The Rice Thresher | Wednesday, October 5, 2016

VOLUME 101, ISSUE NO. 7 | STUDENT-RUN SINCE 1916 | RICETHRESHER.ORG | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2016

FALL 2015 STAFF PROFILE

New laws, offices increase administrative positions

# of students per admin

15%

Community Service, Legal, Arts & Media 11%

Falling student to administrator ratio indicates Rice part of broader national trend of administrative expansion

100 96.66

80

Business & Financial

Other

Service

2%

13%

Office & Administrative Support

14%

Computer, Engineering & Science

Management 11%

23%

60 40

Library, Museum & Archives Facilities & 3%

Maintenance 6%

40.05

20

11.37 13.95

0

1956

1966

Elizabeth Rasich For the Thresher

In 1956, the Rice University Office of the Registrar consisted of two people: the registrar and his assistant. There was a single staff member who wrote sports news, but no dedicated office for public relations.

The Registrar’s Office now lists 14 staff members on its website, including two “student records analysts” and a “transfer credit specialist.” Public relations are now handled by the Office of Public Affairs, which lists 35 staff

1976

1986

members on its website.

Like many universities nationwide, Rice is subject to “administrative bloat,” a national trend in which the number of university administrators per student has increased greatly.

Rice’s student to administrator ratio has steadily decreased in the last half century, indicating more and more administrators were hired per student, an analysis by the Thresher of student/ faculty directories shows.

A 2010 study from the Goldwater Institute reported that from 1998 to 2007, American universities’ spending

6.84

5.37

1996

2006

on administrative costs increased by 61 percent while spending on instruction increased by 39 percent.

According to the 2015-16 directory, Rice employs approximately 1,000 administrators, excluding library, Housing and Dining and custodial staff.

At the time of publication, RICEWorks, Rice’s external job listing site, advertised 74 job openings for regular and temporary staff compared to just 25 faculty job openings.

National reports have found that two factors contributing to the growth of university bureaucracy are efforts

How much of the university’s budget is dependent on its endowment? comparing Rice and peer institutions, fiscal year 2015

6.74

2016

Sources: (Left) Thresher analysis of directories from the Woodson Research Center, Library, Housing and Dining, and custodial staff were not included in the count.

(Above) Office of Institutional Research

to expand student programs and the increasing complexity of federal regulations.

In recent years, Rice has added many programs and administrative departments, including the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Student Success Initiatives, the Center for Civic Leadership and the Gibbs Recreational Center and its accompanying programs.

In 2017, Rice will open the Moody Performing Arts Center.

According to Vice President for Finance Kathy Collins, it is often necessary to hire new directors when

Panel discusses inclusion of black students, faculty Amber Tong News editor

Princeton 47% Rice 40%

Notre Dame 29%

Stanford 23%

Yale 34%

National mean 19%

infographic by samantha ding

$5 billion: Rice’s endowment, explained Jaecey Parham Thresher staff

Rice University’s endowment is valued at $5.3 billion, the 20th largest in the nation. While it supports 40 percent of Rice’s budget, some students have voiced concerns that academic funding does not reflect endowment size. In an interview with the Thresher, the Rice Management Company clarified how the endowment is allocated and spent.

Chief Investment Officer Allison Thacker (Baker ’96) oversees the Rice Management Company.

The RMC stewards Rice’s endowment, made up of money and assets donated to the university.

The RMC invests these funds within different economic sectors to accumulate over time. A portion is withdrawn annually for use.

“The endowment is a charitable donation invested in perpetuity to provide consistent, dependably increasing support,” Thacker said.

The endowment provided 40 percent of the University’s operating

revenues in the 2015 fiscal year.

Thacker said the national mean across all other universities is 19 percent and the median is 14 percent.

“The endowment is critical to making Rice work,” Thacker said.

“We’re a relatively small school; we have a relatively high percentage of financial aid, as well as merit aid.

Those are all things the endowment covers — we are very lucky to have it.”

Thacker said the Rice Management Company’s current goal is to earn 7.5 percent investment return to keep up with inflation and spending such that the size of the endowment does not decrease. She said the 7.5 percent return is not necessarily an annual requirement, but an average over time.

“My team gets up out of bed everyday, and the goal is: How do we earn back 7.5 percent?” she said.

“That’s what Rice needs us to earn.”

According to Thacker, Rice spends about 5.5 percent of the endowment every year, with 2 percent currently lost to inflation.

Thacker said these goals are set

in order for Rice to make the revenue source as dependable as possible.

“Stock markets can have volatility,” Thacker said. “[We try] to make the endowment distribution more predictable because it’s very hard for students and faculty to deal with variability in their budgets.”

The portion of revenue that is set aside for operational costs is divided into a core budget and a consolidated budget, both overseen by Vice President of Finance Kathy Collins.

The consolidated budget includes all operating sources such as research grants from the federal government, parking and transportation, and housing and dining revenues. The core budget covers areas such as the budgets of the Schools, athletics, and the Fondren Library. It is funded from tuition, restricted endowments and unrestricted endowments.

Donors who provide restricted endowments designate the funds for a specific purpose, such as the $50 million donation from John and Ann 0see INVEST, page 4

adding new programs rather than adding that program to an existing administrator’s workload.

“It’s important to have a person in charge to be the face of Rice when it comes to talking to the Rice community and the external community about that program,” she said.

As Rice increases in size, more staff are needed to handle the business operations as well. Departments of human resources, accounting, investments, alumni relations, development and public affairs have 0see ADMIN, page 4

Student, faculty and administrators discussed the experience of the black community at Rice in a panel on Saturday. The event, State of Black Life at Rice, was organized by the Association of Rice University Black Alumni as part of the celebration for 50 years of black undergraduate life at Rice.

ARUBA President Akilah Mance (Jones ’05) said she was encouraged by the diversity of the audience, which reflects Rice’s special demographic advantage.

“Rice is in a unique position because we have such a diverse population and a small number of community members, thus we are able to sit down and meaningfully engage with one another, in hopes of improving the experience for all,” Mance said.

As the only student on the four-person panel, Black Student

Association President Aislyn Orji said while black students are largely free to express their cultures through cultural events on campus, general apathy and covert racism still cloud their experience.

“When it comes to actual concerns, outside of sociology classes or panels such as this that people take the initiatives to come, we are [almost] sounding like a broken record,” Orji, a Martel College junior, said. “How do we break past people’s lack of understanding because of lack of a shared experience to care about our concerns?”

Office of Admission Coordinator of Minority Recruitment Tamara Siler (Brown ’86) pointed out that political decisions made outside of Rice can have resonance for students. For example, from 1997 to 2003, a court decision barred universities from using race as a factor in admissions, which challenged Rice’s commitment to diversity.

Office of Multicultural Affairs director Catherine Clack said such 0see BLACK LIFE, page 2

courtesy jeff fitlow

Black Student Association President Aislyn Orji, left, spoke about her experience as a black student and child of immigrants at Saturday’s State of Black Life at Rice panel, which also included faculty and administrators.

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NEWS

wednesday, October 5, 2016

the Rice Thresher

Pre-health task force to assess needs Emily Abdow

Assistant news editor

When Student Association Internal Vice President Komal Luthra introduced Senate Bill #2 “To Charter a Health Professions Task Force” at the SA meeting on Sept. 13, the proposed committee size was 30, including one chair, one co-chair, four subcommittee chairs and 24 members. But when the bill passed on Monday in a narrow margin of 14 in favor, nine opposed and one abstaining, the committee was reduced to six members. This change was one of several amendments made with the purpose of reframing the task force from bolstering resources for prehealth students to assessing whether a lack of resources even exists.

The task force will begin exploring the needs of the pre-health community in January through surveying students, conducting interviews and talking to faculty and administration, according to Luthra, who will chair the committee.

“We can help students find out earlier on whether it’s a suitable path for them rather than waiting until the third year when they’ve completed a majority of the course requirements,” Luthra, a Hanszen college junior, said.

At the Sept. 19 SA meeting, Baker College President Paul Dingus expressed concerns that the bill failed to provide concrete evidence of a lack of resources for pre-health students. But on Monday, after working with Luthra, Dingus said he supported the amended bill. “[The task force] is five people diluted over a semester and it’s completely exploratory in nature,” Dingus said. “It’s not going to take any action, so to me this is a why-not case rather than a why-shouldn’t case because I don’t see anything to lose from this.”

McMurtry College President Madhuri Venkateswar opposed the bill on Sept. 19 due to what she saw as a prioritization of certain career paths over others. Unlike Dingus, Venkateswar was not swayed by the reframing of the task force. “[The task force] is an initiative that comes from the SA out rather than the community to the SA and then back outwards,” Venkateswar said.

“I still struggle with trying to gather data when

there isn’t a grassroots buy-in already to want to collect that data.”

Several members of SA, including Lovett College President Rahul Kothari, felt a task force focused on pre-health had the potential to alienate students in disciplines such as the social sciences and humanities and suggested widening the scope of the committee.

“My concern is the area where we are starting,” Kothari said. “ We have clearly seen there is a need for other departments at this university to have this support. We should start with something that requires more attention already.”

Those who found the bill exclusive, including Venkateswar and Jones College Senator Rohan Palanki, offered alternative solutions.

Venkateswar proposed addressing advising in the SA’s section of the Survey for All Students while Palanki suggested that the project be taken on by New Student Representatives.

But others, including Brown College President Santiago Avila, felt the bill addressed a need among those under the pre-health umbrella who are not pre-medicine.

“My impression is that when we talk about pre-health, we are thinking pre-med, and there are a lot of pre-health people who are not thinking of going to medical school that don’t have the resources or the support that I think people are conceiving right now,” Avila said.

Another supporter of the bill was Hanszen President Kenny Groszman, who said the prehealth focus was not alienating for those in other academic disciplines.

“We should frame it as ‘The SA is willing to support ideas if you’re passionate about leading them,’” Groszman, a senior, said. “We shouldn’t make this about ‘We’re only going to support a limited number of ideas or that we’re picking favorites.’”

