Special Projects

McMurtry, H&D Plan to create design space

McMurtry College is planning to create a Design Space in its current TV room, which will be open to students across campus early next semester. This space will house a variety of design tools and software for students to create personal projects and host design-related gatherings. Rice Housing and Dining approached the McMurtry College student body in October last year to create a committee to plan the space. The college government approved the space this March. According to Eli Wilson, a member of the McMurtry Design Space committee, the function of the space is to be a creative area.“The McMurtry Design Space will be basically a combination of the [Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen] and art studios,” Wilson, a senior, said. “We’re combining their functions and relegating them down to the residential college scale. The Space is going to be where people will be able to realize their creative ideas.”Isaac Phillips, another member of the planning committee, said he envisions the Design Space as an interdisciplinary resource for students to use tools they might not have access to in class. According to Phillips, a junior, students want more interdisciplinary collaboration, but there is not currently any place on campus for student groups to work together on a project. He hopes the Design Space will meet that need.“If you’re not in the right major, you can’t gain access to certain buildings like the [Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen],” Phillips said. “Students want to widen their horizons and get hands-on experience, and the Design Space will help them do so ... At the McMurtry Design Space, students can work on individual projects and have access to tools for art, engineering and technology.”According to Wilson, the Design Space will have four uses: creating art, building models, giving students access to technology and holding gatherings. It is set to feature a wide variety of tools, including a laser cutter, Adobe Creative Suite, music writing programs and coding platforms such as Rhino. In addition to these tools, the committee plans to allocate ample space to potentially hold group meetings, so that students can hold design workshops in the future.All of the funding for the space has been provided by H&D. According to Phillips and Wilson, the planning committee has not been given a specific budget but everything the committee requested to purchase has been approved by H&D so far. “Once the space opens in spring 2016, access to the Design Space will be available to all interested students after taking a training quiz similar to that required for OEDK access,” Wilson said. According to Wilson and Phillips, the committee in charge of creating it has already received interest from members of other colleges to help create similar spaces at their own colleges. Therefore, the success of the McMurtry Design Space could set a powerful precedent for future residential college design spaces to follow.

SA looks into economic inequality

The Student Association is taking steps to address the challenges faced by low-income and first-generation college students. Lovett College President Griffin Thomas has proposed the creation of the Student Access and Success Working Group, which would aim to make the Rice experience more accessible for all students. “The idea is to reach out to the entire student body to collect information and create a list of a lot of the issues that first-generation and low-income students face,” Thomas, a junior, said. “Ideally it would be a completely comprehensive list. That’s going to be very difficult to do but we want to get a wide sample about these huge issues that they’re facing.” Thomas has clear goals for what he wants for the initiative by the end of the academic year. Once he gathers more information, Thomas said he aims to start helping low-income and first-generation students directly, working with organizations like Generation College in addition to the serveries and leadership development programs on campus. “Once that comprehensive list is created, our goal is going to be to try to rectify some of these problems,” Thomas said. “It could be small changes or large system changes. One of the ideas that has been thrown out is leadership development, because some of the low-income students can’t necessarily participate in some of the leadership activities on campus because they also have to work.”Griffin, however, said he believes Rice already does aid low-income and first-generation students, pointing to many of the resources that Rice provides.“At all universities low-income and first-generation students face challenges that other students don’t face,” Thomas said. “Rice actually has a lot more programs for these students [in comparison to other universities]. Our Office of Academic Advising and Office of Student Success Initiatives are very robust, as well as our peer academic advising network, our academic fellows program [and] our Center for Written, Oral and Visual Communication.”The SA will vote on the Student Access and Success working group on Oct. 14. While the working group is currently a one-year initiative, Thomas sees it as a potential springboard for future change on campus. The future of the initiative itself is dependent on what SA leadership decides at the end of the year. “[The future of the program] depends on how the working group goes this semester,” Thomas said. “Putting these issues into the hearts and minds of students and administrators may be enough but I could also see it expanding into a standing committee or have an organization that works on it.” For now, Thomas said spreading awareness is the group’s primary objective. “We’re not going to be able to fix everything in one year — that’s just not feasible,” Thomas said. “[I want to be able to say] that we developed a list that brought the issues to light so that future students and administrators can’t say, ‘I didn’t know this was an issue.’ Second, ideally we’re going to start the process of trying to correct some of these things.” 

