" MARA GAY: HELPING DETROIT HELP ITSELF OPINION, PAGE 4 'SHOOTER' SCORES WAHLBERG'S LATEST HITS TARGET ARTS, PAGE 5 OFF TO LA.: JACK JOHNSON INKS DEAL WITH KINGS SPORTS, PAGE 9 idian Dai Ann Arbor, Michigar www.michigandaily.com sday March 27UO0 Coleman: Fix state funding system President says the way the state funds its public to funding. last month. universities. "You want to hold us account- Coleman also criticized th allocation of state A battle is brewing in Lansing able? Then compare apples to Education Alliance for Michigan over a proposal that would rei- apples," Coleman said, gestur- a coalition of nine state univers higher ed funding magine the way the state legisla- ing as though she was holding an ties formed last week to oppose th a ture funds higher education. The apple in each hand. "Set incentives idea of separate funding. is unfair presidents of Michigan's three for us, set incentives for them." The debate began when th public research universities - the The separate funding plan state of Michigan instituted a ne' he m, i- he he w Uni Colem critici: By GABE NELSON University of Michigan, Michigan DailyNewsEditor State University and Wayne State University - are arguing that their versity President Mary Sue schools should be considered sepa- an used strong language to rately from the other 12 public uni- ze in an interview yesterday versities in the state when itcomes was endorsed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm in her proposed 2008 budget after the presidents of the three research universities peti- tioned a state higher education appropriations subcommittee appropriations system two years ago, Coleman said. The system was designed to increase account- ability at the state's universities by rewarding schools with more See COLEMAN, page 7 s a h L ( ith f rien ad f e l i se iseNV- University alum Chiara Levin (center) with friends and fellow alumni Elyse Wise- man (left) and Robyn Sussman (right). Friends mourn slain alum Amnew campus group is taking a two-pronged approach to help the victims of genocide in Dafur, a region of Sudan. Will Work for Food, which is headed by LSA junior Jeremy Davidson and LSA sophomore Josh Cohen, says their group is different from others on campus because its approach includes both work and advocacy. "So far, no one on campus has taken a systematic approach to advocacy," Davidson said. "A signif- icant part of our approach is that it is adaptable to other projects." Starting today, students will be able to purchase a T-shirt that says "Working to Save Lives in Darfur, 1 Hour at a Time" in residence halls and Central Campus buildings like Angell Hall. The shirts cost $10 - $5 of which will go to Darfur relief through the American Jewish World Service's Darfur Action Campaign. By purchasing a shirt, students also promise to raise $10 for Darfur by doing community service work. "It doesn't have to be manual labor," Davidson said. "It can be as simple as tutoring a fellow student." Davidson said he wants students to voice their concern by sending postcards or making phone calls to their representatives in Congress. The group will offer pre-addressed postcards tostudents who need help contacting government officials. "There are 40,000 people on this campus," said Davidson, a for- mer news editor and summer edi- nor in chief at The Michigan Daily. "That's at least 40,000 letters to congressmen." There is already one group on campus that has been trying to draw attention to Darfur's plight: the University's chapter of Stu- dents Taking Action Now Darfur. LSA senior Maggie Glass; a STAND member, said she hopes the two groups can work together. LSA junior Justin Benson, who drew up the group's constitution last week, said he was enthusiastic about the new method. "The two-pronged approach is great because it is an innova- tive and effective way of address- ing both the long and short-term issues surrounding Darfur," he said. "While ouroverall goal is to address the short-term effects, advocacy ensures that we put pressure on the government and deal with the long term problems as well." Davidson and Hillel executive director Michael Brooks decided to create the group over breakfast and racquetball last semester, Davidson said. Members of the organization said that they have gotten positive feedback from students on campus. "I've had friends I haven't seen for months calling to ask about WWFF," Cohen.said. "They all real- ly want to get involved and it's great to knowthat." Will Work For Food's leaders also hope to expand the group's model around the country, using the Uni- versity as a template. Chiara Levin 'didn't have a negative bone in her body' By DAVE MEKELBURG Daily News Editor In a tragic shooting, a recent University alum was killed in Bos- ton early Saturday morning. Chiara Levin, who graduated less than a year ago, died after a night spent doing what she loved: meeting new people and spending time with friends. She was in Bos- ton for the weekend to celebrate the 90th birthday of a great aunt. Levin had gone to a bar Friday night with two friends, the Boston Police Department reported on its website. After leaving