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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 1973)
Pag* 2 THE BATTALION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1973 Tenure's Due Process' Also Needs Student Input By DR. DAVID VAN FLEET With the recent discussion of tenure that appeared in The Battalion, one may be tempted to ask, “What is it all about?” The 1970 TAMU Faculty-Staff Hand book states: “Tenure means assurance to an experienced faculty member who has passed his probationary period that he may expect to continue in his academic position unless adequate cause for dis missal is demonstrated in a fair hearing, following established procedures of DUE PROCESS.” Notice that tenure is not a guarantee of employment. It is a general understanding of a con tinued position only after an “apprenticeship” period is served and unless cause for dismissal can be shown. Thus, two safe guards exist: probation and cause. But, who of those on probation shall be awarded tenure and what is “cause”? “Cause” might be financial exigency or discontinuance of a program. Or it might be “moral terpitude,” what ever that may be. Or it might be “the fitness of the faculty member in his pro fessional capacity as a teacher or researcher.” Evaluative judgments must be made in both the move from pro bation to tenure and from tenure to dismissal. Such evaluation have been and are subjective, based on ill-defined (if defined at all) criteria, frequently uni lateral, occasionally without warning. But, they are always made since academicians evaluate themselves. Why not make such evaluations more objective, more rational, using better defined criteria, and with full participation of all members of the organization— faculty, administrators and stu dents. I have offered this view in a bit more detail in the AAUP Bulletin of December, 1972 and will not repeat myself here ex cept on one point—student evalu ations of faculty. Student evaluations of faculty can be reliable, perhaps even valid and quite useful; certainly as valid as any other evaluative instrument and/or judgment. Two purposes may be served by stu dent evaluations, though, and two separate instruments may be necessary. Student evaluations serve stu dents directly by passing along information as to the difficulty of a course or instructor both in terms of the acquisition of knowl edge and in terms of the acqui sition of a satisfactory grade. Evaluation may tell if quizzes are used, if quizzes are “announced or pop,” if lectures are funny or interesting or both, or boring or dull (God forbid), if absences are counted in grading, and so on. Hence the student obtains direct information of value in scheduling and the like. Students may be served indi rectly by such evaluations, also. This would occur if the evalu ations are used by the faculty for improvement. That improvement might be individual, self-improve ment or collective improvement through the use of such evalu ations as one criteria used of several to deny tenure or for dismissal. The instrument used for the first purpose, information for students in scheduling, need not be sophisticated nor carefully re searched. The use is short-term and varies with individual stu dents. However, for the second pur pose, denial of tenure or dismissal, a more carefully constructed in strument would need to be devel oped. One would hope that the American Psychological Associ ation’s Standards for Educational and Psychological Tests and Manuals” would be used. But, those standards are not now used, so almost any carefully designed instrument would be better than no instrument or arbitrary stand ards such as “publish or perish.” Students are, after all, the only observers of teaching behavior on a continuing basis. They are the recipients of our efforts, good or bad. They are “junior col leagues” of the present and our replacements of the future. Should they not be heard! Those interested in n more on this subject such journals as the Applied Science and the Ji of Educational Psychology.) Journal | Dr. Van Fleet is an assisi professor of management TAMU. Listen Up— Aggie •Tanp, 'Coffee, •Ass't Dry Cere •Pan Fried Bacoi •Scrambled KkK s •Blueberry Panel Homosexuals—Normal Friends 'I GOTTA LAY OFF THIS STUFF — I CAN SEE TEN THOUSAND PEOPLE AT THE WINDOW WAITING TO BUY TRAIN TICKETS!' Butt Commentary $$ Disappearing v Inflation has taken its toll on student charges at the nation’s traditionally low-cost state universities and land-grant colleges once more this fall. According to a report issued by the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, increases in median tuition for the 1973-74 academic year have affected resident and non-resident students approximately the same, according to data provided by 115 institutions participating in the annual survey of charges and costs conducted by the Office of Research and Information of (NASULGC). Ninety out of the 115 respondents to the NASULGC survey, or 78 percent, increased at least one charge. Of the schools reporting increases, 33 reported increases in both room and board charges. Texas A&M was among those schools. Other reasons for increases, cited by a smaller number of colleges and universities were the need to increase faculty and staff salaries, the lack of any other source of additional revenue and the need to hire additional fall faculty and staff. Three noted that they had increased fees to help pay for new buildings. In