Pot Policy:Jake Fromm hates it when students are
kell 4 ncriticized for being "collegiate potheads." ) PAGE 4
Grupo Corpo is performing "Parabelo" and "Ima"
this weekend at the Power Center. > PAGE5
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Friday, January 21, 2011
michigandaily.com
FULL HOUSE FOR RECRUITMENT
BOARD OF REGENTS
Arenas to
get updated
scoreboards
CHRIS RYBA/Daily
Phi Sigma Rho sorority members and prospective members play cards at Triangle Fraternity's Poker and Casino Night at the Triangle Fraternity house yesterday. The event
was part of winter recruitment for several fraternities and sororities on campus.
THE JOB HUNT
DsiteI diferen--t majors, carefer
centers offer same job advice
Regents approve
renovations to Big
House, Crisler and
Yost Ice Arena
By MICHELE NAROV
Daily StaffReporter
At its meeting yesterday, the
University's Board of Regents
approved proposals to continue
renovations of Crisler Arena and
to install high-definition score-
boards at Michigan Stadium,
Crisler Arena and Yost Ice Arena.
As outlined in the proposals,
the approved $52 million expan-
sion to Crisler Arena will add an
estimated 63,000 square feet,
including new public entrances,
club spaces, ticketing areas and
additional retail facilities. The
expansion will also improve dis-
ability seating and increase fan
amenities.
These additions will mark the
second phase of the Crisler Arena
renovation project. The first
phase of the project - approved
by the Board of Regents in Octo-
ber 2010 - addressed high-priori-
ty issues like electrical wiring and
plumbing.
University Athletic Director
Dave Brandon wrote in a press
release issued yesterday that the
second phase of renovations will
modernize the arena.
"Our goal is to create a home
court advantage for our teams
while making the fan experience
memorable from the moment they
walk into the arena," Brandon
wrote in the release.
He also said that he is very
excited about the LED video
scoreboard installations, which
will cost an estimated $20 mil-
lion.
"These new boards will pro-
vide our fans with the opportuni-
ty for enhanced and crystal clear
viewing of not only the event but
of replays, announcements, and
other fun ways to create game day
excitement," Brandon wrote.
'U' TO CONTINUE STRONG
FOCUS ON RESEARCH
In a presentation earlier in the
meeting, Stephen Forrest, the
University's vice president for
research, summarized the state
of research at the University.
He emphasized the need for the
University to remain devoted to
innovation in order to support the
state and national economies.
Forrest said the University is
ranked in the top tier of research
institutions in the nation, placing
eighth in the country between
2007 and 2009 for research agree-
ments and business start-ups, and
ninth for revenue generated.
The University's research
spending exceeded $1 billion
this year for the second year in a
row, according to the University's
Annual Report on Research and
Scholarship.
University researchers have
received about $300 million in
See REGENTS, Page 3
Business and LSA
students receive
comparable services
By AUSTIN WORDELL
For the Daily
Contrary to popular belief,
career planning programs aren't
limited to pre-professional stu-
dents at the University.
And while some may think the
career services offered for LSA
students differ from those offered
through pre-professional schools,
according to the directors of the-
University's Career Center and
pre-professional career centers,
any perceived differences among
the centers can be attributed to
the more career-oriented nature
of pre-professional majors.
Kerin Borland, director of the
Career Center, said students who
pursue degrees in disciplines with
more career-specific programs
like business or engineering may
have an easier time finding ser-
vices that cater to their needs.
LSA students often take longer to
decide what specific type ofcareer
they want to pursue, she said.
"Students who choose to pur-
sue a major that is offered through
the Business School are making
a two-in-one decision," Borland
said. "With a liberal arts major,
they still have to take that two-
step process. They have to decide
a major, and then they have to
decide a career focus."
Damian Zikakis, director of
the Office of Career Development
at the Ross School of Business,
echoed Borland's sentiments, say-
ing that LSA students often aren't
on a set career path, while busi-
ness students are more directed
based on their curriculum.
