4A- Wednesday, February 2, 2011
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
4A - Wednesday, February 2, 2011 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom
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Develop your department
STEPHANIE STEINBERG
EDITOR IN CHIEF
MICHELLE DEWITT
and EMILY ORLEY
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS
kYLE SWANSON
MANAGING EDITOR
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
A plan in motion
AATA should consider 'U' transportation needs
ublic transportation around Ann Arbor and the Detroit area
could potentially get a much-needed face-lift in the coming
years. The Ann Arbor Transit Authority has released three
options for new mass transit plans, which include adjustments to
public transportation options throughout Ann Arbor and a "smart
growth" plan that would incorporate travel between Ann Arbor,
Detroit and the surrounding areas. When discussing the proposals,
the AATA should aim to improve public transportation and infra-
structure around campus and the Ann Arbor area. Members of the
community should also utilize the environmentally-friendly transit
options once they become available.
Though my College of Engi-
neering housemates might
disagree, LSA rocks. Every
day I enjoy a
an interdisci-
plinary study
through a lib- ,
eral arts lens,
and I never haveae
to take a bus to
get to a class on
North Campus. JEFF
And with all WOJCIK
respect to the
No. 7 under-
graduate engineering program in
the country, I am glad I am a stu-
dent in the College of Literature,
Science and the Arts.
U.S. News and World Report
stated that for 2010, 67 LSA depart-
ments are in the top 10 in the coun-
try, and nine departments ranked
No. 1 in the country. All around us
is academic excellence, and we will
reap the benefits years from now
when we are curing diseases, end-
ing world famine and producing
award-winning films. But while
our faculty is top-notch and our
academic playground is engaging,
sometimes our departments inter-
act with us students in ways that
leave us scratching our heads.
Some departments give their
concentrators weekly newsletters
with summaries, helpful resources
and important reminders. Yet oth-
ers contact their concentrators at
random, with little productive use
of their undergraduate listserv.
Many departments have student
clubs and peer advisers, which pro-
vide a sense of community to stu-
dents who share a major or minor.
But other departments don't pro-
vide these venues and connections
for undergraduates. As students,
we need to help develop our depart-
ments to better cater to our needs.
We need to partner with schools to
improve our top-ranked programs
and make the best departments
even better.
The idea is to find the leading
practices in LSA departments and
help apply those ideas to depart-
ments that are struggling to pro-
vide all they can to students. We
want to find the best things that
our nationally-recognized depart-,
ments are doing and convince other
departments to follow their lead.
We need your help to do this.
Last semester, LSA Student Gov-
ernment started the Concentration
Council - a group of students who
serve as liaisons and representa-
tives between their department and
the student body. One or two stu-
dents from each department join
other representatives to discuss the
strengths and weaknesses of their
concentrations and determine which
departments are the mostsuccessful.
Using a variety of metrics like advis-
ing, course offerings, community
building and resource creation, the
organization evaluates the good and
bad aspects of every corner of LSA
and works to find solutions to the
concerns in each department. The
representatives then return to their
departments to discuss ideas and
solutions to improve the experience
of undergraduates in their major and
in LSA. We are doing this because
students are the ones who know
what areas need improvement and
which ones are working well. LSA is
incredibly supportive of our efforts,
and many in the dean's office are
also lookingto find the best practices
in LSA. But it's the undergraduates
who should be making the changes in
the college.
In just the last two months of
the fall 2010 semester, LSA under-
graduate students came together
and reworked the way departments
communicate with their concentra-
tors. This semester, several depart-
ments have started a newsletter for
their concentrators. Additionally,
a new department tool was created
through work with the Newnan
Academic Advising Center to help
departments learn how their con-
centrators engage and perceive the
department's work. In the com-
ing weeks we will be developing
a peer mentorship program that
all departments can use to better
interact with concentrators and
streamline the way students con-
nect with tutoring resources. We'll
also be pushing for all LSA units
to use the Online Advising Report
system to help students travel from
adviser to adviser and keep track of
their relationship with the advising
system.
Students should
help to make
changes in LSA.
We are currently seeking inter-
ested students to help advance the
mission of the council and improve
the academic resources provided by
LSA departments. To apply, please
go to sitemaker.umich.edu/lsas-
gconcentrationcouncil and tell us
about your interest in improving
your department and LSA. You will
work with other like-minded stu-
dents to find the solutions to prob-
lems in your departments. Let's
make this place even better.
By the way, engineers, if you'd
like to help us out, please let us
know.
-Jeff Wojcik is the LSA Academic
Relations Officer. He can be
reached at jawojcik@umich.edu.
