OOOTBALL POWERLESS PLAY wl advertisements Poor special teams led to 4s glued to the T V. Michigan ice hockey's third- * straight loss. 9PAGE 7A ,-Hu ~51i A11ig.an &iajj Ann Arbor, Michigan Monday, February 7, 2011 michigandailycom UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN HEALTH SYSTEM Gay couples face no visit restrictions atUMHS Members of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity watch the Super Bowl at Scorekeepers Sports Bar & Grille last night. Green Bay defeated Pittsburgh 31-25. CAMPUS CRIME dOxford Rd.area residents appeal for increased safety 'U' hospitals visitor policy already complies with new health care law By MARY HANNAHAN Daily Staff Reporter Despite a new federal regula- tion expanding hospital visitation rights for same-sex couples, the University Hospital's longstand- ing non-discrimination policy will remain the same. The federal regulation - which went into effect Jan. 18, 2011 as part of the Affordable Health Care for America Act - states that hospitals receiving government funding may not for- bid visitation rights on the basis of a patient's sexual orientation. But according to Kelly Parent, the Patient & Family Centered Care program coordinator at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, the fed- eral regulation has not affected visitation policies at University hospitals, since same-sex couples already have equal visitation rights. "U of M has always been very open and progressive in realizing thatit's not forustojudge, andit's not for us to decide who the sup- port person is," Parent said. "As long as I've known, there's never been a limitation saying that, 'No, it's a same-sex partner, you can't come in here."' Cathy Kendrick, clinical nurse manager for the Cardiac Inten- sive Care-Unit at the University Cardiovascular Center, said that in her 16 years of nursing in the same two units, the visitation rules at the University hospital has been the same regardless of sexual orientation. "They are no different from the rules that govern a heterosexual couple," Kendricksaid. She a4ed that sexual orienta- tion is never a relevant factor in securing visitation rights. "It's not something that we intentionally need to know about the person," Kendrick said. "There's not a need to know what the person's sexual orientation is unless it's something that they want to share with us for whatev- er reason that's personal to them or unless there is a medical rea- See VISIT, Page 2A Greek community petitions for more street lighting By ANT MITCHELL Daily StaffReporter Following several recent crimes in the Oxford Road area near campus, students feeling unsafe have decided to take action. Because of three robberies over the course of the past four months, members of the Greek community at the University have developed a petition for improved street lighting in the area. At the same time, the Ann Arbor Police Department is further investigating the crimes. Brian Jatczak, a sergeant in the AAPD's Detective Bureau, said the involvement of two males in multiple robbery cases in the Oxford Road area may be related to the Oxford robber- ies. He added that the bureau is currently tracking stolen prop- erty and following up on leads from the most recent robbery, which was an armed robbery early in the morning on Jan. 18. Prior to this, two male suspects robbed two females atcgunpoint late at night in December. AAPD Sgt. Craig Flocken said while nothing has been confirmed in terms of evidence, AAPD has begun examining the possible ,link between the crimes. LSA senior Katie Rosenberg, past president of the Panhel- lenic Association, wrote the proposal for the Lighting Ini- tiative, which is a petition to the city of Ann Arbor for improved See OXFORD, Page 8A AROUND ANN ARBOR A2Dems endorse proposed ordinance to limit cameras LEARNING THE TAW 'U' student group seeks to remove cameras from public places By SABIRA KHAN Daily StaffReporter For LSA junior William Leaf, a year and half of tireless work may finally be coming to frui- tion. Last September, Leaf found- ed the campus organization, Students Against Surveillance, with the intent to pass a city ordinance that would restrict the use of government surveil- lance cameras in public areas. The Ann Arbor City Democratic Party officially endorsed the ordinance on Saturdy. Leaf said if passed, the ordi-' nance - which applies only to government-supervised cam- eras - would ban cameras from residential neighborhoods and outdoor parks in Ann Arbor. It would also limit the use of cameras in commercial areas so cameras are placed only in zones that fall within the city's top 10th percentile of crime occurrences. Under the ordi- nance, the police would also be obligated to publish the loca- tions of all the cameras on the Ann Arbor police website. Mary Hall-Thiam, vice chair for outreach and inclusion for The Ann Arbor City Democratic Party, said the group issued a statement saying though the proposal isn't "perfect," it sup- See SURVEILLANCE, Page8A CAMPUS COMMUNITY Towsley offers an education for toddlers and 'U' students The Michigan Journal of International Law hosts the "Successes & Failures in International Human Trafficking Law" symposium in Hutchins Hall on Saturday, Feb. 5. Panelists discussed the future of human trafficking law. UNIVERSITY RESEARCH Portable solar panel expands electricity use Psychology majors conduct research at children's center By DAVID BUCCILLI Daily StaffReporter "Outside so cold. It's like a polar bear winter," a preschool- er says. Two pigtails peek from beneath her knitted hat as she shivers her arms playfully, standing in a warm room sur- rounded by other children. In the corner, a teacher con- sults a crying boy who's strug- gling to learn the idea of sharing. Here at Towsley Children's House, toddlers socialize and learn preschool education basics, often with the help of University students. Towsley, located on South Forest Ave- nue, is a University-affiliated, play-based learning program for young children, where some University faculty and students also pursue research opportuni- ties. Language learning is a key part of the children's education at Towsley. Beth Blanchard, the director of Towsley Children's See TOWSLEY, Page 8A Device for third- world countries created by student By SARAH ALSADEN Daily StaffReporter From the flickering of a can- dle to the bright lighting of a cell phone, one University student created a solar-powered device that may bring new technology to the developingworld. Engineeringgraduate student Md Shahnoor Amin worked with Abdrahamane Traore of Kettering University to create Emerald - a portable solar panel system that opens like a book and serves as a lighting device and charger for portable elec- tronics like cell phones. Traore and Amin, who met as undergraduates at Kettering University,- designed the device for their Ann Arbor-based com- pany called June Energy. The book-sized portable solar panel system they invented is intended to be used in developing coun- tries. Amin and Traor6 know what it is like to live in a developing countries. Traore grew up in Mali and said he experienced difficulty studying at night See SOLAR PANEL, Page 8A WEATHER 1: 17 TOMORROW + :8 GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know. NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM Fab Five "30 for 30" documentary to air March 13 MICHIGANDAILY.COM/BLOGS/THE GAME INDEX AP NEWS....................3A CLASSIFIEDS. b............6A Vol CXXi, No.88 OPINION...................4A NEWS.....8A Q011tTheMichiganDaily ARTS................ 5A SPORTSMONDAY..........1B michigondailycom