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Monday, March, 7,2011 - 5A..

The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom N ~W S Monday, March 7,2011 - 5A

TUITION
From Page IA
schools will receive even less
money from the state if the cost
of their in-state tuition increases
by more than 17.1 percent - the
state average of tuition increas-
es over the past five years. If
the University increases tuition
above this percentage, it will see
about a 20 percent reduction in
state funding.
Despite the prospect of facing
such a large cut in state fund-
ing, University officials said they
knew drastic reductions were
coming, and they've been pre-
paring for the scenario for sev-
eral years.
In an interview with The
Michigan Daily last month,
University President Mary Sue
Coleman said the University has
projected cost savings for the
next several years to ensure the
University's financial solvency.
She added that the University
began cutting costs five or six
years ago to prepare for potential
budget cuts.
"We're in a cycle now to con-
tinue the cost savings," Coleman
said. "We've even projected out
to 2017 because in our view we're
going to have to make ourselves
more efficient, get value for every
dollar that's being spent (and)
make tough decisions because
we don't see the economic cli-
mate in the country bouncing
back any time soon."

In a continuing effort to
reduce costs, University Pro-
vost Philip Hanlon said in an
interview last month that the
University has undertaken cost
savings measures by combin-
ing several IT units- saving the
University $7 million, and by
decreasing the amount of gen-
eral fund money given to the
schools within the University by
$20 million.
"Looking ahead to the next
fiscal year (the cuts) could get
deeper, but that's what we're
executing right now," Hanlon
said. "That's having impacts
on how often small classes are
offered (and) the hiring of staff.
We're doing our absolute best to
protect our core academic mis-
sions and have the impact on stu-
dents be as minimal as possible."
On Wednesday, Coleman
joined Grand Valley State Uni-
versity President Thomas Haas,
Ferris State University President
David Eisler and Oakland Uni-
versity President Gary Russi in
testifying before the state Senate
and House Appropriations Sub-
committees on Higher Education
at the State Capitol in Lansing.
In her testimony before the
House subcommittee, Coleman
emphasized the University's
commitment to cutting costs and
its dedication to ensuring that
tuition is affordable for all stu-
dents. The University plans to
reduce costs by $100 million by
2012 and by another $120 million
by 2017.

Coleman also said the Univer-
sity has offered "historic" levels
of financial aid to students in
recent years.
"These extraordinary
amounts of support mean that a
typical Michigan resident under-
graduate student with an income
of under $80,000 pays less today
than in 2004," Coleman said. "...
We are a better bargain today
than when I first came to the
University in 2002."
A 15-percent slash in state
funding would translate into a
nearly $47.5 million reduction
in state funding from the cur-
rent $316 million state dollars
allocated to the University. That
amount would increase by about
$14 million, or 5.2 percent, if
the University doesn't meet the
state's tuition guidelines.
Both Hanlon' and Coleman
said at this point in the budget
process they don't know wheth-
er the University will be able to
keep tuition increases below the
7.1-percent threshold.
"Ultimately it's up to the
regents to approve tuition, so I
don't want to get ahead of that
process at all," Hanlon said.'"...
I'm hopeful that we would want
to stay underneath that cap any-
way, but again, I always hate
to say anything about tuition
because it's up to the Board to
make tuition."
The University's Board of
Regents typically sets tuition
levels at its June meeting when
the University's budget is

released. In 2010, the regents
increased tuition by 1.5 per-
cent for in-state students - the
smallest increase since 1984-
but increased tuition for out-of-
state students by 3 percent. The
last time tuition was raised by
more than 7.1 percent was for the
2007-2008 academic, when the
regents increased the price of in-
state and out-of-state students'
tuition by 7.4 percent.
A 7.1-percent tuition hike
would translate to an increase of
$827 for Michigan residents pay-
ing lower division LSA tuition,
and non-resident students would
be have to pay $2,542.66 more
for lower division LSA tuition.
Coleman said in her testimony
last week that she will work to.
guarantee that the University
fulfills its mission, regardless of
how much state funding is ulti-
mately cut.
"The University of Michigan is
a treasured public asset, and my
job as its president is to ensure
its future for the next 200 years,"
Coleman said. "I will not allow
its value to diminish under my
leadership. Everyday we honor
the public's longstanding invest-
ment by attracting talented stu-
dents and faculty to Michigan as
well as watching the bottom line
that ensures taxpayers receive a
strong return on their dollars."
Coleman added that the Uni-
versity has remained steadfast in
its goals to educate students and
conduct research even in eco-
nomic downturns. She said the

