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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 1998)
FRIDAY October 16, 1998 Volume 105 • Issue 36 • 8 Pages Candidate complains Bowen receives Pradhan report [bout write-in process BY AMANDA SMITH The Battalion - BY MEGAN WRIGHT The Battalion n Sep. 30, Brian Kienitz, a hman chemical engineering [or and write-in candidate for lent Senate, went to vote dur- the freshmen elections, ienitz claims that on his ballot, e was no space provided for a te-in candidate’s name. “I questioned the poll officer as vhere I should place my write-in Kienitz wrote in a letter sent lytjstudent Body President Laurie kel, Student Speaker of the Sen- Amy Magee and Election Com- ioner Chris Chase. I think the main problem with the election was just lie fact that some the Wildli':| WednesdJ pf the poll officials idn’t know exactly hat to do offici [igginstf bert ] ts lower it ] Piper, iiij m ) less (ini ce of ), He — Brian Kienitz Write-in candidate for Student Senate In response she handed me a :e of paper from the notebook in ire ofskM band. She told me to place my r acknowt |e on the paper along with my stu- 1. pt ID number. Although the cess of writing in a candidate was bnvenient for me, at least I was le to write in a candidate. In con- sations with other voters, I be ne aware of those who were not leto vote for a write-in candidate ie fear because the poll official at their d not pla' , | Jjitofi bands Remember the secok I «pme crime lied aw3( station had said there were no sheets for write-in candidates. I learned of the confusion caused by the write-in policy, and in other cases, direct dis regard of election regulations. ” Kienitz said he felt that because the poll official took away the ability for a voter to cast a vote for a write- in candidate, the ability to be elected was taken away from the candidate. Kienitz said the reason he wrote the letter was in order to make elections better for all who participate. “I know that it is too late to change the election results, but my goal is that, eventually, the elec tions are fair for everyone,” he said. Chase, a senior history and Eng lish major, is responsible for planning and conducting elections and the re cruiting and training of poll officials. “The elections themselves are huge processes which take two days, eight hours each day, at 10 sta tions around campus,” Chase said. “The people on the election com mission serve as poll judges at each station. We use volunteers from two different service organizations on campus to serve as the poll officials, which can mean up to 300 people. We give them an agenda and in struct them as to what happens dur ing those voting days and potential situations, such as write-in candi dates. With so many people, there is bound to be small problems.” Each poll station is given a num ber of pre-printed write-in candi date ballots. When those sheets run out, poll officials are instructed to use regular paper and to instruct the voter to include student identi fication information on each sheet. Chase said if a person was told no ballots were available for write- in candidates, it was an isolated in cident with a specific poll official. see Elections on Page 2. In a report sent to Texas A&M Uni versity President Dr. Ray M. Bowen, a committee said computer sci ence professor Dhiraj Pradhan formally waived any further right for a hearing to consider the cir cumstances un der which he was placed on administrative leave in August 1997. The report was obtained through a request pursuant to the Texas Open Records Act. The five members of the Uni versity Committee on Academic PRADHAN Freedom, Tenure and Responsibili ty proceeded with the originally scheduled hearing on Oct. 6, de spite Pradhan’s formal request to withdraw from the hearing. Pradhan was placed on paid administrative leave after a 1997 University audit accused him of misappropriating more than $100,000 of University funds for his two private businesses. In August, Pradhan filed a lawsuit against Texas A&M University for al leged discrimination and violation of his First Amendment rights. Pradhan, a native of India, accept ed the highest endowed chair in the computer science department in 1992. Pradhan continued to earn $182,000 a year while on administrative leave. Pradhan returned from admin istrative leave in late August. Jim Asholck, executive director of University Relations, said the committee’s report to Bowen will not change Pradhan’s status at the University. “Dr. Pradhan will resume his cur rent status on staff at the Universi ty,” Ashlock said. “There has been no change of plans to change the termination hearing scheduled for June (1999).” Gaines West, Pradhan’s attorney, was not available for comment. In a separate hearing, Pradhan faces a third-degree felony charge of abuse of official capacity for us ing more than $20,000 and less than $100,000 belonging to the Texas A&M University System for personal benefit. The case is scheduled to go to tri al Dec. 3. Petition