Leebron talks about five Cs of Rice at Town Hall

By Ellen Liu     10/21/10 7:00pm

President David Leebron spoke Oct. 12 in his semiannual Town Hall Meeting to an audience of faculty and staff members about the university's past achievements and present challenges, dividing his presentation into what he called the five Cs: Cash, Contributions, Community, Campus and Celebration.Cash

First, Leebron discussed the university's monetary developments. He said that due to economic and political uncertainty, he foresaw the end of government funding for research, in addition to increased regulation. Furthermore, he said the increased federal and state budget deficit, floods, hurricanes, the flu and human error could reduce available university resources even more.

Despite these difficulties, Leebron said Rice had become more financially balanced because of the increase in students and general expansion. He called Rice a half-billion-dollar-a-year enterprise and said about 45 percent of Rice's revenue stems from endowment contributions. He said this year's return on the endowment was more than 8.5 percent. Leebron also said these extra funds were not consumed right away because many gains in the endowment were not calculated immediately into budget spending.

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Leebron also discussed the $1 billion capital campaign instituted in celebration of the university's centennial, stating that Rice was two-thirds of the way to the goal, with $665 million raised already. According to Leebron, about one-fourth of the campaign contributions have been used in construction projects, and most of those undertakings have either met or been under budget, giving Rice substantial savings. The additional money is being used for new programs, like the Institute for Urban Research, and more financial aid.

"We have had increases in tuition, and the student body has grown dramatically but so have scholarships," Leebron said. "When students have a need, we are need-blind."

According to Leebron, the entering class had twice as many recipients of Pell Grants - federal need-based grants for low-income students - than five years ago. Leebron said any student from a family that earned less than $80,000 would not be forced to take out loans. He also said Rice only allowed a debt of up to $10,000 in its financial packages because it wanted students to graduate with one of the lowest debt burdens.

According to Leebron, support for the Annual Fund has dropped slightly because of economic conditions - to about $6 million in contributions this year - after five years of increases. However, he said everyone was still working hard to reach the university's goal of doubling the fund's total amount by 2013 through annual contributions of $8.2 million.

Contributions

Leebron also addressed Rice's contributions to the world, stating that the university was comprehensive and extended across all fields.

"When I say to someone that I'm from Rice, there's a moment when people step back in awe because of what we've contributed," Leebron said.

Leebron cited a few research advances Rice has made, including the buckyball and the Houston Area Survey, and referred to the university's student orchestra as the best in the country. He also listed a few student-made innovations, like the cost-effective Zerow (green) House, BioBeer and a salad-spinner centrifuge.

"We contribute to what our students become, but they also contribute greatly to the world," Leebron said. "We're too small to be arrogant, and we grow by building bridges internally and externally."

Community

Leebron spoke about how everyone at Rice works together to set high standards and focus on excellence. He said Rice is currently going through its third major stage of growth, with the first occurring in the 1920s and the second in the 1960s. According to Leebron, this year's entering class was the largest yet with 949 students, one student shy of the growth goal. Leebron said there would be no more class growth after this, and he would instead focus on expanding and preserving opportunities for people here.

Leebron also said no single group represented a majority of Rice's student body. According to him, the numbers of international and black students have increased greatly. Though more Texans entered Rice, Leebron said Rice now has a smaller overall percentage of Texans than ever before because of total student population growth.

"Regardless, we still serve our Houston and Texas community," Leebron said. "Any accusations to the contrary are not true."

Campus

Leebron then discussed the expansion of Rice's campus. He said it has evolved largely according to the university's original plan, growing from a few buildings in 1912 to 80 today.

"The competition of the future will come from online colleges," Leebron said. "The physical environment we provide our students will become even more important."

Leebron said his current goal was to make Rice vibrant and beautiful through art and $800 million of nearly completed new construction projects.

After his presentation, Leebron fielded questions from the audience about topics ranging from faculty diversity to bus advertisements. One staff member asked about staffing cuts and salary freezes.

"We have budget plans that extend into the future," Leebron said. "And while some faculty or staff members may shift functions, I do not anticipate us having any staffing cuts."

Another individual asked about Leebron's opinion regarding guns on campus.

"I believe it is not a good idea to allow 18- to 21-year-olds to walk around campus carrying concealed guns," Leebron said. "Though Texas' legislation may change, Rice's own policy regarding firearms on campus will not."

Regarding personnel issues, Leebron encouraged staff members to interact with human resources to resolve their problems.

"Are we committed to treating our staff with dignity and fairness? Absolutely," Leebron said. "If we make mistakes, do we learn from them? Absolutely."

Celebration

Leebron ended the meeting by kicking off the Centennial Celebration with the help of Rice's cheerleaders and the Marching Owl Band.

"One of Rice's constant challenges is that we're small," Leebron said. "Just like in Horton Hears a Who!, we must yell and make Rice be heard."

After attending the meeting, Assistant Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies Celeste Boudreaux said she was encouraged by how well Rice was doing given the current economic situation.

"We may have to continue to be patient in the short term dealing with tight budgets," Boudreaux said. "But I am optimistic about Rice's future."

Associate Dean of Social Sciences Ipek Martinez said she was inspired by what Leebron presented, especially the news of no further budget cuts.

"All departments have been taking huge budget cuts for two years in a row and eliminating jobs," Martinez said. "So his talk today was uplifting."

Executive Director of the Office of International Students and Scholars Adria Baker said she believed Leebron was handling Rice's finances in a manner that was best for the university. She also said Leebron was very transparent about his actions and plans.

"I think open dialogue between students and administration is very important, but you can't always do that, especially in bad economic times," Baker said.

Baker said that Leebron didn't necessarily need to discuss the sale of KTRU more in the meeting.

"I believe that sometimes business decisions have to be made, and we can't know it all," Baker said. "I trust that [Leebron] wants what's best for Rice and not personal gain."

Baker said Leebron worked hard in the meeting to unite everyone at Rice and create a strong sense of community.

"[President Leebron] didn't give us just a speech," Baker said. "He gave us himself.

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