COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Michigan likes to talk about the waves of defensive linemen the Wolverines can throw at teams, but not to be overlooked on offense are the waves of running backs the team has been able to rely on this season.
First, Justice Haynes took over as lead back and was among the nation’s best until he was sidelined with a foot injury. Then Jordan Marshall took on the workload with great success and became the team’s leading rusher. He suffered a shoulder injury against Northwestern last week and was on the sideline in uniform for Saturday’s game at Maryland, but he was able to rest while former walk-on Bryson Kuzdzal, who entered the Northwestern game after Marshall was hurt and had 53 yards on 15 carries, took over.
“Jordan could have (played against Maryland) if we needed him,” Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore said.
But the Wolverines didn’t need him and allowed him to rest before next week’s important game against Ohio State. In Michigan’s 45-20 victory over the Terps, Kuzdzal rushed for 100 yards on 20 carries and scored three touchdowns. In the six games he had played before Maryland, Kuzdzal had 106 yards on 25 carries and one touchdown.
Haynes, Marshall and Kuzdzal each have three-touchdown games this season. Kuzdzal’s 100-yard performance was Michigan’s 12th this season – Haynes had six, Marshall, four, and freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, one. The last time U-M had four different players each with at least one 100-plus-yard rushing game was in 1998.
Kuzdzal said he had an idea this week he would get the bulk of carries.
“Because with next week’s game (against Ohio State) and everything else going on, you don’t know if you want to put them in the game,” Kuzdzal said, referring to Marshall. “But either way, I just want to prepare the same way as I can and do the best I can.”
Moore said he was pleased with the way Kuzdzal stepped up in the start.
“Doesn’t matter who’s in the game, there’s a standard of being a running back at Michigan,” Moore said. “There’s a standard being a Michigan football player that you’ve got to play with, and (Kuzdzal) played to that standard today. Ran hard, ran physical, ran tough. And that a true credit to him, to his family, being a walk on. The trust level, the trust factor we have with him is so big, and he just played a really high level for us.”
Kuzdzal said Haynes and Marshall have been in his “corner” and advised him simply to trust himself. He said he learned more about taking practice and applying it to a game.
“It’s just a lot of experience learning to settle myself down and do what I’ve been coached to do,” Kuzdzal said. “I was able to do that today.”
Injury updates
Marshall is nursing a right shoulder injury but could have played if needed against Maryland, Moore said.
“I said, I guess you’re not gonna play next week (against Ohio State),” Moore said to Marshall, who played for Cincinnati Moeller. “And he just laughed at me. He said, is that really a question?”
Two-time captain Max Bredeson, a fullback/tight end, was injured in the game but returned in the second half to the sideline with his right foot in a boot and on crutches.
“We will get further evaluation when we get home and see what happens,” Moore said.
Linebacker Ernest Hausmann, the team’s leading tackler, and receiver Semaj Morgan did not make the trip to Maryland.
“They’re just working to some things, not long-term things. Yeah, we’ll see as we go through the week.”
Marsh has solid game
Freshman receiver Andrew Marsh finished with 147 all-purpose yards — 76 receiving, including a 12-yard touchdown, 48 kickoff and 23 punt return yards.
“Andrew Marsh just kind of doing what Andrew Marsh does, making plays as a punt returner, as a kick returner,” Moore said. “He just continues to make plays so just keep putting him in different places to do it.”
Williams gets his first sack
Defensive tackle Tre Williams had one of Michigan’s three sacks of Malik Washington.
“Getting this was real special,” Williams said. “I talked to my dad this morning, and he was telling me, ‘Don’t do too much. Just be you and do your job, and the play’s gonna come to you,’ so that’s kind of what happened. Shout out my dad.”
Washington had taken three sacks all season.
“We knew that he only had got sacked three times, but I don’t think they had saw a complete defensive line that has waves like us,” Williams said. “We send waves at people. It’s not just a couple guys. We send waves and waves and waves and waves at people, and that gets really overwhelming at times for teams. I’m not surprised that we sacked him three times today. Wish we could have had more.”
Michigan running back Bryson Kuzdzal (24) runs the ball during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Maryland, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, in College Park, Md. (STEPHANIE SCARBROUGH — AP Photo)
We tend to think that fall is when the garden winds down, and spring is when the work begins. But there are several chores that, if completed now, will make your spring job much easier.
For starters, pulling up weeds by their roots in the fall will dramatically reduce their reappearance when the weather warms up again. I’m practically addicted to a long-handled tool called Grampa’s Weeder, which makes easy work of the task.
While you’re at it, thoroughly rake beds and borders where fungus, black spot or mildew diseases emerged this year. This will help prevent the pathogens from taking hold in the soil and infecting next year’s plants. Dispose of the leaves and debris in the trash.
Other disease-preventing measures include removing shriveled, “mummified” fruit from tree branches, and disinfecting tomato cages and plant stakes before storing (use a solution made of 1 part bleach and 9 parts water, or spray with a household disinfectant spray and allow to air dry.)
Clean, sharpen and oil tools now so they’ll be ready when you are. There’s little worse than heading out to plant your new seedlings only to find your spade has rusted over the winter.
Protect your trees and property
This Nov. 10, 2025, image provided by Jessica Damiano shows a coiled plastic trunk guard wrapped around a young peach tree to protect it from rabbit and mouse damage over winter. (Jessica Damiano via AP)
If you planted new fruit trees this year, install protective guards around them to prevent mouse and rabbit damage. I’m partial to coiled-plastic trunk wraps, but mesh, wire and higher-end metal tree surrounds are also highly effective.
For safety’s sake, examine tree branches now, and remove any that are split, dead or broken, lest they rip off during winter storms and threaten people and property.
Prepare for new beds
If you’re planning to start new beds next year, save yourself the back-breaking labor of digging up the lawn (or the money spent on renting a sod cutter) by smothering the grass over winter.
Define the future bed and cover the area with large pieces of cardboard or thick layers of newspaper, using landscape staples or rocks to hold it in place. Then, cover it with a few inches of mulch or compost.
The cardboard may be entirely decomposed by spring, but if not, just leave it in place and dig planting holes right through it.
Clear out the old beds
Clear out spent vegetable beds, then lightly turn the soil, incorporating compost, well-rotted manure and, if indicated by a low pH test result, lime. The amendments will work their way deeply into the soil by spring, enriching the root zone to give next year’s crops a natural, nutritional boost.
And for an early-spring gift to yourself, don’t forget to get flower bulbs (and garlic!) into the ground. The longer you wait, the bigger the risk of delayed blooms, but you can keep planting them as long as the soil is soft enough to dig.
Jessica Damiano writes weekly gardening columns for the AP and publishes the award-winning Weekly Dirt Newsletter. You can sign up here for weekly gardening tips and advice.
This Oct. 16, 2021, image provided by Jessica Damiano shows garlic bulbs and cloves resting on a cleared garden bed in advance of planting. (Jessica Damiano via AP)
When six Southern public university systems this summer formed a new accreditation agency, the move shook the national evaluation model that higher education has relied on for decades.
The news wasn’t unexpected: It arrived a few months after President Donald Trump issued an executive order in April overhauling the nation’s accreditation system by, among other things, barring accreditors from using college diversity mandates. It also came after U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon in May made it easier for universities to switch accreditors.
The accreditation process, often bureaucratic, cumbersome and time consuming, is critical to the survival of institutions of higher education. Colleges and their individual departments must undergo outside reviews — usually every few years — to prove that they meet certain educational and financial standards. If a school is not accredited, its students cannot receive federal aid such as Pell grants and student loans.
Some accreditation agencies acknowledge the process needs to evolve. But critics say the Trump administration is reshaping accreditation for political reasons, and risks undermining the legitimacy of the degrees colleges and universities award to students.
Trump said during his campaign that he would wield college accreditation as a “secret weapon” to root out DEI and other “woke” ideas from higher education. He has made good on that pledge.
Over the summer, for example, the administration sent letters to the accreditors of both Columbia and Harvard universities, alleging that the schools had violated federal civil rights law, and thus their accreditation rules, by failing to prevent the harassment of Jewish students after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel.
The administration’s antipathy toward DEI has prompted some accreditors to remove diversity requirements. The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, for instance, removed diversity and inclusion language from its guiding principles earlier this year. Under White House pressure, the American Bar Association this year suspended enforcement of its DEI standards for its accreditation of law schools and has extended that suspension into next year.
But state legislatures laid the groundwork for public university accreditation changes even before Trump returned to the White House.
In 2022, Florida enacted a law requiring the state’s public institutions to switch accreditors every cycle — usually every few years — forcing them to move away from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, known as SACSCOC.
North Carolina followed suit in 2023, with a law prohibiting the 16 universities within the University of North Carolina system and the state’s community colleges from receiving accreditation from the same agency for consecutive cycles.
Then, the consortium of six Southern university systems this summer launched its new accreditation agency, called the Commission for Public Higher Education. The participating states include Florida and North Carolina, along with Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a news release that the commission will “break the ideological stronghold” that other accreditation agencies have on higher education. Speaking at Florida Atlantic University, he said the new organization will “upend the monopoly of the woke accreditation cartels.”
“We care about student achievement; we care about measurable outcomes; we care about efficiency; we care about pursuing truth; we care about preparing our students to be citizens of our republic,” DeSantis said.
Jan Friis, senior vice president for government affairs at the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, which represents accrediting agencies, said the century-old system is in the midst of its most significant changes since the federal government tied accreditation to student aid after World War II.
“If the student picks a school that’s not accredited by a recognized accreditor, they can’t spend any federal aid there,” Friis said. “Accreditation has become the ‘good housekeeping seal of approval.’”
What’s next for the new accreditor
Dan Harrison, who is leading the startup phase of the Commission for Public Higher Education, described accreditation as “the plumbing of the whole higher ed infrastructure.”
“It’s not dramatic. It’s not meant to be partisan. But it’s critical to how schools function,” said Harrison, who is the University of North Carolina System’s vice president for academic affairs.
Though the founding schools of the new commission are all in the South, Harrison said, he expects accreditation to shift away from the long-standing geography-based model. In the past, universities in the South were accredited by SACSCOC simply because of location. In the future, he said, public universities across the country might instead be grouped together because they share similar governance structures, funding constraints and oversight.
“In 2025, if you were designing accreditation from scratch, you wouldn’t build it around geography,” Harrison said. “Public universities have more in common with each other across states than they do with private or for-profit institutions in their own backyard.”
The Commission for Public Higher Education opened with an initial cohort capped at 10 institutions within the first six states. Harrison said that based on the interest, the group could have accepted 15 to 20.
“I thought we’d be at six or seven. We reached 10 quickly and across a wider range of institutions than expected,” he said. “We already have an applicant outside the founding systems. That’s well ahead of where I thought we would be.”
