12 -- The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, April 22, 1997
,9 , ',.,...
NWlNATIONtWORLD
'There was always a new hole in the middle of the Diag'
1997
Continued from Page 2.
strength, diversity and excitement unique in its history; said
former University President James Duderstadt,
Campus face-lift
During the four years, cranes and yellow bulldozers occu-
pied the campus, demolishing buildings and reconstructing
them.
Construction on the Shapiro Library began nearly four
years ago, just as the class of 1997 had first set foot on
University turf- a foreshadowing of the years of renewal to
follow.
All told, about $62 million was spent to renovate the
Shapiro Library, the Randall Laboratory
and East Hall. A connector was built link-
ing the Shapiro and Harlan Hatcher
libraries, a pedestrian plaza replacedT
grassy knolls and asphalt around East rdICu loi
University and South University avenues,
and on North Campus, the Media Union Weeki
and. the Lurie Memorial Carillon Bell!
Tower were erected. 'Americ
"North Campus is totally different. It's a
lot more centralized," said Engineering forsthe o
senior Allison Eisele. "But the bell lower is
ridiculous. There's no clock or music at
any certain timne. Last week, it was playing ngineering
'America the Beautiful' for the longest
time.
"If they put a clock on it, it would be
fine," Eisele said'.
Barry said it seemed as if there were a new construction
project every fall.
"Every year when we came back in the fall, there was
always a new hole in the middle of the Diag," Barry said.
Some seniors said they grew accustomed to walking in dirt
ditches and amidst sawdust, but complained that they would
not benefit from the years of construction.
"The whole time I've been here, the campus has been
under construction," said LSA senior Rachael Hackmann.
"I'm disappointed because I won't get tie chance to really
enjoy the new buildings."
As the campus facade slowly transformed, Ann Arbor also
changed with it. Around the town, several landmark shops
disappeared and were replaced by new ones.
Drake's sandwich shop, which has now been replaced by
Brueggers Bagels, closed its doors in November, 1993, after
servicing Ann Arbor for 65 years. The O'Sullivan's Pub on
South University shut down two years later, in 1995, after
Good Time Charley's expanded, buying out the space.
+
Student Body
The composition of the student body also changed. becom-
ing more diverse than ever In 1993, students of color com-
prised 22.8 percent of the student body. Today, it has risen to
about 25 percent.
"Through the Michigan Mandate and the Michigan
Agenda for Women, we achieved the highest number of
students, faculty and staff of color in our history,"
Duderstadt said. "And we put in place programs to bring
women more fully into all aspects of the life of the
University."
Accompanying the increased diversity was a growing
backlash against affirmative action programs. The passage of
California Proposition 209 and a court decision in the
Hopwood v. Texas case posed a threat to affirmative action
programs nationwide,
including the University's
tower is initiatives.
In October 1995, 500
last University students
poured into the streets as
was playing part of the "National Day
of Action" in defense of
a the Beautiful' affirmative action pro-
grams.
Tng;est time."Demonstrations, large
or small, became a com-
- Allison Eisele mon sight at the
senior, on the Lurie Bell University during the past
Tower four years.,
"I think that activism
has increased since I first
arrived here four years ago, said LSA senior Andy Schor.
"(During) my freshman year, I don't remember many activists
on campus. Now we have environmentalists, women's rights,
rape prevention, Homeless Power and several other groups."
In March 1996, half of The Michigan Daily's press run was
stolen by a group of students in protest of a cartoon and edi-
torial the Daily had published. Several days later, 250 pro-
testers clamored outside of the Student Publications Building,
home of the Daily, accusing it of being racist.
That same month, yellow placards checkered the campus
after 1,000 members of the Graduate Employees
Organization staged a two-day walkout, suspending classes
for those days.
Out with the old
Inside the classrooms, the course curriculum also shifted=
with the times.
A quantitative reasoning requirement was passed by LSA
in January 1994, which required students to take courses that
test mathematical and logical abilities.
The journalism department disappeared as quickly as the
Entree Plus system. In January 1995, LSA announced it
would remove all film, video and journalism coursework
from the communications department. The department
switched its focus to understanding the process of mass com-
munication in society and abandoned classes that had a pro-
fessional focus.
"I was quite annoyed by (the switch),"said L.SA senior David
Scott. "Before you could get practical experience - as much as
a college could offer. Now it's all communication theory.
"What does that do you? Nothing," Scott added.
The use of Netscape and cyberspace also altered the face of
education, playing a prominent role in the classroom.
Students and professors adjusted to the
information highway and became more
reliant on the Internet for information. At This
the University, the MTS e-mail system was
phased out by 1995 and replaced by Pine. differe
Registering for classes also became
much easier for students. Before phone than an
CRISP was introduced in January 1995,
students waited in long lines at Angell Hall came t
in order to register.