After the passage of the bill, Luthra expressed her hopes for the committee, which will present its findings to the SA by May. “I hope that we can take a step forward rather than exploring if we see that there’s deficiencies in the accessibility of programs or advising,” Luthra said. “I don’t want to say that there’s issues or that students are facing challenges but if there is and we find that, I want to take action.”

NEWS IN BRIEF SA calls closed meeting in apparent constitutional violation Amber Tong, News Editor Student Association President Griffin Thomas called a closed session, in apparent violation of the SA Constitution, at the end of the Senate meeting on Monday.

The constitution states that “[by] a twothirds vote, the Senate may hold a closed meeting to discuss matters requiring unusual privacy.” The Senate, however, did not hold such a vote on Monday.

According to Thomas, a Lovett College senior, in the meeting he expressed his disappointment at the lack of rigorous debates regarding Resolution #2, which concerns student feedback on the implementation of security cameras, especially when compared to other conversations such as the debate regarding the health professions task force.

“I think that these types of introspective,

0BLACK LIFE FROM PAGE 1

instances illustrate the burdens African American students bear.

“Rice students think about what’s happening inside the hedges and ‘How does that affect me,’” Clack said. “Yet African American students don’t have that luxury of being able to be that shallow in their vision. If you’re not aware of what’s going on outside that [affects] you, what ultimately happens is it comes in and bites you in the ass.”

Race Scholars at Rice Director Jenifer Bratter said discussions about black lives affect everyone even if they don’t realize it.

“It’s about more than just you and more than just black students,” Bratter, an associate professor of sociology, said. “This current conversation is shaping us as a nation.”

self-evaluative conversations are generally better received in private,” Thomas said.

Thomas said he misinterpreted the Constitution’s requirements for closed meetings and said the SA is working to make the document more conducive to student government.

“The SA Constitution is 111 pages long and it is sometime difficult for us to make necessary immediate judgments,” he said. “This is of course not to make an excuse for the oversight, but to say we understand the mistake and are making strides to correct it.”

In the same Senate meeting, McMurtry College sophomore Alejandra Gutierrez was appointed as the deputy parliamentarian.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner planned to speak during the meeting, but was forced to cancel due to an emergency.

Prior to the panel, provost Marie Lynn Miranda and Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson spoke respectively on the administration’s efforts to welcome faculty and students of color. In her remarks, Miranda said the stakes are high.

“Rice has so much to gain and, in fact, so much to lose if we do not continue to embrace the importance of diversity for our campus,” Miranda said.

Hutchinson briefly elaborated on some of the university’s new initiatives to prepare and unite minority students. He said the administration is open to students’ requests for change.

“As much as we may have made huge progress in the diversification of our student body, where we really need to make progress is the inclusion of our student body,” Hutchinson said. “It’s important that we sit and listen to our students as they tell us what their current experiences are.”

This article has been condensed for print.

Read the full story online at ricethresher.org.

wednesday, October 5, 2016

the Rice Thresher

NEWS

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NEWS

wednesday, October 5, 2016

the Rice Thresher

RUPD begins security camera test run at Lovett College Sarah Smati and David Yang For the Thresher

The Rice University Police Department is initiating a test run of security cameras at Lovett College and is set to fully implement a campuswide camera initiative as early as this winter, according to RUPD Chief Johnny Whitehead.

Lovett College President Rahul Kothari attributed Lovett’s decision to quicken the process of implementing the cameras to rising concerns related to exposure to Main Street and construction. Kothari clarified that students had requested for the camera installation to be moved to an earlier date, validated and further supported by a favorable vote at Central Committee, Lovett’s student government organization.

“Many students felt that the presence of cameras would increase safety at the college and help RUPD in catching and putting away trespassers,” Kothari, a senior, said.

There have been multiple incidents of non-Rice affiliated people entering the Lovett premises.

0ADMIN FROM PAGE 1 all been added to the university, and with them, more administrative staff.

Rice is further required to expand its offices due to federal regulations, which is also true nationally as a major cause for administrator increase. As both an employer and an educational institution, Rice is subject to regulations applying to both of those entities.

Vice President for Human Resources Mary Cronin pointed to compliance with the Affordable Care Act as a particular challenge. Due to new reporting requirements and other regulations, Rice had to hire more staff.

“If you get two or three Affordable Care Acts over the course of several years, you’re in a position to consider whether we as an employer can carry out the work we have to do in order to be in compliance with the laws and regulations and whether we need to hire another person or need to establish another office,” Cronin said.

Many universities hire Title IX compliance officers to help students and ensure the university will not be sued. Rice has increased its efforts to prevent sexual assault with additional programs such as the Office of Sexual Violence Prevention and Title IX Support.

“There are just hundreds of laws that apply to universities,” Collins said. “It’s an expanding workload of carrying out those responsibilities.”

Collins said Rice is different from many universities nationwide, which have moved away from the traditional faculty-administrator model and hired an increasing percentage of full-time administrative staff who never teach courses. In the 20th century, many schools, including Rice, followed a model in which faculty continued to teach even as they took on administrative roles.

More than one third of Rice’s administrators were also professors in 1956.

According to Collins, many high-level Rice administrators still hold faculty positions: the dean of undergraduates, the vice provost for research, the dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies, the vice provost for academic affairs and the vice president for strategic initiatives all hold both the faculty appointment and the administrative appointment. Rice President David Leebron also co-taught a course at the Boniuk Institute for Religious Tolerance last year.

Despite the increased regulatory burden and an ever-expanding array of student programs, data indicates that Rice’s administration is becoming more efficient. From 2006 to 2016, the student to administrator ratio increased from 5.37-to-1 to 6.74-to-1, indicating that fewer administrators per student were needed to operate Rice even while Rice expanded the number of programs it offered.

Collins and Cronin attributed this improved efficiency to the integration of technology that increases productivity throughout administration.

For example, systems for submitting and

“Colleges and universities have increasingly embraced the use of electronic security systems and security technology to enhance campus safety,” Whitehead said. “This past April, security cameras helped police identify the man who killed a student at the University of Texas, Austin.”

According to Whitehead, RUPD postponed implementation so that the SA could review the plan and offer feedback; RUPD then received a request from the Lovett leadership to consider launching the pilot project in their college while the SA continued to discuss the issue.

Some students have voiced concerns about the cameras, raising issues including privacy violations, a lack of awareness regarding who views the footage, what the footage may be used for and a general loss of Rice’s cultural sovereignty.

Though questions of where the security cameras are needed and in what circumstances they should be utilized persist, others support the plan.

“The security cameras were a necessary precaution considering the scares [Lovett] recently had with people coming inside behind students

reviewing grant proposals are now fully online.

Ultimately, Collins noted, it is difficult to pinpoint what changes make a definitive impact.

“It’s not like any one thing says, ‘Oh, that saves a position,’” Collins said. “I think the cumulative effect of going after this on many fronts changes the workload.”

Student Association President Griffin Thomas said he has mixed opinions about Rice’s expanding administration.

“It is important to understand that higher education and Rice have fundamentally changed since the 1950s,” Thomas, a Lovett College senior, said.

He pointed out that the expectation is that Rice will offer much more than an education.

It’s an expanding workload of carrying out [legal] responsibilities.

Kathy Collins Vice President for Finance

“Today, universities are expected to provide students with the physical, mental and social support that students need to take advantage of this [academic] experience,” Thomas said.“These extra services count greatly towards this administrative bloat, but are also critical to a balanced undergraduate experience.”

Drew Petty, founder of the Mechanical Engineering Advisory Board, said hiring faculty is more important than hiring administrative staff.

“Students want smaller classes, better professors and more research opportunities,” Petty, a Duncan College senior, said.

“Resources spent on more administrators fails to effectively address student concerns and furthers the disconnect between students and administration.”

The new student programs which have been added in recent years reduce resources available for faculty, Petty said.

“I think new student programs seem exciting and appeal more to the upper administration at Rice,” Petty said. “However, the quality of teaching at Rice is suffering and this should be addressed first and foremost.”

Lovett senior Bridget Schilling said she was glad that an expanded administration could offer more to students, but still had some reservations.

“With the expansion of administration comes a lot more bureaucracy and hoops to jump through that don’t always make the resources they are supposed to provide accessible,” Schilling said.

hope zhou/thresher

Security cameras will be installed at Lovett College as a test run for a campus-wide initiative. when they open the door,” Lovett New Student Representative Rose Kantorczyk said. “It was really important for all of CC and all of Lovett in getting student input and making sure that no one felt the cameras were there to catch them drinking.”

According to Kothari, RUPD worked closely with Lovett’s student leadership and the Central

Committee to choose appropriate locations for the cameras.

“We were happy to see how much respect [RUPD] had for student privacy throughout this process,” Kothari said.

This article has been condensed for print. Read the full story online at ricethresher.org.

How much of the endowment is invested in natural resources?

15 12% 10%

10

10%

6.8% 5

0%

Rice

Dartmouth

Stanford

Yale infographic by samantha ding

0INVEST FROM PAGE 1

Doerr for the creation of the Doerr Institute for New Leaders, whereas unrestricted endowments have no specified purpose. The Rice Management Company allocates the latter based upon various needs in the university’s budget.

According to Collins, Rice’s endowment supports about 60 percent of the core budget, a dependency which can be a double edged sword.

“When markets are going up, that’s a great thing. When time’s are more challenging it’s more of a constraint than a good thing,” Collins said.

For the 2015 fiscal year, Rice’s return was 4.2 percent. Yale University’s return was 3.4 percent, Stanford University 7 percent and Dartmouth College 8.3 percent.

“I view all of the [peer institutions’] endowments not necessarily as competitors but collaborators — unlike in the for-profit world, there’s a lot of collaboration,” Thacker said. “We could all do really well, and that would be great for the whole industry and our students.”

Based on a long-term portfolio policy, Rice allocates assets into seven different areas: publicly traded equities, venture capital and private equity, hedge funds, natural resources, opportunistic, real estate and fixed income.

According to Thacker, the RMC, along with Rice’s Board of Trustees, decides upon its investments annually; however, changes from year to year are consistently modest. Thacker said Rice’s strategy has changed over decades.

