The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
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Friday, January 18, 2019 — 3

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EMPLOYMENT
From Page 1

LAW
From Page 1

POVERTY
From Page 1

INSTITUTIONALIZING EQUIT Y

Michelle Bolofer, the Executive Director of Century Forward, a nonprofit focused on building community infrastructure, speaks at the Urban Planning 
Martin Luther King Jr. Symposium on “Institutionalizing Equity: Radically Restructuring Opportunity in Detroit” in the Art and Architecture Building 
Thursday evening. 

DANYEL THARAKAN/Daily

HEALTH
From Page 1

“It is evident that eviction 
is a state-wide phenomenon,” 
Goodspeed said. “Is it other factors 
like the cost of housing, or a lack of 
affordable housing in particular 
locations? Or is it the access to 
legal systems? The number of 
legal attorneys available and how 
close you are to their office really 
varies a lot throughout the state. 
(Attorneys) are doing their best, 
but just have limited resources.”
After observing the available 
data, Goodspeed hopes to identify 
patterns in eviction rates and then 
take it one step further by changing 
public policy.
“The other focus of the project 
is to understand the substantive 
patterns and work with courts 
to understand the data they 
have and then come up with 
recommendations on how the 
court system and how policy 
leaders can better track evictions 
in the state,” Goodspeed said. “We 
want to know how accurate is the 
data that is available and how we 
can set up systems so that we can 
monitor this system going forward. 
Because right now, there is not a 
good mechanism of doing that.”
Benton 
is 
an 
attorney 
at 
Legal Services of South Central 
Michigan, a legal firm in the 
Michigan 
Advocacy 
program 
that services low-income families 
involved in custody and evictions 
cases. She stressed the importance 
of this project, as evictions place 
an overwhelming amount of stress 
on these families already facing 
numerous challenges.
“Our concern is relative because 
we are representing these clients 
every day and see the tremendous 
impact that evictions have on their 
lives,” Benton said. “It’s not just 
about having to move, which is very 
disruptive — but it involves time off 
of work and time away from school. 
Housing is central to people’s lives, 
stability and wellbeing. So when 
they are evicted, it’s just a really 
horrible experience.”
Goodspeed 
and 
Benton’s 
eviction venture is just one of the 
nine projects created in attempt to 
mitigate large-scale poverty. More 
than $200,000 was distributed 
from Poverty Solutions among 
the projects to continue in the 
fight against financial inequality. 
Many of these projects will allow 
numerous 
University 
schools 
and colleges, including public 
health, nursing, social work and 
Michigan Medicine, to conduct 
research in collaboration with the 
greater Ann Arbor community. 
These partnerships include aid 
from the Detroit Community-
Academic Urban Research Center, 
the Detroit Health Department, 
the Henry Ford Health System, 
the Community Health and Social 
Services Center and many other 
community-run facilities.
Luke 
Shaefer, 
director 
of 
Poverty 
Solutions 
and 
Public 
Policy professor, believes this 

system-level approach helps the 
community as a whole better 
understand and address poverty.
“The government can’t do it 
alone, the private sector can’t do it 
alone, and the University certainly 
can’t do it alone,” Shaefer said. “But 
we can if we work together. The 
role for the University is to bring 
data and analysis to bare so that 
we’re targeting the right policies 
and so that we really understand 
what we’re trying to grapple 
together. To really find solutions 
that work, we really have to have a 
working partnership.”
LSA senior Zachary Tingley, 
research 
assistant 
at 
Poverty 
Solutions, believes it is the duty 
of the University as a public 
institution to play a pivotal role 
in 
engaging 
with 
economic 
inequality.
“I think it’s important U-M 
conducts this research because any 
institution has a moral obligation 
to instigate change,” Tingley said. 
“The fact that Poverty Solutions is 
action-based and engaged with the 
community allows the University 
to recognize its impact on the 
community around it and embrace 
partnerships with non-university 
stakeholders.”
Other joint projects running 
this year include the testing of a 
simulation exercise called CHAT 
(CHoosing All Together), with goal 
of helping overlooked, minority 
members of different communities 
establish and prioritize health 
benefits. Poverty Solutions will 
also tackle food insecurity issues 
within impoverished homes by 
providing cooking classes. These 
plan to teach strategies that help 
reduce food waste and budget 
healthy and inexpensive meal 
plans.
Poverty Solutions has resourced 
about $9 million to fund research 
initiatives which have already 
produced an outlasting impact. 
Their research has altered the way 
Detroit Public Schools collect data 
on their homeless students and 
helped implement new methods 
to deliver community-wide health 
care support.
Though these projects will only 
run through the 2019 calendar year, 
Shaefer believes the initiatives will 
have a lasting effect on the fight 
against economic inequality and 
high eviction rates.
“I think (the team) is going to 
really map out and get a sense of 
what’s going on with the eviction 
landscape in a year’s time,” Shaefer 
said. “We will be able to find out 
what we can do to try to keep 
people in their homes while also 
supporting the overall ecosystem, 
and how we might be able to 
increase the affordable housing 
units. These types of policy levels 
are where the rubber hits the 
road. So, hopefully, in a year they 
have come to some proposed 
recommendations 
that 
could 
be moved forward. Sometimes 
change happens very quickly, 
and sometimes it’s much slower, 
so we’ll have to see what the 
landscapes hold.”

