The Michigan Daily
TRANSITION
From Page 1A
- michigandaily.com i
Monday, November 18, 2013 - 5A
October 2014.
Fitzgerald said the University
would recoup savings not only
from employing 50 fewer staff
members, but also by making
operations more efficient, saving
about $5 million during the first
few years.
"As you move forward, the
data indicates we'll continue to
have savings through more effi-
cient operations," Fitzgerald
said. "By having skilled special-
ists in place working together, we
believe we'll continue to handle
an increased number of transac-
tions more effectively."
The University piloted this
model by centralizing servic-
es for offices in the Fleming
Administration Building with
no adverse effects, Fitzgerald
added.
However, at the Senate Advi-
sory Committee for University
Affairs meeting Monday, faculty
voiced concerns regarding the
University's handling of the
change, including a University-
issued gag order imposed to
prevent department chairs from
discussing shared services.
Fitzgerald said Friday he did
ELECTIONS
From Page 1A
hopes," she said.
Public Policy junior Sam Dick-
stein, a forUM spokesperson,
said the party decided to run
LSA junior Pavitra Abraham and
LSA senior Tyler Mesman for
* the elections because it felt as
though it would be beneficial to
have representatives with more
"CSG experience" on the assem-
bly. Abraham currently serves
as a LSA Student Government-
SATURDAY
From Page 1A
And yet, a little less than
50,000 people paid money to sit
on a metal bleacher and watch,
storm and all. Most Michigan
fans, probably half the crowd.
stayed until the end.
They sat, soaking wet, to watch
a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten
team that once had aspirations of
a Big Ten title and was now fight-
ing for a chance to play in the Buf-
falo Wild Wings Bowl.
This is a Michigan program that
scored six points in the first 58 min-
utesagainstateamthatdoesn'thave
a conference win, and a Wolverine
teamthathad rushed for negative 69
yards in the past two games.
This is not a juggernaut, and
neither is Northwestern. Not by
any stretch.
People who work very hard at
their jobs to earn money decided to
spend it on this game and this team.
Think about that for a second.
They were rewarded, of course,
with a play that Michigan coach
BradyHoke called the best he's ever
seen and a play that turned Michi-
not have any first-hand infor-
mation to share regarding what
some faculty members have
characterized as a University-
imposed gag order. He said the
University treats every deci-
sion-making process on a case-
by-case basis and the extent to
which information is shared
varies,
He added that he could not
elaborate on University prec-
edent or protocol related to
keeping such discussions confi-
dential.
He also noted the University
has maintained a website that
explains the shared services
transition for months. Still, he
said the University could have
done better in addressing con-
cerns earlier on.
"There's been some level of
information available, but it's
clear we didn't communicate
enough info early enough in the
process to include people in the
process," Fitzgerald said.
In the statement to . faculty,
University Provost Martha Pol-
lack; Timothy Slottow, executive
vice president and chief financial
officer; and E. Royster Harper,
vice president for student life,
acknowledged the University's
failure to distinctly communicate
the changes and seek input from
appointed representative on the
assembly.
Only two candidates are run-
ning for the three available
Rackham seats and there are no
students running for the School
of information seat. A write-in
candidate with the majority of
votes will secure a seat, but in the
case that no write-in is eligible
for the position, the respective
school or college student govern-
ment will appoint a representa-
tive.
Given current conditions,
DAAP will secure at least three
gan's season from a dumpster fire
into something salvageable.
The stuck around until the
end to see a wide receiver with
nine catches for the season save
the game with a slide and a kicker
that couldn't win a game despite
three chances in Happy Valley last
month nail a 44-yard field goal at
literally the last possible moment.
They stuck around to see a
player who has taken more criti-
cism than anyone over the last
two months pass for a touchdown
and then run for another before
converting a two-point conver-
sion to seal the game.
They stuck around because
at its core, this is what college
football is all about, the chance
to see something like the last
120 seconds on Saturday, even if
the first 58 were maybe the most
unimpressive minutes they've
witnessed in recent memory. The
odds for that type of ending aren't
high, but they exist.
And for once this season, it
doesn't have to be more compli-
cated than that. it doesn't have to
be about offensive coordinator Al
Borges and his repetitive play call-
ing, or about why freshman run-
the University community.
"It is clear we were not sensi-
tive or consultative enough in the
planning and communication of
this initiative," they wrote. "We
deeply value every member of the
university community, and regret
that the early stages of the pro-
cess did not live up to our shared
values."
The administrators added that
the University did not clearly
articulate available support for
staff affected by the transition.
"As this process has moved
forward, we do now have enough
information about the process to
address at least a couple of the
important concerns that were
raised," Fitzgerald said.
The letter stated that the Uni-
versity would provide training
for every member who accepts
a new position. In addition, the
University plans to provide sup-
port for units whose relocated
staff held additional duties in the
department or college.
