ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Saturday, April 30, 2016
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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Many of us arrived on campus with MCards dangling from our necks and oversized TCF sweatshirts in our hands. Since then, we’ve witnessed the inauguration of the University of Michigan’s 14th president, Mark Schlissel. We’ve sat patiently, waiting for the announcement of not one, but two snow days. We’ve cheered on the arrival of Jim Harbaugh, the perennial “Michigan Man.” We’ve frozen while waiting in the frigid weather for tickets to see President Barack Obama speak at the Intramural Building, and we’ve protested police brutality and sexual assault in the streets of Ann Arbor. We can picture where we were at each of these moments, moments that defined our college experience and unified our campus. Today we leave behind a school, a city and a community that looks significantly different than the one we arrived at in 2012.
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Vol. CXXVI, No. 113 ©2013 The Michigan Daily michigandaily.com
NEWS......................... 2A OPINION..................... 5A S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7A
News
2A — Saturday, April 30, 2016
NEWS
2012
YEARS
SEPTEMBER 1 “I’m Schmacked” video was filmed over Welcome Week featuring University students drinking and partying. The video was met with backlash from students and the University for portraying the University in a negative light. University spokesman Rick Fitzgerland condemned the videomakers for “taking advantage of the situation” and said the video has “no redeeming value.”
over the
NOVEMBER 6: U.S. President Barack Obama was
re-elected, winning 51.1 percent of the popular vote over Republican candidate Gov. Mitt Romney (R–Mass.). Many students gathered in the Diag to celebrate Obama’s victory. He was the first president since 1956 to win at least 51 percent of the popular vote twice.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
2013
SEPTEMBER 2: Following a Title IX mandate from the
Department of Education, the University adopted a new sexual misconduct policy that placed the burden of investigation on the Office of Institutional Equity. The policy would be revised again in 2016 to tighten sanctions and the definition of consent.
NOVEMBER 19: A Twitter campaign led by the Black Student Union gained national prominence as Black students joined an online conversation on issues of race and diversity at the University. More than 10,000 tweets called out low minority enrollment and bias incidents on campus.
Schlissel to Greek life: party culture devalues University Previous Greek life scandals lead to call for change by University President By EMMA KINERY and LARA MOEHLMAN Daily Staff Reporters
University President Mark Schlissel discussed alcohol abuse and sexual assault — problems he said are rampant among the Greek community — during a gathering of students from every chapter of University Greek life Thursday. The meeting marked the first of its kind, in which members of every University Greek life chapter gathered for the first time in their 170-year history on campus. Schlissel’s argument centered on the ways in which an unfettered party culture stains the University’s reputation — not only for current students, but for the 500,000 people who graduated before them. “The value of their degrees are gonna go down because the reputation of the University of Michigan won’t be the excitement in the Big House or our teams doing well under our fantastic new coach,” Schlissel said. “It’s not gonna be the kids who receive the Rhodes Scholarships and the Fulbright Scholarships, and the famous professors who do the work that you’re going to get reflected on for, or the National Medal for the Arts that our faculty won this past week. It’s going to be the ‘Shmacked’ videos. So it’s really up to you what the value of your education is going to be, what the reputation of this institution’s going to be.” The talk was met with mixed reactions, with some students coughing loudly when Schlissel, along with other administrators, mentioned problems such as low Greek participation in the University’s sexual assault survey, among other issues. Each fraternity and sorority was required to have at least 70 percent of its chapter attend the meeting. Those that failed to comply will face a semester of social probation, a letter to their national organization and a $1,000 fine.
The meeting comes after a year of magnified tumult in the Greek community, marked by national press coverage of numerous fraternity “ski trips” gone wrong last winter, in addition to increased scrutiny of the role of Greek life in excessive party culture in university settings throughout the country. Dean of Students Laura Blake Jones told members of Greek life that the issues facing their community are grave. “I fear some of you have embraced a work-hard, playhard mentality and that you may have taken to the extreme what has us on this downward spiral, and we know we have to turn this around,” she said. “It’s clear to me that if we can’t begin to make meaningful, student-led progress and change immediately on our campus, the future of sorority and fraternity life as we know it is in peril.” Issues on campus Though Greek life represents just 22 percent of students on campus, administrators emphasized the influence members wield on campus culture. Thursday’s meeting comes as administrators continue to emphasize the dire need for culture change in the Greek community — a point with which Blake Jones opened the conversation. “I’m hoping tonight will be remembered as a turning point when the Greek community came together, reinforced and recognized its positive attributes, contributions and influence and was willing to thoughtfully reflect and consider the need for significant changes in the community,” Blake Jones said. In particular, administrators said they fear the impact of Greek life-organized parties on the University’s image. Blake Jones said the popularity of the 2012 “I’m Shmacked” video — which showcased and glorified the party scene featuring University students — ultimately casts a shadow over the institution. The result: potential students are drawn in for the wrong reasons or others are turned off for fear of a wild social scene. This was a point that Mary Jo Desprez, director of Wolverine Wellness, spoke to in anexclusive interview with The Michigan Daily on
Sept. 4. She said balancing this kind of negative picture of the University with more positive messages that better reflect the school’s values is increasingly difficult in the digital age. “The one thing that’s different today that we didn’t have to deal with 10 or 15 years ago is the 24/7 instant visual of party,” she said. “For those of you who saw ‘I’m Shmacked’ and how quickly that went around and how many views it got — now you’re a 10th grader looking at the schools you want to go to and you type in the University of Michigan. U of M’s admissions tour had like 70,000 (views) and the ‘I’m Shmacked’ had 800,000 ... so who’s doing your recruiting and does that change the way people decide to come to schools? “That might have been 1,000 students in that video, but we have 43,000 students here, and now you have a video that we’ll never be able to get rid of that sort of shows our campus, but it shows this one teeny-tiny bit of the story,” Desprez added. “We’ll never get that sort of traction with any counter story.” The virality of “I’m Shmacked” seems to be representative of what Schlissel sees as an increasingly poor understanding of what it means to have “fun” at school. Referencing his roles as a father and, previously, a practicing doctor, Schlissel emphasized the negative effect the party climate can have on students’ health. “I don’t like the idea that we measure how good or bad a weekend was by how many of you ended up in an ambulance taken to our emergency room,” he said. “That’s not how we should measure how good a time we are having.” According to the Campus Climate Survey taken last year and released over the summer, students involved in Greek life have a 40-percent higher chance of experiencing sexual assault. At the meeting, E. Royster Harper, vice president for student life, stressed that the perception of Greek life on campus isn’t always positive. “There are others in the community that see your behavior as racist and homophobic and sexist and unsafe,” she said. “Some see you as giving back to the community and others see you as sucking the life out of the community. See MICHIGAN, Page 3A
ADAM GLANZMAN/Daily
Students walk through the Diag Monday, following an announcement by University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald that classes would be canceled for the first time since 1978.
University calls for historic snow day after sub-zero temperatures Severe cold causes first cancellation of classes in 36 years
By STEPHANIE SHENOUDA and MAX RADWIN Daily News Editor and Daily Staff Reporter
For the first time since 1978, the University has canceled classes Tuesday due to extreme weather, University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald confirmed Monday evening. According to the National Weather Service, temperatures will be at a high of 2 degrees, with a wind chill reaching -30 degrees and winds reaching up to 20 miles per hour. Campus buildings — including dining halls and libraries — will remain open. University transportation services will continue operating as normal, though delays should be expected. This announcement marks the first time that the University has cancelled classes due to weatherrelated circumstances since Ann Arbor was hit with 19 inches of snow in 1978. University Police spokeswoman Diane Brown said University Police will be taking extra efforts to keep response times low to limit the amount of time that people spend outside in the cold. After Fitzgerald confirmed the decision, University Provost Martha Pollack, Chief Health
Officer Robert Winfield and Laurita Thomas, associate vice president for human resources, sent a memo to faculty and staff encouraging flexibility and telecommuting if possible for Tuesday. “Campus operations will continue,” the memo said. “However, while staff should plan to report as usual, we ask that supervisors be flexible and make reasonable accommodations for these extreme circumstances. Travel may be hazardous, especially on foot or by bus, and we ask that all of our colleagues remain sensitive to safety concerns. Parking and Transportation Services is increasing bus frequency to help minimize wait times.” The memo added that staff who are “unable or choose not to” travel to campus Tuesday should contact their supervisors to use vacation time or unpaid time off. Medical School Prof. Charles Koopmann, a member of the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs, said he feels it’s “unfortunate” that staff on main campus have to come in or be forced to take a day of vacation. However, he said he believes that the medical campus should remain open, which, according to the memo, will operate normally. “The University needs to get a well organized plan for something like this and should remarkably improve communications,” Koopmann said. After the controversy over not closing campus during the Polar
Vortex earlier this month, Pollack sat in on the Senate Advisory Committee for University Affairs meeting Jan. 13 to discuss the University’s decision to not cancel classes. “By the time it became clear that we were facing an extraordinary weather event, we realized that we didn’t have appropriate mechanisms to close the University even if we wanted to,” Pollack said. During that meeting, Pollack said the University planned to establish a committee to address emergency situations, including weather, that merit the cancellation of classes. Though that committee was formed and held one meeting last week, Fitzgerald said the decision to cancel classes Tuesday was made independently of that committee, in consultation with the the Office of the Provost, Winfield and Thomas. “This is a decision that was made based on the unique circumstances that are being presented with the weather forecasts for tomorrow,” Fitzgerald said. “This is not a reflection of any new protocol.” Business senior Michael Proppe, CSG president, said he believes the dangerous conditions Tuesday warranted the historic measure. “It’s really going to be cold tomorrow, I think the University made the right call,” Proppe said. “When it’s -25 degrees out with the wind chill and you have students walking 10, 15, or 20 minutes to class, it can be dangerous to have skin exposed in that kind of weather.” Proppe said he was surprised because such a decision is “unprecedented,” but added that he knows the University has students safety at the forefront. “Though CSG did not play an active role in today’s decision, executive members brought up the school’s lack of a severe weather policy in their last few meetings with the dean of students, Laura Blake Jones,” Proppe said. While many students may spend tomorrow binge-watching Netflix or enjoying some other form of leisure, Proppe said his cold day will likely consist of catching up on homework and CSG related projects. Eastern Michigan University and Washtenaw Community College also have canceled classes for Tuesday. According to the Twitter of the State News Twitter, Michigan State University spokesperson Kent Cassella said that MSU is expected to “continue operations as usual.” St. Joseph County in Indiana, where Notre Dame is located, is under a state of emergency and driving after 7 p.m. is subject to a $2,500 fine.
