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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 29, 2002)
iday, July 29, Opinion The Battalion Page 5 • Monday, July 29, oes A&M need a general studies degree? Name inside: has antique finis - ] please return I )RCYCLE idow 650VLX era bo. (979)260-657! ’ETS 'razos Animal Sti helterpets.org ite tabbies, first s ed. $15, 820-059? ias a great seto doption! 979-820:; ESTATE townhome. 2/251 dining. Enciosed!! storage. 7755 MATES ite needed S199/mo. + 1,05 mates for 3/2 hous ge backyard Sga - ;: s. 695-7778. ad a.s.a.p. 4lxlm2! ximately $10Qtmo. t its welcome with no 39. DOUG FUENTES ing. 2bdrm/1btti tei Deal. $400/mo ii - ). ate needed, Augs .e. Rock Prairie, (era l/3bills, 1st montti 11 or (979)324-8197 ling 8/1, 3bdmV2t' , 1 -block from cam^ 2bdrm/2bth apartmr. and bills, own bdm# ents, 694-7868. d, 4bdrm/2blri Univers- 2003, S326'mo. Depos and first TOhfri 0 ded ASAP. Beau: 1-mi from camp. Emily 979-695-647! led, new 3bdrnv! : 10/mo. Lindsay, lei d. 2/1 duplex $350' tile route, 1/2bills- ! r ould help all students find their niche ihe same old argument has become tired: just because the athletic department or someone involved with an athletic team sks for something, they are looking for pref erential treatment. While this could be true in ome instances, in the case of A&M head foot- tall coach R.C. Slocum championing the ause for the addition of a general studies program, it should be taken to heart. Slocum would not be asking for a change as large as a general studies pro- (ram unless it helped the football team. But in his request to help improve the ithletic program, Slocum has stumbled upon something that will benefit the ntire student population. In an article in the San Antonio Express-News, incoming University presi dent Robert Gates said there was “concern” that A&M’s current curriculum — which currently lacks a general studies program — places it at a disadvantage in ecruiting minority students and student-athletes. Gates sees this as such an important problem he has commissioned a task force o study the addition of a general studies program. According to the Express-News, &M and Oklahoma State are the only Big 12 schools without a general studies cur iculum. Texas has a program similar to general studies, but it is not referred to as uch. This inequality is a thorn in the side of A&M’s athletic programs, earns at A&M are being asked to compete with one hand tied behind their backs while trying to produce the same results as their Big 12 brethren who offer majors in general studies. This has hampered success recently in athletic programs at A&M, and in a field where results are the top priority, this is an important issue for the A&M Athletic Department. Other teams can, and most likely have, used the lack of a general studies program against the Aggies in recruiting. While not all sports are affected by this, football and basketball have taken the brunt of the blow. It is tough for A&M to compete against other schools when a coach at another school can offer a prospective athlete a chance at a general studies major with an easier curriculum. All A&M has to offer is a major in some field the athlete may have no desire to pursue. If a general studies curriculum was in place, these athletes would be able to sample a variety of subjects, and would gradu ate with a degree that would better help them once their play ing days are done. “It’s a moral, ethical issue,” Slocum said to the Express- News. “We must have a program where (student-athletes) can be successful. But the things we need, you just don’t do for athletics. The things we need for athletics are things that Texas A&M needs.” Regular students on campus are in the same position as student-athletes. If a student needs to switch majors because of academics or a loss of interest in tlieir major, they currently do not liave many options. They are pigeon-holed into a major which needed. tMnnSW/i all appliances, fenced 3, +1/4\jfe. tiW®. eded, ‘todi-mlAMHH'- 817-219-6143 3d, new 3/2/2, It, $375/mo. +l* fc 83-8524. move-in, 1-yea 1 tsi, security, i300sp‘ they may not have any use for. It mo. Allison 979-W there was a general studies option, *• Jthey could be exposed to many dif ferent fields of study and could find another major. For those who say a general studies program diminishes the academic quali ty of the University, think again. Two of the schools A&M is trying to emulate in its quest for Vision 2020, the University of Michigan and the ; s r d ve 3 ^ of Califomia-Los 1/3 utilities. Cora Angeles, have general studies pro grams. Those schools have showed it is possible to be recognized as a top-10 university while still cater ing to students’ needs. A general studies program will help to improve the University. Not just in tenns of wins and losses, but in terms of the quality of people who graduate. S7, 220-0567. needed for , Cripple Creek W needed. Lookinj No smoking^* /mo., includes # led. 4bdrm/2btltJ Sublease $29 5r 214-0329. TIouseU5306/rW^ d ed. House, # ;325/mo. 1/4bil |st ' friendly, student- www.showviz.nei 1 needed. distance to caiK /ICES ITED aed to g®f II 776-23/8 U-haif Doug Puentes is u senior journalism major. CAYLA CARR Would lower A&M’s academic standards ast fall, Athlon Sports magazine sur veyed college football coaches to determine college football players’ biggest distractions. Texas A&M University football coach R.C. Slocum suggested academics were the biggest distraction to his foot ball team’s success. On July 18 of this year, the Austin American Statesman reported Slocum claimed the lack of a general studies degree hurts A&M’s football recruiting. Slocum has once again proven he could care less about aca demia at Texas A&M. Slocum would rather the University water down the curriculum to improve his recruiting efforts. The academic integrity of A&M is being threatened by a belly-aching football coach. A&M should not lower its aca demic standards to recruit academically inept athletes. Surprisingly, other administrators support Slocum’s plea. Wally Groff, A&M’s athletic director, told the Statesman, “It behooves the University to have those programs in order to achieve the diversity the university is trying to achieve, not just in athletics.” Minorities could take offense to this statement as meaning their academic stami na is not up to par. Rather than trying to lower the standards by creat ing a general studies degree, why not recruit those athletes who excel in the classroom as well? Dat Nguyen, a member of the Dallas