3-News

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Friday, November 11, 2016 — 3A

does not know much about the 
board, who they are or what they 
do. 

“I think there might be 

eight members on the board,” 
Cohen said. “I’m pretty sure 
it’s a committee of influential 
alumni who make decisions with 
Schlissel.”

The board’s lack of visibility 

may stem from the president’s 
more visible position in times of 
crisis. Schlissel is often the first 
to respond to student concerns, 
holds monthly fireside chats 
with 
30 
students, 
addresses 

the students via email about 
pressing University matters and 
most recently spoke at a protest 
and vigil Wednesday night in 
response 
to 
President-elect 

Donald Trump’s victory.

The board meets only once 

a month to discuss and vote on 
University 
matters. 
Students 

can attend meetings by sitting 
in the audience, but the section 
is physically separated from the 
board by a media table.

Though some regents host 

office hours and work with 
Central Student Government on 
student outreach, the governing 
body does not require them to do 
so.

Created in 1837, the board 

consists of eight regents in total, 
two of whom are elected to 
an eight-year term every two 
years. The University president 
serves as ex officio on the board, 
meaning he is a part of the body 
without being a regent. Regents 
serve without compensation.

When the board votes on 

important decisions at meetings, 
the president often sends out a 
mass email to the University. 
One example is the recent 
appointment of Kelli Trosvig, the 
University’s first vice president 
for information technology and 
chief information officer. In an 
October email to the University, 
Schlissel explained that the board 
approved this new appointment 
and described Trosvig’s role.

LSA junior Alex Contis, a CSG 

representative, said the president 
and various vice presidents’ roles 
are often overemphasized and 
dilute the significance of the 
board.

“When students think of the 

University, they think of the 
president and vice president as 
executing a lot of the decisions 
just because those are the most 
public figures,” Contis said. “I 
honestly don’t think that many 
students at this school can name 
who’s on the Board of Regents.”

CSG President David Schafer 

and 
Vice 
President 
Micah 

Griggs, LSA seniors, proposed 
placing a non-voting student on 
the University’s board to open 
communication 
and 
provide 

increased transparency between 
students and the administration 
during their campaign last winter.

The position, however, has not 

yet been created, and is of dubious 
legality — though all Michigan 
citizens can technically run, 
that would exclude out-of-state 
students, thereby not providing 
equal opportunity for all students, 
according to attorney and current 
regent Mike Behm (D). However, 
the board reinstated a bylaw to 
allow for more student input in 

decision-making during its Sept. 
14 meeting. The bylaw makes the 
vice president for student life a 
liason between students and the 
Board.

Schafer said the low level of 

student interest in the board is due 
to students’ busy lives combined 
with the fact that the board is a 
primarily governing force and not 
always active on campus.

“I think there’s a lot going 

on campus,” Schafer said. “I 
think students are specifically 
immersed 
in 
their 
student 

organizations and their academics 
and their day-to-day lives, and the 
Board of Regents is not always on 
campus, and I think that’s one of 
the reasons why it might be hard 
for students to really get to know 
them.”

Contis noted that CSG’s efforts 

to create a new student seat on the 
board will continue.

“(The board’s) desire to further 

the student body impact in the 
regents’ decision and spreading 
the word is something (CSG) 
wants to do.”

Carl Meyers, who ran for a 

position on the board this election 
cycle but was defeated by Weiser 
and Regent Denise Ilitch (D–
Bingham Farms), advocated for 
creating a student advisory board.

“I am going to have a student 

advisory board advising me on 
challenges and issues facing 
the University from the student 
perspective,” Meyers said. “I will 
hold office hours once a month in 
the student Union where students 
can come and talk.”

Ilitch, won her second term 

Tuesady, also campaigned in part 
on the need for student input on 
University initiatives like the 
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 
plan.

“We 
definitely 
need 
our 

students 
involved 
actively 

and we should work in strong 
collaboration with them,” Ilitch 
said. “The more that we can learn 
about these issues the more we 
can be reactive to it and navigate 
a healthy conversation around 
these topics.”

Even if students’ role in 

the board’s decision-making 
process were expanded, it is, 
however, not clear students 
would be interested in getting 
involved. 
Of 
the 
students 

interviewed by the Daily, many 
did not express an interest in 
creating a relationship with the 
board.

LSA 
sophomore 
Hailey 

Kruger said she is very active 
in 
encouraging 
political 

participation 
among 
her 

classmates, but said she neither 
knew about the board nor was 
she concerned about her lack of 
knowledge.

Business junior Kevin Gay 

did not express concern either.

“I feel like I only hear about 

the regents when something 
bad happens,” Gay said. “I am 
not really concerned about 
them.”

REGENTS
From Page 1A

sexual activity in the workplace, 
and another told her not to wear 
makeup to avoid the impression 
that she “was trying to sleep 
with everybody there.”

“It’s very strange the way 

military men tend to treat 
you,” Szostkowski said. “They 
both want you to be like one of 
the guys, so they can discuss 
whatever they want to around 
you but at the same time reserve 
the right to hit on you whenever 
they choose.”

