As Rice University welcomes the class of 2020 during Orientation Week, the administration has received information that some students may be planning to distribute illicit drugs on campus with the intent of targeting new students, according to Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson.
In response to student concerns regarding the Faculty Senate's passage of a new credit hour limit, President David Leebron and Provost Marie Lynn Miranda sent an email addressed to Rice students describing the proposal, the process behind its development and further steps. The email, entitled "Addressing Concerns About the Recent Faculty Senate Bill," is copied below.
In an email sent to the rest of the Faculty Senate, Faculty Senator Jerry Dickens explained his rationale behind voting “no” on the CUC 18-hour credit cap proposal.
The Faculty Senate voted 14 to nine Wednesday in favor of the Committee for Undergraduate Curriculum’s proposal to lower the limit on the number of credit hours undergraduate students can enroll in from 20 hours to 18 hours, starting with the incoming class of 2020. More than 100 students were present at the Faculty Senate meeting to protest against the proposal in a sit-in organized by the Student Association, with at least 50 remaining until the vote on the changes two hours after the meeting began.
Rice student researchers in a humanities research practicum presented at a research symposium April 14 and April 15. This past semester, the Humanities Research Center partnered with Houston institutions and university archives for students to conduct research in medical humanities or cultural heritage. John Mulligan, a Rice lecturer, led the program.
The Student Association Senate will vote Wednesday on the creation of a director of government relations position, who would advise the Senate about governmental initiatives. SA President Griffin Thomas introduced the legislation in March.
Rice’s Honor Council has announced changes to its penalty system: It will base penalties in proportion to the grade weighting of assignments found in violation.
Hannah Todd was elected Student Association external vice president in an uncontested election last week.
James Carter, a Brown College junior, was confirmed as Student Association Associate Vice President at the April 13 meeting of the SA Senate. As associate vice president, a position which was newly created this month by a Senate bill, Carter will assist SA President Griffin Thomas on diversity-related projects. Thomas, a Lovett College junior, said Carter will work on Senate, student body and administration diversity.
The Student Association Senate voted April 13 to convene the Committee of Constitutional Revisions with the goal of reforming some of the “procedural deficiencies” in the Constitution, according to the legislation.
The Rice University Court held a public hearing Sunday afternoon to deliberate on the revocation of Rice Catalyst’s blanket tax status.
The Faculty Senate voted 14 to 9 in favor of the Committee for Undergraduate Curriculum proposal to lower the limit on the number of credit hours undergraduate students can enroll in from 20 hours to 18 hours, starting with the incoming class of 2020.
The Student Association is organizing a sit-in to protest the Committee for Undergraduate Curriculum proposal to limit the number of credit hours undergraduate students may enroll in each semester. According to the SA, the Faculty Senate will very likely pass the proposal on Wednesday.
A coalition of students called the Students of Color Collective has been collaborating with administration to improve underrepresented minority students’ experiences. The Collective is comprised of members of the Black Student Association and the Hispanic Association for Cultural Enrichment at Rice.
Over 150 students, faculty and administrators attended the mechanical engineering town hall, where undergraduates discussed some of the issues they face in the department, including a lack of tenured professors, underresourced labs and the general underfunding of the department. Mechanical engineering is the second-largest major by enrollment at Rice, with about 190 students.
What is citizenship? Rice students and professors sought to define this idea and discussed the state of citizenship in marginalized communities as part of a panel held by Houston’s chapter of Black Lives Matter. The event, which took place in Hamman Hall on April 7, also featured work from local artists.
Hindi will once again be offered by the Center for Language and Intercultural Communication in the fall 2016 semester as a two year program. According to Meng Yeh, associate director at the CLIC, students will have the option of enrolling in either First Year Hindi or Accelerated First Year Hindi, a faster paced program for heritage students who have been exposed to the language through their culture. She said an accelerated language program is already being offered in Chinese due to the amount of heritage students enrolled at Rice.
Rice University has approved funds for the Rice University Police Department to install security cameras outside of residential colleges to record entrances and exits. According to Police Chief Johnny Whitehead, several hundred security cameras are already on on campus in administration and academic buildings, but crime statistics have revealed the majority of crime including thefts, trespassing and sexual assault, occur in and around residential colleges.
What makes a good O-Week? College coordinators have struggled to tackle this question since they were appointed to the position last semester. With a variety of factors and concerns, diversity has emerged as a topic of discussion.
Public records show that Rice University employees have given 87 percent of their campaign contributions to liberal or Democratic organizations since 2000, while 10 percent of the contributions have gone toward those that are associated with Republicans.