free case management to people 
who reached out seeking advice 
finding 
employment, 
helped 
launch 
the 
foundations 
of 
Upbound at Work.
“There were about 300 job 
seekers just in Michigan, so 
when we started we already had 
a base of about 300 job seekers,” 
Morris said.
Though Autism Alliance is the 
umbrella organization, Upbound 
at Work is not limited to 
assisting just those with autism. 
The 
organization 
maintains 
corporate 
contracts 
and 
partnerships with companies 
such as Ford, General Motors 
and Daimler so Upbound at 
Work can communicate with 
recruiters who specialize in 
helping people find employment. 
Upbound at Work seeks to bridge 
the gap between employers and 
job seekers.
Beyond 
initial 
outreach, 
Upbound at Work helps with the 
employment process every step 
of the way. Hetal Patel is one of 
the communication specialists 

who works one-on-one with 
job seekers in order to provide 
support 
for 
various 
areas, 
including problem solving, non-
verbal 
communication 
skills, 
interviews 
and 
interpersonal 
skills. Patel works with the job 
seekers to provide an initial 
consultation and make goals; it 
is very much an individualized 
process.
“I enjoy being able to work 
through the various obstacles 
individuals seeking employment 
face and finding sustainable and 
suitable 
employment 
options 
that allow the use of individual 
strengths,” Patel said. “Seeing 
how the support we put in 
place is beneficial not only to 
the individual but the entire 
organization has been rewarding 
to see as well.”
Kelly Cole is the vocational 
rehabilitation 
manager 
specializing 
in 
rehabilitation 
counseling. As she transitioned 
from her role as a job navigator 
with Autism Alliance to helping 
with employment at Upbound 
at Work, she was able to work 
with job seekers to build their 
skills and strategize with them 
while also acting as a support 
network once they were hired. 

She explained how retention is 
important for long term growth.
“It’s so unique; everybody is 
so different,” Cole said. “Every 
single case is kind of like a 
brain teaser. It helps me check 
myself and treat everyone as 
an individual who wants to live 
independently and live their own 
lives. And once I get positive 
feedback and see the lives 
that are being changed, I am 
reminded of why I do what I do.”
Such 
direct 
services, 
like 
professional 
skills 
coaching, 
have been working.
Ronald 
Larson, 
professor 
of 
chemical 
engineering 
at 
the University, explains the 
experience his son went through 
with Upbound at Work. Through 
his son, Andrew, graduated in 
2014 with a B.S. in Computer 
Science, 
he 
had 
trouble 
interviewing and adjusting to 
expectations due to social and 
cognitive deficits. And after a 
while, he became discouraged, 
Larson said.
“Thanks to the help from many 
kind people, and most recently 
and especially Tammy and her 
team, Andrew is on a good track 
now, and his added confidence 
has given him a great boost in 

continuing to work towards 
higher life functionality,” Larson 
said. “So, we are delighted with 
Upbound at Work program, and 
how much it has helped our son.”
Morris 
explained 
how 
it 
has grown in the past couple 
years, as there are much more 
job 
seekers 
coming 
to 
the 
organization. From individuals 
with backgrounds in aerospace 
engineering to those versed in 
coding, such job seekers bring 
with them a range of diverse skill 
sets.
“I think it’s because of the 
awareness 
of 
the 
fact 
that 
companies 
are 
looking 
and 
welcoming,” 
Morris 
said. 
“They’re 
diverse 
individuals 
who are a little bit different so 
getting the message out that it’s 
okay.”
The organization aspires to 
raise awareness about these 
issues in order to create a more 
tolerant environment. Due to the 
competitive nature of the field, 
those with invisible disabilities 
are often hesitant to disclose 
their disability.
“The impact of having a job is 
life changing,” said Morris. “It’s 
an entryway into everything.”

