^ ^ Friday, April 30,2004
The Battalion
ilume 110 • Issue 140 • 12 pages
ATexasA&M lYadition Since 1893
OPINION:
A policy worth
backing.
Page 11
www.lhebiitt.coin
PACE DESIGN BY: LAUREN ROUSE
Campus issues
Senate calls on AD to maintain archery funding
Gates addresses tuition, space allocation, diversity
By Jibran Najmi
THE BATTALION
The Texas A&M Student Senate asked Athletic
Director Bill Byrne Wednesday night to maintain
cmrent funding for the women’s varsity archery
team and not send the program back to club status.
In a unanimous decision, the Student Senate
passed a resolution in support of the women’s
archery program, citing the fact that the team
brought home four national championships over
the past four years, has one of the highest team
CPAs throughout the entire Athletic Department
and have a budget that includes less than 0.7 per-
ceniofthe Athletic Department budget.
“When we added archery and equestrian to
varsity status, both sports were considered
emerging sports for women, and we hoped both
would be added to the list of NCAA sponsored
championships,” Byrne said. “Both sports had
done well on a club basis, and so it made sense
here at Texas A&M.”
Amanda Raffaelli, a member of A&M’s
archery team and a sophomore accounting major,
said Byrne’s assessment of the archery program’s
growth was incorrect.
“Currently there are 25 club-level archery pro
grams across the United States,” she said. “We
have reason to believe that archery as a sport will
grow in the next five years, it just needs time.”
See Archery on page 2
By Jibran Najmi
THE BATTALION
Texas A&M President
Robert M. Gates said
Wednesday night at the Student
Senate meeting that he was not
aware of the demolition of any
residence halls, including
Hotard Hall, as he addressed the
Student Senate on space alloca
tion, tuition and diversity.
Gates said selected residence
halls would be converted into
administrative space for new fac
ulty on campus, while having the
least impact upon on-campus
students and living communities.
“I want to preserve the
blocks of residence halls on the
north and south side of campus,
and push the faculty and staff to
the periphery,” Gates said.
“Even if (hypothetically) a resi
dence hall is demolished, it is
my intention to replace it with
another residence hall.”
Gates said the Council on Built
Environment has not addressed
what the second priority will be in
the Campus Master Plan.
“The ideal situation for me
would be that an old Ag some
where would want his or her name
on the new (life sciences) build
ing for something around $25 mil
lion,” Gates said. “That would
allow us to begin our second pri
ority of the Campus Master Plan
and to proceed without delay.”
Gates stressed the fact that it
was important to plan the exteri
or facade of the new life sci
ences building and all future
buildings on campus.
Gates also addressed tuition
increases, saying he would
See Gates on page 2
Building blocks
SHARON AESCHBACH • THE BATTALION
freshman environmental design major Megan building earlier this week. The model cube
Dickerson builds a model cube tower for her tower, also called a golden grid model, is the
ENDS 106 class in the Langford Architecture class' last project for the semester.
Bonfire benefit concert to
feature Texas country music
By Brad Bennett
THE BATTALION
Student Bonfire said it has organized what it
hopes will become an annual benefit concert to help
fund its non-sanctioned organization.
“Basically we are trying to raise money for next
year to help us with funding bonfire,” said senior
rangeland ecology major Ram Lopez, a Student
Bonfire leader.
Lopez said three country music bands — Cooder
Graw, Macon Greyson and The Peter Dawson Band
— will perform at Hurricane Harry’s on Tuesday,
May 4. The event will be hosted by Dub Miller, and
all proceeds will be going toward Student Bonfire.
Lopez said Student Bonfire has been trying to
organize a concert since 2002, but it wasn’t until one
of the members, Kevin Jackson, said he would organ
ize it that the plans began to materialize.
Jackson, a senior poultry science major, said he
became interested in organizing the concert after the
live music at last year’s off-campus bonfire was not
as entertaining as he thought it should have been.
“(Student Bonfire) had a couple good bands (at
last year’s bonfire) but they were local, and 1 was
like, ‘This is Aggie Bonfire; there is no reason they
shouldn't have good bands,”’ Jackson said.
Jackson said he started approaching acts when he
went to concerts.
He said several bands were interested in perform
ing to promote Student Bonfire’s cause.
“Just putting the bonfire name on it has a lot of
pull,” Jackson said. “Everybody knows that for Texas
country, if you are going to be big you got to make it
in College Station.”
Jackson said that if the concert continues in the
future, it may expand beyond a Texas country format
to include nationally famous bands such as
Pushmonkey, which has shown interest in perform
ing next year. He said that if the concert does expand,
ties to Texas music will still be evident.
Jackson said Student Bonfire has received support
from the owner of Hurricane Harry’s since the incep
tion of Student Bonfire. Jackson said the staff at
Harry’s helped plan the event and that they told him
he could have it on any day not already booked.
BONFIRE MUSIC SHOWCASE
^222]^ Cooder Graw, Peter
Dawson Band, Macon Greyson
and Dub Miller will perform to
benefit Student Bonfire.
