Griffins to replace Morrises as Hanszen masters in fall

By Margeux Clemmons     2/26/09 6:00pm

Hanszen College announced its new college masters during a Hanszen-only lunch last Friday: Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Rob Griffin, his wife Ann and their children, six-year-old Liam and three-year-old Meredith, chair of the Hanszen Master Search Committee Ted Wieber said. Wieber, a senior, said he and Hanszen President Abbie Ryan presented the Griffin family, who emerged from an elevator at the end of Wieber's speech, in front of the biggest Hanszen lunch turnout he had ever seen.

"This was not instigated by me at all, but Hanszen gave them a standing ovation," Wieber said. "There were tears in peoples' eyes. Wes and Barbara [Morris, the current Hanszen masters] were front and center to welcome them, and it was a very touching moment."

The Griffins will not begin their five-year term as masters until May, but they will attend Hanszen events and visit the Morrises to discuss the mastership for the remainder of this academic year, Wieber said.

---

---

The master search, which began in October, came to a close in December when the committee submitted two finalists out of three applicants to President David Leebron, who made the final decision.

The Griffins came to Rice in August from New Hampshire, where Rob Griffin was an associate professor in the Earth Science Department at the University of New Hampshire. The couple met 20 years ago as undergraduates at Tufts University and will celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary this year.

Both Rob Griffin and Ann Griffin plan to play intramural sports for Hanszen, and Ann Griffin, who has an MBA and over five years of consulting experience, may teach college courses and become involved in Hanszen's philanthropic efforts, Rob Griffin said.

"I personally would like to get involved and be a steward for environmental issues that Hanszen is involved with," he said. "I would love to have Hanszen have environmental issues be part of their mantra - not to inflict my ideas on anyone, but because I think there's a lot of opportunity for student involvement and my family being involved as well."

Ryan, a senior, said that meeting different masters while being college president enabled her to appreciate the different ways masters could contribute to the college, and that she is looking forward to the uniqueness the Griffins will bring.

"It's been a while since Hanszen has had young blood and had young kids in the masters' house," she said. "It will be an interesting dynamic for Hanszen, and I think it's a different side of the mastership that we haven't seen in a while and will bring new life to the college."

Rob Griffin said the timing was good for his family and that his children were at an appropriate age to learn and profit from the advantages of being involved in college life.

"We wouldn't do this if we didn't think it would be beneficial for our kids," he said. "We want to take them to the powderpuff games or the Hanszen shows that are kid-friendly so that, as much as possible, we make Hanszen events into family time and vice versa. They do call it the family college."

Wieber said Hanszen has not had a master from the math, science or engineering departments since 1978. Rob Griffin mentioned he looked forward to helping dispel the myth that science lacks a warm and fuzzy side.

Rob Griffin said the residential college system was discussed at length during his initial interview at Rice, and that after hearing about the mastership, he and Ann knew they would want to eventually participate.

"One thing that I felt was missing in my previous job was really the opportunity to become involved with undergraduate students both in lab as well as outside the lab, so the culture at Rice really appealed to me," he said.

The committee liked that Ann Griffin was a die-hard Harry Potter fan and was amused when Meredith Griffin could sing all the lyrics to High School Musical. Wieber said the Griffins expressed strong interest from the beginning of the search process, flooding his inbox with relevant questions.

"I think one thing that stood out to our whole committee was how good they were with names, [including] Liam, their son," Wieber said. "When [Rob] had an interaction with somebody, he would remember the vast majority of the names, and that really impressed us."

Ryan and Wieber both said the search for new masters was sometimes long and frustrating, but that they were glad to leave the legacy of the committee's decision. They also said it was difficult to see the Morris family go in the midst of the exciting news.

"All the way through this, it's been a very bittersweet process," Wieber said. "We matriculated with them, and they've been the only faces I've known in the masters' position. They've been supportive of the students as we make this step toward new masters, showing the ropes, answering questions."

Griffin said he felt like part of the Hanszen community almost immediately and was looking forward to moving in to the master's house over the summer.

"The students are so welcoming, and I was just almost a little overwhelmed," he said. "Ted would say, 'Come to lunch, come to dinner,' and the number of students who would just want to sit and talk and get to know us was remarkable, and it really spoke very highly of how important this position is to Rice undergraduates and what an honor it is to be chosen.

---