November 27,
kend sc
The Battalion
ensik said the Ladi
a capture an offei
at has been a faci
i in recent games.
|rhythm] in the
“We’re going to
on staying focuse:
lume 103 • Issue 64 • TO Pages
Monday, December 2, 1996
The Batt Online: http://bat-web.tamu.edu
ar pool lot to be considered by PITS
By Wesley Poston
The Battalion
last weekend, be
iversity of Kansa
o Kansas State U: 1
ensik said thet Student Government, Parking,
o prove to themsjpj c and Transportation and
Che other leans 4 l P er ? tions 0 t[ i P, ials are im T
e still a conten J ln S the of , a P ark -
lor , f Iferea specifically for students
12 Conference, b ' w j
u .Bear pool to campus.
t i n ave sr ftiot Kerlin, chair of the Slu
gs the tirsttunett Government student ser-
hese teams, bwB, comm ittee and a senior fi-
up well against jXg ma j ori said Student
lensik said. Sines )V( , rnment proposed the idea to
n the Big 12, wereBg earlier this semester as a
i out and try to will-
way to decrease parking conges
tion on campus.
“Other ideas to help out the
parking situation are in progress,”
he said. “We were looking for
something more short-term.”
The suggestion is still in the
early discussion and investigation
stages, Kerlin said, and any forth
coming plans would not likely be
implemented before Fall 1997.
Transportation options for off-
campus students include driving
their own cars to class and taking
the bus to campus, he said.
“Other ideas to
help out the
parking situation
are in progress.”
Eliot Kerlin
Student Services Committee
chair
“In the middle somewhere is
car pooling,” Kerlin said.
Several students taking the
same car to campus would lower
the number of cars on campus, in
creasing the number of available
parking spaces. To encourage stu
dents to commute in groups, Ker
lin said, the University would have
to offer a more convenient or less
expensive parking area.
Tom Williams, PTTS director,
said there are few resources avail
able for such a lot. Parking Area 48,
across from the Clayton Williams
Jr. Alumni Center, and Parking
Area 74 on West Campus, near the
Rosenthal Meat Science and Tech
nology Center, are the lots current
ly under speculation, he said.
“It’s not going to solve some
students’ problems getting closer
to campus,” Williams said.
However, dividing the cost of a
commuter lot permit could make
car pooling a less expensive op
tion for students, he said.
The logistics of how many
people would be required per
vehicle and how to enforce that
policy have yet to be decided,
Williams said.
“It really wouldn’t cost any
thing,” he said. “It’s just the me
chanics of getting it done.”
Kerlin said a parking area of this
type could be run on the honor
system, trusting students not to
abuse access to the parking area.
“We obviously can’t hire some
one to watch the lot,” he said.
Williams said the best answer
to on-campus parking congestion
would still be the bus system.
“That’s the best car pool we
can have,” he said, “fifty students
on a bus.”
;k offense and Nei.
li said she plans!
rmance and non
s would be a Ira
ainly something
’m extremely proi
;ood feeling abouti
of staying focuse!
s dow
md about this
Tstaff said atai
e marks the sei
ng change this
ing Cotton Fite
lation in Phoenii
ons, chief execul
:ent Entertain!
the Nuggets, s;
lift were “in coi
lat the right
to his original job.’
le time, we’re lui
tta here,” Lyons
diy mixed emoti
iff said. “I feel ball
nit quite theway
t would. I also
lough to knowtl
ts to be in his heart'
dreams
dashed
in
Tim Moog, The Battalion
tennis
amirez
A&M
quarterback Branndon Stewart gets sacked by #96 Chris
Nicl Atkins, causing A&M to lose 7 yards and punt the ball away.
Plight of the Aggies remains an unsolved mystery
Sports Editor
I t is simply mind-,boggling to watch the Texas
Aggies play football.
I The consensus among fans, followers and
Supporters of Texas A&M is clear — the Aggies
are a walking mystery
no one has a clue how to
figure out. And for near
ly two seasons, this as
cension to full-blown
mystery status has been
painful to watch.
I Whether it be ques
tionable play-calling or
decision-making, mental
or communications
Ireakdowns, turnovers or
list shoddy execution,
lie Aggies always find a
way to puzzle themselves and their fans.
In the meantime, the wins are dwindling,
tlie rankings have disappeared, and with them
IV&M’s state and national reputation as a col
legiate football powerhouse.
I What is even more distressing — no, make
tliat down right sickening — is how a once-proud
program can walk into the house of its hated ri-
Tom Day
Senior journalism major
val, sleepwalk, and then lie down and get de
stroyed and embarrassed on national television.
The Aggie Bonfire may have burned on
Tuesday, but the Aggies left their fire and
emotion in Aggieland, as exposed by the
jacked-up Longhorns not only to A&M, but
also to the 81,887 spectators at Memorial Sta
dium and the countless millions tuned into
the game on television.
Now just what is going on here? How did
we fall so hard, so fast? Fourteen months ago
the A&M football program was ranked No. 3 in
the country and gunning for a national cham
pionship. Now, what is considered to be an
immensely talented collection of players will
be sitting at home on Christmas, pondering a
.500 season and no bowl berth in a year not
marred by NCAA sanctions for the first time
since 1984.
Call me spoiled, but this is unacceptable.
What gives? Are the Aggies overrated talent-
wise, or have R.C. Slocum and his coaching staff
lost touch with their players and the changing cli
mate of college football altogether?
See Day, Page 7
Committee to request funds
Child-care center would operate on tuition after opening
By Meussa Nunnery
The Battalion
The child-care center advisory
committee will request funds to open
an on-campus child-care center at
the Texas A&M University System
Board of Regents meeting in January.
