The Student Association election ballot was recalled just an hour after it went live Feb. 26 after voters found errors. At the end of the ballot, voters were presented with five different constitutional amendments, which proposed varying changes ranging from grammatical fixes to raising the Blanket Tax. The original ballot only allowed students one vote instead of five individual ones, presenting the amendments as a bundle.
Just before 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 26, the Elections Committee released a statement via the SA’s Instagram story acknowledging the error and moving the voting period timeline. The ballot reopened on Feb. 27 and will close March 6, one day later than planned. All votes cast with the original ballot will be erased, the committee wrote in the statement.
“This error occurred due to a miscommunication between the Elections Committee and the faculty member responsible for creating and distributing surveys,” the statement read.
Heather-Reneé Gooch, the associate director of student engagement, said the director of elections is responsible for ballot creation, using past ballots as a guide.
“It is up to the [director of elections] to ensure the ballot creation is properly structured and for presenting the ballot to Senate for approval,” Gooch wrote in an email to the Thresher.
Angela Thompson, the assistant director of survey administration at the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, is the faculty member who distributes the ballot. Thompson said the mistake was not due to a miscommunication. She said her role entailed the administrative functions of distributing the ballot and not the specific contents of the ballot.
Natalie Wang, the director of elections for the SA, did not respond to requests for comment.
The Thresher obtained an anonymous complaint, filed with the elections committee, alleging that the changed timeline is in violation of Bylaw 3102.1.4, an elections rule which states that any changes to the election timeline must first be approved by a majority vote at Senate.
“Simply changing the timeline via Instagram is not enough,” the complainant, an anonymous student, wrote.
Simply changing the timeline via Instagram is not enough.
Anonymous Student
The complaint also alleges that the SA elections committee has violated Bylaw 3102.1.3, which states that the director of elections must announce the general election — and all relevant timelines — at least three weeks prior to the start of voting.
“By changing when the election will take place, the Director of Elections has deviated from the timeline in the Election Rules Handbook that was approved by the Senate on the 18th of November,” the complaint reads.
UCourt Chair Beck Hall did not respond to a request for comment.
The complaint also raises issues with the SA’s method of communicating ballot changes.
“Announcing this change via Instagram does not serve as an effective means of communication to the student body,” the complaint reads.
“This election cannot continue tomorrow, as doing so would be a flagrant violation of the Student Association’s Constitution and Bylaws.”
A brand-new, second student center will open by Fall 2027, president Reggie DesRoches announced in a March 3 email to campus. The current Rice Memorial Center will not be demolished, and will continue to house Rice Coffeehouse, Pub and student media during construction over the next two years. It will undergo renovations after the second building is complete.
The final structure, a “studentfocused hub” called the Moody Center Complex for Student Life, will include the current and new student centers and surround the Central Quad.
The new student center — funded through a collective $115 million gift — will open four years
The new student center will stand parallel to Brochstein Pavilion, in between the existing Rice Memorial Center and Herring Hall. Together, the four buildings will surround the Central Quad.
after its original timeline, and nearly five years after Rice first started to plan the new design. In 2022, construction was delayed due to supply chain issues, pushing the deadline for a new student center to the end of 2024. Then, Rice “reset” the project in 2023 — scrapping the original design — after David Adjaye, founder of the architecture firm Rice had retained for the project, was accused of sexual misconduct.
Rice has now hired a new architecture firm, Olson Kundig, to lead the project.
Rice rebrands DEI office amid federal scrutiny
protected, regardless of any differences.”
Rice has renamed its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence, announced in a Feb. 28 campuswide email from Provost Amy Dittmar. This change arrives as universities across the country adapt — often altering or erasing diversity statements entirely — to federal anti-DEI legislation.
“Rice’s commitment to diversity, academic freedom and excellence is unwavering, and the new name furthers the mission and work of the university in these areas,” Dittmar wrote in a statement to the Thresher. “We aim to build and promote a community at Rice where everyone feels safe, respected, empowered and
Alexander Byrd, vice provost at the now-Office of AIE, said the office’s new name was chosen to reflect the expanded scope of the department.
We aim to build and promote a community at Rice where everyone feels safe, respected, empowered and protected, regardless of any differences.
Amy Dittmar PROVOST
JAMES CANCELARICH ASST. NEWS EDITOR
RIYA MISRA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
VIOLA HSIA ASST. NEWS EDITOR
Graphic by Alice Sun; rendering courtesy Olson Kundig
COURTESY OLSON KUNDIG
Hoot returns after a month
The Hoot remained closed after winter break, reopening a month late with new hours of operation.
schedules by consistently monitoring social media and ordering an appropriate amount of food to reflect our projections,” Hahn wrote.
‘Topping Out’ next step for new business building
ABIGAIL CHIU SENIOR WRITER
Rice Business celebrated the completion of the highest point of its new building with a “topping out” ceremony Feb. 28, where President Reggie DesRoches and Peter Rodriguez, dean of the Jones Graduate School of Business, signed the building’s final beam before it was lifted into place atop the structure.
The business school broke ground on the new building in May. The unnamed 112,000-square-foot building will include classrooms, dining areas and event spaces. It is set to be completed by spring 2026, and DesRoches said in a speech to attendees he was told the construction of the building is on time, if not early.
The beam had an American flag, a Texas flag and a fir tree, which is a construction tradition.
The new building is intended to accommodate enrollment increases over the past few years, DesRoches said in a speech to the attendees.
“The growth of Rice Business school reflects a much larger story unfolding across our campus,” DesRoches said. “For the past five years, we’ve launched programs, extended initiatives and welcomed a record number of students and faculty. We’ve seen a rapid rise in undergraduate business majors, a 75% increase in the MBA students since 2016 and a 41% growth in faculty.”
Rodriguez said the new building will be a hub of collaboration.
“This building stands as more than just a structure of steel and concrete of brick. It’s a symbol of possibility,” Rodriguez said. “By 2026 — well, sometime in 2026 — this building will be built with students, faculty and ideas that will shape the future of business.”
Say goodbye to those unsatisfied late night cravings, because The Hoot has reopened as of Feb. 17.
According to Genesis Hahn, the general manager for The Hoot, the most significant change made during the extended closure is to hours of operation.
“The Hoot now operates from MondayWednesday and opens at 8:30 p.m.,” Hahn, a Hanzen College senior, wrote in an email to the Thresher. “This is to allow Cart Noodles to open from ThursdaySaturday, and the later opening hour is to reflect the changes made to servery hours,” Hanh said.
Hahn said The Hoot plans to change their ordering to better suit the food that students want at the times that they are most likely to purchase.
“We hope to better understand student
Returning to the menu are Oui Banh Mi, Papa Johns Pizza and Raising Cane’s, in addition to various snacks and beverages. However, Hahn said the Hoot is also planning for specialty items such as Whataburger or Cinnabon. Furthermore, Hahn also said The Hoot’s menu pricing will remain the same as last semester.
Hahn said the delayed opening was due to the new schedule as well as hiring and
“As we were communicating with H&D about new food options and servery schedules, hiring and onboarding staff, reorganizing our storage space, and planning for the future (such as projections for ordering with our new hours), we didn’t want to rush anything by opening before we felt everything was ready,” Hahn wrote.
Glasscock School introduces undergrad teaching minor
and Houston.
The Glasscock School for Continuing Studies introduced a new teaching minor, which is now available to declare. The minor is the first undergraduate program offered by the Glasscock School.
The minor consists of six upperlevel courses totaling 21 credit hours. Topics covered include the historical, philosophical and sociological foundations of education as well as assessment techniques, teaching diverse learners, curriculum development and teaching methods.
