Fans at U-M football games may never see a “Will you marry me?” banner flying over the Big House again, if the NCAA, the NFL and Major League Baseball succeed in their efforts to ban advertising towed by small planes. The University has joined with the sports leagues to lobby for a permanent ban of aircraft over stadiums for security reasons. The Federal Aviation Administration temporarily banned flights over stadiums after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, but, recently, waivers have been granted to pilots if they pass a security clearance. Some owners of banner-towing businesses, however, believe the restrictions are really efforts from universities and professional leagues to hurt businesses that get advertising money the universities and leagues don’t receive.

The UM-Dearborn School of Education is offering a new master of science degree program in science education. The program, established by a team of faculty members from the natural science department and the School of Education, will help elementary school teachers emphasize environmental aspects of biology, chemistry or geology while showing them how to meet state requirements in reading. The U-M regents approved the program during their July meeting.

Travel aboard a private Boeing 737 to see breathtaking Paleolithic cave paintings in France and Spain on the Alumni Travel Program’s “The Human Odyssey.” Enjoy an exclusive visit to see the remains of “Lucy,” one of our earliest human ancestors and experience the rarely seen rock-carved churches in Ethiopia. Trip dates are Nov. 2-21. Read more details about this trip.

Actor James Earl Jones, ’55, HLHD’71, (the voice of Darth Vader in "Star Wars") will be honored by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts later this year. Three other U-M alumni---playwright Arthur Miller, ’38, HLHD’56; opera singer Jessye Norman, MMUS’68, HSCD’87; and theatrical producer and the Kennedy Center’s founding chairman Roger L. Stevens, ’28-’30, HLLD’64---have received the honor. The ceremony will take place on Dec. 8 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and will be televised later in the year.

A new study co-authored by a U-M doctoral student reveals that state governments benefit when public universities increase enrollment by out-of-state students. The researchers examined Miami University (Ohio), the University of North Carolina, Penn State University, the U-M and 23 private schools and found that states receive more in expected future tax revenues when public universities admit marginal out-of-state students rather than marginal in-state students. Because most schools have higher minimum standards for out-of-state students than for in-state students, those from outside the state usually have better qualifications and have higher projected future earnings, yet are as likely as in-state students to live in the state after graduation.

If otosclerosis, a type of hearing loss, runs in your family it may be genetic, according to a new study conducted by the U-M Medical School. Researchers found that a genetic mutation in noggin, a gene that is essential for normal bone and joint development, was present among people with autosomal dominant stapes ankylosis, a rare hearing-loss syndrome, and otosclerosis, a form of progressive hearing loss. People with otosclerosis exhibited the same fixed bones in the middle ear that prevented the transmittal of sound vibrations to the brain as those with autosomal dominant stapes ankylosis. Read more about the study.

Join U-M alumni to watch the Newark Bears take on the Somerset Patriots on Aug. 18 at 1:35 p.m. at Riverfront Stadium in Newark, NJ. Ryan Schreiber, the president of the U of M Club of Northern New Jersey, will throw out the first pitch! Tickets are $5 per person. RSVP by sending your name, the number of tickets you'd like and a check made payable to the U of M Club of Northern New Jersey to Steve White, 7 Hickory Drive, North Caldwell, NJ 07006. Call Steve at 973.228.1187 with questions. For directions and more information on the Newark Bears, go to http://www.newarkbears.com/directions.html. To learn about club activities in your area, visit our Web site.

The preseason rankings are in! According to the EPSN/USA Today Coaches’ Preseason Top 25, Michigan is currently ranked 10th in the nation, making it the highest-ranked Big Ten team in the country. Joining Michigan in the top 25 are #12 Ohio State, #18 Michigan State, #23 Wisconsin and #24 Penn State. In another football ranking, coach Lloyd Carr is listed as the fifth-winningest coach in college football over the past five years with a record of 57-16.

You can win big with the Alumni Association’s Michigan Football Fantasy Experience. Two lucky winners and one guest each will be our VIPs for the Michigan vs. Wisconsin football game on Nov. 16 to experience Michigan football like never before! On your big day at the Big House, you’ll:

• Experience a guided tour through the press box and radio broadcast booth.
• Meet the voices of the Wolverines: Frank Beckmann and Jim Brandstatter.
• Watch the game from fully catered, private VIP box seats.
• Come down on the field and see the action from the sidelines.
• Enjoy complimentary after-game dinner cocktails at Goodnight Gracie martini bar and dinner at D’amato’s, one of Ann Arbor’s finest restaurants.
• Meet Michigan’s head football coach, Lloyd Carr.
• Attend the closed set taping of the “Michigan Replay” post-game show starring Lloyd Carr and Jim Brandstatter.
• Spend a complimentary night at the Campus Inn in Ann Arbor.

Tickets are $5 each or three for $10. For full details on what’s included and the rules and regulations, visit http://www.umich.edu/~umalumni/association/football_fantasy.htm. Order your tickets by calling the Alumni Association at 800.847.4764 or 734.764.0384.

Rules and regulations: Drawing will take place on Nov. 12, 2002. Winners will be notified that day. Employees of the University of Michigan Alumni Association and Michigan Sports Network are not eligible to enter. Michigan Raffle License #X50669. Net proceeds to benefit the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan, nonprofit organization #23-7206591. Purchasers must be at least 18 years of age. However, this does not prohibit the purchase of a raffle ticket by a person who is 18 years of age or older for the purposes of making a gift to a person who is under the age of 18 and does not prohibit a person who is under 18 years of age from receiving a prize won in the raffle. All ticket sales are final. Two winners will be chosen in a random drawing on Nov. 12, 2002, between the hours of 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The prize will need to be claimed no later than 12 p.m. EST Nov. 14, 2002. If the prize is not claimed by this time, the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan will conduct another drawing using the original pool of tickets. The Alumni Association, in conjunction with Michigan Sports Network, reserves the right to choose the location for complimentary dinner and one-night hotel stay. Transportation to/from Ann Arbor, Mich., is the responsibility of the winners.