international students as he could
to have a friend — a liaison of
sorts — Poddar teamed up with
LSA juniors Ali Rosenblatt, Seth
Schostak and Ayah Issa, also
representatives within CSG, to
begin planning the program.
“CSG is a really big organization,
but when people from different
branches manage to collaborate,
that’s sort of how it happens,”
Issa said. “We were introduced by
another person in CSG.”
Dubbed M-Pals, students can
apply to be a student guide for new
international students. As part of
their training, about 25 students
attended
monthly
workshops
at the International Center to
prepare them for their roles.
M-Pals
sent
applications
to
accepted
international
students until June, when the
matchmaking began. Each of the
current students were paired
with two or three international
students, and the pairs exchanged
emails over the summer and
through the beginning of the
school year. On Thursday evening,
M-Pals hosted their first event of
the school year, where everyone
involved in the program met face-
to-face, rather than just through
email correspondence.
For
Rosenblatt,
the
most
important part of the program
involved
familiarizing
international students with the
“We get the beans green, and
we roast them as we need them,”
Zeitoun said. “So let’s say today,
you decide to have a Guatemala.
You know that your Guatemalan
beans have been roasted within
a few days. You don’t want
anything that’s roasted within
an hour or two, because it’s too
fresh to drink. So we actually
want it to sit for at least 12 hours,
so everything in the Javabot
has had at least a day of being
roasted.”
Roasting Plant also serves
freshly
made
iced
drinks.
Rather than keeping chilled
coffee in a fridge or putting it
over ice, Roasting Plant uses a
“Chiller,” another device created
by Caswell. The Chiller, like
the Javabot, is on display for
customers. It’s a large glass bowl
with tubes inside that are sitting
in cold water. The coffee is run
through the tubes and is chilled
in the process.
The State Street store is
Roasting Plant’s first location in
Ann Arbor, and Zeitoun said this
has been a goal for some time.
“Ann Arbor has just been one
of those locations that we’ve
always really wanted to get in,
and we just found this prime
location across the street from
the University, so it was perfect,”
Zeitoun said.
Since the soft opening on
Sunday, the new location has
been
unexpectedly
busy
—
Zeitoun said they haven’t even
had time to train their new
employees.
“We’ve only been open for four
days, and it’s insane,” Zeitoun
said. “Everyone’s talking about it,
and we’re already getting repeat
customers coming in every day
and It’s only going to get better
and better.”
Zeitoun said this is because
Roasting Plant is a completely
different experience from nearby
coffee shops like Starbucks and
Espresso Royale.
“It’s totally different coffee,”
Zeitoun said. “Totally different
concept. And even though we
beat all the coffeeshops in quality,
we’re still very competitive in
pricing.”
LSA
senior
Kyle
Bailey
appreciated
the
unique
experience, and said he’d never
heard of the Roasting Plant chain
before.
“I like how the atmosphere
mixes modern elements with
more old-fashioned ones, like
the exposed brick walls,” Bailey
said.
The care with which the
coffee is handled was also not
lost on students. Art & Design
sophomore Alyssa Lopatin took
particular notice of this.
“I’ve been to a lot of coffee
places
all
over
the
place,”
Lopatin said. “And wherever I
go, the best ones are always the
ones that just care more.”
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Friday, September 15, 2017 — 3A
Ann Arbor Police Department
officers arrested a California man
this week after connecting him
to an extensive identity theft and
counterfeit operation that spanned
across several states.
30-year-old
Shawn
Ingram
was apprehended after a gas
station clerk reported his use of
a counterfeit $20 bill, Channel 4
News reported. Police officers
had been previously alerted that
numerous counterfeit bills had
been circulating in Ann Arbor.
The clerk noted Ingram’s license
plate number and police tracked it
to a car rental agency. The AAPD
then traced Ingram to a hotel
parking lot and arrested him as
he was exiting an elevator in the
hotel.
