thebattalion
Closer to new A&M president
● tuesday,
1.19. 2010
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2010 student media
■ Presidential Search Committee may have answers by Feb. Robert Carpenter Special to The Battalion After months of searching, reviewing and eliminating, the Presidential Search Committee has whittled down the pool of candidates for the position of president of Texas A&M University. Cadet Col. Brent Lanier, one of three students on the committee, said the process has been successful. “The candidates are of high caliber and any of them will propel the University where it needs to go,” the senior political science major said. The committee, which was formed by the Board of Regents in July 2009 following Elsa Murano’s resignation, wasted no time in seeking direction from the Aggie family. Feedback was solicited online through the presidential search Web site, and the committee sought out direction in three open forums last fall — one in Dallas, Houston and College Station. As for how much input has come from current students, Student Body President Kolin Loveless said it was “a lot.” “We had a survey which was open all summer, and we
Photos by The Associated Press
United Nations pickup truck pushes through a crowd of earthquake victims Sunday, trying to reach a food distribution center.
Aiding the afflicted
See President on page 6
Texas A&M 2010: Welcoming students back to a new year and a new semester. voices | 11
Matt Woolbright The Battalion Imagine that in 60 seconds every student at Texas A&M died. It is expected the rest of Bryan-College Station faced the same fate. This is the equivalent of the death toll caused by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that devastated Haiti on Jan. 12. Less than 10 miles from the capital of the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, the earthquake began. The quake was followed by 12 aftershocks greater than a 5.0 magnitude that left the capital crippled and the country in shock. Benchun Duan, a world-renowned
Student group lacks funding ■ CARPOOL faces financial trouble and is raising money in order to stay afloat Joaquin Villegas The Battalion One of the biggest dangers in any given campus is automobile accidents involving the consumption of alcohol. For that reason, a student organization decided to come up with a simple solution to the problem: provide safe and free rides to students that have had one drink too many. The student organization, launched in 1999, is called “Caring Aggies R Protecting Over Our Lives,” known as CARPOOL. However, recent financial problems are causing operations to cease for the upcoming weekends, though operations are expected to continue later in the semester. “We expect to be back up and running within the next couple of weeks,” said CARPOOL See CARPOOL on page 6
as Texhistory
this day in
Jan. 19, 1839 The town of Waterloo, which was soon renamed Austin, was approved as the new capital of Texas.
earthquake expert and assistant professor of geology and geophysics at A&M, said the location of the quake was the main culprit for the extreme damage and loss of life. “The major cause of the level of destruction is due to the poor building structure,” Duan said. “It wasn’t only the power of this quake, but that with the unpreparedness of Haiti that is to blame for the total devastation this island country is facing.” In 1994, a similar magnitude earthquake hit northern Los Angeles and killed only 72 people, despite a much higher population density.
Woman charged in Northgate garage case
Samantha Johnson
The Battalion Jonny Green — THE BATTALION An indictment and arrest has been made regarding an incident at the Northgate Northgate parking garage where the Parking Garage in which an A&M student accident took place. was struck by a truck while standing at a pay station in March 2009. Barch said the indictment was necessary. Alma Cooley-Martinez, the driver of “I think the indictment of Alma Cooley the truck, was charged with criminally is fair… I personally think it should have negligent homicide. been bumped to a more serious offense,” Lindsay Walters, a senior accounting Barch said. “My biggest thing is that no major, along with three others, were struck matter the charge she is given, it won’t bring by a Dodge truck when Martinez-Cooley, Lindsay back.” 26, lost control of the vehicle. Walters was According to an affidavit, “the truck the only person killed despite her friend went straight east and jumped the curb for Rachael Rahn’s effort to push her out of the sidewalk in front of the pay station in the way of the truck. the southeast corner of the garage.” Rahn would not comment on the inAfter striking pedestrians on the sidedictment, but said she missed her friend. walk, the truck slammed through two “I love and will always miss Lindsay,” concrete barricade posts and continued on she said. “Her family is in my constant the street until it came to a stop in a church thoughts and prayers.” Longtime friend of Walters, Tasha See Northgate on page 9
The Battalion The National Pan-Hellenic Council Week will kick off with informative programs and the Third Annual Martin Luther King Day March. The council’s president Alexis Phipps said the week is meant to raise awareness of the sororities and fraternities in the council, as well as other organizations with shared interests. “We just want to get everybody
Text Messaging: Text “Haiti” to 90999 and $10 will be donated to the Red Cross
back in the swing of things, and introduce everybody to the programs we are doing and combine focus with other black organizations on campus,” she said, “[and] catch some freshmen who didn’t know about us during the fall semester.” Some of the programs include a panel about black Greek life in A&M’s history. Terrence Bizor, vice president of the council and a senior See Kickoff Week on page 5
The National Pan-Hellenic Council marches at the 14th annual Martin Luther King Jr. freedom march.
Jeramie Heflin — THE BATTALION
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voices
Haitian hardships The misfortune stricken Haiti faces a
Pg. 1-01.19.10.indd 1
Bicycles Etc.: 10% of sales on Monday day went go to Haiti relief
coming wednesday
page 5 Six Aspen Heights homes were broken into, damaged and robbed Sunday afternoon.
Spoons Yogurt: Thursday all revenue will be donated to the red cross
National Pan-Hellenic Council’s kickoff week
Travis Lawson
Aspen break-ins
See Haiti on page 9
Helping Haiti
devastating Earthquake. Was disaster actually predictable and what can A&M do to help?
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Former coach sues Former A&M Diving Coach Kevin Wright is suing the university. Read more @ thebatt.com
1/18/10 10:37 PM