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BY AMANDA SMITH
The Battalion
■ Legislators representing the Texas A&M com
munity are in the process of filing and debating
bills with the potential to impact budgetary ap
propriations, the state’s educational system and
the agricultural industry.
Bsen. Steve Ogden of the 5th District serves on
the Education, Finance and Veteran Affairs and
Military Installations committees.
■ Ogden has authored and sponsored a num
ber of bills in the 1999 legislative session. They
include legislation relating to the contracts with
ami completion of administration of state col
leges and universities, the Department of Pub
lic Safety’s complex crime unit and eligibility for
charge dismissals on the completion of drivers’
education courses.
v; ( In budgetary appropriation hearings, officials
from Texas A&M University have made presen
tations regarding the preservation of the revenue
received through the Permanent University Fund
(PDF), a fund earmarked for the Texas A&M and
the University of Texas systems.
■ Rep. Fred Brown of the 14th District, repre
senting part of Brazos County, serves on the
Higher Education and the Land and Resource
committees in the Texas House of Representa
tives. He served on the College Station City
Council for nine years.
■ Brown said higher education and land and
resource management are both important to the
Texas A&M University System.
■ Brown is working on legislation to increase
the partnerships between industry and high
schools in Texas through the expansion of vo
cational programs modeled after high schools in
Bryan-College Station and the Dallas Indepen
dent School District (DISD).
I “The equipment and the teaching would be
the latest, greatest, neatest, newest stuff,”
Brown said.
B Under the curriculum design Brown sup
ports, students in the vocational programs
would attend core-curriculum classes during the
morning and work in the industrial setting in the
afternoon.
I Brown said there is a demand in industry for
employees educated in telecommunication, mi
croelectronics, avionics and computers.
■ Brown said the Land and Resource Manage
ment Committee will primarily consider bills
cpncerning the land annexation in the extra-ter
ritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) zone of the cities.
I “Cities generally want to annex the sur
rounding land in their ETJ,” Brown said. “But
more and more we are hearing from people in
the ETJs wanting to preserve their rights.”
local problems
Substitute bill
proposes change
in traffic laws
A, A#
JP Beato/The Battalion
Texas legislators are currently working on legislation that will impact budgetary appropriation, the
educational system and agricultural industry. Brazos Valley Rep. Fred Brown of the 14th District
plans to expand vocational programs through out Texas high schools, similar to programs that exist
in Bryan-College Station and Dallas schools districts.
BY AMANDA PALM
The Battalion
Drivers who take advan
tage of the 25 mph speeding
allowance for driving-safety
courses could lose the privi
lege of having the ticket re
moved from their record.
Rep. Fred Brown filed a
bill with the Texas Legislature
that would cut the 25 mph
speed allowance to 12 mph.
Since being introduced in
January, a committee substi
tute to the bill is being drafted
to include additional changes.
When completed, the substi
tute proposal will be present
ed to the Texas House com
mittee in place of the original
proposal.
The changes to the origi
nal proposal divide the 25
mph speed window into two
parts.
The first change affects
speeding tickets issued for up
to 12 mph in a 70 mph speed
zone. The ticket can be re
moved from official record
with the completion of a dri
ving-safety course. The cur
rent law states that drivers
have 90 days from the date of
the offense to take a driving-
safety course provided they
have not taken the course
within one year prior to the
ticket. The law would still ap
ply to speeding offenses of up
to 12 mph over the speed lim
it.
The second change to the
bill affects speeding tickets is
sued for offenses of more than
13 mph in a 70 mph speed
zone. The offense would re
sult in payment of the ticket
and completion of a driving-
safety course under current re
quirements, but the ticket
would not be removed from
from official record.
Brown said the existing
law allows people to get away
with driving too fast because
people driving 95 mph in a 70
mph zone could take a dri
ver-safety course and have
the ticket removed from their
records.
“The number-one priority
of this bill is to get people to
slow down on Texas high
ways,” Brown said.
Phil Ward, president of
USA Training Company,
which is the largest provider
of driving-safety courses in
Texas, said his company
serves 250 privately-owned
schools in the state.
Ward said he is not sure
anything will be effective at
slowing drivers down, but
the bill may have a “dTiHing
effect” on drivers if passed.
“It may not be popular
with college students or with
people living in rural areas,”
he said, “but if you are dri
ving more than 12 miles over
the speed limit, you should
be prepared for what hap
pens.”
