Sallyport

FACILITIES Tree Talk

Rice’s campus provides arborist Dawn Roth-Ehlinger with plenty of ways to branch out and educate the community.

BY TRACEY RHOADES

TALKING TREES is what Dawn Roth-Ehlinger does — a lot. With roughly 4,500 trees covering Rice’s 300 acres, certified arborist Roth-Ehlinger, along with an additional 30 groundskeepers and tree specialists, helps to maintain the tree specimens across campus. As a designated arboretum and a Tree Campus Higher Education honoree, Rice and its leaders are committed to promoting the tree population and engaging students and staff in the process. Does she have a favorite? “Live oaks — big, gorgeous, tolerant, sturdy, long-lived. They’re the whole package.”

What is the tree population like on campus? We don’t really have a diverse tree population, and that’s a concern — 50% are live oak (Quercus virginiana). Some places on campus have to have live oaks for aesthetics; in others, the tree canopy is very full and doesn’t allow enough light for other species to “Our focus now is to add diversity whenever the opportunity presents itself, like after new construction at the new Sid Rich College, where bald cypresses (Taxodium distichum) were planted.”

flourish. Our focus now is to add diversity whenever the opportunity presents itself, like after new construction at the new Sid Rich College, where bald cypresses (Taxodium distichum) were planted.

Do trees have knees? When people think of a tree with knees, they are usually thinking of a kind of root structure on bald cypresses. It looks like a rounded knob on the tree root that is above the soil surface. In a typical urban landscape they are regularly hit with lawn mowers, so they never come to a point. I encourage people not to cut the knees or try to dig them out. The roots they form are the ones supporting the tree.

How does construction impact trees on campus? Construction is probably the top cause of tree injury. Trees need to be removed to make way for new buildings, and sometimes heavy equipment runs over sensitive root zones or breaks limbs. Soil compaction is also a big killer. When vehicles drive over that soil under a tree canopy, it smashes those spaces, and that can lead to decline and death. I’d save and protect every one of them, but we are an academic institution and need the facilities to educate and house our students. My goal is to make our tree protection protocols as robust as possible and make project managers and contractors aware.

Besides construction, what other problems can trees incur? There are a few diseases that are dangerous, so that’s what we keep an eye out for. There were two big water oaks (Quercus nigra) between Herzstein and Anderson halls that were removed in the last couple of years. They still had leaves, but their supporting structural roots and interior of the lower trunks had been significantly decayed by Ganoderma lucidum and other fungi. The risk of them falling had become too great. Those trees were at the end of their typical life expectancy, so what happened isn’t a surprise. Even trees don’t live forever.

How often do you conduct tree tours on campus? We always do one for Texas Arbor Day (first Friday in November) and do several activities that we call Arbor Week. If you have a question about trees at Rice or would like to take a tour, email me at trees@rice.edu.

CAMPUS LIFE Bold Change Ahead

Historical research, stakeholder opinions and debate inform trustees’ decision to relocate the Rice Founder’s Memorial statue.

THE ACADEMIC QUADRANGLE will undergo a redesign that will include moving the Founder’s Memorial statue of William Marsh Rice to a new location within the quadrangle. That’s the decision announced by Rice’s Board of Trustees Jan. 25, 2022.

“We intend for the Academic Quadrangle to both fully acknowledge the history of our founding and founder and to mark and celebrate the important evolution and growth of our university over time,” said Rob Ladd ’78, chairman of the board of trustees. The relocated statue will be presented with historical context and information about the university’s founder, including his ownership of enslaved people and his broad connections to the slave economy in 19th-century Texas.

The trustees’ decision embraces recommendations from Rice’s Task Force on Slavery, Segregation and Racial Injustice. In a June 2021 progress report focused on the Founder’s Memorial, the task force was unanimous in its call for “bold change” in the Academic Quadrangle, which “can and must be significantly redesigned to reflect more accurately Rice’s values, the history of the university, and the current diversity of the campus, and in a way that clearly and visibly rebukes the institution’s segregationist founding and decades of racial exclusion.”

And last December, the Rice Student Association passed a resolution calling for the statue’s relocation and said that it should no longer serve as the area’s “singular point of attraction.”

“This new vision for the Academic Quadrangle will reflect our growth and progress as a university and a community.”

