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FRIDAY
May 7, i999
Volume 105 • Issue 142 • 18 Pages
College Station, Texas
aggielife
• Father and son to
receive A&M diplomas
at the same graduation
ceremony.
PAGE 3
today’s issue
Toons 2
Sports 13
Reminder
Today’s issue of The Battalion is
the last for the Spring semester.
Publication will resume May 31.
opinion
• The Supreme Court
created a double standard
by allowing prayer at
graduation ceremonies.
PAGE 17
Bomb suspects surrender
UPD says A&M students not charged, had no intent to cause harm
Students prepare
to leave halls
MIKE FUENTES/The Battalion
Members of the College Station Police Department prepare bomb squad equipment for the
detonation of a pipe bomb found in the Northgate residence hall area. The police detonated
the device at 2:40 a.m. Tuesday.
BY BETH MILLER
The Battalion
Two Texas A&M students suspected of
threatening the Northside residence hall area
with an explosive device early Tuesday morn
ing turned themselves into the University Po
lice Department (UPD) Wednesday saying
they had no intent to cause harm, UPD offi
cials said.
Bob Wiatt, director of UPD, said the two
individuals, a freshmen electrical engineering
major and a freshman meteorology major,
were found to have had no intent to cause
damage, panic or a response from emergency
personnel.
He said the men were not charged because
of the lack of intent, their cooperation with
the police and their contrition in the situation.
Wiatt said around midnight Tliesday, UPD
officer Ryan Mooney was dressed in plain
clothes patrolling Parking Area 30 near the
Northside residence halls and the Dulie Bell
Building when he noticed two male individ
uals by a barbecue grill flicking a cigarette
I lighter. Wiatt said Mooney’s suspicion was
I that the individuals were smoking marijua-
I na -
II As Mooney questioned the two individu-
11 aJs, they said one of them was smoking a cig-
I arette and was having trouble getting the
jl lighter started because of the wind, Wiatt
I said.
Mooney left the two men and walked to-
I ward the barbecue grill where he found a
I cylinder 9 inches long by 2 3/4 inches in di-
I ameter. Upon lifting the cylinder, he smelled
gun powder. He looked for the men, but they
had run into Moore Hall, Wiatt said.
Wiatt said Mooney called other officers
and the College Station Bomb Squad. The
cylinder was later determined to be filled
halfway with brake-cleaning fluid and Black
Cat fireworks.
Officers moved the device to the sand on
Keathley Beach. They secured the area and
detonated the device at 2:40 a.m.
Wiatt said a large crowd gathered between
midnight and 2:40 a.m. because of the police
cars’ lights and sirens.
He said the reason the effort took more
than two hours is because the officers had to
secure thg« ofea and warn students to stay
away from windows before they could deto
nate the device.
Wiatt said the situation and students’
names were referred to Student Conflict Res
olution Service for possible disciplinary ac
tion.
BY SALLIE TURNER
The Battalion
In the midst of the chaos of fi
nal exams, students living in res
idence halls should communicate
with their resident advisers to
avoid being fined while checking
out of their halls Ron Sasse, di
rector of Residence Life, said.
He said the most common mis
take made by students is failing to
communicate with their resident
advisers.
“Communication with the ad
visers can solve a lot of the prob
lems students have and can help
students avoid being fined,” he
said.
“The resident advisers are stu
dents, too, who have finals and
are busy. Students need to realize
this and plan ahead.”
All students must be out of the
residence halls by May 16, or 24
hours after a student’s last final
exam.
When checking out, students
.should clean their rooms, take all
trash out of their rooms and un
stack furniture. Dormitory resi
dents should also move all furni
ture six inches from the wall and
open desk and dresser drawers
one-third of the way.
“It’s hard for students to re
member all the check-out proce
dures because when finals are
over, all they want to do is go
home,” he said.
“Planning ahead and realizing
that everyone else has to check
out, too, will help avoid delays
and fines.”
Possible fines for students in
clude $45 for failure to return
room keys, $10 for failure to com
ply with closing procedures and
$25 for failure to properly clean
the room.
John Bracy.a resident adviser
in the FHK Complex and a sopho
more computer science major,
said students should follow the
checklists given to them at hall
meetings.
“With 750 people, checkout
can either be a smooth process or
chaos,” he said.
“We are hoping students will
follow the list exactly and make
the process as painless as possi
ble.”
Students may request an ex
tended stay in the residence halls
for extenuating circumstances.
Sasse said common reasons for
extended stay are friends gradu
ating or work. Students who re
quest extended stays must be out
of the dorms by May 16.
rwo bars to open
n Northgate
BY LISA K. HILL
The Battalion
I Hole in the Wall Saloon and Iguana Dan’s, addi
tions to the Northgate bar scene, will open within two
weeks, Willie Bennett, special events coordinator for
Dixie Chicken Inc., said.
I Dan Canter, owner of several Northgate bars in-
cjuding the Dixie Chicken, Dry Bean Saloon and Shad
ow Canyon, said the two new bars will have the qual
ities of a sports bar, daiquiri bar and restaurant.
