;et rio
FRIDAY
October 27, 2000
Volume 107 ~ Issue 46
10 pages
ers exploded in celebrationii|
:y of Gagnoa, a Gbagbo strot
bo had taken power. Someii
mg and danced in the streets,
e have hope for the future,!
iversity economics professoj
^rating.
, though, the celebrationsti
00 supporters of opposition
jattara, who had been barret
ion, rallied in front of the ste
jattara supporters also proti
in the northern city of Koi
They warned clashes if
out in the streets of AbidjaiL
/mbolizing traditional warpr' i{OLANDO Garcia
e the crowds away severalW e Battalion
ally tiring in the air. ■ It will be two years before Aggies see
the flames of another University-sanc
tioned Bonfire, but the group charged
I 41k A with setting the specific guidelines for
L tf 10 revamped tradition has begun its
1 work already.
I The Bonfire 2002 Task Force —
Rmposed of students, staff and faculty
I- is responsible for designing a new
Bonfire that is consistent with guide-
llies established by A&M President Dr.
lay M. Bowen. The task force held its
ti st meeting Thursday.
“This is basically just an introduc-
Bry session for the members to get ac-
fhe Russian emergencies rai# ia ^ te d with each other, said Vice
sending a plane carryingaJf! 6 . 8 ^ 6 ! 11 * ()l ^ luc ) cnt ^ii a i IS ^ r -
rescue team, and an inveaij^outheriand.
imittee had been formed.
Tbilisi
weathe
Russia is in the process of re0|
its troops and equipments
bases in Georgia and is ne®
w ithdrawal from two is
ipment from the bases is!)!
ped through Batumi.
'he II-18 is a Russian-made,!
ne turboprop. In 1997, an!
ed by a private Russianci
led on a charter flight while
to take off in JohanneT
h Africa. All five people
J, and the reason for the;
not determined.
ceremo
RUSSIA
Adzharia
region
GEORGIA
nlbiliS
ARMENIA
Marr m MoHitmotN & Brian Ruf
be Battalion
| Victims of the 1999 Aggie Bon-
collapse will be remembered on
a. 18, with a candlelight ceremo
ny at 2:42 a.m.. the time the stack of
ogs fell last year.
Student Body President Forrest
Lane, a senior political science major,
said the remembrance will be at the
Bontirc site and is being planned‘by a
M-staffe-d task fotve. headed by
Lane and Rusty Thompson, associate
director of student programs.
‘We feel it highly appropriate to
conduct this observance at the Bon
fire site and as closely as possible to
the precise time of the tragic chain of
events — hence the decision to as
semble in darkness,” Lane said in a
press release. “One factor in schedul
ing the observance at 2:42 a.m. is an
ticipation that a crowd would have as
sembled spontaneously at that time.”
The collapse killed 12 Aggies —
students and one former student
-—and injured 27 students.
“By no means are we forcing any
one to be out there, and we hope that
we have planned something appro
priate,” Lane said. “We put this group
together because it represents stu
dents, staff and faculty. It was not
easy to come to consensus about this.
See Ceremony on Page 5.
The task force will be directed by a
steering committee co-chaired by
Southerland and Student Body Presi
dent Forrest Lane, a senior political sci
ence major. Six subcommittees will ad
dress specific issues related to the design
and construction of Bonfire and the
training of students.
Bryan Cole, assistant vice president
for quality leadership in the division of
Student Affairs, will facilitate the work
between the task force committees. In
total, about 110 people will participate
in the task force. Cole said.
“Within the parameters set by Presi
dent Bowen, I think there’s a lot of room
for us to work and ensure Bonfire re
mains a student-organized event,” Cole
said. "Our overriding vision is that,
whatever we do, it should enhance the
student leadership experience.”
The Safety Task Force will identify
safety issues related to the design and
construction of Bonfire and develop a
plan to address them. It will also formu
late a process in which the safety plan is
reviewed by independent experts and
devise a safety evaluation procedure to
follow every Bonfire.
The Design and Construction Task
Force will develop arequest.proposal to
solicit bids for the professional design
and construction oversight of Bonfire. It
also will outline a process to evaluate
the construction of each Bonfire.