Baseball announces 2016 schedule

Seeking their 21st consecutive conference championship, the Rice University baseball team has begun their fall training and have announced their season schedule. According to the Owls’ newly released 2016 schedule, they will open their season with a home game against the University of Arizona on Feb. 16. That will be the first of 54 regular season games, 31 of which will be at Reckling Park. Rice will begin its slate of Conference USA games on March 18 in San Antonio against the University of Texas, San Antonio. They will then play a three-game series against conference foes Old Dominion University, Middle Tennessee State University, the University of Alabama, Birmingham, Western Kentucky University, the University of Southern Mississippi and the University of North Carolina, Charlotte. The Owls will face off against defending Conference USA champion Florida International University May 6-8 in Miami before playing Florida Atlantic University, which ranked No. 24 in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll at the end of last season. Rice will finish conference play with a three-game series against Louisiana Tech University May 19-21.According to senior pitcher Blake Fox, the Owls cannot overlook their conference schedule despite the limited number of nationally ranked teams.“You’ve got to give credit to our conference,” Fox said. “We definitely have some teams that are tough opponents and we’ve seen that in the past.”Strong opponents will come from both inside and outside Conference USA. The Owls will take on seven different teams that ranked in the top 25 of the USA Today Coaches’ Poll at the end of the 2015 season. The first of those games will come on Feb. 23 against Dallas Baptist University, which finished the 2015 season ranked No. 17 in the country and qualified for the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in the past five years. Then, beginning on Feb. 26, the Owls will take part in the Minute Maid Classic held at Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros. During this event, they will play three opponents that were ranked last season: the University of Arkansas, Texas Christian University and University of Louisiana, Lafayette.Senior infielder Grayson Lewis said many of the players are especially excited to play Louisiana-Lafayette because the Ragin’ Cajuns eliminated the Owls from the NCAA tournament regionals last season. “We definitely owe Louisiana-Lafayette a little something after regionals,” Lewis said. Rice will begin its annual series against the University of Houston with a game at Cougar Field on March 22. The Owls will play Houston two more times, on May 10 and 17. The Cougars ranked No. 23 in the coaches’ poll at the end of the 2015 season with a record of 43-20, but the Owls eliminated them from the NCAA tournament with a 3-2 win in 20 innings. Houston, however, won last season’s regular season series over Rice two games to one. According to Fox, the games against Houston will be some of the most fun for him as a player. “Just because of the way the [Houston] games went last year, I’m definitely looking forward to those games,” Fox said. “I’d say those games are the ones I’m looking forward to most.”Rice will finish its slate of games against last year’s top 25 with matchups against Texas A&M University on April 5 and conference foe FAU in mid-May. Other non-conference opponents include Texas State University, Sam Houston State University, the University of Central Florida, Lamar University and East Carolina University. While the schedule is long and full of highly ranked opponents, the players feel optimistic. When asked about his hopes for the season, senior infielder Connor Teykl said only two words. “Obviously, Omaha,” Teykl said, referencing the city that hosts the College World Series. The Owls will hope to make a trip to the College World Series for the first time since 2008. While the regular season does not start until February, Rice’s journey to Omaha has already begun. The Owls will play an exhibition game against Lamar, one of their 2016 opponents, on Saturday, Oct. 17 at Reckling Park.

