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116
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS THURSDAY, MAY 15, 1969
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District 18 Rep. Bill Presnal tells a Political Forum audience
what it’s like to be a “fish” in the Texas House. Serving
liis first term as representative of Brazos, Grimes and Mad
ison counties, Presnal has already introduced 10 bills to
the legislature. (Photo by Bob Peek)
According To Presnal
ailed
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yle Knief
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‘Fish’ Lawmakers
Attempt Too Much
By TONY HUDDLESTON
Battalion Staff Writer
The big problem that fresh-
nan members of the Texas House
il Representatives have is that
they try to carry too many bills,
wd don’t get any of them
passed, Rep. Bill Presnal of Dis
trict 17 told the Political Forum
Wednesday.
“A freshman in the House
should never carry more than
live or six bills at any one time,”
Presnal added. “Because if he
(arries any more than that he
probably won’t get any of them
tot the House calendar, much less
passed.”
Presnal, who was elected to the
Bouse last year, added that he
didn’t follow his own advice. “I
sponsored 10 bills in the House.
Five have passed the House and
Senate and gone on to the gov
ernor.”
He added that it was by luck
that he was able to get the bills
passed. Two more bills, he noted,
have gone through the House
and stood a chance of passage in
the Senate.
facultyAwards
To Be Given
In Guion Hall
The annual Faculty Recognition
and Achievement Awards Pro
gram will be conducted at 3:30
p.m, Tuesday in Guion Hall, an
nounced A&M President Earl
Rudder.
Highlight of the program will
he the Association of Former
Students’ presentation of 11 Dis
tinguished Faculty Achievement
Awards, which include $1,000
checks. The Standard Oil Founda
tion will make three similar
awards.
The program also will include
special recognition for eight re
tiring faculty members.
Rudder will preside and review
•najor events of the current school
year. Former Students President
Ford Albritton Jr. of Bryan, who
also is a member of A&M’s Board
of Directors, will make brief re
marks and present the associa
tion’s awards.
Seven of the Former Students
awards—an increase of three this
year—will be presented for teach
ing, two for research and one
each for extension work and in
dividual student relations. The
Standard Oil awards are based
on teaching achievements.
President Rudder has urged all
faculty and staff members to
attend the awards program.
University National Bank
"On the side of Texas A&M.”
—Adv.
Presnal, a former A&M staff
member and graduate noted that
there were do’s and don’ts in the
House which every freshman
must learn if he’s to be effective.
He added that the late Sam Ray
burn used to quote a phrase to
freshman members of the House
about these:
“RAYBURN told Washington
freshmen — and it applies here
too — to take care of the people
back home during the first ses
sion and then take on the bur
dens of the nation and world
later.”
The former assistant to the
A&M commandant is doing an
outstanding job of following this
advice, commented Robert G.
Cherry, assistant to the A&M
president and Political Forum
sponsor.
“Just looking after A&M in
terests in appropriations would
be a full time job,” Cherry added,
pointing out there are 12 differ
ent agencies in the A&M system
of which eight are headquartered
at College Station. “Then there
are ‘housekeeping’ bills plus
looking into 2,000 or so other
pieces of legislation that could
directly affect the university. On
top of that, he’s doing an excel
lent job in other aspects of rep
resenting the district.”
Presnal noted that House mem
bers fall into four categories that
could easily be compared to the
four class divisions of the Corps
of Cadets.
“A FRESHMAN representa
tive, like a fish at A&M, is eager
and green when he appears in
the chambers of the House,” he
said. “He’s supposed to know it
all the first day and nothing is
more important than his atti
tude.”
The second termer, he added,
like a sophomore, has experienced
it all, sticks out his chest and
tries to make himiself look as if
he knows all the answers.
“Above all, he doesn’t ask
questions about what’s going on
like the freshman representative,”
Presnal continued. “He has more
responsibility to the folks back
home, who are aware that he
knows the ropes, and believe it’s
time to get the job done and
straighten out those people down
in Austin.”
Before the veteran legislator
comes the junor among the rep
resentatives, Presnal said.
‘ RELAXED is the best way
to describe him,” Presnal noted.
