“I always think about this
sexual misconduct, sexual
assault, sexual harassment
as an issue that impacts
people
individually,
right?” Williamsen said.
“These
are
things
that
impact people personally
in a traumatic way … but
it’s
also
a
community
issue,
and
we
know
that.
Communities
are
impacted when something
happens.
Communities
are also places where we
support things happening
and
traditions,
where
sometimes
we
don’t
intervene when we see
something
happening
because we think it’s not
our problem, or we just
look away because ‘that
can’t be right.’”
Panelist Amy O’Neal, an
activist and choreographer
of
Opposing
Forces,
a
dance troupe expressing
ideas
around
femininity
and
masculinity,
shared
a
personal
story
of
experiencing misconduct.
She
said
at
the
after
party of her solo dance
performance,
an
arts
newspaper critic paid an
attendee $20 to pull her
pants down. O’Neal said
she felt vulnerable and
exposed, noting the power
dynamics involved.
“I
think
there’s
this
power
dynamic
that
sometimes
happens
with
performers
and
audience
members
and
administrators
that
they think they know us
because of the things that
we show,” O’Neal said.
“And in the place where I
was supposed to feel safe,
I don’t feel safe anymore.”
Panelist Eun Lee, founder
of The Dream Unfinished,
an
activist
orchestra,
discussed her experience
being
inappropriately
touched in a work setting.
She said she was talking
to donors at a fundraiser
for
the
nonprofit
she
worked
for
when
an
unknown man touched her
without consent. Lee said
instead of finding the man
immediately, she continued
her discussion with the
important donors. When
she told her coworkers,
they were supportive but
also prioritized the event.
No one told their boss until
the next morning after the
fundraising
goals
were
met.
Lee said she often feels
the goals of organizations
are more important than
people, and she discussed
how this is something that
needs to change.
“I
myself
wondered
whether it was worth it
to bring attention to what
happened,”
Lee
said.
“But what kind of culture
are
we
creating
where
organizational
interests
are prioritized above the
safety of people?”
Another
audience
member said he does not
think there is a way to
eradicate sexual predators
or end this type of behavior.
He said it is inherently part
of human nature.
“It seems to me that
sexual
predation
has
existed for thousands of
years,” he said. “It seems
like
sexual
predation
has become embedded in
human
nature.
We
can
enforce
zero
tolerance,
but are we able to actually
prevent it?”
Panelist
Laura
Fisher,
co-founder
of
#NotInOurHouse,
an
organization for victims of
sexual harassment in the
theater industry, disagreed
with the audience member
and said all people have
a choice in how they act.
She said claiming sexual
predation is human nature
is not an excuse.
“I do not think sexual
predation is something to
accept in the workplace,
in any workplace,” Fisher
said. “We know more than
we used to, not only about
how
the
body
operates
and how there are not two
genders, how we actually
can control ourselves if we
would like to. I think as
humans, what we have is
both choice and control.”
Andrew
Fyles,
a
Music, Theatre & Dance
sophomore, told The Daily
after the event that he
really
appreciated
the
open discussion the panel
fostered. He said there
is a lack of opportunities
to talk about the recent
accusations,
and
he
thinks students can learn
from
hearing
others’
personal experiences with
sexual misconduct in the
workplace.
“I just think it was cool
that there was a way for
people to have discussion
about
this
because
it
seems to be a very big
topic of discussion lately,
and there doesn’t seem to
be any actual discussion
about it from peer to
peer,” Fyles said. “I think
it’s nice that Michigan
has these resources and
these events for people to
have these conversations
and for people to share
their stories about how
they
experienced
these
issues.”
Fyles also said he wished
the
panelists
discussed
more solutions, as he is
unsure of what action to
take moving forward.
“I think it was a little
bit unclear as to exactly
what the solutions are,
honestly,” Fyles said. “But I
think it was still helpful to
be able to have a discussion
about it even though I’m
not sure what exactly to
take away from it or what
to do next.”
The
Border-to-Border
Trail is part of a larger
project,
the
Iron
Belle
Trail. The Iron Belle Trail
spans
over
2,000
miles
and
connects
Detroit
to
Ironwood,
in
the
upper
peninsula.
The
specific
section of the trail in Ann
Arbor would pass through
Ypsilanti and connect with
Dexter.
Sanderson also mentioned
the county has teamed up
with and received funding
from
Huron
Waterloo
Pathways. He believes by
getting the approval from
the community now, the
county can apply for grants
sooner.
