Texas A St M University
\
’YOUR
WAY,
64
TODAY
TOMORROW
TH YEAR • ISSUE 39 • 12 PAGES
COLLEGE STATION • TX
See extended forecast. Page 9.
THURSDAY • OCTOBER 23 • 1997
fell practice moved
rom Grove to Quad
Yell practice will be at the arches
i the Quadrangle tonight at around
. The yell leaders moved yell prac-
:e to the Quad from the Grove to
xourage a larger turnout.
.awyer Hankinson
ippointed justice
DALLAS (AP) — Deborah G. Han-
inson, who once represented sev-
ral Dallas-area school districts in
le fight against the Robin Hood
tllfV ^ 00 ' fundin g system, was named
J ted|iesday as a justice of the
;xas Supreme Court.
E Gov. George W. Bush named the
>mner special education teacher
nd Dallas appellate judge to re
lace Justice John Cornyn, who re
igned after declaring he would
sek the Republican nomination for
ered Cam-tate attorney general,
sted deliv- In making Ms. Hankinson the
within tlieiird woman on the nine-member
anel, Bush said she was known for
itegrity and fairness as a judge on
Directorie: , e Q 0ur t Q f Appeals,
i up at 015
per copy
with
' njr: ' n possible danger
ob of lottery head
is, contact
where
itors,
tve.
.ER
rimp,
ipies
DALLAS (AP) — Lawrence Lit-
/infs future as the executive di-
ictor of the Texas Lottery might
a in jeopardy.
The Texas Lottery Commission
light consider firing Littwin later
lis month in a possible shakeup at
id agency, The Dallas Morning
ews reported Wednesday.
The three commissioners are ex-
3cted to evaluate Littwin’s perfor-
larice at their Oct. 29 meeting.
Lottery spokesperson Marcy
fleisch confirmed that a review
f agency management was includ-
d on the agenda.
The commission will retire to
Kecutive session to “deliberate
ie appointment, employment,
palpation, reassignment, duties,
iscjpline or dismissal of the exec-
tive director,” according to a
leeting agenda.
flan gets five years
or investment fraud
DALLAS (AP) — A judge who told
University Park oilman he was
lore dangerous than a crack co-
aine dealer has sentenced him to
i/e years in prison for fraud.
U.S. District Judge Joe Kendall
Iso fined W.D. “Bill” Brosseau.
100,000 and ordered him to repay
8 million he raised from investors in
is speculative oil and gas ventures
i Texas and Louisiana.
More than 200 people in at
aast 28 states put money into
•rosseau’s operations, which U.S.
•ecurities and Exchange Commis-
ion officials have described as a
yramid scheme.
msm
Students should
be concerned
about STDs,
upcoming cold
and flu seasons.
See Page 3
L
est
sports
enior Marcus Heard has
ecome a force for the
exas A&M Football Team.
See Page 7
opinion
lU •urton: Radio broadcast
isputes involve dishonesty,
nethical motives.
See Page 11
-http://bat~web.tamu.edu
look up with state and
lational news through The
Vire, AP’s 24-hour online
lews service.
Student Senate OKs policy change
By Rachel Dawley
and Colleen Kavanagh
Stoffwriters
The Texas A&M Student Senate
agreed last night with a Faculty Sen
ate subcommittee recommendation
to change the co-enrollment policy
of the University.
A subcommittee of the Faculty
Senate issued a report in September
recommending a change in the Stu
dent Rules manual concerning stu
dents co-enrolled at Blinn College.
The rule would require students
planning to take courses at Blinn to
get prior permission from the A&M
department offering the equivalent
course. This would verily no seats
were available in the A&M class.
Students then would be required
to get approval from the dean of their
college to take the class at Blinn.
The current co-enrollment policy
only requires students get approval
from their dean before co-enrolling
at another institution.
Dr. Thomas Wehrly, chair of the
Academic Affairs committee and a
professor in the Department of Sta
tistics, said there were seats available
in large A&M classes, and the admin
istration questioned if this was a re
sult of co-enrollment.
In January, a subcommittee on
co-enrollment was formed in the
Faculty Senate’s Academic Affairs
committee. .
After researching the issue, the
group reported students co-enroll at
Blinn because there are not enough
seats in some A&M classes and be
cause some students believe Blinn
courses to be easier.
Dr. Philip Yasskin, a mathematics
professor at A&M, served on the sub
committee. Yasskin said the report
was not reflective of the opinions of
the Academic Affairs Committee or
the Faculty Senate because it has not
been approved.
“Basically, it is an academic issue,”
he said. “A degree from A&M should
mean that students are taking the
quality of courses offered at A&M.”
The subcommittee report said
A&M’s tuition loss due to co-enroll
ment was $307,200 per semester dur
ing the 1996-97 school year.
The committee researched the
grade-point ratios of students who
took a lower-level class at A&M and
those who took the equivalent course
at Blinn. The group compared the
GPRs after both groups had taken the
next class at A&M. He said the com
mittee found students who took
Blinn classes had lower GPRs.
Aaron Bigbee, a science senator
and a sophomore mathematics ma
jor, said the Student Senate commit
tee considers the research invalid.
“The research is from the 1994-95
academic year and didn’t take into
account many other factors, such as
Blinn’s expanded campus and facili
ties,” he said.
The Faculty Senate Academic Af
fairs committee said more research
should be completed on the issue,
and the report and recommendation
were sent back to the subcommittee.
