ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-NINE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
Ann Arbor, Michigan
michigandaily.com
Buying Silence:
U-M spent $1.26 million over six months in confidential agreements with employees attempting to speak out think the University has done something wrong and you wanted to file a complaint … with (the University’s Office for Institutional Equity) or the (federal) Department of Education or the (State of Michigan’s) Department of Civil Rights, there is nothing in that agreement that precludes you from doing that,” Fitzgerald said in an interview with The Daily. “It says disparagement, it doesn’t mean you can’t disagree with University policy. People do that every day around here.” In an email to The Daily, a former employee currently in an agreement with the University supported St. John’s characterization of these agreements. This employee declined to be identified for fear of legal damages; their agreement is not part of the ten reported in this
SAMMY SUSSMAN, ZAYNA SYED & SAMANTHA SMALL Daily Staff Reporters
On March 8, 2010, professor Edward P. St. John was removed from his teaching position in the School of Education. He had 24 hours to notify his students and no means to appeal his removal. St. John believed his removal stemmed from disagreements he had with the policy opinions of his dean, Deborah Ball, in the Provost’s Achievement Gap Task Force, a University-wide advisory panel on diversity in higher education. He had two options going forward: He could accept his removal or challenge it in court. On June 4, 2010, St. John sued the University for denial of due process, violation of whistleblower laws and breach of contract among other wrongdoings. St. John told The Daily the University began making verbal settlement offers to his lawyer. Each potential settlement contained a confidentiality clause, a non-disparagement clause, a settlement of St. John’s lawsuit and a proposed payment to his bank account. This confidentiality or non-disclosure clause would have permanently prevented St. John from speaking of the terms of the settlement. The nondisparagement clause would have further limited St. John’s speech, permanently preventing him from speaking poorly of the University or his
experiences there. After rejecting two offers of increasing monetary value, St. John was offered $500,000. He alleges the University described this amount as the most that could be paid without the Board of Regents being notified. This proposed settlement agreement is not unique. An investigation by The Daily into agreements reached between the University and former employees from November 2018 to April 2019 uncovered 10 such agreements across different schools and departments. These settlements do not appear in public University documents. These agreements include “gross lump sum”
payments by the University totaling more than $1,265,000. Of this sum, approximately $1,016,000 was paid to former employees. $149,000 was paid to law firms representing these employees. “Any settlement where you get money is going to be money for silence,” St. John said in an interview with The Daily. “(They) are buying silence.” University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald disputed St. John’s characterization of these agreements as “buying silence.” “If you sign an agreement and you still
article. “Misconduct by my superiors caused me to seek counsel, and eventually we arrived at a separation agreement including a nondisparagement clause,” the employee wrote. “Coming out of an adversarial situation, such language can only be seen as silencing. There is no way I could recount my experience with my former school, comment on its procedures, or speculate on its motives without risking that the University find it ‘disparaging.’” See SILENCE, Page 3
ILLUSTRATION BY CASEY TIN
GOVERNMENT
Mother works on ‘Bobby’s Law’ after son’s death Legislation would solidify parents’ rights in situations with life-sustaining treatment EMMA RUBERG Daily Staff Reporter
After doctors at Michigan Medicine took 14-year-old Bobby Reyes off life support on Oct. 15, Reyes’ mother Sarah Jones is working to pass legislation cementing the rights of parents in similar situations. Jones is currently working with state Rep. Joseph Bellino, R-District 17, on a bill that could require doctors to gain parental consent before removing minors from lifesustaining treatment. It would also likely guarantee families the right to find other facilities and request a transfer, as well as to file a stay in court. They bill, which they are calling “Bobby’s Law”, is modeled after similar legislation in Arizona, known as “Simon’s Law.” Reyes suffered an asthma attack on Sept. 21 while driving with his mother and went into cardiac arrest before arriving at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. After being airlifted to the hospital, doctors declared Reyes brain dead. William Amadeo, the family’s attorney, filed an immediate request for a 48-hour stay before doctors could revoke life-sustaining treatment. During this time the family was working to find another hospital willing to facilitate a transfer of Reyes. Washtenaw County’s 22nd Circuit Court initially ordered
Michigan Medicine to delay taking Reyes off life support. Weeks later, Trial Court Judge David Swartz ultimately allowed doctors to conduct a second test confirming their status and to remove life support, citing a lack of jurisdiction over the case. Michigan Medicine Spokesperson Mary Masson explained the decision to remove Reyes from life support. “Our health care team at Michigan Medicine continues to extend our deepest condolences to the family of Bobby Reyes in this heartbreaking situation,” Masson told The Daily in an email. “By law in Michigan, an individual is dead who has sustained either irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions or irreversible cessation of all function of the entire brain, including the brain stem. Continuing medical interventions is inappropriate in these cases from both a clinical and ethical standpoint.” Grant Meade manages policy development for Bellino and said the firm does not expect the bill to face much opposition if it reaches the floor. He also explained how the law currently stands and why Reyes’ parents were not able to prevent him from being taken off life support.
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ILLUSTRATION BY JACK SILBERMAN
U-M students, faculty reflect on century-old engineering honor code Community members recommend updates to system for violation investigations BARBARA COLLINS Daily Staff Reporter
From their first day as students at the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering, students are introduced to the Engineering Honor Code, a set of standards in place to discourage academic dishonesty. The Engineering Honor Code has been in place at the University for more than 100 years. By following the principles of the Honor Code, the document says, engineers at the University will become successful. “The standards for personal integrity demanded by the Honor Code are a reflection of the standards of conduct expected of engineers,” the Honor Code reads.
“These standards allow fairness among students to ensure that no unfair advantage is gained and an equal learning opportunity is given to all students.” George Sprague, assistant director of retention and academic support services in the College of Engineering, said the Engineering Honor Code defines academic dishonesty under four categories: seeking an unfair advantage, copying and plagiarism, inappropriate use of resources and inappropriate collaboration. One unique aspect of the Honor Code allows examinations in the College of Engineering to be unproctored. Sprague said students have told the College of Engineering that this practice makes them feel trusted by the University.
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“It makes (students) feel that they have more real world experience, whereas they don’t feel as though somebody is hovering over a button in terms of how that has been juxtaposed to other units,” Sprague said. “They say it hasn’t been that that’s a negative experience elsewhere as much as they enjoyed the positive aspects that they have here.” Engineering sophomore Madeline Horvitz said she has noticed the difference in the way exams are proctored in LSA and Engineering. With these differences, she said the Honor Code grants students a level of trust that she appreciates. “All of my math and physics exams were proctored, and for engineering, the professors are like, ‘All right, I’ll be sitting outside
Vol. CXXIX, No. 43 ©2019 The Michigan Daily
of class if you guys have any questions, but until then just go ahead,’” Horvitz said. LSA sophomore Victor Li is double majoring in Cognitive Science and Computer Science through LSA. Though he is not in the College of Engineering, Li has taken classes at the College to fulfill his Computer Science requirements. Horvitz and Li both said they have not seen anybody cheat even with no supervision during exams because most people focus on completing their own exam. “If someone wants to cheat, it’s probably easier for them to cheat because no one’s looking at them to see if their eyes are on other people’s exams,” Li said.
NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 CLASSIFIEDS................6
See HONOR, Page 2
SUDOKU.....................2 ARTS...................5 SPORTS.................7