New COVID-19 research from the Uni-
versity of Michigan reveals little spread of the 
virus between the campus and the surround-
ing community last fall. 
Lead researcher Dr. Adam Lauring, a 
virologist and infectious disease physician at 
Michigan Medicine, told The Michigan Daily 
the results of the study are important because 
previous work related to COVID-19 transmis-
sion in college environments has been quite 
ambiguous in the past. This is mostly because 
colleges around the country had different 
COVID-19 prevention measures in place last 
year, Lauring said.
“Our goal of the study was to try to under-
stand how viruses spread both within the 
campus community of students and the sur-
rounding community,” Lauring said. “There 
has been a lot of discussion on how those two 
groups of people relate. I think the results of the 
study would be of interest to anyone wondering 
how COVID spreads in these (environments).”
Lauring said that though the research can-

not say how most COVID-19 cases are linked 
to each other, he believes that the main reason 
for the disconnect between cases in these two 
populations is the communities the two demo-
graphics occupy. While interactions between 
local residents and students in Ann Arbor were 
common last fall in areas like bars and restau-
rants, Lauring said he presumes that students 
mostly congregated with students and locals 
with locals. 
“I think that, whatever it is, students are 
congregating with each other more than they 
are congregating with non-students in the 
community,” Lauring said. “That is probably 
what we are seeing here in terms of the lim-
ited amount of transmission we were able to 
observe between (these two groups).”
The data from the study suggest that some 
COVID-19 cases were introduced from the 
broader community into the student commu-
nity, and a few of these introductions caused a 
subsequent cluster of COVID-19 cases within 
the student population. 
In an email to The Daily, Dr. Joseph Eisen-
berg, epidemiology professor in the School of 
Public Heath, wrote he was surprised by the 
fact that case clusters within the student popu-

lation did not spread into the surrounding com-
munity.
“What is a bit surprising is that (the 
study’s) data suggests that these case clusters 
were contained and didn’t spread back into 
the broader community,” Eisenberg wrote. 
“This could be because students are more 
likely to socialize with other students. It 
could be that they bought more take out food 
using DoorDash or other delivery services. 
And maybe when they did visit a restaurant 
they were still mostly socializing with other 
students.” 
Public Health junior Janna Girotto said she 
used contactless delivery services when order-
ing food from restaurants and diligently wore 
her mask in public settings to limit her contact 
with anyone outside her circle of friends. 
“My friends and I didn’t really feel com-
fortable with (even outdoor dining options) 
just because of how high the rates of COVID 
were in Washtenaw,” Girotto said. “My 
interactions were very limited. If I went 
anywhere I had my mask on, even out-
doors.” 

michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Wednesday, November 3, 2021

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M I C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

OPINION ...................... 8 

SPORTS........................10

STATEMENT......... INSERT
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LSA Dean Anne Curzan gave the 
annual State of the College address to 
approximately 40 faculty and staff at 
Rackham Auditorium on Oct. 27. This is the 
second in-person address given by Curzan 
in her time as Dean, and third overall.
As in 2019, Curzan opened by 
acknowledging that the University of 
Michigan is located on the land donated by 
the Ojibwe, Odawa and Potawatomi Native 
American tribes and acknowledged “their 
profound contributions to this institution.” 
Curzan then addressed the difficulty 
of the past twenty months, mentioning 
both the stress of returning to campus 
during the COVID-19 pandemic and “the 
reckoning with race, justice and anti-Black 
racism” within the United States. 
Kierra 
Trotter, 
director 
of 
the 
Comprehensive Studies Program, said in 
an interview with The Michigan Daily 
that she appreciated Curzan’s use of direct 
and precise language when dealing with 
sensitive topics.
“Last summer, when she was talking 
about anti-Black racism, she called it anti-
Blackness,” Trotter said. “She called it 
racism. She called different events that are 
happening murders instead of deaths. And 
I appreciate that.” 
A key part of Curzan’s plan to improve 
the college is to focus on LSA faculty and 
staff. Her emphasis on the people in LSA 
being the backbone of the college was a 
theme throughout the address. 
Angelo Pitillo, director of the English 
Language Institute, said in an interview 
with The Daily that he is always impressed 
by the way that Curzan puts people at the 
forefront of her work.
In her discussion of the University’s 
commitment to research, Curzan said the 
expenditures last year for research reached 

