The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Wednesday, January 11, 2017 — 3A

HALEY MCLAUGHLIN/Daily

Altyn Ciang Knight, coordinator of The College Postersale, sells a poster to a student in the Union on Tuesday.

POSTE R S GALORE

community? We thought they 
should be working for each 
other — making more revenue 
and getting more foot traffic.”

Spade 
takes 
print 

advertisements from clients — 
local restaurants, for example 
— and places them in local 
apartment buildings such as 
Zaragon or University Towers. 
Consumers can download the 
app and take a photo of the ad 
to unlock the discount.

Fleshner said a small town 

can benefit from a company like 
this because small businesses 
are aware of where other small 
businesses fit in the market. 

“We thought Ann Arbor was 

the perfect place,” Fleshner 
said. “Everyone knows what 
each other’s gist is and what 
people are trying to do.”

According to LSA junior Ben 

Kriegsman, Spade’s regional 
manager, Ann Arbor also serves 
as a good place to develop the 
company 
before 
hopefully 

establishing 
it 
in 
other 

locations such as New York or 
Los Angeles.

“The beauty of this for us is 

we get to have our idea explored 
in our college town,” he said. 
“We get to have consumers who 
are also our peers, who are also 
students, use our products, use 
the app and get benefits from 
it. That way, we can adjust our 
business model and adjust our 
ideas going forward based on 
how that works.” 

Fleshner said he believes 

students will enjoy the app as 
it is easily accessible on their 
phones and offers desirable 
discounts.

“Students — everyone wants 

discounts, 
everyone 
wants 

content,” he said. “We’re always 
looking for stuff and we’re 
always on our phones. Through 
this app, you’re going to be able 
to unlock discounts to places 
that are local. For students it’s 
going to be great to unlock stuff 
and it’s also going to be great 
to see what other people are 
unlocking.”

The app consists of a feed 

that allows people to see what 
their friends and other local 
people are unlocking. They 

can like and comment on these 
items.

Overall, the company has 

more than 150 app downloads, 
22 
partnerships 
between 

businesses and 12 businesses on 
board overall.

Over the winter holiday, 

the 
company 
worked 
to 

improve the app, specifically 
by 
incorporating 
beacon 

technology, which will allow 
advertisers and partners to 
connect virtually.

This new form of technology 

works by way of a small device 
that can pick up signals from 
app users and instantly send the 
advertisement to their mobile 
devices. That way, store-goers 
can have access to discounts 
instantaneously.

Business 
junior 
Jordan 

Golshan said she saw several 
Spade ads in the elevator of her 
apartment — one of which was 
for 25 to 50 percent off for the 
rest of the day at Bivouac, an 
outdoor gear and apparel store 
on State Street.

Golshan said she followed 

the directions posted nearby, 
downloaded the app, took a 
picture of the ad and then 
proceeded to buy something 
from Bivouac. Golshan said she 
was pleased with how user-
friendly the app was.

She also said the app is 

ideal for a city like Ann Arbor 
because it makes popular places 
affordable to college students.

“I think this is a great 

college-town 
app, 
because 

there is already a community 
of these local restaurants that 
you can frequent,” she said. 
“Because Spade is able to 
conveniently place these ads in 
places that people go a lot and 
offers discounts to the places 
that people go a lot, I think that 
combination is really beneficial 
to college students who are 
interested in saving money.”

Golshan said she thinks the 

app would benefit other college 
towns as well.

Meanwhile, Fleshner said he 

wants to encourage students to 
check out their local favorite 
businesses for discounts.

BUSINESS
From Page 1A

saw the woman “crying, naked, 
swaying a lot, with slurred 
speech, vomit in her hair, a 
flushed face, and unable to 
stand or walk on her own.”

Later 
in 
the 
evening, 

the 
female 
went 
to 
the 

hospital, where a rape kit 
was administered by medical 
personnel. 
No 
criminal 

charges were made against 
the male at the time, though 
it 
was 
investigated 
by 

the University’s Office or 
Institutional Equity. The OIE 
initially concluded the male 
in question did not violate 
the sexual misconduct policy 
in April 2016, though the 
decision was overturned by an 
appeals board in May 2016.

Following the decision, the 

student was expelled from the 
University. 

