Writing Portfolio
Western Michigan's enrollment slides as Grand Valley's has swelled
News Writing,
December 20, 2017
KALAMAZOO, MI -- As a high school senior, Jonathan Bowman sent applications to 13 colleges, including both Grand Valley State University and Western Michigan University.
He chose to attend Grand Valley.
The "nice, new and vibrant" campus in Allendale and its "safe and welcoming atmosphere" drove his decision.
"I tell everyone I know to come to Grand Valley, because I really love it," said Bowman, of Brighton, now a senior at GVSU.
Western Michigan and Grand Valley, separated by 65 miles, have seen their enrollments go opposite directions, with GVSU landing more students like Bowman than its counterpart to the south. From the 1990-91 school year through 2016-17, Grand Valley's enrollment grew about 250 percent, while Western's dropped 7 percent.
GVSU's enrollment caught WMU's in 2009, and the gap has since widened.
'I loved my mother dearly,' says son sentenced for killing elderly mom
News Writing,
December 7, 2017
KALAMAZOO, MI -- Wesley Bodine professed "I loved my mother dearly" in a Kalamazoo courtroom Thursday, before being sent to prison for killing her.
Bodine, 49, of Portage, pleaded guilty in October to manslaughter for the death of his 85-year-old mother, Barbara Bodine. On Thursday, he was sentenced in Kalamazoo County Circuit Court to two to 15 years in prison.
Bodine broke down in tears when attempting to read a prepared statement. His attorney, Donald Smith, read it for him, saying his client was "so terribly sorry."
"I did not intend for my mother to be injured so severely. I am so terribly sorry for what happened," Bodine's statement said. "Drinking can ruin your life and cost you everything you hold dear and everyone you love ... I pray for forgiveness from the Lord and my family and hope I'll be able turn my life around."
"I loved my mother dearly," Bodine wrote.
Bodine was charged with an open count murder for the death of his mother, who fell and struck her head after an argument between the two at her Cooper Township home on April 24, 2016. She died June 12, 2016.
Western Michigan shifts dorm focus to southern part of campus
News Writing,
November 22, 2017
KALAMAZOO, MI -- Plans to demolish and replace Western Michigan University's dorms in Valley III were postponed when President Edward Montgomery decided to take the university in a different direction.
"I came in August and the new guy on the block looks at things with a fresh set of eyes, and looks for opportunities where we can do these projects and potentially get a systematic, more holistic movement of the campus for a bolder and bigger vision," Montgomery said.
Renovation plans shifted from the Valleys to buildings in the southern part of campus, including Elmwood Apartments, after a meeting with Montgomery and various university administrators on Sept. 25, according to emails obtained by MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette through the Freedom of Information Act.
Approaching campus development "holistically" and "systematically" is important to Montgomery's plans for WMU, he said. The "curb appeal" of WMU was also important to his decision to shift focus.
The university refers to that part of campus as "South Neighborhood" and it is adjacent to high-traffic Stadium Drive.
The area is the "longest face of the campus, and it's not as appealing as it should be. It doesn't say 'Come in.' It doesn't say, 'Wow, this is a vibrant campus,'" Montgomery said in an interview with MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette on Tuesday, Nov. 22.
Man arrested for pistol-whipping 2 relatives on Christmas Eve
News Writing,
December 25, 2017
KALAMAZOO, MI -- A Kalamazoo man was arrested for allegedly pistol-whipping two relatives during a family dispute on Christmas Eve, police said.
The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety responded to the 1200 Block of Lane Boulevard at about 9 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 24 on a report of an assault.
A 30-year-old man had hit two adult males in the head with the butt of a handgun before fleeing the scene, a news release said.
Both victims were treated at the scene for lacerations to the head. One was transported to a hospital for treatment of injuries that police said were not life threatening.
The incident stemmed from a family dispute, and alcohol is believed to have been a factor, the release said.
The suspect, whose name was not released, faces charges of felonious assault, simple assault and battery, domestic violence, felony firearm and felon in possession of a firearm, according to the release.
For a complete list of articles, see mlive.com.