0 4A - Wednesday, September 19, 2007 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com C74c Mtc4t*pan4,3at4olp Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu IMRAN SYED JEFFREY BLOOMER EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR KARL STAMPFL EDITOR IN CHIEF Don't tase me, bro." - University of Florida senior Andrew Meyer as he was being manhandled by four police officers after causing a minor disruption at an event featuring Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.). Campus police officers used a taser to subdue him. CHRIS KOSLOWSKI | UT A " adg CreativeS when does the Acadnmy hearyour precious Achievement in Interacdw e e out the'"Rest Power A Gorewon an Enr T/.son" ehPNt Presentation Creaed by Sontoe m ed l H}e didI Innt itgr"v i Yai Current Its r nfdwl0Al tGoraward! .4J ** -- - ---- - - - --- - 11-11eF 1,111 0 Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. High and dry Hypocrisy and double talk abound in 'U' skybox plans he decision to add skyboxes to the Big House was conten- tious from the start. The $226 million plan seemed pricey. Fans were concerned that by eliminating some bleacher seats to add luxury-box seating, the University might be compro- mising its position in the arms race to have the largest seating capacity in college football. Alumni are concerned about respect- ing the integrity of the Big House's egalitarian atmosphere. The Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America is concerned that the project doesn't meet disability law requirements. Everyone seems to have concerns, yet none of them were fairly considered. Intoxicated by progress Instead of resolving these worries, the University avoided them. It has neither acknowledged that these arguments might be legitimate nor made a true effort to hear them and make peace. The plan was force fed to the University community with a charade of a democratic process. There is no better example of this approach than the University's legal show- down with the MPVA. The group filed suit against the University earlier this year, charging that the changes to the Big House constitute more than just "repairs," as the University claims, and are therefore subject to the requirements of the Ameri- cans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The law requires new stadiums to have handicap seating equal to at least 1 percent of the total seating capacity, and when old sta- diums are renovated, that they be brought up to ADA requirements. This would mean that more than 1,000 seats at the Big House would need to be handicap accessible. The current plan only makes for 282. In response, the University has played a game of semantics, arguing that the sky- boxes fit ADA requirements because the changes being made are only "repairs." Instead of working to reach a compromise, the two sides will now head to court. The University risks derailing the whole proj- ect simply because it doesn't want to make 1 percent of the stadium accessible to the disabled. The problem with the MPVA is indica- tive of a larger problem with the way the skybox plan was passed: The University has closed its ears to opposition. At the June Regents meeting, the University allowed five speakers to voice their opin- ions. In what seemed to be a show of gen- eral approval for the plan, all five speakers spoke in favor of it. It turns out, however, that Bruce Madej, a spokesman for the Athletic Depart- ment, called a pro-luxury box alum days before the meeting's agenda became pub- lic. The three speakers who tried to speak in opposition to the plan were all turned down because supporters of the plan had filled all five slots - four of them within one day. Effectively, this meant the Ath- letic Department stacked the speakers' list with people who supported the plan. While the University continues to assert that it took faculty opinion into account, a 600-signature petition for submission to Coleman and the regents suggests oth- erwise. Collected by Irwin Goldstein, a professor emeritus of the University, the petition states that opposing views were censored. It also argues that $226 mil- lion is too high a price to pay for such an unnecessary addition. After the football team's recent play - and the University's insistence that alcohol will be restricted in the luxury boxes - selling out the boxes every game is no guarantee. The skyboxes are a risky investment. Wishful thinking won't make the oppo- sition to the skybox plans go away. The University needs to approach these groups with the transparent, public discussion and honesty that have been long-held University values. The Big House is home field for all of us. It's the University's job to ensure it exists for the community at large, not just those with the biggest pocketbooks. hether the Michigan Para- lyzed Veterans of America, Prof. Emeritus Irwin Gold- stein and Save the Big House like it or not, construction on MichiganStadium's controversial new skyboxes is going" to begin in Novem- ber. The University Board of Regents - has already made GARY that decision. The GRACA regents aren't going to stop the $226 million project, even in light of the fact that the Athletic Department stacked the speakers' list at the June Regents meeting to feign widespread approval of its plans and that at least 600 faculty and staff members have signed a peti- tion expressing their disapproval. These are examples of the Universi- ty at its worst. They're great lessons for the future, but they don't have much importance in the present. What the University needs to be dealing with now is the logistics of carrying out a plan riddled with com- plexitythatpromises to bring dramatic changes to the Big House experience. Case in point: alcohol sales. University President Mary Sue