- LOCAL./STATEThe Michigan Daily - Friday, April 16, 1999 -
.Half of respondents falsely believe 'U' uses quotas in admissions
5
ACTION
Continued from Page 1
diversity on campus.
The University now uses a Selection
Index Worksheet in the admission
process for students applying to most
undergraduate schools and colleges,
cept the School of Music.
The worksheet-a major piece ofevi-
dence used by the Center for Individual
Rights in both of its cases attacking the
University's admissions policy -
assigns a total of 150 points to various
admission criteria such as GPA, stan-
dardized test scores, gender, race and
socio-economic class.
Students are scored for academics
based on factors including their GPA and
SAT orACT scores. Applicants' GPAs are
Averted to a point system ranging from
-+ points for a 2.0 to 80 points for a 4.0.
Standardized test scores carry less
weight in admissions. Students receive 0
points for ACT scores of 1 to 19 and SAT
scores of 400 to 920. Perfect scores on
both tests earn applicants 12 points, but a
person with an ACT score of 36 receives
only two more points than a person with
a score of 26.
In addition, 20 points can be given to
*dents who are socio-economically dis-
advantaged, a member of an underrepre-
sented race or a scholarship athlete.
Females applying to the College of
Engineering and males applying to the
School of Nursing are also granted addi-
tionl points.
About 93 percent of Law students sur-
veyed said they favored granting points
to economically disadvantaged appli-
cants for undergraduate schools, while
y 59 percent of LSA student respon-
ts favored the advantage. In addition,
70 percent of Law students in the survey
supported giving points to applicants
who are members of underrepresented
racial or ethnic groups but only 40 per-
cent of LSA respondents supported the
policy.
This allocation of points -- which has
come under fire by affirmative action
opponents - has a significant effect on
students' admission.
For example, a student who is not an
underrepresented minority and earns a
perfect score on the ACT would receive a
total of 8 points less than an underrepre-
sented minority student who earns only
an 18 on the test if both applicants score
equally in all other categories.
University spokesperson Julie
Peterson cautioned against oversimplify-
ing the methods used by the University in
admitting students.
"We don't do it mechanically" she
said. "There is no magic number" to
being admitted. "If that were the case, we
could send the entire staff home."
The University claims its admissions
practices are legally justified by the 1978
Supreme Court decision The University
of California Regents v. Bakke . The case
outuawed the use of any type of quota in
university admissions practices but
retained universities' right to use race in
admissions to either achieve diversity or
remedy past discrimination. This is the
only Supreme Court decision ever made
concerning affirmative action.
Some students oppose the use of race
in admissions because they say it
excludes students who deserve to attend
the University.
"I'm against it," said LSA sophomore
Justin Schmidt, a survey respondent. "I
just feel that any time you use race as a
factor for admission it's racism. You
should be let in on your own merit and
quality rather than any kind of race."
But some students who stress the
importance of diversity in the classroom
say this type of scoring is one way to
achieve that goal.
Survey participant Giancarlo Aversa,
an Engineering first-year student, said he
was at a disadvantage in high school
because the student body was "mainly
white."
Aversa said attending the University is
valuable experience because "you can
learn a lot from different people and dif-
ferent cultures - and even where people
come from. That's diversity too."
The admissions worksheet also privi-
leges Michigan residents, students with
high personal achievement and relatives
of University alumni.
Some students said it is important to
include a variety of criteria in the admis-
sions process in addition to the use of
race.
"I think race plays in but it's not the
only factor," said LSA senior and survey
respondent Susan Daron. "If the program
was abolished, I agree there would be less
diversity, but not just ethnic diversity."
The highly publicized campus debate
surrounding affirmative action can be
explained in part by the 1997 lawsuits
brought against the University.
On Oct. 14, 1997, two white applicants
filed suit against the University's College
of Literature, Science and the Arts,
claiming they had been rejected while
less-qualified minority applicants had
been admitted. The Washington, D.C.-
based law firm CIR filed the complaint
on the students' behalf. Less than two
months later, CIR filed a similar suit
against the Law School on behalf of
white applicant Barbara Grutter.
The lawsuits are expected to go to trial
this fall. Since the suits were filed, sever-
al groups have tried unsuccessfully to
intervene and the cases have received
class-action status.
