University
04 th YEAR • ISSUE 101 • 10 PAGES
COLLEGE STATION • TX
TODAY
1Ps3 65
TOMORROW
MONDAY • MARCH 2 • 1998
Crisis hits students
^.sian financial market woes drives foreign students to
ook for alternative means to cover their tuition costs
By Stacey Becks
Staff writer
The economic problems in Asian
Dun tries are putting a financial strain
n Texas A&M University internation-
. students, requiring some of them to
nd idternate ways of financing their
allege education.
In many Asian counties such as In-
onesia, Korea, Thailand and
lalaysia, currency rates are unstable,
his is having an effect on the ability
families to finance international
udents.
Susan Drolenskey, director of in-
irnational student services, said the
:opomic problems in these coun-
ie& are affecting international stu-
ents across the nation.
“It’s a microcosm because all U.S.
istitutions are having this problem,”
telsaid. “We hope all international
udents will apply for scholarships,
grants and loans for which they are el
igible. We will help anybody who
needs assistance.”
Drolenskey said U.S. institutions are
putting these students on installment
programs, delaying payment of tuition
and fees, providing scholarships and
loans and locating jobs. A&M already
has an installment plan and emergency
tuition and fees loans available to all
students having financial troubles.
“A lot of institutions are planning on
doing things A&M already has in place,”
she said. “I think it speaks well of A&M.”
Drolenskey said people who work
in international student offices are
trying to get Immigration and Natu
ralization Services to allow interna
tional students to fall below the full-
status requirement so they will be able
to save money.
Gwanghyeok Ju, president of the Ko
rean Association and aerospace engi
neering graduate student, said he had
to take out an emergency tuition and
fees loan for the first time this semester.
“Tuition is a problem for my wife
and me right now, so we had to take
out a loan for the first time,” he said.
“It isn’t enough though. Most Koreans
in this town are facing the same fi
nancial problems.”
Ju said many Korean students are
having problems because they rely on
their parents to pay for school.
Asia has the highest percentage of
students who study abroad, and many
of them come to the United States.
Norberto Chaclin, president of the
International Student Association and
a junior chemical engineering major,
said they want to make sure students
explore all financial assistance options
so they will not have to leave A&M.
“We want to make sure if interna
tional students are enrolled in A&M,
they will not have to drop out for fi
nancial reasons,” said.
A&M prof indicted,
receives death threat
By Amanda Smith
Staff writer
ATexasA&M University tenured professor said
he received a death threat over the phone Friday
morning, the day after he was
indicted on two felony counts
that charge him with misap
propriating state funds for per
sonal profit.
Dhiraj Pradhan, once the
school’s highest paid comput
er science endowed chair who
was suspended with pay last
August, said he believes the
death threat is a response to
several quotes that ran in a
Feb. 27 article in the Bryan-
College Station Eagle. The
quotes were taken out of con
text from private faxes he had sent to his col
leagues, Pradhan said.
“These comments were off-the-cuff remarks,”
Pradhan said in a phone interview. "I apologize to
anybody who was offended by the comments but
somebody called and threatened my life.”
Pradhan said he testified in an unexpected
grand jury hearing on Feb. 26 to dispute the accu
sations made against him by
the county. Texas A&M Univer
sity is also conducting a sepa
rate investigation of Pradhan.
“The district was not going
to indict me the night before
(on Wednesday),” Pradhan
said. “They told me that I was
free of possible charges. Then,
on Thursday morning I got a
call about the grand jury hear
ing, but I have nothing to fear.
1 have done nothing wrong.”
District Attorney Bill Turner
said Pradhan’s attorneys re
ceived a letter postmarked Jan. 30, which an
nounced the grand jury hearing.
Please see Pradhan on Page 2.
“They are wanting to
indict me to get rid of
me and to protect
somebody in the chain
of command.”
Dhiraj Pradhan
Computer science professor
Jerald Brown, a sophomore guard for the A&M Men’s Basketball Team, wildcats after the Aggies won their first confer
ence game of the season against the Baylor Bears. The win also marks the final basketball game to be played in G. Rollie
White Coliseum. Please see page 4 for The Battalion’s special section commemorating the Coliseum.
N S I D E
Am—M
P give audiences
two films with
Jxas A&M Men’s Basketball
Jam wins historic game
/er the Baylor Bears con-
uding G. Rollie White
oliseum’s tenure.
See Page 10
Bgpmaaaa
)nes: Discussing possibility
f life on Mars sends
merica into space frenzy.
See Page 9
ESKMSSSS
ittp: / /battalion.tamu.edu
ook up with state and na-
onal news through The
/ire, AP’s 24-hour online
ews service.
Fish Camp kicks off
Counselors announced today in Koldus
By Kelly Hackworth
Staff writer
Fish Camp planning leaders will be
chosen today as the 1998 counselors
are announced beginning at 8»a.m. in
the Koldus Governance Room.
This year’s theme is “Dreams Be
coming Reality.”
The Fish Camp office received over
1,500 counselor applications this year,
up 100 from last year.
Jessica Wallace, assistant Fish Camp
director and a senior biomedical sci
ence major, said the focus of this year’s
camp is a return to the basics and less
of a production.
“We want to focus more on the fears
and problems of the freshmen and how
we can help them,” she said.
