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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 25, 1999)
“M students lobby for 170-hour cap bill clause BY AMANDA SMITH The Battalion A&M students have spent the past two '\W|s k'bbying members of the Texas House of spre; mtatives in Austin, after the Senate 31-0 \' led Monday for a bill that would grandfather law that cuts off state funding to un- Tduates earning 170 hours or more at state jhei-education institutions. "Jl: Ser. Teel Bevins, R-Amarillo, sponsored the 1 challenging the 1997 law permitting uni- rsijies to charge out-of-state tuition rates to "iP^Bexceeding the allowed number of credit eHo 1, ws _ insfchf the revised version of the bill passes, the dPd' wcap will apply to freshmen entering in Fall 99. State funding, in most cases, would be jjpped for undergraduates receiving 45 hours ore than their degree plans as required, legislative Relations, a division of Student iy^Bnment Association, sent two committee embers yesterday and three Tuesday to urge H representatives to pass the concurrent 11. r Ashli Simpson, Legislative Relations chair '110 id a sophomore agribusiness major, said the ?wbill, SB-345, provides incoming freshmen r bOCi4 ou gh room for flexibility in creating their " :heduies. “I feel it gives students adequate room, with a few exceptions, for students to graduate with out exceeding the cap for those with transfer hours and those changing their major,” Simp son said. Alicia Esslinger, a student senator and a se nior political science major, said the considera tion for current students is an improvement over the 1997 law. ‘‘The [Texas] Legislature has a different con cern than the students, and we are looking out for our concerns as students,” Esslinger said. “Had they decided to make this a law affecting students currently enrolled, the bill would have been unfair. ” Under the 1997 law, students with 170 hours in Fall 1999 would pay nonresident tuition, $254 per semester credit hour, compared to $38 per semester credit hour for residents. Rep. Fred Brown signed on as a joint sponsor of SB-345 when it entered the House for debate. “It is just not fair to change the rules on stu dents halfway through their education,” Brown said, in a press release. “Students at Texas A&M and across the state should not be held ac countable for laws that are implemented once they have already started their degree plan. Some were concerned that they would not be able to finish their education if the rules were changed on them this late in their education.” % JIack Awareness Committee to present raditional entertainment at festival be in BY RICHARD PADDACK The Battalion MSG Black Awareness Dmmittee (BAG) will sponsor traditional African-Ameri- m program from 7 to 9 p.m. Rudder Theater. “Harambee Unity Festi- il,”[which began in 1993, ill ‘provide the audience ithjan array of presenta- ans and entertainment ised on African-American ilture. The central theme of the stival is “Lifting the Veil: ackCollegiate Leadership,” id the objective is to pro- ote unity within the irican-American community rough discussion. The pro gram will increase awareness of African-American culture and celebrate diversity. Entertainment will include choreographed step perfor mances and the Miss Black and Gold participants. Representatives from tradi tional black organizations from Texas A&M, Texas South ern, Prairie View A&M and the University of Texas will provide further information on the purpose of their orga nizations and discuss issues plaguing the black communi ty. Until this year, BAG has not included organizations from other universities in the Harambee festival discus sions. BAG has been a University- recognized organization for 30 years. “The MSG Black Aware ness Committee strives to build unity through educa tion,” Valerie Edwards, BAG director of marketing, said. “The committee will pro vide the campus and com munity with an educational and entertaining program that is synonymous with its goals.” The program is free and open to the community. BAG will collect canned goods at the door for charity organizations. Those who at tend are encouraged to wear Afro-centric colors but casual attire is acceptable. bating Disorders Awareness Week losts panel discussion of experts BY PING-YA HSU The Battalion Eating disorders among college students *1 [ire discussed yesterday at a panel sponsored ||||l> l 'the Department of Student Health Services, e Student Counseling Service, Aggie Repre- ntatives Educating About College Health Lgfg EACH) and the Student Dietetic Association. ™ As part of Eating Disorders Awareness eek, the panel featured a group of health pro- Opou^ Ssionals and a student who recovered from i eating disorder. Dr. Mary Ann Moore, a psychologist for the ?partment of Student Health Services, said ^t-las A&M has a team to provide accurate di- fJA ft(f is and treatment of eating disorders. Dr. Ann Reed, a physician for Student ^Klalth Services, and Dr. Jane Cohen, health ucator and nutrition specialist, serve on the jcceT Hand offer evaluation from the three med al fields. “frarely see people who [become] bulimic ace they [have become] college students,” x dole said. “People start as early as junior - ghlor even elementary school.” Tammy Akerman, a member of Aggie iAfH and a junior nutrition major, said near- five million American women suffer from ting disorders, and 50 percent of fourth- ade girls diagnosed with eating disorders ive died from them. “Fashion images of the look in the 1990s are ft Host recent expression of what has be- y Terry Roberson/Thf. Battalion (L to R) Dietician Dr. Jane Cohen, R.D.; Court ney Pickens a junior biomedical sciences ma jor; psychologist Dr. Mary Anne Moore and physician Dr. Ann Reed speak Wednesday as part of a panel discussion on eating disorders. come an obsession with thinness,” Akerman said. Aggie REACH, one of the sponsors, is a group of student volunteers