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Opinion

OPINION 2/24/15 6:00pm

Students, administration must start Title IX dialogue

By Student Association Executive Team

The Student Association exists so that students can connect with the administration. Right now, students feel completely disjointed from the administration, and now it’s our place to bridge the gap. It’s time that we take the conversation about McMurtry College out of the private realm, off of social media and into the open. The Student Association has a duty to advocate for student needs. However, if students aren’t aware of the conversations that are occurring behind closed doors, students can never trust that they’re being advocated for. This was written after spending hours meeting with college presidents, members of administration and college masters and talking to students first hand.Due to student confidentiality, no outside party can ever truly talk about the specifics of the case. However, if you look at this situation very broadly, it can serve as a learning experience for the every single member of the community: Students, students leaders, administration and RAs and masters. One of the biggest questions being asked among students is, “How does Title IX apply to the situation at McMurtry and to our campus as a whole?” Title IX is a federal civil rights act that prohibits discrimination in educational programs. This includes, but is not limited to, discrimination based on sex or gender. If a student feels that they have been excluded from a campus-wide resource as a result of their gender, and after an investigation this appears to be true, this can be considered a violation of Title IX. The next logical question is, “What resource was being denied in the specific situation at McMurtry?” In order to answer this, we need to understand that student leaders are resources. With an open mind, honestly answer this question: “If a male public figure hypersexualized or objectified a woman, and this knowledge became known to me, would I, as a female, feel as comfortable approaching this same leader with issues regarding my own sexuality?” As reasonable observers, we can say that this answer is no. Currently the undergraduate population is arguing about what is legal and illegal, when really this situation is much more complex. As a student body, we need to be reminded of why we elect student leaders. Student leaders are elected to foster a community of acceptance, equality and safety. Furthermore, they should behave in such a way that does not contradict the values and principles that Rice University holds. However, this rationale highlights a much bigger problem. We need to know exactly what values our community holds. We should never be in a situation where, as students, we are surprised about a value or standard that the administration has. While we will never have a written list of what is wrong and what is right, it is clear that we need to be given some sort of guideline to help us. Our community is not malicious. No student on campus wants to offend someone or make them feel excluded. No student has the intent to embarrass the university or jeopardize their own academic career. We need more resources to help us avoid these situations. What is important now is not what has happened, but what are we going to do. We are not going to go on a witchhunt for the person(s) who complained. This sets a dangerous and unfair precedent for other students who want to use SJP as a resource in the future. We are not going to demonize any single party in this situation because, as humans, we know that no story is black and white. The SA is currently planning an open campus forum for the week after spring break to be attended by members of administration and students and moderated by the Student Association. This will be a place to clarify and build a common set of goals within our community in a safe environment. We can’t undo what has already happened, but we can prevent future situations by continuing the conversation.

OPINION 2/18/15 3:12pm

President-elect Jazz Silva should look to past for leadership influence

By Thresher Editorial Board

Sid Richardson College junior Jazz Silva will be the Student Association’s next president. She received more than twice the votes of both Lovett College sophomore Aishwarya and Jones College junior Sandra Blackmun in the general election to secure the position (see p.1).  Silva has promised to bring Senate meetings to the residential colleges, involve athletes in the Student Association and implement Rice Education of the Future suggestions and the new blanket tax system. However, the Thresher asks that Silva and her executive cabinet also look to the successes and failures of the current SA administration in order to inform her presidency moving forward. Current SA President Ravi Sheth became leader of the SA with plans to “fix it.” Although his initial platform appeared vague and overly ambitious, Sheth generated tangible results under his administration, including the creation of Rice Education of the Future, blanket tax reformation and the pods system.  However, Sheth did not make a strong enough effort to reach out to the residential colleges and maintain an approachable public presence. On topics concerning students such as the add/drop policy and Cheer Battle, Sheth’s advocacy either did not match the student body’s interests, or he lacked a response completely. In order to address the current SA leadership’s shortcomings, we recommend Jazz not only to directly communicate students’ interests to the administration, but to go a step further and voice opposition to the administration when their interests directly conflict those of students. Silva showed a willingness to question administrative action when she voiced opposition to Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson’s decision to remove a designated time for cheer battle during Orientation Week, and the Thresher hopes that she continues in this vein. Silva should regularly update the student body on her discussions with the administration. Her presidency provides an opportunity to make the SA president’s interactions with administration, which have typically not been communicated to the student body, public. However, for this plan to be effective, students must care about the SA. Thus, Silva must make student body outreach a priority; otherwise, there will be neither an engaged constituency to provide input nor an audience to witness the SA’s progress. Silva built her campaign on her ability to enact tangible change and a promise to increase student involvement. If she realizes both campaign objectives, the SA will be in a position to better serve the student body’s interests. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Thresher editorial staff. All other opinion pieces represent solely the opinion of the piece’s author.

