Special Projects

Volleyball wins berth to compete in NCAA Tournament

Volleyball will compete in the NCAA tournament after receiving an at-large bid to play against the University of Oklahoma in the first round during Sunday night’s Selection Show. Transportation will not be provided for Rice students to the match against OU, but the possibility exists a student bus will travel to College Station on Friday if the Owls win their first round match, according to Rice director of marketing David Pillen.

Women’s basketball keeps cool after forced mistakes

The Rice women’s basketball team earned a 71-57 win over Northern Arizona University  on Saturday at Tudor Fieldhouse. By defeating the Lumberjacks, the Owls now hold  a 4-3 season record. The win is the second in the row for the team after last Wednesday’s impressive 31 point victory over McNeese State University. 

12-4-2019 Crossword solutions

The power of clothing: how one student is spreading Culture of Care through T-shirts

People often say that clothing has power: what someone wears can send a message about anything from their personality to their belief system. Now, thanks to McMurtry College sophomore Mel Xiao, Rice students can wear a T-shirt that sends the message: “You R Welcome Here.”

Invisible burdens: students talk accessibility challenges

Each semester a Rice student will spend hours carefully crafting a course schedule that fills their major requirements, impresses future employers, and avoids that dreaded 8 a.m. section. But students with disabilities often have to worry about another factor: accessing their classrooms.

Wrap up the year with the best of 2019 music

According to my Last.fm, I’ve listened to 2,767 albums this year — and there are still so many more to listen to. 2019 saw an enormous number of pivotal and groundbreaking releases. Here are 20 of my favorites, and why I think everyone should give them a listen.

“Frozen 2” delivers more emotional depth than original

After “Frozen” took the world by storm in 2013, a sequel has been in discussion on social media among executives, columnists and fans alike. As the second highest grossing animated film of all time (recently dethroned by Disney’s CGI live-action remake of “The Lion King”) it was expected that Disney would attempt to capitalize on “Frozen”’s monumental success. 

“Knives Out” revamps the classic “whodunnit” with modernity and wit

While they are plentiful in the world of literature, original works in the “whodunnit” subgenre are rare in film. With his newest film “Knives Out” though, filmmaker Rian Johnson has put the murder mystery genre up on the silver screen in extravagant fashion, crafting a delightful puzzle of a tale that both echoes and subverts the greats like Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle.

"Queen and Slim" aestheticizes Black trauma

“Queen and Slim” had been on my mind since the film was announced. Written by Lena Waithe (“The Chi” and “Master of None”) and directed by Melina Matsoukas (“Formation”), “Queen and Slim” marketed itself as a film portraying The Great Black Love Story of our time by depicting police brutality from a Black perspective. It seemed too good to be true — and perhaps it was. 

Dhamaka delivers fun, fashion in sold-out show

An explosion of vivid beats and animated dancing emerged from the Dhamaka showcase that occurred Saturday, Nov. 23. This year’s sold-out Dhamaka showcase celebrated South Asian culture with an unforgettable night of dance and vocal performances by talented Rice students at the Rice Memorial Center. 

Citizen journalist collective Indymedia celebrates 20th birthday at Rice Cinema

Last weekend, Rice Cinema hosted Indymedia 20th Anniversary Encuentro, a celebration of a global journalism movement featuring an art and memorabilia exhibit, film screenings and panel discussions with prominent journalists and creatives.

SA forms working group to understand legal concerns facing students

The Student Association Senate voted to approve the creation of a Student Legal Services Working Group Monday, Nov. 18 to understand legal concerns by undergraduate and graduate students, from housing contracts and visas to marriage and divorce laws.

Volleyball falls short to WKU in C-USA title match for second time in four years

Volleyball won two out of three matches and lost in the final to Western Kentucky University this weekend during the Conference USA Championships. WKU receives an automatic bid to compete in the NCAA Championships, but Rice is likely to receive an at-large bid to compete because of its impressive RPI (No. 14 nationally).

College Republicans drop out of BISF biannual debate, prompting event cancellation

Due to a lack of College Republicans, the Baker Institute Student Forum canceled their annual fall debate between the Rice Young Democrats and Rice College Republicans. 

Amidst constitutional concern, SA narrowly approves Campanile Editors-in-Chief

The Rice Student Association voted Monday night to approve Phoebe Dang and Amy Zhang as the official Campanile editors-in-chief. The SA narrowly reached the two-thirds majority required for approval, with 16 votes in favor and seven votes against. 

Students receive ‘sextortion’ scam email

Hackers sent “sextortion” scam emails to 68 students in the past three weeks in which they threatened to release inappropriate videos, according to Marc Scarborough, Rice’s chief information security officer. 

Schedule Planner shut down amid ADA concerns, students react

Whether filtering courses for major requirements or aimlessly scrolling through a list of interesting classes, users of Schedule Planner might miss the now-defunct website after it was shut down Nov. 1 due to noncompliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and replaced with Ellucian’s Banner system. 

Embrace sustainable careers at Rice and beyond

Environmentalism is not a trend. It is not a movement that we can opt out of. If we understand the real meaning of sustainability — the active effort to sustain life on Earth — we must embrace sustainability as an inherent value and practice in our professional careers. 

From the editor’s desk: Student roles need proper compensation, support

Every year, 33 students sacrifice 10 months to plan Orientation Week, a pivotal institution of Rice. Assuming an O-Week coordinator puts in 20 hours of work a week and qualifies for the maximum stipend allowed ($2,500), they would be making a meager $3.13 an hour to help pull off one of the university’s most advertised, unique programs.

Baker Institute events too exclusive

Last Friday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Rice. While students protested outside, only a select few students, such as Baker Institute for Public Policy interns, were invited to attend the event — and that was only after specific petitioning by Rice Young Democrats.