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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 1990)
[The Battalion STATE & LOCAL 3 [Thursday, October 4,1990 e ease-; K>nitt >nce ■dto tes ncerr; its ivado : va he Ui toft fees Is din tli, ligiou action reas heo| l of if, r imes nueto 'mbcic :d award 5 that of this [hums lese nisrti ured edthe is froii awntfi ey han aenisn :has clscir. Special assistant links Senate with graduate student issues By SUZANNE CALDERON Of The Battalion Staff Graduate students have a new voice on campus, and it belongs to the special assistant to the student body president for graduate affairs. Martin Reyes-Duran serves as the link between Student Body Presi dent Tv Clevenger and graduate students. Reyes-Duran, Class of ’90, pres ently is a graduate student in the rhodern languages department. He says before his position was created, the only voice of the 7,000 A&M graduate students was the Graduate Student Council. Reyes- Duran says he attends Graduate Stu dent Council meetings and works with members, bringing their con cerns to Clevenger. Some concerns already have sur faced over teaching assistantships and the use of graduate students’ re search, he says. Previously, teaching assistants’ wages were tax exempt, but now taxes are being taken, he says. Reyes- Duran says he is working with the Graduate Student Council on the is sue and hopes to return the advan tage back to the graduate students. “There also seems to be a problem with abuses concerning graduate students that do research in their de partments and are getting no credit for such research,” he says. Along with addressing graduate concerns, Reyes-Duran says he wants to get graduate students more involved in the University. Many opportunities exist for graduate students to get involved in the Memorial Student Center, Stu dent Government and other Univer sity organizations, he says. The problem is finding interested graduate students and letting them know what is available, he says. For example, some graduate Student Senate seats in Student Government Policy cuts ticket appeals by nearly half Parking citations now must be paid before individuals can ap peal them to the Department of Parking, Transit and Traffic. Tom Williams, director of the department, says the policy change went into effect at the be ginning of the fall due to the large amount of unjustified ap peals. “Just like in any environment where you have received a cita tion, if you decide to appeal the citation, whether it is municipal, court or university, you must post an appeal bond,” he says. The system was unable to keep up with “true” appeals, because of people who appealed to delay payment. As a result of the policy change, appeals have been cut by nearly half, he says, Williams adds that when an ap peal is granted the money is not refunded through the parking department office, but through the A&M fiscal office. Parking official reminds drivers to pay citations Texas A&M students must pay parking tickets even if they do not receive citations on their cars. This issue was sparked by a Battal ion reader’s opinion saying students should tear up parking tickets they see on other cars. Tom Williams, director of the De partment of Parking, Transit and Traffic Services, says students and faculty must pay tickets not on their cars’ windshields unless they go through an appeal process. “We leave a copy of the ticket on all vehicles, but the ticket is recorded in the computer whether the person finds the ticket on the windshield or not,” he says. “Though some people don’t agree with the system, we write tickets to those who violate it and try to keep the system intact for the majority that does not violate the system.” The appeals process is the only- channel a person can turn to if they believe they have a justified reason for not being cited. “If a person is given a ticket that he has a problem with, he certainly has the right to appeal it,” Williams says. He also stresses the appeals are looked at on an individual basis. A $5 late fee is charged by the de partment when a ticket is not paid within 10 days upon receiving it. Gubernatorial nominees debate issue of debates Martin Reyes-Duran are still vacant. Many graduate students don’t feel like they are part of the student body, he says, and this is part of the problem. “We (graduate students) don’t think we are part of the student body and we are — we are 25 per Photo by Fredrick D. Joe cent of the student body,” he says. “They (graduate students) are Ag gies and their voice needs to be heard — if it’s heard it will be taken into account.” Students wanting to speak to Reyes-DurAn can contact him at 693- 4622. Time saved in cleanup AUSTIN (AP) — The Texas Wa ter Commission chairman said he was pleased with the state’s response to the second barge collision in as many months at the Houston Ship Channel. “This just shows what we can do if we have the proper equipment in place in advance of an oil spill,” Buck Wynne, commission chairman, said Tuesday. Last Friday, the Norwegian vessel Bow Panther collided with two bar ges operated by Dixie Towing in Galveston Bay. On July 28, there was a collision between a barge train op erated by the Apex towing company and the Greek tanker Shinoussa. AUSTIN (AP) — Democratic gu bernatorial nominee Ann Richards on Wednesday challenged Republi can Clayton Williams to a debate, but Williams, guarding a large lead in the polls, refused unless Richards signs a pledge with him to wage a positive campaign. Richards said she didn’t trust Wil liams to abide by such a pledge, Call ing it an excuse for her GOP oppo nent to avoid a face-to-face showdown with her. “You cannot be John Wayne and run away from your opposition,” Richards said. “You have got to stand up and take responsibility for the fact that you’re trying to be the chief executive officer of this state.” Williams, a Midland businessman, has said in the past that John Wayne is his hero. After a campaign appearance in Dallas, Williams said he and Rich ards will probably debate “if she’ll he reasonable.” The debate over debates erupted at a news conference by the League of Women Voters, which announced it was canceling its Oct. 30 televised debate because both candidates re fused to make a commitment to par ticipate. Correction A story in Wednesday’s issue of The Battalion incorrectly re ported the dates had not been set for a November regional resi dence hall conference. Registration deadline for the South West Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls is Wednesday. All on-campus residents are welcome to attend the confer ence, Nov. 8 to 11. The RHA Office phone num ber is 845-0689. TICKETS: $2, available at the MSC Box Office agin- 1/1J U.S CONCEPTS INC. PERCENTAGE OF PROCEEDS TO BENEFIT SADD Marc Price Come see what's become of Skippy from "Family Ties". Cheek out his anti-gimmick stand-up comedy geared for college students. Day Wednesday Date October 10 Time 8:00 p.m. Location Rudder Auditorium Look for the PONTIAC EXCITEMENT CENTER and check out the latest PONTIAC cars. Win tickets, t-shirts and enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win a PONTIAC Sunbird Convertible. GMAC PONTIAC, m.