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THE BATTALION
„ 108 Yiafs S@rviftg Tixas A&M Univifsity
Volume 1»<S • Issue 147 • 6 pages www.thebatt.com Monday, June 10, 2002
Gates officially named A&M president
Board of Regents names Tempton as interim president of Prairie View A&M
TALI0N
m the
By Melissa Sullivan
THE BATTALION
In a five to three vote, the
Board of Regents officially
appointed Dr. Robert M. Gates
s Texas A&M University’s next
resident Thursday.
“(Gates) is an esteemed
active public servant and has
lots of energy that will bring
great leadership to the universi
ty,” said Erie Nye, chairman of
the Board of Regents.
Despite the three votes
(against him, Nye said that it was
]not a surprise that Gates was
appointed.
“The board is 100 percent
behind him and support him,“
he said. “The board wishes him
the best tor a successful tenure
as president.”
Gates was named A&M’s
sole presidential finalist in May,
but in accordance with state law,
the board had to wait 21 days to
officially appoint him.
“We could not do anything
official until today,” said
Howard Graves, chancellor of
the Texas A&M System. “He is
familiar with the terrain and he
will get lots of advice. He is a
smart, experienced leader.”
Although officially appoint
ed, Gates will not take office
until August 1. He has other
obligations that he must attend
before he permanently begins at
A&M. Nye said.
Current president Dr. Ray M.
Bowen has agreed to extend his
stay until the end of July due to
the delay. He was originally
scheduled to step down June 30.
Bowen
said that
he is
happy
with the
Gates
decision,
but he did
not favor
one can-
d i d a t e
over the other. Bowen said all
the presidential candidates had
exceptional qualifications for
the presidency.
“I am pleased with the
appointment and we were fortu
nate to have a string of fine can
didates,” he said.
Bowen said that while he is
not making any major decisions
regarding
the
University,
if any
major deci-
s i o n s
arrive, he
will brief
Gates on
the issues
so he has
an advantage when he enters
office.
“I have had a lot of interac
tions with him both on the
phone and by email and we are
working to get into transition
<c
We need to focus on
the future rather
than to focus on any
significant problems. ”
GATES
mode,” Bowen said.
As he makes the transition to
office. Gates says he will be in
the “learning and listening
mode” with the help of a wide
range of faculty and students.
Gates sees his biggest chal
lenge as implementing the
Vision 2020 plan and preserving
the traditions and cultures A&M
has to offer.
“We need to focus on the
future rather than to focus on any
significant problems,” he said.
Gates will begin working
with the University on the
appointment of the new com
mandant of the Corps,when
the time is appropriate, Nye
said.
“We are anxious to help Gates
and the Chancellor for we want
the best for each university in the
system,” Nye said. “It is a chal
lenging job and we will be all
about helping the best we can.”
At the same meeting, in a
unanimous vote, the Board
appointed Dr. Willie Tempton
as interim president of Prairie
View A&M University while a
national search committee con
ducts a search for a new presi
dent who is expected to take
office in the summer 2003.
Tempton has made it clear.that
he is not a candidate, Nye said.
“Prairie View has made some
strides in recent years and we
are anxious to conduct the
search and find the best person
for the job.” Nye said.
■e is a p
of educa
irtment
ed tecta,
tuationiv
schools is
lical sup
on studfi
sks ;
nd soft'';
done in
Grad school popularity
mixed at the moment
By Ruth Hide
THE BATTALION
Recently, gradschools.com released a
study suggesting a significant decrease in
studb popufarity among graduate degrees deal-
. Eighty?
the prim
for rese;
plans,
i experts]—
»met. sclents who are interested in going into
tudy.
nts comet
ing with information systems and infor
mation technology, and an increased inter
est liberal arts programs such as cre
ative writing and international relations.
Gradschools.com offers information to
:r problt 1
istricts
dring.
graduate school. The site is sponsored by
rvany schools nationwide, including
yed, 54? fexas A&M, and provides information
1 ibout what each graduate program
ncludes free of charge to prospective stu-
roublesf krrts-
Mark Shay, founder and CEO of grad-
chools.com, said this research is done on
quarterly basis. Researchers take the top
!0 fields and look at significant changes
mong hits to those sites. The results are
hen placed in a top 20 list including the
ottest trends in graduate school enroll-
ent.
In the months following Sept. 1 1, Shay
lieves that there have been more stu-
ents interested in continuing their educa-
ion because of America’s economic
ownturn, but the number of students
nterested in the technology sector has
lecreased significantly.
He said this may be indicative that
ompanies are not paying six-figures to
AP) -Tta
ent pro -
-terrorism
ednesdat
housands
;r scrutiny
it the new
ig visitor
and pho-
2 horde?
ect thosf
d Middle
tral
3 checks
ose from
e United
ay harbc?
rists.
ss for
oval
rms
eaty
(AP) '
mmoned
graduates of technology degrees; there
fore, students are turning to fields that
catch their particular interests rather than
American interests.
"When the market is hot, people tend
to go with employability, and when its not,
people tend to do more of what they
want,” Shay said. “This is not to say that
fields such as information systems are
dead, but maybe they have lost their lus
ter.”
Other findings in research done by
gradschools.com shows an increased
interest of foreign students who want to
enroll in graduate school, especially after
the events of Sept. 11.
Shay proposed that there was almost a
panic mentality seen in foreign students
wanting to get into a master’s program
before the Immigration and Naturalization
Service put restrictions on who qualifies
for a student visa.
The aftennath of Sept. 11 and immi
gration restrictions did not seem to have
an immediate impact on the international
students at A&M. There was actually a
small increase in the number of applica
tions submitted by those students wanting
to attend A&M.
