With another record number 

of applications submitted for 
the fall 2018 freshman class, 
the University of Michigan-
Ann Arbor campus enrollment 
has seen increased economic 
diversity and higher numbers 
of underrepresented students, 
according to a report published 
by University Public Affairs.

The 
University 
received 

an 8 percent increase in 
applications 
for 
the 
fall 

2018 
freshman 
class. 

More 
specifically, 
64,917 

applications were received, 
14,818 were offered admission, 
and 6,695 enrolled, making a 

slightly smaller freshman class 
than last year. For in-state 
applicants, 40.5 percent of 
those who applied were offered 
admission. 
For 
out-of-state 

and 
international 
students, 

18.8 
percent 
were 
offered 

admission. 
Seventy-two 

percent of in-state freshmen 
accepted the admission offer 
and 31.8 percent of out-of-
state or international students 
accepted the offer.

Erica Sanders, director of 

undergraduate 
admissions, 

discussed the rising levels of 
interest and applications each 
year, explaining the process 
used by admissions officers to 
accept incoming freshmen.

“We’re continually amazed 

More than 100 students, 

faculty and staff attended 
the event “There’s Always 
Someone Who Doesn’t Want 
You to Vote” Tuesday at 
Tisch Hall at the University 
of 
Michigan. 
The 
event 

discussed historical targeting 
of 
minority 
groups 
and 

infringement of voting rights 
throughout the voting process 
ahead of the Nov. 6 midterm 
elections. 

The 
panel 
began 
with 

remarks from Heather Ann 
Thompson, 
a 
professor 

in 
the 
Department 
of 

Afroamerican 
and 
African 

Studies, who discussed the 
impact of mass incarceration 
on voting today. She drew 
from historical policy trends 
post-Civil War and during 
the civil rights movement 
of mass imprisonment that 
directly 
targeted 
Black 

males. 
To 
illustrate 
her 

point, she referenced a study 
which revealed Black men in 
apartheid South Africa had 
lower rates of incarceration 
than they do today in the 
United States. She explained 
voting is not an act which 
solely 
affects 
individual 

rights, but also the 40,000 
citizens in Michigan who are 
incarcerated.

“Right 
away 
we 
are 

discounting a huge swath of 
our population that cannot 

access the ballot,” Thompson 
said. “Of the people from 
these communities who can 
access the ballot, there is 
such community devastation 
from mass incarceration that 
there is a disincentive to vote. 
People are very disinclined 
to imagine that the voting 
system is for them.”

Thompson also mentioned 

prison 
gerrymandering, 

where 
incarcerated 
people 

are 
moved 
to 
prisons 
in 

certain counties to obtain 
more power. In Michigan, 
the 
prison 
population 

disproportionately 
comes 

from Detroit and four state 
Senate districts only meet the 
federal minimum population 
requirements 
by 
claiming 

prisoners as constituents. 

“Those who benefit most 

from funding prisons instead 
of schools, roads, we can 

go on and on, those people 
have more voting power than 
anyone 
else, 
simply 
put,” 

Thompson said. “That means 
that those who are most in 
need of weighing in with what 
we do with our state’s budget, 
those of us who are hoping 
for more public education 
funding, those of us who are 
worried about the potholes, 
who 
are 
worried 
about 

With days until the election, 

resurfacing the documentary 
“Michigan Divided” from earlier 
this year seems appropriate. The 
film focuses on the differences 
and 
similarities 
between 

Michigan residents from across 
the state and the political 
spectrum.

The film’s producer, Bridge 

reporter Ron French, discussed 
the logistics of the film and 
editorial decisions made behind 
the scenes at the Ford School 
of Public Policy Tuesday night 
as part of Bridge Magazine’s 
“Michigan Truth Tour.” He 
defended his team’s call to 
included segments where a 
President 
Trump 
supporter 

from 
Harbor 
Springs 
cited 

unsubstantiated claims Trump 
made as a candidate.