News
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Saturday, April 30, 2016 — 3A
2015
2016
JANUARY 28: For the first time since 1978, the
SEPTEMBER 10: After a spate of scandals involving Greek
life at Michigan — including the Treetops Resort vandalism incident — University President Mark Schlissel told an assembly of members from each University Greek life chapter that their behavior devalues the University.
FEBRUARY 9: Nearly 100 protesters marched to the Diag,
University canceled classes due to extreme cold, with windchill at about -30 degrees Fahrenheit. The University established a committee to address campus closure during severe weather conditions and updated its policies in October.
SEPTEMBER 5: Mark Schlissel was inaugurated as
NOVEMBER 10: The University filed an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court in defense of the University of Texas’s race-conscious admission policies in the case Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin. Michigan was barred from explicitly using race-based affirmative action in a 2006 state vote, and the amicus brief argued this has prevented the University from achieving racial diversity.
2014
the 14th president of the University of Michigan following the retirement of Mary Sue Coleman. During his inaugural address, Schlissel emphasized building diversity and creating an inclusive atmosphere on campus.
calling to recall governor Rick Snyder for negligence in relation to the Flint water crisis. The Flint water crisis began in April 2014 with a switch in water supply, resulting in lead contamination of the water supply. Residents faced adverse health effects, but the supply was not switched back for nearly 18 months.
MARCH 8: Businessman Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders (D–Vt.) won the Michigan presidential primary. Sanders’ victory was a historic upset as polls predicted Hillary Clinton winning by a margin of approximately 20 points, but Sanders ended up winning the state in a tight race. The state also had record high turnout numbers, and students on campus appeared to lean towards Sanders.
MICHIGAN From Page 2A
ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
Kinesiology sophomore Capri’Nara Kendall in a protest organized by the Black Student Union in front of Hill Auditorium on Monday. The speakers made demands concerning their campaign, Being Black at University of Michigan, giving University officials seven days to respond.
#BBUM twitter campaign garners national attention to the University Black Student Union issues seven demands aimed at increasing campus diversity
By SAM GRINGLAS and ALICIA ADAMCZYK Daily Staff Reporter and Daily News Editor
University students took to Twitter in droves Tuesday afternoon to share their experiences as Black students in Ann Arbor and bring attention to issues of race and diversity on campus using the hashtag #BBUM. “Being Black at the University of Michigan has many shades and many levels to what someone might want to speak on it. It can go from someone being the only Black person in their class to someone with no problems at all.” -LSA senior Eric Gavin The campaign, initiated by the University’s Black Student Union, has built up over the past few days before trending nationally on Twitter Tuesday. The hashtag gained momentum after the student organization distributed an e-mail to community members and other campus groups encouraging them to participate in the online conversation. LSA senior Tyrell Collier, BSU’s president, said the #BBUM campaign was planned to raise awareness of the experiences of Black students and for the BSU to collect subjective data it can couple with University statistics to address pressing issues Black students face. Collier said BSU encouraged students to tweet both negative and positive experiences, though the tweets have been predominantly negative, which he expected. He said the issue is especially pressing on campus because while the University frequently discusses ways to increase diversity, many communities have yet to witness tangible results. “I would like to see the lives of Black students valued more,” Collier said. By 10 p.m., over 10,000 tweets included the hashtag from Ann Arbor and beyond. “I don’t think this is a problem specific to the University, I think it’s an experience that Black students at predominantly White universities across the nation are facing,” he said of the far-reaching responses. Black enrollment at the University has fallen precipitously over the past decade largely due to Proposal 2, an
amendment to the state constitution that bans affirmative action policies that was passed by Michigan voters in 2006. The proposal, formally named the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, bars the University from considering race in its admissions process. Immediately after the passage of the proposal, University President Mary Sue Coleman gave a dramatic address on the Diag promising to maintain the University’s commitment to diversity. However, the institution has been unable to stanch the decline in minority enrollment through alternative outreach policies in the wake of the affirmative action ban. In Fall 2006, Black students made up around seven percent of the undergraduate population. In Fall 2013, the University reported that Black undergraduate enrollment had fallen to 4.65 percent. Hispanic enrollment as a percentage of the overall undergraduate body also declined over the same period. At a search forum for the next University president in September, the Presidential Search Advisory Committee — which includes the University’s Board of Regents — heard from a number of students about diversity issues. Several student speakers at the event said many minorities feel they lack a voice on campus and occasionally experience bias incidents with both students and instructors. Collier said the University has not yet contacted BSU about Tuesday’s campaign. University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald stressed that the University’s next step will be to listen to the students and their experiences on campus. “I think at this point the listening is the most important part and how we might respond is the next step and we haven’t gotten there yet,” Fitzgerald said. He said the University is aware of students’ concerns and recognizes that there is always room for improvement in any organization. However, the University’s social media team responded to the campaign via Twitter Tuesday afternoon: “Thanks for engaging in this conversation. We’re listening, and will be sure all of your voices are heard. #BBUM” E. Royster Harper, the University’s vice president for student life, created a Twitter account late Tuesday to address the issue. “Got on Twitter to hear and support your voices. Proud of our students. More later,” Harper wrote. LSA senior Eric Gavin, BSU’s public relations chair, said several recent campus events spurred the
organization to plan a campaign, including a recent controversy involving Theta Xi fraternity members who branded a party with racialized images and words. BSU also timed its Twitter campaign to correspond with a forum this evening hosted by the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies, the Black Student Union, We are Michigan and Students of Color of Rackham. BSU hopes to not only engage members of its organization but also Black campus leaders from an array of groups, Gavin said. However, leaders didn’t believe the student organization would receive national attention for its efforts. “I definitely could not have foreseen the national attention we have garnered in such a short amount of time,” Gavin said. “We felt it necessary to push for an initiative that would bring more awareness to these issues and to the larger Black community.” Though traditional methods such as campus demonstrations play a role in raising awareness, Gavin said BSU decided social media could serve as an additional method for sparking dialogue. “It kept it open ended and that’s why it so successful,” Gavin said. “The hashtag leaves for open ended interpretation so people can say what they feel instead of imposing somebody’s thoughts on them.” So far, students have voiced an array of perspectives. “Being Black at the University of Michigan has many shades and many levels to what someone might want to speak on it,” Gavin said. “It can go from someone being the only Black person in their class to someone with no problems at all. It’s a spectrum, but we want people to be aware of everyone’s different ideas on the issue of being Black at the University of Michigan.” Renowned journalist Michele Norris, the creator of the Race Card Project — a nationwide initiative that gathers perspectives on race and aims to foster dialogue on the subject — partnered with the University during last winter’s theme semester on race, and will give the 2013 Winter Commencement address. In a form similar to BSU’s campaign, Norris used Twitter to broaden the reach of the Race Card Project because she said even though the social media platform only allots users only 140 characters, it’s a powerful way to stimulate uncomfortable conversations.
“I used to say the most productive conversations are the private ones, but Twitter made me rethink that,” Norris said. Norris noted that the University did not “take cover” once the dialogue took off, but rather embraced the campaign and encouraged students to take part in the conversation, which is not always the norm for large institutions. “This is an honest conversation,” she said. “They wanted to see an honest conversation and that’s what this is, as uncomfortable as this may be for people to read about this.” She said diversity has been an issue on every college campus she has visited, and after reading the tweets from Tuesday’s discussion at Michigan, it is likely the topic isn’t going to subside once the Twitter debate dies down. “It really was not just people talking about their own experiences, but it turned into an actual dialogue,” she said. “People were talking to each other and perhaps even learning from each other, and more importantly listening to each other.” Norris added that she will likely address the issue in her commencement address next month. By asking students to share their experiences as Black students on campus, BSU is hoping to not only bring light to challenges, but also to call other student leaders to action.
Some see only the worst in you and others only the best.” Schlissel said the issues described are best dealt with at the student-leadership level because students are more willing to cooperate with the changes if they are promoted by fellow members of Greek life. He noted, however, that the problems don’t have a short-term solution. “They’re culture problems,” Schlissel said. “They’re aspects of how our culture and our behavior line up with our values and who we think we are — who we say we are.” A turning point for Greek life Blake Jones said the need for a turning point for Greek life has been on the horizon for some time, and that the problems were evident for many years prior to the highprofile Treetops ski trip incident in January. Over the summer, administrators began taking steps to curb these incidents by developing a task force composed of four leaders from the four branches of the Greek community: LSA senior Alex Krupiak, Interfraternity Council president; Business senior Maddy Walsh, Panhellenic Association president; LSA senior Reid McManus, National PanHellenic Council president; and LSA senior Kelly Gee, Multicultural Greek Council president. At February’s meeting of the University’s Board of Regents, Walsh said leaders from the Greek community were planning to work with the University to shift Greek life culture. During Thursday’s event, Walsh told the assembled crowd that the taskforce had created a plan to improve the reputation of Greek life members on campus. The first part of the plan requires all Greek organizations to participate in the Achievement Expectations Program, which mandates that all chapters record and submit to the University their philanthropic and servicehour achievements. Walsh noted that last year, Greek students raised roughly $150,000 of the $450,000 raised for Dance Marathon.