The university has launched a process to reimagine the quadrangle with the goal of presenting a proposal to the trustees in May. The physical work on the redesign will begin as soon as practical after that. Once the plans are finalized, the university will hold a competition for the new monument commemorating the university’s integration.

“This new vision for the Academic Quadrangle will reflect our growth and progress as a university and a community,” said President David Leebron. “The campus discussions that informed the board’s decision were guided by a spirit of creating a stronger and more inclusive Rice, as we recognize both flaws and progress in our history.”

The board of trustees solicited ideas and opinions from students, faculty, staff and alumni, who submitted more than 1,200 responses through an online portal. They also consulted with Alexander X. Byrd ’90 and Caleb McDaniel, chairs of the task force; the executive committee of the Association of Rice University Black Alumni (ARUBA); and other leaders in the Rice community.

In a message to alumni, the Association of Rice Alumni Board Executive Committee wrote, “The diversity of input from the Rice community, including many Rice alumni, was extremely helpful to understanding the perspectives on our university’s history, present and future.” The ARUBA Executive Board also issued a statement expressing gratitude for the leadership and work of both the task force and the board of trustees. “We understand that opinions about this decision will vary, and we remain mindful that there is always more work to do.” — JEFF FALK

SHEPHERD SCHOOL OF MUSIC Composers’ Corner

Some people start playing Mozart from the age of 5. Some prefer to see others bringing their music to life. We spoke with three student composers about starting composition, their composition processes and releasing music to the public.

Jaylin Vinson ’25

COMPOSITION

IN HIGH SCHOOL, after seeing his friend’s mom caring for others despite fighting breast cancer, Jaylin Vinson wrote “Everything Beautiful,” which his school’s band premiered. “After the concert, she embraced me, and I realized I didn’t want to do anything else with my life.”

Vinson’s piece, “Shimmer!” premiered at the Moody Center for the Arts’ New Art/New Music concert, a “surreal experience,” according to Vinson. “Seeing something intangible become materialized … I never get desensitized to that.”

In the future, Vinson wants to focus on African diasporic music. His upcoming project, “Exhale,” is built upon the last words of victims of police brutality. “It [also] represents how we never allow ourselves to exhale and acknowledge the traumas we have experienced.”

FAVORITE GENRES AND ARTISTS “I’m giving country [music] a second chance. I say this shamelessly — old Taylor Swift. I’m not sure if I have a favorite artist, but I am a Lizzo stan.” Tiffany Cuaresma ’23

MUSIC THEORY AND COMPOSITION

TIFFANY CUARESMA started composing as a result of figure skating. “Initially, I wanted to create music that people could skate to. I really loved it and wanted to keep pursuing it.”

Recently, Cuaresma scored “Kingdom of Your Own,” a short film exploring the relationship between a transgender person and their father that premiered at the Burbank International Film Festival. “When I received the final mix, I cried. There’s this human aspect you can’t get from a computer.”

However, film score composition isn’t always glamorous. “There aren’t many women of color in this field. People have said, ‘You write well for a female composer.’ But with this project, I worked with an amazing crew. There are still pockets of good in this industry.”

FAVORITE GENRES AND ARTISTS “I love film scores, EDM and Ella Fitzgerald. It ranges from Illenium and Bring Me the Horizon to Tchaikovsky and John Williams.” Tomás Jonsson ’22

PIANO PERFORMANCE

TOMÁS JONSSON takes inspiration from Afro-Cuban music and playing piano with a Black gospel church. His debut album, “First Impressions,” contains many genres, and the album art — a woman looking at 16 individually painted squares — reflects these diverse influences. “Each square and track has its own story. The woman forms a first impression of the art, and the audience forms a first impression of my music.”

For Jonsson, performing a piece isn’t that different from composing it. “I improvise a lot, composing in real time when I perform.” While Jonsson is proud of finishing this album, he confesses that the satisfaction isn’t that fulfilling. “I have other things down the line.”

FAVORITE GENRES AND ARTISTS “Classically, Rachmaninoff and Chopin. Oscar Peterson is a brilliant jazz pianist. Another genre that’s a big influence, of course, is salsa.”

