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The Battalion
Vol. 92 No. 166 (6 pages) 1893 - A Century of Service to Texas A&M - 1993 Wednesday, June 30,1993
A&M takes precautions against letter bombings
FBI, Postal Service, ATF combine forces to catch university bomber
By JENNIFER SMITH
The Battalion
Mail bombings directed at university
employees around the country have not af
fected Texas A&M University, and no sus
picious packages have been found, said
Bob Wiatt, director of University Police,
He said he has received no calls from
anyone with a package he or she was
afraid to open.
"But I've had several inquiries as to
what should be done with packages,"
Wiatt said. "Most people calling don't
want to be crying wolf."
But Wiatt said people should not be
afraid to call University Police if they re
ceive mail they feel is suspicious.
"If anyone has a concern, all they have
to do is call us and we'll take care of it,"
he said.
Wiatt said the two packages used in
last week's mail bombings were sent in
8.5 by 11 inch heavy envelopes. They
were heavily padded with plastic foam
beads, specifically addressed to the per
son who opened them, and marked with
excess postage.
FBI Director William Sessions instruct
ed university personnel around the coun
try^ Friday to be cautious of suspicious
packages, and University Relations at
A&M quickly disseminated the informa
tion to A&M vice presidents and deans,
as well as to the provosts.
Two people were injured as a result of
mail bombings last week at University of
California-San Francisco and Yale Uni
versity.
On June 22, a geneticist at the Univer
sity of California at San Francisco, Dr.
Charles Epstein, 59, lost several fingers
when a mailed package bomb exploded
at his home.
Two days later, 38-year-old computer
scientist David Gelernter at Yale Univer
sity was injured as he opened a letter or
package in his office and it exploded.
According to Associated Press reports,
the FBI linked these university incidents
with a series of similar bombings that
have occurred since 1978 at universities
and high-tech companies. One person
has been killed and 21 injured since 1978.
Wiatt said everyone at A&M now
seems to be aware of this situation.
"Everyone is sort of in an aware
mode," Wiatt said. "We don't want a
panic to occur."
More than two dozen federal agents
were assembled Tuesday in a federal task
force to hunt the person responsible for
sending the bombs.
According to Associated Press reports,
a previous federal task force unsuccess
fully tried to catch the "university
bomber" for eight years before giving up
in 1990.
The FBI, the Treasury Department's
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
(ATF), and the Postal Inspector's office
met Monday to come up with a plan to
catch the bomber.
A senior FBI official will lead the in
vestigation.
Les Stanford, a public information offi
cer for the ATF, said task forces have been
very effective in the past.
"We have worked on a number of task
forces with the FBI and postal service,"
Stanford said. "In 1989, a mail bomb
killed a federal judge and a civil rights
leader."
Stanford said these three agencies in
vestigate bombs. The FBI deals with ter
rorist and federal property bombings, the
Postal Service deals with mail bombings,
and the ATF deals with private property
bombings, he said.
"There is a memorandum of under
standing between the three agencies,"
Stanford said.
See Bombing/Page 6
Survey course
STACY RYAN/The Battalion
Nikki Guerra, a senior civil engineering major to measure angles during a plane surveying class
from Alice, Texas, learns how to use a theodolite Tuesday afternoon.
History hinders recruitment
Efforts made to enroll more minorities
By JANET HOLDER
Minority students at A&M
and University of Texas
The Battalion
Texas A&M University officials say the number of minority gradu
ates does not accurately reflect efforts by the University to recruit
African-American and Hispanic students.
Stephanie Dunlap, associate director of admissions, said A&M has
increased diversity in the past five years and has had one of the high
est minority retention rates at public institutions.
But she said there is a problem recruiting admissible minority ap
plicants at A&M.
Dr. Dale Knoble, executive director of A&M's honors programs,
said A&M has a difficult history to live down because until the 1960s,
blacks were turned away from the University.
The parents of students may remember those days and discourage
them from attending A&M, he said.
Dr. Emily Santiago, assistant director for multicultural services,
said the lack of minority students at A&M may be because many peo
ple don't have complete information about the University.
"I've encountered that problem with conferences I attend," she
said. "People have the idea that A&M is still a male-dominated
See Minority/Page 6
■ UT ’89-'90 ■ A&M'91-'92
Taken from May issue of: ''Black Issues
in Higher Education".
[3 A&M '89-'90
Taken from the associate Registrar's
office, Don Gardner.
ANGEL KAN/The Battalion
Number of bicycle thefts decrease,
but UPD recommends precautions
By MICHELE BRINKMANN
The Battalion
The Texas A&M University Police Department
(UPD) is cautioning cyclists on campus to lock their
bikes because although bicycle theft is slightly decreas
ing on campus, the value of bicycles is increasing.
According to Texas A&M UPD statistics, the num
ber of bicycles stolen in a fiscal year is down from
275 in 1988-89 to 207 in 1991-92. The number has
gradually decreased every year.
