The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, April 2, 2012 - 7A The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Monday, April 2, 2012 - 7A 'U' to hire four new deans after slew of resignations University students play with a dog at the Puppies on the Porch event on Friday. Pupies on the Porch event raises money for charities More than 300 participate in Sigma Chi and Pi Beta Phi event By PETER SHAHIN Daily StaffReporter Copper, a beagle mix, wandered around anxiously, dodging the adoring squeals of girls and the mob of hands that reached down to pet him at the Puppies on the Porch fundraiser hosted by the Pi Beta Phi sorority and the Sigma Chi fraternity on Friday. More than 300 people attend- ed the event, which raised money for the Greek organiza- tions' principle philanthropies, First Book, which provides new books for low-income families, and the Huntsman Cancer Foun- DETROIT From Page 1A Schumack said the majority of the houses in the neighborhood were built in the 1930s to accom- modate the influx of workers that came to Detroit to work in the then booming automobile indus- try, but the homes were never intended to be permanent struc- tures. Many of the houses, even the inhabited ones, are in poor shape due to years of neglect or abandonment, but according to Schumack, the goal of the proj- ect is to make the neighborhood safer and nicer for the remaining residents. "The alternative is unaccept- able to me under any circum- stances," he said. "You'll have one or two houses on a street that are still inhabited, surrounded by burned out, trash-filled, danger- ous structures and drug houses and prostitutes. Your children have to walk by that every day on their way to school ... That's the alternative." In the same neighborhood, Hannah Smotrich, an associate professor at the School, of Art & Design, worked with University students to strip the outside of an abandoned house and replace the dation. Proceeds also went to the Lenawee Humane Society, a non-profit, no-kill shelter in Adrian, Mich. The 12 puppies that partici- pated in the event came from the Lenawee Humane Society, which manages 108 animals on a budget of $27,000 a month. LSA sophomore Sarah Gil- berg, vice president of philan- thropy for Pi Beta Phi, said she was glad that her sorority came together with Sigma Chi to put on the event. "Well, everyone loves puppies and we thought that this would be a good event to fundraise for our philanthropy," Gilberg said. Sasha Wilkerson, assistant shelter manager at Lenawee Humane Society, said she hopes that the event was successful in raising awareness about aban- doned animals. "(We want) to give a lot more siding with large painted boards with a map of rehabilitation, demolition and gardening proj- ects in the area. The work is part of a semester-long project with Neighbors Building Brightmoor. "We came up with a concept of what could be on the sides, what could be useful to the com- munity," Smotrich said. "They would really like almost a'visitor center' in a way ... it would be fun to have an orientation for people who don't live here." At another site in Detroit, stu- dents worked to help demolish a series of houses to make way for a community garden. Busi- ness Senior Chris Sefcheck, who volunteered with Phi Chi Theta, a co-ed business and econom- ics professional fraternity, said he expanded his commitment through the Detroit Partnership to work on a weekly basis tutor- ing elementary school students in Detroit. "It's very rewarding, it's great to work one on one with the kids," Sefcheck said. At the end of the day, all of the participants gathered in Sto- epel Park near Detroit's west- side to hear from community leaders and activists about con- tinuing projects and their appre- ciation for the volunteers' time in exposure and let people know that there is this problem going on," Wilkerson said. "There are animals that need our help, so the more people that can help, the better." LSA junior Anna Peters, a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority, said she was excited to see the puppies, adding that the event was a unique method to raise money for charity. "This is an awesome way to raise money for their philan- thropies ... Everyone wants to see puppies," she said. LSA junior Olivia Roser said that as a member of a sorority, it was a great opportunity to sup- port other Greek organizations. "It is good to support other Greek organizations' charity events," she said. "It won't work unless we have people that come to our (events) and we go to other organizations' (events)." Detroit. Speakers included Detroit City Council members Saunteel Jenkins and James Tate, Albert Rush, pastor at West Outer Drive United Methodist Church, spoken-word artist Walter Lacy, longtime community activist Ron Scott and former Michigan football coach Lloyd Carr. "There's so many positive things going on in Detroit," Jen- kins told the crowd. "Detroit is a delicate city. Just like we're full of challenges, we're even more full of opportunity." After attending his first DP Day last year, Carr said the num- ber of students volunteering and the variety of projects through- out the city through the partner- ship has continued to impress him. He added that his message to students was to keep contrib- uting to their communities in any way possible. "You have to come here to really see what it is all about," Carr said. "My message is that you can't do everything, but you can do something. We're not going to rebuild the city of Detroit in one day, or one year, or one decade, (but) I want to emphasize that what they're doing is something and it's important." Dentistry, Law, Library, LSA deans to leave posts in 2013 By AARON GUGGENHEIM Daily