ONDAYAPRIL 29, 2002
VOLUME 108 • ISSUE 140
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TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
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By Sommer Bunce
THE BATTALION
Against a backdrop of hearsay and a
'rumored vote tally that had U.S. Sen.
Phil Gramm and Robert Gates dueling
for the Texas A&M presidency, candi-
l§ate Richard Herman withdrew from the
presidential selection process Friday.
I The Texas A&M System sent out a
short news release just after 5 p.m.
Friday announcing Herman’s deci
sion, but provided no reasons for his
withdrawal.
I Hemian, provost and vice-chancellor
for academic affairs at the University of
Illinois at Urbana-
Champaign, was one
of three candidates
favored by A&M’s
presidential search
committee as a possi
ble leader for the
A&M system’s flag
ship school.
“I wish to compli
ment the committee on its outstanding
membership and process,” Herman said
in the news release. “I wish Texas A&M
the best in its bright future.”
The two other named candidates,
Robert Gates and Jon Whitmore,
HERMAN
remained in the running this weekend,
along with two unnamed candidates.
Last month, the Presidential Search
Committee announced that Gates,
Whitmore and Herman were candidates
for the University’s top spot. Just days
later, A&M System Board of Regents
Chair Erie Nye revealed that the Board
was considering two other unnamed
contenders.
The regents may consider any can
didate for the job, including those not
previously recommended by the search
committee. In April, the committee rec
ommended its top choice among the
three known candidates to the chancel
lor and the Board of Regents. Their rec
ommendation remains secret.
But last week. The Associated
Press reported that three sources with
ties to the national Republican party
knew who each of the regents wanted
for the presidency: three favored
Gramm, widely rumored to be one of
the two unnamed candidates, while
five would place their votes for
Gates. Regent Wendy Gramm, Phil
Gramm’s wife and a 2001 Gov. Rick
Perry appointee, reportedly abstained
from the vote. Unidentified sources
later told the Houston Chronicle and
The Bryan-College Station Eagle that
the tallies were correct.
. Now, with the number of candidates
down to four, the likelihood that the next
president of Texas A&M will be one
who went through the official applica
tion and interview process and met with
students and faculty during the past few
months drops to fifty percent.
In a previous interview. Regent Dr.
Susan Rudd Wynn said the two
unnamed candidates would not be unfa
miliar to the campus.
“Everybody’s frustrated that the
regents are being so tight-lipped,” Wynn
said last week. “[But] employment deci
sions should be confidential.”
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By Brandie Liffick
THE BATTALION
I Texas A&M System Chancellor Howard Graves and his
wife will be moving to a newly bought College Station
home, due in part to Graves' continued cancer treatments.
I According to The Bryan-College Station Eagle, Graves
announced the move in a letter dated April 10 sent to his
employees. Though leaving the state-owned Reed House that
as served as his home since he accepted the chancellor post
in 1999, Graves said he is not stepping down as chancellor.
“I want you to know from me that the timing of this
move is a direct result of
GRAVES
u
This move is a
direct result of my
doctor's strong recom
mendation that we
make the move now.
my doctor’s strong recommendation that
we make the move now, rather than months
or years later,” he wrote.
Graves has been undergoing radiation
and chemotherapy since he was diag
nosed with a rare form of soft-tissue sar
coma in his abdomen in January 2001.
Last September, doctors discovered the
cancer had spread to his lungs.
In the letter. Graves said the growth in his
lungs had stabilized in the past few months,
but doctors have now found that the tumors
are again growing. Doctors will now increase
the chemotherapy in an effort to stop the can-
cer from spreading. The Eagle reported.
“The extended chemotherapy and surgery, if the new regimen works, will
)e debilitating for some time, and it will be better to make the move prior to
surgery,” Graves wrote.
I As chancellor. Graves oversees nine universities, eight state agencies and
a health science center.
— Howard Graves
Texas A&M System chancellor
Aggie reception
Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah arrives on campus
Friday to a saber arch by the Ross Volunteers. Former
President George Bush met informally with
Abdullah and Morrocon King Mohammed VI at the
STUART VILLANUEVA • THE BATTALION
George Bush Presidential Library. The visiting digni
taries traveled to College Station from Crawford
where they met with President George W. Bush to
discuss Mideast tensions.
JG
Ags present designs for hospice
By Carol Treece
THE BATTALION
I Seven architecture teams from
exas A&M presented their design
lodels Friday for a new headquarters
|jfor Houston Hospice, a center for the
||terminally ill that serves 10 counties.