OPINION 2/17/15 6:00pm

SJP meetings should not be secret affairs

By Griffin Thomas

In Fall 2012, Olivia Hansen, a former Rice student, wrote an op-ed claiming she was mistreated by members of the university administration when she attempted to file harassment complaints against an abusive partner, and was subsequently forced to withdraw from Rice. While the university claimed this withdrawal was for her emotional well-being, Hansen maintains that it was Rice’s attempt to silence an unhappy student to protect its reputation and quality-of-life rankings. Following Hansen’s alleged mistreatment, the student body lost a great deal of trust in the administration’s ability to adjudicate judicial matters and maintain student well-being; some of this skepticism and mistrust persists more than two years later.As a whole, the university has made tremendous strides to attempt to address student concerns and regain trust in well-being and judicial matters. In fact, Student Judicial Programs — one of the bodies Hansen alleges was involved in her mistreatment — underwent seemingly sweeping changes following Hansen’s allegations, including hiring a new director, Lisa Zollner.While I applaud the administration for the strides they have made, I am troubled by a recent trend within SJP that has greatly undercut student confidence in the institution. On April 24, 2014, the Thresher published an article alleging rampant mistreatment of students by SJP staff. Since this article’s publication, numerous rumors have persisted as students — past and present — have come forward to testify to the same crass, disrespectful and threatening treatment at the hands of SJP.Students who feel that they have been unfairly treated may file a complaint with Dean Hutchinson. However, SJP meetings are private, and students cannot record the exchange or bring a witness to the meeting, such as a Master or resident associate. This lack of documentation makes any student accusation of SJP an immediate he-said-she-said matter that is nearly impossible to prove.However, if repeated student claims of abuse are truly fictitious, and the methods used by SJP staff are as benign as the administration claims, why not increase transparency to assuage student concerns? Dean Hutchinson is currently the only check on SJP, and given repeated and continued student complaints, this check is clearly not enough. Thus, the administration should address these concerns directly by allowing students to record or bring a silent witness to SJP meetings. Such actions will not interfere with official proceedings, but will help ensure that students are treated with basic respect and dignity.SJP plays a tremendously important role on Rice’s campus — as it should. Ensuring that safety is maintained should be a top priority for the administration and student body alike. However, the recent decline of student trust in SJP has negatively impacted its ability to effectively execute its duties and has compromised the confidence it has regained since Hansen’s op-ed.SJP’s job is difficult enough when students have confidence in the institution, but it becomes infinitely more complicated when this relationship becomes adversarial. While the outcomes of SJP proceedings are not always in line with student desires, the student body must at least feel that they can trust in the fairness and legitimacy of the process.

OPINION 2/12/15 2:34am

The Thresher endorses Jazz Silva for SA president

By Thresher Editorial Board

The Student Association presidential debate revealed a clear choice for SA president. After responding to questions from the Thresher editorial staff and the audience, Sid Richardson College Senator Jazz Silva emerged as the most viable candidate. Though Lovett College Senator Aishwarya Thakur and Jones College Treasurer Sandra Blackmun showed passion for issues of importance to Rice students, Silva inspired confidence in her ability to enact change on these issues through the SA.

