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Student
Student
By [enny Hynes
Reporter
‘This year Student Government’s
main objective is to be more open
and serve students as a whole,” said
Texas A&M Student Body President
Mason Hogan speaking at Fountain
Forum, a program sponsored by the
sophomore honor society Lambda
Sigma. “We don’t claim to have all
the answers but we have an open
door to any suggestions.”
Three vice presidents in Student
Government also spoke at Wednes
day’s Fountain Forum, the first of
the semester.
A fifth-year senior from Clyde,
Hogan outlined the organization
and functions of Student Govern
ment.
“Student Government is com
prised of three branches — the legis
lative, executive and judicial bran
ches," he said. “There are over 300
people in Student Government.”
Hogan, a 22-year-old animal sci
ence major, said the Student Sen
ate’s 87 members, who represent
housing areas and academic colleges
in the legislative branch, are elected
each spring. Student Government
executive branch members — three
vice presidents and several commit
tee chairmen — are selected through
an interview process. I he judicial
branch of Student Government
comprises a judicial board chairman
and eight board members.
“The main problem we’ve run
into this fall is that there are not
State and Local
body leader explains
Government concerns
enough positions in Student Gov
ernment for all the students that
want to get involved,” he said. “Ag
gies naturally want to get involved
and have an interest in what’s going
on around their campus and we
sometimes just don’t have anything
for them to do.
“We are not up here to be a bunch
of stiff collars, out to help our
flame eternal again.” The Class of
’83 donated the eternal flame but
failed to provide enough money for
its upkeep.
Student Government Vice Presi
dent for Programs, Renee Dix, ex
plained some of the programs spon
sored by Student Government.
These include Parents’ Weekend,
Aggie Muster, the Freshman Pro-
“The main problem we’ve run into this fall is that there
are not enough positions in Student Government for
all the students that want to get involved. ”
— Mason Hogan, A&M student body president
r6sum6s. I believe everyone we’ve se
lected for Student Government this
year actually has a genuine interest
in their fellow students and this
campus.”
Brian Banner, Student Govern
ment executive vice president for
administration, discussed his role in
leading about 40 university commit
tees, including the Who’s Who Selec
tion Committee, Traffic-Appeals
Panel and Intramural Advisory
Board.
Banner, a junior in speech com
munications from Hurst, discussed a
Student Government survey to de
termine faculty members’ reactions
to the faculty lounge planned for
Rudder Tower.
He said Student Government also
is working with the Class of ’83 to
raise money to “make the eternal
grams Committee, Traditions Coun
cil, Aggie Blood Drive and Big
Event. Dix also works on COSGA,
Conference of Student Government
Association, a national program for
Student Government members.
“It’s like a big student council con
vention,” explained Dix, a market
ing and management senior from
Abilene. “We have delegates from all
over the United States, Canada and
England.”
Dix said Student Government is
promoting a new program designed
to allow more students to become in
volved in campus activities.
“One way we’re trying to get more
people to participate is through our
High School Public Relations and
Recruitment Committee,” she said.
“Any student can go back to their
hometown and give a presentation
to promote Texas A&M to their high
school. It’s a big service to their com
munity and to Texas A&M.”
Jody Manley, vice president for
development, explained Student
Government’s new Executive Coun
cil. The council, which consists of the
student leaders and faculty adviser
Dr. Carolyn Adair, helps the
branches of Student Government
work together.
Manley, a senior journalism major
from Dallas, said the council is work
ing to start a telephone events line,
“kind of like a party-line,” which
would allow stuaents to find out
about campus events. She said the
council also is working to put flags
on the empty flagpoles near Kleberg
Animal and Food Sciences Center,
examine the use of the new com
puter access fee and put a student
representative on the Board of Re
gents. Council members also are
working to start an ‘adopt-a-high-
way’ program within Student Gov
ernment.
“Student Government is an op
portunity for growth in leadership
and communication skills,” she said.
Fountain Forum, which began
three years ago as a weekly “Sufly’s
Symposium,” has in the past fea
tured yell-leader candidates, football
players, faculty leaders, Battalion
staff members and other speakers of
interest. Lambda Sigma will hold the
programs on a biweekly basis near
Rudder Fountain.
Texas leaders back
supercollider plans,
stress voter support
WASHINGTON (AP) — A
group of Texas political heavy
weights, including House
Speaker Jim Wright and Gov. Bill
Clements, stressed Wednesday
that Texans must pass a $500 mil
lion bond issue in support of the
supercollider if the state is to re
main in competition for the giant
atom smasher.
More than 20 other states are
mounting major efforts aimed at
capturing the $4.4 billion project,
which the Texas officials said
would bring $1 billion a year for
the next 20 years to the economy
of the victorious state.