The plaintiffs are now attempting to
prove that the use of race in the
University's admissions process is
unconstitutional.
- Daily Staff Reporters Jaimie Winker
and Michael Grass contributed to this
report.
SURVEY
Continued from Page 2.
admissions policies.
"We use no quota in the University of Michigan,"
Associate Provost for Academic Affairs Lester Monts
said.
Some survey respondents said they had falsely assumed
the University used quotas because of the diversity of the
campus.
"If they didn't use a quota we would be stuck in a situ-
ation that didn't have enough black or Asians" students
and other minorities, LSA junior Jeremy Stanifer said,
adding that pamphlets and other literature he has read
have contributed to his views.
"My parents told me, a lot of people told me, there was
a quota;' LSA senior Una Kim said.
Although, Kim said he believed a quota was used in
selecting a racially diverse student body, he did not
believe a quota is used when gender is involved or need-
ed since the presence of female and male students on
campus is relatively equal.
To evaluate the majority undergraduate applicants,
University admissions officers use Selection Index
Worksheets.
Each admissions officer allots points to applicants based
on several factors, including grade point average, geogra-
phy, underrepresented racial or ethnic identification and an
applicant's high school curriculum, among other factors -
but no quota is used.p
But not all students believe that quotas play a factor in
admissions policy. According to the su vey about 29 per-
cent of respondents said they understand quotas are not
used at the University.
Engineering sophomore Carri Glide, a survey respon-
dent, said while quotas do not play a factor in admissions,
added that "I would think that- it would be illegal" to use
quotas.
While LSA senior David Wei said he knows quotas are
not used he said he believes that heavy recruitment goes
into getting minorities admitted into certain programs, as
well as receiving research grants.
Survey results also showed many respondents are mis-
informed about the use of gender in affirmative action
policy.
"Every time you hear about affirmative action it's only
about race," Kim said, adding that television news, news-
papers and rallies often discuss only the racial aspect of
affirmative action. Kim said he did not know that gender
is a provision of affirmative action.
But Glide said that she "definitely associates" affirma-
tive action with gender.
"When I look around in my Engineering classes it's
majority male," she said, adding that she believes because
she is in a school where women are underrepresented, she
has a different outlook on the provisions of affirmative
action in terms of gender.
But Stanifer said that he does not think that women
would be hurt if affirmative action was abolished. "The
whole female issue is not as strong as the race issue," he
said.
Monts said he is disappointed students are so misinformed.
Capitol honors
FAKE IDS
Continued from Page 1
publicity, AAPD officers are now turn-
ing their attention to educating local
restaurant and bar employees on how
to detect false identification.
tification.
Zsenyuk, Project Spotlight's coordi-
nator, said AAPD asked for the grant
partly in response to several publicized
alcohol-related deaths on Michigan
college campuses this school year.
At the training session, Zsenyuk
showed examples of confiscated false
IDs and shared tips with employees on
how to detect them.
Before identification is even pre-
sented, Zsenyuk said, there are behav-
ior types that an employee can check
in a customer. If people do not make
eye contact, do not answer for them-
selves or act nervous, chances are they
are underage. Another sign to check
for, he said, is whether the person is in
the middle of a pack of students. This
may indicate that a minor is attempting
to slip past the bouncer.
Another suspicious behavior,
Zsenyuk said, includes immediately
going to the bathroom upon entering
an establishment. A minor in a group
of over 21-year-olds may go to the
bathroom to allow the group to order
for him or her.
Zsenyuk advised employees to first
look at the picture on an ID. If it is a
side view of the subject, that should
cast doubt on the validity of the ID
because many states have minors pose
in profile, he said. Sometimes, minors
will change the date on their own IDs
and pass them off as expired.
Zsenyuk also suggested that
employees check for whether an ID
picture is too light or too dark and
whether the picture is off-center.
Engineering senior Matt Kosmal,
who works as a bouncer at Touchdown
Cafe, said he always compares the
weight, eye color and height of the
individual to the information on the
ID. He also asks questions about a cus-
tomer's birthdate and address.
"My little trick is to ask them their
(zodiac) sign," Kosmal said. Other
Touchdown employees suggested ask-
ing what year a customer graduated
from high school to verify that the ID
belongs to the person presenting it.
SNRE junior Jennifer Kiminsky, a
waitress at Touchdown, said she relies
on the doorman to check IDs. Double-
checking each ID would be "a waste of
time," she said.
Zsenyuk urged employees to go
with their instincts. "Intuition is a very
important thing for you," he said.
If an ID or a customer's behavior
seems suspicious, Zsenyuk suggested
the employee ask for second piece of
identification, such as a student ID,
credit card or video rental card. An
establishment has no obligation to
serve the individual if it thinks the per-
son might be underage, he said.
"It is not a right to be able to drink.
You can turn someone away for any
reason," he said.
The third phase of Project Spotlight
is scheduled to start next week. During
this final phase, AAPD officers will
call a restaurant to request permission
for two officers to work undercover as
bouncers, servers or managers,
Zsenyuk said. The restaurant will be
contacted 24 hours in advance and can
refuse AAPD's request.
"Obviously we want to be here with
their permission," Zsenyuk said.
There are four types of tickets that
AAPD will write in Project Spotlight:
Minor in possession, minor attempting
to purchase, possession of forged doc-
uments and furnishing alcohol to a
minor. When a legal drinker shares a
pitcher with a minor or buys alcohol
from a liquor store for a minor it is
considered a furnishing alcohol to a
minor offense.
The only type of ticket that has not
increased since 1995 is a minor
attempting to purchase alcohol ticket.
The average number of tickets result-
ing from this offense has averaged
three per year since 1995. Project
Spotlight will address this issue by
having officers pose as servers and
bartenders, ticketing minors when they
merely ask to order a drink.
Possession of forged documents,
including fake IDs, may carry a felony
charge. But Zsenyuk said AAPD offi-
cials are more likely to charge individ-
uals with misdemeanors.
The grant, which funds Project
Spotlight ends in September, but
AAPD plans to request a renewal for at
least another year.
During this time, decoy operations
investigating the restaurants will con-
tinue.
Project Spotlight is based on a simi-
lar program created by Michigan State
University and the East Lansing Police
Department.
Members of the Michigan State University basketball team and hockey team are honored in the Senate chamber
yesterday in the State Capitol building in Lansing.
SWEATSHOPS
Con inued from Page-1
Bollinger's office last month and occu-
pied it for 51 hours, demanding that the
University push for a strong set of labor
standards for licensed manufacturers that
produce University merchandise.
SOLE also demanded the University
sign the AIP-FLA code. SOLE spon-
ed the event with support from
Alianza, LSA Student Government, the
Michigan Student Assembly, the
Overseas Development Network,
Student Peace Action and the
Undergraduate Women's Studies
Association.
MSA paid about $1,500 to fly
Kernaghan, Posner and Levinson to Ann
Arbor, MSA President Brain Elias said.
UJniversity General Counsel Marvin
Krislov, who attended yesterday's forum,
said he approved of its open format.
Members of Students Promoting
Export-Oriented Economic
Development, who protested SOLE's
occupation of Bollinger's office,
passed out informational leaflets prior
to the event.
Kernaghan and Levinson were critical
ofthe AIP-FLA code and pointed to areas
of it that they say are weak in regard to
sweatshop labor conditions, like monitor-
ing factory conditions and public disclo-
sure of factory locations and ownership.
But Posner said the AIP-FLA is a
foundation for future change.
"There is nothing being discussed that
cannot be incorporated into the FLA
code" Posner said, adding that if univer-
sities want stricter standards for their
licensed manufacturers, the AIP-FLA is a
"mechanism" for greater change.
Kernaghan, however, said he is espe-
cially critical of the two-thirds majority
approval that is necessary to amend the
code. "Only three companies are
required to block any changes" he said,
adding that this would make getting
amendments passed difficult among the
few companies in control of the AlP-
FLA board.
Kernaghan helped expose sweatshop
labor conditions in factories that pro-
duced merchandise for the Walt Disney
Company, the GAP and a line of clothing
bearing the name of talk show host
Kathie Lee Gifford.
Though the panelists disagreed over
certain aspects of the AIP-FLA code,
they all supported the student activists at
the University.
Posner, who graduated from the
University in 1972, encouraged students
to continue the fight against sweatshops.
"During my time in Ann Arbor, the
issues were different but there is the same
energy," Posner said.
"I am very pleased with you at the
University," he said, "You are carrying
the anti-sweatshop movement on your
backs."
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