“In the ’60s [Rice] did quite a bit of investing into energy and real estate; in the ’70s and ’80s we invested a lot in U.S. stocks,” Thacker said. “In the ’90s we moved into international investing as well as a little bit of venture capital and in the 2000s we moved into private equity and hedge funds.”

Thacker said the 2010s have had a shift in priorities opposed to in past decades.

“In this decade, I would say our focus has been much more [on] finding the most talented managers in these areas as opposed to making major changes,” Thacker said.

According to Thacker, though minute changes may occur, Rice’s asset allocation is quite similar to what it was 10 years ago.

“Endowments change and evolve very slowly because we’re in the forever business,” she said.

Rice’s allocation figures are fairly standard compared to those of peer institutions with the exception of its investment in natural resources.

Rice aims to invests 12 percent into natural resource managers, whereas Yale aims to invest only 6.8 percent, and Stanford and Dartmouth both average 10 percent of their endowments.

According to Thacker, “natural resources” is broad because it encompasses agriculture, timber, oil and gas and metals and mining.

Thacker said that combined with real estate, the investments are referred to as real assets.

“Investing in real assets has the benefit of providing inflation protection,” Thacker said.

According to Thacker, Rice has a long history of investing in natural resources, seeing that it’s an area that consistently brings a strong source of returns for the university. She said 2 percent of the natural resources investment is in a 50,000-acre timber forest located in Louisiana.

She said Rice’s inclination to invest in natural resources is analogous to a school in New York choosing to invest more in the financial sector.

“Given our location and our alumni network, we have excellent access to information about natural resource investments,” Thacker said.

“This is an area we can strive for excellence in.”

Thacker simplified the philosophy for Rice’s endowment investment into two missions.

“The first thing is, ‘Do no harm’ and then, ‘Do a good job,’” Thacker said.

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Letters to the Editor Consider more ethical endowment investments A breakdown of Rice’s endowment indicates that 12 percent is invested in natural resources (see p. 1). Though we do not have an exact breakdown of how much of that 12 percent is allocated to oil and gas investments, Rice’s geographic location and its alumni network in the industry suggest that oil and gas is not an insignificant component of the endowment.

It is clear that Rice is careful to lessen the burden on students from tuition by drawing from the endowment for sources of operational funding nearly twice more than the national average. Although students may complain that our academics and facilities are not as one would expect them to be given such a large endowment, we must also recognize that Rice is striving to simultaneously maintain our large endowment and the quality of our education.

Of course, there is always room to question and improve Rice’s investments. At universities across the country, student movements have formed advocating for divestment from resources perceived as problematic. In an interview with the Thresher two years ago, Chief Investment Officer and President of the Rice Management Company Allison Thacker said Rice has no current plans to divest from fossil fuels.

While we understand the logistical difficulties in divesting entirely from oil and gas, we believe Rice must take tangible steps towards promoting sustainability through its endowment. This could include planning to gradually reduce investments in oil and gas while increasing those in renewable energy. Rice has a responsibility to the broader global community in reducing its carbon footprint and make shifting towards more ethical investments.

In attempting to attract talented students from across the country, Rice markets itself as a university that differs from the usual stereotypical depictions of the South. While there is no doubt that oil and gas will continue to comprise a sizeable portion of Rice’s alumni network and endowment investments, this should be no reason for us to strive for an endowment that reflects a renewed commitment to sustainability.

Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Thresher editorial staff. All other opinion pieces represent solely the opinion of the piece’s author

Errata In last week’s Sept. 28 issue, “Pre-law internship program to pilot in spring” was written by Lizzie Bjork, not Meredith McCain. The water polo photo on p. 11 was from a game against Texas A&M University and Greg Campo, mentioned in that photo, is a junior, not a senior.

Thresher left Trump as sole choice I don’t think the Thresher staff fully thought through the consequences of their condemnation of third-party voting in last week’s editorial. I fully expected the Thresher to issue an endorsement for Hillary Clinton, but telling me I shouldn’t vote third-party leaves me as a conservative voter with one choice, Donald Trump.

As a political science major, I enjoyed the Thresher’s use of Duverger’s Law to explain why third-party candidates can’t win an election in the U.S., but they did not explain the implications this has on rational voter choice: single-peaked voter preference based on candidate’s policy utility.

This means, based on your personal political beliefs, one candidate will more accurately represent the policy you want to see, and you should vote for that candidate based purely on self-interest. I imagine Hillary Clinton probably represents most Rice student’s preferred policy this election. For conservative students, Donald Trump is the only rational choice in a strictly twoparty election.

I abhor Donald Trump and would never vote for him. I would also not vote for Secretary

Clinton because it would directly violate my selfinterest based on my preferred policy preferences.

It is unreasonable for Democrats to think that large swathes of Republicans will turn up to vote for her (although a small portion will) simply because we aren’t voting for him. We will use third-party candidates, who are available on ballots in all 50 states, or vote exclusively down ticket. Some may see this as sticking our heads in the sand, but it is the only rational and morally reconcilable behavior left, and is a direct result of the types of candidates chosen by both parties. If Democrats want to win in November, they must increase their voter mobilization efforts within their party and hope Clinton outperforms Trump on the campaign trail. Making the mistake of asking people to pick strictly between the two major party candidates forces people like me not to vote my conscience, but instead vote by personal cost-benefit analysis.

Andrew Maust Brown College Class of 2019

Sexual desire and depression Re: the “low sexual desire reader” (assuming it is not a joke). Lack of a “target rich environment,” or whatever, may not be the reason for the reader’s low sexual desire. Depression and anxiety can lead to low sexual desire. Being young and healthy sexually does not preclude depression and/or anxiety from affecting you. Reading that Rice is a “happy place” does not make it easier to admit that one might be depressed or anxious if it is not already obvious. “Everyone else is happy, why am I sad?” I suggest the reader and others having such feelings see a counselor, exercise and eat healthy. I am speaking from personal experience.

Regards, Dustin K. James, Ph.D. Research scientist/Laboratory manager Chemistry dept. and NanoCarbon Center

Dismissing third parties degrades political discourse There are many strong logical and emotional reasons to vote for Hillary Clinton in an effort to stop Donald Trump. You could have briefly outlined the devastating authoritarian realities of policies like racial profiling and stop-and-frisk for which Trump has fervently debated. You could have mentioned his plan to drastically cut the Environmental Protection Agency and national parks budgets and how it would permanently affect our country’s natural resources and beauty.

You could have made a personal appeal objecting to the blatant Islamophobia Trump’s campaign relies on and his thorough history of misogyny and how these are entirely unacceptable and so adverse to American values. You could have brought up his tax evasions, his exploitation of foreign labor, his extremely poorly outlined economic plan or any of his dozens of asinine quotes that demonstrate his incompetence to lead. But you didn’t.

This editorial was barren, devoid of anything substantial or interesting. You yelled at Trump, called people names and stayed smug. You briefly mentioned his sexist microaggressions at the debates and did little to justify anything.

This editorial exemplifies why so many people hate liberals. This is what furthers divides and polarizes us as a nation. By admonishing Trump with minimal evidence and vilifying anyone who dares to even abstain or vote third party, you have silenced voices without rationale. This neo-McCarthyist chilling effect stands directly

antithetical to what journalism, academia and indeed all inquiry should be about. You have added nothing to the political discourse.

It is arrogant, ignorant and, perhaps most importantly, ironic.

Many, many people have talked to me about this editorial. Many of them are Clinton supporters (although reluctantly) still troubled by this piece’s tone and content. Some, however, were third-party voters or Trump supporters.

These people were not troubled; they were angry, and with their anger came a stronger resolve for their convictions. You are accomplishing nothing by publishing a vapid, condescending piece like this. If you cared about stopping Trump, you would write to his supporters, arguing why they shouldn’t vote for him. If you wanted to change people’s minds, you would seek to learn why so many folks support him and try to convince them he’s a bad candidate. Instead you bullied not only his supporters but anyone who dares disagree with you. You wrote to yourselves and gave a good personal pat-on-the-back. You didn’t take the high road but the high horse.

If you’re going to immediately dismiss those with different political opinions as privileged, then what are you even doing in journalism? If you think all third-party voters are privileged, write to the disproportionately high number of Latinx and LGBTQA Green Party supporters.

Go call Eric Garner’s daughter, a vehement Jill Stein supporter, and all other victims of

racial violence going third party or abstaining privileged. Go make fun of Ajamu Baraka, Green Party vice presidential candidate who won a national Abolitionist of the Year award and has dedicated his life to global equality. Go complain to all three transexual people I know who all end FaceBook posts with #ImWithJill, the queer Ojibwe Native American on full scholarship at Macalester who’s a staunch Libertarian, the immigration lawyer who works 60-plus hours/ week supporting the Socialist Equality Party candidate and the black guy I met in Mississippi who believes Gary Johnson is the best choice for this country and walks around barefoot all the time because he can’t afford shoes.

Stating that every Muslim, Latinx, LGBTQA and socioeconomically disadvantaged person “lives in fear” of a Trump presidency is entirely untrue and silences dissenting opinion, which is obviously the sole point of this piece. Hell, there are large bastions of female, gay, minority and even Muslim Trump supporters — are they automatically terrible?

Until you try to understand why Trump has so much appeal and how Clinton has wronged so many, you cannot undermine his support.

You will only undermine your integrity and degrade discourse.

Sincerely, Stephen Hannan Former McMurtry College student

College students have responsibility to register to vote This is the last week to register to vote in Texas for the upcoming election, and we implore you to do so. In the 2012 election, Texas ranked 48 out of 50 in terms of voter turnout, and its ranking didn’t improve with the 2014 midterm election. Last year, 20 percent of registered Rice students voted in the mayoral election, a significantly higher number than expected. Even so, the average age of voters in this election was 69, leading to the defeat of the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance and one of the closest mayoral races in decades.

As college students, we are described as the millennial vote. Why is this fabled class of citizens and voters so sought after? Voters under 30 are now the largest single voting bloc by age in America.

We are important. But we are also apathetic. It’s not that we don’t view voting as important, we just often assume it doesn’t matter. But voting is your voice, and it is loud. Your opportunity to cast your voice in a larger pool in order to elect representatives determines what policies become laws. Think of the policies that influence our daily lives: taxation and energy policies, welfare policy, environmental regulations, business regulations,

legal protections, etc.