Veidlinger’s background as an 
attorney in private practice offers 
a unique opportunity to learn from 
someone further removed from 
the University administration.
“In the past, this course has 
been co-taught by the general 
counsel of the University and 
the Title IX coordinator of the 
University,” Strauss said. “I’ve 
heard that the perspective was a 
little more biased in favor of what 
the University does to deal with 
these things, and I’m excited to be 
able to learn from a professional 
with an outside perspective.”
Gil Seinfeld, associate dean 
for 
academic 
programming 
at the Law School, noted how 
Veidlinger’s experience in Title 

IX investigation demonstrates her 
serious commitment to enforcing 
the law she teaches.
“For any faculty member, it 
is so important to communicate 
genuine immersion in and about 
the 
subject 
matter,” 
Seinfeld 
said. “I think she (Veidlinger) is 
obviously seriously engaged and 
enthusiastic about teaching and 
she’s going to bring that into the 
classroom.”
Strauss 
hopes 
the 
course 
will provide her with a legal 
framework 
to 
better 
inform 
her opinions. Strauss is a board 
member of the Gender Violence 
Project, a student organization 
within the Law School which 
raises awareness about gender 
discrimination in the American 
legal 
system 
and 
represents 
victims of sexual assault. Strauss 
said her work with the project has 

made her increasingly passionate 
about defending the rights of 
accusers, but also acknowledged 
it is necessary to eliminate bias in 
order to study law.
“Title IX proceedings within 
the University aren’t judicial 
proceedings — there aren’t as 
many rules,” Strauss said. “Under 
this policy, it’s totally cool for your 
rapist to come up and slut-shame 
you in front of decision makers. 
I think that’s really troubling 
and unfair to complainants who 
are already going through this 
potentially traumatic process. But 
I also understand that I have a lot 
of personal biases about that and I 
think it would do me some good to 
look at the full picture.”
Veidlinger said the course 
consists of in-class discussions 
regarding the history and current 
use of Title IX policy in higher 

education. Instead of a final 
exam, there will be a paper on any 
topic a student finds particularly 
interesting related to Title IX. 
Veidlinger noted how the study 
of Title IX is not complete until it 
incorporates current events and 
changes to policy that frequently 
arise.
“In my experience, something 
that is so interesting about Title IX 
is there are so many current events 
going on over the past few years, 
and I suspect into the future, that I 
think it’s a great time to study Title 
IX,” Veidlinger said. “I wouldn’t 
be surprised if my syllabus has to 
change mid-way through based 
on changes that may come down 
through court decisions or agency 
actions from the Department of 
Education.”

New MSU President appointed following 
Engler’s resignation of the position

Satish Upda, the school’s executive vice president for admin services, will take the post

The Michigan State University 
Board of Trustees named Satish Udpa, 
the school’s executive vice president 
for administrative services, interim 
president 
on 
Thursday 
morning 
following the John Engler’s resignation.

Board member Brian Mosallam 
said during the meeting he saw the 
resignation of Engler and appointment 
of Udpa as the start of a new era 
on campus, the Detroit Free Press 
reported Thursday morning.
“On this day, our survivors no 
longer have to go to bed thinking no 
one would listen to them,” Mosallam 
said in the meeting. “Today, the healing 
can begin.”
The appointment comes after an 
11-page resignation letter from Interim 
President 
John 
Engler 
released 
Wednesday night. Engler came under 
new criticism after the release of a 
statement to The Detroit News in 
which he commented about a healing 

fund. He said survivors of Larry 
Nassar, who was sentenced to 40-175 
years in state prison for criminal 
sexual conduct charges in January 
2018, were enjoying the spotlight 
created by the case.
In a letter sent to MSU staff 
and faculty in January 2018, Upda 
wrote MSU must work to address 
its mistakes and emphasized the 
importance of devoting time and 
resources to healing and creating a 
campus culture which provides a safe 
environment for all members of the 
community.
“The pain inflicted on young 
women and girls, some of whom are 
our students, indeed our children, will 
remain seared in our memories as long 
as we live,” Upda wrote. “MSU has 
been a beacon of hope for more than 
160 years to many around the world. 
While we are ready to identify and face 
our mistakes, we cannot stop building 
on the mountain of good that we have 
been privileged to build. We cannot let 

