October 2, 2014

Page 1

ALSO IN THE SPORTS SECTION:

GOPHERS CAN’T FIGHT OFF THE ILLINI PAGE 12

■■ Women’s hockey starting season at No. 1

MINNESOTA LOST ON WEDNESDAY IN THREE SETS.

■■ Men’s hockey seeks nat’l championship

The Gophers kick things off with two games Saturday. PAGE 11

The Gophers have an exhibition game this weekend. PAGE 11

PM T-STORMS HIGH 66° LOW 46°

CAMPUS

Faculty retirement deals grow

U OF M

MINNEAPOLIS

ST PAUL

THURSDAY

OCTOBER 2, 2014

ONLINE EXCLUSIVES AT MNDAILY.COM

STUDENT LIFE

Campus diversity lacking

A new option aims to ease faculty into retirement in exchange for tenure status. BY TAYLOR NACHTIGAL tnachtigal@mndaily.com

Faculty at the University of Minnesota will soon have a new option that will allow them to ease into retirement. With the new “tenure trade” retirement policy, some faculty — in return for their tenure status — will be able to gradually retire while working part time or completing any ongoing work, allowing them to leave the school without abandoning any of their long-term projects or research. The policy, currently in a 30-day review process, aims to offer an “in-between” option for faculty who are preparing for retirement, said Joseph Konstan, chair of the University Senate’s Faculty Af fairs Committee. “Going from a full-time faculty member to retirement feels like a big jump they’re not often ready to make,” he said. u See OPTION Page 5

JULIET FARMER, DAILY

University students Sousada Chidthachack, Deirdre Green, Mariah Berry and Bora Faulkner get to know one another at the “Greater Than 7 Annual Welcome Luncheon” on Tuesday at Coffman Union.

As part of a campus-wide initiative, the University dedicated this week to discussing diversity within the student body.

ELECTION 2014

Higher ed neglected in gov. race BY KEVIN KARNER kkarner@mndaily.com

u See DEBATE Page 4 RELATED CONTENT Many candidates this election season promote on social media, but some say it’s ineffective. u See Page 4

Association.

Nya Lony lounged on a couch in the

Lony’s experience as a minority at the

Black Student Union’s office in Coffman

University of Minnesota isn’t unique, and

Union on Tuesday afternoon, surrounded

it’s an issue school leaders say they would

by a buzz of students who were studying

like to address.

and chatting.

Dayton and Johnson debated Tuesday, discussing health care, transportation and other topics.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — The first gubernatorial debate of the 2014 election cycle featured par tisanship, crowds wielding political signs and campaigns’ continued silence on higher education topics. Gov. Mark Dayton, former Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson and Independence Party candidate Hannah Nicollet squared off at the Mayo Civic Center on Wednesday, deliberating on topics like transportation, economic development and health care. But higher education policy was absent

who is also president of the African Student

BY HALEY HANSEN hhansen@mndaily.com

As part of an ongoing discussion to in-

To Lony, the office is a home away from

crease diversity and inclusion on campus,

home where she has a strong sense of com-

the University launched its first-ever di-

munity.

versity week on Monday, which lasts un-

“On a campus of 50,000 people, my com-

til Friday. School officials said the week’s

fort is confined to this space,” said Lony,

purpose is to celebrate campus diversity

u See EQUIT Y Page 16

SCIENCE

U scoops biochemistry researcher from France A French academic recently found a home in Minnesota to do environmental research. BY PARKER LEMKE plemke@mndaily.com

In the world of French academia, a sizable number of doctoral students struggle to share a small pond of opportunities. So the University of Minnesota fished a scholar for itself out of the country’s pool of academics.

EAST BANK

Colleagues of French native Mikael Elias, an incoming biochemistry assistant professor, say his scientific vigor eventually outgrew available academic positions in his home country, where attaining a prestigious position, like a fine wine or cheese, comes with age. “Mikael was too bright for the French system [in which] you must wait your turn,” said his mentor, Aix Marseille University structural biology professor Eric Chabrière. Elias, who holds a joint appointment between the biochemistry, molecular biology

and biophysics department and the BioTechnology Institute, arrived in Minnesota late last summer. Once his lab’s renovations and his search for research assistants wrap up, he said he can begin his work on using enzymes and bacteria to address environmental issues. Elias was hired through the MnDRIVE initiative, an $18 million annual investment focused on developing four research fields at the University, including his specialty, u See ELIAS Page 3

TUITION

Grad freeze raises concerns If a new tuition freeze begins next year, some are questioning how it will be implemented. BY KATE CLARK kclark1@mndaily.com

LIAM JAMES DOYLE, DAILY

A view from the East Bank as the downtown Minneapolis skyline lights the sky on Monday night.

A proposed tuition freeze for graduate and professional students at the University of Minnesota has some school deans worried. Although many graduate and professional schools at the University have varied tuition rates, President Eric Kaler proposed an across-the-board tuition freeze last month for graduate and professional students paying in-state tuition. Some leaders at the schools say they fully support the change because it helps lower students’ costs, but concerns have sur faced that the proposed freeze will

present challenges. Some deans worry that it will make hiring more difficult and some expenses won’t be covered without increases in tuition revenue. The plan is pending the Board of Regents’ approval, and if granted, the state Legislature would make the final call. If approved, the state Legislature would provide funding to help enact the freeze. But how the across-the-board tuition freeze would roll out across multiple colleges and departments — most of which have different tuition rates — is unclear. The College of Veterinary Medicine already enacted a tuition freeze this year for professional students and lowered fourthyear students’ tuition by 8 percent. The college’s dean, Trevor Ames, said Kaler’s proposed freeze would help the u See GRADUATES Page 3

VOLUME 116 ISSUE 19


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