Walsh also addressed concern over social life and the Greek system. She recommended chapters reduce the size and visibility of their parties to downplay the association between parties and Greek life. She said this reduces the liability and risk of hosting many potentially nonGreek students, who could be the ones destroying the reputation of Greek life. Another suggestion: reduce the amount of hard liquor at Greek parties. Gee, the Multicultural Greek Council president, said the Greek community is working to improve diversity and inclusion. Until this meeting, the four branches of Greek life did not ever meet together for this type of discussion. Next year, a Greek life Diversity and Inclusion taskforce will be launched for that purpose. Walsh said compared to other universities nationwide, the University’s practices for dealing with alcohol and other behavioral issues appear fairly advanced. “We contacted universities across the country and found, to some extent, we are above the curve,” Walsh said. “Campuses with problematic Greek life communities are implementing sober monitors and social behavior policies which are things our Greek community at Michigan has had since the early 1990s.” Frequent, loud coughs echoed throughout the auditorium and were regarded by several speakers as a purposeful disruption and show of disrespect. As Schlissel spoke, members coughed so loudly that Harper, the following speaker, said while she rarely is intimidated by a large crowd, the negative atmosphere created by the coughing made her rethink her words. Administrators weren’t the only ones to comment on the behavior. Krupiak, the IFC president, noted the display in his final comments. “Think for a second about how much your chapter means to you,” Krupiak said. “I know it means a hell of a lot to me … But when students sit here and blatantly disrespect the leaders of our University and fellow students like myself and the three behind me, it’s flat-out embarrassing to say I’m a member of Greek life today.”
News and Sports
4A — Saturday, April 30, 2016
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Mark Schlissel inaugurated as University’s 14th president Former Brown provost promises to focus on diversity and dialogue By CLAIRE BRYAN Daily Staff Reporter
It’s official. Students, faculty and administrators filled Hill Auditorium Friday afternoon for University President Mark Schlissel’s inauguration, the ceremony where he was formally installed as the University’s 14th president. With speeches from Republican Gov. Rick Snyder; University Provost Martha Pollack; Ruth Simmons, Brown University president emerita; and Schlissel himself, the inauguration focused on the significant issues facing modern public higher education. In his inaugural address, Schlissel articulated his vision for a University community marked by inclusiveness, accessibility and a vibrant civil exchange of diverse viewpoints. “I firmly believe that we cannot achieve true excellence without leveraging the experiences and perspectives of the broadest possible diversity of students, faculty, and staff,” Schlissel said. “This is challenging work. Not only building a diverse student body, but also creating an inclusive campus climate that is open to difficult discourse.” Despite delivering a clear promise to aggressively pursue an agenda of inclusion, Schlissel
said the process of exploring the University he now leads in ongoing. “I am walking in new directions, and I am asking a lot of questions,” Schlissel said. “I am meeting with students, staff, and faculty, learning their aspirations, what they are most proud of, and what they are anxious about as we move forward together.” Pollack, the University’s provost, gave opening remarks welcoming the community and introducing the University’s governing Board of Regents, deans and faculty, as well as Schlissel and his extended family. She also stressed the responsibility Schlissel has to respond to the challenges and trials facing public higher education. Following her speech, Snyder noted Schlissel’s eagerness to learn, alluding to the new president’s recent trip around the state. He added that Schlissel will serve as the cornerstone of humanity at the University. “What makes the University of Michigan a truly special place is not one area or sectors, it is the humanity of the University, the people,” Snyder said. In an address that elicited thunderous applause multiple times, Simmons, who served as the president of Brown University and appointed Schlissel it’s provost, called on universities to devote more attention to ensuring students leave prepared to resolve conflict and treat others with respect — even as they increasingly push forward new innovations in science and technology. “Respect for others is a goal
worth setting and worthy of presidential leadership,” she said. Regent Kathy White, who is the chair of the Board of Regents, outlined a history of past University presidents, concluding with Schlissel’s formal inauguration. The crowd gave an overwhelming standing ovation. An hour before the inauguration ceremony, Schlissel joined the regents, executive officers, deans, faculty and representatives from 100 other universities for a formal robing ceremony held in Rackham Auditorium. In an interview with The Michigan Daily during the ceremony, Schlissel said he was impressed by the number of guests who came to represent their university, department or college. “It is one of the most amazing days of my life,” he said. “I’m humbled.” Though he technically assumed the presidency in July, Schlissel said the past week has been an experience apart from the rest of his time at the University. “It really changed a lot when the students came back to town a few days ago,” he said. “I’ve been running into students all across the campus. The energy level went up a notch and it’s just really exciting.” However, Schlissel said there’s more he can do to become further acquainted with the campus community. “I have to continue my efforts to getting to know people, getting to know the faculty, students and staff and what their aspirations
RYAN REISS/Daily
President Schlissel is officially installed as president at his inauguration Sept. 5, 2014 at Hill Auditorium.
are and how I can add to the work of the University to make it better,” he said. After the ceremonial robing process, a processional of hundreds of gowned academics and officials marched down the steps of Rackham Auditorium and through the Diag, ending at Hill Auditorium. Students and members of the community who lined the pathway cheered and applauded. Some event attendees reached for members of the processional, including President Emerita Mary Sue Coleman, to snap a photo. In the Diag, student volunteers in maize T-shirts created a tunnel for the processional to walk through. Students chanted, “It’s great to be a Michigan Wolverine”
and sang Hail to the Victors. When Schlissel exited the student volunteer tunnel, many students jumped at the opportunity to give him a high five and take a selfie. Dozens of those participants also took positions in a postinaugural community festival set outside the auditorium. A few hundred people gathered for University-sponsored food and music set up around Ingalls Mall. LSA sophomores Kasey Wright and Stephanie Saravolatz served as event volunteers earlier in the day and helped cheer on the processional as it passed through the Diag. “I am a scholarship student here and this was something I could do to give back to the
University (that) has given me so much,” Wright said. “Students started joining even though they didn’t have t-shirts and I thought that was pretty cool and I think everyone enjoyed it a lot,” Saravolatz said. LSA junior Joe Murray, another student volunteer, said he was impressed with Schlissel’s inaugural speech and his push for valuing all voices, despite conflict or disagreement. “I would love to see him implement those ideas he talked about as far as making sure the University stays really open to people and that we seek people from Michigan and around the country and the world, making sure everyone who deserves to go here has the opportunity to.”
Warde Manuel introduced as new ‘M’ athletic director By MAX BULTMAN Managing Sports Editor
In front of a crowd of media, coaches, donors and former athletes, University President Mark Schlissel introduced Warde Manuel as Michigan’s next Athletic Director on Friday in a press conference at the Michigan Union. Manuel, who is currently the athletic director at Connecticut, will officially begin work at Michigan on March 14, taking over for interim Athletic Director Jim Hackett, who has held the position since Oct. 31, 2014. Manuel holds three degrees from the University — a bachelor’s degree in general studies with a focus in Psychology, a master’s degree in social work and an M.B.A. from the Ross School of Business — and played defensive line on the football team for legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler. He also worked in the Athletic Department in various roles between 1996 and 2005, ultimately serving as Associate Athletic Director under Bill Martin. Given his ties with the University, Manuel said he made no effort to play coy when he was contacted about the job opening. “I want to say it was maybe, officially, some time toward the beginning of December that (the Turnkey Search firm) reached out to see if I had interest in the
position,” Manuel said at his press conference. “I laughed when they asked me that question, like, ‘Are you really asking me if I have interest in being the Michigan A.D.?’ And (the recruiter) said, ‘Yeah, really, I just need to hear the answer.’ “And I said, ‘Hell yeah!’ ” Manuel, who was among 82 candidates Turnkey considered, inherits a self-sustaining athletic department with an operating budget of $151 million per year. Hackett, who was part of the search committee to fill his own seat, has made remarkable progress in his time, leaving the department in a state of stability. Part of that stability came in the form of Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh, whom Hackett hired. Harbaugh and Manuel were teammates for one year at Michigan, and Harbaugh was the captain of the team when Manuel was a freshman. During the press conference, Manuel reminisced about sitting in the back of team meetings as a freshman, with Harbaugh in the front as a senior. He commented on how things had come full circle, with Harbaugh leading the football team as coach and Manuel heading up the athletic department. Hearing that, Harbaugh stood up and gave Hackett a hug, slipping Manuel a No. 79 Michigan jersey with his name on it.
“I used to be able to fit in this,” Manuel quipped. While he may not fit in the jersey, he should fit in well in his new position. Manuel is the most experienced athletic director Michigan has ever hired, and he has built up the foundations of relationships with some of the Wolverines’ most prominent coaches through visits during recent years. Manuel has held his current post at UConn since 2012, and the Huskies have won six national titles with him in charge. In 2015, 13 UConn teams turned in perfect single-year Academic Progress Rates. Prior to working with the Huskies, he served as Buffalo’s athletic director from 2005-12. Now, he returns to Michigan hoping to continue his success both on and off the field. “There should be excitement about the future and potential for Michigan to not only win Big Ten championships but national championships,” Manuel said. “We don’t back away from it. We never have, and we never will.” Manuel’s contract will pay him an annual base salary of $800,000 with deferred compensation of $100,000 per year. He will be paid a one-time recruitment incentive of $250,000 as well as being provided two cars, moving expenses and standard university benefits.
GRANT HARDY/Daily
Athletic Director Warde Manuel was introduced as Jim Hackett’s successor on Jan. 29, 2016.
LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily
Jim Harbaugh became the J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Football Coach at Michigan in December 2014.