“This teaching minor is yet another way we can help build thriving urban communities, which is a priority of Momentous, the university’s 10-year strategic plan,” Dittmar wrote in an email to the Thresher.
The program includes EDUC 467, a 14-week practicum where students teach alongside mentors in Houston-area schools. Rangel said the program will be structured around the needs of both students and schools.
This teaching minor is yet another way we can help build thriving urban communities.
Amy Dittmar PROVOST
Brenda Rangel, the assistant dean of the Rice Center for Education, said that the program was in part developed due to the state of public education in Texas.
“There are more teachers retiring and less joining the field of education, so what is really important for us is that we really strengthen the teacher pipeline here in Houston and beyond,” Rangel said.
Provost Amy Dittmar said that the minor would contribute directly to increasing qualified public school teachers in Texas
“Every student is different, and we want it to be a good fit for them, a good fit for that school community,” Rangel said.
This program, combined with an undergraduate degree, can allow students to apply for a Texas Teacher Certification. Glasscock has tutoring services and faculty that will provide feedback on the required video portfolio and content exam to be a certified teacher in Texas.
“Everyone’s had an amazing teacher that has impacted them. And when they think about that amazing teacher, that’s what they want for all of the students in the Houston area and beyond,” Rangel said.
Dittmar said that the minor will have a
wide range of professional applications.
“In addition to [pre-K and K-12] education careers, this minor could be beneficial to students who go on to careers in educational technology, human resources, psychology public policy and more,” Dittmar wrote.
Chaitanya Ghatty, a Wiess College freshman, said that he would be interested in taking teaching and education courses to improve his professional skills as an aspiring professor.
“Something that’s really valuable to me as a teacher, tutor, whatever, is just knowing how different kinds of people work, knowing how to write my lessons, write pedagogy, stuff like that,” Ghatty said. And I think
taking an education course or a teaching course could just be really valuable for me. I think a teaching course could be valuable for most everybody.”
Chaitanya said that while he will be taking courses in the program, he does not expect to complete the minor because of the commitment. He also said he was concerned about whether the minor will address broader challenges such as teacher compensation, respect and overall treatment.
“Education is baked into everything we do and into every facet of our society, so people who are able to teach others, I think those people are just inherently valuable,” Chaitanya said.
DEVAN SANKA FOR THE THRESHER
KONSTANTIN SAVVON / THRESHER
ABIGAIL CHIU / THRESHER
The final beam for the structure was signed by the construction team, resident Reggie Desroches and Jones Graduate School of Business Dean Peter Rodriguez.
VALENTINA KUSCHNIR FOR THE THRESHER
JENNIFER LIU / THRESHER
Students petition for immigrant student sanctuary policies
ABIGAIL CHIU
SENIOR WRITER
Students are petitioning university officials to declare Rice a sanctuary campus, which offers protections to international and undocumented students and, notably, does not cooperate with immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant. The petition garnered over 400 signatures by March 4, said Conner Schultz, the co-chair of Rice’s chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America. Rice YDSA spearheaded the petition, which has now been co-signed by campus organizations like Students for Justice in Palestine, Planned Parenthood Generation and Rice Urbanists.
immigration [enforcement].”
Federal immigration agents must be allowed on campus if they have a judicial warrant. If they have an administrative warrant, they must receive Rice’s permission to enter, according to an FAQ by the Office of International Students and Scholars.
Rice is at risk, and every single college in the United States is at risk of dealing with immigration [enforcement].
Conner Schultz
RICE YOUNG DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS OF AMERICA CO-CHAIR
The petition asks Rice to publicly declare itself as a sanctuary for undocumented students, workers and associates and codify a refusal to work with state and federal immigration agents without a judicial warrant, which would include not letting such agents onto Rice’s private campus.
Schultz, one of the primary petition authors, said he started researching sanctuary campuses in January. The movement picked up in 2016, after Donald Trump was elected to his first presidential term — schools like the University of Pennsylvania and Texas A&M University either adopted or considered the label.
“Trump is back in office and pushing a lot of anti-immigration, antiinternational rhetoric,” Schultz said.
“The Department of Homeland Security declared that schools are no longer safe zones from ICE raids. So Rice is at risk, and every single college in the United States is at risk of dealing with
“The law requires Rice to allow federal immigration agents on campus to discuss immigration matters with university officials, including OISS,” the website reads.
“RUPD has no plans to independently enforce federal immigration law. However, it must comply with judicial warrants given to it by other law enforcement agencies.”
A judicial warrant, which is issued by a judge, allows immigration enforcement to enter private property such as Rice.
An administrative warrant, issued by an agency like ICE, does not carry the same legal force. Schultz said administration indicated they would cooperate with administrative warrants as well, also allowing enforcement to access OISS records — which include information about student immigration status.
“On a Zoom call with faculty two weeks ago, the RUPD chief [Clemente Rodriguez], and the General Counsel, Omar Syed, both confirmed that they were willing to work with ICE and FBI if they wish to come on campus,” Schultz said. “And not only that, they also said they would do it if they had an administrative warrant.”
University administration and RUPD declined to comment.
The petition calls for Rice to guarantee the privacy of international students and staff by refusing to disclose immigration status information to immigration
enforcement and provide educational and legal support to students who are arrested, detained or deported.
“I don’t have any bad faith with administration. They’re going to try to support their students the best way they can,” Schultz said. “But I feel like they’re also going to cave if ICE actually puts pressure onto them. That’s what my biggest fear is, because we have a hostile state government and hostile federal government towards immigration.”
Schultz said he sees the sanctuary campus as a way for Rice to show it is committed to protecting its students by ingraining it in their policy. He said he hopes to get 1,500 signatures by March to send the petition to Rice officials and in
the meantime is also drafting a resolution for the Student Association.
Sammi Frey, co-president of Rice Young Democrats, said she encourages Rice students to stay aware of immigration enforcement activity in Houston. RYD did not co-sign the petition, and Frey did not comment on why.
“The feeling of protection that Rice’s gates provide to many of us is a privilege and can blind us from seeing things just 30 minutes away, like Colony Ridge, where over 100 people got arrested by ICE agents,” Frey wrote in an email to the Thresher. “I didn’t hear one person talking about that the next day — pay attention to that silence and don’t let yourself contribute to it.”
Admin agrees to $10 min. wage
“Members of the office reflected on the mission of the office and the work that we do and then explored and discussed a number of names,” Byrd wrote in a statement to the Thresher. “The new name, the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence, reflects the breadth of the work that the office engages in to ensure that all Rice students can realize their full potential and find community at the university, regardless of their backgrounds.”
The office will add team members dedicated to religious diversity and pluralism, university life and freedom of expression, support for veterans, resources for community college transfer students and “LGBTQ+ Thriving,” according to
Dittmar’s Feb. 28 email.
Just a week before the name change announcement, President Regigie DesRoches sent a campus-wide email reaffirming Rice’s commitment to diversity and academic freedom in response to a Feb. 15 guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Education prohibiting raceconscious programs.
“In times of scrutiny, the wideranging research and scholarship that universities like Rice perform becomes even more important,” DesRoches wrote in his Feb. 21 email. “Our priority is to preserve Rice’s commitment to our mission, while safeguarding academic freedom and minimizing the risk of misinterpretation of the critical work conducted at our university.”
JAMES CANCELARICH / THRESHER
The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion was renamed to the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence in the wake of state and federal crackdowns on DEI programs.
hour minimum wage.”
