Michigan
Pro-Palestinian protests briefly disrupt University of Michigan graduation
PUBLISHED : 5 May 2024 at 09:06
Pro-Palestinian protesters briefly disrupted a commencement ceremony at the University of Michigan on Saturday while demonstrators faced off with police at the University of Virginia as U.S. colleges braced for more turmoil during graduation festivities.
Students across the U.S. have rallied or set up tents at dozens of universities to protest the months-long war in Gaza and call on President Joe Biden, who has supported Israel, to do more to stop the bloodshed in Gaza. They also demand their schools divest from companies that support Israel’s government, such as arms suppliers.
Videos shared on social media showed dozens of students wearing the traditional keffiyeh headdress and graduation caps and waving Palestinian flags as they walked down the center aisle of Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, among cheers and boos from a crowd of thousands.
The ceremony continued and campus police escorted the protesters toward the back of the stadium, but no arrests were made, according to Colleen Mastony, a spokesperson for the university.
“Peaceful protests like this have taken place at U-M commencement ceremonies for decades,” Mastony said in a statement. “The university supports free speech and expression, and university leaders are pleased that today’s commencement was such a proud and triumphant moment.”
The weekend brought more action across U.S. campuses where contrasting views over Israel’s war in Gaza have erupted, sometimes violently, over the last couple of weeks.
Many of the schools, including Columbia University in New York City, have called in police to quell the protests.
Tensions briefly flared up once more on Saturday at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Police officers in riot gear can be seen in a video moving on an encampment of pro-Palestinian protesters, cuffing some demonstrators with zip ties and dragging them across the lawn.
Police have so far arrested over 2,000 protesters at colleges around the country.
The University of Michigan is one of the many universities which altered their security protocols for graduation ceremonies.
The school told Reuters last week it trained staff volunteers in how to mitigate disruptions, a change from the usual duties of guiding guests around campus and showing them to their seats.
The anti-war protests have been staged in response to Israel’s offensive in Gaza, which it launched after a Hamas attack on Oct. 7 that Israel says killed 1,200 people. Israel has killed over 34,000 people in retaliation, according to Gaza health authorities, and flattened the Palestinian territory.
OUTRAGE AT OLE MISS
Campus protests have emerged as a new political flashpoint during a hotly contested and deeply divisive U.S. election year.
On Thursday, a pro-Palestinian protest at the University of Mississippi was met by a larger crowd of counter-protesters singing the national anthem and carrying U.S. flags.
The events at Ole Miss, the state’s flagship university, drew widespread outrage and condemnation after a viral video showed a group of mostly white students taunting a Black female protester. Some shouted racist remarks and one individual can be heard making what sounded like monkey noises at the Black student.
While the university’s chancellor condemned the “racist overtones” of the incident and said an investigation was underway, Georgia Republican U.S. Representative Mike Collins shared the video on his X account on Friday, writing “Ole Miss taking care of business”.
A spokesperson for Collins said he was pointing to examples of “regular everyday students … pushing back against the very small group of leftist agitators who care only to disrupt and destroy.”
Another Republican, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, on Saturday said he was sending Chick-fil-A, a popular U.S. fast food chain, to the counter-protesters who “protected our flag and stood up for America” on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill earlier this week.
“The actions of these young men make me hopeful for the next generation’s love for our country,” Graham’ X post read.
Michigan
Yaxel Lendeborg scores 29 points and No. 2 Michigan stays unbeaten with 101-83 win over Maryland
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Yaxel Lendeborg had 29 points, a career-best nine assists and eight rebounds, and No. 2 Michigan rallied from a nine-point deficit Saturday night to defeat Maryland 101-83.
Aday Mara scored 18 points for the Wolverines (10-0, 2-0 Big Ten), who overcame a halftime deficit for the second time this season and the first since they beat TCU on Nov. 14.
Michigan scored 100 points for the fourth time in five games.
Diggy Coit made eight 3-pointers and scored 31 points for the Terrapins (6-5, 0-2), who lost center Pharrel Payne to a right leg injury late in the first half and forward Solomon Washington to ejection after he picked up his second technical foul early in the second half.
Coit scored nine of Maryland’s first 10 points and 22 before the break, helping to prevent Michigan from opening a lead larger than six in the first half.
The Terps lost Payne, their leading scorer at 18.7 points a game, with 4:36 remaining before halftime. Yet Maryland stretched its lead from one to 50-45 at the midpoint, then expanded it to 56-47 on Elijah Saunders’ 3.
Washington, who had a first-half technical for celebrating a 3 in front of the Michigan bench, was called for a delay-of-game technical just after Saunders’ basket. His departure left the Terps without their two most experienced and imposing interior players.
Lendeborg took advantage, scoring the next eight points. Mara’s dunk with 14 minutes left made it 64-63 and gave the Wolverines the lead for good.
Elliot Cadeau’s layup with 21.2 seconds remaining got the Wolverines to 100 points for the fifth time this season.
Up next
Michigan hosts La Salle on Dec. 21.
Maryland visits No. 24 Virginia on Dec. 20.
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Michigan
Aquinas College expands automatic acceptance to 2 more West Michigan high schools
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – After beginning a direct admittance program at one West Michigan high school in November, Aquinas College has now expanded the program to cover more classrooms.