Football suffers loss to Western Kentucky

 Playing at home for the first time in a month, the Rice University football team was defeated by sixth-year senior quarterback Brandon Doughty and Western Kentucky University, snapping a five-game home winning streak and dropping the Owls to 2-3 (1-1) on the season in a 49-10 loss.The Hilltoppers got the ball to open the game and the Owls’ defense promptly forced a three-and-out, after which Rice would march down the field and strike first with a field goal. The lead, however, was short-lived. Western Kentucky would go on to score four touchdowns on its next five possessions, while the Owls’ next five drives yielded two punts, two lost fumbles and an interception. A game with a promising beginning quickly turned awry for the home team. By the time redshirt senior quarterback Driphus Jackson was benched in the second quarter in favor of junior backup Tyler Stehling, the team trailed 28-3 and would do little the rest of the game to decrease the deficit.In the first-ever meeting between the Conference USA schools, Rice was outgained in total yardage, possessed the ball four minutes fewer than the Hilltoppers, and gained nine fewer first downs than their opponent. While the Owls were unable to force a turnover, they committed five of their own, off of which Western Kentucky scored 21 points. The Rice defense faced an NFL-caliber quarterback for the second straight week, and proved not to be up to the task again. Doughty threw for 409 yards and four touchdowns in a typically strong performance.Head Coach David Bailiff, who expressed concern following last week’s 70-17 loss to Baylor University about putting the big loss behind his team, said his team was not ready to play the Hilltoppers, and took the blame for it.“We didn’t play very [well] today, and that’s on me,” Bailiff said. “I didn’t have those guys ready to go. It’s my job to make sure the offense is ready, the defense is ready, and the special teams is ready.”According to Bailiff, the Owls’ turnovers and poor tackling on defense exemplified unusually poor play, and that the team would need to return to form soon.“We have more turnovers already this year than all of last season,” Bailiff said. “We’ve got to stop that. We have to tackle defensively. We’ve had more missed tackles in the last two games than in the first three. The formula for success has always been take care of the football, get points at the end of drives offensively — we’re not doing that. You just can’t win football games this way.”In years past, the Owls have gained a reputation as a disciplined team that does not commit many penalties. Bailiff said this year’s team has not been playing like it has in recent years.“We had eight penalties, and that’s not who we are,” Bailiff said. “We’ve been one of the least penalized teams in Conference USA since I’ve been here. Some of them were late. We need to work on those. It’s not who we are, and it’s not how we’re going to do this.”According to Bailiff, spectators should not to read too much into his decision to bench Jackson after the quarterback turned the ball over on consecutive drives in the second quarter.“I was just trying to stimulate the offense,” Bailiff said. “Driphus [Jackson] is our starter. He’ll be right back here as our starting quarterback. [Benching Jackson] was just to rally the troops and throw the ball down the field.”Rice will next face Florida Atlantic University, who are 1-3 overall, but 1-0 in Conference USA play. The two teams last faced off in 2013, when Rice was able to pull out an 18-14 home victory. While FAU redshirt senior quarterback Jaquez Johnson sustained an injury in the team’s second game of the season, FAU boasts a pair of running backs in sophomore Greg Howell and junior Jay Warren that average above five yards per carry. Following the loss to Western Kentucky, Bailiff said the team needs to turn the page and focus on winning out the remainder of the schedule.“We have to get better,” Bailiff said. “We have great seniors in here and we have some great leaders on this team. We’re not going to let it go the wrong way; it’s not going to happen. There’s nobody left on our schedule that we can’t beat. We’re going to expect winning, and it’s what’s going to get done.”The Owls will look to halt their two-game losing streak in a road matchup against FAU at 1:30 p.m. in Boca Raton, Florida.

STRIVE coalition to spearhead sexual violence prevention efforts

In response to the need for a strong sexual violence prevention program, the Wellbeing Office recruited students to create the STRIVE Coalition: Students Transforming Rice Into a Violence-Free Environment in spring 2015. The group seeks to promote healthy relationships and connect students with resources on campus and is hoping to enact change following the release of results of the Survey on Unwanted Sexual Experiences.

Club registration must verify sustainability

Rice has too many clubs, apparently. This semester alone, Rice approved 49 new clubs, bringing the grand total to 316 (see p. 1). The more troubling matter is that, if past trends hold true, nearly half of those clubs won’t renew. Clearly, the ratifi cation process for clubs does not thoroughly verify whether they’re serving an unmet and persistent need in a sustainable manner.

R2: Turbulence

If you want to say that you met God, say you met him on an airplane. Say that, as the flight attendants gave you your complimentary beverage, United music jingling in your ears, you realized the stranger next to you was all too calm through the turbulence. Say that your Pepsi spilled across your hands and he offered napkins to wipe it up, nodded when you thanked him nervously. Say that you glanced at your side through the hours only to see his eyes firmly fixed on the tray table in its locked position, his hands gently resting on the armrests.

Students launch club for women in business

Rice’s women are preparing to run the world as a part of the new club Rice Women in Business. Seniors spoke on a panel at the club’s inaugural event last Tuesday about their past internships and answered questions.

Administration defends increasing tuition costs

Rice tuition has increased roughly 142 percent in the last 15 years, according to Rice’s archived tuition records. The cost of tuition for students entering Rice in 2000 was $17,150, while the cost for students entering in the fall of 2015 was $41,560.

Rising number of student clubs prompts scrutiny from administration, SA

Student Activities plans to address the increasing number of student clubs according to Olivia Barker, Associate Director of Student Activities. This semester, there are 49 new student clubs and 239 reregistering clubs, while 42 clubs from last year did not complete their renewal or registration process.

The sixth president of Rice University passes away at age 74

Malcolm Gillis, the sixth president of Rice University, died of cancer on Sunday, Oct. 4. He was 74.

