Students unhappy about U. Michigan's racial climate

ANN ARBOR (AP) - University of Michigan students plan to hold an all-night protest starting Tuesday over what they call low minority enrollment and inclusion on campus as school officials move forward with plans to boost racial diversity and increase black enrollment.

The 12-hour "Speak Out" at the school's Ann Arbor campus is scheduled to run through Wednesday morning. It's being hosted by the United Coalition for Racial Justice, a group comprised of undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff.

The event is an extension of a campaign started this year by the Black Student Union, which has criticized the university's low black enrollment and demanded a series of changes on campus, The Ann Arbor News reported.

Michigan President-elect Mark Schlissel has encouraged the activism on campus.

Meanwhile, the newspaper reported that the school's provost Martha Pollack plans to ask the Board of Regents at its Thursday meeting to establish a new position of associate vice president for enrollment management. That person would be tasked with recruiting minority students.

"Focusing on core values of diversity, excellence, and access, this position will build and lead a team charged with working across the university to envision and deliver the optimal undergraduate enrollment program for U-M," Pollack said in a written proposal.

University of Michigan officials have said they planned that to boost racial diversity. Among other efforts, students living on campus in coming years are expected to get training on tolerance and expectations for living in a racially diverse community.

Leaders of the Black Student Union released a list of demands this year aimed at increasing black enrollment and inclusion on the Ann Arbor campus, including lower housing costs for low-income students. They want black enrollment to be 10 percent.

Black students made up 4.6 percent of the school's freshman class in 2012, down from recent years.