Wednesday,
AGGIELIFE
DIDATES
idnesday, March 22,2000
THE BATTALION
Page 3
Continued frc
diversity, Rosenbuscbj
ity to integrate mult
into the classroom,
or international stude-
i Garrett said the keytou
diverse campus is morei;
anting efforts to attract;
of that involves makings
e group of students staff«
ts, Garrett said, to showpii
lents, many ofwhomcoiji
segregated neighborhort
ot a divider atA&M.
ett said he also wants lot
panel within the Student
Association that would
Admissions Departmeiii;
efforts, as well as an In
rareness Committee to gr
tal students a voice in thei:
nent Association,
luntary sensitivity traiai
faculty and staff wouldak
es feel more welcome ai l
aid.
been in a class and bra
w something the profess:;
; lass of two or three himte
ou don't fee like youbi:
r even the right to go upt
‘I don’t believe whatyn
J it offended me,’” Garrtr.
st Lane, a seniorpoliticalsti
rid the key to getting niffl
s to communicate to prosp
that A&M embraces dives
need to make sure thank
: recruiting understandik
t atmosphere because we;
give any negative ideasn
nd because getting I
e; once you get here youiia
it this is an incrediblepli
1
gh the overall picture isa
campus organizations muf.
in mutual problems and got
to increase diversity on can
e can bridge that gap a
l all those organizationste
thing from Multicultural
he Greek system to theCoij
iring them together andtio;
ir opinions are, what their
muse the more we educate
all our concerns, I think it
keus better w'hen we ]
■ people in organizations!
scruit,” Lane said.
tie: We will be holdinga
itasy.and Horror Convert
the Memorial StudentC
tation call 845-1515.
raight Shot: There
list Cancer Awarenesss
hitheater at 8:30 a.m.
/, March 26
Je: We will be holt
intasy, and Horror CoiM
!6 in the Memorial Studt
ormation call 845-1515'
y, March 27
'ill be a general m
113.
Committee: We will bed
out The Women’s I
- 4:30 p.m. in MS 1
y, March 28
'house: Join us forabl
lip at 7:00-8:30 p.m.aK
r ch located near N
ATTALION
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reles, Managing Editor
tight. Community Editor
son, Campus Editor
icre, Aggielife Editor
errano, Aggielife Editor
astillo, Opinion Editor
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ing, Sports Editor
yhoff, Radio Producer
tyton, Web Master
tecek, Graphics Editor
una, Graphics Editor
s, Photo Editor
hoto Editor
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L^asnii
ion Forward
Stores try to ease difficulty of finding unique clothes
EMILY HARRELL/Thk BATTALION
Touchstone
Pictures
ut
addocicUioH.
with
atomic Living
■pA&ie+tti a
COMPLIMENTARY
ADVANCE SCREENING
M 888 & M* 6 i
DnllFMltii
JJU
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^ * ww
BASED ON THE NATIONAL BEST-SELLING NOVEL
Wednesday, March 29
8:00pm @ Rudder Theatre
Free passes are available at
Rudder Theatre Box Office or Lobby
Passes required. Seating is limited
and not guaranteed. Please arrive early.
BY EMILY HARRELL
The Battalion
F lying in the face of the traditional
conservative, khaki-colored fashion
sense of Bryan-College Station has
been a challenge for those who choose to
stray from the beaten catwalk.
After thrift store fare had been
picked clean, Bryan-College Station
stores offered few shopping choices for
the consumer in search of alternatives.
Fortunately,
shops in
the area
are be-
spond to the needs
of the not-so-average
shopper.
“[Consumers] are definitely
getting trendier,” Kim Faucher, man
ager of Post Oak’s Gap store, said.
“They’re definitely into the fads, even
the layering. A few years ago, it seemed
that all people wanted to wear were jeans
and T-shirts, but now some of our alter
native items are doing better.”
Hot Topic’s store manager Daniel Grif
fin said he thinks that the community’s em
phasis on tradition gives the area’s fashion
a conservative overtone.
“There is, in general, a lot of conser
vatism, and I think that’s tied to the fact that
there is so much tradition here,” he said.
“People are used to going to certain
places and wearing certain types of
clothes, and I think that’s part of the tradi
tion. If we were to get a bad response or a
bad opinion, as far as looks go, that is why
we would get it,” Griffin said.
Misti Reeves, Gadzooks employee and
a sophomore agricultural development ma
jor, said the conservatism of College Sta
tion’s fashion community is a result of con
servatism in the area’s social community.
think there’s a lot of fashion here,
there’s just not a lot of places to express
that fashion,” she said.
