N ifl 011 4 - Friday, February 25, 2011 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com *,I Ce Midiigan B3at*1 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com MICHELLE DEWITT STEPHANIE STEINBERG and EMILY ORLEY KYLE SWANSON EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS 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. FROM THE DAILY Wisconsin s woes Governor's actions have set a scary precedent Workers have the right to bargain with their employees over wages, working conditions and benefits, but newly elected Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is trying to take that right away from state employees. Budget cuts are needed in Wis- consin, which, like many states, is facing a major budget shortfall. But instead of negotiating with public-sector unions, Walker is trying to eliminate them altogether. His actions have paralyzed Wisconsin as protesters have gathered at the Capitol, and he has set a dangerous precedent for the rest of the country. Governors facing deficits should work with unions to produce sensible budgets, not use shortfalls to attack public employees. A New Age' thought process n my last column, (Encourage crazy ideas, (2/11/2011) I dis- cussed the importance of non- linear thought, thinking outside of the box and I highlighted an' upcoming forum. called TEDx- UofM that will showcase some of the Univer- sity's leaders in TULIAN this regard. I TOLES now realize that I may have left some readers with one deeply burn- ing question: How do I develop my own "crazy" idea? An often essential component of crazinessiscreativity.Whathappens when you unite creativity, multiple disciplines, enthusiasm and spiritu- ality? If you guessed "magic," you're completely correct. Congratulations. Welcome to Creative Process. Officially titled UARTS 250, the class unites a diverse group of stu- dents from various stages in their academic careers and offers the perfect medium for collaboration. Students spend two weeks each in a unit on art, dance, architecture and engineering. This provides them the chance to forge relations with faculty who they would likely never interact with outside the confines of a focused course load. One of the University's most intriguing courses, Creative Process seeks to overturn the commonly held belief that creativity is a natu- ral essence, an x-factor-like attribute passed down genetically that bene- fits only the winners of the "ovarian lottery," as investor Warren Buffet calls it. The course aims to demystify our notion of creativity. We're provided random and quirky prompts such as "butter," or "things fall apart", atypical materi- alsandunexpectedtasks.Thecourse forces participants to step outside of their coveted comfort zone. It's a pioneering course with a noble goal: To serve as a beacon to "inform or inspire similar courses at other Michigan institutions," as the course description states. But as stu- dents, we also gain inspiration from one another. I've been in awe at each and every project display day we've had thus far, and was especially amazed by a classmate who inter- preted her "weightlessness" prompt as a command to set her final project ablaze - which she did. Whereas most courses seek to instill convergent thought, Creative Process embraces the divergent. There is no "one right answer" and no "one way to get there," other than commitment, of course. This stipulation is where the latter half of the namesake, the process - which invites ingenuity and persistence - comes into play. And with an optional meditation component, the class encourages life skills far beyond the confines of classroom walls. A weekly colloqui- um on spirituality is one of the most attractive and unexpected aspects of the course. It embraces a "New Age" thought process, which has gained credence in the mainstream with the likes of gurus Deepak Cho- pra and, to a lesser extent, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons. Inspired by the likes of philosopher and mystic Meister Eckhart, students explore the four paths to creativity in a hands-off manner by embracing mindfulness. UARTS 250 helps students develop 'crazy' ideas. A refreshing air of calmness and tranquility fills the interspaces of the seminar during this portion of class - two emotions that we typi- cally don't associate with any type of lecture during our college years. I, for one, never dreamed of a class with an emphasized spirituality component. In the end, it may not be as much about unearthing one's creative capacities as it is about cultivating and reigniting them. As Pablo Picas- so said, "Every child is an artist. The problem is to remain an artist once they grow up." If you're a student looking for anenthralling and inspir- ing course next winter, remember to seek out Creative Process. -Julian Toles can be reached at jaytoles@umich.edu. Wisconsin faces a $3.6 billion budget defi- cit over the next three years. Among Walker's proposals to cover that gap is a bill that would require state employees to vote each year on whether their union should exist and limit public-sector employees' right to yearly col- lective bargaining meetings with state offi- cials. Since Walker announced his plan last week, protesters have crowded the state Capi- tol in Madison, jamming galleries and sleeping among statues on the rotunda floor. Fourteen Democratic senators have taken refuge in Illi- nois, leaving the state Senate without enough members