Dr. Clifton Griffin, assistant dean of
graduate studies, said that there was really
no upsurge in graduate school enrollment
after September 11th and that enrollment
V
See Popularity on page 6
West Texas bus crash
ills three passengers
COLORADO CITY, Texas (AP) —
Three passengers aboard a Greyhound
bus died and at least four others were
hospitalized when it rear-ended a trac
tor-trailer on Interstate 20 headed
toward Dallas, authorities said Sunday.
The bus was behind a tractor-trailer
traveling east on the interstate at about
5:30 a.m. Sunday when a second trac
tor-trailer began slowly entering the
highway from a rest stop, Texas
Department of Public Safety communi-
Ications operator Erin Hale said.
The first tractor-trailer had enough
|time to pull out of the lane the second
Jtractor-trailer was entering, but the
esday to Greyhound driver, who was directly
Greyhound bus
fatal crash
At least two are dead Sunday
after the bus going from Los
Angeles to Dallas rear-ended
the tractor-trailer.
approval
lear arm!
at he and
behind the first truck, didn’t have time
to move, she said.
“The people who were killed were
Vladimi 1 at the front of the bus,” Hale said.
ionth. About two dozen other passengeis
tors 0n the bus were taken to local hospitals
, a t Russia to be treated for injuries. Hale did not
noneyM know the extent of the injuries.
3 ds deat Joann Market, a nurse at Mitchell
-eaty. County Hospital, said 22 patients who
he Whit e c ame to the facility were treated foi
jiden, D uhnor injuries and released.
ie Senak Two other patients, initially brought
Commit to the hospital, were transferred to a
, ar R-Ind tra uma center in Lubbock and anothei
[thepa 0 ' Was admitted.
>w treaty Another six patients were releasee
dthernh 5 fr om Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital
pc tation ' n Sweetwater, where two of the thiee
the treaty riders died. The third was pronounced
dead at the scene.
The bus driver and one of his fema e
SOURCES: Associated Press; ESRI
passengers both were in stable condi
tion Sunday afternoon at Hendrick
Medical Center in Abilene, hospital
spokeswoman Karen Brittain said.
Brittain said the bus driver, 39-year-
old Sweetwater resident Earlie
Johnson, is expected to survive.
However, he might lose part of his leg,
she said.
Washing away the rain
BRIAN RUFF • THE BATTALION
Despite rain moving through the Bryan-College Station on the corner of Texas Avenue and Southwest Parkway
area, junior computer science major Ray Evans (left) and on Sunday. The two were raising money for summer mis-
senior nuclear engineering major Chad Suhr wash cars sions for Aldersgate United Methodist Church.
Car tire saboteurs searched for
Pro-life group offering $500 reward for information leading to arrests
By Diane Xavier
THE BATTALION
A local pro-life group is offering a
$500 reward for information leading to
the arrest of any individuals responsible
for sabotaging car tires with an estimat
ed two to three pounds of nails near the
Planned Parenthood Clinic on East 29th
Street in Bryan.
For the second time in the past three
months, nails were scattered throughout
Sandia Street in Bryan, where members
of the Brazos Valley Coalition for Life
park while they pray in front of the Clinic.
Bryan police said they estimated
two to three pounds of roofing nails
were found on abortion day at the clin
ic May 28. Hundreds of nails were also
found at the same location on the morn
ing of March 22.
Both incidents resulted in flat tires
for protesters. Neither the Coalition nor
the Bryan Police Department have
received any leads or tips.
Bryan Police Public Information
Officer Lt. Chris Farris, said the nails
were obviously placed on the road
intentionally.
“There was a large number of nails
on that street, not just a few placed here
and there,” Farris said. “The area is
just a small street with no other traffic
and the only people that park there are
the protesters.”
Tuesday is abortion day at Planned
Parenthood and this usually brings out
more protesters, he said.
“Whoever is responsible for this
knows we’re always out here and it is
obvious that they want to harm us,”
said Amber Matchen a Coalition mem
ber. “We don’t have physical proof but
it was obvious that the nails were
placed for malintentions.”
Jon Agnew, a member of the coali
tion and a Bryan Police officer, had his
tire punctured in March. Agnew was
praying in front of the clinic on May 28
when a Coalition member notified him
of the incident.
The punctured tire did not bother him;
however, Agnew said the profanity he
See Saboteurs on page 2
Kroger now offering fingerprint scanning
By Courtney McDonald
THE BATTALION
Buying groceries at Kroger is now
only a fingerprint away thanks to its
new Secure Touch-n-Pay technology.
The three Kroger stores in the Bryan-
College Station area currently utilize
this new technology and as of March,
the store located on Texas Avenue at
Southwest Parkway, was the first store
nationwide to implement the finger
print payment machines.
“Kroger stores in the B-CS area
were chosen as the pilot stores because
they have the best cultural diversity in
the surrounding neighborhoods,” said
store manager David Herrick.
The Secure Touch-n-Pay system
stores the customer’s Driver’s License
or State I.D. number, telephone num
ber, Kroger Plus shopper’s card, credit
cards, and checking accounts under the
shopper’s fingerprint. The fingerprint is
mapped out numerically on the capture
window and cannot be duplicated.
The benefit of using this technology
is essentially convenience, Herrick
said. Customers can pay for their gro
ceries and receive discounts from their
Kroger Plus card without the hassle of
writing checks, credit cards with worn-
out magnetic strips or I.D. verification.
Finger imaging guarantees that only
the individual shopper can access their
account, thus decreasing the chance of
credit card fraud and enabling the dis
covery of overdrawn bank accounts.
See Scanning on page 2