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According to a Jan. 27 AnnArbor.com arti-
cle, the plans currently being reviewed aim to
improve public transportation not only within
Ann Arbor, but also between surrounding cit-
ies. Each of the 30-year plans - which will be
voted on in March - include a shuttle service
from Detroit Metro Airport to cities in Washt-
enaw County. Smart Growth - the most com-
prehensive of the three mass transit proposals
- willfurther increase the availability of pub-
lic transportation between Ann Arbor and
cities in the metro Detroit area. The AATA
released estimates this week that state that
the cost of the new services range from $120
million to $566 million, according to a Jan.
31 AnnArbor.com article. Last night, AATA
project coordinators met with community
members at the Ann Arbor District Library to
discuss the proposed changes.
In the Smart Growth proposal, the AATA
laid out plans to build a high-capacity tran-
sit system,!create "high frequency" services
within the most active areas in the county and
listed street cars, trams and rapid bus transit
as possible options. These services would cut
wait times for passengers and increase avail-
able transportation within cities. It's current-
ly an expensive struggle for people without
a car, or those who are trying to avoid using
their car to get to the Detroit Metro Airport,
and these updates could hugely expedite that
process. While also keeping cost in mind, the
AATA should consider a plan that will help
connect Ann Arbor with surrounding cities.
The selected plan also needs to explicitly
address the needs of University students and
provide on-going transportation between
campus and the Ann Arbor area. It's not very
easy to get around Ann Arbor without a car
- which many students don't have - and the
AATA needs to approve a plan that addresses
that concern. By providing students ample
travel options, the AATA can make getting
around campus easier, while also reducing the
environmental impact of people on campus.
Once a plan is finalized, students and Ann
Arbor residents need to take advantage of the
comprehensive transit system. According to
AATA Project Coordinator Michael Benham,
the current transit mode share - the percent-
age of public transportation used compared to
other vehicles in Ann Arbor - is at a mere 6.2
percent. With the increase in available pub-
lic transit, along with proposed expansion of
carpool programs and bike paths,Washtenaw
County commuters, including University
students, need to reduce their dependency
on cars and utilize more eco-friendly travel
options.
With an end to the county-wide debate
over the ideal transit plan in sight, the AATA
should consider the transportation needs
of students. In turn, students must also take
advantage of the 'green' transit options avail-
able and restrict use of gas-guzzling cars in
favor of public transportation.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS:
Aida Ali, Will Butler, Michelle DeWitt, Ashley Griesshammer, Erika Mayer, Harsha Nahata, Emily Orley;
Harsha Panduranga, Teddy Papes, Roger Sauerhaft, Seth Soderborg, Andrew Weiner
Crumbling infrastructurne
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Emphasize ownership over
location offirearms
tracking the sale and ownership of each fire-
arm which finds its way into the citizenry.
Danny Fries
LSA senior
TO THE DAILY:
The Michigan Daily's editorial on Tuesday
(Rethink Gun Legislation, 02/01/2011) was onT r e rssus than
target with some points, but missed others."
Neither "side" in our strident American the campus smoking ban
political climate is justified in rushing to a
regulate or deregulate extreme. This argu- TO THE DAILY:
ment is echoed by moderates from both sides I am a conservative, and I oppose most ini-
of the aisle, aswell as independents. There can tiatives that require significant discretion-
be no doubt that the immediate rush of pro- ary spending and impose greater government
posed deregulation laws observed in Michi- interference in the lives of Americans. This
gan and elsewhere (Arizona Senate Bill 1201, includes the campus smoking ban set to take
South Dakota House Bill No. 1237) are a bit of effect in July. I found Timothy Hall's piece (A
pre-emptive politicking by staunch conserva- burdensome ban, 1/31/2011), however, to be a
tives who fear a wave of attempted regulation. little over the top.
Indeed, there seems to be intrinsic merit Setting aside the flawed intimation that Presi-
to the argument "certain environments are dent Mary Sue Coleman decided to pursue this
ill-suited for the concealed carry of firearms." initiative for personal economic gain, it was
But to use blanket statements like "large Martin Luther King, Jr.'s quest to gain the most
crowds" and "places where people are drink- basic civil rights for African Americans along-
ing" tends to ignore specific instances where side that of the mild inconvenience smokers on
deregulation would be ok. As an example, let's campus will face beginning this summer that
use one of the proposed deregulation spots: struck me as objectionable. I know Hall didn't
residence halls. Many students drink in the equate these two things directly, but even an
dorms, but there are many who don't. How indirect association is overly dramatic, not to
do we choose who can legally carry a firearm? mention disrespectful to those who actually
The answer may be a combination of carefully endured maltreatment in decades past.