"It is true that we sometimes
have to make difficult chang-
es to continue to protect the
resources that are so vital to
our core academic mission, but
it is our responsibility to do so
in the most respectful and sup-
portive manner possible," the
statement read.
seats on the assembly for uncon-
tested Rackham and School of
Public Health representative
positions.
DAAP is the oldest party to run
candidates in the student govern-
ment elections. Created in 1997
before CSG existed in its current
constitutional form, the party is
known for its longstanding sup-
port of race-based affirmative
action when the Michigan Stu-
dent Assembly - the previous
student government - endorsed
affirmative action at the Univer-
sity-level in 2001.
ning back Derrick Green hasn't
been getting more carries up
until this point, or about how this
affects who goes to whatbowl.
We don't need'to draw out big
conclusions or make sweeping
judgments, just like we do every
other week of the year.
None of that stuff matters. For
the most part, this is not a good
football team. The 2013 season is
not going to go down in the hal-
lowed annals of Schembechler
Hall. So, whether this team plays
in the Outback Bowl or the Gator
Bowl or the Buffalo Wild Wings
Bowl is not important.
What's important is the last
two minutes of Saturday's game,
and the potential for those two
minutes that kept 50,000 soaking
people in their seats, waiting for a
miracle ending from a team that
gave no indication of being able to
pull off such an ending.
People left the stadium
drenched, cold and sniffling. They
left with their wallets lighter.
But they also left with an
improbable memory, of slides
and overtimes. Maybe the season
doesn't matter anymore, but for a
night, nobody cared.
STEM
From Page 1A
FEMMES hosts the event to
help them realize their potential
in STEM fields, with the long term
goal ofeasingtheshortage ofiAmer-
icans in STEM-related careers.
"There are a couple of differ-
ent aspects to the crisis in STEM
education," Garrity said. "One
aspect of it is that a lot of our
MCUBED
From Page 1A -
past year.
The program was original-
ly scheduled to end in August
2014. However, during the event,
MCubed announced the launch
of the External Funding Pro-
gram, which will allow outside
investors to get involved with the
projects on the MCubed website.
The MCubed Symposium was
the first gathering of all 222 cubes.
More than 1,200 people attended
the event, including University
faculty, staff and students.
"Only at Michigan would
we see political scientists and a
computer engineer using satel-
lite data to study how variations
in energy access lead to political
unrest," wrote University Presi-
dent Mary Sue Coleman in the
symposium's brochure. "MCubed
powerfully reflects the spirit of
innovation that drives this insti-
tution, whether in the labora-
tory, studio, clinic, classroom or
library."
high-school students in the Unit-
ed States are not fully prepared
for science and math when they
get to college."
State Rep. Adam Zemke (D-
Ann Arbor) also attended the
FEMMES capstone event and
was able to engage in activi-
ties with the kids. Zemke,
who has worked with the
state government to increase
grant opportunities for orga-
nizations like FEMMES, said
Tony Fadell, CEO and founder
of the technology company Nest
and inventor of the iPod, deliv-
ered the keynote address.
"Don't do something just
because it is the way it is has
always been done; think of new
ways to innovate and improve,"
Fadell said.
The symposium highlighted
specific cubes,. including the
Holy Braille, which sought to
create technologies that would
allow blind people to use devices
like smart phones. The project
brought together professors from
the School of Engineering and the
School of Music, Theatre & Dance.
Sara Soderstrom, an assis-
tant professor of Organizational
Studies and the Program in the
Environment, said the program
offered a lot of flexibility in
research. She said the money pro-
vided by MCubed was very gen-
erous, especially for research in
the social sciences.
"All you had to have was an
idea, and they would give you the
money," Soderstrom said.
Soderstrongs cube included
he recognizes the benefits
of more technical education
opportunities.
. "STEM education, in par-
ticular the hands-on application
of math and science technical
concepts, is really important
because Michigan has such
a technical driven economy,"
Zemke said. "The ability to
attract and retain highly educat-
ed, technically educated talent is
really important."
professors from the Business
and Kinesiology Schools. Their
research focused on food sus-
tainability, in partnership with
FoodLab in Detroit. Soderstrom's
cube employed four University
undergraduates and one graduate
student over the summer to con-
duct research.
Rackham student Nayiri
Kaissarian said she attended
'the event because as a student
researcher, she usually goes to
research talks,, but she was excit-
ed to hear presentations on social
science research.
Public Policy senior Kelsey
Rhodes assisted in planning
for the MCubed Symposium
as a speaker liaison and coach
because of her previous experi-
ence with TEDxUofM. She said
members of the MCubed board
admired TEIDxUofM and wanted
to bring some of the spirit of TED
Talks to the Symposium.
"When you go to research con-
ferences they can often be cutand
dry; this was supposed to tell the
actual human story and recruit
new donors," Rhodes said.
THAT STORM LAST NIGHT MAY
HAVE BEEN CRAZY,
BUT WE WILL ALWAYS
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