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Southwest Michigan Today: Tuesday July 10, 2018

Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office - file photo by WMUK
WMUK

WMU Plans a national search to find a new leader for development and alumni relations. Body armor will help protect one of the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Department dogs. The latest monthly report shows solid growth continues in West Michigan's industrial economy. 

Western Michigan University says it’s launching a national search for a new vice president for development and alumni relations. A news release says the search follows the resignation of Tim Terrentine. He had held the job since 2016. Western says Director of Engagement Renee Pearl is serving as interim vice president. The university is expected to name a search committee in the next few weeks.

A Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Department dog will soon be getting body armor. The department says it's received a grant from the nonprofit Vested Interest in K-9's. The special vest that costs about two-thousand dollars helps protect police dogs from gunfire and knife wounds. This vest will go to "Roseco," one of the Kalamazoo Sheriff's three police dogs. The two-year-old German shepherd is named for Wayne State University K-9 Officer Collin Rose, a Richland native who was killed in the line of duty in 2016.

The state has added to the list of conditions that qualify people for medical marijuana cards. The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs says eleven illnesses have been added. They include arthritis, autism, chronic pain, Parkinson's disease, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. But an advisory board rejected others, like diabetes, depression, panic attacks, asthma, and schizophrenia.

The latest report on West Michigan’s industrial economy shows continued solid growth. Grand Valley State Universityeconomist Brian Long’s monthly report for the Institute of Supply Management shows economic indicators were positive, and mostly improved last month. Long says some of the business leaders responding to his survey during the last two weeks in June expressed concern about what a trade war could mean for their companies.

(Michigan Radio) The union that represents state park officers in Michigan says they should be able to carry guns on the job. The union claims there's been an increase in criminal activity in state parks. The state says that's not true. State park officers already carry pepper spray, batons, and handcuffs. There are currently 226 conservation officers in Michigan, who do carry guns.

In baseball, Kalamazoo won at Kenosha Monday night 14-4. Battle Creek lost to Madison Monday 3-0. The Growlers and Bombers begin a two game series Tuesday night in Battle Creek. The two teams play again Wednesday night in Kalamazoo.