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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 6, 1997)
“Serving Texas A&M Since 1893” The Battalion the class! imetprel 'HoweveJ#^ ?d to mi|| Jn myrol^^ Volume 103 • Issue 107 • 10 Pages The Batt Online: http:// bat-web.tamu.edu Thursday, March 6, 1997 thi studeai •s range their re irse van: wives there ha e house Vnd, just bea mg 911 )eoplefm orps commanders chosen Gen. Hopgood announced selections for top leadership positions By Joey Jeanette Schlueter The Battalion I has j,. inks . Ohio an; en blames does, umbers o )y all nw i on sands man Dc: mnties eas, mat e. ose theti ; concrete ramewoil mge sheet so were to y the time 'Ut 13 the rivet er crest is The top seven leadership positions the Corps of Cadets for the 1997-1998 school year were announced Wednes- iy by Commandant of Cadets Maj. Gen. M.T. “Ted” Hopgood Jr. in a cere mony at the Sam Houston Corps of Cadets Center. Hopgood said there were 31 appli cants for the seven positions. ‘Ttwas a fair but difficult process to choose the commanders,” he said. The new Corps Commander is Cadet Daniel M. Feather, a senior eco nomics major, from Squadron 8. Cadet Kenneth M. Evans, a senior manage ment major from Company A-l, was named Deputy Commander. Feather said he was surprised by the announcement. “I felt I could count the last thirty beats of my heart before the an nouncement,” Feather said. “I have been very nervous about it for the past two weeks. It was a great surprise.” Feather said die focus of his term will be recruiting and retention. The com mander’s duties include responsibility for the 2,200 members of the Corps of Cadets. This year, Feather served as the Corps’ leadership training sergeant. Feather will address the Corps of Cadets for the first time at Final Re view May 10. Evans said he is looking forward to being Deputy Commander and assist ing Feather. “I am ready to support the com mander,” Evans said, “and carry out the directives of the Commandant.” Duties for the deputy commander in clude serving as commander in Feather’s absence and helping him as needed. Evans served as the Corps’ adminis tration sergeant this year. The current Corps commander, Stephen Foster, a senior political sci ence major, said he is happy about the selection of the new leaders. “I think this group of young men that we just selected are some of the finest cadets the Corps has to offer,” Foster said. “I’ve watched them grow through their Corps experience, and I think they’ll do a better job than we did this year.” See Commanders, Page 6 Amy Dunlap, The Battalion Wing Commander Randall Schmedthorst (2nd from right) and Combined Band Commander Clay Kennedy (far right) greet cadets in the receiving line following the ceremony Wednesday afternoon. Board suspends fraternity ^ At an IFC Judicial Board Hearing, Phi Gamma Delta received a three year suspension for a Jan. 8 hazing incident. By Marissa Alanis The Battalion Phi Gamma Delta fraternity re ceived a three-year suspension for violating the Texas A&M University and Interfraternity Council hazing regulations at the IFC Judicial Board hearing Tuesday night. The penalty stems from a Jan. 8 hazing incident in which pledges were subjected to a “hosing down” with a water hose outside the fra ternity house. In addition to the suspension, the board recommended the chap ter not be allowed to return to cam pus until the spring semester of 2000 and a recommendation be made to the national organization to suspend their charter. Matt Airhart, chief justice of the IFC board and a junior industrial distribution major, said after re viewing the situation, the Judicial Board made the determination that Phi Gamma Delta pledges were subjected to hazing. “The Board did feel that there was evidence of concern as well as an environment of inappropriate behavior,” Airhart said. Matt Huppe, a Phi Gamma Delta member and a senior community health major, said the fraternity plans to appeal the Board’s decision and that the members believe the decision was unjust. “The fraternity feels that the pun ishment does not fit the act that we did,” Huppe said. “The fraternity just doesn’t believe that the act warrants a three-year suspension that was given.” David Bethel, Phi Gamma Delta president and a junior finance major, said the fraternity members will stay together during the suspension. See Fraternity, Page 6 Place of Worship Chapel invites members of all faiths Short Circuit Ryan Rogers, The Battalion Carlos Rodriguez, a senior civil engineering major, and Carissa Mardiros, a senior civil engineering major, manipulate a current through a circuit board in an electrical engineering lab Wednesday afternoon. By Graham Harvey The Batt alion Christians, Buddhists and Baha’is are just a few of the religious gr oups that worship in All Faiths Chapel. Constructed in 1957 and formally dedicated in 1958, the chapel con tinues to provide a place for Texas A&M University students of all reli gious backgrounds to congregate. Millie Wright, manager of sched uling and services for the University Center, is in charge of setting times for various student religious groups to meet in the chapel. While All Faiths Chapel primarily as a meeting place for student reli gious organizations, Wright said, pri orities are given to funerals, memor ial services, non-sectarian religious holiday programs, weddings and baptisms. Except for weddings, which cost anywhere from $75 to $175, use of the chapel is free. “It is the center for on-campus re ligious activities,” Wright said. “Many former students even come back to get married in the chapel.” The current monthly report from the department of scheduling and services lists 11 different student groups, all of which are booked for chapel meetings in March. These groups include the Catholic Students All Faiths Chapel, constructed in 1957, religious backgrounds to congregate. Association, which meets in the chapel twice a week for Mass, the newly formed TAMU Buddhist Asso ciation and