From May 22 to May 28, MSU will be hosting the 2023 Odyssey of the Mind World Finals. This is a global competition that allows students to develop their problem-solving capabilities, encourages collaboration with others, and supplements students’ education through skits and challenges.

Hosting the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals is an honor. This is an excellent opportunity for MSU to contribute to an organization that fosters creativity and critical thinking in young students. Furthermore, we hope many of these students plan to be future Spartans after enjoying their week on our beautiful campus. We are excited to share our Spartan home with these students and their families as they compete and learn valuable skills.

During this week, more than 600 teams from across 31 states and 10 countries around the world will join us on MSU’s campus. Approximately 6,500 guests will stay in various residence halls, and an additional 3,000 will stay in hotels across Greater Lansing. Therefore, our campus and the surrounding area will be much busier than usual May 22-28.

Please prepare for heavy traffic on roads and a large number of pedestrians in and around central campus, as competition and event locations include Brody, East, River Trail and South neighborhoods, Breslin Center, Kellogg Center, International Center, Wells Hall, Jenison Fieldhouse and IM West. 

We appreciate your understanding of potential increased traffic due to the presence of a large population that is not necessarily familiar with MSU’s campus. Thank you for your patience as we work to extend our warm Spartan hospitality to these students and their families.