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Ann Arbor, Michigan
Thursday, January 7 , 2016
ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
INDEX
Vol. CXXIV, No. 47
©2016 The Michigan Daily
michigandaily.com
NEWS......................... 2A
OPINION.....................4A
SPORTS ......................7A
SUDOKU..................... 3A
CL ASSIFIEDS...............6A
B - S I D E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 B
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WEATHER
TOMORROW
HI: 23
LO: 17
Members teach
incoming recruits
how to fox trot,
swing and rumba
By ANNA HARITOS
Daily Staff Reporter
The
12-time
national
championship-winning
Michigan
Ballroom
Dance
Team
opened
its
doors
Wednesday
evening
to
newcomers
interested
in
joining the group this semester.
Students who attended the
meeting learned the basics of
ballroom dance, including how
to swing and foxtrot. Amid
lessons on how to dance, the
team also showcased some of
their best dancers.
The center of the Rogel
Ballroom quickly filled with
over 250 students as the lesson
began by separating attendees
by gender. First, the males
were taught step by step how
to lead a basic swing dance. As
current members demonstrated
the dance, the female side was
then instructed.
“It was a lot easier than I
expected, and I want more”
said
LSA
freshman
Erica
Edwards “My friends on the
team have been begging me to
come out and give it a try and
after seeing how fun it was, I’m
definitely considering it.”
Soon
after
experienced
members
finished
teaching
their planned steps, the team
moved on to a showcase of
their more seasoned members.
It
opened
with
a
rumba
performed by LSA sophomore
Jenelle Rofe and Art & Design
junior Jonny Pang. The couple
has performed on the national
level. Prior to joining the
Ballroom Dance Team both had
no experience whatsoever.
Rofe said her time on the
team has been rewarding and
has given her opportunities
Barbour and
Newberry
residents respond
to center’s move
By LARA MOEHLMAN
Daily Staff Reporter
A planned relocation of
the
Trotter
Multicultural
Center to Central Campus has
garnered mixed reactions from
the
University
community
ranging from excitement to
apprehension.
Dec. 17, the University’s
Board of Regents approved
a proposal to relocate the
Trotter
Multicultural
Center, currently located on
Washtenaw Avenue, to State
Street in an area behind Betsy
Barbour and Helen Newberry
Residence Halls on Central
Campus.
In Winter 2014, the Black
Student Union called for the
relocation of Trotter as part
of the #BBUM movement —
a
student-driven
campaign
sharing the experiences of
Black students on campus.
After the years of public
discourse on the issue, many
students lauded the approval,
including Rackham student
Austin McCoy.
McCoy, a leader of Ann Arbor
to Ferguson, a protest group
advocating
against
police
brutality, said he welcomed
the accessibility and visibility
of the new location. He noted
that replacing the current
multicultural center with a
facility on Central Campus
illustrates the importance of
issues of inclusion and equity.
“I
think
students
of
color
and
some
various
underrepresented
backgrounds need to have a
space that’s more accessible
than
on
the
margins
of
campus,” McCoy said. “I think
Trotter’s
current
location
actually
symbolizes
how
students
feel
marginalized
Ballroom team welcomes
new dancers with lessons
SINDUJA KILARU/Daily
LSA sophomore Nathan Harnden leads dance lessons for the University of Michigan Ballroom Dance Team in the Rogel Ballroom of the Union on Wednesday.
RITA MORRIS/Daily
Ann Arbor resident Leanne Wade dances with LSA senior Ilya Beskin during the Wednesday Night Swing Dance held
weekly in the Michigan League on Wednesday.
DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY
Boilermakers’ stout
defense matches
up with Michigan’s
sharpshooters
By LEV FACHER
Daily Sports Writer
John Beilein says he doesn’t
decide until a season’s end which
games are more important than
the rest. It seems safe to assume,
however, that Thursday’s trip to
No. 20 Purdue (1-1 Big Ten, 13-2
overall) will make the list.
It’s
the
Michigan
men’s
basketball
team’s
(2-0,
12-3)
second visit of the year to a team
ranked in the top 25. The first
one — an 82-58 shellacking at the
hands of then-No. 19 Southern
Methodist — left plenty of room
for improvement.
“You all can just go through
your books,” Beilein said. “How
many times has Michigan beaten
a ranked opponent on the road?
You won’t find very many times. I
don’t care who the coaches were
and who the players were. It is
difficult to do.”
It
won’t
help
if
senior
guard
Caris
LeVert
remains
unavailable as he recovers from
an unspecified injury to his lower
left leg. The plan, Beilein said,
was for LeVert to attempt to
practice Wednesday and do the
same Thursday in West Lafayette
prior to tipoff. Beilein declined
to elaborate further on LeVert’s
status or the nature of his injury,
saying only that LeVert will play
if he can practice without pain
prior to tipoff.
With
or
without
LeVert,
Purdue’s
perimeter
defense
presents a tall task. Though
Michigan
shooters
such
as
redshirt
sophomore
guard
Duncan Robinson have excelled
in recent games from beyond the
3-point line, the Boilermakers’
size from top to bottom will likely
create a space crunch for the
Wolverines. Michigan is shooting
42.8 percent from beyond the arc
as a team, but Purdue is holding
opponents to 28.3 percent 3-point
shooting.
To
combat
the
size
disadvantage, Michigan has been
practicing with sticks and pads
that extend defenders’ reach by
inches or even feet.
Snyder accepts
resignations of key
city officials in
light of issue
By CAITLIN REEDY
Daily Staff Reporter
After
building
concern
about
water
quality
and
public
outcry,
Gov.
Rick
Snyder (R) declared a state
of emergency for Genesee
County Tuesday.
The move comes as part
of an effort by the state
to provide restitution for
the health damages Flint’s
residences experienced due
to tainted water and ensure
the city’s water safety in the
future. Snyder had previously
accepted the resignation of
Dan Wyant, director of the
Michigan
Department
of
Environmental Quality, on
Dec. 29. Brad Wurfel, the
public information officer
for
the
Department
of
Environmental Quality, also
resigned.
It followed a confirmation
See BALLROOM, Page 3A
See TROTTER PAGE 3A
Alums draw
from wide range
of academic
experiences
By REBECCA SOLBERG
Daily Staff Reporter
From helping on campaigns to
running for office, University
students are making an impact
in politics, often with the
help of classes focused on the
election process.
University alum Zachary
Ackerman, who graduated in
the fall 2015 semester with
a political science degree,
is indeed making an impact
in the city of Ann Arbor. He
ran for city office this past
November and defeated four-
term
incumbent
Stephen
Kunselman,
making
him
the youngest member of the
council.
Ackerman’s age was an
initial challenge during his
campaign, but it forced him
make personal connections
See ALUMS, Page 3A
See FLINT, Page 3A
A look at how, why and where
‘U’ students get their local grub
» INSIDE
best of
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Trotter site
prompts
mixed
responses
Wolverines set
for conference
test at Purdue
University, state respond to
ongoing Flint water crisis
‘U’ classes
help inspire
careers in
government
MEN’S BASKETBALL
GOVERNMENT
POLITICS
DIVERSITY