close to $200 million despite the pandemic. 
She also mentioned that during 2020 
and thus far in 2021, faculty and graduate 
students published over 3800 journal 
articles and over 90 books.
In reference to this year’s budget, 
Curzan 
acknowledged 
the 
many 
sacrifices that had to be made over the 
last year but said LSA will be expanding 
its non-essential spending going forward. 
She specifically cited a hiring search for 
two Disability Access Coordinators to 
support staff with issues of accessibility 
and renovations to the Willard H. 
Dow Chemistry Building with an 
environmentally conscious focus. 
Curzan also announced the new LSA 
Meet the Moment Initiative. This initiative 
will support the $2 million LSA Change the 
World Award and the $250,000 LSA Vital 
Impact Award.
Curzan said she hopes this award will 
reward faculty and their teams to address 
pressing societal issues.
“This new opportunity will support 
interdisciplinary research with the 
goal of leveraging our strengths here 
in the college across fields to amplify 
the impact of pathbreaking research 
collaborations to contribute to positive, 
purposeful change in the world,” 
Curzan said.
To conclude the address, Curzan 
acknowledged many people’s hope that 
things return to their pre-pandemic state 
but said she hopes to embrace many of last 
year’s changes. 
“I would like us in the college to 
aim for different positive narratives,” 
Curzan said. “That we take this moment 
as a chance to recreate how we work 
and learn and live and that we come 
back doing things differently, to align 
ourselves even more closely with our 
mission.”

In annual address, LSA 
dean shares her vision for 
the future of the college

Anne Curzan talks plans to ‘create 
classrooms where everyone can thrive’

ISABELLA KASSA 
Daily News Contributor

UMich study finds little COVID-19 spread 
between campus and Ann Arbor community 

Researchers discover different coronavirus strains existed at University, in community

NADIR AL-SAIDI

Daily Staff Reporter

BECCA MAHON/Daily
Michigan Medicine announced a virtual way for patients to display their vaccination record through their patient portal or a mobile application. 

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

The Ann Arbor Coffee Roasting Co. 
began its soft opening on Tuesday, Oct. 19 
at 324 State St. The new coffee shop fills 
the space formerly occupied by Espresso 
Royale, a longtime coffee favorite that 
closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. 
The shop, co-founded by Manthri 
Srinath, Amy McEwen Goller and her son 
Spencer Goller were all former employees 
of Espresso Royale. Ann Arbor Coffee 
Roasting Co. is the second to take over 
a former Espresso Royale location with 
former employees of the coffeeshop — 
M-36 Coffee Roasters opened in the 
former South University Ave. location in 
August. 
McEwen Goller and her husband, 
Marcus Goller, were the original founders 
of Espresso Royale, which opened on State 
St. in 1989.
“I think the most interesting thing 
about (the shop) is the fact that Manthri 
and Spencer and I are doing it together,” 
McEwen Goller said. “It’s just really sweet 
to have a project with Manthri again, and 
it’s incredibly nostalgic for me to have 
the store open again and to make it what 
we always wanted it to be, just a clean, 
beautiful, friendly, high quality place.”
According to Goller, Ann Arbor Coffee 
Roasting Co. has another location in 
Brighton, Mich., where they are currently 
roasting their coffee until the roaster 
for the Ann Arbor location is built. They 
expect the roaster to be completed by the 
first quarter of next year. They also make 
their chai at the Brighton location, while 
all of the food and pastries are baked 
in-house at the Ann Arbor location.
Goller explained that the Loring Smart 
Roast roaster the cafe will use is very 
sustainable and will be showcased to 
customers once it is assembled. 
“The roaster) uses a lot of the newer 
technology in coffee roasting and recycles 

hot air so it’s also very eco friendly. It 
uses less energy,” Goller said. “So we’re 
planning on having the roaster be really a 
showpiece and something that’s upfront 
for everyone to get to see.”
Srinath described the coffee shop as 
“retro” in its sourcing and supply chain 
and said they cater to a wide array of 
dietary restrictions. 
“That’s a fairly basic menu, with focus 
on a lot of plant milk,” Srinath said. “We 
do have really good baked goods, a lot 
of vegan and gluten-free options. Other 
than that, the actual core concept is pretty 
simple. We don’t do a lot of super sweet 
stuff but the things that we do, when I say 
retro, they kind of go back to a time in the 
coffee industry when the whole product 
line was much simpler.”
The building the shop is located in is 
considered a historic landmark by Ann 
Arbor’s Historic District Commission. 
The commission approved the roasting 
company’s renovation plans in July 2021, 
which, according to McEwen Goller, 
include some structural changes but 
“maintains the integrity of the historic 
building.”
“One of the other structural differences 
is some of the seating has been sacrificed to 
make way for the roaster,” Goller said. 
While the Ann Arbor Coffee Roasting 
Co. initially planned to open their cafe 
in September, Goller said the October 
opening was caused by construction 
delays. Srinath said they are taking a 
flexible approach to opening during the 
pandemic.
“The business model is going to be 
flexible,” Srinath said. “If we cannot use 
the space or decide we don’t want to, 
we will have take out options or provide 
curbside service, or anything along those 
lines that the current climate demands at 
any given time. It’s very as you go at this 
point, it’s really pretty much impossible to 
prognosticate.”