As college students, we have the resources to be properly informed in this election. This is the first presidential election where many of us are eligible to vote; it is one of polar opposites, in which whoever wins will cast stark differences from the other in terms of policies, supreme court justices, diplomacy, government reach and just about every issue that affects you and everyone you know. Your vote counts to elect either one of these visions this November, here in Texas and all over the country.

Earlier this year, a federal judge issued an order that Texas allow anyone to vote so long as they sign an affidavit and submit proof of being a U.S. citizen and of their residency. The forms of acceptable identification without an affidavit include Texas driver’s licenses, Texas personal ID cars, Texas handgun licenses, a U.S. military ID card, a U.S. citizenship certificate, a U.S. passport or an Election ID Certificate. With the new federal order, you can have the following types of ID so long as you sign an affidavit stating why you cannot obtain the aforementioned forms of ID: voter registration certificate, birth certificate, current

utility bill, government check, paystub or bank statement that includes your name and address, or a copy of or original government certificate with your name and address. The latter forms of ID can include your out-of-state driver’s license.

This is an important election without a clear front-runner, an election of importance that you can participate in. With a current Supreme Court vacancy and several more anticipated over the next four to eight years, our next president has the potential to significantly impact this country for decades to come. There are also 12 governors, 34 senators and all U.S. representatives up for election, positions of absolute and often neglected importance.

The election is this Nov. 8. Deadlines are quickly approaching to send in absentee applications for ballots. Moreover, this is the last week to register to vote in Texas. We implore you to utilize this opportunity, one that we have consistently here at Rice. The Rice Young Democrats have been hosting voter registration drives all month, and are going to be hosting one last drive this Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Rice Memorial

Center. Come with your Texas driver’s license or your social security number. If on campus, you can register with your Rice address and vote in the RMC on Election Day. It takes five minutes to have an immeasurable impact. As Thomas Jefferson said, “We do not have a government by a majority of the people, we have a government by a majority of the people who participate.” Help be the force that makes it to actually majority participation; we can change systems and create revolutions simply through our ballots.

Alex Bergin-Newman is a Wiess College junior and financial director of Rice Young Democrats, and David Cirillo is a Sid Richardson College junior and president of Rice Young Democrats

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Let’s improve undergrad education this year Student responses to last year’s Survey of All Students encapsulate the emphasis we collectively place on our education: Three times as many students selected teaching for undergraduates as the key priority for the Student Association as any other area. As students, our time at Rice presents a unique environment for personal growth and development, including opportunities to learn from the diverse views of our fellow students, time to explore career possibilities through internships and experiential learning and of course, a worldclass education that sets the foundation for success after graduation.

I see this year as an exciting opportunity for us as students to assert an active, engaged role in what goes on inside the classroom. From discussions with students, faculty and administration, I have seen significant interest in coming together to meet student needs in teaching. An article in last week’s Thresher described the IDEA course evaluation software, which brings together groups including the Provost’s Office, the Faculty Senate and the Center for Teaching Excellence.

The SA is currently conducting the Survey of Teaching for Undergraduates to collect focused information on recurring areas of student feedback and lay the foundation for future student-led initiatives. In recognition of the contributions made by students and professors toward a positive classroom environment, we as students must collaborate with the stakeholders on campus to effect concrete progress in teaching for undergraduates.

Rice’s own mission statement notes a “distinctive commitment to undergraduate education” and “unsurpassed teaching.” Rice’s recent ranking as the fifth-best university in the nation for undergraduate teaching is cause for celebration and highlights our strengths in this area. I feel confident that a spirit of collaboration and open communication between faculty, administration and students will build upon this further. These two initial efforts, the Survey of Teaching for Undergraduates and the IDEA course evaluation pilot, are a strong start for students to play a key role in contributing to our undergraduate education. The unique opportunity we have at Rice to share our views and work for meaningful change is not one to be taken lightly. By committing to a campus-wide dialogue on what our education should look like, students can strengthen a vibrant academic environment and shaping the landscape of teaching at Rice University well into the future.

Constantine Tzouanas

is the Student Association director of external affairs and a Wiess College sophomore

Purpose of ‘color wars’ at Rice must be questioned It seems as though the poverty- and filthridden image of India most people have in their minds has given way to a new stereotype that paints the entire subcontinent as a unidimensional group of people whose only contribution to society is plastic sacks of colored powder. Instead of being a rich way to appreciate and take part in Indian culture, Rice has made Holi (and its affiliates of “color war” or “powder fight,” which may not explicitly use the name and thus falsely deny any tie to Holi) a shell of its actual glory, an undervalued and decontextualized caricature that promotes colorblind disrespect.

The Rice community by and large can intuitively understand that incorporating a tradition from the Abrahamic religions, like baptisms or lighting a menorah for Hanukkah, into Beer Bike would be completely unnecessary at best and insensitive and hurtful at worst to many of that religion. Yet, the incorporation of a “color war” as a part of Beer Bike, where it is completely taken out of its religious and cultural context, passes largely unquestioned. Yes, Holi is an outwardly “fun” tradition, but that does not mean it is yours for the taking. We should not have to explain why incorporating Holi into Beer Bike is insensitive, yet we must do so because it is consistently the burden of minority religions to justify that their religious traditions are legitimate and deserve respectful, mindful recognition.A similar burden falls upon the South Asian Society when it comes to securing funding from campus resources for its annual Holi, as the club must justify why its Holi celebration deserves sponsorship more than other similar events.

As we move toward an increasingly globalized world, how can people engage religious and cultural celebrations from around the world without being disrespectful? Rice students must reflect on the events around them and take care to be thoughtful participants. Those who host events like “color war” must ask themselves:

STAFF Yasna Haghdoost* Editor in Chief Anita Alem* Managing Editor Juan Saldana Business Manager news Drew Keller* Editor Amber Tong* Editor Emily Abdow Asst. Editor

OP-ED

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What is the purpose of incorporating Holi into this event? In what ways are the cultural roots of Holi being honored? Is the event educational or is it simply to have fun? As a consumer, do you use the nonreligious name of the event to deny its roots and rationalize your participation? If those are tough or uncomfortable questions to answer, perhaps it’s time to reconsider the way you are using Holi for your event.

Holi celebrations at Rice that ignore the centuries of tradition behind the festival not only encourage stereotyped homogeneity of minority cultures, they erase narratives of real students at Rice who have grown up reconciling their multiethnic identities. As with any issue, nuance must be acknowledged. This sentiment does not represent the feeling of all South Asian students at Rice, and many are comfortable participating in color wars. However, in a school that prides itself on being inclusive, it is important to try to empathize with all opinions. As we move forward to make Rice a more welcome environment for all, students must stop to ponder the difference between “taking part in” and simply “taking” and actively work toward creating a place that everyone feels proud to call home.

Shankar has previously written on the topic of Holi for the Huffington Post.

RICE WRITES

Editor’s Note: This month we received a record number of writing submissions - way more than I’ve ever seen in two years of running this contest! Choosing a winner was difficult, as we were really impressed by the unique interpretation of the prompt each piece displayed. This piece stood out from the rest in its sophisticated tone, beautiful imagery, and overall haunting take on “A Stranger’s Story.” We loved reading this piece, and hope you do, too —Bailey Tulloch, R2 managingeditor Wren at Rest

by Jacobi Lockett How long have I been hovering here? I don’t know the answer and I never know.

No one ever knows. I fly here in secret.

On my first visit, I happened upon this place. I stumbled through a worm hole. But now I steal away, I seek it out and I fly here in secret.

I hover in secret. Above a gently sloping sea of green hills, slothfully stretching out into a solitary expanse, I hover.

There are no cobblestone paths to blaspheme its sweep. No trees, never a branch on which to rest.

Warm droplets from the burgeoning sun swirling within honeyed breezes dance from the east and keep me afloat, keep me from transgressing the ground.

Floating here is a strange feeling, it rattles the bone. It’s a feeling I would trade for that patch of green tucked under the shadow of the highest half-moon’s solemn bow, cresting upon the horizon and surrendering to strokes of blush and frozen foam above it and above me. I would claim it as my own, that patch that now houses my flittering shadow in silence.

I would bury my back in the brush and stretch my wings as wide as the hills. I would lose my wings to gain this spot.

It is near this spot that the coolness of the clear, blessed brook caresses a craggy splinter in the ground. The brook is blessed because he blesses it.

He scales the slopes and kneels beside the rill, and bids with his notched and weathered staff its glassy surface part. He comes here every day.

His children are never far behind. Under his watchful eye, the speckled brood wobble and wander, their bleats and sighs saddling the east’s flurry of vagabond gusts. And with the smallest voice and a smaller smile, he bids the children come, and drink the nectar the brook supplies, and rest.

And in this moment, and in every moment, my rattled bones plead him to turn his watchful eye to me. To number me among his children.

He must see my flittering shadow. He never bids me come and drink and rest.

Meanwhile, I hover.

Bairavi Shankar is a Brown College senior

and the former co-president of the South Asian Society, and Anita Alem is a Martel College senior and the Thresher managing editor

opinions Mitch Mackowiak* Editor sports Andrew Grottkau Editor arts & entertainment Lenna Mendoza Editor Walden Pemantle Editor design Justin Park Director Samantha Ding News Designer Katrina Cherk Sports Designer Christina Tan A&E Designer Jennifer Fu Illustrator photo Sirui Zhou Editor

R2

copy Jasmine Lin Editor Julianne Wey Editor backpage Riley Robertson Editor business operations Shannon Klein Ads Manager Sean Kelley Distribution Manager online Charlie Paul Editor Alex Kim Editor *Editorial Board member

R2 September Winner - Art “A Stranger’s Story” by Sophie Leung Photo taken at 9/11 Memorial in NYC October Monthly Contest: “Our Monsters” Want to see your writing and/or art here next month? Submit your work to our October contest! Email a short story or poem up to 400 words in length to r2ricereview@gmail. com. Word or Google doc for writing, and jpg/png for art. The October winner will win two free Esperanza tickets.

