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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 12, 1997)
I 104 th YEAR • ISSUE 10 • 8 PAGES COLLEGE STATION • TX ■jlm'i-a • w mam mfmmiimL ■ 3 TODAY TOMORROW See extended forecast. Page 2. FRIDAY • SEPTEMBER 12 • 1997 JPD investigates IValton incident The University Police Department aid five individuals were found carry- ig another individual out of Walton all Tuesday night. The UPD received a telephone call 16:50 p.m. Tuesday that reported iree individuals were duct-taped to •htposts in front of the residence hall. UPD officers found no activity at the all, but the one individual being car ed out. Bob Wiatt, UPD director, said the in- ividuals said they were "horsing ■ound.” The UPD said the victim said he as a willing participant and not in- red. He did not file charges, and no rests were made. Wiatt said the report was filed and under consideration by the Student onflict Resolution Center as a hazing icident. arrell relief unds questioned DALLAS (AP) — The attorney gen- IraTs office is reviewing complaints bout the allocation of relief funds for rsidents of tornado-ravaged Jarrell at ie request of some families whose omes were devastated by the storm. Officials with the Jarrell Recovery oard say that six families have com- lained about how the board is award- g money from its $1.7 million fund. Many residents are asking “how )me so-and-so got more than me?” 3id board president Dianne Johns, le of eight local residents on the )ard who have been overseeing and jministering the donated funds to 83 Dplicants. iports authority bpens meetings I HOUSTON (AP) — In the wake of ticism for holding closed-door etings, the Harris County-Hous- |n Sports Authority says it now will Id open committee meetings. The authority’s finance and con- ruction committees were holding ivate meetings under an exemp- bn in the Texas Open Meetings 6w which makes deliberation a ferequisite fora “meeting” and ps “verbal exchange” as part of e definition of “deliberation.” The authority’s committees say ley only received information Dm third parties like architects, Detractors and bankers at the meetings, so there was no verbal ■(change or meeting. ► octors promote organ donation AUSTIN (AP) — Texas doctors fe launching a campaign they jape will increase the number of oi ^an donors, an act the Texas Medical Association’s president understands better than most. Dr. Phil H. Berry’s life was ived by a liver transplant in 1986. I “This is a program that has the Issibility of making a huge differ- iice in the lives of some patients l(ho are struggling, who don’t rnow their fate, who are scared to peath,” Berry, 60, said Thursday, was one of those patients.” lifestyles Word of mouth is the key to restaurant’s success with A&M students. See Page 3 Pynn Hickey continues to help A&M strive toward a piore complete program. See Page mm http://bat-web.tamxi.edu ■look up with state and na- ional news through The Wire, AP’s 24-hour online news service. Multicultural Services Department celebrates 10th anniversary By Jenara Kocks Staff writer The Texas A&M Department of Multicul tural Services is commemorating its 10-year anniversary with a celebration this weekend. Kevin Carreathers, director of Multicultur al Services, said the event’s purpose is to thank the people who have supported the de partment over the past ten years. He said it is also a time to reflect on the de partment’s accomplishments and future goals. ' “We’ve helped the institution [A&M| and its commitment to diversity for faculty, staff and students,” Carreathers said. “We’ve helped with the retention of minor ity students.” The celebration starts at 3 p.m. today with registration on the second floor of Rudder Tower. A jazz concert by Karen Chavis and The Big Apple Trio will follow at 8 p.m. in rooms 221-224 of the MSC. Saturday’s events will include workshops, student organization lunches, campus tours, a silent auction, a banquet and a party. A brunch and worship service will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. Sunday in 205 and 206 MSC. Carreathers said the department has es tablished programs for minority students, in cluding the ExCEL Freshman Student Success Program, MEDALS (Minority Enrichment & Development through Academic and Lead ership Skills), TAMU Enhancing Diversity Awards Program, Southwestern Black Stu dent Leadership Conference and the Whoop- stock Unity Festival. Carreathers said he has three goals for Multicultural Services for the next 10 years. “First, we hope for federally funded pro grams that will help in recruitment and re tention of minority students,” he said. “Sec ond, we would like