-person courses with technology, or “flip” their courses. Flipped courses are those in which much of the lecture and content work is done outside of the classroom, so course time is preserved for more active instruction.

 
The deadline for entry is Friday, March 5, 2021 by 5 pm.
 
For more details on nominating an instructor, or for information on past winners, visit https://att-awards.msu.edu/entry-information. If you have any other questions, email Nick Noel at lepeschk@msu.edu.
 
 
 

The following is a list of educator professional development tools, resources, and supports at MSU. This collection is just that, a sampling of offerings aimed at providing anyone who supports student success by contributing to the teaching and learning mission with a place to start when they're looking for ongoing opportunities for growth outside of the #iteachmsu Commons. 
 

SOIREE: The SOIREE (Spartan Online Instructional Readiness Educational Experience) workshop was created to help you better prepare to teach online. You will learn online pedagogical principles and develop proficiency with a variety of technologies. You can check out SOIREE for more information. (Fall programming TBD)
ASPIRE: The ASPIRE (Asynchronous Program for Instructional Readiness) workshop was created to help you better prepare to teach online. ASPIRE is entirely self-paced and will guide you through the processes and issues you'll need to address in order to develop an online version of your course. You can check out ASPIRE for more information, including enrolling in ASPIRE.
The College of Education’s Mini-MOOC on Remote Teaching: The Master of Arts in Educational Technology Program (MAET) at Michigan State University is honored to support the amazing work that educators are doing around the world as they transition to a range of remote teaching contexts. You can check out CED Mini-MOOC for more information, including enrolling in the Mini-MOOC.
#iteachmsu: You teach MSU. A wide educator community (faculty, TAs, ULAs, instructional designers, academic advisors, et al.) makes learning happen across MSU. But, on such a large campus, it can be difficult to fully recognize and leverage this community’s teaching and learning innovations. To address this challenge, the #iteachmsu Commons provides an educator-driven space for sharing teaching resources, connecting across educator networks, and growing teaching practice. #iteachmsu Commons content may be discipline-specific or transdisciplinary, but will always be anchored in teaching competency areas. You will find short posts, blog-like articles, curated playlists, and a campus-wide teaching and learning events calendar. We cultivate this commons across spaces. And through your engagement, we will continue to nurture a culture of teaching and learning across MSU and beyond.
Teaching and Learning Bootcamp: The Teaching and Learning Boot Camp is offered to bring together educators new to MSU from across campus to explore and exchange ideas about quality and inclusive teaching, as well as find community among the large group of people who are engaged in the important work of creating the best learning environments possible for our students. The focus is to assist educators in developing practical materials that are needed for immediate use in their teaching and to best prepare them for their courses and work with students. For more information, check out Teaching & Learning Bootcamp.
Accessible Learning Conference: For the last five years, the Accessible Learning Conference has provided a forum for students, educators, community members and leaders to connect, share knowledge, and foster innovation in accessibility in higher education. You can check out the Accessible Learning Conference for more information.
MSU Dialogues: MSU Dialogues is an intergroup dialogue program for students, faculty and staff at Michigan State. It is a face-to-face learning experience that brings together people from different identity groups over a sustained period of time to: understand our commonalities and differences; examine the nature and impact of societal inequalities; explore ways of working together toward greater equity and justice; prepare individuals to live, work, and lead in a complex, diverse stratified society. Go to MSU Dialogues on Race, Religion, or Gender for more information.
Course Review Process: Quality Matters (QM) is a nationally recognized, faculty-centered, peer review process designed to certify the quality of online courses and online components. MSU purchased a campus subscription to the QM Rubric to assist faculty and instructors in creating quality courses that will improve online education and student learning. For more information on getting started with peer course review and Quality Matters at MSU, please visit MSU SpartanQM Webpage.
