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By Rose Ann McFadden
Reporter
[Needs of Texas A&M students older
Ian 25 will be explored in a telephone
Jrvey by the Off-Campus Housing Cen
ter The survey, beginning today, will be
onducted through Nov. 8, excluding
Iturday and Sunday.
I Nancy Thompson, coordinator of the
ff-Campus Housing Center, said the
|using center is the first university or-
aization to address the needs of older-
n-average students.
“Because A&M has such a huge pop-
btion of traditional students (under 25
(ars old), no place on campus was will
ing to provide services for older-than-av-
pge students,” Thompson said. “When
have limits, you have to put your
be and energy where the most students
are
J“We want to work toward being advo-
les for these students,” she said. “We
want to find out what the issues are for
them.”
[This semester 5,431 older-than-aver-
age graduate students and 1,945 older-
fn-average undergraduate students at-
bd A&M. Reports on national trends
licate these numbers will increase,
|ompson said.
She said 250 graduate students and
150 undergraduate students will be inter-
inewed by phone. Students’ names will
blchosen randomly from a list of older-
thau average students.
Ht will take students about 10 minutes
to answer 45 yes/no and multiple choice
^stions, she said. Questions will cover
topics like where students live, what
Wblications they read, difficulties they
erience at A&M and services they
Huld like the University to provide.
Responses to the survey will not be.
anonymous, Thompson said
“Students’ names, phone numbers,
and social security numbers will be re
corded with their answers,” she said.
“These are not personal questions. If
someone expresses interest in Off-Cam
pus Center services, we need their name
to send them information.”
Older-than-average students not inter
viewed can call the housing center and
express opinions or volunteer to partici
pate in the survey, she said.
you’re worried about what’s happening
to your kids,” Swanson said. “We pay
the premium cost, but it’s worth the
peace of mind.”
“I can’t believe that Texas A&M, with
the number of staff, faculty and students
with young children, doesn’t have some
kind of day care program,” she said.
Thompson said some older-than-aver
age students have problems because they
take evening classes.
“If you come in the evening, park your
car, go to class, and go back to your car,
“They (older-than-average students) expect to move
through with ease, but they are frustrated by the size
of A&M and its complexity.”
— Nancy Thompson
Older-than-average students face
problems not experienced by traditional
students, Thompson said.
“Many are juggling full-time jobs,
families and school,” she said.
Older-than-average students often
have trouble with day care.
Tabb Tidmore, a 30-year-old senior
industrial distribution major, said his
wife doesn’t work because day care for
their 15-month-old daughter would cost
about $200 a month.
Tidmore said, “My number one prob
lem is financial aid. I’m limited as to
how much I can receive because my wife
doesn’t work. It’s not enough.”
Deborah Swanson, a senior manage
ment major, said she and her husband
had difficulties finding trustworthy day
care for their two children.
“It’s really hard to work or study if
the chance of them getting our informa
tion is not great,” she said. “If a student
is on campus all day, it’s easier to get in
formation on services and programs.”
Thompson said the survey will reveal
the best way to get information to older-
than-average students.
Being on campus only in the evening
also causes problems with registration,
scheduling meetings with professors and
getting access to student services that are
available only during business hours, she
said.
“In no way are we minimizing the dif
ficulties traditional students face,”
Thompson said. “But they have more ac
cess to support groups and services.”
Swanson, who came to A&M from
Minnesota, said she and her husband
have problems finding support groups.
“When you’re married and have kids,
it’s really hard to meet people in your sit
uation,” she said. “You can’t go to
happy hour if you can’t pay the baby sit
ter.”
Thompson said graduate students from
smaller universities often have problems
adjusting to a university as large as
A&M.
“They expect to move through with
ease,” Thompson said, “but they are
frustrated by the size of A&M and its
complexity.”
The survey may result in changes in
student services, registration and admin
istrative office hours, Thompson said.
“Some changes may not come from
the Off-Campus Center,” she said. “We
may work with other departments in the
university to say, ‘Here is this over
whelming need. What can we do about
it?’ ”
Some University departments have al
ready made changes to meet the needs of
older-than-average students, she said.
The Student Counseling Center started
a support group for female students who
have families and are returning school
after long absences, she said.
Also, the housing center published
The Age Adantage, a booklet listing
campus and community services useful
to older-than-average students.
Thompson said housing center staff
began planning the survey after an in
crease in concerns expressed by older-
than-average students. She said the work
of the housing center intern, Bertha Ra-
mones, a graduate student, aided the de-
velopement of the survey.
re is
id revera
88 arrested in statewide abortion protests
K A pro-choice group held a rally on the
|steps of the state Capitol to downplay the
isignificance of hundreds of abortion pro-
■ •testors demonstrating throughout Texas,
but the anti-abortion groups gained the
' attention of police who arrested at least
88 people.
