The Battalion
Vol. 92 No. 131 (12 pages) 1893 - A Century of Service to Texas A&M — 1993 Thursday, April 15,1993
Unify Fest '93 urges
alternative to KKK
By GINA HOWARD
The Battalion
Ten Texas A&M University student organizations are banding to
gether to provide the community with an alternative to protesting
the local Ku Klux Klan rally April 24.
Whoopstock Unity Fest '93 is a non-discriminatory event to keep
people away from the rally, said Michael Deen, co-coordinator of the
festival.
"When we read the KKK was coming to town, we realized the
need for an alternative event to celebrate the unity of Bryan-College
Station and A&M," Deen said. "We wanted to put on an event
everyone could participate in regardless of religion, sex or color. The
festival is for all people."
He said he hopes people participate in Whoopstock to keep pub
licity away from the Klan rally.
"We don't want to see anyone protest because it would only give
them publicity they don't deserve," Deen said. "Some groups who
planned to protest are now part of the Unity Festival."
Even if people are offended and angry at the Klan's activities, the
best protest is to not go to the rally, he said.
"We want to show the Klan the Aggie Spirit," Deen said.
The festival will provide music and entertainment at no charge.
Deen said financial support will come from Texas A&M's student
services department and donations.
Entertainment will include local bands, and possibly celebrities,
but nothing has been confirmed yet. The yell leaders will be on hand
to conduct yell practice.
The Department of Food Services will provide food at a minimal
cost.
"For somewhere around a buck you will be able to buy a coke and
a hot dog," Deen said.
Ric Gonzalez, MSC Black Awareness Committee member, said he
would like to see the festival continued in the future.
"This (the Klan rally) may be the reason to unify, but we need to
keep it going and show we don't need a reason to come together,"
Gonzalez said.
Deen said as many as 2,000 people are expected to attend.
Student organizations sponsoring the program include Student
Government Association, Interfraternity Council, MSC Black Aware
ness Committee, Off Campus Aggies, NAACP, Pan-Hellenic Coun
cil, Panhellenic Council, Fish Camp, and University Awareness for
Cultural Togetherness (U-ACT).
Whoopstock Unity Fest '93 will be April 24 from noon to 5 p.m.
on the Polo Fields.
Communication breakdown
Linguistic barriers hurt
education, dean says
By STEPHANIE PATTILLO
The Battalion
One of the greatest obstacles to
learning in the classroom is a lack
of communication between stu
dents and instructors - especially
foreign instructors, said Dr.
William Perry, dean of faculties
and associate provost Tuesday.
But although Texas A&M has
taken measures to alleviate this
problem, it still exists.
Dr. John J.
Koldus III,
vice president
of student ser
vices, fre
quently holds
student lun
cheons to dis
cuss student
concerns.
"I ask stu
dents if they
could change
one thing
about Texas A&M, what would it
be," Koldus said. "Often the con
cern of a great number of students
is the difficulty of understanding
some members of the faculty."
Brian Walker, Student Senate
speaker and student body presi
dent-elect said the fact that pro
fessors are foreign is not the prob
lem. "A lot of students have
voiced concern when they have a
professor whose English isn't eas
ily understood," he said.
But, Larry Greshom, director
for the Center for Teaching En
hancement, said not all classroom
communication problems are lan
guage differences, some may be
traced back to cultural differ
ences.
"In many foreign countries the
profs are seen as gods," he said.
"Here in America, students don't
buy that. Foreign professors de
mand more respect than the A&M
student population gives them."
To give students an opportuni
ty to voice their concerns and
complaints about their instruc
tors, the
Classroom
Com muni-
cation En
hancement
Program
was formed
more than
three years
ago.
Dr. E
Dean Gage,
senior vice
president
and provost, said the program
was started to investigate and
handle scattered complaints
among students. Fewer than 10
students register complaints each
term about their instructors be
cause of communication prob
lems, he said.
