DIVERSITY AT FOREFRONT OF PRES. SEARCH PG 10 MONDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2018
EARLY WEEK
SOME FACULTY, STUDENTS HOPE FOR DIVERSE CANDIDATES
MNDAILY.COM
ADMINISTRATION
U narrows presidential candidates The search committee has interviewed nine candidates selected from 67 applicants. BY AUSTEN MACALUS amacalus@mndaily.com
Shedding light on addiction
ELLEN SCHMIDT, DAILY
A sophomore, who asked to remain anonymous, poses for a portrait in her apartment near campus on Tuesday, Nov. 13 in Dinkytown. The student dropped out this semester largely because of her alcohol use.
After a group for students struggling with addiction started back up this fall, many are still looking for ways to make recovery part of their campus experience. BY AUDREY KENNEDY akennedy@mndaily.com u See RECOVERY Page 3
NEIGHBORHOODS
Students work to reduce Cedar-Riverside stigma Students say they feel unsafe in the nearby neighborhood, prompting MSA’s campaign. BY MICHELLE GRIFFITH mgriffith@mndaily.com
Due to the high number of crime alert notifications she receives from the University of Minnesota concerning crime in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, freshman Claire Connolly doesn’t feel safe in the area.
Before she treks from Middlebrook Hall to a bus stop in the Cedar-Riverside area, Connolly often checks if she has her pepper spray. The bus will drop her off in front of Middlebrook on nights and weekends, and Connolly said she is relieved when it does. With the goal of reducing stigma about the neighborhood, the Minnesota Student Association is working on an initiative to educate students about the CedarRiverside neighborhood. MSA aims to roll out the initial program messages in the spring of 2019. Right now, it’s looking at the best ways to disseminate information
about the neighborhood. “What we’re planning on doing is just really trying to bridge the gap between students and the Cedar-Riverside, West Bank area,” said Tala Alfoqaha, director of MSA’s Diversity and Inclusion committee, who is spearheading the project. “Right now, there are a lot of negative misconceptions and it’s very much rooted in misperception about how safe the area is.” MSA is planning on doing an extensive messaging campaign, highlighting the u See WEST BANK Page 3
The search committee selected to help find the next University of Minnesota president announced Friday the g ro u p h a d n a r ro w e d its list of candidates — the next step in the ongoing process to find ABDUL OMARI, President Eric Kaler’s replacement. REGENT The Presidential Search Advisory Committee, led by Regent Abdul Omari, interviewed nine front-runners selected from a pool of 67 applicants. Those interviewed include five women and four men, and three are people of color, according to a statement posted on the presidential search website Friday. Out of the nine interviewees, the search committee picked a smaller number of candidates for further vetting, which will include verifying credentials, reference calls, a credit history review and civil, criminal and DMV background checks. The total applicant pool, according to the statement, was made up of 78 percent men, 22 percent women and 25 percent of applicants were people of color. Many faculty, staff and students have voiced support for choosing a president that is female or a person of color. The update said the pool “included candidates from a variety of backgrounds” — some University members have raised concerns about non-academic candidates, such as business experts or politicians. The names of applicants were not disclosed. Under the Minnesota Data Practices Act, the names of applicants are not public until candidates are named as finalists. But the University has been criticized for lacking transparency in the search process, which some worry could impair vetting candidates, among other concerns. For the past two months, the search committee — made up of 23 University members — has worked to find and screen candidates for the position. The group was charged with recommending three to four top candidates to the Board of Regents, who will ultimately decide on the next president. According to the update, the search committee will review candidates’ information and finalize recommendations to the regents at a later date.
STATE LEG.
Recently split legislature may impact University’s tuition, funding during budget year Lawmakers said the new DFL control of the state House may affect UMN’s budget allocation. BY ISABELLA MURRAY imurray@mndaily.com
Democrats took over 18 seats on Election Day to win control of the Minnesota state House, a shift lawmakers say could impact future funding for the University of Minnesota. The subsequent split between the newly DFL-controlled House and a Republican majority in the Senate, combined with new
gubernatorial leadership, may have implications for higher education, legislators say. These changes might affect how the University will fare during the upcoming biennial budget process. “The U will probably do better. But how much better? I don’t know,” said Rep. Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona. “As much change you’ve seen in this election I think you’re going to see it reflective in what’s going to happen legislatively.” During the 2017 legislative session — the last time the University’s budget was allocated — the Legislature provided $54.62 million of the University’s $147.2 million request. Republicans controlled both the
House and Senate at the time. “I think the main difference that will come of the DFL-controlled House will be in the budget dollar amount,” said Richard Draheim, R-Madison Lake, who vice chaired the Senate higher education committee last session. Jennifer Schultz, DFL-Duluth, a University of Minnesota-Duluth economics professor, said the University received less than they asked for last session, in part due to Republican House leadership during the session. “I think it was the House that was reluctant to invest in higher education at the University of Minnesota in particular,”
Schultz said. “I am more optimistic, given the breakdown on who’s in control, that the University of Minnesota will come out ahead better than they would if the Republicans were in control of the House.” The last time the House and Senate were split between parties during a budget year was in 2015. The University received around $52 million of its $148 million ask for the respective fiscal year. This year, the University has requested $87 million. “I think our budget this year is a reasonable request,” said Regent Steve Sviggum, u See BUDGET Page 4
RESEARCH
Conference seeks to make research more accessible to marginalized groups Friday’s conference was held to address the gap between researchers and communities. BY LEW BLANK lblank@mndaily.com
A conference at the University of Minnesota Friday looked at ways to include marginalized communities in the research process — an issue that’s increasingly important in researcher’s work. The Diversity Data Deep Dive brought together over 160 staff and students from each of the University’s campuses. The fullday series of lectures and workshops focused on collaborating with diverse communities in the research process and making studies more accessible to people from marginalized backgrounds. This is the third time the conference has been held, but this year the event brought together all University system campuses — Twin Cities, Morris, Crookston, Duluth and Rochester — for the first time. The issues researchers study are often
determined by people in the academic community, not by low-income and diverse demographics, said Teddie Potter, the director of inclusivity and diversity at the School of Nursing, who led part of the conference. This makes underrepresented communities feel disconnected from the research process, she said, and leaves many important issues facing disadvantaged Americans unexplored. “People with lived experience have an expertise that may be different than … someone [who] has gone through levels of [academia],” Potter said. “In a faculty role, I can only ask the questions that have popped up in my viewpoint.” When researchers collaborate with diverse communities, they should be careful to respect their unique needs, said Virajita Singh, assistant vice provost at the Office for Equity and Diversity, who moderated part of the conference. University research in North Minneapolis — which is predominantly black and African American — has not always been received positively by members of the u See DIVERSIT Y Page 4
TONY SAUNDERS, DAILY
Virajita Singh, assistant vice provost of the University of Minnesota Office of Equity and Diversity, speaks at the Diversity Data Deep Dive held at Coffman Union on Friday, Nov. 16.
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