The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, February 25, 1999, Image 1

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    “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.