The Risk Management Task Force
will draft recommendations to address
issues of risk in constructing Bonfire
and risk management in other student
organization activities.
The Student Leadership and Partic
ipation Task Force will develop a
process for aligning student involve
ment with professional design and
oversight of Bonfire.
The Vision for Student Leadership
Task Force will use the information
gathered by the other groups to devise a
plan for creating and enhancing student
leadership opportunities at A&M.
The Institutional Culture Task Force
will develop a plan to address the cul
tural biases that the Special Commission
on the 1999 Aggie Bonfire Collapse said
were the root causes of the 1999 Bon
fire collapse. The task force will formu
late recommendations for mitigating
cultural biases in other student organi
zation activities.
Among the modifications Bowen im
plemented for the next Bonfire are a sin
gle-tier teepee design, a construction plan
drafted by licensed engineers, the use of
precut lumber and expanded University
and professional oversight of Bonfire.
See Bonfire on Page 5.
KEVIN BURNS/The Battalion
Ita Villanueva, a junior microbiology major, helps smash the "Beat the Hell Outta
K-State" car by the Memorial Student Center. The car-smashing fundraiser was put
hosted by the Aggie Fish Club.
Employee
reported
for v ulgar
gesture
By Noel Freeman
Tbe Battalion
A Texas A&M employee learned
earlier this week that “the bird” is not
necessarily “the word” when driving
official University vehicles.
On Monday, a report was made to
the University Police Department
(UPD) regarding disorderly conduct
by the driver of an A&M vehicle.
“The driver fell into a fit of road
rage, shot another driver the finger
and shouted profane remarks,” said
Bob Wiatt, director of UPD.
Wiatt said a woman was driving on
the freeway in Fort Worth and wit
nessed the exchange between the em
ployee and another driver. She noti
fied UPD out of concern for A&M’s
image. Her report provided the li
cense plate number of the vehicle.
UPD personnel were able to track
down the employee and report the in
cident to his supervisor.
“The supervisor remonstrated the
employee,” Wiatt said. “He was told
he embarrassed and brought disrepute
to Texas A&M University.”
Wiatt added that no legal action
was taken against the employee.
Wiatt noted that the woman was
concerned that the incident was stan
dard behavior for the driver. Further
investigation and consultation with
the employee’s supervisor ruled that
that was not the case.
See Driver on Page 5.
Fate of PSEL discussed at forum
Study space could be lost to faculty offices
By Brian Ruff
Tin B i i \i h
3ERNARDO GAR/
A forum was held to discuss the fate of the Policy Sciences and
Economics Library.
The Battalion
Students who use the George Bush
School of Government and Public Ser
vice’s Policy Sciences and Economics
Library could notice a different layout
at the library in the future.
An informational forum was held
at the Bush School on Thursday to de
termine the best way to accommodate
users’ needs of the increasing faculty
without giving detriment to the stu
dents who use the library.
The 5,000-square-foot library,
housed in the Academic Building
West, opened Sept. 1 and provides ac
cess and services to faculty and grad
uate and undergraduate students in po
litical science and economics. The
library offers a specialized collection of
periodicals, reference works and mono
graphs in political science, government
and public service. Students and facul
ty also have access to hundreds of elec
tronic journals and databases.
Twenty-five faculty members and
students attended the meeting to ex
press their concerns. The group lis
tened to concerns expressed by both
sides and evaluated each plan of action.
“The faculty explored what could
be done reasonably to balance needs
of both the students and faculty,” said
Dr. Ben Crouch, associate dean of
liberal arts.
Texas A&M Executive Associate
Provost Bill Perry decided to form a
See Library on Page 5.
bisa Dining Hall open house this weekend
i it - free.
enovations made to comply
ith modern building codes
Y Bryan Blanton
lie Battalion
Aggies can get a sneak preview this weekend of the
ew rendition of Sbisa Dining Hall, the Northside dining
facility that has been under renovation for almost a year.
Despite what many may think, the renovations pro
ject on Sbisa is right on target and only about seven
weeks away from completion,” said Cindy Zawieja, as
sociate director of Food Services.
