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ONE 1UN)11)tEIGH
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Monday, January 28,2008
michigandaily.com
'LITTLE BROTHER' GETS THE BEST OF BLUE IN HOCKEY, HOOPS
IJNIEnT ENM NT
'U' ranks
8th after
$1.4 billion
increase
Michigan's 25.4-percent return
on investments was the highest of
any school in nation's top 10
By ELIZABETH LAI
Daily StaffReporter
The University's $7.1-billion endowment ranks
eighth among all colleges and universities nationwide,
according to an annual report released Thursday.
The report, released by the National Association of
College and University Business Officers, showed that
2007 was a good year for most college endowments.
The national average rate of return was 17.2 per-
cent, but the University did even better, posting a 25.4-
percent return on its investments. The return was the
largest of any school that finished in the list's top 10.
With endowments swelling at schools across the
country, rising tuition costs have led many to question
how the benefits are distributed and why they don't
lessen the cost of attending college.
One reason is that most of the money colleges earn
on investments cannot be spent. Universities usually
spend about 5 percent of their investment returns,
See ENDOWMENT, Page 7A
ZACHAKY MEISNEK/Daily
The Michigan State hockey team celebrates its 1-0 victory over Michigan at Yost Ice Arena Friday night. The teams skated to alt-1 tie at Michigan State the following night. Yesterday, the Spar-
tans men's basketball team prevailed over the Wolverines on the hardcourt, too, winning in convincing fashion in East Lansing. FOR MORE, SEE SPORTSMONDAY, Page 1B
INTERNATIONAeL ST UDEmNTSe
fCIh ange keps Is from int' students
Secretary of State says
policy didn't take int'l
students, workers
into account
By BETH WITTENSTEIN
Daily StaffReporter
A decision to stop granting Michigan
identification to immigrants without
permanent resident status could prevent
international students at the University
from getting state driver's licenses.
Last week, Michigan's Secretary of
State made permanent legal status in
the United States a requirement for
anyone applying for state identification.
Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox
issued a statement last month saying
illegal or non-permanent immigrants
shouldn't be granted Michigan driver's
licenses because that would be inconsis-
tent with federal law. Secretary of State
Terri Lynn Land followed the opinion
by changing the policy.
The change was an effort to crack
down on illegal immigration by mak-
ing it harder for undocumented immi-
grants to live and work in the state. But
the decision will also affect temporary
immigrants living in the state legally for
work or educational purposes.
In the past, Michigan law followed
former Michigan Attorney General
Frank Kelley's 1995 opinion that no
one should be refused a driver's-license
based on legal citizen status. Before last
week, Michigan was one of eight states
in America that didn't require proof of
legal residence to apply for state identi-
fication.
Rackham student Hsien-Chang Lin,
a committee member of the Michigan
Taiwanese Association, said interna-
tional students often use a Michigan
driver's license as a means of identifica-
tion rather than a passport. A driver's
license is often asked for as identifica-
tion while using credit cards or to verify
age when entering bars, Lin said.
"It is not possible to bring a passport
every day, because it is too important,"
Lin said. "The policy change should
See STATE ID, Page 7A
WELL-ENDOWED COLLEGES
Schools with the largest endowments
A NEW ID POLICY
Now, most international students
can't get a Michigan state-issued ID
" Under a new law, individuals mustnow
have permanent legal status inthe U.S.to
apply for state identification.
0 Citizens of certain countries can obtain
permission to drive in Michigan if they
have a valid driver's license from one of
the 61 countries listed on the International
Center's website.
* State lawmakers have proposed two
bills - one in the state Senate and a
companion bill in the state House - which
would allow legal,non-resident students
and workers to obtain identification.
c
0
-.
c
TEXAS A&M
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Endowment size (in billions of dollars)
sOURcE: NAT'L ASSOC. OF COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY BUSINESS OFFICERS
UNIVERSITY RESEARCH
'U' relying less on federal funding
MIDDLE EARTH SHRINKING
Research budget grew
in 2007, but federal
funding grew at
lower rate
By ELAINE LAFAY
DailyStaffReporter
While the costs and scope of
University research continue to
grow, the federal government's
share of the University of Michi-
gan's research budget has dropped,
according to University research-
fundingreports.
Federal research funding to the
University has been increasing at a
sluggish pace over the last several
years because of decreases in the
national research budget, said Lee
Katterman, a project manager in
the office of the Vice President for
Research at the University.
While giving a report to the
University's Board of Regents ear-
lier this month, Stephen Forrest,
the University vice president for
research, said the University's fed-
eral funding grew by 1.8 percent
during the 2007 fiscal year after
a 2.4 percent increase during the
2006 fiscal year and a 6.5 percent
increase during the 2005 fiscal
year.
Overall, the University's
research budget grew by 3.3 per-
cent to $823 million during the fis-
cal year that ended on June 30, but
Forrest attributed the increase to
investments from the private sec-
tor.
During the Regents meeting,
Forrest said he doesn't expect an
increase in federal funding for the
current fiscal year.
Katterman said federal allo-
cations could change over time
See RESEARCH, Page 3A
CHANGES IN FEDERAL
FUNDING
Percentage increase in federal
funding per iscal year
2003 .... 15.9%
2004 ........1.6%
2005 ............... 6.5%
2006 -............. 2.4%
2007.1.8%
SoURCE: UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
STUDENSTUDENTUDENT LENDING
New site allows students to lend, borrow money
Prosper.com allows
lenders to check
borrowers' credit
By JILLIAN BERMAN
Daily StaffReporter
Instead of lending and borrow-
ing money through banks, some
business-savvy students are using
the person-to-person loan web-
site Prosper.com to lend money or
apply for student loans.
Along with other person-to-
person lending services, including
Lending Club and Lending Circle,
Prosper offers students a chance
to earn increased returns with
higher lending interest rates than
available at banks. The lending
service also lets student borrow
money without going through a
bank.
With Prosper, users first cre-
ate a profile that specifies wheth-
er they want to lend or borrow
money using the website. An
individual's profile also displays
personal background information
and his or her credit score.
Although there are many stu-
dents from other colleges and
universities seekingstudent loans
on Prosper's website, many Uni-
versity students said they use the
website to lerid money.
LSA sophomore Evan Plisner,
president of the Michigan Invest-
ment Club, said he uses Prosper to
invest the club's money.
"We were looking for different
ways to invest that weren't tied to
the stock market," he said. "And
what Prosper allows you to do is
to diversify both your risks and
returns."
Depending on an individu-
al's credit score, Prosper offers
lenders a higher interest rate
than most banks, which means
increased returns for lenders.
Plisner said he has found that
he can get a higher interest rate
when lending money on Pros-
per than he can lending through
banks.
University alum Brian Walby,
See LENDING, Page 7A
CHANEL VON HABSBURG-LOTHRINGEN/Daily
Middle Earth owner Cynthia Shevel plans to make her store smaller this spring. The
popular South University Avenue novelty store is holding a sale on much of its mer-
chandise to fit into the smaller space.
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