6F - New Student Edition - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, September 8, 1999 HIT THE ROAD (and the books, too) 0 By Jacob Wheeler something foreign in the United States. Only Daily Staff Writer the Baechle, the small, peaceful streams run- FREIBURG, Germany - Here at the ning along many pedestrian lanes, keep Greiffenegg Biergarten, perched atop flowing normally. The Strassenbahn passes Schlossberg, the highest vantage point in by and Europe resumes its normal, relaxed greater Freiburg, the American college stu- pace. dents sit on picnic tables gulping their half- The American students have missed their liter Hefe-weizens and munch on warm streetcar but it's no problem. Another one Brezels (breaded German pretzels) because will be coming along in 10 minutes. The the hot, Southern German sun reminds them only things on their minds now are making it thatit's still too early in the day to drink to the grocery store before it closes for a beer. mid-day break (stores in Europe always It's 11:30 a.m. on a Monday in mid-spring close for an hour or two in the early after- and, back home in the United States, that's noon to give the workers a lunch break) and also too early in the week to drink alcohol: planning the next long weekend trip the pleasure of the refreshing wheat beer to Prague or Barcelona. A week- would be overshadowed by chemistry assign- end is not a long time for a ments or frantic preparations for the out- vacation, but almost any loca- spokenly tough Michigan midterms. tion in Europe is reachable But for Americans studying ' within a day because of the abroad in Europe, weekly home- continent's reliable train work assignments are no obsta- system. cle. They know that the German ' These students are experi- university system stesses one exam encing what some would call or term paper due at the end of the year-long vacations. The diffi- semester, and sometimes one oral class cult points of culture shock are presentation - but no busywork that locks over for them: The grueling jet students in the Graduate library until 4 a.m. lag upon arrival, the frustrating five nights a week. language barrier before they were Time isn't the enemy of these Michigan confident enough to speak German with students enjoying a year-abroad program in a native strangers in town, the bureaucracy of historically Medieval town at the base of the picking classes at a new university in a new Black Forest. country and, of course, the dwindling service Time is a concern, though. In super-pune- hours at grocery stores. tual Europe, time could be the fifth of the Yet they're actually knocking off a year of natural elements: earth, wind, fire, water ... college by studying - and traveling when and time. This is apparent every 15 minutes time allows - through Europe, this conti- when the numerous clock towers all over nental microcosm of different landscapes, Freiburg chime to each others' melodies. The different languages and different cultures, chime is a warning to those walking down a separated sometimes by only a few kilome- peaceful cobblestone street: Watch out! Here ters. comes a Strassenbahn (street car), and order Freiburg, for instance, lies about half an is momentarily interrupted as bikers, pedes- hour away from Switzerland and 40 minutes trians and pigeons jump out of the way of away from France. You can buy a bottle of ocoming public transportation - French wine, a loaf of hearty German Hmm, let's see. Study .. bread and a bar of Swiss chocolate for under 10 Deutschmarks (about $5.50). University students, as well as most American college students, have many opportunities to study abroad in Europe, or almost anywhere else in the world. Year- long programs are offered in conjunction with an American university, as well as some shorter, semester-long or even summer programs. The general requirements for Michigan students at the moment are simply a minimum number of course semesters in the given language, junior year standing and a good academic record. In Ann Arbor, the Office of International Programs, located on State Street next to the Michigan Union, facilitates all University of Michigan-linked study abroad pro- grams. OIP currently offers over 60 pro- grams in every continent except Antarctica (French wine isn't as easy to find there, anyway). OIP Director Carol Dickerman said the two most popular sites for Michigan students are Great Britain and Australia. "English language countries are the most popular destinations," she said. This is in line with study-abroad numbers at other universities as well." Dickerman estimates that about 400 to 500 University students a year participate in study-abroad programs administered by the OIP. Most of them are LSA students. But OIP is not necessarily satisfied with such a small percentage (less than ten per- cents of the total LSA student body) study- ing abroad. "I don't think that any study-abroad office would say that it is satisfied with the number of students