Lt. Bert V. Kretzschmar, UPD crime prevention spe
cialist, said most bicycles are stolen simply because
they are unsecured or do not have the right kinds of
locks. He recommends U-Locks over chain or cable
locks because the U-Locks are made of solid steel.
"Cables and chains don't work," he said. "The
better the lock, the more time is on your side, but a
lock will not prevent your bike from being stolen. If
it's a professional they'll find a way."
The proper way to secure a bicycle is to use a bike
rack, go through the frame of the bike and go
through back wheel, Kretzschmar said.
Dave Mosier of Aggieland Cycling and Fitness,
said, "My advice to people is to lock your front tire
too. Aggies aren't honest; they're supposed to be,
but they're not."
In past years, mountain bikes have been the most
popular targets of bike thieves. No particular brand
name is being stolen more than any other, Kret
zschmar said.
Mosier said the mountain bikes he sells range
from $200 to $3000.
"The most popular bikes we sell are Cannon-
dales," he said.
"When fall starts, we order an extra 100 front
wheels because so many get stolen," Mosier said.
"The front wheels are quick release wheels and a
tool is not needed to steal it."
Another common occurrence is to have a student
"borrow" a bicycle if he or she is late to class or if the
class is across campus, Kretzschmar said.
"Bicycles reported stolen are sometimes found
across campus, but if a lock is on your bike and you
have no proof that it is yours, then there's nothing
we can do," he said. Kretzschmar said it is necessary
to have bicycles engraved.
He said he believes education is the key to pre
vent bike theft and recommends four things to do to
keep bicycles from being stolen.
-Use operation Identification (Record serial number
and engrave drivers license number on your bike).
-Register your bicycle with Parking Transit and
Traffic free of charge.
-Buy a U-Lock and lock it to a bike rack.
-Immediately report anyone suspiciously loitering
around bicycle racks.
The National Crime Information Center has a list
of serial numbers to locate the owners of stolen bicy
cles. The service has been used by UPD and been
successful in locating bicycles in other states.
"The only way we are able to prosecute a person
who stole a bicycle is if the bicycle has a serial number
or driver's license number on it," Kretzschmar said.
The penalty for bicycle theft is usually a Class A
or B Misdemeanor, depending on the value of the bi
cycle, he said.
According to statistics from magazines, law en
forcement journals, and Integrated Cycle Systems Re
search, over 2.1 million bicycles have been reported
stolen in the past three years, but the true figure is
much higher because many thefts are never reported.
A&M career center provides summer services
Facilities remain available to alumni
By JENNIFER SMITH
The Battalion
Some students at Texas A&M
do not realize the Career Center is
open in the summer, but many
companies have conducted on-
campus interviews since June and
many more will visit A&M before
the summer is over, said officials
with A&M's Career Center.
Dr. Leigh Turner, director of
the Career Center, said 15 compa
nies have scheduled interviews so
far this summer.
"We also get at least a call a
day from companies asking us to
send them resumes," she said.
Jay Wheeler, assistant director
of the Career Center, said students
don't realize the Career Center
has the same services available in
the summer that they have in the
fall and spring.
"New companies are constant
ly calling us to come to campus,"
he said.
The Career Center has orienta
tion meetings once a week in the
summer, and students can watch
a 30 minute video about its ser
vices, Wheeler said.
Although 13 of the 15 compa
nies scheduled to conduct inter
views have already been to cam
pus, two companies still have in
terviews scheduled for July.
Summit Electric Supply will be
on campus July 7, 8 and 9, and
Thomas & Betts will be on campus
July 19. There are still interview
times available for both of these
companies.
Turner said students who came
to the Career Center at the begin
ning of summer and saw only one
or two companies scheduled to in
terview during the summer
should come back and sign up for
an interview as soon as possible.
"And we will probably have
more companies request inter
views," she said.
Most of the companies coming
to A&M in the summer are re
questing interviews with industri
al distribution, business, liberal
arts, computer science and engi
neering majors and are looking for
May or summer graduates.
Turner said a company called
recently asking for management
information systems students, but
the Career Center has only one
student in this major with his re
sume on file.
Wheeler said there are many
reasons fewer students visit the
Career Center in the summer be
sides the fact that A&M has fewer
students.
See Career/Page 6
Inside
Sports
•Boxing: Mercer pleads not
guilty to bribery charge
•Rush: No new playoff system
for Major League Baseball
Page 3
Opinion
•Editorial: Consumers lose in
Cable vs. broadcast battle
•Column: Stanford urges
readers to look at both sides
Page 5
•Wednesday: partly
cloudy, higns in the 90s,
lows in the 70s
•Forecast for Thursday:
partly cloudy, widely
scattered thunderstorms,
highs in the 90s
•Extended forecast: partly
cloudy with isolated
afternoon and early
evening showers, highs in
the 90s
Tomorrow in
Weekend celebration:
A look at what Bryan-
College Station and other
cities in Texas plan to do
for Independence Day,
Reviews:
The soundtrack to
'Last Action Hero,'
the film 'Dennis
the Menace'