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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 15, 1999)
105 YEARS AT TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY THURSDAY July 15, 1999 Volume 105 • Issue 170 • 6 Pages College Station, Texas aggielife • Local art galleries provide artists the chance to present their work to the public. PAGE 3 today’s issue News 6 Battalion Radio Listen to 90.9 KAMU-FM at 1:57 p.m. for details on a volleyball camp being offered by the Brazos Valley Boys and Girls Club. d his im. He leel, cm opinion • Notifying parents of students’ alcohol violations raises issues of. responsibility and consequences. PAGE 5 'ask force: Tell parents of alcohol offenses see Related Columns on Page 5. BY RYAN WEST todyimfl The Battalion officers r s,asweL B T exas A&M may notify parents of am % students charged with drug or alcohol 'dassuajfenses on campus under the Family ionan^'ftticahonai Rights and Privacy Act safe in t |ERPA). hiefd Rear reel said. I uldsunafl The A&M task force on parental no- rvebeetLcation regarding student alcohol and trugglirti jg violations made the recommen dation to Dr. J. Malon Southerland, !liefthat®ce president for student affairs, that a tudent’s parent or guardian be noti- nstart; led via a letter when he or she is of peoFjjjaught in violation of A&M’s drug and jhLudwi'Icohol rules as outlined in the Unl it Wei® Trsity’s Student Rule handbook, lie and m The letter would express the Univer- si y’s concern for the student, request it for fell ad feai the parent’s support in addressing the issue and list University’s steps to ad dress the problem through programs such as enrollment in programs like an alcoholic education workshop, assess ment and basic intervention by a certi fied alcohol and drug counselor in the Department of Student Life’s Alcohol and Drug Education Programs and pos sibly a referral for counseling and treat ment. Brent Paterson, director of student life and coordinator for Alcohol and Drug Education Programs, said the fo cus will be on the health and safety of the University community as a whole and not on the individual student in vi olation. He said many people are affected by one student’s poor decision. “The most important thing is inter vention early on,” he said. “The first violation is usually not the student’s first time to do it. The stu dents who are not abusive are usually not the ones getting caught.” Paterson also said the University has the right to withhold information from parents if the University has a reason to believe the student will undergo physical harm or will be forced to re turn home. Gene Zdziarski, associate director of student life, said the decision is a double- edged sword, with both pros and cons. “We know getting parents involved is effective for drug and alcohol prob lems,” Zdziarski said. “But we also try to treat students like adults who are re sponsible for their own actions, so we don’t want to be holding it over the students’ heads.” Zdziarski said because the parental notification is for alcohol and drug vi olations on campus only, the Univer sity does not want parents to expect notification for off-campus offenses or any other on-campus offenses such as theft, assault, etc. Sgt. Allan Boyett, a member of the University Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit, said parental notifi cation will make students more re sponsible. “It will make students think twice,” he said. “Many students donft mind at tending an alcohol (or drug) awareness class or paying a fine, but it’s a differ ent story if Mom and Dad find out.” According to the Department of Ed ucation Website, FERPA applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S.- De partment of Education. FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their children’s education records. Alcohol Offenses on Campus Sept. 1,1998 - June 1,1999 'Alcohol Consumption by a Minor - 3 •Minor in Possession - 221 •Public Intoxication - 65 •Driving While Intoxicated - 40 r 'artraefc Fired up rasl •this IK] iabreTedil otacri®] hat Safe d thet quired i as empt’ ito the a of aft its ato demicaii iduceate aiical f&' ’ )lace om erator i- ; aroducei >ach 50! ime, uthorizf] azan tors did ad aargofiy i the fl® r cabin- off on t 996. ft | es, gall! i the of shof iding \ >n fire" tower. mm floriano CODY WAGES/Thi Battalion Trainees participate in firefighting exercises Wednesday at the Brayton Fire Training Center as part of an All-Hispanic training seminar running through the end of the week. Commission looks to future of Brazos Valley BY MEGAN E. WRIGHT The Battalion In an attempt to make the mil lennium celebration as inclusive as possible for all citizens of the Bra zos Valley, Bryan and College Sta tion have instituted the Brazos Val ley Millennium