Usually a venue for local newspapers only, yesterday's University Board of Regents meeting attracted several television reporters and camera crews.

In the aftermath of President Bush's speech Wednesday asserting that the University's admissions policies are unconstitutional, University President Mary Sue Coleman's opening remarks of the meeting reaffirmed her commitment to diversity and defended the University's use of race in admissions.

"We strive for a student body that is richly diverse in many ways because it enriches each student," Coleman said to the regents. "We do not have nor have we ever had quotas or numerical targets."

She also responded to the alternatives to racial preferences Bush spoke about in his speech, such as the Texas Ten Percent Plan. This plan allows any Texas high school student who graduates in the top 10 percent of his high school a spot in a Texas state university. Coleman said such a proposal would be terrible for the University because it is based solely on class rank and does not look at the "whole student."

"(These plans) are not a panacea," Coleman added. "In the end, we believe the (U.S.) Supreme Court will find our practices to be fair and legal."

At his first board meeting since being sworn in Jan. 1, Regent Andrew Richner (R-Grosse Pointe Park) said he is committed to defending the University's policies, even if he wasn't on the board when the policies were formulated. He did agree with Bush's contention that there are multiple ways to achieve diversity without taking race into consideration.

"There's a divergence of opinion," Richner said, adding that he is confident the Supreme Court will resolve the issue. Regents also reopened discussions on plans regarding new building projects on North Campus.

University Planner Susan Gott and Hank Baier, associate vice president for operations and facilities, presented tentative ideas for these buildings, including a map of North Campus that featured a spot north of Pierpont Commons for the new Walgreen Drama Center, which will include the Arthur Miller Theater.

Former President Lee Bollinger first proposed the idea for the new center in 1997. Bollinger expressed a desire to build a world-class performing arts institution, and said he wanted to honor Miller, a playwright and University alum. The University originally budgeted $20 million for the project and planned to build it adjacent to the Power Center, but postponed the project after the cost of the building increased to $67 million. University officials also discovered the area near the Power Center is very dense, and no longer a feasible construction site option. The project was halted in December 2001 after University officials realized the cost was too high and started looking into the idea of placing the theater on North Campus.

Coleman said a final plan should be brought to the regents in upcoming months. She added that departments are now measuring costs more realistically and focusing on what their students can benefit from, especially due to the sensitive state of the University financial situation.

"We need to be very conscious of cost because we're in a difficult budgetary situation," Coleman said.

Also at the meeting, University Vice President Fawwaz Ulaby presented the annual research report, noting there was a 10.8 percent increase in research expenditures from 2001, bringing the total amount to $656 million. In addition, the University was ranked ninth in a study examining the impact of research at the nation's top Universities.

"We are among the very best institutions," Ulaby said.