(^222^^ Hurricane Harry’s
^20^ Tuesday, May 4
MiiUm 9 p.m.
• Tickets are $10 at Cavender’s
or at www.studentbonfire.com
• Tickets are $12 at the door
RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION
SOURCE : STUDENT BONFIRE
Jackson said drafting contracts and getting
approval from Student Bonfire’s attorney and the
bands’ booking agents were the most difficult parts
of planning the concert.
Lopez said the costs of an off-campus bonfire
have increased from $26,000 in 2002 to $39,000 in
2003. Next year, he said, he expects costs to be more
than $39,000. Student Bonfire plans to buy 500 acres
of land, where it can grow trees and hold bonfire
every year.
See Bonfire on page 2
Freebirds offers free burritos to cyclists
By Brian D. Cain
THE BATTALION
Ride Your Bike to Work and School Day is an innovative
way to come together and improve the community through
the collaboration of several organizations, businesses and
patrons in the area, said Pierre Dube, Freebirds World
Kurrito owner.
This is a community effort sponsored by several local organ
izations and businesses including Freebirds, Brazos Valley
Cyclists and the League of American Bicyclists, said Keri
Krueger, brandmaster of Freebirds.
Friday is Ride Your Bike to Work and School Day, and
everyone is encouraged to ride their bikes to Freebirds for a
free burrito, Dube said.
“Bike to Work and School Day embraces all that Freebirds
is known for,” Dube said.
To celebrate the day, Freebirds will be giving away free reg
ular burritos to anyone who rides a bicycle to the Northgate
Freebirds between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Friday, Krueger said.
This is the l Ith year that Freebirds has sponsored the event.
Texas A&M graduate student Kevin Baker said he is
proud that his organization, Brazos Valley Cyclists, is a spon
sor of the event.
“The point of Bike to Work and School Day is to reward and
encourage cyclists, as well as increase awareness of bicycles on
the road,” Baker said. “We want to change the attitude of some
drivers who believe that bicycles don’t belong on the road, even
though it’s legal to ride a bicycle on the road in all 50 states.”
Baker said several members of the Brazos Valley Cyclists
will be at Freebirds to help hand out free burrito coupons and
that there will be a band out on the Promenade.
Texas A&M Transportation Services Web Designer Jennifer
LeGrevellec said several TS representatives will be at Freebirds
handing out water bottles as well.
Free ride
Friday is Ride Your Bike to Work and
School Day, an event sponsored by
Freebirds, the Brazos Valley Cyclists
and the League of American Bicyclists.
• Ride your bike to the Freebirds on
Northgate and receive a free burrito
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Members of the Brazos Valley
Cyclists will be at Freebirds to hand
out free burrito coupons
• This is the 11th
year Freebirds
has sponsored
the event
RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION
SOURCE : PIERRE DUBE, OWNER OF FREEBIRDS
“We are definitely supporting Bike to Work and School
Day,” LeGrevellec said.
Rod Wagner, owner of Aggieland Cycling, said compa
nies should give more consideration to people who ride their
See Bike on page 2
Fraternity to ‘rock’ for
pediatric AIDS research
By Rhiannon Meyers
THE BATTALION
The Texas A&M chapter of
Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity will
host a concert at Margarita Rocks
Sunday to raise money for pedi
atric AIDS research.
Robert Wolf, a junior marketing
major, said Sigma Alpha Mu, a
new fraternity at A&M, will donate
all of the concert’s proceeds to the
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS
Foundation, a nonprofit organiza
tion committed to eradicating pedi
atric AIDS. Wolf said pediatric
AIDS is an important issue that
students need to be aware of.
“These kids don’t want to have
AIDS, but they weren’t given that
chance,” Wolf said. “I think it’s
good for people to raise money so
these children won’t suffer.”
Ian Hartman, a junior econom
ics major, said the concert will fea
ture alternative rock band “build
ing g” from Austin. Hartman said
that although no cover will be
charged, there will be a suggested
donation of $3 at the door.
“It’s important to give money
to the pediatric AIDS foundation
because it raises awareness in the
community,” Hartman said. “And
every time you donate it puts, a
smile on your face.”
Hartman said the fraternity has
already raised $600 for pediatric
AIDS last week with its “Bounce
for Beats” fund-raiser on campus.
The fraternity spent two days
bouncing basketballs, symbolizing
the heartbeats of children with
AIDS to drum up donations for the
foundation. Hartman said the fra
ternity is expecting 250 people to
attend the concert.
Patty Evans, a senior events
manager for the Elizabeth Glaser
Pediatric AIDS Foundation, said
the foundation was co-founded by
Elizabeth Glaser, who was infect
ed with HIV, and two of her
friends in 1988 to help Glaser's
two HIV-infected children. Evans
said the 15-year-old foundation is
now the international leader in the
identification and funding of pedi
atric AIDS and HIV research.
Evans said a lot of the research
funds are raised at the 100 college
campuses that the foundation
See AIDS on page 2