"Rather than deal with the ru
mor, we decided to put in place a
procedure in which legitimate
concerns could be expressed by
students and addressed by the
University," Gage said.
See Professors/Page 3
"Often the concern of a
great number of students
is the difficulty of under
standing some members
of the faculty."
-Dr. John Koldus III,
vice president student services
NOW rally stresses campus safety
By JULIE CHELKOWSKI
The Battalion
Texas A&M's chapter of the
National Organization for Women
banded together with other stu
dents Wednesday night to pro
mote a safer campus for women
and children during the second
annual Take Back the Night rally.
Poor weather prevented a high
turnout, but it did not stop NOW
from communicating its message
- violence against women is a se
rious problem, and it needs to
stop.
Jennifer Adams, NOW treasur
er, said the purpose of the annual
rally is to raise awareness that vio
lence is a problem on campus, and
help is available for victims.
"People aren't aware that rapes
occur on campus," she said.
NOW and the Brazos Valley
Rape Crisis Center submitted a
list of suggestions to A&M offi
cials for increasing campus safety.
The list included increased light
ing, increased publicity for escort
services and the rape crisis center,
convenient night parking for
women, and rape awareness fo
rums for all incoming freshmen.
"These freshman girls are sit
ting ducks," said Dr. Wendy
Stock, professor of psychology
and NOW adviser. "They come to
school, go to a party, get drunk,
and then get raped."
The rally featured a local folk
singer, Stacy Lieder, who wrote a
song specifically for the Take Back
the Night and summarized the
goal of the rally with the follow
ing passage: "Daughters of the
night, born in the shadows of the
night. Join your hands and show
your might for now is the time to
Take Back the Night."
Take Back the Night began in
the late 1970s at the University of
California and continues today
nationwide sponsored by various
feminist groups.
Jim Kuboviak, Bryan county at
torney, praised Take Back the
Night and other programs like it
because they have a positive im
pact. He said that even though re
ports to the Bryan Police of family
violence have increased from 500
in 1985 to 666 in 1992, it does not
mean that violence has increased
- just awareness.
"It is no worse than it has ever
been, it's things like this that help
to educate people about violence,"
Kuboviak said.
Stock presented an explicit
slide show of pornography and
See NOW/Page 10
Rain or shine?
RICHARD DIXON/The Battalion
Students try to keep dry Wednesday afternoon outside of Harrington Wednesday afternoon and night, but the heaviest storms moved east
Education Center. About 10 minutes later the sun was shining and j n to Louisiana late in the afternoon. The line of thunderstorms was
the rain had quit. Much of Texas was under a tornado watch associated with a cold front that was moving across the region.
Senate committee OKs new
power plant for University
Mobley to make A&M
smoke-free by summer
By GINA HOWARD
The Battalion
Texas A&M University will be
come a smoke-free campus this
summer under the order of Uni
versity President Dr. William
Mobley.
Dr. E. Dean Gage, senior vice
president and provost, said Mob
ley's order is an extension of cur
rent University guidelines.
"A&M is already an almost
smoke-free campus," Gage said.
"This will just carry it a little fur
ther as is being done in many oth
er cases throughout the country."
Last week, Mobley released a
memorandum outlining extend
ed restrictions on A&M's present
smoking policy, including a
smoking ban inside all University
facilities and vehicles. The prohi
bition extends to all public seating
in outdoor arenas such as Kyle
Field and Olsen Field.
The order, which originated in
the Faculty Senate, will go into ef
fect June 1.
In a survey requested by Mob
ley in January, building proctors
reported 145 of
190 buildings
are presently
smoke-free.
Thirty-three
percent permit
smoking in
designated ar
eas only, and
12 restrict re
strict smoking
to individual
offices.
Gage said he has heard only
good responses about the new
policy.
In the memorandum, Mobley
cited scientific findings by the U.
S. Surgeon General and the Envi
ronmental Protection Agency
which indicate the separation of
buddings into smoking and non
smoking sections does not neces-
saiily eliminate tobacco smoke
health risks.