“The second termer is still a
little tense, but he is confident
that he knows the answers, pro
cedures, rules, and what’s happen-
ing in committee. He has ac
quired the tricks of the trade. It
could be said that he’s a big shot
(See ‘Fish,’ Page 3)
Geistweidt Is President;
38 Senate Positions Filled
Vice Presidency
May Go To Holt
AT THE POLLS
The democratic process of voting went much like this Wednesday as more than 3,000 stu
dents turned out to select a Senate president and fill 22 other offices. The turnout was
several hundred less than that of the Senate election held April 23. (Photo by Bob Peek)
Black Students 6 Unsatisfied’
After Meeting With Rudder
By DAVID MIDDLEBROOKE
Battalion Staff Writer
Gerald Geistweidt, elected Stu
dent Senate vice president three
weeks ago, was elected president
of the same organization Wed
nesday with 1,548 votes in a spe
cial election held in conjunction
with the Senate college elections.
Bill Holt, who placed behind
Geistweidt in the April 24 Sen
ate vice-presidential race, may as
sume the now vacated office.
“The only way that it would
happen otherwise,” said Tommy
Henderson, Election Commission
vice-president for publicity, when
questioned on the matter, “is if
Geistweidt does not resign from
the vice-presidency before the
Senate meeting Thursday.
“In that case, under Section
III, article 6, paragraph C, of the
Senate constitution, there would,
by my interpretation, have to be
a new election for the office of
vice-president.”
Henderson later said that he
had talked with Geistweidt, who
told him that he (Geistweidt) had
not yet decided what he will do.
Henderson added that Geistweidt
will make a decision sometime
Thursday.
Garry Mauro, with 1,205 votes,
placed second in the race, which
attracted over 3,000 voters, 600
less than in the April 24 elec
tions. Jimmy Adams placed third
with 284 votes.
College election results, filling
38 Senate positions, are:
College of Engineering, class of
'70 — Allen Janecek (114), Jess
Rhodden (82), and Robert Stan-
zel (75), with Frank McDuff (73)
and Bob Chancey (65) as run
ners-up; class of ’71 — James
Hackedorn (99), Fred Hofstetter
(144) and David Reynolds (123),
with Gregg Weaver (87) and
James Wiley (84) as runners-up;
class of ’72 — John D. Bennett
(179), Raymond Kopecky (157),
and Joe Nix (149), with Samuel
Tucker (108) and Robert Hobbs
(126) as runners-up.
College of Liberal Arts, class
of ’70 — John L. Grumbles (46)
and James Stephenson (53), with
Raymond Jordan (30) and David
Former
J. Gordon Gay, who served
Aggies 40 years through the uni
versity’s YMCA prior to semi-
retirement last September, was
remembered Wednesday night by
students and associates alike.
Young Men’s Christian Associ
ation (YMCA) cabinet officers
surprised Gay, 68, with a 21-inch,
portable color television set dur
ing their annual installation
steak-fry in Hensel Park.
“Oh, my gosh,” he exclaimed,
on being presented the RCA set,
complete with stand and a year’s
paid-up cable service.
Contributions for the gift, a
well-guarded secret, came from
friends, business associates and
student YMCA members.
Mrs. Gay was present for the
ceremony.
The gift was presented by out
going YMCA cabinet president
David Howard.
Gay, starting his life-long
career at A&M in 1928 as YMCA
associate secretary, was also pre
sented a plaque by “Freshmen
Campers.” It read “Originator
and Director of YMCA Freshmen
Camp, 1954-68.”
Two years after he was named
general secretary in 1952, Gay’s
freshman camp dream became a
reality. The first camp attracted
36 students. His last camp at
tracted 351.
Camps are designed to get stu
dents involved in campus life by
“letting them see the larger out-
P. Bailey (26) as runners-up;
class of ’71 — Larry Carreker
(50) and Charles Hoffman (51),
with Jon C. Simms (43) as run
ner-up; class of ’72 — Stephen
Bryant (73) and Jimmy Weaver
(59), with Robert Burns (47) and
Robert Miller (54) as runners-up.
COLLEGE of Business Admin
istration, class of '70 — Kenneth
H. Fengolio (39) and Leonard
Odem (38), with Daniel Swords
(37) and John Maline (30) as
(See Presidency, Page 2)
NCUChancellor
To Address
’69 Graduates
Dr. John T. Caldwell, chancel
lor of North Carolina State Uni
versity at Raleigh, will be fea
tured speaker for commencement
exercises May 24, announced
A&M President Earl Rudder.
A record 1,303 students have
applied for spring graduation.
Ceremonies will be conducted at
9 a.m. in G. Rollie White Coli
seum.
Dr. Caldwell joined North Caro
lina State as chancellor in 1959
after serving seven years as pres
ident of the University of Arkan
sas. He was previously president
of Alabama College and taught
at Vanderbilt.
