The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
NEWS BRIEFS
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich.
Four grants given
to reduce toxins in
the Great Lakes
The U.S. Environmental Pro-
tection Agency has awarded four
grants totaling over $3.6 million
for projects designed to reduce
exposure to mercury and other
toxins for people eating Great
Lakes fish.
State health departments in
Michigan, Minnesota and Wis-
consin about nearly $1 million
each. Cornell University got
about $600,000 for a project to
reduce toxic exposure among
urban anglers in the Great Lakes
region.
The grants came from the
Great Lakes Restoration Initia-
tive, an Obama administration
program that focuses on some of
the most persistent environmen-
tal problems affecting the lakes,
including toxic pollution, inva-
sive species and habitat loss.
PA regional administrator
Susan Hedman said Wednesday
that despite significant progress,
10 percent of babies born along
the north shore of Lake Supe-
rior had mercury levels above the
agency's dose limit.
FORT MYERS, Fla.
Florida legislator
enters rehab center
for substance abuse
Florida Republican Rep.
* Henry "Trey" Radel, who plead-
ed guilty to a misdemeanor
charge of cocaine possession and
received a year's probation, said
Thursday he has checked him-
self into a rehabilitation center.
The freshman lawmaker said
in a statement that he is seek-
ing treatment and counseling in
a Florida center for his drug and
alcohol abuse.
"It is my hope, through this
process, I will come out a bet-
ter man," Radel said. "I will
work hard to gain back the trust
and support of my constituents,
friends mand most importantly,
my family."
On Wednesday, Radel called
a late-night press conference
to announce that he is taking a
leave of absence from Congress
and donating his salary to char-
ity.
CENTENNIAL, Colo.
Colorado shooter's
case postponed for
insanity evaluation
The judge in the Colorado the-
ater shootings case on Thursday
indefinitely postponed the trial
of James Holmes so attorneys can
argue whether he should undergo
further psychiatric evaluation.
Holmes' trial had been sched-
uled to begin with jury selection
in February.
Holmes, 25, pleaded not guilty
by reason of insanity to charges
of killing 12 people and injuring
of 70 during a packed midnight
showing of a Batman film at a
suburban Denver theater in July
2012.
Prosecutors are seeking the
death penalty.
WARSAW, Poland
Activists upset by
lack of progress at
U.N. climate meet
Hundreds of environmental
activists walked out of U.N. cli-
mate talks on Thursday, saying
they were deeply disappointed by
the lack of results with just one
day remaining.
Wearing "Polluters talk, we
walk" T-shirts, the activists
streamed out of Warsaw's Nation-
al Stadium, where rich and poor
countries were arguing over who
should do what to fight global
warming.
The two-week session in the
Polish capital was never expected
to produce any big decisions or
breakthroughs, but the protesters
said in a statement that the talks
were "on track to deliver virtually
nothing."
-Compiled from
Daily wire reports
BBUM
From Page 1
In his monthly report to the
board, CSG President Michael
Proppe, a Business senior,
stressed the importance of
swiftly addressing the issues
raised by the campaign. While
briefing the board on #BBUM,
Proppe acknowledged the
movement brings to light an
experience that the majority
of University students do not
have.
"This is not an experience
that I will ever have," he said.
"It is not an experience that 95
percent of our student popula-
tion will ever have."
The University's enroll-
ment of Black undergraduates
dropped from about 7 percent
in 2006 to 4.65 percent in 2013.
In 2006, Michigan vot-
ers approved Proposal 2, a
ban on affirmative action in
higher education. Although
the University has worked to
create alternate recruitment
programs for underrepresent-
ed minorities, the programs
have not been able to stanch
the decline in Black and Native
American enrollment. His-
panic enrollment has fallen as
a percentage of the overall stu-
dent body but remained fairly
constant in terms of absolute
numbers since the student
population has grown overall.