unless it can somehow get every student abroad at some point in his/her undergraduate career," Dickerman stated. "The biggest obstacles now to students considering studying abroad are financial and academic." Dickerman said, pointing out that meeting academic requirements may be more difficult abroad. Some of the more competitive programs at the University, like the Business School or the College of Engineering, make it tough to study abroad for an entire year and still grad- uate in four, deterring many prospective par- ticipants. University of Wisconsin in Madison and the current resident director of the Wisconsin- led Academic Year in Freiburg program - in which Michigan 'students take part - dis- courages shorter programs compared to year-long opportunities. "The major trend over the past decade has been half-year programs (one semester) because students are often not willing or financially able to spend an. entire year abroad. Only about 14 percent of all study- abroad programs now are full-year programs and ours is indeed an 11-month program." Howell argued that it takes a while for students to get used to a new culture and a new school system. "We want our students to experience first- hand the life of a German university student. In order to achieve that the students have to be here for an entire year because it's only after the first semester that they really begin -s~ ... or travel? For many University student the choice is a tough one when studying abroad. Fortunately, there's enough time In a semester - or a full year, to do both Photo iustration by RICK FREEMAN/Daily H to see how things work and their lingustic skills are developed enough to participate fully in German seminars. Students say home. almost without exception after the first Challenges like weighing your own C semester that they're just barely getting into and bringing your own bags to a Gefr it." grocery store or getting hold of the landlord Howell - an American -- teams with who only has "office hours" for a half ser native German Sabine Habermalz , facili- every two weeks can be trying. tate the AYF program, But none of this year's AYF students have They lead American students through the abandoned ship and flown home to the paperwork, help them pick courses, find familiarity of North America. In fact. some places for them to live and introduce them to have actually made plans to stay in Germany all the difficulties which students face in a through the summer and into next fall foreign land. Their cross-ocean nationality either because they've found jobs or th.ey' creates a bridge which makes it easier for fallen in love with locals. AYF students to settle into the German cul- Lauren Pierzchalski, currently a senioi ture for a year. Wisconsin, didn't land a job here and, she "With the AYF program you have an hasn't tied the knot with any Germans.. But office, you're never alone, you have com- she is satisfied with her study abroad experf plete liberties, but you also have the help if ence through AY, as well as the traveling you want it," Habermalz said. "The cord that she's done through Europe during her vaca- exists between students and their parents tions. study abroad." can leave for a whole year and be away from Habermalz, who once studied abroad her- their family. But the positives of studying self in Madison (the home of the University abroad definetely outweigh the negatives, of Wisconsin is a sister city of Freiburg's) I've done more in my-short year here ti glows when she describes the character most people have done in a lifetime. It's al transformations which students go through so convenient, anybody who wants to go to when they study abroad. France from the States has to buy a p110 "I've seen the way students change during ticket ... I just hop on a train." a year abroad. When they first arrive they're Pierzchalski proudly pulls out three full shy, they're tired. As the year goes on they photo albums which she's compiled onrips start to pick up things: widening their hori- from Munich to Barcelona, to Lisbon, to zons, improving their German. They didn't Amsterdam, to Rome, to Venice. She s know what they were capable of. been nearly everywhere in Western "When you transfer yourself to anoth- Europe and yet she's fulfill er culture and then back again you grow ayear of college at the saW. up not gradually, but in leaps." time. Studying abroad certainly presents A couple term papers still difficulties. Small differences between loom on the horizon, but tonight the United States and Europe can force she's going across the Rhine Rivg shy, meek students to their knees in to France with a German friend, fos tears during the first weeks away from dinner and red wine. 