ONE-OL HUNDED-TWENTh-TW() YEAIIS OP EIIIAL LREEI)OM
Tuesday, April3, 2012
SAnn Arbor, Michigan
michigandaily.com
UNIVERSITY RESEARCH
Of pu blic
universities
'U' ranks as
top spender
on research
NSF: University expenditure of $1.184 bil-
lion during the 2010 fiscal
spent $1.184 year. The University also
, ranked second among pub-
billion in fiscal lic and private institutions,
below Johns Hopkins Uni-
year 2010 versity at $2 billion in total
research spending.
O By JOSH QIAN The survey concluded
Daily StaffReporter that colleges across the
nation have totaled more
Though most students than $61 billion in research
know the University engag- expenditures. It also noted
es in a variety of innovative that nationwide, the top
research projects, many three academic disciplines
may not realize the magni- conducting research are
tude of funding utilized to science, life sciences and
finance its exploratory ven- engineering.
tures. Stephen Forrest, the Uni-
Last month the National versity's vice president for
Science Foundation ranked research, said he is not sur-
the University as the top prised by the ranking since
spending public university the University ranked in the
for research and develop- same place last year.
* ment expenditures at a total See RESEARCH, Page 3
LEISURELY LABORS
w
i
1
4 x
L
LEGAL DISPUTE
GSRA ban
will not be
i iate
Regents vote to
support court
ruling
By GIACOMO BOLOGNA
Daily Staff Reporter
The University's Board of
Regents public quarrel over
whether graduate student
research assistants should be
able to legally unionize contin-
ued yesterday in a hastily sched-
uled special meeting.
The regents voted 5-3 in
favor of the University writing
an amicus brief to an Ingham
County Court decision regarding
unionization of GSRAs. Specifi-
cally, the court found that Mich-
igan House Republicans did not
follow correct protocol when
voting last month on immedi-
ate effect of a bill that formally
declared that GSRAs are not
state employees.
Senate Bill 971 was passed
with immediate effect, barring
GSRAs from unionizing. With-
out immediate effect, the bill
will go into action 90 days after
the last of day of the Michigan
legislative calendar, which is
scheduled to be March 2013.
The regents' meeting was
called on Saturday, but the court
hearing was held yesterday, just
hours before the special meeting
began.
After only about 10 minutes
of discussion, the regents voted
along party lines with Olivia
Maynard (D-Goodrich) as the
only Democrat to oppose the
motion.
University President Mary
Sue Coleman declined to offer
her opinion on the issue. How-
ever, Coleman has previously
said that she along with other
top University administrators,
believes that GSRAs are students
not employees with collective
bargaining rights.
"I'm not going to comment on
this particular decision," Cole-
man said "I think this is some-
thing the board needs to decide."
Still Coleman said that filing
See GSRA, Page 3
LSA senior Daisy Howlind, a competitive ballroom dancer, stretches while studying out-
side of Angell Hall yesterday.
COLD AS ICE CENTRAL STUDENT GOVERNMENT
After CSJ hearing, the
CSG election continues
Student Judiciary
remands case back
to UEC
By GIACOMO BOLOGNA
Daily StaffReporter
The saga continues.
After the four parties and
one independent running
for Central Student Govern-
ment president endured vari-
ous complaints that led to the
longest-known hearing in the
history of University Elec-
tions Commission - ultimately
delaying election results by 11
hours - the Central Student
Judiciary held its own hearing
last night.
Ending a nearly six-hour
hearing until about 1 a.m. today,
the Central Student Judiciary
voted to remand an appeal of a
hearing held by the UEC against
Business junior Manish Parikh,
the unofficial winner of the CSG
presidential elections, back to
the UEC. However, even after
the UEC addresses the case
again, it could be appealed an
additional time, and CSG offi-
cials say they are unsure when
the case will end.
In the original hearing,
which lasted a total of 12 hours,
the UEC ruled in a 3-2 vote that
e-mail violations by Parikh only
garnered four demerits,because
of various mitigating factors.
Parikh originally faced more
than 1,000 demerits - only five
are needed to disqualify a can-
didate from the election.
CSJ found that only two of
the 11 mitigating factors that
the UEC decided the case on
still stand. The UEC will now
review the hearing on these two
factors.
Law student Ryan Gerso-
vitz, the CSJ chief justice, was
unable to give a definite date for
the end of the hearings.
See ELECTION, Page 3
AUOTC5 HUFFORD/Daily
LSA sophomore Raniro Alvarez crushes ice to make snow cones yesterday in front of the MLB in order to promote the
Latin Culture Show on Thursday.
ANN ARBOR CITY COUNCIL
'Ame ica marijuana policies
focus of City Council me eti
Councilmembers discussion of amending the During the meeting, City
city's medical marijuana licens- Attorney Stephen Postema said
discuss hazy ing ordinance until mid-June dispensaries should be licensed
and also voted by City Council before the coun-
pot guidelines to delay deciding P NAgB cil determines zoning. He added
on a resolution to p :_ that current state law requires all
By STEVE ZOSKI protect dispensa- j dispensaries to be licensed before
Daily Staff reporter ries from license O zoning.
enforcement "The body of law that has
At last night's Ann Arbor City until a future developed right now, I think, is
Council meeting, city leaders dis- meeting. City more restrictive than certain
cussed how to handle medical Council did, however, direct the people of the (medical mari-
marijuana dispensaries as Michi- Ann Arbor City Planning Com- juana) community would want,"
gan cities continue to struggle to mission to consider revising the Postema said.
interpret the state's imprecise zoning ordinance requirements Councilmember Christopher
medical marijuana law. for medical marijuana dispensa- Taylor (D-Ward 3) said the reso-
City Council decided to table ries and cultivation facilities. See MARIJUANA, Page 3
ELECTION 2012
Students increase political activism
As election citizens filled the Hutchins Hall
Snears, conference room overlooking
Democrats and theLawQuadforthe 2012 Mich-
igan Field Organizer Academy.
Republians ratchet The program is a part of Orga-
nizing for
up activity America- a
grass-roots
By KATIE SZYMANSKI group start-
Daily Staff Reporter ed by the
Democratic
With the presidential election National
just months away, students on Committee to support President
both sides of the political spec- Barack Obama - and trains par-
trumhave begun to more active- ticipants in campaigning strat-
ly promote political activism on egies and skills to potentially
campus. become OFA field organizers.
This weekend, a group of Though the Republican Party
abouto50 students and Ann Arbor has yet to choose its presidential
nominee, Republican students
on campus have similarly been
working to promote their ideals
and formulate unique ways to
encourage politicalparticipation
leadingup to Election Day.
LSA freshman Pavitra Abra-
ham, an intern with OFA and a
volunteer at Saturday's event,
said she became involved with
Obama's campaign to help
ensure his re-election in the fall.
"I have always kept up with
politics ... I figure, what bet-
ter time to get involved than
now?" Abraham said. "Now
that I'm here and the campaign
is so active, I figured it was the
See ACTIVISM, Page 3
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