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NEWS 2/22/22 11:52pm

Rice commits to becoming carbon-neutral by 2030

By Emily London

Rice will commit to becoming carbon-neutral by 2030, according to an email sent out on Feb. 11 by President David Leebron and incoming President Reginald DesRoches. This change comes after Rice announced that they would go carbon-neutral by 2038 in 2013. According to DesRoches, current provost, Rice felt compelled to speed up their timeline due to the rapid advancement of climate change.

NEWS 2/22/22 11:42pm

Rice unveils plan for new student center

By Prayag Gordy

The new student center will include a basement auditorium, a two-story multicultural center and a second-floor food court, according to Bridget Gorman, dean of undergraduates. Anzilla Gilmore, the project manager, said that construction is still scheduled to finish by fall 2023.

NEWS 2/15/22 11:15pm

Willy’s Pub rebrands as The Pub at Rice

By Prayag Gordy

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.

NEWS 2/15/22 11:12pm

Gupta, Unegbu square off in election for SA IVP

By Bonnie Zhao

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.

NEWS 2/15/22 11:06pm

SA resolution introduced to address swim coach comments

By Viola Hsia

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. 

NEWS 2/15/22 11:04pm

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

By Nishanka Kuthuru

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. 

NEWS 2/11/22 4:44pm

Gas leak forces several building evacuations

By Savannah Kuchar

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.

NEWS 2/1/22 10:41pm

Woman sues Rice, former Shepherd instructor for childhood sexual assault

By Kennedi Macklin

A Houston woman has launched a civil lawsuit against Rice University and Dariusz Pawlas, a former Shepherd School of Music instructor, alleging assault and neglect.  The woman, who is identified as I.R. in court documents, was ten years old when she said Pawlas first began to assault her during her piano lessons at Shepherd. Attorney Anna Greenberg said in the lawsuit that despite a formal complaint of sexual misconduct from another student years later, Rice allowed Pawlas to continue teaching on and off campus for months.

NEWS 2/1/22 10:33pm

Fourth Datathon held last weekend

By Viola Hsia

Rice University, along with the D2K club, hosted its 4th Annual Datathon this past weekend. The directors, Caleb Huang, Gazi Fuad and Michael Kelley, said that this year’s event was the biggest yet. The Datathon is Rice’s annual data science competition, where participants have 24 hours, in teams, to design and also implement data science-related projects. 

NEWS 2/1/22 10:30pm

New study spots opened up on campus

By Bonnie Zhao

Rice expanded its study space options since Jan. 18, opening up selective rooms in Rayzor Hall, Duncan Hall and Kraft Hall on a reservation basis. Rayzor Hall rooms 106, 113 and 123, Duncan Hall room 1046 and Kraft Hall rooms 103 and 104 will be accessible for students. The Rayzor Hall lobbies will continue to be open until 1:45 a.m. via swipe access.

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