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Ann Arbor, Michigan
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
michigandaily.com
LEGAL DISPUTE
Board passes
resolution
decrying bill
In emergency
meeting, regents
oppose bill barring
GSRA unionization
By PETER SHAHIN
Daily Staff Reporter
Even though none of the Uni-
versity's regents were in the
room, the tension was palpable.
At a contentious 8 a.m. tele-
conference meeting yesterday,,
the University's Board of Regents
met to consider a motion to state
the body's opposition to pending
legislation in the Michigan Sen-
ate that would formally disqual-
ify graduate student research
assistants from classificajtion
as public employees - render-
ing them ineligible for unioniza-
tion. The regents voted 6-2, in a
party-line vote, in support of the
motion. The Graduate Employ-
ees' Organization is currently
working within the Michigan
Employment Relations Commis-
sion's system to achieve a vote for
GSRAs on unionization.
Before the debate on wheth-
er or not the motion would be
approved by the board, Regents
Andrea Fischer Newman (R-
Ann Arbor) and Andrew Rich-
ner (R-Grosse Pointe Park), the
sole Republicans on the board,
expressed their belief that the
See BOARDPage 3A
ALDEN REISS/Daily
LSA senior Michelle Szewczyk, Kineseology junior Apolonia Theresa Rybicki, and Engineering junior Daniel Joseph Kalasinski, members of the University's Polish
Club, sold paczkis doughnuts for Fat Tuesday yesterday in Mason Hall.
L EG AL D IS PU TE
Supreme Court to decide legality
of race in college admissions
OVe
Bo
Af
to tI
politi
Supr
revie
tially
2003
that t
ty of
ions
Th
filed
Texas
admi
Texa
was q
Justices could rejected due to her race.
Texas public universities
2rturn landmark accept the top ten percent of
each high school class in the
Grutter v. state, then evaluate students
below that level on other fac-
llinger decision tors, including race.
A federal district judge found
By KATIE BURKE the University of Texas's admis-
Daily Staff Reporter sion process to be constitution-
al, leading to a series of appeals
firmative action returned which eventually brought the
he forefront of national case, Fisher v. University of
cs yesterday as the U.S. Texas, to the Supreme Court.
eme Court agreed to The court's ruling could
w a case that could poten- affect public universities
overturn the landmark nation-wide by reversing the
case, Grutter v. Bollinger, 2003 Supreme Court's 5-4 deci-
upheld the constitutionali- sion in Grutter v. Bollinger,
using race in college admis- which decided that the Uni-
versity Law School's admission
e court will hear the suit process - providing minorities
by Abigail Fisher, a white an advantage without using a
s resident who was denied quota - was a constitutional
ssion to the University of way to increase the diversity of
s in 2008, claiming she incoming classes.
ualified for acceptance but "The Law School engages in
a highly individualized, holis-
tic view of each applicant's file,
giving serious consideration to
all the ways an applicant might
contribute to a diverse educa-
tional environment," Justice
Sandra Day O'Connor wrote in
the majority opinion.
Charles Shipan, political
science professor and depart-
ment chair, said it is likely the
Supreme Court will agree with
Fisher's claim because of the
conservative voting history of
the majority of the court's cur-
rent judges.
"Several of the judges in the
Court right now, including (Jus-
tice Clarence) Thomas and (Jus-
tice Antonin) Scalia don't feel
bound by precedent very much
at all," Shipan said.
According to Shipan, a ruling
in favor of Fisher would affect
public institutions that consid-
er race in their evaluations of
applicants.
"If a school is currently say-
ing that we take a holistic look
... they can no longer use race as
one of the factors," Shipan said.
Shipan added the ruling is
not based solely on which side
the court takes, but on how the
decision is defined and justified.
"(The Supreme Court) law-
fully (has) a lot of leeway to
make other sorts of decisions...
whether they'll cast it very
broadly and completely elimi-
nate race from consideration,
or whether they'll cast it more
narrowly, and find some things
about how Texas does it and
strike that down," Shipan said.
