News

NEWS 3/23/21 10:24pm

Union brings attention to alleged worker mistreatment at Ion construction site

By Hajera Naveed

The Rice Management Company’s current construction of the Ion in the Third Ward has continued to spark controversy within the community. During the past year of ongoing construction, the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades has brought attention to the alleged mistreatment of workers from Milam & Co Painters, a company subcontracted by Rice for the Ion construction project.

NEWS 3/16/21 10:30pm

Slavery, Segregation, and Racial Injustice Task Force solicits opinions on Willy’s Statue through survey

By Hajera Naveed and Bonnie Zhao

The Task Force on Slavery, Segregation, and Racial Injustice asked Student Association presidents on March 7 to send out a survey regarding Willy’s statue to college presidents, who were asked to send it to their respective college students. The survey asked if the statue of William Marsh Rice should be removed from the Academic Quad and asked how they reached that answer. Responders were instructed to write as little or as much as they would like.

NEWS 3/16/21 10:24pm

Student-Run Businesses endorse “Down With Willy” Movement

By Hajera Naveed and Bonnie Zhao

Rice Student Run Businesses collectively announced their official endorsement for the removal of the Willy Statue on social media last Thursday. Rice Coffeehouse, The Hoot and Rice Bikes concurrently released a statement on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter outlining their reasons for supporting the movement.

NEWS 3/16/21 9:20pm

Wiess, Will Rice redo elections due to complications

By Ivanka Perez

Will Rice College and Wiess College both reheld elections for certain college positions after facing issues relating to their respective voting softwares, OwlNest and Qualtrics. By holding these elections again, the election outcomes were changed both for Wiess and Will Rice.

NEWS 3/16/21 9:18pm

Students react to RUPD officers seen wearing “Thin Blue Line” masks

By Rynd Morgan

In the past two weeks, students reported seeing Rice University Police Department officers wearing face masks depicting the “Thin Blue Line” symbol on campus, a symbol sometimes associated with the Blue Lives Matter movement and which some students associate with the movement. RUPD Chief Clemente Rodriguez said that he had not seen any officers wearing masks with the words “Blue Lives Matter” written on them, and none of the RUPD supervisors he spoke with saw any RUPD officers wearing masks with messages saying the words “Blue Lives Matter.” However, some officers have worn masks depicting the “Thin Blue Line” symbol, which Rodriguez said was meant to support fellow law enforcement officers.

NEWS 3/9/21 10:54pm

Rice will have in-person May commencement ceremonies, featuring journalist Nicholas Kristof

By Bonnie Zhao

Rice University administration announced on Friday evening that it will host in-person commencement ceremonies for both the class of 2021 and 2020 graduates on May 14 and 15, while families and guests will attend only virtually.

NEWS 3/9/21 9:28pm

Rice’s mask policy will remain unchanged following Gov. Abbott’s decision to lift state-imposed mask mandates

By Bonnie Zhao

Rice University will continue to require face masks on campus after Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to lift state-imposed mask mandates and allow businesses to operate at full capacity starting on March 10, according to an email sent by Kevin Kirby, vice president for administration.

NEWS 3/9/21 8:12pm

Rice researchers develop two new sensors to detect COVID-19

By Megan Xiao

Researchers at Rice University have been developing two new innovative tools to detect COVID-19: a real-time sensor that can detect small amounts of the virus in the air and a mobile phone reader with a chip that can detect the virus from a blood sample.

NEWS 3/9/21 7:57pm

Students, faculty discuss sprinkle days amidst unconventional semester

By Talha Arif

Two sprinkle days have occurred so far, with one occurring during the winter storm, and the final three will occur on March 16, March 26 and April 8. Students have generally responded well to the implementation of sprinkle days, but some say it is hard to take a break as intended with only one day off.

NEWS 3/8/21 1:49pm

Rice receives approval to receive and distribute vaccines on campus for eligible individuals

By Ivanka Perez

Rice has been officially approved to order, store and distribute vaccines on campus, according to Kevin Kirby, chair of the crisis management advisory committee. In an email to the Rice community today, Kirby also wrote that Rice community members who received the first dose of the Moderna vaccine on campus on Feb. 15 will likely receive the second dose on Mar. 22.

