Kevin M. Guskiewicz, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist and higher education leader who assumed the presidency of Michigan State University on March 4, 2024.

 

Guskiewicz focuses on the university’s role as a talent activator for the state of Michigan and beyond, preparing students for the global challenges and career opportunities of the 21st century. As the leader of a proudly public educational institution, his chief priority is fostering a university that is strategic, bold, inclusive and student-focused.

 

He holds a professorship in the MSU College of Education’s Department of Kinesiology and was awarded a John A. Hannah Distinguished Professorship on Oct. 31, 2025.

 

In 2011, Guskiewicz received the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship for his innovative work on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of sport-related concussions. His research has influenced collegiate and professional football safety guidelines, and he has published over 200 peer-reviewed papers and maintains an active research portfolio.

 

In 2013, Time magazine named him a Game Changer, one of 18 “innovators and problem-solvers that are inspiring change in America.”

 

Upon his arrival at MSU, Guskiewicz embarked on a 52-stop listening and learning tour of the university’s colleges and administrative units. The tour initiated his work to help identify an institutional “true north,” leading MSU to provide the best education and workplace culture for Spartans and bold service to the public in the land-grant tradition.

 

The university celebrated his presidential investiture on Sept. 29, 2024. There, Guskiewicz described his “one team” approach and unveiled his first set of initiatives addressing strategic priorities for Michigan State’s continued rise as a leading global research university.

 

Among President Guskiewicz’s signature initiatives is the Green and White Council, a group of civic and business leaders, funders and government officials advising MSU on how to best prepare students to meet current and future workforce needs. He has introduced a full-ride, competitive scholarship program that features financial support for experiential opportunities such as education abroad. Other key initiatives include widening access to an MSU degree through programs accommodating Michigan community college transfers, Native American enrollees and Lansing-area students.

 

To bring the university closer to its Michigan communities, Guskiewicz, in the fall of 2024, inaugurated the semi-annual Spartan Bus Tour. The bus tours take MSU leaders and faculty members to places our students call home and where Michigan State’s impact is felt daily through its research, education and outreach.

 

To equip the university with the resources to thrive in the 21st century, Guskiewicz, in the spring of 2025, launched Michigan State’s most ambitious comprehensive campaign to date. The $4 billion “Uncommon Will, Far Better World” campaign aims to cultivate lasting change by expanding access and opportunity for Spartans and enhancing their potential through scholarships and programmatic support; growing groundbreaking research and community partnerships to tackle the world’s most pressing challenges; and transforming university spaces and technology to empower Spartans to lead in their fields.

 

Kevin Guskiewicz’s leadership extends beyond the campus boundaries to include representing Michigan State in prestigious higher education associations, including the Association of American Universities, Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, University Innovation Alliance, Big Ten Conference, Research Universities for Michigan and the Michigan Association of State Universities.

 

Recognizing the importance of higher education to the prosperity of the state and nation, Guskiewicz is also active in Business Leaders for Michigan, Citizens Research Council, Detroit Economic Club, Detroit Regional Chamber, Downtown Detroit Partnership, Grand Action 2.0 and the Council for Competitiveness.

 

Guskiewicz came to Michigan State from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which he led as chancellor from 2019-24. Earlier, he served as dean of the UNC College of Arts and Sciences, as a department chair and as a Kenan Distinguished Professor in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science. He was executive director of the Center for the Study of Retired Athletes at UNC and the founding director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center.

 

A 2020 National Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame inductee, Guskiewicz earned a bachelor’s degree in athletic training from West Chester University, a master’s in exercise physiology/athletic training from the University of Pittsburgh and a doctorate in sports medicine from the University of Virginia.

 

Born and raised in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, he and his wife Amy have four children: Jacob, Nathan, Adam and Tessa.

                                                                                                                                                                                                         DowntownLansing Inc is having its annual Big Red Ball on Saturday, November 21, and they are looking for volunteers to help with the event.  DLI’s mission is to “strengthen and nurture the culture, health, and sustainability of our downtown district.”   Shifts on November 21 include event setup 2:30-5:30 pm, various shifts during the event from 5:30-10:00 pm, and event tear down and cleanup from 9:30-11:30 pm.  More information can be found here: https://signup.com/go/GpgGkpd. 

The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan invites Rotarians to participate in the August 28th March on the Capitol for Voting Rights and Deomocracy at 5:30 p.m.