the midst of the large number of reported increases in various charges, there were nine institutions which showed decreases in one fee or another. Five institutions reported minor decreases, ranging from one dollar to $14 in required fees. Board charges were reduced at two institutions—Arizona State University and the University of Neveda, Reno. The University of Michigan, which levied fee increases on all categories of students for the 1973-74 academic year which were among the highest in the nation, illustrated what may become an alarming trend for the years ahead. Fees there for resident students are now the sixth highest among all state and land-grant institutions and are the highest for non-resident students. Under new residency guidelines established as a result of a Supreme Court ruling, the university anticipates that more student heretofore classified as non-resident can become residents. The school estimates that the resultant loss in annual revenue will be approximately $2.4 million. As other institutions are required to change existing rules pertaining to residency, it seems likely that they also will make price adjustments comparable in size to the Michigan increases. Coupled with the developing trend to put more of the cost of education on the student and less on the taxpayer, moves such as these may do much to hamper educational rights now held so dear by many students currently receiving financial aid. Cbe Battalion Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or of the writer of the article and are not necessarily those of the University administration or the Board of Directors. The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting enterprise operated by students as a University and Community newspaper. LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and are subject to being cut to that length or less if longer. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit such letters and does not guarantee to publish any letter. Each letter must be signed and show the address of the writer. Address correspondence to Listen Up, The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, College Station, Texas 77813. Members of the Student Publications Board are: Jim Lindsey, chairman ; Dr. Tom Adair, Dr. R. A. Albanese, Dr. H. E. Hierth, W. C. Harrison, Randy Ross, T. Chet Edwards, and Jan Faber. Represented nationally by National Educational Advertising Services. Inc, New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles. The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M, is published in College Station, Texas, daily except Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and holiday periods, September through May, and once a week during summer school. MEMBER The Associated Press, Texas Press Association Mail subscriptions are $3.50 per semester; $6 per school year; $6.50 per full year. All subscriptions subject to 6% sales tax. Advertising rate furnished on request. Address: The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, College Station, Texas 77843. The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for reproduction of all news dispatches credited to it or not otherwise credited in the paper and local news of spontaneous origin published herein. Right of reproduction of all other matter herein are also reserved. Second-Class postage paid at College Station, Texas. EDITOR MIKE RICE Assistant to the Editor Rod Speer Managing Editor Greg Moses News Editor T. C. Gallucci Sports Editor Kevin Coffey Ass’t. Sports Editor Ted Boriskie Editor: Your decision not to comment on the gaylib article signified something quite different to me than it did to Professor Eilers. I saw it as an indication that A&M is still at that stage where one can’t admit that he doesn’t go to football games or hasn’t given to the blood drive and noncondemna tion of homosexuality is taken as proof of being queer. Well, let me say that I am not a homosexual; I say that so that you won’t think I’m blowing my own horn and because I believe it to be true. However, because I have taken the time to get to know some of my friends and to care about them, I know that sev eral of them “deviate from the be havioral norm.” Yes, here at A&M there are faculty members, student leaders, athletes, and, of course, plain old students — male and female — that are gay. Not many of them are obvious and none of them is about to rape anyone. They face about all of the same problems as everyone else except that additionally most of them try to appear “normal” so that they won’t get attacked or treated like lepers. Texas A&M is not the only school with tradition. How about Texas and its tradition of the largest drum in the state and its proud flags of the Southwest Conference. Texas A&M does have tradition, but it was not made by the stu dents at A&M today, that is plain for anyone to see. I hope the stu dents at A&M will mature enough to live up to the tradition that has been made for them. GROW UP A&M ! ! ! ! ! IS THAT SO HARD? Denise Maddox ★ ★ ★ Editor: I have never been a student at Texas A&M but have long known of and respected your university, being a native Texan. In fact, my brother goes to A&M and I know quite a few other Aggies rather well. I was simply appalled to hear that next year the Corps will be made coeducational. Only a few institutions would greatly suffer if opened to women, but your Corps is definitely one. What will happen to its proud