The Student Association’s Labor Commission received a verbal commitment from Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman Feb. 10 to raise the student minimum wage from $7.25 to $10 an hour. This change will be applied in July 2025 for the start of the 2025-2026 fiscal year.
Gorman declined a request for comment.
Oscar Vietor, the Labor Commission’s chair, said that the commission reached out to Gorman with the petition towards the end of last year, after which she met with various members of administration.
“We ended up collecting over 400 signatures on our initial petition, and we’ve been meeting with the Senate and making sure that Dean Gorman is advocating on the behalf of undergraduates,” said Vietor, a Wiess College sophomore. “If we can continue this advocacy, it seems realistic that in the future we could achieve a $15 an
According to the Labor Commission’s survey conducted last year, 13% of undergraduates with on-campus jobs currently make less than $10 an hour.
“Among those students, they’re going to be getting an average raise of $2.13 an hour,” said Matti Haacke, the Labor Commission’s vice chair.
“The biggest wage changes in this are … mostly going to be Fondren workers or TAs or people that are paid much closer to the actual [federal] minimum wage of $7.25 an hour,” Vietor said.
The Labor Commission said administration will establish a timeline for raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
“Dean Gorman did commit to an end goal of $15 without providing a specific timeline, and that was due to the current crisis of higher ed funding,” said Haacke, a Sid Richardson College senior. “She did believe that by next year, she would have a set timeline for when the minimum wage would reach $15.”
NDIDI NWOSU / THRESHER
FROM FRONT PAGE DEI RENAMED
HONGTAO HU ASST. NEWS EDITOR
ABBY PEREZ / THRESHER
‘Real life sort of friendship’:
Darr runs for treasurer
Nudge app launches at Rice amid electoral confusion
Nudge, a social media app created by McMurtry College sophomores Ben Rubin and Yining Zhang, launched Feb. 24. Rubin and Zhang say the platform aims to promote in-person social interaction and authentic sharing. Nudge currently has 300 users.
Nudge was designed in response to infrequent interaction between users on other social platforms, Rubin said.
“It feels like social media has become more about passive consumption rather than active participation,” Rubin said. “Nobody really posts anymore … It feels like you’re just scrolling content, and we wanted to come up with a solution to that.”
Zhang said that this problem is because in-app friendships often do not reflect dayto-day friendships.
“On Instagram, you have hundreds or even thousands of followers that you don’t really interact with on a regular basis, and that creates this pressure for you when you post, to perform to this audience,” Zhang said. “That felt unnatural and doesn’t reflect the real life sort of friendship we have.”
using, I’m just using it by myself and seeing what my friends have been doing by themselves,” said Stewart-Aday, a McMurtry College senior. “But with Nudge, what’s unique about it is that you use it by being in person with other people, and when you’re scrolling you see who your friends were with and what they were doing.”
Nate Dominitz, Rubin and Zhang’s suitemate, said that he was one of the alpha testers before the app launched and saw many improvements.
It feels like social media has become more about passive consumption rather
than active participation.
Ben Rubin
“It was pretty bare bones when we first got it,” said Dominitz, a McMurtry College sophomore. “I know me and some of my friends started leaving suggestions, like new features, and they added a photo diary, like a calendar. You can scroll back through and see all your nudges and posts from every day. And also they added streaks … A lot of cool features the past few weeks.”
NUDGE CO-FOUNDER
Rubin said that the biggest thing he and Zhang learned from creating the app was to listen to user feedback.
The two main features of the app are the “nudge,” or collaborative post, where users can post pictures when they are physically together by tapping their phone, and a 10 day time limit for friends after a nudge, where posts from expired friendships are blurred out, Zhang said.
“With Nudge, you can meet with your friends more often and socialize,” Zhang said. “This also removes any barrier to posting because people seeing your posts are people you actually meet up regularly in person.”
There is also a five minute time limit to post after a nudge, according to Rubin.
“The nudge was inspired by BeReal’s kind of post,” Rubin said. “We tried to capture the informal nature of their posts because we realized that that’s what was making social media authentic … People weren’t carefully curating their posts.”
Jamie Stewart-Aday, a Nudge user, said that he enjoyed the in-person element of Nudge.
“Any other social media app I’m
“Listening to users is the most important thing because I feel like that’s how we’ve been able to keep improving and get it to the state that a lot of people like so far,” Rubin said. “That’s just been through constantly interviewing people … and doing exactly what people really want out of it.”
Dominitz said he likes the intimacy of using Nudge compared to other social media platforms.
“I don’t really post on Instagram … I feel like there’s a little less apprehension to post [on Nudge] because you just know the close friends you see pretty often and also the collaborative aspect of it,” Dominitz said. “The actual action of putting your phones together and the names pop up on the screen and you press ‘nudge’ is actually pretty enjoyable.”
Zhang said that he can see that his friends in McMurtry post more on Nudge than other social media platforms.
“We’re able to see … people just using [Nudge] naturally without us even prompting them,” Zhang said. “Their usage is probably higher than both [founders].”
HONGTAO HU ASST. NEWS EDITOR
Jackson Darr is running unopposed for treasurer in the ongoing SA elections, which are set to conclude March 6 after being delayed by ballot errors.
While the treasurer position was unfilled at the Feb. 6 campaign packet deadline, at the Feb. 10 Senate meeting, the director of elections Natalie Wang extended the deadline until Feb. 19 to collect petitions.
Although Darr submitted all the requisite campaign materials to Wang on Feb. 11, he said there was still confusion on whether he would be on the regular ballot.
While Darr does appear on the current ballot, it is unclear whether his candidacy was viable for the regular election. Bylaw 3103.2.1 states that “members of the Student Association who do not submit nominating petitions by the deadline may run as write-in candidates for any office for which they are eligible.”
On Feb. 24, SA secretary Chelsea Asibbey, released minutes for the Feb. 10 Senate, writing that the treasurer position would be filled via a special election.
However, in those minutes for the same Feb. 10 Senate, director of elections Natalie Wang said she would start “collecting positions starting tomorrow up until next Wednesday” for students interested in running for treasurer.
It is also unclear whether the director of elections can extend candidate deadlines for regular elections to waylay special elections.
If election regulations in the timeline are to be amended, in accordance with Bylaw 3102.1.4, they must be amended “only by a majority vote of the Senate.” Wang did not respond to request for comment.
Darr’s platform includes revitalizing the Hedgehopper cards, a 2008 SA program that allowed students to receive discounts on off-campus locations.
“It’s an older program where there was a card that students could purchase and it would give them access to discounts around the Houston Community,” Darr said. “I know Trevor [Tobey] has talked a lot about finding ways to bring discounts, to use in the community and get students outside of the hedges, so that’s definitely something I want to work on.”
Andrew Kim, the current Lovett president, said that he was impressed with Darr’s work as a Lovett SA new student representative. Editor’s Note: Andrew Kim is the Thresher’s Backpage editor.
“As NSR, he contributed to the SA’s report on justifications for raising the Blanket Tax and expanding Blanket Tax Organizations’ capacity to support student programming and wellbeing, and I have full faith that he has both the motivation and familiarity for the treasurer job,” Kim wrote in an email to the Thresher.
Rice reflects on Black History Month
CHARLIE CRUZ THRESHER STAFF
Rice concluded its Black History Month celebrations, which lasted from February until early March and featured more than 30 events highlighting Black culture, history and contributions to labor movements.
Themed “African Americans and Labor,” this year’s programming included panel discussions, film screenings and fellowship opportunities.
Martel College freshman Kaleb Blanton said that he valued the programming because of the pride and cultural richness that it fosters.
