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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 11, 1986)
Tuesday, November 11, IQSbTThe Battalion/Page 3 State and Local FARMERS MARKET T1 Criteria for promotion may change Faculty Senate approves widening of performance categories E ers an it. ;ver.. s. Th rity k lier.E! •d" tli* aim ndti: By Sondra Pickard Senior Stuff Writer ■ The Faculty Senate on Monday approved unanimously a document which, if put into use, would broa den the categories of performance fatuity must show before being con sidered for promotion and tenure. ■Three major faculty performance categories — teaching, creation and dissemination of new knowledge or other creative activities, and service — are included in the document. ■ When considering teaching per- formance, a faculty member would H judged on the following (among other things): jg • Classroom and lab instruction. |t • Development of new courses, labs, and teaching methods. Ill* Publication of instructional materials. I* • Supervision of graduate stu dents. ■ Although the second category would primarily consis't of research and publication, some disciplines may include other forms of creative aciivity such as architectural design, engineering technology, fiction, po- e|ry, painting and sculpture. HA faculty members’ service would be judged by how they served the University — students, colleagues, department and college — as well as service beyond the campus. The document also suggests that each college establish written guidelines describing its own evalua tion process. In other business, the Senate adopted a resolution that would al- would judge the individual’s contri butions and forward the informa tion to the college dean. The dean would submit the recommendation to a Committee for Emeritus Status, which would then report to the pro vost and, finally, the president. The resolution recommends eme ritus status be given to those “judged to have made noteworthy and mer- The resolution recommends emeritus status be given to those “judged to have made noteworthy and merito rious contributions to the academic programs of the University. ” low a faculty member to be judged for emeritus status by an open com mittee instead of a select group. The resolution says that every ten ured faculty member who, at the time of retirement, has served the University at least 10 years must be considered for emeritus status and that non-tenured faculty who have served less than 10 years also may be considered. A committee open to all available tenured faculty and convened by the faculty member’s department head itorious contributions to the aca demic programs of the University.” A related Senate resolution, also approved Monday, suggests that the Committee on Emeritus Status be composed of the dean of faculties plus one tenured faculty member from each academic college exclud ing the Graduate College. The reso lution sets the term of service on the committee at three years and estab lishes the scope and powers of the body. Speaking to the Senate’s commit tee of the whole at the end of the meeting, Dr. Chester Dunning, asso ciate professor of history, asked for an investigation by the Senate’s Ex ecutive Committee into a Nov. 3 pro gram sponsored by the Memorial Student Center’s Political Forum. Dunning’s motion was unanimously approved by the Senate. Dunning said the program titled “A Panorama of Republican Persec- tives on the State of Texas” was bi ased and was obviously a forum for Republican candidates to campaign the day before the election. Fie said how the situation came about was not important, but he said it should not have been sponsored by a Uni versity organization that should be politically nonpartisan. In other business, the Senate: • Recommended that insurance personnel for the Texas A&M Uni versity System give regular, timely reports to the Faculty Senate, which would cover employee benefits pol icy information. • Elected Dr. Don Russell, asso ciate professor of electrical engi neering, to the Senate Executive Committee. • Approved several new under graduate and graduate courses. Within walking distance of Texas A&M OPEN DAILY 9:30 a.m. THIS WEEK: SPAGHETTI MADNESS Garlic bread and Medium drink included only $1." plus tax See Farmer's Market Special Every Tuesday in The Battalion University Drive at Northgate 846-6428 expires 11/15/86 Dark cloud hangs over solar energy industry I AUSTIN (AP) — Many companies involved in the solar energy industry have closed their doors Because of plummeting sales of solar water heat ing equipment and the end of solar tax credits, industry observers say. I The industry knew it would have problems in Texas when the solar tax credits expired at the end of 1985, but the sharp reduction