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December 10, 2003
@2003 The Michigan Daily
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Vol. CXIII, No. 68
One-hundred-thirteen years ofeditoriadfreedom
TODAY:
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Lawmakers, Gov. cut deal on higher ed
By Andrew Kaplan
Daily Staff Reporter
When the University slashed its budget in
the middle of last year, faculty had to stretch to
temper the costs of their own programs. Philos-
ophy Prof. Stephen Darwall, who also directs
the LSA Honors Program, recalls the conces-
sions the program had to make to meet admin-
istrators' financial timetables, including cutting
vital staff positions and coping with an under-
sized faculty.
"We haven't increased the size of the faculty
in two or three years," Darwall said, adding that
a dearth of instructors in all departments has
made it difficult to fit students into courses,
such as his philosophical ethics class.
"But that's the cost of budget cuts," he said.
Since the state Legislature carved 10 percent
from the budgets of public colleges and univer-
sities last year, department cuts have been part
and parcel of cost reductions at the University.
But the problems may only get worse in the
coming year.
In a conference with Republican leader-
ship yesterday, Gov. Jennifer Granholm and
Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema (R-
Wyoming) agreed to cut up to 5 percent of
state funding to Michigan's colleges and
universities.
Although the governor is not expected to
officially present her decision to the entire Leg-
islature until today, reports of higher education
cuts as great as 6 percent and as small as 3 per-
cent have circulated among news sources since
Granholm's televised "budget conversations"
last month.
Granholm's latest proposal will allow admin-
istrators to avoid major cuts by keeping tuition
fees down, a spokesman for Senate Democrats
said yesterday.
Following Granholm's executive order today
on the budget, the University will begin evalu-
ating its assets and form decisive, cost-saving
measures, University spokeswoman Julie Peter-
son said.
Given the urgency of the budget cuts, admin-
istrators will need to work quickly to trim their
expenses, she added.
"We don't have the luxury of taking a lot of
time," Peterson said, but didn't specify a
schedule.
If the University sees more cuts, students and
faculty could face increased class sizes, fewer
course sections and layoffs, Peterson said.
"The schools and departments have been
very conservative this year," Peterson said. "We
did feel the impact on class sizes, because
departments weren't able to offer as many sec-
See CUTS, Page 8
CRUNCH TIME
Proposed amendment
seeks greater scrutiny
of college spending
Photos by DAVID TUMAN/Daily
LEFT: Psychology doctoral student Hyekyung
Park studies at a computer station in the
School of Social Work Library yesterday.
ABOVE: LSA junior Thomas Stark and
Pharmacy student Ajay Desal (background)
study at the Michigan Union study lounge
last night.
By Michael Gurovitsch
Daily Staff Reporter
A proposed amendment to the Michigan con-
stitution introduced in the state's House of Repre-
sentatives last week would
change how the state's public
universities receive and
spend state-allocated funds.
Rep. Jack Hoogendyk (R-
Kalamazoo), who proposed
the legislation, said contro-
versies over rising tuition
costs, affirmative action and
the University's "How to be
Gay: Male Homosexuality
and Initiation" class have Hoogendyk
made it necessary for legislators to carefully
examine how state tax dollars are being spent.
Hoogendyk said he is only concerned with how
universities are spending state money, and that
universities could still use their tuition revenue as
they see fit.
"It is incumbent upon me as a state representa-
tive to scrutinize every dollar the universities
spend," Hoogendyk said.
One provision of the legislation, which would
need a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and
the House and voter approval to pass, would give
lawmakers greater power in determining how
state money will be spent, a responsibility cur-
rently reserved to each university's governing
board.
This amendment could be used to forbid the
University from using state money for the "How
to be Gay" class, Hoogendyk said, adding that the
scope of the restrictions would be up for debate
after the amendment passed.
"This amendment undermines the constitution-
al autonomy that our universities have come to
enjoy. The autonomy gives the flexibility to make
budget decisions and academic decisions based
on each (university)," said Mike Boulus, execu-
tive director of the Presidents Council, State Uni-
versities of Michigan.
"I am not sure the Legislature wants to get into
the business of checking every single class offer-
ing," he added.
"We believe the constitutional autonomy that
this state granted to public higher education near-
ly 200 years ago has been the key to the strength
and breadth of Michigan universities," University
President Mary Sue Coleman said in a written
statement. "It would be a mistake to turn away
from a model that has worked so well."
Boulus said monetary decisions should be left
to each university's board, which can make the
best decisions for its own school.
Rep. Ruth Ann Jamnick (D-Ypsilanti) echoed
those concerns, adding that if legislators have a
problem with course offerings, they should voice
their complaints to the regents before taking any
other action.
"I don't think it's an issue we need to get into. I
think we have a lot of pressing issues before the
state of Michigan," Jamnick added.
The legislation also proposes appropriating
higher education funding to the 15 state universi-
ties "equitably" on a per-pupil basis, counting
only in-state students.
This change could reduce funding to the Uni-
versity, which has a high proportion of out-of-
state students compared to other Michigan public
universities.
Hoogendyk cited what he believes are discrep-
See HOOGENDYK, Page 8
A tour oft/e best study sots on campus
By David Branson
F inals not only mean everyone on
campus has more to do, but it
also means the study spaces that
have been packed since the
beginning of the semester are even more
crowded.
As classes finish and exams loom, time is
limited to find new places to study.
Tomorrow and Friday are set aside by the
University as "study days" in anticipation
for students' exams next week. Library
hours will also be extended starting today.
