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FRIDAY
April 14,2000
Volume 106-Issue 129
18 pages
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eekend Minority faculty members face
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ollege life
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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
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ETY
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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
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“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
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Stop
the press!
Media cover
age shows
intrusiveness.
Page 1 7
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•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