DATE: Monday, September 1, 1997             TAG: 9709010064

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B10  EDITION: FINAL 

                                            LENGTH:   86 lines

VIRGINIA

VMI coed complains

of being singled out

for unfair treatment

At least one of the women attending Virginia Military Institute's first coed class has complained about being singled out for unfair treatment.

Senior Class President Kevin Trujillo said the woman felt she was being picked on by the cadre, the upperclassmen who train the freshman class, also known as ``rats.'' However, Trujillo said the woman is staying at the institute.

One other woman has been called before the Rat Disciplinary Committee. Trujillo said Angelica Garza of Fort Belvoir ``popped off a little attitude with an upperclassman.'' Her penalty will be some sweaty calisthenics.

Except for a few members of the bellowing training cadre who ``got a little hot'' and had to be told to back off from yelling at the freshmen, no inappropriate behavior toward female rats has occurred, Trujillo said.

Charlottesville

U.Va. admits largest, most

diverse of freshman classes

The University of Virginia's freshman class is its largest and most diverse ever, school officials said Saturday.

A total of 2,925 freshmen enrolled this year, including 115 from foreign countries. Seventy-nine international students enrolled in last year's freshman class of 2,825.

Twenty students from Turkey and 11 students from India are expected this fall. Students from Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Pakistan, Indonesia, the Netherlands and Colombia also will attend the school.

Some 16,643 students applied for admission to the class of 2001. About 64 percent of the entering class is from Virginia. Staunton

Town celebrates 250th

year with music, history

It was a party that celebrated the rich history of this town in the Shenandoah Mountains, and one that drew revelers from far away to say thanks for the memories of the community they hold dear.

Staunton turned 250 on Saturday.

Some celebrants learned about the city's history and listened to a musician's relaxing melodies emanating from a hammered dulcimer and a flute.

Others sat just outside City Hall listening to loud music coming from a bandstand, and others meandered along Beverley Street browsing through booths selling paintings, glass vases and a variety of other arts and crafts.

A historian with a display inside City Hall said the celebration would remind people how much has happened in Staunton's first 250 years.

Sergei Troubetzkoy said former President Woodrow Wilson, actor William Haines and the Stonewall Brigade Band all should be town treasures.

Wilson was born in Staunton; Haines appeared in 50 films after leaving the town at age 17; and the Stonewall Brigade Band serenaded Ulysses S. Grant and played for Wilson numerous times. The band, which began in 1855, is the nation's oldest continuous band supported by a municipality, he said. Richmond

Convicts help fix plumbing

at Goochland Elementary

Pupils at Goochland Elementary School have some convicts to thank when they file in to class this week.

Convicts from nearby James River Correctional Facility helped repair the school's plumbing system.

``The plumbing was completely rotted out,'' said Dr. Warren A. Stewart, Goochland's school superintendent. ``But there will be no school delays.''

Stewart said the deadline was met in part because of a community program that uses inmate workers.

Only nonviolent offenders qualify to work, and none are allowed near schoolchildren, Stewart said.

The plumbing problem at Goochland Elementary surfaced two years ago. Money for repairs was not available, and the damage posed no immediate health threat. However, some children and school staff complained of unpleasant smells.

Inmates have cleared nature trails, worked on the athletic field and painted trailers in the past three or four years, Stewart said. This year, they also helped teachers move into additions at Byrd and Randolph elementary schools.

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