That early interest, he said, reflects frustration among public institutions around finances. In particular, public universities are mandated to undergo audits from the state, but also feel burdened by audits required by accreditors.
“Public universities already undergo multiple audits and state budget oversight,” he said. “Then accreditation requires them to do the same work again. It feels like reinventing the wheel and it pulls faculty and staff away from teaching and research.”
Harrison estimates it will take five to seven years for the new accreditor to be fully up and running, and that institutions will need to maintain dual accreditation to avoid risking Pell Grants and federal loans.
The commission is busy assembling peer review teams made up primarily of current and former public university leaders such as governing board members, system chancellors, provosts, chief financial officers, deans and faculty. In contrast to regional accreditors, which typically draw reviewers from both public and private institutions, the new commission is prioritizing reviewers from public universities.
“Ultimately, we want to be a true nationwide accreditor,” Harrison said. “Not a regional one. Not a partisan one. Just one that is organized around sector and peer expertise.”
While the creation of a public university accreditor is new, the concept of sector-specific accreditation exists in other parts of higher education, including for two-year colleges.
Mac Powell, president of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, said that tailoring accreditation to a sector can make the peer-review model more meaningful, because reviewers can identify with similar challenges. He said reviewers have been moving away from measuring resources and bureaucratic compliance toward assessing what students actually get out of their education.
“The big shift was moving from counting inputs to asking, ‘Did students actually learn what we said they would learn?’” said Powell, whose organization accredits 138 colleges across Arizona, California, New York and the Pacific.
The most important metric all accreditation models should value is how they transition their students into the workforce, he said.
“Every accreditor today is paying much more attention to retention, persistence, transfer, career outcomes and return on investment,” Powell said. “It’s becoming less about how many books are in the library and more about whether students can find a pathway to the middle class.”
The institution evolves
Stephen Pruitt is in his first year as the president of SACSCOC, the accreditation organization that the half-dozen Southern state university systems just left. Pruitt, a Georgia native, jokes that his “Southern accent and front-porch style” has helped him break down the importance of accreditation to just about anyone.
In simple terms, he said, accreditation is the system that makes college degrees real. But he feels he has to clarify a misconception about the role of accreditation agencies like SACSCOC.
“There’s this myth that I’m sitting in Atlanta deciding if institutions are good or not,” he said. “That’s not how American accreditation works. Your peers evaluate you. People who do the same work you do.”
At the same time, Pruitt isn’t dismissing the concerns that prompted states such as Florida and North Carolina to explore alternatives to SACSCOC. According to Pruitt, institutions have long raised concerns about slow turnaround times, redundant paperwork and standards that have not always adapted quickly to the evolving landscape in higher education.
“Some of the frustration is real. Institutions want less redundancy and more responsiveness. Competition isn’t something we’re afraid of,” he said. “We’re doing a full audit of our processes. We have to be more contemporary. Faster approvals, more flexibility, more transparency. Accreditation shouldn’t just be the stick. It should be the carrot too.”
Soon to be graduates pose for a photo at the University of North Carolina on May 1, 2024 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images North America/TNS)
DALLAS — The saying goes that you should stay out of the kitchen if you can’t take the heat, but new research suggests otherwise — for the sake of your blood pressure.
In a study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, researchers at UNT Health Fort Worth found at-home heat therapy may hold the key to lowering blood pressure. A group of older adults wore heated pants for an hour a day, four days a week. After eight weeks, their blood flow improved and their systolic blood pressure, which measures blood flow when the heart beats, dropped by around 5 points.
Exploring ways to reduce the risks of high blood pressure — like stroke and heart attack — is crucial, and “this is an important proof-of-concept study,” said Dr. Amit Khera, a cardiologist and professor of medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center, who was not involved in the research.
Khera doesn’t see heat therapy “as a replacement for blood pressure medicine,” he said, but he does find it intriguing. “It could be a potential adjunctive treatment for other heart diseases and problems.”
Crank up the heat
Anyone who’s stepped out of a sauna or settled into a hot tub knows heat can feel good. Research backs that up: A 2025 study found soaking in hot water can lower blood pressure, stimulate the immune system and, over time, improve how the body handles heat stress.
Other studies similarly found heat therapy can improve cardiovascular function in middle-aged and older adults — whether or not they have chronic diseases — and that its benefits can be comparable to aerobic exercise, said Scott Romero, an associate professor of physiology and anatomy at UNT Health, who led the study.
“The crazy thing is, the cardiovascular responses to heat exposure are almost identical to exercise,” Romero said. “Heart rate changes, blood flow changes, muscle changes. It’s almost identical, which is one of the reasons why we think that heat therapy is efficacious, especially in a clinical population, because it almost mimics exercise.”
Raising your core temperature with heat therapy usually means regular time in a sauna or hot tub — tough if you don’t have either. To make heat therapy more accessible, Romero and Ysabella Ruiz, the study’s first author and a graduate student in Romero’s lab, tested whether pants lined with tubes that circulate hot water could deliver similar cardiovascular benefits. (The pants, Romero said, were adapted from suits developed by NASA to study cardiovascular function during heat stress.)
The researchers recruited 19 adults, aged 55 to 80, without a diagnosed condition of high blood pressure and split them into two similarly aged groups. One wore heated pants circulating water at nearly 124 degrees Fahrenheit, which raised skin temperature to about 104 degrees. (Romero and Ruiz chose that setting based on earlier work showing it nudged up core body temperature by about one to two degrees Fahrenheit over an hour in older adults.) The other group wore pants that were mildly warm, with the water heated near 88 degrees Fahrenheit and skin temperatures just over 90 degrees. Romero said these pants would feel pleasant but wouldn’t make people sweat like in the heat therapy group.
Participants had their blood pressure checked three ways: at the start of the study, during the day while active and after eight weeks. The researchers also used ultrasound before and after the treatment to see how well it helps widen the endothelium, or inner lining, of a blood vessel to let blood flow. Problems with this lining are among the earliest signs of aging in the circulatory system and can appear even without the usual risk factors for heart disease. When the lining stops functioning normally, the risk of clogged arteries, cardiovascular disease and complications such as stroke or death goes up.
The participants kept their normal routines, setting aside an hour a day, four days a week, to wear the pants. After eight weeks, when they returned to the lab for final tests, the results stood out: systolic blood pressure was about 5 points lower for the heat therapy group, and on ultrasound, the inner lining of the blood vessels among those group members seemed much improved, dilating better than before.
Further studies needed
Romero and Ruiz aren’t sure why the heated pants led to these results. One possibility, Romero said, is that the brain adjusts how tense or springy blood vessels are in response to heat. Another is that the vessels change and improve with repeated heat exposure.
“We think that some of those things are actually changing long term,” Romero said. “We didn’t actually measure the mechanisms,” since the study focused on whether the therapy would be effective in this population.
Khera is curious how the results would translate to people with diagnosed hypertension. There’s also a question of the clinical significance of a modest drop in blood pressure when treating patients one on one.
“On a population level, if you treated 100,000 people, 5 points help,” Khera said. “But on an individual level, [blood pressure] pills are much stronger than that. … If your blood pressure is modestly high and you want to start with this as a feasible first step, as they continue to do more studies, this could be a potential treatment.”
Khera added it’s unclear how long the benefits of heat therapy last. Romero and Ruiz acknowledged that’s something they hope to determine as they investigate the underlying biology behind the results.
The researchers’ longer-term goal with at-home heat therapy is to create an accessible way for older adults to acclimate to heat.
“We know that older folks are most at risk for heat-related illnesses, especially in Texas, where we have really hot summers,” Romero said. “Those older folks are the ones who are getting sick and the ones that are dying during heat waves. Our idea is to be proactive about these heat waves and have individuals heat acclimate themselves at home.”
Romero said preliminary data from his lab suggests that at-home heat therapy can help older adults build better resilience to heat stress. That matters because heat-related deaths disproportionately affect older adults, and research from 2024 projects that as many as 246 million more people in this demographic will face dangerous levels of heat by 2050.
Miriam Fauzia is a science reporting fellow at The Dallas Morning News. Her fellowship is supported by the University of Texas at Dallas. The News makes all editorial decisions.
NEW YORK (AP) — Maybe your car broke down, your computer was stolen, or you had a surprise visit to urgent care. Emergencies are inevitable, but you can prepare to deal with them by building an emergency fund.
“There are so many things that happen in our lives that we don’t expect and most of them require financial means to overcome,” said Miklos Ringbauer, a certified public accountant.
The industry standard is to save three to six months of expenses in an emergency fund. However, this can feel daunting if you live paycheck to paycheck or if you have debt. But if you’re in either of these situations, it’s even more crucial to build a financial safety net that can help you in times of crisis.
“Emergency funds allow you to prevent further debt,” said Jaime Eckels, certified financial planner and wealth management leader for Plante Moran Financial Advisors.
Suppose you’re paying multiple credit cards and other loans. In that case, Rachel Lawrence, head of advice and planning for Monarch Money, a financial planning and budgeting app, recommends that you make the minimum payments while you build your emergency fund. Once you’ve hit an amount that feels right for your lifestyle, you can go back and continue tackling your debt more aggressively.
Whether you want to start an emergency fund or create better habits while you save, here are some expert recommendations:
Start with small milestones
The idea of saving for three to six months’ worth of expenses can be daunting, so it’s best to start with a smaller milestone. Lawrence recommends starting with a goal of saving $1,000, then moving on to save one, three, and six months of expenses.
The way you approach this goal can vary depending on your income and your budget. But starting with small, attainable goals can help you build an emergency fund without feeling financially strained.
“Starting small is okay. Even if it’s $20 right out of your paycheck, those small things can add up,” Eckels said.
She recommends building your emergency fund in a separate account from your regular savings account, ideally a high-yield savings account, which offers a higher interest rate than a traditional savings account.
Decide on the appropriate amount for your life
Knowing how much to save for your emergency fund depends on your life situation. Lawrence suggests you gauge your own financial responsibilities to estimate how much your ideal emergency fund should be.
For single professionals with no significant financial responsibilities, such as a mortgage or a car, the amount might be $2,000 to $3,000. At the same time, people with children and several pets might aim to save for six months’ expenses.
“There’s no one-shoe-fits-all solution. Everybody is different, especially if you have variable expenses on a monthly basis,” Ringbauer said.
Lawrence recommends that self-employed people maintain two emergency funds: one to buffer low-income months and another for true emergencies. To build your buffer account, Lawrence recommends setting aside some money during high-earning months.
“You set that amount aside in your buffer account until you have two or three months of the amount that you want, she said. “Because that way any month where you have less money, you go pull from the buffer and it’s no big deal.”
