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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 14, 2000)
' ' ' " v -’V!t:1 u'^4' ri.' ■ I- ■ i!, ' TF1E FRIDAY April 14,2000 Volume 106-Issue 129 18 pages k KW4 =f:1 :^Wl\ * < =1; WI * v < eekend Minority faculty members face owcases racism m Bryan-College station ollege life ELIZABETH O FARREa ii-hB. lab making parts forln se )N sale to China V BY CYRA GATLING The Battalion ; Just when college students thought they had left them at home, par ts by the thousands will Hood into Bryan-College Station this week- dtj take a look at college life and participate in Parents’ Weekend 2000. Tre Parents' Weekend is April 14-16 and officially begins at Mid- jht Yell Friday at Kyle Field. ‘The goal of Parents’ Weekend is to give the parents a picture of talwe do here at A&M,” said Jeremy Poland, a marketing sub- mrnittee member for Parents Weekend committee and a senior busi- sslnajor. “It serves as a bond and brought my family closer.” The Parents’ Weekend Committee is in charge of the overall struc- •ejpromotion and scheduling of the weekend. It is made up of 50 jankers who serve on marketing, special events, barbecue and Par ts bf the Year subcommittees. See related articles on pg. 2 | Student Government Association sponsors Parents Weekend. Fund- rthe weekend comes from the BBQ ticket sales and T-shirt sales, his year, Roger Creager will perform at the Bevo Burn Barbe- ie, 1 ' said Xavier Resendez, who serves on the barbecue committee id is a senior industrial distribution major, ifdany great barbecue teams from across the state are coming to impete in a cook-off for prizes and to feed lots of people.” Many Aggie parents are looking forward to spending time with eirsons and daughters during Parents' Weekend. ■^^^Jflrhis year is especially exciting for us because we get to attend / -it daughter's class council awards ceremony,” said Pat and Mona labor, parents of Katie Maher, a sophomore education major. “We hina See Parents on Page 2. Variety of options for iling taxes BY APRIL YOUNG The Battalion s the April 17 tax deadline approaches, students who have not " 'ftfiled for their 1999 tax return may seek other alternatives to meet ^deadline. Cenneth Vargas, spokesperson for the Internal Revenue Ser- vice(IRS) in Central Chemllfl CH.i DEADLINE Gene 301 Gene 301 Ellison SAT Apr 22 GeneJ 1 ! Ellison f gfmX Noon-2PM Chem 101 Test #3 Mawk Chemtff IS MAY B > THE COLLEGE STATION POST JOSE NOT ABLE TO FILE ON i SHOULD FILL OUT FORM 4868 )R A FOUR MONTH EXTENSION. BRANDON HENDERSON/I'm: Battalion ETY >F CAIRO Texas said the most accurate method of filing is electronical ly via the Internet. Nationally, through the end of March, 3.5 million taxpayers had filed their taxes electroni cally, compared to the 1.8 million taxpayers who filed electroni cally last year through March. Since the normal tax deadline of April 15th falls on a Satur day, procrastinators have two more days to finalize their 1999 tax returns, but for some students this still might not be enough time. Vargas said stu dents who will not [e their form completed by midnight on April 17th can file for an ex lion by filling out a form 4868 by midnight on April 17th. (“The extension gives tax payers who file an extension of four jjnths to file, not four months to pay,” Vargas said. “Even if you leand can’t pay, it’s best to file an extension because the penalty Jnot paying on time is much greater than not filing on time.” [Vargas said the extension form is only about four to five lines long an extension form can be obtained on the IRS Website at w.irs.gov. Some on-line filing companies will also have extension forms that be submitted online. Jessica Miranda, a sophomore business major, said she plans lie for her tax return by the deadline to avoid having to file for extension. “I’ve just been so busy that I haven’t had time to complete my tax im, but I’ll probably file it over the phone on Monday,” Miranda Id. “I’m a procrastinator. I always wait until the last minute, but out a form to get an extension I might as well fill out the fonn get my tax return.” Vargas said he cautions all students who cannot complete the fonn iciently to file for an extension. “If students are really pressed for time — and they won’t be able Ido it and walk away and come back to review it — they should [p for an extension,” Vargas said. “It only causes more of a delay if form is not accurately done.” MMHOjfl Students like Miranda who decide to wait until the last minute to ji“ their taxes may run into a few problems, but the IRS has set-up loll-free, 24-hour-help line available to answer any questions. To access the help line, call 1-800-829-1040. fejcii BY ROLANDO GARCIA The Battalion When Dr. Elizabeth West moved to College Station two years ago to take a job as an Eng lish professor at Texas A&M, she was eager to make her family feel at home in their new com munity and enrolled her daughter in Girl Scouts — but encountered an unexpected snag. “When they found out we were black, the troop that had an opening suddenly didn’t have one,” West said. This perceived lack of tolerance and di versity in the Bryan-College Station com munity is one of the main obstacles to re cruiting minority faculty to Texas A&M, some minority professors said. Mitchell Rice, director of the Race and Ethnic Studies Institute at Texas A&M, said the small minority professional class in Bryan-College Station and dearth of cultur al and social activities is a disincentive for some minority