hits 600 signature mark BY BETH MILLER The Battalion People of differing opinions gathered at the Munson Avenue- Dominik Drive barricade Thursday morning to support their views with petitions and protest signs. The recent College Station City Council decision to permanently block Munson Avenue, allowing only emergency vehicles access to the street, has been under debate by College Station residents. A pe tition to get the situation on an election ballot has begun circulat ing by residents opposed to the city council decision. The group circulating the petition organized Thursday’s gathering to offer College Station registered vot ers the opportunity to sign the peti tion. Several College Hills residents in support of the city council deci sion assembled at one corner of the intersection holding protest signs with the hopes of persuading voters to not sign the petition. Kayla Glover, initiator of the peti tion, said she had obtained approx imately 300 signatures prior to the gathering, and that Thursday’s ef- “/ don't want the traffic through the neighborhood, but I don't want this barricade here” — Linda Allbritton College Hills resident forts raised the total to approximate ly 600. The group must obtain 1,010 valid signatures in order to submit the petition to city officials. Judy Warren, a College Hills res ident who supports the city coun cil decision, said her main concern is the safety of the children and the families of the neighborhood. “I started being concerned about traffic because I couldn’t get my 10-year-old across the street to her piano lesson,” Warren said. She said she is looking for some type of protective device for the neighborhood and is concerned about the increase in traffic once the conference center and hotel construction projects conclude. “The reality is big streets are made for traffic; neighborhood streets are made for the people who live in the area,” Warren said. “I think the petition is offering an al ternative that is disallowing any traffic-calming on this street.” Linda Allbritton, a College Hills resident who signed the petition, said she is in favor of removing the barricade because it is an inconve nience when trying to enter and exit College Hills neighborhood. see Munson on Page 4. Hispanic Presidents’ Council leads unity rally nctim ainst Soi lC kedoi(f : BY AARON MEIER The Battalion per and Hi e fellow? ,v, both si p havefo rned m * ) following Thursday’s meeting of d woulil ! Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and 'fDallasI'* UlssexLia l Aggi es > members of the lanization spent time construct- |S ’ [yellow arm bands to honor the 0 smory of Matthew Shepard. Shepard, a gay University of doming student, died Monday trning after being assaulted, bed and tied to a fence in near- «zing weather Oct. 7. The arm bands can be picked up •III l* 16 Gender Issues Education Ser- liy :es (GIES) office at 211A YMCA. - Rick Brenneman said people na- iCn inwide are wearing the arm bands honor the memory of Shepard. A member of GLBTA discovered initiative through the Internet. “There is one reason we are iring the arm bands,” Brenne- ansaid, “and that is awareness — fiply awareness.’ Brenneman said the GIES office ay continue offering the arm bands ixtweek depending on availability. “There has been a lot of press riceming Matthew’s death,” Bren- inian said, “press both positive and Native. The positive press, as far as «anti-hate crime, and the negative foments that are anti-gay. ” Brenneman said the recent assaults |the Northgate area demonstrate no ^ is immune to the hate crimes. “The is no reason to believe that |is [the attacks in Northgate] could- thappen to a homosexual person,” penneman said. BY AMANDA SMITH The Battalion A national leader for the His panic community said Thursday learning how to respect ourselves is key to respecting other people. Maria Antonietta Berriozabal, a member of the Texas Advisory committee to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission and a mem ber of the Women’s Leadership Conference of the Americas, said cultural differences are part of what fuels the hate crimes seen in the news today. “In our country our children are seeing people killed because of their color, because of their religion and because of their sexual orien tation,” Berriozabal said. “We are killing people because they are dif ferent than we are. ” The Hispanic Presidents’ Coun cil invited Berriozabal to the Unity Rally, the final event celebrating His panic Heritage Month. Berriozabal said learning about personal culture is important to un derstanding different cultures. “When we are proud and re spectful of who we are, we are go ing to be more respectful of other people, of their culture, of their his tories and who they are,” Berrioz abal said. “It’s about learning how to respect ourselves and learning who we are. We are not better than anybody else, but we are not any less either.” More than 40 students marched to the Rudder Fountain area from George Bush Drive as ERIC NEWNAM/The Battalion Yvette