to vote on the plan. Union leaders in Wisconsin say they're will- ing to accept all the cuts the governor has pro- posed. The fact that Walker continues to push for an end to collective bargaining proves that he isn't interested in balancing the budget - he wants to dismantle the unions. Through misleading language of fiscal responsibil- ity, Republicans in Wisconiifare working to break state-employee unions. Wisconsin Republicans - including Walker - share agreat deal of the blame for the state's current fiscal woes. The new state Legislature irrationally passed $117 million in tax cuts as soon as members took office, knowing that the cuts would only increase the state's multi billion-dollar deficit. Wisconsin Democrats deserve credit for their decision to leave the state. By preventing the state Senate from con- vening, they may force Walker to tone down his misguided proposal. There are times when it may be necessary for the government to limit union rights, but there's a big difference between limiting rights and takingthem away all together. State employees hadn't yet come to the bargain- ing table when the governor announced his plan to take away their right to bargain. They went on strike only after he refused to meet with union leaders. Walker's effort to defeat public-sector unions is the latest assault in an unprecedented Republican offensive against working-class Americans. Wisconsin's careless governor has set a terrible precedent that other states under Republican leadership are beginning to fol- low. Republicans in Indiana and Ohio have proposed similar bills to limit both public- and private-sector labor unions. Michigan Repub- lican Gov. Rick Snyder has, admirably, stated his intention to work with state employees' unions through the budget process. This is the model that other states should follow as they face fiscal crises of their own. Wisconsin's governor - and other Republicans - should foster a spirit of cooperation, rather than all- or-nothing policies. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor. Letters should be fewer than 300 words and must include the writer's full name and University affiliation. We do not print anonymous letters. Send letters to tothedaily@michigandaily.com Forget Hollywood stereotypes EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Aida Ali, Will Butler, Elli Chessen, Michelle:DeWitt, Ashley Griesshammer, Melanie Kruvelis, Patrick Maillet, Erika Mayer, Harsha Nahata, Emily Orley, Harsha Panduranga, Teddy Papes, Asa Smith, Seth Soderborg, Andrew Weiner MATTHEW SHUTLER I Harry Potter and 'U' As a self-proclaimed member of the "Harry Potter" Generation, I've spent the past 15 years fighting alongside Harry,' Hermione and Ron as they grew from little children to powerful adults. In a way, their journey mirrored my own - only without a wand or those annoying life-or-death encounters. The "Harry Potter" series helped usher me - and millions of others - into adulthood, giv- ing us an intricate and extraordinary world to lose ourselves in. Filled with supremely real characters, there was never a lack of role models or situations that I could relate to. Whether it was dating, dealing with loss or just being happy, Harry Potter has been there and shown me that these feelings are univer- sal. No one is alone. HarryPotter has certainlyhad an impacton my generation, and I don't think it's an over- statement to call it one of the biggest cultural phenomenons of all time. I still remember practicing the "swish and flick" and "dueling" with friends at recess with sticks we found (yeah, we were just that cool). It's stemmed numerous incarnations - literary and non - to create a little bit of magic in our world. You can even visit Hogsmeade and Hogwarts now if you happen to be in Orlando. But the truer test of its power and impact comes on a much more personal scale. Rowling's masterpiece has helped guide me to where I am now, and I know I'm not the only one who feels that way. As Harry made friends, enemies, fell in love, out of love and back into love, I was, and still am, doing the same. The true mark of Harry Potter is that in a world filled with magic, brooms, dragons and someone who'goes by the name Lord Voldemort, it's the characters and life events that truly color the pages. As I walk through campus - especially the Law Quad - I feel as though one could easily transport themselves to this world. The Uni- versity is our own personal Hogwarts. A place to live, learn and love. This school is definitely full of magic - anyone who's eaten in the caf- eteria during one of the Thanksgiving dinners knows that's pretty much as close as one can get to a feast in the Great Hall. It's here, just walking with friends, that I feel most con- nected, or maybe it's just that college has been the best comparison to the wizarding world of Harry Potter (bonus points for those who know what that was a reference to). While I've never had a class as fun as flying or a teacher quite like Hagrid, the realness of the books and characters makes getting into the Uni- versity feel like I received my own personal Hogwart's letter. I treasure my time here, and I think I appreciate its magic all the more because of reading these books. As Harry's journey reaches its conclusion with his final cinematic romp taking place this summer, I feel as though I'm finally graduat- ing as well. I'll be starting my final year at the University and preparing for