ONE-HUNDRED-TWENTY-FOUR YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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ADMINISTRATION
Schlissel to leave Brown ready for ‘U’ leadership University Presidentelect reflects on tenure as researcher and administrator By YARDAIN AMRON Daily Staff Reporter
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The provost’s office is on the first floor of an unremarkable brick building. The shades are drawn, but just outside lies Brown University’s Main Green, the school’s equivalent to the University’s Diag. It’s noon and the pathways are bustling with students between classes, jackets unzipped under a tall sun. Brown Provost Mark Schlissel — who was selected as the University of Michigan’s next president in January — stands maybe 6-feet-2-inches. His suit is gray, tie maroon and glasses neither rectangle nor oval. His beard is grizzly and beginning to lose color. He gives a firm handshake and says, “Take a seat wherever.” I took one of 10 seats at a long mahogany table and looked around. The office was grand, featuring a large U-shaped desk, used but tidy, filled bookcases across one wall, a grandfather clock, a fire-
place with no wood, four armchairs for intimate meetings and bamboo shoots for a natural touch. This has been Schlissel’s situation room for almost three years now. He must have noticed my eyes widening because he said, “You should check this out,” and walked over to a wall and punched what must have been a button. A 60-inch television rose from a hidden compartment, but before it rose two inches he clicked again and the TV disappeared. “Pretty neat, eh, if anyone needs to give a presentation.” I mentioned the computer speakers on a nearby secondary desk, and he said, “Yeah, I joke I should have a Super Bowl party in here.” He had missed his last opportunity, though. On Jan. 24, about a week before Seattle blew Denver out 48-7 in Super Bowl XLVIII, Schlissel was in Ann Arbor accepting the title of 14th president of University of Michigan. I asked if he knew he’d be getting an office downgrade when he arrives at the University. “Yeah, I’ve seen President Coleman’s office. I’m not too worried,” he said. “Certain things are worth sacrificing.” He took the seat at the head of the table. See SCHLISSEL, Page 3
LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily
Public Policy junior Bobby Dishell, current CSG vice president and Make Michigan CSG presidential nominee, debates issues related to this Wednesday’s election with the other CSG presidential candidates Monday in South Hall.
CSG candidates debate issues before polls open Presidential hopefuls discuss #UMDivest, student government budget priorities By KRISTEN FEDOR Daily Staff Reporter
The discussion at the Central Student Government presidential debate Monday evening centered on the current state of student government at the University, but lacked focus on specific future initiatives. Public Policy junior Carly Manes, a FORUM candidate,
LSA junior Ryan Hayes of The Party Party and LSA sophomore Mical Holt of the Defend Affirmative Action Party all expressed discontent with the status quo. Public Policy junior Bobby Dishell, Make Michigan’s candidate, focused on his role as current CSG vice president and how he will expand on that experience if elected. In the opening statements, Dishell specified major platform points of Make Michigan, such as increased support of the LEAD Scholars Program to foster minority enrollment and the creation of a peer support network aimed at bettering the mental health of students across
campus. He referenced these points several times throughout the debates. Manes reiterated FORUM’s commitment to increasing diversity on campus and support of what she referred to as “student-centered initiatives” in her opening statement, an echo of the party’s slogan, “Empowerment, Not Politics.” Hayes began with a direct criticism of CSG and said the way student government has functioned reveals a lack of engagement with the student body. “We need to open doors, not have people find our open doors,” he said.
