Con-Con Room – State of Michigan Seal with a plaque for Con-Con Room (Shaw Lane entrance outside of room 115) The text of the plaque is:
“Con-Con Room (115 International Center)
State of Michigan Constitutional Convention 1961-62
Since its existence as a state, Michigan has had four different Constitutions, five Constitutional Conventions and one Constitutional Commission.
The last and most recent Constitutional Convention was held on October 3, 1961. One hundred forty-four delegates from every walk of life, including eleven women and thirteen African American delegates, assembled at the Lansing Civic Center to draft a new Constitution for the State of Michigan. The existing Constitution had been amended seventy times and no longer suited the industrial leader the state had become. For eight months, the delegates listened, proposed, debated and compromised. The document that was produced changed the workings of Michigan’s executive, legislative and judicial branches of government, and included significant revisions to the local governments, the administration of public education, and the terms of office for elected officials. The new constitution revitalized the guarantee of civil rights for every Michigan citizen and established a civil rights commission to safe guard those rights. The Constitution was approved by voters in a close election on April 1, 1963. Despite their many differences, the delegates produced a charger that has stood the test of time.
As the convention concluded, it was determined that the furnishings used by the convention were preventing the Civic Center from reusing the space for the multitude of other events supported by the facility. As a result, the State of Michigan decided that an alternate location should be found for these furnishings. In May 1962, the furnishings were given as a gift to Michigan State University and the convention room was recreated at the International Center, room 115, which for many years was referred to as the Con-Con Room. The furnishings remained in the room until 1997 serving various instructional and meeting needs of the campus over a 30-plus year period. In 1997 the furnishings were distributed to various Michigan county historical museums, the Michigan Historical Museum, the MSU (Detroit) College of Law, and representatives and senators that served during the convention, with remaining items made available to the public. This distribution was undertaken in preparation for renovation of the room in 1998 to provide for an updated instructional and meeting space that continues to serve campus today.”
The plaque includes two photographs: one shows the Constitutional Convention in the Lansing Civic Center. The other shows the Con-Con room at the MSU International Center, room 115. The caption for that photo is “Pictured are two leaders of the Constitutional Convention who have strong MSU connections. Stephen Nisbet (left), president of the Constitutional Convention and member of the Michigan State Board of Trustees (1964-1971). John Hannah (right), delegate of the Constitutional Convention and president of Michigan State University (1941-1969).”
Delia Koo International Academic Center Plaque (Shaw Lane Entrance) The text of the plaque is:
“Delia Koo International Academic Center Plaque
On November 10, 2000, the Michigan State University Board of Trustees adopted a resolution to name the academic wing of the International Center the “Delia Koo International Academic Center.”
Koo, nee Zung Fung Wei, was born in China in 1921. In 1941, she went to Radcliffe College (Harvard University) where she was an Evans Fellow and Ann Radcliffe Fellow and completed a master’s degree (1942) and doctorate (1947) in English. She received and M.A. in mathematics from Michigan State University in 1954, and subsequently launched a twenty year teaching career as professor of mathematics at Eastern Michigan University and as author of texts on the subject. She has served as governor of the Michigan Section of the Mathematical Association of America. After her retirement in 1983, she founded the Volunteer English Tutoring Program at MSU, a program which enables American volunteers to share and appreciate the diverse cultures of the world, and international visitors to become familiar with the American way of life.
Koo’s guiding philosophy is: Our languages and cultures may differ, but underneath all that, we are all the same.”
https://givingto.msu.edu/media/stories-archive/pdf/Developments_Summer2003.pdf
1966 Class Gift – Replica of Unisphere from 1964-1965 Worlds' Fair with plaque, (west entrance nearest Crossroads Food Court)
The text of the plaque is “A Gift From the Class of 1966” “Symbolizing “Peace Through Understanding” this replica of the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair unisphere was presented to Michigan State University by the MSU class of 1966. It serves as a reminder and inspiration for all to work for the betterment of humankind.
The base of the globe was made from walnut milled from a tree planted at the turn of the century on the land where MSU’s Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center now stands.”