“Growing up in a Black household, I was surrounded by different cultural influences and traditions,” Blanton said. “It shaped my identity and deepened my
COURTESY CONNER SCHULTZ
Students performed in a showcase hosted by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the Multicultural Center Jan. 31 to kick off Black History Month.
appreciation for our history.”
Rice Owls of Color United co-president Ichmael Joseph said that the events highlighted the importance of unity within Rice’s Black student organizations and the broader community.
“We bring together student athletes and affinity groups to promote collaboration and ensure that everyone feels included,” said Joseph, a McMurtry College junior. “We’re also working on expanding our outreach beyond Rice to connect with schools in the surrounding area.”
Black Student Association co-president Mordecai Logan said he similarly wanted to create spaces that connect the community and honor the achievements of Black students.
This article has been cut off for pr int. Read more at ricethresher.org.
HOPE YANG ASST. NEWS EDITOR
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KATHERINE HUI / THRESHER
EDITORIAL STAFF
DEI office name change is symbolic, maybe necessary
Amidst federal funding cuts impacting research and firings of federal workers, higher education feels chaotic right now. At first glance, it seems alarming that Rice’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion was renamed to the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence, announced in a campus-wide email. However, we feel this name change is mostly symbolic and necessary to ensure Rice can continue supporting those values — in action, if not in name.
The move comes in response to the U.S. Department of Education’s letter referring to DEI programs as discrimination based on “racial preferences” and “racial stereotypes.” Dittmar’s email said current services will be expanded, including the
recently added staff position dedicated to LGBTQ+ Thriving. We are particularly heartened by plans to hire staff dedicated to religious pluralism and freedom of expression — though we hope the latter change comes alongside a reevaluation of recent changes to protest policy, seemingly developed without consulting students.
As the Trump administration enacts wide-ranging changes to higher education, Rice has seemingly doubled down on its efforts to support DEI, reaffirming its commitment through several campus-wide emails. It’s certainly not groundbreaking but, as peer institutions start to selfcensor and scrub DEI language from their websites, we appreciate that Rice has so far held steady.
It’s hard to stay hopeful right now. However, the administration’s attempt to reiterate their support is a signal that our identity as an inclusive institution is not at risk. While it’s frustrating to watch the words DEI disappear, we hope not much else will change.
Still, Dittmar’s email and the expansion of current services is just the beginning. We are watching whether the administration’s words will match up to their actions, especially as federal research funding is threatened and as campuses become vulnerable to immigration enforcement.
Editor’s Note: Opinions Editor Sammy Baek recused himself due to his involvement with the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence.
Rice protects rich abusers — but we shouldn’t
Editor’s Note: This is a letter to the editor that has been submitted by a member of the Rice community. The views expressed in this opinion are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of the Thresher or its editorial board. Letters to the editor are fact-checked to the best of our ability and edited for grammar and spelling by Thresher editors.
The author of this piece was granted anonymity due to personal safety risks.
“Culture of care” is our central motto at Rice. Orientation Week, Beer Bike, publics and even random days are accompanied by the phrase — a reminder that we’re always supposed to protect each other. We do not stand for harm. Yet even after being previously exposed for failing victims of sexual violence, Rice continues to bury cases in the name of its image, and more importantly, its endowment.
When I reported the abuse I endured, including death threats, I was met with disturbing apathy from resources I was told to trust. Student Judicial Programs, university administration and, most of all, RUPD failed me at every turn. Even after my abuser stalked me and showed up at my door, he did not face any consequences for his actions. Both residential college and Title IX administration had previously instructed him to stay away from me, which I later found out wasn’t enforceable since I had not filed a resolution. His excuses were taken at face value.
Abuse survivors have miniscule options on campus. An SJP complaint threatens criminal investigations by immediately providing evidence to the person you file against, and allowing the involved parties to “inspect and review all relevant evidence.”
SJP would not allow me to open a
complaint on the condition that they wait for the end of my criminal investigation, which proves tricky when you are in a race against commencement. And, despite being initially told that a no-contact order does not require a resolution, I was later told that it does. My last option was an informal resolution, but that required me to sign away my right to file an SJP complaint.
In what I strongly believe was a joint effort between RUPD and administration, my case was shuffled through the department ... They ensured my abuser would get off scot-free from the start; the plan was always to bury it.
I had three options: to let my abuser walk away without disciplinary action, go without legal consequences or let myself go without protection in hopes that RUPD would close their investigation soon enough for SJP to conduct theirs. After months of terror, I conceded and completed an informal resolution.
When the SAFE office warned me that victims seldom go to RUPD after being sexually assaulted, I should have known that it was not an issue of fear. Reporting is always traumatic, but it would prove to be the least terrible part of my experience with RUPD. In what I strongly believe was a joint effort between RUPD and administration, my case was shuffled through the department.
Evidence was “lost,” I was lied to, and, most damning: not only was my evidence determined not “good enough,” but the investigator who told me also let it slip that they decided so months before — when I could have still gone to SJP. RUPD never followed up with a friend of mine, the most crucial witness to his written confession, who provided her availability to meet. Yet RUPD insisted that she had refused a follow-up meeting.
Finally, in a message to my friend, my abuser said that RUPD was, to his knowledge, “not treating [the case] with any manner of urgency,” and that they did not even plan to investigate him. I now know that he was not lying. They ensured my abuser would get off scot-free from the start; the plan was always to bury it.
There are sadly countless other firstgeneration, low-income women on this campus whose stories rhyme with mine. Our evidence, our words, our lives did not matter — because the men who decided we were their property had more money, power and connections than us. I still vividly recall when my abuser told me that, because he is a white man and the son of a faculty member, he was “above the law.” He later told my mother that he would do whatever he wanted to me, and because of his wealth, she could not stop him.
We owe it to ourselves and one another, now more than ever, to demand better from those who are supposed to protect us. Rice pride lies in our culture of care. We are above this. It’s time for Rice to lead by example. No amount of privilege, money or power grants the right to harm another person.
And to the “men” who inspired this piece: we can do better than you, actually. We are not yours to hurt whenever you wish. Justice always prevails in the end.
Condemn DEI censorship, protect campus research
Editor’s Note: This is a guest opinion that has been submitted by a member of the Rice community. The views expressed in this opinion are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of the Thresher or its editorial board. All guest opinions are fact-checked to the best of our ability and edited for clarity and conciseness by Thresher editors.
The Office of the Provost announced that Rice’s DEI office will be renamed to the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence on Feb. 28. As a graduate student, I am not privy to the reasons for this rebranding. I hope that, in light of recent federal and state directives and ongoing censorship, it is obvious why I
am wary, even if the office claims to continue to promote values of diversity, equity and inclusion while removing these words from its website.
To put it bluntly: If DEI programs are not illegal, why is Rice changing the name of this office?
This censorship seems like the university is overeager to comply with the federal government rather than standing up for the values it claims to protect. By renaming this office, Rice shifts the focus away from diversity, equity and inclusion and emphasizes institutional excellence over its constituent students.
While I recognize the need for continued
federal and state funding, Rice does not have to over-comply with these changes. Rice is a private university, and thus, has the privilege to be able to ignore laws that public universities are forced to follow.
Editor’s Note: This guest opinion has been cut off for print. Read the full article at ricethresher.org.
Ivy Li PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY PH.D. STUDENT
ABOUT
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Sports Law Society connects contracts and catches
Breaking into the sports industry can feel like trying to score a touchdown without a ball. Rice’s sports management program, ranked #1 in the country by Niche, offers a specialization in sports law that allows undergraduates to explore the legal side of the field.