Fourteen students have been
orking on the assignment since
ebruary as part of a design studio
project to provide solutions for the
Hospice’s increasing demands for
space, said course instructor, George
J. Mann, the Ronald L. Skaggs
endowed professor of health facilities
design at Texas A&M.
“We meet with the client, listen to
the client’s needs, pin some things up
and show the client what [we] heard
[them] say,” Mann said.
The project called for an adminis
trative building, an educational build
for
ter
SPECIAL TO THE BATTALION
Ana Perdiz stressed the
Architecture students Lorena Holguin and -
lrr >portance of light, water and trees in their design for the new Houston
■Hospice. Teams from A&M presented their designs Friday in Houston.
ing, a 24-bed residential unit and a
parking lot for 300 vehicles. Hospice
aims to provide a nurturing environ
ment for patients, families and
employees, Mann said. A circular
design was recommended to reflect
the Hospice’s philosophy for the con
tinuum of life, he said.
“The Hospice administrative cen
ter will hold records and staff, and
the educational center will be used
for seminars, continual education
and meetings,” Mann said.
Students April Struss and Mitchell
Rider designed their model using a
“campus” approach with the build
ings arranged in a circle. They includ
ed a lot of glass to allow for incoming
light and a more natural feeling,
Struss said. A water sculpture was
placed in the central area between the
buildings so residents could enjoy the
sound of water, she said.
“The Hospice had a vision but
didn’t know where to start,“ Struss
said. “We took their vision and put it
into form.”
Students Reynold Magnuson and
Pedro Bodegas proposed that the
Hospice design their campus in phas
es so additional funds can be raised
as the buildings are needed. By
See Hospice on page 2
Reveille VII continues in
summer obedience school
By Melissa Sullivan
THE BATTALION
Texas A&M mascot Reveille VII will
remain in obedience school this summer
after a semester of training found that the
purebred, year-old collie needs more time
with her handlers before facing the
crowds at another Aggie football season.
When Reveille VII first arrived on the
Texas A&M campus last spring as a puppy,
a lot was expected of her. Filling the paws
of Reveille VI was not an easy task.
During the pre-game performance of the
A&M-Texas Christian University game in
December, the puppy’s nervous, high-
pitched barks could be heard above the band.
In January, after conferring with offi
cials, members of the Corps of Cadets sent
the mascot to obedience school. After sev
eral months of training, a small committee
of Company E-2 cadets and faculty met to
determine Reveille’s role on campus.
‘‘Reveille’s training is progressing very
well,” said Wynn Rosser, assistant to the
vice president and adviser for the outfit.
“However, we thought this spring, while
she was gone for training, would be a
good time to look at the big picture and
make sure things are in place to ensure
that the Reveille tradition is around for
years to come.”
Reveille has successfully completed
four months of training and will work
closely with her professional trainer. Dr.
Kay Stephens, this summer, along with
the newly-appointed mascot corporal
Jordan Caddick.
Junior E-2 Company Commander des
ignate Justin Fountain said the training
will ease the pressures that come with
being the campus’ first lady.
“The training is meant to better equip
Reveille to handle the stressful environ
ments that she is subject to as our mas
cot,” Fountain said.
When Reveille began training in
January, the goal was to have her back on
campus in the fall, and that is still the
goal. Reveille made appearances at sever
al Parents’ Weekend events, and things
went well, Rosser said.
“One thing I have learned is that dog
training never ends,” he said. “So even
after Reveille returns to campus, she will
still need ongoing training.”
Reveille’s current handler, sophomore
See Reveille on page 2
loyef
Rodriguez trial opens in new venue
MOUNT VERNON, Texas (AP) — Dallas County
Prosecutors, who easily secured death sentences for
two prison escapees convicted of killing an Irving
Police officer, will present their case in a different part
°f Texas on Monday.
Lawyers for Michael Rodriguez, the third inmate to go
trial in the Christmas Eve 2000 slaying ot Aubrey
Hawkins, successfully lobbied for a change of venue
r °rn Dallas, where the earlier cases received heavy
niodia attention.
Opening statements in the trial, which was moved to
the Franklin County seat of Mount Vernon, about 100
miles northeast of Dallas, were set for Monday morning.
Assistant District Clerk Rebecca Cates said 1,200 jury
questionnaires were sent to residents, the most ever can
vassed in the county.
“Somebody from every family here likely got a jury
See Rodriguez on page 2
lUSIDlE
AggieLife Pg. 3A
The ride of a lifetime
Student athletes tell the ups
and downs of their time at A&M
Sports Pg. 1B
Aggies falter in
finals of Big 12
tournament
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FORECASTS COURTESY OF