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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 5, 1999)
Page 8 • Friday, March 5, 1999 l The College Station to open Northgate police office • Department may add new services as result of new location. BY NONI SRIDHARA The Battalion A new College Station commu nity police office will officially open with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and reception at 10 a.m. today be hind the Loupot’s bookstore in Northgate. Major Mike Patterson of the Field Operations Bureau with the College Station Police Department (CSPDJ, said this community office is a natural extension of CSPD’s two other offices. The first is located in Lincoln Center and the second is in Windsor Square Apartments. Suanne Pledger, special projects director for Loupot’s bookstore, said the location was chosen be cause Northgate is the center of College Station activity. CSPD is trying to duplicate a program im plemented in Denton where the College Station officers recently re ceived formal training. Patterson said another reason for choosing the location of the of fice is because officers spend a large amount of time patrolling the Northgate area. “We not only have drinking in cidents,” he said, “but sometimes we’ll see car burglaries or vandal ism occurring over there. ” “We can now deal with these problems more directly if we have some officers over there. We are hoping to see more of a long-term effect.” Patterson said, in the beginning, the office will primarily be open during weekends and evenings, with one bicycle officer patrolling the area. He said the space and materials for the center, including the furni ture, have been donated by the Northgate Merchant’s Association. Patterson said they are looking at relocating the office if the North- gate parking garage is built. “If the Northgate parking garage is built, then we will see if we can relocate into the garage,” he said, “so we will have more space and it will be more secure.” Pledger said the office will also distribute tourist information to area visitors. “The members of the CSPD are acting as community ambas sadors,” she said, “so I hope it will be well embraced by the commu nity. ” News Rewarding Experience Conference to help develop new system to award Texas A&M professors for excellence in teaching BY RACHEL HOLLAND The Battalion Texas A&M faculty and admin istrators will explore ways to change the reward system for teaching today at the College Sta tion Conference Center. The local conference is part of a national project that helps uni versities develop methods of eval uating and rewarding teaching that enhance student learning. A&M, through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, was one of 11 universities that partici pated in the original national pro ject in 1995. Dr. Larry Oliver, project coordi nator and associate dean for the College of Liberal Arts, said A&M administrators became interested in expanding the project to other colleges after seeing its success in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Oliver said representatives from at least one department with in each college at A&M will par ticipate in the conference. “With the information they get, they will begin making plans to better evaluate, measure and re ward effective teaching," he said. He said departments will have one year to produce a brief report about their plans and make it available to other departments. “The end goal is for all depart ments to have better information and ideas on stimulating, evaluat ing, and measuring effective teaching,” he said. “We hope it will have a ripple effect across campus.” He said there is no master plan for departments to follow. “This is not an attempt to con struct a one-size-fits-all teaching system,” he said. “It is an attempt to get departments to construct a system that is best for the culture of the department.” Dr. Carlton Stolle, project coor dinator and a professor in the Mays College and Graduate School of Business, said the con ference will try to change the per ception that teaching is not as im portant as research. “What we are trying to do is keep the level of teaching high and more visible,” he said. “We are not trying to bring down research. We just want to elevate the level of teaching.” Memorial run to benefit American Cancer Socie BY RACHEL HOLLAND The Battalion Nearly 600 runners and walkers from the community are expected to participate in the 12th annual Bill Thomason 