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MONDAY
February 5, 2001
Volume 107 ~ Issue 87
10 pages
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e”andeiif(Bonspicuously missing from
rite his "[efflie Moms' boutique tables re-
partict fily are the staple items bear-
a Suprer igihe Aggie Bonfire logo.
in ? s rigticBollowing the 1999 Aggie
1 detend onlire collapse, the Texas A&M
n controlBjnistration swiftly banned li-
, and said ;n|ingof the official Aggie Bon-
ot pane re i 0 g 0 potentially closing off
i important source of revenue
>r Aggie Moms’ Clubs, which
tisc money by selling Aggie
enm during events like Parents’
?d/hw# e kend.
IMiespite not being allowed to
e Icxaslse the Aggie Bonfire or related
)gos on merchandise, the Fed-
led in the ration of Aggie Moms’ Clubs
is fixed as not lost any revenue from its
riving ir outique sales, said Karen Stra-
ic future:an. vice president in charge of
eight rw ou t j L j Ues _
h the R&BB ast year, the clubs gave al-
dtloon-iost $500,000 to scholarships
last legi'nd student programs, she said.
gtonsai:|Mtrahan said there are several
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www.thebatt.com
o use
cases where certain clubs are in
terested in using the Bonfire
logo, and they are working with
the administration to bring the ef
fort to fruition. Strahan declined
to comment on the cases.
However, she said the federa
tion has not received any com
plaints regarding the logo ban.
“It’s not a big deal,” she said.
“It’s a rumor (that Aggie Moms’
Clubs are upset). If it were true,
they would get in contact with
me or (federation President)
Ruby Sanders.”
Sanders said the clubs stand
by A&M President Dr. Ray M.
Bowen’s decision to postpone
Aggie Bonfire until 2002.
“We support the moratorium
on Bonfire,” she said. “We un
derstand Bonfire will never be
the same style.”
Sanders said there was one in
stance when a club ran afoul of
the ban. An Aggie Moms’ Club
created a necklace in remem
brance of the 1999 Aggie Bonfire
collapse, but the federation has
advised it not to order any more,
Sanders said.
“We will not sell anything
Bonfire-related at our bou
tiques,” she said.
Sanders said the federation
will not use any Bonfire logos,
official or unofficial, until the ad
ministration lifts the restrictions.
After the collapse, Aggie
Moms’ Clubs played an impor
tant role for the students, serving
as a reminder that some of the
most important members of the
Aggie family are the students’
own families.
“Many went to campus for
their students and other students,”
Sanders said. “As a federation,
we have collected money to give
to the permanent memorial
fund.”
The Aggie Moms’ Clubs are
not the only group affected by
the licensing restrictions.
Rosa Rodriguez, a licensing
See Mom on Page 2.
Sharpshooter
Phillip Symons, a 12-year-old from Tomball, takes
aim at moving beer cans during the annual Go Tex
an Weekend at the Grimes County fairgrounds on
BERNARDO GARZA/The Battalion
Saturday. The festival included games, rides and
barbecue and chili cookoffs. The event raises mon
ey for local scholarships.
on campus
International Month teaches
Aggies about other cultures
“Tc
er
ii
eer
Meenal Patel, a junior biochemistry
or, tattoos Dimple Patel, a senior
Omputer engineering major, with the
plant extract henna in the MSG on Fri
day. Henna stains the skin and is part of
STUART VILLANUEVA/The Battalion
Hindu traditions. The tattoos were of
fered as part of the opening celebration
of International Month and to help raise
money for the victims of the Indian
earthquake.
Students push Indian relief efforts
lunteers St Rfsha Bryan
if sexual *M> e Battalion
kills arc Texas A&M student or-
forwardS 3111 radons are collaborat-
mmienlfT ■ nterna fi° na l re_
liif efforts to bring aid to
jfnldian families through
’ gifts of clothing, food,
■nds and prayer. India’s
1 Kissive Jan. 26 earthquake
killed thousands and left
■ore than half a million
families homeless.
■ The quake, which mea-
■ pi red 7.9 on the Richter
.scale, destroyed cities, mon-
tents and homes, leaving
■■^Gujarat, India, with grief and
^piles of ruin.
The A&M Hindu Student
Council, Indian Association
|IU and the International Business
and Technology Consortium
(IBTC) are hosting relief ef
fort booths in the Memorial
Student Center (MSC),
Zachry and Wehner buildings
this week from 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. At each location, stu
dents and faculty can give
money, food and clothing.
At the MSC relief booth,
the Hindu Student Council
members are painting Indi
an mehendi artwork on
donors, giving participants
a sample of Indian culture.
Indian mehendi, elaborate
body decoration, is an Indi
an wedding custom thought
to bring good luck to new
marriages. The bride’s arms
and hands are painted with
oils from the mehendi
plant, creating the artwork.
“We are all working to
gether to bring aid to all the
Indian families who were
left without anything,” said
Pranav Mehpa, IBTC pres
ident. “Everyone can give
donations around campus
and help us.”
There are approximately
650 Indian international
students at A&M, and they
are asking their fellow Ag
gies to help their friends
and families in India.
“People can help Indian
families greatly by giving
funds to a credible Texas
A&M organization,” said
Anurada Mukheriji, an Indi-
See Relief on Page 2.
By Elizabeth Raines
The Battalion
Although Texas A^cM officials
plan to diversify the campus by
2020, international students at
A&M are ready for a diverse cam
pus now.
Students from the International
Students Association (ISA) began
the third annual International
Month, or I-Month, with an inter
national buffet in the Memorial Stu
dent Center (MSC) Friday.
