Bernard Banks will join Rice’s Doerr Institute for New Leaders as director Jan. 1, 2024. He currently serves as the associate dean for leadership development and a professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
Students Transforming Rice into a Violence-Free Environment, a student organization addressing sexual and domestic violence, is no longer active this semester. Ndidi Nwosu, who had been a STRIVE liaison for two years and reapplied last semester, said the organization has gone “radio silent.”
Rice has partnered with Tecnológico de Monterrey to offer concurrent doctoral degrees and dual master’s programs alongside joint efforts in continuing and professional education. Additionally, the agreement allows Tecnológico de Monterrey undergraduates to engage in research at Rice, providing more opportunities for Rice students in research to collaborate with international peers.
Nine student cultural organizations hosted the first Pangea Potluck at the Rice Memorial Center Nov. 15. Clubs shared food, organized activities and participated in a passport program where students could collect a stamp from each organization in exchange for a prize in the Grand Hall. Participating groups included the Hispanic Association for Cultural Enrichment at Rice, the Vietnamese Student Organization and the Black Student Association, among others.
Rice’s Office of General Counsel hosted an Immigration Law Program for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Undocumented Students in Anderson Hall Nov. 8 in response to DACA being ruled unlawful earlier in September. Partners from the immigration and employment law firm Monty & Ramirez LLP, Carolina Ortuzar-Diaz and Maricela Alvarado, presented at the event and offered free legal consultations for DACA and undocumented students.
4,407 undergraduate students participated in the course request process for the Spring 2024 semester, according to the Office of the Registrar. This number is an increase from the Spring 2022 and 2023 semesters, when 4,269 and 4,103 students registered, respectively.
Rice’s Responsibility, Inclusion and Student Empowerment program, which was founded in 2021, will now serve sophomores and juniors. The program was previously exclusively for incoming freshmen who also attended a RISE pre-orientation seminar program in the summer.
Multiple Rice faculty members released a “statement of solidarity” with Palestinians Oct. 27 later signed by members of the Rice community. The statement was written in response to President Reggie DesRoches’ “message of supportt” to the community Oct. 11, sent two days after an initial email about the “conflict in Israel and Gaza.”
A resolution allocating $2,000 to the Student Success Initiative’s pantry passed unanimously at the Student Association senate meeting Nov. 13.
Members of the Rice community lined up to vote on Election Day at the Sewall Hall polling location Nov. 7. According to presiding judge Vivian Zheng, there will also be an on-campus polling location in Sewall Hall during the mayoral runoff elections Dec. 9.
Eleven student models took the stage for the International Justice Mission’s Interwoven: Celebrating Resistance & Resilience to Trafficking fashion show Nov. 11 at the Rice Memorial Chapel. The models showcased garments ranging from an English trenchcoat to a scarf made in Rwanda. All proceeds were donated to the IJM field office in Ghana, according to Rice IJM president Sarah Sowell.
The Rice African Student Association hosted the first campus-wide Rice Date Auction in the Grand Hall of the Rice Memorial Center Nov. 10. The event was Rice’s first date auction hosted by a campus organization, according to RASA co-treasurer and organizer Barakat Ibrahim.
The Founder’s Memorial statue was removed from its pedestal Nov. 8. The statue is currently in storage and will eventually sit at the corner of Lovett and Sewall Halls in the redesigned academic quad. The Board of Trustees announced in January 2022 that the statue would be relocated and the quad would be redesigned.
Rice students regained access to Max, HBO’s subscription streaming service, Nov. 8. Included in the room and board fee, Max is only available for on-campus students and graduate students living in Rice Graduate Apartments, according to David McDonald, the interim associate vice president of Housing and Dining.
Robert L. Moody Sr., known to friends and family as ‘Bobby,’ passed away Nov. 7 at the age of 88. The cause of death was not reported.
Following the Night of Decadence, which saw seven hospital transports and over 24 students requiring on-site medical treatment, Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman announced changes to Rice’s parties and social events. Public parties are canceled through spring break, Pub nights are limited to students 21 and older and NOD is placed on “probation,” Gorman wrote Nov. 2.
The Academic Quad closed Nov. 6 to begin construction of the redesign, according to a campus-wide email from Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Kelly Fox. The closure and construction are expected to continue through late April 2024.
Public parties will be canceled through spring break, Pub nights will be restricted to attendees aged 21 and older and NOD will be placed on “probation,” Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman wrote in an email to students Nov. 2. Additionally, an alcohol policy advisory committee will convene to suggest alcohol policy revisions, which Rice may then implement.
Rice Pride hosted its first annual Fall Festival Nov. 3 to highlight queer art and the arrival of the fall season. The festival consisted of a queer market, pumpkin painting, a food truck and games and took place in the Grand Hall of the Rice Memorial Center. It concluded with a drag show later in the evening, with local and student performers. Local queer advocacy groups also tabled at the festival, including Equality Texas.
Rice Parking informed South Colleges Lot parking permit holders that they were allowed to use the Entrance 3 Garage if they are unable to find parking spots, according to a September email obtained by the Thresher.