Soccer splits weekend matches at home

The Rice University soccer team played two consecutive matches at home for the first time since Sept. 6. The Owls either tied or broke a school record in each game resulting in an exciting weekend of games. On Friday night’s 4-2 victory over Florida International University, senior forward Lauren Hughes registered three assists, tying a school record. In Sunday’s matchup against Florida Atlantic University, Rice was trailing 2-1 leading up to the final moments of the match. In a frenzied finish, Rice tied the game at the 89:58 mark of the match, just two seconds from the final whistle for what became the latest goal in Rice history. However, Rice eventually lost in double overtime 3-2. The Owls are currently 6-5-1 (2-2 in C-USA) on the season. At the 1:21 mark of the first half, Hughes drove in a ball to sophomore Nia Stallings who secured a touch and put it past the keeper into the back of the net to open up the scoring. After FIU tied the match up in the 19th minute of play, the Owls quickly responded with a goal in the 21st minute. Junior transfer midfielder Madeleine Lundberg fired in a shot from just inside the 18-yard box to reclaim the lead for Rice. Following halftime, Rice scored again to make it 3-1 on Hughes’s third consecutive assist. The scoring for the afternoon was complete in the 58th minute when Hughes scored a goal of her own to give her six on the season to put the game away for Rice. The four goals scored were not only by four different players but were more goals than Rice had scored in their previous four road games combined. The Owls held on for a 4-2 final. The Sunday matchup featured a battle of the two Owls squads in Conference USA. Rice delivered the first blow in the 30th minute of the match. Freshman forward Marissa Topolski navigated her way around a defender on the outside of the box and fired in a low cross to senior midfielder Danielle Spriggs who had the easy tap-in right in front of goal for her second goal on the weekend. FAU then responded by scoring two goals in the 34th and 39th minute of the match to take a 2-1 lead into halftime. Rice played the entire second half looking for the equalizing goal and outshot FAU 14-5 but continued to come up empty. As the stadium announcer counted down from 10 seconds to the final buzzer, Rice was busy trying to redirect a bouncing ball into the net. After multiple deflections from players on both teams and a shot by Hughes, senior defender Jasmine Isokpunwu fired it home with two seconds remaining in the game to stun FAU. In the 99th minute of the match, Rice looked like they had the game-winning goal on a put-back shot by Hughes, but an offside call negated the goal and sent the game into a second overtime where FAU would score and hand Rice the 3-2 loss.Head Coach Nicky Adams said she credits the execution of the game plan and the play of her forwards up top to the victory on Friday night. “I thought we had a great game plan going into it,” Adams said. “Lauren [Hughes], Nia [Stallings] and [senior forward Holly Hargreaves] up top were amazing for us. [Hughes] with three assists just shows what a dynamic player she is where she can score goals and can also put people in front of goals.”Adams said the last-second goal represents the essence of her team. “We outshot them 14-5 [in the second half] which is really tremendous,” Adams said. “We knew a goal was going to come but it was just a matter of time. It just shows the character of those girls … how amazing they are and their commitment to this team and to the game itself.” Lundberg, a transfer from the Air Force Academy, said all the goals scored originate from team effort. “For me, it’s all a clean state [being at Rice],” Lundberg said. “I’m out there with my teammates and we’re working together so well to the point it shows in our scoring. The goals were 100 percent team effort which is the way it should be.” Spriggs, a team captain for the 2015 season, has started in 45 of the last 47 games for the Owls. She said the perseverance shown by her team to fight down to the final second in Sunday’s match will benefit the team as they look ahead to two road games this upcoming week. “I think our resilience showed that our team is a team that’s not going to shy away when down a goal or when things get tough,” Spriggs said. “That’s something that is going to help us as we move forward in the season.” The Owls will head back on the road for the next two games to face Old Dominion University and the University of North Carolina, Charlotte in more C-USA competition. On Friday night, Rice will face an ODU team coming off a weekend of two rain-suspended matches. Rice will then face Charlotte, who were on the losing end of back-to-back 1-0 games this weekend. 

Thinking toward a more transparent Rice University

Rice University Police Department has been subject to open records requests for more than a month now.