The Rice Thresher, the official student newspaper at Rice University since 1916, is published each Wednesday during the school year, except during examination periods and holidays, by the students of Rice University.

Letters to the Editor must be received by 5 p.m. the Friday prior to publication and must be signed, including college and year if the writer is a Rice student. The Thresher reserves the rights to edit letters for content and length and to place letters on its website.

Editorial and business offices are located on the second floor of the Ley Student Center: 6100 Main St., MS-524 Houston, TX 77005-1892 Phone (713) 348-4801 Email: thresher@rice.edu Website: www.ricethresher.org The Thresher is a member of the ACP, TIPA and CMBAM © Copyright 2016

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JULIUS CAESAR!

VADA impresses with pithy production

yutian liu/thresher

Roman senators rally around Brutus in the department of visual and dramatic art’s production of ‘Julius Caesar.’ From left to right: Duncan College senior Yena Han as Trebonia, Jones College sophomore Dorian Korein as Casca, Hanszen College junior James Altschul as Decius, Hanszen sophomore Nonie Hillard as Cassius, Martel College sophomore Alan Kim as Brutus, Hanszen senior Rachel Buissereth as Cinna and Sean Doyle (Wiess ’16) as Metellus Cimber.

Cannon Lewis Thresher Staff

It is clear that our country currently faces a charged political environment. Whatever views one holds about the upcoming election, it is easy to be swept up in the virulent language that each side vigorously deploys.

The Rice visual and dramatic arts department strides confidently into this charged political climate with a production of “Julius Caesar” that highlights the similarities between our American system and the age-old drama of despotism, democracy and rhetoric.

In “Julius Caesar,” the VADA department appears to have done the improbable: With a minimal set, simple costuming and in large part retaining the original language, the cast and crew manage to capture the spirit and passion of the Shakespearian tragedy while connecting it to modernity.

“Julius Caesar” tells the story of the conspiracy against its titular character’s life by Roman senators at the height of his reign and is thus a play whose success depends primarily on the oration of its actors. Fortunately for the VADA production, the leads handle this task in perfect form.

The lead conspirators are Cassius, played

by Hanszen College sophomore Nonie Hilliard, and Brutus, played by Martel College sophomore Alan Kim. Both are true

THE WEEKLY SCENE The editors’ picks for this week’s best events. Time to explore the wonderful world of Houston.

standouts: Each speaks every line of dialogue with a degree of emotion and intention that is incredible for the dense, Shakespearian language that they are assigned. Hilliard is especially well-suited for her role, playing Cassius’s complex mix of political ambition and respect for Brutus with such sincerity that she seems to embody the entire conceit of the conspiracy. Though he plays a rather small role in the play, McMurtry College freshman Zach Verne is excellent as Julius Caesar; his portrayal highlights the latent rage and hubris that defines Caesar and provides an excellent foil for Brutus’s stoicism. Finally, Jones College junior Justin Bernard performs Mark Antony’s famous monologue with such fervor and excellent timing that one cannot help but be struck by the power of oratory to incite people to action. The monologue is a crucial, powerful moment in the tragedy, and Bernard handles it masterfully with the help of some strategically darkened lighting and frenetic ensemble staging suggestive of the mob rule he inspires.

When performing a Shakespeare play, there is tremendous pressure to adapt; at first glance, it seems impossible that a play from 1599 could be relevant to modern worries.

Director Jack Young steers a wise course with the VADA department’s production in this area, retaining much of the original intent of the play while cutting scenes during the tense

INSANE CLOWN POSSE

fourth and fifth acts. Young also utilizes a timeless, monolithic set and 20th-century costuming to suggest a modern applicability.

Furthermore, the use of monochromatic lighting and practical sound effects lend direct emotional weight to otherwise dense Shakespearian language, so that the audience remains engrossed in the action onstage throughout the play. These assistive devices

When performing a Shakespeare play, there is tremendous pressure to adapt; at first glance, it seems impossible that a play from 1599 could be relevant to modern worries. are the mark of a director who understands the innate power of his material; the VADA production retains one’s interest effectively without resorting to modern reinterpretation.

INPRINT

Furthermore, the costuming in “Julius Caesar” is ingenious: In the first half of the play, which focuses on the political aspects of conspiracy, every character is dressed in vaguely modern, professional clothing, suggesting a linkage to contemporary life.

In the second half, however, the costumes are much more military and reminiscent of the French Resistance in World War II. This transition places a dire prophecy in the mind of the viewer, though the specifics of this particular implication may change depending on the audience member.

The VADA department’s production of “Julius Caesar” is, in a word, strong. In every aspect, it is clear the cast and crew put a surfeit of effort and heart into the play and, in combination with a deep understanding of the merits of Shakespearian literature, they have crafted an excellent rendition. By developing a minimal aesthetic, the play also benefits from inevitable connections to modern cultural touchstones such as “The Hunger Games” and the current political situation. Thus, the VADA production serves precisely the role the best modern Shakespeare productions do; it is a bridge between history and today, which calls attention to the essential human qualities that persist through time. I would encourage anyone with any political interest whatsoever to see this play as soon as possible.

ANIMAL CARTOGRAPHY

CAMH COLLEGE NIGHT

Ever wanted to witness an FBI classified gang mosh to cringe-inducing rap? We haven’t either. But if rubbing shoulders with other juggalos next week appeals to you, hit up Warehouse Live Wednesday, Oct. 12 for tickets to Insane Clown Posse’s show. The show starts at 7 p.m. and tickets are $22.

Novelists Lauren Groff and Ann Patchett are coming to Brazos Bookstore Monday, Oct. 17 as part of the Margarett Root Brown Reading Series.

Both award-winning writers are leading voices in contemporary writing, winning both popular and critical praise. Tickets are $5 and the reading is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

Artist Luis Moro’s gallery “Animal Cartography” has migrated to Redbud Gallery in the Heights. Moro’s work investigates the link between human exploration and animal life, turning a critical eye to many instances of human achievement. Redbud Gallery is free to the public Wednesday to Sunday, 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

On Oct. 14 from 6 to 8 p.m., the Contemporary Arts Museum of Houston will open for free to all with a college ID. Although Rice students can already get in for free, college night will also feature live music, free food and art creation stations.

Warehouse Live 813 St. Emanuel St warehouselive.com

Alley Theatre 615 Texas Ave brazosbookstore.com

Redbud Gallery 303 East 11th St redbudgallery.com

Contemporary Arts Museum 5216 Montrose Blvd camh.org

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A&E

the Rice Thresher

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Trevor Sensor talks touring at age 23 Ali Wilt

For The Thresher

Fresh out of college and signed to his dream label, singer-songwriter Trevor Sensor loves to travel. This weekend, the 23-year-old musician will come to Houston’s Warehouse Live as part of his most ambitious trip yet: touring the country with Irish musician Foy Vance.

Sensor’s music combines elements of pop, folk and Americana. Although his raspy voice can initially seem off-putting, his lyrics about love and loss are, while simple, highly relatable, with lines like “Blue eyes and stars shine, girl you know your/Heart is mine” on his first EP’s title song, “Texas Girls and Jesus Christ.” His acoustic instrumentation conveys an infectious buoyancy that gives lightness to even his darkest songs.

Hailing from a small town in Illinois, Sensor said he has always been passionate about music.

“Ever since I was 12, I was in bands, I was songwriting,” Sensor said. “Hard work came naturally to me.”

During college, Sensor was discovered while playing at a local bar and was later signed to Jagjaguwar, the independent label that houses critically acclaimed artists such as Bon Iver and Angel Olson. For Sensor, signing to Jagjaguwar was a given.

“I had grown up listening to those artists [on the label], so I jumped at the chance when they gave me an offer,” Sensor said.

Signing to an independent label also gave Sensor a great deal of creative control, another major factor in his decision to reject offers from other, larger labels. Sensor said he tries to write from a place of honesty and experience, free from outside influence.

“Reading has mainly improved my vocabulary,” Sensor said. “I listen to things that 0see SENSOR, page 11

illustration by jennifer fu

MCMURTRY CELEBRATES BANNED BOOKS WEEK Ana Paula Pinto-Diaz For The Thresher

The history of banned books is long, dark and convoluted. But, aside from being wildly intriguing, it is also the starting point for a much bigger conversation on the ethics of literature. Such a conversation took place at McMurtry College this past Thursday in celebration of Banned Books Week.

Led by Director for the Center of Teaching Excellence and McMurtry associate Joshua Eyler and a group of McMurtry students, the college honored Banned Books Week by hosting a reading of Kurt Vonnegut’s “SlaughterhouseFive” at the college commons. Volunteers took turns reading sections of the book aloud in consecutive 20 minute shifts, finishing after about five hours.

Eyler approached McMurtry College senior Magen Eissenstat about organizing the event after planning similar readings at other universities. Both agreed that the reading

QUEER AGENDA Paid for by the Queer Resource Center

EVENTS Wednesday, Oct. 5

Houston GLBT Political Caucus Meeting,

Monday, Oct. 10 - Tuesday, Oct. 11

Midterm Recess

Tuesday, Oct. 11

National Coming Out Day

Monday, Oct. 17

Q&A Meeting, RMC Club Office Space

Sunday, Oct 16

Krewe of Olympus: Bitchy Witchy Bunch

QUEER ART

Keith Haring, a famed gay artist, made this work of art for the first National Coming Out Day in 1988. Most of his work surrounds LGBT topics such as the AIDS epidemic. In this particular work, one of his iconic Haring figures is coming out of the closet. Haring passed away due to AIDS in 1990.

FACT OF THE DAY

National Coming Out Day began in 1988 in response to the realization that the LGBT community at the time reacted defensively to anti-LGBT actions. The idea of celebrating coming out also promoted the idea of being proactive against prejudice. Keith Haring donated art (seen in the Queer Art section) to commemorate the first National Coming Out Day.

IF YOU WANT TO BE FEATURED IN THE QUEER AGENDA, SUBMIT YOUR ART PIECE TO BROOKE.E.ENGLISH@RICE.EDU

could be a great way to raise awareness about intellectual and cultural topics within the residential colleges.