Jim Harbaugh welcomed as next ‘M’ football coach By MAX BULTMAN and GREG GARNO Daily Sports Editor and Daily Sports Writer
Jim Harbaugh’s first press conference as Michigan football coach was filled with laughter and clapping from the players, coaches and family looking on. But the room of hundreds went quiet when Harbaugh was asked if he was inheriting a turnaround program. “This is Michigan,” Harbaugh said. “There are no turnarounds at Michigan. This is greatness.” He added in his statement: “Throughout my life I have dreamed of coaching at the University of Michigan. Now I have the honor to live it.” The Michigan Athletic Department announced the hiring of the former San Francisco 49ers coach on Tuesday afternoon, the 20th coach in program history. Harbaugh agreed to a sevenyear contract paying a base salary of $5 million per year. Hoarse-voiced from a gatorade bath in his NFLfinale Sunday, he handled his first press conference nearly an hour after addressing
his team for the first time. Harbaugh didn’t give a timeline for when he planned to name a coaching staff. A former quarterback under Bo Schembechler, Harbaugh was an All-American and Heisman Trophy finalist, but he’s been part of the Wolverines’ program since he was nine years old. Harbaugh’s father, Jack, was the defensive backs coach at Michigan while Jim was growing up. It was then, Harbaugh said, that he first dreamed of coaching at Michigan. “When I was nine to 10 years old, there was a time when I was sitting in coach Schembechler’s office. I was sitting in his chair; I had my feet up on his desk,” Harbaugh recalled. “He walked in and said, ‘How ya doin’, Jim?’ And I said, ‘I’m doing great Bo, how you doin’? He said, ‘Whattaya doin?’ and I said, ‘I’m sitting in your chair, coach!’ ... There’s just been times in my life where I’ve thought about it, dreamed about it, and now it’s time to live it.” In addition to his $5 million base salary, Harbaugh’s contract includes incentives for playing in ($125,000) or winning ($250,000) the Big Ten Championship Game,
a $50,000 bonus if he is Big Ten Coach of the Year and a $150,000 bonus for each year the team’s Academic Progress Rate is 960 or higher. He can also earn $300,000 for playing the College Football Playoff or $500,000 for winning the national championship. His contract includes a $2 million signing bonus. Michigan marks Harbaugh’s fourth head coaching job in the last 10 years, most recently in San Francisco, where his base salary is roughly the same as it will be with the Wolverines. “I kind of think of myself as a construction guy,” Harbaugh said. “You build this home, and hopefully it’s a great cathedral, and then afterwards they tell you, ‘Go build another one.’ And I feel like that again. … But I’d really like to live in one permanently. And that’s what I’m really hopeful for here.” Harbaugh insisted his decision to take the Michigan job had little to do with his salary or financial considerations. “I really made a decision from the heart, which I thought was best for myself and my family,” Harbaugh said. “I’m very excited by it and very challenged by it.”
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
5A — Saturday, April 30, 2016
An attack on inclusivity Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
FROM THE DAILY
Too little too late 9/30/14
Saturday afternoon, sophomore quarterback Shane Morris took a helmet-tohelmet hit during the fourth quarter of the Michigan football team’s game against Minnesota. Morris remained in the game after exhibiting concussionlike symptoms, obvious even to the untrained eye. After further assessment of an ankle injury sustained earlier in the game by the head athletic trainer, Morris was cleared and allowed into the game in blatant disregard for concussion protocol and player safety. In the days that followed, Michigan coach Brady Hoke, Athletic Director David Brandon and University President Mark Schlissel respectively released official statements about Saturday’s mishap. However, the lack of a timely and forceful response from the University Athletic Department, the University’s Board of Regents and Schlissel and the rising discontent among students and alumni propelled the story toward a national discussion about Michigan athletics and the way it treats its students on and off the field. Moving forward, the University and the Athletic Department must be transparent in their actions and make students their first priority. The Athletic Department’s handling of the situation after the game and its response, or lack thereof, was a total failure. Hoke’s postgame press conference indicated his total ignorance regarding the incident, and his official statement, released Sunday afternoon, didn’t address Morris’ head injury. By Sunday night, the failure of the Athletic Department to address the situation and admit shortcomings allowed the story to hit all the major news outlets, even taking a segment on ABC’s “World News” and “Good Morning America.” In his weekly Monday press conference, Hoke remained blatantly unprepared, did not know key information and repeatedly answered questions by asking reporters to refer to a forthcoming statement from the medical staff. At 12:52 a.m. Tuesday morning, that statement did not come from the medical staff, rather it came from Brandon, who addressed the situation on behalf of the Athletic Department. The statement contradicted many of Hoke’s halfanswers during his earlier press conference. Most notably, Brandon confirmed Morris had suffered a “probable, mild concussion,” when previously Hoke stated there had been no signs of head trauma. According to Brandon, the oversight occurred because medical personnel and the coaching staff did not see the hit. A general failure of communication further prevented the proper and timely handling of Morris’ head injury. Though this statement and statements from Hoke don’t suggest intentionality, there is no acceptable excuse for compromising player safety, as negligence is equally as deplorable. The players on the field are entwined in a culture of toughness and playing through injury without much regard to the potential hazards of doing so. The decision to play cannot be left to the students. ESPN Broadcaster Ed Cunningham lambasted the team for its lack of concern for Morris’ safety for multiple minutes on air during the game, both before the hit to the head while Morris was limping around with an ankle injury and after the hit. The crowd booed loudly when Morris was left in and subsequently when he reentered the game. Because the hit on Morris occurred after the ball left his hands, the coaches
were no longer watching the quarterback when the incident happened, and therefore, sideline staff assumed his post-hit stumbling was due to his ankle injury. The lack of communication between coaching staff, athletic trainers and the team neurologist prevented Morris from receiving a full examination and allowed for his reinsertion into the game. Brandon’s statement early Tuesday morning outlines a plan to have a medical professional in the press box or video booth to ensure that this situation will not happen again due to a failure to see the entirety of the play, and also says the team is examining its sideline communications with regard to player injuries. These proposed changes, supported by Schlissel in his statement, and by the NCAA, must be implemented immediately. This incident was just the tipping point for public opinion of the University Athletic Department. Students feel a large disconnect with the Athletic Department, especially in light of the failed implementation of a general admission seating policy at football games and the switch to a claims-based system for basketball tickets. Furthermore, students and non-students alike are fed up with historically high ticket prices, especially for a season with one of the weakest home schedules in recent memory and an increasingly over commercialized stadium culture. Many fans feel loyalty is no longer rewarded, as exemplified earlier in the week with the two Coke products for two tickets marketing ploy. In addition, the mishandling of former kicker Brendan Gibbons’ permanent separation from the University after being found responsible for violating the school’s sexual misconduct policy contributed to the simmering discontent of many students. Overall, the Athletic Department’s public relations has failed to positively engage students, alumni and fans, leading to Tuesday’s protest and petition through the CSG website calling for Dave Brandon’s resignation that has amassed over 10,000 signatures. In order to rectify the situation, the University administration and the Athletic Department must restructure their priorities to include the safety and well-being of student athletes while also keeping the input of all students in mind.
JAMIE TAM AND VELMA LOPEZ | MICHIGAN IN COLOR
Diveristy initiatives might fail 1/6/16
Editor’s Note: As commencement is upon us, Michigan in Color thought it would be important for the larger University community to reflect on the initiatives we experienced as students. This piece was a phenomenal critique of the current plans for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. This piece reflects the necessity of continuing conversations that impact beyond the brief time we spent on campus. The plans for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are meant to impact the students who are on campus now, but they are also supposed to impact generations of Wolverines to come. Michigan in Color encourages everyone, whether moving on, continuing, or just beginning your time here, to remember that we should work to create changes that outlive our moments here at the University. We are a part of a legacy. Why should our social impact be any different? While University President Mark Schlissel’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategic planning initiative is admirable, its prospects for success are questionable. The President’s charge calls on each campus unit to develop a five-year strategic plan to promote Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. We are excited to see this new momentum in the wake of the #BBUM campaign, and to see this effort come from top University leadership. The current dialogue is absolutely necessary for us to continue to foster awareness of historical and ongoing institutional biases at the University, and to move beyond a purely academic understanding of structural racism. Unfortunately, the initiative falls short in a profoundly important way. To date, there has been no explicit allocation of resources to make diversity happen at the
University. Other educational institutions have recently funded large-scale diversity programs: Brown University announced plans to spend $100 million to promote diversity on its campus, and Yale University launched a $50 million initiative to increase faculty diversity. These financial pledges are a testament to their commitment to social equity. We are waiting to see whether efforts at the University will be supported by funds commensurate with their degree of importance. Funding for the President’s charge remains ambiguous, even as two mechanisms for diversity funding opportunities have been described in disseminated documents. First, departments are encouraged to submit “requests for funding for innovative initiatives … through the annual budget process,” according to a frequently asked questions document distributed to campus groups in November. However, there is little transparency surrounding how much will be made available within the annual budget, or how competitive it will be to secure these funds. Secondly, the campus-wide initiative is being overseen by an executive leadership team that “will allocate resources throughout the planning process and ensure that the effort is appropriately supported and staffed.” Again, the level of support and direct provision of tangible funds remains vague. In order to address climate and bias issues effectively, allocated budgetary line items are needed to develop, implement and sustain strategic plans.
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
4/5/16
T
hough the anti-Islam words that appeared on the Diag earlier this week could be easily erased by a group of students with rags and buckets of water, the same cannot be said for the sentiments behind the ANNE statements, which are KATZ systemic and unfortunately long-lived. We cannot dismiss those hostile messages with a shrug and an invocation of the importance of “free speech.” We cannot let the broader debate over “safe spaces” on college campuses obscure the fact that, whatever the motivation or intention, whoever wrote the messages gave a voice to hatred and hostility toward the religion of Islam and those who follow it. And we cannot deny that this Islamophobia dehumanizes and marginalizes millions of Muslims who are guilty of nothing more than being Muslims, laying the groundwork for persecution and violence toward them. Unfortunately, this is precisely what the vast majority of comments on The Michigan Daily’s coverage of the antiIslam chalk do. They attempt to dilute the maliciousness behind the statements and attribute the outrage that the words sparked to yet another round of the debate surrounding “safe spaces” on university campuses. “Look what we have here,” they seem to say,
“another episode of anguish for those goddamn, cry-baby liberal students, so coddled that they simply can’t handle discomfort, let alone honest disagreement.” Forget paraphrasing. By way of example, here’s what one commenter actually wrote: “To the darling precious snowflakes who melt into a shimmering puddle when they see chalk drawings they don’t approve of — do you EVER hope to get a job?? You understand that ALL workplaces (even university labs) are filled with a variety of people some of whom may have different perspectives and even different values than you.” Four other commenters nodded in agreement with a “like.” Though the chalk writings were expressing a “perspective” that’s (thankfully) “different” than that of many, that’s only the beginning of the discussion we need to be having. At a university where respect, civility and equality are supposed to be at the core, we cannot tolerate a “different perspective” that’s grounded in ignorance and hatred of people because of their religion. This is a “perspective” that exposes Muslims to the risk of physical harm and hurts them in other ways that are just as real and equally as offensive. It doesn’t matter whether the inflammatory words were written in chalk on the Diag or burned into the side of Angell Hall with a blowtorch. They must be understood as a virulent attack on our community’s obligation to be more inclusive. To dismiss the statements as harmless, let alone to defend them as protected
by concepts of “free speech,” aids those who would divide the University community. These words cannot go unchallenged. If, instead of the anti-Islam statements, there had been swastikas, I strongly doubt that so many of the comments on the Daily’s article would’ve told offended Jews to “cry me a river.” That’s because generally, we understand and reject anti-Semitic remarks as harmful hate speech that alienates an entire population. In most quarters, malicious Jewish conspiracy theories aren’t accepted as merely expressing a “different perspective,” and Jewish slurs aren’t excused as simply an exercise of “free speech.” In this regard, Islamophobia is no different than anti-Semitism. To be sure, freedom of speech should be broadly defined, particularly in an academic setting, where open expression of different ideologies, thoughts, beliefs, analyses, viewpoints — you name it — is essential to generating meaningful discussion of important but difficult issues. But the motivation behind the speech matters, and to pretend that the words on the Diag were inspired by anything other than hatred and bigotry is absurd. That doesn’t mean that those words can’t be uttered or written, even in the way they were. It just means that the statements, and whoever wrote them, deserve nothing more than to be swiftly condemned by both the administration and our community as a whole. It’s that simple. —Anne Katz can be reached at amkatz@umich.edu.