Cowboys, and the all- time leading tackier in school history, performed on and off the field. He received his bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M in Agricultural Development and attended graduate school. Slocum should direct his efforts towards recruiting more athletes like Dat Nguyen and increase both his graduation rate and football team ranking. In a July 24 Battalion article, Slocum was quoted saying, “No matter how good of a player you are, in some point in your life you will no longer be a football player. So in order of relative impor tance the academics should get a whole lot more attention than the football.” If only Slocum practiced what he preached. The goal of a university is to provide students with adequate knowledge for a career. If a general studies degree is offered, those stu dents are cheated. The best interest of the student’s academic career should be top priority, not their athletic career. Students should accept the challenge of a difficult curricu lum and coaches should not baby their players by requesting a generic major. Not every college football player is drafted by the NFL. As Slocum suggests, the football career will one day end, some sooner than oth ers. It is the duty of the Athletic Department and the University to provide those students whose football careers do not continue after college with another alternative. According to the Statesman, Brian Davis, assistant athletic director for aca demic services at the University of Texas, commented on recruit ing efforts. He claimed UT has no such major and would not direct its atten tion toward graduating underqualified athletes. A&M and Slocum should take note. The goal of an athletic program should be to provide athletes with an advantage after graduation. Not only do they spend countless hours on the playing field, but they should also receive a respectable degree from one of the most academi cally challenging Universities in the state. SARAH FOWLER • THE BATTALION Cayla Carr is a senior speech communication major. Lack of lifeguards makes Texas beaches unsafe South Padre beaches need solution to lifeguard shortage before more drown - _ emniovees. the Coast Guard and even innocent bystanders have island. LAUREL FRANCK W hen Texans and tourists head to the beaches of South Padre Island for some fun in the sun, they are usu- a lly on the lookout for the com- m on dangers — jellyfish, riptides or even sharks. But what many do not realize is that South Padre Island, home to some of the most popular beaches in the U-S., is experiencing a vast shortage of properly trained life guards. According to The Dallas Morning News, South Padre Island and Cameron County officials say lifeguards are too expensive and too much of a liability. Cameron County Judge Gilberto Hinojosa estimated setting up lifeguards on the 10 miles of coast in Cameron County would cost at least $1 mil lion, and the county does not have that kind ol money in its budget. However, not having lifeguards could result in an even •arger expense for South Padre. South Padre Island serves more than 3.5 million overnight guests per year and is among the top spring break destinations for Americans, especially college students. It consists of more ^an 13 and one-half miles of city and county beaches, and brings in tens of millions of dollars in revenue from tourists, Specially during spring break and summer. Despite this, South Padre Island beaches still do not have lifeguards. Last year, seven people drowned in the gulf waters o t e c oast of South Padre. This alone should alert officials to the obvious fact professional lifeguards are needed. City anc county employees, the Coast Guard and even innocent bystanders have had to jump in and save drowning people. This should not be happening, and could result in even more fatalities if something is not done soon. Officials have taken measures to compensate for the lack of lifeguards. In May, flags and signs were set up explaining the flag system at beach entry points, the Morning News reported. Red is for dangerous conditions, yellow is for moderate condi tions and blue alerts visitors to the presence of dangerous marine life. Texas park rangers check twice a day to determine water conditions and then post a flag accordingly. While this system has been set up with good intentions, how much of a real safeguard is it? People often ignore or simply do not notice these types of warnings, and if this happens in South Padre, drowning deaths could become an all-too-common horror. County officials are also planning to use the Internet and radio to notify people about water conditions, and to teach chil dren about water safety by taking coloring books and videos to schools. These are all helpful and worthy methods, but having lifeguards would be the most fool-proof measure of all. Professional, fully-trained lifeguards are a necessity to the beaches of South Padre Island for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, lifeguards would most likely lessen the occur rence of drowning fatalities and further ensure the safety of all beach-goers. People go to the beach to have fun and relax. City and county officials should provide lifeguards as a courtesy to all visitors because they bring business and revenue to the island. Another reason lifeguards are needed is because it is not the responsibility of the Coast Guard or that of beach-goers to res cue flailing swimmers. They should not have to be on constant alert and risk their own lives. According to the Morning News, the Coast Guard responded to 79 calls for struggling swimmers in 2001. It was able to rescue 25, and the remaining 54 either saved themselves by swimming to shore or were rescued by beach workers or beach-goers. As Robert Brown, a Coast Guard firefighter said to the Morning News, "It gets real risky because one person goes down, then everybody goes to try and save them." Lifeguards are trained to deal with panicked, drowning peo ple — ordinary beach-goers are not. One person drowning could pull down those trying to save them, resulting in an even bigger tragedy. City and county officials have taken steps in the right direc tion with the limited means they have. However, they should seriously consider the employment of professional lifeguards* Perhaps they should work with business and hotel owners to lessen the cost and make this possible. This would assist in pro tecting the safety and happiness of all beach-goers, which should be the top priority for all involved. Laurel Franck is a junior English major.