Ann Arbor Coffee Roasting 
Co. opens in place of old 
State St. Espresso Royale
New coffee shop co-founded by former 
employees of Espresso Royale

JARED DOUGALL
Daily Staff Reporter

Nearly 700 University of Michigan faculty 
members signed an open letter dated Oct. 21 
asking for School of Music, Theatre & Dance 
Professor Bright Sheng to be reinstated as 
professor of his undergraduate composition 
seminar less than a month after he stepped 
back from the course. The letter also calls for 
the University to issue a public apology on his 
behalf. 
The letter, sent to SMTD Dean David Gier, 
University President Mark Schlissel and 
Provost Susan Collins, comes after Sheng 
showed a 1965 version of the film “Othello” 
in which the lead actor appears in blackface. 
Some students said Sheng did not properly 
contextualize the racism in the film before he 
showed it. 
The faculty open letter says the response to 
this incident hurt the University’s reputation 
and Sheng’s career, leading to extensive media 
coverage that portrayed the University in a 
negative light.
“The 
very 
public 
campaign 
against 
Professor Sheng has harmed him and the 
students in his seminar who wish to study with 
him,” the letter reads. “Furthermore, it has 
damaged the reputation of the University of 
Michigan as a place for thoughtful discourse on 
difficult matters.” 
Sheng wrote in an email to The Daily that he 
was aware of the letter and had no comment as 
of publication. 
In an email to The Michigan Daily, the 
authors of the letter — including Mathematics 
Professors Alexander Barvinok and Mark 
Rudelson, Business Professor Fred Feinberg, 
Associate 
Chair 
of 
the 
Mathematics 
Department Kristen Moore, and Engineering 
Professors Fred Terry and Herbert Winful — 
wrote they were worried the incident would 
discourage thoughtful discourse and free 
debate among faculty due to fear of retaliation. 

“The university needs to be a place where 
vigorous debate can occur on topics that are 
unsettled by conventional wisdom, and where 
various voices can be heard without fear of 
reprisal,” the statement reads. 
The statement from the letter’s authors also 
said the University should institute a formal 
policy for dealing with situations like Sheng’s 
when they occur.
“At the very least, we believe a facilitated 
discussion should have occurred between the 
students, Prof. Sheng, the department chair, 
and the DEI representative in SMTD,” the 
statement reads. “It’s critical that universities 
have stated procedures for dealing with 
situations of this nature.”
The statement also said students should have 
been given the option to continue the course 
with Sheng or an alternate faculty member 
depending on their comfort level and whether 
they deemed Sheng’s apology sufficient. 
Sheng issued a formal apology to the 
department on Sept. 16, writing that he lost the 
trust of his students and failed to recognize the 
historical connotations of blackface. Sheng also 
included a section of the letter noting where he 
had worked with people of color in the past. 
This section of the letter in particular drew 
controversy, leading to an open letter to Gier 
from SMTD students and faculty calling for 
Shreng to be removed from the undergraduate 
composition course. 
In the Oct. 21 open letter in support of Sheng, 
faculty allege Sheng was removed from his 
teaching position without due process. The 
faculty claim that the University and Gier’s 
response to the incident have worked to portray 
Sheng’s actions as “an inherently racist act” 
and have been used to justify administrative 
sanctions. 
While the letter acknowledges that 
Sheng’s actions made some students feel 
unsafe and uncomfortable, it claims his 
apology should have been sufficient and 
that his removal from his class threatened 
future faculty’s ability to teach controversial 

subjects 
without 
fear 
of 
academic 
repercussions. 
“While claiming safe space for themselves, 
Professor Sheng’s detractors deprive him of 
it and are willing to go as far as to disrupt his 
livelihood and teaching process,” the letter 
reads.
In an email to The Daily, University 
spokesperson Kim Broekhuizen wrote Sheng 
decided to step down in consultation with Gier. 
Broekhuizen wrote SMTD is committed to 
fostering conversations on diverse viewpoints 
and pressing issues.
“SMTD 
plans 
to 
host 
facilitated 
conversations in its community to foster an 
open exchange of varied ideas and viewpoints 
surrounding this and other emergent issues,” 
Broekhuizen wrote. 
As of Sunday, the University has not issued a 
public statement in response to the letter. 

Student petition
In addition to the faculty letter, some SMTD 
students have written a second open letter 
addressed to Gier and has 59 signatures as of 
Sunday. The letter says the University failed to 
act in an appropriate manner in response to the 
blackface complaints and caused reputational 
damage. SMTD seniors Olivia Cho and Helen 
LaGrand drafted the letter.
The students wrote that Erik Santos, chair 
of the composition department, should have 
taken responsibility to initiate a dialogue 
between Sheng and the students and was 
responsible for the backlash Sheng received. 
“The university’s response to the incident 
involving Professor Sheng has fostered an 
atmosphere of fear and animosity that is 
hostile to positive change,” the students wrote. 
“When students addressed the Chair (of the 
composition department) because they felt 
unable to directly approach Professor Sheng, 
the Chair should have taken responsibility to 
initiate a conversation.”

Nearly 700 UMich faculty, 60 
students petition for SMTD Professor 
Bright Sheng to be reinstated

ACADEMICS

SMTD professor stepped back from teaching course after showing a film featuring blackface

GEORGE WEYKAMP 
Daily Staff Reporter

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

BUSINESS

See BRIGHT SHENG, page 3

Read more at MichiganDaily.com