"It was a pain, but it was only one day,"
said LSA senior Arthur Cote. "It was Vice Pres
helpful back then (because) when you
didn't have a class, or it was canceled, (the
CRISP monitors) would help you imme-
diately."
Finally, there was the disappearance of Entree Plus, fondly
nicknamed by many seniors as "Entree Parents"
Entree Plus "was almost like free money," said LSA senior
Aaron Hartman. "It was like coming to the (Michigan) Union
and eating for free."
Barry said the arrival of the M-Card system was drastic.
"it was like this big leap forward, and Entree Plus got left
behind," Barry said.
Administration
At the administrative level, the names and faces in the
Fleming Administration Building changed as quickly as the
buildings around campus.
Duderstadt's resignation in September, 1995, stunned
many students, leaving widespread speculation about why he
stepped down.
"The president is the closest thing we have as an embodi-
ment of institutional values and vision," said Vice President
for University Relations Walter Harrison. "For me,
(Duderstadt's resignation) was one of the biggest changes."
Following Duderstadt's resignation, the search for the next
president began --- a search that would eventually land the
University in the courtroom.
The University Board of Recats selected Vice President
I
in
for Research Homer Neal as interim president, marking the
first time an African American held the post. Neal served as
interim University president for seven months.
"I think it is great that he happened to be, among other
things, an African American," said Regent Rebecca
McGowan (D-Ann Arbor). "But we picked him because he
was the best person in the minds of all eight regents to lead
the University at that time."
The search process resulted in the selection of Lee
Bollinger as the 12th University president. Ironically,
Bollinger managed to leave the University and return within
the four-year cycle of this year's graduating class.
Bollinger left his post as the dean of the University's Law
School in 1994, only to return
three years later.
is a very On the board, four new faces
made their way to the regents'
' i am putable since 1993. Gone are regents
Paul Brown, James Waters, De
$ Baker and Nellie Varner. The n
additions to the board are regents
P Andrea Fischer Newman, Daniel
Horning, Olivia Niaynard and S.
- Walter H arrisn Martin Taylor.
lent for University "I don't think the dynamics
Relations have shifted," McGowan said.
"Our way of operating has always
been formal with emphasis on
consensus building."
So long and farewell
Along the way, the Class of 1997 lost some of its class-
mates and professors.
LSA senior Arati Sharangpani and Rackham Associate
Dean Betty Jean Jones died in January's Comair flight 3272
crash.
As the Class of 1997 chants the fight song one last time on
May 3, it will remember the best and the worst of times. It
will remember the massive facelift the University underwent,
the resignation of Michigan Football Coach Gary Moeller,
the demonstrations and the cheers.
"This has been a period of extraordinary change," Harri*
said. "The whole University was going through enormous
change at the same time as many undergraduate students
were.
"This is a very different campus than any student came to
in 1993,"' Harrison said.
For some members of the Class of 1997, the University has
been a far better place than they've ever known.
"For as many changes as I've seen at the University, prob-
ably the biggest ones are the changes I've made personally
because of the University" said Kinesiology senior Rusga
Ordonia.
I
Ashes of
'60s icons
launched.
to space
Los Angekls Times
Turn on, tune in, blast off.
The cremated remains of '60s icon
Timothy Leary were among those roc
eted into orbit yesterday for the fi
commercial burial in outer space. The
ashes of others on board a rocket
launched from the Canary Islands
included those of "Star Trek" creator
Gene Roddenberry. space colony advo-
cate Gerald O'Neill and Simi Valley,
Calif., realtor James Spellman, who
was the nephew of the late Francis
Cardinal Spellman.
In all, remains of 24 men were car-
ried on this "Founders Flight" sp4
bored by Celestis, a Houston-basec
company created in 1994 with the
expressed purpose of offering what it
calls "space memorials."
The funds for Leary's final trip were
primarily contributed by his friends
Susan Sarandon, the actress, and Tony
Scott, director of "Top Gun" and other
films, according to Carol Rosin, a
space industries consultant.
Rosin said she told Leary abcd
Celestis a few weeks before he died in
Beverly Hills, Calif., on May 31 last
year.
"He loved the idea that he was going
to take this flight," said Rosin, who was
on hand for the launch.
"He would say, 'Ride the light into
space."'
More symbolic gesture than burial,
the Celestis flights are designed to
carry only about a quarter-ounce of a
from each person encased in an indi-
vidual. aluminum capsule about the
size of a lipstick.
The capsules, attached to the second
stage of the rocket, are predicted to
remain in low-flying orbit for about
two-to-six years, Celestis officials said,
before the remains are re-cremated
upon re-entry into the atmosphere.
The consumer cost: 54,800 per per-
son, with a money-back guarantees0
something goes wrong during a launch.
For at least this first flight, it seems
Celestis will be able to keep the money.
"It was a perfect launch, right on the
path;" said Celestis founder Charles
Chafer, from his hotel on Grand Canary
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