nuanced legislation which addresses our abil- The time has come to put the smoking ban
ity to maintain and track the sale of firearms, into perspective. Not to give up on pursuing a
without a heavy focus on actual locations stop to it if that's the goal, but to at least con-
where carrying a concealed weapon is legal. sider how valuable our time spent on this issue
I disagree with the article's claim that really is. On so many days in this paper's opin-
allowing faculty and staff to carry concealed ion section, I have read two or three thought-
weapons (CCW) could have "horrible conse- provoking, well-reasoned pieces - and then
quences." Banning CCW from public offices, yet another piece about the smoking ban that
public spaces, or public schools will not solve essentially repeats what has already been said.
the problem; it didn't stop a massacre from Whether or not smoking is allowed on campus,
occurring at Virginia Tech, and it wouldn't the University offers an incredibly wide vari-
have stopped Jared Loughner. Gun regula- ety of viewpoints and opportunities. It would
tion has historically limited only those who be foolish to allow the space consumed by an
responsibly use firearms. issue like this to prevent us from taking advan-
To reiterate, gun control legislation - or tage of them.
de-regulation legislation - shouldn't be so
concerned with where and when it's appropri- Nicole Miller
ate to carry weapons, but rather meticulously LSA sophmore
1t 4
was once told that C's get
degrees. It's a common adage
that fills any student who
receives a less-
than-satisfac-
tory grade with
a glimmer of
hope. It reminds
students that
life as we know
it doesn't begin'
and end with a
grade point aver- JOE
age, and it grants SUGIYAMA
some humor to
an extraordinary
not funny situation. Getting a D is
another story. A story that usually
ends by retaking a class that you've
already learned to hate. There aren't
many words of compassion for
someone who's come to the conclu-
sion that summer term is the only
plausible way to graduate on time.
I guess taking a summer course
isn't the end of the world - just
the end of some of your parent's
hard-earned money - and it forces
unlucky students to count their
blessings as they get a second chance.
Colleges have built this re-do system
into their infrastructure to keep the
checks coming in and allow students
to accomplish their ultimate goal of
getting a degree. The infrastructure
of the United States may needa simi-
lar get-out-of-jail-free card - minus
the "free" part.
In President Barack Obama's
State of the Union address last
week, he informed America that
our infrastructure is crumbling
- literally. Roads, bridges, trans-
portation systems, drinking water
systems and our methods of deliv-
ering energy have been scrutinized
by the American Society of Civil
Engineers in its annual infrastruc-
ture report card. The ASCE is the
authority on infrastructure in the
U.S. and has given us an overall
grade of a D. But what exactly does
that grade mean?
It means that given the current
state of our infrastructure, our sys-
tems will begin to fail in the very
near future. It means that the esti-
mated lifetime of structures, like
dams and bridges, are coming to an
end. It means that America will need
a facelift for the ages on pretty much
everything we have come to rely on.
Through research and studies,
the ASCE has decided that in order
to prevent our country from falling
apart around us, an estimated $2.2
trillion investment is needed over
the next five years. Though this
egregious sum isn't quite equitable
to a semester's tuition, infrastruc-
ture is a required course in just
about every country.
I'll admit that majoring in civil
engineering has made me a bit biased
- if Obama wanted to give your pro-
fession $2.2 trillion you'd be jump-
ing for joy as well - but that doesn't
mean that my vision is clouded by job
prospects. This problem is about as
serious as they come and letting this
information pass by is simply not an
option for a variety of reasons.
Drinking water systems - receiv-
ing a D-, the lowest grade in the
study - are becoming obsolete. The
life expectancy of many water plants
is shortening and leaking pipes are
losing about 7 billion gallons of clean
drinking water a day. Soon, the cost
of cleaning and transporting drink-
ing water will be more than the allot-
ted funding needed to keep systems
running.
Roads received a D-, based on
quality and traffic congestion, and
there aren't many residents in Michi-
gan who would argue with that
grade. The ASCE estimates that one-
third of our roads need repair, and
traffic congestion costs Americans
about 4.2 billion hours a year of sit-
ting mindlessly in traffic. I don't
know about you, but that's about 4.2
billion more hours of radio-broad-
casted Ke$ha than Americans want
to listen to.
D grades
aren't acceptable
for America.
I could go on with this list for
another 700 words. The statistics
are equally alarming for each of the
15 categories that the ASCE investi-
gated, and each grade raises the same
question of how these problems are
going to be fixed.
The ASCE has determined that
addressing these issues will require
America to increase federal leader-
ship, promote sustainable systems
that can stand the test of time, devel-
op plans to implement these new
systems, figure out what it will take
to stop the crumbling process and
- of course - find a way to come up
with the $2.2 trillion needed. It will
be an arduous journey, but without a
well-engineered plan for our infra-
structural future, we could be in for
a bumpy ride - literally.
Joe Sugiyama can be reached
at jmsugi@umich.edu.
S
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