in oil prices and the resulting effect on the Texas economy has aggravated the downturn. I Even in Austin, where the city has promoted solar water heating through cash rebates and low-interest loans, sales have dropped sharply, industry of ficials said. I More than 15 companies were selling solar units two years ago in Austin. Now there are three. Some have turned to air conditioning or related businesses and provide solar equipment as a sideline. Others have boarded up their win dows. I “We still believe in the technology and want to push it,” said Phil Barrett, manager of the re bates and incentives division for the city Re source Management Department. “We aren’t getting any interest these days.” Solar companies in other Texas cities are un der a similar cloud, industry officials said. “There is no doubt that the solar industry in Texas is flat on its back,” said Mike Osborne, president of the Texas Renewable Energy Indus tries Association and head of Osborne Solar in Elgin. “In Dallas, San Antonio and Houston there were probably 50 companies out there selling so lar water heaters two years ago, and there are only a handful now,” Osborne said. The statewide industry organization, which had about 60 members two years ago, is down to 27 and probably will lose another 15 after the first of the year, Osborne said. The renewable energy industry includes ev erything from solar electric cells to wind genera tors, but the big business in recent years has been the sale of equipment that uses the sun’s energy to heat water and swimming pools. Sales of solar units were spurred by a federal credit that allowed a 40 percent tax credit on purchases of up to $10,000 for renewable energy equipment. Despite heavy lobbying by the indus try and environmental groups, solar tax credits were not extended this year. “The companies knew something bad was going to happen when the credits ended,” said Scott Sklar, director of government relations for the Solar Energy Industries Association in Wash ington, “but that doesn’t make it feel any better.” Nevertheless, Sklar and others are optimistic the industry will bounce back when energy costs go back up. “We feel sure the tide is going to turn again,” Sklar said. The University of Texas Medical Branch School of Allied Health Sciences Galveston, Texas Presents: A HEALTH CAREERS SYMPOSIUM Thursday, November 13,1986 4:00 pm Rudder Tower Room 302 You are invited to learn about the following UTMB Professional Training Programs: * Medical Technology * Health Information Management * Physician's Assistant Studies * Radiologic Health Sciences Occupational Therapy Physical Therapy Health Adminstration Respiratory Therapy Individual time will be spent on each program, All interested please stop by. Call Battalion Classified 845-2611 This holiday season get the" Write Stuff’ at the right price. m p f; VJ Now you can get the competitive edge when classes begin in January. With a Macintosh™ personal computer, and all the write extras. We call it the Macintosh “Write Stuff” bundle. You’ll call it a great deal! Because when you buy a Macintosh “Write Stuff” bundle before January 9, 1987, you’ll receive a bundle of extras—and save $250. Not only will you get your choice of a Macintosh 512K Enhanced or a Macintosh Plus, you’ll also get an Image Writer™ II printer, the perfect solution for producing near letter-quality term papers or reports, complete with graphs, charts, and illustrations. Plus, you’ll get MacLightning, the premier spelling checker con taining an 80,000 word dictionary with options for thesaurus, medical or legal dictionaries. Together with your favorite Macintosh word processing software, you can transform your notes into the clearest, most letter perfect papers you ever turned out. And turned in on time. What’s more, there’s a Macintosh Support Kit filled with valuable accessories and computer care products from 3M.* Complete with all the things you need to keep your Macintosh running long after you’ve graduated. Let us show you how to get through college better, faster, and smarter. Stop in and see us for more information. This is Your LAST Chancell Since Juniors, Seniors, Grad ■# Med. and Vet students didn't get their pictures made, the Aggieland is giving them one last chance. Texas A&M Micro Computer Center First FloorMSC 10am-6pm M-F 845-4081 *0ffer Good While Supplies Last © 19S6 Apple Computer. Inc. Apple and the Apple logo are registered trademarks of Apple Computer. Inc Macintosh and tmageWriter are trademarks of Apple Computer. Inc. MacLightning is a trademark of Target Software, Inc Get your picture made by November 21 at AR Fhotgraphy II Mon-Fri 8-12 1-5 707 Texas Suite 120-B r-i ttv (Across from the A&M Polo Field) Freshmen and Sophmores deadline Nov. 7.