ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Thursday, December 10, 2015
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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S W E E T E N YO U R D AY
GOVERNMENT
Court hears arguments in Fisher v. Texas case Supreme Court to once again consider use of race in college admissions process
DAVID SONG/Daily
LSA sophomore Sarah Gizzi and LSA freshman Marielle Dewicki make sugar cookies after a cookie baking demonstration by a Michigan Dining chef at the Michigan Union on Wednesday.
CITY COUNCIL
Year in Review: Ann Arbor leadership faces transition From deer cull to departure of key city officials, 2015 marked year of change By ISOBEL FUTTER Daily Staff Reporter
For City Hall and the Ann Arbor City Council, the past year has been one of major changes — from an influx of new faces on
city staff to an unprecedented decision to hire sharpshooters to reduce Ann Arbor’s deer population. As the year wraps up, The Michigan Daily is reviewing City Council’s major challenges and successes throughout 2015, and what the year’s progress, or lack thereof, will mean for the year ahead. City staffing changes In 2015, the city of Ann Arbor lost upward of five key city leaders. Among these were the police chief, the city
administrator, the city fire chief, the city community services area administrator and the city planning manager. A challenge for the city in the coming months will be finding the resources and staff to accommodate council’s needs. According to Councilmember Zach Ackerman (D–Ward 3), an LSA senior, council will need to slow down with policy change in the beginning of 2016. “We have a leadership vacuum in City Hall, five of them are
By SAMANTHA WINTNER Daily Staff Reporter
senior positions that all left the city within a year,” Ackerman said. “The responsible thing is to slow down policy wise and make sure that we have the key players we need to make sure that what we want to implement can be implemented.” Chuck Warpehoski (D–Ward 5) also said the openings will slow down Ann Arbor for a while. “There’s a lot of vacancies at the top of the organization and the organization is tight on staff See REVIEW, Page 3A
Amid increased discussion of race on college campuses across the country, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in Fisher v. University of Texas, a case that could diminish the use of affirmative action in college admissions processes. The case considers the legality of institutions of higher education using race as one of many factors when making admissions decisions. Abigail Fisher, a white woman from Texas, is suing the University of Texas at Austin because she believes she would have been admitted to the school if not for her race. At the time, UT-Austin granted automatic admission to students who were in the top 10 percent of
TECHNOLOGY
RESEARCH
New policy to standardize safety in labs Policy also creates oversight board to ensure best research practices By JACKIE CHARNIGA Daily Staff Reporter
After University President Mark Schlisselpledged in April to enhance on-campus laboratory safety, the University has implemented a standardized lab safety policy, on top of creating an oversight committee on laboratory and research safety. The new Academic Laboratory and Research Safety Policy applies to all University students, faculty and staff. The policy outlines the responsibilities of those in a management or supervisory position for the safety of those who serve under them. Danielle Sheen, associate director of research and operations safety from the Office of Occupational Safety and
Environmental Health, said the policy changes intend to put more emphasis on following existing policies and formalizing current safety practices. “There have been some recent tragedies on university campuses across the nation and University leadership wanted to be proactive to emphasize the importance of safe research to prevent any similar outcomes on our campus,” Sheen wrote in an e-mail interview. The policy begins with emphasizing reporting and resolving health and safety issues. Position-specific responsibilities increase with the level of authority, the majority of which rests with the laboratory director. “A culture of safety is a shared responsibility and this policy formalizes the role of everyone in the U-M research community,” Sheen wrote. “This information did not previously exist in a policy format for individuals to reference.” The new policy also defines the roles of those on the University See LAB SAFETY, Page 3A
their high school classes, which makes up about 75 percent of UT-Austin’s student body. Though this plan does not explicitly consider race as a factor, it is intended to result in a more diverse collegiate student body since high schools in the state may not be diverse. Fisher did not make this cut at her high school. The Supreme Court previously heard the case in 2012, when the justices remanded it to a lower court. The case then made its way back up through the court system through the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The Fifth Circuit ruled against Fisher, but that decision was appealed and again sent to the Supreme Court in 2014. The case follows a line of Supreme Court decisions ruling on the use of affirmative action, including two cases challenging the University of Michigan’s admissions policies. In 2003, the court ruled in Gratz v. Bollinger that the University’s point system for undergraduate admissions was unconstitutional, but that the use of race as one of many factors by the See SCOTUS, Page 2A
‘U’ licenses 3D-printed tracheal splint device Device has already saved the lives of four children, pends FDA approval DAVID SONG/Daily
By ALEXA ST. JOHN
Linda Winkler, vice chair of the Human Rights Commission, listens to citizen complaints about the Police Oversight Resolution at Larcom City Hall on Wednesday.
Residents say more debate needed for police oversight Human Rights Commission holds forum on proposed civilian commission By RIYAH BASHA Daily Staff Reporter
The Ann Arbor Human Rights Commission met at Larcom City Hall on Tuesday night to discuss an advisory report on improving
police-community relations. The commission, which reports directly to the Ann Arbor City Council, opened the meeting to the public. More than 30 community members attended, over half of whom voiced concerns about the 42-page report released last month. In the report, the commission calls for the formation of an independent civilian review board, the hiring of an independent police auditor and the formation of crisis
intervention teams. The discussion of the proposals comes at a critical time for the city’s police force, as James White, an assistant chief with the Detroit Police Department, will take over as the department’s new chief in January. Commissioner Dwight Wilson, who said he met extensively with various local organizations and community members before drafting the See COMMISSION, Page 2A
Daily Staff Reporter
The University plans to take its 3D pringing initiatives one step further. The University has signed a license agreement with Materialise, a 3D printing and software company headquartered in Belgium, to commercialize 3D-printed tracheal splints developed at the University. The splints already saved the lives of four children, and are used to mitigate complications associated tracheobronchomalacia, a condition resulting from the malformation of vascular structures in a person’s airway. The malformation can result in a weakened trachea or bronchi, which can cause the airway to See PRINTING, Page 3A
the b-side
Ann Arbor awaits release of new ‘Star Wars’ installment
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INDEX
Vol. CXXV, No. 43 ©2015 The Michigan Daily michigandaily.com
NEWS......................... 2A OPINION.....................4A S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7A
SUDOKU.....................2A CL ASSIFIEDS...............6A B-SIDE ....................1B