The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, January 31, 2011 - 5A The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Monday, January 31, 2011 - 5A AFROTC sgt. known for fostering an inviting atmosphere on campus From Page 1A Christon said her most memo- rable experiences at the Univer- sity have been witnessing cadets swearing to support and defend the Constitution at graduation. She said her second-most memo- rable moment was witnessing cadets paint a message for her on The Rock on the corner of Hill Street and Washtenaw Avenue. "For them to care enough to do that - that was the greatest gift ever ... thousands of people don't get that opportunity to get their name on the rock," she said. Christon also discussed how she enjoyed counseling the cadets as they prepare to enter the Air Force after graduation. "It's been a privilege to be there for them, to help guide them and help them understand what the Air Force expects of them." Engineering senior Brad Oat- men, a cadet in the AFROTC, said that Christon has been a driving force and mentor for all students in the program. "She keeps us in check because she knows what's actu- ally going to happen out there," Oatmen said. "She's kind of the eyes and ears of experience that we don't have." The close-knit nature of the University's AFROTC helped Christon feel at home on cam- pus. "You develop a special bond, a PROTEST From Page 1A have their voices heard. "People are actually standing up for their rights," Mattar said. According to Mattar, the cri- sis in Egypt is mainly the result of frustration among young peo- ple who are unable to find jobs in the country's poor economy. Mattar added he believes the protests in Egypt will lead to more citizen-led political reform movements across the Middle East. "It's already having a ripple effect," Mattar said. "But we don't know what the outcome in different countries is going to be." Mattar added he was encour- aged by the number of people who attended the event on Fri- day. "The number of people around here is just shocking to me," Mattar said. Mohamed El-Sayed, an asso- ciate professor in the College of Engineering, led the group of protesters in an Arabic chant. El-Sayed said the chant trans- lated into English as, "Down for Mubarak's regime, long live Egypt." El-Sayed added that he believes the crisis in Egypt is representative of a lack of democracy and acorruptregime. "(Mubarak) has been in power for 30 years," El-Sayed said. "There is no democracy that allows somebody to rule for 30 years." Like Mattar, El-Sayed said he was impressed with the turnout and clear student interest in the issue. "It just shows that (students) are fully aware of what's going on," El-Sayed said. LSA senior Noha Moustafa also commended the turnout at the protest, calling it "a testa- ment to the student activism that is on this campus." Moustafa, another member of the Egyptian Students Associa- tion, said she supports the Egyp- tian citizens who have decided to expresstheir pent-up frustration with Mubarak's administration. "I'm glad that the people are finally able to do something about the oppressive regime," Moustafa said. TERRA MOLENGRAFF/Daily Master Sgt. Karen Christon, a staff sergeant with the University's Air Force ROTC, at her retirement ceremony in the Michigan League on Friday, Jan. 28. special closeness, here," she said. Capt. Jonathan Liscombe, an assistant professor at the Uni- versity's AFROTC who worked with Christon for the past year and half, said he'll miss working with her. "She's one of those rare employees that will lift everyone up, no matter what is going on in the day," Liscombe said. "She always has a smile on her face, so it naturally puts a smile on mine." Liscombe continued, "From day one she introduced herself to me as Sgt. Christon, and she gave me a big hug. That's very rare, especially in the military where it's really formal." LSA senior Thomas Barger, an AFROTC cadet, said Christon helped him feel comfortable in the program. "She has such a personality about her," Barger said. "It's not just that she's a hard worker ... She's not intimidating, she's very approachable, and she's always joking with people, always laughing, always kind of teasing you a little bit, but always with something positive to say." Though Christon said she's looking forward to the next chapter in her life, she'll miss being at the University. "I never even knew anything about football before being here at Michigan," she said. "(Now) I've become a Wolverine to my heart ... It's just the camaraderie here at Michigan - it's conta- gious." FIRE From Page 1A Lanza said. Rachford, who was not a student at the University, graduated from Ann Arbor's Community High School in2009 and was a member of the div- ing team at Ann Arbor's Pioneer High School. LSA sophomore Patton Doyle, who was on Pioneer High School's swim team with Rach- ford, said Saturday evening Rach- ford was a very valuable member of the team. "He was a great guy," Doyle said. "This is a horrible thingthat happened." The second person found unconscious - a non-University student named Tyne Mosbey- is in critical condition at Butter- worth Hospital in Grand Rapids, hospital officials confirmed late last night. Lanza said authorities are not sure whether the residence met fire safety standards or if it had workingsmoke detectors. "It's hard to say right now," he said Saturday. Lanza said Saturday evening the fire department is waiting to find out specific details of the incident. AAFD did not return multiple calls by The Michigan Daily as of Sunday evening. The department will most likely release results of the inves- tigation Monday, Lanza said on Saturday. Lanza also said he believes the fire spread as much as it did because of the time it originated. "At that hour of the morning, I'm sure everybody was asleep, so it probably went unnoticed for a while," he said. One neighbor who lives near the house, who wished to remain anonymous, said she had seen people entering and exiting Rachford's house on Saturday at about 3 a.m. Another neighbor, who also requested anonymity, said he had also heard and seen activity inside and around the house atthattime. Eight other neighbors inter- viewed Sunday said they were awoken by the sound of sirens at about 5 a.m. None of the neighbors who commented said they had met the individuals living in the house that caught fire. A few neighbors said Rachford, the unidentified injured woman and two or three other young adults moved into the house this past fall. - Daily Staff Reporter Kaitlin Williams and Daily