Hanzel
went
over
the
details of the tunnel. She
told residents a feasibility
study had been done and
would be updated for a better
estimate for grant funding.
The
city
of
Ann
Arbor
also worked closely with
construction companies to
create accurate dimensions.
“We were thinking for
dimensions
approximately
14 feet wide, 10 feet tall for
the interior space,” Hanzel
said. “We’d like to have
lights on the interior. We’ll
hopefully have the budget to
improve the exterior.”
Construction
may
not
start until 2020 or 2021.
Following the presentation,
the room was open for
discussion and community
members
voiced
their
concerns on the timeline.
Ann Arbor resident Kim
Hill,
who
attended
the
meeting, told The Daily the
city should put the issue on
their list of priorities.
“I would like them to
prioritize
it,”
Hill
said.
“It’s something that’s been
obvious
for
years.
They
studied it back in 2005.
They couldn’t get funding,
is what they said. So now,
you have this feasibility
study already, you’re going
to update the numbers, just
concentrate on getting the
money. I’m not worried it
won’t happen, just worried
it will take a little bit of time
— longer than it probably
should.”
Many
residents
were
excited about the tunnel
and trail. Ypsilanti resident
Ashley Fox was especially
excited
about
the
trail
connecting Ann Arbor and
Ypsilanti.
“I just wanted to strongly
endorse this project,” Fox
said. “I think it’s a really
important one and … I think
it’s really important not just
that this crossing would be
there, but that we would
have the path getting there
clearer, especially coming
from Fuller Road.”
Ann
Arbor
resident
Valerie Shinebarger enjoys
biking near the Barton Dam
and looks forward to the
idea of a bridge — part of the
Border-to-Border trail — to
help create a safer way to get
to the park.
“I
like
what
Peter
Sanderson said: ‘It would be
the gateway to Ann Arbor,’
because really there’s no
way to bike to Dexter right
now,” Shinebarger said. “I
see people there all the time
and I’m really excited to be
able to do it safely because
with MDOT putting more
of these barriers to make
people
safer,
it’s
more
dangerous because people
are still doing it anyway, but
now they’re having to jump
over things and slide down
a hill.”
Sanderson said he was
pleased with the meeting,
but
understood
there
is
always
a
possibility
of
opposition.
“I think the crowd seemed
generally supportive of the
project, but we’ll see what
kind of comments we get
back,” Sanderson said.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Wednesday, February 27, 2019 — 3A
LSA freshman Rubani Walia,
a member of MPowered, said she
welcomes the results of the study,
feeling empowered by the increased
opportunity.
“I definitely have seen a gender
disparity in the business fields,”
Walia said. “But when I joined
MPowered and started gaining
exposure to venture capitalists as
well as those working in startups,
I began to see a potential for that
gender gap to close. Though I have
always been confident in my ability
to succeed in business regardless
of my gender, it helps to know that
there are women in Ann Arbor that
I can look up to and turn to.”
While
female
investors
and
women-owned businesses are still
underrepresented on the venture
market, the study found the climate
was
steadily
improving.
After
examining
how
startups
with
female founders performed after
their first round of capital compared
with those that did not, the study
determined most had raised a
second and third round within three
to five years, some eventually going
public. Those who went public did
so at about the same rate as other
startups without a female founder.
According to the study, Ann Arbor
is the metro area with the largest
share of these “first financings”
secured by female startups.
Among the 19 cities with above-
average shares of women-founded
startup activity, Ann Arbor topped
the list. Between 2005 and 2017, 29
percent of female startups secured a
first round, compared to the national
average of 16 percent. Holding 58
percent of first financings, Ann
Arbor had almost three times the
national average of 21 percent of
women-founded shares between
2016 and 2017. Memphis, Boulder,
and Honolulu had shares of about 40
percent and St. Louis; Providence,
Rhode Island; Tampa, Florida; and
New Orleans were all around 30
percent.
The cities identified in the study
all had women-founded shares of
startup activity greater than the
country’s
average
percent
and
an average of at least four first
financings each year from 2017 to
2016 or from 2017 to 2005.
The study’s author, Ian Hathaway,
noted in the report the bigger cities
benefited from large established
startup communities.
“Because these four cities are
both large and gender diverse,
they drive a substantial portion of
women-founded startup activity
overall,” Hathaway wrote.
Hathaway said this disparity
could be because the number of
female investors located in the
region is much higher than a smaller
city, or because the city supports
industries that historically have had
more companies founded by women.
Sectors like consumer products and
services, health care and software
are among the industries with a
larger share of female founders with
venture-backed financing.
