TUESDAYNOVEMBER 20, 2001
Texas A&M University
2 SECTIONS • 14 PAGES
Celebrating 125 Years
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College Station, Texas
www.thebatt.com
NEWS IN BRIEF
Bush signs bill,
putting screeners
on U.S. payroll
WASHINGTON (AP) -
President Bush signed legis
lation Monday to put the
nation’s airport baggage
screeners on the federal pay
roll, part of an effort to
enhance airline safety and
reassure passengers the
skies are safe 10 weeks after
the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The legislation — the sub
ject of political wrangling —
was the latest in a series of
steps the government has
taken to tighten safety in the
skies. Additional air marshals
have been assigned to flights
in greater numbers; airline
companies have strength
ened cockpit doors and
members of the National
Guard now patrol many of
the nation’s airports.
The measure requires air
ports to expand inspections of
checked baggage, and explo
sive detection systems are to
be in place by the end of next
year. The Transportation
Department may authorize
pilots to have weapons in the
cockpit of their planes.
To finance the security
improvements, passengers
will be charged a $2.50 fee
each time they board a plane
for a flight, up to $5 per trip.
Congress began work on
the measure not long after
the ^ept. 11 suicide hijack
ings that killed thousands in
New York City, Washington,
D.C., and Pennsylvania.
PUBLIC EYE
Students who ride
on-campus buses
each day
11,791
TODAY
Page 4A
Understanding
Islam
Lookin’
for respect
Ags hope to upset
No. 5 Horns, spoil
Texas’ 2001 National
Championship hopes
OPINION
Page SB
Rivals to
the Corps ...
always
Battalion and Texan
editors square off
WEATHER
today
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TOMORROW
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Reed Rowdies promote A&M basketball
CODY WAGES * THE BATTALION
Mike Solomon, a member of Reed Rowdies, smashes a car set up by the group to promote awareness and participation in the Texas
A&M-George Washington basketball game tonight.
A&M-Blinn co-enrollment up
By Melissa Sullivan
THE BATTALION
Texas A&M students
enrolled at Blinn College
account for 14 percent of
Blinn’s total enrollment this
semester, officials said.
A&M Registrar Don Carter
said the more than 1,400 co
enrolled students may be the
result of full classes at A&M, not
the perception that classes are
easier at the community college.
“They don’t necessarily
take classes there because they
may be easier; we have
instructors who teach there as
Ags not
visiting
advisers
A third have not
sought advice
By Justin Smith
THE BATTALION
Nearly one-third of Texas
A&M students have never
met with their academic
adviser, according to a survey
conducted by the Student
Senate last month.
But advisers say it is
important for students to con
sult with them to ensure they
are progressing with their
degree plans.
Students should visit with
their adviser at least once a
semester, said Dr. Lawrence
Petersen, a computer science
undergraduate adviser.
“Sometimes a rumor will
start about what courses to
take and students will end up
taking a class which won’t do
them any good,” Petersen
said. “I’d much rather have a
well as here at A&M,” Carter
said. “Primarily, there are more
classes at Blinn that don’t fill
up as easily.”
Blinn College students
often enroll at A&M to earn
hours at the four-year institu
tion. Blinn has the highest
transfer rate of any community
college in the state, with 23.6
percent transferring to other
colleges, said Vivian Jefferson,
director of Admissions and
Records for Brazos County
from Blinn College.
Enrollment at Blinn, which
includes an increase in the
number of co-enrolled A&M
students, has increased at least
3 percent every semester,
Jefferson said.
“Blinn offers smaller class
es, with 25 students as com
pared to 100, in subjects like
English and government, plus
more sections to choose
from,” she said.
Students like being a part of
the A&M community, Jefferson
said. She said students who are
fresh out of high school find
that enrolling at Blinn makes
the transition to college easier.
The 1,400 co-enrolled stu
dents do not include the 370
students in TEAM Blinn, which
places A&M waiting-list stu
dents into Blinn for basics and
then conditionally admits them
to the University once they have
completed 45 hours at Blinn.
TEAM Blinn began this semes
ter and guarantees co-enroll
ment with the majority of a stu
dent’s 12-hour load taken at
Blinn and three to five hours
taken in residence at A&M.
Students must complete 45
hours at Blinn, 15 hours at
A&M and maintain a 3.0
grade-point ratio to gain full
time admittance to A&M.
Co-enrollment admissions
have already risen as a result of
TEAM Blinn, and administra
tors at both schools expect
admissions will continue to rise.
Proposed A&M program
may fight bioterrorism
By Emily Peters
THE BATTALION
The Sept. 1 1 terrorist acts and the appear
ance of anthrax have heightened national con
cern about bioterrorism and its potential
effects on what the government has declared
a “vulnerable” food supply.