“This change could make
a good effort to slow drivers
down,” he said.
Brown said safety is his
main concern with drivers.
“We want to save lives on
Texas highways,” Brown
said.
Rep. Charles Jones of the 13th District, rep
resenting parts of Brazos, Austin, Burleson, Lee,
Milam and Washington counties, will serve on
the Agriculture and Livestock Committee and
the State, Federal and International Relations
Committee in the House of Representatives.
Jones said his work with the Texas Agricul
ture and Livestock Committee concerns A&M
System agencies, including the Agricultural Ex
tension Service, the Agricultural Experiment Sta
tion and the Board of Veterinary Medical Exam
iners.
Jones said he is primarily interested in re
ducing the property tax, which is supported by
Gov. George W. Bush.
Jones worked in the public school system as
a teacher and administrator for 28 years, and a
job training administrator for 12 years.
Driving-safety class qualifications
Drivers who exceed the speed limit by:
25 mph
12 mph
Old Law
Possible Law
• Driver-safety course is
•Driver-safety course
optional but must be taken
required to be taken within
within 90 days of the
90 days of the offense.
offense.
•The ticket will not be
• The ticket is removed
removed from official
from official record.
record.
nce Architect submits
tn odel for College
Architecture
Internationally recognized designer
Promotes drastic change for campus
coin
BY NONI SRIDHARA
The Battalion
Philip Johnson, a world-renowned architect, presented his
nodel for the design of a new building for the College of Archi-
ecture Thursday.
John H. Lindsey, a member of the Board of Regents, said the ac-
ual construction of the building has yet to be approved.
Lindsey said officials in the College of Architecture sought the
dd of Johnson because of his reputation and because of the limit
’d space available for the construction of the new building.
“In a way, we are building the carts for the horse,” Lindsey said,
r Johnson said the A&M campus is in need of a new building.
i ;: ; “This is the most monotone campus in this world, because it is
i ill one color, but it does have an amazing amount of uniformi-
(nf fP aru ^ clarity’” Johnson said.
want to break this mold of the beige brick and the lime-
itone trim.”
Johnson said the new building will possess many unique fea-
ures.
WISE sponsors forum
on career advancement
Photo courtesy of the College of Architecture
Philip Johnson, fourth from left, gazes at his design for the new
building for the College of Architecture. The estimated cost of the
structure is $12 million.
Lindsey said if the construction of the building is approved, then
they will come up with a time line, fit it into a budget and make
any necessary changes.
Lindsey said the estimated cost of the building is $12 million.
Johnson said his main purpose is to emphasize the student use
features in the building.
“This building will be an epicenter for student circulation,” he
said.
The proposed site for the building is where it will be among the
other architecture buildings facing Ross Street.
Johnson said this building will be a symbolic piece of architec
ture and the only one of its kind in the world.
BY NONI SRIDHARA
The Battalion
Enhancing career advancement,
avoiding workplace conflicts and
projecting a positive self-image are
among the workshop topics for the
seventh annual Women in Science
and Engineering (WISE) conference
to be held Saturday in the MSC.
Nancy Magnussen, director of
WISE, and program coordinator for
the College of Science, said WISE pri
marily targets graduate students but
the topics will be helpful to under
graduate students, faculty and staff.
Magnussen said there will be
speakers from throughout the nation
at the conference. The keynote
speaker this year is Dr. Stephanie
Bird, a special assistant to the provost
of the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT). Bird develops ed
ucational programs concerning ethi
cal issues and responsibilities in sci
ence.
Dr. Elena Castell-Perez, an assis
tant professor in the Department of
Agricultural Engineering, will be
hosting a workshop called “Striking
at Another: Avoiding Extremes.”
Perez said she will present scenarios
drawn from personal conflicts from
work and school.
“Women in the science apd engi
neering fields is kind of a non-tradi-
tional role so we sometimes have to
face many ordeals,” she said.
Castell-Perez said she wants her
presentation to be interactive. After
she shares her experiences she wants
input from students who would have
handled the situations differently.
“I want people to know it is ok to
be in a difficult situation, but once it
is resolved, even though it might
have been a painful experience, you
always learn a valuable lesson out of
it,” she said.
Magnussen said they want to
show the women how to have a pos
itive job experience.
“We want to help show these
women how to have a positive mind
set when they enter the workforce
and help create a positive environ
ment so they can go forward in their
careers,” Magnussen said.
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