University of Michigan - Michiganensian Yearbook (Ann Arbor, MI)

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The Michigan Union towers above State Street as one of the more prominant landmarks of the University. -K. Hill Fall colors explode across the North Campus ev- ery October. The classical archways which grace the front of the Lawyers ' Club provide a peaceful setting for the law students. By David Gal and Mike Repucci ill H -K. Aihby

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The 0= m s . m m Oiorarrr OKOMO f ?e sword of michigan 1982 Volume 86 University Of Michigan 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109

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Opportunity From Adversity One of the toughest things to survive at the University is the tempestuous Michigan winters. Students combat the frigid claws of a hostile North wind with a resourceful array of foul weather gear. Though the battle is hard fought, students are eventually forced to re- treat to the safety of their dorm rooms and apartments and to the warmth of their furnaces. These irrepressible scholars may have mastered this aspect of a typical Michigan winter, however in 1982 they were forced to face yet another adversary: the frigid climate of an economic depression. For the first time in nearly sixty years, the University was forced to retreat into its academic fortress, seal off its unnecessary cham- bers, to insulate and strengthen a cen- tral living space or face economic hypothermia. Any description of the 1981-82 aca- demic year at the University of Michi- gan which does not discuss the severe economic depression which had crip- pled the state would be inaccurate. The institution, though insulated, can never be independent of the society in which it exits. For the state of Michigan, 1981 marked one of the bleakest seasons since the Great Depression. 20% inter- est rates, $1.50 a gallon gasoline, as well as a shift in demand for more fuel effi- cient foreign cars, crippled Michigan ' s auto industry. Plant shutdowns and massive employee layoffs sent the State ' s unemployment figures skyrock- eting above the national average. With business moving out of state, less in- come tax revenues and more people than ever before on welfare rolls, Lans- ing ' s coffers were unable to maintain the level of funding previously allocat- ed to the University. On the federal level, President Ron- ald Reagan, under the direction of a new economic approach, Reagano- mics, axed federal support for basic re- search and higher education in general. These cut backs, designed to balance the federal budget with the hopes of curbing inflation and of stimulating in- dustry, provided immediate hardships for academic institutions with no relief in sight. Funding roll backs created an incal- cuable burden for the University of Michigan and its students. The presi- dent of the University, Harold Shapiro, stated in his annual address that in or- der to survive these economic realities and remain a high quality research uni- versity, the school must reduce the number of programs, students, faculty and staff in order to maintain the excel- lence befitting the Michigan tradition. Becoming smaller may be a useful strategy for achieving quality in those programs and activities that we contin- ue. Smaller is not a goal; it is rather a strategy of choice. The question of where to cut back was tremendously complex, so the Uni- versity administration began early in 1981 to seek out excesses and set prior- ities in expectation of the reduced gov- ernment funding. In a widely publi- cized decision, the Geography depart- ment came under review. Students and (continued on page 4) -D. Gal Senior band member, Dan Meyers, leads the sideline pep-bano Opening 3