own self-monitoring in saying that 
we need to stop the social activities 
because of all this going on, and 
that also frightens me because my 
experience has been when we self-
correct, things are sometimes more 
dangerous than we know.”

In addition, Harper spoke on 

multicultural 
fraternities 
and 

sororities, specifically surrounding 
issues 
of 
police 
presence. 
In 

October, The Daily reported a 
disparity between the large amount 
of Black and Latino fraternity police 
citations and the low amount of 
police activity at predominantly 
white fraternities on MSU gameday 
weekend.

Harper said the disparity is one 

that mirrors national conversations 
on overpolicing and concerns the 
differences between Greek life 
organizations and private homes.

“The same behavior in front of a 

white Greek letter organization gets 
an entirely different response than if 
it’s a private home and there are lots 
of students of color,” Harper said. 
“That is an ongoing challenge for us 
as a university and as a community 
as we work with our students 
because they notice the difference, 
we notice the difference.”

Many students also feel a 

lost 
connection 
between 
the 

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 
planand Greek life. While Harper 
explained the difficulties in finding 
solutions to the issue, specifically 
for those often “overpoliced and 
underprotected,” she spoke of the 
importance in continuing to engage 
in 
conversations 
surrounding 

the issue and in strengthening 
relationships 
between 
different 

communities.

“I think what public safety 

officers are trying to do is to ensure 
public safety,” Harper said. “I think 
what students experience is, ‘But 
your response to ensuring that is 
different depending on how people 
look,’ and that’s true — that’s the 
national conversation. We just have 
to continue to do this work.”

Student Life Support
In 
terms 
of 
initiatives 

undertaken by Student Life, Harper 
first spoke on sexual assault, a topic 
that has become especially relevant 

as allegations are made against 
men in power around the nation 
and in Hollywood, as well as at 
the University of Michigan. Most 
recently, the trial of Larry Nassar, 
a former Michigan State University 
and USA Gymnastics doctor who 
received 40 to 175 years for sex 
abuse, has sparked a larger sexual 
assault conversation among higher 
education institutions.

At 
the 
University, 
Harper 

explained through strengthening 
and improving staff at the Sexual 
Assault Prevention and Awareness 
Center 
and 
Counseling 
and 

Psychological Services, the Student 
Life 
administration 
has 
been 

working to change the dialogue 
surrounding sexual assault, so that 
rather than focusing all efforts on 
the punishment of perpetrators, 
more efforts are directed toward 
increasing 
and 
advocating 
for 

the reporting process through 
educational efforts.

“What we’re really talking about 

is a culture change,” Harper said. 
“The narrative has been around 
punishment. ‘Why wasn’t the guy 
punished, why wasn’t the guy 
stopped, who knew when?’ What 
we want to focus on is, certainly, 
when it occurs [to] have a strong 
adjudication process … But we 
really want our efforts to be around 
education and training.”

She explained the administration 

has looked over assessment data 
and surveys around sexual assault 
at the University, researching the 
reasons students may not report 
incidents of sexual misconduct and 
determining ways to strengthen 
training 
programs 
so 
as 
to 

encourage and improve reporting.

“We want to be effective in 

repairing harm and adjudicating, 
but the real goal for us is to not have 
it happen, and when it does, to have 
the kind of community where our 
students will come forward, know 
that they will be believed, and know 
then that we will work to resolve in 
a fair and equitable way what has 
happened,” Harper said.

While 
the 
encouragement 

of students to come forward 
with 
allegations 
is 
important, 

Harper highlighted the duties of 
those within her own office to 
act on allegations and to ensure 
investigations are handled properly.

“The President has been very 

explicit with all of us that the buck 
stops with us,” Harper said. “His 
expectation is that staff in Student 
Life are trained, that they are 
reporting and that I am acting when 
I hear something. That has always 
been the expectation, but he sort of 
turned up the volume.”

In explaining the efforts of the 

Office of Student Life in improving 
training and education, Harper 
also emphasized giving voices 
to survivors — something that 
becomes especially important in 
times when countless individuals 
come forward. She expanded on 
her commitment to ensuring all 
students, staff and faculty recognize 
their right to be present at the 
University free of the possibility of 
sexual assault and misconduct.

