The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
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Thursday, January 19, 2017 — 3A
built form, as a kind of generator
of records,” McDonald said.
“We’re going to spend some
time at the Bentley Library,
attend a special tour of the
show at UMMA on the history
of the Union and the League,
and we’re having a variety of
guests come in and speak about
other topics.”
McDonald, who has been
teaching at the University since
1980, believes that studying the
school’s past will help students
understand its significance on
a global scale.
“If you spend time studying
the history of the University,
one fact about it is that it was
one of the most important
universities
in
American
history,” McDonald said. “I
think we have a vague sense
of the current rankings, but
really from the 1950s on, the
University of Michigan has
been one of the most important
universities in the country
and in the world. I think it’s
important to know that.”
American
Culture
Prof.
Kristin Hass is also taking
a hands-on approach to the
bicentennial in her class, titled
“University of Michigan Time
Capsule.”
In
Hass’s
class,
students create work that will
be included in the bicentennial
time capsule, which will be
launched into space this year
and brought down for the
tricentennial in 2117.
While
preparing
for
the
class, Hass discovered that
very few time capsules have
been successful in revealing
novel information about the
past. She wants her students
to use the class to create pieces
that will actually affect future
views of the last century at the
University.
“In
100
years,
people
will
have
so
much
more
information about us,” Hass
said.
“The
challenge
is
producing something that will
cut through that avalanche of
data.”
Hass describes the 16-person
class as much more fun than
most of her other courses.
It’s an important one though,
she said, because it hones in
on the true purpose of the
bicentennial.
“Having classes that really
engage students for a whole
semester
celebrates
the
University by doing what we do
best: teaching,” Hass said.
Other
classes
honor
the
landmark year in more abstract
ways. Heather Thompson, also a
professor of history, is teaching
a themed class called “The
History of Detroit in the 20th
Century.” The class grapples
with
both
historical
and
modern issues faced by the city
and examines its relationship
with the University.
“I think it’s really important
that students know the history
of the largest metropolitan
area around,” Thompson said.
“Over the decades, there’s been
a sense that the University
of Michigan and Detroit are
really disconnected, and we’ve
been trying to reconnect the
two.”
Thompson’s
class
aligns
with the bicentennial theme
of challenging society, and
she hopes her class will give
students
an
insight
into
what she sees as a notorious
gap between Ann Arbor and
Detroit.
“I think it’s really important
that
Michigan
students
question why they are so
disconnected from this major
metropolitan
region
and
actually engage,” Thompson
said. “I hope they see it as
a
place
that’s
incredibly
interesting, and … I hope they
learn to listen to Detroiters,
and what they have to say —
what they feel needs to happen
to
their
city,
rather
than
treating it like a laboratory.”
There
are
also
many
bicentennial
research
projects
focused
on
the
solely
University’s
internal
affairs.
LSA
Senior
Katie
Zoller, participated in a study,
conducted by German studies
prof. Dr. Kerstin Barndt, on
the
University’s
museums.
The
experience,
she
said,
broadened both her view and
her appreciation of the school.
“(The
research)
tells
us
how we got started, how our
university developed, and also
shows us how the tradition of
excellence that we see today has
been here since the University
started,” Zoller said. “There
are lots of discoveries we made
that have impacted the history
of the University.”
The project ended in April,
but
Zoller
is
continuing
her
involvement
with
the
bicentennial
by
taking
“Michigan
in
the
Era
of
Industrialization.” The class
involves more research than
Zoller’s
other
classes,
and
allows her to explore a more
specific topic.
“It looks like we’ll have
a lot more time to go to the
Bentley library and do primary
research,”
Zoller
said.
“It
seems really interesting to talk
about the University at the
University, as opposed to going
to the University and learning
about a lot of different topics.”
Aside
from
historical
classes, bicentennial courses
includes
topics
from
the
physical sciences to the social
sciences. The theme is intended
to involve all aspects of this
institution this semester, and
Professor McDonald says this
is his favorite part about it.
“People
from
a
variety
of
different
disciplines
are
using
the
University
as their case study for this
semester,”
McDonald
said.
“It’s a phenomenal banquet of
intellectual interest that cuts
across all these courses.”
BICENTENNIAL
From Page 1A
sustained outreach with ESG.