BJ. Egenes, Fish Camp director and
a senior marketing major, said an ad
ditional 72 counselors will be added
this year to reduce the discussion-
group ratio.
“This will allow for more one-on-one
interaction between counselors and
their DG (discussion group),” he said.
The counselor results are no longer
posted on a list as in previous years.
Each applicant now receives an indi
vidual envelope containing either a
camp or regret letter. The regret letters
also include information about Fish
Co., formerly called Fish Crew.
Fish Co. is the official hospitality and
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welcoming committee for Fish Camp.
Applications for Fish Co. will be
available this month in 131 Koldus.
Fish Co. is open to anyone with Fish
Camp qualifications.
Qualifications include being in good
standing with the University and en
rolled in at least 6 hours in either class
es, student teaching or co-oping in the
spring and fall semesters. It is not re
quired to be in Bryan-College Station
during the summer and camp experi
ence is not necessary.
The 24 Fish Co. members also pay to
attend camp, but their charge is less,
Egenes said. They welcome guests,
speakers and University officials and
run the mixers.
Fish Camp runs its entire program
through student fees, Egenes said. Fish
camp is $100 for new students.
Fish Camp staff consists of the direc
tor, who has a two-year commitment;
an associate director who takes over the
following year; six assistant directors; 72
co-chairs; and 902 counselors.
Week showcases array
of international cultures
By Jennifer Wilson
Staff writer
Cultures from all over the
world are being celebrated dur
ing the 19th annual Internation
al Week, which begins today.
The celebration is sponsored
by the International Student Asso
ciation (ISA) and features cultural
displays, an international buffet,
entertainment and fashion.
Norberto Chaclin, president
of ISA and a junior chemical en
gineering major, said Interna
tional Week is an opportunity
for the entire campus and com
munity to come together and
learn about the 116 countries
and cultures present at Texas
A&M University.
“A&M is an extremely diverse
campus and has the potential to
be the most diverse university in
the nation,” he said. "This week is
organized for people to experi
ence unity and acceptance while
sharing their diversity.”
Chaclin said the theme of this
year’s celebration, “A Kaleido
scope of Cultures,” is intended to
show how cultures are different
and similar.
“Many cultures have origins
that overlap just like images in a
kaleidoscope overlap,” he said.
“When you bring all these cul
tures together, they form one
image of many different things,
as if you were looking through a
kaleidoscope.”
The festivities begin today at
10 a.m. with an opening ceremo
ny in the MSC Flag Room. After
the ceremony, arts and crafts rep
resenting the cultures of more
than 40 countries wilhbe-on dis
play in the MSC until Wednesday.
Fen-Ju Tsai, vice president of
MSC programs and a junior ar
chitecture major, said the cultur
al displays are presented by inter
national clubs at A&M who will be
representing their country.
Tsai said the displays provide a
chance to travel around the world
without leaving the campus.
She said over 2,000 students
from 116 countries will represent
their country by making models,
displaying flags, presenting trav
el information, baking food or
writing participants’ names in
their country’s language.
“The cultural displays pro
mote multiculturalism and are a
way for the community, especial
ly children, to learn and experi
ence new things,” she said.
A televised symposium on
China-U.S. higher education will
take place Wednesday from 2 to 4
p.m at the George Bush Presi
dential Conference Center, fol
lowed by an international buffet
at 7 p.m. on the second floor of
the MSC.
Tatsuki Ohashi, director of the
buffet and a junior international
'studies’-majoT; said the buffet is
one of the most popular events of
the week.
He said 30 countries will be
represented and each country
will bring 300 servings of three
dishes for a total of 900 servings
of food from each country.
“There will be some very un
common and unknown foods
that people will be able to enjoy
without having to actually visit
that country,” he said.
Thursday, delegates from
countries represented at A&M
will attend a consuls general
luncheon.
Please see ISA on Page 2.
Free library entry lures COSGA
By Helen Clancy
Staff writer
Free admission to the George Bush Presidential
Library and Museum attracted not only Texas A&M
students, but representatives from universities
across the nation.
“Student Weekend” at the Bush Library coin
cided with the Conference On Student Govern
ment Associations, which drew visitors from as far
as Hawaii.
Brandon Garrett, a COSGA host and a sopho
more international studies major, said the delegates
responded enthusiastically to the exhibits.
“They loved the Southern hospitality,” he said.
“We got great feedback from the delegates.”
Visiting the library was the last activity COSGA
planned for the delegates before their departure
Sunday evening.
Naomi Rodriguez, COSGA delegate and stu
dent body president from Long Beach State Uni
versity, said her strong ties to the Democratic par
ty did not hinder her appreciation of the Bush Li
brary. A photo of George W. Bush even brought
her to tears, she said.
“ [The library] brings you into the life of our for
mer president,” she said. “I’m a hard-core Democ
rat, but it changed my opinion of what I thought of
George Bush as a president.”
Rodriguez said she was hesitant to tour the fa
cility, but consented when she was offered free
admission.
Bush Library directors organized the weekend to
encourage students from A&M and Blinn College to
feel welcome at the facility, Museum Curator Patri
cia Burchfield said in a press release.
About 400 students toured the Bush Library Lri-
day and Saturday.
Please see Library on Page 2.
HELEN CLANCY/The Battalion
Brandon Garrett, a COSGA host and sophomore international studies major, examines an exhibit on Bush’s
’92 campaign during Student Weekend at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum.