U U U V V V V V V -W -07 _W _W T _W -IV -W 0 Th Satmet / eneda, arh 4 200 statement Magazine Editor: Trevor Calero Editor in Chief: Jacob Smilovitz Managing Editor: Matt Aaronson Deputy Editor Allie White Designers: Sara Boboltz Corey DeFever Photo Editor- Jed Moch Copy Editors: Erin Flannery Danqing Tang Cover Illustration: Allie Ghaman Sarah Squire The Statement is The Michigan Daily's news magazine, distributed every Wednesday during the academic year. STUDENTSOFTHEYEAR editors' note T our readers, This week, The Statement brings you its annual Students of the Year issue. Like the other special issues before this, we've scrapped our usual content - Junk Drawer, About Campus and Personal Statement - and have dedicated the entire magazine to one theme. For this issue, we had the especially challenging task of picking just ten "Students of the Year" out of the 26,208 undergraduates at the University - sort of a best of the Leaders and Best, if you will. Though the students on our list are certainly unique - we have a pair of Olympic silver medal winners, the president and founder of a national veterans orga- nization and a political activist vying for a spot on the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners - one thing remains constant between them all: the desire to change the world around them. "There's something in the eyes of our generation," one of our students said. "I feel like we're on the cusp of a better future." Change the world? Maybe. Make a difference? Definitely. Enjoy, Trevor Calero and Allie White, Magazine Editor and Deputy Magazine Editor Afghanistan with his friends. "I'm sitting there thinking about (how) I'm wasting my time and wast- ing my life sitting in this classroom when there's something far more important for me to be doing," Blumke said. Because he had trouble integrat- ing into campus life, Blumke thought other veterans could possibly be hav- ing the same problems. So, in the spring of 2007, he started the Student Veterans of Michigan and was funda- mental in founding the Student Vet- erans of America in January 2008, of which he is the first president. As president, Blumke works on the national level to advocate for veterans' issues. In the first six months of his presi- dency, Blumke said he went to Wash- ington seven times in support of the passage of the Post- 9/11 GI Bill. The bill, which became law in 2008 and went into effect last August, pays for veterans' tuition at public colleges and universities and gives them a sti- pend for books and housing. Blumke said the new GI Bill is helping veter- ans continue their education. ,March-24, T m 7B "(Before), if you wanted to go to school and you had a wife and kid, or a husband and family, it wasn't really an option," Blumke said. "You had to work and support your family. Now, with this new GI Bill, you can go to school and you can have a family and you can move on with your educa- tion." * On a local level, with over 200 chapters nationwide, Blumke said the SVA is dedicated to easing the transi- tion to college life for returning veter- ans so they won't have to struggle like he, and countless other veterans, did. Blumke added that in the two years since SVA was formed, veteran servic- es on college campuses have improved drastically. He said it's critical that veterans help one another adjust because they have shared experiences that a majority of the population can't relate to. "Today, a lot of the college campus- es are better suited for returning vets, and I also think that veterans on cam- puses across the country are doing a better job of helping each other," Blumke said. "I think that's probably the most important piece of that puz- zle because we're doing a better job taking care of each other." Though he is graduating in August, Blumke said the SVA will continue to advocate and assist student veterans so they will be able to stand out for their achievements, not their differences. - JOSEPH LICHTERMAN Dedicated and Energetic Individuals to be Advertising Account Executives for next fall! lIEWARD Real world advertising and sales experience! Please send resumes or questions to dailydisplay@gmail.com to the attention of Stephanie. Bowker. FAN THE DAILY ON FACEBOOK Derek Blumke has always stood out from his peers. Last week, when it seemed like all of Ann Arbor was either study- ing for midterms or celebrating St. Pat- rick's Day, Blumke was in Washington, D.C. As the president of Student Veter- ans of America - a national organiza- tion dedicated to assisting veterans on college campuses - Blumke was par- ticipating in roundtable discussions regarding the implications of repeal- CAROLE From Page 5B that he was inspired after observing disadvantaged peers achieve academi- cally despite their difficult circum- stances. "Seeing all these people who have these disadvantages but that are ten times smarter than me and work a lot harder than me, it kind of made me really want to be involved or to do something about it," Carole said. Carole said that, in terms of the engi- neering job market, being a minority is actually an advantage but many African Americans lack the confidence to excel MICHELON From Page 5B director where I'm dealing with very technical things, like making sure the lighting works," he said. "The challenge of producing in general is that you're bringing together person- alities. My job is essentially making sure that the choreographer is get- ting along with the