The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 18, 2003 - 5A ADVANCE Continued from Page 1A diversity, then male faculty members have to change some of those prac- tices," said Tony England, associate chair of the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department. "NSF sets up programs to effect change. We give money, and it gives people incentive to look at why these things are happening. If NSF hadn't been there, the faculty would not have had time to educate ourselves and structure a recruiting program," added England, who is also a member of Sci- ence and Technology, Recruiting to Improve Diversity and Excellence, an advisory committee under ADVANCE that focuses of recruitment. The process, England admitted, takes time. Over the summer, the advi- sory committee, of which he is a mem- ber, met several times to discuss and research recruitment practices. "Improvement always can be made. In all areas where we have underrepre- sented minorities, we have lots of room for improvement. In some respects it's a matter of going to K-12 and getting girls interested and involved in the sci- ences. That's a challenge that every- one's facing," atmospheric sciences and chemistry Prof. Mary Anne Car- roll said. Concerning the initiative's future, female faculty and staff recognized the ongoing need for improvement and growth in the areas of retention and recruitment. "This year we are focusing on con- tinuing recruitment efforts, while enhancing our activities in the areas of climate and leadership. We know that we need to eniure that women scien- tists and engineers are able to thrive as researchers, teachers and colleagues once they come here. We will be initi- ating some new programs on mentor- ing and on the climate for women faculty," said Abigail Stewart, the ADVANCE program's director. RELIGION Continued from Page 1A prayer and communal church life strengthens spirituality and can serve as a safeguard against unexpected stressors. Self-described atheist Gwyneth Hayes said she agrees that religion and church build a sense of community but rebuts the portrayal of "serving a higher being. ... The notion of women like myself get- ting on her knees and genuflecting to a higher being, which through social con- ditioning is a white male, is an oppres- sive thought," said Hayes, an LSA junior. LSA Junior Sierra Taylor, who ascribes to the Church of God Church of Christ, said the church promotes com- munity building. "Religion through the church also awards members the power to demean another person's actions through judgment," Taylor said. "Many people come to church wearing a facade in the attempt to seem holier than thou." "Social congregation and gossip were the emphasis in my church," Hayes said. "Many of the persons that wanted to 'bless me' were out drinking and such the night before," Hayes said. Historically, religious practice in the black community has been part of cul- ture and a determinant of cultural and ideological autonomy, Levin said. The church has traditionally preserved, fos- tered and guided the lives of many African Americans, said Norma Har- grow, a follower of the Word of Faith Church. Christianity was the total subordina- tion of pre-existing African culture geared toward complete enslavement by whites in order to maintain dominance, LSA senior Erik Michael said. "We were Kings and Queens, gods upon this earth, and Christianity was used to reprogram our minds and hearts in order to laud an white oppressive identity," said Michael, a practitioner of the Pan African Voodoo Faith. The institution of the black church is a place not only of spirituality and LAWSUIT Continued from Page 1A every time I checked his website all this year his terrible charges were still there, and it seemed there was nothing I could do about it," he said. "I still have to face new students or their parents who will wonder, 'Was there any truth to this?"' Card added that he has received sup- port from academics nationwide who feel Pipes' "intimidation of college fac- ulty" is preventing open discourse at universities. In an interview with the Daily last year, Pipes said the University was included on a list of biased schools because it promoted racial and socioeco- nomic diversity but did not accommo- date intellectual diversity. He also said that Middle Eastern stud- enlightenment but also of favoring suc- cess for many African Americans, Levin said. Within the church, Black leaders helped members of the community find solace with their troubles and produce hope for blacks, said LSA senior, Angela Dudley of Christian Ministries. While living in Tulsa, Okla., as a Christian youth minister, "I personally encountered extremely exploitative and perverted actions within the church," Michael said. I personally know of sexu- al abuses committed against boys by members of the ministry that was not brought under scrutiny by the church" "In