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Wednesday, January 30, 2019 — 3A
LANGUAGE
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LIBRARY
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After Ann Arbor residents
voted in November to approve
Proposal A, an amendment
to
the
city
charter
that
required the city to retain
ownership
of
the
Library
Lot,
City
Administrator
Howard Lazarus sent a letter
to Core Spaces in December
terminating
their
purchase
agreement.
The
council
voted
8-1
to settle the lawsuit with
Bannister and Kailasapathy on
Jan 22. This final settlement
will require the city attorney
to
sign
additional
legal
documents, preventing the city
from selling the development
rights of the Library Lot.
Upon Taylor’s suggestion,
Bannister recused herself from
the vote, as she was a plaintiff
in the lawsuit. Councilmember
Jeff Hayner, D-Ward 1, was the
only no vote on approving the
settlement.
Councilmember
Chip Smith, D-Ward 5, was not
present for the meeting.
Hayner
explained
his
reasons for voting no on the
settlement, stating he was
unsure of the council’s ability
to invalidate a contract. He
questioned
the
necessity
of City Council to approve
contracts like the one the city
was engaged in with Core
Spaces.
“I would like this body to
take a look at its rules,” Hayner
said. “I don’t think it’s proper
that a body reserve the right
for itself to waive the final
review of a contract.”
Councilmember Jack Eaton,
D-Ward 4, expressed concerns
similar to Hayner’s but voted
yes to approve the settlement.
Councilmember Ali Ramlawi,
D-Ward 5, also voted yes on
the settlement but wanted to
clarify that his vote was only
in agreement with affirming
procedural
requirements
stipulated by the city charter
and was not a vote to prevent
the
development
by
Core
Spaces.
“I would like to go on
record saying I was under the
impression that that’s what
the lawsuit was about — it
was not about preventing the
construction
of
a
building
but about the procedures of
a whole process,” Ramlawi
said. “And if we are going to be
consistent up here, we have to
respect that principle.”
After the vote, Bannister
read a prepared statement
thanking the city attorney for
recommending settlement of
the lawsuit and the council for
approving the settlement.
“When Sumi Kailasapathy
and I filed our complaint last
June, we did not take that
matter lightly,” Bannister said.
“We did so because we believed
that when City Council votes
to approve a contract, that
contract must be available for
our review.”
Bannister
ended
her
comments by declaring her
hope for the city to follow
proper procedures, as written
in the city charter, when
approving contracts in the
future.
“By settling this case, we are
acknowledging that the voters
amended the city charter in
November and we are agreeing
that the city will not proceed
with the sale of the Library
Lot to Core Spaces,” Bannister
said. “I hope we will also agree
that going forward, that the
city will approve contracts only
when the contracts are written
and available for review.”
and we have to be vigilant. Just
like everything in Housing,
it’s a 24-hour operation: once
we’ve done each corner of the
building, we start over again to
maintain safety.”
Walsh also said while the
University
has
been
doing
a good job, she had to make
sacrifices for her wellbeing and
not attend her classes or club
meetings due to the slippery
sidewalks and roads last week.
She
noted
her
professors
were accommodating of her
situation.
“I had to skip class on
Wednesday [last week], the day
it was really icy out, and there
were a few club mass meetings
I didn’t get to go to on Tuesday
night of last week,” Walsh said.
Walsh
is
one
of
many
students who lives on North
Campus and takes the buses
every day. On Monday, a Blue
Bus slid off of Fuller Road and
crashed into a tree. She said
the bus crash scared her, as
she is already injured, and it
made her think about other
students and faculty who have
to drive longer distances to get
to campus.
“When one of the girls said
she had felt herself jolt when
the bus crashed, that was a
little scary, because I’m not
looking to get any more hurt,”
Walsh said. “It definitely was
concerning, especially with all
of the professors and students
that drive to school. It made me
think that we should probably
not expect everyone to have to
endure all of those conditions.”
According to First District
of the Michigan State Police,
which includes Clinton, Eaton,
Ingham, Hillsdale, Jackson,
Lenawee, Livingston, Monroe
and
Washtenaw
Counties,
there were a total of 117 crashes
in the district on Monday.
The Division of Public Safety
& Security issued a warning on
Sunday about especially snowy
and slippery roads on Monday
and Tuesday. Similarly, the
Ann Arbor Police Department
advised
city
members
and
students
to
avoid
driving
during the snow and spend
minimal
amounts
of
time
outside.
LSA
sophomore
Shelby
Alston commutes 90 minutes
each way, five days a week. She
drives an hour every day and
then parks 30 minutes away
from campus as part of the free
parking program. Alston said
she often has to decide whether
her safety or a class is more
important.
