MI Diaries Researchers Presenting at MCTE 2026

Project Lead Dr. Betsy Sneller and Postdoctoral Researcher Joel Berends will be presenting at the Michigan Council of Teachers of English Fall Conference on October 16. They’re presenting with high school teachers, Greg Schreur of Grand Rapids City High-Middle and April Mueller of West Ottawa High School, and sharing possibilities for use of the Just Talking app (a generalized version of the MI Diaries software) in classroom speaking events.

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Lab Members Presenting at NWAV 54

Several Socio Lab members are taking their research to the 54th News Ways of Analyzing Variation conference, to be held in Montréal from October 22nd-24th, 2026. For more information on these projects, see the abstracts linked below: Jess Shepherd and Betsy Sneller will present "Domain-narrowing of a variable phonological rule in parent-to-child transmission." [ABSTRACT] Adam Barnhardt will present "The development of style in adolescence and its implications for theories of sound change." [ABSTRACT] Annan Kirk will present "'Kinda took it easy yet': non-polar yet in Michigan English." [ABSTRACT] Connor Bechler will present "UHM in Michigan English: Variation as a Lens on the Grammar." [ABSTRACT] Drake Howard will present "Underspecified singular they and pronoun switch in the MI Diaries Corpus." [ABSTRACT]

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MI Diaries is an example of “Arts and Humanities in Action”

The MI Diaries project was featured in an August 4, 2026 news story from the Michigan State University College of Arts and Letters. Thomas Stubblefield, Dean of the College, underscores in this article that “The arts, culture, and humanities enrich our lives by helping us better understand ourselves and others, appreciate different perspectives, and find meaning and common ground in an increasingly divided world...They foster a stronger sense of belonging, strengthen our communities, and help ensure that Michigan remains a place where people want to build their futures.” MI Diaries plays an important role in these efforts: The College of Arts and Letters also is helping document and preserve Michigan’s linguistic heritage through MI Diaries, a project led by Betsy Sneller and Suzanne Wagner, both Associate Professors in the Department of Linguistics, Languages, and Cultures. This multi-year study collects audio recordings and personal reflections from participants across the state, documenting changes in the lives and language of Michigan residents while creating a living archive of language, culture, identity, and everyday life. https://cal.msu.edu/news/arts-and-humanities-in-action-how-msus-college-of-arts-and-letters-is-shaping-michigans-future/

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Betsy Sneller watches a child add a sticker to an MI Diaries poster at the MSU Science Festival.

MI Diaries at MSU Science Fest 2026

On April 11th, the Sociolinguistics Lab's Michigan Diaries Project set up at MSU's annual Science Festival to talk to the public about sociolinguistics! In addition to answering people's questions about language and hyping them up to become participants for the Diaries project, we ran two informal studies throughout the day to gauge changes in time in Michiganders' preferred terms for a fizzy drink (pop, soda, or other), as well as the realization of Michiganders' pre-nasal /æ/ vowel (is the vowel in 'hand' the same as the one in 'cap'?) Professor Betsy Sneller helping visitors add to the Pop vs. Soda chart. Team member Connor Bechler giving the MI Diaries rundown to a curious prospective participant. Rush hour at the MI Diaries Science Fest booth.

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Michigan State Presenting at LSA 2026

Five MSU linguists (including Sociolinguistics Lab members Mofart Ayiega & Leah Nodar) will be presenting their work at the Linguistics Society of America’s annual conference, taking place this year in New Orleans from January 8th – 11th!

Please find their talk titles below:

  • Mofart Ayiega (co-authored with Dr. Suzanne Wagner) – Morphological Leveling of Noun Class Agreement in Urban Swahili
  • Dr. Leah Nodar – Twelve Variables of Africatown English in 1927 and 1979
  • Jingying Xu (co-authored with Dr. Cristina Schmitt):
    • Beyond Truth Conditions: Context Modulates Telicity Interpretation
    • Learning Telicity in Context: Developmental Evidence from Mandarin Children
  • Ellie Xia (co-authored with Dr. Alan Hezao Ke) – Tonal Marking of Telicity in Hakka: An Agree-Based Analysis
  • John Ryan (co-authored with Yaxuan Wang) – Reference, Aspect, and Event Completion in Mandarin Sentence Judgments

Click ‘Continue Reading’ for abstracts.

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