life outside its walls and comfort. While my career choices sadly don't include being an Auror or dragon trainer, the possibilities are still endless. I plan to tackle the unknown of the next couple years with the same determination and excite- ment that I've used waiting for and reading these books. The series has helped countless people find a love for books and reading, but what I think is even more important, is that it's helped people find their voices. So go take a break fromstudying, lose yourselfinthe magi- cal world and catch up with some old friends. You'll be doing yourself a favor. Matthew Shutler is an LSA junior. C ongratulations! If you're reading this, it means you've survived the most challeng- ing week of the semester thus far. You've stud- ied for three exams, knocked out a 10-page paper and tried not to slap your classmates while SARAH preparing for yet . another group SMITH project. You had to sacrifice pre- cious hours of sleep and sell your soul to Starbucks to find the energy to keep going, but it's all over now - and if you're lucky, you're packing your bags to travel somewhere far, far away from Ann Arbor for Spring Break. While it may seem obvious, our collective pursuit of academic achievement is what we all have in common as students. But as a mem- ber of a sorority, I'm often bothered by the lack of attention given to the scholastic achievements of our Greek community. One of the most prominent stereotypes about fra- ternities and sororities is that their members are stupid - caring more about an upcoming party or going shopping than their homework or that exam next week. (See: John "Bluto" Blutarsky and Elle Woods.) I won't dispute that among the University's 5,000 Greeks, there are probably some who fit that ste- reotype. But as a community, we certainly don't. At the University of Michigan, the All-Greek GPA is con- sistently higher than the All-Univer- sity GPA, suggesting that fraternity and sorority members aren't only matching their non-Greek counter- parts in the classroom, but actually outperforming them. Certainly, every student at a uni- versity as prestigious as ours is intel- ligent,-and there are lots of men and women here who are doing well in their studies without being affiliated with a Greek organization. But it's clear that Greeks enjoy an academic edge. So the question becomes, why? In my experience as a leader both in my sorority and in the greater Greek community, I've identified several factors that, in my opinion, make fraternity and sorority members more likely to succeed. The first thing to consider is the sheer foundation of our organiza- tions. The earliest fraternities and sororities began as scholastic groups and literary societies - places for men and women to meet outside the classroom and discuss what they were learning. Over the years, Greek organizations have incorporated social and philanthropic elements, but the original emphasis on scholar- ship hasn't been forgotten. Today's Greek organizations have high expectations for their members, and most chapters have minimum GPA requirements that are enforced for current brothers and sisters and for the men and women who are inter- ested in joining their organization. While GPA requirements may seem trivial, I think they have a major impact. In my two years of recruiting women for my sorority, I've seen that scholarship can make a big difference - there have been potential new members who we've removed from our consideration because they didn't meet our aca- demic standards. On the contrary, if I learn that a woman going through recruitment had graduated at the top of her class in high school, Iwill want her to join my organization because I know that she has high personal standards and prioritizes academic success. Additionally, a GPA requirement forces current fraternity and sorority members to continue to prioritize their studies throughout college because fall- ing below it could result in expul- sion from the organization. Thus, if members prioritize their Greek involvement, they must also priori- tize their grades to remain a brother or sister of their organization. Fraternities and sororities also develop scholarship programs to help their members succeed academ- ically. These programs vary widely from chapter to chapter, but they often include providing places to study and recognizinghigh achieve- ment. My chapter, for example, has two rooms in the house reserved for quiet study and holds a scholar- ship dinner every semester to honor the women who have succeeded the most in their studies. Greek members are definitely making the grade. Other chapters do things like reserving rooms at University librar- ies for their members or raffling off gift cards to sisters who have aced a test recently. Furthermore, the Panhellenic Association encour- ages chapters to publicly announce their members' accomplishments at weekly Panhel meetings. Most importantly, fraternities and sorori- ties can assist members who are struggling by finding a brother or sister to tutor them or developing individualized study plans for each member who needs help. Regardless of the reason, frater- nity and sorority members at the University are definitely making the grade, perhaps even more so than non-Greek students. So let's leave Hollywood stereotypes behind and recognize that Greeks aren't stupid - they're actually pretty darn smart. Sarah Smith can be reached at smisarah@umich.edu.