the bar, Levin and her friends were invited to the party in the city's Dorchester neighbor- hood with some people she and her friends had met at the bar. When they decided to leave the party, Levin and her friends accepted a ride home, police reported. While waiting to leave, gun- shots were fired into the idle car and Levin was struck. She was pro- nounced dead at Boston Medical Center two hours later. Police said there is no evidence to suggest that Levin was the tar- get of the shooter. The case is still under investigation. Friends remembered Levin for connecting with people from across campus, whether on the equestrian team, in her sorority or among the football players she tutored. "If you were ever walking to class or walking to go out or what- ever (with Levin), you'd have to allot two hours to get there," said University alum Seema Singh. Singh said Levin seemed to know everyone that she passed on campus and she would stop talk to each for atleast 15 minutes. Singh knew Levin well: She was one of her roommates in New York City. Levin, a native of Danville, Ky., had been working at a public rela- tions firm in Manhattan since she graduated. Friends said Levin was some- one who brought people together. Perhaps it is fitting, then, that her death created a reunion of sorts for the people who knew her. "A lot of us live in New York, and we've all been banded together," Singh said. OnSundaynight,15ofherfriends See LEVIN, page 7 Officials caution students on crime, OFF-CAMPUS CRIME Bar fight leaves student in custody, cop bloodied DPS director: Larceny most common campus crime By EMILY BARTON Daily StaffReporter LSA senior Stephanie Tillman asked police at a campus safety forum last night whether she could carry mace on campus for self- defense Department of Public Safety Director Bill Bess said she could, but recommended what he said was a more practical solution for keeping safe at night: the buddy system. Tillman,wholives on MaryStreet, near where a student reported being raped on Feb. 28, said she came to the forum because she is concerned about her safety. Michigan Student Assembly and the Office of the Dean of Students sponsored the forum, which also featured Ann Arbor Deputy Police Chief Greg O'Dell, Dean of Students Sue Eklund and DPS spokeswoman Diane Brown. The meeting's purpose was "to have a check-in for how things feel on campus," Eklund said. Only ten students attended the event last night in the MSA chambers in the Michigan Union Bess said the most common crim- inal activity on campus is larceny. Brown said that these larcenies are often just crimes of opportunity. She said people leave laptops and ALLISON GHAMAN/Daily DPS Director Bill Bess at a forum on campus safety last night cell phones in a public area unat- tended and that "all it takes is five minutes" for someone to pick up a device and walk away with it. Bess said that personal crimes - those that involve interaction between the suspect and the-victim - are relatively low on campus. See FORUM, page 3 T By J AI ended senior and a: bleedi Bri. bar w Yops after s Unive confir assaul Drunken tiff Saturday. Peters said that at about 9:30 escalates to p.m. Yops threw something at a man in the booth next his. blows at Everyone at the two booths stood up." he Brown Jug Yops walked around to the other booth and pushed the man ESSICA VOSGERCHIAN into the table, Peters said. Daily StaffReporter The table - which Peters said was securely bolted to the wall fight at The Brown Jug - collapsed under the man's Saturday night with LSA weight: Jack Yops in custody Peters said the second man n Ann Arbor Police officer was about 6 feet 4 inches tall. ng from the lip. Yops is 5 feet 9 inches, accord- an Peters, a doorman at the ing to his Michigan driver's ho saw the fight, told police license, which a Brown Jug assaulted a police officer employee photocopied after the tarting a fight in the South fight. rsity Avenue bar. Police Peters said he stepped between med that an officer was Yops and the table while the sec- ted at The Brown Jug on and man stayed on the ground. He saidYopsclaimedtheother man had spit on him. Employees asked for Yops's driver's license andcreditcard to photocopy for their records and to close his tab, Peters said. AfterYopsrefusedanemploy- ee called the police, Peters said. Yops began yelling at a group of people that included football players Jake Long and Garrett Rivas, calling them "third- string English majors," Peters said. .After several minutes, Yops gave his credit card and driver's license to an employee, who then closed his $25 tab. Peters said Yops then began taunting one of the two Ann Arbor Police officers who arrived on the scene. See FIGHT, page 7 TODAY'S HII 69 WEATHER LU 44 HAVE A NEWS TIP? Calf 734-763-2459 orne-mail news@michgandaily.com and let us know. 014 TH E DA ILY BLOGs How to apply for Amaker's old job MICHIGANDAILYCOM/THEGAME INDEX NEW S ............... Vol. CXVII,No.t122 SDK Vol.CX~i, No 122 S U DO0 K U......... ,.. ©2007 The Michigan Daily michigondailynum OPIN ION .... .......... 2 A R TS ................. .3 CLASSIFIED...... ..... 4 SPORTS............. ..5 ..6 ..9 A