According to Eissenstat, “SlaughterhouseFive” was chosen both thanks to its controversial status and its unique form, which allowed listeners to engage with the story regardless of how much of it they were able to listen to.

“It’s short and engaging, it’s a really immediate style, immediate language,” Eissenstat said. “I think it gave some people some opportunities to say some words that you would normally not say over the microphone in the commons, and so it was this provocative, fun, discussion-sparking activity. ” Eissenstat discussed the goal of Banned Books Week, sparking conversations on the influence of literature and why challenges to literary freedom should be important to us.

“Basically, it’s an awareness-raising week to think about the politics of censorship [and] the politics of reading and writing,” Eissenstat

said. “[It is] a really interesting conversation to have about how people interact historically with literature. What power do they assume that literature has? What power do they assume that different ideas or ways of writing has? I think that gives us a much better understanding of where we are now, when we can look at the history of an idea, of a piece of literature.”

Eissenstat also described how the reading was personally meaningful to her as a way of connecting with literature directly and for its own sake, as opposed to much of the reading we do as students at a university.

“I forgot how much I loved reading out loud, and how that’s such a different way of engaging with literature than when you’re just scrolling through something for class,” Eissenstat said. “To really be able to savor every word I think was a good experience.”

She also spoke about what the event was able to achieve in the broader context of 0see BANNED, page 9

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

the Rice Thresher

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0BANNED FROM PAGE 8 McMurtry’s community, especially noting how it brought people together, as was originally hoped, and sparked those important conversations in communal settings.

“Seeing the way that it brought McMurtry associates and McMurtry students together was really cool,” Eissenstat said. “And then, ultimately, [some of my favorite things were] those little conversations that happen when you’re sitting in the commons, and there’s someone reading over the microphone, and someone goes like, ‘What is this? What’s going on?’ and you get to have a conversation about ‘Slaughterhouse-Five,’ and literature, and Banned Books Week, and censorship, and all these fun things.”

Banned Books Week occurs annually on the last week of September, and Eissenstat shared her hopes for the future of this initiative, emphasizing the importance of continuing student involvement in bringing these topics to light and provocative discussions to light.

“I think the hope is that this will become an annual tradition, probably in the same format with a different book,” Eissenstat said. “Maybe something longer, maybe something more salacious. Who knows? I’m graduating this year so it’s kind of up to the younger generation to decide where they want to go with it […]

Because it is such a cool, and fun, engaging way to think about banned books and really bring a community together.”

jiayi lyu/thresher

McMurtry College junior Jeffery Xiong finger paints at McMurtry’s Fall Arts Showcase. The event, held Saturday night in the McMurtry commons, displayed the talents of student artists, including a visual arts presentation and an hour of poetic, dramatic and musical performance.

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Wednesday, October 5, 2016

the Rice Thresher

WHAT’S HIP RIGHT NOW:

Green Edition

by elisabeth kalomeris

EDIBLE FOOD WRAPPERS FLAX MILK

LAB-GROWN MEAT

courtesy slate

courtesy treehugger

In a phrase: Food packaging you can eat Where to find it: A grocery shelf in the near future

In a phrase: Fabrics made from bamboo fiber Where to find it: Cariloha Bamboo and many other retailers

courtesy discover magazine

In a phrase: Synthetic meat products made without killing animals Where to find it: Silicon Valley, New York City Meat, while delicious and good for getting swole, is pretty bad for the world.

Slaughterhouse footage and environmental impact shown in documentaries like “Food, Inc.â€? have caused many Americans to look for alternatives. Many companies are now trying to corner the meat-deserter market by oering burgers and other meat foods grown without killing a single animal. Cultured meat is grown in cell culture from muscle cells using tissue engineering techniques originally invented for regenerative medicine. The first of this type of burger was sold in London for $330,000 — perhaps a bit steep for the average consumer, but production costs are rapidly decreasing.

Another more creative approach to synthetic meat has been developed by Impossible Foods.

Unlike in vitro meat grown from animal cells in a petri dish or traditional veggie burgers which consist of ground-up plants, Impossible Foods recreates meat on a molecular level.

Their burgers smell and sizzle like beef and are biologically extremely similar but contain zero animal products. You can already try them at Momofuku Nishi in NYC for only $12. The question is: Will people buy them?

BAMBOO TEXTILES

In this age of globalization and mass transportation, packaging is an imperative but often forgotten factor in products.

Consumers usually focus on the contents of a package with little thought to how it got there. This is even more true when the product is food. The realities of food packaging, however, are grave: Plastic used to wrap snacks, produce and other fare is not recyclable and accounts for a huge amount of waste. Enter David Edwards and Francois Azambourg, an engineering duo responsible for crafting Wikipearl in 2013. Wikipearl is an edible skin for food products such as ice cream, cheese and really anything else. It’s made up of dierent chocolate, nut and seed particles and has a texture similar to mochi.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has also thrown a fork into the ring and developed their own edible food packaging made from a milk protein called casein. Casein-based packaging films are up to 500 times better at preventing oxygen from entering than traditional plastics. They’re also lithe yet tough and resistant to dissolving. These food wrappers are slated to hit shelves in one and three years respectively.

courtesy onegreenplanet

In a phrase: Beverage made from flaxseed Where to find it: HEB or most major grocery stores The alternative milk market in the United States has been surging over the past five years and is projected by Bloomberg to soon pass $2 billion. Reasons for the decline of traditional animal milk vary: Lactose intolerance, an aversion to supporting the often abusive dairy industry and the alleged negative health eects of traditional cow’s milk all contribute to the large number of people who do not “got milk.â€?

Soy led the non-dairy industry for many years in the early 2000s but has declined steeply due to studies about its goitrogenic problems associated with hormone imbalances. Almond milk, the new supposedly trendy alternative, requires massive amounts of water to produce — a single almond takes over one gallon of water to grow, wreaking havoc on already arid California farmlands. Thus, flax milk, despite its lower protein content, is the winner for hipness.

Flax milk oers omega-3 fatty acids, lots of varieties and a rich, creamy taste. Flax is also naturally devoid of cholesterol, saturated fat and nut, gluten and soy allergens.

In addition to food, the textile industry is being disrupted by cheaper and more eco-friendly products. As flax is to dairy, bamboo is to cotton. Bamboo shoots require about a third of the water absorbed by cotton, have no native pests and grow extremely quickly. Manufacturing processes allow for enormous versatility in texture and elasticity and other material properties. Common bamboo products include shirts, shorts, sheets, pillows and towels. An antimicrobial agent called bamboo-kun found in the plant fibers fights o fungi and bacterial infestations with no need for synthetic additives, meaning your sheets or shirt will naturally reduce odors.

Bamboo textiles also possess exceptional wicking properties, translating to a dryer feel as moisture is pulled away from skin, a special bonus for Houstonians. As with all cellulose-based fabric, bamboo biodegrades relatively fast with sunlight and soil. Cariloha Bamboo Houston, located near Torchy’s in Rice Village, oers a substantial selection of typical bamboo fiber items like clothes and bedding.

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11

Pepper Twins opens with vibrant Sichuan cuisine Alice liu

For The Thresher

Pepper Twins Address: 1915 West Gray St Phone number: (346) 204-5644 Price range: $$

Recommended Dishes Fish Loves Tofu, $13 Mapo tofu, boiled white fish, red chile, bean paste Colorful Berkshire Pork Silk, $14 Berkshire pork, carrots, scallions, wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots

Those familiar with the charming Sichuan eatery Cooking Girl know that its newly opened sister restaurant, Pepper Twins, has big shoes to fill. Since setting down its roots in Montrose, Cooking Girl has satisfied diners looking for an authentic Chinatown experience without having to leave the comfort of the Loop. Given the huge success of her first venture, it makes sense that the owner, Yunan Yang, has kept much of the same model for her second — Pepper Twins’ dishes preserve

the classic Sichuan flavor profile without falling prey to monotony. In fact, a large part of the restaurant’s uniqueness comes from its delicate balance between the traditional dishes Yang perfected at Cooking Girl and its more modern dishes, creating a fresh yet comfortingly familiar dining experience.

Just a 10-minute drive from campus in River Oaks, Pepper Twins held its grand opening on Sept. 20. Yang hopes Pepper Twins’ larger venue will give her more room for creativity than her cramped Montrose quarters. At 7 p.m. a few days after opening, the restaurant was about half full. The dichotomy was evident as soon as we walked in; the upscale decor alongside the paper menus, the playlist that alternated between traditional Chinese songs and modern Chinese pop, the predominantly Asian audience in the predominantly white River Oaks.

Yang describes Pepper Twin’s cuisine as “country-style, organic Chinese.” The restaurant emphasizes its organic, farmraised, high quality ingredients, which stand out among a Chinese food scene that is often indifferent with regards to ingredient sourcing. The menu touts Berkshire pork, certified Angus beef and Spring Mountain Farms chicken, the majority of which are sourced from deliberately chosen, pasturebased farms. Taking this into account, the prices are extremely reasonable, with most entrees falling between $12-15, generously portioned and served with complimentary steamed rice.

The Pepper Twins Chicken, consisting of stir-fried cubes of glistening chicken nestled in an abundance of diced imported green chilies, tomatoes, garlic and peppercorns, is beautifully presented. However, though the chicken was moist and tender, the dish lacks the tofu’s nuanced yet robust flavors, instead tasting mostly of salt and spice. The tomatoes add a bit of acid, but the overwhelming spice was missing a crucial second flavor to balance it out.

The Colorful Berkshire Pork Silk succeeds where the chicken fails; its sweet, sour and spicy flavors extend well beyond the worn path of peppercorn and chili. The “pork silk” refers to the star of the dish, thin strips of tender, juicy Berkshire Pork. Thinly sliced carrots offer a vibrant orange color, while sliced scallions, wood ear and bamboo round off the stir-fry into an exciting medley of textures. The sauce is slightly reminiscent of Kung Pao chicken, tasting mostly of soy sauce, chili sauce and hoisin sauce. When placed over rice to soak up the delicious sauce, the Pork Silk is a wonderful, full-bodied, satisfying dish.

