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Nearly $32,000 raised at ninth annual Fostering Futures Scholarship Trust Fund event in Detroit

LANSING – More than 480 foster youth are eligible to receive college scholarships following the ninth annual Fostering Futures Scholarship Trust Fund Benefit Dinner organized by the Michigan Education Trust (MET) and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). Friday evening’s event at the Roostertail along the banks of the Detroit River was attended by approximately 150 guests who raised $31,615 for scholarships through MET, the Michigan Department of Treasury’s 529 prepaid education program. So far this year, MET has raised $38,969 for the scholarships. Both ...

Stabenow, Peters announce over $3 million in support for Michigan fire departments

WASHINGTON, D.C - U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (MI) and Gary Peters (MI) announced that the Michigan Public Health Institute will receive $1,408,797 to provide smoke detectors and develop online fire prevention tools for Michigan schools. The Fire Department Safety Officers Association will also receive $1,500,000 in federal funding to support community fire prevention education and training. These federal funds come from the Department of Homeland Security's Fire Prevention and Safety Grant (FP&S) Program. "Our firefighters and first responders put their lives on the line to protect ...

Rep. Markkanen highlights pivotal grant awarded to Houghton

HOUGHTON — State Rep. Greg Markkanen today announced the city of Houghton has been awarded a grant to provide people with improved, more efficient infrastructure. A total of $1,035,000 in water-related infrastructure grant awards will be provided to the community through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Michigan Strategic Fund’s Community Development Block Grant Program. “This funding is a critical investment into a western U.P. community – allowing Houghton to address public health and infrastructure planning while making the city an even better place to work, ...

Fall color chairlift rides on hold at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park

The popular fall color rides at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in Ontonagon County are closed until at least mid-October. With the popularity of the rides, which offer a spectacular view of the surrounding autumn countryside and the deep blue waters of Lake Superior, upgrades were necessary to the triple-chair lift to meet current engineering and design specifications. These upgrades will allow more visitors to ride up and down simultaneously, decreasing wait times. Unfortunately, the work is taking place between now and mid-October – the traditional peak of the fall color ...

UIA begins search process to upgrade operating system

LANSING — The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency will issue a Request for Information through the Department of Technology, Management and Budget as the agency looks at options to replace its unemployment benefits and employer tax system that has been in use since 2012. The RFI is intended to get an understanding of the products that are available in the market for a system capable of handling the complexity of the unemployment insurance program, and is robust, secure and protects sensitive claimant and employer information. It will ultimately help create the necessary ...

Governor Whitmer appoints Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian as chief medical executive, thanks Dr. Joneigh Khaldun for leadership during pandemic

LANSING — Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced that Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian will serve as chief medical executive for the state of Michigan beginning on Friday, Oct. 1. Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, who currently serves as chief medical executive and chief deputy for health, has accepted a new position to pursue an opportunity outside of state government, which will be announced in the coming weeks. The State of Michigan will conduct a nationwide search to select a permanent chief medical executive. “Thanks to Dr. J’s around-the-clock leadership, our state acted quickly with the best ...