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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 1999)
Battalion s TATE Page 5 » Monday, February 15, 1999 rsm iouston-based company denies * tilde’ cholarships to honor students HOUSTON (AP) — They were, thout a doubt, the best and itingoutthai ghtest high school seniors in the icational pro'jntry: straight-A students, Na- ' studentsabo nal Merit Scholars, their class ease the odds illy transmittee vever, somebt rt week would tioual” if safe- aid, insteadoi do ms to sttide rtions of Rich; ns workout vi ulling any de; ever. lonents of cog, -bor hopes ibe dll somedayb edictorians. One student from every state in ? nation and the District of Co- nbia, connected by a common ead: All applied for and won a ),00('-a-year college scholarship, tewable for four years, from uston-based AdamsVision USA. There was just one problem. amsVision now admits there is money — never was. Now the students, having com- ■ted their first semester at col- ;e, are scrambling for financial listance while their parents are >d and apprec irchmg for answers and, in ont-informnu tie cases, lawyers. 'Howtopa.< AdimsVision founder Val nd the week-i amp insists he still is trying to tudy “TheAh a® up money to honor the ale for footba tolai ships. “Tpi very saddened that we’re the point that we are, but at the nejtime I’m very hopeful that 1 will get these scholarships rted and be able to continue our nmitment,” Adams said. “This s agood thing we were trying to But information uncovered autl Adams and the scholarship terprise raises questions about tether it was a legitimate effort reward good students or a scam ^Btrated by a man with a rap et full of financial crimes. ‘Besed on my contact with ripients only) b Huval is : major. him, I would be concerned if he were in any business where any one was relying on his promises,” said John Boone, a prosecutor with the Harris County district at torney’s office. Boone described Adams as a habitual criminal, convicted of theft for writing bogus checks in 1980, 1981, 1985, 1987, 1993 and 1995. Adams remains on proba tion for a 1993 case. “His schemes were fairly grandiose,” Boone said. “The least "This was a good thing we were trying to do ” — Val Addams AdamsVision founder serious of scams he was doing he had some sort of a fake business, and he would use checks from the business basically just to live well.” Boone said Adams may have had legitimate enterprises but that “typically there would be no sub stance behind the business. It would just be a front.” Adams acknowledges his crim inal past but maintains the schol arship effort was on the level. He notes that the students were not asked to pay an application fee or provide any money, something the students and their parents con firm. And he insists he invested $300,000 for expenses such as salaries for the professional edu cators who selected the recipients. “If I spent $300,000 to shyster somebody, that’s my response to that. I don’t think anybody in their right mind would do that,” he said. The scholarships, he said, were the company’s primary focus. In fall 1997, AdamsVision sent applications for its “Scholar-Lead ership Award” to every high school in the country. An attached letter promised the awards would be presented to the winners by the governor of their state at a musical event at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. Eligible students had to have at least a 3.0 grade-point average, a combined SAT score of 1160 or above and submit an essay and three letters of recommendation. Jean Lockhart, a former teacher Adams hired as a consultant on the project, assembled 15 educators in December 1997 to select the win ners. She said Adams assured her from the start that the scholarship money was in place. But Lockhart became suspicious after Adams, despite his contention, failed to pay her and the educators who se lected the students. On Jan. 8, 1998, letters were sent to 51 students announcing they had won, including Texas re cipient Justin Burt of Uvalde, who now attends Notre Dame. But their elation turned to con fusion a few months later when AdamsVision dispatched another letter saying funding for the schol arships was not yet complete. The letter stated AdamsVision was negotiating with “two major corporations” regarding sponsor ship of the awards presentation and that, although funding was in complete, it remained “absolutely confident we will receive corporate sponsorship.” At that point, however, many students already had accepted ear ly placement with universities. Ad ditionally, some had lost out on other scholarships after winning one so large. About a month before classes began, AdamsVision sent another round of letters to each winner’s university, informing