The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, June 22, 1990, Image 1

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    ie Battalion
Vol.89 No.162 USPS 045360 6 Pages
College Station, Texas
\\ 1 1 / // /
Fun in the sun
wm
Learn proper swimming pool
etiquette from the experts.
///iluxx
See page 3
Friday, June 22,1990
EOC: A&M used illegal employment practices
iy JULIE MYERS
I The Battalion Staff
natedliy
''Our via
on’thavt
II. We
physi-
s. For
The Equal Employment Opportunity Com-
liission in San Antonio determined Texas
l&M engaged in illegal employment prac-
Ices by denying tenure to a former A&M bi-
■logy professor.
I The EEOC also threatened to file a class ac-
|tion suit on behalf of all female faculty at
if it is not satisfied with ongoing concil-
fctory efforts between A&M and Dr. Lynn
■amoreux.
I EEOC District Director Pedro Esquivel
wrote the following in the determination let-
: ter:
“Evidence obtained during the investiga
tion establishes violations of the statute as fol
lows: there is reasonable cause to believe
K&M has engaged in an unlawful employ
ment practice in violation of Title VII of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, by de
nying tenure to Dr. Lynn Lamoreux because
of her sex, for filing her previous charge of
discrimination (with the EEOC), her opposi
tion to unlawful employment practices and
her age, 53.”
Esquivel also stated the Equal Pay provi
sions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938
were violated, citing that investigation had re
vealed A&M female faculty members in all
colleges who are classified as assistant profes
sors, associate professors and professors are
paid less than their male counterparts.
“Further investigation is not required at
this time because a charge under EPA (the
Equal Pay Act) is not necessary,” Esquivel
wrote.
“A&M has the required number of employ
ees to be covered as an enterprise engaged in
commerce as required and the evidence of the
violation has been furnished by A&M,” it
stated.
Pending outcome of the conciliation for
the illegal practices, there are further legal ac
tions Lamoreux or the EEOC can take to have
a class action suit brought against A&M.
In the Plaintiff s Response and Brief in Op
position to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss
filed April 24, Lamoreux’s attorneys at West,
Adams, Webb and Albritton of College Sta
tion said the EEOC has entered into a concil
iation process to obtain a resolution of these
matters.
The response said the plaintiff most likely
would amend Lamoreux’s complaint to have
a class certified if the conciliation was not sat
isfactorily concluded prior to her termination
in May 1990.
The response also stated that if the EEOC
is not satisfied with conciliation, it has options
of intervening on behalf of the class in this
lawsuit or bringing an action on its own.
The Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss was
submitted April 3 by Attorney General Jim
Mattox, First Assistant Attorney General
Mary Keller, General Litigation Division
Chief James Todd and Assistant Attorney
General Cynthia Alksne.
This motion states the 11th Amendment is
a bar to all jurisdictional claims against the
state or arms of the state in federal court —
this is true regardless of the relief sought.
The defendants named by the suit are state
officials and have qualified immunity.
Lamoreux’s attorneys, however, assert in
their brief that the 11th Amendment does not
bar all suits. Congress has the power to and
has waived the states’ 11th Amendment im
munity in legislation enforcing the 14th
See Lawsuit/Page 6
I
5U! Faulty relay
pauses outage
across campus
By CHRIS VAUGHN
Of The Battalion Staff
: service
louda'j
:aii SM .
than you
5275.
I A power outage in some buildings
On the north side of Texas A&M sus-
Bended work Thursday for students
Tnd faculty members for about an
pour, but kept the whole campus
armer than usual the remainder of
be day.
The outage occurred at approxi-
liately 11:30 a.m. Thursday and af-
wcted several buildings, including
lie Sterling C. Evans Library, the
Barrington Education Center com-
llex, the Reed McDonald Building
Ind the Halbouty Geosciences
Building.
I All electrical power, including air
imditioning and hot water, was shut
i |ff until approximately 12:30 p.m.