University has actually grown
and expanded during previous
economic slumps and cited that
the Law Quadrangle, Rackham
Graduate Building and Burton
Memorial Tower were built dur-
ing the Great Depression in the
1930s, and the University Hospi-
tal was built during the recession
in the 1980s.
"This is not the first time our'
state has faced difficult eco-
nomic times," she said. "We can
all point to challenging eras of
dwindling resources, and yet
generation after generation of
the state's leaders and citizens
have supported the University of
Michigan."
Coleman added that like her,
Snyder also believes higher edu-
cation will be the catalyst for
economic turn-around in the
state.
"As Governor Snyder has said,
world-class universities are one
of our biggest assets," Coleman
said. "Higher education, with all
of its contributions to society, is
how Michigan will reclaim its
prominence. We know a Uni-
versity of Michigan education
makes a difference."
Coleman said in an inter-
view after the hearing that it
was important for her to testify
before the committees because
a number of senators and repre-
sentatives are newly elected.
"I was really happy to (testi-
fy) because alot of these people
were brand new, and they haven't
heard me talk about the Univer-

sity of Michigan and they don't
know necessarily about some of
the programs," she said. "And
one of my jobs is to educate them
... And I think based on some of
the questions they asked, they
got it. They understand what I
was talking about."
State Rep. Bob Genetski (R-
Saugatuck), chair of the statg
House Appropriations Subcon-
mittee on Higher Education, said
in an interview last week that he
was glad the university presil-
dents testified, as it provided
more education for the Legisla-
ture to make its "big decisions"
about the budget.
Like Coleman, Genetski said
the state's public colleges are
important in turning around the
state's economy. But he also said
the higher education budget was
one of only a handful of places
where the Legislature could cut
funds.
"When you look at the higher
ed budget, almost all of it is gen-
eral fund money," Genetski said.
Unfortunately, universities
are one of the few places from
where we can cut."
Genetski pointed out that in
Snyder's proposed budget for
the 2013 fiscal year, also released
last month, there are no further
reductions to the state's higher
education budget beyond what
Snyder proposed for 2012.
"(There are) no cuts next year
in the two-year budget," Genet-
ski said. "That's a very good and
very optimistic thing."


BRIDGE CARDS
From Page 1A
"We're ready to extend a help-
ing hand to any citizen who is
truly in need - including col-
lege students who care for young
children and are taking the right
steps toward becoming self-suf-
ficient," Corrigan wrote. "But
those who don't meet federal
guidelines won't be able to take
advantage of what is meant to be
a temporary safety net program."
The Bridge Card program
serves about 1.9 million Michi-
gan residents, and DHS estimates
that up to 20,000 of those users

are students, according to DHS
spokesman Christina Fecher.
The previous DHS adminis-
tration had been following fed-
eral instructions for use of the
money allocations, but the cur-
rent administration requested to
grant the state regulation rights
when officials realized many stu-
dents take advantage of the pro-
gram, Fecher wrote in an e-mail
interview.
The new state regulations are
expected to eliminate many of
those students from the program
by removing eligibility of any
student "attending college with
an approved education plan,"'
Fecher wrote.

State Rep. Dave Agema (R-
Grandville), one of the first law-
makers to take action against
abuse of the Bridge Card pro-
gram, said the need for change
became obvious when numbers
demonstrated a vast increase
in Michigan college students
applying for financial assistance
through the program.
"It went viral," Agema said.
"Too many people were asking to
get on, and it drew our attention
to it. In one county, two-thirds
of the new people (applying for
cards) were college students."
While some legislators view
the forthcoming restrictions on
the program as an end to mon-

etary waste, others think the
move is a negative one.
State Rep. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann
Arbor) said the law is likely
to change before it is actually
enforced. He added that the state
may be moving in the wrong
direction by focusing on abuse
by college students only.
"I think that in a country
that is the richest country in the
world, and the most prosperous
country in the history of human-
kind, it's a shame that we're try-
ing to lower the ceiling rather
than raise the floor," Irwin said.
"We're trying to cut back on pro-
grams that help people. There
are times when it gets abused

whether (Bridge Card users) are
college students or adults."
But Agema said students who
weren't necessarily in dire need
of food assistance were using
the program, adding that the
decrease in student use will
allow for reallocation of millions
of dollars through the Bridge
Card program.
"It was too easy to get on, and
it's too easy to lie," Agema said.
"That's why Indiana had almost
no students on (food assistance
support) and we had (thou-
sands), on Bridge Card because
some were coming from wealthy
homes. People were getting a
Bridge Card that weren't finan-

ciallyneedyand didn't qualifyby
other standards."
Students opposed to the new
law include LSA senior Jenni-
fer Zobel, who is fighting the
changes with a petition she said
she plans to take to Republican
Gov. Rick Snyder's office after
she gets 20,000 signatures.
"My roommate and I started
(the petition) because we think
it's unfair for the government to
just target one group of people
that utilize the Bridge Card,"
Zobel said. "Instead of changing
the (laws) to make it harder for
everyone, they're just (targeting)
college students and that doesn't
seem right."