Alternative assessment/Online exam workshops: These workshops ran live in 2020 and provided information and examples of designing online exams and assessing students with alternative assessments beyond exams. Recordings of the workshops can be accessed asynchronously via #iteachmsu Commons. 
Learning Communities: Learning Communities provide safe and supportive spaces for complicated conversations about curriculum and pedagogy. Michigan State University has supported these initiatives since 2004 and continues to do so through a funding program administered by the Academic Advancement Network. Learning Communities at MSU are free to select their own topics and determine the structures that best support their inquiries. Accordingly, communities tend to vary greatly in their practices, interests, and agendas. All communities, however, share three things in common: they meet monthly across the academic year, explore important educational themes, and welcome all members of MSU’s instructional staff, regardless of rank or discipline. Please go to Learning Communities (AAN) or Learning Communities (#iteachmsu) for more information.
Cohort programs: Lilly Fellowship - The program is intended to advance the University’s continuing efforts to support excellence in teaching and learning. The program supports a cohort of six faculty or academic specialists at all ranks with at least five years of service to the institution. The Program also provides an opportunity for Fellows to expand relationships and collaborative engagement with peers and colleagues within their own college and across the University. The program is supported by matching grants from AAN and the Fellows’ departments and/or colleges. The goal is to develop academic leaders who will guide the University into the near future with regard to learning, teaching, and educational programming. Participants are expected to focus their work on a project of their choosing that will make a substantial contribution to a unit’s educational efforts. The unit can be a program or a department, but it can also be a college or a University unit or initiative. Using the proposed project as a foundation, participants will also learn leadership concepts and models, build specific skills, learn more about how the University works, and practice what they learn through the activities of their project and small group mentoring and coaching. Adams Academy - The Walter & Pauline Adams Academy of Instructional Excellence and Innovation is named in honor of former MSU President Walter Adams and his wife and MSU faculty member emerita, Pauline Adams, in recognition of their sustained commitments to promote instructional excellence. The program brings together a cross-disciplinary group of faculty and academic staff for a year-long fellowship focused on teaching and learning. Adams Academy Fellows explore the literature on effective university teaching and learning practices and consider how this robust body of research can be used to guide instructional decisions in the courses they teach. Participants learn from and contribute to a community of teacher-scholars committed to excellence in teaching and learning.
Technology and Tools: IT Services offers many different resources to support teaching and learning efforts. For more information, check out Tech and Tools workshops from IT.
MSU Libraries Workshops: MSU Library & Archives provides a series of events, seminars and workshops on a wide variety of topics including but not limited to: Mendeley, data management, 3D models, special collections, distinguished lectures, Zotero, geocoding and more. Go to MSU Library Workshops for more.
The Graduate Teaching Assistant Institute: The New Teaching Assistant Institute is a university-wide orientation for graduate teaching assistants, in partnership with academic and support units on campus. It is up to departments to decide to require or recommend that their students attend this program (*graduate students should ask their graduate program directors if they are unsure about participating). All attendees must register and are expected to attend the entire day. Go to Graduate Teaching Assistant Institute for more information.
Certification in College Teaching: The Michigan State University Certification in College Teaching program is an initiative of The Graduate School, in partnership with departments and colleges. The program is designed to help graduate students organize and develop their teaching experience in a systematic and thoughtful way. Program participants partake in a series of workshops, enroll in a graduate course devoted to teaching in higher education, engage in a mentored teaching experience with a faculty member and develop a teaching portfolio to highlight, organize and reflect upon their teaching experiences. Upon completion of the program, students receive an MSU Certificate in College Teaching and the accomplishment is noted on their transcript. Visit Certification in College Teaching for more information. 