'U' wants discoveries out ofInstitute ifirstfive years INSTITUTE Continued from Page IF study complex biological systems and will be tied to teaching biotech- nology, biomedical engineering, evo- lution and human behavior and organogenesis. But the initiative will additionally seek to establish a better understand- ing of the relationship of develop- ments in the life sciences to human values and person-environmental relationships. Omenn said these discoveries should be able to be used in "imme- diate clinical practice." At the May regents meeting, Allen Lichter, dean of the Medical School, said discoveries made at the LSI will further medical science. "If we have the people organized in the right fashion, we will be able to reveal the secrets of life," he said, adding that "we are at a truly histor- ical place in medical science." The history In May 1998, Bollinger formed a commission to study how the Univeristy could improve the quality of life science research and educa- tion. "We seek to place the University at the forefront of this important field," according to the 'Life Science Commission's report released in February. In the report, the Commission said that "Michigan is currently good, but not outstanding in the life sciences, and the Commission's goal is to put Michigan in a position of leadership commensurate with its standing in other scholarly arenas." Members of the Commission gave a presentation to the regents in March, outling the guiding principles for the initiative. At the May regents meeting held at the Fair Lane Estate on the University's Dearborn Campus, architects Denise Scott Brown and Robert Venturi of the Philadelphia- based firm Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates presented initial designs for the LSI. The plans revealed a proposed multi-building LSI complex, to rise along Washtenaw Avenue across from Palmer Field, linking the Central and Medical campuses. Along with the proposed state-of- the-art facility, the regents expressed their excitement for the possible research breakthroughs to come. When the regents approved the proposals, many believed it was a defining moment for the University. Regent Rebecca McGowan (D- Ann Arbor) called the proposal "one of the most important" items the board had ever voted on. "This is a great and defining moment for the University," said Regent Laurence Deitch (D- Bloomfield Hills). Bringing people together Like other life science proposals at other colleges and universities, the University's LSI will bring students and faculty from different areas and expertise together. "If you go to other institutions around the country, the story is going to be interdisciplinary," Krenz said. Although Krenz said many other colleges and universities that are pur- suing the life sciences in a similar manner, there are a few things that will set the University's LSI apart from the rest. "We have both a medical school and an engineering school ... we have a lot of schools of health ... the wide variety of disicplines is one of our big strengths," Krenz said. "It's unique in diversity and in its breadth." University Provost Nancy Cantor said one of the LSI's gretest benefits will be its role as place where University students and faculty can come together to exchange their ideas, broadening the educational horizon of everyone at the University. "It will serve as a gathering place for departments across campus ... and will serve as a centerpiece" for the University, Cantor said. While some collegiate life science proposals focus only on research, Krenz said the LSI will incorporate both graduate and undergradute 'edu- cation into it's research capacities. An undergraduate living-learning program focusing on the life sci- ences is to be established at Couzens Residence Hall, located across street from where the LSI complex is to rise. "It would be irresponsible of us not to build in undergraduate educa- tion," Krenz said. Although the core of the LSI will focus on the study of structural and chemical biology, cognitive neuro- science, genomics and complex genetics, Krenz said that all University departments and colleges tied to the LSI will benefit. "Part of the mission is to be sure that there are links to the core," he said. Filling a gap The Life Science Institute will fill a gap in the University's curriculum and reasearch as well as a physical hole. The LSI complex will rise in the "Cat Hole," a depression behind North Hall and the School of Dentistry, currently a parking lot and service area for the University Power Plant. Because of the site's awkward ter- rain, "... it's the last piece of major real estate left on Central Campus," University Chief Financial Officer Robert Kasdin said. "This plan cre- ates a space where there is currently a wasteland." Directly linking the Central and Medical campuses for the first time, the LSI will erase the "Cat Hole" a barrier that has prevented the physi- cal cohesion of the campus for the past 100 years, Kasdin said. The LSI's plan includes an elevat- ed walkway, plaza and bridge over Washtenaw Avenue that ends near Couzens Residence Hall. The complex itself will include: three new buildings, one for the LSI and two for non-laboratory aca- demics, one including a cafeteria. a