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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 27, 2015)
NEWS The Battalion I 3.27.15 2 ‘A World of Healthy Products for Your family!” Wide Selection of 100% Pure Essential Oils * SNOW LOTUS CERTIFIED ORGANIC * Aura Cacia *The Herb E3ar 4303 S. TEXAS AT ROSEMARY BRYAN • 379-846-4459 MON-FRI 9 TO 6 • SAT 9 TO 4 CeSebtHtiog 26 tear* of Serving the B/aaras Valleylj Mark Dore, Editor in Chief THE BATTALION is published daily, Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters and Tuesday and •Thursday during the summer session (except University holidays and exam periods) at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843. Offices are in Suite L400 of the Memorial Student Center. News: The Battalion news depart ment is managed by students at Texas A&M University in Student Media, a unit of the Division of Student Affairs. News room phone: 979-845-3315; E-mail: edi- tor@thebatt.com; website: http://www. thebatt.com. Advertising: Publication of advertising does not imply sponsorship or endorse ment by The Battalion. For campus, local, and national display advertising, call 979-845-2687. For classified advertising, call 979-845-0569. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Email: battads@thebatt.com. Subscriptions: A part of the Univer sity Advancement Fee entitles each Texas A&M student to pick up a single copy of The Battalion. First copy free, addi tional copies $1. DONATE " PLASMA i TODAY! | NEW DONORS EARN IN YOUR FIRST 2 DONATIONS TWO LOCATIONS TO DONATE AT! (979) 315-4101 I {979} 314-3672 4223 Wellborn Rd 700 University Dr E., Ste 111 Bryan. TX 77801 | College Station. TX 77840 Hold onto a piece of Aggieland It S Hot tOO lato to order your copy of the 2015 Aggieland yearbook. The 113th edition of Texas A&M’s official yearbook will chronicle the 2014-2015 school year - traditions, academics, athletics, the other education, the Corps, Greeks, residence halls, campus organizations, and student portraits. Distribution will be in Fall 2015. If yOU haven t, pick up a copy of the award-winning 2014 Aggieland yearbook that is a 520-page photojournalistic record of the 2013-2014 school year. By credit card go online to http://aggieland.tamu.edu or call 979-845-2613. Or drop by the Student Media office in Suite ' L400 of the MSC. STAFF APPRECIATION As part of the University's Staff Appreciation Week, staff participated in activities at Olsen Field, such as bean bag toss, mini golf, and eating cotton candy. Tim Lai —THE BATTALION Peter Luft, Grant Hewitt, Joey Bowers, Reid Towart, Steve-o Callaghan and Trent Jones discuss strategy for the competition. LEAGUE OF LEGENDS CONTINUED Jones said if the A&M team wins the South Division round robin, the team would move on to another round robin against the three teams that won in the other divisions. “We’re excited because we get to represent A&M and I think it will make a big splash,” Jones said. “Espe cially if we get to final four, where ev eryone will see A&M’s banner versus these three other schools. It could be pretty exciting.” Reid Towart, engineering senior and player on the team, said League of Legends is a unique genre of a video game. “It’s a five-on-five game where the objective is to destroy an enemy’s base,” Towart said. “But in order to do that you need to kill the opposing team multiple times and kill objec tives to make your team stronger and win the game. It’s one of those games where its only about 60 percent me chanical skill and the rest is strategy, which is where the team play comes into it.” Steve-O Callaghan, English senior and the team’s coach, said Basketball was a good analogy to describe the game. Callaghan said there are five members on the team, each with a specific area of expertise. Callaghan said that communica tion, while vital, poses an interesting problem because of the online com ponent of the game. “If you’re on a basketball court, and I want to talk to you, I could look at you and talk to you. And if I want to talk to Trent, I could turn to him and talk to him and there is less overlap,” Callaghan said. “But when you are us ing Skype or any other sort of voice software it’s a flat plane and everyone is on the same ground, it’s sort of a challenging environment to commu nicate in.” Communication difficulties cou pled with poor Internet connection makes the game more difficult, said Jones. “Imagine you are at a basketball practice and the team is practicing and two guys shoes break and they don’t have shoes,” Jones said. “It’s like, what are we supposed to do? These two guys, they aren’t going to play. They are going to fall all over the place in their socks, and they aren’t going to practice. And the other guys lose out because of it.” Jones said professional teams have shown interest in drafting him and his teammates. “I really want to perform in this college tournament,’’Jones said. “And if I do incredibly well and people actu ally think I’m a prospect I’ll consider it, but I’ve gotten offers from amateur teams that I’ve turned down.” While Jones said the attention is great, the general consensus among the team is that such offers are too time consuming. Jones said the team values their higher education too much. For now, Towart said the team is aiming to win the South Division first and foremost. “The biggest thing is to make it there,” Towart said. “‘Cause if you make it to the event, even if you come 4th place it’s $7.5 thousand per person, so that’s our goal right now, just to qualify. But once we make it there, we’re going to shoot for first.” DEBATE CONTINUED To encourage the student body to take an active part in the election process, Bermudez said the university will allow students to participate in debate-related activities and program ming organized by student groups and academic colleges and departments. The deadline for the bids is March 31 and requires the university provide a full logistical plan for the political circus that would arrive with the de bate. The Commission requires that all applicants are able to handle large events, something Bermudez said the university has historically done well. To handle such an event, Bermu dez said the university will need