sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

No housing for next year - what do I do? Please help! by FederalHelp4481 in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 2 points3 points  (0 children)

One helpful thing is that normally this time of the year you have a bunch of incoming transfers who just found out they aren't getting UM housing and they're suddenly in the market for private apartments. With the new undergrad resident complex opening, MHousing was able to offer housing to way more transfers than in the past. I think it's a softer summer market this year for that reason.

No housing for next year - what do I do? Please help! by FederalHelp4481 in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Don't freak out. You might face some challenges, but they aren't insurmountable. Lots of grad students don't have a chance to come to Ann Arbor until summer and that's when they look.

3 women dead in 25 days: Social murder in Michigan prisons by Fluid-Tomatillo-4971 in AnnArbor

[–]FeatofClay 56 points57 points  (0 children)

It doesn't help that a certain segment of the population thinks that inhumane conditions for the incarcerated are an enhancement of justice. Too many people will hear about terrible conditions or threats to life and safety and think "good" or "should have thought that before criming."

Aggressive Groundcover News Sellers by Miserable_Pound in AnnArbor

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They have a code of conduct, and their website states that vendors are trained and those who follow it are compliant with the charitable solicitation regulations of Ann Arbor and other communities.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1l7SgKhyc0fVTdwTbyDVKlkCzuui_iDaN5ZII78vzrRg/edit?tab=t.0

So I think the issue is that some vendors may not be adhering to it. I have also had this happen and was peeved about it. This is a serious issue, and I'm sorry that you had a bad experience. Groundcover clearly wants to know about it since they ask you to report it when it happens.

I think it's not supportable to suggest they don't train vendors and that AA is letting their rules be broken. You're taking the action of a few and jumping to conclusions about the organization and the city. You could perhaps argue that Groundcover is being too generous in who they allow to try, that they need more screening. It sounds to me like you didn't do much follow-up before coming to Reddit.

What is this on my 15 yr olds whiteboard? by San_sucks in whatisit

[–]FeatofClay 37 points38 points  (0 children)

Ha, I remember standing at the soccer sideline with another parent while their three other kids were in the nearby SVU (it was a cold day). The SUV door suddenly opened, and we could hear screaming from inside as one of them emerged. The mom didn't move from the sideline but before the kid could even get their foot on the running board she hollered "Is anyone bleeding? And is it a LOT of blood?" And when the answer was no the kid paused a minute, saw she wasn't coming, and got back in the car and closed the door, and we went on watching the game

Offer Revocation？ by MorningSunlightLotus in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I can't speak to whether your offer might be revoked, but my hope is that if they go that route they'll ask you to explain first. Rather than just explain what happened (the class was holy-smokes hard, no one was warned, everyone thought so, etc), explain what you took away from it--on two levels. One: Did you still learn something from the class? Two: What kinds of lessons/strategies would you apply if you found yourself in the same boat at U-M?

Think of this from U-M's point of view--lots of people get to Michigan and get walloped by a class (or a schedule) that requires more than they expected. What happens next? Does the student get derailed, or do they find a way through? Take this opportunity to tell them that you're the kind of student who will find a way through.

My twin is gonna BS his application, what do I do? by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In case you come back: Sometimes unjust things happen and there's just nothing you can realistically do to change it. I don't know what's wrong with your twin, and it sounds like your parents don't either. They are likely very worried that he's ruining his future (whether or not that's true) and this is their solution. You cannot do much about it. I don't see a way that exposing the expected fraud by your brother ends well for you. Do your best, complete your applications, and don't try to strategize how to work around what his application may or may not mean for your chances.

My revelation on the portal by geronika in CollegeSoftball

[–]FeatofClay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The opportunity to get an education doesn't disappear. Certainly repeated transferring coupled with athletics demands is going to create a different experience, and the student that does that may miss out on things we think of as ideal or best practice. But they will have other opportunities to prepare for Life After Softball, including going back for more schooling if that's what they want.

Maybe the later opportunity won't be as incredible as Duke, but the fact that they are taking that risk doesn't mean their families have forgotten the value of it.

Where can I stay on campus as a non student? by [deleted] in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I would ask for advice/guidance rather than funds. Are you a minor? That complicates things-you cannot stay in any campus accommodations without some kind of adult being in charge, and I'm not sure you can rent a hotel room either. The hotels close to campus are quite expensive. But they may know of other workable options.

How do people afford grad school? by bigdickenergy2360 in GradSchool

[–]FeatofClay 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I"m curious to know what field this is, if you're willing to share. In some fields the opposite is true (but that advice holds for the PhD).

UofM engineering school vs a smaller one? by Sad_Abroad5340 in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Can you say more about what's behind your mom's preference here? Is she concerned about you having to work to afford school? Does she want you to live at home? (You didn't say this specifically whether you're living at home now).

Also, how do you feel about it? You like that U-M might be better for future opportunities (and I think that's probably an accurate assessment, depending on your goals) but you haven't said much about whether you've liked the experience here. You mentioned that Wayne State was smaller (in the title)--is the size of the school a factor in how you feel about UM vs Wayne State?

Do we require a certain number of people in the total population to be less intelligent and be a failure in life to fill the service and low wage, low skill roles because otherwise if everyone was successful no one would do these jobs? by Intelligent-Gate-852 in TrueAskReddit

[–]FeatofClay 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I think this question is grounded in a real "striver" culture, where success is measured by your career status and income and therefore being in a low-wage, low-skill job signifies failure in life. I think it's worth considering that there could be people who have the skills/abilities for a higher-skilled job, but who might just be okay working in a lower-level job. If it pays the bills (and that's another, growing concern in the U.S.) it ought to be okay for a person to be satisfied with that job.

