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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 1992)
October; s dee w HUruuJ ’UWC p«ry noon 0^3), 7;" m, The Battalion Vol. 92 No. 27 (10 pages) ‘Serving Texas A&M Since 1893’ Tuesday, October 6, 1992 Students react to disabilities act at forum ; seori cord d Recordss I .said Edit I i Pit Bull la; I ■eight divisii 1 - in less to I ■ery day foi | unzeot Inis I By CHERYL HELLER Reporter of THE BATTALION An open forum to help identi fy issues with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was held Monday in the Student Ser vices Building. The forum gave concerned in dividuals a chance to voice their opinions and discuss the changes that must be made at Texas A&M University in order for it to com ply with the ADA. The ADA, which became effec tive last January, prohibits dis crimination against the disabled in employment and in their ac cess to public phces. It applies to colleges, universities and other educational institutions. The forum began with an in troduction by Vice President for Finance and Administration Robert Smith, who explained the purpose for meeting and the changes that must be made at Texas A&M. "This forum is a visible mani festation of our commitment," Smith said, "and is being held to determine what our priorities are." Ben Wolf, a visually impaired Texas A&M graduate student who attended the forum, said he believes A&M has a lot to offer in the area of physical access. "The physical accessibility at Texas A&M is second to none," Wolf said. "Except for some problems with steep wheelchair ramps, narrow doors, and a lack of bicycle regulation enforce ment, I feel that A&M is doing a good job in making the facilities accessible for the disabled. "There is some discrimination in classes as far as the teachers are concerned," he said. "The professors aren't willing to ac commodate students with dis abilities because it will inconve nience them." Tom Strganac, an associate professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering who is confined to a wheelchair, agrees the problem of discrimination among the faculty needs to be ad dressed. "The System doesn't allow the faculty to be very sensitive to stu dents," Strganac said. "It's easy for a faculty member to discour age a student from taking a class because it's more convenient to him." Strganac agrees with Wolf that there are some architectural prob lems at A&M that need to be smoothed out, but general acces sibility is good. "There are a few problems, such as bathrooms that aren't easily wheelchair accessible," Str ganac said. "Just because there's a handicapped sign on the door doesn't mean that they're easy for us to use." Lisa Larson, an Evans Library employee who attended the fo rum, was diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome as a direct re sult of poor working conditions at the library. "I was diagnosed with this condition about two years ago," Larson said, "and since then little has been done to improve work ing conditions here." Experts have visited offices and made recommendations, Lar son said, but the University has rejected them because of cost. "As our campus becomes more automated, more and more people will be disabled on poor work stations," Larson said. "I hope the University realizes this and that changes can be made be fore more people are injured." Others attending the forum commented on the fact that there is no set procedure for fire drills, causing confusion for the dis abled who must get out of the building quickly. The creation of a mandatory workshop to teach staff members sensitivity in deal ing with disabled students was also mentioned. Smith has appointed an ADA Steering Committee to identify policy and procedure changes that are needed at Texas A&M in order for the University to be in compliance with the ADA within three years. The committee is in the process of performing a self-eval uation required by the ADA to focus on the areas of physical fa cilities, transportation and hu man resources. A Disability Access Advisory Committee of disabled and non disabled faculty, staff and stu dents has also been formed to function as a sound board and as a funnel for questions and com ments. The committee makes recom mendations to the ADA Steering Committee regarding the issues that arise. Joe Sugg, director of the Physi cal Plant, believes that the infor mation gained in Monday's fo rum will help the committees de cide the changes that need to be made to gain university compli ance. "We'll take this input and use it to help us gain a better under standing in dealing with ADA is sues," Sugg said. "The forum will go a long way in directing our limited resources to the areas that need improvement." RAILEEN TWAMLEY/Special to The Battalion Jeff Klouda, a computer science major from Kingwood, goes up a ramp outside the Teague Building. Klouda said the Teague Building entrance is one of the worst on campus because the ramp is steep with a narrow corner. Congress overrides Bush's veto of cable bill THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - Congress overrode President Bush's veto Monday and enacted legislation designed to regulate the cable television industry and curb ris ing rates. It was the first time the House and Senate had thwarted Bush's veto during his presiden cy. The House voted 308-114; the Senate 74-25. Both were comfort ably over the necessary two- thirds majority. Bush had successfully vetoed 35 other bills. "Good for the House, good for the Senate, good for the Re publicans who voted to over ride," Democratic nominee Bill Clinton said on CNN's "Larry I King Live." • 'This was a bill that was in the interests of the ordinary, av erage Americans, the kind of people who have been left out of the policies of this administra tion," said Clinton, who was in terviewed in Ocala, Fla., with running mate Sen. A1 Gore. The cable TV bill would re quire the Federal Communica tions Commission to set rates for basic cable service in communi- i ties where cable companies oper ate as monopolies. It also is de signed to enhance competition from other companies that can provide expanded programming ; similar to cable. And in a concession to the broadcast industry, it requires cable companies to negotiate with local broadcasters before carrying their signals, r "The president says competi tion will not increase with this bill," said Sen. Daniel Inouye, D- Hawaii. "He is wrong. If we do not pass this bill, there will never be competition to cable." Republican Sen. John Dan- [ forth of Missouri, a coauthor of | the bill, cautioned Democrats not to characterize the vote as a Weakening of the president. "I know a lot of weight has gone on the president's perfect j record on vetoes," said Danforth. "A lot of presidents have had ve toes overridden and they have been very strong presidents." AIRBORNE Candidates actions BILLY MORAN/Thc Battalion An AH-1 Cobra helicopter flies over the Rudder Theater Complex Monday as part of a recruiting drive of the Army National Guard. Based in Waco, A Troop, 1/124 Cavalry was the representing unit. face public scrutiny Opponents' pasts arise during campaign THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - Bill Clinton never seems to foreclose an option while George Bush stakes out un qualified stands that sometimes come back to haunt him. Clinton's hedged support of the Mexican trade treaty was a classic example of his style: weigh all factors, split the differ ences and satisfy everyone a little. "You must look at the other side of the coin," he said. Bush faces a day of reckoning on what came perilously close to a re newed no-new-taxes pledge earlier this campaign season. Congress is about to send him a bill that con tains many of the tax breaks he wants. "They pack it up with some of the good things the country needs, and then load in some things like higher taxes, and I'm going to have difficulty there," the president said Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America." Bush has been known to fudge and Clinton has been known to do 180-degree turnarounds. Usually it's the other way around. The rap against Bush is that he flip-flops and the knock against Clinton is that he waffles. Clinton's positions usually come with qualifiers and conditions. To supporters, that's shading and nu ance; to detractors, it's slick or eva sive. Republicans have had a field day with Clinton's ever-changing ac counts of how and why he avoided military' service during the Vietnam War. His position on the Persian Gulf War has also provided fodder for the GOP. Clinton says now that he supported the Persian Gulf War. He said at the time he would Clinton have voted with the Senate ma jority that authorized the war if it were a close vote. He also said then, "I agree with the arguments of the people in the minority on the resolution." On Sunday, Clinton endorsed the Mexican trade treaty negotiated by Bush. He also pledged to seek supple mental agreements to protect U.S. jobs and markets. And while Clinton supports le- > gal abortion, he also told Readers Digest this month that he doesn't oppose a 24-hour waiting period "as long as it is not an undue bur den on low-income people who travel long distances in states where abortions are performed only in one or two places." He supports laws that require young girls to notify their parents or a judge that they're having an abortion. And while abortions for poor women would be subsidized under his national health-care reform plan, Arkansas has not paid for them during his tenure as governor. Bush Advance No September SUver Taps There will not be a Silver Taps ceremony tonight because no Texas A&M students have died during the month of September, said Sherry Nesbitt, coordinator for Silver Taps. The last time there was not a ceremony was April of this year. Julian Jelinek, Ross Volunteer, said there will not be an alternative ceremony to take the place of Silver Taps. The reason for Silver Taps is to honor Aggies that have passed away so there is no need for a ceremony this month, he said. bhi