I , tcl gttn tti[ RA D ON ' One-hundredfourteen years ofeditorialfreedom www.michzaandaily.com Ann Arbor, Michigan Vol. CXV, No. 122 02005 The Michigan Daily ON THE LAST DAY OF CLASSES, SENIORS SAY GOODBYE By Amber Colvin Daily Staff Reporter As the class of 2005 graduates and look toward its future, the seniors also look back on their fondest memories from the past four years. Just several days after arriving at the University, the class of 2005 was confront- ed with the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. Kinesiology senior Jessie Christel recalled Sept. 11 and its aftermath as she became involved in the ROTC the follow- ing year. "I went into ROTC during wartime basically. That really shaped my college experience," Christel said. In 2003, the University gained national attention when its admissions policy was challenged in the Supreme Court, and the College of Literature, Science and Arts' points-based admissions were struck down. "The campus got really heated up about (the cases)," said LSA senior Markus Sztejnberg, remembering debates on cam- pus about affirmative action and diver- sity. In its sophomore year, the class of 2005 saw Mary Sue Coleman replace Lee Bol- linger as president of the University - the first female executive of the University. The U.S. president was also a promi- nent figure for seniors last year when many exercised their right to vote for the first time during the presidential elec- tion that saw President Bush re-elected over Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry. Despite such historical events, the most memorable times for many students were their Saturday afternoons at the Big House. Sztejnberg remembered the triple overtime thriller last October when the football team rallied to defeat Michigan State. His favorite part was when he insisted that his friends stay at the game, even as Michigan neared defeat, and laughed at those who did. Though both consecutive trips to the Rose Bowl ended in defeat, they also provided many memories for the class of 2005. While football games and other sports created some great moments, students, friends, roommates and professors also made lasting impressions. For Christel, hanging out with her friends at her house will be what she misses most, though she said her favorite memory of college is yet to come - her graduation next Saturday. RYAN WEINER/Daily The Class of 2004 graduation ceremonies held at the Big House on Saturday, May 1, 2004. Coleman officially inaugurated as 'U' President March 27, 2003 By Jeremy Berkowitz Daily Staff Reporter At a time when lawsuits threaten the University's admis- sions policies and state legislators threaten its budget, Uni- versity President Mary Sue Coleman used her inauguration ceremony to address ideas from these problems by learning from our past. Surrounded by former University presidents Lee Bollinger and James Duderstadt as well as current and former regents, Coleman centered her speech around the sankofa, a bird from Ghana that moves forward with its head turned backward. Coleman recalled the proverb associated with the symbolism of the bird, saying, "Look to your roots, in order to reclaim your future," d "The glory of the University of Michigan resides in its ability to re-invent itself continually, to cherish its roots while inventing the future." Coleman spoke about Thomas Jefferson's plans to make the University of Virginia a great institution, and his struggles to obtain a suitable appropriation from the state legislature. He repeatedly wrote to state legislators suggesting money be shifted from primary schools to higher educations. "Some tensions have not changed in two hundred years," Coleman exclaimed. "Because the state benefits from hav- ing an educated citizenry, the state supports it with public funds. The universities, in turn, have a reciprocal respon- sibility to the states. In this regard, outroots are not only deep, but also broad, extending hundreds of years and hun- dreds of miles." Coleman also addressed keeping the University accessi- "We are asking the court to affirm America, by re- affirming affirmative action" Mary Sue Coleman ble for all students and maintaining a diverse student body. She noted the University's long history of a dedication to diversity and the importance of the U.S. Supreme Court hearings Tuesday where the University will defend its race- conscious admissions policies. "We are asking the court to affirm America, by re- affirming affirmative action," Coleman said. "At the University of Michigan, we have room for all points of view, and for the syntheses of those views." Preceding Coleman, the keynote speaker - Psychology Prof. James Jackson - also touched on diversity. "Today, as a more mature country, we often appear afraid of changes of multiple races and ethnicities," Jackson said. "We need to learn from the mistakes as well as the triumphs of the past." At a press conference afterwards, Coleman expressed her excited sentiments about the inauguration and the challenges she faces ahead. "This is a dream that I could never have imagined," Coleman said. "Sure it's a hard job," she said, adding however that she feels confident about the upcoming hearings and the budget- -ary cisis. "You can't help to feel good about the job." Affirmative action upheld June 24, 2003 By Jeremy Berkowitz and Tomislav Ladika Daily Staff Reporters WASHINGTON - Considering a college applicant's race is constitutional, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision yes- terday. But in a 6-3 vote, it struck down the College of Literature, Science and the Arts' policy of granting points for race. The two judgments, which gave the University guidelines for how race can be used in its admissions systems, were the culmi- nation of the six-year legal battle between the University and the rejected white applicants who sued it. The court accepted the University's argument that the need for a diverse student body justified affirmative action. Ac Admisio criteri to be refor-med June 30, 2003 By-Tomislav Ladik Daily Staff Reporter When administrators meet this week to begin writing an interim College of Literature, Science and the Arts admis- sions policy to comply with the U.S. Supreme Court's rul- ins, their task will be fairly easy because the overturned point system already required an individualized review of applicants, said LSA Dean Terrence McDonald. Petition targets ad msion policy January 7,2004 By Aymar Jean Daily Staff Reporter Despite the University's victory at the U.S. Supreme Court last June, 2004 promises to be a decisive year for its race-conscious admissions policies. Ward Connerly - a University of California regent and outspoken opponent of affirmative action - is spearheading a petition drive for an initiative on November's ballot. The referendum regards whether state institutions can give "preferential treatment" based on race, eth- nicity and other characteristics. If passed, an amendment effectively banning affirmative action in the public sphere will be added to the state constitution. The start date for the initiative, originally set for yesterday, was post- poned until Jan. 12 to abide by Michigan election laws. The initiative's supporters must obtain 317,517 signatures by July 6 to place the issue on the ballot. "It's going to in effect put into the Michigan Constitution what every- body thinks the Equal Protection Clause (of the 14th Amendment) already says," said Tim O'Brien, operations director for the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative. The initiative is a subsidiary of the American Civil Rights Coalition, the group Connerly chairs. MCRI gathers James Gartenberg, an alum who was killed in the terrorist attacks left his wife, Jill Gartenberg and his 21/2-year-old daughter Nicole behind. Alum failed to escape attack September 17, 2001 By David Enders Daily News Editor NEW YORK - Jill Gartenberg laughs when she remembers how her husband Jim woke her up three Saturdays ago. "He woke up and said, 'Do you know what day it is? It's the start of college football season!'" But this weekend, college football was suspended, and Jim Gartenberg, who graduated with an economics degree from the University of Michigan in 1987, is one of the more than 4,900 people still missing this weekend after the collapse of the World Trade Center towers Tuesday. His friends knew him for his love of the University of Michigan. He was the president of the New York City chapter of the University's alumni association the largest chapter in the country for 10 years. "He lived for Michigan football anything Michigan, he loved. He prided himself on the fact that he went back to Ann Arbor for a game every year," his wife said. "He always said he would be one of those old guys who wore the pants with the 'M' on them." Jim Gartenberg worked on the 86th floor of Tower One for Julien J. Studley Inc., a commercial real estate firm. He remained in phone contact with his wife until shortly before she watched the building collapse on television. "He called me at quarter to nine and he called me at my machine at work and said there was a fire at work and he didn't know if he was going to make it," Jill Gartenberg said. "I don't even know if he even knew if it was terrorism." Jill Gartenberg said her husband told her he couldn't escape because the stairwell was full of smoke and debris. signatures January 7, 2005 By Aymar Jean I