StaffReporter Come 2013, the University will have four new deans to help lead the institution. At a Mar. 26 meeting of the Senate Advi- sory Committee on University Affairs, University Provost Phil- lip Hanlon announced that four deans - Dean of Libraries Paul Courant, Law School Dean Evan Caminker, Dentistry School Dean Peter Polverini and LSA Dean Terrence McDonald - will step down from their positions followingthe next school year. University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald said Hanlon will appoint four different search committees of faculty and stu- dents to find a new dean for each school. He explained that an active University dean will help guide the committee's rec- ommendation and inform the committee about the role of a University dean. Fitzgerald said each search committee will then submit three candidates to Hanlon and University President Mary Sue Coleman, who will make the final decisions. McDonald, Caminker and Polverini, who have been deans since 2003, will have all served two five-year terms when they step down. Courant will have served a five-year term and an 18-month term. Fitzgerald said deans normal- ly serve two five-year terms and added that this transition is typi- cal. He explained that Courant requested to step down after 18 months instead of completing his second five-year term. Courant wrote in an e-mail interview that during his tenure as dean, he has helped move the library into a position to take advantage of "digital technolo- gies in the academic world." "It was and is a struggle and we have not moved as far as I had hoped," Courant wrote. Courant wrote that he is proud of his work improving the physical environment of the University libraries. "(We were able to) create welcoming and productive spaces for students and faculty to hang out and work, and for the broader community to enjoy the libraries treasures and con- tributions by faculty, students and visitors," he wrote. After almost 30 years serving as University provost, director of the Institute of Public Policy Studies and chair of the eco- nomics department, Courant wrote that he plans to return to teaching and researching at the University. "I want to ... while I've still got some energy," he wrote. Law School Dean Caminker said he has been satisfied with his work in improving and expanding the facilities of the Law School. "We are very pleased to have expanded and updated and modified the building spaces for appropriate 21st century legal pedagogy," he said. Caminker added that he helped transition the Law School to focus on teaching skills-based learning by providing opportuni- ties for law students to have real- world clients and participate in simulation courses. "(They are) all designed to make sure our students not only think like lawyers, but actually learn how to be lawyers so they can hit the ground running," he said. Caminker said he hopes his successor continues the Law School's emphasis on the learn- ing initiatives he promoted dur- ing his tenure. "There are some potentially significant changes in the legal profession right now that (will) likely influence the way law schools ought to prepare stu- dents for practice," he said. After his service as dean, Caminker said he will step down to teach and conduct research as a faculty member at the Law School. Polverini said he has found the success of his faculty to be the most rewarding part of being a dean. He added that he is proud of the innovative research by his faculty, com- menting specifically on the research on regenerative medi- cine. "Any dean measures his or her success on other peoples' success," he said. Polverini said despite an increase in funding from the National Institutes of Health, tough economic conditions have made it difficult to invest in research. Still, he said the Dental School's investments have paid off. He added that he is glad for the independence that the administration has given him involving research programs. "They certainly have provid- ed some important guidance," he said. "They have been very supportive of what we do." Polverini said after his ten- ure is finished, he would rather help shape health care policy in the dental field than return to research, adding this would require an increase in preventa- tive care and education. "My goal is to do something entirely different," he said. "(I want) to try and look how we can operationalize the evolving field of perspective health care in dentistry." McDonald wrote in a letter to LSA faculty and staff that he is proud to have served as dean. "I have found my time in deanship to be endlessly inter- esting, energizing and inspir- ing," he wrote. McDonald wrote that he feels his accomplishments include hiring distinguished faculty and expanding the number of tenure track faculty by 10 percent. "The foundation of our suc- cess has been an enormous and continuous investment in faculty," he wrote. "We have enlivened the intellectual atmo- sphere on campus." McDonald added thathe is also pleased to have invested in the infrastructure of LSA. He stated that more than $70 million have been spent to improve classrooms and learning spaces, including $1.5 million that were invested in building a wireless network. After nearly a decade as dean, McDonald wrote that he plans to return to teaching. "It has been a privilege to be your dean but most importantly to me, to be, first and always, your faculty colleague," he wrote. FOLLOW THE DAILY ON TWITTER @michigandaily @michidandaily @michdailynews @michdailysports @michdailyarts @michdailyoped @michdailyphoto @michdailydesign *This offer is not YWid an LMW bmOrmr sLjW lo creM and coWOspuat WvW vft EI[lydwalk WRW qbUf Arn at P a Rate W9 c4 Horne a ti + : andghlip bmm8