Physical plant employees caused
te outage when they shut down two
iectrical feeders to that portion of
ie campus.
They shut off the circuits because
Bi a faulty relay on one of three gas-
owered boilers that generates
tuch of the electricity, chilled water
lor air conditioning and hot water.
I The relay gave a false indication
■flow gas pressure which automat-
Bally shut down one of the boilers,
■he other two boilers overloaded
■nd also shut down.
■ Joe Estill, associate director for
■tilities, said the two circuits feeding
Blectricity to the library, Harrington
Bomplex and other buildings were
■mt off to save the entire power
Blant operation.
| | Although only part of the campus
Bst total electricity, most of the cam-
Bus didn’t receive normal air condi-
loning the rest of the day because
the chilled water systems were not
Bperating at a normal level.
B Estill expected the buildings to
Bave returned to normal tempera-
ture by this morning.
Police investigate
pedestrian accident
Student remains hospitalized
A Texas A&M student was
listed in stable condition Thurs
day evening at Humana Hospital
after he was struck by a car near
the intersection of Spence Street
and University Drive.
Chris Ritchey, 22, was struck
by a car at approximately 11:45
a.m. Thursday while he was
crossing University Drive.
He was taken to Humana by
ambulance and underwent treat
ment and evaluation.
A spokeswoman with Hu
mana’s emergency room said
Ritchey “was listed in stable con
dition and was being evaluated.”
A College Station Police De
partment report about the acci
dent said Ritchey had suffered a
compound fracture of the right
leg. Emergency room personnel
would not specify whether
Ritchey had sustained additional
injuries.
Mike Doyle, a McDonald’s em
ployee and freshman at A&M
Consolidated High School, wit
nessed the accident.
He said the windshield of the
car that struck Ritchey was shat
tered.
College Station police said
charges have not been filed
against the driver. The matter is
under investigation by College
Station police.
The driver was not injured in
the accident.
Photo by Debi Sport
Photo by ThomasJ. Lavin
Earthquake kills, injures thousands in Iran
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — An earthquake
jolted northern Iran on Thursday, killing more
than 10,000 people and injuring thousands,
Iran’s government announced. The quake demo
lished scores of villages and towns and buried
thousands of people in their homes.
The “sad, painful and horrible tragedy has so
far claimed 10,000 lives and left thousands of
others wounded,” said a statement by the Iranian
Cabinet, released after an emergency evening
session.
The announcement carried by the Islamic Re
public News Agency placed all government orga
nizations “on full alert” and ordered an air
bridge set up between Tehran and the stricken
areas to evacuate survivors.
Landslides blocked rescuers on the ground,
and bad weather hindered helicopters trying to
airlift supplies and victims, IRNA said.
Many people remained buried in the debris, it
said, and several hundred Revolutionary Guards
were flown from Tehran after nightfall to join
rescue teams.
Iran’s spiritual leader, Ali Khamenei, called
the disaster a “divine test” and urged the be
reaved residents of the stricken provinces “to
pass this test with pride through patience and co
operation.”
The trembler measured 7.3 on the Richter
scale of ground motion, the Geophysics Center at
Tehran University said. The U.S. Geological Sur
vey measured it at 7.7.
At least a dozen aftershocks shook the region
within two hours after the quake. The earthquake
struck at 12:30 a.m. and was centered 125 miles
northwest of Tehran, near the Caspian Sea,
IRNA reported.
It shook buildings and shattered windows in
Tehran, but apparently caused no deaths in the
capital.
Enrollment
increases
end in merge
A&M-Riverside
moves to San Antonio
By JAMES M. LOVE
Of The Battalion Staff
The Texas A&M-Riverside cam
pus is consolidating with the Insti
tute of Electronic Science in San An
tonio.
Pat Wallace, A&M-Riverside’s
electronic department head, said de
mand on the school has increased
dramatically in the past few years.
He said the facilities in San Anto
nio are able to handle better the in
creasing enrollment.
The Riverside campus, off High
way 21a few miles outside of Bryan,
is a conglomerate of technical classes
ranging from electronics to heavy
machinery.