Automate your savings
Eckels recommends setting up automatic savings as a low-effort way to build your emergency fund.
Scheduling your savings to be withdrawn from your bank account as soon as your paycheck arrives is an effective way to build a savings habit without having to transfer the money manually.
“I always tell people if it was never in your bank account, you never had it, right?” Eckels added.
She also recommends that her clients open a separate account, one that isn’t at the same bank as their checking account, so they aren’t tempted to transfer the money in a non-emergency.
Make it visual
As you’re making progress towards your emergency fund goal, making it visual can help you stay motivated, according to Lawrence.
She recommends getting creative with how you track your progress, ideally with a method that brings you joy.
“You want your brain to get rewarded as often as possible when you’re seeing a bunch of progress,” she said.
Some options to make your progress visual include drawing a thermometer-like tracker and keeping it updated as you advance toward your goal, documenting your progress on a habit-building tracker on your phone, or using a budgeting app with a tracking tool.
Save windfalls
If your budget is really tight and you don’t have much wiggle room to set aside money for an emergency fund, Lawrence recommends saving windfalls.
“Unexpected chunks of money that maybe you weren’t expecting, like tax refunds or getting a third paycheck when you normally get paid twice a month, or a bonus, those are your best ways to make progress when you’re tight otherwise,” said Lawrence.
In general, Lawrence recommends that people keep 10% of their windfall for themselves and the rest for their emergency fund. With that breakdown, you can both save and feel rewarded by the unexpected income.
If you use it, don’t feel guilty
FILE – Medical bills are seen in Temple Hills, Md., on June 26, 2023. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
Chances are that an emergency will happen, and when it does, you don’t need to feel guilty for using your emergency fund, Lawrence said. Instead, it’s best to think about how you’ve achieved your goal of building a financial safety net for yourself.
“You wouldn’t feel bad about using your down payment to buy a house, you wouldn’t feel bad about saving for retirement, actually to retire,” Lawrence said.
The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.
FILE -Customers of American International Assurance (AIA), a wholly owned subsidiary of American Insurance Group (AIG) stand in line outside the AIA office as they wait to speak to customer service officers, and some others seeking advice on terminating their insurance policies on Tuesday Sept. 16, 2008 in Singapore amid fears that that American Insurance Group, the world’s largest insurer, was fighting for its survival after downgrades from major credit rating firms, adding pressure as AIG seeks billions of dollars to strengthen its balance sheet.(AP Photo/Wong Maye-E, File)
Police are investigating a potential threat against Groves High School, officials said Friday.
The Beverly Hills campus is part of the Birmingham Public Schools district.
School staff alerted the police department’s school resource officer at 9:30 p.m. Thursday about a “concerning” image posted on social media, according to authorities. The image displayed several hunting rifles lying side by side. It had no captions and was posted on a group thread related to the school district, police said.
Officers visited the student’s home to conduct a welfare check. Investigators said the student and his parents were cooperative.
“It was determined last night that there was no immediate threat to the community and there were no guns located at the individual’s residence,” Edward Arnold, the village’s Director for Public Safety, said Friday.
He said there are no firearms registered to the parents, and the photo had been taken several months ago when the student was in the Upper Peninsula.
On Thursday, district officials told parents in a letter that the police department received a tip from the state’s OK2SAY system for reporting school threats anonymously.
The report involved a social media post made by a Groves student that included an image depicting several rifles, the letter said. “Importantly, there was no direct threat made toward any individual or toward the school.”
School officials said although police deemed there was no immediate threat to the school’s students and staff, they will “continue to exercise due diligence and work closely with law enforcement to thoroughly review all aspects of the situation.”
The district also said the student suspected of posting the image of the weapons will not return to the school while the investigation is conducted.
“Additionally, families can expect an increased police presence at Groves and our feeder schools throughout the day (Friday) to provide added reassurance for students and staff,” officials said.
Groves High School has about 1,100 students.
In August, Michigan State Police said the OK2SAY system received 11,671 tips in 2024, a 20% increase from the previous year and the highest reporting level of the program since its inception in 2014.
More than 600 of those tips related to threats, 252 were about guns,125 were about bombs, and 73 involved weapons possession, according to the program’s annual report. That compares to 741 tips about threats, 185 about guns, 64 about bombs, and 73 about weapons possession in 2023.
There is no doubt this year’s toy wish lists will include new versions of classic toys such as Barbie, G.I.Joe and even others such as Furby, Lite-Brite, Barney’s World and even Tamagotchi.
Many parents will be able to rely on their own experience to guide them with familiar toys but it becomes difficult to choose from the crop of new toys being introduced every year.
To help parents narrow their store and online searches The Macomb Daily has compiled a list of hot new toys and what’s being said about them. Some of the reviews were provided by our team of toy-testing tykes, while others were suggested by experts in the field including parents and teachers.
Have a look at what reviewers from schools in Clinton Township and Birmingham had to say about some of the newest games, gadgets and gizmos:
Infant and up
Animated Peeki the Puppy from Gund (infant-up, $44.99) is an animated plush pal with floppy ears and his own cute personality. Landyn, 5-months, took to the toy immediately. He loved the song it played although it only plays one and was especially excited to see the puppy’s ears moving. Five stars!
Sweet Pea Snuggle Pod (6-months-up, $24.99) is a cute little doll that fits snugly in a plush green peapod. It’s a great first doll for developing nurturing skills. Its small size and soft features make it easy for toddlers to tote and tuck.
My First Tackle Box (infant-up, $34.99) from Gund. The five-piece soft plush playset features a self-contained plush tackle box along with a fishing rod with touch and close fastener for sticking to a worm crinkle toy or fish squeaky toy.
Smart Steps Balance Buddy Learning Monkee (18-months-up,$29.99 ) from Baby Trend is a STEM toy for little ones. The toy has an intelligent recognition system that interacts with babies in two play modes, one helping them to count and follow directions and another teaching them about balance and direction. Our preschool teacher said the children loved the movements, bright colors and sounds. One suggestion: Make it out of a softer material or add a stand so it doesn’t tip over.
Glo Pals Light Up Library (18-months-up, $21.99) was named to Toy Insider’s hot list of toys for little ones. Bedtime stories take on a whole new light with the magic magnifier that children can use to light up each page in the story. Five stars!
Barney’s World Sensory Barney (2-up, $11.99) features a variety of textures and activities for little ones to explore. Many of the parents buying the purple dinosaur this year are likely to have known Barney when they were kids. Each plush comes with a heart-shaped fidget.
Miko 3 (3-5, $199) was a big hit with Brynn. The new AI interactive robot features interactive games, academic content and a personality. What Brynn loved most about it were the games, that she could talk to Mike and that she and the little robot could make a video call to her parents.What she didn’t like was that many of the activities were only accessible with a monthly membership. .
and educational toy designed to improve problem-solving skills and an understanding of basic mechanical concepts. Our toy testers Roger and Hayden said it took a while to assemble but once they were done they loved the lights and sounds it made.
Luna Storytime Projector (3-up, $59.99) was a big hit with the little ones in Clintondale Community Schools childcare program. The starter set comes with one story and a character. Our toy-testing toddlers enjoyed seeing the story projected on the wall and the songs that played along. Other story figures include: Unicorn Stories, Paw Patrol, Sesame Street, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and Thomas & Friends.
Alpha Group’s Super Wings Electric Heroes (3-up, $27.99 ) is a 3-in-1 Transforming World Spaceport is another toy that children transform from a robot to a vehicle. Our toy tester liked it but wasn’t crazy about it. Whereas another child who likes playing with transformers might love it.
The Dragon Eggmazing Egg Decorator (3-up,$27.99 ) from Hey Buddy Hey Pal Investments is a decorating kit that comes with two dinosaur eggs, markers and a machine and holder that turns the egg children are decorating. Our toy testers did not like the smell (could’ve been the markers) but loved the dinosaur that pops out of the egg when you’re done decorating it. Other eggs with 12 other collectible dinosaurs are available.
Barbie Color Reveal 6 Surprises (3-up, $24.97) joins the list of fun toys for kids who love Barbie. Our tester was pleased with her surprise and had fun with the fashion accessories including a plug-in ponytail that undergoes a color transformation using icy cold or warm water. Note to parents: It’s a tad messy because of the changing color ponytail.
Fisher-Price Montessori Wooden Sorting Tree (3-up, $15.99 ) is a cool wooden sorting toy that features fruits and vegetables that fit in the tree and can be used for several levels of play. Our preschool teacher from Clintondale Community Schools Childcare Program gave it a thumbs up for teaching children colors and sorting. One suggestion for Santa: Make the sorting compartments a tad bigger.
Imaginext Jurassic Park Rebirth Ultimate Action Chomp T. Rex (3-up, $75) was named among the top toys this season by Toy Insider magazine and got a thumbs up from our youngest toy testers. Their teacher said it’s big, it talks, it walks and its eyes change color. Tip for parents: Consider a storage space as it’s a big toy with no compartments for the projectiles and small figures. Five stars!
Tame & Train Interactive Toothless Dragon from Spin Master (4-up, $52.99) is a cute animatronic toy. It features advanced technology touch sensors for interactive play and while our 5-year-old tester and his dad were unable to figure out the directions it didn’t matter to L.J. He loved the toy. He fed the dragon the little fish that came with it and when the wings didn’t move he used his imagination to make it fly around the room on his own.
Eye Connect Crafts 3D Tunnel Book (4-up,$39.97) a kit that comes with pre-cut card stock animals that you assemble, watercolor paints and markers and instructions to create a 3D Tunnel Book. One of our testers was unable to review it because of missing parts but a second tester loved coloring the dinosaurs in the kit that he was given to test.
Fanroll Dungeons and Dragons Orb (4-up, $28) is an automatic dice roller. It’s a cool gadget and our toy testers had fun playing with it but to be really great parents might want to pair it with a game that requires a roll of the dice.
Age 5-up
Math Made Fun, Music Made Easy (age 5-up, $99) is designed to improve a student’s math skills by playing the latest popular songs on the piano. It comes with a STEAM curriculum and app for children in second-through twelfth-grade. Our fifth-graders from McGlinnen Elementary’s student council loved the piano but did not use the books or the app. However, other testers did use the two together and found it fun as well.
Smartivity Activities for Smarter Learning Hydraulic Plane Launcher (6-14, $28.99 ) is a cool STEAM set that includes everything a young engineer might need to build a hydraulic-powered plane launcher. Our toy testers Kyler and Brayden, who are fourth-graders, however, could have used some help as they found it very difficult to put together. Great project for kids who have a parent helping or for older kids who love construction projects. Smartivity Activities sets are available for a number of other building projects including a telescope.
