It’s been 40 years since ‘The Big Chill’ examined the nature of lifelong bonds — the ones forged in college — that couldn’t survive the real world. In the case of 12 alumnae who met as U-M freshmen in 1985, those bonds remain as solid as the day they moved into Alice Lloyd Hall.

Jeremy Bailenson, BS ’94, served as one of the consultants on the $2.3-billion Sphere in Las Vegas, the groundbreaking immersive entertainment venue. Extended reality isn’t just for play, he says. Impactful learning experiences are among the technology’s most impressive benefits.

In 1945, Sarah Elizabeth Ray was denied passage on a ferry on the Detroit River because she was Black. She fought the injustice, became a civil rights activist, and her case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, her legacy is being preserved in a collection coming to the Bentley Historical Library.

In the 1910s, anarchist, writer, and provocateur Emma Goldman, described by J. Edgar Hoover as ‘the most dangerous woman in America,’ paid regular visits to Ann Arbor. She described one rowdy U-M crowd as ‘pampered parasites, not one of them with enough backbone to fight a flea.’

The power of the narrative can be harnessed to “change perspectives, promote social progress, and particularly amplify the voices of marginalized individuals and communities,” SMTD professor Antonio Cuyler told attendees of the October ’23 DEI summit. Narrative storytelling is where CRT converges with hip-hop, he said.

Nominees may be individuals who have advanced their field of endeavor in significant ways, or who have made compelling contributions to society. Nominating deadline for candidates to be considered for the 2024 Spring Commencement Exercises is 5 p.m. Oct. 16.

The first Japanese American workers arrived on the U-M campus in 1943. When they were willing to wash dishes and stock shelves, the University opened its doors. When they applied as students, the doors closed.

After seven decades, Michigan Marching Band photographer Dick Gaskill, BBA ’57, has finally put down his gameday camera. But all those memories at Michigan Stadium are forever printed in the pages of history, and on his heart.

School of Information students are looking through the ‘lens of an information professional’ and using data to tackle urgent water-related issues in Michigan and around the globe. Partners in the school’s inaugural ‘theme year’ include representatives from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.