Sbisa was shut down for renovations on Dec. 15,
1999. Since then, the facility has been completely made
over and is being updated to comply with modern build
ing codes. The plumbing, electrical and mechanical in
frastructures were revamped, and a new roof was added.
Originally opened in 1912, Sbisa will open its doors
once again in January 2001, and the new Sbisa will
boast significant improvements since the bygone days
when it served as the dining facility for the Corps of
Cadets. Until 1939, the Corps formed twice daily and
marched to Sbisa for meals.
Spaw Glass Construction, which is renovating Sbisa,
also constructed on-campus buildings such as the
Memorial Student Center, Krueger Hall and Dunn Hall.
“The only thing we didn’t do to Sbisa was build it,”
said Sbisa project superintendent Glenn Storey. “It
needed a lot of work, and it got it.”
Courtney Cox, a sophomore construction science
major, is one of nine student employees of Spaw Glass
Construction who worked on the Sbisa project.
“Cosmetically, students will not even recognize the
inside of Sbisa,” she said.
The renovated Sbisa will feature an array of food,
such as Italian, Mexican, Asian and American cuisines.
“With the new food court choices that will be in
Sbisa, the students will have a better variety of prod
ucts to choose from, and still be able to choose the
regular cafeteria-style cuisine,” said Karen Carter, fa
cilities manager for Sbisa.
Zawieja said the Underground Food Court was also
reworked.
“The original goal was to get the Underground back
by Nov. 1, but problems were found downstairs with
the air-conditioning system,” she said. “We also want
ed to create more seating, so the decision was made to
See Sbisa on Page 5.
"AT courses start
ill for schedules.
'rincetonReview.cofl
Sfti IWKHW iOf tot .StP#/
Outbound meal trend expected to increase
By Noel Freeman
Sbisa Dining Hall is under renovation for compliance with modern building
codes and improving the plumbing, electrical and mechanical infrastructure.
The Battalion
When Sbisa Dining Hall reopens in
Spring 2001, students who enjoy the Out
bound Dining plan will be treated to a
wider array of selections.
Sbisa closed for renovation in Decem
ber 1999, and Food Services saw a marked
decrease in the number of meal plans pur
chased for the Spring 2000 semester.
Cindy Zawieja, associate director of
Food Services, estimates that approxi
mately 3,000 fewer meal plans were pur
chased than in previous semesters. How
ever, Fall 2000 saw those numbers bounce
back almost to normal levels.
According to Zawieja, the rebound
was largely because off-campus students
purchased meal plans for of the Out
bound options.
“We’rb hoping for an increase [in meal
plan purchases], knowing off-campus stu
dents really like the Outbound options,”
she said.
After the reopening of Sbisa, Outbound
options will remain in place and will be
expanded in restaurant locations on cam
pus. Zawieja explained that the temporary
food huts located around Fish Pond will
be removed and Bernie’s — a restaurant
located on the west side of Sbisa — will
serve as the Outbound facility for Sbisa.
Bernie’s will be converted to a coffee shop
See Outbound on Page 2.
uses
Night Of Terror at the Veterinary Hospital
by Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine
Your Life's on the fine, based on the
Haunted Crack House Project
at 116 North Main Street in Downtown Cry an
Hraz.os Valley Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse
Annual Fall Fest ival at woo manor street in
College Station, by the iincoln Recreation Center
Wicked Woods 2QOO
at Kappa Sigma House 4466 Raymond Stouter Parkway
Halloween Carnival and Fall Fcst
at I 1004 West William Joel Bryan Parkway in Bryan
by Sons ot Hermann
Annual Halloween Carnival
at the Wellborn Community Center (Wellborn Road
and Greens Prairie Road) by Wellborn community
Hotard from Hell Haunted House
at Hotard residence hall
Mansion of Horrors at 90s n. Houston
St. in Cameron, across from Circle K off
(/..S’. 77, by Milan County Crime Stoppers
Safe Trick or Treat Night at Sam's Club
in College Station
Candy X-rays at Winn's Allied Health Center
JO I Post Office. Street in Bryan
by Blinn College Radiologic technology Association
BRANDON HENDERSON/The Battalion