Tuesday, September 24,1985/The Battalion/Page 3
State and Local
- Waldo
by Kevin Thomas
SC Council approves sale
of laser photograph posters
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By MEG CADIGAN
Staff Writer
The Memorial Student Center
ouncil unanimously approved the
ale of laser photo posters at T exas
&M Monday.
Other important business in-
luded a request from the president
f the Mexican Students’ Associa-
lon, Angel Gonzalez-Mendez for
undraising help to aid Mexican
arthquake victims.
David Klosterboer, executive vice
president of programs, said the laser
Iphotos will be full color, moderately
priced and should yield $9,600
(profit.
He said the proceeds from poster
ales will benefit student devel-
ipment programming at the MSC,
mich includes the fall and spring
leadership programs and retreats,
nd freshmen leadership programs.
The project requires an initial
utlay of $5,400. This funding was
llocated by Enrichment Fund
oard during its meeting last week-
nd.
Jill Thrash, vice president for de
velopment, said, “The purpose of
the Enrichment Fund Board is to
f uovide contact for students for
undraising.”
Thrash said the board’s lead
ership consists of Chairman Wade
Seidel, Vice Chairman for Public Re
lations Joe Arredondo and Vice
Chairman of Finance Charles Plum.
She said the board is vital in help
ing MSC committees achieve their
fundraising goals.
Jim Reynolds, director of the
MSC, said committees this year are
expected to solicit $300,000 in con
tributed income.
Thrash said the Enrichment Fund
Board is assisting MSC student de
velopment to raise its long-range
goal of $6 million in endowment
funds.
In other business, the Mexican
Students’ Association made a pre
sentation on the situation in Mexico
after the two recent earthquakes
there.
Gonzalez-Mendez said his group
is planning to work through the San
Antonio Red Cross to get aid to
Mexico. He said about $300 has
been raised by his association so far.
International Student Association
President Luis Rodriguez said,
“Thirty-six thousand students here
at A&M can do better than that.”
MSC Opera and Performing Arts
Society and the MSC Fall Leadership
Committee also appeared before the
council.
OPAS Chairman Jody Boarnet re
ported that 1,806 OPAS season tick
ets had been sold already.
She said season ticket sales com
bined with 212 tickets given to OPAS
corporate sponsors left only 494
seats available for individual ticket
sales.
Boarnet attributed the success of
season ticket sales, in part, to a two-
for-one student ticket promotion
run by OPAS.
Fall Leadership Chairman Sharon
Schultz said the Fall Leadership
Conference was successful in both its
fundraising and student devel
opment goals.
Tuition crunch
Devaluation of currencies affect foreign students
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By JUNE PANG
Staff Writer
The recent currency devaluation
in such countries as Venezuela,
Peru, Argentina and Brazil accom
panied by an increase in tuition is
causing some Texas A&M interna
tional students to wonder how they
will be able to stay at the University
after thissemester.
“In February 1983, it was 4.30 bo-
livares to $1 (U.S.),” said Luis Rodri
guez, the president of Venezuelan
Students Association about the Ven
ezuelan currency. “Now, it’s 15 boli-
vares to $ 1.”
Rodriguez explained that Vene
zuela’s huge debt prodded the gov
ernment to devaluate the currency,
hoping the devaluation would stimu
late more exportation and curb the
money flow to other countries.
“The (Venezuelan) govenment
says up to December this year, for
eign students can have $490 per
month for living expenses, and
$2,500 per academic year for tuition
at the old rate,” Rodriguez said. “Wi
thin this limit you can use the old
money rate. But if you need more
money than that, you’ll have to buy
American dollars at the new rate.”
Rodriguez said many Venezuelan
students are spending their $2,500
limit this semester. With this semes
ter’s tuition increase, an average for
eign student taking 15 credit hours
needs $1,800 for tuition per semes
ter.
What about next year?
“That’s a problem,” Rodriguez
said. “I don’t know how the Venezu-
going
■ Decen
next year. . . . After December, only
those who are wealthy can stay here.
Those who are not so wealtny will
have to either go home or transfer.”
In Peru, 6,000 soles — the Pe
ruvian currency unit — was equiva
lent to $1 in December 1984.
Now it ranges from 18,000 to 20,000
soles per dollar, depending on the
current exchange rate of the bank or
market used, said Rosa Yupari, the
president of Peruvian Students As
sociation.
Yupari said the devaluation in
Peru started in 1968 when the for
mer president was overthrown by a
military government. The military
government distributed the wealth
of the rich to the poor, but didn’t
know how to manage the economy,
she said.
Yupari said Peru’s military gov
ernment lasted until 1980 when a
democratic government was
adopted. But, she says, the new gov
ernment inherited the bad economic
situation and the currency remains
unstable.
Although there are no resrictions
on the money flow from Peru for
students to pay tuition, the high tu
ition and living expenses make it im
possible for an average family to
send their children to study here.
“Most students here come from
families who have business back
grounds,” Yupari said. “They have
to have a wealthy family if they don’t
have scholarships to support them.”
The Brazilian and Argentine gov
ernments also have devaluated their
currencies.
According to Flamarion B. Diniz,
the president of Brazilian Students’
Association, Brazil’s foreign debt is
the highest in the world. The bad
economy caused high inflation and
fewer number of students are study
ing abroad now, he said.
“T his year we have very few stu
dents,” he said. “When I first came
here, we had many students from
Brazil.”
Diniz, who came to A&M in 1982
to get his Ph.D. in Chemistry, said
when he came here there were about
60 to 80 students from Brazil, and
now there are only about 30 stu
dents.
Three years ago, it was about 100
cruzeiros — the Brazil currency unit
— per $1, now it is 6,000 cruzei-
rous per $1. In black market, the
exchange rate can go as high as
9,000 cruzeiros per $1, Diniz
said.
In Argentina, the inflation rate
from June of last year to June of this
year is nearly 1,000 percent. Since
June the government enforced new
regulations and the exchange rate
has been stablized. In August, the in
flation was 3 percent, said Alberto
Livore, president of the Argentine
Club.
“Every time the government de
valuates, the families (of students
who study here) have more difficulty
in supporting them,” Livore said.
Like the situation in Peru or Ven
ezuela, Livore said, “It’s not possible
for people to come here if they don’t
have a wealthy family or schol
arship.”
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