An Overview of the Syllabus and its Role at MSU
In this resource, we describe the purpose and history of the syllabus and describe the required and recommended elements of syllabi at Michigan State. We end with links to MSU’s many existing syllabus guidelines and resources. While what to include in your syllabus is flexible, we encourage educators to keep students’ needs in mind and think about how your syllabus can contribute to their learning. 
What a syllabus is
A syllabus is a synecdoche for a course of study—a part of the curricular experience that represents the whole. They are often the very first course texts our students encounter and, accordingly, they frame and preface learning in powerful ways. On one hand, they communicate practical and structural details—where and when a course meets, what to read, and how to contact an instructor. But they also express intellectual and discipline-specific expectations. 
As a special genre of educational texts, syllabi have taken various forms and played various roles over many centuries. In the 17th century ‘syllabus’ was synonymous with ‘table’ or ‘index.’ They served as a structural preview for manuscripts or a list of speakers and topics for a lecture series—they were a means of organizing texts, ideas, and experience. Although that core function remains, post-secondary syllabi have expanded significantly in volume and purview over the past forty years. 
What a syllabus needs at MSU
There is no universal definition or template for contemporary syllabi. There are, however, some critical things that effective syllabi share. At Michigan State University, our Code of Teaching Responsibility states  “Instructors [are] responsible for distributing a course syllabus (either in print or electronic form) at the beginning of the semester [that] minimally includes:

instructional objectives;
instructor contact information and office hours;
grading criteria and methods used to determine final course grades;
date of the final examination and tentative dates of required assignments, quizzes, and tests, if applicable; 
attendance policy, if different from the University attendance policy and especially when that attendance policy affects student grades;
required and recommended course materials to be purchased, including textbooks and supplies; and any required proctoring arrangements to which students must adhere.”

If you are creating a new course or new to teaching at MSU, it can be helpful to request sample syllabi from your Departmental Chair, from past versions of the course you're teaching or even adjacent courses. These samples can help you learn more about general and discipline-specific expectations within your department. Syllabus templates are also available from different colleges; for example, CANR has a downloadable template.
Additional considerations
Beyond the fundamental requirements listed above, contemporary syllabi often include additional information or passages. We encourage MSU educators to consider including the following policies, keeping empathy and flexibility in mind: 

notify students about MSU’s religious observance policy
describe available mental health resources 
include equal opportunity/affirmative action and inclusion statements
include statements on civil discourse and the civil discourse policy
consider including your attendance policy
acknowledge the indigenous land(s) on which their teaching will occur
provide an accessibility statement, link to the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities
list institutional resources to support students
describe policies for student athletes
explain the technologies students will be required or asked to use
describe the instructor’s communication preferences or instructions for scheduling office hour appointments
describe COVID-specific health and wellness guidelines or emergency measures
provide information about academic dishonesty
provide study or writing tips and link to the Writing Center
include other course- or college-relevant policies 

Some instructors include these and other statements in a ‘policies’ section, while others prefer to write a shorter syllabus that refers students to other course documents containing these and other course and university resources. 
Flexibility for students
It's best to communicate expectations in the syllabus for students that need to miss class or discuss adjustments to due dates with you for excusable reasons, such as religious observance, bereavement, health, or athletic competition. We strongly recommend that educators consult the university’s academic calendar and a current interfaith calendar when planning your course and make accommodations for students’ religious observance, or when courses directly conflict (e.g. final examination conflicts). Educators should make every effort to avoid scheduling exams and oral presentations during days of religious observance. It's best to remember that if the absence is excusable, and you'd do it for one student, you should apply your method consistently for all students. Your syllabus should include when and how to contact you to make arrangements for excusable absences. Instructors should provide a university expectation/deadline by which students need to inform instructors of an accommodation (i.e., 2 weeks after the start of the semester) in the syllabus, and this expectation be iterated during the first day of class. We encourage you to be flexible and empathic with students, and to act consistently and equitably. 
Innovative models for syllabi
Many educators, especially over the past few decades, have experimented with syllabi and created texts that reach far beyond basic documentation. For instance, some instructors use a fill-in-the-blank syllabus whereby students are asked to expand a set of learning objectives or required texts in order to customize their learning. The ‘annotated syllabus’ model gives students the opportunity to make suggestions for the syllabus at the beginning of the course, making it more of a living document.  Others have reconfigured the syllabus as a course textbook and used it throughout the semester to support learning (instead of just the first week). Other models reimagine the aesthetic potential of the document, approaching it as a graphic novel (Barry, 2017), mixtape, or chapbook (Lockett and Wong, 2018). Although their approaches differ, these educators have questioned the role and conventions of syllabi and found creative ways to expand the educational potential of these ubiquitous texts. 
Additional MSU syllabus resources 

MSU Syllabus Checklist with in-depth descriptions of potential sections of the syllabus.

