u h40P 46F 46F IV ,qq I Ld c an at ONNE-1.tU: I)llI'ID-l, }f1VENIfy-Fi lURtYE ARS\_ 1{ 1{ D1,11011,1All Ill E D(), 1I Ann Arbor, Michigan Thursday, January 30, 2014 michigandailycom ADMINISTRATION 'U' declines to release Gibbons PATRICK BARRON/Daily A worker carries in equipment to dry East Quad's floors after a flooding occured Wednesday. Classes in the building were subsequently canceled. Pipe burst cancelsclass Flood affected first level of newly renovated residence hall By IAN DILLINGHAM Daily News Editor One day after the first Uni- versity weather-related clo- sure since 1978, some students were told to take another day off Wednesday. Classes in East Quad Resi- dence Hall were cancelled Wednesday in response to a pipe burst in the early morn- ing, according to a University press release. According to the press release, the break occurred at 9:30 a.m. but caused no dam- age to residential areas of the building. University Housing spokes- man Peter Logan said he could not confirm the precise time of the break, but said the flood was the result of a frozen one and a half inch pipe in the fire suppression system, which ruptured over the first floor theatre area. Fire alarms were set off throughout the building as a result of the flooding imme- diately after the line break. Logan said the alarms auto- matically activate when the system senses a discharge of water, since that can be an indicator that the system is attempting to suppress an active fire. Fire officials must investigate the area to deter- mine there is no fire present before the alarms can be deac- tivated. Logan said fire suppres- sion systems in the building are now fully operational. Most classes in East Quad will resume normal operations Thursday, with the exception of five classrooms that may require additional repairs. Stu- dents with classes in affected rooms will be contacted by their professors to arrange alternate schedules or loca- tions, Logan said. Wednesday's pipe break reflects a similar situation in March 2013 - the flooding at North Quad - when a fire suppression supply line, much larger than the pipe in East Quad, broke and triggered a similar evacuation procedure. The flooding primarily affected the first level corri- dors and main concourse areas. Logan added that regu- lar dining operations resumed as normial after the incident, although an e-mail from resi- dential advisors to students suggested that the flooding might have reached some parts of the dining facilities. See FLOOD, Page 3A inal I Experts say FERPA empowers institutions to release outcome of sexual assault cases By MATT SLOVIN and ADAM RUBENFIRE Daily Sports Writer and Daily News Reporter After The Michigan Daily reported Tuesday that former Michigan kicker Brendan Gibbons was permanently separated from the University in December, Uni- versity officials declined to release any information pertaining to his academic status, citing the Fam- ily Educational Rights and Privacy Act and University policy. University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald reaffirmed that stance Wednesday and cited University precedent of not discussing disci- plinary records. "It's a combination of being sen- sitive to FERPA, the law, as well as the University policies that are more restrictive than FERPA," Fitzgerald said. ruling Fitzgerald said administrators deliberated Wednesday on what course of action to pursue, tak- ing into account "the letter of the law, the spirit of the law and long- standing University policies." "After consulting the law, con- sulting the attorneys in the Office of General Counsel, giving careful consideration to our long-standing policy of not discussing student disciplinary matters publicly, this is the only information we are releasing," Fitzgerald said. "We're not releasing any additional details." Without directly referring to Gibbons, a written statement e-mailed to the Daily from Fitzger- ald stated that allegations of sexual misconduct made in 2009 were "handled in accordance with the University policy in effect at the time." Though FERPA does not pro- hibit the University from relying on its institutional policies as rea- son to withhold the results of a dis- ciplinary proceeding, two experts specializing in media and records law said in. interviews with the Daily on Wednesday that the out- See GIBBONS, Page 3A CAMPUS LIFE SAPAC pilots online chat to increase aid VOICES HEARD m tc Un Th tion has o onlin that the t anon advo will thros 5 p.m Ar gram care, for th ratio: Holly two the id ture bega and implementing the pro- gram about a year ago. essage system Ensuring users' confiden- tiality was a primary concern be open to all when selecting a chat pro- vider. SAPAC decided to work iversity students with an Ann Arbor-based company, Alark, on the proj- By JULIA LISS ect. Daily StaffReporter Next, the technical staff worked to set up the chat on re Sexual Assault Preven- SAPAC's website in a way that and Awareness Center would be visible and acces- fficially launched its new sible. SAPAC began piloting e chat feature, a program the feature in a beta version will allow members of last semester, during which University community to interns would test it a few days ymously chat with an a week to work out any bugs cate. The chat feature that might have come up. be available Monday Given the new feature is ugh Friday from 9 a.m. to intended for use by the Uni- . and is free to use. versity community, users are ny Burandt, SAPAC pro- asked to enter their Kerberos manager for survivor password to verify their iden- came up with the idea tity, although this information 7e new feature in collabo- is not revealed to the SAPAC n with SAPAC Director expert responding to the chat Rider-Milkovich. The request. Users are also shown women began discussing a detailed explanation about lea for an online chat fea- confidentiality and who will about two years ago and be corresponding with them. n the process of creating See SAPAC, Page 3A VIRGINIA LOZANO/Daily BAMN organizers Joseph Semana and Jose Alvarenga speak at Activism Night as part of the exposure series at North Quad Wednesday. ANN ARBOR Construction on high-rise buildings moves forward RESEARCH Engineering prof. works to prepare for epidemics Team creates model for policymakers to consider in potential disease outbreaks By PAULA FREDRICH Daily Staff Reporter A fluepidemic inPortland?There's a model for that. Engineering Prof. Siqian Shen and collaborators from Sandia National Laboratories, a contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy, have created an optimization model that could help public health officials make decisions about which places to close in epidemic situations. The project uses data from Port- land, Oregons social networks and censuses to model how the flu would spread when cities close facilities to contain it. It builds on previous simulations by taking into account people's continued movement after certain facilities are closed, known as compensatory behaviors. The model gives the option of clos- ing five different facilities and then See EPIDEMICS, Page 3A Luxury apartments to bring over a thousand new rooms By HILLARY CRAWFORD Daily StaffReporter Two development companies have received authorization from the Ann Arbor City Coun- cil to build new high-rises near campus. one building will be built on top of the south side of Pizza House at 624 Church Street, near South University Avenue. The 14-story building will con- sist of 76 units, 74 percent of which will be either one bed- room or two bedrooms. It is projected to open to tenants in August 2015. University alum Bradley Moore, owner of the Ann Arbor- based architecture firm J. Brad- ley Moore and Associates, will oversee development and con- struction of the high-rise above Pizza House. The restaurant's owner, Dennis Tice, and Opus Group, a Minneapolis-based development company, part- nered with J. Bradley Moore. See HIGHRISE, Page 3A WEATHERHI:26 GOTANEWSTIP? NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM INDEX NEWS.....................2A SPORTS ,.. ...........,.....7A TWM RO EI A2E Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail Hopwood Awards recognize 21 winners for writing Vol. CXXIV, No.58 SU DO KU............2A CLASS I FI EDS..............6A TOMORROW O21 newsmichigandaily.com and let us know. MICHIGANDALYCOM/BLOGS 4The Michigan Daily OPINION...........,.4. A B-SIDE.................1 B news ichganail~co andletus now MIHIGADAIY CM/BOGSmichigandoily.com i