A leader in public higher edu
cation, Dr. Caldwell headed the
National Association of State
Universities and Land-Grant Col
leges in 1961-62. He is currently
chairman of the association’s
International Affairs Committee.
He has served twice as chairman
of the board of trustees for Uni
versity Testing Service.
The 58-year-old native of
Yazoo, Miss., received his under
graduate degree at Mississippi
State and Ph.D., in political sci
ence, from Princeton. He also
holds degrees from Duke and
Columbia.
During World War II, Dr. Cald
well served in the Navy as a
lieutenant commander.
YMCA
look in life,” Gay said.
The plaque was presented by
Gary Anderson.
Gay received several honors
through the years for his service
By TOM CURL
The demands submitted May 2
;o the administration by a group
of 15 black students resulted in
a meeting with A&M President
Earl Rudder last Friday, The Bat
talion learned this week.
The group, which calls itself
the Afro-American Society, ex
plained the demands to Rudder
in a session that lasted more
than two hours and ended with
the students still unsatisfied, ac
cording to Allen Giles, spokesman
for the students.
“The hang-up is that we could
not get the President to ack
nowledge that we have prob
lems,” Giles said Tuesday night.
According to Giles, Rudder
later acknowledged the problems
claimed by the black students,
but said that the students caused
the problems themselves.
PRESIDENT Rudder was con-
to Aggies, including the Distin
guished Faculty Achievement
Award in 1956. In 1957 he was
named religious life coordinator
as well as YMCA general secre-
tacted on the matter Tuesday
night.
“If there is anything in the
way of their (black students)
education, I’ll remove it,” he
commented.
“However, these demands are
not in keeping with good educa
tion,” Rudder added.
The demands concerned such
proposals as a black history
course, more black literature in
the University Library and re
cruitment of black high school
students by black students already
at A&M. In addition, they
charged discrimination by A&M
Athletic Director Gene Stallings.
“The only positive thing from
the whole meeting was that
President Rudder said he would
talk to Stallings,” Giles remarked.
Giles said the black students
wanted the black history course
to “enhance our awareness of our
tary.
Even the steak-fry was sym
bolic for Gay who personally
cooked thousands of steaks for
students and guests.
culture and origin.”
HE ADDED that in many
cases, the history course would
be more beneficial to white stu
dents because they would be
made aware that the black Amer
ican is not “dull-witted and lazy.”
In its demands, the group also
called for official recognition of
the Afro-American Society as a
campus organization; a request
that was denied last fall.
“It (the society) would not be
segregated and white students
would be allowed to join,” Giles
added.
Giles added that the demands
were not meant to evoke the
strong policy statement from the
A&M Board of Directors which
said they would not consider or
tolerate “change which would
disrupt due academic processes
—change thrust upon this insti
tution under the ugly veil of
threat or demand.”
Giles claimed the action by the
group was not a threat and clari
fied the section of the demands
that said “appropriate action”
would be taken if the demands
were not acted upon by the third
week in September.
“IT MIGHT be something of
the nature of a boycott; but
strictly non-violent,” he empha
sized.
Last week, the demands drew
a resolution of criticism from the
A&M Student Senate because the
black student group did not fur
ther its complaints through Sen
ate channels. They were also
criticized because they did not
contact the administration
through the Committee on Black
Student Affairs created earlier
in the yea'r; of which Giles and
several others are members.
“We went directly to the ad
ministration because we felt the
bonds of communication had been
cut,” Giles commented.
He added that the black stu
dents felt the committee had
been ineffective in finding solu
tions to the problems of black
people on the A&M campus.
A prepared statement was re
leased Wednesday from Presi
dent Rudder’s office saying that
Rudder discussed each of the
demands at the Friday meeting
and gave each student the oppor
tunity to be heard.
According to the statement,
Rudder assured the students that
“all requests of all students will
be given due consideration when
made in good faith and with
noble purpose.”
Bryan Building & Loan
Association. Your Sav
ing Center, since 1919.
BB&Li —Adv.
YMCA PRESENTS GIFT
Aggie associates, friends and students presented J. Gordon Gay a 21-inch color television
set Wednesday at Hensel Park. Gay, YMCA general secretary and religious life coordina
tor, retired last September after 40 years of service. Left to right are Gary Anderson,
Gay, and David Howard. Gay also received a plaque as originator and director of Fresh
men Camp.
‘Served Aggies 40 Years’
Head Honored