Congratulations Class of 2016! Rape culture is real
I
t’s almost impossible not to think of Steubenville, Ohio when hearing about the recent case in Maryville, Missouri. For those who haven’t yet heard of the Maryville case — or the Steubenville case, for that matter — both involve the alleged rape KATIE of an intoxicated STEEN teenaged girl by hot-shot football players, and both involve the community rising to the defense of the alleged rapists. The Maryville story is a long, horrifying ordeal that’s been, for the most part, buried from the eyes of the public until recently. To summarize: In January 2012, 14-year-old cheerleader Daisy Coleman sneaked out with a friend to meet up with 17-year-old football player Matthew Barnett. She was encouraged to drink excessively out of the “bitch cup,” and was allegedly raped by Barnett while his buddy filmed it with an iPhone. Her friend, Paige Parkhurst, just 13 at the time — under the age of consent in Missouri, by the way — was also allegedly sexually assaulted by another football player. After all of this, Coleman was left on a front lawn in below freezing weather for her mother to find in the morning. This was more than a year ago, and most people are just hearing about it now. I encourage you to read more on it if you’re interested in educating yourself further and ruining your day. But today, those football buddies are off at college, free from all charges of sexual assault — or anything, for that matter. Even with all of the evidence against the alleged rapists — even after Sheriff Darren White reportedly stated that this would “absolutely” result in a conviction — the boys still were able to walk free. Sheriff White’s advice to the Colemans? “I guess they’re just going to have to get over it.” Rape cases are already hugely underreported, so when something as heinous as the Maryville case gets utterly brushed to the side, what kind of message does that send? It sends a message that says Maryville supports its football players, supports masculinity and “boys will be boys” — but ladies who get mixed up with these boys are “skanks” and “crazy bitches.” In short, Maryville supports rape culture. So who were the victims of the Maryville incident? Well, there were of course the boys, whose reputations and football careers were at stake. A parent of one of the teens at Barnett’s
10/18/13
house is actually reported as saying, “Our boys deserve an apology, and they haven’t gotten it yet.” There were the poor coworkers at Mrs. Coleman’s old workplace, who had to deal with her “stress.” There was even Barnett’s daddy, a GOP politician in Missouri who decided to stay out of the case because it “would have been bad for me.” As far as the girls who were allegedly raped? “F--- yea. That’s what you get for bein a skank : ),” reads one tweet in response to the dismissed charges. Victim-blaming is nothing new; we’ve heard it all before. She drank too much; she was asking for it; she should have known better; she shouldn’t have worn that outfit; she shouldn’t have been hanging around boys that age; she was out too late at night; why didn’t she take a cab? Why did she take a cab? She should have called the police sooner — it goes on and on and on. There’s the flip side of victimblaming, and that’s rape apology, but I’m thinking even more specifically of a bizarre form of rape sympathy that I’ve been noticing. The focus, in the case of rape sympathy, is taken off the victim, and placed on the repercussions that the rapist will or would have to potentially face. I’m thinking of those photographs in The New York Times — of those poor Steubenville boys who could have had it all, dressed in neat buttondowns, rendered weeping into their palms in the courtroom because of some stupid girl who ruined everything for them. I’m thinking of CNN anchor Candy Crowley’s response to the Steubenville rapists’ sentencing — “I cannot imagine how emotional the sentencing must have been.” I’m thinking of endless hateful tweets aimed at “sluts” and “skanks” of all ages all over the world. I’m thinking of the incident in Torrington, Connecticut — another rape case involving football players. This case involved two 18-year-old football players, Edgar Gonzalez and Joan Toribio, who were convicted of rape after they had sex with two 13-year-old girls, with the age of consent in Connecticut being 16. What happened next was a slew of online harassment targeted toward, of course, these girls — these girls who were still in middle school. “What was a 13 year old girl doing hanging around with 18 year old guys…” one girl posted on Twitter. I’d ask the question in response, what were 18-year-old boys doing have sex with girls who weren’t even out of middle school? “You destroyed two people’s lives” another tweet reads, referring, of course, to the boys’ lives. This is past the point of rape apology — it’s sympathy.
One of the football players, Gonzalez, won the title of MVP for his team, and in response to the charges, Torrington High School’s Athletic Director Mike McKenna stated, “If you think there’s some wild band of athletes that are wandering around then I think you’re mistaken … These things happen everywhere and we’re not any different than any other community.” And he’s right. I think it’s worth stopping and considering how this all-American, sports-centric model that exists in so many high schools — and colleges — affects how people view masculinity and sexual assault. I’m not saying football is to blame for rape, just like too many shots at a party, a short skirt, not having a boyfriend, letting him pay for you at the bar … is not to blame for rape. Rapists are to blame for rape. It’s been said so many times and yet it still hasn’t quite seem to have gotten through to everyone. So what happens when the University has its very own sexual assault scandal involving a football player? We sweep it under the rug, pretend it never happened and head to the game to lose our voices cheering on our beloved Wolverines. In 2009, current University senior and placekicker on the University football team Brendan Gibbons was arrested for allegedly raping an 18-yearold woman at a fraternity party. Washtenaw Watchdogs has a detailed synopsis of the allegations, and Daily blogger Emma Maniere wrote about Gibbons fairly recently, but for the most part, it’s been willfully ignored by the University. Many University students and Wolverine fans still don’t know about the allegations, and even after they do find out about them — well, the thought of there being a potential rapist on the field while we sing the fight song is kind of uncomfortable, so we dismiss those thoughts. In the Gibbons police reports, it’s written, “(Gibbons) stated his whole life will probably get ruined, and that the girl always wins.” Let’s make one thing clear: The girl does not always win. According to RAINN, as many as 97 percent of rapists are not charged. The girl very rarely “wins.” And anyway, sex should not have a “winner.” A woman you want to take to bed is not your opponent. Sex is not just another sport — another way to reaffirm your masculinity and machismo. Rape culture is real, and it’s important to be mindful of how we’re participating, even if it’s just as spectators. —Katie Steen can be reached at katheliz@umich.edu.
Arts
6 — Saturday, April 30, 2016
ARTS
2013
over the
YEARS
In the early hours of DECEMBER 13, Beyonce’s eponymous fifth album appeared on iTunes with zero press. The visual album, consisting of 14 songs and 17 music videos, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts with only three days of sales.
2014
SEPTEMBER 18: Two members of the Russian punk protest group Pussy Riot discussed LGBTQ rights, freedom of speech and their thoughts on Vladimir Putin to the Michigan Theater, which was filled to capacity. NOVEMBER 7: “Interstellar” brings Christopher Nolan’s pretentious but beautiful vision to screens nationwide.