Syllabus Checklist (2-page version)


Revised MSU Syllabus Checklist for [Fall 2020] online and hybrid courses
Inclusive Pedagogy Syllabus & Template
Civil Discourse Syllabus
Discourse Policy on Syllabus
Attendance Policy on Syllabus
Syllabus Resources from the Office of the University Ombudsperson
Generative AI Syllabus Guide  (with examples and sample language)
Calendar of Religious Observances from MSU's Office of the Provost
Guidelines for Online Camera Policies
Advice for MSU students about using a syllabus

Additional readings

Rocha et al. (2022) The syllabus as curriculum: A reconceptualist approach.  
Hsu (2020). A celebration of the syllabus.
Germano and Nicholls (2020) Syllabus: The remarkable, unremarkable document that changes everything.
Lockett and Wong (2018). Reframing syllabi as aesthetic encounters.
Barry (2017). Syllabus: Notes from an accidental professor.

MSU does not currently have a university-wide policy on cameras/videos (e.g. web cameras) for online learning. Much like attendance/participation policies, camera/video policy statements will be determined by individual instructors, departments, and programs. Instructors are responsible for communicating the individual course policy to students.
The following resource is provided to assist you in developing coherent policies on camera use in your course. Please adjust the guidance to fit your particular course context, but remember you must make allowances for certain circumstances that might be tied to connectivity issues or environmental circumstances. It is key that your desire for video-on participation be built on a foundation of inclusion and accessibility, pedagogy and design.   The information below is shared as key considerations for developing your course policy.  If you have specific questions about writing your course policy, please reach out to the Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation (CTLI).  
Benefits and Challenges of Webcams 
The use of webcams in live online meetings can add to the educational experience in many ways. Some of these include: 

Students working in groups 
Showing physical evidence or materials 
Proof of attendance 
Classes that focus on communication skills, performance, or physical movement 

Students may wish to keep their webcams off because: 

Their internet speed cannot support the use of streaming video. Bandwidth problems are real for many students regardless of their location 
They may have privacy concerns (e.g. roommates, children, or other family members in the background) 
Students may wish to keep their webcams off because leaving them on may reveal their exact geographical location or other unique identifying information to the rest of the class 
They may have a visually busy environment or otherwise distracting background that could detract from others’ ability to attend to class content 
They may have personal or environmental concerns that make sharing their likeness or their personal spaces problematic. Not all computers can replace backgrounds with virtual backdrops that would alleviate these concerns 
They may have a disability where the video feed will decrease their success in the course 
Students may not have a webcam on their computer. This item has not been a component of the university required laptop/desktop description. 

