Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 2, 1995)
Just for kicks The A&M Soccer Team won the Post Oak Mall Classic this weekend. Sports, Page 7 I’m your man Stidvent: The choice for the student liaison is obvious. If chosen, HI look the other way. Opinion, Page 11 Mind game Fencing offers students physical and mental challenges. Aggielife, Page 3 he Battalion iVol. 102, No. 26 (12 pages) Established in 1893 Monday • October 2, 1995 Students present day care center designs Stew Milne, Tut Battalion Daniel Dixon's campus child-care center model was one of I the designs displayed Friday in Langford Architecture Center. o Different concepts from the architecture students' designs may be used for a proposed Texas A&M child care facility. By Tara Wilkinson The Battalion Seventeen Texas A&M architecture stu dents displayed their designs for a campus child-care center Friday morning in Langford Architecture Center. See related EDITORIAL, Page 11 A&M faculty and staff, who supported a Faculty Senate resolution passed in December Employees make charity donations through program □ A&M's overall goal is $210,000 for the State Employee Charitable Campaign. Student groups hope to raise $12,000. By Tara Wilkinson The Battalion Texas A&M employees have four weeks left to par ticipate in the 1995 State Employee Charitable Cam paign, which gives state employees more than 200 ways to use their money to help others. State employees can donate through monthly payroll deductions, bank drafts or straight donations. As of late September, 231 A&M employ ees had contributed a total of $32,899 to the campaign, which began Sept. 1 and ends Oct. 31. Mary Miller, assistant vice president for finance and administration, said data about contributions turned in last week is not yet available, but she expects the total has reached $40,000. A&M’s goal, not including contributions from the agricultural and engineering de partments, is to raise $118,000 for SECC. The goal for A&M and the University System com bined, which includes the agriculture and engineer ing departments, is $210,000. Miller said she thinks A&M. employees will have no problem reaching that goal. “I definitely think we’ll get there,” she said. “We’re coming along very nicely,- considering that many of the departments got a slow start.” Volunteer coordinators were appointed to spread SECC information and forms to their campus depart ments and to collect pledges from staff members in those departments. Miller said the campaign is progressing at varying rates in departments throughout the University, de pending on the promotion efforts of in dividual coordinators. Bob Fleischer, SECC local campaign manager, said SECC began operating last year with the goal of implementing a more convenient way for state em ployees to make charitable donations. “State employees could not use pay roll deduction for charitable contribu tions before SECC,” Fleischer said. “But in the private sector, it was a common practice.” However, campus contribution rates actually declined last year, with See Donations, Page 12 Preserving a piece of history Groups raise money to restore Forsyth Gallery grand piano □ The 1922 piano was handmade and the refurbishing will cost $25,000. By Kristen Homyk The Battalion The Bryan-College Station Music Teachers Association and the MSC Forsyth Center Gal- stew Milne, The Battalion Groups are seeking donations to re store the piano in the Forsyth Gallery. leries are looking for community support as they restore a piece of Texas A&M’s history. “A Grand Idea,” needs $25,000 to refurbish a 1922 Mason and Hamlin concert grand piano owned by the Forsyth Center. The handmade piano, one of perhaps 100 of its kind, was built over two years by six people. It has been at A&M for several decades, although no records ex ist to date its exact arrival or tell who brought it. The instrument was housed in various locations on campus before settling in the MSC and the Forsyth Galleries. The piano’s survival makes it a “testament to Texas A&M,” Dr. Jennifer J. Novak, project chair man, said. Novak said the piano suffered many indignities over the years to become a long-stand ing tradition at A&M. “It fell off a stage once, and the University ‘tried to replace it sev eral times,” she said. “But every one remembers this old piano, and they never managed to get rid of it.” The University has tried to re store the piano, but the attempts sometimes did more harm than good. Several ivory keys were re placed with ill-fitting plastic keys, and the ivory keys were shaved down to match, which gave the keyboard a “gap- 1994 calling for on-campus child care, came to view the designs. Students in George J. Mann’s Architectural Design III class were given assignments to de velop a campus child-care center, complete with a research display and model. The students had three weeks to complete the entire project. The students were expected to follow state laws and regulations regarding child-care facilities, but they were otherwise given creative freedom. The students chose campus locations for their child-care centers and decided what the centers would look like and how they would operate. Glenn Dowling, executive director of A&M’s Office of Planning, Evaluation and Institution al Research, said he was so impressed with the students’ work that he was going to offer to buy the models for $50 each. “I’ve been absolutely amazed at the individ ual creativity that comes through here,” Dowl ing said. “You can walk up to any one of these and say, TT1 take it.’ You could build any one of these, and it would work.” Dowling said concepts would probably be pulled from each of the students’ models, when and if a campus child-care center is built. Michael Cuff, Architectural Design III teach ing assistant, said the students did an exception al job, considering the assignment was an indi vidual project with a three-week deadline. “You can’t snub your nose at any of these because of that,” Cuff said. He said he believes the administration will seriously consider the students’ work when mak ing future decisions about a day care center. “Not one will be used, but elements from each of them will go into the final project,” he said. Mann’s class focuses on communicating See Designs, Page 12 toothed” look. The piano was also modified to be placed on rollers, even though the original designers never in tended the 9-foot concert grand piano to be moved very much. None of the piano’s parts are standard, which has caused prob lems for restorers in the past. The Music Teachers Associa tion plans to bring in an expert in restoring antique instruments to complete the project this time. It will take a single person two years to put the piano back in its original condition. Novak said the effort will be well worth it, as music students from A&M and around the area will be allowed to practice and perform on the beautiful instru ment when it is finished. Dr. Tim Novak, assistant di rector for visual arts and curator of the Bill and Irma Runyon Art Collections at A&M, noted that the Bryan-College Station com munity and the University will benefit greatly from the recon struction because it will provide Forsyth Gallery visitors and mu sicians a dual exposure to the fine arts. “By repairing this piano, we open up lots of possibilities for the Forsyth Galleries,” he said, See PlANO, Page 1 2 Nick Rodnicki, The Battalion Frisbee fever Reveille VI returns her frisbee to sophomore Mascot Corporal jeff King after making a great catch Sunday afternoon in front of Gainer FHall. Children’s Miracle Network sponsors dance marathon □ Campus organizations can dance for children's charities dur ing "Gotta Move It for the Kids." By Leslie New The Battalion The Children’s Miracle Network will hold its 40-hour dance marathon benefiting several Brazos Valley charities Nov. 3-5. Registration for the event will begin Wednesday, Oct. 4 at a informational meeting in 601 Rudder at 5:15 p.m. The event is a fund-raiser for the Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple and Bryan-College Station children charities such as Scotty’s House, Sheltering Arms and Phoe be’s Home. The marathon, with its theme, “Gotta Move It for the Kids,” will have entertainment and free food for participants. Although contestants are not required to dance the entire time, they are encouraged to stay on their feet to signify the pain and suffering many children endure. Bradley Peterson, Children’s Miracle Net work coordinator for the Brazos Valley and Class of ’93, said there is a great need for funds to help children in the Brazos Valley. “We’re trying to fill in the gaps that are left by Medicaid and health insurance,” Peterson said. “The problem is we don’t have enough money to help all the places that need help. We’re just beginning.” The Greek council was approached by CMN to visit Penn State University and witness their dance marathon first-hand to learn about it See DANCE, Page 12 •.let M»!!S£ n pS ail |». IS ’.SUM; sisniWi ll.lt WnS'j n'Mi ite I? tjas if ill