EVENT PREVIEW
Pussy Riot Gives ‘Punk Prayer’ Russian protest group to participate in lecture series By GILLIAN JAKAB Daily Arts Writer
Patriarch Gundyay believes in Putin / Would be better, the bastard, if he believed in God! / The Virgin’s belt won’t replace political gatherPussy ings / The eternal Virgin Mary Riot/Zona is with us in our Prava: protests! These are Punk some of the lyr- Prayer ics from Pussy Riot’s “Punk Thursday Sep. Prayer,” per- 18, 5:10 p.m. formed by five Michigan Theater masked faces in Cathedral of Free Christ the Savior in Moscow in March 2012. They criticize, among other things, the lack of separation between the Russian Orthodox Church and Putin’s increasingly totalitarian government. The Pussy Riot members brought their message of rights for Russia’s marginalized — women, LGBTQ, youth — up from Moscow’s underground scene and into view of the world. But they did so at a price. Nadezhda (Nadya) Tolokonnikova and Maria (Masha) Alyokhina, two of Pussy Riot’s members, were among those arrested for the performance and were sentenced to two years of prison on charges of “hooliganism” and disrupting public order with a religious hate crime. Amnesty International and many other human rights organizations decried the prosecution as suppression of free speech and politically motivated. The women’s trial and imprisonment under harsh conditions gained international attention and an outpouring of sympathy from artists around the world. Vigilance and pressure from the international community may have contributed to the Pussy Riot members’ early release in December 2013, though some said it was because the expiration of their terms would have coincided with the Winter Olympics in Russia. Having endured the horrors of Russia’s prisons and legal system, Masha and Nadya have founded Zona Prava (Justice Zone), a prisoner’s rights NGO that offers advocacy and aid to prisoners, and MediaZona, a media forum that reports on
issues of prisons and legal systems worldwide. The rockers-turned-revolutionaries are publicizing their experiences and aims in a world tour that includes a stop in Ann Arbor. This Thursday evening in the Michigan Theater, University organizations The Penny Stamps Distinguished Speaker Series and the Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies are co-presenting the Pussy Riot/Zona Prava members’ lecture “Punk Prayer.” In curating the Stamps series, Chrisstina Hamilton — director of visitor’s programs at the Penny Stamps School of Art and Design — tries to choose speakers that reflect the issues of concerns and interest on campus and in the classroom. The lineup is created via nominations from throughout the University, but the particular invitation to Pussy Riot and Zona Prava members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, was a whim of Hamilton’s own. Hamilton was in New York this past spring when the two Pussy Riot members gave a public interview on Randall’s Island organized by London’s Frieze Festival. The interview was conducted in a room that allowed only 100 seats and left many disgruntled feminist punk enthusiasts on the outs. “When I was there, I said to the organizers: please put me in touch with them because I actually have a 1,700 seat theater,” Hamilton said. “Obviously they want to speak to people about what they’re doing; I can give them a much more public voice and venue in order to do that.” The Michigan Theater is an icon in a city steeped in the history of political activism and influential artist communities. Though the scale and methods of protest at the University have shifted since the 1960s, students today grapple with issues of identity through publications such as The Michigan Daily’s “Michigan in Color” series and “What the F,” and voice their passions for social, economic and political justice locally and globally. Pussy Riot’s words, their credibility rooted in deeds, will find a warm reception here. “Russia’s in the news constantly right now,” Hamilton said. “The fact that these young women were able to stand up to Putin, be in prison, and … have garnered this international attention, gives them a lot of power.” Masha and Nadya are harnessing this power to shed light on
the oppression of feminist and LGBTQ* communities in Russia, the consequences of dissent, and the brutal Russian penal system. “A lot of the people who are going to come obviously know something of the story of what’s happened to them up to this point, but I think it will be very excited to hear about what their plans are now that they’ve captured the world stage, what are they going to do with it?” Though they are rock stars on the metaphorical stage of world politics and media, they will not be performing in the musical sense on the stage of the Michigan Theater. Right before coming to Ann Arbor, Pussy Riot joined many punk bands at Riot Fest Chicago, not on the lineup to play a concert, but to give a panel discussion. “They won’t actually be performing,” Hamilton said. “I asked them about it when we were discussing the whole thing and their response was: they don’t perform … they’re activists. They would perform if there were a reason to, as they have done.” “I’m looking at it more as the context of the moment that they’re performing in, which in some ways makes it more punk rock than any punk rock,” she added. In the field of performance studies, some scholars would disagree with this distinction and tend to define performance as a public practice, analyzing “performances” spanning the spectrum from religious rituals to Shakespeare on a proscenium stage. Though Pussy Riot did not achieve its fame by merit of its music and performance art, the group’s genre of conceptual art amplifies and articulates its political message. In their interview on the Colbert Report, Nadya and Masha say they’ve come to America to “look at American prisons, to talk to human rights activists, and to learn from their experience.” They explain that it presents a middle ground between the inhumane prison system in Russia and the mostly pleasant conditions of the prisons they visited in the Netherlands. On campus, Nadya and Masha will get to learn more about the American prison system when they meet with Lisa Greco, the Prison Creative Arts (PCAP) events coordinator and Washtenaw County Youth Center Director, as well as Carol Morris, a local artist who works with women in prison and youth in detention and treatment. They will tour the facility and discuss the work of Youth Arts Alliance! and PCAP. “Performing” or not, the only way to experience the power of Pussy Riot is live, and this Thursday’s Penny Stamps lecture is one of a select few opportunities in the U.S. to do so.
THANKS FOR EVERYTHING DAILY ARTS SENIORS! You’ll be missed!
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
2015
APRIL 23: After 11 seasons, Derek Shepard, portrayed by Patrick Dempsey, dies on “Grey’s Anatomy.” NOVEMBER 20: Adele released her album, 25. In its first week, it sold 3.6 million copies, the highest such number in 16 years. DECEMBER 18: “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” storms into theaters, earning critical acclaim and becoming the highest grossing film domestically.
2016
MARCH 19: Jim Harbaugh made his musical theater debut in a cameo role in a student-run production of “Big Fish.” APRIL 7: “American Idol” aired its final episode. The finale brought back many of the stars it developed, including Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.
ALBUM REVIEW
COLUMBIA
Staring lustfully at you seniors. You don’t have to deal with finals again.
Adele’s ‘25’ touches on her broken 20’s By AMELIA ZAK Daily Arts Writer
Ms. Adele Adkins, four years ago, would describe herself as a highly depressed, less mature, very bitter voracious smoker who paired each B passing day with 25 a bottle of wine. She Adele was the life of the party Columbia Records who said too much and cared too little. Her 2011 project, the album 21, reflected this situational distress. She was living and learning and feeling; and with all that, she produced what will probably be perpetually recognized as her best, most important work. 21 reflects just what Springsteen’s Tunnel of Love, Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks, The Strokes’ Is This It, or Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours did: The indisputable condition of the creative soul is that when they are the most sad, or the most emotionally distraught, their best work is set to inevitably emerge. Being in despair almost always means you’re the most artistically motivated. It’s in those moments of intense emotional disparity that artists are most motivated to find the answer to the question that belies the human experience: “What is the point to all this ‘love’ bullshit?” Adele reconnects with this unanswerable query, and many more, on her just-released album, 25. She’s a mother now and has happily settled into a stable relationship with the father of her child. Adele doesn’t smoke anymore, doesn’t drink, spends time with close friends but, admittedly, spends most nights at home with her family. After all the emotional and lifestyle changes over the past four years, it’s a little surprising that all these acquired experiences wouldn’t immediately inspire and motivate an album for age 23, or at the very least for the age of 24. But writer’s block plagued the mind of one of the world’s favorite red-heads. She held her experiences in equally high esteem, surely, but struggled to connect them to her art form. Writing sessions with an array of acclaimed individuals — Ryan Tedder, Danger Mouse, Greg Kurstin, Shellback and many others — were supposed to help spur her creativity. And a lot of that didn’t help. More time was supposed to help, too. More learning, more yearning and personal reflection: this combination should open the floodgates to Adele’s hidden
world of pain, shouldn’t it? The Almighty Adele had to eventually reemerge in the studio with some new recollection of a messed up life and mind. That’s what we have all pegged her to do, isn’t it? Ms. Adkins, instead, decided to give herself the necessary amount of time, whatever that would be, before releasing 25. She waited for what was most honest, a key ingredient to all of Adele’s music. This task — locating the most honest parts of yourself, or the messages that most clearly define your current emotional and mental landscape — is exceptionally arduous. And when one considers how many people plan to draw relatability and direction from whatever is produced, the difficulty of the task intensifies. So, as the emotional epi-pen to millions, what do you do? Do you give the perpetually despaired masses what they crave: soulful, gorgeously produced pop music to underlie a nearly perfect voice speaking sonnets of lost loves, bad decisions and unfair conditions? Adele had the formula for what would derive for her the most success — she had acquired it with 21. But she left it back there, with her frightfully distraught 21-yearold self and reemerged in the studio with the wisdom of a new mother, the depth of a lover in some comfortable, settled kind of love, and the child-like, experimental nature of one still trying to define their 20s. The lens from which Adele envisioned 25 was less jaded and broken, but far more mature. In 25, Adele lyrically chastises herself, rather than some unnamed man of the past, for her mistakes and shortcomings and the people she has hurt. The album’s opener and first single, “Hello,” is a direct indicator of this sentiment: I royally screwed up a couple of years ago, and so did you. Let’s reconnect. Other tracks, like “River Lea” or “Million Years Ago” drip with self-deprecation and nostalgia. “I know I’m not the only one who regrets the things they’ve done,” sings Adele on “Million Years Ago.” She is missing her youth, missing her former self and reexamining it all from the aged wisdom of a woman who has trenched through some thick emotional shit. Other tracks like “Send My Love (To Your New Lover)” and “All I Ask” follow the lyrical themes found on 21. “If this is my last night with you, hold me like I’m more than just a friend / give me a memory I can use,” sings Adele on the piano power ballad, “All I Ask.” It’s a song
she co-wrote with one of her favorite musical colleagues, Bruno Mars. The pleading and nervous expectation of future sadness leans back into 21 for just a moment. Because, as Ms. Adkins reveals, time passes and hearts mend, but the fear of future loss remains. “When We Were Young,” the fourth track on the album, was co-written by Tobias Jesso, Jr., the Piano Man for the new generation. Beginning as a slower piano ballad, the simplistic musicality of the song holds up against the consuming nature of both the song’s nostalgia and the singer’s emotion. Adele’s fluid syncopations with fellow artists is obvious on 25, but this artistic eye for collaboration is most successful on this fourth track. The most precious and possibly most mature track on 25 opens with the giggles of her son. “Sweetest Devotion” begins with the little laughs and mumbles of a child before exploding into the layered explosions of the song. In the album’s finale, Adele makes it clear that she has selfactualized as a mother and girlfriend. “Sweetest Devotion” is a postcard to her past and future self, letting them both know that at one point, and in one moment, she did figure it all out. The musicality of 25 is less cacophonous than 21. The growth of Adele’s mind and heart has bled into her music as one of greater fluidity and smooth soul sounds. 25 does, however, hold variety: working with Max Martin, Shellback, Bruno Mars, and Danger Mouse left the album with a few more pop beats and a couple more catchy hooks. Listeners have lost the tantalizing drums of “Rolling in the Deep” and “Set Fire to the Rain,” but have gained the pop beats and sweeter versions of Ms. Adkins’ voice on “Water Under the Bridge” and “Send My Love (To Your New Lover).” 25 is a rightful follow-up to the Billboard-shattering success that was 21. The tear ducts of the listener are less empty and emotional staminas will feel less ravaged upon each listen, but Adele hasn’t rescinded her honesty. We have observed her potential. Adele has taken us to the peak of the mountain of despair. We’re back with her now, in the year 2015, piecing together what we have learned. Take another four or five years now, Adele, and send us a soul-pop postcard when you get to the next mountain. We’ll be waiting here, ever so patiently, to hear about what you have found there.