Educators should be aware of the privacy, hardware, software, disability, and equity concerns and only require the use of webcams or video feeds when the educational value of requiring video supersedes those concerns. In such instances, there may still be students whose specific disabilities preclude the use of webcams. The Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities will work to assist students who have gone through the proper accommodation request process and for whom the use of webcams is not possible. Instructors should also keep in mind that the accommodations process can be a time consuming and expensive one; and not all students may be able to engage in it. In addition, disabilities, temporary or otherwise, can manifest at any time. These factors should be considered when you determining the policy for your course.
Best Practices for Developing Video Conference Policies 
In general, online learners experience “Zoom fatigue” and extra cognitive loads when it comes to learning (McCabe, et al., 2023 & Fauville, et al, 2021) For reasons of equity and respect for privacy, students generally should not be required to turn on their webcams for the full duration of all online class sessions. The literature around camera-on requirements promoting learning is scarce. Waluyo and Wangdi (2023) found that classroom dynamics, classroom exhaustion and participation, physical appearance and background, unrelated physical activity, distracting behaviors, and technical issues all played a role in student-camera behavior. It is also important to note that there are many ways to - through pedagogical design - effectively build a sense of belonging and classroom engagement. If you’re interested in more on classroom engagement strategies, you can schedule a consultation with a member of the CTLI team or check out CTLI’s upcoming events! 
Faculty might have pedagogical reasons to ask students to turn on cameras when teaching online, but educators should consider whether asking students to turn on their webcam is necessary to accomplish a learning objective and should explain to students the educational reason for their request, allowing the student to make their own, informed decision to do so based on their circumstances and without incurring penalties of any kind. 
In short, the default recommended practice would be to allow students to keep their webcams off, with certain learning goals and instructional practices making it justifiable for the educator to ask students to turn on their webcams if they are willing and able, after receiving an explanation for the request. The only exception to this choice would be during assessment activities that require* the use of a webcam.  
*Any webcam mandates need to be clearly communicated in advance of the first-expected use to allow students adequate time to plan and prepare their environment. 
Relevant MSU Documents and Policies 
Restrictions on instructors requiring students to turn on their webcams is supported by MSU’s Student Rights and Responsibilities, Article 2.II.B 8 (The student has a right to protection against improper disclosure of his/her education records and personal information such as values, beliefs, organizational affiliations, and health) and Article 2.III.B 10 (The student and the faculty share the responsibility for maintaining professional relationships based on mutual trust and civility). 
In light of the Family Educational Records Protections Act (FERPA), MSU’s Office of General Council recently put together this guide addressing how to properly deal with files of recorded synchronous sessions containing video feed.  References & Further Readings 
McCabe, J. A., Banasik, C. S., Jackson, M. G., Postlethwait, E. M., Steitz, A., & Wenzel, A. R. (2023). Exploring perceptions of cognitive load and mental fatigue in pandemic-era zoom classes. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/stl0000347  
Fauville, Geraldine and Luo, Mufan and Queiroz, Anna C. M. and Bailenson, Jeremy N. and Hancock, Jeff, Nonverbal Mechanisms Predict Zoom Fatigue and Explain Why Women Experience Higher Levels than Men (April 5, 2021). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3820035  or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3820035   
Waluyo, Budi & Wangdi, Thinley. (2023). Reasons and Impacts of Camera On and Off during Synchronous Online English Teaching and Learning: Insights from Thai EFL Context. CALL-EJ. 24. 179-198.  Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/367384842_Reasons_and_Impacts_of_Camera_On_and_Off_during_Synchronous_Online_English_Teaching_and_Learning_Insights_from_Thai_EFL_Context  
https://courses.cs.washington.edu/courses/cse481p/23sp/readings/W6S2/four-causes-zoom-fatigue-solutions-VigneshRamachandran.pdf   
Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash 
 

***This is part of a series of articles compiling useful resources and information for new graduate students. Some of the information in this series will be relevant for anybody new to MSU, including undergraduates, postdocs, faculty and staff. The topical areas range from settling into East Lansing and Michigan, getting to know which services can be found on campus to administrative steps and information needed throughout a graduate program at MSU. For the full series, see this playlist dedicated to (international) graduate students.***
 