Bigbee said the student commit
tee also found there are many ad
vantages to taking classes at Blinn,
such as a smaller student-to-faculty
ratio.
Josh Hennessey, chair of the Stu
dent Senate Academic Affairs com
mittee and a junior accounting ma
jor, said that if the policy is changed,
the new policy will be difficult to en
force.
“Student requests to co-enroll
have been turned down in the past,”
he said. “They have gone ahead and
taken the classes at Blinn, and A&M
had to recognize the credits.”
If co-enrollment requests are
turned down, the students can take
the classes during the summer wher
ever they choose, Hennessey said.
Hennessey said the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board is
pushing universities to accept cred
its from recognized junior colleges.
Pole position
DAVE HOUSE/The Battalion
Junior redpots TJ. Saari, an agriculture business major, Gabe Perez, a construction science
major, and Nathan Buschow, a general studies major, set the drill to dig a hole Wednesday for
one of Bonfire’s four perimeter poles.
Commission formed to
address diversity issues
in higher education
Staff and wire report
A coalition of Texas university and col
lege leaders, including Texas A&M Uni
versity System Chancellor Dr. Barry B.
Thompson, announced Wednesday they
have created a commission to promote di
versified student bodies at Texas schools.
“It is imperative for us to find ways to
ensure the students attending Texas col
leges and universities reflect the popula
tion of the state,” Thompson said in a
press release.
The 24-member Texas Commission,
made up of community leaders from
across the state, will focus on how institu
tions can increase minority enrollment
without the affirmative action programs
outlawed by the Hopwood decision .
Eight Texas higher education entities ap
pointed three people each to the commission.
The A&M System appointed Dr. Perry
L. Adkisson, chancellor emeritus of the
A&M System and professor of entomolo
gy at A&M; L. Lowry Mays, chair and CEO
“It is imperative for us to find
ways to ensure the students
attending Texas colleges and
universities reflect the population
of the state.”
DR. BARRY THOMPSON
CHANCELLOR
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY SYSTEM
of Clear Channel Communications Inc.
and a former regent of the A&M System;
and Ron Kirk, Dallas mayor and a former
Texas Secretary of State.
Please see Commission on Page 2.
Tour wraps up visit
to Texas A&M campus
By Amanda Smith
Staff writer
Texas A&M students took advantages
of games, free prizes and samples from
corporate sponsors at the Glamour “In-
Sync” College Tour Oct. 21 and 22.
Texas A&M was one of 10 universities
on the tour sponsored by Glamour and
was featured in the October issue of the
magazine.
Deborah Blangiardo, senior merchan
dising editor, said the tour received strong
support from students and Texas A&M
Food Services, who sponsored the event.
“It (the tour) is in conjunction with our
college issue [in October],” she said. “We
recognized the colleges that we featured
in the magazine on our tour. It brings the
pages of the magazine to life.”
Misty Mitchell, a junior biomedical sci
ence major, said she decided to take ad
vantage of the free samples.
“They had a large variety of products
that would interest students,” she said.
“The tour seems to have brought a lot
of students out despite the cold weather.”
Blangiardo said the college tour focus
es on educating students about different
products on the market.
Please see Tour on Page 2.
Jerry
Gaston
By Colleen Kavanagh
Staff writer
Dr. Jerry Gaston, vice president
for administration at Texas A&M,
has high expectations for the future
of Texas A&M.
“Within the next 10 years, I see
A&M firmly established in the list of the top 10 public
universities,” he said. “People will know of A&M because
of its many academic accomplishments.”
Gaston coordinates Facility Planning Human Re
sources, University Police Department, Food Services, Research Park, the Department
of Parking, Traffic and Transportation Services, the Graphic Arts Center, Easterwood Air
port, the Physical Plant, the Faculty Club and the developing child care center.
Gaston said these departments work not for themselves, but for students and faculty
“Our goal is to provide the best service possible to support the missions of this uni
versity,” Gaston said.
Jeanette Pharris, assistant provost at A&M, worked with Gaston before he became
vice president for administration at A&M. She said Gaston established a positive rela
tionship with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
“Dr. Gaston always made sure a proposal was accurate and well-researched before he
sent it to the board,” she said. “He made sure facilities here were up-to-date and space was
well-utilized for the best benefit of this institution.”
Please see Gaston on Page 2.
PROFILE:
Gaston
Alice
Gonzalez
By Brandy! Brown
Staff writer
Although Alice Gonzalez stays
busy with her duties as speaker of
the Student Senate, she believes
it is important to save time for
friends, family and the community.
Gonzalez, a junior agricultural major, said her high-
school principal and agricultural teacher taught her
helping others can be rewarding.
“Their dedication to all students made me realize how important the people in our
lives are to helping us accomplish things,” she said. “So now if I have the opportuni
ty to be of service to someone, I follow their example. It instilled in me the importance
of taking a personal interest in students and those you have the opportunity to guide.”
Gonzalez is employed by the FFA, an agricultural youth organization, to present
personal development conferences to high-school students across the nation. She
speaks for the FFA eleven weekends a year.
Gonzalez said that these weekends provide her with something different from her
average day.
“Sometimes when we do the same things every day, we are pushed into routines,” she
said. “It is easy to forget about the outside world and to lose sight of the big picture when
you spend your days in a little office dealing with similar problems day to day.”
Please see Gonzalez on Page 2.
Gonzalez