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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 2004)
is ^ Thursday, April 15, 2004 The Battalion olume 110 • Issue 129 • 22 pages A Texas A&M Tradition Since 1893 Opinion: School district in peril Page 9B www.thehatt.com PAGE DESIGN BY: APRIL WAREHAM tying it ability Jlofftt last An in® lorer, aift, Indents to request parking spaces for fall c ■encv mi ivaterd By Natalie Younts THE BATTALION Students will be given the opportunity to uest which parking lot they want to park in for e 2004-05 school year beginning Monday, der Transportation Services 1 new parking plan, id IS Director Rodney Weis. Faculty and staff parking will not be affected the new plan. Weis said. Student parking permits will only be valid in lie assigned lot, compared to the current system | here permits are valid in any resident lot or any pmuter lot, Weis said. “We as students have a vested interest in re- ialuating the way parking is done; it’s been an sue on this campus for many years,” said Student lody President Matt Josefy. “With 400 faculty being hired, if we don't do something, ultimately h will lose parking spots to those staff and | eulty.” Students can go to the TS Web site Monday to s bmit their first through sixth preferences for parking lot assignments. “(The plan) assures (students) that they’ll actu ally have a spot in the lot that they choose,” said Chris Diem, vice president of Student Services. Diem said students will have a chance to hear more details and ask questions about the new parking changes at 7:30 p.m. tonight in Rudder Theater. “It is vital that students come,” Diem said. “This will be an explanation of how parking is going to work next year.” The distribution system is priority-based or seniority-based, Weis said. Josefy said the parking situation might not be perfect in the beginning, but that the plan has advantages. “We have to give it a shot,” he said. On-campus residents will be given priority in the lots close to residence halls, and they have pri ority over a senior commuter, said Peter Lange, TS associate director. A student would automatically remain on the waiting list for higher priority requests if he didn’t get his first choice, Lange said. “If you end up parking in your fourth choice as a freshman, you will be on that list so that if your second choice comes open, they will move you into whatever your second choice is,” said Logan Renfrew, Southside student senator. If a space eventually becomes available, the student will receive an e-mail that will explain how to redeem the permit, Weis said. Some students had doubts about moving for ward with the student portion of the plan, but not with the faculty and staff side said John Mathews, the student services chair for the Student Senate. “After talking with TS and Mr. Weis ... I’m convinced that there are more benefits than there are problems with going ahead and doing the stu dent side,” said Mathews. Weis said the temporary separation of the stu dent parking system from the staff system has its benefits. “(Separation) allows us, this coining year, to See Parking on page 2A Proposed Parking Plan 2004—| Students will be given the opportunity to request which parking lot they want to park in for the 2004 - 05 school year, beginning Monday. Parking areas will be assigned on a priority basis, beginning with faculty and ending with freshmen. Online requests will be taken V-) April 19 through July 16 at http://t ra n sporto n I i ne.ta m u .ed u Starting July 16, parking -£) assignments will be available. Andrew Burleson • THE BATTALION Source • TRANSPORTATION SERVICES mp4 ' are •tia :ation'':| Get your stomp on nily Behr, a sophomore applied exercise physiology major, performs th Delta Gamma at the 6th annual Stompfest held in Rudder Auditorium ednesday night. The event was sponsored by the National Pan- Hellenic Council and showcased teams from different Greek organizations. Delta Gamma placed second behind three-time winner Kappa Kappa Gamma. B-CS ranked as a top place to live By Aerin Toussaint THE BATTALION Bryan-College Station was ranked 14th in the United States and first among Texas cities, in the newly published book “Cities Ranked and Rated” by Bert Sperling and Peter Sander. The authors looked at several categories in determining the ranking, including the economy, jobs, cost of living, climate, edu cation, transportation, crime, arts and culture, leisure and quality of life, said Tom Brymer, College Station city manager. “Obviously we agree with their analysis,” Brymer said. “We’re flattered that they’ve identified our community as one which has such a high quality of life.” Charles Wood, assistant director of economic develop ment, said college towns tend to rank well on the list. “You can be a relatively small community, but offer things that other cities this size can’t,” Wood said. Wood said Bryan-College Station offers cultural ameni- TQP-BANK f \ Bryan-College Station was ranked 14th in the nation and 1st in Texas on a list of best places for relocation in a new book written by Pete Sander and Bert Sperling. Criteria included economy, jobs, cost of living, climate, education, health I care, crime, transportation, arts and | culture, leisure and quality of life. College towns traditionally rank well on the list. The top community on the list was Charlottesville, Va., which