The Rice Sports Law Society, founded by Maya Moise and Kai Cowin, aims to provide a platform for students interested in the intersection of law and sports. The club’s objective is to bridge the gap between theoretical legal knowledge and practical experience in the sports industry.
Both Moise and Cowin said their interest in sports law was born out of their experience in an introductory sports law class.
“Kai and I come from different backgrounds and majors, but taking that class sparked our interest in the field,” said Moise, a Jones College junior.
“We immediately thought, ‘Okay, what’s next? How can we get more involved?’”
to enter the legal field are advised to get good grades, take the LSAT and apply to law school. The problem is that a career in sports law is more nuanced than most realize, Cowin said.
“A lot of people have heard about sports law and how it intersects with various industries, but they don’t truly understand the day-to-day operations because they’re very different from what most expect,” said Cowin, a Hanszen College senior.
The Rice Sports Law Society aims to give students a hands-on introduction to the sports law industry, helping them decide if it’s something they’d like to pursue in the long term, they said.
“Sports law covers a wide range of areas, such as contracts, labor, compliance, agency and front-office operations,” Moise said.
We both felt that sports law within the legal industry is very gatekept. There are many opportunities and resources, especially at Rice, for student looking to get involved in the legal side of the sports industry.
Maya Moise CO-FOUNDER OF
RICE
SPORTS
LAW
SOCIETY
Moise said they considered how they could give back to the community, taking into account things that would have been beneficial for themselves when they were freshmen and sophomores.
“We both felt that sports law within the legal industry is very gatekept,” Moise said. “There aren’t many opportunities and resources, especially at Rice, for students looking to get involved in the legal side of the sports industry.”
Moise and Cowin said students hoping
Moise and Cowin want the organization to guide students, as they explore these subfields.
“Our goal is to create a space where if you’re interested in becoming a sports agent … we can get you experience and hands-on work to prepare you for a specialized career,” Cowin said. “If you’re too generalized, you won’t have the depth of understanding to thrive as someone who’s worked hands-on with detailed, specialized knowledge.”
Currently, Cowin is researching the relationship between Name, Image and Likeness deals and Title IX policies. Moise has done work on the NCAA’s settlement allowing athletes to be compensated in NIL deals, focusing on the 22% salary cap that limits athletes’ salaries.
“Our goal is to raise awareness about
Rice’s presence in the sports law field,” Moise said. “This has started to attract attention, but we don’t want it to just be me and Kai competing — we want other Rice students to join us.”
Moise and Cowin say they hope to spearhead a mentorship program for sports law students.
“We’re working on launching an initiative like ‘Hoots and Suits,’ which is part of [the] ‘Legal Nest’ program,” Cowin said. “The goal is to connect students with law professionals — whether it’s law students … or practicing lawyers in the area, from junior associates to partners.”
Owen Marye, a sports management student interested in a sports law specialization, said he’s excited for the new opportunities the sports law society may bring.
“I chose sports law because I had a pre-established interest in law, as my father is an attorney,” Marye wrote in a message to the Thresher. “His work
inspired me to pursue the law side of sports, and I’ve always been interested in sports, so it felt natural.
“I’d like to see more specialization in the subjects we study,” Marye, a Wiess College sophomore, continued. “There’s one singular sports law class, not counting the advanced section, so adding some classes focused on something like sports negotiation would be something I’d like to see in the future … The program has the potential to give us even more visibility and improve our standing as not just a sports management school, but a sports law school.”
Ultimately, that’s the vision Cowin and Moise have for their club, they said.
“Our goal is to invest in students in a deeply personalized way. If a student comes to us and says, ‘I want to be a sports agent, but I’ve been rejected from multiple internships,’ Kai and I can say, ‘Let’s figure out how we can help you move forward,’” Moise said. May your costume trick or tr(eat)
Hanszen Halloween
It’s time to make a public appearance, and Hanszen College’s Halloween public, or Halloweekend pt. 2, is just the place to do it. March can be just as frightening as October was, and not just because of midterms. If you’ve already donated, recycled or sold your Halloween costume for parts on Depop, we’ve got your back.
Party animal(s)
Got a leopard-print scarf? A zebrastriped shirt? A pair of cheetah-print leggings you bought in the heat of the moment for Duncan College’s Sensation? Ditch the neon and instead pair with a birthday hat or sash, and you’re a certified party animal. If you’re feeling extra creative, consider adding some simple face paint — a few whiskers or a painted nose.
Neapolitan ice cream
For all the trios and the wonderfully selfaware third wheels, this next idea is for you. Just pick your flavor — chocolate, vanilla or strawberry — and dress accordingly. Want to take it up a notch? Try coordinating white tops, brown bottoms and pink shoes.
Dress as your fear
A definite crowd-pleaser that might require a little explanation, depending on how creative you get. Bring to life the nightmare of the endless lecture on a Friday afternoon or a group project with one end-of-semester deadline. Have fun with it, and don’t shy away from unique takes.
Sheet ghosts
A classic for a reason, the sheet ghost costume is the epitome of simplicity and effectiveness. All you need is a white sheet, some scissors and a bit of creativity. This costume is perfect for last-minute decisions or those who prefer a minimalist approach.
Traffic cones
If you’re really at a loss, take inspiration from campus and try to embody the traffic cones that nearly outnumber students. Go for anything orange and white with reflective accents to truly capture the campus’s current state of perpetual remodeling. Do too good of a job, though, and you might accidentally get integrated into the new Moody Center.
AISHA KHEMANI THRESHER STAFF
AMY CAO / THRESHER
ABBY PEREZ / THRESHER
SOPHIE GARLICK THRESHER STAFF
3-D Mini
This crossword functions just like any other, but in 3 dimensions. You have the typical ACROSS and DOWN words, but this puzzle adds THROUGH, words that span multiple layers. Just like in regular crosswords, the THROUGH words stop at black squares above or below them. Each letter now corresponds to 3 different words, and you can use any or all of the three clue types to solve this puzzle.
Online locations for “brief” chats
Boating propulsion, perhaps
Performance with a partner
____ Rubik: inventor of the Rubik’s Cube
Chaos over trivial matters
Measure of inflation (abbr.)
One of Pakistan’s official languages
Course subject code featuring classes such as “Environmental Management” & “Animal Behaviors”
Sports org. for pro. outfielders & shortstops
Request incessantly
Um or eins
The city of London has a big one?
Set ablaze
Uncanny lake?
Fauna-made blockade
You wouldn’t want to bury one?
A part of, as a prank 1550 in Rome in 450
In Samoan mythology, the first man on Fiji
Contrasted with “don’ts”
Bawl
Fortune teller’s crystalline utility
Bird hit by a cybertruck
Flow antonym
Mimic
Prep, as machinery
Each of the four 4x4 crosswords is a layer of the 3D crossword. Words can span through multiple layers or just be confined to an individual layer (as shown).
Inside Anderson Hall, student designers, models and artists gathered for “InThread” and “Archi-Arts,” two student-run showcases that blurred the line between fashion and visual art. This year’s shared theme, “Perforations,” explored transformation — through cut fabric, layered textures and fragmented materials.
Wiess College senior Annie McKenzie said attending Archi-Arts for the first time was eye-opening.
“I was impressed by the variety,” McKenzie said. “The photographs, sculptures, charcoal drawings — even a quilt that used technology to print images and text — it was stunning.”
The theme carried into the InThread runway show, where fabric was cut, reworked and intertwined.
“You could see it in the way fabrics were layered and reconstructed,” McKenzie said. “It mirrored the way different art mediums came together in the gallery.”