faculty. “It’s a small town, and most minority faculty — especially if you’re young and single — would rather live in a big city to participate in the social and cultural ameni ties a big city can offer,” Rice said. The homogenous cultural atmosphere in the community can also make minority fac ulty and their families feel isolated. West said. “If I’m a black person with a family, wanting to my child to grow up with a sense of diversity, that’s hard to achieve when they see that most black people are poor and un educated,” West said. West added the Bryan-College Station community could do more to foster attitudes of diversity and tolerance, beginning in its pub lic schools. For example, she said, during Black History Month in February, her daugh ter’s elementary school class was given the op tion of reading a story about a prominent African-American or their favorite president. JL JL “They’re encouraging a policy of non participation and saying the contributions of African-Americans aren’t important enough to be studied,” West said. “It’s very subtle, but it makes black kids feel alienated and iso lated in the schools.” Royce Hickman, director of the Bryan- College Station Chamber of Commerce, said the community makes extra efforts to make minorities and international students feel welcome. “We’ve done a lot to make sure that all people feel included and be a vital part of the community, and we’ll continue to reach out to people who may feel uncomfortable be cause it’s important we all work together,” Hickman said. But Finnic Coleman, assistant professor of English, said that while Bryan-College Station isn’t the most cosmopolitan commu nity, the University should not use this as an excuse not to recruit more minority faculty. “The University must ‘demonstrate a committment to diversity, but instead they use obstacles, real and imagined, when they could do more,” Coleman said. This includes making minority studies a priority, but the University recently passed on an opportunity to host one of the nation’s leading African-American literary journals, which would have helped attract minority faculty, Coleman said. “It would have been expensive, but this University can find money to do things it re ally wants to do,” Coleman said. West said the lack of minority students can also be a disincentive for minority schol ars applying to Texas A&M. “If you’re teaching and involved in research, you want students to mentor,” West said. The paucity of minority faculty am then lead to fewer minority students looking for mentors, See Minority on Page 2. Transformation’ JP BEATO/Thk Battalion At the “Transformation” exhibit in the Langford Gallery, Priotr Krawczyk, a sophomore computer science major, and Alecia Cooper, a sophomore English major, admire an inkjet print series on canvas by Julia Rosenberg titled, “Before, Now and Then...” Senior Corps members, guests gather at 2nd annual dining-in JP BEATO/The Battalion Lieutenant Governor Rick Perry, Class of ’72 and a former head yell leader, addressed the seniors at the Corps of Cadets “senior dining-in.” BY JEANETTE SIMPSON The Battalion The Corps of Cadets Associa tion hosted the Class of2000 Thurs day at the 2nd annual Corps of Cadets “senior dining-in,” a formal banquet held exclusively for senior Corps members and invited guests. Lieutenant Governor Rick Perry', Class of ’72 and a former head yell leader, addressed the se niors and reminisced on his years at Texas A&M and the Corps. “The bonds of friendship you have built these last four years, will be with you for a lifetime,” Perry said. “The memories you have shared with the men and women around you are memories you will carry in your hearts as you disperse throughout the world. You will never again experience another four years like the last four years you have just had.” Perry reminded the cadets that it is their responsibility to be the keepers of the Aggie spirit. “You, as Aggie Cadets, have built over the last years a profound legacy of sacrifice, honor and de votion.” Perry said. “Through your leadership, the Aggie spirit is kept alive and strong.” The event is held to thank seniors for their dedication to the Corps. “This is a special time for the seniors, it is a time to reflect on their time in the Corps,” said Forrest Lane, Corps Comman der and a senior political sci ence major. “This is the Corps of Cadets Association saying ‘Thanks’ for the four years of contributions the Class of 2000 has made to the University.” As a tribute to his service to A&M, the Corps, to Texas and to the nation, the Corps of Cadets Association presented Perry with a case for his senior boots and a framed picture of the ‘missing man formation’ flown over Kyle Field during the 1999 Texas A&M vs. Uni versity of Texas football game. Neal Adams, Class of ’68, took a moment during the festiv ities of the evening to acknowl edge the senior cadets and the Corps in general for demonstrat ing leadership during the 1999 Aggie Bonfire collapse. “You have faced the greatest tragedy faced by this University in its history. Your leadership dur ing the bonfire fall showed other Texans and the rest of the world a little part of what it means to be an Aggie,” Adams said. • Here and Now Asian American theater company stops by A&M to perform. Page 3 mmyrnr ■nMUMMMMl Stop the press! Media cover age shows intrusiveness. Page 1 7 ;M< -vV v' 1 % mmmmmamSmmrn •Listen to KAMU-FM 90.9 at 1:57 p.m. for details on a proposed health care plan. —*ru I •Check out The Battalion online at battalion.tamu.edu