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arCon to offer live action
onvention caters to variety of gaming interests
By Shikonya Cureton
The Battalion
Herman will be si
at 8:30 p.m. in 292A',1
ia Homann at 76464B^arCon ’97, a gaming convention spon-
■-ed by MSC Nova, is attacking Texas A&M
grams:
ethe Spring '98
rom 3:30 to 4:15 d# us a g°’ when
■The name WarCon was established 24
Hall West.
ft convention in-
■ved only war
nformational table eft 1168-
west Student Confr® Hanna,
besetupintheMSfl mmittee chair
nformation, call LoreF Nova . a nd a j u -
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said the convention has moved from its
s: A general meet r ft8 inal f° cus °f strategic board games,
i in 301 Rudder C#« ^ ai ^ 011 now das odier games, such as
3for more infomia: l 111 ® 60118 and Dra gons and Star Wars,
rTftich is a card game,” he said. "And we also
i Student Societw ve S ueststocomes P ea k at the convention
I. A general meeffr t0 sel1 games at discount prices.”
hp p ar ppr Fair Frf As the gaming industry has evolved, War-
10 p m in 410 Rum 111 ^ as de g un to °ff er enough variety for
ro i gt at 696-87 : ft dod y wdo d ^ es playing games to partic-
B Bate, he said.
■ “Anybody that wants to learn to play, we
»e make suggestic'f
at 84 7-1693 or KI
teach them,” Hanna said.
If someone is looking for more involved
games at WarCon, live-action events might
suit their tastes.
One such event is a murder mystery in a
game setting, with the emphasis on inter
action. Hanna said participants are given a
plot, characters and
character roles to
play out. He de
scribed it as a the
atrical interactive
experience.
Another live ac
tion event, called
“Amber Real World Event” is based on Roger
Zelazny’s “Chronicles of Amber,” a series of
science fiction fantasy books.
Hanna said the live-action event takes a
scenario from a book and allows the players
to act it out and solve a mystery.
“People familiar with the books would be
really interested in playing,” Hanna said.
“But we also show you how to play.”
The Amber Real World Event is unique in
that it does not use game pieces — it is based
on a mystery of murders.
Don Searing, a mechanical engineering
graduate student, said the game begins with
murder and ends with the player’s goal of
solving a mystery.
“The Amber Real World Event is like an
other universe with its people being im
mortal,” Searing said. “The players travel
through shadows (other universes) like de
tectives solving a mystery. It’s like the [tele
vision] show Sliders.”
Searing said the WarCon convention is a
place for students to go and have fun while
learning about different computer and card
games. Students can also meet others who
share their interests.
WarCon also offers 24-hour Anime, or
Japanese animation, which is free to anyone
who would like to see it. Games and other
products will be on sale at a discount price
in the Dealer’s Room.
Future plans for WarCon include the ad
dition of a historical Civil War reenactment
and a medieval art display.
Students can register to attend WarCon
’97 by stopping by the MSC Nova office at
203 MSC. Cost is $20 for the entire weekend
(Friday-Sunday) and $12 for one day.
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High Hopes
Dave House, The Battalion
Nattavut Duangsungnaen (left) and Alexander Gil (right), both senior aerospace engineering
majors, sand down a preliminary plane model for their senior project. The plane will undergo a
stability study in a wind tunnel before a real model is constructed out of lighter material.
\ggie Band marches on with parades, events
By Rebecca Torrellas
The Battalion
I When football season comes
to a close, fans may not get to
sec the Aggie Band’s duties be-
■md forming at the North end
of Kyle Field.
K In the spring, charity events,
basketball games, parades,
■arches and exhibitions fill the
wnd’s calendar.
K Clay Starr, an saxophone
Player and a sophomore envi-
Bnmental design major, said al-
■ough the spring is eventful,
fcrforming at the football
fames is his favorite part of be
ing in the Aggie Band.
“Nothing compares to march
ing on Kyle Field,” Starr said.
Matthew Hudson, a saxo
phone player and a senior en
gineering technology major,
said the spring semester is not
as difficult as the fall because
there are fewer practices and
performances.
“You have more time to do
homework and free time on the
weekends,” Hudson said.
The band practices twice a
month and before special events
during the spring. In the fall, prac
tice totals up to 15 hours a week.