Rfhe anti-abortion effort Saturday was
part of a national “Day of Rescue’’ and
included demonstrations at clinics in
Austin, Dallas, San Antonio and Hous
ton.
Houston police arrested 22 for block
ing passage to one clinic and Dallas po
lice loaded 29 into buses after they were
cited for attempted criminal trespassing,
police said.
Some protesters in Houston chained
themselves around a clinic. As police
worked to free one man, he said, “This
is a violent place. This is a place where
innocent blood is shed for money.”
About 140 protesters at two different
women’s clinics in San Antonio partici
pated in protests, and police said 37
demonstrators had been arrested and
charged with attempted criminal tres
pass.
About two dozen anti-abortion protes
ters were arrested in Dallas.
No arrests were made in Austin,
where about 300 blocked the entrances to
an abortion clinic called Reproductive
Services.
Pro-choice activists said they avoided
a “media circus” in Austin because they
did not ask police to make any arrests.
Monday. Oct. 31, 1988 Page 3
Panel encourages
blacks to pursue
education, pride
By Scot Walker
Staff Writer
The keynote speaker for the National
Society of Black Engineers’ workshop
on black professionals told a crowd of
over 200 people in the MSC Saturday
that the responsibility for improving the
conditions of blacks in society lies not
with government or charities but with
blacks themselves.
Blake White, product communica
tions manager for Apple Computers, said
that American blacks today live in a dual
reality of those who have arrived and
those who still make up a huge percent
age of the poor and the homeless.
After White’s presentation, he joined
a panel of professionals and educators
composed of Dr. Joseph McMillian,
president of Houston Tilleson College,
Dr. Warren Morgan, president of Paul
Quinn College, Warren Davis, a me
chanical engineer with Dow Chemical,
and Dr. Alan Ledden, a Texas A&M
professor of mechanical engineering.
The panel tried to allay students’ fears
about the negative stigma of attending a
predominantly black school. Several
panel members also encouraged black
students to go beyond four-year degrees
by attending graduate or law school, but
Morgan disagreed.
“It doesn’t matter what degree you
get,” Morgan said. “You just need to
have pride in yourself before you can go
out to try and restructure society.”
Morgan said the biggest obstacle most
black students face is teachers and au
thority figures who tell them they don’t
have the capabilities to achieve their
goals. Morgan said that he has a mea
sured IQ of 86, flunked out of high
school, and was told by teachers he
would be never succeed, yet he had a
Ph.D when he was 23.
White agreed that the degree itself was
not of great importance.
All of the panelists agreed that a stu
dent who attends a predominantly black
school is just as prepared as one who at
tends a traditionally white school like
A&M.
Morgan said that both types of schools
have advantages.
“The big schools have lots of equip
ment, money, faculty and resources,” he
said. “But the smaller schools, while
having only 30 percent of the total en
rollment of black engineers, graduate
about half the black engineers in the
country, so they would seem to be more
efficient at what they do.”
He said that the real issue is not
whether black higher education should
be mixed or segregated.
“The real issue is that the Negro needs
education,” he said. “It’s not so impor
tant where he gets it as long as he does.”
A&M group
trading prizes
for ‘Howdies’
Texas A&M students may win
prizes this week simply by saying
“Howdy.” A&M’s Traditions Coun
cil is sponsoring Howdy Week to in
crease friendliness and spirit on cam
pus.
Students who say “Howdy” to Tra
ditions Council members on campus
this week can win T-shirts, free din
ners and free entrance to night clubs.
They also will receive coupons mak
ing them eligible to win prizes, in
cluding a free semester at Lifestyles
Health Club, a gift certificate to Post
Oak Mall and a 12th Man towel auto
graphed by Jackie Sherrill.
Traditions Council member Jen
nifer Sauter said it is important to re
vive “Howdy” on campus because
A&M is known as such a friendly
school.
“I think Howdy Week is important
because our University has dramati
cally changed in the past few years,”
she said. “Even though we’re ex
panding, we need to remember what
A&M is all about, and that’s tradi
tion.
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The MSC MBA/Law Committee
presents
The MBA/Law Symposium
Destined for
Nov. 9, Wednesday
Representatives from:
Harvard and Chicago Business &
Law Schools
Georgetown, Notre Dame fk Cornell
Law Schools
Wharton Business School
Business & Law schools in Texas
10am-4pm, 1st floor hallway, MSC
Nov. 12, Saturday
Business and Law professionals
speak on career development issues
9:30am-5:30pm, 211 MSC
Register in MSC Hallway, Blocker ad Student Programs Office
10am 3pm October 3l-Hovember 11
$5 in advance/$8 at the door
Call 845-1515 for more information
COMMITTEE