"Such evidence leads me to
conclude that a more beneficial
policy would require all facilities
to be smoke-free," Mobley stated
in the memo.
See Smoking/Page 3
By JULI PHILLIPS
The Battalion
AUSTIN - The state Senate Ed
ucation Committee unanimously
approved a bill Wednesday that
would allow Texas A&M Univer
sity to build a power plant to cov
er its increasing energy needs.
"This plan has the potential to
be an incredible model to others
in the state and country," Univer-
By SHELIA VELA
Tlte Battalion
Texas A&M University will
serve as host for its annual 1993
Parents' Weekend this week with
activities including campus tours,
awards ceremonies, social events
such as Casino Night and a Fish
Drill Team performance.
"It is an opportunity for us to
show our parents what we do and
what traditions exist at Texas
sity President Dr. William Mobley
told committee members Wednes
day. "We need to find a cost-ef
fective way to meet our energy
needs."
Sen. Jim Turner, R-Crockett,
the bill's sponsor, told the com
mittee that the new facility would
be environmentally sound be
cause it would burn natural gas to
See Power Plant/Page 10
A&M, as well as giving them a big
welcome," said Ashley Mathews,
Parents' Weekend Chair and se
nior marketing major.
Parents' Weekend originated in
1919 and was originally called
Parents' Day. In the past 20 years,
it has become a weekend event
held every year in the spring.
"Parents' Weekend is a way to
show off everything about A&M
in one weekend and thank parents
See Parents' Weekend/Page 6
Gage
Campus gears up for annual
Parents' Weekend, activities
A&M, SACS meet to discuss re-accreditation
Academic Building
By JENNIFER SMITH
The Battalion
The Southern Association of
Colleges and Schools, which has
been visiting the Texas A&M cam
pus since Monday, will meet with
University President William
Mobley today to re-accredit the
University.
Members of the SACS have
been interviewing faculty, staff
and students in an attempt to re
view University services. A&M
participates in the accreditation
process every 10 years.
To prepare for this process, the
University has conducted a self-
study for the past two years. The
self-study was completed about a
month ago and was given to the
SACS before representatives came
to A&M.
Dr. Lee Blank, director of the
self-study, said after the study
was completed, the University
compiled a list of recommenda
tions for A&M's future.
"Our basic recommendation is
that this University become much
more involved and serve as a fa
cilitator for continuous improve
ment," Blank said.
Dr. E. Dean Gage, provost and
senior vice president, said A&M
will surely be re-accredited. "It is
essential for A&M to be accredit
ed," he said.
The self-study has assisted
A&M officials in evaluating per
formance, Gage said.
"It's a process that is helpful to
us," he said. "They (the SACS) al
ways makes recommendations
based on their findings.
But, Gage said, the SACS does
more than point out areas needing
improvement. "They also point
out good things A&M is doing,"
he said.
Blank said three of the 33 mem
bers of SACS are visiting A&M at
Galveston to assess its services.
The Galveston campus had not
been included in previous accredi
tation processes was studied this
time because it is now a part of
the A&M campus.
The SACS has been in continu
ous contact with students since
they arrived on campus.
"They are asking questions
about programs the University
provides to the student, and how
they feel about their input in the
future," Blank said.
SACS' fundamental goal is to
decide whether A&M is meeting
its mission and purpose. Gage
said this involves academics, re
search, faculty policies, student
programs, foundations and many
other services.
"They've been meeting since
Monday with all the different col
leges looking at all the academic
programs," Gage said. "The crite
ria for accreditation involves the
entire University."
Insid
Sports
•Baseball: Texas Aggies
defeat Texas Southern
1 2-2, move to 38-5
•Column: Raggies walk fine
line between heckling and
harassment
Page 7
Opinion
•Editorial: Aggies not
obligated to uncover in MSC
•Column: No one ever stops
growing up
Page 11