He said that occasionally an
LSA student will call the Business
School asking to take advantage
of services they think are exclu-
sively offered there. However the
student often has not met with a
career counselor to see what the
University's Career Center has to
See CAREER CENTERS, Page 3
* AROUND ANN ARBOR
Officials worry drivers
will continue texting
'U' researcher
foresees violations
of statewide law
By RACHEL BRUSSTAR
Daily StaffReporter
About eight months after tex-
ting while driving became illegal
in Michigan, local officials say
the ban is permeating driving
culture. But some drivers still
have one hand on the wheel and
the other on the phone.
Democratic Gov. Jennifer Gra-
nholm turned Michigan House
Bill 4394 into law with her sig-
nature on Apr. 30, 2010. The law
prohibits drivers from reading,
writing or sending text messages
while driving.
Prior tothe statewide legisla-
tion, the Ann Arbor CityCoun-
cil proposed a citywide ban on
all hand-held electronic devices
while driving. The proposal was
dropped after the state law was
passed.
As Ann Arbor City Council
member Stephen Rapundalo (D-
Ward 2) explained, the passage
of the state legislation eliminated
the need for a city ordinance.
In drafting the city proposal,
Rapundalo consulted with Paul
Green, a research professor at
the University's Transportation
Research Institute.
Green has testified twice
before the state legislature on the
risks of using hand-held electron-
ic devices while driving. He said
See TEXTING, Page 3
4
4+
CAMPUS COMMUNITY
Women's Studies students petition
for gender neutrality on Facebook
JAKE FROMM/Daily
Crows fly around campus in November. According to Robert Payne, professor emeritus of zoology at the University, there are
about 10,000 crows in Ann Arbor during the winter months.
Influx of crows on'U' campus
result of routine bird behavior
Class project aims to
add gender-neutral
identity option
By JENNA SIMARD
Daily StaffReporter
Many Facebook groups are
formed by students seeking to
advocate for or against a cause.
But one group started by Univer-
sity students is targeting an issue
concerning the social network
itself.
The group, which was created
by three University students as
a project for a Women's Studies
class last semester, advocates for
gender neutrality on Facebook
and suggests that users have a
gender-neutral option for those
who don't identify as either male
or female.
LSA senior Cecilia Innes, co-
founder of the group, said the
initiative called "I Choose Neu-
tral" is a product of an assignment
given to students in Women's
Studies 240 last semester. The
project, called the Praxis Project,
is based on the idea that Women's
Studies should combine theory
and activism, Innes wrote in an
e-mail interview.
"The idea behind 'I Choose
Neutral' is one of equality and
respect to the individuals using
Facebook," Innes wrote.
The ultimate goal is to get
See FACEBOOK, Page 3
'U' zoology expert:
crows gather in
winter months
By JENNIFER DOMINGUE
Daily StaffReporter
Students walking around cam-,
pus in the evening may some-
times feel like they're in their
very own Hitchcock film.
And while students don't have
to worry about being pecked to
death by birds any time soon,
there has been a recent influx
of crows congregating in areas
like the Nichols Arboretum, For-
est Hill Cemetery and the Diag,
among others.
Robert Payne, professor emer-
itus of zoology at the University,
wrote in an e-mail interview that
he believes the increase in crows
is a result of a habitual tendency
of the species. The crows gather
in large numbers during the
winter and early spring months,
finding security in tall trees,
wrote Payne, who is also a cura-
tor emeritus of birds at the Muse-
um of Zoology at the University.
The Ann Arbor crow popula-
tion is at an estimated 10,000
birds during the winter, com-
pared to a few hundred during
warmer months, according to
Payne. However, the Washtenaw
Audubon Society counted almost
30,000 crows in Ann Arbor in
the group's annual Christmas
Bird Count on Dec. 20, 2010.
"(Crows) often shift their
See CROWS, Page 3
WEATHER
TOMORROW
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