By Bus
The local bus service is called CATA. CATA also operates the busses on campus. They have an App called Transit that is useful but can be a bit confusing in the beginning and is not always 100% accurate in my experience. So don’t wait until the last second to get to the bus stop!
On-campus bus services are free to use.
Off-campus bus services have a reduced fee for students. You pay the driver 60 Cents which includes free transfers. Make sure to say you are a student and have your student ID ready to show to get that reduced fee. You can only pay in cash but no worries if you don’t have the exact amount, you will get the change back as a ticket to use next time. If you use the bus often, it might be worth buying a semester pass.
A note on busses…
Busses in the US don’t stop at every bus stop, you will have to signal the bus driver when you want to get off. In most busses, this is done by pulling the yellow cord that runs along the windows. Some of the newer busses have “Stop” buttons on the handrails. Make sure to signal early enough!
By car
Getting a car might be a convenient option for you. Remember to purchase insurance for your car!
If you drive to campus, make sure to get a parking permit or if you only come in occasionally to park at visitor parking spots.
As an international student, you will probably have to get an American driver’s license. This is also good as identification here (better than carrying around your passport).
A note on driving…
Make sure to get familiar with the local traffic laws, e.g. surprisingly for me you can actually turn right on a red light (unless there is a sign saying otherwise).
Have you heard of the “Michigan left”? It is quite common in this state to not be able to make a left turn at an intersection. Don’t worry, you are meant to make a right turn and then a U-turn.
When driving anywhere but especially on campus: Please be a respectful driver, stick to the speed limit and look out for cyclists and pedestrians especially when turning.
By Bike
The MSU campus is big! A great way, besides taking the bus, is to cycle across campus. There is a decent network of dedicated bike lanes and there are bike racks to lock your bike near every building.
Whether you cycle or walk, this map can be useful in navigating from building to building using the “Wayfinding” function in the top right corner.
Cycling is also a great way to explore the Lansing River Trail and beyond. The MSU Bike Shop has maps of good bike trails and lanes around town. And if you ever get caught in the rain or snow, CATA busses have bike racks on which you can transport your bike while riding the bus.
The MSU Bike Shop sells (second-hand and new), rents and repairs bikes at good prices.
You can also find second-hand bikes at the Lansing Bike Coop (also for DYI and repairs), Dicker& Deal and others. There are several dedicated bike shops around East Lansing and Lansing if you are looking for something new or high-end.
Make sure to REGISTER YOUR BIKE! There are regular checks of campus for neglected, dysfunctional or improperly parked bikes. If your bike doesn’t have a registration sticker, it will be removed.
A note on cycling on campus…
Though there are a lot of cyclists on campus, please be careful when cycling. Not every car driver looks over their shoulder when they make a turn! At the same time, please make sure to be a respectful member of traffic – follow stop lights, indicate with your arm where you are going if you’re making a turn, don’t ride on the sidewalks, park and lock your bike at bike racks only. Also, protect your head, wear a helmet! 😊
 
Long-distance travel
There are several ways you can explore Michigan and the rest of the country.
By train
The local train station is on Harrison Road, close to Spartan Village. The trains here are operated by Amtrak and are a great way to go to Chicago or Detroit. They have comfortable seats and Wi-Fi but are not the fastest.
By bus
Next to the train station, you also find a bus terminal for longer distance busses operated by Indian Trails and Greyhound (which also leaves from the main CATA bus terminal in downtown Lansing).
The Michigan Flyer that leaves from downtown East Lansing (just outside the Marriott Hotel) is a convenient way to get to Detroit Metropolitan Airport or even just to Ann Arbor for a visit.
By plane
Lansing has its own airport, the Capital Region International Airport. You can sometimes find good deals to fly from there.
Often times, flying from the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is a cheaper option though.
It may also be worth looking at the Chicago airports, however, do keep in mind the longer travel time to get there and potential delays of trains, busses or because of traffic.

Spartan 365 (also known as Office 365) is a suite of Microsoft Office software available to staff, faculty, and students that is configured for MSU’s unique environment. Spartan 365 offers robust features, a secure, collaborative environment, and the ability to use on multiple devices.
This software is provided to individuals when they become affiliated with MSU and removed when they leave employment or graduate. MSU Email may be retained for individuals that formally retire from the university or have graduated after June of 2015*. Details about the Spartan 365 service offering can be found here. Additional information is available here.
Below are some of the available Spartan 365 tools. Additional Spartan 365 tools are being reviewed and will be rolled out in the future. You can log in to your Spartan 365 account at spartan365.msu.edu.
 