Urteaga (right), a senior finance major, leads the Hispanic Presi dents’ Council unity rally march to Rudder Fountain Thursday afternoon. part of the Unity March before Berriozabal addressed students, faculty and administrators. Yvette Urteaga, president of the Hispanic Presidents’ Council and a senior finance major, said celebration of Hispanic culture will continue. “Just because Hispanic Heritage Month is over, we do not stop cel ebrating culture,” Urteaga said. “Hispanics in Texas will be the ma jority minority in Texas. Our cul ture is going to set us apart from the rest and make us a success.” see Rally on Page 4. Mammography Day aims to raise awareness BRANDON BOLLOM/The Battalion Brenda Bridges, a breast cancer sur vivor, said her treatment at the Cancer Center in Bryan saved her life. BY ANDREA BROCKMAN The Battalion An estimated 44,000 people in the United States have died from breast cancer so far this year. According to the American Can cer Society, in its earliest stages breast cancer has no noticeable symptoms. However, a mammo gram can detect tumors one to two years before they can be felt. As a reminder for women to practice breast health aware ness, the American College of Radiation is sponsoring Nation al Mammography Day. Dr. Kumud THpathy, an oncolo gist at the Bryan Cancer Center, said women at high risk for breast cancer should start getting mam mograms at 25. “A woman is at high risk if there is known familial breast cancer,” he said. THpathy said benefits show all average-risk women ages 50 to 70 should have yearly mammograms. “For women younger than 50 and older than 70, the benefits of a yearly mammogram have not been proven,” he said, “but a com mon practice is to recommend the first mammogram for every woman between the ages of 35 and 40, so they can observe any changes through the years. ” Tripathy said doctors should make their patients aware of all benefits and disadvantages of the procedure. “The benefits are obvious,” he said. “Cancer can be found at its earliest stage and can be removed with the least amount of disfigure ment. However, most abnormali ties found in mammograms are not cancer. In younger women false positives are high, and they may go through unnecessary stress, dis comfort of surgery, expenses and complications,” he said. see Mammography on Page 4. NEWS IN BRIEF Corps of Cadets plans Waco parade The Corps of Cadets will march though Waco Saturday as a prelude to the Texas A&M-Baylor football game. The march will begin at 4 p.m. from the corner of Franklin and 26th streets and end at the sta dium grounds. The Aggie Band will lead the parade, and Parson’s Mounted Cavalry will ride as the final unit in the march. The Corps selects two cities each year in which to march that co incide with A&M football games. The second march this year will be in Austin before the Texas A&M-Uni- versity of Texas football game. Influential architect visits Texas A&M Internationally-recognized archi tect Philip Johnson will visit the Texas A&M campus today. Johnson is visiting at the invita tion of Texas A&M Board of Regents member John Lindsey, who is bring ing the architect to A&M because Johnson is interested in designing a building for the University’s campus. Johnson was influential in the pop ularization of modern architecture in the United States, especially through his role as director of the department of modern architecture at the Muse um of Modern Art from 1930-1934. Many of his designs, including the AT&T Building built in 1984, helped promote Postmodernism architecture. Greek tourney to benefit charities Tomorrow, Sigma Chi fraternity and Zeta Tau Alpha sorority will be hosting their annual SB/Frat Rat Softball Tournament. The tourna ment will be held at the Bryan Ath letic Center and consists of 16 teams representing various organi zations in the Greek community. The proceeds from the tournament will go to the Children’s Miracle Network and the Susan B. Koman Breast Cancer Research Foundation. An es timated $1,200 will be raised at this year’s tournament. Indian Spring Park chosen for yell site Midnight Yell Practice for the Texas A&M-Baylor University game Saturday will be held Friday at Indi an Spring Park in downtown Waco. The park is located at the intersec tion of University Parks Drive and Franklin Avenue, just west of Inter state 35. Texas A&M-Tech game rescheduled The kickoff time for the Texas A&M-Texas Tech game on Saturday, Oct. 24 has been rescheduled from 1 p.m. to 2:35 p.m. The game will be broadcasted locally on ABC. Bush interview set to air tonight Former President George Bush’s interview with Charlie Rose will be aired tonight at midnight on KUHT- TV, Houston’s Channel 8. Bush and Brent Scowcroft, for mer National Security Advisor, dis cussed their book, A World Trans formed, last week at a taping of “The Charlie Rose Show." A World Transformed discusses world events that occurred during the Bush administration such as the re unification of Germany, the collapse of the Soviet Union and Tiananmen Square.