Higher
education
reform
has been a hot topic this
election season — particularly
for Democrats. As opponents
in the Democratic primary,
now-Democratic
presidential
nominee
Hillary
Clinton
and
Sen.
Bernie
Sanders
(D–VT)
lauded
their
two
separate proposals of debt-
free and tuition-free college,
respectively.
Several
states
already
offer free college plans at
certain institutions including
Maryland, New York, Colorado,
Connecticut,
California,
Pennsylvania,
Missouri
and
Kentucky. However, no such
plans have come into fruition in
the state of Michigan.
As the current system stands,
students must take out loans
or receive grants on a federal
level. With higher education
reform, the overarching plans
come from the national level,
but state support would still be
required, particularly from the
governor’s office, if they were to
be fully implemented.
In Michigan, it is unclear how
gubernatorial support would
play out. In 2011, Gov. Rick
Snyder cut state funding for
higher education by 15 percent,
on
trend
with
decreasing
support for higher education
during
several
years
prior.
Snyder’s office did not respond
to request for comment on his
administration’s willingness to
work toward debt-free plans.
Nonetheless,
after
2018,
Snyder will no longer be in office
due to term limits. Depending
on
when
higher
education
reform is implemented, the
state may be under different
leadership. Additionally, lack of
state support does not translate
into lack of support from voters.
Debt Free vs. Tuition Free
In the primaries, Sanders
saw
massive
support
from
students and young people,
many of whom viewed his
higher
education
plan
as
the best for their needs. In
July, after Clinton became
the presumptive Democratic
nominee,
the
two
worked
together to expand Clinton’s
New College Compact so that it
encompassed more of Sanders’
ideas, including making tuition
at public colleges free for
students with families who earn
less than $125,000 per year.
Clinton’s debt-free plan as
it stands now promises that all
students will be able to graduate
from a public institution within
their state without taking out
loans for tuition, books or fees.
This guarantee requires that
students contribute by way of
at least 10 hours of earnings per
work week and their families
make a reasonable contribution
based on income.
Sanders’ plan was largely
similar to Clinton’s, however, it
went further in order to allow
public universities to be tuition
free for all in-state students.
Even after Sanders’ departure
from the presidential race and
Clinton’s sizable expansion of
her college plan, some of those
whose votes were influenced by
higher education reform are not
fully satisfied.
Collin Kelly, the chair of the
Republican
presidential
nominee Donald Trump visited
Michigan for the second time
this month Wednesday, when
he toured a water treatment
facility in Flint. During the trip,
Trump also visited Bethel United
Methodist Church and met with
Rev. Faith Green Timmons and
other community members.
Trump’s trip to Flint — a
primarily Black community which
was affected by a major public
health crisis after its water supply
was contaminated with lead in
2015 — follows a recent theme in
his campaign of attempts to reach
out to minority voters. In his Sept.
3 visit to Detroit, he attended
a gathering at a Black church
and was interviewed by Bishop
Wayne T. Jackson, the Great
Faith
Ministries
International
congregation leader.
Even before he made it to
Flint Wednesday, however, some
residents were not enthused.
Flint Mayor Karen Weaver —
who has endorsed Democratic
nominee Hillary Clinton — did
not encourage the visit, charging
that Trump did not reach out to
michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Thursday, September 15, 2016
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INDEX
Vol. CXXV, No. 135
©2016 The Michigan Daily
NEWS......................... 2A
OPINION.....................4A
CL A SSIFIEDS .............. 5A
SUDOKU..................... 2A
A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 A
B S I D E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 B
Starting in the fall 2017
semester, the Ross School of
Business will no longer offer
the
option
for
prospective
undergraduate students to apply
through a regular admissions
process after they’ve already
enrolled at the University of
Michigan.
Instead, applicants will have
the option of applying through
the preferred admissions process
as high school seniors or through
the normal transfer application
process for students already
studying at the University of
Michigan or at other college
institutions.
According to the Ross website,
under the new system 500
students will be admitted to Ross
as high school students and enroll
during the first semester of their
sophomore year through the
preferred admissions application
following
the
Fall
semester
of 2017. This pre-admissions
system, which currently accounts
for roughly 20 percent of Ross
students is slated to increase
exponentially to 80 percent of
all students per year once the
regular admissions application is
replaced.
Lynn Wooten, senior associate
dean for student and academic
See ROSS, Page 2A
PAUL AHNN/Daily
The State Theater sits closed Wednesday as it prepares for months-long renovations.
After nearly being converted
into office space, the State
Theatre and all of its art deco
grandeur
will
be
properly
restored and renovated over
the next eight to 12 months
in order to better serve the
community, right on time for
its 75th anniversary in 2017. In
the meantime, the theater will
be closed. Renovations began
Tuesday.
The
State
Theatre
was
purchased by the Michigan
Theater in 2014 to preserve
and protect Ann Arbor’s movie
exhibition business, and has
been dedicated to showing art-
house films since. The theater
is renowned for its high-style
art
deco
cinema,
designed
by C. Howard Crane in 1942
and
Crane’s
facade,
classic
marquee, entrance and lobby,
as well as the restrooms, are
parts of the restoration efforts
to come. The restoration will be
funded by a capital campaign
the State and Michigan project,
operated
by
the
Michigan
Theater Foundation.
Russ
Collins,
executive
See TRUMP, Page 3A
ILLUSTRATION BY MIRANDA RIGGS
Stories in the city
The B-Side explores the
Kerrytown Book Festival,
and the patrons, publishers
and authors who come to it.
» Page 1B
michigandaily.com
For more stories and coverage, visit
For the first time in more than
three decades, a new school is
in the works for the University
of Michigan. The new college,
suggested
tentatively
named
the School of Sustainability,
Environment and Society, would
replace the School of Natural
Resources and the Environment.
Modifications to the Program
in the Environment and the
Graham Sustainability Institute
are slated to take place within
the next year.
In fall 2015, University Provost
Martha Pollack asked an external
review committee to evaluate
the University’s programs in
sustainability, leading to the
current plan for a new school.
James Holloway, vice provost
for
Global
Engagement
and
Interdisciplinary
Academic
Affairs,
said
the
external
committee
found
there
is
greater
opportunity
for
the
University to lead in the field
of sustainability by bringing
together
and
integrating
its
major sustainability programs.
Holloway said programs at the
University are regularly reviewed
See SUSTAIN, Page 3A
See REFORM, Page 3A
See STATE, Page 3A
Ross plans
to modify
admissions
procedures
Iconic State Theatre closes for
renovations, set to reopen in 2017
ACADEMICS
Business school will no longer use
regular application process
TIMOTHY COHN
Daily Staff Reporter
The Ann Arbor venue will get a facelift for its seventy-fifth anniversary
KEVIN BIGLIN
Daily Staff Reporter
In Flint,
Trump is
greeted by
skepticism
GOVERNMENT
Republican nominee
interrupted during
remarks on Clinton
LYDIA MURRAY
Daily Staff Reporter
Feasibility of higher education reform
plans questioned by Michigan officials
Debt-free college proposals would require investment from states
LYDIA MURRAY
Daily Staff Reporter
University
considers
addition of
new school
SUSTAINABILITY
Proposed college would
allow students to study
sustainable practices
RACHEL COHEN
Daily Staff Reporter