“It’s
been
really
tough,
especially since, you know,
every school from my house
to the University is closing,
and I know it’s going to be a
dangerous drive and I find
myself in my head weighing my
options and sort of choosing
between safety and a grade,”
Alston
said.
“It’s
really
unfortunate sometimes to have
to make those decisions.”
Alston
noted
that
Perry
Samson, professor of climate
and
space
sciences
and
engineering, live streamed his
lectures and enabled students
to continue to interact even
if they were watching from
home. She said she wishes the
University would implement
more classes like Samson’s.
“I think the main issue (is)
that they either need to be more
lenient in their (attendance)
policies or they need to have
more classes that do things
live streaming,” Alston said.
“I thought it was amazing. He
took a video of himself, had the
audio streaming, and if we had
any questions, we could type
it in an anonymous platform
and his GSIs would tell him.
It was still interactive, and
I wasn’t stressed because if
there was snow, I could still
attend lecture and still get
the valuable teaching that I
wanted. Because it’s not that
I don’t want to go — I want to
hear what my teacher has to
say. Lecture is valuable, you
know?”
A
Public
Policy
junior
who
requested
to
remain
anonymous due to the small size
of her class said her professor
is requiring the class to log
onto an online Canvas chat on
Wednesday to participate in a
class discussion at the normal
8:30 a.m. start time, ending at
9:50 a.m. as usual.
“She did make it very clear
that if we do not have internet
or do not have access to internet
that she will excuse us from
class — we just have to let her
know,” the student said.
The student expressed their
understanding that the online
discussion is being used to
avoid falling behind in class
material.
“I understand where the
professor is coming from,” the
student said. “We only have
only so many class periods
throughout
the
semester
to meet and getting behind
even one can be difficult for
a professor to make up, so I
understand where Professor
Lin is coming from.”
While
the
professor
said the grades of students
without internet will not be
penalized, the student said
those people will be inherently
disadvantaged by missing the
class material.
“It is just a little bit difficult
when some students, if they do
not have access to internet, they
are now missing out on a class
period that the rest of the class
gets to enjoy,” the student said.
“Also with it being on a chat
based site and not even a video
chat, we are missing out on
face-to-face interactions with
our other students regarding
information that could be used
later in the class, so to me it
feels like I might be missing out
on a particular environment
that I could learn better in.”
The
student
has
never
participated in an online class
and said she is worried about
being evaluated on this basis.
“It’s going to be a big group
chat from my understanding
— like I said, I’ve never used it
before,” the student said. “I’ve
never had a professor use this
thing on Canvas, so I’m not 100
percent sure what its going to
look like, which is also kind of
nerve wracking.”
The student said the online
chat hinders the quality of
discussion because students
cannot speak face-to-face.
“I feel like I learn better
in an environment where I
can see my peers around me
and by forcing us to have this
discussion online, it seems
like it can hinder the very
collaborative
environment
that the Ford School likes to
promote, and so this just feels
like we might be losing valuable
time that we could be spending
in the classroom discussing
this stuff,” the student said.
Northwood III Hall Director
Stephanie Pocsi said in an
email that students with meal
plans can order Dining To-Go
Meals
on
Wednesday
and
Thursday for either lunch or
dinner, which will be delivered
to
students’
buildings
or
community centers.
“The meal will be delivered
to the (Community Center)
according to the type of meal,”
Poscsi said. “Lunch will be
delivered around 12 p.m. and
dinner around 5 p.m. as long as
the weather allows. The dining
halls will still be open; we just
wanted to offer an option so
folks didn’t feel that they had to
either walk through the winter
weather or not eat.”
University
buildings
and
local Ann Arbor businesses
such
as
Espresso
Royale
will
close
on
Wednesday
and Thursday. Libraries will
reopen on Friday at 8 a.m.
The Ross School of Business
will be locked from midnight
Wednesday and will reopen
at 7 a.m. Friday, but faculty
and staff will be able to enter
the building. Ann Arbor trash
and recycling services will
be delayed for two days. The
Winter
Engineering
Career
Fair, which was scheduled
for Wednesday, as well as
any related interviews and
recruiting events, have been
canceled.
According to the LSA website,
more than 40 languages are
offered across LSA to fulfill
the
language
requirement.
The
number
of
language
courses one must take can be
minimized for some languages
by
completing
a
placement
exam, which, depending on
how well the student performs
on it, can exempt students
from as many as all four
semesters of the requirement.
Advanced
Placement
credit
for language courses, among
other examinations, can also
aid
students
in
expediting
the process of completing the
requirement.
LSA
last
reviewed
the
language
requirement
in
2004
and
upheld
its
original
requirements.
As
fewer
institutions
require
undergraduate students to take
courses in a language other
than English for two or more
semesters, LSA continues to
instill language proficiency of
four semesters in its students.