Primal Hatch T. Rex Tyrannosaurus from Spin Master (5-up,$65.99) was a big hit with the preschoolers in the Clintondale Community Schools Childcare Program. They loved watching it hatch and then they loved feeding it, once it broke out of its shell. Their teacher did say the shell was hard to crack, which might make it a good toy for an older child as well. Five stars!
DIY Sticki Rolls Wearable Shareable Bracelet Kit (5-up, $9.99-$27.99) from Sky Castle could not have been more popular with our toy testers Ma’Leah, Aria and Silvia. They played with the award-winning kit that comes with 500 stickers to create cool bracelets during the entire toy-testing event and other members of Clintondale Community Schools student council joined in as well. Their advisor said Santa really nailed it this time. Five stars!
Infinity MadQ from Alpha Group (5-up, $44.99). Our toy testers said the new battle set that comes with glowing Nados, two sword launchers and arena was hard to assemble but fun to play.
Smartivity Activities for Smarter Learning Rocket (6-up, $24.99). If you’re looking for a great toy that teaches kids about rocket propulsion this would be it. Our toy testers Benji and Hamza said it was a challenge to assemble but loved how high it flew. Their teacher Darrin Winkler was also impressed but said the rocket launcher should definitely be used outside, as it almost put a hole in their classroom ceiling. Five stars!
Hootenanny Games Feelin’ Cute (6-up,$19.99 ) is a 15-minute game featuring cute animal cards that players rate according to a cuteness meter. Our third- and fourth-grade toy testers Destiny, Mia (Pangori), Mia (Davis), Abriella and Patricia said the name alone made them want to play and it kept their interest.
D20 Foam Oversized Dice (6-up, $24.99 ) from Kess is a new dice game for youngsters but even adults would find it fun, indoors or outside. Our testers loved its size, how easy it was to roll and that it’s pink.
Hootenanny Games Early Bird (7-up, $19.99) was a big hit with Jade, Juliet and Noelle, who loved how it made them laugh. They also loved the funny cards and the things they came up with during the game. Five stars!
Strikesphere Soccer Bot (6-up,$59.99 ) was a big hit with our toy testers including Clintondale Community Schools Superintendent Kenneth Janczarek and two members of the student council, Blake and Kellan. Janczarek said the toy was hard to set up. They had to google directions but once they did they loved it. The smart soccer ball uses built-in sensors to track the ball and has three speed settings you can switch from indoor to outdoor use. Five stars!
Also available from Strikesphere is the Counter Ball (6-up,$59.99), a soccer ball that glows, cheers and counts your kicks. Our fourth-grade testers liked that it counted their passes but said it was really loud.
Tech Dech Shred N’ Blast Sk8Board (6-up, $29.99) from Spin Master features a cool character who does big air stunts. The toy inspired by skateboarders takes the popular pastime to new heights. Our toy tester had some trouble with the ramp (it wouldn’t stay together) but loved how high the skateboard character jumped, at one point reaching almost 7 feet in the air.
Headbanz from Spin Master (6-up, $17.99) continues to be a popular game for tweens and family game nights. Our testers from Clintondale Community Schools had fun playing the game of “What Am I?” This version is for younger kids but their teacher suggested adding more cards for older players.
Clixo Dino Adventures (6-to-forever, $15.99-$59.99) is a magnet construction building toy. Jack’s imagination kicked in as soon as he saw the pieces and within a few minutes had several creatures built before he even knew his kit was made to build a dinosaur. He’s a second-grader but even our third and fourth-grade testers Brooklyn, Ava and Alaya had fun with the toy and said they liked that it inspired them to be creative. Choose from a variety of kits including: Creator Pack with 40 pieces, Sparkle Jewelry Pack, 34 pieces and Marine Marvels featuring 36 pieces for assembling sea creatures. Five stars!
Pokemon Trainer Expert from Ultra Pro (6-up, $34.99) is an electronic game for Pokemon fans. Our testers had fun but had some difficulty in guessing the Pokemon, making it truly a game for experts and even older players.
Squishy Verse Snackipoos from Kandico (5-up, $24.99) features three DIY characters, glitter packets and surprise accessories for making fun creatures. Our fifth-grade testers Liliam, Leila and Sergio loved the toy but did not have enough time to see their creations completed. Be sure to set aside enough time to finish the task. Five stars!
Shark Strike from Spin Master (5-up, $21.99) is a new game that combines the fun of bowling, fishing and sharks into one funny game. Our toy testers loved everything about the game and had only one suggestion: Add more sharks. Five stars!
Mush Meez Taba Squishies ((8-up, $11.99) from Beverly Hills Teddy Bear company are among this year’s favorite squishy and sticky toys. Alaya and Ava loved the fidget, play foodie toys that come in a variety of delicious choices including a hot dog, hamburger, cinnamon bun and peanut butter and jelly sandwich. They said all of the other kids wanted to play with them including Daniella and Chloe, who loved the hot dog squishy. Noelle said they’re great because they’re a lot like slime toys but not sticky, which is perfect for parents who don’t like slime. Five stars!
Smartivity Activities for Smarter Learning Pinball (8-up,$29.99) is an award-winning STEAM toy kit that children can use to build their own pinball machine. It was a hit with our fourth-grade testers Daniella and Jack. They said it was easy to build but it did take a long time to do it.
Virtual Reality ESPN (age 8-up, $59.99) from Abacus Brands is a cool idea for any kid looking to learn more about sports. Our toy tester couldn’t wait to try it out but was unable to hook up the virtual reality portion created with the phone app. He liked the DK Book filled with facts and cool stories but his favorite part was the Olympic medals that come with it.
Wise Block Build and Play RC Military Armored Truck (8-up, $36.99) was a big hit with our fourth-graders, who said it’s a very cool toy. It features 371 pieces that are interchangeable with other block building toys and can be used to create a RC tank. Henri-Paul and Hugo had great fun building the tank and playing with it afterwards. One suggestion for Santa: Add some accessories like toy soldiers. Five stars!
Also from Wise Block is the Build and Play RC Racing Car (8-up), another award-winning STEAM set featuring 414 pieces for aspiring engineers interested in building a RC racing car. Mason said his favorite aspect was all of the creativity that was dedicated to this car and how enjoyable it was to create.
Hipster The Music Party Game (16-up,$39.99) from Galt is geared for teens who enjoy a variety of music. Each player picks a card and then scans the QR code to automatically play it on Spotify. Then they must guess what year it came out.
Hipster Guilty Pleasures (16-up,$39.99) was a hit with our ninth-grade tester Lauren Hampshire. She said the variety of music was great and that it was a fun game. However, she was not keen on the old songs and would probably enjoy a version with newer music even more.
Rubik’s Pulse Cube (8-up, $15.99 ) from Spin Master starts with a sleek mirrored finish that lights up with Rubik’s iconic colors as players work to solve the puzzle. It was challenging but that’s what Juliet, our fourth-grade tester loved most about it.
Tetris The Board Game (8-up,$24.99 ) from Spin Master Games has players completing as many lines as they can before the first player adds another piece to their grid. Our fourth-grade testers said it was fun to play but suggested making it so the pieces could be placed in more than one direction.
My Robotic Pet Coding Chameleon ($54.95) from Thames and Kosmos is a construction and coding toy rolled into one robotic reptile. It’s recommended for 8-up but with an adult’s help or age 12-up for kids without supervision. Once built it’s designed to respond to gestures, change colors and automatically fire and retract its tongue, but our 8-year-old testers found it difficult to snap together and never got to try the coding.
3Doodler Candy (8-up, $59.99) by Wobbleworks is a new tool that makes 3D printing a little sweeter. Kids just load the pen up with candy and then press a button to make delicious treats. Five stars!
Stocking stuffers
Looking for a few little things to add to your list? These are a few items to consider, some were award-winners last year and others are new this season including a whole lineup of squishy toys:
Incredible Novelties’ Squishi Toys were a big hit among our testers who liked the feel and scent of them. Noelle, Lucy, Alex and Ella, fourth-graders at Pierce Elementary School were all particularly fond of the Oreo Squishi Toy. Choose from a variety of options for different ages including: Bazooka and Scented Ring Pop Squishi Toy (6-up) or Sour Patch Kids Scented Squishi (13-up).
bottle featuring an easy-open-nob (eyeball) and belt for kids on the go. Jack loved the eyeball opener and that it comes attached to a belt for easy carrying.
The Macomb Daily’s annual holiday review of the season’s hottest toys is a newsroom tradition that started when virtual pets and Tamagotchi were the buzz words on Santa’s Wish List.
Our editorial staff started doing the reviews to help parents navigate the growing number of toys on the market. It is readers’ interest that fuels this tradition but it’s the work of many that make it possible.
That includes the toy manufacturers across the United States and Canada, and many other parts of the world who provide free toys for testing and jump through many logistic hoops in order to make sure they are submitted on time. Some even include batteries to make sure testers have everything they need.
Most importantly, we would like to thank our toy-testing tykes from Macomb and Oakland counties.
Working collectively for Clintondale Community Schools were members of its student council at McGlinnen and their advisor Amanda Madson as well as students in the Clintondale Childcare Program at Parker and Rainbow Elementary schools. A special shout-out goes to Clintondale Community Schools Superintendent Kenneth Janczarek, who joined in the fun of testing the toys and Alexandra Hichel and Melissa Kloposki for coordinating the teams and logging the results.
Tackling many of the STEAM toys this year were the fourth-graders in Darrin Winkler’s class at Pierce Elementary in Birmingham.
Our thanks to all of you for your enthusiasm and help in making this year’s mission a success.
What if…
We’ve been told by toymakers over the years that they follow reviews not only as a means of improving their products but also for ideas on how to expand a line or even introduce something new. So we asked our toy-testing tykes to answer a bonus question: If anything was possible what kind of toy would you invent?
Here’s a few of the gadgets and gizmos our fourth-grade testers came up with:
Henri-Paul Rias and Hugo Zhou said they would create a construction building set for a military shop complete with firing cannons and toy soldiers. It would also have the pieces to build a smaller ship and helicopter that you could land on the ship.
Noelle Simmons would create a realistic robotic dog. She said her parents don’t really love dogs but she would love it and play with it every day. She might even create a robot that can do household chores or make her dinner and name it the magical assistant.
Ella Ebiner said she would create a 3D printer that makes squishy toys.
Jack Schroeder and Daniella Fraser said they would create a fidget toy that gives you any superpower in the world.
Benji Papaghanian and Hamza Alwan said they would like to create a toy that lets you build an entire city like maybe Detroit or Parish.
Letty Eilander would make a remote-controlled bird that would fly or sit on her shoulder.
Jade Ransford said he would create a magical robotic cat in rainbow colors covered with stars and sparkles that teaches people how to talk to cats.