To improve the University's
diversity education, Proppe
said LSA should change its
Race and Ethnicity require-
ment to include classes offered
by the Program on Intergroup
DINING
From Page 1
are available at an extra cost of
$143, $420 and $558, respec-
tively, per term.
While Fall 2014 and Spring
2015 off-campus meal plans
have yet to be announced, Uni-
versity Housing Spokesman
Peter Logan said he tentatively
expects to have 50-, 75- and
125-block plans with different
amounts of Dining Dollars.
Additionally, University
Housing will make significant
changes in the function of Din-
ing Dollars and Blue Bucks.
Beginning in Fall 2014, Din-
ing Dollars will be accepted at
25 locations inside and outside
of residence halls. Blue Bucks
will be disconnected from meal
plans and will be available for
purchase at any time by stu-
dents, faculty or staff. The use
of Blue Bucks will be expanded
to items other than food, such
as books and equipment rent-
als.
Currently, Dining Dollars
can be used only at residential
dining halls, cafes and conve-
nience stores. Blue Bucks are
accepted in those places as well
as at University Unions, athlet-
ic stadiums, library cafes, laun-
dry rooms and dozens of other
on-campus locations.
Logan said feedback from
the Residence Hall Association
and members of the University
Housing Student Advisory and
Input Group was considered in
the process of developing the
new meal plans.
"Most students have
Relations. Since eligible class-
es for the requirement must
be at least three credits, the
two-credit IGR classes do not
currently qualify to fulfill the
requirement.
IGR courses are intimate,
student-driven classes that dis-
cuss gender, race and ethnicity,
socioeconomic status, religion
and sexual orientation, among
other culturally relevant top-
ics.
Proppe added that the Uni-
versity should continue to lis-
ten to students, as they have on
thegeneral-admission policy
for football games, the Munger
Residence Hall and the presi-
dential search advisory com-
mittee - to gauge student
voice and concern about diver-
sity and related topics. Proppe
added that he looks forward to
working with the board to find
real solutions.
"Students are tired of talk-
ing; students want to see some
action," Proppe said.
On behalf of the board,
Regent Denise Ilitch (D) said
the administration is work-
ing on programs to better
approach problems facing
diversity on campus.
Although Ilitch said the pro-
cess ofimplementing programs
may take a while, she said the
board shares the same passion
to solving the problems as the
students.
"We're as frustrated as the
students, but we're very com-
mitted to these topics," Ilitch
said.
The next meeting of the
Board of Regents is scheduled
for Dec. 19.
responded positively - espe-
cially in light of the dining
renovations and new options
that will be available at South
Quad," he wrote in an e-mail.
"Student surveys over several
years indicated that these plans
result in the highest levels of
satisfaction."
Logan added that he has
been in contact with other
universities across the country
to discuss students' meal plan
preferences - with unlimited
meal plans largely preferred.
Engineering sophomore
Matt Chudoba, who currently
lives in Bursley Residence Hall,
said he supports the unlimited
meal plans. As a freshman liv-
ingin Mary Markley Residence
Hall, Chudoba said the 125-
block meal plan provided more
than enough Dining Dollars,
Blue Bucks and meals, but the
same plan is not as effective in
Bursley.
However, LSA sophomore
Kaia Parenti thought the
unlimited meal plans will be
unnecessary for some. With
her 150-block meal plan, she
has only used two-thirds of her
meals, and spends Dining Dol-
lars and Blue Bucks a couple of
times a week.
While Parenti said she will
purchase a Silver or Gold Plan
next year to save money, she
said she thinks a plan with
fewer meals and more Din-
ing Dollars would be a better
option for some.
"It really depends on where
I'm living but I think overall, I
wish I could get more Dining
Dollars," she said. "Twenty-
five is nothing. It's going to last
me two weeks."
SERVICE
From Page 1
ing firm. The report suggested
Accenture was "taking over
financial and IT management" at
the University.
