One hundred eleven years of ed~nrl freedom ti NEWS: 76-DAILY CLASSIFIED: 764-0557 www michigandaily. com Thursday October 4, 2001 a 4 Y 8 $ l . --------- --- ------------ -- ------- - - I U I1, p By Rachel Green and Elizabeth Kassab Daily Staff Reporters Columbia University's presidential search committee officially announced yesterday that it will recommend Lee Bollinger to be the next president at the Board of Trustees meeting this Saturday. Bollinger, who had previously declined to comment, acknowledged that he will be leaving Ann Arbor, although he did not say exactly when. "I've indicated that I will accept," said Bollinger, who has been president of the Uni- versity of Michigan since 1997. "I didn't seek this out. Columbia brought this to me and after giving it very serious and hard consideration, it seemed to make the most sense." Bollinger was first approached in June by Columbia's search committee, said University of Michigan Regent Andrea Fischer Newman (R-Ann Arbor). "We think that Lee Bollinger will be great for Columbia and that Columbia will be great for Lee Bollinger," said Henry King, chair of the Columbia search committee. King, who had earlier refused to discuss the search process publicly, confirmed the commit- tee's selection after The Michigan Daily report- ed yesterday that Bollinger would be leaving Ann Arbor. "We concluded that he is an outstanding president of a wonderful university, that he has a great track record of dealing with faculty, staff and students, that he has a great vision of the life sciences," King said. King said the committee sought candidates who "demonstrate the ability to do the job, and, certainly Lee Bollinger has done that." The committee looked for someone with "vision, leadership ability, ability to mix with faculty and students and the neighborhood," King said. He also said Bollinger's interest in the arts and sciences should serve him well in New York. "He will thrive in this Qity," King said. Newman said yesterday that the regents have not yet planned a course of action to replace Bollinger. The regents could meet before their scheduled Oct. 19 meeting to get a search process under way. "Thiere has been no discussion yet among the board and Lee in regards to what happens next," she said. The search committee started working in March shortly after Columbia President George Rupp announced his plans to retire on June 30, 2002. Bollinger would take office July 1. King declined to say whether there were any other finalists for the position. "We have tremendous momentum under George Rupp," King said, noting that applica- tions and fundraising have risen since Rupp became president. "That momentum has be to continued and even advanced." King said the search committee feels Bollinger can do just that. "He's got a lot of sta- mina and vigor. The president of a major uni- versity has to have stamina because it is a job that is all-consuming." The search committee was also impressed with Bollinger's staunch commitment to the benefits of diversity in higher education. "We do have an effort to have a very diverse student body," King said. Columbia admits students through a need- blind admissions policy, accepting students regardless of financial need and then working with individuals to determine financial aid packages. This widens the pool of applicants the institution can accept, King said. The search committee was impressed by "his acknowledging that life sciences is and is going to be the most important research a university can do in this century. He saw it and he moved it forward," King said. Columbia has the resources and the interest to further its own research in the life sciences, King said. Bollinger's development of the University of Michigan's Life Sciences Initiative is consid- ered the biggest project he has undertaken as president - and one that could suffer in his absence. Michael Welsh, chair of the cell and develop- mental biology department, a division of the Life Sciences Initiative, said Bollinger has been the most proactive president he has seen in 22 years with regard to advocating the life sci- ences. "I hope that the institution and the initiative are far enough along now to be minimally impacted," Welsh said. "His leadership and his advocacy of the Life Science Initiative have been impressive although probably now things won't be quite as they would have been with him here." Welsh said the LSI should remain stable without Bollinger but questioned whether the program will advance until a new president is selected. "Whoever sits in that chair next will have a big impact on our progress," Welsh said. "There is always a reluctance by an interim president to make big decisions or changes so it is only when we have a bona fide president that we are able to advance our vision." Bollinger said he is confident any progress made in his four years as president will not soon be forgotten. "All of the things that are in motion will con- tinue to grow and they'll shift some as is appro- priate," he said. "It takes a decade to do things like this ... so whenever I left these things would have been left unfinished." Life Sciences Institute co-director Jack Dixon was optimistic that the University has the kind of leadership necessary to keep current projects moving forward on an everyday basis, but agreed that without a permanent president See BOLLINGER, Page 7A University President Lee Bollinger, shown here at his inauguration ceremony in 1997, has verified that he will in fact accept the presidency at Columbia University after It is offered. Bush prepares plan for. recession WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush and his top economic adviser urged Congress yesterday to approve a stimulus plan of between $60 billion and $75 billion to avert a steep reces- sion triggered in part by last month's terrorist attacks. "I know people are hurting," Bush said. Proposing tax cuts for individuals and businesses, Bush told business leaders in New York that Washington must "provide a kick start to give peo- ple reason to be confident, and we will do that." Bush said the administration is con- sidering tax rebates for people or accel- erating the tax cuts approved earlier this year. For businesses, corporate tax cuts and investment tax credits are among the options. Laid-off