The
detectives
discovered
several dozen counterfeit debit
cards, credit cards, iTunes and
other gift cards, numerous sheets
of counterfeit currency, multiple
fake driver’s licenses and devices
capable of producing these items.
They believe the suspect has been
operating out of a mobile lab in
order to maintain discretion and
operate behind the scenes.
“We believe that this operation
has crossed into several states,”
AAPD said in a statement. “The
suspect
has
used
numerous
rented cars and hotel rooms
in what we believe is to keep
the criminal enterprise mobile
thereby increasing the likelihood
of success.”
Ingram is currently being held
in Washtenaw County Jail and is
charged with nine felony counts.
Ann Arbor Police Department
arrests man charged with
identity theft
RHEA CHEETI
Daily Staff Reporter
of Higher Education, averaged
$464,000 last calendar year.
Nevertheless,
he
remains
outside of the top ten paid
public university officials due
to an increase in the average
public
university
official’s
salary between 2016 and 2017.
After five years of compiling
data,
the
Chronicle
noted
average
salary
generally
increases
2
to
3
percent
annually.
Yet,
this
year,
the
average
increase
was
approximately
5
percent
—
noticeably
higher
than
Schlissel’s 3.5 percent raise.
Last fiscal year, the three
highest paid public university
leaders
each
took
home
$1,000,000
or
more,
while
seven earned over $700,000.
Raymond Watts, president
of the University of Alabama
at
Birmingham,
received
$890,000 last year — the 10th
highest
public
university
official salary in the country —
while President Michael Crow
of Arizona State topped the list
with more than $1.5 million.
However, the Chronicle does
not account for the housing
and transportation Schlissel
receives from the University,
benefits other presidents do not
necessarily gain.
SALARY
From Page 1A
Schlissel
also
thanked
May for his work with the
campaign and effectiveness in
fundraising in general, saying
the University’s supporters
and competitors often passed
along praise of May to him.
“You really do make blue
go,” Schlissel said.
Construction
and
Renovation
Several
of
the
regents
debated
raising
the
cost
threshold
for
construction
and renovation projects not
requiring
regent
approval
from
$1
million
to
$3
million. Kevin Hegarty, the
University’s
executive
vice
president and chief financial
officer, proposed the measure,
which ultimately passed 5-3,
saying $3 million was still a
relatively low threshold.
“Projects that fall in the $1
million to $3 million dollar
cost range are typically of a
routine, capital maintenance
nature,” he said. “Things like
replacing
air
conditioners,
replacing heaters, replacing
damaged or failed drain lines,
doing building repairs, street
repairs, etc.”
Several
regents
opposed
the
measure,
however.
Regent Shauna Ryder Diggs
(D) said she felt a fiduciary
responsibility to students to
require stricter procedures
for approval, citing rising
tuition costs.
“I’m not in favor of this
proposal because I think the
$3 million limit is too high,”
she said. “This is not about
trust –– I trust the executive
officers –– this is about how I
feel about oversight of public
dollars,
particularly
when
the limit is reaching the same
amount of money that I hope
for for tuition increase.”
Regent Ron Weiser (R) was
one of the regents in favor
of
raising
the
threshold,
saying the ability to expedite
the approval process could
ultimately
end
up
saving
the
University
money
on
construction contracts.
“Having some knowledge
of construction, because of
the shortage of labor and
contractors,
the
cost
of
projects can go up if they
can’t fit them in a certain time
period,” he said. “So for these
kinds of projects, quite often,
if we can’t move quickly, the
price is going to be quoted
at a higher rate, because by
the time we get back to them
they might not have the time
periods available to make
them.”
Schembechler Hall
The regents also approved
schematic designs for 24,000
square feet of renovations
to the Schembechler Hall
football performance center,
which will include a state-of-
the-art treatment and recovery
facility, hydrotherapy pools
and administrative spaces.
Plans for renovations to
the Oosterbaan Field House,
which
include
replacing
lighting, practice surfaces and
the roof of the facility, were
approved in February.
