Texas A and M University - Aggieland Yearbook (College Station, TX)

Page 31 text:

Bob Sebree SCONA 27

Page 30 text:

SCONA — A Chance for Student Involvement Brian Mylar The Student Conference on Na¬ tional Affairs has reached its 26th year at Texas A M University and is one of the largest student-run events held on campus with ap¬ proximately 200 participants, in¬ cluding lecturers from London, professors from Jerusalem, and students from as far away as Kuwait. Although SCONA only takes one week, committee members work all year contacting com¬ panies for donations, acquiring lecturers, preparing dates and get¬ ting everything ready. Some of this work is alleviated by the strong support of former students. Olin Teague used his connections to get Hubert Humphrey to lecture. This support of former students and ad¬ ministration is phenomenal. Without this all-out support the Student Conference on National Affairs would never take place. The widespread effort creates an excitement that induces students to become involved. Each year, weeks before the actual event, students wait nervously for their interviews and the chance to be SCONA delegates, hosts and hostesses. The competition is stiff, with hundreds of people being narrowed down to fill a few positions. SCONA originated from a similar event held at West Point in previous years known as SCOUSA, Student Conference on United States Affairs. The Texas A M conference began when Bud Whitney, a student at Texas A M, attended the West Point event and was eventually placed in charge of creating a new conference that would be more student oriented. The first SCONA had a $12,000 budget and included 20 univer¬ sities. The budget has now grown to $56,000 and includes represen¬ tatives from universities, colleges, and high schools from Canada, Mexico and Central America. The budget encompasses food, adver¬ tising and part of the travel ex¬ penses of the delegates. The big¬ gest expenditure, however, is the $10,000 for the lecturers involved in SCONA. This year speakers in¬ cluded Robert Krueger, former Ambassador to Mexico, Edgar Owens, (cont.) 26 SCONA

Page 32 text:

SCONA • • • development officer with Ap¬ propriate Technology Interna¬ tional, Dr. John P. Holdren, Pro¬ fessor of Energy and Resources at the University of California at Berkeley, Peter T. Baur, Ad¬ ministrator for the Agency for In¬ ternational Development and Dr. Fred R. Glahe, President of the Economic Institute for Research and Education. The optimism of the committee members and lecturers was reflected by the high spirits that abounded during the five day con¬ ference. The out-of-state delegates got a taste of Texas by going country-western dancing and eating barbecue. The visitors received a large dose of Texas A M by dining with the Corps of Cadets and touring the campus. Involvement in SCONA is both a learning experience and fun. The enthusiasm felt on campus during the week of the conference ensures the annual event a place on campus for years to come. 28 SCONA