4 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, June 7, 2004 420 MAYNARD STREET ANN ARBOR, MI 48109 NIAMH SLEVIN SUHAEL MOMIN tothedaily@michigandaily.com Editor in Chief Editorial Page Editor EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS AT THE Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion o4 UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN the majority of the Daily's editorial board. All other pieces do not SINCE 1890 necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily. In a triumphant moment, the Lecturers' Employee Organization signed a three year contract with the University. Complete with salary hikes, summer health coverage and more job security, the contract will impact lectur- ers on the Ann Arbor, Flint and Dearborn campuses. The agreement comes after deliberations twice a week over the past 10 months and in spite of the failure of those deliberations on April 8, when LEO members participat- ed in a day long walkout. Now that a middle ground has been met, LEO, although generally pleased with their gains, recognizes that there is still much left to fight for. This agreement can be perceived as a mere stepping stone and the University should be aware that the fight for labor rights is far from over. LEO's gains are extensive when com- pared to the previous status quo. The most noticeable concession by the University was the increase in salary and agreement to annual pay raises. LEO roars, 'U' listens New contract a groundbreaking, progressive agreement Lecturers that were the least paid obtained a pay raise close to 50 percent. Lecturers now will also enjoy greater job security and increased chances for longer employment. After undergoing a probation period and review, non- tenured staff will be eligible for longer contracts. Despite these gains, this agreement still leaves much to be desired. Health coverage is perhaps the most important and most contested field. The contract lacked improved insurance coverage for the standard school year, a situation that LEO will be looking to ameliorate in three years. Also, with pay disparities reaching as much as $8,000 between the three different campuses, LEO will be seeking to bridge such financial schisms. The pay disparities will only become exacerbated when the percent- age pay raises begin to accumulate. The other juncture of contention will be the amount of annual salaries. Although LEO is pleased with their raises, the amount is far from enough; $31,000 is a low figure for people of such high acad- emic achievement. Furthermore, given the University's extensive reliance on lecturers - they teach 75 percent of language classes - it is imperative that the University provides adequate com- pensation. The problems facing LEO are represen- tative of a growing and pervasive trend. The death of state funding has caused pub- lic universities to resort to budgetary mea- sures seen at private institutions and the situation will only worsen if left unre- solved. However LEO's struggle is a metaphorical line in the sand. The exten- sive benefits gained by LEO are unique amongst the nation and should be celebrat- ed as a historical milestone. Their success provides an example to other lecturers across the country and will give lecturers at other institutions the motivation and momentum that is needed to launch simi- lar campaigns. The continued unionization of lec- tures will be an instrumental force in reminding institutions that their distin- guished reputations are significantly impacted by the dedication and hard work of their non-tenured staff. Although the University and LEC. should be applauded for their mutual cooperation, this agreement marks a momentary compromise that will not suffice for the future. After this three year contract expires, lecturers will con- tinue to fight to receive more of their demands. Dwindling diversity? Admissions statistics should cause concern, not panic Recently released figures indicate that this fall's incoming freshman class will likely contain more white and fewer black students than last year's. There are several possible causes for the drop in minority representation in the incoming class, and it is currently too early to tell whether this drop is permanent or merely an anomaly. However, this class is the first to use the new application process that the University developed to comply with last year's Supreme Court decision, which upheld the use of race as a factor in collegiate admissions, but over- turned the previous point-based system. As such, the drop is a troubling indicator that the new admissions system could potentially be interfering with the University's commitment to diversity. Applications to Michigan were down across the board: 25 percent fewer African- American applicants, 20 percent fewer whites, a 13 percent drop in Hispanic appli- cants and 8.5 percent fewer Native American applicants. Part of this drop may reflect economic insecurities amongst potential students and their families, who may, for instance, be more likely to consid- er attending a local community college for the first two years to save on room and board. However, it would be difficult to argue that the new application process did not also contribute to the overall drop in applications. The new application is 26 pages long and requires applicants to write four essays. This is a far more rigorous pro- cedure than the short form and one generic essay required of previous