Padnos International Center to host study-abroad fair 

The Padnos International Center will host its study-abroad fair Thursday, Jan. 18, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Henry Hall Atrium. Students interested in seeing what study abroad is all about are welcome to browse the different programs and speak to students who have participated in them.

Snacks and drinks will be provided at the fair. For more information, email [email protected] or visit www.gvsu.edu/studyabroad.

GVSU to hold Sibs & Kids Weekend 

Students are welcome to bring a sibling or any youngster in their life to Grand Valley State University for Sibs and Kids Weekend on Friday, Jan. 26, and Saturday, Jan. 27. Activities include face painting, laser tag, an escape room and inflatables. 

To register for the event or to see the completed list of activities, visit www.gvsu.edu/sibsnkids/.

Spotlight Productions teases spring concert headliner

Grand Valley State University’s Spotlight Productions has announced that the headliner for the 2018 spring concert will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 18, on its Twitter account. The opening act of the evening, Gnash, was announced on Twitter on Tuesday, Jan. 16. The account has tweeted hints of the headliner with a blurred album cover. 

GVSU to host space exploration conference

Grand Valley State University and the Grand Rapids Public Museum will host a two-day symposium on space exploration featuring the first African-American to travel to space.

“Roger That! A Celebration of Space Exploration in Honor of Roger B. Chaffee” will take place on Friday, Feb. 16, and Saturday, Feb. 17, at the DeVos Center Loosemore Auditorium on GVSU’s Pew Campus. Chaffee was an astronaut from Grand Rapids who died during the testing of Apollo I in 1967.

Guion “Guy” Bluford became the first ever African-American to travel into space in 1983. He will be a part of the conference. The conference is free and open for the public to attend, but the registration deadline is Sunday, Feb. 11.

GVSU receives grant for history project

The Grand Valley State University Kutsche Office of Local History received a $12,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Common Heritage grant will go toward a collaboration with the Saugatuck-Douglas History Center for its project “Stories of Summer.” The project will use historical newspaper articles to document the rise of the LGBT community in Saugatuck.

GVSU professor warns of worker shortage

Paul Isely, professor of economics at Grand Valley State University, told a gathering of workers during the West Michigan Economic and Commercial Real Estate Forecast on Wedneday, Jan. 17, that West Michigan employers are “out of workers.”

Isely, who is also the associate dean for the Seidman College of Business, told attendees that employers are hiring non-violent felons.

He also said that growth will continue through 2018, but a shallow recession is expected in 2019.