them that the scholarship would be paid in $5,000 increments at the end of each semester. Then came the final blow. Last month, Adams sent a two- paragraph letter to each university stating simply that AdamsVision “will not be financially capable of honoring the Scholar-Leadership Award at this time.” Adams said he is continuing to try to get corporations to bankroll the scholarships and provided as proof correspondence with dozens of firms, including Sony, Ford, Time Warner and locally based Houston Industries, now called Re liant Energy. ot union refuses to yield to judge’s orders LAS (AP) — More than half of the Amer- n Airlines pilots participating in a sickout ve taken themselves off the sick list, but it is nut enough to prevent 550 flights from be- l canceled Sunday. Another 231 flights, or about 10 percent, of ipbeka flights scheduled for the Presidents Day hol ly on Monday have already been canceled be- use not all of the pilots were immediately liable for flying. The mass return followed a judge’s contempt FAC /)^ er f’ aturc ' a y against the pilots union and two •» ^•-^•'-"Dts top officials. ics anc | Gynecolo An American spokeswoman said “well un- r 1,000” of the 9,400 pilots were still shown ns of •ology sick on Sunday, compared to the nearly 2,500 ursday and Friday, when one in four pilots dared themselves unfit to fly. “We’re just glad they are coming back and we hope by the end of the week to be in busi ness as usual here,” added Sonja Whitemon, saying the airline could be offering close to 100 percent service as soon as Tuesday. According to American, about 40 pilots per hour have been taking themselves off of the sick list since a federal judge held the Allied Pi lots Association and two top board members in contempt and promised sizable fines against them. U.S. District Judge Joe Kendall said Satur day that the union did not do enough to en courage pilots to return to work after his court order. More than half a million travelers have been left at the gate by the nation’s second-largest air line because of the large number of pilots call ing in sick. Despite the continued cancellations, most of the nation’s airports were calmer Sunday with many passengers prepared for delays. At Miami International Airport, heart-shaped decoratiqns adorned American’s baggage counter wall Sunday, and musicians strolled through the Terminal serenading passengers. But many travelers remained angry. Kendall said he would decide Wednesday how much to levy in fines, although he promised they would be substantial. He re quired the union to place $10 million with the court and for union president Rich LaVoy and vice president Brian Mayhew to remit a total of $15,000. “I’m the guy who gets to stick his chin out there. I’m trying to protect the careers of these pilots,” said LaVoy, who told pilots in a hotline to continue to call crew scheduling to get off of the sick list. tic Counseling -Risk Pregnane; sound and Eleclit Monitoring C- Jfju rtc w riosis and Treatif ^ r ility idual, Nurturins ery of Your Bab; ^ Excision of Cen lasia ippointment, nd most other ce iite 117 2 49 & What’s a VP to do? Thursday, February 18th 6pm MSC 216T Learn about the new Vice President positions in the MSC and how you can be a part of the action. Questions?? Contact Jennifer V. at 845-1515 Persons with disabilities please call 845-1515 to inform us of your special needs, We request notification three (3) working days prior to the event to enable us to assist you to the best of our abilities. May Graduates Official Texas A&M Graduation Announcements on sale Jan. 11 - Feb. 26, 1999 For Information and to place your order access the Web at: http://graduation.tamu.edu All orders must be placed over the Web All payments must be received by February 26 MSC Box Office 845-1234 Mon-Fri 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Quantum Cow Tutoring 260-COWS In The Sparks Bldg. On Northgate. zal CHEJVtXdTRY DON’T SPEND HOURS ON THOSE WRITE-UPS! LAB \ Wise, Pum Weenie, Zip iiover, Wadf more only: -nt Retired 1 New Rel> •“more, out )erby & M)- 7 more only ! Kicks, Hopf So, Goldie, i pore only! SOLUTIONS TO PRELABS, 1 Cow REPORTS, POST LABS! jjjfotei 20—/ (Far purpose m only) [c supplied ~~ = LPfTy, Inc. " Texas Aggie Athletics This Week! Baseball Tuesday 3:00 vs. Southwest Texas State at Olsen Tennis (W) Wednesday 3:30 vs. SMU Basketball (W) Wednesday 7:00 vs. Nebraska Softball Friday, Saturday and Sunday Aggie Invitational Baseball Saturday 1:00 vs. UTA Tennis (W) Saturday 1:30 vs. Nebraska Basketball (M) Saturday 3:00 vs. Texas Baseball Sunday 2:00 vs. UTA Tickets off campus Kroger in College Station A Proud Corporato Sponsor! # THE PRINCETON REVIEW 2 reasons you should prepan with our 6RE course WE’RE SMARTER Our students