CELEBRATING OUR ONE-HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIFTH YEAR OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Wednesday, September 9, 2015
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PING PONG RALLIES ON
‘Big data’ initiative to receive $100M RUBY WALLAU/Daily
LSA sophomore Kyle Johnson plays table tennis on the Diag using tables organized by the UM Table Tennis Club on Tuesday.
IT staff troubleshoot issues with ‘U’ wireless networks Problems reported in several areas of Central Campus By MICHAEL SUGERMAN Daily News Editor
Just in time for the first day of class, University wireless networks decided not to make an appearance on Central Campus Tuesday.
Andy Palms, the executive director of communications systems and data centers, said the Wi-Fi problems — which began at 10 a.m. Tuesday with the MWireless, MGuest and eduroam networks all struggling to connect — should be resolved by early Wednesday morning. “It does not impact the Health System,” Palms said in an interview Tuesday about the intermittent service. “It does not impact the South Campus.
It also does not impact most of North Campus. It’s pretty much a Central Campus issue.” Tuesday’s problems, Palms explained, arose from a bug in the Wi-Fi vendor’s code as a result of heavy wireless use across campus. “Today, by changing configuration and spreading the load out across more equipment, we decreased the impact of the bug,” Palms wrote. Earlier, Palms had noted that the University upgraded roughly
3,000 of its wireless access points over the summer. Doing so, he said, was part of accommodating a yearly increase in network use. This year’s Wi-Fi use rose by 20 percent from last year, a change that Palms said is “well within our specs.” During the day Tuesday, the University’s information technology phone line touted an automated message explaining that the connectivity issues were See WIRELESS, Page 2A
University to hire 35 new faculty members over next four years By TANYA MADHANI Daily Staff Reporter
The University will invest $100 million in a new Data Science Initiative over the next five years with the aim of enhancing learning and research opportunities for students and faculty members. To support the initiative, the University will hire 35 new faculty members over the next four years and launch the Michigan Institute for Data Science, which will lead educational and research opportunities related to big data. Massive sets of data can help researchers produce new insights into a broad spectrum of topics, from learning and medicine to transportation and
social media. “Big data can provide dramatic insights into the nature of disease, climate change, social behavior, business and economics, engineering, and the basic biological and physical sciences,” University President Mark Schlissel wrote in a statement. “With our widely recognized strengths across all of these areas and our longstanding culture of collaboration across disciplines, U-M is in a unique position to leverage this investment in data science for the good of society.” The initiative also aims to expand the University’s computing capacity, support interdisciplinary research on big data and provide opportunities for students interested in careers related to data science. Engineering Prof. Alfred Hero and Brian Athey, a professor of psychiatry and See DATA, Page 3A
At first meeting, Schlissel talks diversity, sexual misconduct CSG discusses Enrollment could show fall priorities progress on Representatives to propose resolution for undocumented student aid By JACKIE CHARNIGA Daily Staff Reporter
At Central Student Government’s inaugural meeting of the school year Tuesday, representatives discussed priorities for the school year and confirmed nominations for executive positions. Priorities CSG President Cooper Charlton, an LSA senior, said his first priority is to ensure the student body understands the University’s Statement of Student Rights and Responsibilities. The statement — which details expectations for student conduct and outlines suggested sanctions and disciplinary measures for violations — is due for revision this year. Students can suggest changes to the statement by the beginning of November, and for that reason, Charlton said it’s
imperative students understand the document. Charlton also discussed drinking culture on campus, particularly the University’s new efforts to curb alcohol abuse. Whether they agree with the new plans or not, he said CSG representatives are in a good position to voice their opinions on the subject. The University’s new initiatives include plans to notify the parents of first-year students after they incur a second violation, as well as an effort to expand the presence of the University of Michigan Police Department off campus. “Welcome Week, I’m sure everyone had fun, but there’s definitely a line and we all know what it is,” Charlton said. CSG Vice President Steven Halperin, an LSA junior, also discussed CSG’s plans to approach sexual assault, citing a new program instituted in Greek life for incoming freshmen pledges. Each incoming student vying for a position in a sorority or fraternity will be subject to a mandatory meeting about sexual assault prevention, Halperin said. The formulation of sexual See CSG, Page 2A
diversity
ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
University President Mark Schlissel speaks with Michigan Daily reporters at the Fleming Administration Building on Septemer 1, 2015.
Sexual misconduct policy to receive update by Dec. President says updates likely won’t impact consent definition By SAM GRINGLAS Managing News Editor
University President Mark Schlissel told The Michigan Daily he hopes to update the
University’s Student Sexual Misconduct Policy “before the new year.” “The goal of making change is to have the process be as fair as possible to the complainant and the respondent to help us arrive at a decision which is the right one,” he said in an interview. Schlissel previously discussed the University’s intentions to consider changes to the policy at a fireside
chat in April. The policy was last revised in 2013, when it was updated based on a set of recommendations handed down by the U.S. Department of Education. The updated version changed the burden of proof applied when adjudicating sexual misconduct cases. Now, decisions require only a “preponderance of evidence,” meaning an incident is more See POLICY, Page 3A
Ahead of today’s session , Schlissel discusses new initiatives By ALLANA AKHTAR Daily Staff Reporter
After a year of calls for increased campus diversity, University President Mark Schlissel said he expects to see signs of tangible improvement as early as this September. In an interview with The Michigan Daily last week, Schlissel said he hopes this year’s freshman enrollment figures — typically released in the fall — will reflect the impacts of a new University effort to package the delivery of financial aid awards and admissions decisions. “We should start to see See DIVERSITY, Page 3A
the statement
Stimulants and alcohol, a deadly combination
WEATHER TOMORROW
HI: 77 LO: 52
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INDEX
Vol. CXXIV, No. 122 ©2015 The Michigan Daily michigandaily.com
NEWS......................... 2A OPINION.....................4A S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7A
» INSIDE
SUDOKU.....................2A CL ASSIFIEDS...............6A T H E S TAT E M E N T. . . . . . . . . .1 B