"I assure you that this is sim-
ply not true," Slottow wrote in his
e-mail Wednesday. "Well trained
University of Michigan employ-
ees with deep expertise are man-
aging our day-to-day finance and
IT operations."
Additionally, since Rowan
Miranda, associate vice president
for finance, previously worked for
Accenture, Slottow said Miranda
took himself out of the selection
process "to eliminate any pos-
sibility of real or perceived bias."
The report had accused Miranda
of a conflict of interest because
of the involvement of his former
employer in the Shared Service
Center's creation.
Addressing concerns that
lower-income women were par-
ticularly burdened as part of the
transitional staff, the statement
said that planned Shared Service
Center staff shares similar demo-
graphics with the rest of the Uni-
versity's staff positions.
Three separate forums led by
Laurita Thomas, associate vice
president for human resources,
were held during the week to pro-
vide more detailed information
about the center's organization
and transition process. The cur-
rent structure of the center will
feature six functional lead posi-
tions and about 20 other leader
roles.
Interim LSA Dean Susan
Gelman reiterated in an e-mail
interview that there will be no
layoffsin the transitional pro-
cess and voiced her support for
staff members' moving to the
center.
"In my view, this was the most
urgent of all the concerns that
have been raised regarding AST,
and it is tremendously reassur-
ing that our staff will continue to
have a place within the univer-
sity," she wrote.
Friday, November 22, 2013 - 3
During the public comment
portion of Thursday's Board of
Regents meeting, two faculty
members and one graduate stu-
dent expressed concerns about
the Shared Services Center.
Women's Studies Prof. Celeste
Brusati, Rackham student Eliza-
beth Walker and Women's Studies
Prof. Maria Cotera all touched on
similar points. Their comments
were mostly concerned with the
possible dehumanization of fac-
ulty members and lack of commu-
nication and interaction between
faculty and students.
In her address to the regents,
Walker said she chose the Uni-
versity's graduate program over
other competitive higher educa-
tion institutions because of the
interactions she had with staff on
campus when she visited.
"I want you to realize that by
doing this program you'll be tak-
ing something vital from my edu-
cation," Walker said. "There is no
possible way the staff could con-
tinue their level of service in a dif-
ferent location."
VIDEO GAME out and doing things in real life, School, the School of Informa-
From Page 1 as well as the knowledge of the tion, the College of Engineering,
health-care provider," Meade the School of Public Health and
said. the College of Pharmacy.
bridge the gap between the hos- Acquiring the funding and In light of recent cuts to fed-
pital and home environments. intellectual resources for the six eral support for research, Meade
"This acknowledges both the projects outlined in TICTOK was said the grant provided encour-
issues of the spinal cord injury an interdisciplinary effort, with agement to everyone involved in
and the priority of folks being contributions from the Medical the research.
Kony has reportedly been in
talks with Kenyan president
Subject of massive
manhunt believed to
be in the southeast
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - Central
African Republic's government
said Thursday that Joseph Kony,
anaccusedwarcriminalhuntedby
African troops and U.S. advisers,
is believed to be in the country's
remote southeast and has been
talking with the president. U.S.
officials and others expressed
doubt the reported talks represent
a breakthrough in efforts to bring
himto justice.
Kony, who has been indicted on
charges of crimes againsthumani-
ty, has evaded capture for decades
and was the subject of viral video
seen by more than 100 million
people last year produced by the
advocacy group Invisible Chil-
dren. His fighters with the Lord's
Resistance Army are known for
hacking off the lips and ears of
their victims, and turning young
girls into sex slaves.
Reports over the years have
claimed that the brutal jungle
gangster was hiding in Sudan's
Darfur region or in a remote
corner of volatile Central Afri-
can Republic, where LRA fight-
ers have killed at least 33 people
since January and abducted
more than 100 others.
Central African Republic
government spokesman Gaston
Mackouzangba said Thursday
that Kony is now believed to be
in the town of Nzako. None of
the groups searching for Kony
reported any indication that
Kony was really there.