5K Memorial Run/Walk Saturday. Christian Galindo, the event di rector, said the race began in 1987 to raise funds for the American Cancer Society when his running partner, Bill Thomason was diagnosed with cancer. Galindo said there are two pur poses for the race. “We want to remember and hon or Bill, who died of cancer in 1988,” he said. “We also want to raise funds for and support the American Can cer Society. ” He said $50,000 has been raised from the past 11 races and another $9,000 is expected from this year’s race. “It is important to raise funds for the fight against cancer, because it is such a horrible disease," he said. “And at the same time, we are trying to pass on a message of healthy liv ing. We want to encourage people to get involved in physical fitness and to eat properly so their bodies will be strong enough to fight off any thing.” Galindo said helping the Ameri can Cancer Society through the race became even more important to him last year when he was diagnosed with cancer. have struggled thro hopefully beaten it,” I remains an important cans 1 'We want to e/i courage peoplei get involved in physical fitness — Christian C Event! The race is at 9:30 a.m.S and there is a $15 entry course is a loop through we| that begins and ends at th on Villa Maria. Galindo said at least ha participants each year are dents. Forrest Lane, the unived tions sergeant for the Cadets and a junior polina i and economics major, saidffi l of Cadets will volunteer eleventh year at the race , The course is certified for the first time through | r • Track and Field and the-M Club of America. The orgac.® will measure the course a: J will be officially recognizee r tlLe 1 7 ° Jnversi I ■dents : acct FASHION. SOME PEOPLE GET IT. SOME GET IT FOR LESS. If you're one of the 99.9% of all college students who could use a little extra spending money during Spring Break, stop by T.J. Maxx before you go. We have everything you need from swimsuits to sandals, sunglasses to beach towels. All at incredible savings. That's it, class dismissed. COLLEGE STATION: Post Oak Square Shopping Center, Hwy. 30 (Harvey Rd.) & Highway 6 Bypass, next to Post Oak Mall Daughti of Jasp man urgt legislat Rijiness IV&M en r s rep :h|nce t ision ifbegen ■d Uni tastude Tadh ftt 195 • udit in to Ai AUSTIN (AP) - With bling hands and moistened I the eldest daughter oiabiacijl dragged to his death in East £ urged lawmakers Thursday teB/^ / hate crimes legislation. * ‘As Americans, we have es in life to hate or not to bar'll x kill or not to kill, to be alealpW'l' be a follower,” Francis Renee! Mullins, 28 said. “(Whoever killed my t« also had choices,” she tolly. u j e| Senate State Affairs CommiE^^ “and they chose violence.” |Lp US Last summer, Mullin’s n( ] anc | James Byrd Jr., waschainei:L s j onj; back of a pickup truck whiff] et lra alive, dragged for several {ration, and left outside a black ceirMcordc in Jasper. ijor in A jury convicted oneoiBd the white suspects, John Willia ilutions and sentenced him to deposed ec week. Trials for the othert'|ing the pending. ■Harw Mullins made no memTpic wa the jury’s verdict, but she® “Our that hatred led to her dor death. °brate “While we were out beiii^ Uc h le ers in our country, my dad' 1 ! Harw home being lynched by hi- 01 citizens,’’ she said, referring® actlv time that she, her brother at )c ' e 1SSI husband served in the Ann! “It was a crime against Americans,” she said, “and also a crime against human* Mullins urged supportW that would establish a Text man Rights Protection Acttt • victims of hate crimes to set A7“| il remedies in the formot V X pensatory and punitive da “Texas has been in thespi due to the horrific hate I killing of James Byrd Jr.,”sl bill’s author. Sen. Royce Tain ten Dallas union t “This bill could setanJ«^ ore precedent for taking careT la itic Katin n tims of hate crimes ... by ration in the message that if you cok es ' n ;ii Wernati hate crime, you will payll, , cost, not only to society,' ^ your victim as well,” WestJ )w Mullins spoke alone, a ;: l S()C|)( legislation was left pendinL , p‘ if fore she left, all committee- bers rose to applaud and the ! iS;50c j at brace her. T Thef “We can’t allow our sod tie dres: be divided by race, sexual o: j|social tion, ethnicity, religion, ag^ti dent der anymore,” Dianne Hai4 s ;ociat cia, executive director 0 ldent Lesbian Gay Rights Lobby said in an interview. Donn eoring “It is time we unite todo ir^ctor can, and we’re hopeful this we will.” ociatior