I ww 1111 i3 thsar Today: Sunny. High 25. Low 16. Tomorrow: Scattered snow showers. High 27. One hundred nine years of editonafreedom Monday January 24,2000 -- i " r t a i III i:;: pap ! tl 1 'U By Jeannie Baumann Daily Staff Reporter proposes stricter hazing policies After several nationally publicized allegations of fraternity hazing on campus, Interim Vice resident for Student Affairs E. Royster Harper said she now is working with students to "put more teeth" into the University's anti-hazing policy. "The policy is so broad we couldn't find it," she said during Friday's meeting of the University Board of Regents. Adopted by the regents in June 1982, the pol- icy states that "the University of Michigan con- demns hazing practices as requirements for membership, advancement, or continued good standing in organizations." Harper described the "umbrella" policy as a philosophical base, upon which organizations were to develop specific practices. But she said the latter half has not been completed and her office is looking into developing those practices. "We must institutionally hold students accountable for their behavior," she said. Harper said she hopes to enforce the policy by creating an anti-hazing hotline and strengthen- ing relationships with the national fraternity organizations. "These behaviors are unsafe and demeaning," Harper said. "We have to move pretty assertive- ly to make sure that our students are safe." Interfraternity Council President Adam Silver also attended the meeting and said IFC and the Panhellenic Association are taking immediate steps to address the recent hazing incidents on campus. "We're writing letters to parents, letting them know that their son or daughter is a member of a Greek association," said Silver, an Engineering senior. Silver also described an upcoming conference with new member educators, presidents of each campus chapter, University administrators and public safety officials to discuss the dangers of hazing and the consequences of violating the anti- hazing policy. He also said IFC and Panhel are appointing a joint task force to create specific policies on hazing violations, including physical and mental harm and poor academic perfor- mance. "We hope to have the policy by the end of the semester," Silver said. Regent Laurence Deitch (D-Bloomfield Hills) said the incidents are "abhorrent" and he supports the concept of a thoughtful investiga- tion. But he added that only a small number of students are violating anti-hazing codes. "I believe that the overwhelming number of men and women in Greek organizations have consistency between action and word," he said. Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs Gilbert Omenn addressed hazing incidents which result in hospitalization and suggested a way for students to learn firsthand of the risks involved. "It's appropriate to visit fellow students to see the consequences;" he said. *Presidential candidates gear up for Iowa vote By Yaol Kohen Daily Staff Reporter * After nearly a year of campaigning across the coun- try, Republican and Democratic presidential candidates will see their efforts finally translate into votes when Iowans meet at the Republican and Democratic caucus- es today to elect their choices for the presidential nom- ination. The Iowa caucus is the first of many caucuses and pri- maries that will follow in coming months. Campaign coordinators expect the Iowa caucuses to give each campaign ynomentum as candidates continue o attract voters in other states. In the caucus system, registered voters gather in com- munity centers throughout the state at 7 p.m. to hear about the various candidates. At the end, the voters choose who they want to nominate for president. Democratic presidential candidates former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley and Vice President Al Gore and Republican presidential candidates Sen. Orrin Hatch (R- Utah), Texas Gov. George W. Bush, magazine editor Steve Forbes, Christian activist Gary Bauer and televi- sion commentator Alan Keyes have been traveling across Iowa for last-minute campaigning to bring out *he vote. Sen. John McCain (R.-Ariz) opted not to campaign in Iowa and focus his attention on the upcoming New Hampshire primary. Bush is 23 points ahead of Forbes and Gore leads Bradley by 28 points, according to the latest polls con- ducted by The Des Moines Register. Because of the caucus system, "Iowa is a state where orga See CAUCUS, Page 2A Markey room damaged in fire By David Enders Daily Staff Reporter A fire on the sixth floor of Mary Markley Residence Hall on Friday night forced the evacu- ation of the entire building and caused extensive damage to one room in Blagdon House. University Facilities and Operations spokesperson Diane Brown said no one reported injuries as a result of the Markley fire. All residents, except those of sixth floor Blagdon House, were allowed to return to their rooms at 11 p.m., about 35 minutes after the alarm was pulled. "The fire has been attributed to some kind of electrical situation," Brown said. Ann Arbor Fire Department officials on the scene said the blaze spread quickly after a mat- tress and some furniture ignited, but the blaze was contained to the room where it began. Many students were initially skeptical of the evacuation, but thick black smoke pouring out of a sixth-floor window alerted them to the serious- ness of the situation. "I thought some jerk pulled a false alarm," said Kendra Byrne, an LSA first-year student who lives in Markley, as