applicants. The intensity of the new application ensures that the University will attract a more dedicated group of applicants. Students who are considering the University as a "backup" school are far less likely to fill out a 26-page application that those whose blood already runs maize and blue. Indeed, the incoming freshman class could be the largest in the University's history, as there has been an overall increase in the numbers of admitted students who choose to enroll. However, there is a troubling racial dis- parity amongst matriculated students: While enrollment deposits are up 8 percent amongst white students, they are down 13 percent amongst blacks. It is too early to tell why this might be the case. Perhaps the University is attracting a more elite set of minority applicants, who choose to attend other schools; perhaps, since minority stu- dents are more likely to come from socio- economically disadvantaged families, fewer are able to afford a University education given the state of the economy. The current picture of the incoming class is troubling, but not yet cause for alarm. It is impossible to tell from one year's statistics what precisely caused drops in minority rep- resentation in the incoming class. Some of the potential causes, such as confusion over the court rulings, may be temporary. Others are largely beyond the University's control: Other than offering the most extensive financial aid possible, there is little the University can do to offset the decisions stu- dents and their families make in hard eco- nomic times. In light of the current drop in minority enrollment, however, it is impera- tive that University administrators and the admissions office increase their vigilance and watch closely in future years to deter- mine whether the new admissions proce- dure or any other University actions or poli- cies could be leading to a long-term drop in minority enrollment. Rolling s gs AATA promoting effici T he Ann Arbor Transportation Authority deserves credit for being a progressive public transportation enti- ty; the authority is at the forefront of creating innovative programs for the benefit of its rid- ers, the environment and the city which it serves. The AATA has truly set a high bar for other transportation authorities to follow. Its newest endeavor has been the installation of clock timers at the various stops on the "The Link" bus system, which connects downtown Ann Arbor with the University's central cam- pus. These timers tell the number of minutes that has passed since the last Link bus arrived at the stop. Since the interval between the buses arriving at each stop is about every eight minutes, commuters will easily be able to decide whether or not they want to wait for the next bus. Besides the "coolness" factor of these devices, it is one step closer to the big- ger picture of a transportation coordination system of the future by which all buses are linked through a single network with the abil- ity to transmit their locations to the Internet in real-time. By taking the first steps towards such a system, the AATA shows that it is actively testing new technology that could improve public transportation's user-friendli- ness and ultimately its usability. The AATA has also recently begun exhibiting student artwork on the sides of its buses under a program named ArtRide. Large posters on the sides of all 82 buses in the bus fleet decorate Ann Arbor's roads with expressions of student creativity and artistic talent. The goal of the program is to forge closer bonds between the University's population and the city as a whole. Community building through ini- tiatives like ArtRide will enhance the rela- tionship between these two entities, which in times past and present, feel estranged moothly ent mass transportation and often isolated from each other. With stronger community ties, Ann Arbor can be even more proud of being the home to one of the best public universities in the nation. Besides pioneering new technology and implementing innovative programs to enliven the community, the AATA is alsO environmentally friendly. In July of 2002, the AATA announced a partnership with British Petroleum, a global oil producer, to use ultra-low sulfur diesel. By using the low sulfur fuel, AATA buses obtain a 10 percent reduction in particulate emissions, which are colloquially known as "smog." This is in light of tougher federal regula- tions that require buses to cut down emis- sions by 2006. The AATA was proactive i* creating this partnership and was the first municipal transportation system in the Midwest to use this fuel. By meeting future emissions standards before it needs to, the AATA shows a sense of social responsibility in operating minimally pol- luting buses for the sake of a cleaner envi- ronment. Not many public transportation sys- tems can claim the innovative trends the AATA has tried to set, or the environmen- tally friendly attitude that it has adopte@ The authority should be praised for their efforts in adopting a progressive attitude towards transportation. The superior exe- cution of their initiatives proves that the AATA is not some municipal service satis- fied with the status quo but, in fact, a dynamic institution that constantly sub- jects itself to ideas for improvement. With rising oil and gas prices, Ann Arbor' transportation system is well positioned t serve as a great alternative for drivers who are looking for a way to cut down on costs.