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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 2, 1977)
Page 10 THE BATTALION WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 1977 focus The good and bad of co-op Some combine their classroom studies with rewarding jobs, while other battle tough housing markets, low wages and menial labor By STEVE MAYER Some students working in cooperative education programs at Texas A&M University often get an inside shot at a good job after college and usually earn enough to help out with school expenses. However, others in the program complain of hard-to-find housing, low wages and “almost manual labor.” The Cooperative Education Program (Co-op) at Texas A&M allows students in certain colleges (agriculture, architecture and environmental design, engineering, liberal arts, science and veteri nary medicine) to alternate semesters of work and study. Students can gain practical knowledge on the job and obtain theoretical knowledge in the classxoom. “Co-op gives students the opportunity to decide if they are in the type of curriculum they want — rather than graduate, go to work and then be unhappy with their careers, says Dr. Charles Rodenberger, co-op director for the college of engineering. Engineering has the largest co-op program at A&M, with more than 600 students working for more than 150 companies throughout Texas, the nation and overseas. Co-op programs in other colleges of the University are now being organized and have few students involved at this time. Mark Edmund, a graduate in chemical engineering, had praise for the program. “It was the best way to put myself through school, Edmund said. “Experience was secondary. I flat-out needed the money. “I enjoyed the chance to get away from course work — it was a different environment, he said, after working with Amoco Produc tion Company of Houston. “Afterward, I looked forward to hitting the books again. “There’s always enough money for future semesters,” he said, “if you keep a budget in mind. ” Steve Yeary, a senior also in chemical engineering, became dis enchanted with the program and dropped it. “If someone wants to be in co-op, they should find out a lot about the company, he said. “The present system doesn't show what it's like. You can wind up doing almost manual labor. I felt the job I had was below my classification. Yeary was working for Olin Corp. in Houston. “I was teaching basic algebra to the person above me, he said. “Most of the people I worked with were high school educated. Yeary said that after he dropped co-op, he got a job paying $400 more per month. Andy Case, a sophomore in mechanical engineering, is satisfied with the program but said housing is a problem. “Getting short-term leases and moving every four months is a hassle,” Case said, “but it’s definitely worth it. Rodenberger said he is aware of the problems co-op students must face. “We make sure students can get back on campus after their work semester, he said. “As for housing where the student is working, we leave it up to him. We feel it is part of his education. There is a bulletin board outside the engineering department where students can post notices for roommates needed in a particular locale, he said. To decrease the number of students unhappy with their em ployers, Rodenberger said the program tries to match the two by knowing what the company offers and what the student wants. He said he encourages the students to interview with as many companies as possible. The average co-op salary per month for the spring of 1977 was $798, the lowest was minimum wage and the highest was $1,433. Rodenberger estimated that 70 percent of the co-op students work for their co-op employer after graduation. Higher minimum wage advocate Looking for a job? A good place to start would be Texas A&M University’s Placement Center in Rudder Tower. Notices list various positions open in government and private industry, as well as grants available and reports on the job market. I nited Press International —WASHINGTON-The director of the Texas Department of Human Resources Tuesday endorsed a Car ter administration proposal to create jobs for welfare recipients, but said the jobs should pay more than the minimum wage. Jerome Chapman, in remarks prepared for U.S. House welfare subeommittee hearing, said a work requirement will help financial as sistance payments gain acceptance. “Work requirements attached to public assistance are attractive to many taxpayers who support the costly welfare system, but it is jobs — not required participation — that are needed to make the plan work, he said. alone needs 300,000 jobs. “Of more concern than that, how ever, is that Texas needs several times that number of higher paying jobs to enable its working poor to gain economic independence. Chapman told the subcommittee. Chapman said the Better Jobs and Income Act will create jobs for 1.4 million persons, but said Texas “It is our concern that Texans w ill continue to be forced into work of little substance at wage levels that will leave them still dependent. A full-time worker earning the catres/ minimum wage takes home less than those at the poverty line. He said Texas has no need fe thousands of minimum wage that would require permanent fed eral subsidies. “We have plenty those, Chapman said. “The pro gram should provide ahelpinghi to economic independence for llif working poor, not a permanent crutch of dependency. For Battalion Classified Call 845-2611 Women denied hananas <r LOkat (^rciclucit&A are^UDeariktcf As a woman Air Force ROTC student, you compete for your commission on the same footing as the men in your class. And later on you wear the same insignia. There are two-year, three-year, and four-year scholarship pro grams available to help you get there.. If you enroll in the four- year Air Force ROTC program you also qualify to compete for a scholarship for the remaining two or three years as a cadet. Tuition is covered, fees are paid, textbook costs reimbursed . . . plus $100 a month, tax free. cooebius the literary magazine of texas a&m university on sale now $1 msc main hallway m/c sponsored by the arts committee l nited Press International —HOUSTON— Three women dockworkers filed a federal court suit Tuesday claiming they were il legally denied jobs unloading banana boats because of their sex. Maria J. Garcia, Rose M. Men doza and Sylvia H. Cooke charge International Longshoremen’s As sociation Local 1576 and Southern Stevedoring Co. Inc. illegally dis criminated against them. The company claimed the pres sure of a box against a woman s breast could cause cancer. The suit said the three women were cleaning ships as members of another long shoremen’s local when the alleged incident occurred May 6, 1975. They complained to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commis sion, which rifled in their favor but failed to negotiate a settlement with the defendants. The EEOC au thorized the lawsuit Aug. 10, as provided by law. “We don t believe it s possible for a woman to do the work our people now doing, the company told the EEOC. “To expect a woman. hour after hour, to maintain an at erage of 150 boxes of 46.5 pound' each doesn t seem practical. But the complainants lawyer,)# E. Turner, said that although clean ing ships was their normal function, the women had done unloading® the past and could “hook a cable# operate a crane as well as anyone He said cleaning could sometime! be harder work than unloading. “Obviously, employing women do such a job is not an everdayoc- currence, but it is a trend, Turner said. Tt|e St|ci|»e ©£ Tilings Embrey’s Jewelry We Specialize In Aggie Rings. 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