Imogen Brown, a Duncan College senior, said modeling for the first time was a leap into the unknown.
“I’ve never modeled before, but I wanted to push myself,” Brown said. “Seeing how much effort went into every detail — the designs, the staging, the coordination — was incredible.”
She was invited to model by Andrew Ondara, an InThread designer, whose work embodied the show’s theme.
“I thrifted old blankets and sweaters, then cut and restructured them,” said Ondara, a Jones College senior. “One piece was a conjoined dress and sweater — two models walked the runway connected at the sleeves, forced to move together.”
His standout design reflected the core of the theme — movement,
fragmentation and reinterpretation of material, he said.
“I don’t like to assign meaning to my work,” Ondara said. “I think people should interpret it in their own way. But I love when people come up to me and ask, ‘How did you make that?’
That’s the best part — seeing how people engage with it.”
Lucas Salaberry, a Will Rice College sophomore, said the show was immersive.
beyond just the layout, according to Amy Lam, who designed jewelry that was featured in both InThread and Archi-Arts, reinforcing the interplay between fashion and visual art.
“I wanted my jewelry to respond to the clothing around it,” said Lam, a Lovett College senior.
Events like this prove there’s real interest in fashion, design and wearable art — it’s just about creating spaces for it.
Andrew Ondara JONES COLLEGE SENIOR
“The lighting, the music, the way the models moved — it wasn’t just a runway, it was a performance,” Salaberry said. “Even the smallest details felt intentional.”
That sense of cohesion extended
“Some pieces were bold, others were more subtle. The show let me highlight how jewelry interacts with the body, while the gallery let people engage with it as standalone art.”
McKenzie said Anderson Hall’s layout contributed to the experience.
“Having the art on the second floor and the fashion show on the first
created a sense of connection while still keeping them distinct,” McKenzie said. “The different walkways let you see how everything fits together from multiple perspectives.”
InThread is still in its early stages, Lam said. It was founded last year to provide Rice’s fashion community with a dedicated platform for artistic expression.
“There wasn’t a space for student designers before this,” Lam said. “We had ArchiMarkets for selling art, but nothing dedicated to fashion as an artistic practice.”
For many, the showcase represents a growing demand for spaces where art and design intersect.
“There’s so much creative talent at Rice that doesn’t always get recognized,” Ondara said. “Events like this prove there’s real interest in fashion, design and wearable art — it’s just about creating spaces for it.”
McKenzie said she sees Archi-Arts as vital to Rice’s creative culture.
“Events like this show students that there are creative outlets beyond formal art classes,” McKenzie said. “They build community and foster a more interdisciplinary education.”
As a senior, McKenzie said she will not be around for the next Archi-Arts. Still, she hopes to see more languages incorporated into the exhibition’s labels and programs to reflect Rice’s international student body, she said.
“There were a lot of international artists,” McKenzie said. “It would be great to see that represented more visibly.”
For Brown, stepping onto the runway for the first time wasn’t just about fashion — it was about pushing herself.
“I was nervous, but I’m so glad I did it,” Brown said. “At the end of the day, it’s about celebrating student creativity. And that’s what makes it worth it.”
Review: R&B legends Mary J. Blige, Ne-Yo and Mario electrify
A&E EDITOR
A sold-out crowd at Toyota Center witnessed three R&B legends combine forces on Feb. 18, delivering a night that was equal parts nostalgia, powerhouse vocals and pure soul. Titled the “For My Fans” Tour, Mary J. Blige’s first major outing since her Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction felt like a homecoming of sorts — not just for Blige, but for openers Mario and Ne-Yo, who brought their own timeless hits and crowd-pleasing flair to the stage.
Houston has a storied history when it comes to R&B, from the foundational work of Eddie Vinson and Billy Preston to modern-day superstars like Beyoncé and Don Toliver. That lineage was palpable on Saturday night as Mario kicked things off, setting the tone with a brief but mighty set. Performing classics like “Just a Friend” alongside new material, he radiated gratitude and pure showmanship. Mario’s backup dancers injected extra energy into his already lively set, earning cheers for their synchronized moves that matched each beat.
Ne-Yo followed, turning up the voltage in the arena by weaving his own chart-
toppers — “Miss Independent,” “Closer,”
“Give Me Everything,” “Time of Our Lives” — with the kind of electronic touches that have always set him apart in the R&B sphere. A highlight was watching him interact with his fleet of dancers, who seemed to exist in perfect harmony with every line of his smooth falsetto. The entire arena felt like it had time-traveled back to 2007, especially when the massive sing-alongs started, reminding everyone exactly why Ne-Yo remains on so many playlists.
After a DJ-led intermission that kept the venue buzzing with beloved classics from the ’80s, ’90s and early 2000s, the Queen herself appeared in true Mary J. Blige fashion — carried above the crowd via harness, draped in a dazzling ensemble that could’ve made a peacock jealous. Leaning into her signature hip-hop soul vibe, Blige delivered a masterclass in stage presence. Her opening number set the tone: This was going to be an immersive, no-holds-barred Mary J. experience.
Clocking in at around an hour and a half, Blige’s set was a whirlwind of more than 30 hits, interspersed with everything from flashy costume swaps to heartfelt documentary footage. The massive stage underwent multiple transformations,
featuring towering statues and a giant crown — just right for the Queen of HipHop Soul. While many fans came to hear the legendary ballads, Blige found room for a little experimentation too, surprising the crowd with an energetic cover of Kendrick Lamar’s “tv off,” proving that she’s not afraid to push creative boundaries.
From the high-octane vibes of “Family Affair” to the timeless groove of “Mary Jane,” Blige’s song selection spanned decades. She even dipped into soulful, introspective numbers like “My Life,” giving long-time fans exactly the emotional catharsis they’d hoped for. The synergy between Blige and her backup dancers matched the choreography’s inventiveness: quick step sequences melted into seductive slow jams, and the transitions felt smoother than butter.
But it wasn’t just about the music. Interspersed with her performance were intimate video clips detailing Blige’s journey — not only in the industry but as a person reclaiming her worth. She spoke candidly about forging a new relationship with her father, who, she revealed, battled demons of his own. These candid, documentary-style segments gave fans a glimpse behind the curtain, showing the grit and pain that shaped her into the resilient woman she is today.
Throughout the night, the crowd remained on its feet, feeding off the
performers’ energy. Whether belting back the lyrics to “Not Gon’ Cry” or attempting Mary’s signature bop during “I’m Goin’ Down,” the Houston audience made it clear they were there to celebrate these R&B giants. The entire event felt like a genuine dedication “for the fans,” a sentiment made all the more powerful by the show’s deep sense of connection and gratitude. Even the production details reflected that ethos.
In between acts, the DJ spun classic neo-soul and hip-hop, forging a communal vibe that bridged generations of R&B lovers. This article has been cut off for print. Read the full piece at ricethresher.org.
ARMAN SAXENA
COURTESY RADHANI KAPOOR
RICHARD LI / THRESHER
Models walked the runway during the “InThread” and “Archi-Arts” collaboration show “Perforations” at Anderson Hall March 2.
Students react to Sarofim
the construction every day.”
Among non-art majors, awareness of the new building stayed low.
Musical apocalypse hits Rice
For years, art students say they’ve worked within the constraints of the aging Sewall Hall and the “insufficient,” inaccessible Hamman Hall. But with the 80,000 square-foot Sarofim Hall set to open next semester, students are preparing to transition into a purposebuilt space that finally feels like home.
Artie Throop, a Sid Richardson College senior studying studio art, said the move into Sarofim Hall is significant — but also long overdue.