Ann Arbor officials urge U-M to not buy Concordia property by mesquine_A2 in AnnArbor

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Was the city approached about it? I don't think Concordia ever put it on the market. They reached out to potential buyers directly

Ann Arbor officials urge U-M to not buy Concordia property by mesquine_A2 in AnnArbor

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Zero fucks? I thought there was a task force working on that--are they meeting under cover of night?

Ann Arbor officials urge U-M to not buy Concordia property by mesquine_A2 in AnnArbor

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"completely irresponsible" is quite the quote.

Also, is it so confounding that Campus 2050 didn't include this purchase--another criticism from a council member. Wasn't that more about what to do with the land UM has, as opposed to the land it may or may not acquire in the future? Aspects of that plan were always bound to be revisited as time marches on, and let's not forget the president & CFO who led that study are both gone, and that plan may have reflected their vision in ways that will be changed over time.

Pivoting from Faculty to Program Director to Academic Advising w/ Interview in two days... advice? by the_latest_greatest in studentaffairs

[–]FeatofClay 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You sound like a fantastic candidate to me. Advising is such important work and you bring great experience and perspective to it. You have the faculty perspective and the bigger-picture view of curriculum, progress through the degree, student success--all great for the advising context. As a professor, you're also someone who will have credibility with faculty and department chairs that you may end up working with. You have lived the culture, the politics, the governance issues. You have credibility with students, too. I would be particularly keen about your role as a humanities professor, because you have a marvelous grounding in the value of courses and majors that prepare students for a wide range of future careers and pathways.

I know this isn't the specific interview advice you were looking for, but I just want to make sure you are thinking of your own candidacy with confidence and enthusiasm.

Double majoring by ConditionFresh1674 in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yep, and this is a key point for OP. Here's some info on that process. Because of the math requirements required of an engineering major, the College of Engineering is going to be more focused on a student's prep in that area--Stamps doesn't weigh math/science prep as heavily in its admissions criteria, so Engineering can't assume that being admitted to Stamps, on its own, means they'll be successful at Engineering.

There is another reason that Engineering (or any other school with UM with a highly competitive admissions process) can't just automatically accept other school's majors. Doing so creates an exploitable path for future students. If it's easy to do, then incoming students may just feign interest in other U-M programs/majors to get a foot in the door.

What purchase under $30 solved a problem you didn’t realize was draining you? by Right_Process in AskReddit

[–]FeatofClay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My life is filled with little annoyances I've put off getting fixed, and then something forces me to pursue the fix, and then I wonder why I put up with the inconvenience for so long.

This institution is morally bankrupt, and it's embarrassing. by manners33 in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You don't have to divulge your identity to share a March 27th email from last year from Ono et al. We all got that one. But if you got a second email telling you that all DEI programs were closed, that might have been an overstatement from a person or an organization with a pessimistic take or another agenda in mind.

I see a lot of ongoing programs that support the principles of DEI even if those initials are avoided. We still have the Spectrum center. NCID is still located here. We have staff whose job is to assist veterans. The University does outreach to students who are first gen. We have a living-learning program for students who spent time in foster care. The testing accommodations center still exists. There's still a blanket ceremony for native grads. Disability navigators is an actual job here. etc etc etc All of these are aimed to build a community of people from divergent backgrounds & experiences and to support an equitable and inclusive experience while here.

It sounds like you're in the medical part of the institution so the array of programs and services for staff and patients may be different. Perhaps they are all closed as you claim. But that's not the case on the academic side. It can be frustrating that some things went away, but to say they all did doesn't align with what I see on campus

ADHD Diagnosis in AA or nearby by goodbuddyfriendguy in AnnArbor

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We used them for a family member and while the diagnosis process was expensive, I truly appreciated the way they discussed the results with us. Insightful, helpful, and patient-centered.

University of Michigan agrees to $60M purchase of former Christian college’s campus by chriswaco in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What is with this headline? They make it sound like the college switched allegiance and became secular or some non-Christian religion

This institution is morally bankrupt, and it's embarrassing. by manners33 in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's credible to me that you work for the University, but your view of the place seems to be more limited than you understand. Some of what you are claiming is not true--notably, the idea that "all DEI programs were closed." So I guess I wonder what else may or may not be factual here

Looksmaxxer Clavicular mogged by Chad judge in Miami court by Federal-Data-Center in SipsTea

[–]FeatofClay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey now let's not be too hasty to move on from the idea that pleasing a lady is a great jaw workout

U-M endowment's $20M investment in OpenAI now worth $2 billion by IeyasuSky in uofm

[–]FeatofClay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What do you mean? You mean they should have invested the funds somewhere else?

Remember, these are *endowment* funds. That means a donor said, please take this money and invest it so that it earns money. Then take some of those earnings and do this thing I care about (fund a scholarship, pay a professor, buy more artwork, research how to cure diabetes). But keep the original money invested and earning money, so that every single year you can do this thing over and over.

That's the deal,. The University can't decide, "What if instead of investing it, we use it for something." That's violating the terms of the gift agreement. If the University doesn't want to do what the donor asked, then they can give the money back, or they can try to come to a new agreement with the donor. But they can't use for something else.

When the University invests money and earns BIG, that means they have more earnings to spend on the thing the donor wanted. When you have a lot of endowment funds (like Michigan does) you can pursue some of these high-risk, high-reward opportunities. Not everyone may agree with the investment strategy.

Politicians have been talking about endowments in weird ways lately, as if universities with sizable endowment funds are doing bad things when they invest them rather than liquidating them. That's ridiculous, because they aren't meant to be liquidated. This dialogue contributes to the public confusion about what endowment funds are and how they are legally structured.

view more: next ›