“This provides Texas with the
chance to become the world
leader in high energy physics into
the 21st century,” Wright, a Dem
ocrat from Fort Worth, said.
Behind Wright, in the Rayburn
Room at the U.S. Capitol, stood
Sens. Lloyd Bentsen, D-Texas,
and Phil Gramm, R-Texas; Clem
ents; Reps. Jack Brooks, D-Beau-
mont; Beau Boulter, R-Amarillo;
Martin Frost, D-Dallas; and Joe
Barton, R-Ennis.
Clements said,“We feel it’s a
real turning point, a fork in the
road for Texas. We are in a no-
holds-barred fight with states like
Illinois and California.”
Stressing that the competition
will be fierce, Clements said the
word has to get out to the voters
that the state must pass the $500
million in general obligation
bonds or fall behind the other
competitors.
The general obligation bonds,
along with $500 million in reve
nue bonds already authorized by
the Texas Legislature, make up
the heart of an incentive package
offered by the state to induce the
Energy Department to locate the
giant atom smasher at one of its
two official sites — Amarillo or
Dallas.
Bentsen said voters would have
to seek out the resolution, num
bered 19, out of a list of 26 pro
posals to be voted on the Nov. 3
ballot.
“We’ve had some tough times
in Texas, and here’s a chance to
move out into new frontiers,” he
said. “California and Illinois will
be going all out to win it.”
Gramm, usually for cutting
government spending, joined his
Democratic colleagues in support
of the bonds, saying it will ensure
the state’s economic vitality into
the next century.
“I don’t usually ask people to
spend . . . but this proposal is an
investment,” Gramm said. “It’s
seed money. It’s a chance to lay a
new cornerstone in the economy
of Texas.”
Ex-fugitive says he set up prison-bidding company for ‘good reason’
HOUSTON (AP) — A man who was re
cently captured in Idaho said he set up his
own company to bid on prison contracts
when he was a Texas prison system official,
but added he did it for a good reason.
“We had to get inmates out of tents in
September 1983,” J.R. Pitts told the Hous
ton Chronicle from a tiny visitors room at
the Bonner County Jail in Sandpoint,
Idaho. “All I did was expedite the job.”
A few hours after an Idaho judge re
fused to lower his bond, Pitts said Tuesday
he believed he could beat the Texas theft
charge that landed him in jail.
Pitts was captured after three years as a
fugitive. He said he set up a company to bid
on Texas Department of Corrections pro
jects to speed up work on court-ordered
prison improvements.
Pitts, 40, is facing extradition proceed
ings involving a 1985 Madison County theft
indictment that alleges he made off with
$17,500 in prison funds through bid-rig
ging and kickbacks from contractors.
He denied pocketing the funds.
“The paperwork doesn’t represent what
really happened,” Pitts said. “I didn’t take
any money.”
As a contruction superintendent, Pitts
was under pressure to complete several in
mate cell blocks before the deadline im
posed by U.S. District Judge William
Wayne Justice, he said.
Under state law, three companies must
bid on equipment and service expenditures.
On some occasions, only one or two compa
nies were avilable to bid.
In order to meet the three-bid require
ment, Pitts formed J&R Enterprises, a Pal
estine-based company that would join in the
bidding — usually submitting a bid a few
dollars higher.
Unfortunately, he said, the other compa
nies sometimes dropped out of the bidding,
leaving Pitts’ company as the only bidder.
He said he then performed the required
work.
“Maybe I went at it wrong,” he sai<;
“Maybe I should apologize to the state of
Texas and the people.”
Pitts also said he was unaware of the theft
charge against him despite repeated trips to
Texas.
He said he first became aware of the
charge when he was arrested on Sept. 19 —
just hours before his wedding — on the
Texas warrant.
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PIZZA HUT DELIVERY
AGGIE SPECIAL
2 Medium Cheese Pizzas for $9"
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2 Medium $.99, covers both pizzas!
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CALL 693-9393
1988 Aggieland
Student organizations
Recognized student organizations that
wish to appear in the 1988 Aggieland
must complete and turn in an organiza
tion contract in 230 Reed McDonald by
Friday, Oct. 2. There will be a $10 pen
alty for those organizations that missed
the Sept. 25 deadline. Contracts should
be in your boxes in the Student Finance
Office. If you have not received a con
tract, you may pick one up in 230 Reed
McDonald.
Class pictures
Freshmen and sophomores can have class pic
tures taken on the following days:
Last name G-L Sept. 28-Oct. 2
Last name M-R Oct. 5-9
Last name S-Z Oct. 12-16
Photos can be taken from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, at
AR Photography II
707 Texas Ave., Suite 120B
(across from the polo field)
693-8183