to coordinate with city and emergency services — something College Station Mayor Nancy Berry said the city is ready to help with. “We would have our fire and EMS people, as well as police officers and communications people available to the university on an as-needed basis,” Berry said. For the local community. Berry agrees that increasing voter turnout is the main hope. She said a major de bate, which would be one of the most covered events in an intense election season, would also give national ex posure to the area. “I think that the exposure is im measurable and unquantifiable,” Ber ry said. “It would be really exciting.” If the application is successful the debate will be the first in Texas since 1976, a point that U.S. Rep. Bill Flores made clear in his recommen dation letter to the Commission. “Hosting a debate would be an outstanding opportunity for our community and the state as a whole,” Flores said. “The many partnerships that exist between the university and the two cities will contribute to mak ing the debate an outstanding occa sion for students and faculty at the university along with the entire Bra zos Valley region and state of Texas.” The application process is heav ily competitive, and in addition to competitors who have not an nounced their application, the cities of Birmingham, Ala. and Charleston, W.Va. have announced their inten tions to apply. Bermudez said if the A&M appli cation is successful the payoffs for the student body will be significant. “It would be an opportunity for us to show the entire world what Ag gies can do when they put their mind to it — and how committed we are as a university to serving the public good,” Bermudez said. THE TEXAS A&M STUDENT MEDIA BOARD INVITES APPLICATIONS FOR Eclitor-in-Chief BATT The Independent Student Voice op Texas A&M since 1893 Fall 2015-Spring 2016 (The fall and spring editor will oversee print and digital editions, and serve Aug. 16,2015, through May 14,2016) Qualifications for editor-in-chief of The Battalion are:. REQUIRED • Be a Texas A&M student in good standing with the University and enrolled in at least six credit hours (4 if a graduate student) during the term of office (unless fewer credits are required to graduate); • Have at least a 2.25 cumulative grade point ratio (3.25 if a graduate student) and at least a 2.25 grade point ratio (3.25 if a graduate student) in the semester immediately prior to the appointment, the semester of appointment and semester during the term of office. In order for this provision to be met, at least six hours (4 if a graduate student) must have been taken for that semester. PREFERRED • Have completed JOUR 301 or COMM 307 (Mass Communication, Law, and Society) or equivalent; • Have at least one year experience in a responsible editorial position on The Battalion or comparable daily college newspaper, -OR- Have at least one year editorial experience on a commercial newspaper, -OR- Have completed at least 12 hours in journalism, including JOUR 203 (Media Writing I) and JOUR 303 (Media Writing li) or JOUR 304 (Editing for the Mass Media), or equivalent. Application forms should be picked up and returned to Sandi Jones, Student Media business coordinator, in Suite L406 of the MSC. Deadline for submitting application: S p.m. Tuesday, April 7, 2015. THE TEXAS A&M STUDENT MEDIA BOARD INVITES APPLICATIONS FOR Aggieland 2016 Qualifications for editor-in-chief of the Aggieland yearbook are: REQUIRED • Be a Texas A&M student in good standing with the University and enrolled in at least six credit hours (4 if a graduate student) during the term of office (unless fewer credits are required to graduate); • Have at least a 2.25 cumulative grade point ratio (3.25 if a graduate student) and at least a 2.25 grade point ratio (3.25 if a graduate student) in the semester immediately prior to the appointment, the semester of appointment and semester during the term of office. In order for this provision to be met, at least six hours (4 if a graduate student) must have been taken for that semester; PREFERRED • Have completed JOUR 301 or COMM 307 (Mass Communication, Law, and Society); • Have demonstrated ability in writing, editing and graphic design through university coursework or equivalent experience; • Have at least one year experience in a responsible position on the Aggieland or comparable college yearbook. Application forms should be picked up and returned to Sandi Jones, Student Media business coordinator, in Suite L406 of the MSC. Deadline for submitting application: 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, 2015. THE TEXAS A&M STUDENT MEDIA BOARD INVITES APPLICATIONS FOR Editor-in-Chie# BATT The Independent Student Voice of Texas A&M snce 1893 Summer 2015 (The summer editor will oversee print, digital and special editions, and will sen/e May 17, 2015, through Aug. 15,2016) Qualifications for editor-in-chief of The Battalion are: REQUIRED • Be a Texas A&M student in good standing with the University and enrolled in at least six credit hours (4 if a graduate student) during the term of office (unless fewer credits are required to graduate); • Have at least a 2.25 cumulative grade point ratio (3.25 if a graduate student) and at least a 2.25 grade point ratio (3.25 if a graduate student) in the semester immediately prior to the appointment, the semester of appointment and semester during the term of office. In order for this provision to be met, at least six hours (4 if a graduate student) must have been taken for that semester. PREFERRED • Have completed JOUR 301 or COMM 307 (Mass Communication, Law, and Society) or equivalent; • Have at least one year experience in a responsible editorial position on The Battalion or comparable daily college newspaper, -OR- Have at least one year editorial experience on a commercial newspaper, -OR- Have completed at least 12 hours in journalism, including JOUR 203 (Media Writing I) and JOUR 303 (Media Writing li) or JOUR 304 (Editing for the Mass Media), or equivalent. Application forms should be picked up and returned to Sandi Jones, Student Media business coordinator, in Suite L406 of the MSC. Deadline for submitting application: 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, 2015.