“[Current seniors] were basically the guinea pigs for the new art major,” Throop said. Over the past few years, the visual and dramatic arts department has undergone a drastic restructuring — merging film, photography and studio art into a single major. The change allowed for more interdisciplinary approaches, but it also required students to adjust, Throop said.
“I’m still on the old VADA requirements, but the new major gives students more flexibility,” Throop said. “Now, you don’t have to choose between film, photography and studio art. You can merge them. I’ve even started incorporating photography into my work, which I probably wouldn’t have explored otherwise.”
“I had no idea the art department was moving,” said Lucas Dovalina, a McMurtry mechanical engineering senior. “I think Rice does a fine job making information public, but if you’re not already in that world, it’s easy to miss.”
Caroline Pollan, a Duncan sophomore studying visual art and biosciences, said the move is exciting but also an adjustment.
“Sewall Hall wasn’t built for art students,” Pollan said. “It was never meant to house exhibitions or provide proper studio space, which is why so many of us had to split between Sewall and the PCF tents.”
Shrinsky-de Armas echoed these concerns, saying that space constraints in Sewall have directly impacted students’ ability to work.
“In intermediate painting, you’re encouraged to go big with canvases, but there’s barely enough space for that,” Shrinsky-de Armas said. “We have to rearrange desks constantly. Sometimes, you have to go to another room to prep materials — if it’s even available. It’s a space issue that’s always been there.”
This could be the start of an actual arts district at Rice. With Moody and the opera house next door, we have a chance to create something bigger — a hub for interdisciplinary collaboration.
While the construction of Sarofim Hall represents a step forward, Throop said that Rice has historically not prioritized investments in the arts.
Musab Salah WILL RICE COLLEGE JUNIOR
“When I first came to Rice, I was told that if I wanted to study art, I should have gone to a liberal arts college,” Throop said. “We’re definitely not as supported as engineering majors or STEM majors in general. We just sort of do what we can.”
Stella Shrinsky-de Armas, a McMurtry College freshman and visual arts major, said that Sarofim Hall’s construction sends a message about the university’s changing priorities.
“It shows that art is wanted and valued here,” Shrinsky-de Armas said. “It tells the rest of Rice that this is not just a self-contained major, but a real part of campus culture.”
Despite new tenure-track hires and curriculum changes in the department, students noted how little buzz Sarofim Hall received compared to other Rice construction projects, like the O’Connor building.
“The art major was changing, and nobody was talking about it. Meanwhile, everyone knew about O’Connor,” Throop said. “Most students don’t go near Moody unless they have a class there … If you’re not already in the arts, you’re not seeing
Throop said Sewall was a place filled with history, where students could see the remnants of past generations of artists.
“I love that you can see paint splatters on the floors from past students,” Throop said. “There’s something about working in a space where you know art has been made for years.”
While Sarofim Hall will have larger, better-equipped studios, Throop said the transition won’t be seamless.
“It’s going to feel sterile at first,” Throop said. “It’s up to the next generation of students to bring it to life — to make it messy, to make it theirs.”
Despite concerns, students recognize Sarofim Hall’s potential to reshape the arts at Rice.
Musab Salah, a Will Rice College junior and architecture and arts student, says the new building is part of a larger, newer vision for humanities at Rice.
“This could be the start of an actual arts district at Rice,” Salah said. “With Moody and the opera house next door, we have a chance to create something bigger — a hub for interdisciplinary collaboration.
“This investment signals that Rice sees the arts as integral to its academic environment,” Salah continued. “But at the end of the day, art students still have to carve out a place for themselves in a university that has historically prioritized STEM.”
Music, screaming and laughs filled McMurtry College commons Feb. 27 to March 1, as Lovett Theatre and McMurtry Arts Committee brought to life the horror-comedymusical: “The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals.”
The story follows Paul, the titular guy who doesn’t like musicals, as he and his friends attempt to survive an alien apocalypse that is turning the world into a musical. The show often refers to 2018 popular culture, the year of its release.
“We’re dressed like how people dress nowadays, we talk the way people talk nowadays and there are jokes that you would get because we’re in that current cultural moment, and we haven’t really done a show like that before,” said Celeste Uribe, a Baker College junior. “A lot of the [other shows] have been a little antiquated.”
Nadia Thieriot, a McMurtry junior, was the director and one of the show’s producers. As a long-time fan of the production, she said she was excited to bring the musical to her home college.
“I’m very excited that I’ve gotten to bring theatre to McMurtry, especially since the past few years since I’ve been doing residential college theater, there hasn’t been any at any north colleges,” Thieriot said.
Throughout the production process, Thieriot said she used her experience to create her unique interpretation of the story, which she was able to bring to life.
“It’s been such a joy to be able to dig really deep into the script and work with a very talented cast,” Thieriot said.
The musical came together throughout the first seven weeks of the semester, bringing the cast, pit and tech members close together, according to stage manager and bass guitarist Carolina Balboa.
“The cast created their own culture in a way that I forgot theater does to people,” said
a Baker College
“This is just a show comprised of incredibly talented, hardworking and good-hearted people … It makes me want to do more.”
Thieriot said the cast and production team worked through a short timeline to bring the show together.
“We had about five weeks of rehearsals, and now we are doing our shows,” Thieriot said. “It’s fast-paced for a show, but the show is not particularly long, and I had faith we could do it in this time frame.”
Music director Elise Stewart, a Hanszen College sophomore, also said the amount of time spent preparing for the show built a sense of community between the cast and crew. Additionally, throughout the performances, they enjoyed connecting with the audience and watching their work come together, she said.
“My favorite part of the show was watching all of the Hidgens scenes,” Stewart said. “Every time he came on stage, the audience started dying. It didn’t matter if it was just ‘Alexa, dim the lights!’”
This article has been cut off for print. Read the full piece at ricethresher.org
Balboa,
freshman.
ANGELICA HERNANDEZ THRESHER STAFF
ALICE XU / THRESHER
CHARLIE CRUZ THRESHER STAFF
KATHERINE CITINO / THRESHER Sarofim Hall undergoes construction behind the Moody Center for the Arts.
Abell replaces Intellectual Brutality slogan with ‘WE’
ANDERSEN PICKARD ASST. SPORTS EDITOR
As soon as Rice football head coach Scott Abell arrived for his first day on campus last November, he began preaching an acronym: “WE.”
WE stands for three different ideas: win everything, win everywhere and with everyone. Abell introduced these values during his first meeting with players, allowing them to understand what their new coach stood for and whether they wanted to invest in his vision.
“During our first team meeting, you could tell how much that word means to him,” said redshirt junior running back Quinton Jackson. “Ever since that moment, he’s had complete buy-in from the team.”
go outside of their comfort zone.
“You just can’t be your best in the places you’re comfortable,” Abell said. “You’ve got to learn to be at your best when you’re uncomfortable. When you’re traveling on the road, playing a game on the road or having to go do research for a class that’s out of your comfort zone — whatever it is, we have to win everywhere.”
The third and final component requires coming together as a unified team, which Abell has already seen the Owls achieve in his first few months with the program.
These aren’t just acronyms that sound good. These are true things that I live my own life by daily.
Scott Abell HEAD FOOTBALL COACH
Abell emphasized that winning everything doesn’t mean going 12-0 during the season. Rather, it’s a philosophy for players to work toward in all aspects of their daily lives.
“That will be something that we work toward every day to be the best version of ourselves, whether it’s on the football field, in our training, in the classroom [or] in the community,” Abell said. “We want to win everything that we put our heart behind and our hands on.”