large parking structure below the complex. a proposed seven-story laborato- ry building, to be built north of the site, across East Huron Street from the Power Plant, between Zina Pitcher Place and Glen Avenue. The presentation of the initial site plan by Venturi and Scott Brown was accompanied by planning reports that are part of Bollinger's Master Plan - an initiative to look at plan- ning in a broad ense, joining the Ann Arbor campuses in a more phys- ically cohesive manner. These reports gave a comprehen- sive look at the land and building use of the University's property and how it co-exists with the surrounding city of Ann Arbor. Included in the reports were maps showing every- thing from the walking paths of first- year students, to the use of campus and off-campus entertainment facil- ties to the clusters of laboratories around campus. The reports showed how the Ann Arbor campus began life clustered around the Diag, but has spread among multiple campuses in and around the city. Bollinger said that when he left the Univeristy to become provost at Dartmouth College, the University had two major campuses, Central and North. But when he returned, Central Campus had separated into smaller areas including the Hill and the Athletic and Medical campuses Also some outlying University offices had evolved into the Briarwood and East campuses. Any future University growth will be guided by the Master Plan, so any additional building will not only be meaningful to its surroundings but to those at the University who will use the future facilities. "As a discipline, architecture seems to be more focused," Krenz said. When designing buildings "you need to adjust to people's behavior." The price tag The cost of the proposal is one of the biggest initiatives the University has committed itself financially. "Any time you set aside $200 mil- 'lion, you are doing something big," Krenz said. About $150 million of that total will come from the University Health System, which includes the University Hospitals, Medical School and M-Care, the University's health management organization. Kasdin said the Central Adminstration fund will foot the remaining $50 million of the bill. Although the $200-million price tag may send some into sticker shock, Kasdin said the proposal is "within the University's financial means." Although Kasdin said the figures are "extremely preliminary," about $110 million of the total allotment will be put into the LSI endowment. About $70 million of the total will be used to construct the complex, Kasdin said, leaving the remaining $20 million for as of yet determined uses. The price tag for the Life Science initiative ranks among the most expensive University projects to date. Although he could not say for cer- tain whether the LSI would be the costliest University expenditure, Kasdin said the project compares to the establishment of the Institute for Social Research in the 1950s'and the building of the University Hospitals in the 1980s, which cost in the "hun- dreds of millions of dollars." But Kasdin and other administra- tors contend this significant invest- ment of University funding is well worth it, considering the academic and research benefits the University reaps down the line. "We're making a very important committment," Kasdin said. Looking ahead The University is not waiting nti the LSI complex is completen ge started in transforming life secene research at the University. "In the 1999-2000 academic:yea we should have a director name plans completed, and maybe eve have some activities launc Krenz said. "There is nothing s ping us from having a sen'na series." Once a director is named,th search for faculty can begin. Omenn said the LSI will not onil utilize current faculty members; tft will seek out 30 additional ones. The Univerisity's LSI initiative-i attracting interest from the nati'n top students and researchers. Sean Morrision, formally a t doctoral fellow at Californi Technical University, said part of the rmason why he came to Ann Arbort become part of the University-s LSI (he will research stem-cell biology because of the University's effortlto break down interdepartmental barri- ers and fostering of junior faculty. "Everybody in the life sciences who are going to be successful in the future are the people who fsr interdisciplinary work," Morrison said. "Of all the universities.,,he University of Michigan has done he best job at bringing down iterde- partmental boundaries." Omenn said that Morrison, noa an assistant professor in internal medi- cine, was one of the top students in the nation - Morrison's choice- to come to the Ann Arbor shows -the attention the University's LSI is receiving from around the natio* In the meantime, bringing the-LSI to reality remains one of the number one priorities for the University adminstration.I- "The idea is to work quik'ly," Krenz said. "In two years, we hs4e to have a building and faculty appoint- ed. "In five years, things should be running at full speed."