Pepper Twins deserves a warm welcome from not just loyal fans of Cooking Girl, but everyone looking for a quality meal in an inviting atmosphere. The staff is friendly, efficient and patient enough to laugh along at my unfortunate attempts to pronounce the Chinese names on the menu. Though some dishes fall short, the menu as a whole displays both the chef’s expertise with fundamental Sichuan flavors and her willingness to explore beyond those boundaries.

The menu’s combination of Sichuan and Chinese American dishes may be slightly off-putting for purists — I know I personally wrinkled my nose after spotting the dreaded orange chicken and broccoli beef. However, there is a good balance; the Sichuan dishes retain their authentic flavors while the Chinese American dishes provide familiar options for less daring or non-Chinese diners. There is a wide range of spice levels and quite a few gluten-free options. Though there are vegetarian dishes, the restaurant is definitely not vegetarian-friendly, as even some of the tofu and eggplant dishes have pork.

After reading through a menu full of quirky names like “Mr. Radish,” “Princess CiCi” and “Dancing Squid,” my party ended up ordering the Fish Loves Tofu, Pepper Twins Chicken and Colorful Berkshire Pork Silk.

The Fish Loves Tofu is a rendition of the famous Mapo tofu with boiled white fish slipped in with the broth. This dish displays everything there is to love about Sichuan dining — delicate cubes of silken tofu and slices of tender fish suspended in a vivid red chile and bean paste sauce, and topped with dried chilies and scallions. The less prominently displayed peppercorns gradually reveal their presence in the tingling sensation that strikes a few mouthfuls after the bold spiciness of the chilies. Overall, the spices are used with a cautious hand. Especially when eaten with rice, I could enjoy delicious mouthful after mouthful without having to stop for a gulp of ice water.

0SENSOR FROM PAGE 8 differ from my own sound, mainly post rock.”

Sensor said he is adamant about being independent from the mainstream.

“Major labels, film corporations, they tend to suck the quality out of art,” Sensor said.“The more creative things come from the smaller places.”

His fondness for the underground is evident when discussing literature, referring to the novel “On the Road.”

“I’m living out my Kerouac fantasy right now,” Sensor said. “Bumming around, trying to find meaning out in America. It’s great, man.”

College students are often expected to predetermine their entire careers. The unknown can be daunting and students are constantly bombarded with career fairs, practice interviews and the daunting task of networking. At 23, what separates Sensor from this mindset is his commitment to his passions. He makes a point to reject the conventional model of school, marriage, kids and death that so many people are pressured to follow.

“Put in the work. If you’re going to do it, fucking do it,” Sensor said, in advising college students to go off the academic-oriented path of success. “Being an artist requires a great deal of sacrifice. Don’t expect anything. The point is to make really good art.”

Trevor Sensor will be performing at the White Oak Music Hall on Saturday, Oct. 9, in support of Foy Vance’s “Wild Swan World” tour.

jiayi lyu/thresher

Guests discuss an exhibition at this year’s Texas Contemporary Arts Fair. The fair showcased galleries from top contemporary artists across the globe from Sept. 29 through Oct. 2.

WHAT IS THIS THING CALLED SWING?

The 4th annual

Boutique Clothing Sale

.

First Pick Party Thursday October 6th

JIM BERNHARD

American Entertainment Group Presents: :

STEVE HALE

Ned Battista and his 16 piece orchestra in an evening of American Jazz and Swing Music from Early DevelopDevelop ments to 1945

Friday October 7th and Saturday October 8th

NED BATTISTA

Stude Concert Hall, Rice University October 8, 2016 8:00 PM

TIANNA HALL

12

jiayi lyu/thresher

Senior linebacker Alex Lyons defends against a University of North Texas receiver during last week’s 42-35 overtime loss to the Mean Green. Lyons is on pace for a career year, amassing 40 tackles in the Owls’ five games this season. Despite his production, the Rice defense has given up more yards than any other Division I team so far this season. Lyons and the Owls will have a bye week this week.

Lyons adding exclamation point to strong career Madison Buzzard For the Thresher

Senior linebacker Alex Lyons started playing football at only six years old. Now, as a seasoned veteran for the Rice football team, Lyons is a preseason All-Conference USA selection and a pivotal leader in the Owls’ defense.

Through five games in the 2016 season, Lyons has already registered 40 tackles, on pace for a career high. Additionally, Lyons has broken up a pass play and assisted on a tackle for loss.

While high-marking statistics and numerous accolades note his individual success, Lyons is quick to deflect the attention away from himself and toward his teammates. According to Lyons, his focus has to remain on those who support him and not the numbers in the box score.

“A big part of my success is because of my teammates, those around me who push me everyday, and my family who is always supporting me,” Lyons said. “I try not to pay attention to [the accolades] and keep my mind focused on the field.”

Lyons’ success and dedication to his

teammates and the Owls’ football team is not newfound. After a solid freshman year in 2013, Lyons flashed signs of brilliance during the 2014 season, positing 71 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks. Compiling those impressive statistics, especially as a second-year player, drew massive amounts of attention. Lyons said he believes playing the game helped him push aside the distractions from the attention.

“When I got on that field, I was free,” Lyons said. “I was home. I just loved it.”

Lyons continued his dominant play in 2015, compounding his career totals with

77 tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss. The year catapulted Lyons into the ultimate leadership role: coach on the field. The additional responsibility has not changed his approach to the game, however. According to Lyons, he allows his play to speak for itself.

“I’m a lead by example kind of guy,” Lyons said. “I make plays and try to keep guys encouraged.”

Lyons will have to set a winning example if the Owls are going to make the postseason in 2016. Their current 0-5 start is Rice’s worst since 2009, when Rice finished the season a 0see FOOTBALL, page 15

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

SPORTS

the Rice Thresher

13

Told by Tolpadi

After 0-5 start to the football season, it is time for Rice to part ways with head coach David Bailiff After a 44-28 loss to the University of Southern Mississippi, the Rice University football team will head into its bye week winless, sporting an 0-5 record. The team has alarmingly taken steps back in numerous key categories; most embarrassingly, the team ranks dead last among all Division I schools in yards allowed per game (567) and 120th in points allowed per game (40.2). With the team in the midst of a second straight down season and facing the heightened expectations that come with football facility upgrades, the time has come for head coach David Bailiff to go.

Coming off a disappointing 2015 season, the Owls were determined to return to a bowl game after failing to do so for the first time in four years. They were plagued a year ago by a series of issues that they saw as correctable: An excessive number of penalties, a defense prone to giving up the big play and inconsistent quarterback play were among them. Bailiff repeatedly said during the offseason that he “liked the way his team worked” when asked about the progress his team made. He furthermore expressed in practically every interview that there is “power in failure” when asked how his team was handled failing to qualify for a bowl game. The team underwent a change at quarterback but had otherwise retained nearly all of its starters and key contributors from a year ago. The thinking was, with another year of development, the Owls would be competitive within Conference USA and be in the thick of the hunt for a bowl game. This was an opinion shared by many, as the Owls were picked to finish third within the C-USA West Division.

Fast forward to the present, and what has been made clear thus far is that the Owls have regressed from their disappointing season a year ago. Whereas the defense a year ago was prone

to giving up big plays and was one of the most porous in Division I college football, it is now, by yardage allowed, the most porous in Division I college football. The pass defense is even more remarkably bad: The Owls rank last in Division I in yards allowed for pass attempt with 11.9, while the second-to-last team in this category gives up 9.2 yards per attempt. The team is still plagued by penalties, as they are the fifth most penalized team in C-USA after spending years as being one of the least penalized teams in the conference. They have not led often this season, but in a game against North Texas in which they raced out to a 17-0 lead, they also demonstrated a lack of a killer instinct to finish off the game, ultimately losing.

[Bailiff ’s] philosophy – namely, his boundless optimism – no longer seems to be reaching the team.

Most frustratingly, the team appears hellbent on implementing an offense predicated on stretching the field horizontally and throwing a large number of passes at or beyond the line of scrimmage, even though this strategy has been extremely unsuccessful in 4 of the 5 games. The Owls have shown a refusal to adapt from this strategy, forcing their offense into numerous

third-and-long situations that they are not built to manage. Perhaps the offense will look better as they play inferior opponents within conference play, but it has undoubtedly not been good enough to field a competitive team.

It not only matters that Rice has lost; it matters how Rice has lost. And it is through this lens that one must analyze Rice’s football team. Given the conference in which the Owls play, the academic standards to which they must adhere in recruiting and the size of the university’s alumni network in general, they cannot reasonably expect to defeat some of the opponents that they have played in years past, such as Baylor University, the University of Notre Dame and Texas A&M University. The standards to which they should always be held, however, include the following: discipline on the field, adaptive offensive game plans and sound tackling, to name a few. In their games this year, the Owls simply have not played up to those standards. As Bailiff says so often to the media, “Everything we do here at Rice, we have to do it precise,” which is exactly what his team has failed to do for most of of the last two seasons.

As one of the longest-tenured coaches within Conference USA, Bailiff has restored respectability to the Rice football program, bringing them to four bowl games and winning a Conference USA championship in 2013. That said, the 2016 Owls look like a shell of their former selves. They are no longer as disciplined a team, nor as talented, and they do not execute nearly like they did in previous years. In other words, his team has lost the identity that made them successful in years past, and it is not a stretch to say that this program could begin to lose the respect it has earned if that does not change. Bailiff was certainly the right coach for the program once he was brought on board from

Texas State University in 2007. That said, his philosophy — namely, his boundless optimism — no longer seems to be reaching the team, and his staff continues to make the same coaching mistakes game after game. A lack of discipline and poor utilization of the talent on the team must ultimately fall on the coaches. After two years of failing to reach expectations and making blatant coaching errors, it is time for Bailiff and his staff to go.

Looking toward the remainder of the season, the Owls will have consecutive home games after their bye week against the University of Texas, San Antonio and Prairie View A&M University.

One can only hope that the bye week can serve as a “reset button” of sorts for a program that has not threatened its goals for the season to this point. With their bowl game hopes all but shot, we will learn a lot in the weeks to come as the team is playing primarily for pride and for roles next season. Rice football has lost its way, and we will see if the team can regain their lost identity during what remains of the season.

