WAITING THEIR TIME
The end of the Lady Aggie bench
prepares for the future.
Sports, Page 9
III K
A NEW BREED OF AGGIE
Littlefield: Traditions at A&M should not cause
students to feel isolated.
Opinion, Page 11
TEXAS AGGIE DANCE TEAM
Team shows support for A&M basketball
with halftime performances
Aggielife, Page 3
|ol. 101, No. 104 (12 pages)
“Serving Texas AdrM since 1893
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Senator introduces student regent
J The proposed bill
would put a student
on the system Board
of Regents.
)y Lisa Messer
[he Battalion
A Texas senator introduced legisla
tor! Monday that would provide for a
tudent regent on the governing board
if the Texas A&M University System.
Senate Bill 769, filed by state Sen. Jeff
See Editorial, Page 11
Ventworth, a former A&M student,
rould allow college and university stu-
lents to be represented on the governing
wards of their university systems.
The Texas Senate has voted against
similar provisions 22 previous times.
A student liaison would have the
same rights as other board members to
voice opinions, make recommendations
and participate in board meetings.
However, the student would not be
allowed to vote on any matter before
the board or be included in the execu
tive sessions of the board, unless invit
ed to attend by the chairman.
Wentworth said student liaisons are
an integral part of representative
democracies.
“A student liaison to a board of re
gents would, I believe, give university
students the opportunity to be heard
where it counts — in the policy-making
councils of their universities,” he said.
Mary Nan West, chairman of the
Texas A&M Board of Regents, said al
though she is not opposed to a student
regent sitting on the Board, she ques
tions how well that student will be
able to represent all students within
the System.
“I have always welcomed input from
students,” West said. “They’re the peo
ple we’re supposed to serve. If we don’t
know what the students think, we can
hardly serve them well.
“My one question, though, is how
will a student regent be chosen to rep
resent everyone. This is a system, not
just Texas A&M University at College
Station. We’d need to be sure there
were mechanisms , in place to be fair,
but I don’t know what those mecha
nisms would need to be.”
Under the proposed bill, a system’s
student advisory council, which is made
of representatives from each school in a
system, would nominate three of its
members for the position.
The names would be forwarded to the
governor by June 1 for the final decision.
If the school chose to participate in
the program, a student liaison would
serve a one-year term. A school’s stu
dent government would decide whether
or not to participate, and it could with-
bill in state Legislature
draw from the program. .
Forty-three states have passed laws
"A student liaison to a board of
regents would, I believe, give
university students the opportu
nity to be heard where it
counts—in the policy-making
councils of their universities."
—Jeff Wentworth
Texas state Senator
that provide for at least one student on
a public university governing board.
Only Arkansas, Idaho, Oklahoma,
Michigan, Mississippi, Rhode Island
and Texas lack such a law.
Kathy Partain, chairwoman of the
University’s student government’s
Legislative Study Group, said she
doubts the bill will pass the Texas
Senate.
“Its chances are pretty slim,”
Partain said. “The issue has been
going on for years now, and the
legislators are tired of hearing
about it.”
Partain said the A&M System
may gain a student liaison without
the state Senate’s passing Went
worth’s bill if the A&M Board of Re
gents approves a student govern
ment proposal to create a liaison.
“Our regents are very open to
student opinion,” Partain said.
“They want to have student input
and be informed on what students
think. We have a much better chance of
getting a student liaison through our
Board of Regents than the legislature.”
Partain said the student governmen
t’s proposal should go before the board
for approval in May.
.J
Business leaders address students
on affirmative action history, future
$
15
17
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□ Leaders say they hire based
on qualification, not affirmative
action mandates.
By Eleanor Colvin
The Battalion
Business leaders who deal daily with the
ups and downs of affirmative action told A&M
students Monday that quality is their basis for
hiring employees, not gender or race.
Judge James DeAnda, moderator of the fo
rum sponsored by MSC Great Issues, said affir
mative action has evolved since its conception.
“Affirmative action has changed because
circumstances and events surrounding it have
changed,” he said. “Today, we see a decidedly
different program from what was initially in
tended. In some ways, it has broadened and
narrowed in its scope.”
DeAnda said the purpose of the discussion
was not to take a stand on the legality of affir
mative action, but to offer insight on what
types of affirmative action programs are used
by companies today.
Jason Brown, chairman of MSC Great Is
sues, said educating students about affirma
tive action is more important than debating its
value. Texas A&M students, whether for or
against the issue, have an interest in it.
“There’s a lot of anxiety on campus concern
ing affirmative action,” he said. “Instead of
Bart Mitchell/THE Battalion
Tom Holt, the human relations manager
forSchult Homes Corporation, addresses a
crowd Monday night about issues concern
ing affirmative action practices in today’s
job market.
having a fight about the issue, we wanted pro
fessionals to tell us about what we’re facing —
help us get past the myths.”
DeAnda said affirmative action and diversi
ty play a significant role in the workplace but
the bottom line today is quality.
Panelist Tom Holt, human relations manag
er for Schult Homes Corporation, echoed De-
Anda’s thoughts when he said his company
searches for competent and dedicated workers,
not minorities and women.
“We need quality people to make a profit,”
Holt said. “I’m looking for people dedicated to
doing the job right the first time — responsible
and honest workers.”