“Part of the reason why we have 

to be so vigilant now is because 
imagine you come out of high 
school, you come to college, you 
sort of learn in college (to) put up 
with it — why wouldn’t you go into 
a career and put up with it?” Harper 
said. “So in some ways, we’re hoping 
that if we are just focused and really 
get this culture right, it will then 
ricochet (as you go) into a career and 
you say no.”

Spencer delays
On the topic of a potential visit 

from white supremacist Richard 
Spencer next semester and the 
current 
issues 
surrounding 

free speech on campus, Harper 
addressed the removal request 
of 
biology 
professor 
John 

Vandermeer’s “Black Lives Matter” 
sign from his office window two 
weeks ago.

Harper 
acknowledged 
the 

University’s request to remove the 
sign was a mistake. However, she 
emphasized if it was purposeful, the 
University would be contradicting 
its own position on free speech — 
especially since it is the basis for 
allowing someone like Spencer on 
campus.

“If the taking down of the 

sign was based on content then 
we’re talking out of both sides 
of our mouth because we have a 
commitment to free speech, and it’s 
everybody’s free speech,” Harper 
said. “It’s Richard Spencer’s free 
speech, and Black Lives Matters’s 
free speech.”

Harper furthered this sentiment 

and said the power of free speech 

lies in the fact that it belongs to 
everyone.

“There is a strong commitment, 

there 
is 
an 
unwavering 

commitment to free speech, and 
that’s everybody’s,” Harper said. 
“That means that (Spencer) can 
come, and I can protest his coming. 
He can say swear words, and so 
can I. That’s the power of the right 
to speak. It applies to everyone. 
Though 
sometimes 
we 
would 

rather not hear what the person 
is saying because it’s so offensive 
or racist or homophobic, they still 
have the right to say it. (However, 
Vandermeer) has the right the put 
up the sign.”

She also warned of the danger 

that not standing true to the idea 
that everyone has the right to 
voice their opinions can lead to 
the University coming across as 
insincere.

“There can’t be two standards 

for free speech without us being 
hypocritical as an institution,” 
Harper said.

Harper also addressed the topic 

of student housing and the added 
financial 
burden 
it 
continues 

to place on students each year. 
According to the U.S. Census 
Bureau, Ann Arbor’s median rate 
for rent increased 14 percent from 
2010 to 2015 — lying at $1,075 
as of the last survey. As the Vice 
President of Student Life, Harper 
is in charge of the Beyond the Diag 
initiative, which helps students find 
off-campus housing.

Harper explained while the 

University 
cannot 
control 
the 

prices of off-campus entities, there 
are discussions taking place about 
refurbishing existing on-campus 
housing options and even building 
new ones altogether.

“One of the ways we’ve been 

thinking about it is, is there 
something we can do in terms of 
additional housing for students, and 
how do we repair and replace what 
is here so students want to live on 
campus and should we be thinking 
about additional housing?” Harper 
said. “We can control that cost in 
a way that we can’t control the 
market.”

HARPER
From Page 1

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Tuesday, January 30, 2018 — 3

LSA senior Julia Berg, a 

volunteer 
co-coordinator 

for 
SAPAC’s 
Bystander 

Intervention and Community 
Engagement 
program, 
said 

the Lyft partnership was a 
success in terms of helping 
students and other members 
of the community becoming 
more aware of how to be better 
bystanders.

“It was a cool partnership 

we had with them, and we’re 
hoping to keep using those 
Lyft passes to demonstrate that 
Lyft is still partnering with us 

and that we can still be better 
bystanders,” Berg said.

Berg was unsure of how often 

SAPAC uses transportation on 
an organizational level, but 
thought they could perhaps use 
the grant to collaborate with 
other student organizations.

“Within BICE, we’ve done 

a 
lot 
with 
the 
bystander 

intervention part of our name, 
and we’re working more on 
the 
community 
engagement 

part,” Berg said. “So hopefully 
we can find ways to work with 
other groups on campus that 
could potentially use this as a 
resource. Or maybe there’s some 
sort of collaborative event that 
could use this type of funding.”

