Letters To The Editor

OPINION 7/24/20 7:57pm

Letter to the Editor: Re-evaluate return to campus

By Moshe Vardi

During the past couple of weeks, Rice faculty have received various messages from Rice University administrators that explain in detail how Rice is working to provide a safe and effective learning environment for students in the fall semester. These plans are premised on the physical return to the campus of a significant majority of the undergraduate population. While I am grateful for the efforts of our colleagues in administration, I am also deeply concerned that these measures are not sufficient to provide the level of safety that Rice students and employees should be able to count on. In keeping with Rice’s long-standing commitment to life-safety and the well-being of the community, I feel compelled to convey my concerns.

OPINION 5/12/20 3:55pm

Letter to the Editor: Keep standardized tests, but broaden them

By Sanat Mehta

The pandemic might justify making tests optional for the upcoming admission cycle, though I still think they should be strongly encouraged for those who can take it, but I don’t think de-emphasizing tests in the long term is the right approach.

OPINION 5/5/20 4:37pm

Letter to the Editor: Don’t sacrifice students to keep standardized testing

By Daniel Koh , Grace Wickerson and Anna Margaret Clyburn

On April 21, the Thresher reported on a Student Association resolution urging Rice to suspend standardized testing requirements for applicants who will matriculate in 2021. Vice President for Enrollment Yvonne Romero da Silva makes statements in the Thresher article that do not reflect the reality of standardized testing or the obstacles marginalized students have been facing even before COVID-19.

OPINION 1/14/20 11:21pm

Invisible opportunities: Reframing accessibility at Rice

By Ling DeBellis

When I read last December’s Thresher news article, “Invisible Burdens,” and the accompanying staff editorial, highlighting the apparent lack of accessibility on campus, I was disappointed, a bit angered and saddened.

OPINION 2/12/19 10:36pm

Innovation district must make progress for all

By Alice Liu , Nia Prince and Mary Claire Neal

When asked about the inspiration behind the name “Ion”, President David Leebron described Rice’s planned innovation hub as “embodying the ever-forward motion of discovery.”

OPINION 10/17/18 7:58pm

LTTE: Don’t confuse College Republicans’ inaction with malice

By Juliette Turner

Two issues were recently brought to light by Maddy Scannell and Moses Glickman in their letter to the editor: my misstatement in my interview with the Thresher on Oct. 3 and Rice University College Republicans’ lack of voter registration on campus in the past weeks. Contrary to what Maddy and Moses insinuate, both issues are wholly unrelated in nature and intention.

OPINION 10/17/18 12:51am

Letter to the Editor: Rice College Republicans say they’re committed to registering voters. Their recent record indicates otherwise.

By Maddy Scannell and Moses Glickman

In the Oct. 3 issue of The Rice Thresher, the Rice University College Republicans claimed to support increasing voter turnout. RUCR President Juliette Turner claimed in her interview with the Thresher that her group has not been invited to participate in campus events to increase voter registration.

OPINION 9/4/18 10:52pm

Letter to the Editor: In Defense of Public Parties

By Paul Mayer

About a year ago, the Thresher started publishing “Party Patrols,” reviews of public parties around campus.

OPINION 4/18/18 2:42pm

Response to Anson Fung: Support of Dreamers adheres to Rice's commitment to diversity and excellence

By Gilbert Saldivar

It is uniquely fitting for Rice University to publicly declare its unwavering commitment to pursue excellence in and from every corner of the globe, especially when that excellence finds us first.

OPINION 4/17/18 10:06pm

Response to Anson Fung: No reconsideration necessary, Rice stands with Dreamers

By Franz Brotzen , Blake Coleman and Maddy Scannell

It is impossible for a university’s policies to align with every individual’s beliefs. But if we truly desire to uphold our university’s mission statement, it is crucial that we embrace every Rice student, documented or not, as integral and valuable to the Rice experience.

OPINION 4/17/18 10:04pm

Response to Anson Fung: Rice should stand against divisiveness

By Christen Sparago

Fung’s argument is an interesting enough intellectual exercise if you’re bored while sitting in Monday morning traffic, but I entirely disagree with the premise that the public positions taken by the administration on political issues like DACA “call into question Rice’s commitment to diversity of learning and discovery.”

OPINION 4/17/18 9:56pm

Response to Anson Fung: Rice must stand by all its students and support DACA

By Maurice Frediere

When President Leebron and Dean Hutchinson spoke in favor of protections for Dreamers, they were fulfilling a responsibility to ensure that all members of our community feel safe inside the hedges.

OPINION 3/6/18 11:14pm

LTTE: Sid is dead, long live Sid

By Liston Pitman

Over the past few months, I’ve been slowly untangling the mess of feelings I feel about Sid Richardson College’s impending move and the current building’s eventual demolition.

OPINION 2/22/18 10:39am

LTTE: Correcting the record on the Thresher's endorsement

By Rohan Palanki

First, to the People for Palanki, thank you. Thank you for all the love and support you have shown during this campaign, from hanging flyers to changing profile picture frames to keeping me sane throughout these stressful weeks.

OPINION 2/21/18 5:07pm

LTTE: Op-ed regarding Turner’s political involvement misguided in its criticism

By Maurice Frediere

As someone who has served on the SA’s executive team and been heavily involved since my freshman year while maintaining leadership positions in the Rice Democrats and various political campaigns, I can confidently say that Juliette Turner’s political involvement would not conflict with her responsibilities as IVP.

OPINION 2/6/18 3:15pm

LTTE: Beer Bike team reduction is vital to increasing safety on the track

By Colin Losey

We do need to make the certification process more difficult in order to ensure safety, but at the same time, we also need to decrease roster sizes.

OPINION 2/6/18 2:35am

LTTE: A Response to “SA to vote on resolution rejecting speaker disinvitations.”

By Maurice Frediere , Mahdi Fariss , James Altschul , Albert Nabiullin , Juliette Turner , Reagan Kapp and Taara Clarke

Ultimately, if the spirit of the Academic Freedom Working Group was unclear from Tuesday’s article, we hope to illuminate it now.

NEWS 2/5/18 10:28pm

A Response to “SA to vote on resolution rejecting speaker disinvitations.”

“SA to vote on resolution supporting student values and freedom of expression” perhaps would have been a more apt headline for the article the Thresher ran on Tuesday summarizing the findings of the Student Association’s Academic Freedom Working Group.

OPINION 1/30/18 10:15pm

Letter to the Editor: In Defense of Rice Men’s Basketball

By Martin Rather

Rice men’s basketball is still worth our time. In response to last week’s column in the Thresher sports section, “A midwinter airing of grievances” (Jan. 23, 2018), I would like to highlight the simple resiliency of this year’s team.

OPINION 1/23/18 9:54pm

LTTE: ‘Origin, 135 Degrees’, a platform of decadence

By Lorenzo Venneri

And so the legacy of ill-conceived art funded by Rice University continues.