On Feb. 8, the Artillery band
will march in a Mardi Gras parade
in Galveston. The Infantry band
will go to the Lakewood Yacht
Club in Galveston for “Blessing of
the Fleet,” where the band per
forms for former students to bless
their new yachts.
The entire band performs in
several parades during the spring,
including the “Battle Of The Flow
ers” parade in San Antonio during
Fiesta Week.
Starr said participating in the
parade is rewarding, despite the
seven-mile walk.
“It is really long and arduous,
but there are a lot of Aggies there,”
Starr said. “It’s really fun.”
The band is also involved with
charity organizations such as
Adopt-A-Highway and The
March of Dimes.
Band members help clean up
Texas roads by “adopting” two
miles of highway.
The Corps Of Cadets will
participate in a March of Dimes
fund-raiser on April 26, when
they will collect money for
muscular dystrophy.
Band members are kept busy
with preparations for the fall. In
April, they try out for new band
positions. The results are an
nounced during Final Review on
May 10.
oard of Regents chairman to retire
cas
ual
t?
By JoAnne Whittemore
The Battalion
The Board of Regents at Texas A&M will
s ]>on bid farewell to its chairman, Mary
pan West.
I West was appointed six years ago by Gov.
Bin Richards. She was elected chairman of
B Board of Regents in 1994 and was re
flected in 1995.
West said her position as chairman in
corporates many different duties.
“Have you ever heard of a chief cook and
ttle washer?” she said. “That’s what a
hairman does.”
West said acting as chairman is more
bne-consuming than most people realize.
I “A lot of people think being a Regent is a
)iece of cake,” she said. “But when you real-
y look at it, there’s a lot more to it.”
1 She said there were phone calls to an-
ivver, trips to other campuses to make, meet-
ngs to attend and mail to read and answer.
West said she received quite a bit of mail,
and answering letters takes a lot of time.
“The volume of mail was staggering,” she
said. “It would be difficult for you to believe
if you saw it.”
While West was chairman, a new policy
BOARD OF REGENTS
CIIANGING OF THE GUARD
manual and ethics policy were written for
the employees and faculty of the University.
She worked closely with the chancellor and
visited other schools in the A&M System.
Alison Brisco, a member of the Board of
Regents whose term will also expire this year,
said West worked well with the other Re
gents, other schools and the students.
“She is a very inclusive chairman and
was able to strike a balance between A&M
and the smaller campuses,” she said. “She
wanted to make the Board available and
open to students and take away the mys
tery of what we do.”
Brisco and West
were the third and
fourth women ap
pointed to the
Board of Regents
of A&M since its
beginning.
Brisco said
West has been a
strong, positive
image.
“I think, sym
bolically, it’s been
very important
as our System
looks toward the
future to have a bright, caring woman sit
ting at the head of the Board of Regents,”
she said.
West said if not for the assistance from
her loved ones, her job would have been
much more difficult.
See Chairman, Page 8
West
Senate addresses
need for change
By Erica Roy
The Battalion
The Texas A&M Student Senate
called for meetings on Feb. 6 and Feb. 9
to draft a bill that would strengthen the
Student Government Association.
The Senate invited students and the
executive and judicial branches to
attend and give their input.
Speaker Chris Reed, a senior
finance major, and other exec
utive members of the Senate
said during open session on
Wednesday night that the
SGA needed changes in all
of its branches.
“Student government
has no real enacting power
in ourselves,” Reed said. “We
as a Senate... have nothing to
make them (the administra
tion) implement our ideas.”
Reed said restructuring the
Student Senate, the executive branch
and the judicial branch could increase
the effectiveness of the SGA.
Reed suggested changes in the Senate
include eliminating residency senators
and redundancy representation to make
the Senate more responsive to their con
stituencies. This change could cut the
number of Senate seats in half.
“By cutting the Senate in half, we
solve many problems,” Reed said.
He said the reduced number of sen
atorial seats would force candidates to
campaign on a platform.
The possible changes in the execu
tive branch could include having an
elected student vice-president with a
more defined role and increasing the
power of the student body president,
Reed said.
Changes in the judicial branch, Reed
said, could include making the judicial
branch more active and changing the
method of membership selection.
Reed said a possible fourth change
in SGA would bring the Student Ser
vices Fee Allocation Committee closer
to the policy area of student govern
ment. This could be accomplished by
establishing designated Senate spots
on the committee.
