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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 5, 1991)
1991 )l n f jonye Thursday Scattered Thunderstorms High . 93 Start your engines Texas World Speedway to hold races for first time since 1983. page 3 At least if we are not up to “world class” standards today, we know exactly what’s being done to get there. Or do we?" Tim Truesdale pages Cultural clashes Advocates of minority sensitiv ity say “political correctness” is stifling academic freedom on university campuses. page 2 The Battalion ity ve pro- , only e non- son '-''V 4/A/, Vol. 90 No. 148 USPS 045360 6 Pages College Station, Texas 'Serving Texas A&Msince 1893' Wednesday, June 5, 1991 Association of Former Students funds scholarships for Gulf War vets By Melinda Cox The Battalion Texas A&M students who served in Operation Desert Shield can now receive financial aid to return to college thanks to a new scholarship fund set up by the University's Association of Former Stu dents. "The association was asked if we would be interested in the scholarships and if funds would be available," said Ron Spies, comptroller of the Association of Former Students. The association will provide $100,000 in funds over a three-year period for the scholarships. The former students group also will select applicants who meet cer tain criteria. Spies said. Molly Georgiades, administrator of Scholarships and Employment at the as sociation, said the criteria are determined by the Scholarship Committee. Some of the criteria for eligiblity in clude how long the student was enrolled in school before being called to active duty and the time left to complete a de gree, Georgiades said. She said criteria also could be affected by the number of students who apply and are given funds. Faye Mieth, a counselor for Veteran Services in the Department of Student Fi nancial Aid, said the scholarships will be awarded on a need-basis. "Students can use the money to cover the cost of tuition or whatever they need," Mieth said. Students who apply for the schol arship had to be enrolled at the Univer sity prior to the onset of the war and have to return to A&M no later than one year after the end of the conflict. Students accepted for the scholarship also must have a 2.0 GPA and maintain a 2.5 GPA throughout the time the student receives aid. The scholarship is not limited to un dergraduate students, Mieth said. Grad uate students also can apply for financial aid and must have and maintain a 3.0 GPA to receive aid. The association is not the only organi zation providing financial support for Persian Gulf War veterans. Mieth said Mobil Oil Corp. also has set up a $100,000 scholarship fund for veter ans, but different criteria apply to the Mobil scholarship. "Applicants must meet one of three priorities to receive aid," Mieth said. "Applicants must be children of veterans killed, veterans themselves or depen dents of veterans." Students interested in the scholarship provided by Mobil do not need to be pre viously enrolled at A&M, Mieth said. "Students who are transferring to A&M from another university can apply, or students who were about to enroll in college before the war are also eligible (for the Mobil scholarship)," she said. Spies said the scholarships being of fered by the association are in the amount of $1,000 a year for a maximum of four years. The scholarships provided by the Mo bil Oil Corp. are in the amount of no less than $1,000 a year, but no more than $5,000 a year. Georgiades said application deadline for the association's scholarship is July 22. Interested individuals are encouraged to contact the Department of Student Fi nancial Aid, the Veterans Services Sec tion at 845-4641. House kills liberal civil rights bill Bush promises to veto Democrat version of bill native ;onsin ;d by istruc- a case ivicted cutors a pay- solicit- court scope t only lay vi- usions hough cipant WASHINGTON (AP) — The House discarded a liberal civil rights bill and debated two others Tuesday, as Democratic leaders still sought the two-thirds majority that could make their version im mune from President Bush's veto. The House rejected the most lib eral of three job discrimination bills before it, voting 152-277 against a purists' bill sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus, Democratic congresswomen and some liberal lawmakers. It then turned to the most re- . strictive version, sponsored by Re publicans and supported by the president. A vote on a third version, backed by Democratic leaders and civil rights groups, was put off un til today. The action came as the House neared the end of a long day of de bate, with Bush's veto threat shap ing the maneuvering by Demo cratic leaders. They were confident their version would pre vail by a large margin but struggled to approach the two- thirds majority needed to override a veto. Accusations and insults, build ing for weeks, proceeded un abated. House Speaker Thomas S. See Bush/Page 6 Tennis ducklings Lori Boylan, a junior accounting major from The Woodlands, encourages her students at the Texas A&M Tennis Camp. The students were engaged in a game of “around the world." After losing to another group, their ishment was waddling and quacking around the court like ducks. Ethiopian ammo dump explodes ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — A mili tary ammunition depot exploded in a se ries of thunderous blasts early Tuesday, burning almost a square mile of factories, shops and ramshackle homes. Scores were feared dead. Officials said it could take days to estab lish the final toll in the blasts, which the in terim government of the Ethiopian Peo ple's Revolutionary Democratic Front Warned on saboteurs. It did not name a specific organization, and no one claimed responsibility. By nightfall more than 100 people had been hospitalized, and at least five were known dead, including a television sound man. More victims were arriving at medi cal facilities by the hour. The