The 
suit 
against 
the 

University 
by 
the 
former 

male 
student 
was 
filed 

on Sept. 1. He said he was 
forced to sign a permanent 
separation agreement with 
the University on June 27 
based on an “improper and 
erroneous 
determination” 

by 
a 
University 
appeals 

board made up of two faculty 
members 
and 
a 
student. 

Lawson’s decision references 
a preponderance of evidence 
considered by the appeals 
board, including the plaintiff’s 
inconsistent accounts.

“Nothing about the panel’s 

rationale 
for 
discounting 

Doe’s testimony suggests that 
it did so because of his sex or 
gender,” the opinion reads. 
“As to Doe’s own testimony, as 
noted previously, the appeal 
panel found his account of the 
sexual encounter significantly 

less 
credible 
because 
of 

his abrupt reversal during 
his 
interview 
with 
police 

wherein he conceded that 
his account was ‘wrong’ and 
the complainant’s was ‘right,’ 
with the exception that he 
continued to insist that he 
never heard the complainant 
say ‘no sex.’ ”

University spokesman Rick 

Fitzgerald said he was pleased 
the federal judge ruled in favor 
of the University’s process for 
handling sexual misconduct.

“We 
are 
gratified 
that 

the federal court affirmed 
the 
University’s 
sexual 

misconduct 
process,” 

Fitzgerald said.

The 
sexual 
misconduct 

policy was updated July 2016, 
adding changes to definitions 
of consent, sanctions and the 
appeals process. An appointed 
appeals board consisting of a 
faculty member, staff member 
and student was replaced with 
an expert external reviewer 
with legal knowledge.

Though the policy change 

was not in effect at the time 
of the case, Deborah Gordon, 
his lawyer, said her client 
would have not been expelled 
under the updated appeals 
process 
and 
definition 
of 

incapacitation in the new 
sexual misconduct policy.

“My client did have a fair 

hearing in front of the OIE 
investigator,” she said. “That 
was all swept away by this 
appeals 
panel. 
I’m 
really 

surprised by the lack of due 
process rights provided to 
students whose lives are going 
to be completely changed 
forever.”

Gordon 
applauded 
the 

updates, 
though, 
which 

Fitzgerald 
said 
were 
not 

instituted in relation to the 
case in question.

“Like so much of the policy, 

we 
spent 
several 
months 

looking 
at 
other 
schools’ 

policies, doing outreach in our 
community with open forums 
and meetings,” he said. “Most 
of the changes grew out of 
that process.”

In 
response 
to 
Doe’s 

lawsuit, the female victim — 
identified as Jane Doe — filed 
a suit of her own in Washtenaw 
County Circuit Court on Sept. 
21, in which she claimed 
battery and assault stemming 
from 
the 
alleged 
sexual 

assault, as well as a breach 
of contract over the male’s 
decision to seek readmission 
to the University following 
his agreement to permanently 
withdraw. Jennifer Salvatore, 
the female student’s lawyer, 
welcomed the federal court’s 
decision.

“It has been very difficult 

for 
my 
client 
to 
come 

forward and go through the 
university’s 
process,” 
she 

wrote in an email interview. 
“Then with the respondent 
suing and attempting to get 
back into the university after 
he agreed to withdraw — it 
injected a lot of uncertainty 
into 
her 
life 
and 
her 

educational experience. She is 
relieved that his case has been 
dismissed and is grateful for 
the court’s swift decision.”

ASSAULT
From Page 1A

Because Spade 

is able to 

conveniently place 
these ads in places 

that people go a 
lot, I think that 
combination is 

really beneficial to 
college students

We are gratified 
that the federal 
court affirmed 

the University’s ... 

process

disabilities.

Pile 
also 
mentioned 
the 

handicapped 
ramp 
on 
the 

north end of the building 
needs renovation. After the 
construction, Pile said, the 
building will be much more 
accessible for all patrons.

“One 
of 
our 
challenges 

with a building that’s going 
to be 100 years old in 2019 
is that it was built in a time 
that really didn’t need to take 
(physical 
disabilities) 
into 

consideration,” Pile said. “And 
that’s a commitment that we 
have today, to ensure that 
we’re going to be able to better 
address those needs and make a 
more inclusive community.”

Engineering freshman James 

Surge said the direct passenger 

elevators will contribute to the 
Union’s plan of inclusion for 
everyone.