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS over the
YEARS
2014
2013 Bis APRIL etum8: il ius Theeliquam Michigan usaerum basketball eiumteam velicti lost comnit to Louisville dunt, tota in the que national consequo championship is essunture dolor after amolesti seasonberiore, in whichil the ea ne Wolverines plab ipsae excero startedte16-0. volorep tation re videndunt omnihil ipienda veliqui nobites et laboriame lantiossunt NOVEMBER hil ius 30: arumqui The Michigan dentibus, football qui aliat teampa lost quitosimolessit, Ohio Statenes in the escilit final harum game of que the regular volorit eicia season conwhen plis everum Devin Gardner’s fugitatur si pass quiae on esto a two-point blaturem attempt labo. Itatas was intercepted. mos venis arumnihilla It would’ve given ntentotatem the Wolverines aut etumahil one-point il mod quam lead with es est 32asseconds endaesc left. ipiendis escium lation cupta doluptam ab ipsapicit aut optiis
MEN’S BASKETBALL
OCTOBER Athletic directoreium Dave Bis etum il ius31: eliquam usaerum Brandon resigns over backlash from theis velicti comnit dunt, tota que consequo Shane Morris incident. essunture dolor molesti beriore, il ea ne plab ipsae excero te volorep tation re videndunt omnihil ipienda veliqui nobites DECEMBER 2: Brady Hoke fired. et laboriame lantiossunt hil iusisarumqui dentibus, qui aliat pa qui simolessit, nes escilit harum que volorit eicia con plis DECEMBER 30: Harbaugh is everum fugitatur si Jim quiae esto blaturem labo. introduced as thearumnihilla new head football coach of Itatas mos venis ntentotatem the aut Wolverines. etum hil il mod quam es est as endaesc ipiendis escium lation cupta doluptam ab
Saturday, April 30, 2016 — 7A
2015
2016
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JANUARY Bis etum il ius 1: eliquam The football usaerum teameium finishes velicti its comnit 10-3 season dunt,after tota aque winconsequo against Florida is essunture in the dolor molesti Citrus Bowl. beriore, il ea ne plab ipsae excero te volorep tation re videndunt omnihil ipienda MARCH 19: The veliqui Michigan nobites hockey et laboriame team beatslantiossunt Minnesota hil to win ius arumqui the Big dentibus, Ten Tournament qui aliatand pa qui clinch simolessit, a berth in nesthe escilit harum NCAA Tournament que volorit – its eicia first since con plis 2012-13. everum The Wolverines fugitaturbeat si quiae Notre esto Dame blaturem in thelabo. first Itatas mos round before venis falling arumnihilla to Northntentotatem Dakota. On aut etum April 3, coach hil il mod Red Berenson quam es est announces as endaesc he ipiendis will return escium for the lation 2016-17 cupta season. doluptam ab
FOOTBALL
One night and one For Michigan, a mesmerizing death more time I
A
RLINGTON, Texas — One night, and one more time Thanks for the memories Maybe the Fall Out DANIEL Boy hit was WASSERMAN just a part of On Men’s the Kansas Basketball pep band’s routine playlist, but maybe — with the Jayhawks leading 63-52 during a timeout at the 9:59 mark of the second half — it was an early tip of the cap, an ode to the end of the 2012-13 Michigan men’s basketball team. And why not? Kansas was dominating all facets of the game and well on its way to the Elite Eight. So thanks for the memories, cheerleader Alexandria DeLuca. You’re a senior, so it appeared to be your final game cheerleading for Michigan, and you knew the tears were on their way. Thank you, LSA junior Zachary Salander. As a mellophone player in Michigan’s pep band, we’ve heard you during each and every home game, though we wouldn’t recognize you if we passed you on the street. And thank you, Josh Bartelstein and Matt Vogrich. The pair of senior guards battled day in and day out in practice and provided invaluable leadership but played sparingly this season. Both of your basketball careers looked to be over, and in nine minutes and 59 seconds, your realworld lives were set to begin. But most importantly, thank you, Trey Burke. You were the catalyst behind an improbable Big Ten Championship last season, and as college basketball’s best player this year, you put the Michigan basketball program back into a spotlight that hasn’t shined on Ann Arbor since the Fab Five days. But as the song goes: One night, and one more time Thanks for the memories Even though they weren’t so great For much of Friday night, as the Wolverines couldn’t keep up with the Jayhawks, it was time to reflect on the memories of a season full of ups and downs, and of course, Burke’s illustrious two-year career. Before he bolts to the NBA, he was supposed to lead the Wolverines deeper than just the Sweet Sixteen, but by the 9:59 mark, Burke was shooting just 4-for-12, good for just eight points after being held scoreless in the first half. His time in a maize-and-blue jersey was fleeting as each second ticked away on the massive Cowboy Stadium jumbotron. Kansas continued to pour it on, eventually stretching its lead to 14 with 6:50 to play. Meanwhile, not even lottery-pick money could buy Burke a shot in the game’s first 38 minutes. The sophomore missed 12 shots on Friday. But then something changed. Staring down an eight-point deficit with 1:22 left to play and stuck on 10 points, Burke channeled his inner Jordan — yeah, that Jordan. “I grew up watching Michael Jordan,” Burke said in the locker room nearly an hour later. “I’ve seen him make so many shots, and I’m not comparing myself to him, but — ” He paused to collect himself, before referencing his favorite MJ quote. I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. “I think that described me tonight,” Burke said calmly. At the 1:15 mark, he nailed a 3-pointer: five-point game. With 14 seconds left, a layup:
three-point game. And with six ticks left, after Elijah Johnson missed the front end of a one-and-one, Burke pulled up from around seven feet behind the 3-point line: tie game. “The moment it left my hand, I knew it was good,” Burke said. So from Bartelstein, who was so confident that Burke’s shot would go in that he jumped out of his seat while the ball was at the peak of its arc, thank you, Trey Burke. “That’s not how it was supposed to end. I’m not even sure what happened,” Bartelstein said. His phone was ringing, and Zack Novak was on the other line. It was past 3 a.m. in Zwolle, Netherlands, where Novak had stayed up to watch the game, but Bartelstein didn’t take the call, joking that he wouldn’t be sleeping much on Thursday night, either. “I don’t recommend normal people taking that shot,” he continued. “It was an iconic shot from an iconic player.” And thank you, too, from Vogrich, the veteran whose minutes have decreased in each of the past three seasons. “I just want to sit here forever,” he said aloud, but to no one in particular, from his seat in the locker room. A few minutes later, as he was still reveling in the moment, his dad texted him an underwhelming message that called Burke and teammate Mitch McGary “good.” “We’ve got the best player in the country on our team,” Vogrich said. “I never thought it was over. But that’s the greatest game I’ve ever seen. Unbelievable. That was nuts, man.” And Trey, Salander would like to thank you, too, for giving him the “perfect angle” to the end of the “craziest game I’ve ever been a part of.” “I was right under the basket, and he shot it and I was like, ‘It’s going, it’s going, this is going in, this shot is going in the bucket!’ And then it went in,” Salander said. “It was just absolutely insane. “I jumped and screamed and like, I — I just went crazy.” Salander and the rest of his bandmates had to regain their composure to play ‘The Victors’ just seconds after the shot, when Kansas took a timeout, and then for the ensuing overtime session. After a brief celebration when the overtime clock read zero, and Michigan had escaped with an 87-85 win, he calmly walked off the floor. But the moment he stepped into the tunnel, hidden from the public’s view, he jumped and let out a feverish scream. “Oh my gosh, it was just total excitement,” he said. “It was hard to contain myself.” And then there was DeLuca. The tears that, as Michigan trailed throughout the game, she expected still did stream down her face. “There were actually two moments that I cried,” she said, noting both the immediate aftermath of Burke’s game-tying 3-pointer and Kansas’ buzzerbeating miss in overtime. “It was overwhelming,” DeLuca said. “You don’t want it to be over, so I was really just hoping that we could pull it off, that it just wasn’t over yet.” It wasn’t over on Friday night, and come Saturday morning, when Bartelstein, Vogrich, Salander and DeLuca could’ve been boarding planes back to Michigan, they’ll instead still be in Dallas. So the journeys of these four, out-of-the spotlight upperclassmen will continue until at least Sunday afternoon, where for at least one night, and one more time, we’ll say to you, Trey Burke, thanks for the memories.
f it was a death, it was a mesmerizing death. It was an end fitting for a game that somehow ZACH made HELFAND everyone On Football believe again. Brady Hoke went for it. He didn’t have to, and he even had a chance to change his mind. Michigan lined up for a two-point conversion to win the game. Ohio State coach Urban Meyer called a timeout. Hoke polled his seniors in the huddle. They all said to go for it. It was a mesmerizing, brilliant death, but that doesn’t ease the pain, not for Devin Gardner, who was so despondent after the 42-41 loss to Ohio State, with his helmet pulled low over his face, that he needed Kevin Koger to escort him as he meandered in a daze off the field, and then sobbed so loudly it echoed down Michigan’s tunnel. His pain was raw and endearing and real. It didn’t ease the pain for Hoke, whose eyes were as red as the thousands of Buckeye fans in the Big House. They had come expecting a rout, snatching tickets from Michigan fans who had long ago abandoned hope. It didn’t ease the pain for Taylor Lewan, the fifth-year senior offensive tackle, who nearly choked up during his
press conference. “I love every single one of these guys,” said Lewan, whose last play at Michigan Stadium was the most wrenching. His voiced wavered. He turned to Jake Ryan and tapped Ryan’s arm with his fist. “He’s my best friend.” Hoke went for it, because “we wanted to go win the football game,” he said, and good for him. The walls have been closing in during this nightmare of a month. The team has underperformed — regressed even — and some have called for Hoke’s job, or the job of his offensive coordinator or that of his offensive line coach. Michigan Athletic Director Dave Brandon had to issue a statement of support for Hoke on Wednesday. The star recruit chose the other team and another said he might reconsider Michigan. Why? He’s worried about Hoke’s job. But Hoke went for it. It was a rub route, the same one they practiced this week. Gardner in the shotgun, with Devin Funchess, Jeremy Gallon and Drew Dileo stacked to his right. Funchess ran a post, Gallon an out. It was supposed to create space for Dileo, the little, sure-handed receiver who
always seems to be forgotten until the biggest moments. Dileo would surely make the catch, because he always does. But Tyvis Powell jumped the route. Dileo never had a chance. “I threw an interception to lose the game,” said Gardner, who put his chin on his fist in his press conference. He hardly spoke above a mumble. “There’s not really much else I can say.” After the pass, Gardner crumpled to the ground, spent. He stayed there, his arms and legs extended out. That’s what you’ll remember, because that’s the image that will last. This one hurts just like the loss last year, maybe even more. A win wouldn’t have cured the offensive line or erased any losses. But it would’ve helped a lot. It would’ve erased some of the sting from a disappointing season. It would’ve put to rest any coaching rumors. So, yes, you’ll remember Gardner on the ground, because that’s what matters, but don’t forget the rest. Don’t forget how it made you believe, and Hoke too. It was a painful end, but Michigan lived it well. Maybe you allowed yourself to think this will be a game after all, after the screen to Gallon
You go for it every damn time.