grants to assist in diversity-education efforts, especially in the faculty. Third, we would like to be a larger fa cility. We would like to expand our facilities, programs and staff to extend to all we serve.” Ron Sasse, director of Residence Life and a member of the celebration planning com mittee, said he is looking forward to the event. He said he has worked for the University for 20 years and he has seen the Multicultural Services department grow. “I think everyone gets so busy and takes things for granted,” Sasse said. “Students know it’s [the department] there. It [the cele bration] is a chance to pause and celebrate all the accomplishments of the department.” Senators informed of rank system By Brandye Brown Staff writer The Texas A&M Senate in formed senators of the election “ranking system” for freshman elections and honored the De partment of Multicultural Services Wednesday night. This summer, Speaker of the Senate Alice Gonzalez, a junior agricultural development major, approved the ranking system on a conditional basis after meeting with A&M student leaders. After the system is used, the Senate will vote whether to use the ranking system for student body elections in the spring. Gonzalez said she agreed to test die system under two conditions. “First, that it is only for the freshman elections,” she said. “Second, any use beyond that would be referred to the Senate body with statistical data and re search about [its] effectiveness and ease of implementation.” Also, the Senate passed the Multicultural Services Depart ment Appreciation Resolution honoring the 10-year anniversary of the department. Golden occasion %* - i*-- ■iimflffwi” RONY ANGKRIWAN/The Battalion Ashley Baxter, a senior marketing major, picks up her senior ring at the Clayton Williams Alumni Center Thursday afternoon. Over 1,500 rings are being handed out. Corps halls provide housing for civilian women By Karie F EULER Staff writer Although the Quadrangle is best known for housing the Corps of Cadets, two residence halls on the Quad provide rooms for about 400 civilian women enrolled at Texas A&M. This year, Spence and Kiest halls are the only two residence halls on the Quad that house non- Corps students. Kiest residents also share the hall with the Corps staff, who live on the first floor. Darby Roberts, area coordinator for the De partment of Residence life, said the number of civilian women living on the Quad depends on the number of cadets. “The Corps decides how many spaces they need for the upcoming year,” Roberts said. “If they don’t need the entire space, they allow civilians to fill those spaces.” Roberts said Kiest and Spence share a hall council because some year s Kiest is a Corps res idence hall. “Because Kiest is a temporary situation, we decided to combine it with Spence,” Roberts said. “It provides a little more unity.” Jessica Geeslin, a resident advisor for Kiest and a junior political science major, lived in Spence Hall last year. She said the two halls dif fer from each other. “A lot more work needs to be done as far as facilities in Kiest,” Geeslin said, “and the envi ronment is totally different, but not really be cause of the Corps. It’s kind of a security thing [having the Corps live in Kiest].” Geeslin said living on the Quad has many benefits. “You have a natural alarm clock at six every morning, and you get to know a lot of people,” she said. “There are a bunch of people in a small space. And even though I “It was neat for the fish to be recognized by the guys, but we just had to have some girl bonding.” NINA DE ROUEN JUNIOR ENGLISH MAJOR used to live in the Commons, I’ve met a lot more people on the Quad.” Danny Feather, Corps commander and a se nior economics major, said he likes living on . the first floor of Kiest Hall. Feather said the non- Corps residents bring a different atmosphere to the hall. “The Corps staff is always overworked, and normally the first floor of a dorm is loud and crazy,” he said. “We really enjoy the quietness and cleanliness in Kiest, and the ladies are al ways friendly. They always say ‘Howdy’ and we like that.” Feather said the decision to make Kiest a civilian hall was not due to a decrease in Corps enrollment. “Last year was just an overestimatiop,” he said. “This really was a needed adjustment.” Nina DeRouen, a junior English major who lives in Kiest Hall, said the women in Kiest played a game of mud football after a thunder storm last week. She said some of the freshmen were apprehensive about playing on the Quad. “But once we started playing, they had fun,” she said. “Then the Corps guys started walking by. They would stop and watch — one outfit even saluted us as they