University of Detroit - Tower Yearbook (Detroit, MI)

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students. At the start of the first semester, 12 concerts were planned by the Department of Performing Arts. The first concert, with folk singer Gordon Lightfoot, made a profit. However, after that, attendance decreased and several acts cancelled their engagement. The series was discontinued because Dr. James Rogers, Performing Arts director, felt it was too difficult to book entertainment in the Memorial Building. Noticeably absent this year was the publicity usually given to campus crime It was only a few years ago that the local newspapers were runnmg stories alluding to the terrible security problem With everything that was mentioned concerning muggmgs armed robberies rapes and car thefts it was no surprise to anyone that enrollment began to drop But the story was different this year Except for a few incidents involving thefts from Shiple Hall dormitory security received little attention The fences which were erected last year to completely surround the l campus seemed to reduce the number of cars stolen out of University parking lots. One theory explaining the rise of crime is that U-D itself was responsible for bringing this problem tothe area. The University, as the attraction for crime, was then an easy target for outsiders to prey upon the campus and surrounding area. Following this idea, the administration chose to increase campus security with the hope of improving the neighborhood situation as well Interestingly this 1S not the only explanation for the crime increase The city of Detroit was plagued with a high number of murders and police shoot outs and the neighborhood around U D was not able to escape this One shoot out that involved patrolmen from the undercover unit STRESS CStop the Robberies Enjoy Safe Streetsl occurred only a block from campus When Newsweek Magazine reported the story they referred to this area as the Near Northwest ghetto . . . . ' 1 , - - 0 . ' V , X ' . . . . 1 ' - Q , . . . . - 9 i , Y . . . 1 - , , ,X ' 5 . . . l ' . - I l l , I . . , - ' - -I 1 , l I I ' V- I Q - . . '. . V , ' ' . ' ca as N 4 ,AV ' W ' , 1 V, A I -, ,

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Situated in a city of this size, the University of Detroit cannot help but become involved with the surrounding area. University presi- dent, the Rev. Malcolm Carron, S.J., a native Detroiter, is the chairman of New Detroit Inc. This is an organization of civic and business leaders that was formed after the riots in 1967. He is also a member of 30 other civic organizations. Jesuit Universities used to be thought of as closed societies. But as they became more secular, they were bound to become more a part of their communities. U-D and other universities may have turned out Archie Bunkers by the barrelful as was pointed out in an article from the Nov. 21, 1972 issue of World Magazine. But things are changing. A large number of departments offer students the opportunity to go out into the community. The Urban Law Clinic, for example, furnishes legal advice to indigents for a minimal charge, and 1 A the Dental and Psychology . Clinics serve people in .,,. - a similar manner. While 4 1 the Engineering co-op f V program is the most well known, other co-op ,- opportunities are available from the College of Business and Administration f and the Departmentlf V11 of Media Studies. Field placement is a part of the Sociology curriculum. Programs of this type give students the experience they need and enable them to serve other people at the same time. The Detroit area Consortium of Catholic Col- leges, an organization of eight separate insti- tutions, allows students to take courses at campuses other than their own. The Consoli- dated Performing Arts Center of U-DfMary- grove College, called The Theatre, combines student and local talents acting in critically acclaimed plays. Attendance records illus- trate that the plays have been well-received by theatre-goers. Students, however, failed to support the speaker series sponsored by University Stu- dent Government. After two events, the series was dropped because USG was afraid of losing too much money. Comedian Dick Gregory at- tracted a large crowd, but attorney Melvin Belli only managed to draw about 50 Law

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DETROIT,S NEAR NORTHWEST GHETTOU: A SECOND LOOK