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Tomorrow
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INSIDE « p ? rts "• see ^ age f
Opimon ... see Page 5
Battalion
TOMORROW
Opinion:
Advertising campaigns
should focus on products
actual use, not sexist
propaganda.
TH
YEAR • ISSUE 144 • 6 PAGES
TEXAS ASM UNIVERSITY ■ COLLEGE STATION. TX
MONDAY • JUNE 1 • 1998
Stars and Bars
Cadet sues University for Corps’ divisive symbols policy
ebas;
ipus
ction
By Amber Benson
City Editor
A member of the Corps of Cadets
filed suit against Texas A&M Univer
sity May 15 claiming a Corps policy
barring the display of Confederate
symbols is unconstitutional.
Thomas Chisum Womack, a
sophomore agricultural journalism
major from Eustace, retained an attor
ney after being forced to remove a 3-
by-5 inch Confederate battle flag stick
er from his footlocker in the fall.
Womack was asked to remove the
sticker in compliance with Corps pol
icy, outlined in the Corps of Cadets
manual. The Standard, which bans the
display of divisive symbols.
Corps Commandant Maj. Gen.
M.T. "Ted" Hopgood amended the
manual last August to specifically
mention the Confederate flag and has
stood by the wording despite several
attempts by Womack's attorney, Kirk
Lyons, to persuade him to remove the
specific reference from the manual.
Lyons, an attorney with the South
ern Legal Resource Center in
Mountain, N.C., said the case
about the battle flag.
"This is a civil rights issue.
Black Confederate flag issue," said Lyons,
is not "You could substitute any flag you
want to, the issue would still be about
not a his First Amendment rights."
CONFEDERATE
A Corps of Cadets spokesperson
said the Corps does not comment on
pending litigation.
Texas A&M University System
Chancellor Barry Thompson com
mented on the issue last month when
he was a featured as an interview sub
ject on Texas Monthly's Web site.
"Texas A&M's Commandant of
Cadets views display of the Confeder
ate battle flag within the Corps as divi
sive and, therefore, prejudicial to good
order and discipline," Thompson said.
Thompson said he considered
Hopgood's actions to prohibit the flag
a proper exercise of the commandant's
authority.
Some A&M former students,
however, have not been supportive
of the ban.
In a Jan. 12 letter to Hopgood, for
mer gubernatorial candidate and dis
tinguished alumnus Clayton Williams
Jr. argued for an end to the ban, ac
cording to reports in the The Bryan-Col-
lege Station Eagle.
see Lawsuit on Page 2.
Aggies for Dixie
seeks local support
By Amber Benson
City Editor
Preserving Texas A&M University's "Confederate past"
is the main purpose of a new student organization now be
ing formed in support of Thomas Chisum Womack's law
suit against A&M.
Womack's attorney, Kirk Lyons, said the group, which
is organizing under the name of Aggies for Dixie, is cur
rently looking for support both on campus and within the
Bryan-College Station community.
Although Aggies for Dixie is not affiliated with any of
the numerous self-proclaimed Southern heritage organi
zations, it is supported by them.
Dr. Michael Hill, president of the League of the South,
a Southern heritage organization headquartered in Alaba
ma said Aggies for Dixie will be a much-needed voice in
the community.
"Aggies for Dixie will combat the attitude of General
Hopgood and raise support for the traditional Confeder
ate history of the University," said Hill.
Lyons said Aggies for Dixie hopes to become a univer
sity-recognized organization by the fall.
infro|
dthfl
Officials reluctant to make
predictions on minority
enrollment for the fall
By Sarah Goldston
Staff Writer
I Despite an increase in minority student confirmations for the fall se-
Biester, Texas A&M University admissions and records warns against ear
ly predictions of increased minority enrollment.
I A&M bases the number of minority students who will attend in the fall
|on the number of confirmations for the summer conference that is designed
as an orientation and registration opportunity.
I Gary Engelgau, executive director of admissions and records said A&M
is seeing an increase of confirmed acceptance responses of minorities over
Ilastyear because the overall number of accepted students has increased.
I The increase is due in part to a state law, which grants automatic ac
ceptance to all high school seniors graduating in the top ten percent of their
llass. Among the students who have been accepted to A&M for the fall,
i,600 applicants fall into this category. The total predicted number of stu
dents for the fall is around 6,300.
