Special Projects

The Rice track should be open to all Rice students

The other day I (Rutherford) broke Rice’s rules — at least that’s what the security guard in the golf cart told me. Growing up as an avid runner near another small, private university in Texas, I, like much of my community, ran frequently on the university track. Hoping to maintain my fitness in college, I jogged to the on-campus Rice track early one morning through the open gates, and after barely finishing two laps was stopped by security. “You can’t run here,” he said. “The track is for Rice athletes only, and the gate should’ve been locked.” Why it’s a problem for a Rice student to run a few minutes on the empty Rice track, I don’t know. But rules are rules, and I politely exited the track to make way for the non-existent athletic practice.

Vote. It’s not that hard.

After last year’s Student Association election saw less than a fourth of the student body turnout to vote, we penned an editorial calling on students to engage further with the SA and its elections. As we approach another election — voting opens next Wednesday — we feel it necessary to reiterate our call. For anyone who has tried to raise student awareness of an issue, aired a grievance against the administration or tried to spur change on campus, now is the time to cast your ballot for who you want to represent the student body and fight for the issues that matter to you.

We stand with The Battalion

Last week, the Texas A&M University President M. Katherine Banks gave The Battalion — A&M’s student newspaper — a 24-hour notice that they would have to stop printing despite being self-funded by advertisements, ahead of the paper being rolled into the university’s new journalism department. The administration made these calls without any consultation or even warning to the students or their faculty advisor, informing them that if they chose to remain a student organization, they would potentially lose their office and faculty advisor. 

Willy’s Pub rebrands as The Pub at Rice

Willy’s Pub is formally changing their name to The Pub at Rice, according to Sophie Call, Pub’s marketing manager. Pub has considered renaming since the racial justice protests of summer 2020, Call said.

Powderpuff season set to start after long delay

After the cancellation of the 2020 women’s flag football season due to COVID-19, students across Rice have been looking forward to the return of powderpuff this year. According to Vaidya Parthasarathy, a Powderpuff coach at Wiess College, the coaches and players are just excited to be back on the field.

Bunting, Franklin vie for Student Association Presidency

Madison Bunting, current Student Association internal vice president, and Gabrielle Franklin, current Brown College SA senator, are the two candidates running for Student Association president this year. 

Gupta, Unegbu square off in election for SA IVP

Trisha Gupta, current Student Association chief of staff, and Crystal Unegbu, current new student representative for Hanszen College and a member of SA’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, are the two candidates running for SA internal vice opresident this year.

Ni runs uncontested for SA treasurer

Solomon Ni, a freshman from Jones College, is running uncontested for the Student Association treasurer position. SA 2022 elections open on Feb. 23, and close on March 3.

SA resolution introduced to address swim coach comments

The Student Association Equity Council introduced a resolution on Feb. 7 denouncing Rice swim coach Seth Huston’s comments after he made statements regarding an NCAA policy change. The NCAA’s new policy states that transgender policies in the sport are now to be determined by the sport’s national governing body, along with commenting on University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas’ right to compete. 

Rice, GenCo partner to provide free, eco-friendly detergent

The Rice Environmental Society at Rice is partnering with Generation Conscious this semester to provide students with free and sustainable laundry detergent. The GenCo company creates sustainable laundry detergent sheets which are plastic-free and use 97 percent less water and 95 percent less carbon than traditional detergent. 

2022 Student Association Election Candidates

The Thresher reached out to candidates from each race in the 2022 student association elections, including those for SA executive team, blanket tax organizations and honor council. Listed are headshots and statements from each. 

Gas leak forces several building evacuations

A gas leak forced multiple buildings to evacuate Thursday afternoon around 4 p.m., after a subcontractor on the New Engineering and Science Building project hit an exposed Centerpoint gas line, according to Associate Vice President for Facilities Engineering and Planning Kathy Jones.

Proposed Solutions for the Willy Statue

Women’s basketball takes down LA Tech for first conference win of the season

It took six games, but the Rice women’s basketball team was able to get into the win column in Conference USA standings on Thursday when they took down Louisiana Tech University by a score of 72-64. The game was the first conference win in the tenure of first-year head coach Lindsay Edmonds, who guided the Owls to a 5-3 record in non-conference play before the team hit a five-game skid. According to Edmonds, the win meant even more given all that it took for the team to get there.

Schmidt reflects on coaching career after 200th win

As of last week, Rice women’s tennis head coach Elizabeth Schmidt now has 200 career wins to go along with her six conference championships and nine NCAA tournament appearances. But according to Schmidt, it’s the people with whom she’s shared these accomplishments that have made them special.

Men’s basketball misses opportunity to knock off second place LA Tech

Last Thursday, the Rice men’s basketball team traveled to the Thomas Assembly Center in Ruston, LA to face off against then conference co-leaders, Louisiana Tech University. The Bulldogs defeated the Owls 80-63 in the first matchup between the two squads this season. The Bulldogs were able to sustain an Owls push at the beginning of the game and put together several significant runs to put the game out of reach. According to head coach Scott Pera, the Owls played with plenty of effort, but weren’t consistent enough.

Both T&F teams earn top-3 spots at UH indoor meet

The Rice men’s and women’s track and field teams both finished near the top of the leaderboard at this past weekend’s meet at the University of Houston, as the men’s team finished second out of ten teams and the women’s team finished third. 

Simpson-Sullivan discusses unlikely journey to stardom

Tara Simpson-Sullivan is a star by any standard. Last June, she earned a gold medal in the women’s hammer throw at the British Championships and placed fourth in the same event at the NCAA championships. Given her recent successes, it might surprise you to learn that she didn’t even know what the hammer throw was until one fateful meet when she happened to stumble upon it. 

Valen-tunes: Songs to listen to this Valentine’s Day

Maybe Valentine’s Day is a corporate scam to sell heart shaped boxes of chocolate, but how can I care when they’re so cute? Here’s my confession: I’m a hopeless romantic at heart despite my cynicism (one true love? I’m gagging), and, in that vein, here are some songs that hopefully encompass the conflict between romanticism and disillusionment around the holiday. You can listen to the full playlist on Spotify in the lead up to Valentine’s Day this year.

Seasonal review: Sprinkles finds its strength in classic flavors

Whether you’re looking to celebrate an occasion, grab dessert after a quick bite or simply indulge your sweet tooth, Sprinkles never disappoints. Located in Rice Village on 2563 Amherst Street, Sprinkles Cupcakes, a popular nationwide dessert bakery, is creating new limited flavor items on a monthly basis. For the month of January, they offered a seasonal Pop Tart cupcake, and I was curious as to how it would compare with other traditional flavors in both taste and value.