Q:
thebattalionasks
What do you think about A&M moving to the SEC?
I don’t feel like it would be the best move for us right now.
Matthew Schmidt, junior kinesiology major
thebatt.com
The Big 12 is a sinking ship and we’ve got to bail.
I think it’s not going to be good considering the strength of SEC teams.
Travis Nault, freshman agricultural economics major
Aaron Beal, freshman electrical engineering major
I honestly don’t know much about Big 12 versus SEC… but I’m still excited to get into the games. Travis Lamb, freshman computer science major
thebattalion ● monday,
august 29, 2011
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2011 student media
Should A&M join the SEC? Vote online and send your opinions to mailcall@ thebatt.com. Texas A&M could leave the Big 12 this week. See inside for story, 3a.
campus news
Looking at Gig ’em week
Evan E Eva Ev an A Andrews n e nd ndr ews w — THE BATTALION
Take a peek at our photo recap of Texas A&M’s Gig ’em week activities. Whether you’re in the Corps of Cadets, part of Greek Life, or participated in Fish Camp check if you can find yourself or a friend. See inside for photos, 4b and
5b.
coming tuesday
No end in sight for drought A&M professor and State Climatologist John NielsenGammon weighs in on Texas’ record drought.
inside
b!
sports | 1b Mixed weekend for Aggies
The A&M women’s volleyball team won its home tournament, while the soccer team lost to No. 7 Florida and Tennessee on the road in Knoxville, Tenn.
Prepared to cut A&M takes steps to reduce spending Jordan Wilson The Battalion For the past two years, students in Texas A&M’s current student body were focused on getting into college, transferring into A&M or simply keeping grades up. During this same period, University administration prepared for sizable state budget cuts, which the Texas legislature enacted during a special session in Austin this summer. Preparation for these cuts was a multi-year ordeal, but University President R. Bowen Loftin said the early work accomplished its goal. “For more than a year we have worked hard to prepare for a projected decline in state appropriations result-
ing from reduced state revenues,” Loftin wrote in a July 15 campus memo. “While this process was painful for all of us, I can now say with certainty that we planned accordingly for these difficult budgetary times.” According to the memo, the University prepared for $39 million in reductions, an accurate projection of the total impact of appropriation reductions. Sen. Steve Ogden, chair of the State Senate Finance Committee, said the legislature recognized the need to cut spending long before the most recent legislative session convened in January. The Bryan-College Station legislator added that A&M adjusted for
these cuts in such a way that students shouldn’t notice much of a difference. According to Ogden, state cuts to higher education institutions averaged around seven percent. Roughly 25 percent of A&M’s funding comes from the state. “What you should expect to see is that spending will be down 2-3 percent for the current year,” Ogden said. According to B.J. Crain, vice president of finance for A&M, the process of identifying more efficient ways of allocating funds and cost-saving methods began in the summer of 2009. For the past two years, Crain said, University and System administration acted
I’m just a bill ... ◗ Three laws passed by the 82nd Texas legislature — known around Austin as House Bills 9, 10 and 33 — changed the outlook of higher education in Texas. State legislators, A&M administrators and student leaders reacted to the laws. See Bills on page 5a
See Cuts on page 5a
national
Irene sweeps East Coast Natalee Blanchat & Angela Washeck The Battalion Hurricane Irene swept the East Coast this weekend, hitting New York City early Sunday morning. At least 21 were confirmed across six states, while more than 4 million people in the Northeast region have been left without power. In New York City, subway yards on Coney Island flooded, as did parts of Upper Manhattan. New York’s Hudson and East Rivers also overflowed. Early estimates of the damage ranged anywhere from $7 billion to $20 billion. Still, Irene’s impact in the Big Apple was less than expected. Eric Falcon, freshman international stud-
ies major at Princeton University, said things could be worse in his neck of the woods. “Princeton is pretty far inland, so we did not have to evacuate. Our power is out, so that is the storm’s biggest impact on us,” Falcon said. Falcon added that New York City, only a short commute from Princeton, lucked out. “NYC [just got] the tail end of things. The general consensus was that the storm was bad, it made a huge mess, and there are isolated patches of major flooding, but it pales in comparison to the doomsday forecasts we were told on TV and online,” Falcon said. KBTX meteorologist Shel Winkley said Irene’s force was less than anticipated because it took in dry air 24 hours before landfall. See Irene on page 3a
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Residents of the New Dorp section of the Staten Island Borough of New York wade in knee-deep water in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene, Sunday.
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