Told by Tolpadi is a column written by Aniket Tolpadi. The opinions expressed in the column are solely his own.

Aniket Tolpadi

is a Duncan College junior and Thresher staff writer

sean chu/thresher

Head coach Genny Volpe instructs the volleyball team during last week’s 3-0 sweep over Lousisiana Tech University. Volpe, in her 13th year at the helm of the team, has led the Owls to a record of 11-7 so far this season. Rice is currently on a seven-game winning streak following a sweep of conference rival Middle Tennessee State University and a 3-1 win over Tennessee State University on the road.

Volpe using experience to sustain winning culture Craig Broadman Thresher Staff

Since 2004, the Rice University women’s volleyball team has compiled a 232-157 record, paving the way for eight winning seasons, one Conference USA championship (2009), three second-place finishes (2004, 2011 and 2012) and three berths to the NCAA tournament (2004, 2008 and 2009), the only three appearances in Rice volleyball history.

It is no coincidence that head coach Genny Volpe’s arrival coincides with the beginning of this historic run. Under Volpe, the Owls have enjoyed their winningest period under

a single head coach.

Volpe, however, refuses to accept much credit for Rice’s consistent success, despite being named Conference USA Coach of the Year in 2008. She said many other people have had their share in developing the Rice volleyball program into what it is today.

“No head coach could do it alone,” Volpe said. “My coaching staff and I work very hard, but so much goes into being a consistent performing team. We need great strength coaches, athletic trainers and most importantly, student athletes that are all-in. I felt blessed that we have had so many awesome players come through this program.”

[Volpe] has a lot of energy in practice every day.

Leah Mikesky Senior Volleyball Captain One of these players is senior captain Leah Mikesky, one of 14 Conference USA All-Academic selections and one of 38 All-

Conference selections under Volpe. In an interview with the Thresher earlier this year, Mikesky said the interaction between Volpe and the athletes is very positive. “[Volpe] has a lot of energy in practice every day,” Mikesky said. “It’s really easy to talk to her and she is really open to our feedback. If we have any concerns or questions, [she] listens to us and what we think.”

According to Volpe, being more open is a product of her developing into a better coach since coming to Rice.

“I love learning new things and discovering other methods of coaching from 0see VOLLEYBALL, page 14

14 SPORTS

0VOLLEYBALL from page 13 my peers,” Volpe said. “I think the volleyball circle is unique in that sense. Those of us that truly live the game share ideas.”

This team is a great combination of youth and experience. It is a group that is eager to get better every day.

Genny Volpe Volleyball Head Coach

Volpe has been living the game for a while now, in several different roles. After playing for the Texas A&M University team as a four-year letterwinner setter and outside hitter, Volpe became a student assistant coach for the Corbellis at A&M in 1994. In 2002, Volpe participated in the USA Volleyball National Tournament and earned a selection to the all-tournament team by leading her team, Texas Advantage, to a third-place finish in the AA Gold Division National Championship. She also served as an assistant coach at Rice (1995), Southern Methodist University (1996-2000) and Texas A&M (2001-2003) before finally landing a head coaching job at Rice. According to Volpe, there is something unique about Rice that keeps her coming back even after 13 years.

“Rice is a very special place,” Volpe said. “There are very few universities that set the bar high both athletically and academically. I feel fortunate to be able to lead this program and am thankful. The type of student athletes we attract and recruit are

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

the Rice Thresher wonderful people and a joy to coach.”

This year has been no exception, and Volpe said the team, which has won seven straight games after a disappointing 4-7 start to the season, is unique from all of her previous teams.

“I can honestly say there have never been two teams alike [that I have coached],” Volpe said. “This team is a great combination of youth and experience. It is a group that is eager to get better each day.”

Currently tied for second in Conference USA behind 16-2 Western Kentucky University, Rice is aiming to get back to its first NCAA tournament since 2009, when it won the its only Conference USA championship. According to Volpe, the Owls have a shot if this team accomplishes some key tasks.

“A lot goes into making the postseason,” Volpe said. “Staying healthy. Staying focused. Keeping up with academics so in November we are peaking. We need to have a strong conference season and put ourselves in the best position to win the [Conference USA tournament]. If we do those things, NCAA postseason could be in our future.”

This year, the Owls will get the opportunity to play for the conference championship at home in Tudor Fieldhouse. Rice will host the Conference USA tournament beginning Nov. 18 and the tournament champion will earn the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA tournament. Volpe said she is hoping Rice students will come to support the team.

“The more support we get from the students at Rice the better,” Volpe said. “The last time we hosted we had great support and we hope that the students come out again. It was an awesome environment.”

As for the volleyball program in general, Volpe said she is proud of what has been accomplished but is not content with where the program is right now.

“Rice volleyball has certainly made great strides over the years, and I’m really proud of that,” Volpe said. “I see our team continuing to grow and recruit the best of the best. I see our team continuing to compete on a national level, and consistently competing for conference championships. We are always striving for that championship.”

The Final Kauntdown A football-free space

Listen, I know. It’s not fun to read the sports section right now. Was it ever? I don’t know. But that’s not the point. The most popular sport on campus, football, is not fun to watch. In fact, it’s totally unwatchable. And not just because the Rice-University of Southern Mississippi game was not broadcast on television this past weekend.

The football team is bad. 0-5 bad. No.-1-teamin-the-ESPN-Bottom-10-rankings bad. So why would you read another article about how terrible our football team is?

What is the point of watching five weeks of losses when you can watch a team that doesn’t lose?

Thankfully, you don’t have to. This column is a football-free space. But not a safe space, because President Leebron would not approve.

After all, why should you care about a winless football team when you can watch the women’s cross country team, which finished second in the Rim Rock Classic ahead of No. 26 University of Kansas? Sophomore Abigail Cartwright won her second race of the season in the meet, finishing first out of a field of 89 runners. The football team still hasn’t finished first in a field of two teams — and it has had five tries. Seniors Katie Jensen and Cali Roper finished third and fifth, respectively, to round out a stellar showing from the Owls’ top three.

What is the point of watching five weeks of losses when you can watch a team that doesn’t lose? If you like wins, volleyball is the team to follow. The Owls have not been defeated since Sept. 14 and have won 21 of their past 25 sets. And,

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best of all, senior Madison McDaniel was named Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week this week. Perhaps football’s defense, ranked dead last in Division I in yards allowed per game, could use her on the team.

Or, if you’re devoted to football, why not stick with it? Become a fan of Rice’s other football — er, well, soccer — team. The soccer team narrowly lost to Western Kentucky University on Friday and then beat the University of Southern Mississippi Sunday behind a late goal from sophomore Darcy Mickalow. The Owls shut out their opponents for the third time this season as freshman goalkeeper Samantha Colley kept the Golden Eagles’ offense at bay. Football, on the other hand, let the Golden Eagles score 44 points.

And if none of these options work for you, just wait until next month. There’s only one name you need to know: Marcus Evans. He’s the one who outscored No. 1 overall NBA draft pick Ben Simmons last season to lead all NCAA Division I freshmen in points per game. He averaged 21.4 points per game in 2015-16, or 1.2 points per game more than Rice’s football team has scored this season. This year, Evans was picked by College Sports Madness to win the Conference USA Player of the Year Award.

So I get it. I would hate to read another article about our 0-5 football team, too. Our lost-inovertime-to-North-Freaking-Texas football team.

Our football team that turned its first punt of the season into its first safety of the season. But lucky for you, you didn’t have to.

Opinions expressed belong solely to columnist.

Andrew Grottkau

is a McMurtry College sophomore and Thresher Sports Editor

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

SPORTS

the Rice Thresher

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Madison McDaniel: Junior Setter This week, the Thresher recognizes volleyball junior setter Madison McDaniel as Rice’s Athlete of the Week.

McDaniel helped Rice earn two road victories over the weekend, one over Middle Tennessee State University and another over Tennessee State University. In the victory over the Blue Raiders, she recorded 29 assists and 12 digs to help the Owls to a 3-0 sweep of their conference rivals. In the four set win against the Tigers, she added 44 assists and 18 kills. McDaniel was honored with the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week for her performance in the wins.

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15

POWDERPUFF STANDINGS Teams

Wins

Losses

Pt. Diff

McMurtry

4

0

104

Duncan

3

0

24

Baker

3

0

17

Hanszen

3

1

12

Brown

2

2

-28

Martel

1

2

0

Will Rice

1

2

-11

GSA

1

2

-12

Sid Rich

1

2

-30

Lovett

0

2

-12

Jones

0

2

-13

Wiess

0

4

-51

sean chu/thresher

0FOOTBALL from page 12 paltry 2-10. For Rice to be bowl eligible, it will have to win six of its last seven games.

Still, Lyons believes in his team as long as it remains motivated.

I couldn’t have made a better decision. Rice has been great to me.

Alex Lyons Senior Linebacker

“When guys get their heads down, I tell them to keep their heads up,” Lyons said.

“You’re going to make mistakes, but you rebound from it.”

Additionally, many critics have commented on head coach David Bailiff ’s job security due to the unpromising start to the season. While some of those concerns may be valid, Lyons said he still has full confidence in the character and ability of his coach.

“Coach Bailiff is a stand-up guy,” Lyons said. “He is a man of his word. Whatever he says he’s going to do, he is going to do.

That’s what I want to be as a man in the future. I want to be a man of my word.”

A combination of Bailiff, Lyons’ teammates and Rice University as a whole has left Lyons reminiscing on his five years as a football player for the Owls. Lyons said he is thrilled he made the choice to come to Rice.

“Looking back I feel I couldn’t have made a better decision,” Lyons said. “Rice has been great to me, and I’m thankful to the opportunity it has provided.”

Lyons and the Owls will be in action on Saturday, Oct. 15 when they host the University of Texas, San Antonio at Rice Stadium at 6 p.m. They will look for their first win and their first conference win in the game against the Roadrunners.

Born to run

courtesy rice athletics

Senior Katie Jensen sprints to the finish line during Rice’s win in the Texas A&M University Invitational on Sept. 24. Rice finished second in the Rim Rock Invitational this past weekend, ahead of No. 26 University of Kansas, as Jensen took third place individually.

16 BACKPAGE

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

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