Cole- man and the rest of the administration have put the issue of selling alcohol in the skyboxes on the back burner. The responses are always calculated and robotic: No alcohol will be sold at the Big House, no potential buyers care and no one foresees the no-alcohol pol- icy as anything but a non-issue for now and forever. But if the experiences of other Big Ten universities are any indication, it won't be long before alcohol is flowing in the skyboxes. Afteradding24luxurysuitestoSpar- tan Stadium in 2004 and 2005, Michi- gan State University wasted little time making an exception to its no-alcohol policy for the wealthy few in the suites. While Coleman was president at the University of Iowa, Iowa was able to maintain an alcohol-free football sta- dium. Coleman left Iowa in 2002, and when Kinnick Stadium added luxury seating in 2006, the university aban- doned its moral high ground. Now, suites and club seats offer the luxury of alcohol that fans paying steep ticket prices have come to expect. As University of Michigan Regent LarryDeitch (D-BinghamFarms),who voted against the skybox plan, told The Wall Street Journal last December: "Why pay a whole bunch of money, driveup toAnnArbor, sit behind aglass wall and not be able to get a beer?" Even if the University can stand strong on its commitment to a no-alco- hol policy and even if such a policy doesn't discourage potential buyers, the University has nothing to gain and everything to lose by enforcing this policy in the luxury boxes. At pro- jected prices ranging from $55,000 to $85,000 per season, the skyboxes will be home to any number of high-pro- file University alumni and Michigan businessmen. Money talks. That's why there are going to be skyboxes in the first place. Let's take Stephen Ross, for example. If Ross - who doAated $100 million to the University a few years ago - pays for a luxury box, it's doubtful that he would be herded through the main gate like any regular fan. According to Diane Brown, University facilities and opera- tionsspokeswoman,it'smorelikelythat, depending on personal preference, Ross and his family would have the option of entering through the stadium's tunnel or special vehicle entrance. Although the select few who sit in skyboxes will supposedly be subject to the same rules and restrictions as normal ticket holders - regardless of whether they go through alternative entrances - I can't imagine Ross'swife being asked to leave if her Coach purse doesn't fit through the 5-by-8 plastic rectangle. A purse might not be an aggravat- ing example of skybox exceptionalism, but say a distinguished donor brought a bottle of vodka. If whoever is drink- ing in the skyboxes is held to the same standard as an of-age student caught with a bottle of vodka in the stadium, some old folks in suits would likely be ejected. But no one in a right mind would eject someone who is paying thousands of dollars for a three-hour football game - not to mention that these people are already some of the University's biggest donors. That could leave quite a dilemma. How skyboxes might bring Skyy vodka to the Big House. If the University continues to have a dry football stadium, it will be left with an impossible enforcement prob- lem in the luxury suites. If it partially reverses its stance and allows alcohol in the skyboxes, imagine the backlash from fans who are already upset that the skyboxes represent a move toward elitism atthe Big House. What happens then? Does the University open up the whole stadium to alcohol sales? The University must pick its poi- son: enforcement, exceptions or alco- hol. Maybe this time we can have a real discussion and everyone in the University community can have more than a cursory say. Gary Graca is an associate editorial page editor. He can be reached at gmgraca@umich.edu. a 4 SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU THE INTERFRATERNITY COUNCIL AND PANHELLENIC ASSOCIATION VEP. Greek life offers unique opportunities Greek life is more than Panhel and IFC TO THE DAILY: Although Theresa Kennelly clearly has her reservations about the Interfraternity Coun- cil and the Panhellenic Association (Rushing into trouble, 09/18/2007), she failed to shed light on the two other councils that exist as potential options - the National Panhellenic Council and the Multicultural Greek Council. These organizations were founded for minor- ity students and for students whose ideals do not mirror those of the IFC or Panhel as alter- natives to the mainstream organizations. It is evident that Greeks did change in order to affect the lives of students from different communities. For someone who has been on campus for almost four years, it's disheartening how seemingly ignorant Kennelly is of the spectrum of organiza- tions Greek life has to offer. For example, my sorority, Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc., is a member of the Multicultural Greek Council. Our recent rush did not include one party at all. Each event was meant to give students the opportunity to learn about the organization and its members on a more personal level than can be found at the Pan- hel rush. Granted, both the IFC and Panhel include great organizations, but it is unfair to exclude NPHC and MGC because they are also part of Greek life. That contradicts the diversity and inclusiveness the University has tried to push for. As Kennelly wrote, freshmen should do their research and see the true side of Greek life. Take the time to choose your letters, to join any Greek organization is a lifelong commitment. Should you find the right one, it will definitely change your life. ChiChi Onyemaechi LSA senior JACK DOEHRING / \: "0 7, -H F IR ST (omiC LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor. Letters should be under 300 words