Citing the large size of the
football team, the goal of the
renovations is to provide a
more unified space where
all
athletes
can
practice
simultaneously.
Schlissel, Sarkar welcome
students back to school
President
Schlissel
welcomed the regents back
for the first meeting of the
academic year and expressed
his concern for all those
on
campus
affected
by
Hurricanes Irma and Harvey.
“I want to express my
sympathies
for
those
in
the
University
community
affected by recent natural
disasters,” he said. “All of the
students from Texas are safe
and sound here on campus.”
Schlissel then announced
the formation of a search
committee
for
the
next
University
of
Michigan-
Dearborn chancellor, which
will begin with two Dearborn
campus town halls Sept. 29 and
Oct. 2. The committee consists
of wide range of faculty and
professors, stemming from all
three University campuses.
As
with
all
executive
officer selection processes,
the procedure will remain
confidential
until
Schlissel
provides his recommendation
to the Board of Regents.
The regents also received
their first report from LSA
senior
Anushka
Sarkar,
president of Central Student
Government.
While Schlissel did not
address the recent defacing of
the Rock, which was covered
with anti-Latino and pro-
Trump graffiti, Sarkar noted
the importance of calling out
forces that threaten the well-
being of University students,
no matter how controversial
they may be.
“I want to emphasize the
importance of speaking out in
the face of happenings simply
beyond the campus that impact
our
Michigan
community,”
she said. “When forces beyond
the confines of the University
of Michigan campus threaten
any member of the University
of Michigan’s community, it is
our collective responsibility
–– every person at this table
–– to support, protect and
stand
in
solidarity
with
the students who are being
impacted. I will also note that
supporting,
protecting
and
standing in solidarity with
members of our Michigan
community who are being
threatened by these forces
sometimes means pushing the
envelope and being outspoken
in your support.”
Sarkar
also
mentioned
several
CSG
initiatives
for
the
upcoming
year,
including
“Know
Your
Rights” workshops following
the recent DACA decision,
alcohol-free tailgates on high-
risk game days and increasing
first year student involvement
in student government.
REGENTS
From Page 1A
know how to support their
institution.
“This kind of (rally) gets
(students) involved in some of
the most crucial issues,” Eaton
said. “As the speakers said,
Walmart and their owners have
been funding the defunding
of public education. This is
a public university. I know
students who are going to the
University of Michigan are
incurring huge debt because we
don’t fund public education the
way we used to.”
With
Michigan
State
University as the next stop
on their tour, Ritter said the
college tour was organized to
show college students their
effect on the global economy
and their impact on politics
through the places they shop.
“It’s hard to change the
world, but you can change your
world and every day, students
here on this campus have the
opportunity
to
change
the
world in the small decisions
that they make and where they
put their purchasing power,
their economic power, their
political power through their
vote — they’re able to make that
change and we want people
to be aware of that. You don’t
have to be a CEO to change the
country.”
TRUMP
From Page 1A
Herrada said she felt the
panel was an excellent way to
bring
historical
movements
and moments together with
modern
day
activism
and
scholarship.
“As
an
archivist
and
librarian
it’s
important
for me to kind of relate
the work that people are
doing here on campus —
how they came to find that
work, how they discovered
the documentation of the
historical
movements
that
they did find — and a lot of
them can be found here in the
library,” Herrada said. “So for
me a takeaway is how much
rich scholarship can come
out of the resources the U-M
library has. Also how they can
relate historical movements
to what is happening today.”
The
panel
consisted
of
researchers and activists who
each have done research or
are experts in topics related
to Hayden’s work during his
activism.
The three topics set the
scene of what was happening
during the 1960s and 1970s and
how that related to Hayden’s
work.
LSA senior Leah Schneck,
an organizer on campus for
College Democrats, discussed
her research on participatory
democracy.
She
described
participatory
democracy,
a
term
coined
by
Arnold
Kaufman, to be a method,
not a theory, to reevaluate
hierarchies that exist in our
society.