“I pledge to all of you tonight
that I’m going to be working
with my commissions, asking
them and encouraging them,
to hold more events on North
Campus, because for every
event that we do on Central
Campus I deeply believe we
should have an event on North
Campus as well,” Schafer said.
Following his presentation,
ESG members asked follow-
up
questions
and
offered
suggestions to create a more
collaborative
relationship
between the two governments.
Engineering senior Neha
Chopra
asked
Schafer
to
differentiate
between
the
roles of members of ESG and
Engineering representatives
on CSG, aiming to ensure that
the two student government
bodies are not duplicating
efforts.
Schafer
suggested
an addition be made to CSG
bylaws that would require
CSG members to attend their
respective school or college
student government meeting
once a month or once a
semester.
“I think a lot of it is
really
strengthening
and
institutionalizing
linkages
of communication between
each governing body, Schafer
said “and I think that that
is something that all of us
should aim to do.”
The
meeting
continued
to cover new business, in
which the development of a
biomedical engineering minor
was discussed.
Engineering
sophomore
Xavier Yeshayahu introduced
the
idea,
and
noted
the
number of minors offered in
LSA subjects is significantly
higher than the minor options
in Engineering subjects.
“Our BME program is really
comprehensive
and
really
open to different majors,”
Yeshayahu said.
Because of the fast growth
in the BME field, Yeshayahu
thinks
the
minor
would
increase interest in the BME,
particularly
for
graduate
students. The idea received
substantial support from the
members of ESG.
Engineering
sophomore
Ainsley
Ashman
Jr.
supported
the
idea,
but
expressed concern about the
development process.
“I really like this idea,
but I know that the process
of approving new courses
is cumbersome so getting a
whole new minor approved
could be very difficult to do,
but I think it’s a great idea,”
Ashman said.
ESG
From Page 1A
something that was challenged
during the question and answer
session later in the afternoon.
“There
is
an
enormous
resistance
both
inside
my
own community and inside
what we would call the larger,
mainstream community … to
thinking about the world in any
critically, racially interesting
way,” Díaz said. “Often, what
we are asked to do is to have
solidarity with a point of view
(white supremacy) that erases
our lived experience.”
LSA senior Juyeln Ha said
Díaz’s voice as a Hispanic
activist was new to her.
“I guess there aren’t that
many Hispanic activists that I
know of,” Ha said. “I thought
that this was a really good
chance to explore that kind of
area and just educate myself
more.”
Díaz’s speech drew parallels
between
the
Dominican
Republic
and
the
United
States and how each country
racializes immigrants for its
own political purposes. He
emphasized that both have a
border wherein the outside is
viewed as inferior.
In the United States, he
highlighted,
Mexicans
are
framed as inferior, while in
the Dominican Republic —
where Díaz emigrated from
— Haitians are deemed second-
class.
Both countries, Díaz said,
use racialized immigrants as
a political touchstone, and use
it to activate a shift in popular
mentality from thinking about
the world critically to being
dictated by fear.
In recent history, politicians
in
both
countries
use
immigrants to control political
conversation.
In the Dominican Republic,
Díaz
explained,
citizens
rallied around a collective
action in a fight for education
funding until there was a
sudden emphasis on Haitian
immigrants,
disrupting
solidarity and creating fear of
foreigners.
“This dream-like moment,
of
cross-class,
cross-race,
cross-geography,
cross-age,
solidarity begins to absolutely
unravel when the political
elites
of
the
Dominican
Republic awaken this very
charged, very emotional issue
of the invader immigrant,”
Díaz said.
In the recent U.S. election
Donald Trump created a fear
of Mexican immigrants, which
in turn controlled the political
conversation and climate in
the recent election, according
to Díaz.
LSA senior Kennedy Clark
said she valued the opinions
Díaz voiced and issues he
brought to light.
“He’s dealing with a subject
matter
that
affects
him
personally—it
affects
many
people
personally—but
that
isn’t necessarily acknowledged
by a vast majority of people,”
Clark said.
Halfway
through
the
lecture, the floor was opened
up
to
questions,
allowing
audience members to ask about
topics such as institutionalized
racism and the books Díaz is
currently reading.
“That sort of anti-Latino and
anti-Islam rhetoric fits right
back into anti-Blackness,” Díaz
said. “What’s interesting is
that our enemies have created
antagonistic
solidarities
between
our
communities
that we have not yet begun to
equal.”