Concert Preview: Five Essential October Shows

Mad you couldn’t get tickets for ACL? Fortunately, there are plenty of good acts coming to Houston this October. Here are five concerts you won’t want to miss.Who: BORNS, Avid DancerWhere: Walter’s DowntownWhen: Oct. 9, 8 p.m.Tickets: $25 general admission on stubhub.comIf you’re in for more indie-pop, be sure to check out BORNS. He has been dropping numerous catchy singles over the past few months including “Electric Love,” and is releasing a new album “Dopamine” on Oct. 16. See him cheap before he gets big.Who: Run the Jewels: Jewel Runner Fall TourWhere: House of BluesWhen: Oct. 13, 8 p.m.Tickets: From $22 on songkick.comEver since Atlanta-based rapper Killer Mike and rapper/producer El-P teamed up to form Run the Jewels, their hip-hop duo has received praise from critics and listeners alike. Also, you have to love their sense of humor. Their latest album “Meow the Jewels” remixes their 2014 hit album “Run the Jewels 2” entirely with the use of cat sounds.Who: The Internet: Ego Death tourWhere: Warehouse LiveWhen: Oct. 14, 8 p.m.Tickets: $20 for general admission on ticketfly.comDrifting away from traditional R&B, the Internet draws from a unique mix of hip-hop, jazz, and soul. They are currently on tour for their latest album “Ego Death,” which was released in early June.Who: Mac DemarcoWhere: Warehouse LiveWhen: Oct. 18, 8 p.m.Tickets: $22 for general admission on ticketfly.comExpect to hear quirky, guitar-based tracks from singer/songwriter Mac Demarco. His latest album “Another One” came out Aug. 7.Who: Oddisee: The Good Fight World TourWhere: House of BluesWhen: Oct. 27, 8 p.m.Tickets: $19.33 on livenation.comDC-based hip-hop rapper and producer Oddisee stands out in hip-hop world for his insightful and relatable lyrics backed by quality production reminiscent of A Tribe Called Quest. Be sure to listen to his April release “The Good Fight,” which will be featured on the tour.

Rice falls to Western Kentucky, 49-10

Rice lost to Western Kentucky by a score of 49-10 Saturday afternoon. The loss drops them to 2-3 on the season, and 1-1 in Conference USA play.After Rice opened up with a 3-0 lead, WKU senior quarterback Brandon Daughty led the Hilltoppers down the field, throwing four touchdowns over the next five drives and leading to 28 unanswered points for Western Kentucky. Daughty showed why he is regarded as one of the best quarterbacks in the conference, ending the day going 28/38 for 409 yards and four TD.For Rice, Driphus Jackson struggled mightily. On Rice’s first six drives, Jackson went 5/10 for 87 yards with one interception and one fumble. These struggles led him to be benched in favor of redshirt junior Tyler Stehling early in the second quarter after Jackson’s interception. Stehling started the game strong, going 4/6 for 56 yards on his first drive, leading to a Luke Turner rushing touchdown. Stehling finished the game 11/19 with 150 yards and one interception.Samuel Stewart was a bright spot for the struggling Rice offense, averaging almost six yards per carry, rushing for 60 yards on 11 carries. Ultimately, losing the turnover battle 5-0 and failing to score in the second half proved too much for Rice to keep the game close.Rice continues playing their Conference USA schedule next week when they travel to Florida Atlantic.

Volleyball overcomes illness to defeat Florida teams

The Rice Owls volleyball team faced an unanticipated foe this week when 11 Owls fell victim to a contagious stomach virus. Before this major setback, the week was already scheduled to be a difficult one with three Conference USA matches. On Tuesday, however, the team was forced to postpone their match against the University of Texas, San Antonio Roadrunners because of the team-wide illness. The match will be rescheduled for a date to be determined.

Baylor’s top ranked o

Soccer looks to repeat C-USA title

As the Conference USA portion of the 2015 season begins, the Rice University soccer team will look to make a run towards securing back to back championships.

Local artist surrounds viewers with media at Matchbox Gallery

Matchbox Gallery’s latest exhibition, “Surrounded by Searching,” covers the interior of the small gallery, overwhelming the viewer from all sides. The piece’s creator, Chris Henry, is an emerging Houstonian artist with connections to the San Francisco and New York art world. According to Claire O’Malley, a Baker College senior and co-director of Matchbox,“Surrounded by Searching” is meant to represent the way media envelopes and forces itself upon the user.

Rice Gallery debuts new exhibit

A six-foot cube hangs from the ceiling in the center of the gallery, with a single light bulb suspended in the middle of the box. Together, they manage to fill the entire space, from ceiling to floor, with patterned shadows that are composed of lines and geometric shapes. The details of the cube are defined and delicate, but they become distorted as they fill the rest of the room; the patterns are stretched and expanded on the walls. It is impossible to step into the gallery without becoming yet another piece of the art: The light and shadow from the center of the room are cast onto the viewer’s body, while the viewer’s shadow is thrown to the floor and the wall behind them.