Panelist Truman Bell, human resources co
ordinator for Exxon, said he spends little time
thinking about affirmative action and concen
trates on recruiting the best and the brightest
from the finest universities.
“Of the 200 people I hire this year, I will
target mechanical engineers, chemical engi
neers, accountants and other disciplines,”
Bell said. “Of those, I have no targets for
blacks, Hispanics or women — only for quali
fied workers.”
Panelist Gaither Fischer, corporate manag
er of Employment Planning at Southwestern
Bell Corporation, agreed that quality is the
key in hiring employees.
“When I saw ‘White Men Need Not Apply’
on the program I almost dropped it, because
that simply is not the case,” Fischer said.
“The bottom line is profit and hiring on the ba
sis of race and sex simply is not profitable.”
Fischer said he sees the controversy sur
rounding affirmative action shifting from race
and gender to economics, and this shift calls
for policy changes.
“Affirmative action may need to be based on
economic need, not race or sex,” he said.
“There is a definite distinction between the
haves and the have-nots in this society. If we
don’t address it we’ll have more have nots of
all races and sexes wanting a change.”
Panelists said they think the misconception
that women and minorities are not qualified
for the positions they hold is dying.
“We are definitely getting past that point,”
Bell said. “Your productivity determines how
long you stay in a job or how far you will go —
not race or sex.”
Harambee Fest closes Black History Month
□ The festival,
sponsored by the
Black Awareness
Committee and the
Pan-Hellenic
Council, will he held
tonight.
By Eleanor Colvin
The Battalion
Texas A&M students can
experience the essence of
African-American culture
tonight at the Harambee
Pest, sponsored by the Black
Awareness Committee and
the Pan-Hellenic Council.
Harambee, which means
unity in Swahili, is the
theme of the festival cele
brating African-American
culture and achievement.
The co-directors of pro
grams for the Black Aware
ness Committee, Tina Harri
son and Steve Traylor, said
they hope to bring students
together and educate them.
“We hope to build unity
among Texas A&M stu
dents, regardless of race
and ethnicity,” Harrison
said, “and to offer a glimpse
of Afirican-American culture
during the last days of
Black History Month.”
Traylor said unity is an
important aspect of African-
American issues.
“A lack of unity is the
backbone of many issues
plaguing the African-Ameri
can community and this
campus,” Traylor said. “We
want to stress the need for
unity as we commemorate
Black History Month.”
Harrison said the increas
ing minority population at
Texas A&M creates a need
to break down cultural barri
ers through education.
“With the current racial
climate on campus, it’s nec
essary for everyone to learn
about other cultures,” she
said. “It’s important for oth
ers to be able to understand
the black culture, even if
they don’t wish to accept it.”
Traylor said the Haram
bee Fest provides an oppor
tunity for student organiza
tions to give insight on what
Black History Month means
to them.
“We are offering a means
to emphasize the preemi
nence of African-American
culture,” Traylor said. “We
are very much alive on this
campus and the Harambee
Fest will give African-Ameri
can students a chance to
prove this.”
Various groups, including
The Voices of Praise, Focus,
Prime Time Posse, National
Association of Black Engi
neers, NAACP, several
Greek organizations and oth
ers, will be represented at
the fest.
Harrison said she wants
the unity within the groups
to encourage all students to
accept and identify with
See Harambee, Page 12
Bart Mitchell/THE Battalion
Hang on!
Mike Coyle, a sophomore civil engineering major, slolums the course at 36 m.p.h. using a 15-foot rope
at Century Lake on Monday afternoon. The TAMU Waterski Club practices at the lake seven days a
week, weather permitting.
Japanese language course offers students an ‘edge’
□ The College of
Business will offer the
language and culture
non-credit class
beginning in March.
By Tracy Smith
The Battalion
The Texas A&M Center for In
ternational Business Studies is
helping business faculty and stu
dents get a competitive edge by of
fering a Japanese international
language and culture class.
Becky LeFlore, the senior secre
tary for the Center for Internation
al Business, said a Japanese
course, beginning March 28 and
ending April 27, is for people inter
ested in learning about the Japan
ese lifestyle and gaining skills
needed to survive in Japan.
“This class is especially good for
people who ever plan to do busi
ness with the Japanese,” she said.
“While the five—week course won’t
teach everything, it will cover
many fundamentals needed when
visiting Japan.”
Dr. Lyon Schoenfeldt, a Texas
A&M management professor, said
it is important for people in the
field of business to be as diverse as
possible.
“This class lets the students
learn a few words and phrases,
something the Japanese people ap
preciate when someone visits from
another culture,” he said. “Second
ly, it offers an understanding of
their culture by giving some valu
able insight.”
Schoenfeldt, who sat in on a
previous class, said he has taken
three groups of 20 students each to
Japan to learn more about the
Asian culture and to visit compa
nies throughout Japan.
“You can’t learn the little things
that go on without being there,” he
said. “But the class definitely gives
you an edge over those who don’t
have any Japanese training.”
Janice Mills, a business gradu
ate and one of the students who
visited Japan with one of Schoen-
feldt’s group, said that with the
continuing globalization of the
economy, it is important for busi
ness professionals to have knowl
edge about other cultures.
“While in Japan, one of the
See Course, Page 1 2