any occurrence, and in everything is a sign, a symbol of higher existence moving us, nature and society towards harmony and unity with God," LSA Senior Halim Naeem, a Sunni Muslim, said. "Religion guides a person by mar- ginalizing complex ideas into basic tenets," Naeem said. "No fault can be found in Blacks that choose Christianity because it has been an empowering tool for virtuous change also;'Naeem said. ies are in "very bad shape" due to an influx of politically radical ideas and professors who do not tell the whole truth or abuse their authority. In a letter written to the Daily last year, Cole defended his comments about al-Qaida by saying that the group con- sists of only 3,000 to 5,000 members nationwide. He also said watch lists of college professors are "undemocratic and un-American." Bush's nomination of Pipes to one of eight seats on the Institute of Peace came under fire in Congress when crit- ics demanded an investigation to investi- gate whether Pipes was anti-Muslim. But Bush used his presidential power to appoint Pipes during the Senate recess in August. Pipes will serve an 18- month "recess appointment" instead of the standard four-year term. FUEL CELLS Continued from Page 1A then we need electricity. Where we get the electricity is another problem," Rycus said. Hydrogen fuel cells have been used to power prototype vehicles like Gen- eral Motors' "HyWire," and the Toyota "FCLV" - a vehicle that claims to run at three times the efficiency of a vehi- cle with an internal combustion engine. Actual consumer models of fuel cell vehicles are still very early in develop- ment, and this may be due largely to the energy and oil industries' reluctant backing of non-fossil fuel initiatives. The oil industry "is pursuing the short-term gains in air quality made possible by reformulated gasoline (at a considerable cost of $37 billion)," while Germany and Japan lead the world in fuel cell research, states James Cannon, president of the Col- orado-based Energy Futures Inc., on the NHA website. Still, Cannon said he believes fuel cell cars will be common on America's, if not, Ger- many and Japan's, highways by the year 2010. Developing fuel cells for use in power plants may be even more distant in the future, but the necessity for change was reinforced by the blackout a month ago. Unfortunately, the Uni- versity currently has no plans for implementing fuel cell technology into its power grid, but the possibility still exists for expansion later on. "I have great hope for fuel cells, people say they might be the source of (energy for) the future. From a University standpoint, we've been looking for an application to test them out," said Central Power Plant Associate Director William Verge. "Fuel cells could be the answer, but it's still a way off." BLUES Continued from Page 1A because when they join a team, they have an instant circle of friends. "As soon as my girls walk on campus, they have a fami- ly, a community. We have to help them adjust to every- thing. We have facilities and people willing to help them. We can deal with everything from test anxiety to home- sickness," Plocki said. Plocki said another goal in helping athletes is making them self-reliant. "The demands we put on them are high. From practice to study hall, we are designed to make them good time man- agers" she added. Furthering the separation between athletes and other students are mandatory study-hall hours that differ from team to team. Plocki said her athletes spend six hours a week study hall. Like the gymnastics team, Waithe said he and his fellow track team members also spend six hours a week in study hall while Dest said the hockey team requires eight hours a week. "Even with these demands, our girls are outgoing enough to make friends in classes and whatnot," Plocki said. Plocki said she has not dealt with severe cases of athletes feeling isolated. "I can read my girls. I've had some girls who've had trouble adjusting but they know my door is always open," Plocki added. Waithe said he experienced bouts of isolation but said he feels optimistic. "I get lonely sometimes, you know? I'm always at practice or in my dorm and I don't know that many people. I can get lonely - but you know it's early, I know it'll get better," Wait- he said. LSA freshman and track athlete Jason Stewart said being an athlete has its share of difficulties. "I don't get that isolated but you do have to take advan- tage of the things around you or else you'll probably get left alone. We're constantly doing things so it's hard to meet people and you just end up seeing the same people everyday," Stewart said. "But, at the end of the day it's a rewarding life," he added. I. T n T IN Uce'Dd yevveDm $oior & m so e-op WALK-INS WELCOME LOOKING GOOD - FEELING GOOD! 328 S. MAIN STREET (LOCATED ABOVE PRICKLY PEAR) (734) 827-2777 HOURS: M-F 10AM-8PM SAT. 10AM-S PM $0 OFF FIRST VISIT m U V? IIRmo ~l