Mary Miller, associate vice pres
ident for administration and chair
of the child-care center advisory
committee, said the center will
provide part-time and full-time
care for pre-kindergarten children.
The center will provide services for
children of Texas A&M employees
and students only.
Faculty, staff and students have
been asking for an on-campus
child-care center for about 20
years. In the past few years, Miller
said, an advisory committee has
been formed, and the idea of an
on-campus child-care center was
given serious consideration.
Miller said parents will be re
quired to pay tuition for their chil
dren so the center can operate finan
cially independent of the University.
“The University provides a place
and the upstart money,” Miller said.
“The University
provides a place and
the upstart money.”
Mary Miller
Child care center advisory
committee
“The tuition paid by the children will
support upkeep.”
She said the child-care center
advisory committee is looking for
ways to raise money for scholar
ships for children of students and
lower-paid staff.
She said the original goal was for
the center to be operating by the fall
of 1997. But because they are waiting
for approval of funds from the re
gents, the center is behind schedule.
Miller said the on-campus
center would not conlpete with
other Bryan-College Station day
care centers.
“People have asked for higher
quality care,” Miller said. “We will
have better-quality teachers and a
lower student-to-teacher ratio.
That’s why we’re raising money
for scholarships and trying to
subsidize the cost.”
She said they plan to raise enough
money so, even if tuition is high, stu
dents’ costs will stay down with the
help of financial aid.
Miller said volunteers and student
workers will also help offset the cen
ter’s operating cost.
“Volunteers are a possibility, and
we have positions for student work
ers,” Miller said. “If we can get
enough qualified student workers,
that will keep the cost down.”
The projected site for the center is
near the married student housing
area. The committee is working on
designs for the center and wants to
have a center director hired at least
six months before it opens.
TIs the
Season
Rony Angkriwan, The Battalion
Angie McDaniel, a senior psychology major and member of MSC Hospitality
Committee, decorates the 14-foot Christmas tree in the MSC Flagroom Sunday
afternoon.
■he Battalion
int
discounts.
is. m-f
fibling Aggies
iothers and sisters
jve ventured to
(M to share life at
liege.
Aggielife, Page 3
•in’ Dancin’
|e A&M Volleyball Team
J1 host Arkansas-Littie
|ck in the first round
the NCAA Tournament.
Sports, Page 7
MMMMMMMNMIMMMI
low Hiring
pnroth: “Leftover
pgers for employees
fth degrees.” The job
(arket’s looking grim.
Opinion, Page 9
Aggies design Heritage House
By Melissa Nunnery
The Battalion
Texas A&M architecture
students are working on de
signs for Heritage House, a fa
cility to house pregnant
homeless women in Bryan-
College Station.
Marie Fournier, assistant
lecturer in the College of Ar
chitecture, said having stu
dents do a class project for
Heritage House is a good way
to link the University with a
community need.
An article she read last year
spurred her interest in the pro
ject, Fournier said.
“What’s really interesting is
that one article in The Battal
ion gave us an idea to do
something creative and some
thing linked to and needed by
the community,” Fournier
said.
She said the students are
working on how to make the
design of the facility fit the
needs of its residents.
The students have visited
similar facilities in Houston to
get a practical idea of what
Heritage House requires.
Fournier said the students got
to see the residents’ state of
mind, problems and needs.
“[Visiting similar facilities]
helps students better see the
space needed for future
users,” Fournier said. “It’s im
portant to take into account
people’s needs.”
Sue Sorensen, board chair
of Heritage House, said the
project is in the fund-raising
stage. The Board is trying to
raise money to lease a building
or purchase property to house
the facility.
“We want to provide a safe
residence for women who find
themselves pregnant without a
place to live,” Sorensen said.
A leased facility would
house about six women, while
a newly built one would house
up to 30.
Sorensen said women will
not receive prenatal care at
Heritage House because it is
provided by the community.
“We would either take them
(residents of Heritage House)
to the doctor or to the prenatal
clinic,” Sorensen said.
Women would be allowed
to live in Heritage House for
three to four months after the
birth of their baby. The pur
pose of Heritage House,
Sorensen said, is to help
women get back on their feet
while they are pregnant. They
can learn job skills or finish
school while living there.
Sorensen said the project
the A&M students are working
on will be helpful in designing
the facility.
“We’re excited about the
project the students are do
ing,” Sorensen said. “It will
give us something to look at.”
Fournier said the designs
will help Heritage House’s
fund-raising efforts.
“It’s hard to raise money for
something people can’t see,”
Fournier said. “[The designs]
will give them images to show
people and give them an idea
of what it would look like.”
Dining hails try to serve
students’ breakfast needs
By Carla Renea Marsh
The Battalion
Attendance for breakfast in cam
pus dining halls is low but still im
portant for students who want a bal
anced, nutritional meal during
the day.
Although breakfast may include
fattening foods such as eggs and ba
con, this is not a problem if healthy
choices are made.
Vicki Beck, dietitian for food ser
vices, said breakfast has never been a
popular meal in the dining halls.
“Breakfast is important,” Beck
said. “Everyone should eat a well-
balanced meal.”
Last year, the dining halls began
offering a limited breakfast to stu
dents all day long.
“We do try to encourage people to
eat, but it is not that popular,” Beck
said.
Breakfast hours are 7 a.m. to 10:15
a.m. during the week.
Beck said most students are either
in class or still asleep during these
breakfast hours.
Kelly Manson, a freshman chem
istry major, said a major reason she
does not eat breakfast in the dining
halls is the time factor.
See Breakfast, Page 5