“I approve of that,” he said. 

“It makes it easier for everyone 
to get around. If there’s one 
elevator that goes to all the 
floors, then everybody has 
equal access to the space.”

LSA 
freshman 
Alexandra 

Niforos said the fact that the 
improvements to handicapped 
resources haven’t been a larger 
issue earlier is concerning but 
the renovations are better late 
than never.

“I don’t know why we don’t 

have elevators right now that go 
all the way up to all the floors,” 
Niforos said. “But anyways, it’s 
good that they’re doing this.”

One of the largest spaces 

slated for renovation is the 
courtyard in the middle of 
the Union. According to Pile, 
the outdoor courtyard behind 
Starbucks will be covered and 

converted into a larger study 
space for students.

Niforos said the plan to 

build the ceiling over the 
courtyard closes off the Union’s 
connection to fresh air in the 
warmer months.

“I 
think 
it’s 
cute, 
the 

courtyard,” Niforos said. “I 
mean I’ve never been into it 
but I feel like we have enough 
rooms in this place that we can 
have one outdoor space.”

As of right now, Pile said 

there are no further plans 
for 
renovations 
after 
the 

$85 
million 
is 
exhausted. 

Furthermore, she said as much 
will be done with the budget as 
possible.

“This isn’t a phased project,” 

Pile said. “This isn’t phase 
one of more to come. We’re 
spending the budget that we 
have and moving forward with 
that.”

UNION
From Page 1A

under DACA in the United 
State.

BAMN returned to CSG 

to propose a resolution that 
would urge Obama to use 
his executive power to stand 
against President-elect Donald 
Trump’s 
future 
intentions 

to overturn DACA, an act 
that 
allows 
undocumented 

immigrants who were brought 
to the United States by their 
parents as minors to defer 
deportation. The resolution 
asked CSG to directly send 
a statement to the White 
House expressing support for 
students under DACA.

University of Michigan alum 

Kate Stenvig acknowledged 
the past resolution, hoping to 
now directly talk to the White 
House instead of merely the 
previous general statement of 
solidarity.

“The reason that we want 

you to take it a step further 
to 
specifically 
ask 
Obama 

to do this action is this is a 
real concrete thing that can 
be done, that can be a real 
victory against the threat of 
deportation,” she said. “If 
Obama does nothing to protect 
those people, the people who 
have DACA and the people 
who applied for DACA would 
be in a worse position than 
before 
they 
applied. 
That 

would be a real betrayal, and I 

think it would show the huge 
bankruptcy of principal in our 
whole political system.”

The 
new 
resolution, 

authored by CSG members who 
are also involved with BAMN, 
cites several problems left by 
the Obama administration.

“Applying 
for 
DACA 

required 
giving 
the 

government extensive personal 
and 
familial 
information, 

including 
school 
records, 

addresses, fingerprints and 
a DNA sample,” it stated. 
“DACA applicants relied on 
the 
promises 
of 
President 

Obama and his administration 
that the data they provided 
would never be used against 
them or their families, and 
took this risk in order to 
advance their own futures as 
well as their families and their 
communities.”

LSA senior Keysha Walls 

said protecting documented 
students 
was 
Obama’s 

obligation, since he was elected 
with the promise of protecting 
them. The resolution’s authors 
believed Obama failed to take 
appropriate 
action 
toward 

immigration 
rights 
during 

his final days of presidency, 
pointing to this as evidence 
of abandoning those under 
DACA.

Walls 
noted 
applying 

to DACA was a large risk 
for 
undocumented 
youth 

as 
it 
required 
personal 

information, including DNA 
samples, that could be used 
to identify and deport them. 

According to BAMN, this data 
should be protected through 
executive action because of 
his 
administration’s 
moral 

obligation 
to 
continue 

protecting immigrant youth.

“The 
safety 
of 
these 

undocumented 
immigrants 

is only promised under the 
Obama 
administration,” 

Walls said. “For Obama to 
know these things, and not 
take every cautionable step to 
ensure the continued safety 
of undocumented peoples in 
this nation is disgusting and 
inhumane … If he will not 
act on his own, then we must 
take action, in doing so set the 
example for him.”

