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Ann Arbor, Michigan
Monday, February 10, 2014
michigandaily.com
DATE AUCTION
GREEK LIFE
Fraternity
brothers
displaced
after fire
Art and Design senior Darius Shelton and LSA freshman Capr'Nara Kendall auction off a date with LSA sophomore Leslie Morgan at the Sister 2 Sister
masquerade charity date auction in the Union Ballroom on Saturday.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Former basketball captain
diescusses business growth
Four students sent
to UMHS after
SAE incident early
Saturday morning
ByJACK TURMAN
Daily StaffReporter
A fire broke out at the Sigma
Alpha Epsilon fraternity house
early Saturday morning, sending
four people to the hospital.
According to a release, the
Ann Arbor Fire Department
responded to a structure fire
at 1408 Washtenaw Ave. at 5:37
a.m. The address provided in
the report corresponds to the
location of the Sigma Alpha
Epsilon fraternity.
Four fraternity brothers were
released from the hospital after
precautionary visits for possible
smoke inhalation, according to
Business sophomore Brett Mizzi,
SAE president.
Upon arrival, fire crews
found a fire ina coat closet. First
responders rescued 20 residents
from the building, including the
four taken by ambulance.,Crews
were able to control the blaze
within 20 minutes, keeping it
contained to the front area of the
building.
The cause of the fire is
still under investigation. The
fraternity house suffered smoke
damage on all floors and fire
damage to approximately one
half of the square footage on the
first floor, AAFD Battalion Chief
Steven Lowe said.
Mizzi said the University
helped fraternity brothers
affected by the fire find alternate
housing in hotels while the house
is being repaired. However, many
of the brothers have relocated to
Varsity Management apartments
on amonthlylease.
"They're all taken care of,"
Mizzi said.
Fire and police agencies from
Ypsilanti, Ypsilanti Township,
Pittsfield Township, Superior
Township and University Police
assisted, and no firefighters were
injured.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon is
no longer recognized by the
University after allegations of
hazing led to the fraternity's
expulsionfromtheInterfraternity
Council in 2011.
In November, two males were
stabbed near the house during
an altercation, resulting in minor
injuries.
David Merritt has
created fashion line
and social initiatives
By AMRUTHA SIVAKUMAR
Deputy Magazine Editor
Two statues representing the
University's desire for academic
and athletic excellence adorn
both sides of the Michigan
Union's main entrance.
However, University alum David
Merritt, former co-captain of
the Michigan basketball team,
wants to show students that
it's possible to bridge the gap
between the two.
Merritt visited the University
Friday to offer entrepreneurial
students advice on how to go
about building their ventures
and start-ups. Though he was
hesitant to call himself an expert
in entrepreneurship, Merritt
turned his experiences and
mistakes in the classroom and
on the court into tools students
can learn from.
The talk was hosted by the
Center for Entrepreneurship as
a part of its Entrepreneurship
Hour series, in conjunction with
the Michigan Engineering Com-
mon Reading Experience. Titled
"Doing Well and Doing Good,"
the discussion focused on doing
business while making a social
impact.
Originally from Detroit,
Merritt earned an academic
scholarship to the University
and enrolled with the hope
that. he would be able to play
on the men's basketball team.
See BUSINESS, Page 3A
CAMPUS LIFE
Transfers to 'U'
contend with
new challenges
Gathering of students
and administrators
discusses academic
rigor and support
By KRISTEN FEDOR
Daily StaffReporter
Change is never easy, but the
goal is to make it a little less
hard.
Students and administrators
engaged in an open dialogue at
the Commission on Transfer
Student Resources' first
Transfer Student Symposium
Saturday in the Michigan Union.
The day included testimonials
from a panel of transfer students
and collaborative development
of possible plans for the future.
The commission presented
data from a survey it conducted,
sent out to about 3,000 transfer
students, which brought to light
areas of concern.
The data showed that transfer
students struggle most with the
academic transition, regarding
properly transferring credits
and understanding the difficulty
of the classes they signed up for.
Of the 19 percent of transfer
students who responded to the
survey, the top challenges cited
were time management and the
rigor of University classes.
At the discussion, the
participants also expressed
concern with the short length of
orientation for transfer students.
LSA senior Tyler Mesman, chair
of the Commission on Transfer
Student Resources, said the
overload of information in a few
hours is often overwhelming.
Toward the end of the sym-
posium, attendants were asked
to write down goals on index
cards. The goals of administra-
tors and students mainly dealt
with easing this academic tran-
See TRANSFERS, Page 3A
LILY ANGELL/Daily
Members of the Leim Irish Dance Club perform at their annual event Dance of the Celts on Friday.
Irish dancing club puts on
event to keep culture alive
ANN ARBOR
City council
to consider
new smoking
restrictions
New ordinance will
reinforce, expand
existing regulations
By MATT JACKONEN
Daily StaffReporter
Smokers in Ann Arbor may
soon find their cigarette breaks a
little bit more tedious.
A recently proposed ordinance
in the Ann Arbor City Council
would ban smoking near bus
stops and city building entranc-
es - a move that public health
advocates say would cut down on
instances of second hand smoke
and protect non-smokers.
The new ordinance reinforces
and expands on an existing
ordinance in Washtenaw County
that prohibits smoking near
building entrances, ventilation
systems and windows.
However, under the county
See SMOKING, Page 3A
Student group
performs annual
Dance of the Celts
By BRIE WINNEGA
Daily StaffReporter
The Ldim Irish Dance
group put on its annual
performance Friday night at
the Mendelssohn Theatre in
front of a crowd of friends,
family and other students.
The group was founded
in 2000 as a platform for
experienced Irish dancers to
foster their love for the dance
and to spread their passion to
other students who wished
to learn it. Ldim hosts one
major performance every
year and is involved in other
small-scale events, including
a performance on the Diag to
promote Irish traditions on
St. Patrick's Day.
This year's show, titled
"Dance of the Celts," featured
two acts with seven dances
each.
Engineering senior Mar-
cus Deloney, executive pro-
ducer of Leim, said the group
See DANCING, Page 3A
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