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Ann Arbor, Michigan

Friday, March16, 2012

michigandaily.com

BOARD OF REGENTS
Students extol
tuition equality
at regents mtg.

Graduate students
share desire for
increased childcare
services
By PETER SHAHIN
Daily Staff Reporter
Dozens of yellow-shirted stu-
dents representing the Coalition
for Tuition Equality, accompa-
nied by student representatives
of allied organizations on cam-
pus, filled the Michigan Union's
Pendleton Room yesterday during
the University's Board of Regents
meeting.
At the meeting, several student
organizations protested in sup-
port of issues such as childcare for
graduate students and increased
enrollment for underrepresented
demographics.
LSA junior Luz Meza, who
spoke on the Coalition's behalf,
said she had been contacted by
Regents Julia Darlow (D-Ann
Arbor) and Katherine White (D-
Ann Arbor) to discuss the group's
core issues before the board.

Meza recounted a personal
story about her experience as
an undocumented immigrant in
Detroit. She said one of her clos-
est friends in high school, also an
undocumented immigrant, was
arrested during their senior year
and deported to Mexico despite
being acceptedto attend college at
the University of Detroit-Mercy.
"Over the course of the three
years I spent in Mexico, none of
my classmates and I discussed
higher education," Meza said.
"(My) parents brought me to
the United States because of the
opportunities that they know we
will have. There were only five of
my peers from elementary school
to graduate from high school, and
I was the only to attend college."
Meza also called for increased
enrollment of Latino and Afri-
can-American students, the
implementation of a mandatory
intergroup relations course for
University students and establish-
ment of in-state tuition for undoc-
umented students.
"I want to go back to south-
west Detroit and tell them that
the University of Michigan cares
See EQUALITY, Page 3

Firefighters respond to a tornado in Dexter last night. No causalties were reported, though many buildings and homes were damaged ,
Tornado slams Dexter

Ann Arbor spared
as campus takes
cover from storm
By ZACH BERGSON and
ANNA ROSENBERG and
ADAM RUBENFIRE
Online Editor, Daily Staff Reporter
and DarlyNews Editor
DEXTER, Mich. - As a result
of a storm that brought signifi-

cant rain, severe hail and gust-
ing winds to campus yesterday,
several University buildings
sustained damage, while a tor-
nado ravaged the nearby towns
of Dexter and Pinckney.
No casualties or injuries were
reported by the Washtenaw
County Emergency Manage-
ment agency as of 11 p.m. yester-
day. However, at the University,
significant leaking was observed
in the center hallway connect-
ing Mason and Angell Halls. At

the intersection of South State
and Arch Streets, about 2 feet
of standing water slowed cars
traveling near South Campus,
and water reached the hoods of
parked cars in front of the Ste-
phen M. Ross Academic Center
and the Athletic Ticket Office.
A tornado warning for Washt-
enaw County was issued after 5
p.m. yesterday evening, and the
University's Emergency Alert
system was activated, sending
text, e-mail and voice messages

to students, faculty and staff
The system sent students four
messages regarding the initial
tornado warning, an extension of
the warning, spotting of funnel
clouds and tornados, and finally
the expiration of the warning
and a subsequent thunderstorm
watch and flood warning.
Department of Public Safety
spokeswoman Diane Brown
said she did not have any details
regarding the leaks in Angell
See TORNADO, Page 3


LEGAL DISPUTE
A2 taxicab driver
accused of assault

Driver disputes
claims made by
Tri-Delt member
By ADAM RUBENFIRE
Daily News Editor
Murmurings of a sexual
assault by a popular local taxi
driver have been circulat-
ing through the University's
Greek community, after an
e-mail was sent to members
of numerous sororities this
week.
The e-mail, which originat-
ed from LSA sophomore Bri-
anna Porter, a member of the
Kappa Alpha Theta sorority,
alleges that the driver picked
up a woman by the name of
Emily, the guest of a Delta
Delta Delta sorority member
on March 8. According to the
e-mail, Emily was lost in the
crowd outside Scorekeep-
ers Bar and Grill at 310 May-
nard Street, but recognized
the driver from earlier in the
night and decided to take his
cab before he allegedly sexu-
ally assaulted her.
The Ann Arbor Police
Department is investigat-
ing the incident, which was
reported at AAPD headquar-
ters last Friday afternoon.
AAPD has also made contact
with the suspect.
The e-mail alleges that
the driver attempted to drop
Emily off at the Tri-Delt
sorority house at 718 Tappan
Avenue, but she was unable
to enter the house because