have higher average improvements than students who took other courses. YOU’LL REALLY LIKE US More than 94% of our students were recommended by a friend. Classes started this past weekend ... but there’s still time. Call today! (409) 696-9099 T 11 [j A"\\ /to- www.review.com VS-JJ :;vv u ii v,--V/ ii The Princeton Review is not affiliated witli Princeton University or ETS. AGGIE RING ORDERS THE ASSOCIATION OF FORMER STUDENTS CLAYTON W. WILLIAMS, JR. ALUMNI CENTER DEADLINE: February 17, 1999 Undergraduate Student Requirements: 1. You must be a degree seeking student and have a total of 95 undergraduate credit hours reflected on the Texas A&M University Student Information Management System. (A passed course, which is repeated and passed, cannot count as additional credit hours.) 2. 60 undergraduate credit hours must have been completed in residence at Texas A&M University if your first semester at Texas A&M University was January 1994 or thereafter, or if you do not qualify under the successful semester requirement described in the following paragraph. Should your degree be conferred with less than 60 undergraduate resident credits, this requirement will be waived after you graduate and your degree is posted on the Student Information Management System. 30 undergraduate credit hours must have been completed in residence at Texas A&M University, providing that prior to January 1, 1994, you were registered at Texas A&M University and successfully completed either a fall/spring semester or summer term (I and II or 10 weeks) as a full time student in good standing (as defined in the University catalog). 3. You must have a 2J) cumulative GPR at Texas A&M University. 4. You must be in good standing with the University, including no registration or transcript blocks for past due fees, loans, parking tickets, returned checks, etc. Graduate Student Requirements If you are a May 1999 degree candidate and you do not have an Aggie ring from a prior degree, you may place an order after you meet the following requirements: 1. Your degree is conferred and posted on the Texas A&M University Student Information Management System; and 2. You are in good standing with the University, including no registration or transcript blocks for past due fees, loans, parking tickets, returned checks, etc. However, if you have completed all of your course work prior to this semester and have been cleared by the thesis clerk, you may request a “letter of completion” from the Office of Graduate Studies (providing it is not past their deadline). The original letter of completion, with the seal, may be presented to the Ring Office in lieu of your degree being posted. Procedure To Order A Ring: 1. If you meet all of the above requirements and wish to receive your ring on April 15, 1999 , you must visit the Ring Office nfi later than Wednesday. February 17. 1999 between the hours of 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. to complete the application for eligibility verification. It is recommended that you do not wait until February 17 to apply for your ring audit. Should there he a problem with your academic record, or if you are blocked, you may not have sufficient time to resolve these matters before the order closes out on February 19. 2. Return no later than February 19, 1999 between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. to check on the status of your audit and if qualified, pay in full by cash, check, money order, or your personal Discover, Visa or MasterCard (with your name imprinted). — Men’s 10K - $329.00 Women’s 10K-$203.00 14K-$434.00 14K- Add $8.00 for Class of ‘98 or before. The ring delivery date is April 15, 1999. Yep. That’s how we feel, too. The similarities are kind of uncanny: strength, pride, respect. But as they say, when you're a leader, certain things just come with the territory. 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PLATINUM technology .Jecause it's a jungle out there. At PLATINUM technology, inc., you'll be in good company. We not only have exceptional benefits but we also offer tuition reimbursement, and the freedom and flexibility to be your own leader. If you are unable to visit us on campus, please submit your resume in the following manner: For U.S. Mail/Fax please use 12 point font with minimal use of bullets, italics, underlining and bolding. For e-mail/Internet, please use ASCII format. PLATINUM technology, inc., Attn: Staffing Services-Code: COLLEGE, 8045 Leesburg Pike, Suite 300, Vienna, VA 22182. Fax: 703-848- 3357. E-mail: imc.staffing@platinum.com PLATINUM is an affirmative action equal opportunity employer, rich in diversity. For additional employment opportunities at PLATINUM technology, inc., please visit our website at www.platinum.com PLATINUM TECHNOLOGY