The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, September 30, 2002, Image 3

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The Battalion
Page 3A f Monday, September 30, 2002
By Erica York
THE BATTALION
Going to class, studying and taking
ests is enough responsibility for most
tudents, but for Jared Copeland, a
enior political science major, school
ust isn’t enough.
Copeland is running for Brazos
lounty justice of the peace for the 3rd
bout evenrfretinct in the November election.
Copeland said college students
lon’thave enough representation in
r me,” shesj Jryan-College Station’s local govem-
et a little ha: ^ent.
‘There’s no reason we shouldn’t
Ouna ScAa ve a current Aggie as justice of the
:tivities into P ce - ’ Copeland said. “Being a col-
free masv? lege student and running for office in a
e therapists, j allege town makes sense.”
with, coma Copeland said justice of the peace
t duck ractf is a four-year term.
booths dec Be plans on only taking one or two
linistries: th classes a semester and possibly push-
sex. develr ing hack his graduation date if elected
and dealing: 50 i 16 can foNy concentrate on the
office.
“Running a campaign and staying
focused on school has already been
MSC Rad iifficult ’ But I knew when I filed to run
j p.m, that it was going to be a lot of hard
work,” he said. "It’s something I know
can handle.”
Chris Durham, a senior genetics
major and class of 2003 president, said
taff"deveior llle characleris,ics Aggies share,
fully develop lndud ' n 8 honeslv an.l imegrity, can he
7 ^■powerful in a local office.
“I think because Aggies make up
such a large percentage of the Bryan-
College Station community, it’s impor
tant to see Aggies moving beyond
campus to get involved and represent
their fellow students in local politics,"
Durham said.
im mml , Co P e/and sa ' d running as a democ-
® razos County hasnl bepn an
oostacle because most people realize
justice of the peace is an office in
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which political party affiliation doesn’t
matter.
“Our biggest obstacle has been not
having as much money as we would
like to run the kind of campaign we
want,” he said.
Copeland said he has spent more
than $4,CKX) on his campaign, but most
of it has been donated by supporters.
Copeland is running against
Republican George Boyett. Boyett has
been justice of the peace for the 3rd
precinct for 14 years, and Copeland is
the first candidate to run against him,
he said.
“Politicians in office too long can
forget who put them there,” Copeland
said. “I feel that our campaign offers a
chance for change.”
Copeland said he decided to run for
justice of the peace after hearing how
George Boyett treated people.
"When I found out I lived in his
precinct I knew I could do a better job
as justice of the peace. I saw some
thing that needed change and decided
to do something to change it,”
Copeland said. "The more I thought
about the idea, the more people pushed
me and the more support I received.”
Copeland said he had a lot of sup
porters willing to go with him to knock
on more than 1,000 doors this summer
as part of his campaign.
“Some of the people helping with
my campaign wanted campaign experi
ence, some I met randomly, and some
just wanted to help after I told them I
was running against Boyett,” he said.
“My supporters are a variety of peo
ple.”
Copeland said he thinks he is more
qualified because he would listen and
be there for people. If elected, he
would be required to attend a school
for first-time justices of the peace for a
month in Austin.
“I’m old enough to know what’s
right and what’s wrong,” Copeland
said. “There are former and current
justice of the peace candidates who
have taught me things.”
Scott Fredericksen, a microcomput
er specialist and Bryan resident, said
he would feel more comfortable with
someone as justice of the
peace who had a little bit
more life experience.
“As far as I’m con
cerned, a student would lack
the maturity to handle that
level of responsibility,”
Fredericksen said.
Though Copeland's campaign is
directed toward the entire community,
Copeland said the current focal point
of the campaign is on campus. Ten
thousand people live on campus and
Copeland needs 4,000 votes to win,
he said.
“If I could tell people one
thing, it would be to register to
vote,” he said. “If students will
turn out to vote. I’ll definitely
win.”
Copeland said there are
some specific things he
would like to change if
elected, such as extend
ing court hours in order
to have night and week
end court sessions to bet
ter serve students.
“1 want to bring fairness
and respect back to the office
of justice of the peace,” he said.
“I want to treat individuals as indi
viduals and not as revenue for the
county.”
After the campaign and his
possible election to the office,
Copeland said that he would like
to go to law school and eventual
ly pursue a career in politics,
party voting begins
Oct. 21 and ends Nov
1. Election day is
Nov. 5, and students
can vote at the Memorial Student
Center.
“I feel confident that I will win,”
Copeland said. “We’ve worked really
hard for nine months now and it’s
down to the last few weeks. I’m confi
dent that our hard work will pay off.”
Stephanie Berlin, a senior psycholo
gy major, is also running for justice of
the peace as a member of the libertari
an party against Copeland and Boyett,
but was unavailable for comment.
RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION
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DIRECT FROM BROADWAY
October 29 and 30 Rudder Auditorium
hen composer Giacomo
Puccini premiered his captivating
opera in 1896, he probably never
dreamt that a century later, the story
of LA BOHEME would be reinvented
on the Broadway stage by composer
Jonathan Larson. But that's precisely
what happened with RENT.
MSC OPAS celebrates two breath
taking versions of the same story this
October. Don't miss this chance of a
lifetime to see both on the same
stage tn the same month.
Purchase your RENT ticket and
save 50% off LA BOHEME. To take
advantage of the discount, just bring
this ad to the MSC BOX OFFICE today.
The MSC Box Office is located on the
first floor of Rudder Tower.
Questions? Call 845-12341
This 50% off discount made possible
by the OPAS Endowment.
October 1 and 2 Rudder Auditorium
LAGNIAPPE LECTURE SERIES: Join us for an informal discussion previewing La Boheme. Part of the OPAS
Guild's Patricia S. Peters Lagniappe Lecture Series, the discussions will be held prior to each performance at
6:30 p.m. in the Stark Gallery at the MSC.
Redeemable in-person at MSC Box Office only, Limit 2 tickets to each program/coupon, Not valid for tickets already purchased,TAMU student iD required,
Offer expires October 2, 2002.Tickets to LA BOHEME and RENT must be purchased at the same time to receive the discount.
-T
MSC
Ij^g*
Three Decades of Performing Arts