directors." Michelon cites this as one of the most difficult things to assess about his job. "As a senior, I'm now trying to ing the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy at the Pentagon, and veterans' benefits on Capitol Hill. Similarly, in the fall of 1999, when most of his peers were enrolling in college, Blumke joined the Air Force where he served for six years, includ- ing three tours of duty in Afghanistan. In 2007, at age 26, when people his age were starting their profes- sional lives, Blumke enrolled as an undergraduate at the University after academically and struggle when com- peting with peers in the classroom. "It's definitely not that they're less smart, and it's definitely not that they don't work hard," Pascal said. "It's that they approach their education in a very different way. They have a lot to prove and they have alot to fight for." Through NSBE, Carole has worked to foster confidence among its members by building a community and "having those individuals uplift each other and really show each other that they can succeed." Besides establishing faith within the group, a big focus for Carole is giving back to the community by mentoring Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti area schools evaluate the impact I've left on my organization after I leave. Because it's so relationship based, it's hard to tell how long this thing lasts," he said. "I can tell myself that I worked really hard to give MUSKET a good name on campus in this way, but good producers, they're not too progres- sive - you keep things running and keep things working well," he added. "It's a day in, day out kind of job. Any real advancement in the group and any strides won't be noticed by the public because it's all internal." More recently, Michelon has been spending two years at community col- lege. When he first came to campus, Blumke said he felt isolated from his fellow classmates - most of whom were much younger than he was - and struggled with depression. Blumke said he would be in class and hear the people sitting next to him talking about their weekend plans or the latest gossip, and all he would be able to think about was being back in Today's Career Tip: Meet with professionals today to create your personal development plan. 9-Noon at the Alumni Center Text "UMStudents" to 41411 to win great prizes and get daily career tips. ALUMNIASSOCIATION UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN umalumni.com/r21 and encouraging future black engineers in the community. Carole said he would ; WASHINGTON also like to see the group play a larger ; From Page 3B role in uniting students on campus and " in helping to instilla more positive atti- . "The organization tude among minority engineers. ; organization of nine Ultimately, Carole said he hopes tions, so we try to n someday people will look beyond the * ships between the ot concepts of minorities and race issues, " Next year, Washi and race-based organizations like his Teach For America will no longer need to exist. * ber in Memphis and "I guess that's a really, really long- * middle school Engli term goal," Carole said. "But the hope " became interestedi is that the inequalities that exist will go . school when she pa away at some point and the community ; internship that allos can form by itself and it won't necessar- * with incarcerated ily be just there to support people." understand the sub - BETHANYBIRON . on their children ,,cases, the neglect th 00because of the deta looking to expand his management ; parent. capacities, taking on the job of pro- . "I was just very s ducing the Go Blue, Beat OSU rally , the kids could be; back in November. ; their mothers and th "I've had more fun at Go Blue ; dren are put in when than in my entire life," Michelon .0,,,,,,,,, said. "Once again, producing is from , conception to execution. Back in the VW HAT'S T summer, I was just sketching on nap- * kins what the rally would look like : MUST I and how we're going to organically bring X amount of students to the: Tel us for The Diag. That night, I was able to look * out and see that crowd of people. You don't get that as much in theater." - JENNIFER XU : CAL n is an umbrella other organiza- nanage relation- her nine." .ington will join as a core mem- d hopes to teach sh. Washington in TFA in high rticipated in an wed her to work mothers and bsequent effects and, in some hey experienced achment from a tuck about how separated from e positions chil- they don't have people in their home telling them they need to go to school, they need to do these things," Washington said. "I just thought it was incredibly unfair that kids aren't in the same schools as I am just because there wasn't someone there to tell them that college was the way to go." Washington said she has always liked working with children, and through her experiences in teach- ing dance to underprivileged chil- dren in Atlanta, as well as attending a performing arts high school, she believes that art can level the play- ing field. "I'm really passionate about the arts and I feel like the arts are a very equalizing sort of thing," Washing- ton said. "The arts can speak to any- one no matter what your education level is. You can express yourself through art in ways that you can't necessarily do through an essay." - ANNIE THOMAS IE ONE THING EVERY STUDENT DO BEFORE GRADUATION? Statement's first-ever Bucket List Issue. SEND AN E-MAIL TO ERO@MICHIGANDAILY.COM