tradition of toughness? How can a freshman system be seriously administered to girls ? It is a mat ter of historical fact that when women are admitted into a for merly all-male preserve, the re maining men suffer an acute loss of esprit de corps and sense of worth. If you don’t believe me, just ask any Pennsylvania Mili tary College or Norwich cadet whose supposedly elite Corps are now completely open to women. True, pride isn’t everything, but every successful military organi zation in history has been built upon it, including your Corps. Texas A&M is not known for its football team. Neither is it known for its exceptional aca demics (although I am not down grading them). A&M’s reputa tion, especially outside of Texas, is based solely on your Corps. I know! I live on the East Coast and when I mention Texas A&M someone invariably asks, “Aren’t they the ones who wear jackboots and World War II uniforms?” Corps is A&M and A&M ist| Corps. If you destroy your Cm; by admitting women, (fori wither and die and balloons fraternities will take its plaj you might as well change name of your school, for Ter A&M will have died also. A1; faceless state university will s main, but “Texas A&M" and; Corps should be buried same coffin. G. D. Martin Citadel Station Charleston, S. C. Women will not be joining! Corps of Cadets. ROTC partici|e| is open to all people.—Ed. Gift Wrapping Like it or not, the Corps is the only thing that makes A&M dif ferent from any other large state university such as the University of Texas. Like it or not, the The Student Y Associatioai conducting its annual Christai| gift wrapping service. The cost of gift wrapping!?! a non Y member is 25 cents pjl gift. The service is freetoa!i| Y member. This service is held daily fra! 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Room 216Ai!| the Student Programs Office 1 will be offered through Dec. Ill Everybody plays his own little gjr roles because there probably is no such thing as a “behavioral norm,” but we’d like to think there were. We’d like to think that we’re just like everybody else and if that means we have to pretend that we like the taste of Pearl or pretend that love can only happen be tween people of opposite sexes, then we do. It seems to me that a lot of people’s problems stem from the fact that they don’t really understand themselves, much less anyone else. I’ll end by saying that there are probably many more gay people at A&M than anyone can guess and I doubt that anything can really cause them to change. So, let’s just accept our friends for what they are and not try to force upon them some form of “normal cy.” Name Withheld by Request ]fi^][ig3ffs][fa][fl][rg][[l][E]fil]fia]ffg]|fi][rgj[ia][ii][fB][rg][fi]rf5][ig][ig][fg][iB]fil]ffl][rg][ig3ffg]ffiPPPI The following is an article by Herb Holland from the November 29, 1973 issue of The Daily Texan, the student newspaper of the University of Texas at Austin. The views expressed here are purported by The Daily Texan to be those of Mike Rice, editor of The Battalion. IS THIS REALLY THE IMAGE OF A&M? We do not condemn homosex uality. Norma'ey should not be conformity, we agree. However, we do not try 10 endorse or con demn any articles that are by- lined by others. There’s no reason a gay lib society couldn’t be initi ated here.—Ed. ★ ★ ★ Editor: It seems that no periodical can have any mercy on Jethro Tull’s “A Passion Play.” First “Zoo World” took a shot at it, with what is at best a second rate and superficial look at the album. I thought then that that was the dead end of all reviews. I was wrong. That appeared in the Nov. 28, 1973 edition of The Battalion. I have never read a review so poor in concept or in execution as that one. The author starts out by giving some history. It’s nice to give history—few critics do—but it’s also important to give all the history, like the fact that “A Passion Play” is his seventh album, and that two before “Thick as a Brick” were as immensely popular as that one. His attempt to further downgrade the album by its cover is a neat way to side track the reader and take up space, but little more. . . Now, I’ll admit that, although I think that the album is a good one, it doesn’t quite have the magic of some of his earlier ones (such as “Stand Up”), and the cover is not the best. But at least I gave a four month trial with the album before I committed my thoughts to paper. Don C. Warrington ’77 ★ ★ ★ Editor: I am an Arkansas Razorback and could care less whether Rice wins or A&M carries home a vic tory. I am worried about tradi tion and honor of the once proud Aggies. No longer will I respect the tradition of the Aggies, not since the day the Owl band had to be escorted from the stadium under police guard. What a dis gusting display of a proud honor able school like A&M. On Nov. 22, 1971, I was given an honorable discharge from the U S. Army and vowed never to return to another military installation or anything close to that. But ironically enough, two years later on Nov. 22, 1973, I returned to something close to that, as I drove to College Station for the Texas-Texas A&M game. It was one of the stranger and more interesting days of my life. At 10:30 a.m., the A&M Student Govern ment held a brunch in the “civilian” cafeteria. A few people were there, in cluding Randy Ross, A&M student govern ment president, and Mike Rice, editor of The Battalion, A&M’s student newspaper. Discussion was on the campus leadership at A&M