inale
The Battalion
■* u uy qtO
.92 No. 187 (16 pages)
1893 — A Century of Service to Texas A&M — 1993
Wednesday, August 25,1993
Regents to revote on name change
Stroud
By Lisa Elliott
Thc Battalion
The Texas A&M University
stem Board of Regents will take
anew vote Friday to decide if the
names of three System schools
auld be changed.
The revote is a result of a law-
it filed by five Texas A&I Uni
versity alumni and one current
student charging the Board violat
ed the Open Meetings Act by not
posting notice 72 hours in ad
vance for the March 5 meeting, at
which the vote to change the
pies was made.
James Bond, A&M system vice
Board's action provoked by A&I lawsuit
chancellor and general counsel,
told The Battalion last month the
lawsuit is a result of an inadver
tent clerical error.
The name change, which was
scheduled to go into effect Sept.
1, would change the name of
Texas A&I University to Texas
A&M University-Kingsville, Cor
pus Christi State University to
Texas A&M University-Corpus
Christi and Laredo State Univer
sity to Texas A&M International
University.
System spokesperson Terri
Parker said the Board decided it
would be easier to revote rather
than challenge the lawsuit.
She said they assumed the new
vote would probably cause the
lawsuit to be dropped.
The schools affected by the
name change have been put under
a temporary injunction not to act
on the name change until after the
final vote is made, she said.
Doug Vannoy, executive direc
tor of the Texas A&I Alumni As
sociation from 1980-1991 and one
of the filers of the lawsuit, said he
is pretty certain that the vote will
be in favor of keeping Texas A&I
as it is. He said he thinks the
Board will vote to change the
name of the other two schools be
cause they haven't made them
selves heard as much as the A&I
community has.
"The regents finally under
stand that we will have a great
deal to lose if we lose our name,"
he said.
Vannoy said he is optimistic
about the vote and he has not con-
sidered what will happen if it
doesn't go in his favor.
"If the unexpected happens, we
will plan accordingly after that,"
he said.
^5
31ock
llenge
Senior Texas A&M linebacker Jason Atkinson signs an autograph for
some young fans at the annual Aggie football Photo Day held at
Kyle Field last Saturday. More than 500 fans crowded the field to
Kyle Bumett/THi Battalion
meet their favorite Aggie players. Atkinson was one of eight Aggies
who had a line of fans that stretched over 20 yards. Atkinson and
the rest of the A&M football team will open the season on Sept. 4.
U.N. creates
new agency to
handle money
complaints
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
UNITED NATIONS - Ad
dressing repeated complaints of
U.N. waste and mismanage
ment, Secretar) 7 -General Boutros
Boutros-Ghali on Tuesday creat
ed a new post to police the way
U.N. money is spent.
Mohamed Aly Niazi, a fel
low Egyptian and U.N. insider
who had previously been in
charge of internal U.N. audits,
was appointed to take charge
of the new watchdog agency.
Asked whether such an in
sider could be objective,
spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told
reporters Niazi is expected to
take a "responsible and zealous
look" at management problems.
A congressional critic blast
ed the move as "window-
dressing." Sen. Larry Pressler,
k-S.D., said in a statement the
Investigator lacks the authori
ty and independence to do a
good job and will be using
"the same personnel, the same
bureaucracy that has been
part of the U.N.'s serious mis
management problems."
The United States has com
plained for years that the Unit
ed Nations is poorly equipped
to investigate corruption,
waste and mismanagement.
It has been pressing for ap
pointment of an inspector gen
eral, similar to the post found
in many U.S. federal agencies.
Gage appoints interim provost
By Michele Brinkmann
The Battalion
Dr. E. Dean Gage, soon-to-be
interim president of Texas A&M
University, appointed Dr. A. Ben
ton Co-
canougher, cur
rent dean of
business admin
istration, to
serve as interim
senior vice pres
ident and
provost begin
ning Sept. 1.
Gage, who is
scheduled to be
named interim
president of
A&M by the Board of Regents on
Aug. 27, announced his decision
on Aug. 13.
Gage
Gage currently serves as senior
vice president and provost, the
University's top academic posi
tion. Cocanougher has been dean
of the College of Business Admin
istration and Graduate School of
Business since 1987.
"This appointment will keep
the rest of the provost's staff in
place to maintain greater stability
for all of us during this interim
period," Gage said.
"With several interim situa
tions across the University at this
time, we must all commit to be
supportive partners in fulfilling
our responsibilities," he said.
Gage said he has asked Robert
Smith, vice president for finance
and administration, to remain in
his current position as the Univer
sity's top business officer.
"I am aware of the various me
dia reports that Mr. Smith would
be taking a position within the
Texas A&M University System,
but I have asked him to remain in
his position at the University and
am delighted that he has agreed to
do so," he said.
Cocanougher previously
served on the faculties of the
University of Texas at Austin,
University of Southern California
and Southern Methodist Univer
sity and also served as dean of
business and senior vice presi
dent and provost at the Universi
ty of Houston.
Smith, who graduated from
A&M in 1962, has served as vice
president for finance and adminis
tration since 1987, following 23
years of service in a number of po
sitions of increasing responsibility
within the University.