The guaranteed admission program, first implemented for graduates of West Catholic High School with a 2.0 GPA or above, has now been expanded to Catholic Central High School in Grand Rapids and Muskegon Catholic Central High School.
The partnership will apply to students from all three schools entering college in the fall of 2026.
The direct admission program was described by Aquinas College leaders as offering high school students a “clear path to college success” while also continuing to develop partnerships.
Aquinas College, a private Catholic liberal arts institution located at 1700 Fulton St. E, was founded by the Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids in 1886.
The college has enrolled 1,262 students during the 2025-26 academic year, and its new student numbers are up, with 419 new students on campus this fall, up from 311 in 2024-25.
The college’s overall enrollment total is just slightly under the approximately 1,300 students Aquinas recorded across its campus in 2023-24, according to a press release sent out in January 2025.
This year’s partnership announcements do not mark Aquinas’ first direct admittance deal.
The college also has a direct admit bachelor’s in nursing partnership with the University of Detroit Mercy, which allows students to take core curriculum courses at Aquinas and nursing classes from Detroit Mercy faculty.
On Nov. 14, Aquinas announced its direct admittance deal with West Catholic High School.
The school, located at 1801 Bristol Ave. NW, enrolled just over 500 students as of the 2024-25 school year, according to an online school profile.
West Catholic President and CEO Jill Wierzbicki said the initiative simplifies the college application process and offers students a straightforward path to higher education.
On Nov. 20, Aquinas then announced it had also partnered with Grand Rapids’ Catholic Central High School, 319 Sheldon Blvd SE, which enrolls 567 students and is the oldest co-educational diocesan Catholic high school in the nation.
Brian Matzke, vice president for enrollment management, said there’s “no doubt that Aquinas here has had more graduates from Catholic Central than any other school in our history.”
On Dec. 10, the college announced another partnership deal with Muskegon Catholic Central High School, 1145 W Laketon Ave., which enrolled just under 300 students in 2023-24, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Jerry McDowell, Muskegon Catholic Central president, said both the high school and Aquinas share a “deep commitment to developing the whole student — academically, spiritually, and individually.
“This direct-admit program provides our graduates with an exceptional opportunity to transition confidently into higher education while maintaining the Catholic values that guide their formation,” McDowell said.
Aquinas’ listed price for traditional undergraduate tuition is $41,192, according to senior director of strategic communications Dave DeJonge.
Students are eligible for annual merit scholarships between $15,000-$25,000, depending on their GPA and housing status. Additional scholarships may be available. This applies to all students who are admitted to Aquinas.
Matzke highlighted the direct admittance program’s easy transition from one West Michigan school to another, with those accepted to Aquinas able to live on campus or commute from home depending on what best fits their needs.
He also said a growing Grand Rapids job market, combined with support from the college’s career center, contributes to a 97% placement rate for graduates.
Michigan
Legal experts question University of Michigan’s role after charges against former HC Sherrone Moore
WASHTENAW COUNTY, Mich. – Former Michigan Wolverines head football coach Sherrone Moore appeared in court Friday on charges of stalking, home invasion, and breaking and entering, just days after being fired from his position.
The 39-year-old coach, who has no prior criminal history, was terminated by the university on Wednesday following an investigation that uncovered evidence of an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.
According to prosecutors, the charges stem from an incident that occurred after the victim, a University of Michigan staff member, ended her relationship with Moore on Monday (Dec. 8).
Following the breakup, Moore allegedly made numerous unwanted calls and texts to the victim.
The situation escalated on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2025, when Moore allegedly forced his way into the victim’s Pittsfield Township apartment.
Prosecutors say he grabbed kitchen utensils and threatened to take his own life, allegedly telling the victim, “My blood is on your hands.”
“The totality of the behavior is highly threatening and highly intimidating. She was terrorized, your honor,” a prosecutor told the court during Friday’s arraignment.
Defense attorney Joseph Simon pushed back on prosecutors’ claims that Moore could be a threat to public safety.
“My client’s 39 years old, with zero prior criminal history, zero prior contact with the criminal justice system in any fashion,” Simon stated.
Attorney Todd Flood, who practices both criminal defense and civil litigation, said the fallout within the university could continue depending on when the organization was first alerted about the relationship and how university athletic officials first responded.
“What did they know, when did they know it, and what did they do about it when they found out? Those are going to be the three major questions,” Flood said.
“The university could possibly have some culpability there, that they didn’t put a stop to this,” noted Flood, adding that the victim may have grounds to pursue action against both the university and Moore.
Flood said the stalking charge against Moore likely stems from a documented pattern of harassment.
“When there is a position where he is harassing, either via text messages, harassing via telephone calls, social media content, or showing up at a place where he doesn’t belong,” Flood said. “Those stalking charges are ones where you can show that pattern of conduct.”
“He’s ultimately going to probably plead this case out, under some sort of either misdemeanor, or something that gives probation,” Flood said.
Moore posted his $25,000 bond Friday.
As part of his bond conditions, he must wear a GPS tether, undergo mental health treatment, and have no contact with the victim.
He is scheduled to appear in court in person on Jan. 22.
–> Jim Harbaugh talks Sherrone Moore’s firing, arrest after former Michigan football understudy posts bond
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