Clintondale Community Schools’ students Kyler Berryhill, 9, left, and Brayden Kryscynski, 7, put Smartivity Activities for Smarter Learning Hydraulic Plane Launcher (6-14, $28.99 ) (SUBMITTED PHOTO)
A Coloradan who purchased an abandoned Douglas County storage unit found that it contained 1.7 million counterfeit fentanyl pills, plus several pounds of meth and fentanyl powder, law enforcement officials said Monday.
The discovery amounted to a record seizure of fentanyl in Colorado, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the sixth-largest in U.S. history.
The unit was purchased at auction after its previous renter lapsed on its payments.
The new owner then called law enforcement, including the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, after opening it to discover the pills. The unit also contained 12 kilograms of fentanyl powder and two and a half pounds of methamphetamine. Law enforcement subsequently learned that the unit’s previous owner had been arrested by the DEA in April, which is why the unit’s rent went unpaid.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that’s at least 50 times more powerful than morphine. While it has legitimate medical uses, illicitly created fentanyl has become the dominant opioid on the U.S. drug market, and it fueled an overdose crisis that surged in Colorado and across the rest of the United States. The street version of the drug is primarily pressed into pill form, typically to mimic the look of other legitimate opioid pills.
“I want to thank the citizen who reported this discovery, the storage facility staff for their cooperation, and the deputies who responded quickly and professionally,” said Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly said in a statement. “Let me send a strong and unmistakable message: fentanyl and illegal narcotics will not be tolerated in Douglas County.”
The powder seized in the operation was enough to create another six million pills, the DEA said.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office seized approximately 1.7 million fentanyl pills from a storage unit after its new owner reported finding them on Nov. 11. The Drug Enforcement Agency said an additional 12 kilograms of fentanyl powder, enough to make 6 million more pills, and 2.5 pounds of methamphetamine were in the unit. (Provided by Douglas County Sheriff’s Office via X.com)
With just one week left in the regular season, the Mid-American Conference championship chase is absolutely bananas.
Five of the conference’s 13 teams remain in the hunt to play for the MAC title at Ford Field on Dec. 6, with Western Michigan in the driver’s seat and four others, Central Michigan included, still with a chance.
The Broncos are 6-1 in the MAC and can get into the MAC championship game for the first time since 2016 with a win over state rival Eastern Michigan on Tuesday. Central Michigan, Toledo, Miami and Ohio all are 5-2 in the MAC, which pending next week’s outcomes might just have to reach deep into its bag of tiebreaker scenarios. By the end of the regular season, there could be as many as four teams that have to go to the tiebreakers.
The only team that doesn’t have to worry about tiebreakers for now is WMU; win at EMU, and the Broncos are in.
“We have built a foundation and mentality of going 1-0. I’ve been saying this since training camp … our players are probably tired of me saying it,” said Lance Taylor, WMU’s third-year head coach, who has the Broncos bowl-eligible for the second straight year. “You’ve gotta fight human nature, whether it’s complacency, whether it’s blocking the noise and distractions, looking at all the what-ifs. None of that stuff matters.
“The only scenario that matters is how we prepare this week, and going 1-0.”
Western Michigan, of course, still could get into the MAC championship game, even with a loss to EMU, depending how other games shake themselves out, thanks to the one-game lead entering the final week of the regular season.
Western Michigan has won three straight games, including thrilling comebacks over rival Central Michigan and Ohio, and this past week’s 35-19 win over Northern Illinois. In that game, the Broncos trailed, 13-0.
There remains the possibility that WMU could play CMU in the MAC championship game for the first time ever. It wasn’t possible from 1997-2023, when the winners of each division played for the title. The MAC did away with divisions in 2024.
Central Michigan has won two straight games since the loss at Western Michigan to stay in the mix, including this week’s 28-16 victory at Kent State.
The Chippewas host Toledo next Saturday, meaning one of those teams will fall out of title contention with a loss. It’s the only MAC game in the final week of the regular season between two teams still in the championship mix. CMU needs a win, and some help to get to Ford Field. If WMU wins, CMU needs a win and Ball State to beat Miami. If WMU loses, CMU needs a win and Buffalo to beat Ohio, or Ohio to beat Buffalo and Ball State to beat Miami. Got all that?
Either way, it’s been quite a resurgent season for CMU under first-year head coach Matt Drinkall. It’s the Chippewas’ first winning season and first time being bowl-eligible since 2021. They last played for a MAC championship in 2019.
“To be in the position we’re in I think is just a testament to the kids’ buy-in,” Drinkall said. “We have a very good plan and these guys attack it every single day, every week. They have bought all the way in. … We might not have the flashiest, most talented roster, but it’s talented enough, and we’ve got elite leadership and elite heart.”
Here’s the MAC schedule for contenders in the final week of the regular season:
• Western Michigan (7-4, 6-1) at Eastern Michigan (4-7, 3-4), 7:30 p.m. Tuesday (ESPN2)
• Toledo (7-4, 5-2) at Central Michigan (7-4, 5-2), noon Saturday (ESPN+)
• Ball State (4-7, 3-4) at Miami (6-5, 5-2), noon Saturday (CBSSN)
There are up to seven MAC tiebreakers to determine the two participants in the championship game, starting with head-to-head if there are two teams tied, and starting with head-to-head winning percentage among the tied teams, if there are more than two. But that tiebreaker might not work with a multi-team tie because the MAC now plays an unbalanced schedule. The second tiebreaker for multi-teams is if one tied team defeated the other tied team(s). The third tiebreaker is winning percentage among all common opponents. Things should finally be settled by then, well before the seventh tiebreaker ― which is actually a random draw by commissioner Jon Steinbrecher.
In other words, it’s good to be Western Michigan right now, even though it is a rivalry game, and Eastern Michigan, despite being out of bowl eligibility, has won its last two games.
“When you take care of the opportunity that you’re given,” said Taylor, “you’re given more.”
Tickets to this year’s game start at $18.80, and they are available at detroitlions.com.
In last year’s MAC championship game, Ohio beat Miami, 38-3.
Michigan wide receiver Donaven McCulley, center, is tackled by Central Michigan defensive backs Jaion Jackson, left, Brenden Deasfernandes, right, and Elijah Gordon during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, in Ann Arbor. (RYAN SUN — AP Photo, file)
The growing awareness of the value among parents wanting to develop and inspire their child’s interests is not only driving more companies to develop educational products but pushing sales.
According to a report by Global Market Insights the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) toy market is projected to reach $13 billion by 2032. Among the toymakers meeting the demand is Assaf Eshet, CEO and founder of Clixo , a flexible, origami-inspired magnetic system that was recently named one of Time magazine’s Best Inventions of 2025. As an industrial designer who has worked for some of the top names in the toy industry, Eshet said his mission has always been to create toys that inspire exploration rather than dictate outcomes.
Brooklyn Knott, 9, left, and Ava Salcio, 9, fourth-graders at Clintondale Community Schools’ McGlinnen Elementary School and members of its student council try out Clixo, one of several STEAM toys not only earning awards but the attention of kids who love to build things. (Photo courtesy of Alexandra Hichel/Clintondale Community Schools)
“Kids should have a real appetite for curiosity,” said Eshet. “Our job as parents, teachers and toymakers is to strike that nerve of wonder and keep it alive.”
That’s what Playmobil did for him as a child.
“I used to assemble them and then reassemble them to make them my own,” Eshet said during a phone interview from New York City.
Now children are taking his kits, assembling them as they are and then reimagining them to be something else.
“Things that we can’t even imagine they are already creating,” said Eshet, who launched the brand in 2020 with a few kits and has expanded it to include 20 kits ranging from $15 to $200. New this year for aspiring paleontologists is Dinosaur Adventure (6-up, $49.99).
“It’s an amazing set,” Eshet said, of the newest addition to the Clixo family featuring 36 pieces that can be used to make a variety of dinosaurs or whatever creature comes to mind.
“You can mix and match them, too,” said Eshet, whose Clixo brand is also in the running for the Toy Foundation’s Best Creativity Toy of the Year.
The company also earned the Best Creative Fun Award by Tillywig and was named to Toy Insider’s Top Holiday Toys list in 2023.
Clixo is a new favorite but the launch of STEM toys happened around the same time as the space race and the inauguration of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 1958.
“The scientific achievements of the next three decades from the moon landing, artificial heart, personal computing and cell phones all yielded a call for enhanced science education,” according to a report from Forbes. “The call was answered by the National Science Foundation (NSF), which established guidelines for the teaching of science, math, engineering and technology in grades K-12, introducing the acronym SMET. However, educators and policymakers found the term awkward and unappealing, evensuggesting it sounded like ‘smut’. So in 2001, the NSF officially rebranded the initiative STEM and more recently STEAM, as ‘Art’ was added.”
“A lot of parents are buying STEAM toys that have educational value and those toys become treasures,” said Julie Everitt, co-owner of Whistle Stop Hobby and Toy in St. Clair Shores, which has been in the business of selling toys for more than 50 years. Everitt said there are a number of cool new STEAM toys out this year including Rail Cube by Sanko Toys (3-up, $99.99-$199.99).
“The set comes with magnetic tubes that you connect to create a little monorail for a little engine,” Everitt said. “It’s a super cute set and it really goes.”
Another favorite at Whistle Stop is Hape’s Lock and Learn Playboard (3-6, $34.99), a wooden busy board featuring little exercises that teach kids meaningful tasks like how to unlock a latch or turn on a light. Among the STEAM toys growing in popularity among older kids is Rolife’s miniature kits ($49.99). Tweens and teens, even adults can build everything from little houses and book nooks to tiny greenhouses.
“Most of them are for ages 14 and up but we do carry some for 8-plus,” Everitt said, sharing but a few of the STEAM toys making this year’s hot list.
More toys
Looking for a few more toys. Check out our kids’ review of this year’s lineup of STEAM toys along with many others that are expected to make Santa’s Wish List inside the Homefront section and on our website.
Meet toymaker Assaf Eshet, an industrial designer who came up with the idea for Clixo, a STEAM toy that’s been making everyones hot list of toys this holiday season including Time’s 2025 Best Inventions. (Photo courtesy of Clixo)
• National Collection Week of gift-filled shoeboxes is Nov. 17-24, to benefit Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan’s Purse. The public is invited to pack gift-filled shoeboxes and deliver to a local drop-off location in Michigan. Drop-off locations and a step-by-step guide, How to Pack a Shoebox are at www.samaritanspurse.org/what-we-do/operation-christmas-child. Participants can donate $10 per shoebox gift online through “Follow Your Box” and receive a tracking label to discover its destination.