— MABEL TANG ’23

ADMISSIONS Loan-Free College Expands

Changes in need-based financial aid packages mean a Rice education is more accessible than ever.

NO MORE BURDENSOME student loans. That’s the heartening message from Rice, which announced this past December that need-based financial aid packages for both domestic and international undergraduate students will no longer include loans. The new policy, which takes effect in fall 2022, expands on an existing commitment to make financial aid packages for students with family annual incomes of less than $200,000 loan free.

Also announced in December was an expansion of the annual income brackets that determine how much aid students can receive via the Rice Investment, crucially affecting students from low-income families. Students with family incomes below $75,000 will be given grant aid covering full tuition, mandatory fees, and room and board. Scholarships covering full tuition will be awarded to students with family incomes between $75,000 and $140,000. The last bracket, between $140,000 and $200,000, can receive scholarships that will cover at least half of tuition costs.

“Access and affordability are limited if you have a program that can’t be easily explained,” President David Leebron told the Houston Chronicle. “If you think you need assistance … now we will say, ‘No, you don’t need to borrow money. We will provide financial aid.’”

Current students will also see the shift in their financial aid awards beginning this fall.

“The original goal of the Rice Investment is to invest in the promise of students, regardless of their financial background,” said Anne Walker, assistant vice president and executive director of university financial aid services. “By offering financial aid packages without loans, we are continuing to invest in our students and their ability to create a bright future free from student debt.” — DOUG MILLER

COMMENCEMENT

A POWERFUL VOICE

Journalist and social justice advocate Sonia Nazario will give the 2022 commencement address. Lauded for her investigative journalism and deeply reported stories on immigration, Nazario has received numerous honors and awards, including two Pulitzer Prizes. While working for the Los Angeles Times, Nazario published a Pulitzer Prizewinning series titled “Enrique’s Journey” about a Honduran boy’s experience when migrating to the U.S. The series was published as a book in 2006. Nazario continues to advocate for the rights of unaccompanied migrant children and the general well-being of immigrants and refugees. The 109th Commencement ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, May 7,

2022. — EMMA KORSMO ’24

EQUITY

SYLLABUS A Space to Discuss Diversity

RICE IS MORE diverse than ever before — people on campus identify with many different nationalities, races, colors, sexual orientations and religions.

“Diversity informs the solving of difficult problems, the kinds of problems that universities exist to address through research,” said Alexander X. Byrd ’90, Rice’s vice provost for diversity, equity and inclusion and an associate professor of history. “The way to solving those problems is made easier through intellectual diversity. Intellectual diversity is informed by identity diversity. Diversity also creates some problems because difference can create some friction, but we can learn ways to reduce that friction.”

The Critical Dialogues on Diversity (CDOD) workshops aim to begin a conversation about the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion across the university and the ways students interact with others throughout their years on campus. A recently added required course for new students, CDOD offered 44 sections during the fall 2021 offer a chance for students to have these discussions honestly and freely and to ask questions that might be difficult or uncomfortable to broach under other circumstances.

Jorge Arnez Gonzales ’25, a Bolivian international student at Brown College, said, “At the end of the day, we all have growing to do. … I disagreed with some others’ comments, but that’s part of dialogue: to try to understand the other person’s position.”

SEXUAL ORIENTATION

PERSONAL BIAS RELIGION

RACE

CULTURE MICROAGGRESSIONS

GENDER

semester and an additional six this spring.

The course opens up space for discussing the problem-solving capacity that diversity brings in addition to bringing issues to light like the problem of microaggressions — instances of personal bias and discrimination, often subtle or unintentional, that happen between people in day-to-day interactions. Students break into small groups to discuss hypothetical scenarios involving acts of discrimination and ways to respond personally to those acts, as well as what responses might be expected from leaders at the administrative level.

The workshops do not require readings or written assignments. Instead, they IDENTITY

— JENNY WEST ROZELLE ’00

Read more at magazine.rice.edu. UNIV 195 Critical Dialogues on Diversity

DEPARTMENT University Courses

DESCRIPTION The university’s remarkable diversity enlivens and enriches all of its core missions. Such gains, though, are not all to be gotten passively. This five-week, discussionbased orientation course explores critical approaches to culture, identity and dialogue fundamental to living and working at the university and essential for taking full advantage of a Rice education.