“I think having International
Month is good for Texas A&M Uni
versity because there is a lack of
knowledge of different cultures
here, and I think that it is the re
sponsibility of the international stu
dents to take an active role in edu
cating the students,” said Amit
Goenka, ISA vice president of pro
grams and a business graduate stu
dent from India.
Goenka said the month began
as an extension of the annual
A&M International Week after a
conflict three years ago in a
Northgate bar, where some inter
national students were injured.
He said the only way to create
awareness on campus is to allow
students to interact with people
from different cultures.
Rudder Fountain
To help spread awareness, ISA
will show international movies
throughout the month.
“We believe that movies are one
of the best ways to let people see the
different cultures,” said Gautham
Vadakkeepatt, an I-Month organizer
and an engineering graduate student
from India.
Besides the movies and the on-
campus events, students can listen to
and play cultural trivia games on 96.1
KAGG-FM and 104.7 KKYS-FM.
Tonight, two events will be
held. Harambee 2001, sponsored
by the MSC Black Awareness
Committee, will begin at 7 p.m. in
Rudder Theater. At 8:30, members
of the different Indian student as
sociations will hold a prayer at
Rudder Fountain for the Indian
earthquake victims.
“All the Indian organizations
have joined together to help the
victims of the India earthquake,”
said Meenal Patel, a Delta Kappa
Delta member and a senior bio-
chemistery major. “We are col
lecting money all week and are
planning on donating it to either
the Houston Indian Consulate or
the Millennium Relief fund.”
Goenka said students and resi
dents of Bryan-College Station
should take advantage of
the unique opportunity of
experiencing international
cultures this month.
“I encourage all students
and residents of Brazos
County to take advantage
of I-Month and enrich their
lives a little by being a part
of another student’s cul
ture,” Goenka said. “This is
a vast and rich experience
for all, and it brings out the
RUBEN DELUNA/The Battalion best ip all Of US.”
Semi-formal
at Sbisa Hall
draws crowd
By Brandie Liffick
The Battalion
The words “Sbisa ball”
took on a new meaning Fri
day night. This time, in
stead of wadded napkins,
ice sculptures and balloons
decorated Sbisa Dining
Hall for the Old Army
semi-formal.
Sponsored by the Legett
Hall Council, Coca-Cola and
the Food Services Depart
ment, the semi-formal was
the grand reopening of Sbisa
and an opportunity to revive
an old Aggie tradition.
Sarah Dreyer, Legett
Hall council president and a
senior agricultural systems
management major, said
Legett residents wanted to
host a dance but were unde
cided about where to have it.
“We called around and
weren’t able to find a place to
hold the dance. Then we
thought of Sbisa,” Dreyer
said. “I contacted Food Ser
vices, and they said that they
alreadyjiad a dinner planned
for that night, so we com
bined the two.”
Ron Beard, director of
Food Services, said the
event was a nostalgic flash
back to the way life used to
be in Aggieland.
“Historically, they had se
nior and class balls and ban
quets in Sbisa since it opened
in 1912,” Beard said.
“When Duncan opened
in 1940, some of that moved
over there. Tonight we are
trying to bring back some of
the elegance and traditional
aspects of dances in Sbisa.
This is a wonderful building,
and we want the students to
enjoy it. We are just thrilled
to have the opportunity to re
turn an Aggie tradition.”
Photographs of the 1949
Ross Volunteer Ball were
displayed, and dance cards
were provided for the
women at Friday’s gala.
Students said Food Ser
vices did a fine job convert
ing Sbisa from a cafeteria to
a ballroom.
“I’m impressed with
what they’ve done with
Sbisa,” said Cat Cone, a
freshman English major.
“The decorations were great,
but it’s still Sbisa. People are
still yelling ‘pick it up’ and
things like that.”
See Ball on Page 2.
iberal arts career week welcomes all majors
Shannon Galary
Battalion
[Liberal arts majors will be encour-
gtd to explore the variety of career op
tions open to them as Liberal Arts Career
Week commences today and lasts all
veek, ending with a career fair on Fri
day. The fair is hosted by the Liberal
ts Student Council and the Texas
SrM Career Center.
J Brooke Holbert, director of the Lib
eral Arts Career Fair and a junior Eng-
ish major, said the career fair is not only
Aired for liberal arts students looking
for a job but also for students looking for
itlier opportunities during college.
“More than half of the companies are
looking to hire students for internship
We've spent a lot of
time preparing for
this.”
— Julie Leake
Liberal Arts Student Council
and co-op opportunities,” Holbert said.
Holbert said students should become
more proactive in exploring what they
want to do, and she said career week is
a great start. The event is designed to
show students that, despite the common
belief, jobs are available for liberal arts
majors.
The fair is hosting 25 companies, and
they will all be present at the end-of-the-
week event.
“Students should log onto www.lasc-
tamu.com to find out more about the
companies that are going to be at the ca
reer fair and research the ones they are
interested in,” Holbert said.
Julie Leake, who is hosting National
Instruments at the fair and is a junior
journalism major, said she expects this
year’s career week to be successful.
“We’ve spent a lot of time preparing
for this and calling companies to make
it a big success,” she said.
Leake said many students are helping
to organize the fair and are unloading
materials when the representatives ar
rive, among other things. Students will
serve as liaisons for companies that send
recruiters.
Ruth Schemmer, the career services
coordinator, said the fair will feature a
wide variety of companies.
“The Career Fair is open to all stu
dents; the companies involved range
from banks to technical firms to law
firms,” Schemmer said.
W.
CHAD ADAMS/The Battalion
Lindsey Kennedy, a senior psychology major, and
Todd Blackhurst, a junior industrial engineering major;
dance at the Old Army semi-formal on Friday.