SW Michigan

Lansing - Gov. Rick Snyder on Tuesday embraced classroom technology innovation that is part of a controversial reform group's study and said he wants to make the reformers' secret "skunk works" project an "official" government initiative.

KALAMAZOO TOWNSHIP, MI -- The Kalamazoo Township Board of Trustees voted this week to add language to its equal opportunity employer policy. Board members added that the township will not discriminate against gender identity, sexual orientation, or genetic information.

Battle Creek Fire Chief Larry Hausman has spent hours cleaning his office as he prepares to retire from the fire service. The pictures, memorabilia and files are gone as he ends a career he has always loved. "It doesn't seem possible," he said Tuesday, "after you have worked all your life and are in a routine of working.

Longtime Michigan Republican operatives are open about their desire see Rep. Mike Rogers run in the state's open-seat Senate race, but they're worried Rep. Justin Amash -- who possesses little regard for the GOP establishment -- won't let the possibility of a damaging primary derail his ambition for a seat in the upper chamber.

ST. JOSEPH - The state Department of Environmental Quality has approved Berrien County's application for a five-year permit to dredge areas of the St. Joseph River to improve navigation for boaters.