workers need extra relief, he said, because the attacks "shocked our economy just like it shocked the conscience of our nation." Bush made the remarks shortly after Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill told the Senate Finance Committee he expects negative real growth in the third quarter but said similar poor per- formance could be avoided in the fourth quarter if consumer confidence V quickly rebounds. "The depth of this contraction, as well as the pace at which the economy returns to a healthy rate of growth, will depend in large part on how fast con- sumers regain their confidence and on our success in incorporating new pro- tections against terrorist acts without material reductions in productivity," O'Neill said. O'Neill said the president had set the range for the additional economic stimulus at between $60 billion and $75 billion. Congress has already approved a $40 billion emergency spending plan and $15 billion airline aid package. Administration officials said Bush wants quick agreement on the size of the stimulus package before the White House and congressional leaders delve into the details and comments from FACEOFF AT THE 50-YARD LINE Outdoor hockeyis a whole new ba igame By Seth Klempner Daily Sports Writer SEAST LANSING - With a hockey rink fully in place, Spartan Stadium has been transformed from a midsized college football stadium to the largest hockey arena in the world. Most college hockey arenas pro- vide intimacy with only the glass serving as separation between fans. Sound in these barns, field houses and arenas reverberates between small walls magnifying the noise, producing an atmosphere unique to college hockey. Spartan Stadium, on the other hand, is expansive and open with the closest fans being 20 yards away from the ice and on the 50-yard line rather than the red line. Luckily, there will be more than 70,000 fans on hand for this game to make up for the escaping noise. For fans going to the game, it will take on a football atmosphere, with the main attraction not being the game inside the stadium, but rather the celebration inside and outside. Another factor unique to this. game will be the weather. Saturday's forecast calls for a chance of show- ers and highs in the upper 40s. While most fans see the game more as an event, the players are not so lucky. Michigan State players must focus on preparing for it as they would any other game with Michigan. This is particularly important for the Spartans, who have seven freshmen to familiarize with the team's disciplined defen- sive systems. Furthermore, Michigan State must also handle the duties that accompany hosting a world record- breaking event. The Wolverines, on the other hand, must simply geuff the bus and play. "We are just trying to do the See HOCKEY, Page 7A DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daily Ice crews work to prevent the ice from melting during the unseasonably warm weather yesterday afternoon in preparation for the Cold War outdoor ice hockey game that will take place Saturday night, when temperatures will be in the upper 40s. International students face lockout By Lisa Hoffman Daily Staff Reporter With Democratic Sen. Diane Feinstein's pro- posed moratorium on foreign student visas on the table, University community members fear the loss of the rich cultural atmosphere that embodies Ann Arbor. The moratorium, which would prohibit inter- national students from acquiring visas for six months, is one suggestion to help the Immigra- tion -and Naturalization Service establish an extensive background check and tracking pro- gram for foreign students before entering the country. "Some of these hijackers were students, so there is a whole push to put new rules on immi- gration," said Toby Smith, the University's director of federal relations in the office of the vice president for research. "It's a tough world out there. We need to be able to service students in the best way possible and still reassure them that we are doing our best to make sure there is no hatred," he said. Though University officials are concerned for the welfare of students, faculty and staff, they hope increases in safety won't harm the diversity of the area. "It would be just a terrible thing to have hap- pen," said John Godfrey, the assistant dean of international education at Rackham. "It's just taken totally out of line. Our international stu- dents contribute so much." Panayiotis Georgiopoulos, an international graduate student from Greece in the College of Engineering, feels the moratorium would harm the Ann Arbor atmosphere. "I think if you go anywhere else in the Mid- west, the environment is totally different," Geor- giopoulos said. "International students give The moratorium could lead to the first class without international students since the Univer- sity began admitting them in the 1920s. "It will impact the cultural richness of the University," Altamirano said. "We bring in the cream of the crop of the world. Once you're opening doors to international students, the opportunities are limitless." Besides social implications, international stu- dents also have a major influence the economy. Last year, they brought $12 billion to the U.S. economy and $126 million to the economy of the University. International students seem to have the gener- al feeling of questioning what is in store for immigration, said Altamirano, who meets with groups of international students on a regular basis. "Everyone is afraid of what will happen next, even in Greece," Georgiopoulos said. "I'm lose something." In the past, students were wondering what would happen with immigration rules and ask- ing questions, Altamirano said. "They're wondering if they have to go home," he said. Concern also surrounds international students in research labs, who make up a large propor- tion of graduate students. "We are very concerned about the impacts that (restrictions and monitoring) might have, as well as foreign students working in labs," Smith said. "We need to find a balance between acade- mic openness and classification." Already, according to an article in Science Times, foreign national students across the country have been told they couldn't work on their proposals, leading to even greater concern about the backlash and impact of the events of Sept. 11.