Berg 
also 
said 
she’d 
be 

interested in using the grant 
to continue providing students 
with late-night Lyft passes.

“We 
didn’t 
actually 
give 

out all of the passes we got 
from Lyft, but we’re hoping to 
give more out at workshops,” 
Berg said. “If the funding 
could be used in that capacity, 
I think that would be a cool 
opportunity.”

For 
organizations 
like 

The 
Detroit 
Partnership, 
a 

University student group that 
aims to get students involved 
in the Detroit area, Lyft’s 
grant 
could 
be 
especially 

helpful. Business senior Arjun 
Kaushal, 
finance 
director 

of The Detroit Partnership, 
discussed the group’s reliance 
on transportation to achieve 
their mission. He said the group 
mainly uses Zipcar to transport 
students 
for 
their 
weekly 

programs and buses for their 
major events.

Kaushal said Lyft’s program 

is something the organization 
would 
probably 
look 
into, 

but noted how quickly they 
would run through the $1,000 
due to how often they need 
transportation.

“It’s obviously of interest 

to us; it’s in our target space 
as it’s targeting communities 
in Ann Arbor and Detroit,” 
Kaushal said. “In terms of the 

$1,000, if I was going to use 
Lyft to go to Detroit, one way 
is around 50 bucks. For us, as 
an organization, we’d use it up 
pretty quickly.”

Kaushal 
also 
said 
he 

recognized 
the 
benefits 
of 

this grant and a continuing 
partnership with Lyft.

“From what I hear, Lyft is 

generally good about factoring 
in social change and positive 
change in their mission and 
their 
company’s 
fabric,” 

Kaushal 
said. 
“Functionally, 

there’s definitely value to be 
had there for us in getting our 
members down to the city.”

In an email interview, Elliot 

Darvick, 
the 
general 
Lyft 

manager of Detroit, said the 
positive 
drive 
demonstrated 

by students at the University 
motivated Lyft to extend the 
Community Grant Program to 
Ann Arbor. He also expressed 
his excitement in seeing what 
these organizations will achieve 
with the help of the grant.

“Knowing that U-M students 

and the community surrounding 
them are equally driven to 
create a better world inspired 
us to bring the grant program 
to Ann Arbor,” Darvick wrote. 
“I’m eager to see the great 
work that organizations in our 
community are able to do with 
access to Lyft’s safe, reliable, 
and convenient rides.”

The fallout from scandals of 

sex abuse by disgraced doctor 
Larry Nassar at Michigan State 
University and as a member of 
the USA Gymnastics medical 
team 
have 
had 
innumerable 

ripple effects at the University 
of Michigan. The Daily spoke to 
women’s gymnastics coach Bev 
Plocki, in her 29th season on 
campus as one of the winningest 
coaches in the country, about 
this “moment of reckoning” for 
her team and the gymnastics 
community.

The Michigan Daily: How is 

your team feeling, after the trial 
and sentencing and survivors 
coming forward?

Plocki: The reality of this 

situation is that it’s so incredibly 
widespread. Everyone on our 
team, in our entire gymnastics 
community has been affected by it. 
Everybody knows at least someone 
who has been a victim. We’re all 
deeply saddened by what’s gone on 
and what these victims have had to 
say. We really hope, now, that since 

it’s over and since — I don’t even 
know what to call him, I certainly 
won’t call him Dr. Nassar—he’ll be 
gone for good, I hope everyone will 
be able to move on and heal. It’s the 
amount of support that is out there 
that’s the light at the end of a really 
dark tunnel. It has strengthened 
the community and bond between 
these athletes that are behind 
everyone affected.

TMD: How do I know that what 

happened at MSU won’t happen 
here?