no one answered the door.
Instead, he offered to let her
stayin the cab while he picked
up other customers. Accord-
ing to the e-mail, the driver
dropped off one customer and
then proceeded to drive Emily
into a wooded area where he
sexually assaulted her in his
vehicle.
Emily was able to open
the door of the vehicle and
run from the area, and was
later picked up on South Uni-
versity Avenue and brought
back to the Tri-Delt house
before reporting the incident
to police the next morning,
according to the e-mail.
In the e-mail, Porter urged
sorority members to avoid
taking his services until the
incident was investigated.
"Please, please, please stop
taking (the driver's) cab," Por-
ter wrote.
Porter did not respond to
a request for comment on
Wednesday.
AAPD spokeswoman Lieu-
tenant Renee Bush was unable
to confirm whether the house
in the report was in fact the
Tri-Delt house since the vic-
tim was "not familiar with the
area."
According to Bush, the
driver initially told the victim
at the time of her taxi request
at Scorekeepers that he had
to pick up other customers,
after which he would drop her
off. This does not correspond
with statements in the e-mail,
which suggest that the driver
took the victim straight to the
See ASSAULT, Page 3

Uninersity President Mary Sue Coleman speaks at the Board of tegents meeting yesterday.
New School o Nursing
building gt go ahead

CAMPUS LIFE
Greek Life
plans safe
St. Patty's
Program organized
to ensure revelers
stay safe tomorrow
By LIANA ROSENBLOOM
Daily StaffReporter
As students kick off their St.
Patrick's Day festivities tomorrow
adorned in green apparel and with
pitchers of green beer in tow, mem-
bers of the University's Greek com-
munity will be working to promote
safe behavior.
In an effort to prevent the poten-
tially dangerous effects of alcohol
on the annual holiday that's known
more for excessive drinking and
partying than its religious roots,
LSA junior Sean Jackson, president
of the Interfraternity Council, said
IFC developed a three-part preven-
tion effort to aid students.
According to Jackson, members
of the Interfraternal Development
Council will serve as ambassadors,
walking around the areas of Geddes,
Hill and State Streets tomorrow in
orange T-shirts, looking for unsafe
behavior and providing assistance
as needed. They will also hand out
bottled water and fliers with impor-
tant safety and emergency contact
information.
The junior members of IFC, who
will be joined by members of the
junior Panhellenic Association,
received specific training from the
Ann Arbor Police Department and
University Health Services. Dur-
ing the training, ambassadors were
taught how to recognize dangerous
See ST. PATTY'S, Page 2

Regents also
appoint external
auditor
By PETER SHAHIN
Daily StaffReporter
The University's Board of
Regents approved a new home
for the School of Nursing at
their monthly meeting yesterday
in the Pendleton Room of the
Michigan Union - a deviation
from their typical meeting space
in the Fleming Administration
Building as the board seeks
a new permanent location to

accommodate more attendees.
University Provost Philip
Hanlon said the school's cur-
rent building - a former hospital
built in 1913 - can't be retrofit-
ted to accommodate the use of
models and other technologies
for instruction. In addition to
voting on the new school, the
regents voted on a name change
for Crisler Arena and addressed
the hiring of an external auditor
to investigate the University's
handling of the alleged posses-
sion of child pornography by a
former University of Michigan
Health System resident. The
board also approved honorary
degree recipients for the 2012

Spring Commencement ceremo-
ny and an increased budget for
Yost Ice Arena renovations.
In an interview after the
meeting, Hanlon said the new
School of Nursing will be able to
provide for increased resources.
"They want to greatly expand
their use of simulated patients
in their instruction," Hanlon
said. "They have these manikins
(and) they can program them to
have all sorts of symptoms and
problems, and students can work
on them as a first step before
they run into real patients."
According to a communi-
cation to the regents sent by
See NURSING, Page 3


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