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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 16, 1990)
[he Battalion iSTATE & LOCAL 3 : riday, February 16,1990 riFeach For America recruits different kind of corps ^'ay,( By SUZANNE CALDERON Of The Battalion Staff A new organization at Texas A&M is re- uiting a different type of corps — a tea- icr corps, and they want you. Teach For America is a national, non- ofit organization whose purpose is to Cre te a national teacher corps to combat tea- cfier shortages across the United States. | Teach For America Texas A&M recently |as organized on campus to recruit grad- iting seniors. The graduates teach for two :ars in rural and inner-city areas in the hited States where teacher shortages are ie worst, Aloysia Schwabe, A&M represen- itive for TFA, said. ■ Schwabe, a junior bioengineering major, somen sM t ^ le uniqueness of TFA stems from the ||Htct that it’s aimed primarily at non-educa- ; Bon majors, and the recruiting is done by Budents through the campus representa- niaii] Bve and organization. Education majors are welcome to apply, Schwabe said, but the organization is "eared toward non-education majors. She id the organization especially is interested Omen’s ^erstand daketc, heirotii 'enaw ht raise 7 tasks e how si >cially 'l to seell in liberal arts majors, science and engi neering majors, and minority and bilingual students. “We hope to bring in people with a new enthusiasm who before may not have con sidered teaching — now they have an op- Anything that will help us to identify how important teaching is to our society is going to be helpful. The aspirations of society cannot rise any higher than the quality of our teachers.” educator — Dr. Dean Corrigan portunity to try it,” she said. Applying to be part of TFA may appeal to seniors who aren’t sure what to do after graduation, Schwabe said. “This provides them (seniors) a chance to do something in the meantime before they ?averb lecessital Inouftf . Time;* 'court m lements agrees to reduction 1 state pari-mutuel racing tax ISTTN CAP'r — (Tnv Rill Ctlfm. earlv heranse of financial nrohlerr have to make a decision about their definite career path,” she said. The ultimate goal is to have the corps members continue teaching after their two years are over. One of TFA’s aims is for stu dents to experience the positive and re warding aspects of teaching, she said. Many kids in rural and inner-city schools need role models as well as teachers, Schwabe said. “The main gist of this is to encourage kids to stay in school,” Schwabe said. “By participating in the TFA program, you’d be contributing to their future and serving as a role model — that’s what the kids really need right now.” TFA, founded last year, is the brainchild of 1989 Princeton graduate Wendy Kopp. The idea of a national teacher corps to help with education reforms and combat teacher shortages was the subject of Kopp’s senior thesis at Princeton. After her grad uation from Princeton, Kopp made her the sis a reality and started TFA. This fall will be the first time TFA’s corps will hit the schools. Before getting to this point though, corps members are required to attend an in tensive eight-week training session that will be in Los Angeles from mid-June to mid- August. Corps members then will head to their assigned schools in places such as Washing- We hope to bring in people with a new enthusiasm who before may not have considered teaching — now they have an opportunity to try it.” — Aloysia Schwabe, TFA representative ton D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, Chi cago, Mississippi and North Carolina. Although the recruiting is done by the national organization, the individual school districts do the hiring and decide the pay, Schwabe said. TFA members will receive the same pay as other starting teachers in the area. The average pay for starting teachers is around $23,000 a year, but can be significantly higher or lower depending on the area, she said. To become part of TFA’s teacher corps, students need to fill out an application and then go through a two-part interview. Schwabe said that in addition to a stan dard interview, applicants will be put through a simulated teaching session. Dr. Dean Corrigan, former dean of the College of Education and currently A&M President Mobley’s deputy for educational leadership, said he thinks TFA is a good idea. “Anything that will help us to identify how important teaching is to our society is going to be helpful,” he said. “The aspi rations of society cannot rise any higher than the quality of our teachers.” For more information and an applica tion, contact Career Services or call Schwabe at 696-3530. Informational meetings will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday in 504 Rudder and at 8:30 p.m. Feb. 27 in 302 Rudder. AUSTIN (AP) — Gov. Bill Clem- ejits said Thursday he agrees with ducing the state’s portion of the ari-mutuel racing tax and has no rticular concern about expendi- res by the Texas Racing Commis- on that are the focus of an in-house vestigation. • And to the possibility of approv- Bg a state lottery in the Feb. 27 spe- 1 legislative session, Clements said, odeal.” Clements said he would favor con- eration of lowering the 5 percent [xon betting during the special ses- an “if we will tend to our knitting aikl get down to business quickly” on " leducation and j