Plocki: I think that we’re doing 

everything in our power … I mean 
the reality of the answer is that 
we can’t issue any guarantees. But 
for myself personally, I have tried 
very hard—and my athletes know 
this—to create a culture of open 
communication. They know my 
cell phone is on 24 hours a day, it’s 
by my bed, if they need me at two 
o’clock in the morning, I’ll be there. 
We’ve created that culture of 
encouraging them to come forward 
no matter what it is. My place is to 
be there for them, to make them 
feel safe, and to care. But I won’t 
overstep my boundaries.

TMD: This is year 29 now for 

you at the University, and many 

of the survivors we heard at the 
trial spoke about three decades of 
abuse. What kinds of things have 
you seen in your time here?

Plocki: I would never speak 

publicly about anyone’s issue, but 
I can tell you in 29 years, we’ve 
dealt with a lot of things, from 
personal tragedy to homesickness 
to something that’s happened in 
childhood or after. We can’t prevent 
people 
from 
having 
personal 

traumatic events, especially if they 
don’t have anything to do with 
their time at the University. But we 
have plans in place to help anybody 
that comes forward, with anything 
they might be dealing with.

TMD: Did you know him? How 

well?

Plocki: Who didn’t know him? 

I know he did his undergraduate 
work here at Michigan, but beyond 
that, I didn’t know him here. I 
would not classify him as a friend, 
but he was acquaintances with 
everybody in our world. He was 
all over the place, so you’d run 
into him here, there, and he was 
always a very friendly person. That 
was part of his grooming, he was 
very kind, giving, accommodating. 
Other than seeing him in other 

venues … It makes me very happy 
to say we’ve never utilized his 
services 
or 
referred 
student-

athletes to him. We utilize our own 
training staff.

TMD: Another 
wrinkle 
in 

this story is Michigan State’s 
involvement in the case, that 
officials created a culture that 
enabled this abuse and assault. 
What kinds of conversations have 
you been in among coaches, or in 
the Big Ten?

Plocki: We’re in the middle 

of our season, and so it’s not a 
pleasant thing for anyone to pick 
up the phone and speak about. 
I can only speak to our policies 
and procedures here, and it’s not 
appropriate for me to speak for 
anyone else. All I can really say 
is that Mr. Nassar was a master 
manipulator, and the number of 
children and young women that he 
fooled, the number of adults—be it 
parents or colleagues—it amazes 
me. I don’t know the specifics of 
any of that, so I’m not comfortable 
pointing fingers or placing blame.

state, and shape the subjectivity 
of those that design, fabricate, 
test, and ultimately use such 
systems,” James said.

James 
continued 
by 

describing her personal mission 
in discovering her ancestry to 
Jesse Scott Sammons, a public 
figure in Charlottesville, Va. 
towards the end of the 19th 
century. His previous familial 
homestead and cemetery were 
in danger of being paved over 
by a highway plan initiated 
by the Virginia Department 
of Transportation under the 
principle of eminent domain. 
After being traced to Sammons, 
she 
was 
asked 
by 
local 

historians to participate in the 
battle to preserve the land and 
its historical sites.

She described her initial 

reluctance in becoming involved 
with the project, not knowing 
exactly what obligations she 
owed the Sammons homestead, 
or how culturally significant 
this battle truly was.

“Taking on the fight meant 

embracing kinship with, and 
connections to, persons and 
troubling histories that have 
haunted my family, Virginia, 
and the United States, for more 
than two centuries,” James 
said.

James 
revealed 
after 
a 

lengthy struggle with legality 

and 
questionable 
legitimacy 

of the historical site, the battle 
ended in her favor, the team of 
historians and other ancestors 
of the Sammons family. The 
debate was reviewed by the 
Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation, which deemed 
not only the Sammons cemetery 
and homestead were historically 
relevant, but also the remaining 
27 acres were eligible to receive 
federal protections.

Despite 
this 
success, 

James questioned the overall 
accomplishment 
of 
the 

preservation and respect of the 
history of people of color and 
the losing battles in many other 
Southern states.

“Whose history is deemed 

important and what are the 
criteria?” James said. 

Rackham student Kathryn 

Berringer 
expressed 
her 

excitement for future talks 
within the STeMS series and 
said the opportunity to be a 
part of this STS collaboration 
can widen the scope of the 
concentration and bring the 
dialogue to other parts of 
campus.