on the first drive. The fight, Hoke running out to separate his players, the punches and the double middle fingers made it personal. Hoke went for it because he wanted it as bad as his players. He wanted it as bad as Gardner, who threw a touchdown pass to Dileo down 14 in the fourth quarter. Afterward, Gardner tried to run off the field, limping so badly he nearly fell over on the sideline. Taylor Lewan came off limping after that play too, and bloody again. Most of these players are playing through injury because they don’t care how many losses they have. They just want to beat Ohio State. By the time Carlos Hyde fumbled, and the clock showed plenty of time, and Gardner was fighting with everything he had left and the breaks started turning Michigan’s way, a ripple went through the stadium. Then Jake Butt scored and then Funchess, and then the timeout and it seemed like destiny. It was a hell of a death, but it was a hell of a game too, right up until the end. For the best three hours of the year, 7-4 Michigan was on top of the world. So Hoke went for it. It was ballsy, and it was risky, and it didn’t work out. But that’s what you do when what you want is right there to take. You go for it. You go for it every damn time.
SOFTBALL
Hutchins becomes winningest coach By ORION SANG Daily Sports Writer
As Michigan coach Carol Hutchins embraced her players one by one after the secondranked Wolverines’ 8-0 win over Indiana Saturday, senior outfielders Olivia Richvalsky and Mary Sbonek crept up from behind carrying a large Gatorade jug. Hutchins noticed the duo at the last second and unsuccessfully tried to escape the impromptu shower. Nonetheless, she appreciated her players’ celebration of her new status as the all-time NCAA wins leader. Hutchins collected career win No. 1,458 on Saturday and added No. 1,459 on Sunday in a three-game sweep of the Hoosiers. “One of my favorite things to do is to be with my team, and we were all in it together,” Hutchins said. “I told them, ‘This is not
about me; this is about us.’ I think my team continues to represent every woman who’s ever played before them. That’s an important tradition to uphold, and it’s an important duty, one that comes with wearing the Block M.” Now, Hutchins can add winningest softball coach in NCAA history to a list of life accomplishments that reach far beyond the softball field. Hutchins, as a student, successfully pursued legal action against the Michigan State administration over equal treatment of female athletes, and hosts the Michigan Softball Academy, an annual event that both increases awareness about breast cancer and raises funds for the American Cancer Society. “She’s more than just a softball coach,” Montemarano said. “She’s touched so many people’s lives, she’s affected my life in such a positive way and she’s there for you no matter what.
KRISTINA PERKINS/Daily
Carol Hutchins broke the NCAA wins record in April with her 1,458th victory.
She’s worked so hard — not just in softball — for women’s rights, to affect people’s lives. It’s a blessing to play for her and to learn from her every single day.” Hutchins was quick to attribute her record to the efforts of those around her. “It’s an achievement by the University of Michigan softball
program,” she said. “It’s not a personal achievement. It’s a reflection of every person who has ever been involved with Michigan softball, including our support staff. Everybody’s committed to the same thing. We’re very proud, and I thought our kids were very excited to be a part of that.”
Sports
8A — Sunday, April 30, 2016
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
FOOTBALL
Seniors go out with a win
O
RLANDO, Fla. — Minutes after Friday’s Citrus Bowl ended, senior fullback Sione Houma stood near midfield, trying to put on his championship T-shirt. It started off as a simple process. He MAX put his arms COHEN through the sleeves with ease, eager to show off his team’s victory. But then his pads got in the way, leaving the shirt rumpled up above his midsection. Houma called one of his teammates over, and with assistance, he was finally able to do something he had never done in his collegiate career: be officially recognized as a champion. Sure, it wasn’t the national championship, a Rose Bowl championship or a Big Ten championship, but for one day, it seemed like none of that mattered. Friday wasn’t the day to minimize Michigan’s feats. The senior class Jim Harbaugh inherited for one season is one that arrived just after of Michigan’s Sugar Bowl victory to cap the 2011 season, right before the program suffered the downturn that led to the firing of Brady Hoke. Among the fifth-year seniors, only linebacker Desmond Morgan played in that Sugar Bowl. The rest of them had never appeared in a game that ended with them wearing shirts that had the words “Michigan” and “champions” on the front. A loss Friday would have put Michigan’s seniors in unfortunate territory: The last four-year period in which the Wolverines won neither a Big Ten championship nor a bowl game culminated in 1968. The previous three seasons for
the senior class ended like this: a heartbreaking loss in the Outback Bowl to South Carolina in 2012, a blowout loss to Kansas State in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in 2013 and them sitting on their couches last season while 10 other Big Ten teams played in bowls. Somehow, it did not crush their resolve. “The trust and intensity these boys had, given everything that happened, we all stuck together,” Houma said. “And the bond we created, I’ll never forget that.” They had never experienced anything like Friday’s postgame: Jake Rudock, Joe Bolden, Joe Kerridge and Jehu Chesson standing on a podium with a trophy they had won, maize and blue confetti enveloping them; half of a stadium in Florida, the state where its opponent resided, screaming “It’s great to be a Michigan Wolverine”; players who not only didn’t want to leave the field after the game, but who stayed so long to run around and give fans high-fives that they needed to hustle so they wouldn’t delay the team’s TSA airport security check on the way out of the stadium. The fans were relentless, screaming for Jim Harbaugh, chanting his name. But he stood to the side of the stage, out of the spotlight and among a crowd, holding his son Jack in his arms. Harbaugh took pictures with a never-ending line of fans and donors, stopping only to tell passing game coordinator Jedd Fisch that Friday’s offensive performance was as good as he has ever seen. Harbaugh’s handprint on the win, on his team, was evident through it all. Michigan was relentless Friday, pounding Florida’s top-10 defense from start to finish. Things weren’t much different on the other side of the ball — Bolden said he was surprised Florida managed to score seven points. But if every day of 2015 was about Harbaugh, the first day of 2016 wasn’t really
about him at all: It was about Michigan’s senior class. Bolden, as much as anyone else, is emblematic of the struggles of his classmates. His teams have suffered through four losses to Ohio State, nothing easy to cope with for an Ohio native; he was ejected from Michigan’s game against Michigan State for a questionable targeting call that changed the complexion of the game; and last year, in the middle of a 5-7 season, he was called upon as one of a few team representatives charged with frequently explaining the inexplicable to the media. But Friday eased much of that pain. There will, Bolden noted after the game, be a banner commemorating this bowl victory hanging in Schembechler Hall for decades. The final game of his career was a victory, and the dominating fashion in which they won made it all the more satisfying. “It’s also memorable that you beat the runner up in the SEC that bad,” Bolden said. “If I remember correctly, I think it was worse than ’Bama beat them. It goes to show that when we’re clicking on all cylinders, in my opinion, we can beat anyone in the NCAA.” The Wolverines will try to prove that in 2016, when this year’s senior class has moved on to other endeavors. Harbaugh will have to try to top this year, his favorite season in football. He had a team full of “jackhammers,” players who not only bought into his message, but lived it every day. They helped bring Michigan back into national prominence, and did it while mentoring the players who will follow them. And in their final act as Wolverines, the senior class helped give the younger players their first chance to put on championship T-shirts. And for next time, they’ll have had practice. They won’t have to worry about the shirts getting stuck.
JAMES COLLER/DAILY
The Michigan hockey team won the Big Ten Tournament against Minnesota in St. Paul, Minn., on March 19, 2016.
Wolverines take home B1G Tournament Championship By KEVIN SANTO Daily Sports Writer
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Three hundred sixty one days ago, the Michigan hockey team found itself in a situation eerily similar to that of Saturday night — taking the ice for the Big Ten Championship against Minnesota. At the time, as the Wolverines entered the championship game at Joe Louis Arena, they were on the wrong side of the NCAA Tournament bubble, in dire need of an upset against the Golden Gophers to keep their season alive. But when the final horn sounded, Michigan was left with a scoreboard reading 4-2 in Minnesota’s favor to cement its campaign. In the 361 days that followed, though, that dynamic had changed drastically. This time, the Wolverines had the cards in their hands entering the championship game — having already solidified a NCAA Tournament berth with only retribution to truly play for. And now, Minnesota was
the team in need of a seasonpreserving victory. And Michigan was able to change the most important part of the former narrative, capturing the Big Ten Championship with a 5-3 victory against thwe Golden Gophers at Xcel Energy Center. “Up until tonight there’s been five banners hung and we have four of them,” said Minnesota coach Don Lucia. “We were trying to get a fifth, and Michigan didn’t have one — and that’s a proud program. … That can sometimes be the driving force.” After three unanswered Minnesota goals left Michigan in a 3-2 hole entering the third period, freshman forward Kyle Connor and sophomore defenseman Zach Werenski rose to the occasion during crunch time. A few short minutes into the final frame, the freshman brought the Wolverines back to life with an equalizer. Connor received a cross-ice pass from junior forward JT Compher, and was alone against
Schierhorn. He hesitated and baited Schierhorn to come out of the net before faking one shot and deking right to leave both the Gophers’ goaltender on his back and the puck in the net. Twelve minutes later, with Michigan on the power play, Werenski gave his team the Big Ten Championship. The Wolverines rotated the puck around the offensive zone, tallying a number of shots, before it ended up at the point on Werenski’s stick. The blueliner let one loose, and the goal horn lit up. Michigan 4, Minnesota 3. “In between the second and third, (last year is) something we talked about, is ‘We owe them,’ ” Werenski said. “They ended our season last year, so we came out with some fire.” Behind Werenski’s goal and an empty-netter that followed, Michigan changed the most important part of the former narrative. It has a banner to hang at Yost Ice Arena. And more than anything, it exorcised its demons that have been following it all season.