went by.” DeRouen, who lived in Spence last year, said the residents got to know each other during the game. “It was neat for the fish to be recognized by the guys, but we just had to have some girl bonding,” she said. Kenny Jones, a junior political science ma jor, saw the game. “We stopped and watched for a while,” he said. “It was really cool.” Jones said he approves of women living on the Quad. “Of course we like it,” he said. “It brings girls closer to the Quad, and we always like that.” Ernesto Garcia, a freshman business ad ministration major, said the situation is en couraging to him. “I believe it to be motivational,” Garcia said. “We don’t see many girls on the Quad, and when we do, it’s something to see.” Garcia also said women help make the Quad a better place for freshman cadets. “We must always be watching for upper classmen, but if we can see girls, it doesn’t make the Quad seem that bad,” he said. Jonathan Dancy, a freshman biomedical sci ence major, said having women live on the Quad has both good and bad aspects. “It’s nice to see girls,” he said, “but some of them have signs in their windows saying ‘Want a date?’ They put their names and phone numbers on these signs. It seems kind of desperate to me.” Kyle Betty, a junior agricultural develop ment major, said he has mixed feelings about integrating the Quad with civilians. “I don’t hate it,” Betty said. “I kind of like it, but 1 really think the Quad should be the Corps’. The whole Corps should live together.” DeRouen said the living arrangements seem to be working well. “The fish had no idea what to expect,” DeR ouen said. “We’ve taken them under our wing — our attitude is ‘This is cool.’ I think if we had a negative attitude about living on the Quad, people would not be having such a good time.” Army releases harassment study WASHINGTON (AP) - Sex ual harassment exists “throughout the Ar my, cross ing gender, rank and racial lines,” the service said today, faulting leaders who ignored problems and allowed such behavior to become com monplace. In a searing indictment of it self, the Army has released its largest-ever study of sexual ha rassment. The 10-month re view was sparked by the last November’s allegations of widespr ead sexual misconduct at the U.S. Army Ordnance Center in Aberdeen, Md. It was made public by Army Secretary Togo West and Gen. Dennis Refiner, the Army chief of staff. At a Pentagon news confer ence, West sought to draw a distinction between sexual harassment, which he said “continues to be a problem” throughout the service, and the sexual abuses that were found at Aberdeen. “What happened at Ab erdeen was an aberration,” in sisted West. White House Press Secre tary Mike Curry said that Pres ident Clinton believes the ac tions being taken by the Army will help prevent future sexual misconduct. He said the pres ident “views with concern all allegations of sexual abuse and sexual misconduct.” The two-volume study was accompanied by an Army in spector general’s report on the Army’s training program, and a separate “action plan” aimed at fixing many of the problems turned up by a senior review panel. It calls among other things to require a week of training for recruits on ethics and moral values. “Sexual harassment exists throughout the Army, crossing gender, rank and racial lines,” the report declared. Prof’s comments draw heated reaction AUSTIN (AP) — A group of Hispanic lawmakers demanded the resignation Thursday of a University of Texas law pro fessor who said blacks and Mexican Americans come from cultures in which “failure is not looked upon with disgrace.” But UT officials defended the profes sor’s constitutional right to say “even these offensive and painful words.” Rep. Hugo Berlanga, D-Corpus Christi, is chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus. He said fu ture UT funding could be jeopardized if constitutional law professor Lino Graglia does not leave the school. “It seems we’re in an era where the Ku Klux Klan does not come in white robes but in the robes of academe,” added Sen. Gregory Luna, head of the Senate Hispan ic Caucus. Graglia spoke Wednesday during the announcement of a new UT student or ganization that supports a federal court ruling outlawing race-based admissions policies in Texas. Graglia is a faculty advi sor for the group. “Blacks and Mexican-Americans are not academically competitive with whites in selective institutions,” he said. “It is the result primarily of cultural affects. They have a culture that seems not to encour age achievement. Failure is not looked upon with disgrace.” UT Interim President Peter Flawn, said inflammatory comments alone aren’t enough to fire Graglia.