and must include the writer's full name and University affiliation. The Daily reserves the right to edit letters for clarity, grammar and space, and all submissions become property of The Michigan- Daily. Send letters to: tothedaily@umich.edu. During their college . careers, people will be faced with numer- ous challenges and find themselves having to make difficult choices about their future. With about 6,000 incoming students each year, the University can be an overwhelming place.Findinganorganizationwhose members share similar values and goals is imperative to handling the difficult and exciting years to come. The Greek community provides an immediate support system and a way to make a large university feel small- er, friendlier and more like home. Theresa Kennelly's column yester- day (Rushing into trouble, 09/18/07) presented a rather narrow view of the Greek community here. While everyone is entitled to express their opinions and personal beliefs, when these statements are misleading and naive, it is necessary to correct them. While the statement made in the col- umn that recruitment numbers have increased dver the past few years is true, the reasons mentioned are not. Hard work and dedication to the community exhibited by the execu- tive board members of the four coun- cils and the members of the nearly 60 chapters is a large factor, as is everything these commitments have allowed our community to offer. Being Greek is more than wear- ing letters and participating in social and philanthropic events. Joining a fraternity or a sorority is ultimately, about finding people with whom you can relate and with whom you can share the next four years the rest of your lives. It is aboutbeing embraced for individuality while at the same time being a part of a brother- or sis- terhood with others who share com- mon interests and ambitions. While each Greek chapter repre- sents something different, they are all connected by the perpetual bond of friendship. Within each chapter, friendship and a mutual commit- ment to the chapter's values are the principle foundations that tie the chapter together. It is these unique aspects of Greek life that offer the greatest reward to members. Per- haps this is the reason that the Greek community's recruitment numbers have increased over the past several years - not the "heightened exclu- sivity" that Kennelly mentions. It is rare that you will find mem- bers of fraternities or sororities who did not positively enhance their college experience by going Greek. Joining a fraternity or sorority does not narrow opportunities, but it instead assists in the development of student leaders across all corners of our university. During recruitment, our goal is to share our own posi- tive experiences and allow potential new members to choose for them- selves if they want to become part of our community. We believe the increase in members of Greek life is a result of more people realizing the unique opportunities a fraternity or sorority offers. The Greek community is the largest student organization both nationally and at the University. Currently, 16 percent of students at this University are members, which translates into about 4,000 stu- dents. The Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic Association, Multi- Cultural Council and National Pan- Hellenic Council work to support and grow our member chapters by sponsoring recruitment activities, offering scholarships, promoting healthy habits, ensuring safety at sponsored social events and sup- porting the greater student body. The activities of the councils are orchestrated by elected represen- tatives of every chapter and work toward our goal of delivering a meaningful and safe experience to all of our members. The leadership bodies have been quite effective in curtailing nega- tive activities like unsafe social events and hazing - as evidenced by our swift actions to punish chap- ters who do not represent the ideals of our organizations. That said, we are college students and this is and will always be an ongoing endeavor. Additionally, a national research project conducted recently conclud- ed that at the University, first-year students who join the Greek com- munity earn statistically significant higher GPAs than non-Greek stu- dents. They also exhibited a higher potential for academic performance, thus showing that fraternities and sororities provide resources to sup- port academic achievement at this rigorous university. The members of the Panhel- lenic Association and Interfrater- nity Council have chosen the slogan "Choose Your Letters, Change Your Life"as thisyear'srecruitmenttheme, because we feel that it appropriately summarizes the Greek experience. It reflects the ways inwhich joiningthe Greek community enhances one's life. Going Greek, unlike participat- ing in other campus activities, is not simply a college experience; it's a lifelong connection that never ceases to benefit its menlbers. Of course, it provides its members with an engag- ing social calendar, but more impor- tantly it offers rich opportunities for campus and philanthropic involve- ment, an academic support system, alumni and career networking con- nections and a sense of brotherhood and belonging. This is not just a romantic col- lege notion: Greek alumni around the country will gladly attest to the never-ending advantages of member- ship. In considering everything that a Greek affiliation can offer, one can- not deny that it is truly and uniquely a life-changing experience. Carlie Kleinman is Panhel's vice president of public relations. Chris Kane is the IFC's executive vice president. I I 4 I Editorial Board Members: Ben Caleca, Mike Eber, Brian Flaherty, Kellyn Jackson, Gavin Stern, Jennifer Sussex, Neil Tambe, Radhika Upadhyaya.