 

Beginning at the Lansing Center and concluding on the Michigan State Capitol lawn, participants will experience an evening of inspiration, education, and unity featuring community organizations, family activities, food trucks, live entertainment, educational resources, and voter-engagement opportunities. Held on the anniversary of the historic 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, the event honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s enduring legacy while encouraging civic engagement, voter participation, and a renewed commitment to protecting democracy for future generations. The award-winning Detroit Youth Choir will bring its powerhouse sound, youthful energy, and inspiring message to the Capitol lawn. The choir will help set a joyful, uplifting tone for an evening rooted in unity, civic engagement, and community pride. DJ Zachary Clark will keep the evening moving with music that welcomes families, energizes participants, and creates a celebratory atmosphere from the march to the Capitol lawn.This event is free and open to the public. Clerks' offices, NAACP, League of Women Voters and more will be on hand to assist with voter education and registration. RSVP on Facebook.com CLICK HERE

We have a service opportunity at the Greater Lansing Food Bank on Tuesday, September 22nd from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. located at 5600 Food Ct., Bath Township. Please let Jason Brunette know if you can help:  Jason.Brunette@martincommercial.com 

The MSU Broad Art Museum has invited us to an evening of art, networking, and civic conversation. This will be our "Social Gathering" for September, inviting other Rotary Clubs to join us as well.

The evening includes a reception, networking, and an opportunity to explore the MSU Broad Art Museum, including the exhibit:

 We Art This Land: Meditations on the Great American Experiment, which fills the entire museum. Tours will be offered periodically throughout the evening

if you wish to dive deeper.

 

President Susan Angel started the meeting at 12:30 p.m. on the nose with the Four-Way Test.

 

Cathy Zell gave the reflection for the day. She shared a story about a relationship with Melissa Nay that began when they worked together at WKAR. Cathy had hired her, and the station manager was so glad Cathy had found her. Cathy asked us to reflect on relationships that start as one thing, turn into friendships and eventually become the family we choose. Make sure you tell those people what they mean to you.

 

When our coworkers become our friends, they make the work so much more enjoyable. Think about the people in this room with whom we break bread. Have some of these people moved from stranger, to acquaintance, to friend, to family we chose? Cathy has several people in the room who she considers to be in that category.

 

I’m the Editarian, so I get to write whatever I want here.

 

Today is the five-year anniversary of my dad dying. He was in this club for 31 years. I even buried him with his Paul Harris Fellow pin on. This reflection hit super close to home as I thought about all the Lansing Rotarians who started as my dad’s acquaintances in this club, then became his friends, and eventually became his chosen family.

 

I thought about Lisa Smith, who sang at his funeral. He cherished their friendship. I thought about Duane Vernon, who was one of my dad’s closest friends. They had a special bond. I thought about Kevin Schumacher, who has helped both of us for decades through business challenges and even got to handle both of our divorces. Lucky Kevin.

 

Barb Whitney introduced Rachel Beatty, who works as the Marketing Manager for Legends Global. She will be in charge of Silver Bells! Jason Brunette introduced Jayme Taylor, Director of Marketing at Martin. Katie Krick introduced Lauren Powell, Field Sales Manager for Priority Medicare. They were friends, then colleagues, then friends.

 

Terry Terry introduced Dave Mingus who was our special music for the day.

 

Big Red Ball needs volunteers. We have a volunteer opportunity from 9–11 a.m. at the Greater Lansing Food Bank on a day I can't remember. Details further down in this email. There is a nonpartisan march for voting rights and democracy led by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission.

 

Julie Thomasma introduced our speaker for the day, Melissa Nay.

 

Melissa is an MSU graduate with a B.A. in advertising. She started her career at the Fort Myers News Press and eventually made her way to the Lansing State Journal.

 

Choose Lansing’s vision is to inspire visitors and community partners to love Greater Lansing as much as we do. Their mission is to positively impact our community’s quality of life by developing the region as a visitor destination.

 

They are a 501(c)(6) organization dedicated to attracting visitors of all kinds to Greater Lansing. Greater Lansing welcomes 6.7 million visitors annually, who generate $732 million in direct spending. Tourism supports 9,500 jobs in the Lansing community in hospitality. Before COVID, there were 11,000 jobs, so the industry is now doing more with less.

 

Greater Lansing is 90 minutes from 90% of Michigan’s population. We are centrally located and have less traffic than other major cities.

 

Choose Lansing supports the entire tri-county region, which has a population of approximately 472,848 people.

 

Choose Lansing is funded through hotel taxes and assessments. The more people who stay in our hotels, the more money there is to promote the region. Their annual budget is just under $7 million. A 5% tax comes directly to Choose Lansing from Delta Township, East Lansing and Meridian Township. In Lansing, a portion goes to the Ingham County Fairgrounds and the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, with the remainder going to Choose Lansing.