“The series and the program 

itself provides a chance to bring 
together 
faculty, 
graduate 

students and undergrad from 
around the University campus, 
to 
then 
engage 
with 
the 

speakers who are coming in and 
speaking to questions relevant 
to STS from many different 
fields,” Berringer said.

be applying several research 
methods, such as algorithmic 
investigations 
and 
statistical 

tests, to a comprehensive data 
set 
of 
anonymous 
workers’ 

compensation cases.

“What we want to do from that 

data is try to learn what works 
well and what doesn’t work well 
using data science approaches, 
so algorithmic approaches, for 
learning what decisions are likely 
to lead to somebody being able 
to get back to work in a safe and 
timely manner,” Denton said.

The research will use deep 

reinforcement machine learning, 
along 
with 
statistical 
and 

industrial operations methods, to 
create a model for how a patient 
can be treated for injury or illness 
and when they can return to 
work.

Rackham 
student 
Haozhu 

Wang, who is leading the student 
research 
group 
collaborating 

on the project, said the wealth 
of data the project has to work 
from will benefit the project 
immensely.

“This data set that we are 

going to work with is really 
kind of novel,” Wang said. “It’s 
a huge data set which contains 
the information of one million 
patients … To my knowledge, this 
is the largest data set by far (to be 
analyzed by machine learning).”

Wang also noted this is some of 

the first research using machine 
reinforcement learning, which 
investigates data sets through 
trial-and-error as a human often 
would, that looks at occupational 
healthcare.

Peers 
Health 
CEO 
Jon 

Seymour said the focus on 
return-to-work data is relatively 
new in occupational health data 
analysis as well.

“The focus of the data set 

is 
return-to-work, 
which 
is 

specifically how to get patients 
back to work from injuries and 
illnesses,” Seymour said. “It’s 
an important facet of medicine 
that is often underappreciated 
… Getting someone back to 
work from an injury or illness is 
equivalent to returning them to 

their productive endeavors.”

Seymour said the decision to 

work with University researchers 
was based on the advanced 
technological power, such as 
Mcity and the highest amount 
of research and development 
spending out of all public U.S. 
universities, 
and 
knowledge 

available.

“Here, 
these 
technologies, 

like artificial intelligence, are so 
cutting edge that the more we 
looked at it, the more we felt, to get 
the most out of it, we needed an 
academic component,” Seymour 
said. “These technologies are the 
ones that will eventually parallel 
a self-driving car, (they will) be 
able to actually interpret data and 
develop a policy around what to 
do in a given situation, and make 
proactive recommendations to 
doctors and other stakeholders.”

Denton reiterated Seymour’s 

self-driving vehicles example, 
saying 
the 
technology 
and 

research in artificial intelligence 
can apply to the research and data 
procedure the University and 
Peers will be working on with 
worker injuries through creating 
the 
deep 
learning 
research 

networks that rely on artificial 
intelligence to synthesize the 
data.

“Self-driving 
vehicles 
are 

trying to learn over time to 
become more and more effective 
using data they collect from 
multiple sources, and in a way 
that’s exactly what we’re trying 
to do here with the data that 
Peers is providing — many 
different sources of data that we 
bring together to build learning 
algorithms to improve upon 
decision making,” Denton said.

Seymour acknowledged there 

is 
considerable 
commercial 

interest going into this research 
— Peers Health develops and 
sells guidelines in the return-
to-work industry — and he said 
he believes the research has the 
potential to go even farther into 
the health care field.

“The implications of what we’ll 

learn here go beyond the niche 
of occupational health care and 
really extend broadly to general 
health care, and potentially every 
medical episode that goes on all 
day, every day,” Seymour said.

INJURY
From Page 1

LYFT
From Page 1

MONUMENTS
From Page 1
Pervasive sexual assault is “black cloud” 
over gymnastics, says ‘U’ women’s coach

Plocki supports survivors, but stays away from calling out structural issues in interview

RIYAH BASHA

Managing News Editor

Read more at 
MichiganDaily.com

Read more at 
MichiganDaily.com

