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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1997)
The Battalion ober28 Tuesday • October 28, 1997 E S T Y L E S HELPING HAND ByjA&M students find hel e Station Acting saving grace of Playing God elementary school students a rewarding experience By Marium Mohiuddin Staff writer 5 X5 = 25, To Aggies, this equation should be easy to solve. To elementary school students, this equation can be the cause of sleepless nights and stressful weeks of math. Simply helping a child Plough the horror of multiplication tables "will be received with a big toothy smile and jning happy eyes. A few A&M students encounter these awards on a weekly basis by volunteering at ^elementary schools in Bryan-College Sta tion and spending 30 minutes to an hour a ====»week with an elementary student. GoT TJtTodd King, a senior marketing major, has t>lt 'fe volunteered for two years with the Aggie ^Buddies program in elementary schools. ■“I got involved through my church,” King said. “I would go (to the school) for a couple of hours every week, and I would sitlwith them in the classroom or in the ha)l. I would read with them or go over things they were having problems with sufch as math.” ^■King said it is not always obvious he is ' J<j helping the children he mentors. ||||“I had two students to work with,” King •said. “One showed no emotions and the other always ran over and gave me a hug J^i was always saying, ‘thank you.’ One Ui'tilhe I could not come, so I called ahead informed the teacher. When I went back, the teacher told me the student (who did not show emotions) had been crying because I did not come. That just killed me because I did not know I was having such an effect.” Ann Busch, the enrichment coordinator at Rock Prairie Elementary School in Col lege Station, has been involved with the Ag gie Buddies program for two years and finds it to be successful. “The program started nine years ago because we found there was a need for some young students to have a positive role model,” Busch said. “We have grown from 14 volunteers to 100 volunteers in the last year. The teachers request bud dies for their students. They look at stu dents who do not have siblings, who may have lost parents, are very shy or who need academic help.” The students are nominated by their teachers and need permission from their parents to participate. Busch said the program has been effec tive. Some parents have called her and asked if they can nominate their own child. Six to seven A&M campus organizations are involved with the Rock Prairie Elemen tary School Aggie Buddies program. The volunteers do not come exclusively from campus organizations. Volunteers have come from church groups and some inde pendently volunteer because they heard about die program dirough word of mouth. Busch said she did a survey to discover if the program is effective. “The teachers felt this was a positive influence and had made a difference on the students,” Busch said. “The teachers have noticed an increase in the students self-esteem, their attitude and their school work.” Busch said some relationships be tween the students and their mentors are maintained outside of the elementary school, also. “The partners have developed real friendships,” Busch said. “With permission from the parents, some A&M students have taken them bowling or to Putt-Putt. It is very gratifying when you see them walking down the hall holding hands with big smiles on the children’s faces.” Nicole Rodriguez, behavior manager at Ross Elementary School in Bryan, co -co ordinates Ross Buddies, a mentoring pro gram at Ross Elementary School, because she saw the impact it had on her daughter. “Two years ago I had a baby,” Ro driguez said. “I saw that my daughter was facing issues about the new baby and that ‘we loved the baby more.’ We felt that a buddy could help her through these is sues. Her buddy helped to reassure her, and I noticed a change in her attitude to wards the baby.” Please see Volunteers on Page 4. Playing God Starring David Duchovny and Timothy Hutton Directed by Andy Wilson Playing at Hollywood 16 ★ ★ ★ 1 / 2 (out of five) "relaying God uses a nice cast and solid JL-^/vriting to give the audience a heav- JL enly time. The action-thriller gives small screen star David Duchovny another chance at the big screen. Duchovny plays Dr. Eugene Sands, a gifted surgeon with a nasty drug habit. When he loses a patient while under the influence of drugs, he loses his license and almost his sanity. Sands is in a club one night looking for some drugs, when a shooting occurs. A man is left looking like a can ofV-8 at a fir ing range. Sands uses his considerable medical skill to save the guy’s life. After a job well done, Sands takes his drugs and heads home to get high. When the good doctor wakes up from a narcotic nap, a couple of gun-toting thugs are there to greet him. Apparently some one with a lot of clout took notice of Sands’ impromptu medical demonstra tion and liked what he saw. Sands’ new admirer is Raymond Blos som (Timothy Hutton), a software pirate who is nuttier than a squirrel on crack. Blossom likes Sands so much, he wants Sands as his own personal doctor. He pokes and prods Sands until he agrees to ‘Play God’ again, and start saving the lives of criminals. Blossom’s lady, Claire (Angelina Jolie) is not as eager to see the surgeon start practicing again. As Blossom’s gun han dling moll, it is her job to be suspicious of Sands. Things get complicated when the FBI gets involved, hoping to nail Blossom and anyone close to him. Soon Sands is caught between a large, jagged rock and a place harder than diamonds. The acting in Playing God is excellent. David Duchovny uses his stoic nature for great effect as Dr. Eugene Sands. Sands is nothing but an emotional flat line, with only a deadpan sense of humor to occa sionally spice up his existence. Timothy Hutton steals the show with his portrayal of the new age guru-cum- gangster Raymond Blossom. Hutton, a skilled actor, makes Blossom a kind of charismatic beach boy with a bad attitude. His character is never boring. Please see God on Page 4. David Duchovney stars as Dr. Eugene Sands in the new movie Playing God. Al&T Wireless Services G. Rollie White Tuesday October 28 9pm Presents Aggie Basketball Mania! Meet Both Teams! The Aggie Band! Prizes! Contest! Reveille! The Yell Leaders! Free Admission! Meet New Friends! The Aggie Dance Team! COLLEGE PARK 6 THEATRES f CT'l 2080 EAST 29TH STREET I J BRYAN, TX MOVIE TIME GUIDE THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS VALID FOR MONDAY - THURSDAY OCT. 27-30, 1997 CONTACT (PC) 7:00 9:50 SPAWN (R) 7:25 10:00 MY BEST FRIEND'S WEDDING (PG-13) ‘ 7:10 9:50 CONSPIRACY THEORY (R) 7:00 9:40 LEAVE IT TO BEAVER (PG) 7:20 NOTHING TO LOSE (R) 10:00 HERCULES (G) 7:30 EVENT HORIZON (R) 9:45 BOX OFFICE OPENS 6:30 pm MONDAY through THURSDAY Pink House Restaurant -•c- Romantic Candlelite Dining Exquisite Gourmet Fare Reservations - 364-2868 Now Taking Holiday Reservations J*I BRAZOSTRADER Vantkhjes & COLLEcnem: Browse in our store for a different shopping experience! Bargains Galore! • M - F 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. • Sat 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. • Sundays by chance 210 West 26th St., Bryan (409) 775-2984 1 nr -it ■ V . ; L, wimui Kf iifJUS V 111 MEDICAL SCHOOL TUESDAY OCT. 28 7:00 MSC 206 I Qyii • fm*2 -A+i* m. . •> ’Xia im Texas A&M University Executive Council of Health Organizations m sses C Box ETY 3BI1 if rertible . Tuesday and Wednesday, November 4th and 5th, 1997 COLLEGE STATION HILTON GRAND BALLROOM - 6:15 EM. All December *97 graduating seniors and graduate students* are invited. Complimentary tickets may be picked up in the MSC hallway, October 28, 29 & 30 (9 a.m. - 3 p.m.) TICKETS GIVEN ON A FIRSTCOME, FIRST-SERVED BASIS Student l.D. Required to Pick Up Tickets Compliments of The Association of Former Students *Graduate students who are not already a member may attend either night.