University of Texas deals with meningitis death
AUSTIN (AP) — Officials at the University of Texas at Austin on Wednesday planned to notify more students who may have been in class with a student who died of suspected bacterial meningitis.

Joseph Slade Blackstock, 21, of Benbrook, died Tuesday shortly after arriving at Brackenridge Hospital about 4 a.m. He was a junior studying business and lived in an off-campus apartment.

University officials on Tuesday began contacting Blackstock’s friends who may have gone back to Benbrook with Blackstock over the weekend.

Tarrant County health officials also are contacting individuals who spent time with Blackstock, the Austin-American Statesman reported Wednesday.

The disease is spread by sneezing, coughing, kissing or sharing food, drinks or cigarettes.

University officials say because of the timing of his illness, it’s unlikely there is a risk to classmates.

Health officials from the university, country and state on Tuesday began trying to figure out Blackstock’s whereabouts to make sure anyone who may have had close contact with him recently seeks medical attention.

Officials say Blackstock probably did not attend classes Friday and went home to North Texas over the weekend, where he spent time with as many as 15 people from various colleges before returning to Austin on Sunday.

He began showing symptoms Monday, a school holiday, and arrived at the hospital about 4 a.m. Tuesday. He died about 10 a.m.

Based on that scenario, UT health officials say it is unlikely there was a risk to students in his class.

On Tuesday, university health officials distributed the antibiotic Cipro to about 150 students who attended class last Thursday with Blackstock. Officials stopped distributing the medicine when it was determined that he did not show symptoms until Monday.

Blackstock had just transferred to Austin from Texas Tech, where he enrolled after graduating from Western Oaks High School near Fort Worth.

Qatar, University of Texas discuss new campus
AUSTIN (U-WIRE)—University of Texas President Larry Faulkner said Tuesday representatives from the Persian Gulf country of Qatar have approached him about the possibility of starting a satellite business campus in the oil-rich region.

Faulkner said UT officials already had “feelers out” for about a year regarding the potential creation of a petroleum engineering campus outside the capital city of Doha, where the country plans to create an “education city.” Qatar has contracted with Cornell University to start a medical school in the area in the fall, according to The Associated Press.

Since June 2001 the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development has been negotiating with University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill about establishing an undergraduate business degree program. While Faulkner said he doesn’t know if discussion between the two groups faltered, he did say a representative of Qatar’s head of state visited the UT campus recently.

Faulkner said he would soon contact Cornell officials about their dealings with the foundation and then possibly discuss the opportunity further with the Qatar representatives.

Faulkner said the move probably would give some UT professors the chance to teach in the country. He added, however, he isn’t sure of the possible size of the operation of how many faculty openings would be available.

The parties did not go into too much detail regarding the project’s timeframe or what the program’s curriculum would be, Faulkner said.

Capital for the project, Faulkner said, would have to come from Qatar and supporters of the would-be agreement -- not from the University.

According to The Associated Press, North Carolina school leaders submitted a proposal by which the foundation would pay $28 million a year, including faculty pay and benefit packages.

A & M gets low voter turnout in Bonfire survey
COLLEGE STATION (U-WIRE)— Bonfire 2002 planners are disappointed at the dismal response to the survey undertaken last week to gauge student support for the drastically revamped Aggie Bonfire. Only 12,000 Texas A&M University students responded to the survey, including less than a third of the undergraduate student population.

“I would have expected considerably more because of the high visibility of this issue,” said Bonfire 2002 Steering Committee Coordinator Dr. Bryan Cole.

Based on the low turnout, Cole said he would not feel confident reporting to A&M President Dr. Ray M. Bowen that the student body wants to have Bonfire. Bowen is expected to make a final decision Feb. 8 if Bonfire will burn next fall.

Among those who completed the survey, more than 90 percent said they supported ,having Bonfire under the strict new safety parameters, but students were less enthusiastic about having to pay for it.

Student Body President Schuyler Houser, a senior industrial engineering major, said that compared to turnout in student elections the number of students who completed the survey is an overwhelming show of support for Bonfire. Every student received a link to the online voting site through e-mail accounts.

Students were asked to choose from three potential stack designs selected by the committee, and almost 97 percent chose the wedding-cake design. All the logs in the design would touch the ground, but would be cut to different heights to give a multi-level appearance.

Because of the overwhelming student preference, that is the design the steering committee will recommend to Bowen in its final report, Cole said. All designs meet Bowen’s parameters, which include the use of professionally cut lumber, a one-tier stack and work on Bonfire will be limited to two weeks. Cole said each design could accommodate up to 2,500 workers, but each student would be limited to working only a few hours on the project. In the survey, more than 5,000 students indicated they would like to work on Bonfire.

Student reluctance to foot the bill for Bonfire could be a stumbling block to continuing the tradition, Cole said. If Bonfire burns next fall, the final price tag could be as much as $2 million.

However, many of those costs are one-time expenses, such as professional fees to craft a stack design, Cole said, and future Bonfires could be built for between $500,000 to $750,000. But more than 60 percent of respondents said that price was too steep.

Cole said a $20 per semester fee would fully fund Bonfire, but only 30 percent of students said they would be willing to pay that much.

The profile of the students who took the survey also indicates where support for Bonfire is the strongest. Respondents were disproportionately white and on-campus residents or Corps of Cadets members. Cole said one of the main goals of Bonfire 2002 planners was to include groups, especially minorities, from the 90-year-old tradition. Only about one in seven African-American students took the survey, compared to one in three white students.

Of the students who took the survey, less than 20 percent have been involved in building a Bonfire, and less than half have ever seen one burn. Also, 78 percent strongly agreed that safety must be an essential part of future Bonfires.

Ohio University proposes new policy for hate crimes
(U-WIRE) ATHENS, Ohio— Ohio University officials are revisiting their policy to allow students who are victims of alleged hate crimes to report the offenses anonymously.

The proposed system, undergoing legal review, is designed to allow students who feel they have been victims of hate-motivated crimes to report the incident without going through the OU Office of Judiciaries, said Janice Edwards, associate vice president of student affairs.

OU officials have been working on the plan since last year but would not comment on specific aspects of the plan because of legal concerns.

According to OU Student Code of Conduct, students accused of violating the code can request their hearings to be open to the public.

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