British Broadcasting Corporation re ported late Tuesday that the explosion had killed at least 100 people. The BBC said their figure came from the Ethiopian Red Cross. The capital and much of Ethiopia's coun tryside had been beset by unrest for weeks, much of it blamed on deserting soldiers of the ousted government and on young, armed thugs. The explosions came one week after the main rebel group shot its way into Addis Ababa and took over the government fol lowing the flight into exile of former Presi dent Mengistu Haile Mariam. Two other ammunition dumps blew up during the rebel takeover, one at the Impe rial Palace and another on the southestern outskirts of the city. Red Cross volunteers, aided by residents and soldiers, were carrying out the search for victims in the area shattered and burned by Tuesday's explosions. Officials said the task could take at least two days to complete. Tebebe, the chairman of the Addis Ababa chapter of the Red Cross, led a small group of reporters around the devastated area. He said victims found so far had been on the perimeter of the blast area. "When we get into the village it will be much worse," he said. "The congestion was very high. I think many people are buried in those houses. ... In coming days, the casualty toll will be much greater than the one we have now." Tebebe said the depot was the largest of four such ammunition dumps maintained by the former government in Addis Ababa. "It was crazy to have it in an area like this," he said. Back to school A&M graduates return to campus for classes, extracurricular activities By Robin Goodpaster The Battalion AggieHostel Many of the Aggies "graduating" this Friday did not take any final exams or write any term papers to get their diplomas, but they did get to enjoy many of the extracurricular activities Texas A&M has to offer. These fortunate former A&M students are a part of AggieHostel — a program designed for older Aggies that combines interesting classes with campus life to bring back fond memories of Aggieland. AggieHostel is for A&M graduates ages 65 and older and their spouses. It is a week-long program in which participants can take classes such as "Aggie Folklore: Fact or Fiction," "Healthy Senior Lifestyles" or "Creative Writing," said Porter Gamer, chairman of the AggieHostel committee. These former students attend classes throughout the week while also participating in activities including a square dance, a trip to Calvert and a tour ot the Messina Hof Winery'. But the thing that impresses the "Hostelers'" the most is the involvement of present A&M students, said Gamer, also the field director of the Association of Former Students. Students involved with the program eat with the former students and go to class with the older students. They usually end up going on an unscheduled trip to the Dixie Chicken, he said. Former students who have not been back to the A&M campus since their orginal graduation can see the changes that the University has undergone in the past 30, 40 or even 50 years, he said. Aborst 80 senior students regxo. ror me program each year, and this is the fourth year that AggieHostel has been in existence. Aggiet io&ua ai&v, piovidc-; loriner students wttn the chance to meet with old friends as well as the chance to make some new ones. Garner said. Present students who wish to participate in the program can call Porter Garner at 845-7514. Groups host youth in science program By Jeff M. Brown The Battalion Texas A&M is playing host to a five-week summer enrichment program for Brazos Valley sixth- and seventh-graders that focuses on engineering, science and math ematics skills. Lori Cardenas, program coordi nator, said 30 students are attend ing TAMUPREP. The program is sponsored by the College of Sci ence and the College of Engi neering. Funding also is provided by the Department of Energy and Dow Chemical Co. U.S. A. Cardenas said applications for the program were sent to local school districts in early March. Students with an average of at least a B in their overall course work and their science and math ematics courses were encouraged to apply. The program, which started Tuesday, includes topics such as the history of science, logic and problem solving, guest lecturers and math labs. "Students will attempt labs such as measuring the volume of the O&M Building," Cardenas said. "In this program, students will not just be sitting in a classroom all day." She said there will be a competi tion to see who can build the most structurally sound model bridge and most aerodynamic rocket. Students also will learn about the physics behind what makes a bridge sturdy and a rocket fly straight while building their mod els. Participating students are from the Bryan, Caldwell, College Sta tion, Hearne, lola, Navasota, Snook and Somerville school dis tricts. Mao's widow dies; students remember Tiananmen BEIJING (AP) — The govern ment all but closed Tiananmen Square on Tuesday, the second anniversary of the army killings of pro-democracy demonstrators, then announced the suicide of Mao Tse-tung's hated widow. The news of Jiang Qing's May 14 death was held until the anni versary was nearly over. Authori ties may have decided to make the announcement while security re mained on alert. Paramilitary police cordoned off most of Tiananmen Square in Beij ing beginning in the early af ternoon. The square, symbolic center of power in China, was the focal point of 1989's massive pro tests for a more accountable lead ership and an end to corruption. Police were aided by an af ternoon thunderstorm that cleared the air and the streets. Patrols also were heavy at Beij ing University, whose students played a leading role in the 1989 protests. Three students were seen led away by security forces after a brief bottle-smashing pro test. A&M sophomore dies in accident John W. Brock, 20, a sopho more general studies major from Euless, was killed in an automobile accident May 27. The Silver Taps honoring Brock will be Sept. 10.