be 1idiganBail NE-F NDIREiD-NINEITEELN Y1011)EARS1FDI LAL FREEDOM Ann Arbor, Michigan Monday, March 30, 2009 ONE AND DONE michigandaily.com TRAVELING TO ISRAEL Birthright cuts back on availability Officials: Decline is result of high admissions num- bers the past two years - a time the result of more when Israel was celebrating its 60th birthday - not international acceptances in past financial troubles or fallout from Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme, years, not economy which affected a disproportionate number of wealthy Jewish people By AMY MUNSLOW and Jewish charities. Daily StaffReporter Allison Sheren, program direc- tor for the University's Taglit- LSA freshman Lauren Kap- Birthright Israel program, said nick has never been to Israel, but the number of available spots on thanks to the Taglit-Birthright the trip has decreased drastically Israel program, she thought that this year, while registration has this would be the year she would seen an unprecedented spike. finally get the opportunity to visit Only 75 University of Michigan the country - and for free, none- students are taking a Birthright theless. trip through Hillel this summer, But when Kapnick received down from 165 students last sum- her admission decision from the mer. Sheren said this drop is a organization, she got a surprising result of limited availability. answer: She was rejected from "Unfortunately, a major- the trip. ity of students who registered for Record-breaking numbers of Taglit-Birthright this summer Jewish students applying to the will be unable to actually go on a Taglit-Birthright Israel program trip," Sheren wrote in an e-mail this year, hoping to go on a free interview. "Many of them will be trip to explore their heritage, waitlisted because of the number have received similar responses of spots available." from the program. But according The program, which is funded to Birthright officials, the severe by private donations and the Israe- decline in availability is the See BIRTHRIGHT, Page 7A ELECTING MICHIGAN'S NEXT GOVERNOR A2 businessman throws hat into, Republican race ARIEL BOND/Daily Junior forward Brian Lebler consoles senior forward Brandon Naurato after the Air Force hockey team upset the Wolverines 2-0 on Friday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in Bridgeport, Conn. The top-seeded Wolverines outshot the fourth-seeded Falcons 43-13, but failed to score on goalie Andrew Volkening. After last year's run to the Frozen Four, Michigan was heavily favored to go deep in this year's tournament. For more on the game, see Sports, Page1B. A NEW MODEL FOR TEACHING BUSINESS Ross ethinks finance studies Industry woes haven't hurt student interest in field, officials say By MALLORY BEBERMAN Daily StaffReporter Despite the nation's econom- ic meltdown, driven primarily through the collapse of Wall Street and the suffering of large financial institutions, officials at the Ross School of Business report that the decreased availability of jobs in finance hasn't soured students' interest in entering the field. To meet this continuing demand from students, Business adminis- trators said they are restructuring the Bachelor in Business Adminis- tration Finance curriculum for the upcoming academic year by alter- ing existing classes and adding four new courses. "Very close to 60 percent of our students are interested in finance careers so we wanted to take a good look at the curriculum," Business School Prof. and Finance Depart- ment Chair M.P. Narayanan said. Narayanan said though the field of finance has suffered of late, he hasn't seen a related dip in enroll- ment in finance classes for this upcoming fall. The new finance program will feature an increase in action-based learning, Narayanan said, which will give students the chance to use real money and information to start and manage their own hedge funds. Additionally, the 2009 curricu- lum will allow for more specialized interests within the finance field. Narayanan said the four new courses will educate students in financial trading, the macroeco- nomics of capital markets, alterna- tive investments and real-estate finance. But even with enrollment in classes holding steady, Robert Koonce, the director of undergrad- uate student affairs in the BBA Pro- gram office, said a change to the program was more necessary than ever to help students navigate the current economy. "The finance faculty thought it was time for some changes based on what's going on in the world to try to keep the program presti- gious," he said. John Kavchak, a Business See FINANCE, Page 7A U students reconnect with Detroit Unvesityalu," More than 800 head downtown for this year's DP Day By DEVON THORSBY Daily StaffReporter DETROIT - With brushes, sandpaper and buckets of paint in hand, more than 40 University stu- dents gathered this weekend in the halls of Priest Elementary to give the school's lockers a much -needed paint job. The group, primarily made up of members of the business frater- nity Phi Chi Theta, was one of more than 27 groups from the University volunteering in the 10th-annual Detroit Partnership Day. This year, more than 800 stu- dents participated in the annual day of service known as "DP Day." The event is organized by The Detroit Partnership, a service-learning organization focused on creating a stronger connection between the University and the city of Detroit. Students worked in areas locat- ed mostly around southwest and northwest Detroit, doing a variety of activities like repainting schools, clearing abandoned buildings for demolition and planting trees on city blocks. The first DP Day, in 2000, was created as a way to get University students more interested in Detroit through community service proj- ects. Beginning with about 400 participants, the event has now Snyder forms exploratory group By A. BRAD SCHWARTZ Daily StaffReporter Michigan's next governor could come from right here in Ann Arbor. Rick Snyder, a local venture capitalist and University alum, is considering running as a Republican candidate for gover- nor in 2010. Snyder announced in a press release earlier this month that he has formed an exploratory com- mittee to assess the possibility of a gubernatorial run next year. "I am in the process of putting together the best team of advisors this state and countryhas to offer," Snyder wrote in the release. Snyder went on to write that he will travel around the state, talk- ing with citizens for the next few weeks to learn more about the problems Michigan residents face. "Oureconomyisinshamblesand there is no doubt we are heading in the wrong direction," he wrote in the release. "The economic problems in this state started long before the economic meltdownhit- ting the rest of this country due, in See GOVERNOR, Page 7A University students Sam Hamburger (left), Himesh Pathmanathan (left center), Ells Hamburger (right center) and Alex West (right) sand lockers at Priest Middle School in southwest Detroit on Saturday. 800 students participated in this year's DP Day. more than doubled in size, attract- ing student groups seeking service projects that help surrounding communities. LSA senior Julia Roberts, a volunteer at Priest Elementary, stressed the importance of service work in Detroit. "There is so much cleanup to be done in Detroit. (DP Day) is a great way to contribute," she said. "It's a great form of solidarity with sur- rounding communities." Priest Elementary is located in a neighborhood in southwest Detroit that has seen better days. The walls outside the schoolyard are littered with graffiti and the lockers inside are faded and paint-chipped. The work of paintingthe school's lockers began last year, when half of the lockers in the main hallway received a fresh coat. This year the work continued, as students sand- ed down lockers before giving the hallway a new splash of color with blue, yellow and red paint.. Business junior Cory Rosenfield, who volunteered at Priest Elemen- tary, said he found the work done on DP Day to be simple, but impor- tant in helping to clean up Detroit. "We're here just to paint and do anything that the janitor needs," he said. "It's really too bad that we can't see how the kids react to what we've done in the halls. It would be nice to see that." Rosenfield, who is also president of Phi Chi Theta, attributes DP Day's popularity amongstudents to See DP DAY, Page 7A WEAT HER HI: 54 TOMORROW LO04) GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know. NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM Memories of Michigan men's gymnastics THEGAME.BLOGS.MICHIGANDAILY.COM INDEX Vol. CXIX, No.119 02009 The Michigan Daily michigandoile.com N EW S ................................ 2 A A RTS .................................. 5 A SUDDKU .......... .................3A CLASSIFIEDS ......................6A OPINION. . ........ . .4A SPORTS MONDAY ................1B