ALSO IN THE SPORTS SECTION:
GOPHERS BLOW PAST EASTERN ILLINOIS 42-20 PAGE 20
■■ Riding the Pine: Williams solves passing woes
AFTER SLOW START, LEIDNER SHINES IN OPENER
■■ Volleyball splits first weekend matches
New sports columnist says the TE needs more looks. PAGE 21
Minnesota beat Notre Dame but lost to Louisville. PAGE 21
PARTLY CLOUDY HIGH 79° LOW 62°
U OF M
MINNEAPOLIS
ST PAUL
TUESDAY
SEPTEMBER 2, 2014
ONLINE EXCLUSIVES AT MNDAILY.COM
WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS
Coaches out after harassment claim A husband-wife coaching pair resigned amid investigations of their conduct with gymnasts.
Former volunteer assistant coach Jim Stephenson quietly resigned after more than two decades with the program amid the University’s review of his conduct with team members, some of whom allege he repeatedly sexually harassed gymnasts. The team finished the year under the direction of head coach Meg Stephenson, his wife. She resigned on Thursday. From the stands, the team seemed unaffected. It ended the 2013-14 season with high marks despite what some gymnasts — who won’t be named due to the nature of the allegations — described as a culture of
BY JESSICA LEE jlee@mndaily.com
Per fect landings and lipstick smiles masked federal and University of Minnesota investigations into complaints of sexual harassment and retaliation within the Gophers women’s gymnastics team last season.
CONGRESS
confusion and tension culminating behind closed doors. “We didn’t really know what to do or who to believe,” one former gymnast said. Meg Stephenson declined requests for interviews in July on behalf of herself and her husband. Investigations into the alleged sexual harassment and its fallout reached the federal level. For months, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has been investigating a complaint that alleges the University failed to take effective steps to end the sexual harassment by Jim
Stephenson and remedy its effects. Until that examination concludes, its details remain confidential. University administrators said the school addressed the complaints efficiently and promptly and that the athletics department secured the student-athletes’ welfare throughout the season. But some current and former gymnasts disagreed, claiming they were left in an uncomfortable environment as they grappled with emotional distress. u See COMPLAINTS Page 4
RESEARCH
Fairgoers fill a test subject void
New law to ease money transfers For years, tight federal laws made overseas transactions challenging for immigrants. BY KEVIN KARNER kkarner@mndaily.com
To Mohamud Abdi, sending money to family and friends is routine. “I don’t think I know a single Somali family who doesn’t send money back home,” the sociology sophomore said, adding that his family has done so ever since immigrating to the United States in 2003. Transferring money overseas, and especially to Somalia, has proven difficult for many years due to federal regulations, but u See HAWALA Page 5
DEVELOPMENT
Housing boom could soon bust
BRIDGET BENNETT, DAILY
Medical student Mariel Lougee works with research participant Milton Dodd on Sunday afternoon at the Driven to Discover research building at the Minnesota State Fair. People of all ages participated in studies hosted at the site during the fair’s 12-day run.
A new University facility at the State Fair helped researchers access a wide range of volunteer study participants.
Spending on building permits in the U-area is high now, but some say it won’t be for long.
A
BY ETHAN NELSON enelson@mndaily.com
A chunk of the city’s construction this year comes from projects near the University of Minnesota — a product of the ongoing student housing boom that is being watched with bated breath. Developers have targeted proper ties near campus in recent years. So far in 2014, the city has approved at least $118 million in building permits for new student housing — a significant portion of Minneapolis’
teers — a resource many said they normal-
grease-battered cheese curds and
ly couldn’t count on.
corndogs, University of Minnesota researchers scooped attendees for studies. Spamville exhibit became an unlikely
said, which can distort findings when most-
hotspot for more than 30 research proj-
ly educated young people respond.
ects claiming alternating spots at the site’s
“It turns out we tapped into a wide facul-
new Driven to Discover research building.
ty demand,” Spector said. “We get a broader
u See FAIR Page 10
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BY KATE CLARK kclark@mndaily.com
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New bus route, more stops A survey of students spurred adjustments to campus bus lines that take effect Tuesday.
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around campus to attract volunteers, associate pediatrics professor Logan Spector
NEW BUS ROUTE AND STOPS
RTH
Researchers often rely on posting fliers
During the fair’s 12 days, its former
TRANSPORTATION
FOU
gave them access to a vast pool of volun-
mid the Minnesota State Fair’s
u See BUSINESS Page 11
UNIVERSITY AVENUE CIRCULATOR
Researchers said the open clinic format
BY PARKER LEMKE plemke@mndaily.com
*
SOURCE: PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION SERVICES
Following student requests, the University of Minnesota’s campus bus system will sport new stops and debut an additional route beginning Tuesday. The new bus route, called the University Avenue Circulator, will run from Third Avenue to 23rd Avenue. Also, three stops are new for the East Bank Circulator and the Washington Avenue Bridge Circulator. Buses will now service 15th Avenue and Fourth Street, the Variety Club Research Center on East River Parkway and the Carlson School of Management on 19th Avenue
South. The stop near Seven Corners will be discontinued, said Jacqueline Brudlos, a spokeswoman for Parking and Transportation Services. University officials say results from a transit sur vey, which PTS and the Minnesota Student Association administered last spring semester, led to the bus route changes, and they plan to tap students again in the coming year in light of impending switches to campus transportation. The depar tment analyzed the information before conducting meetings with stakeholders over the summer. Brudlos said they considered changing the routes even before the survey. She said when University buses returned to Washington Avenue Southeast in December, PTS addressed feedback regarding the bus routes. u See BUSES Page 9
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 1