OPINION 2/10/15 6:00pm

Botched election timeline ensures uninformed votes

By Thresher Editorial Board

The Student Association presidential debate, initially scheduled for Monday, is instead being held today, Wednesday, Feb. 11 in the Kyle Morrow room in Fondren Library at 8 p.m. in place of the SA senate meeting. The SA initially planned to host the SA presidential debate on Monday, before elections began. However, according to SA President Ravi Sheth, the debate was moved to Wednesday to increase the event’s turnout.  Additionally, the SA did not release official information for all general election candidates until Monday, less than 24 hours before the ballot opened. Director of Elections Austin Cao said the registrar’s new requirement that all candidates must release information indicating good academic standing forced the SA to delay releasing candidate information. While the Thresher understands exigent circumstances forced the SA to make changes to the elections timeline, these changes have negatively impacted the student body’s knowledge of the candidates and issues. By creating such a large window of time between the start of elections and the debate, framed in an already short voting period, the SA effectively ensures uninformed voting.  Moreover, the idea that delaying the debate will increase turnout to the event is flawed. Sheth’s decision to hold the debate during the scheduled Senate meeting time because those who would typically attend the former will be available for the latter only guarantees that Senate members will be present. Considering Senate members are typically at the forefront of Rice leadership, it is reasonable to expect these individuals to make time to attend the debate regardless of its scheduling. The debate should be scheduled at a time that is most convenient for the entire student body as opposed to a time that appeals to a niche group already engaged in student government. Consistently low voter turnout plagues the SA general elections. Increasing turnout is a responsibility that currently falls upon candidates themselves; however, candidates have their own interests in mind, and although they may contribute towards increasing turnout, they are more focused on becoming elected than sustaining a positive culture surrounding voting. We have long treated low turnout as an inherent problem without a solution, but the truth is that the SA has not yet attempted a solution.  Evidently, elections deserve greater attention from SA leadership. For the sake of its own future, the SA must expand the role of the elections committee to include ensuring a smooth elections timeline and instilling students with a strong sense of civic duty. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Thresher editorial staff. All other opinion pieces represent solely the opinion of the piece’s author.

OPINION 2/10/15 6:00pm

I will show you the SA's power

By Jazz Silva

It is a very frustrating time to run for a position in the Student Association. For the past few weeks, I have been walking around campus trying to convince people that I’m capable of running the most powerful student organization on campus. From Facebook spam to “Get Jazzy On It” t-shirts, I’ve been trying to market myself and my campaign. But at the end of the day, I know most Rice students don’t give a damn about a cute flyer. You want to make sure that the 50K you pay a year goes toward a university worth your money. For those students still choosing who to give their vote to, I write this to assure you that I would not run for SA president if I did not wholeheartedly know that I am the most qualified candidate.I am not running on future promises or hopes. I am only running on the platform that I have been holding myself to for this past year. You see something that needs to be fixed and you get that thing done. You don’t wait until someone else makes it a priority.  Parking has been a problem on campus for longer than I’ve been in attendance. So why haven’t we seen any changes until this year? It’s because this year the SA made it a priority. When you elect competent leaders, they do what it takes to command our community. I am not going to mindlessly criticize the SA. No one who’s ever been in the SA would argue that the we don’t have the power, influence, structure or resources to function. What needs to change is the fact that the rest of the student body believes that isn’t true. Roughly six people this week asked me what the SA even does. That’s not acceptable, and it is entirely the fault of the SA. It is not the job of a busy Rice student to find the campus-wide SA meetings, learn about the legislation on the agenda and then show up. The SA should go to the colleges, which is something they used to do. This is not just another election; you are choosing who will set the agenda for an entire year of legislation. When you cast your vote, you are actually choosing the problems that are going to get addressed. I am that person who will stand up for you, and I sincerely hope you trust me with your vote.

OPINION 2/10/15 6:00pm

Let’s improve the Rice experience

By Aishwarya Thakur

My three-point platform of advancing our experiences inside and outside the classroom, and looking ahead beyond Rice is rooted to what I see as the Rice experience. There’s a reason we consistently report being some of the happiest college students around, so there must be something here worth upholding. Whether that includes your appreciation for our self-governing 11 residential colleges, small class sizes, or available career-advancing opportunities, let’s work to maintain them — but also to advance them. Let’s find a way to view the SA not as a 12th college, but an extension of each of the colleges — a part of the student body that connects us all. Let’s fight back against the growing student population and urge administration and faculty to keep our class sizes small and education at its best. Let’s demand for more externship, internship, research and shadowing opportunities; let’s make it easier to connect with 100 years’ worth of alumni who have been in our exact befuddled, yet driven, shoes.With the knowledge of whom to contact and how to contact in the administration, you all have the power to ask for the changes you want to see; with our online petition system, you all even have the power to make those changes. Having been an active leader in the SA as an NSR and senator, I recognize that we need to increase the flow of information from you, the student body, to the administration, and vice versa. Let’s get everyone on the same page from the very beginning of every topic of discussion.With a vision of how to proceed and clear-cut goals, we can truly impact the faculty’s and administration’s thinking. What’s the best way we see fit to handle add/drop for registration? Is there a way students can access new parking spaces as well? Is a two-week spring break feasible for our culture, and how do we as students envision it to provide more opportunities for experiential learning, as we proposed in the Rice Education of the Future Initiative? Let’s work together and relay our ideas to the university.And, lastly, let’s just do it. These are not far-fetched ideas, but a list of concrete plans. Let’s fix what’s broken — such as how we allocate the blanket tax — and let’s better the education we receive. Voice your opinion with your vote and let’s advance the Rice experience together. 