udicial reforms, sheacisB elements said a reduction in the )rtune. ate’s take may be needed to get arse racing off the ground. More are/eciri an t"* 0 years ago voters approved ice wagering, but only one track opened — G. Rollie White owns in Brady — and it closed ivorcec |uite liars wi to live il aigh-di It her ivbeslit early because of financial problems. The horse racing industry has said the tax is too high and the Rac ing Commission has lobbied Clem ents, who initially opposed lowering the tax. On Wednesday Clements said, “We don’t want to start out on the basis of having it (the racing tax) so onerous we kill the goose that we hope is going to lay the golden egg.” Clements said he favors a tax rate that would increase as the amount of betting increases. He said if lawmakers begin se rious negotiations on school finance and judicial selection, “I will be happy to consider addressing this particular issue (the racing tax).” The Texas Supreme Court has declared the state’s school funding method unconstitutional because it allows disparities in financing be tween rich and poor school districts. Federal prosecutors bring civil charges against apartment for 6 no children’ rule HOUSTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors have filed a civil lawsuit against a Houston apartment complex, claiming the operators vi olated the fair housing law by prohibiting families with children from renting apart ments. The lawsuit filed Wednesday in a Houston federal court is one of the first in Texas to test 1988 revisions to the federal law. . “If we lease to two adults and a child, we’ll have to lease to three adults,” said Bob Mat- jeka, manager of Braeswood Park, which planned to evict Dale and Carol Brant after their daughter, Kelly, was born 16 months ago. “We don’t have the facilities and the parking to handle three and four people per apartment.” Matjeka said the 240-unit Braeswood Park apartment complex has had a 15-year policy limiting the occupancy of any apartment to two. But the Brants filed a complaint with the Department of Housing and Urban Devel opment in April last year. The ensuing HUD investigation prompted the Department of Justice to file the civil lawsuit against the com plex’s owners and operators on Wednesday. A 1988 amendment- of the Fair Housing Act, that went into effect last March, prohibits discrimination against families with children. The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages for the Brants and any other victims of similar discrimination, plus civil penalties against the owners. Assistant Attorney General James P. Turner, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said the suit was filed “to assure that young families would have unfet tered access to the Houston housing market.” The complex’s owners, Perrin W. White Properties and James M. Hill Jr., had pre viously filed a lawsuit seeking clarification of the amended act. But their attorney was at a seminar Thursday and could not comment on that suit. Matjeka said the complex now has “four or five or six” tenants who have had children and exceed the two-occupant limit but that the complex will wait until resolution of the case before acting. The Brants moved out of the complex of their own accord in August, Matjeka said. Justice Department spokeswoman Deborah Burstion-Wade said there has been a number of discrimination lawsuits since the amend ments went into effect. She attributed that to the law being “clear cut” in prohibiting dis crimination against families with children. “The law says there’s no such thing as sin- gles-only or adults-only,” Ms. Burstion-Wade said. “Now, the only specialized housing al lowed for is for older persons, aged 55 and older.” it jshooi; ients: hinawo nded tin !tlu'. ithept eople: evani. he the® to stopi from vf ' 's sense ivill Stop okilb® iccessi® ,vhosei it, p> e i joint: iveno runs® Iguns to be fS. mentb iigw nou 0 le.l® owsth' probl« re- idp fli; ject® : )te r CAMP DAY Monday February 19 M.S.C. Room 226 9 am to 3:30 pm 40-50 Camps from Texas and the Northeast United States will be interviewing students for positions in summer youth camps. If you have skills in aquatics, sports, nature study, equestrian activities, handicrafts, hiking, first aid/emergency medical care, or working with kids, and if you want to spend a reward ing summer in the great outdoors, then visit with these camp owners and directors. Sponsored by the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences and the Recreation and Parks Club GE Information Meeting Who? All students interviewing with General Electric. What? Your chance to learn about the GE businesses you’re interested in before you sit down for a formal interview. Not only will you be better informed, you wont have to waste precious interview time asking about GE when you should be telling us about you. Presentations will explore the following programs: • Distribution Management • Technical Sales • Field Engineering • Manufacturing Management Also, recent grads and current program members will be on hand to discuss their experiences with you. When and Tuesday, February 20th, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Where? College Station Hilton, 801 University Drive East What else? Informal mixer with GE employees, immediately follow ing the presentations. Refreshments will be served. The mark of a leader. An Equal Opportunity Employer