NEWS 3/8/21 11:59am

St. Luke’s Health and Rice partner together for new vaccine clinic at the Rice Stadium

By Rishab Ramapriyan

St. Luke’s Health announced on Monday that it has partnered with Rice University to open a new vaccination site at the Rice Stadium on March 15 to run till the end of July. The Rice Stadium clinic will be focussed on administering vaccines to the most vulnerable populations, such as healthcare workers, seniors, school teachers, child/adult care workers, and underserved communities.

NEWS 3/6/21 4:40pm

Rice Mutual-Aid distributes thousands to undergraduates during polar vortex

By Isaiah Hwang

Rice Mutual Aid, a community-funded and student-led organization, redistributed thousands of dollars to Rice and Houston community members in need due to the recent winter storm.

NEWS 3/4/21 10:28pm

President Biden visits Houston following disastrous winter storm

By Rachel Johnson

President Biden visited Houston last Friday, Feb. 26, following the disastrous winter storm that affected millions of Texans. During his visit, Biden traveled to the Harris County Emergency Operations Center, the Houston Food Bank and the Federal Emergency Management Agency COVID vaccination site at NRG stadium.

NEWS 3/2/21 11:11pm

Rice cancels summer 2021 study abroad programs

By Megan Xiao

Rice plans to extend the suspension of study abroad programs into summer 2021 due to ongoing health and safety concerns as well as restrictions related to COVID-19, according to the Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman, in consultation with the Provost and Rice’s Crisis Management Advisory Committee. This includes the Rice in Country programs offered by the Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication, in-person study abroad programs from the Study Abroad Office and certain fellowships that require international study abroad from the Center for Civic Leadership.

NEWS 3/2/21 10:52pm

Faculty Senate approves new undergraduate Business major

By Isaiah Hwang

The Faculty Senate recently approved the undergraduate business major, which will start offering courses in fall 2021 according to Jeff Fleming, deputy dean of academic affairs at the Jones Graduate School of Business. Undergraduates in the class of 2024 and beyond will be eligible to declare the new business major.

NEWS 3/2/21 10:48pm

Rice Management Company discusses contentious CBA at SA meeting

By Hajera Naveed and Prayag Gordy

Rice Management Company attended last week’s Student Association meeting, updating the Rice community and sparking debate about Rice Management Company’s ongoing development in Houston’s Third Ward. The Ion, a centerpiece of the 16-acre Innovation District, is slated to open later this year, according to Rice Management Company’s manager of strategic initiatives Samuel Dike.

NEWS 3/2/21 9:35pm

Guest meal swipe donation program reinstated

By Mainavi Reddy

Rice University reinstated their Guest Meal Swipe Donation Program this semester after a pause during the Fall 2020 semester. The program serves to mitigate food insecurity by allowing on-campus undergraduates with a Type A meal plan — 20 meals per week — to donate their unused meal swipes to off-campus peers, according to the Student Success Initiatives website. According to David McDonald, approximately 1,443 meal swipes have been donated this semester leading to the reimplementation of the program.

NEWS 2/27/21 12:24pm

Vining wins SA presidential election, Sethre-Brink wins EVP race amidst low voter turnout

By Talha Arif

Kendall Vining will serve as the next Student Association president after winning the election against Jarrett Prchal. Vining received 56.8 percent of the vote (545 ballots) while Prchal received 41.4 percent (345 ballots). A total of 959 ballots were cast for the SA presidential election for a voter turnout of 24 percent, the lowest turnout in the past five years.

NEWS 2/25/21 9:59pm

Rice launches new graduate programs in psychological sciences and data science

By Shiyu Miao

Rice plans to launch a two-year professional master’s degree in industrial-organizational psychology and a 31-credit professional master’s degree in data science. Both programs will begin their classes in Fall 2021.

NEWS 2/23/21 11:48pm

Rice Bikes, Hoot & Coffeehouse prepare for Spring semester

By Julia Li

Three of Rice’s student-run businesses — Rice Coffeehouse, The Hoot and Rice Bikes — are all expected to reopen in the coming week for the spring semester. There have been no updates released regarding the reopening of Willy’s Pub and East-West Tea.