ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIX YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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statement T H E M I CH I GA N DAI LY | FE B RUA RY 1 , 2017
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
CSG passes resolution adopting $5 student fee
Leadership Engagement Scholarship funds aim to reduce financial burden FILE PHOTO/Daily
President Mark Schlissel discusses the immigration ban, diversity, and Poverty Solutions in an interview on Tuesday.
Schlissel talks immigration order, SES diversity, Poverty Solutions
University president discusses U-M’s responses to various issues, initiatives JENNIFER MEER Daily Staff Reporter
On Tuesday afternoon, Mark Schlissel, president of the University of Michigan, met with The Michigan Daily to address issues surrounding the University’s response to changes in national immigration policies, as well as its Poverty Solutions initiative and socioeconomic diversity on campus. Changes in Immigration Policies and Statement
On Saturday, Schlissel released a statement proclaiming the University’s refusal to disclose students’ immigration information in response to President Donald Trump’s executive order banning the immigration of people from Muslim-majority countries. The statement notes that the University has been a longtime advocate of international enrollment — the policy around students’ immigration statuses has been in place for months — and that it is “committed
RESEARCH
New toilet by ‘U’ team turns urine to fertilizer Researchers involved in so-called “Peecyclying” with new split bowl design ERIN DOHERTY Daily Staff Reporter
Out of all of the national rankings the University of Michigan makes each year, a new project could shake things up: The University, they say, is “number one” at number one. Last week, University researchers contributed to a project some dub “peecycling,” installing a toilet and a urinal in the G.G. Brown Engineering building on North Campus that recycles human urine to fertilizer. The initiative, funded by a $3 million grantfrom the National Science Foundation, created a split-bowl toilet design that collects urine from the toilet in a tank. The urine is then treated and filtered to be used as a fertilizer in the University’s botanical gardens. Solid waste from the toilet is sent to a treatment plant. From a user’s perspective, researchers said, the split-bowl toilet is not much different than a traditional toilet. Anthropology See TOILET, Page 3A
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to protecting the rights and opportunities currently available” to community members. Tuesday, Schlissel said he felt it was necessary to remind the community of the University’s stance, given the national political climate and concerned students on campus. “These are very important basic long-held principles of the University, and I think it was an important moment to … reaffirm our values and reassure your fellow students of our longstanding policy,” he said.
He added a primary reason for the statement was to draw attention to the importance of international community members: faculty and staff, he clarified, will be afforded the same protections as international students. “The reason I really wanted to speak up with clarity is I don’t necessarily think many people appreciate how international — not just our university — but all the great universities are,” he said. “We have students from See SCHLISSEL, Page 3A
HEATHER COLLEY Daily Staff Reporter
Central Student Government passed a resolution to adopt a student fee to increase funding for the Leadership Engagement Scholarship at its weekly meeting on Tuesday. The resolution passed with 29 in favor and two opposed. The Leadership Engagement Scholarship reduces the burden of financial strain for potential student leaders who aspire to contribute to any area of extracurricular campus life. The scholarship also seeks specifically to reduce socioeconomic barriers faced by many students who must forgo valuable opportunities because of financial strain. The nature of the scholarship, and its intention to aid student leaders with demonstrated financial need, is in accordance with the University of Michigan’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategic plan. Many members of CSG
expressed support for the resolution, noting that financial barriers affect many on campus, even if these students are not widely represented within CSG itself. CSG Communications Director Joe Shea, a Public Policy senior, has been a proponent of the resolution since its introduction. He said he supported it for its dedication to increased student involvement on the part of those who may struggle to access opportunities on campus. “The idea behind this resolution is one of solidarity,” Shea said. “As students, we understand how expensive it is just to go here … I try to remember that for some people at this university, it is simply not possible, and that is where something like the Leadership Engagement Scholarship comes into play.” The resolution — which was tabled during last week’s Central Student Government meeting following debate over whether it See CSG, Page 3A
Students express concern over effects New group of Pres. Trump’s immigration ban consults BUSINESS
Political organizations, refugee advocates disagree over executive order’s efficacy CARLY RYAN
Daily Staff Reporter
Throughout his campaign, President Donald Trump promised to limit immigration from Muslim countries, but nothing could prepare LSA senior Tina Al-khersan for the phone call she received at 2:30 a.m. Sunday. Al-khersan’s sister, a citizen of the United States, Iraq and New Zealand, called because she was detained at the Canadian border while trying to come back home after a trip with her boyfriend. American border patrol officials searched her car and phone, and told her they weren’t quite sure what to do with her, implementing Trump’s immigration restrictions was above their paygrade. After four hours, Al-khersan’s sister demanded to be let in, using her knowledge as an immigration lawyer to her benefit. “I don’t even want to speculate what would’ve happened
if she didn’t know her rights,” Al-khersan said. “She’s a U.S. citizen; they were only treating her differently because her passport said she was born in Iraq.” Al-khersan’s family is one of innumerable citizens, green card holders, visa holders and refugees who have been affected by Trump’s executive order tightening restrictions on immigration from seven Muslim countries, halting
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refugee immigration for 120 days and barring Syrian refugees indefinitely. President Trump said in a statement Sunday his goal is to keep Americans safe, not to ban Muslims, as some critics assert. “America is a proud nation of immigrants and we will continue to show compassion to those fleeing oppression, but we will do so while protecting our own citizens and border,” Trump wrote. “To be clear,
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this is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting. This is not about religion — this is about terror and keeping our country safe.” However, Michigan representatives wrote in a statement by banning admissions and visas from exclusively Muslim-majority countries, the order is clearly religious discrimination. See IMMIGRATION, Page 3A
DESIGN BY: MICHELLE PHILLIPS
INDEX
Vol. CXXVII, No. 20 ©2016 The Michigan Daily
student to student org
Capital Consulting Group aims to provide business advice to fellow startups TYLER COADY
Daily Staff Reporter
In a Capital Consulting Group meeting Monday evening, LSA sophomore Shriyance Jain laid a bold future for his organization, the University of Michigan’s newest consulting group. “We are underdogs right now, but I feel like that within the next couple of semesters, we will be up there as well,” he said. “I believe the other consulting groups better watch out.” Founded in the fall of 2015, Capital Consulting is student organization aiming to provide business consultation to other organizations on campus. The group of six executive board members split between LSA and the Ross School of Business, as well as more than 20 consultants, recently elected LSA freshman Boyang Yu as the group’s president. Executive board member Aaron Small, a Business sophomore, wanted to apply what he was See CONSULTING, Page 3A
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