Chat & Collaboration
Teams
Teams is the chat-based workspace tool that allows you to manage all of your conversations, files, and tools in one team workspace. This tool can be used across multiple devices.
Available for faculty, researchers, staff, and students.
Access Teams at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about Microsoft Teams.
Collaboration & File Storage
Spartan Drive
Spartan Drive offers users a simple way to store, sync and share files with other people and devices. The files stored in Spartan Drive can be accessed directly from a web browser or from an operating system.
Available for students, faculty, researchers, and staff.
Access Spartan Drive at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about Spartan Drive.
Delve
Delve helps you manage your Spartan 365 profile, and to discover and organize the information that’s likely to be most interesting to you right now – across Office 365
Available for students, faculty, researchers, and staff.
Access Delve at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about Delve.
SharePoint
SharePoint is a web-based, collaborative platform that integrates with Spartan 365 products. This tool can be used to create an intranet or team site.
Available for faculty, researchers, and staff.
Access SharePoint at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about SharePoint.
Office Tools
OneNote
OneNote is a digital notebook you can use across multiple devices or through any web browser. OneNote automatically saves and synchronizes your notes and allows you the ability to share and collaborate.
Available for students, faculty, researchers, and staff.
Access OneNote at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about OneNote.
Sway
Sway allows you to design and create presentations that will be presented primarily onscreen rather than to an audience.
Available for students, faculty, researchers, and staff.
Access Sway at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about Sway.
Forms
Forms allows you to create surveys, quizzes, and polls, and to easily see results as they come in. When you create a quiz or form, you can invite others to respond to it using any web browser, even on mobile devices.
Available for students, faculty, researchers, and staff.
Access Forms at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about Forms.
PowerApps
PowerApps is a suite of apps, services, connectors, and data platforms that provides a rapid application development environment to build custom apps for your business needs.
Using PowerApps, you can quickly build custom business apps that connect to your business data stored either in the underlying data platform (Microsoft Dataverse) or in various online and on-premises data sources (SharePoint, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, SQL Server, and so on).
Access PowerApps at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about PowerApps.
Power Automate
Power Automate is a tool that allows you to automate workflows and streamline processes.
With Power Automate, you can automate business processes, send automatic reminders for tasks, move business data between systems, and more.
Access Power Automate at spartan365.msu.edu and learn more about Power Automate.
Office Pro Plus Licenses
MSU licensed Spartan 365 Office Pro Plus software (including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Sway, and Outlook) for use by the MSU community at no added cost. This software is available for Mac, PC, and mobile devices.

Departmental use – Available for download at msu.edu
Undergraduate Student use – Available for download when students log into their Spartan Mail/Spartan 365 accounts
Graduate Student use – Available for download at msu.edu
Faculty/Staff use – Available for download at msu.edu

Spartan Mail
Spartan Mail (Microsoft Outlook and Campus Exchange) is the official email client of MSU available for all MSU faculty, staff, undergraduate, and graduate students. It provides management of email and calendaring features in a common environment. Spartan Mail replaced the legacy email system previously accessed through mail.msu.edu.
Access your account at spartanmail.msu.edu or through Spartan 365 using the Outlook app.
Spartan Mail offers benefits:

Email, calendaring, security, and collaboration features across your devices
Up to 25GB of data storage
Access to the Spartan 365 suite of tools at msu.edu

Learn more about Spartan Mail and MSU Mail Protection.
Data Protections
Microsoft’s Enterprise Agreement for Spartan 365 provides compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). This means student and health information are protected and onshore data storage is ensured.
As part of MSU’s Spartan 365 agreement, Microsoft will not mine individual data and will only access that data for troubleshooting needs or malware prevention.
Spartan 365 customer data belongs to individuals and they can export their data at any time.
*Note: The terms of these service offerings are subject to change. Termination of services will be preceded by a two-week notice whenever possible.