trained to give pre sentations about health-related issues. Aker man said the organization’s main goal for sponsoring the panel was to enhance aware ness of eating disorders and provide a clinical explanation to help students understand the is sue. Cohen said while it is true women suffer from eating disorders more often, men are not an exception. She said the majority of men who have the problem are athletes monitoring their weight and physical-fitness level. SALLIE TURNER/Tm- Battalion Kendra Wilson, a sophomore general studies major, climbs up to the Wild Woosey at the challenge course Wednesday. Each semester more than 500 students run the challenge course for venture dynamics. organs donated BY SAMEH FAHMY The Battalion Five people, including a one- year-old girl, were given a second chance at life after receiving the or gans of Barry Joseph Vail II. Vail, a freshman ocean engi neering major, died Saturday, Jan. 30, after falling three stories in the southwest stairwell of the South- side Parking Garage. Vail’s sister, Lorie Vail, a sopho more education major, said if peo ple understood the benefits of or gan donation, more people would donate. “My brother died,” she said, “and yet there were five miracles that day.” The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), a non-profit orga nization to advance organ avail ability and transplantation, esti mates that more than 3,500 Texans are waiting for organ transplants and more than 200 Texans will die this year before finding an organ. Vail said her brother indicated he wanted to be an organ donor on his driver’s license, and his family supports organ donation. According to UNOS informa tion, families must agree to donate the organs of their relatives, re gardless of what a their driver’s li cense indicates. see Vail on Page 2. Residence Hall Association discusses parking garage, Mclnnis Hall bills BY RACHEL HOLLAND The Battalion The Residence Hall Association (RHA) discussed two bills last night, one recommending that the Texas A&M University Board of Regents vote against the proposed West Cam pus parking garage, and the other addressing Mclnnis Hall residents. The parking garage recommenda tion which will reduce the corre sponding parking fee increases and further researching the placement of the garage was adopted and will be referred to the Board at its March meeting. The proposed site for the parking garage is Parking Area 56, near the Student Recreation Center. Sam Keen, author of the garage bill and a freshman chemical engi neering major, said the proposed garage is not located near future res idence halls or academic building sites, and it would not benefit the students, staff and faculty it is de signed to serve. He said on-campus residents are the primary users of contract park ing on campus, and they would be affected by large parking-permit-fee increases if the Board approves the existing proposal. “What the parking garage would mean for residents is worse spots for more money,” Keen said. Heather Sizemore, an RHA mem ber and a sophomore biological sci ence major, opposed the RHA garage bill. She said she disagrees with im plications of the recommendation’s wording. “The [RHA] bill complains about the garage and the fees, which are separate problems,” she said. “The RHA needs to address these sepa rately, not in the same bill.” RHA postponed action on a bill giving Mclnnis Hall residents priori ty in selecting a new hall for the Spring 2000 semester, when the hall will be closed for renovations. The bill would also give priority to prior Mclnnis residents when returning to the hall in the Fall 2000 semester. The bill will be addressed at the next RHA meeting. The guidelines outlined by the bill would be followed for residents of other balcony-style halls, the FHK complex and Shumacher Hall if the halls undergo similar renovation procedures. Collin Brogile, an author of the Mclnnis Hall bill and a sophomore electrical engineering major, said students who live in Mclnnis de serve preference in selecting a dif ferent hall. “Many of us live in Mclnnis be cause of the price,” he said. “We don’t want to be forced into more expensive halls during the ren ovation.” Conference to review effects of Hopwood BY ANDREA BROCKMAN The Battalion A University-wide conference today at Rudder Theater will unite students, staff and faculty to discuss effects of the Hopwood ruling and efforts to enhance diversity in the community. In March 1996, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals declared race-based practices in admission procedures un constitutional in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. The Texas legislature and attorney general applied the ruling to all state universities. Steve Murdock, professor and head of Texas A&M’s Department of Rural Psychology, concluded in a recent study that the Hopwood decision may be leading minority students, particu larly African-Americans, to attend col leges outside of Texas. Nancy Sawtelle, director of admin istrative services in the office of the provost, said minority groups are pro gressively becoming the majority in Texas, and A&M is not as diverse as other universities. “We are trying to get people across campus to talk individually and col lectively how we can offer the benefits of a Texas A&M education to minori ties,” she said. Murdock will begin the conference giving the keynote address on the im pacts of Hopwood on students, em ployees and the Texas population. The conference will feature panel discussions on successful diversity pro jects and perspectives from A&M lead ers, including Jerry Gaston, vice presi dent for administration, and Dr. J. Malon Southerland, vice president for student affairs. Sawtelle said the conference will conclude with discussion sessions to allow students, faculty and staff to brainstorm together. “Sometimes students have great ideas no one on the faculty or staff has thought of,” she said.