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NEWS 8/27/24 11:50pm

Remembering Andrea Rodriguez Avila

By Riya Misra

On a spring night, Andrea Rodriguez Avila was wrapping up her Peer Academic Advisor training. Her close friend, Karen Martinez, wanted boba tea; it was nearing the end of the semester, and everything was "messy and unorganized," she said. The two went to The Tea Nook on campus — Andrea had never been. "We talked the whole way there," Martinez said, and all through their wait in the line.

NEWS 8/26/24 7:07pm

RUPD, HPD investigating alleged murder-suicide at Jones College

By Riya Misra and Juliana Lightsey

Rice University Police Department is investigating a potential homicide on campus at Jones College, according to a Rice Alert sent at 5:39 p.m. to the Rice community. Students and faculty received a shelter-in-place notice, which lifted at 6:49 p.m. All classes and activities have been canceled for the remainder of the day, according to a 6:04 p.m. Rice Alert.

NEWS 8/30/24 2:50am

Rice gathers for vigil honoring Andrea Rodriguez Avila

By Riya Misra

Rice students and staff paid their respects to Andrea Rodriguez Avila in a candlelight service, held Aug. 28 in the Rice Memorial Chapel. Over a hundred attendees, including Andrea’s family, filled the chapel’s pews while dozens more stood to the side. The ceremony, hosted by community faith members, opened with remarks from Provost Amy Dittmar.

NEWS 8/27/24 11:05pm

Rice adds ED II to application process

By Belinda Zhu

Rice introduced an Early Decision II plan June 17 that took effect in the 2024-25 admission cycle. Students applying in the ED II round must submit materials by Jan. 4, 2025 and will receive decisions by mid-February. The deadline for ED I remains unchanged from Nov. 1. 

NEWS 8/21/24 10:34pm

MLFA files Title VI complaint against Rice, alleges ‘discriminatory treatment’ in university’s tabling of S.RES 02

By Riya Misra

The Muslim Legal Fund of America filed a complaint against Rice with the U.S. Department of Education, alleging the university violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through “discriminatory treatment of its Muslim and Jewish students advocating for Palestine,” according to an MLFA press release. The complaint was filed Aug. 12, on behalf of two unnamed Rice students, in response to the university’s indefinite tabling of S.RES 02, a resolution urging the Student Association to boycott and divest its spending from Israel-aligned companies.  The Department of Education has already opened a separate Title VI investigation into Rice, launched July 30, according to the OCR’s database of pending cases. The specific nature of the complaint is unknown. A spokesperson for the Department of Education denied a request for comment.

NEWS 6/5/24 7:37pm

NOD permanently canceled, Rice strips away-decades old campus tradition

By Riya Misra

After 50 years of decadence, Wiess College’s infamous underwear party is no more.  Born in the early 1970s after a group of Wiess students poured all their alcohol into a bathtub — creating a brew “so potent it removed the varnish” — Night of Decadence has spent years in the national eye. Allegedly recognized as one of Playboy’s top college parties in the nation, NOD has also been subject to mounting scrutiny over alcohol use and an “explicitly dangerous and sexual atmosphere.” Rice has now permanently canceled the public, Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman and Wiess magister Flavio Cunha announced in a message to campus June 5.

NEWS 5/24/24 11:48am

Rice Mutual Aid partners with student organizations to fundraise for Gaza

By James Cancelarich

Rice Mutual Aid launched a fundraising campaign for Gaza on May 13 in partnership with 15 other student organizations at Rice, including Rice Students for Justice in Palestine, Rice Pride, the Hispanic Association for Cultural Enrichment at Rice and the Rice Muslim Student Association. RMA will direct donations towards American Near East Refugee Aid, a non-governmental organization that provides humanitarian aid and emergency relief in Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan. A day after its launch, the campaign raised over $2,000 according to RMA’s Instagram.

NEWS 5/19/24 8:57pm

Jones School breaks ground on new expansion, final project to wrap up spring 2026

By Riya Misra

The Jones Graduate School of Business will expand its building, constructing an additional 95,000 square feet around McNair Hall. Rice Business announced blueprint plans for the new $54.5 million building at its groundbreaking May 9. The new building will include multiple large classrooms, lecture halls, dining facilities, event spaces and communal areas, designed to “blend seamlessly with the campus and its surroundings.”

NEWS 5/19/24 8:45pm

Audrey’s closes in advance of Jones School expansion

By Riya Misra

After four years of operation in McNair Hall, Audrey’s closed May 10 prior to the Jones Graduate School of Business expansion. The original Audrey’s space will be cleaved by a wall during construction, Niken Prabanto, co-owner of Greenway Coffee Company, which oversees Audrey’s, said. 

NEWS 5/6/24 4:28pm

Rice’s COVID class graduates amid nation-wide campus protests

By Sarah Knowlton

Rice held its 111th commencement ceremony Saturday, May 4 at Rice Stadium. The class of 2024 walked through the Sallyport, which is currently closed amid ongoing construction of the academic quad, but was temporarily reopened for commencement. For the second year in a row, all undergraduate commencement events were condensed into one day — prior to 2023, ceremonies were typically spread out over a two-day span.

NEWS 5/4/24 2:40pm

Rice SJP ‘liberated zone’ ends, university removes artwork in ‘beautification efforts’

By Maria Morkas and Spring Chenjp

The “liberated zone” on Rice campus and associated events ended Friday, April 26, after four days of programming, according to the Rice Students for Justice in Palestine Instagram page. Unlike overnight encampments spreading at college campuses across the country, Rice SJP disassembled the “liberated zone” each night and returned the following morning. And in contrast to clashes and escalating police responses that have led to some 2,000 arrests from Los Angeles to Hanover, N.H., there were “no major incidents and no arrests” at Rice, according to President Reggie DesRoches.

NEWS 4/21/24 11:41pm

Jeremy Zucker headlines second-ever Moody X-Fest

By James Cancelarich

Jeremy Zucker headlined Rice’s second annual Moody X-Fest in Founder’s Court on April 19. In advance of Zucker’s set, student groups like Basmati Beats, Rice Philharmonic and BASYK performed. The festival also offered complimentary merchandise and food from Dripped Birra, Cane’s and Oh my Gogi.

NEWS 4/17/24 5:23pm

Jones wins men’s and women’s Beer Bike races, GSA snags alumni

By Viola Hsia and Riya Misra

Jones College won both the women’s and men’s Beer Bike 2024 races, while the Graduate Student Association claimed the alumni team win. Hanszen College bike teams were the runner-up in the alumni and men’s races, while Brown College was the runner-up in the women’s race. Martel and McMurtry Colleges did not bike in the alumni race, according to the Rice Program Council’s final report, and the GSA was disqualified from the men’s race for accidentally sending out two bikers simultaneously.

NEWS 4/16/24 11:08pm

Rice SJP hosts protest in response to S.RES 02 tabling

By James Cancelarich

Rice Students for Justice in Palestine staged a  walkout and protest in response to the tabling of S.RES 02, a resolution that proposed a divestment of student funds to Israel-aligned companies, outside the Allen Center, April 12. The protest occurred during Owl Days, when prospective students were touring the campus.

NEWS 4/16/24 10:14pm

Title: Exploring Michel Foucault’s Legacy – Foucault: Genealogies for the Future

By Wenshi Chen

Rice will host the Foucault: Genealogies for the Future international conference from April 18 and 19, convening scholars to reconsider the influence of Michel Foucault in academia and culture since his death in 1984. This international conference is a part of the Foucault: 40 Years After, a world congress commemorating the legacy of French philosopher and historian Michel Foucault.

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