Located on a retired Air Force
base, the buildings have been used
for classrooms and the runways have
served as crash testing areas since
the school opened in 1963.
Many Texas Agricultural Exten
sion Service activities will continue at
the campus, but classes will move to
the San Antonio location.
The San Antonio institute still will
have an association with A&M.
“The move is a cost-savings
thing,” Wallace said. “We’re already
doing a lot of work with the San An
tonio campus, and we’ll be saving
time and money by not having to
deal with both locations simulta
neously.
“We’re excited the students will
benefit from new buildings and fa
cilities.”
Wallace said the new location also
will accommodate those students
who need to have time to work as
well as study.
“Currently, the Riverside campus
offers classes that last six hours ev
eryday which makes it difficult for
working students,” he said. “The
new location will have classes lasting
four hours so that students will have
more time to work and study.”
Wallace said it will be a year be
fore the move is complete and
classes cease at the A&M campus.
“The students currently enrolled
at the Riverside campus will be al
lowed to finish their degrees,” Wal
lace said. “We will not stop accepting
students at the Bryan campus until
this fall when all enrollments will be
done in San Antonio.”
Wallace said the move should not
affect many students since most have
had to relocate to study at A&M-Riv-
erside anyway.
“We have the best training classes
in the U.S.,” he said. “We’re already
training people to work in electronic
companies like T.I. and Motorola,
and this move will make us a better
asset to these companies. We don’t
see our move as anything but an im
provement.”
Dixie Chicken owner Don Ganter directs workmen who repaired known sign, temporarily revealing the name of the pool hall that
the establishment’s roof Tuesday. They had to remove the well- occupied the building before Ganter started the Chicken in 1973.
Survey reveals
teachers’ gripes
One in five moonlights
By KEVIN M. HAMM
Of The Battalion Staff
Almost half of all Texas teachers
are seriously considering quitting the
profession mainly because of poor
working conditions, according to a
survey by a Texas A&M researcher.
Karen Henderson, a lecturer in
the educational curriculum and in
struction department, conducted the
survey in February with her hus
band David, a professor at Sam
Houston State University.
Both have taught in various public
schools around the state.
The survey, which has been con
ducted every two years since 1980,
was sent to 593 teachers and re
ceived a 68 percent return rate.
Among teachers considering quit
ting teaching, the survey found 57
percent cited stress, burnout, paper
work and hassles as contributing fac
tors in their decision. In 1980 only
27 percent said poor working condi
tions were a factor.
The number of teachers citing
money as a reason for leaving has
dropped from 46 percent in 1980 to
24 percent this year.
The average salary has increased
90 percent during the past decade
from $14,113 to $26,838.
The survey found, however, that
during the past two years the aver
age salary increas was only $677.
One of five teachers moonlights
an average of 11.6 hours per week to
support themselves or their families.
Sixty-one percent of those work
ing a second job believe it is detri
mental to their teaching, and 73 per
cent would quit their other job if
they could make ends meet on their
teaching salary.
Of those who moonlight, most
work in school-related jobs.
Henderson said the study origi
nally was started to gauge the num
ber of teachers who work second
jobs to supplement their teaching in
come, but gradually expanded to in
clude new issues important to teach
ers.
Henderson also collected com
ments written by teachers who an
swered the survey. Many expressed
frustration with the disinterest some
parents take in their children’s edu
cation.
“My real frustration is that the
E ublic, specifically parents and legis-
itors, is unaware of their responsi
bilities as support mechanisms in the
teaching environment,” one said.
“Children who assume no respon
sibility, no self-initiative or motiva
tion, and who are ill-mannered,
rude and disrespectful are frustrat
ing to teach,” the teacher continued.
“We are a nation at risk because va
lues are no longer taught at home.”
Another commented, “I’m tired
of having the responsibility of a
child’s success being placed totally in
my hands rather than being shared
with the parents and student.”
See Teachers/Page 6