the Voices of Praise choir. Dennis Bush, faculty sponsor for the Baha’i Club and manager of the University Center, said the Baha’is use the chapel for intergroup prayer meetings and teaching sessions for non-Baha’is. The Baha'i faith is based on the teachings of Baha’u’llah, a 19th-cen tury Iranian prophet. Dave House, The Battalion provides a place for students of all “We believe there is only one God, one religion and one mankind,” Bush said. “We are working toward the uni ty of the planet, and the Baha’i prayer sessions in the chapel are for the uni ty of mankind.” Chris Yates, head of the Reformed University Fellowship and director of the Presbyterian-sponsored Campus Ministry, said the chapel provides a necessary service to the University. See Chapel, Page 6 EE I 5. Sat stfier ble. 37 Article ranks A&M low in value Kiplinger's financial analysis compares 51 state schools By Kevin Cummings The Battalion Ranking Texas A&M University in the bottom 20 percent in value, a re cent article in Kiplinger’s Personal Fi nance Magazine raises questions about whether Aggies are getting their money’s worth. Public university costs have risen 55 Percent over the past 20 years, adjusted for inflation. Although this increase is less than the The Battalion INSIDETODAY MARCH MADNESS: A&M looks to upset OU in the first round of the Big 12 championships. Sports, Page 7 'Wmmmammmmaamamm Aggielife Page 3 What's Up Page 6 Opinion Page 9 costs of private institutions, which have nearly doubled in the same time period, these price increases prompted the magazine to take a look at the value of state universities. In March, Kiplinger’s conducted a financial analysis of 51 state schools across the country and ranked them in terms of overall value. The relative value of each school was evaluated on a scale of one to five, five being the highest. A&M scored a one. The article considered such factors as student-to-faculty ratio, tuition ad justed for average family income, li brary books per student and admis sions standards. Rome Walker, the assistant manag er of student financial services, said the findings in Kiplinger’s are contra dictory to his personal experience. “In my dealings with other students and universities across the nation, I’ve found A&M is perceived to be one of the best buys in the nation,” he said. “As long as our programs are perceived to be top-notch in agriculture and en gineering, we are going to continue to draw out-of-state students.” Katherine Boyd, a senior geogra phy and reading major from Virginia, said she was drawn to A&M because of its long-standing tradition despite the cost of out-of-state tuition. “My grandfather and brother both are Aggies,” she said. “I always want ed to go here.” Kiplinger’s financial analysis did not take into account special programs of fered by the schools in the study. Penny Pennington, recruiting co ordinator for the Texas A&M honors program, said with enrollment dou bling in the past ten years, A&M has one of the largest overall honors pro grams in the country. She said A&M Offers a unique learning environment to about 6,000 students a year. “The honors program offers a hands- on learning style and provides an envi ronment in which they (the students) achieve a higher academic understand ing of the material,” she said. Despite the report, many students find A&M provides excellence in their field of interest. Emily Bell, a freshman agricultural development major from Missouri, said she researched many other schools, but came to A&M because of its reputation. “A&M is well known for agricul ture,” she said. “Everywhere you go, people say A&M is the best.” Conference to explore women's studies, issues By Kathleen Strickland The Battalion In conjunction with Women’s History Month, the South Central Women’s Studies Association will hold its 1997 conference at Texas A&M Uni versity this weekend. Pam Matthews, director of women’s studies and an associate professor of English, coordi nated the conference. “We are expecting about 150, maybe up to 200 people,” Matthews said. “This is the first time that the conference has been held here, and it’s nice that it could work with Women’s Histo ry Month. In fact, Saturday is even Internation al Women’s Day.” The conference will begin with a reception tonight from 7 to 9. Sessions begin Friday and continue through Saturday. They include such topics as being an academic woman, research on violence against women, stories of women in the Academy, women’s bodies and lives and the movement of women from the background into the foreground. There also will be a banquet Friday at 6 p.m. The keynote address will be given by Susan Kop- pelman, author of “Women in the Trees: U.S. Women’s Short Stories About Battering and Re sistance, 1934-1994.” Her speech, “Saving Women’s Stories, Saving Women’s Lives,” will emphasize her book, giving a brief overview of 25 years of research and uncovering women’s short stories dating from 1811 to 1997. A victim of abuse, Koppelman said she hopes to use the book to teach others how to save the lives of victims of domestic violence. “Battery is a major problem in this country,” she said. “It is never a woman's fault and no woman deserves to be battered.” She said everyone, not just women, should read her book. “Not all men are batterers, but most know and care about some woman who is a victim of domestic violence,” Koppelman said. “I hear from men and women who are concerned about sisters, friends or daughters who have been battered.” The conference will end with a reception Sat urday from 4 to 6 p.m. During the reception, there will bea performance of music by women composers. The performance was organized by Laurine Elkins-Marlow, a lecturer in philosophy and hu manities, who will play piano selections. “In addition to the piano,” she said, “a harp sichord, recorders and other early instruments will be featured, along with singing.” Other performers include Bonnie Harris- Reynolds, Patty Creel, Dr. Lisa Peterson, and Dr. Robert Boenig.