OPINION 2/10/15 6:00pm

I want to create more leaders

By Sandra Blackmun

My extensive experience in political television series has taught me a great deal about how to be an effective leader and how to empower others to create the significant change they want to see. But more importantly, my experience at Rice has given me the opportunity to meet incredible people, experience the amazing campus culture and to learn that everyone has a voice.I am running to be your next Student Association President because I see the potential of this organization. The SA is an amazing organization that allows us to truly make a change not only for our own undergraduate experience, but also for that of students to come. But something doesn’t add up. If you ask the average Rice student what the SA does, they are unable to tell you. To me, there are two main reasons why this is the case:1)    College and SA Relationship: I believe a current gap exists between the colleges and the SA, and my goal is to bridge this gap. With my college leadership background, I fundamentally understand the college government. I want to allow colleges to remain autonomous and run themselves but also to bring the two organizations together to create campus-wide changes.2)    Communication: Many people are unaware of what the SA actually does. I plan on increasing communication via social media, attending college cabinet/council meetings to create a direct relationship with students and increasing our relationship with the Thresher to publish even more to students.Together, we will make a change. I hope to empower you to make the difference you want to see. One of my favorite quotes in life has absolutely changed the way I work with others, and I hope you’ll know that I will lead with this belief: “Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders.” We can all come together and elicit the changes we want to see in our university, but to do so, we need an SA President who knows both sides of the relationship between the SA and the colleges and who has a vision to empower you. I hope you’ll Stand with Sandra and see this vision become a reality. 

OPINION 2/4/15 3:49pm

Blanket Tax Crack Team proposal remedies current system’s failures

By Thresher Editorial Board

The SA Blanket Tax Crack Team has petitioned a revamp to the existing blanket tax system with a new “pot of gold” proposal. 200 student signatures are required for the petition to be included in the General Election ballot, where a 20 percent referendum and a two-thirds majority vote will put the measure into effect (see p.1). The Thresher strongly supports the Crack Team’s new proposal and encourages students to sign the petition and to vote for it in the General Election. Currently, organizations petition to qualify for blanket tax status and specify a requested amount of annual funding through a ballot in the General Election. If a blanket tax organization’s budget appears questionable in the Annual Review, they are brought to a Contingency Committee, which can determine if the organization has violated blanket tax laws and if a decrease in funding is warranted. The existing process has proven inefficient at and inconducive to encouraging fiscal responsibility among blanket tax organizations. Since a Contingency Committee must find three violations within a four-year period to decrease a violating organization’s blanket tax, it currently takes years to effect any change in funding, even if an organization demonstrates excessively large surpluses or fiscal irresponsibility. Fleeting institutional memory coupled with a bureaucratic quagmire renders the process infeasible; no subsidiary organization has ever seen a decrease in its funding. The “pot of gold” proposal, which calls for a standing committee, provides a welcome change to a broken system. The standing committee, to be comprised of students and advisors to subsidiary organizations, would predetermine which organizations qualify for priority funding and would conduct annual reviews on these organizations’ budgets. Additionally, new organizations can petition to become subsidiaries and qualify for priority status through the general ballot as before. The proposal also calls for surpluses higher than a predetermined amount to return to the “pot of gold” for use by other student organizations. The mechanisms outlined in this proposal will encourage fiscal responsibility in subsidiary organizations and will ensure student governance can preemptively address issues in blanket tax funding instead of undergoing a cumbersome process. Previous ballot measures have been defeated by a lack of quorum. The Thresher strongly encourages students to voice their support for the proposal by signing the Blanket Tax Crack Team’s petition and by voting for it in the upcoming General Election. If passed, the new measures usher in much-needed blanket tax reforms that promote greater fiscal responsibility and accountability among blanket tax organizations. Editor in Chief Miles Kruppa and Faculty Advisor Kelly Callaway are members of the Blanket Tax Crack Team. They did not contribute to this editorial. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Thresher editorial staff. All other opinion pieces represent solely the opinion of the piece’s author.