According to the Statistic 

Brain Research Institute, women 
tend to be underrepresented 

in the military, with only 14.6 
percent filling active duty roles. 
Because of the relatively low 
numbers of enrolled women, 
Spaulding asked panelists what 
advice they would give to any 
female students in the audience 
considering joining the military.

Rackham 
student 
Allison 

Tyler, a panelist who served in 
the U.S. Navy, said they would 
have to prove themselves to 
their superiors and peers.

“Be 
prepared 
to 
prove 

yourself, more than the men 
will have to … People will tell 
you that you can’t, people will 
tell you that you’re not good 
enough, people will tell you that 
you should have done it faster 
because you should have proven 
yourself more,” she said. “The 
fact that you’re doing it is proof 
enough. Just be prepared for 
it and don’t quit. Don’t give in 
to the people who tell you that 
because you’re a woman, you 
cannot do it.”

LSA junior Andie Bulbin, 

said she attended the panel 
because she wanted to further 
her understanding of veteran’s 
experiences.

MILITARY
From Page 1A

response opportunities.

Harte also noted conversations 

and 
sentiments 
surrounding 

the election results fit well in 
conjunction 
with 
this 
year’s 

conference theme of identity, 
wellness and work.

“The outcome of our election 

has a lot of impact for people 
across many identities,” she said. 
“We know that there are people 
who are happy about the election 
and people who are not happy 
about the election. Identity is a 
part of that. We want to be able 
to address that, how people are 
feeling, how they are processing, 
give space for that and to be in 
community with each other.”

Erin Byrnes, lead of Democratic 

Engagement and Community-
Based 
Work-Study 
at 
the 

Ginsberg Center, led the dialogue. 

In her opening remarks, Byrnes 
said she wanted to create a space 
for people to start a conversation 
in a supportive environment.

“No matter where you fall 

on the political spectrum, even 
if you don’t really see yourself 
as a political person, these are 
some challenging times, again, 
regardless of your identity and 
how you see yourself,” she said. 
“I think there is much to be 
discussed right now, there are a 
lot of feelings and a lot of thoughts 
that we’re holding.”

Attendees broke into seven 

groups of about seven people 
each to discuss prompts that were 
placed on the tables.

Questions included: “Are there 

identities you hold that have been 
impacted this election cycle?” 
and “What are some productive 
strategies (approaches, phrases, 
questions) that can be used in 
challenging conversations?”

Groups discussed and wrote 

down their opinions on the 

potential impact of President-
elect Donald Trump, as well as 
concerns and ideas that can be 
implemented moving forward.

Staff 
members 
from 
one 

group emphasized community 
engagement 
in 
their 
notes, 

writing, “(We) need to talk 
together and understand although 
we cannot all get what we want, 
we can try to accommodate.”

Members of this same group, 

who 
requested 
to 
remain 

anoymous, 
said 
they 
felt 
it 

was 
necessary 
to 
normalize 

supportive places, as well as find 
ways to stay physically safe and 
secure.

Neeraja 
Aravamudan, 
the 

assistant director for engaged 
learning at the Ginsberg Center, 
said it is important for people to 
have a voice and feel comfortable 
expressing opinions especially 
with people in their lives who 
have different beliefs.

“Personally, I see a lot of 

people struggling with a lot of 

emotion, struggling with how to 
talk to folks who differ so much 
from them in terms of what they 
believe and how to reach those 
who we might — whether it’s 
family or friends we might care 
about — feel we’re fundamentally 
different from, either in values or 
in ideology or actions, and how 
to continue to have a relationship 
while challenging someone.”

She added she felt the election 

exposed 
many 
underlying 

nationwide issues.

“I don’t think people feel 

comfortable returning to normal, 
how to move forward, how to 
figure out the strategies that 
allow us to feel like we have 
agency to change the future and 
to have an impact and to continue 
to process the emotion in order to 
move toward action,” she said. “I 
think that’s the big piece.”

GINSBERG
From Page 1A

referred to white supremacy as 
a system designed to prioritize 
and benefit one group over 
another, and said racism was 
engraved in the roots of the 
country.

“Racism is not just about 

interpersonal 
discussions, 
it 

is about policies,” Islam said. 
“Racism 
is 
something 
that 

morphs and evolves over time.”

Islam listed several ways 

for students to combat recent 
incidents on campus, such as 
anti-Black, 
anti-Muslim 
and 

anti-LGBTQ posters found on 
campus, 
including 
listening 

to and showing compassion 
for minority students. MSA 
President Farhan Ali, an LSA 
junior, said this was the main 
reason they invited Islam to 
speak.

“We want to try to build 

relationships 
with 
other 

minority groups on campus,” 
Farhan said. “We want to try to 
educate members in MSA about 
racism. They share the same 
struggles we do.”

LSA sophomore Hiba Asad, an 

MSA member who attended the 
event, said she felt empowered 
by Islam’s talk.