One
question
received
shouts of disapproval from
the audience and led to Díaz
dismissing the questioner.
“I don’t deny racism exists,
sure it does,” the audience
member said. “But I do deny
that America is defined and
controlled by white supremacy
— it seems to be real nonsense.”
Díaz repeatedly emphasized
that gutted public education
systems
have
led
to
a
misinformed public and have
undermined critical thinking.
“Nevertheless,
I
would
simply point to the fact that
the
average
American
has
been educated in a system that
makes
them
fundamentally
ill-prepared to defend their
rights,” Díaz said.
AUTHOR
From Page 1A
importance
of
recognizing
dreams and approaching new
challenges.
Altruda relayed stories of
attempting to establish himself
as a promoter in the Ann Arbor
music
scene,
including
his
failures and how he learned
to better market himself as a
music entrepreneur in the 21st
century.
In his final words, Altruda
said since most students at
the ceremony are going to be
graduating in the near future
and keeping one’s vision in
mind and doing what makes
one happy is crucial after
leaving the University.
“You’re young right now,”
Altruda said. “It’s really time
to start thinking about your
vision and your career and your
life. Earn it. Life is so short …
so whatever you do, earn it. If
that means drop out of school,
go to Costa Rica and live on the
beach for the rest of your life,
if that’s gonna make you happy,
then you heard it from me. You
should do it.”
The first place winner for the
Film category was a short film
named “Roll Call” produced
by students LSA junior Dylan
Hancook, LSA senior Kelsey
Comeau and LSA sophomore
Dylan Lange. Inspired by the
pedantic spiel of professors on
the first day of classes taking
roll, Hancook, wrote a comedic
short featuring characters such
as Marie Antoinette, Big Bird
on his day off, a Grandfather’s
urn and others on the first
day of an American cultures
lecture.
While
filming,
Hancook
said he was glad he had plenty
of friends willing to be extras
in the project. Since the time
crunch for the competition
is tight, a large ground of
friends gave Hancook the extra
support he needed.
“My project in particular
is a great example of why you
need friends to make things,”
he said. “I think we had about
30 different characters. It’s so
important to have friends that
are interested and available.”
For
the
Music
category,
the song “Have to Go (Hope
You Don’t)” by SMTD senior
Steven Ciasullo, LSA junior
Tim Everett, SMTD senior
Cedric Lee and LSA senior Jin
Kim took home first place. An
R&B track about friends going
through similar experiences
throughout their time at the
University, LSA senior Sarah
Shelby
contributed
to
the
songwriting on the project.
Shelby said the song attempts to
draw together the experiences
of her and her other friends
who worked on the project.
“We’re
all
really
good
friends and we were discussing
different
relationships
and
we’ve
all
been
through
a
million
different
things
in
college that are similar and
kind of understood this feeling
of moving on and changing
so much,” Shelby said. “We
all were able to get into that
feeling
based
on
different
experiences in the past.”
Ciasullo, who did the final
mixing and mastering on the
track, said Spotlight gave him
the chance to spend time with
his friends and create music.
“It’s really nice to have a
goal to work towards,” Ciasullo
said. “I was brought on to
work on this fun project with
my friends and that’s kind of
exactly what we got out of it I
think. The creative process for
me is really hard individually
but with other people, it was
really great to feed off of their
ideas.”
After
its
first
year,
participants
said
the
competition
elevate
both
artistic
innovation
and
cooperation.
“It
definitely
promotes
people who are just naturally
creative and want to go out
and
make
things,
whether
it’s music film or whatever,”
Hancook
said.
“It’s
really
promoting Michigan students
being creative and doing things
in a short amount of time.
You know coming into this
competition that you’re going
to have something by the end of
the weekend which is always a
really good feeling.”
Shelby said the competition’s
format lends itself well to
friend groups who want to
create art in a short amount of
time.
“I would encourage people
to try and do something like
this on their own having this
example,” Shelby said. “You
really just need two days and
set time aside for what you feel
like you really want to do. Have
trust in your friends and be
honest.”
SPOTLIGHT
From Page 1A
Having classes
that really engage
students for a
whole semester
celebrates the
University by
doing what we do
best
I don’t deny
racism exists, it
sure does
It definitely
promotes people
who are just
naturally creative
and want to go out
and make things
I think a lot
of it is really
strengthening and
institutionalizing
linkages