she stood outside. Due to the cold weather conditions, the evacuated residents were allowed into the School of Public Health Building II, Alice Lloyd and Couzens residence halls while the fire was being contained. A fire at Seton Hall University last Wednesday left three students dead and five hospitalized. Like Markley, Boland Residence Hall, where the fire began, doesnot have a sprinkler system. Many Boland Hall residents were slow to leave their rooms because they assumed the alarm was a continuation of a string of prank alarms. Seton Hall reported having 18 false alarms in Boland Hall since Sept. 1, 1999, Seton Hall officials said in a written statement. "We have a very low incidence of false alarms" at the University, Brown said. "For the calendar year of 1999, there were 17 false alarms recorded for the entire residence hall system." Brown attributes the University's small number of false alarms to two reasons. "First, we have a mandatory evacuation procedure, and second, the pull stops are cov- ered," she said, referring to the fire alarms which are protected by breakable glass to pre- vent accidental alarms. The mandatory evacuation procedure allows the University to penalize students who do not leave their rooms, regardless of whether the alarm is false. Brown said that the penalties for students See FIRE, Page 7A DAVI D A/ailay Ann Arbor Fire Department Driver Operator Daniel Stabley stands in front of Mary Markley Residence Hali on Friday night after a fire damaged room. *Art museum receives $65K grant By Sana Danish Daily Staff Reporter The National Endowment for the Arts will award a $65,000 grant to the University's Museum of Art to fund an exhibit titled "Women At The Top: Images Of Female Power, 1500- *650." The grant, which will allow for the February 2002 exhibit, is the second largest the NEA has awarded to a Michigan arts organization this year. The Detroit Symphony Orchestra received the largest grant. "The funding of the NEA has been reduced in the past 20 years," Museum of Art Director James Steward said. "We regard the fact that we received the second largest grant awarded to a Michigan arts organiza- tion as an exceptional endorsement of our work." Steward said the selection procedure for the grant was extremely competi- tive. Each museum can submit only one application per year. An anonymous NEA expert panel consisting of artists, scholars and museum professionals made recom- mendations regarding which organi- zations shouldi receive grants. The Museum of Art won its grant in the category of "Creation and Presentation." Curator of Western Art Annette Dixon; who is organizing the exhib- it, said the grant is a stamp of approval for the museum. The grant will help garner attention as well as See GRANT Page 2A Alive and kickin' Salary increases 5.9 percent for faculty, Bollinger By Anna Clark Daily Staff Reporter The University Board of Regents on Friday unanimously approved a 5 per- cent pay increase for University President Lee Bollinger, making him the seventh-highest paid employee on campus with a $311,000 salary. Following the regents' applause, Bollinger thanked his wife Jean and the regents. "There is an uncompromising com- mitment to excellence here. And I'd like to thank my wife, who keeps the house a lively place on campus," Bollinger said. Regent Laurence Deitch (D- Bloomfield Hills) moved for the vote to increase Bollinger's salary, praising him for his leadership the past three years. "You are a pleasure to work with," nlow h ni averaged 4.55 percent. "These are very good salary increas- es," Provost Nancy Cantor said. "They reflect a real intent on the University's part to recruit and retain faculty and staff." "There's a very tight academic labor market" across the nation and it's cru- cial for the University to keep pace, Cantor said. "Our peer institutions have a similar focus in recruiting and retaining quality faculty and staff," Cantor said. "And we're squarely in there." While pay increases at the University are typical, in past years budget prob- lems forced salary freezes, although that has not occurred in more than a decade. Vice President for Medical Affairs Gilbert Omenn retains his distinction as the highest paid person at the I Inivmrcit with a5M 750 alarv - a JUANNA PAINE/ Datly LSA senior Anuj Vohra and LSA sophomore Ranjit Das discuss minority issues yesterday at the Midwestern Indian American Student Conference. 400 Come to 'U' for TASA confereh~*Chnce By Tiffany Maggard Daily Staff Reporter Nine months of intense preparation and anticipation came down to just three short days for members of the Indian American Student Association as they hosted the fourth annual Midwestern Indian American Student Conference, the largest event of its kind in the nation. Over 400 Indian American stu- dents from across the nation con- verged at the University this weekend to engage in a celebration of Indian culture, heritage and history. The event titled "2000 Reflections: traveled to Philadelphia for a retreat last June in hopes of finding inspiration for the symposium's theme after seeing an Indian American history exhibit. "We're on a milestone in our com- munity with the millennium this year;" said MIASC External Director Jaspreet Singh, an Engineering senior. "In Philadelphia, we decided that we needed to focus not only on what we're going to do in the future, but what we've done in the past," Singh said. In an effort to make the event more meaningful and intimate for everyone involved, the planning I I- I