The University of Michigan’s
Board of Regents met for their
first meeting of the 2019-2020
school year Thursday. Regents
Jordan Acker (D) and Michael
Behm (D) were not present, and
chair Ron Weiser (R) arrived
late.
University President Mark
Schlissel began the meeting by
thanking E. Royster Harper,
vice president for Student Life,
for her time at the University.
Harper
announced
her
retirement this week.
“After
an
amazing
four
decades
of
service
to
the
University and to generations
of our students, among student
life leaders in our nation, Dr.
Harper has set the standard,”
Schlissel said. “And it’s a very
high standard. Throughout her
career, including 18 years as vice
president, she worked tirelessly
to enrich the lives of students.
She supported their academic
and career aspirations, their
health and their goals as people
so they could reach their full
potential.”
Schlissel then discussed the
University’s new measures to
prevent
sexual
misconduct,
including
a
new
online
module that is required for all
employees. He said nearly half of
the University’s employees have
completed it so far.
“Already,
47
percent
of
University
employees
have
completed training,” Schlissel
said. “The senior leadership
takes this very seriously, and I am
pleased to report that all regents,
executive officers and deans on
all three of our campuses have
already completed this training.
The deadline for completion is
December 31.”
Ben Gerstein, Public Policy
junior and president of Central
Student
Government,
then
took the stand. He started by
discussing what CSG hopes to
accomplish this year.
“Our
priorities
for
the
upcoming year include elevating
student voices in the potential
renovations to North Campus,
namely for an increase in North
Campus’s health and wellness
resources,”
Gerstein
said.
“Additionally, we are acting on
student concern surrounding
financial barriers to academic
inclusion and success, namely
textbook affordability and the
high cost of homework access
codes.”
Gerstein
continued
by
expressing CSG’s support for
the Washtenaw County Climate
Strike tomorrow, and for the
University in joining the Climate
Change Coalition.
“I want to acknowledge the
activists organizing tomorrow’s
Washtenaw
County
Climate
Strike
for
highlighting
an
important cause through their
activism
and
showing
the
urgency of action,” Gerstein
said.
michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Friday, September 20, 2019
ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Pushing
a
strand
of
magenta hair out of her face,
Ruth
Leonela
Buentello
recovered from a tearful
moment.
Buentello,
this
year’s Efroymson Emerging
Artist
in
Residence,
was
recounting an incident in her
hometown of San Antonio
where nine migrants died in
a case of human smuggling.
The migrants, who were
undocumented and had most
likely just crossed the U.S.-
Mexico border, died after
spending hours in a Walmart
van without air conditioning
in the middle of a notoriously
hot Texas summer.
“They were begging for
their lives,” Buentello said.
“And
no
one
published
their names, their family
members. … I just don’t know
how to not feel and not say
something.”
San Antonio-based artist opens exhibit
on struggles at US-Mexico border
Efroymson Emerging Artist showcases experiences of undocumented immigrants
ZAYNA SYED
Daily Staff Reporter
Ann Arbor Public Schools
will allow students to leave class
to participate in the “Global
Climate Strike” on Friday if their
parents approve.
In a letter to parents that was
posted online by the organizers
of
the
Washtenaw
County
Climate Strike, AAPS Deputy
Superintendent David A. Comsa
said the schools aim to provide a
safe environment for students on
campus.
“We
are
clear
that
our
students are expected to be
in school and to remain on
school grounds,” Comsa wrote.
“Students may only be excused
from our campuses with parental
permission in advance of an off-
campus event. Our work with
our student leaders is focused
on activities on our campuses.
With
advisement
from
law
enforcement, we discourage our
students from gathering at any
sites off of our campuses.”
AAPS allows
students to
leave class
for walkout
ANN ARBOR
School district gives ‘OK’
to participate in strike if
parents say they approve
LEAH GRAHAM &
AMARA SHAIKH
Daily News Editors
RUCHITA IYER/Daily
LSA Institute for the Humanities presents ‘Yo Tengo Nombre’ by San Antonio-based artist Ruth Leonela Buentello at the Institute for Humanities Thursday.
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INDEX
Vol. CXXVIII, No. 137
©2019 The Michigan Daily
N E WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
O PI N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
S U D O K U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
CL A S S I F I E DS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
michigandaily.com
For more stories and coverage, visit
Author discusses taking personal
action to mitigate climate change
RUCHITA IYER/Daily
New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Safran Foer speaks on food sustainability in his latest book “We are the Weather: Saving the Planet Begins at
Breakfast” at Rackham Auditorium Thursday night
Jonathan Safron Foer highlights new book at signing at Rackham Auditorium
Best-selling author Jonathan
Safran Foer spoke to a crowd
of several hundred people at
Rackham Auditorium for a book
talk
Thursday
evening.
The
Ford School of Public Policy
collaborated with the Literati
Bookstore to host the event.
Foer’s book, “We are the
Weather:
Saving
the
Planet
Begins at Breakfast,” focuses
on changes people can make in
their immediate lives to promote
environmental
sustainability.
Foer
highlighted
four
major
contributors to climate change:
airplane travel, overpopulation,
cars and food consumption. The
way people eat is just as important
as the other three since it also
deals with dangerous pollutants,
Foer said.
“Eating is the only one of
those that immediately addresses
nitrous oxide and methane, which
are
two
extremely
powerful
greenhouses gases,” Foer said. “I
think there are focuses exclusively
on fossil fuels. It’s good to have
a focus on fossil fuels, but bad to
have a focus exclusively on fossil
fuels.”
The discussion was moderated
by Ivette Perfecto, a professor
in the School for Environment
and Sustainability. She asked
Foer why he did not talk more
about the political side of climate
change.
“Is this a tactical device
because do you think that people
would dismiss you … or do you
truly think that capitalism has
nothing to do with it?” Perfecto
asked.
Foer said he wanted to focus his
book on a part of climate change
that is not talked about enough.
“The focus of the book is
individual action,” Foer said. “In
the same way that I acknowledge
the fossil fuel industry is a
profound problem, but I don’t
really write about it in the book
because I feel like a lot of people
are giving a lot of attention to it.”
He acknowledged that, though
the government needs systemic
change, it cannot be done without
some individual change.
“The
government
needs
our help and we need the
government,” Foer said.
ALYSSA MCMURTRY
Daily Staff Reporter
Regents approve
new $920 million
hospital, address
STEM concerns
Community members ask Board to tackle
issues including child abuse, pedestrian safety
LIAT WEINSTEIN
& EMMA STEIN
Daily Staff Reporters
A team of University of
Michigan and University of
California,
San
Francisco
researchers developed a new
technology able to efficiently
produce human-like embryos,
also called embryoids. The
research was published in
Nature on Sept. 11.
Other
scientists
have
created embryoids in the past,
which are made by coaxing
human stem cells to behave
and organize into structures
similar to ones found in very
early human embryos. The
researchers specifically use
pluripotent stem cells, which
are able to differentiate into a
variety of cell types.
The new technology uses
a
microfluidics
device
in
which scientists first insert
pluripotent stem cells and
then
add
chemicals
that
stimulate the cells to develop
into
human
embryo-like
structures.
New tech
employed
to produce
embryoids
Team of researchers study
early stages of human
development, complications
MICHAL RUPRECHT
Daily Staff Reporter
See EMBRYOS, Page 3
See REGENTS, Page 3
RESEARCH
See WALKOUT, Page 3
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com
See CLIMATE, Page 3