News Editor Joseph Lichterman contributed to this report. Panhel talks women's leadership At discussion, Dean of Students urges sorority leaders to band together ByKIMBERLY PAGEAU About 200 executive board members of the University's Panhellenic Association sorori- ties attended a seminar titled "Women Leading Women" yes- terday afternoon to discuss the importance of women leadership. Held at the Michigan League Ballroom, the event was exclu- sively for sorority executive board members. In addition to discuss- ing women's leadership, par- ticipants focused on teamwork. Laura Blake Jones, the Univer- sity's dean of students, spoke to the group about obstacles women leaders face today and how women can overcome them. Following Jones's speech, the panel broke up into various ses- sions for each executive position. LSA junior Sarah Smith, Panhel's vice president of public relations and a Michigan Daily columnist, said though some women have different official titles, they often perform the same duties in the chapters. "The event is a chance for sorority leaders to meet and col- laborate with each other on issues that all these chapters are facing," Smith said. Mary Beth Seiler, director of University Greek Life, said in an interview at the event that Panhel holds a Women Leading Women event every year. This year's event was different CONFERENCE From Page 1A cussion about Japan, the Associa- tion of Southeast Asian Nations, China, Korea and India. It also held panels about technology, cor- porate social responsibility and energy and the environment. Business graduate student Carrington Renfield-Miller, the conference co-chair, wrote in an e-mail interview that the confer- ence drew 217 people, including students, alumni and area profes- sionals. The event was sponsored by the Ross School of Business's Student Government Association, the school's Center for Interna- tional Business Education and the University's Center for Chinese Studies and the University's Cen- ter for Japanese Studies among others. than previous years', Seiler said, because a group of experts from the University and Ann Arbor community came to speak dur- ing the breakout sessions. One of the experts, University Assistant General Counsel Maya Kobersy, spoke to the sorority presidents aboutrisk management and liabil- Sity issues. 5 Before the breakout sessions; began, Jones emphasized how women can benefit from working together. "The value and relationships of sisterhood that this group so clearly espouses and embodies has been a big part of my success," she said. Following the event, Jones said she hopes her own professional experiences can inspire women. "As a woman who has worked in leadership roles for a long time, it's rewarding to be able to give back and encourage others to think about all the possibilities that are offered to them." Jones said throughout her career, she'sworked hard to prove she's more than just compassion- ate and empathetic - traits she said were stereotypically associ- ated with women in the work- place. However, she added that women need to find a balance between being too nurturing and too stoic. "Some of the things that I put in my speech have rung true in my career," Jones said. "I've seen col- leagues of mine who are women who went so far to avoid that ste- reotype that they've come across ... as not feeling and uncaring." Still, in her speech, Jones said it is often hard for women to stray from what is traditionally expect- ed of them. "There's still powerful scripts that exist in our society (in terms of) stereotypes for women," Jones said. "Deviating from what's still considered to be the norm for women can be costly." Over the course of her time in the workplace, Jones told the attendees that women have come a long way in terms of employ- ent opportunities. "You know that your future has always included the oppor- tunity to be mothers, daughters, sisters and friends," Jones said "Your Michigan experience and today's opportunities that exist for women also means you can be doctors,lawyers, teachers, college presidents, corporate executives, the Speaker of the House (and) state senators." The University community contains prime examples of women leaders, Jones said. She specifically mentioned University President Mary Sue Coleman and E. Royster Harper, the Univer- sity's vice president for Student Affairs, as inspirational women. "(Coleman) embodies the fact that more and more women are in executive positions on college university campuses across the country," Jones said. Though women have made tre- mendous strides in recent years, they are still subject to certain stigmas and prejudices, Jones said. To overcome these challeng- es, she said she believes women of this generation need to continue to capitalize on the bonds and foundations that were built by previous generations of women. "As women we do need to be champions and supporters of each other," she said. - Daily Staff Reporter Claire Hall contributed to this report. WANT TO TALK TO POLITICIANS AND UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATORS? Join Michigan Daily News E-MAIL ABER@MICHIGANDAILY.COM Ghanta spoke before the Uni- versity's Board of Regents meet- ing on Jan.20 asking for financial support for the conference. Ghan- ta wrote in an e-mail interview last night that they didn't receive any funding for the event from the regents. In an interview after speaking on a panel about China, Marty Kahn, CEO of the Ann Arbor- based business ProQuest, said the University's longstanding com- mitment to the conference reflects its presence on the global stage. "It's really startling how inter- national the University of Michi- gan is," Kahn said. Kahn, whose company sells databases in China, added that it's important for students to "recog- nize that the global economy is not just a flow of goods, but the flow of ideas." Venkatesh Prasad, a group and senior technical leader for Ford Motor Co., spoke during the technology panel. He said in an interview at the event that he is pleased with the opportunities the conference offers for Univer- sity students. "I think this is a really rich experience for those students (and) for those who come as pan- elists," Prasad said. "The past meets the present to create the future." Business graduate student MJ Kamal, said in an interview at the conference that he enjoyed the event and its broad appeal. "It's a nice break from every- thing else," Kamal said. "It's very good for students who are not in the Business School." - Daily News Editor Joseph Lichterman contributed to this report. A.