I Due to the Hopwood decision, A&M cannot use ethnicity as selection
Iriteria for admission. Engelgau said A&M is putting forth more effort to
lecruit underrepresented students.
I Engelgau said he does not expect the number of minority students to
drop, but he wants potential students to know that A&M is a school for all
yalified applicants.
Engelgau said after the last round of regular admissions, applications
re reviewed and acceptance letters are sent.
1 "About 50 percent of the students receiving letters accepted our offer
last year, but this year we are seeing a 63 percent response from the entire
applicant pool. As of now there will be no more admission offers for next
|ear and there will be no wait list acceptance," said Engelgau.
I Although A&M cannot target minorities directly, an effort is being made
:osend more information to high schools that have not sentstudents to A&M
n recent years. A&M is also trying to geographically cover Texas to aim at
'ecruiting students from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds.
see Enrollment on Page 2.
College Station plans to erect barricade
at Munson Avenue and Dominik Drive
OVERALL
7269
CONFIRMATIONS
as of May 98
5573
fall 97
fall 98
©
By Amber Benson
City Editor
The College Station City
Council voted 3-2 Thursday to
close Munson Avenue at Do
minik Drive on a trial basis.
see Related Editorial on Page 5.
City Manager Skip Noe said
barricades could be in place
within a few days.
The decision to close the road
is the second attempt by the
council to lessen the amount of
traffic on Munson Avenue, a res
idential road used as an alterna
tive to Texas Avenue.
The first attempt to decrease
traffic, which began in January,
involved installing stop signs
and speed bumps from Lincoln
to Dominik Drives.
While reducing traffic vol
umes on Munson Avenue from
8,000 vehicles per day to 3,250,
traffic counts on neighboring
Ashburn Avenue tripled.
Members of the College Hills-
Woodlands Neighborhood Asso
ciation presented a petition of 41
signatures urging the council to
close the street citing a need to
"preserve their neighborhood's
character as a small town" and to
save the street from "destructive
levels of non-neighborhood
through traffic."
Neighborhood association
president Gary Halter, who
worked to open Munson Avenue
Photo Bv Kvan Rogers/The Battalion
Dustin Aldridge, a senior industrial design major and a resident of Munson Ave., watches traffic as he anticipates the tentative
street closing. Last week Aldridge’s dog was injured when it was struck by a car on Munson.
when he was mayor of College
Station from 1981-1985, said he
had changed his mind and en
couraged the council to "correct
a mistake I made."
Opposition from, accessed
through the Department of Stu
dent Financial Aid's Web site
(http: / /faid.tamu.edu), the clos
ing came from area residents and
College Station Fire Marshal Jon
Mies who said closing the street
could increase fire and emer
gency vehicles response times.
see Munson on Page 2.
Employment database found on Internet
WHITE
INTERNATIONAL
BLACK
OTHER
ASIAN
HISPANIC
1997
By Amber Benson
City Editor
Information about student employment op
portunities is now available exclusively on the
Internet.
A Web-accessible database replaced the job
boards formerly located on the second floor of the
Pavilion.
This database database can be accessed
through the Department of Student Financial
Aid's Web site (http: / /faid.tamu.edu).
The database allows students to create a re
sume, search job listings and apply for positions
online.
Both on- and off-campus employers can post
available positions, as well as search for quali
fied students.
Assistant Director of Student Financial Aid
Bob Lawson said posting information online is
simply better customer service.
"Students shouldn't be relegated to search
ing for jobs during my office hours," said Law-
son. "This system allows students to find em
ployment on their own time."
Some employers are concerned about a de
crease in applications since the listings went on
line.
"It's a good system," said Adam Davidson,
director of human resources at the Texas A&M
Ocean Drilling Program, who cited a drop-off
in the number of applications he has received.
"I just don't think many people know about it."
Lawson said there are currently 850 students
and 431 employers who have filed information
into the database, but he looks for those num
bers to increase dramatically in the fall semes
ter.
"With the job boards, a student looking at
five different jobs would have to prepare five
applications, with the Web site you only have
to prepare one application for those five jobs,"
said Lawson. "It's a tremendous timesaver."