• Focus: HOPE is hosting The Giving Machine, in collaboration with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nov. 19–Jan. 4 at Great Lakes Crossing Outlets at Entrance E (at Nike Store and Bass Pro Shops) in Auburn Hills, and Nov. 18–Dec. 7 at Campus Martius Park in Detroit. Visitors can purchase donations to support Focus: HOPE’s mission to help end food insecurity and build equitable opportunities for families in Metro Detroit, www.focushope.edu.
• Meijer announced it will donate the equivalent of one meal to local Simply Give food pantry partners for every Meijer brand, Frederik’s by Meijer, True Goodness, or Purple Cow food item purchased, from Nov. 23-29. Meijer customers can also contribute to the fight against hunger by adding a $10 Simply Give donation card to their order, https://meijercommunity.com/simply-give.
• Southfield Parks & Recreation invites the community to “Skate for a Cause” 5-6:50 p.m. Nov. 24, at the Southfield Sports Arena, 26000 Evergreen Road. Admission and skate rental are free with the donation of a non-perishable food item, to help support local families. A second Skate for a Cause event will also be held 5-6:50 p.m. Dec. 23, (248) 796-4620, www.cityofsouthfield.com/deaprtments/parks-recreation.
• The annual Mighty Gobbler 5K Run/1Mile Walk is 8-11 a.m. Thanksgiving morning, Nov. 27, hosted by Lutheran Church of the Master, 3333 Coolidge Hwy., Troy. Pre-registration for the 5K is $37 through Nov. 25 and $32 for the 1M, and then fees increase by $5 November 26 and 27. Portion of the proceeds will benefit Micah 6 Community in Pontiac and Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers, two local non-profit organizations serving people in need. Runners are also encouraged to bring canned goods to help stock the food pantry at Troy People Concerned. To register, visit mightygobbler.com or call 248-643-0176 for information.
• “Coats for the Cold” Coat Drive is through the month of November, donations sought of new or gently-used, clean coats at one of the 95 drop-off sites around Oakland County. Look for the box with the “Coats for the Cold” Coat Drive sign on it and place your donation inside. Partners in this effort: Genisys Credit Union, Max Broock Realtors, Real Estate One, Christ Church Cranbrook, @1800SelfStorage.com, McKenzie Moving. For a list of drop-off sites, visit www.facebook.com/OCSOMichigan.
• Rochester and Rochester Hills announce a friendly food drive competition to support Neighborhood House, from Nov. 10 to Dec. 1. Rochester residents should drop off non-perishable food items at 400 Sixth Street in Rochester, while Rochester Hills residents should bring donations to 1000 Rochester Hills Drive in Rochester Hills, ranh.org.
• Easterseals MORC 10th annual Cheers Gala is 7 p.m. Dec. 5, at M1 Concourse Event Center in Pontiac,holiday fundraising event to honor donors and community partners, features strolling dinner, cocktails, a silent auction, a photo station, interactive gaming and casino activities, live entertainment, tickets are $150+ for general admission at www.cbo.io/app/public/bidapp/cheers.
• Urban League of Detroit & Southeastern Michigan’s 60th Annual Guild Gala is 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Dec. 6, at Westin Southfield, 1500 Town Center, Southfield, www.deturbanleague.org, tickets are $100 for adults, $50 for youth.
• The Bloomfield Township Police Department is hosting Holiday Charity Campaign-Gift Cards for Veterans. The police department is collecting gift cards to any major box stores and grocers to distribute to multiple Oakland County veterans and their families this holiday season. Gift cards can be donated through Dec. 18 at the front desk of the Bloomfield Township Police Department, 4200 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Twp., https://bloomfieldtwp.org/police.
• “Crafted in Kindness,” a handmade hat and mitten drive, at The Hawk Makerspace. Knitters, crafters can donate crafted items from Nov. 29-Dec. 20, which will then be distributed to older adults in need through the City’s Adults 50 & Better Division. Crafters will be entered for a chance to win prizes from The Hawk Makerspace. The Hawk Makerspace is hosting workshops to teach aspiring makers to sew fleece hats and mittens on Nov. 29, www.fhgov.com.
• To fulfill a holiday wish list in the Senior Secret Santa program, contact Teresa at 248-473-1826 or tjergovich@fhgov.com. Wrapped gifts must be dropped off at the Costick Activities Center at 28600 W. Eleven Mile Road in Farmington Hills by Dec. 5.
• Farmington Hills police and firefighter/paramedics are teaming up with Toys for Tots, through Dec. 16, donate unwrapped toys in the lobby of the Farmington Hills Fire and Police Departments on the campus of Farmington Hills City Hall, 31555 W. Eleven Mile Road, Farmington Hills, www.fhgov.com.
Holiday activities
• Royal Oak Holidays Opening Weekend is Nov. 21-23, in downtown Royal Oak. With its merger with Royal Oak Winter Blast, festivities include The Rink at Royal Oak skating season opening, located in Centennial Commons, visits with Santa, mini carnival rides with a small donation to the Holiday Basket Food Drive. The Rink at Royal Oak is a collection site for The Bottomless Toy Chest. Royal Oak Holidays features five themed weekends of festive activities through Dec. 21, www.royaloakholidays.com.
• Visits with Santa are Friday-Sunday Nov. 21-Dec. 14, and daily Dec. 18-24, during Santa’s hours by walk-up only at The Village of Rochester Hills Outdoor Shopping Center, Festival Park, 104 N. Adams Road, TheVORH.com. Pet Night is 2-6 p.m. Nov. 23, guests are encouraged to bring their furry friends to The Village to take photos with Santa. Visits with Santa’s Reindeer take place 1-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, Nov. 29-Dec. 21.
• Annual Lagniappe event and Big Bright Light Show: 6-9 p.m. Nov. 24. Lagniappe, a Creole word for “a little something extra,” embodies the spirit of giving and appreciation, hosted by Rochester merchants. The program starts at 6 p.m. on stage on the crosswalk of W. 4th Street & Main, downtown Rochester. At 7 p.m., The Big, Bright Light Show will illuminate buildings downtown, followed by a fireworks display. Afterward, children can visit with Santa from 7:15-9 p.m. The Big, Bright Light Show will run nightly from 5 p.m. to midnight through Jan. 18. During the Lagniappe event, Main Street will be closed to traffic from Second Street to University Drive from 5-9:30 p.m. For information, visit www.downtownrochestermi.com/lagniappe.
• Holly Dickens Festival lighted parade is 6 p.m. Nov. 28, (includes a sensory-friendly portion). Festival continues 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturdays and noon-5 p.m. Sundays, Nov. 29-Dec. 14, downtown Holly. Stroll the streets of historic Battle Alley, visit shops, enjoy strolling Christmas carolers, street performers, holiday lights, roasted chestnuts, hot chocolate, children may visit with Santa in the Tiny Tim Children’s Tent, Run like the Dickens Race is Dec. 6, register at www.hollydickensfestival.org.
• Holiday Walk and Winter Wonder Lights take place on select dates Nov. 28-Dec. 30, Meadow Brook Hall, 350 Estate Drive, Rochester, on the campus of Oakland University, annual indoor daytime Holiday Walk, and the outdoor evening light show, featuring music and concessions, meadowbrookholidays.com, (248) 364-6200, ticket prices vary.
• Very Merry Brunch is held Nov. 28 and Dec. 22 in Meadow Brook Hall’s ballroom, 350 Estate Drive, Rochester, brunch before exploring the three main floors of the mansion decorated for Holiday Walk, meadowbrookholidays.com, tickets are $75 each.
• Holiday House Tours and All Aboard! Model Railroad Exhibit are noon-4 p.m. Nov. 28-30 and select Saturdays, Sundays and weekdays in December, at Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm, 1005 Van Hoosen Road, Rochester Hills, buy tickets at the door, general adm. is $5/adults, www.rochesterhills.org/musprograms.
• Birmingham Santa Walk: 9:30-10:30 a.m. Nov. 29, walk with Santa, hot chocolate while supplies last 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Santa visits are noon-4 p.m. Nov. 29 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Nov. 30. Free horse Drawn Carriage Rides are 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 29-30, Small Business Saturday activities, register for Santa Walk at www.allinbirmingham.com. Birmingham Winter Markt is Dec. 5-7.
• Holiday Tea & Tour: select dates Nov. 30-Dec. 21, in Meadow Brook Hall’s Dining Room, 350 Estate Drive, Rochester, includes admission to Holiday Walk. Tickets are $85 each.
• Annual holiday lights celebration is 6:30-8 p.m. Dec. 2, ceremony, tree lighting and 20-foot candle, carols, and Santa will arrive via fire truck at Farmington Hills City Hall, 31555 W. Eleven Mile Road, Farmington Hills, followed by free cookies and hot cocoa, and Santa visits inside Fire Station #5 on the campus of City Hall, www.fhgov.com.
• Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony: 6-8 p.m. Dec. 2, on the front lawn of the Southfield Municipal Campus, 26000 Evergreen Road, www.cityofsouthfield.com.
• Starlight Stroll: Dec. 3, Meadow Brook Hall’s ballroom, 350 Estate Drive, Rochester, holiday elegance that includes live music, open bar, strolling dinner, and complimentary valet, meadowbrookholidays.com, tickets are $150 each.
• “Holly, History & Harmony”: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Dec. 9, at the historic Buhl Estate at Addison Oaks, 1480 West Romeo Road, Leonard, event includes an educational tour, live seasonal music provided by the Twelfth Night Singers, who will sing a cappella selections while dressed in traditional Renaissance attire, and buffet meal, $45/person. Register by Nov. 24. Call 248-858-0916 or reserve at www.oakgov.com/community/oakland-county-parks/events.
Holiday markets
• Festival of Trees is Nov. 22-23, (10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday), The Rochester Community House, 816 Ludlow, Rochester, www.downtownrochestermi.com/festival-of-trees. Admission is free, proceeds benefit The Big, Bright Light Show.
• Arts & Greens Market is Nov. 22-23, Bogie Lake Greenhouses, 1525 Bogie Lake Road, White Lake Twp., (10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Sunday), 18th annual event, partnership between Huron Valley Council for the Arts and the greenhouses, www.huronvalleyarts.org, free admission.
• Davisburg Christmas Market: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Nov. 23, at Springfield Oaks, 12451 Andersonville Road, Davisburg, thebespokemarkets.com, $2 admission, www.facebook.com/groups/618971923690444.
• Holiday Market Pop-Up: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 23, Friendship Circle’s Soul Gallery, 5586 Drake Road, West Bloomfield Twp., featuring limited-edition, handcrafted items created by artists with special needs, 50% of the purchase price goes directly to the artists, and the other 50% is reinvested into the studio and its mission, shop online through Dec. 31 at https://gallery.friendshipcircle.org.
• 53rd Annual Elf Shelf Arts & Craft Show is 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Nov. 29, at Troy High School, 4777 Northfield Parkway, featuring over 200 booths of handcrafted gifts, seasonal décor, jewelry, textiles, hosted by the Troy Women’s Association, (248) 988-0426, www.troywomensassociation.org, $3 donation at the door to benefit scholarships and local charities.
Parks/Outdoor activities
• Oakland County Parks and Recreation offers free admission. General park entry fees and vehicle permits have been eliminated for all parks operated by Oakland County Parks, www.oakgov.com/community/oakland-county-parks.
• Huron-Clinton Metroparks in Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne, metroparks.com. Park entrance fees apply. Annual vehicle passes are $40 for residents or $45 for non-residents. Senior citizen pricing on annual passes are available in-person at toll booths or park offices with ID as proof of age.
• Michigan State Parks and Recreation Areas, michigan.gov/dnr. Park entrance fees apply.
Support resources
• For access to local community services, dial 211 (844-875-9211) or text zip code to 898211, for information and referrals to physical and mental health resources; housing, utility, food, and employment assistance; and suicide and crisis interventions, United Way, https://unitedwaysem.org/get-help.
• The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline provides 24/7 confidential support for people who are suicidal or in emotional distress, or who know someone who is. Calls and text messages to 988 route to a 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline call center, www.fcc.gov/988Lifeline.
• National Domestic Violence Hotline, 800-799-7233, available 24/7.
• Common Ground’s Resource & Crisis Helpline is available 24/7 – call or text 800-231-1127.
• Veterans Crisis Line, dial 988 and then press 1 to connect to the Veterans Crisis Lifeline. For texts, veterans should text the Veterans Crisis Lifeline short code: 838255.
The annual Mighty Gobbler 5K Run/1Mile Walk is 8-11 a.m. Thanksgiving morning, Nov. 27, at Lutheran Church of the Master, 3333 Coolidge Hwy., Troy. (Photo courtesy of The Mighty Gobbler)
Months after federal officials demanded voter data from Colorado and several other states, Secretary of State Jena Griswold and several peers are trying to determine what exactly the Trump administration is doing with the data.
“As Secretaries of State and chief election officials of our respective states, we write to express our immense concern with recent reporting that the Department of Justice has shared voter data with the Department of Homeland Security, and to seek clarity on whether DOJ and DHS actively misled election officials regarding the uses of voter data,” Griswold and nine other secretaries of state wrote in a letter sent Tuesday morning.
It was addressed to Pam Bondi, the U.S. attorney general, and Kristi Noem, the Homeland Security secretary.
Bondi’s Justice Department sent letters to Colorado and other states in the spring asking for voter rolls and, in some cases, it has sought more detailed data, including partial social security numbers and birth dates.
The state officials’ new letter asks Bondi and Noem whether the voter rolls were shared with Noem’s department, which has served as the tip of the spear in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, or any others. The secretaries of state who signed on are all Democrats.
Colorado provided some of the information requested by the Justice Department as required by law, Griswold said in an interview Monday. Other states, particularly those tasked with turning over more extensive voter data, refused; six of them have since been sued by the federal government.
Griswold said federal officials had provided shifting answers on whether the Homeland Security Department had been given access to the data that had been turned over to the DOJ, including from Colorado.
Heather Honey, the agency’s deputy assistant secretary for election integrity, told the secretaries of state in September that DHS hadn’t received or asked for the data, according to the secretaries’ letter. But the next day, the agency confirmed to Stateline that it was collaborating with the Justice Department to “scrub aliens from voter rolls.”
Six weeks later, on Halloween, the agency posted an administrative update indicating it was expanding a tool — used previously to ensure federal benefits don’t go to immigrants without proper legal status — to check voting rolls.
“We would like the attorney general and the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to explain what they’re doing collecting mass voter data on American voters,” Griswold said. “It also looks like the DOJ or DHS misled secretaries of state.”
Attempts to reach both federal departments for comment Tuesday were not successful.
Griswold said some of her staff members also had a brief conversation with officials from the Justice Department’s criminal division earlier this summer. The federal officials asked if Colorado election officials had a way to report election crimes to the state attorney general, Griswold’s office said. State officials replied that they did, and the conversation ended.
The state officials request a response from Bondi and Noem by Dec. 1.
In addition to Colorado, the secretaries of state from California, Minnesota, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Maine, Vermont, Oregon and Washington also signed the letter.
Two-year-old Alessandra Caffa holds her toy bunny while watching her father Juan Pablo Caffa vote for the first time after recently becoming an American citizen, at a voting center in the McNichols Civic Center Building in downtown Denver on Nov. 4, 2024. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)
The Social Security Administration has abandoned plans to block thousands of older Americans from qualifying for disability benefits after an uproar that reached senior officials in the Trump White House, according to people familiar with the decision.
The agency is also halting a plan to use modern labor market data to help judge whether disability claimants can work, a project that has cost the federal government more than $350 million so far. The new data would have replaced a long-outdated jobs database that until recently included obsolete occupations such as nut sorters and telephone quotation clerks.
The policy affecting older people would have fundamentally altered who qualifies for the two federal disability programs by eliminating or limiting a person’s age as a factor to consider. It fulfilled a long-held goal of Trump officials to tighten the federal safety net and had been on track to be announced in the Federal Register as soon as December.
But widespread opposition mounted following an article in The Washington Post in October that reported the new policy could result in a loss of future benefits for hundreds of thousands of people.
Jason Turkish – an attorney representing disabled people and co-founder of the advocacy group Alliance for America’s Promise – said SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano and other administration officials assured him in meetings over the past week that the proposal would not move forward. A former Social Security executive familiar with the disability program confirmed that Bisignano has scrapped the proposed rule.
“The commissioner took a decisive, unambiguous role in concretely ruling out that this mega-regulation would move forward,” Turkish said.
A White House spokesperson said that “the White House has not seen any such proposal. However, President Trump remains fully committed to protecting and strengthening Social Security while making it easier for millions of Americans to engage with the Social Security Administration.”
Social Security officials did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
The about-face follows months of turmoil at the agency that issues retirement and disability benefits to 72 million Americans. Thousands of staff cuts, voluntary departures and reassignments, service failures, and an aggressive takeover by Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service early in the Trump administration have led to widespread customer complaints and low morale in the agency’s workforce.
Social Security evaluates disability claims by considering age, work experience and education to determine if someone can adjust to other types of work. Applicants over 50 have a better chance of qualifying because age is treated as a limitation in adapting to many jobs.
But with prodding from Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought earlier this year, the agency began to consider eliminating age as a factor entirely or raising the threshold to 60, according to people familiar with the plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private discussions. Leland Dudek, the acting commissioner at the time, instructed officials to begin drafting the new rule shortly after he took office.
Advocates for the disabled and elderly applauded the decision to back off.
“Social Security disability insurance is a critical lifeline for people who find themselves no longer able to work,” Jenn Jones, vice president of financial security for AARP, said in a statement. “We appreciate Commissioner Bisignano’s commitment to a careful and transparent process, because any changes to [disability insurance] can impact older Americans across the country who rely on Social Security for their independence and livelihoods.”
A cut in disability benefits could have significant political consequences, advocates and lawmakers have warned, pointing to Trump’s campaign promise to not touch Social Security.
“I’m incredibly pleased to see Commissioner Bisignano and the administration decided not to pursue proposed cuts to Social Security’s disability programs – cuts which would have been out of step not only with what the American people want, but also with President Trump’s repeated promises not to cut Social Security,” Rebecca Vallas, CEO of the National Academy of Social Insurance, said in a statement.
Conservatives have long argued that since Americans are living longer and fewer have jobs that require manual labor, many physically disabled workers could adapt to desk work, with the result that fewer people would qualify for disability benefits. Social Security had prepared a similar rule at the end of the first Trump administration but ran out of time to formally propose it.
To determine the jobs a disability applicant might be able to do, Social Security has long relied on a database compiled by the Labor Department, which abandoned the list more than 30 years ago as the economy shifted away from blue-collar work to information and services. Martin O’Malley, who served as Social Security commissioner during the Biden administration, removed many of those jobs from consideration after scrutiny from lawmakers following a Post investigation in 2022.
But the agency did not replace them with a sophisticated database of jobs in the modern U.S. economy compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics over the course of years. Among the Trump administration’s concerns with using the new data is that younger disabled people with cognitive and mental impairments would probably qualify for fewer jobs, potentially leading more of them to be awarded benefits, the former Social Security executive said.
According to two former officials, starting next year the agency planned to develop a database using the BLS data to help determine which jobs, if any, someone seeking benefits could perform. Disability advocates say they worry that such a database would be programmed to come up with a vast array of jobs – particularly if advancing age was no longer a limiting factor – and would end up denying benefits to tens of thousands of claimants every year.
Michelle Spadafore, a New York-based disability attorney, said that advocates were most concerned about the proposal that could have made more older Americans ineligible for disability and are willing to wait until the agency moves forward with a modern jobs database.
“I don’t know if there’s a way to not throw out the baby with the bathwater,” she said. “The threat of taking age out of the equation is so great that even though we want to see modernization of job data, we’re willing to wait on that.”
Today is Sunday, Nov. 23, the 327th day of 2025. There are 38 days left in the year.
Today in history:
On Nov. 23,2005, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected president of Liberia, becoming Africa’s first democratically elected female head of state. She guided her nation through recovery after its exit from a decade-long civil war.
Also on this date:
In 1863, thousands of Union soldiers under Gen. Ulysses S. Grant marched out of Chattanooga, Tennessee, and battled Confederate forces through Nov. 25, forcing their retreat into Georgia in a significant blow to the South in the American Civil War.
In 1939, early in World War II, the British armed merchant cruiser HMS Rawalpindi was on patrol when it was shelled and sunk in an engagement with two German warships southeast of Iceland, leaving more than 200 dead aboard the Rawalpindi and only a few dozen survivors.
In 1963, President Lyndon B. Johnson proclaimed Nov. 25 a day of national mourning following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
In 1971, the People’s Republic of China was seated in the United Nations Security Council.
In 1980, an estimated 2,500 to 3,000 people were killed by a series of earthquakes that devastated southern Italy.
In 1984, Boston College quarterback Doug Flutie completed one of the most famous passes in college football history, connecting with Gerald Phelan for a 48-yard touchdown with no time left on the clock as Boston College defeated the Miami Hurricanes 47-45.
In 1996, a hijacked Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767 ran out of fuel and crashed into the Indian Ocean near the Comoro Islands, killing 125 of the 175 people on board, including all three hijackers.
In 2006, former KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko (leet-vee-NYEN’-koh) died in London from radiation poisoning after making a deathbed statement blaming Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In 2008, the U.S. government unveiled a bold plan to rescue Citigroup, injecting a fresh $20 billion into the troubled firm as well as guaranteeing hundreds of billions of dollars in risky assets.
In 2011, Yemen’s authoritarian President Ali Abdullah Saleh (AH’-lee ahb-DUH’-luh sah-LEH’) agreed to step down amid a fierce uprising to oust him after 33 years in power. (After formally ceding power in February 2012, he was killed in 2017 by Houthi rebels who were once his allies.)
In 2024, Israeli airstrikes in central Beirut killed at least 20 people and wounded dozens more, the latest strikes in renewed fighting between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah militants. (A U.S.-brokered cease-fire would be reached on Nov. 27, with sporadic violations of that truce for months afterward.)
Today’s Birthdays:
Actor Franco Nero (“Django”) is 84.
Singer Bruce Hornsby is 71.
TV journalist Robin Roberts (“Good Morning America”) is 65.
Composer Nicolas Bacri is 64.
Poet and author Jennifer Michael Hecht is 60.
Olympic gold medal sprinter Asafa Powell is 43.
Ice hockey player Nicklas Bäckström is 38.
Singer-actor Miley Cyrus is 33.
**FILE** Liberian President elect Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, center, after she gave an address to the nation in the city of Monrovia, Liberia in a Nov. 23, 2005 file photo. Johnson Sirleaf takes office as Africa’s first elected female president Monday, Jan. 16, 2005 but rebuilding war-scarred Liberia will be no easy task. (AP Photo/Pewee Flomoku, File)
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Cade Cunningham had 29 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds as the Detroit Pistons capitalized on sizzling shooting to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 129-116 on Saturday night for their 12th straight victory.
Detroit’s Jaden Ivey played 15 minutes and scored 10 points in his first game since breaking his left fibula on Jan. 1. Tobias Harris scored 18 points while playing for the first time since Nov. 1 after dealing with a sprained right ankle.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo missed a second straight game due to an adductor strain.
The Pistons are one victory away from matching the longest winning streak in franchise history. Detroit won 13 straight games in 1989-90 and 2003-04, and the Pistons went on to win the NBA title both seasons.
Detroit also ended a 13-game skid in this series by beating the Bucks for the first time since a 115-106 triumph at Milwaukee on Jan. 3, 2022. That had been tied for the second-longest active win streak by any one team against another.
The longest such active streak is owned by the Los Angeles Clippers, who beat the Charlotte Hornets for a 15th straight time Saturday as James Harden scored 55 points in a 131-116 game.
Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff said during his pregame availability that Cunningham had brought up the Pistons’ lack of success against the Bucks to the rest of the team earlier in the day.
Jalen Duren had 19 points and Duncan Robinson 15 for Detroit, which shot 53.3% (16 of 30) from 3-point range and 62.8% (49 of 78) overall. Ryan Rollins had 24 and Bobby Portis added 18 for Milwaukee.
The Bucks have lost four straight to drop below .500 for the first time this season.
Detroit pulled ahead for good in the second quarter and led by as many as 29.
Up next
Pistons: Visit the Indiana Pacers on Monday night.
Bucks: Host the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
— By STEVE MEGARGEE, Associated Press
Detroit Pistons’ Cade Cunningham dunks over Milwaukee Bucks’ AJ Green and Andre Jackson Jr. during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Azzi Fudd scored 31 points and Sarah Strong added 16 points and 20 rebounds to lead No. 1 UConn to a 72-69 victory over sixth-ranked Michigan on Friday night in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase.
Huskies coach Geno Auriemma had said earlier in the week that Michigan might be the best team that his team would play this early in the season. He wasn’t wrong.
UConn (5-0) looked like it would run away with it early, building a 17-point lead midway through the third quarter before the Wolverines (4-1) rallied. They used a 13-0 run to pull to 49-45 heading into the fourth.
Fudd ended a nearly 8-minute scoring drought for the Huskies hitting a 3-pointer to start her own personal 9-0 run and restore a double-digit advantage for UConn.
Michigan wasn’t done, rallying to 68-66 in the final minute on a 3-pointer by Syla Swords with 22.2 seconds left. The Wolverines fouled Fudd 5 seconds later and the guard calmly hit two free throws to restore the two-possession lead.
Swords once again answered hitting a deep 3-pointer with about 12 seconds left, making it 70-69.
Fudd then hit two more free throws with just under 8 seconds left and Michigan couldn’t get a final shot off to tie it.
Swords finished with 29 points and Olivia Olson added 18 for the Wolverines.
UConn jumped all over Michigan with Strong leading the way on both ends of the court. She had six points, nine rebounds and three blocks in the first 10 minutes as the Huskies led 22-5 after one quarter. Fudd took over in the second quarter, scoring 13 points as the Huskies led 45-27 at the half.
This was the third time in the past two seasons that Michigan has faced a No. 1 team in the poll. The Wolverines lost to South Carolina to open the season last year and then were beaten by Big Ten foe UCLA. Prior to those meetings, Michigan had only faced a No. 1 team once before — a loss to Iowa in 1988.
Up next
UConn will play Utah and Michigan will face Syracuse on Sunday in the second set of games in this tournament.
— By DOUG FEINBERG, Associated Press
UConn guard Azzi Fudd, center, drives to the basket as Michigan guard Mila Holloway, left, defends in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025, in Uncasville, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
Mohammad Habhab had 24 points in Eastern Michigan’s 97-91 win against Oakland on Friday.
Habhab had 11 rebounds and nine assists for the Eagles (3-2). Carlos Hart added 22 points while going 7 of 10 and 6 of 6 from the free-throw line, and added seven rebounds and five assists. Mehki Ellison finished 5 of 8 from the field to finish with 13 points.
“Sometimes the other team just plays better and we honestly did not play bad tonight,” Oakland head coach Greg Kampe said. “Offensively, we played pretty well. We took a few bad shot, panicked a bit…within the last few minutes we got it back to three [points], and we had chances and weren’t tough enough with the ball. We need to learn how to finish late in the game.”
The Golden Grizzlies (1-5) were led in scoring by Brody Robinson, who finished with 22 points and six assists. Michael Houge added 17 points for Oakland. Isaac Garrett had 15 points and six rebounds.
Habhab put up 12 points in the first half for Eastern Michigan, who led 46-41 at halftime. Eastern Michigan turned a one-point second-half lead into an eight-point advantage with a 7-0 run to make it a 75-67 lead with 8:09 left in the half.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Oakland guard Brody Robinson (55) plays during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind., Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (MICHAEL CONROY — AP Photo, file)
Amid increased immigration enforcement across the country, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald urged students, teachers and families not to interfere with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents — but to also know their rights if agents show up at a school or detain parents.
McDonald said in a Friday news release that interfering with ICE or other law enforcement “increases the risk for everyone.” The county prosecutor said ICE agents may enter public areas in schools without restriction, but must present either a judicial warrant or permission from the school to enter private areas like classrooms or offices.
McDonald’s statement follows news on Wednesday that ICE agents pursued purported gang members who had fled on foot near a Clarkston Community elementary school, Oakland County Sheriff’s Public Information Officer Steve Huber said Friday. The district issued a shelter-in-place order, sheriff’s deputies provided additional security to the school and assisted the search, Huber said.
The search and shelter-in-place order lasted for about an hour, according to district officials.
In preparation for a possible ICE presence, McDonald said schools should require visitors to sign in, make sure security cameras work, follow student privacy protections and have a communication plan. She also said faculty and staff should treat ICE agents like they would any visitor who’s not a parent or guardian and educate the staff on how to identify a judicial warrant.
The prosecutor also said parents and caregivers should remember their right not to answer any questions about immigration or birthplace, make sure the school has correct emergency contact information, ask their schools if they have an ICE preparedness plan and make a family plan if a parent is detained while their children are at school.
“As ICE raids have happened across our country, many community members, including our students, parents, and teachers, have experienced understandable anxiety and fear. Schools should be places where kids feel safe, and worrying that a teacher, child, or classmate could be detained can impact a student’s health and well-being. Working together, there are steps schools and families can take to keep kids safe, informed, and protected,” McDonald said in a statement.
School superintendents across Michigan vowed in January that they would keep their students and school buildings safe and instructed staff on proper procedures as the Trump administration increased its immigration enforcement efforts nationwide.
ICE officials said in September their agents do not “raid” schools, but could enter a school if an undocumented immigrant with a felony record were to flee into a school.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen D. McDonald urged students, teachers and families not to interfere with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents — but to also know their rights if agents show up at a school or detain parents. (Katy Kildee, The Detroit News)
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck will undergo an arthroscopic procedure on his knee and be out four to six weeks, the team said Friday.
Jets coach Scott Arneil said Friday that Hellebuyck, a three-time Vezina Trophy winner as the NHL’s top goalie, had been trying to play through a knee injury, and the timing is right to get it taken care of. Hellebuyck is from Commerce Twp., and attended Walled Lake Northern High School.
“Obviously, he’s, what is it, 10 years, he’s been pretty healthy,” Arniel said. “And this has kind of been nagging on him here since training camp. It’s something we’ve kind of known about, he was trying to play through it, would be good days, bad days, just something that, timing’s right, get it done now.
“A lot of schedule ahead of us, so that was really just the thinking. Sat down, talked to him, obviously the medical staff, everybody, agent. This was the time to do it.”
The surgery comes less than three months before the start of the Olympic men’s hockey tournament in Milan, Italy.
Hellebuyck is 8-6-0 with a 2.51 goals-against average and .913 save percentage this season for the Jets (12-7-0), who entered a game Friday against Carolina in third place in the Central Division.
The 32-year-old Hellebuyck won his first Hart Trophy as NHL MVP and his second straight — and third career —Vezina Trophy in 2024-25, helping the Jets to the best regular-season record in the NHL. He also won the award as top goalie in 2019-20.
Hellebuyck was not included in the first group of six players announced for the United States’ Olympic preliminary roster, but was widely expected to be added to the team.
Eric Comrie is expected to take the Jets starting role in Hellebuyck’s absence. He is 4-1 with a 2.60 GAA and .908 save percentage this season.
In a corresponding move, the Jets called up goaltender Thomas Milic from the American Hockey League’s Manitoba Moose.
“Obviously we’ve been really fortunate to have Helly be healthy and available,” Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey said. “His durability is something to marvel at. Obviously now without him, you can’t replace a guy like that.
“But we’re super confident in Coms and Milly and our defensive game. But definitely, we’ve been fortunate to not have him out of the lineup for a whole lot of years.”
Hellebuyck, who last played on Nov. 15 in a victory over Calgary, was 47-12-3 last season. He has a career record of 330-191-44 with a 2.56 GAA and .918 save percentage and 45 shutouts.
Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck (37) makes a save with the shaft of his stick during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks, in Vancouver, on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)
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