is home I to the University of Virginia. Austin was ranked 23rd. v y Andrew Burleson • THE BATTALION Source • "CITIES RANKED AND RATED" ties such as the George Bush Presidential Library, which brings such notable world leaders such as Henry Kissinger and Condoleezza Rice to the area, and the Memorial Student Center OPAS, which brings interna tionally known Broadway shows to the area. Although college students are often attracted to big Texas cities such as Dallas, San Antonio, See B-CS on page 4A idwards campaigns n Brazos County 00pm By Rhiannon Meyers THE BATTALION m 30pm ay only) your Democratic Congressman Chet Edwards said that if elected, he would continue to support research programs at Texas A&M and would work for better roads and effective jobs for Brazos Valley residents. ■ “I’m one of only three Aggies in Congress, and I’ve spent 13 years • . Bipporting research programs at A&M,” said Edwards, who has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1990. “A&M and ^^■razos County had a profound impact on my public service career, Bid if I can make a difference on this community and A&M, perhaps I’ve paid back my debt a little bit.” f Edwards, Class of 1974, kicked off his campaign for District 17 presentative on Wednesday night at Savannah’s Porch in College ■tation with more than 150 supporters present. I Edwards, who was moved from District 11 to District 17 after the Week aimed at academic dishonesty, plagiarism By Carrie Pierce THE BATTALION The University Writing Center and Aggie Honor System Office have teamed up for Academic and Professional Integrity Week, a week of panels and symposiums address ing plagiarism at school and the workplace. Faculty, students and parents are invited to discuss issues of academic integrity, professional ethics and writing in various contexts, said Michelle Hall Kells, sympo sium director and associate director of the University Writing Center. “I really see the issue of integrity as something that permeates the academic and professional world,” Kells said. The symposium is geared to help stu dents write with confidence and without plagiarism, said Valerie Balester, executive director of the University Writing Center and associate professor of English. “We are getting a conversation going across different areas of campus for stu dents to do their best without resorting to plagiarism,” Balester said. Students will be taught how to check if they are plagiarizing, Balester said. “It will help students manage their time so they aren’t tempted to plagiarize,” Balester said. Balester defined plagiarism as using the words of another person without appropri ate attribution. “This is a problem everywhere,” Bale c ter said. “A&M is no exception.” John Huffman, Corps commander-des ignate and a junior finance major, said that it is important to not practice plagiarism because workplaces will not tolerate it. “It is important that students learn aca demic integrity while they are at A&M as a preparation for their real world experi ence,” Huffman said. According to a study by the Center for Academic Integrity conducted by Donald L. McCabe of Rutgers University, more than 75 percent of students on most college campuses admitted to some form of cheat ing. McCabe's research also found that academic honor codes serve as effective ways to curb cheating, but that faculties are See Plagiarism on page 9A See Edwards on page 2A Joshua L. Hobson • THE BATTALION emocratic Congressman Chet Edwards speaks with students and supporters Qt a Savannah's Porch Wednesday night- Yildirim: Sufism stresses love and acceptance By Michael Player THE BATTALION Following one‘s heart as a compass will lead one to God, said Yetkin Yildirim, interfaith faculty coordinator at the University of Texas. Yildirim spoke about Sufism to an audience of about 30 stu dents, faculty and staff in Rudder Theater Wednesday night, spon sored by the Interfaith Dialogue Student Association. “Sufism is a part of Islam that stresses love and acceptance,” Yildirim said. Disassociation from materialism is the first step in growing closer to God,Yildirim said. The word Islam actually means peace, he said. Yildirim said Sufism began in the 13th century. When Yildirim ended his presentation, he fielded questions about Sufism from the audience, saying that open discussions are what Sufism is all about. “This (discussions) is what we stress in Sufism,” Yildirim said. Mert Atilhan, a graduate chemical engineering student from Albania, said the IDS A consists of members from more than 10 foreign nations, and it promotes discussions of different religions at its meetings. Atilhan said IDSA is highly infUienced by Fethullah Gulen, a Turkish intellect that interprets Islam as peaceful and promotes dialogue amongst the many religions of the world. Gulen said he is known for his diplomacy and has met with the pope and the archdiocese of New York. It is important for people to see the positive of Islam and not just the negative, Atilhan said. “I am from Turkey and to America most people see Turkey as a place that democracy and Islam coexist,” Atilhan said. “There is nothing in Islam that keeps people from being free.” Atilhan said discussions about Sufism and other aspects of Islam are a good way to promote diversity at A&M. “We were recently awarded the Diversity Award by the University, and we are very proud of that,” Atilhan said.