Conference prepares Corps leaders for year
By Jennifer Smith
The Battalion
At a conference last week, the Corps of Cadets fa
miliarized outfit and unit commanders with changes
in Corps policies and prepared them to lead cadets
during the 1993-94 school year.
Marc Bertamini, Corps adjutant and a senior polit
ical science major, coordinated this year's comman
ders conference. He said the conference informs the
commanders of basic Corps policies and procedures
so that they can inform other cadets.
"It's a time for commanders to prepare them
selves for the year," Bertamini said. "We want to re
flect any new policies and give the commanders the
opportunity to ask questions."
Deputy Corps Commander Mando Avila, a senior
industrial distribution major, attended the confer
ence and said it helps cadets in leadership positions
prepare themselves to lead.
Southerland named
to replace Koldus as
Student Services VP
Southerland
By Michele Brinkmann
The Battalion
Dr. J. Malon Southerland, as
sociate vice president for stu
dent services, was named Texas
A&M University's interim vice
president for student services
on Aug. 20, replacing Dr. John J.
Koldus III, who is retiring at the
end of the month.
Southerland was selected by
Dr. E. Dean Gage, who is sched
uled to be named interim presi
dent of A&M by the Board of
Regents of the Texas A&M Uni
versity System later this week.
"Dr. Southerland is an ex
ceptional administrator who
has served Texas A&M and its
student body with distinction
for many years," Gage said. "1
find his willingness to accept
this interim position a clear in
dication of his commitment to
our students and to the Uni
versity and look forward to
working with him to maintain
our momentum in the Division
of Student Services."
Gage said a national search is
currently underway to find a
permanent replacement for the
position.
Southerland said following a
legend like Koldus will be a
challenge, even on a temporary-
basis.
"John Koldus is recognized
as one of this nation's top stu
dent services professionals,"
Southerland said. "It has been
my distinct privilege to work
with him, and I look forward to
the challenge of continuing the
many outstanding programs he
has put into place during his 20
years at Texas A&M."
Southerland graduated from
A&M in 1965 and has been with
the University since 1968. He is
a past recipient of both the Uni
versity's Distinguished
Achievement Award for Indi
vidual Student Relationships
and Texas A&M Student Gov
ernment's Outstanding Admin
istrator Award.
Sorority fall Rush / 93
stresses Aggie pride
By Cheryl Heller
THE BA1TAUON
Texas A&M sororities started Fall Rush 1993 on Monday with the
theme "A Tradition of Excellence."
About 642 women are participating in this fall's Rush, a weeklong
series of parties and skits at sorority houses that allow rushees to visit
with active members and learn about the different sororities.
At the conclusion of the week, rushees will indicate the sororities
they are interested in and receive bids from the sororities who would
like them to join.
Panhellenic Council President Stephanie Johnson said this year's
Rush will provide an interesting experience to everyone involved.
"Rush gets bigger every year," she said. "It's definitely an exciting
time for the sorority members and the rushees."
"Our slogan is that Greeks are Aggies first,
and that keeps our school spirit strong."
-Stephanie Johnson,
Panhellenic Council President
Women decide to join sororities for many different reasons, but one
of the main reasons they join, Johnson said, is because of the friend
ships they develop with other members.
"A sorority is a great place to meet friends, and it gives students a
chance to get involved with the other education at Texas A&M," she
said. "Our slogan is that Greeks are Aggies first, and that keeps our
school spirit strong."
Another big part of belonging to a sorority is philanthropy, Johnson
said.
"It makes us feel really good to get involved in order to give some
thing back to the community," she said.
Alpha Delta Pi Rush Chairman Monica Perez said this year's Rush is
a positive movement for the Greek system because of the emphasis on
Aggies and Greeks.
"We've been promoting that we're all Aggies before Greeks, and I
think Panhellenic has done a great job of that this year," she said.
Johnson said, "Belonging to a sorority is a lifetime experience that
will last beyond college, and it gives girls who have had sisters or
mothers in the system a chance to carry on the tradition."
"It gives them leadership training and lets them
know what is expected of them," Avila said. "It
helps because the commanders are not coming back
cold turkey from the summer break."
Avila said training the commanding officers is
just as important as training the freshmen because
freshmen learn good or bad qualities from their su
periors.
"We want to make sure the company comman
ders are good enough to lead the freshmen," Avila
said. "If they aren't, poor leadership traits are de
veloped."
Bertamini said 29 outfit commanders, four major
unit commanders and seven minor unit comman
ders attended the conference that began last Wednes
day and ended Saturday.
The Corps Commandant Maj. Gen. Thomas Dar
ling spoke at the conference, as well as University
President William H. Mobley and Senior Vice Presi
dent and Provost E. Dean Gage.
Inside
Campus
►FOW week '93: Incoming
cadets prepare for Corps
Page 2
A ggie life
• Movie 'Heart and Souls' is
spiritually sentimental
Page 6
Sports
•A&M finishes up summer
practice, prepares for LSU
Page 9
Weather
•Wednesday: cloudy in
morning, clearing by
afternoon, high in 90s
•Forecast for Thursday:
morning cloudiness,
partly cloudy by afternoon
•Your Battalion extended
forecast: slight chance of
afternoon showers, highs
in the 90s lows in the 70s