Thresher holds the memories of a campus

By Ben Baker-Katz     4/18/23 10:09pm

For the last two years, whenever someone has tried to make plans with me on a Tuesday, I’ve responded with some version of “I can’t, I’ve got Thresher.” The natural next question, after I explain that putting together a weekly paper takes up the vast majority of every Tuesday, is “Why do you spend so much time on it?” And silly as it may seem, I’ve never really come up with a good answer to that question.

I usually give some obligatory answer along the lines of “I enjoy it, and I think the work we produce makes campus a better place.” Both of those things are true, but they don’t accurately convey the extent of my answer. It wasn’t until recently, when I began to seriously reflect on leaving this job, that I realized the true purpose of the Thresher is what it leaves behind.

Do yourself a favor, and spend some time exploring the Thresher archives. Pick a random issue, or choose one very deliberately, and immerse yourself in whatever was happening on campus that week. From old intramural sports coverage, to discussion of conscription’s impact on students to the phenomenal shenanigans that Rice students used to get up to, I promise it is well worth your time.

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I’m incredibly proud of the work the Thresher has published in my two years in leadership. Some articles made me laugh, others made me cry, but they were all worth writing. I hope that, in a few decades, someone will be looking back at our archives to learn about what Rice was like in the years following the pandemic, and thoroughly enjoying themselves in the process.

Now it’s time for some obligatory sappiness. Thank you to Savannah Kuchar and Ivanka Perez for being the best EIC role models imaginable. Thank you to Katharine Shilcutt, for agreeing to a job with no idea what she was getting herself into and for helping me love Houston. Thank you to Morgan Gage, the most talented person I’ve ever worked with. And finally, thank you to Kelley Lash — gone but never forgotten, you are missed every day on the second floor of the RMC.

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