Texas A&M may soon be one of the lead
ers in bioterrorism research. Plans for a new
anti-bioterrorism institution at A&M will be
presented to the A&M System Board of
Regents in December.
If approved, the Institute for
Countermeasures Against Agricultural
Bioterrorism will culminate the A&M
System’s research efforts on multiple aspects
of bioterrorism, which is the deliberate
release of toxins or infectious organisms.
“If you look across the entire idea of ter
rorism, there are people looking at all aspects
at A&M,” said Neville Clarke, director of
A&M’s Center for Natural Resource
Information Technology. “We hope to align
all of that talent.”
Clarke said the plan existed before Sept.
11, but public need and government support
have changed dramatically since then, and
more government funds for this type of
research have been made available.
The institute will develop technology to
prevent attacks on U.S. agriculture and food
supply and research how to handle outbreaks
See Bioterrorism on page 6B.
Seniors
‘die’ at
E-Walk
By Christina Hoffman
THE BATTALION
Today, the Class of 2002 will
“die” out, and the Class of 2003 will
officially take its place as seniors.
Elephant Walk and Junior E-
Walk begin at 2:02 and 2:03 respec
tively. Elephant Walk marks the end
of the “usefulness” of the Aggie sen
iors to the student body as they wan
der around campus for the last time,
said Beth Weems, Class of 2002
president and a senior agricultural
development major.
“There has been a lot of hard work
put into these events, and it will be
great to see fellow classmates join
together in unity to carry out such a
time-honored tradition,” Weems said.
Junior E-Walk coincides with
Elephant Walk because juniors walk
in celebration of becoming the new
leaders on campus. Started in 1992,
the junior event is called E-Walk
because juniors are not allowed to say
“elephant,” Weems said.
Events will begin at 10 a.m. on the
Law-Puryear Field. There will be live
music, a fajita lunch at 1 1 a.m., games
and Reveille and elephants to take pic
tures with, said Chris Durham, a jun
ior genetics major and president of the
Class of 2Qp3. Tickets for the lunch
will be on sale in limited numbers at
Law-Puryear Field for $7.
After the fajita lunch, seniors will
meet at Kyle Field for yell practice
and to hear the Elephant Walk speak
er, Dr. John Hoyle, a professor in
public school administration and
future studies. The Class of 2002 will
step off from Kyle Field, Weems said.
Juniors will remain at Law-
Puryear Field for the Jr. E-Walk
speaker, Ronnie McDonald, Class of
1993 and A&M’s first African-
American yell leader, Durham said.
“This is the first time for the Class
of 2003 to come together, unified as a
class,” Durham said.
Bryan Barton, a senior economics
major and a member of Traditions
Council, said Elephant Walk and Jr.
E-Walk are ways for the classes to
come together a few last times.
“It’s a realization that our time is
quickly coming to an end,” Barton
said. “We have to use all the time we
have left.”
ELEPHANT WALK
& JUNIOR E-WALK
CLASS OF 2002
KYI f Fir to 2:02 P.M.
CLASS OF 2003
t. AW PUR YEAR I It IP 2:03 P.M,
ADRIAN CALCANEO • THE BATTALION
Comstock, others file Bonfire lawsuits
Staff & Wire
THE BATTALION
FORECASTS COURTESY OF
www.weathermanted.com
See Advisers on P a g e 2A.
Two more lawsuits related
to the deadly 1999 Aggie
Bonfire collapse were filed
Monday, the deadline to sue in
connection with the accident,
including one by the most
severely injured survivor.
John Comstock and his
mother, Dixie Edwards, filed a
lawsuit in U.S. District Court in
Galveston, said Lee Alford, the
family’s Bryan-based attorney.
Comstock’s left leg was ampu
tated above the knee and his
right arm was partially para
lyzed after being trapped under
the stack for seven hours.
Comstock was hospitalized
for five months after the Nov.
18, 1999, collapse. He under
went intense physical therapy in
Dallas, living at home and
learning to walk, write and
drive again. Comstock was able
to return to the A&M campus
for Fall 2001.
“The lawsuit was filed to
protect his rights and see what,
if anything, he is entitled to
recover for the damages he sus
tained,” Alford said.
Texas A&M President Dr.
Ray M. Bowen, other school
officials, several current and
former students and several
companies involved in con
structing Bonfire were named
as defendants, similar to other
Bonfire lawsuits. All of the suits
seek unspecified damages.
Comstock’s federal lawsuit
alleges Aggie Bonfire was a
See Bonfire on page 2A.