University of Michigan News

09/26/2025

"Michigan is now staring down the barrel of its first extended shutdown ever," wrote Nicholas Bagley, professor of law at the University of Michigan Law School.

Bagley believes that if the state legislature can't come together and pass a budget, it may lead to a government shutdown in Michigan. via Detroit News: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/2025/09/17/the-michigan-legislature-needs-to-do-its-constitutional-duty-and-pass-a-budget/86179868007/

09/25/2025

Flavored cannabis vapes are now the #1 way U.S. teens use ma*****na.

Richard Miech, principal investigator of the Monitoring the Future study at the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research (ISR), says flavored vapes are “gaining traction among youth,” with fruit flavors and easy concealment driving appeal.
https://news.umich.edu/flavored-ma*****na-vapes-becoming-new-face-of-teen-drug-use-sparking-addiction-fears/

09/25/2025

About 20 million U.S. adults are living with some form of age-related macular degeneration. Current treatments slow the disease, but none restore vision.

U-M researchers at Michigan Medicine used retinal pigment epithelial stem cells derived from adult postmortem eye tissue in a phase 1/2a clinical trial. The treatment was safe and the participants experienced improved vision in the transplanted eye, hinting that the approach could provide a new therapeutic avenue.

Learn more: https://michmed.org/7KRAj

09/24/2025

Michigan’s local officials are growing more pessimistic about their ability to maintain—let alone expand—services under the current local government funding system, according to a University of Michigan study.

That’s the main takeaway from the latest installment of the Michigan Public Policy Survey conducted by the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy.
https://news.umich.edu/many-local-michigan-officials-say-services-threatened-by-faltering-local-government-funding-system/

09/24/2025

Geoff Chatas, executive vice president and chief financial officer at the University of Michigan, discusses solar arrays on North Campus that generate enough electricity to power nearly 100 homes. via Audacy, Inc.: https://www.audacy.com/wwjnewsradio/news/local/u-of-m-says-two-campus-solar-arrays-are-up-and-running

09/23/2025

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has stopped publishing the nation’s annual Household Food Security Report, the key resource for tracking hunger in America. University of Michigan School of Public Health and Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy experts say eliminating this report means losing the most rigorous tool for understanding how federal policies affect families and children struggling with food insecurity.

Read more and connect with our experts:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has stopped its annual Household Food Security Report, the government's primary measure of hunger and food insecurity in the United States. University of Michigan experts are available to discuss the implications of ending this decades-long data collection effort.

09/23/2025

ABC announced Jimmy Kimmel will return to his late night show Tuesday following criticism over his comments about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The off-again, on-again saga has more plot twists to come. But one thing is certain as it unfolds: The host's removal and restoration "is a testament to the power of cultural consumption as a combatant to the sway of the political bully pulpit," according to Ross School of Business marketing professor Marcus Collins.
Learn more: myumi.ch/y1ZmQ

09/23/2025

Aditi Verma, assistant professor with Nuclear Engineering & Radiological Sciences, discusses the investment into nuclear microreactors. via The Conversation US: https://theconversation.com/nuclear-in-your-backyard-tiny-reactors-could-one-day-power-towns-and-campuses-but-community-input-will-be-key-261225

09/23/2025

Hepatitis B can linger in microscopic traces of bodily fluids, meaning that specks of dried blood that end up on nail clippers, towels, tooth brushes, razors or other items can be infectious for a week. Debra Langlois, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at Michigan Medicine, discusses. via The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/well/hepatitis-b-vaccine-rfk-jr.html?searchResultPosition=1

09/22/2025

Two new solar arrays on North Campus are now generating power, marking the first installations completed under University of Michigan’s Maize Rays initiative. These panels are part of a multi-year plan to expand on-campus solar capacity, enhance energy resilience, and reduce the university’s carbon footprint.

The University of Michigan announces the first two solar arrays are now up and running on the North Campus. It consists of both rooftop panels and a solar carport.

09/22/2025

In his $15 billion lawsuit against The New York Times, Donald Trump would need to prove not just that a claim was false and defamatory, but that its publisher either knew that at the time or acted with “reckless disregard” for the truth. Don Herzog, professor of law at the University of Michigan Law School, discusses. via Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/09/16/trump-new-york-times-defamation-lawsuit/

09/19/2025

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