“Like all the clubs and bars are pretty
conservative. There’s nowhere to get
dressed up and go,” Reeves said. “Going
down Sixth Street in Austin, the little
leather skirts and shorts for girls would be
fine, but here you wouldn’t wear that stuff
to the Dixie Chicken or [Hurricane] Har
ry’s,” she said.
“People just look at
fashion differently
here. A lot of people
look down on the
trendier clothes.”
— Misti Reeves
Gadzooks employee
Reeves said the conservative look that
prevails in College Station has kept some
from walking on the wild side of fashion.
“Wearing a lot of the girls’ clothes,
like the backless things and strappy
shirts, in this town, people would be like,
‘what a slut,’ when it’s really just really
cute,” she said.
Leilani Stelfan, another Gadzooks em
ployee said she thinks that the risk of be
ing insulted is not the only reason people
avoid dressing differently.
“I think also a lot of people don’t real
ly want to stand out in the crowd. Some
people are more comfortable in the things
that blend in with everyone,” she said.
“People just look at fashion different
ly here. A lot of people look down on the
trendier clothes. 1 admire the people that
go ahead and wear that stuff,” Reeves said.
Despite College Station’s generally
conservative look, mall employees said the
addition of Hot Topic to Post Oak’s rela
tively tame atmosphere has opened con
sumers to a wider variety of styles show
ing that, in this case, diversity gives more
opportunities to the consumer.
“All our clothes are music related.
We do a lot of the club scenes with
the huge, fat pants. All we do is poke
fun of labels. Everything in here, for
the most part, is just safe, fun stuff,”
Griffin said.
He said some consumers come into the
store with a negative attitude but that their
impression changes once they have had a
look around.
“One time, a Christian youth minister
came in the store, and at first he wasn’t
happy with some of the merchandise. But
after he found out that our merchandise
is all based on popular music and popu
lar culture, his opinion of the store
changed. He actually mailed a letter of
recommendation to the CEO of the com
pany,” Griffin said.
“Where Gadzooks was once the ex
treme, now we’re the extreme.”
Hot Topic, boasting an array of vinyl
evening gowns, trendy music, and pop-
culture paraphernalia, is beginning to draw
the fashionably creative out of the wood
work and into College Station’s retail
stores. Gadzooks, known for its trendy
merchandise and zealous staff, has en
joyed Hot Topic’s gothic shadow.
“I think it’s great, because before peo
ple were afraid to buy our stuff because
they thought it was too crazy. Now with
Hot Topic in the mall, they see that our stuff
is not really so crazy,” Reeves said. “More
people with the whole gothic look have
started to come [to Gadzooks]. Also, a lot
of people that were more conservative have
gotten where they like the trendier clothes
since Hot Topic has come in.”
Faucher said exposure to the wild
styles at Hot Topic has allowed other stores
to carry trendier merchandise. “The new
thing is colored denim. We [Gap] carry
embellished khakis. We carry multiple
washes. Whereas the average college stu
dent here was only interested in the basic
jeans, khakis and T-shirts. Now they arc
more likely to buy the things that befofe
were not necessities,” she said.
“We have a lot of people that are shop
ping at Gadzooks and Hot Topic, and then
they come in here and pick up the things that
are a little trendier. Whereas before they
might have come in and said, ‘There’s noth
ing here for me,’ we think finally they are
able to find something here,” Faucher said.
Vote VW\
M & f* K iCr! F r^ J
J J dy J J,
; i F : : f' I T i •( f f
J 13U J 1J S- Jll
How Does a $7 fee increase benefit TAMU students?
Students will be voting Mar. 29 & 30 on whether to increase the Recreational Sports Fee. The
Department of Recreational Sports and Student Government leaders have recommended a
net $7 increase. The increase will preserve what Aggies have now. Specifically, the Rec
Center and Department of Recreational Sports programs will be maintained and operated in
the same high quality and accessible manner that they are today. The Department will be
able to replace old equipment and keep it in good working order. The Rec Center will con
tinue to be open from early morning to late evening, and will be able to continue to offer the
programs and services students have come to expect and enjoy. A vote of "yes" will ensure
that future Aggies have the same opportunity to recreate, socialize and be exposed to a
healthy lifestyle in well-maintained and beautiful surroundings.
Polling Sites: 9 a.m-5 p.m. March 29 & 30
MSC Rec Center
Kleberg Zachry
Evans Library Bush School
Duncan Dinning Hall outside All Faith Chapel
Blocker
Wehner
Commons
NETWORK
EVENT
THEATER*
/^V-v
Visit atomicLiving.com/highfideiity from iVlarch 27 through April 7
X^M+J
and receive 10% off your purchases of
atomrcliving
fashion, furnishings, technology and outdoor gear.
Referendum information available at
recsports.tamu.edu
. AS.M
Mk
SPORTS