and how it compares with Texas’. “How can you get such a good political machine going at Texas?” one person ask ed me. I said I wasn’t aware Texas was another Tammany Hall. But because Texas was such a large school, I figured there were naturally some people interested in politics. However, I found out A&M wasn't like that. And there are a lot of Aggies in College Station. “People here are too interested in tradi tion to worry with extracurricular stuff,” said Rice. “That’s why the Rice band was nearly mauled.” rahs, like everybody at A&M.” Before I could answer, a guy dressed in the orange and white costume of a Texas cheerleader walked into the room and said, “Is there anyone here from Texas?" “Do you mean TU,” one of the A&M students said. The Texas cheerleader sat down and entered into the discussion about Texas and campus life. “So you're from The Texan,” he said to me. “I’ve been meaning to tell you that Buck Harvey is crazy and your sports sec tion is too biased. You don't show enough school spirit.” It didn’t take long for the cheerleader and me to get into a battle of words, and Rice soon had to intervene. The cheerleader left, and Rice said, “I see what you mean about that minority on your campus.” The topic then turned to the football game, as it was nearly kickoff time. However, A&M fumbled on its first play from scrimmage. Texas recovered the fumble deep in Aggie territory, and I went to sleep along with the other sportswriters in the pressbox. Rice continued to tell me about his frustrations as a liberal student on a con- servative campus. “You can’t imagine how hard it is for us to do anything on campus here,” he said. 1 m 1 m I m i 1 i Mob Attack The Marching Owl Band, better known as the Mob, came under attack from the fans when it spoofed the Aggie Band by do ing an offstep version of the Block-T and the traditional Aggie War Hymn. Had it not been for the A&M yell leaders and local police, angry A&M fans, mostly alumni, might have really done bodily harm to the Mob. • “I thought it (the Mob’s show) was real ly funny,” said Rice. “But you’ve just got to understand that nothing is more impor tant to the student body here than preser ving tradition—that of the ‘true Ag.’ ” As a matter of fact, Rice said the students were opposed to any change because of the image of the True Ag and A&M tradition. “Could you believe it? The biggest issue on campus around here was getting a gynecologist on campus,” said Rice. “And we almost didn't get one, either.” From the discussion, it seemed as though everybody on the A&M campus was either a gung-ho Aggie or a newspaper editor. That is, the image of the Aggie—the football team, the Corps, the band—was more important to the mass of A&M students than anything else. “So you must know what I’m up against when I try to effect any kind of change through editorials here in the Battalion," Rice said. “But at Texas, it seems like the small minority of students are really rah- as we watched touchdown. Texas score another Silent Leaders “The administration won’t tell anything, even if we ask and the student body doesn’t really give a damn. It's almost like ignorance,” he said. “We call it tunnel vision here. “That is, nobody sees what goes on out side College Station and nobody cares. Just so Aggie tradition is perpetuated." He said A&M was so far behind the times it really has got him down. “Do you know that we just recently had our first panty raids on the women s dorms?’’ he asked. “Have you ever noticed that an Aggie entrees . •Baked Ham •Fruit Sauce Shrimp Creole •Tomato Juice, •Ass't. Dry Cen •Toast - Oh •Grape* Jelly, *S Peach Tresc Pan Fried Race entrees •Pizza 4-Oz. No •Chicken Chop : doesn’t call attention to himself when he’s in Austin? That’s because he’s afraid of all the Texas people,” Rice said. r Euf when you come to A&M, you’ll notice that everybody wears maroon. That’s to scare off all the Longhorns.” Just then, Roosevelt Leaks failed to get up from a tackler’s grasp and the A&M fans went wild with excitement. Leaks was helped off the field and the Aggies had displayed great sportsmanship—just like the week before at Rice. “You have to realize,” Rice said, almost apologizing for the action of the fans, “that we re so far behind the times here it will take a while to do anything But we’re going to do our constructive damndest at the Battalion.'’ Hang in there, Mike. Paid for by the Committee of Concerned Students for an accurate image of A&M. •Beef & Vegeta •Sliced Chicken •Grilled Cheese Grilled Strip S Beef and Nood •Tanfr. *Coffee •Ass’t. Dry Cei Toast - *0160 •Grape Jelly, * •Peach Prc *1. Cherry Nu Pan Fried ENTREES •Barbecue Frai •Salmon Pattie •Tomato Sauce •Grilled Cheese •Chicken Nood Spicy Smoked | ‘Cocktail Meat w/Sauce 5 Hamburger Hot Dogs Chili Grapefruit Jv •Ass’t, Dry C< Toast, •Oleo, •Strawberry & *1. Fresh Fn Hotcakes Finger SI ENTREE SitBraised Beef ■•Bite Size Fis •Grilled Cheei •Tomato Souj •Roast Fresh Dressing Seconds c Burritos \v/( Hamburgers Franks Chili ’Grilled Chet ’Pullman Ha ’Beef Rice S Pan Fried i No Seco Spicy Hot & Secon ’Hamburger ’Cheese Bur ’Coffee, ”M ’Ass’t. Dry Toast - *() ’Grape Jell: Grape 1 P Sc ram l Sausag Hot Bi< ’Roast Beef ’Grilled Ch ’Tamales \% 2 ea. & thicken & ’Coffee, •A SS *t. I),-; toast, *() ’Grape Jel entr ’Fried Chi Cream Gr Canned S 101 Salisbury : ’Brown G l Breaded Tartar S: WANT TO SELL THOSE USED BOOKS? LOU'S BUYING Loupot’s - Across From The Post Office