“Actually, I felt that was a very 

important part of the film to 
have in there — to show the sort 
of bad information that some 
people have and on which they 
make their decisions,” French 
said. “We made a conscious 
decision at the beginning of 

michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Monday, October 31, 2018

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM

Enrollment 
of minority, 
low-income 
students up

First-generation student panelists 
spotlight unique invisible identity

See ENROLLMENT, Page 3A

AARON BAKER/Daily

First generation college students speak at a panel about challenges and the importance of mentorship at the Student Activity Center Tuesday.

ADMINISTRATION

Students whose household incomes are less 
than $65,000 increased by 8 percent

JORDYN BAKER
Daily Staff Reporter

Event took place as part of First Gen Week, an inititative to highlight experiences

First-generation student panelists 

convened Tuesday morning for a 
discussion about the invaluable role 
of mentorship in transitioning to 
life at the University of Michigan. 
The panel, hosted by the Office of 

New Student Programs, took place 
during First Gen Week as part of 
a series that spotlights the unique 
experiences 
of 
first-generation 

students and will culminate with 
the First-Generation Symposium on 
Nov. 2.

Ayeza Siddiqi, assistant director 

of ONSP, opened the panel by 
defining what it means to be a 

first-generation student and noting 
how this identity applies to many 
students regardless of race, gender 
or socioeconomic class. 

“Because it is an invisible identity 

... it can be hard to know who’s first 
gen despite the fact that there are 
over 3,500 first-gen students on this 
campus,” Siddiqi said. “Hearing 
about these students and hearing 

about their narratives is going to be 
really critical as we move forward in 
doing the work that we do.”

Though first-generation students 

account for a sizable portion of the 
total students on campus, they are 
still a distinct minority and often 
struggle to find resources to help 
them acclimate to the demands 

LIAT WEINSTEIN

Daily Staff Reporter

See FILM, Page 3A

Bridge MI 
film shows 
a divided 
Michigan

CAMPUS LIFE

Documentary analyzes 
increased partisanship 
and post-Trump faultlines

LEAH GRAHAM
Daily Staff Reporter

MILES MACKLIN/Daily

University professors speak at the “There’s Always Someone Who Doesn’t Want You to Vote Panel” at Tisch Hall 
Tuesday.

Professors outline history of voter 
suppression in U.S. ahead of midterms

Speakers also addressed Proposal 2 referendum on increasing voter accessibility

KATHERINA SOURINE

Daily Staff Writer

The University’s 
forgotten roots 

Originally a venture by 

frontier clergymen in 

Detroit, has the University 
abandoned its origin story? 

» Page 5B

See VOTER, Page 3A

See FIRST GEN, Page 3A

The University of Michigan 

Central Student Government 
convened 
Tuesday 
night 
to 

discuss the development of an 
adaptive sports program and the 
possible creation of a tenants’ 
union in Ann Arbor.

Dr. Oluwaferanmi Okanlami, 

an alum of the University’s 
Medical 
School, 
spoke 
to 

CSG 
members 
about 
the 

importance of adaptive sports 
to students both with and 
without disabilities. Pointing 
to the emphasis of athletics at 
the University, Okanlami said 
he believes the addition of an 
adaptive sports team would 
give the University a successful 
program unrivaled by any other 
in the country.

“We care about athletics 

for everyone,” Okanlami said. 
“And you have an ability and 
an opportunity to pioneer an 
adaptive sports program right 
here on campus that is going to 
be unrivaled by anybody in the 
country.”

Okanlami ran track as an 

undergraduate 
at 
Stanford 

See CSG, Page 3A

CSG talks 
organizing 
for renters’ 
protections

STUDENT GOVERNMENT

Student Legal Services 
attorneys back new Ann 
Arbor Tenants’ Union 

BARBARA COLLINS

For the Daily

GOT A NEWS TIP?
Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail 
news@michigandaily.com and let us know.

INDEX
Vol. CXXVIII, No. 21
©2018 The Michigan Daily

N E WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

O PI N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

S U D O K U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

CL A S S I F I E DS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
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THE MICHIGAN DAILY | OCTOBER 31, 2018