Angela Dillard, the associate
dean
for
Undergraduate
Education in LSA, wrote in an
email to The Daily that despite
other universities’ decisions to
cut down language departments,
LSA still believes strongly in
the benefits of the language
requirement.
“Many of us are concerned
that
some
institutions
have
begun to eliminate language
study departments, and to offer
less and fewer opportunities for
second language acquisition,”
Dillard wrote. “LSA remains
committed
to
the
two-year
language
requirement
and
to offering a wide range of
opportunities,
including
those in less commonly taught
languages.”
Students
have
expressed
concerns over the LSA language
requirement since its conception,
particularly in terms of its four-
semester length and hefty time
commitment. Many languages
are recitation courses, meaning
they are taught four days a week,
limiting students’ ability to
schedule other classes.
Four
semesters,
or
two
years, are oftentimes only the
prerequisites
to
pursuing
a
major or minor in a language.
In the Romance Languages and
Literatures
Department,
for
example, five semesters of the
student’s respective language
must be completed before they
can begin working toward the
major or minor. Some students
opt for this route, but those who
are on pre-professional tracks or
wish to explore other interests
are boxed into taking a language
for at least half of their college
career.
LSA
freshman
Natalie
White is currently enrolled in
French. After completing four
years of French in middle and
high school, she placed into
French 103, of second-semester
equivalency. White, who is on a
pre-medicine track, expressed
frustration with the fact that
both her major requirements
and pre-professional track pose
a heavy course load, and her
foreign language requirements
require the same, if not more,
time and attention.
“I have a whole major I
need to finish, and pre-med
prerequisites I need to finish,
and now I need to take three
semesters of this language,”
White said. “It’s been really
frustrating because (French is)
not a low-credit class.”
The
intense
hours
and
extensive
course
work
surrounding
the
language
requirement
cause
some
students
to
question
the
purpose of the requirement, and
whether or not the language
skills
they
acquire
through
LSA will help them in the long
run. The demands of French, in
addition to her other academic
commitments,
have
pushed
White to consider transferring
out of LSA in order to avoid the
language requirement.
“I really love the school of
LSA, but if I switch into another
school I wouldn’t have to take
this language requirement …
it’s gotten to that point,” White
said.
While some students have
strong opinions against the
LSA
language
requirement
and
its
effectiveness,
LSA
administrators and many faculty
members voice their support for
the requirement, citing lifelong
skills that learning a language
can bring to students.
“LSA’s language requirement
seeks to prepare students for a
world that has been profoundly
transformed by the forces of
globalization,” the LSA website
states.
“Learning
a
second
language provides both a deep
awareness of linguistic and
cultural differences and a means
to bridge them.”
Echoing
the
mission
of
cultivating cultural awareness
amid
globalization,
Hartmut
Rastalsky, language program
director
for
the
Germanic
Languages
and
Literatures
Department, praised the LSA
language requirement and its
ability to create well-rounded
and cultured students.
“(Language)
provides
students
with
intercultural
skills that will be invaluable
to them both globally and
locally, in their professional and
personal lives,” Rastalsky said.
“Learning a foreign language
makes students more aware of
how their own language works,
and thus helps them to become
better and more creative.”
Dillard further emphasized
the advantages of achieving
proficiency
in
a
foreign
language.
“Language study is (and ought
to remain) a cornerstone of an
education in the liberal arts
and sciences,” Dillard wrote. “It
gives students a value skill, an
important way of understanding
and navigating the world, and a
competitive edge.”
While
acknowledging
the
importance of having knowledge
in
a
language
other
than
English, White noted the lack
of enthusiasm and participation
that exist in the requirement-
level language courses.
“I get the point of having to
take a foreign language because
the U.S. is so ignorant to
understanding other languages,
but at the same time it should be
a choice,” White said. “There’s
nothing worse than sitting in a
foreign language class and no
one wants to be there.”
LSA junior Yosef Gross is
majoring in Spanish and also
taking courses in Yiddish, but
placed out of the language
requirement after taking the
placement exam. Continuing to
take languages for fun, Gross
stressed the importance of using
language to communicate with
people from different cultures.
“I think taking a language
can be a very eye-opening
experience, because when you
communicate
with
someone
in their native language … it’s
like you’re making an effort
to meet them where they are,”
Gross said. “A lot of times it can
lead to more meaningful and
productive conversations.”
LSA senior Holly Wood is
currently
in
a
second-year
Indonesian
language
course.
After
a
self-proclaimed
embarrassing placement exam
experience
with
Mandarin
Chinese,
Wood
decided
to
take Indonesian instead. She
wrote in email to The Daily
she
recognizes
the
intense
nature of the requirement but
understands the overarching
benefits as well.
