Opinion 4 Jones: You shouldn't nt
be desperate just
because the Army is
Arts 9 White Stripes dance
with 'Satan'
Monday,June 13, 2005
Summer Weekly
One-hundred-fourteen years of editorid freedom
www.michigandaily.com Ann Arbor Michigan Vol. CXV No. 129 @2005 The Michigan Dail
Minort enrollment up for next fall
Preliminary data show slight
growth in minority and overall
enrollment since last year
By Jeremy Davidson
Daily News Editor
New data released by the University shows
the incoming freshman class will likely see a
} slightly greater number of minority students
in its ranks this fall.
The University has seen a 12.8-percent
increase in black applicants and a 7.3 percent
increase in Latino applicants compared with
last year. The University has also seen a 15.5-
percent increase in black acceptances and
12.4-percent increase in Latino acceptances,
according to the Office of Undergraduate
Admissions.
While full data on the freshmen class will
not be available until October, as of last week
6,597 students paid enrollment deposits. Last
year, 6,571 students had paid deposits, yield-
ing 6,040 enrollments, the largest freshman
class in the history of the University.
Chris Lucier, associate director of under-
graduate admissions, attributes the increase
in minority enrollment to new strategies the
University has adopted over the last year to
attract minority students.
Among these procedures used to attract
minorities, Lucier said videos were sent to
every minority student after they had been
accepted to welcome them to the University.
Radio advertisements sponsored by the Uni-
versity were broadcast in areas with large
minority populations, and University Presi-
dent Mary Sue Coleman spoke at black and
Latino churches.
The University suffered a decline in minor-
ity enrollment following the 2003 U.S.
Supreme Court decision that struck down the
points-based system for the College of Litera-
ture, Science and the Arts. Race can still be
used as a factor in admissions, but not in such
a system.
Lucier said the goal of the University's
campaign was to continue to promote diver-
sity at the University and to increase minority
enrollment.
"Diversity is important ... to the quality of
the education here at the University. Last year
we experienced a drop-off in undergraduate
minority enrollment, so this year we tried
See ENROLLMENT, Page 8
,-
MCRI cleared
from complaint
By Jeremy Davidson
Daily News Editor
The Michigan Secretary of State's office has dismissed a
complaint filed by BAMN against the Michigan Civil Rights
Initiative accusing it of laundering money through a group
called the American Civil Rights Coalition.
BAMN accused MCRI - which is proposing a ballot mea-
sure that seeks to end the use of race and gender as determin-
ing factors for admission or employment in public institutions
- of concealing the sources of its donations on their campaign
finance report by listing 75 percent of funds as coming from
the ACRC and not listing the donors to the ACRC.
Secretary of State officials determined that ACRC itemized
its donations in accordance with Michigan law, and that com-
mittees such as the MCRI are not required to provide further
itemization about donations from groups like the ACRC, the
Associated Press reported.
The original complaint against MCRI claimed the identities
of the group's primary donors were being concealed through
an organization called the American Civil Rights Coalition.
The ACRC was fined over $95,000 for failure to list its donors
in California.
"Their entire campaign finance complaint has been thrown
out," said Jennifer Gratz, executive director of MCRI .
When the ACRC finally revealed its donors, it showed that
over 90 percent of the donations came from eight wealthy
donors.
MCRI is not disguising its donors through the ACRC, but
is instead disguising donations through Ward Connerly, said
Luke Massie, BAMN's national co-chair.
Connerly, a former University of California regent and chair-
man of the American Civil Rights Coalition, has been a leader
behind MCRI, modeling the initiative off a similar proposal he
led in California, which ended the use of affirmative action in
the California University school system.
"Michigan voters have the right to know who stands behind
this issue. Ward Connerly disguising the, money may get
around the lettering of the law, but it doesn't get around the
spirit of the law. Michigan voters have the right to know where
the money is coming from," Massie said.
Gratz, however, said that Massie's claim was completely
unjustified.
"Is he saying that (Connerly) is not allowed to spend his own
money on a cause he feels strongly about?" Gratz asked.
Connerly is listed having donated $430,000 to MCRI.
See MCRI, Page 8
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Student sues SAE for assault
EPlaintiff fought fraternity
members during attempted
pbreak-in of DKE last year
By Laura Van Hyfte
Daily News Editor
A student who said he was assaulted
by members of the Sigma Alpha Epsi-
lon fraternity last year is now filing a
lawsuit seeking damages from SAE.
LSA senior Calvin Kattola filed a
lawsuit against SAE last Thursday, cit-
ing "ethnic intimidation" as one of the
charges.
David Nacht, Kattola's attorney,
said he and the plaintiff are seeking
damages from a jury and that, based
on the evidence they have gathered,
they will show that the fraternity has
a "serious issue" with underage drink-
ing and violence.
"Based on investigation that we've
done, I have significant concerns about
this frat," Nacht said. "I do not think
that this incident is isolated, and evi-
dence that we bring forth will show
that they have a significant problem.
This particular frat has had multiple
incidents, but we will see how the evi-
dence comes out."
Kattola and his attorney filed the
lawsuit because they believe the attacks
were connected to ethnic intimidation.
According to a police report filed in
February of last year, members of SAE
punched and kicked Kattola while
repeatedly calling him a "sand-nigger,"
Nacht said.
The alleged attack was connected to
a feud between SAE and Delta Kappa
Epsilon, and it occurred outside the
DKE house, located on Olivia Street.
SAE was placed on suspension from
the Interfraternity Council as a result
of the events that night, but no crimi-
nal charges had been filed until last
Thursday.
See SAE, Page 2
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