this tragedy define us. Our collective 
will to be a force of good has to prevail.”
Engler also faced criticism in 
December over his decision to close 
a $10 million healing fund created 
to pay for mental health services for 
survivors of former MSU doctor Larry 
Nassar’s abuse. Board trustees voted 
the reopen the fund.
Engler’s appointment as interim 
president followed Lou Anna Simon’s 
resignation from the position in the 
wake of the Nassar scandal in January 
2018. Engler’s resignation came after 
board chairwoman Dianne Byrum 
told him the board was holding a 
special meeting Thursday morning, 
during which the board planned to 
fire him.
In his letter, Engler highlighted 
changes he made on campus during 
his tenure as president. Under his 
leadership, the University developed 
24-hour access to counseling and 
a new app for related services. The 
university’s health colleges, clinical 

operations and student wellness 
programs 
were 
all 
restructed 
during Engler’s time as president, 
and oversight of athletic trainers 
was transferred from doctors from 
coaches.
“The bottom line is that MSU 
is a dramatically better, stronger 
institution than it was one year ago,” 
the letter read. “It has been an honor to 
serve my beloved university.”
Upda held his vice president 
position at MSU since 2013 and served 
as dean of the engineering school for 
seven years before that.
As vice president for administrative 
services, 
Upda 
oversaw 
the 
university’s human resources, IT and 
facilities departments, as well as the 
offices of planning and budgets, land 
management and the Facility for Rare 
Isotope Beams, according to the Free 
Press.

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must focus on the social climate 
of an individual as well. She 
mentioned that by researching a 
variety of topics, more evidence 
could be found that one’s health 
is influenced by more than just 
a handful of factors.
“We worked on a report 
called Reducing Youth Arrests 
Keeps 
Kids 
healthy 
and 
Successful,” Rabinowitz said. 
“Not 
necessarily 
something 
you think a health department 
would be involved in, but we’re 
really concerned about it and 
now we’re looking at what 
other communities have done.” 
Felicia 
Brabec, 
licensed 
psychologist and social worker, 
continued Rabinowitz’s theme 
of social determinants affecting 
one’s 
health 
and 
included 
how race is often tied in with 
determining 
one’s 
health 
situation. She explained how 
her offices have taken a new 
approach to combating health 
inequality.
“We are operating under 
something 
called 
‘targeted 
universalism’ which means that 
we are choosing to really focus 
on race and how it’s shared 
some of those determinants 
that we’ve heard about based 
on race,” Brabec said. “And 
what 
targeted 
universalism 
says is ‘Hey, we’re going to start 
with this sliver, we’re going to 
start with race, understanding 
that intersectionality is really 
important and part of all this 

and we’re not doing that to 
the detriment of these other 
intersectionalities, but this is 
where we’re starting.’”
 
She 
continued 
her 
presentation 
by 
informing 
the audience on how racism is 
institutional, individual and 
structural. She then brought the 
complexity of racism back to a 
local scale by citing an example 
of 
redlining 
in 
Kerrytown 
a few years ago. Redlining 
is the denial of a home in 
certain neighborhoods based 
on someone being deemed a 
“financial risk” because of their 
race. Brabec also supplied the 
statistic of Washtenaw County 
falling to the bottom 8 percent 
in the U.S. for upward income 
mobility.
The 
final 
panelist, 
Paul 
Fleming, 
assistant 
professor 
of health behavior and health 
education at the University, 
wrapped up the presentations 
by discussing what he deemed 
“the chilling effect” the 2016 
election had on undocumented 
immigrants attending health 
care 
professional’s 
visits. 
After 
intensive 
research 
at 
several 
different 
health 
care 
institutions, 
Fleming 
and his team found a reason 
why 
immigrants 
skipped 
out on appointments was an 
increase and pervasive fear 
of 
deportations. 
The 
fear 
has resulted in fractures and 
strategic behavioral changes. 
citizen.

ALEX HARRING
Daily Staff Reporter