Lucy Sanders, co-founder and
CEO of the National Center for
Women & Information Technology
and author of the CAE report’s
foreword,
encouraged
startup
cities to create a more amenable
community
for
female-founded
companies.
“Technology investors and other
leaders, both men and women, must
perform as champions for female
technologists and entrepreneurs,”
Sanders wrote in the report. “They
must be informed and equipped
to pass along their guidance and
encouragement
effectively,
with
a clear understanding of both the
values and unique challenges to
gender inclusion embedded in our
current systems and operations.”
According
to
Hathaway,
mentorship programs or support
groups to inspire young female
entrepreneurs may be a way to
start improvement. Business senior
Hayley Rogers, co-president of
Michigan Business Women, said a
strong network of women is essential
for aspiring entrepreneurs.
“Both the academic curriculum
as well as the community in
MBW push individuals to try and
innovate,” Rogers said. “You feel like
you can do anything, you are taught
the basic skills of starting a business,
and you have the resources and
experiences of those around you — it
makes starting a business seem like
less of an obstacle.”
Rogers said it made sense Ann
Arbor was one of the top places for
women-led startups to prosper.
“I am not surprised by the
findings of the study,” Rogers said.
“Ann Arbor is and will always
be a hotspot for learning. Given
this atmosphere and the support
available from the University of
Michigan, I understand why female
entrepreneurs can succeed.”
STARTUPS
From Page 1A
TUNNEL
From Page 1A
REEF
From Page 1A
POVERTY
From Page 1A
CLIMATE
From Page 2A
“Some of the people who are
playing
various
community
roles in the simulation are
people
who
are
formerly
homeless, some are on public
assistance,”
Warpehoski
said. “They bring a real-life
experience to the role and to
the simulation that can provide
an authenticity and perspective
that is difficult to bring in from
just reading about it.”
During
the
simulation,
each
volunteer
was
given
a
specific
community
role
to play, occupying the roles
of
policemen,
employment
officers
and
mortgage
collectors.
Helen Simon, one of the
simulation’s organizers, has
been
volunteering
in
ICPJ
simulations since the 1990s.
During
the
event,
Simon
managed
“Quick
Cash,”
a
location
made
up
by
the
simulation’s
organizers
to
give out food stamps and
transportation
passes
to
student participants.
According
to
Simon,
volunteers
were
permitted,
and in some cases, instructed,
to make tasks more difficult
for participants. For instance,
several
volunteers
failed
to provide work checks to
participants due to long lines,
or even cheated participants
who were unaware of their
rights.
“I think we try to make it as
realistic as we can,” Simon said.
“I’m a Quick Cash person and
I’ve never done this particular
job before, but (the simulation
guide) says that if you can get
away with it, try to cheat the
person. I’m too kind-hearted,
I’m not going to try and cheat,
but evidently it does happen.”
LSA
freshman
Nathalie
O’Hernandez was a student
participant.
According
to
O’Hernandez, the economic
struggles
faced
by
her
simulation
group
were
noticeably linked to factors of
race and ethnicity.
“It’s something that I’ve
noticed,
especially
with
my identity — I’m Latina,”
O’Hernandez said. “And our
family
(in
the
simulation),
we’re the Perez family. And
how many times has a police
officer come up to us and
harassed us, asking us what
we’ve
done?
Why
are
we
singled out in that sense?”
O’Hernandez
said
her
perceptions about the biases
of
law
enforcement
and
other public resources were
intensified by her participation
in the simulation Tuesday.
“It’s just really striking
how
the
stereotypes
you
have about these different
systems are really apparent,”
O’Hernandez said. “Although
we have reached a time where
we are able to talk about these
things, nothing has changed
them.”
Mitcham reflected to The
Daily after the event on the
opportunity to engage with
the speakers.
“The speakers are the
best in their field, so it’s
the best knowledge you can
get.”
Mitcham said she left the
event feeling more educated
about heat-related issues.
“It’s something that I
never had thought about,”
Mitcham said. “You can
see Michigan doesn’t have
as many heat stroke cases
as other states. It really
hits you, because you don’t
really see that here, so it
placed me in the position of
those people.”
A reception followed the
event featuring student and
community organizations,
including
the
Citizens’
Climate Lobby and the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency’s
SmartWay
program. Koman invited
these
organizations
with
the
intention
of
encouraging attendees to
take action following the
event.