When a department approaches the
committee for additional funding, the
committee may deny their request if the
department has not enacted some of
the Senate’s proposals.
“We don’t reward them for not doing
what we ask,” Reed said.
The Senate members who announced
the purpose of the upcoming meet
ings said none of the changes are
definite, and input from all stu
dents and student groups are
wanted in the development
of the bill.
Tracey McAllister, exec
utive director of organiza
tional assessment and a se
nior marketing major, said
that although she com
mends Reed for his efforts
on trying to improve the
SGA, his suggestions shocked
her because not all of them had
been discussed with the executive
branch before the meeting.
“The Senate cannot mandate the job
of the executive branch because of
checks and balances,” she said.
At the meeting, McAllister said she
and Student Body President Carl
Baggett created her position to improve
the Student Government.
“I’m so mad. We had foresight,”
McAllister said. “We saw that student
government needed change ...You have
ignored my position. All the work Carl
and I have done has gone down the
drain. I’m really disappointed.”
Reed said his suggestions were not
a solid proposal, just his ideas. He
asked for all students to come and
give suggestions at the meetings in
February.
Reed said the meetings are open to
anyone with any kind of interest in Stu
dent Government, from yell leader run
off elections to a general improvement
in the SGA.
At the Feb. 6 meeting, the drafting
of the legislation will begin. A forum
will be held at the Feb. 9 meeting. The
Senate will introduce the bill at its Feb.
12 meeting.
The time and place of the meetings
has not been set.
► Miss Black & Gold
Fraternity to sponsor
scholarship pageant
By Benjamin Cheng
The Battalion
Ten Texas A&M students will represent
African-American women as they display
their talents in the 1997 Miss Black & Gold
Scholarship Pageant Feb.l in Rudder The
atre at 7 p.m.
The pageant is hosted nationwide by
each chapter of the Alpha
Phi Alpha fraternity. The
winner, runner-up and
third-place contestant will
receive scholarships of
$1,000, $500 and $300, re
spectively. The 10 contes
tants were chosen through
an application and inter
view process.
Marcus Gardner, vice
president of Alpha Phi Al
pha and a senior civil engi
neering major, said the
winner should be a good
student and a role model
for the community.
“She’s a reflection of our fraternity and
of African-American women as a whole,”
Gardner said.
The pageant will include a question-
and-answer session, a talent show and
modeling. A panel of five judges will de
termine the winner.
The contestants will model casual, busi
ness and formal attire. Although other
chapters will include swimsuit contests in
their pageants, the A&M chapter will not.
Gardner said they did not want to risk
eliminating prospective contestants who
might be wary of modeling swimsuits.
“Females look at the swimsuit contest
and they’re kind of scared and timid to
show their bodies,” Gardner said.
Gardner said he hopes the pageant
demonstrates that African-American
women can be intellectuals, not just
housewives, and are capable of things
some may deem them incapable.
The contestants range from engineer
ing majors to liberal arts majors and in
clude a member of the Corps of Cadets.
“We’d rather have brains than beauty,”
Gardner said.
Contestant Virginia Smith, a freshman
biology major, entered the pageant to help
pay for her education. Her father must help
put four of his children through college.
“It’s a lot of strain on my father,”
Smith said. “I’m always looking for mon
ey for school.”
Smith hopes to alter some percep
tions of African-American women
through her participation.
“Sometimes people
see us as always being
loud and bold,” she said.
“We can be, and are, an
intellectual group.”
Contestant Christrina
Minor, a sophomore po
litical science major,
wants to show an active
person can also interact
with A&M society.
“We are scholars that
take time to be part of the
community,” Minor said.
For the talent show, Mi
nor will read her poem “My
African King.” Minor said she hopes the
pageant will present a side of African-Amer
ican women people sometimes ignore.
“The pageant portrays us as strong
African-American women full of grace
and eloquence,” she said.
The winner of the pageant will represent
A&M at the state pageant in Fort Worth on
Feb. 22. The national pageant will be held in
New Orleans, La., this summer.
The Battalion
INSIDETODAY
STAR WARS: The first
installment of the trilogy is
being re-released today.
Aggielife, Page 3
Sports Pages
Opinion Page 7
Police Beat Page 8
“She's a reflection
of our fraternity
and of African-
American women
as a whole."
Marcus Gardner
Vice president, Alpha Phi
Alpha fraternity