OPINION 1/28/15 7:21am

Ravi Writes In

By Ravi Sheth

As my term nears its completion, I wanted to reflect on the Student Association’s accomplishments over the next semester and write about what our focus will be in the remaining month. 

OPINION 1/28/15 7:20am

Rice must invest in instructors

By Thresher Editorial Board

Rice has a scalability problem. As undergraduate enrollment at Rice has grown rapidly in the past 10 years, many students and faculty have questioned if the undergraduate experience has lost part of its value: its educational intimacy (see p.1).

OPINION 1/21/15 4:36am

Student Association should not have to handle housing issues

By Thresher Editorial Board

At the most recent Student Association meeting, the SA senate discussed legislation guaranteeing on-campus housing for Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps members (see p.1). Supporters argued that the midshipmen’s early-starting, rigorous schedule and service to the nation justified the guarantee. Those in opposition felt on-campus housing was not required for NROTC students to fulfill their training, as it might have been for Emergency Medical Services in-charges to perform their duties. Ultimately, neither side understood the others’ argument, and the two sides could not reach a middle ground, underscoring the fact that cases like these cannot be legislated by the entire student body.

OPINION 1/21/15 4:34am

NROTC deserves housing

By Marisa Hudson and Elliot Baermann

Last Wednesday at Senate, two Rice Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps midshipmen brought forth their request for on-campus housing to voting members of the Student Association. They presented what Elliot and I considered a logical argument, and yet they were met with opposition and doubt. Weston Ruths, a junior midshipman, explained their rigorous morning routine, which requires them to report to training at 5:30 a.m. most days of the week. He also explained the ROTC requirement for all midshipmen to choose a STEM major, and as a result, the majority of the midshipmen have extensive engineering coursework on top of their ROTC training. Ruths pointed out that there are currently 10 midshipmen in the ROTC program at Rice, two to five of whom would ordinarily be kicked off campus on any given year. Given their difficult and demanding training schedule, being off campus proves to be challenging and leaves them with an unhealthy amount of sleep deprivation.

OPINION 1/14/15 3:54am

Hutchinson’s decision to cancel Cheer Battle strips students of voice

By Thresher Editorial Board

Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson has made an executive decision to not allot time to Cheer Battle during Orientation Week 2015 (see p.1). However, O-Week coordinators will retain the option of organizing an unofficial Cheer Battle during O-Week. According to Hutchinson, Cheer Battle “doesn’t represent who we are at Rice anymore” and violates Rice’s harassment policy requiring a non-hostile environment.

OPINION 1/14/15 3:50am

Charlie Hebdo attacks affirm place of free speech

By Tina Nazerian

For its Jan. 19, 2015 edition, The New Yorker chose the sketch “Solidarité,” by a Spanish artist named Ana Juan. Below the Eiffel Tower is a sea of blood, and the tower itself is dark, only becoming grey when it starts morphing into a pencil — a pencil that writes in red.

OPINION 1/14/15 3:49am

Cheer Battle cancellation solves nothing

By Ilina Terziyski

I am not surprised that the administration has decided to remove Cheer Battle from Orientation Week. As any O-Week 2014 Coordinator can tell you, it was clear that there was push back on Cheer Battle from the administration. The time allotted to teaching and performing cheers was shortened and the traditional cheer routes were changed so that fewer colleges met up. The changes to Cheer Battle were simply presented to the O-Week Coordinators, and despite a majority disagreement, the changes remained. Some of our opinions were heard but not taken seriously. I quickly learned that our voices as student leaders are not as strong as they are advertised to be.

OPINION 12/3/14 1:23am

Rice should beat down ever-rising tuition

By Michael He

When I heard about students at University of California, Berkeley organizing a sit-in to protest the UC system’s approval of a five percent increase in tuition per year, amounting to a $612 increase next year, I actually scoffed. This laughter was not in belittlement of the tuition increase or in disregard for the plight of UC students; rather, I was bitterly amused at how much publicity this increase was receiving when Rice University has routinely increased student tuition by over three times that amount for the past decade.

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