“I think that students,
faculty
and
staff,
and
community
members,
everyone needs to be acting
in their everyday lives to
be thinking deeply about
their carbon footprint, how
to make these changes,”
Koman said. “We’ve got a lot
of really exciting solutions
coming, and we all need to
be a part of them.”
Balbus echoed Koman’s
emphasis
on
continued
activism.
“You guys are citizens
of the University, and you
have a voice in decisions
the University makes, and
this is a big place with a lot
of impact,” Balbus said.
SMTD
From Page 1A
Statistics 250 is one of
the classes participating
in the Reef pilot program.
According
to
Brenda
Gunderson,
who
is
a
statistics
professor
and
coordinator for Statistics
250,
the
class
usually
keeps
up
with
new
learning
technology,
as it was also an early
adopter
of
the
original
iClickers. Gunderson said
she appreciates the way
the app anticipates her
questions.
“You can come up with
some
very
good
true-
false and multiple choice
questions,
but
it
also
really does help to mimic
sometimes the ways you’re
going
to
ask
questions
in
assessments
or
make
them think and type up an
answer,” Gunderson said.
Statistics 250 has been
piloting
Reef
for
two
semesters.
According
to
Gunderson,
her
students
told her they found Reef
to be more engaging than
traditional
remotes.
LSA
freshman
Hannah
Albee,
a student in Gunderson’s
lecture,
said
she
enjoys
the accessibility and wider
variety of questions.
“(Reef)
is
pretty
straightforward,”
Albee
said. “Honestly I don’t really
have any complaints with it.
It’s convenient.”
Albee added she hopes
more classes use Reef. She
was required to buy a remote
for her comparative politics
class
last
semester,
but
never used it because there
were problems integrating
it in the class. According to
Albee, Reef seems easier to
implement.
LSA
senior
and
Instructional
Consultant
Anthony King approached
Gunderson as well as other
professors
to
offer
the
opportunity to participate
in the pilot program. He
explained how LSA started
supporting
iClickers
10
years ago and is cooperating
with Macmillan Learning
to
test
out
Reef
in
14
pilot
courses
within
the
Statistics;
Biology;
Psychology; Sociology; and
Film, Television and Media
departments.
LSA
freshman
Adam
Ross’s biology courses this
semester and last semester
both used iClicker remotes.
Ross expressed interest in
using Reef.
“(Reef) sounds like a great
idea,” Ross said. “It seems
more
convenient
instead
of having to worry about
the batteries forgetting the
clicker device. I’d totally be
down to try it.”
However,
Reef
also
presents some challenges
that could prove problematic
for learning environments.
Ross noted how Reef might
disrupt grading systems.
“I
had
friends
that
would use Reef and not go
to lecture and would just
answer the questions from
their computer when it was
lecture time,” Ross said. “I
could see why that might
pose a problem in grading
for attendance.”
Gunderson
said
Reef’s
interface
wasn’t
too
complicated,
but
some
technical challenges came
with its implementation last
semester. Since the course
is designed so students may
attend any lecture during
the
week,
Reef
synced
all students to the course
rather than to each class
section, creating some lag in
the response system.
“In order for me to give
good feedback, I want their
thinking, and I want to see
the results of the poll in real
time, not after the fact,”
Gunderson
said.
“There
were a few glitches because
of how big the course was.
Many
of
these
glitches
were fixed for the current
semester.”
The pricing model also
varies between Reef and
remotes. Whereas students
can buy a iClicker remote
for $39 at the Computer
Showcase or get one used
for a lower price, Reef is
available for use free of
charge in the pilot program.
King
explained
students
would have to pay a one-
year
subscription
fee
of
$23.99 to use the app if it
were officially integrated
into LSA classrooms.
“The business model for
the
cloud-based
iClicker
Reef assumes students pay
for the software they use on
their own laptops, tablets, or
phones — this means paying
for both a subscription and
needing to have a compatible
device,”
King
said.
“We
are
currently
exploring
with Macmillan Learning
whether
institutional
licenses might be an option
and
what
the
financial
impact could potentially be.
It’s premature to speculate
on how much students might
pay.”
King explained how LSA
ultimately needs to weigh
in on the different effects
of student response systems
before deciding if the system
should be implemented.
“I want to be clear that
there
is
no
University-
wide ‘transition’ to iClicker
Reef,” King said. “Individual
schools
and
colleges
determine
what
student
response system is most
appropriate for their faculty
… for a variety of important
reasons, some instructors
may prefer to stay with the
traditional iClicker device-
based version.”
Read more online at
michigandaily.com