University spokeswoman
Kelly Cunningham said the Uni-
versity will closely follow the
case and its potential impact on
public education, but the deci-
sion may not change University
admission policies.
Proposal 2, a 2006 Michi-
See SUPREME COURT, Page 3A
SB 971 heads
to frill Senate,
Legislation would in favor and opposed to the bill,
which was introduced by state
classify GSRAs Senate Majority Leader Randy
Richardville (R-Monroe). The
as students, not Republican-led committee
voted 3-2 along party lines to
send the bill to the Senate floor.
The hearing and subse-
By RAYZA GOLDSMITH quent vote on the bill came in
DailyNewsEditor the immediate aftermath of
an emergency meeting held
Though it was only intro- by the University's Board of
duced a week ago, Senate Bill Regents yesterday morning. At
971, which would legally classify the meeting, the regents voted
graduate student research assis- 6-2 on a resolution expressing
tants as students, barring them their opposition to the bill. The
from unionizing, moved out of board also instructed Cynthia
committee yesterday to the Sen- Wilbanks, the University's vice
ate floor to be voted on. president for government rela-
The Senate Government tions, to actively lobby against
Operations committee heard the bill.
testimony from individuals both See SENATE, Page 3A
Vargas calls for immigration reform
FROSTY READING
In speech, He added that many people
associate illegal immigration
journalist with criminality, thus it was
importanttocollectstories from
discusses personal as many people as possible.
"Undocumented immigrants
experiences are just like everybody else,
our parents, like the parents of
By YOUNJOO SANG the country's first immigrants,
Daily StaffReporter came to U.S. for a search of a
better life like everyone in this
Pulitzer Prize-winning jour- room," he said. "With or with-
nalist Jose Antonio Vargas out proper documents, I'm a
spoke yesterday about his life human too, and no human being
as an undocumented immi- is illegal."
grant and his desire to promote Kevin Mersol-Barg, founder
discussion about immigration of the student organization
through Define American, the Coalition for Tuition Equal-
organization he founded. ity and the event's organizer,
Before an overflowing crowd said the speech was intended
at the Rackham Amphithe- to provide perspective on the
ater last night, Vargas said he struggles undocumented stu-
launched Define American to dents face.
encourage conversation about The University restricts
immigration and tell the stories undocumented students who
of immigrants in the United live in Michigan from paying
States through YouTube videos in-state tuition, forcing them
modeled after the It Gets Better to pay the same rate as interna-
campaign. tional students - three times
LSA junior Kevin Binder gives a snowman a newspaper on the Diag.
A NN A R rOR CITnY COUNCIt
A2 Marathon to be run in June
AUSTEt HUFFORD/Daily
Jose Antonio Vargas spoke at the Rackham Ampitheatre last night.
the amount an in-state student
pays.
Mersol-Barg said such poli-
cies were pushing away talented
students, and he said he wants
to make the University acces-
sible to all students.
"It's not just a minority stu-
dent issue, but an issue for all of
us," he said.
Vargas said he discovered he
was an undocumented resident
when he went to get his driver's
permit when he turned 16 and
was told his green card was
fake.
"I was thinkingto myself, the
woman must be lying, because
I'm not Mexican," Vargas said.
"I was a victim of my own
stereotype - I thought only
Mexicans could be illegal immi-
grants."
See VARGAS, Page 3A
a
Council after the Ann Arbor City Council
finalized plans for the marathon at
unanimously their meetinglast night.
The Ann Arbor Marathon will
pproves event take place on Sunday, June 17 and
money raised will benefit the Ann
By STEVE ZOSKI Arbor Public Schools Educational
Daily StaffReporter Foundation and Champions for
Charity, the organization that
June, the first-ever Ann supports the annual Big House
marathon will join the list of Big Heart 5k, 10k and 1 mile race.
events to take place in town See MARATHON, Page 6A
This
Arbor]
unique
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