DANA BUILDING
From Page 1A
dents and faculty members who
frequent the Dana Building have
grown accustomed to the sound
and have even come to recognize
its timing.
"It's good for comic relief in a
morning lecture," Rackham stu-
dent James Mulligan said.
While the noises are funny for

some, they're irritating for oth-
ers like Rackham student Mat-
thew Boutin.
"It is very annoying. We were
in this room and there were real-
ly whiny noises," Boutin said as
he offered his own high-pitched
interpretation of the sound.
Stanton Jones, associate pro-
fessor in the SNRE, agreed that
the noises can be a distraction.
"The first couple of times it did
(distract me) because I just wasn't

expecting it," Jones said. "It
causes me to have to stop (class)."
Some students said classes
take an interim break at the
sound of the noise.
"We usually just sit there and
wait it out," Rackham student
Lindsay Hanna said. "It's usually
15 seconds or so."
Jones said he thinks the
sounds are due to heating issues,
but the actual source of the
sounds has yet to be identified.

"There's no fix for it," Jones
said. "It's what the heating in the
building is unless we totally went
to a different mode of heat for the
entire building."
Students offered different
explanations for the reason for
the sounds.
"Someone said that they had
been told that it was the piping,"
Hanna said.
Lara Ann Nelson, the director
of budget and administration for

SNRE, said her office has never
heard any noises or received any
complaints about them. None of
the students interviewed said
they have approached adminis-
trators to report the issue.
In order to pinpoint the source
of the sound, Nelson said her
office would need more details.
But she said she couldn't think of
any reason the building's infra-
structure could be acting up.
The Dana Building was built

in 1901 but was renovated in
2004 to improve the building's
infrastructure and majke it more
environmentally friendly.
According to Jones, the noises
have also reportedly occurred in
past years.
"I think it's more of a distrac,
tion fornewstudentsthanitis for
students who've been here and
have been around it for awhile,"
Jones said. "At some point, it just
becomes background noise."


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DISEASES
From Page 1A
failures and collaboration with
researchers from the Massachu-
setts General Hospital and Har-
vard Medical School, the current
SIVQ tool emerged as a potential
"game changer" for the field of
pathology, Hipp said.
Different from other pattern
recognition software currently
being used by physicians, the
SIVQ technique pinpoints cell
or tissue abnormalities using

circular vectors instead of the
traditional square or rectangle-
shaped search tools. The circular
vectors can identify the features
of an image no matter the image
orientation.
"The idea of the tool is to
help improve diagnoses, (and)
help pathologists provide bet-
ter patient care," Hipp said. "It
adds a quantitative component to
a profession that is based on an
art."
Ideally, the tool will allow
pathologists to use digital imag-
es of the body's tissues in more

prolific ways, according to Balis,
who is the director of the Divi-
sion of Pathology Informatics
Division at the University Medi-
cal School.
"Now that pathologists have
access to digital images, the
challenge has been what to do
with them," Balis explained.
"Pathologists generally don't do
anything with digital images
other'than look at them."
Hipp said the tool can be used
to identify carcinomas - an
invasive malignant tumor - and
certain cancer-prone areas like

the prostate.
"The idea would be to have
the computer program help the
pathologist identify the cancer
glands," he said.
Though SIVQ has the poten-
tial to hold "tremendous value"
for physicians, Hipp said, it isn't
intended to replace the work of
pathologists.
"We want to stress that this is
a tool to aid the pathologist," he
said.
Though the tool isn't likely to
enter the medical market any-
time soon, Balis said it has been

distributed throughout the aca-
demic community at institutions
like Rutgers University. Cornell
University has also expressed
interest in the tool.
"We're still in the very early
phases of identifying how this
technology can improve produc-
tivity ... for researchers as well as
at the clinical level," Balis said.
"The thought is that within a
year or two's time, this algorithm
could be a critical part of work-
flow. The technology highlights
the fact that there's much to be
optimistic about."

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Holds Public
Comment Meeting on Great Lakes
Study in Ann Arbor
On March 8, from 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti at
Eagle Crest,located at 1275 S. Huron St., the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is
holding a public scoping meeting to gather input on the Great Lakes and
Mississippi River Interbasin Study (G[MRIS).
The public is invited to attend and provide comments on GLMRIS. Identical
presentations about the study will be given at 2:15 p.m. and 5:45 p.m., each
followed by theomment period.
The purpose of GLMRIS is to evaluate a range of options and technologies to
prevent the transfer of aquatic nuisance species, such as Asian carp, between the
Great Lakes and Mississippi River through aquatic pathways.
The public scoping comment period will end on March 31, 2011. If you plan to
make an oral comment, please register on the GLMRIS Web site.
Comments can also be submitted electronically through the Web site. For
additional information and meeting locations, visit www.glmris.anL.gov.

March 12tl
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