● thursday,
september 13, 2012
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2012 student media
thebattalion
of l i nc gic u o C ate Str geting Bud
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Pooling Students fund collective fee, council to analyze reallocation Barrett House
EDITOR’SNOTE President R. Bowen Loftin announced the Council for Strategic Budgeting, illustrated above, in order to analyze the reallocation of the University Advancement Fee, which replaced 13 mandatory student fees for a total collected budget of
$120 million. The council is made up of three subcouncils: the Tuition and Fee Sub-Council, the Strategic Reallocation Sub-Council and the Student Service Fee Advisory Board SubCouncil.
The Battalion As state funding to public universities has decreased in recent years, Texas A&M administrators have implemented alternative money management strategies to bear the brunt of fluctuating finances. One strategy was the establishment of the University Advancement Fee. The UAF, approved by the Board of Regents during the last spring semester, replaced 13 mandatory student fees by pooling that money into one fee. The established pool of money can then be reallocated back into the various fee divisions based on priority and need. “Last year, we went through a pretty difficult exercise in trying to deal with a 14 percent reduction in our state appropriation — almost $40 million. That was a big hit,” said University Presi-
dent R. Bowen Loftin. “That money primarily is what pays faculty salaries and staff salaries.” Loftin said the loss of appropriations directly impacted the educational mission of the University, something already made difficult by the increase in students and decrease in faculty. “When you have that kind of hit coming directly at the educational enterprise of Texas A&M, it’s very serious,” Loftin said. “Our whole goal is to make sure [students] get the best education [they] can get, and we have fewer faculty than we had a year ago, and we have more [students].” The solution — something the University administration has been working on since the spring, was to find funding from non-state dollars. Loftin said the goal was to reallocate these See UAF on page 3
Photo illustration by Josh McKenna — THE BATTALION
world&nation
U.S. ambassador killed in Libya Jake Walker The Battalion The search for those behind the provocative, anti-Muslim film implicated in violent protests in Egypt and Libya led Wednesday to a California Coptic Christian convicted of financial crimes who acknowledged his role in managing and providing logistics for the production. Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, told
The Associated Press in an interview outside Los Angeles that he was the manager for the company that produced “Innocence of Muslims,” which mocked Muslims and the prophet Muhammad and may have caused inflamed mobs that attacked U.S. missions in Egypt and Libya. The film was implicated in protests that resulted in the burning of the U.S. consulate Tuesday in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi.
Libyan officials said Wednesday that Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other embassy employees were killed during the mob violence, but U.S. officials now say they are investigating whether the assault was a planned terrorist strike linked to Tuesday’s 11-year anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. The U.S. sent 50 Marines as an See Libya on page 6
campus
To Write Love on Her Arms extends hand of assistance Julie Blanco The Battalion Although the first step to recovery is often the hardest, students at Texas A&M who suffer from depression, addiction, self-injury or thoughts of suicide have a new opportunity to reach out for help. To Write Love On Her Arms, TWLOHA, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to finding resources to help those with personal struggles, now has a UChapter at Texas A&M. The organization had an informational meeting Monday and due to the high amount of interest organized a second for Wednesday. As a result of the determination of senior management major Bailey Bennett, a chapter of TWLOHA was brought to campus.
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“We’re starting to see our efforts create something tangible on campus,” Bennett said. Bennett has been interested in the national organization since it was established in 2006, personally connecting with the message that TWLOHA conveys. A goal of TWLOHA is to battle the stigma and shame of feelings of depression, addiction, self-injury and thoughts of suicide with honesty and compassion. “People have a bad stigma about To Write Love On Her Arms because it’s a really ‘heavy’ organization,” said senior communication major and chapter publicity chair Amber Kelly. TWLOHA is also here as a reminder that an abundance of people deal with harsh
bryan-college station Mosquitoes continue to test positive for West Nile Mosquitoes collected at various sites in BryanCollege Station tested positive for West Nile virus, bringing the total of positive mosquito pools to 60 for the year. According to Brazos County Health Department, mosquitoes were trapped and tested positive for West Nile at Glade Street and Rayado Court in College Station; Woodcrest Drive, East Villa Maria Road and Warwick Lane in Bryan; and the Texas A&M University golf course. BCHD issued a reminder that all of Brazos County is positive for West Nile. BCHD urges residents to keep up their defenses and remember to drain standing water around homes, trim grass and shrubs, wear insect repellent containing DEET, stay indoors at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active, and dress in long sleeves and pants when outdoors to prevent bites. Jake Walker, staff writer
aerospace engineering
Shuttle simulator shipments complete Luz Moreno-Luzano
Roger Zhang — THE BATTALION
Senior management major Bailey Bennett leads an informational for the A&M chapter of To Write Love On Her Arms. feelings. “They’re your everyday student or friend,” Kelly said. “It’s not a certain person, it’s everyone.” The organization creates an open environment by
presenting hope and providing resources to those in need. “We are going to give you a community where you can express your thoughts,” Bennett said. “We build an enviSee Write on page 6
The Battalion Sitting in crates and boxes in the University Services Building is the soon-to-be assembled NASA Shuttle Mission Simulator — the same one that trained NASA astronauts for the last 35 years. The fourth shipment of simulator parts arrived Wednesday after aerospace engineering faculty waited several months for the final shipment to arrive. The first shipment was delivered in January. “It means so much to the University,” said aerospace
engineering professor John Valasek. “This is the only one in existence. It’s living history and students will be able to interact with it.” This particular simulator began operations at Johnson Space Center in 1977 and has trained 355 astronauts for all 135 space shuttle missions. The simulator exposed astronauts to the sights, motions, faults and sounds they would experience upon launch and landing. Former NASA flight dynamics officer Nick Combs said NASA used problem See Shuttle on page 5
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