Op Eds

OPINION 10/3/17 11:25pm

V2C2 committee’s bureaucracy may fail to obtain strong ideas from students

By Andrew Grottkau and Sydney Garrett

While we’re pleased that students are being consulted in this vision for the next 100 years at Rice, the current plan for obtaining student input is remarkably problematic. Because of the structure of the committee and the process through which ideas will be chosen, the student body as a whole will have limited influence on V2C2.

OPINION 9/21/17 3:24pm

Response to DACA: What can we do?

By Rice Faculty

We were disheartened by President Trump’s decision to rescind the Obama administration’s immigration policy known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

OPINION 9/19/17 10:09pm

Rice should admit more humanities majors

By Lizzie Bjork

Yes, Rice is known for biological sciences and engineering, but we cannot truly claim to be one of the preeminent national universities if we focus so heavily on technical disciplines.

OPINION 9/19/17 9:54pm

Rice must credit student artists when displaying their work

By Lenna Mendoza

Supporting the arts on campus isn’t as simple as decorating light poles.

OPINION 9/16/17 3:58pm

Harvey: A not so natural disaster

By Camille Chenevert

People are concerned for their environment when a hurricane destroys it, but will not change their way of living to protect themselves from the same damage in the future.

NEWS 9/13/17 3:23pm

Understanding the privilege and humility of a Rice education

By John Hutchinson

We can either use our advanced education to build up our individual selves, or we can use the privilege that we gain from the knowledge Rice gives us to build up humanity.

OPINION 9/6/17 4:54pm

My Wey or the Highway: Avoid impertinence on social media in times of disaster

By Julianne Wey

Rice is a bubble — most students here will attest to that. I don’t think it’s ever been more true than in this last week.

OPINION 9/6/17 4:53pm

Rice students: Continue to give back to your home

By Maurice Frediere , Justin Onwenu and Madeleine Pelzel

Over the last week, more than 2,000 Rice students, faculty and staff signed up to help rebuild the city we all call home through the Rice Harvey Action Team collaborative. They have volunteered nearly 8,000 hours, waking up before the sun rises and working long after it goes down. The Rice community’s sense of civic duty has been inspiring to everyone; however, we can and should ask more of each other.

OPINION 8/31/17 11:26am

A few reminders about advocating on campus

By Thu Nguyen

I am writing this because I was once a confused and concerned member of the Rice student body, wondering what I could possibly do to help the social injustice happening both in my city but also hundreds of miles away — like in Charlottesville.

OPINION 8/29/17 2:22am

Houston: This is your f***ing city

By Andrew Grottkau

The 2013 bombings did not rob the city of its spirit. It reinforced what it meant to be a Bostonian, and it ignited a sense of pride and togetherness that we never truly had before. If the heroic efforts of Houstonians are any indication, Harvey will do the same to Houston. Yes, it will take time to rebuild and heal. But when that happens — and believe me, it will — Houston will be stronger than ever before. In your face, Harvey.

OPINION 8/24/17 9:57pm

102 years of reinventing the Thresher

By Drew Keller and Juan Saldaña

We’ve come to the role of editor-in-chief through different paths — Drew as a news writer and editor, Juan as the paper’s business manager and a sports writer — but we share a common goal. From documenting day-to-day student life to investigating the most serious issues on our campus, we seek to provide an unbiased lens into the Rice community.

OPINION 8/24/17 9:55pm

Charlottesville, empathy, and speaking out

By David Leebron

This year we are reminded once more that we don’t live in a bubble here at Rice, and that external events — good and bad — have an impact on our community. On Monday morning, I sent a letter to the campus community conveying some thoughts on the outrageous and tragic events in Charlottesville. I placed it in the context of our own values, and the importance of both our commitment to those values, and for taking responsibility for living those values.

OPINION 8/24/17 9:54pm

Welcome back from the SA president

By Justin Onwenu

For those of you who aren't familiar with the SA, we are the campus-wide student government organization that collaborates with students, administrators and the colleges to represent your interests to the faculty, administration and external organizations. Our mission is to enrich the undergraduate experience by engaging, inspiring and advocating for all Rice undergraduate students.

OPINION 8/24/17 9:50pm

Committee needed for responsible investment

By Taylor Morin

This May, 62 percent of ExxonMobil shareholders voted in favor of the company reporting the impacts of climate change on its business. In 2016, shareholders of Fluor, a major global engineering firm with over $19 billion in annual revenue, voted to require the company to formally report all of its political contributions. Yet, due to the $5 billion Rice University endowment’s sole focus on investment-picking, had it been an investor in either of these companies, it would have abstained from these votes, a de facto vote against these proxy resolutions for positive social change.

OPINION 8/5/17 8:17pm

NYT subscription initiative well-intentioned but misguided

By Darren Pomida

While I applaud the Student Association’s efforts to “encourage engagement beyond the hedges,” providing full access to The New York Times for free may not be the best way to effect change on the levels of student engagement with the wider world.

OPINION 7/7/17 4:46pm

Rice should offer scholarships to Syrian refugees

By Justin Onwenu and Danna Ghafir

Rice University is in a great position to lead by becoming the first university in Texas, and one of the first in the South, to offer scholarships to displaced Syrian students.

NEWS 5/22/17 2:50pm

Rice Gallery treatment shows lack of concern for arts

By Felisa Vergara Reynolds

What Rice is showing me these days is that it does not care about art. Perhaps Rice University would be well served by being reminded of its own crest: Letters, science, art.

OPINION 5/2/17 3:57pm

Don't mistake success for activism

By Anita Alem and Lizzy Kalomeris

We were very disappointed to read the WomenLEAD winning essay featured in the April 19 edition of the Thresher. The author opens with her remorse about being unable to attend the Women’s March, but realizes that by not marching and preparing herself for a leadership position, she is marching in her own way.

OPINION 4/20/17 12:34pm

The administration needs to back off its power trip

By Sam Pearson

On Easter Sunday, an email went out to the Sid Richardson College listserv from our Chief Justice announcing our traditional end-of-the-year party, Hi-Liter, was effectively canceled.

OPINION 4/19/17 8:00am

Rice needs religious pluralism, not tolerance

By Siqi Ning , Camilia Perez , Qianru Xiong , Chad Tatum , Sandra Lopez , Hayley Clark and Mekedlawit Setegne

As Rice students, we pride ourselves on being a part of such a diverse population. We have multiple forums via which we can have meaningful conversations surrounding sensitive topics.