Students face an array of choices when
cramming for exams. We follow the
hypothetical situation of a student living
near Central Campus, with a final on Fri-
Daily Staff Reporter
day, who wakes up at 11:00 tomorrow
morning.
We shower, eat lunch, watch a little tel-
evision, check e-mail and leave the apart-
ment at 2:00 in the afternoon.
Computers on campus, especially sites at
the Shapiro Undergraduate Library and
Angell Hall, are usually full.
We begin studying at the School of Edu-
cation, where we arrive at 2:30 p.m. There
are numerous student lounges on the first
floor, most of which have vending
machines. The lounges are well-lit, quiet
and rarely occupied. "There's also a really
good computer site on the first floor of the
School of Education," said LSA senior
Group wants Bush to
uphold affirmative action
Omry Maoz.
"There's another site on the first floor of
West Hall and there's never anyone there
either," Maoz said. After studying for two
See FINALS, Page 8
By Carmen Johnson
Daily Staff Reporter
Harassing phone
C , vcalls reach Asian
°';student community
The Bush administration is not doing enough to
help implement nationwide affirmative action poli-
cies, a report released yesterday by a group alleges.
The Washington-based group, Citizens' Com-
mission on Civil Rights, stated that the administra-
tion has a critical role in addressing questions about
how the policies should be applied in circum-
stances like higher education, K-12 education and
military schools.
These criticisms against the administration come
months after the U.S. Supreme Court partially
upheld the University's race-conscious admissions
policies. But the University has not expressed any
interest in working with the administration in craft-
ing its policies.
Commission Chair William Taylor, who wrote
the report, said it did not necessarily mean that col-
leges should await White House direction before
forming policy. But the administration should step
in if there are disputes or uncertainties.
The report goes on to list the administration's
past disapproval of affirmative action. Judging by
the Bush administration's record and pronounce-
ments since the court decision, there is doubt that it
will uphold the law, the report states.
The White House filed a brief in the Supreme
Court opposing the University's race-conscious
admissions policies and sent Solicitor General
Theodore Olson to argue in front of the court. Bush
called the policies "fundamentally flawed" in a
nationally televised address.
The report states that regardless of its own views,
the administration needs to adhere to the court rul-
ing. "The cases set principals, but the federal govern-
ment still needs to address questions,' Taylor said.
Taylor, former staff director of the U.S. Commis-
sion on Civil Rights, expressed concern that when
the administration investigates complaints concern-
ing affirmative action programs, schools are intimi-
dated to end their programs.
But the University already established a new,
holistic approach to the admissions process to keep
a diverse student body.
University spokeswoman Nancy Connell said the
University took into account the court's opinion and
received guidance from its attorneys when crafting
its new admissions policies. Connell would not
comment on the commission's report.
The commission, established in 1981 after reor-
ganization of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
during the Reagan administration, has long sup-
ported affirmative action and the University's case.
Since 1989, the commission has written numerous
reports regarding the federal government's enforce-
ment of civil rights.
By Emily Kraack
Daily Staff Reporter
JASON CUUPEh/Daily
An LCD projector hangs from a classroom in Angell Hall near
the Fishbowl. There have been numerous thefts of these
expensive machines recently.
University loses
$ 130K in thefts
By Emily Kraack
and Victoria Edwards
Daily Staff Reporters
The University is out more than $130,000 and is get-
ting ready to put down thousands more. Budget cuts?
Nope. Fiscal irresponsibility? Try again.
More than 25 liquid crystal display projectors have
been stolen from University buildings and Washtenaw
Community College buildings since March. The
Department of Public Safety in conjunction with WCC
is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information
about the theft of these projectors.
ra "These are similar crimes of a similar nature at the
Student leaders on campus are
expressing confusion over a slew of
derogatory voice mails and phone
calls made over the weekend.
In the wake of three phone calls
prompting last Tuesday's crime
alert, a new kind of phone harass-
ment has sprung up.
At least five student leaders of
Asian American organizations on
campus have reported receiving
phone calls since Friday from a man
asking questions about prevalent
stereotypes of Asians.
SNRE senior Han-Ching Lin said
that on Saturday he had a 45-minute
phone conversation with the caller,
who claimed to be the president of
Sigma Nu fraternity and wanted to
know information such as "why
Asian men are short and skinny"
and "why Asian men play only mar-
tial arts roles in movies."
Sigma Nu President Jacob
Strumwan er denied making the
received two voice-mail messages
of a similar nature to those reported
by Lin.
She said the caller wanted to
know "what donations Asians have
made to Caucasian society" and
asked her to call him back. She said
she didn't feel comfortable return-
ing the call.
"I never experienced something
like this before," she said. "It kind
of makes me feel uneasy about
campus life.
"I had heard of things like this
happening on other campuses. I
thought at the University of Michi-
gan we were safer."
The student said she didn't think
the caller was actually the president
of Sigma Nu.
Strumwasser, an LSA sophomore,
said he hadn't heard anything about
the calls.
"This is shocking and disgusting to
me that someone would misrepresent
my house and my name in such a
racially degrading way."
Strumwasser said he did not
Today marks the last issue of The Michigan Daily
for the fall term. We wish you the best of
luck on finals and hope you have a very
happy and relaxing break.
The Daily will resume coverage when school starts on
Jan. 6. Please stay tuned to www.michigandaily.com during the next
few weeks for any breaking news.
Enjoy your holidays and whether you are in Pasadena, New York, or
Michigan, have a very hany New Year's.
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