"The president said he had
spoken by telephone with Joseph
Kony who wants to lay down his
arms," Mackouzangba told The
Associated Press. "The negotia-
tions are ongoing."
The government also said it
had sent medicine to Kony at
his request. The African Union
envoy in charge of pursuing the
LRA said Wednesday that many
reports indicate Kony is seriously
ill.
The State Department said
Thursday that U.S. authorities
are aware that CAR officials
have been in contact "for several
months" with a small LRA group
"that has expressed interest in
surrendering." The U.S. said
it's clear the LRA is facing sig-
nificant pressure from African
military forces hunting for LRA
fighters and Kony.
"At this time, we have little
reason to believe that Joseph
Kony is part of this group," the
State Department said, adding
that Kony and his senior com-
manders have used "any and
every pretext to rest, regroup,
and rearm, ultimately returning
to kidnapping, killing, displacing
and otherwise abusing civilian
populations."
The Resolve, a U.S. aid group
that carries out anti-LRA work,
said the report of talks with Kony
is based on a series of engage-
ments between an LRA group
near Nzako and local authori-
ties. A few mid-level LRA lead-
ers say they are interested in
settling peacefully in the area,
said spokesman Michael Poffen-
berger.
"They have referred to
involvement from 'the big boss'
but there has been no evidence
of actual involvement from Kony
in this process. On the contrary,
there is some indication that the
group may be acting independent
of his direction," said Poffen-
berger, whose group helps run
the LRA Crisis Tracker, a website
that charts LRA attacks.
The spokesman for Uganda's
military also said Thursday that
he's pessimistic that the reported
contact with Kony or his fight-
ers will bear fruit. Lt. Col. Paddy
Ankunda said Uganda supports
in principle any initiative by Cen-
tral African Republic to engage
in talks with Kony, but he noted
that it's the third time there have
been reports of such efforts.
Uganda has about 2,500
troops working to find Kony in
CAR and the surroundingregion,
Ankunda said. The U.S. also has
about 100 special forces sta-
tioned across central Africa who
are helping advise in the hunt for
Kony.
Uganda's military is the prin-
cipal player in the multi-coun-
try hunt for Kony, who kidnaps
men, women and children, forc-
ing some to become fighters and
others to become sex slaves.
The LRA, which originated in
Uganda in the 1980s as a popu-
lar tribal uprising against the
government, has waged one of
Africa's longest and most brutal
rebellions.
@MICHIGANDAILY I @THEBLOCKM
SURVIVOR
From Page 1
etal myths,suchras theidea
chat male survivors are gay or
weak, have hindered survivors
reaching out. Struve believes
that social-stigmas associated
with sexual abuse have caused
men to think that they can hide
their traumatic experience and
can recover on their own.
"The definition of masculin-
ity in our culture really cre-
ates a strong disincentive for
any man to come forward and
to say that he has been victim-
ized," Anderson said.
While Alterman, Anderson
and Struve have extensively
researched and discussed
this topic, many students
who attended the event were
shocked about the storieswand
statistics discussed. Rack-
ham student Mallory Fuhst
described that this event
expanded her perspective of
sexual abuse.
Others, such as Rackham
student Ramon Martinez,
praised the willingness and
strength the panelists had to
share their stories.
"It's a real issue," he said.
The Online
Revolution:
Learning
without Limits
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(Dec 10
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We are at the cusp of a major transformation in higher education.
In the past year, we have seen the advent of massive open online
courses (MOOCs). In this interactive talk, Prof. Koller will discuss
this far-reaching experiment in education, including examples &
preliminary analytics. She will also discuss why this model can
support an improved learning experience for on-campus students,
& provide access to education to students around the world.
Register today engin.umich.edu/form/mellorlecture20l3
JAMES R. MELLOR LECTURE SERIES 4 MICHIGAN ENGINEERING
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