Commission. The theme, “Seize the Light: Cel ebrating the Legends, Endeavors and Dreams of the Brazos Valley,” rep resents a look at the past, present and future of the Bra zos Valley. The commission is responsible for coordi nation of the various millennium activities scheduled for the Bra zos Valley. Carol Wagner, chair of the Brazos Valley Millennium Commis sion, said in a speech during a press conference yesterday that it is nec essary to honor advancements made in the past 1,000 years. “It is appropriate we honor and celebrate many of the advances during the past millennium as we try to understand the present and BRAZOS M I l L £ plan for the future,” she said. The Millennium Commission will plan and participate in a num ber of activities for the community including a New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day celebration. The New Year’s Day activities will in clude the burial of a time capsule containing items representing the community. Also planned by the commission is a “Month of Art” celebration scheduled for February 2000, where each day of the month will feature an art activity. The International Students Association (ISA) presented its plans for the Plan et Northgate festi val at the press conference. Jason Royster, Planet Northgate chair and a junior political science major, said the cel ebration is taking shape and is going to include representatives from all types of student organizations. “The Chamber of Commerce loved the idea because it brings all of our see Commission on Page 2. IMIiiiii VALLEY N N I U M We cal' tt pn book’s effects /s and BY MATT WEBER The Battalion ortingl A former legal writer for the id adwB/all Street Journal told a group of theg 1 Texas A&M journalism students y.sterday that writing his book, ck anijr/ie Good Black: A True Story of s of palace in America, raised several eth- mic rfcal questions for him, such as how is book would impact people and ^/ed "'il-iendships. The book by Paul Barrett, a for- ner Pulitzer Prize nominee, exam- tes race relations in America rough the experiences of Barrett’s frican-American former college bommate. The roommate, a Harvard-edu- :ated lawyer, filed a lawsuit against is own firm charging racial dis- rimination. Barrett said he had to ask himself hat effect his book might have. 3WS "S That tieneV 1 thend' ~e clc J[ ! *.,”116* in$1 ^ has □,i and “[One has to ask] to what degree is the author of a book like this re sponsible for the aftermath, for the outcome of the book,” he said. Barrett said that although he has known the former roommate for 16 years, he could not completely know the obstacles he had faced. “Are there some questions, per haps, that a white journalist could understand about a black man’s ex periences in this setting,” he said. “I understand it well enough for news paper purposes, but I probably real ly don’t understand it at all.” Ed Walraven, coordinator of undergraduate advising and stu dent affairs for A&M’s Depart ment of Journalism, said the question of friendship and conflict of interest is a legitimate concern for journalists. see Book on Page 2. PTTS considering changes to Southside Parking Garage ANTHONY DISALVO/Thk Battalion Paul Barrett of the Wall Street Journal discusses his book with a group of journalism students Wednesday in the Reed McDonald Building. BY CARRIE BENNETT The Battalion Parking, Traffic and Transportation Ser vices (PTTS) and the Campus Access Task Force are considering changing the South- side Parking Garage from numbered contract parking to contract parking that would be operated on a first-come, first-served basis. Sherry Wine, associate director of PTTS, said physical and electronic counts have been taken in the garage, and it was found that there were as many as 300 empty spaces at 4 a.m., meaning the garage is not being used to its full capacity. She also said more than 900 residents who live on Southside have to park on West Campus be cause of a lack of spaces near their residence halls. “We will continue taking counts throughout the fall semester to see if the results are rein forced,” Wine said. “If this is the case, then we would consider changing the garage to contract place instead of [assigned] space.” Wine said that early in the spring semester, she began talking with people who would be affected by the change to gather their input. She JP BEATOAThl Battalion PTTS officials are considering changing the Southside Parking Garage from numbered to first-come, first-served contract parking. said PTTS and the task force have spoken with representatives from Student Government As sociation, Residence Life, the Physical Plant and the Department of Food Services. Amanda Albritton, president of the Resi dence Hall Association, said the change sounds like a good idea. see Garage on Page 2.