 

An additional 3% assessment just passed and Melissa thanked us! This applies to Ingham County only. Greater Lansing is the second area in the state to pass this, with Grand Rapids being the first. Choose Lansing only measures hotel rooms that pay assessments in our region. This does not apply to short-term rentals such as Airbnb or VRBO.

 

How many hotels pay assessments in Greater Lansing? Currently, we have 5,668 room nights available per day, for a total of 2,061,050 annually. There are 58 hotels that report rooms, and only hotels with more than 20 rooms pay the assessment. Hotel occupancy was 55.2% in 2025, up 2.4%.

 

Greater Lansing has now had two years in a row with more than 1 million occupied hotel rooms, which is only the third time in Choose Lansing history that has happened. Since 2021, Greater Lansing has opened the following hotels, adding 818 total rooms, or 298,570 room nights per year:

New hotels slated to open include:

What are the top-performing days for hotels in Greater Lansing, and who is visiting us? MSU football had a major impact in 2025. Hotel occupancy averaged 77% across all MSU football game days and peaked at 90.5% during Parents and Family Weekend on Saturday, September 13, against Youngstown State.

 

The top hotel-generating weekends in both 2024 and 2025 were MSU graduation weekends. Some key MSU dates for 2026 that generate hotel revenue include:

From the beginning of the year through the end of June, Michigan was the top origin for visitors to our region. Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Florida followed. The average length of stay is 1.6 days.

Students and their families are coming to MSU from all seven continents. Their average length of stay is 4.2 days, and 99.7% stay overnight.

 

Choose Lansing can help you plan meetings and events in Lansing. They can assist with hotel room blocks, securing locations, referrals for caterers, décor, videographers, welcome bags for guests, travel activities and more.

 

The Lansing Sports Commission is part of Choose Lansing. It focuses on amateur athletic competitions and events. They support and maintain athletic facilities and playing structures throughout the Lansing region and partner with organizations including U.S. sports organizations for figure skating, clay sports, MHSAA, NCAA and local events. They host a diverse range of sporting events year-round, from wrestling and bowling to many other sports, helping position Greater Lansing as a premier sports destination. This year, for the first time ever, we are hosting the Division I men’s and women’s cross-country regionals. Two days later, the regionals for Division III men’s and women’s cross-country will also be held here.

 

Choose Lansing is a huge advocate for accessible tourism. Greater Lansing prides itself on being a welcoming community and strives to provide the best possible experience for all guests who visit. They are always working to accommodate visitors and make our services more accessible for travelers of all abilities. They have a guide that lists attractions, hotels, museums and recreational activities that visitors can discover based on their abilities.

 

When in doubt, refer people to Lansing.org. It tells you where to eat, where to stay, things to do and explore, shopping, local attractions, events and upcoming activities. They also have printed visitor guides available for visitors looking for more information about the area.

 

The Team Lansing Foundation is the 501(c)(3) nonprofit arm of Choose Lansing. They give $250–$500 to local festivals, and organizations can apply for grants for impactful projects that enhance the visitor experience. Examples of projects they have supported include:

Choose Lansing also runs the Certified Tourism Ambassador, or CTA, Program. The CTA Program is a four-hour class held on-site at Choose Lansing for $20. They will also come to your location with a minimum of 10 participants and six weeks’ notice.

 

Participants learn about what Choose Lansing does for the region, what we have to offer here and customer service. Proud CTA here!

 

Choose Lansing also runs Lansing Restaurant Week with Lansing 5:01 and Lansing Foodies. The next Restaurant Week is October 1–7. Participating restaurants will have:

They will do Restaurant Week again in May leading up to 517 Day.

 

Irv asked how we can best stay in the know about construction in town. Melissa recommended using the MDOT Traffic Map. She also teaches a class every January about upcoming traffic and construction in Lansing.

 

Diane gave a soliloquy. I don’t think there was a question in there. Ben Bakken asked what, in a perfect world, a sports complex in Greater Lansing would look like. Melissa said it would be an indoor facility that could accommodate multiple sports. They already know where they would want to build it. Ideally, they would then want hotels and retail attached to it.

 

Melissa thinks the largest opportunity for growth is enhancing the current assets that we already have. Lugnuts Stadium is at the top of that list.

 

She also shared the top attractions in Lansing: Uncle John’s Cider Mill, Spartan Stadium, Horrocks, Jackson Field, Impression 5 and the Michigan State Capitol.

 

Next week’s speaker is MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz. Please communicate in advance if you are bringing guests.

 

Email for Ben Rathbun:  Ben@rathbunagency.com