Trump’s campaign has been 

controversial 
— 
especially 

in regards to immigration. 
Trump 
has 
promised 
to 

build a wall on the United 
States’ 
southern 
border, 

and claimed Mexico would 
pay for it — though recently 
Trump has asked Congress 
to do so instead. Trump has 
discussed a “Muslim ban,” and 
has suggested stopping those 
who practice the religion or 
come from Muslim-dominate 
countries from entering the 
United States.

CSG had a heated debate over 

whether to keep the political 
aspects 
of 
the 
resolution. 

Schafer asked the authors to 
remove references to Trump in 
order to keep CSG politically 
unbiased. This decision was 
contentious among the body, 
as a few members felt that the 

resolution should hold Trump 
to official statements he has 
made during his campaign and 
the impending prospects of his 
presidency.

“Understanding the ability 

and the responsibilities of 
this 
organization, 
I 
don’t 

feel 
comfortable 
the 
way 

in which it’s worded,” he 
said, explaining CSG should 
support students across the 
political spectrum.

Despite the debate, Schafer’s 

suggestion was included in the 
draft. Ultimately, with several 
modifications 
eliminating 

all mentions of Trump, the 
resolution passed.

Engineering 
senior 
Alex 

Brewster 
commended 

Schafer’s 
amendment, 

stating he feels University 
students 
could 
still 
show 

their support for immigrants 
without pointing fingers and 
implicating certain figures.

“As an immigrant myself, 

I think it’s really important 
to stress immigrants rights, 
but on the other hand, I think 
one thing that, even though 
I did vote for the resolution, 
I didn’t enjoy was that we 
were playing the blame game, 
and I do appreciate David for 
taking the names out,” he 
said. “I think the resolution 
that we passed still hammers 
home 
that 
University 
of 

Michigan students still care 
about immigrants … whether 
they 
are 
documented 
or 

undocumented, 
we 
accept 

them as human beings.”

CSG
From Page 1A

still band together.”

Also prior to the start of the 

speech, LSA junior Ellen Endres 
echoed this statement, expressing 
her belief that Obama would 
deliver a strong farewell address.

“I really expect him to give the 

speech with the same amount 
of grace and intelligence that 
he’s carried out throughout his 
campaign,” Endres said. “I’m 
really not expecting anything less 
tonight.”

As President Barack Obama 

took the stage at McCormick Place 
in Chicago and began his speech, 
murmurs of “this is the last one” 
echoed throughout the room and 
faded into silence. Some students 
in the auditorium pulled out 
tissues to wipe away tears.

Obama framed most his address 

around urging his listeners to 
respect all American citizens, 
and fighting against the political 
division caused by issues such as 
terrorism, economic crisis and 
race relations. He said Americans 
must respect one another as equals 
and work to empathize with 
the immigrants coming into the 
country.

“So regardless of the station 

that we occupy, we all have to try 
harder,” Obama said. “We all have 
to start with the premise that each 
of our fellow citizens loves this 
country just as much as we do, that 
they value hard work and family 
just like we do. That their children 

are just as curious and hopeful and 
worthy of love as our own.”

The president also encouraged 

Americans to not be complacent 
and to exercise their full rights as 
citizens in a democracy.

“So you see, that’s what our 

democracy 
demands,” 
Obama 

said. “It needs you. Not just when 
there’s an election, not just when 
your own narrow interest is at 
stake, but over the full span of a 
lifetime. If you’re tired of arguing 
with strangers on the Internet, try 
talking with one of them in real 
life. If something needs fixing, 
then lace up your shoes and do 
some organizing.”

LSA junior Collin Kelly, College 

Democrats chair, said he thinks 
all of Obama’s speeches have been 
remarkable, including his farewell 
address. He explained he was sad 
to see his long-time role model 
leave office, but said he found 
Obama’s words both empowering 
and inspiring.

“He has a sense of optimism 

about the country that’s inspiring 
and that’s really all we can say 
about it because he makes us want 
to keep working hard to fight for 
the values that we believe in and 
that definitely accomplished it,” 
Kelly said. “It was bittersweet for 
sure to see someone that we all 
grew up with as our president, 
someone that we all adore and 
look up to as a role model, it’s sad 
to see him go in his final speech as 
president, but he left us with words 
to continue living and fighting by.”

College GOP did not respond 

for comment by the time of 
publication. 

WATCH PARTY
From Page 1A