“I feel like a lot of times 

we’re always told to stand up 
for different subcommunities 
within the overarching Muslim 
community, 
and 
even 
non-

Muslims, 
groups 
that 
are 

marginalized in America,” Asad 
said. “I feel like it’s always nice 
to have tangible ways to go 
about that.”

Throughout the talk, Islam 

stressed 
the 
importance 

of education and making a 
sustained 
effort 
to 
affect 

change for the betterment of 
race relations on campuses and 
in communities.

With education, she noted, 

comes a compulsion to liberate 
and 
de-stigmatize 
other 

minority groups.

Islam’s 
talk 
was 

coincidentally scheduled just 
days 
after 
President-elect 

Donald Trump won the general 
election. Several students in 
attendance 
mentioned 
how 

they felt a renewed sense of 

fear on campus following the 
results — during his campaign, 
Trump made several negative 
comments regarding Muslim 
Americans that have sparked 
concern among members of the 
campus community.

“It’s a hard time to be a 

minority and a person who is 
actively standing up for them,” 
Asad said.

Islam concluded her speech 

by telling the crowd to “have 
heart” in the face of uncertain 
times ahead.

“Just because society might 

marginalize these individuals 
doesn’t mean that we need to,” 
she said. 

RACISM
From Page 1A

never released a developed plan 
or position on student debt. 
Trump’s interviews and position 
statements during the campaign 
had few comments pertaining to 
student debt other than stating it 
is a problem.

Student debt in particular is 

currently a major concern for 
college students. More than 40 
percent of Americans who have 
borrowed from the government’s 
main student loan program either 
aren’t making payments or are 
behind, according to a quarterly 
report from the Department of 
Education. These loans total 
more than $200 billion spread 
out among 22 million Americans, 
and those numbers are on the 
rise. That number does not 
encapsulate private loan debt.

LSA 
sophomore 
Jessica 

Ankley is worried about both the 
current levels of student debt and 
the prospect of an exponential 
growth in tuition costs.

“As someone who is trying to 

avoid more debt, it’s sad,” Ankley 
said. “I feel like it digs us deeper 

into this hole of student debt 
and being trapped within the 
fact that education is already so 
expensive.”

Engineering 
sophomore 

Morgan Meade wrote in an 
e-mail interview that one of the 
defining factors in whom she 
voted for in this election was 
which party would support her 
in pursuing her education.

“Trumps platform on reducing 

student debt is incredibly vague 
as he claims that he will work 
with congress to make sure that 
universities make a “good faith 
effort” to reduce college costs 
and student debt in exchange for 
tax breaks,” Meade wrote in an 
email interview. “This platform 
seems dismissive of the subject 
since most colleges are not the 
holders of student debt … As a 
young voter, I definitely wish that 
I could have heard more about 
education from both parties.”

Meade wrote that Trump’s 

lack of a plan is worrisome for 
future generations, given his 
influence as president.

“This shows a lack of regard for 

the country after his presidency 
since college-age students will be 
entering the workforce after his 

first term but he hasn’t considered 
the federal assistance that many 
students need to complete their 
education,” Meade wrote. “If 
the next generation of college 
students are trapped paying off 
their debts for many years after 
graduation as students are now, 
the income of these students that 
should be spent stimulating the 
market will end up back in the 
hands of banks.”

The Republican Party platform 

as a whole, which consists of 
more than 60 pages, has slightly 
more on the topic, dedicating 
two sections to college costs 
and general higher education. 
The platform suggests that the 
federal government abstain from 
involvement with student loans 

and instead shift the loans to the 
private sector.

“In order to encourage new 

modes 
of 
higher 
education 

delivery to enter the market, 
accreditation should be decoupled 
from federal financing, and states 
should be empowered to allow a 
wide array of accreditation and 
credentialing bodies to operate,” 
the document reads.

Cynthia Wilbanks, University 

vice president for government 
relations, 
said 
regardless 
of 

what legislative action is taken 
in regards to student debt, the 
University 
will 
continue 
its 

work in assisting students with 
financial aid and offering up their 
own experience throughout the 
legislative process.

“There are high-level goals in 

terms of helping students afford 
a college education,” Wilbanks 
said. “They certainly are the right 
goals. The legislative process 
works in largely mysterious ways. 
Nonetheless, it does take time 
for ideas to get developed into 
legislative bills … but we will have 
time to look at the specifics, have 
a chance to react and provide our 
own experience as to what we 
have been able to do.”

TRUMP
From Page 1A

“Trump’s platform 

on reducing 

student debt is 

incredibly vague.”
“Be prepared to 
prove yourself, 
more than the 

men will have to.”

“I honestly don’t think 

that many students at this 

school can name who’s on 

the Board of Regents.”

ALEXIS RANKIN/Daily

U.S. Navy Veteran Leon Howard, a Program Manager in the Office of 
Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs, speaks at a screening of the documentary 
Veterans of Color as a part of Veterans Week in Haven Hall Thursday. 

VETE R ANS OF COLOR