As a single-issue party, Holt’s opening statement reflected DAAP’s focus on increasing minority enrollment. Throughout the debate, Holt’s responses circled back to this sentiment of increasing minority voices on campus. The CSG budget was the most divisive issue of the debate. While every candidate agreed that student organizations should see increased funding, the methods in which this goal would be achieved and its feasibility given current funding provided intense disagreement among the candidates. Manes and Hayes held similar See CSG, Page 6
INNOVATION
GOVERNMENT
Students form start-ups to compete for hefty prizes
Court will review emergency stay on marriage case
Business Challenge provides incentives for entrepreneurship
Court of Appeals ruling may just be a step towards the U.S. Supreme Court
By HILLARY CRAWFORD Daily Staff Reporter ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
Between the Dare to Dream grant program and the Michigan Business Challenge competition, both sponsored by the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, startups campus-wide have won over $113,000 to boost their new businesses. The Michigan Business Challenge, which initially included only the Ross School of Business, has been conducted for 31 years. The competition’s campus-wide scope has encouraged the mingling of various colleges within the University, creating more diverse, successful entrepreneurial teams. In addition to the prize money awarded to the four finalists, other awards recognize specific strengths of a team: best-written business plan, outstanding presentation, participation, most successful undergraduate team, and the Williamson Award for the best cross-functional team. A total of six teams won these awards. The grand prize Pryor-Hale Award is worth $20,000, and the runner up receives $10,000. Engineering graduate student Muhammad Faisal and Rackham student Daniel Andersen won the See START-UPS, Page 6
WEATHER TOMORROW
HI: 30 LO: 21
Scott Masten, professor of business economics and public policy, was unanimously elected SACUA Chair at the Fleming Administration Building Monday.
By RACHEL PREMACK
SACUA welcomes new members, discusses AST Committee looks at Shared Services plan, LSA dean search By ANDREW ALMANI Daily Staff Reporter
The newly elected members of the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs attended their first meeting Monday afternoon. At the Senate Assembly meeting March 16, three professors were elected to serve three-year terms on the committee, Pharmaceutical Sciences Prof. David Smith; William Schultz, professor
of mechanical engineering, naval architecture and marine engineering and Silke-Maria Weineck, chair of the Department of Comparative Literature and associate professor of Germanic Languages and Literature. The committee also held SACUA officer elections for the positions of chair and vice chair. After some discussion and a quick paper ballot, Scott Masten, professor of business economics and public policy, was unanimously elected to the position of SACUA chair, while Astronomy Prof. Sally Oey was unanimously elected to be vice-chair. SACUA Chair Karen Staller spoke briefly of her private
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meeting with University President-elect Mark Schlissel on March 14 in which they discussed faculty involvement at the University. “Overall it was an extremely positive exchange, he’s clearly interested in learning about the University from its faculty ... he asked very informed questions,” Staller said. “I’m very optimistic about our ability to form a working relationship with him.” SACUA took time to discuss Administrative Services Transition, a part of the University’s effort to increase cost-containment. This controversial proposal would merge nearly 300 departSee SACUA, Page 3
NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM What is divestment and why is there a sit-in? MICHIGANDAILY.COM/BLOGS
INDEX
Daily News Editor
On Wednesday, the Sixth Circuit court will hold a hearing concerning same-sex marriage in Michigan--the next step in what legal experts said will likely be a lengthy legal battle over the issue. Late Saturday, following a decision on Friday by U.S. District Judge Bernard Friedman to strike down Michigan’s ban on same-sex marriage, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette requested a stay and filed an appeal on the case. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit accepted the stay, temporarily preventing further same-sex marriage licenses from being issued. The stay is temporary and may end Wednesday, pending the Court of Appeals’ ruling. More than 300 marriages that occurred early Saturday are valid under state and federal law. However, if the stay progresses through the Court of Appeals, located in Cincinnati, as Schuette and other proponents of traditional marriage hope, there may be no more same-sex marriages in Michigan for a longer period.
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Furthermore, Schuette, representing the state of Michigan, may file for an appeal in Friedman’s overturning of the 2004 ban. If the Sixth Circuit Court rules in favor of the state, same-sex marriage will likely become illegal again in Michigan. However, Anna Kirkland, associate professor in the department of women’s studies, said same-sex marriage was likely to become legal in Michigan. “I think there’s a clear path for victory on this for the same-sex couples seeking to get married,” Kirkland said. “The fight is basically over for conservatives on this one, I think, but it could still take a while with some up and downs.” The legal team representing the plaintiffs in the case, April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse, has until Tuesday to respond to the state’s request for a stay. Kenneth Mogill and Carole Stanyar, two of the five lawyers for the plaintiffs, confirmed Monday the legal team for the plaintiffs will file the response Tuesday, which comes in the form of a legal brief. “All we can do is make the best arguments we can, which we believe are very strong, and the court will do what it does,” Mogill said. Sara Wurfel, press secretary for Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, said the governor is not weighing into those issues yet. See MARRIAGE, Page 6
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