“It
is
different
from
a
representative system because
it brings direct responsibility
and
accountability
through
building a system of how you
make decisions starting in
smaller groups and then the
decision that comes from the
smaller group then reaches a
higher level,” Schneck said.
Sian Olson Dowis, University
alum and doctoral candidate in
U.S. History at Northwestern
University,
presented
her
research on the left movement
in
Urban
America.
Dowis
spent time on the Economic
Research and Action Project
that was founded in 1963 by
Students for a Democratic
Society, a student organization
that Hayden co-founded.
Dowis
discussed
how
history has shown, through
examples such as the ERAP,
that creating any kind of social
change requires more than
strong ideals; it requires open-
mindedness.
“It shows that democracy
is messy,” Dowis said. “Social
change is messy and, that
there is an enormous amount
of
change
going
on,
and
sometimes to achieve really
important
social
ends
you
have to be willing to change
your mind and listen to people
saying things even if they’re
not really what you want or
hoping to hear, but that’s what
democracy is. It’s listening to
people and taking their ideas
seriously.”
Taubman
postdoctoral
fellow Austin McCoy spoke
about his research on Tom
Hayden
and
the
“Final
Campaign to End the War.”
He discussed the importance
of following political thought
through time.
“I think what seems to be
important was that it shows
how some of his thinking
around politics, participatory
democracy
especially
can
still resonate today,” McCoy
said. “As an audience member
pointed out, we are galloping
towards oligarchy. I think folks
want to know what happened
to American Democracy, and
are there any other visions
that could counter the kind
of representative democracy
we have now and I think
Tom Hayden points us in that
direction.”
ACTIVIST
From Page 1A
I want to
emphasize the
importance of
speaking out
in the face of
happenings
simply beyond the
campus
Social change
is messy and,
that there is
an enormous
amount of
change going
on
I like how the
atmosphere
mixes modern
elements
with more
old-fashioned
ones
COFFEE
From Page 1A
MPALS
From Page 1A
campus. While promotional
videos and other forms of
information exist to help new
students become acquainted
with the University, advice
directly from students is often
more helpful.
“There’s a lot of questions
that I think come up before
you get to Michigan,” she said.
“We try to bridge that gap, that
knowledge gap, to kind of even
out the playing field of what
people know when they come
to campus.”
With assistance from the
International
Center
and
the Office of New Student
Programs, the leaders took
into account any possible
barriers.
Another major goal of the
program is to help connect
and
create
meaningful
relationships
between
students
from
different
backgrounds.
Schostak
explained the divide between
international and domestic
students is something CSG
recognizes
and
looks
to
improve upon.
“I think it’s a really cool
community of people who are
trying to make the University
and campus more inclusive,”
he said. “We always felt
there was a big gap between
international
students
and
domestic students.”
When
Schostak
asked
Public Policy junior Benji
Mazin to serve as an M-Pal,
he willingly agreed and was
paired with Business senior
Mencía Lasa. One unique
aspect of their situations is
that both students are from
Spain — this being Lasa’s first
year at the University.
Lasa explained that M-Pals
made her transition as an
international student easier
and that she and Mazin have
had the opportunity to meet
each other’s friends, creating
even more connections on
campus.
“He’s been really helpful
with all the experience itself,
he’s given me tips on buildings
and what the University is
like, the campus ... it’s been
really easy to adapt to the new
environment,” she said.
M-Pals looks to grow in
the coming years to support
more international students by
expanding their base of current
Michigan students as well as
implementing new ideas and
activities for M-Pals to engage
in. The opportunity to meet
new people is something that
many college students look
to take advantage of, and for
the founders of M-Pals, the
experience has been especially
meaningful for those who got
to pair up with international
students.
Issa said while helping to
create the program has been
rewarding, her favorite part
of it all was taking part in
its activities, expanding her
network and meeting new
people.
“I met a lot of people in the
workshops, I learned what
questions really get you to
know more about a person,”
she said. “I met more people
internationally and I managed
to match with an M-Pal, so
I got to be a part of my own