thebattalion ● wednesday,
november 3, 2010
● Serving
Texas A&M since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2010 Student Media
Incumbent Democrat Representative Chet Edwards, A&M class of 1974, kept his seat in the House for 20 years before relinquishing it to Republican challenger Bill Flores Thursday night. During his time in office, Edwards was regarded as a champion for the cause of U.S. veterans.
An elated Bill Flores, Aggie class of 1976, addresses supporters during his victory speech. Flores, a retired oil and gas executive, won in his first campaign for elected office.
Daniel Cernero — The Lariat (Baylor)
Michelle Myers — THE BATTALION
elections
Flores, Perry victorious in landslide election Republican takeover spreads through Congress, across US Ty Petty The Battalion It is often said voting is one’s political voice. Voting is to be the preverbal seal of approval or the shout of discord. If this is the case, then the voters of the 17th congressional district in Texas and the nation at large have shouted out. In stark contrast to the elections of 2008, conservative Republicans chalked up victory
after victory last night regaining control of the House of Representatives, several governorships and gaining enough seats to nearly tie the Senate. These trends were reflected in the results from the area. The 10-term Representative Chet Edwards went down in defeat to his challenger Bill Flores of Bryan. Flores won with 62 percent of the vote to Edwards’ 37 percent. The loss ends Edwards long career as a
Democrat from conservative rural Texas and begins Flores’ freshman term in congress. “I am honored and humbled by the trust that the voters have placed in me. We won this campaign because of the outstanding campaign team and army of volunteers that we built across all 12 counties,” Flores said. “Ultimately, the voters sent a clear message that they want a See Elections on page 6
National results Race governor senate house of representatives ASSOCIATED PRESS
Rep. 21 46 230
Dem. 7 51 165
Change
+10 +5 +50
All numbers are as-called at time of press, with several seats still undecided. SOURCE: CNN
Incumbent Texas Gov. Rick Perry celebrates his re-election Tuesday night in Buda, Texas.
business
activism
b-cs area
Mays-sponsored “Aggie 100” honors top Aggie ventures
Children’s rights group to visit College Station
Associate professor leads program preparing middle schoolers for college life
Katie White The Battalion Aggieland was bursting with success last week when more than 600 Aggie entrepreneurs came to town for the sixth annual Aggie 100 presented by the Mays Business School Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship, CNVE. Aggie 100 annually honors the Top 100 fastest growing Aggie owned or operated businesses around the world. Richard Lester, executive director of CNVE, laid out the criteria for any business that hopes to be nominated for the honor. “The company has to have been in business for five years, has to have made a minimum of $100,000 in revenue each year in the last years, and it has to be Aggie owned or operated,” he said. Calls for nominations begin each spring and usually about 150 businesses join the running. A professional accounting company calculates which are the fastest growing and ranks them. “We keep the list a secret, but all 100 companies are invited,” Lester said. “They just don’t know until they get there if they are number one or number 99. Dr. Loftin was our keynote speaker this year.” About 100 students attend the luncheon where the names are revealed. This is a part of the program’s intent to reach out to current Aggies. See 100 on page 2
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Joanna Raines The Battalion While today’s youth in America is consumed with the war between “Team Edward” and “Team Jacob,” children across the world are faced with the reality of true conflict. They live in a world where their home is a battlefield, and never once have they experienced a time of peace. The conflict between The Lord’s Resistance Army, LRA, and the Government of Uganda has resulted in Africa’s longest running war, and has left nearly two million citizens in the crossfire. The children born into this generation have known nothing but war. It is estimated that 90 percent of the LRA troops are abducted children. Invisible Children is one of the leading organizations in the fight against injustice in Uganda, and it is coming to College Station. It will present two events. At 6:30 p.m. Thursday, there will be a “face to face” screening in Mugwalls Cafe.
The event consists of a live performance by Gatlin Elms, a film relating to the conflict in Uganda and a previous child soldier guest speaking. “The film that the team is showing is called ‘go.’ It really highlights the tangible and sustainable impact that students in the United States can have on Northern Uganda whenever we just work for it,” said Joleah Stiles, regional manager for Invisible Children and class of 2008. There will be another opportunity to get involved Friday for a $2 lunch at the Baptist Student Ministries on Northgate at 12:30 p.m. At the Invisible Children event there will be merchandise for sale, and money will go to the Invisible Children organization. Invisible Children is coming to College Station because of junior political science major Alex Schlebach. “Seeing that hundreds of thousands of children need to See Children on page 2
Ryan Seybold The Battalion It’s never too early to prepare for college, at least that’s the idea behind GEAR UP, Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, a Department of Education grant program aimed at encouraging and preparing middle school students for postsecondary education. In 2008, Pat Lynch, Bryan ISD GEAR UP co-director and Linda Castillo, an associate professor in the Texas A&M educational psychology department and Bryan ISD GEAR UP director, applied for a grant to start a GEAR UP program in Bryan ISD. They were successful in getting it funded, and the project received a six-year grant to provide services to more than 1,050 students from the Class of 2014. The group’s received services starting in seventh grade and will continue to receive services until their senior year in 2014. “I serve as the project director. I provide project oversight, management and evaluation,” Castillo said. “This is the
GEAR UP videos ■ Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs public service announcements can be found at http://gearup. cehd.tamu. edu/.
See GEAR UP on page 5
11/3/10 1:14 AM