“While it is annoying to have
a language as a requirement, I do
think it is important for students
to learn different languages
and cultures,” Wood wrote. “I
support the (two) year language
requirement, especially because
these
language
classes
get
students interested in a lot of the
(culture) on campus.”
To petition the LSA language
requirement, students must go
through the Office of Academic
Standards and Opportunities’
Academic
Standards
Board,
which reviews student petitions
and provides the students with
substitution culture courses
if they prove their inability
to learn a language. Prior to
petitioning, a student must
attempt a foreign language
course, exert a “good-faith”
effort in the course (including
near-perfect attendance and
strong participation), and then
consult their foreign language
instructor for assistance in
seeking an alternative. Students
can
find
the
information
regarding the petition process
if they speak to someone at the
Office of Academic Standards
and Opportunities.
“It’s an opportunity for our
existing fellows and our visiting
fellows to bring what they’re
working on to the table within
a 30-minute to an hour speech,”
O’Hair said.
Jessica
Walker,
an
LSA
collegiate fellow in American
culture, said Wilson’s talk was
beneficial to her research.
“That notion that architecture
is an extension of this notion
of reason, that’s separated by
Europeans and those who aren’t,
I think is important to my work,”
Walker said. “I work on kitchen
and domestic spaces, and I think
those also are designed with a
similar type of, ‘They tell you
how to cook in whatever nation
you’re in, and that tells you how
to be the right class, be a normal
person, belong to a group,’ food is
very important to that. So I will
take that with me especially.”
Wilson
said
the
most
important discovery she made
through her research relates to
the long-standing and intense
nature of racism in the United
States’ foundation.
“For me, the biggest revelation
is that the challenges that the
United States’ face have their
DNA back to the founding in
original
colonial
history
of
the nation,” Wilson said. “It’s
not new. At all. So that’s been
interesting for me at least.”
For Keith Mitnick, an associate
professor of architecture and
Institute for the Humanities
fellow,
details
of
Jefferson’s
disdain for Black intellect
—
saying the poems of Phillis
Wheatley, a reknowned African-
Amerian poet, were below the
dignity of criticism and claiming
African Americans lacked the
ability to appreciate beauty or
comprehend the law, according
to Wilson’s research — came as a
surprise.
“A lot of it surprised me,”
Mitnick
said.
“I’m
from
Philadelphia, so I grew up with
a lot of this kind of architecture
from that period, and Thomas
Jefferson’s
always
celebrated
as the founding father of this
idealistic view for a radical
country that’s departing from
the English model, and yet you
find
out
how
deeply-seated
racism is in our culture, so the
fact that it’s actually ingrained in
forms of our architecture is both
sobering and important to think
about.”
Wilson later expanded on
the economic complications of
slavery and how it relates to core
American values.
“I think that it’s a complicated
moral bind that people found
themselves in. Some of the
wealthy elites, they let their slaves
free, because they recognized
that they can’t say, ‘I believe in
freedom and yet I hold another
human in bondage,’” Wilson said.
“Others, like Jefferson, were
financially dependent, because
not only do the slaves work, they
have value. They’re worth money,
so it’s like land. So there was this
huge investment in slaves as
property, essentially, as well as
the labor that slaves did in order
to build the wealth of people. So
the complexity of the history of
the slavery and its intertwined
relationship to American ideas
of freedom and to mercantile
and industrial capitalism. It’s
fascinating and there’s so many
great scholars and artists doing
work on the topic. Still much to
know.”
“They stood by Detroit and
Detroiters
stood
by
them,”
Grimm said.
Grimm
also
pointed
out
Faygo is now owned by National
Beverage,
which
is
highly
profitable, despite declining soft
drink sales, because it produces
popular sparkling water brand
La Croix.
Commenting
on
the
presentation, Bandyke said he
appreciated Grimm’s enthusiasm
for his research on Faygo. Not
every author, Bandyke said, can
fill up their presentation time
and successfully engage the
audience.
“You have the feeling that
this guy just could have talked
for twice as long and have
commanded your attention
for that long,” Bandyke said.
“Not every author has that
passion that he does for the
subject
matter.
It’s
really
impressive.”
Ann Arbor resident Kathie
Wilder said she found Grimm’s
talk very informative, and was
particularly struck by Faygo’s
inclusive hiring practices in the
1960s.
“I thought they were way,
way ahead of the times,” Wilder
said. “They were pathfinders, I
thought.”
Wilder added that as a non-
Michigan native, she was excited
to taste some of the flavors
Grimm mentioned.
“I’ll have to try some of these
unique flavors,” Wilder said.
FAYGO
From Page 2A
SNOW
From Page 2A