I “Hole in the Wall Saloon will have TV trivia and
show satellite sporting events,” he said. “There will
Photo courtesy of CHAD MALLAM
The mural at Iguana Dan’s was painted by Chad Mallam.
also be pool tables and a dining area where everyone
can enjoy a variety of appetizers and burritos.”
The bars will open at lunchtime daily.
see Northgate on Page 2.
New classes to be introduced in fall
BY RACHEL HOLLAND
The Battalion
More than 30 new undergraduate and graduate
classes will be available to Texas A&M students for the
fall semester.
I Dr. Bruce Simpson, chairman of the University Cur
riculum Committee, said most new class ideas are sug-
sted by professors who have interests in new sub-
cts, have received requests for new classes or have
ught the classes as special topic seminars.
Following approval by the appropriate departments
id colleges, new undergraduate classes are approved
b\ the University Curriculum Committee, Faculty Sen
ate and University President Dr. Ray M. Bowen. New
aduate classes are approved by the Graduate Coun-
I.
“As the class goes higher up the ladder to approval,
is considered on a broader scope,” Simpson said.
“Departments review the class syllabus and credit
Jours and determine if there is enough demand and
faculty to teach it. ”
I Simpson said the University Curriculum Committee
ensures that there is no duplication of class material
and that adequate resources are available.
I “We also consider whether or not the class has been
taught as a special topic,” Simpson said, “and we ask
if it is going to create undue strain on the faculty or
cause a setback somewhere else in the department.”
I Dr. Danny Ballard, a professor of health and kinesi
ology, said delving into new areas is the most benefi
cial aspect of teaching a new class.
I “It’s exciting to research new materials and create
new projects,” Ballard said, but it is also very time con-
siiming.
I “You sift through all of the new information and
wonder how you are going to fit it all into just one se
mester.”
Classes Approved by Dr. Bowen
for the fall semester include:
AGROB12
Introduction to Turf Management Lab
ANTH 319
Indians of Mexico
BICH 605
Methods of Biochemical Analysis*
ENDS 370
Virtual Architecture
GEOG 687
Geoarcheolgy*
GEOP 413
Near Surface Geophysics
HLTH 236
Minority Health
HLTH 334
Women's Health
MTKG440
Services Marketing
OCNG 674
Paleoceanography*
SOCI 445
Sociology of Law
SPED 426
Effective Instruction Diverse Abilities
* indicates Graduate level course
■■■■■■■
tmmmmtrnm
Aggieland, Battalion editors
nominated, await approval
BY EMILY R. SNOOKS
The Battalion
Kasie Byers, Sallie Turner and Alicen Swift have
been nominated to be the chief editors of the 1999
Summer and Fall Battalion and the 2000 Aggieland,
respectively.
The three nominations now await approval by the
provost before they can officially take their positions.
Byers, a senior agricultural engineering and agri
cultural journalism major will serve as the summer
editor in chief of The Battalion.
Byers has had four years experience working on
the student newspaper as a city reporter, office
manger, assistant Aggielife editor, Night News edi
tor, Aggielife editor and managing editor.
Byers said during the summer. The Battalion only
runs four days a week, but the staff will have to dig
for stories.
“It will be a bigger challenge to go out and find
the news because it won’t be falling into our laps
like in the fall and spring,” she said.
Byers said she is going to divide the city desk into
campus and community in order to achieve more
thorough coverage of the University and surround
ing area. She said the change will continue into the
fall, when it will be more beneficial.
Sallie Turner, a junior journalism major, will serve
as the the editor in chief in the fall and will lead The
Battalion into the 21st century. Thrner served as a
photographer and city reporter for The Battalion this
GUY ROGERS/The Battalion
Alicen Swift, a junior journalism major, was nominat
ed for the position of editor for the Aggieland.
GUY ROGERS/The Battalion
Kasie Byers (left), a senior agricultural engineering
and Sallie Turner were nominated for Summer and
Fall 1999 chief editors for The Battalion, respectively.
semester. Turner said that during the summer she
will be photo editor and will work with Byers to gain
knowledge and experience.
Turner said her leadership experience in a variety
of campus organizations will serve as her best asset.
Turner said she wants to improve the quality of
the paper, increase the diversity of the staff and rep
resent all the views of the campus. She said her main
concern is staff diversity.
“I really want everyone who complains about the
coverage of The Battalion to come in and apply for
a position,” she said. “I have already personally de
livered applications to Student Government Associ
ation, the Corps of Cadets and to the Memorial Stu
dent Center in hopes of encouraging students to
apply.”
In August, Turner will travel to Atlanta, Ga., to at
tend a conference designed specifically to train edi
tors in management skills.
Ron George, faculty adviser for The Battalion,
said the search for the fall editor was difficult be
cause there were few applicants. He said during the
first round of applications, all applicants were turned
down.
“After the first round, I had to go out and active
ly contact and recruit about six or seven qualified
students,” he said.
George said Turner gave the most convincing pre-
see Editors on Page 2.