Achieving success beyond the football field is an important component of Abell’s WE pillars. He embraces the three core values as a husband and father, and he expects his players to follow suit when they leave Rice Stadium to attend away games, classes or community outings.
“Ever since Coach Abell taught us the importance of WE, I’ve tried to use it in every aspect of my life,” Jackson said. “Whether that’s in the community helping out as much as possible or in the classroom with teammates being the best students we possibly can be.”
The idea of winning everywhere includes an expectation that players will consistently
“I believe great things are accomplished when people come together and bring their talents together, and that’s really what a football program is all about,” Abell said.
Abell has emphasized the importance of his WE pillars at every program where he’s coached, including most recently at Davidson College, where he was the head coach from 2018 through 2024. Now in his first stint at the helm of a Division I FBS program, Abell acknowledged that he has adapted the philosophy over the years, fortifying it into a central point of emphasis for his players at Rice to buy into.
Finding the right people to embrace the WE values doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen passively, Abell said. In addition to introducing the current team to the three pillars, he and his staff have focused on recruiting players who align with the program’s core values. That process includes numerous meetings and research into recruits’ social media accounts.
“We’re looking for people that want to compete, not just on the football field [but] in everything they do,” Abell said. “[To] find those people that want to be a part of something bigger than themselves, you’ve really got to get to know them, you’ve got to talk to their coaches, you’ve got to dive
into them as people. Are they used to doing things with groups or are they about themselves individually?”
The implementation of these values represents an identity change for Rice football, which previously embraced the “Intellectual Brutality” mantra under former head coach Mike Bloomgren. Abell said that having an identity that encompasses the program’s core values is “imperative.”
“When you’re leading people, you have to have something that brings everyone together but holds the values that you know are going to be important to the program to be successful,” Abell said. “That’s exactly what these are. These aren’t just talking points. If we can strive for these values, then we’re going to have a shot to be successful.”
The philosophy has a public-facing component, too. Rice football’s social media pages include “#WE” in their bios
and every post. By the start of the 2025 season, “WE” will appear on every helmet and on the walls of the Brian Patterson Sports Performance Center, Abell said.
But make no mistake: Abell said he didn’t implement his WE values just for the sake of having an identity.
“These aren’t just acronyms that sound good,” Abell said. “These are true things that I live my own life by daily. When I go to work, I want to be the best version of myself for the group around me, for the program. When I go home, I want to be the best husband or father that I can be to my family.”
So far, Abell has been impressed by how the program embraces its new identity, following the core values in practice and in the classroom. As the Owls look to bounce back from last season’s 4-8 finish, Abell said players are already buying into his guiding principles.
Meet football’s 2025 early enrollees
This spring semester, Rice football welcomed a number of new players to the program. Seven of them are early enrollees, graduating from their respective high schools a semester early and matriculating at Rice before any of the other Class of 2025 recruits.
This allows them to participate in spring practices and fet to know their coaches and teammates before the start of the 2025 college football season in August.
While early enrollees are common within many programs in college football, this is only the second class of early enrollees at Rice, the first coming two years ago.
Learn more about some of them below:
Tyvonn Byars
Tyvonn Byars, a Hanszen College freshman, is a running back from Lake Creek High School in Montgomery, Texas.
Rice Thresher: What are your first impressions of Rice so far?
Tyvonn Byars: My first impression
of Rice is that it is a very diverse community with many things to learn and lots of great classes to choose from.
RT: Is there a football player you try to mold your game around?
TB: A football player that I would want to mold my game around would be Saquon [Barkley] because he can do a little of everything.
RT: Who is the best non-football athlete of all-time?
TB: Michael Jordan.
RT: What do you hope to accomplish in your time at Rice?
TB: I hope to greatly contribute as a freshman and build many connections with people.
Semaj Pierre
Semaj Pierre, a Lovett College freshman, is a slot receiver from Memorial High School in Port Arthur, Texas. His hometown is Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Rice Thresher: What are your first impressions of Rice so far?
Semaj Pierre: Rice is very diverse but also friendly. The campus proposes
an extremely helpful environment.
RT: Is there a football player you try to mold your game around?
SP: A combination of Zay Flowers and Tank Dell.
RT: Who is the best non-football athlete of all-time?
SP: Lebron James.
RT: What drew you to commit to Rice?
SP: Getting a top-tier education while playing in a competitive league of football.
RT: What do you hope to accomplish in your time at Rice?
SP: Win a conference championship and get my degree.
Payton Matthews
Payton Matthews, a Lovett College freshman, is a wide receiver from Harlan High School in San Antonio, Texas.
Rice Thresher: What are your first impressions of Rice so far?
Payton Matthews: It is very diverse and the amount of people you can connect with is endless. Overall the
first thing I really noticed is how nice everyone is and they are genuine.
RT: Is there a football player you try to mold your game around?
PM: I wouldn’t say there is a specific player I mold my game around but I can say that I watch other receivers both in the league and dominating at the collegiate level and try to add specific elements I see to my game to get better.
RT: What drew you to commit to Rice?
PM: I feel like Rice was the best of both worlds for me as far as academics and athletics.
RT: Why did you decide to graduate early and come to Rice this semester?
PM: I wanted to graduate early to set myself up in the future and get a head start on the things I need to take care of before the season starts. Put myself in the best opportunity to get on the field.
RT: What do you hope to accomplish in your time at Rice?
PM: I hope to graduate with a degree in Business Finance and be an honor roll student at the top of my class, but not only being successful in the classroom but successful on the field.
“Who’s WE?”
HONG LIN TSAI / THRESHER
DIEGO PALOS RODRIGUEZ ASST. SPORTS EDITOR
COURTESY CARLOS GONZALES — RICE ATHLETICS
Senior tennis player Arthus de la Bassetiere celebrates after winning the clinching point against Texas Tech University Feb. 16.
Men’s Tennis 7-4 leading up to conference matches
ANA RIVERA THRESHER STAFF
The Rice men’s tennis team is midway through their season, ranked No. 65 according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association with a record of 7-4. The team is back in Houston with three upcoming matches at home after spending the weekend in La Jolla, California for the Pacific Coast Doubles Championship.
The Owls opened the season with a 3-0 record at home, earning wins against Prairie View A&M University and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. However, the competition intensified with road matches against No. 1 University of Texas, the University of Arkansas and Baylor University, all three of which they lost.
“We knew those matches would be tough,” said head men’s tennis coach Efe Ustundag. “The goal was to push ourselves against some of the best teams in the country and learn from the experience. I think we did that.”
The Owls found their rhythm back at home, securing key wins over Louisiana State University, Texas Tech University and Lamar University. The 4-3 win over LSU stood out as a defining moment of the season, not just for the team but for senior tennis player Arthus de la Bassetiere personally.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had more fun in a match,” de la Bassetiere said. “The atmosphere, the energy — it was unreal. It felt like every single point mattered, and the crowd was behind us the entire time.”
Despite losing his singles match, de la Bassetiere said the environment made it one of the most memorable moments of his career.
“That was probably one of the best college tennis environments I’ve seen at Rice,” Ustundag said. “The players fed off the energy, and it showed in their performances.”
The intensity of the LSU match created a competitive edge that has helped fuel the Owls throughout the season, de la Bassetiere said.
“That match was a battle,” de la Bassetiere said. “We were fighting on every court. The way we supported each other, the way the crowd got into it, it felt like a real college sports moment. It reminded us why we play, and it gave us the confidence to push forward.”
Despite these wins, Ustundag identified doubles play as an area for growth.
“We’ve had strong doubles teams in the past,” Ustundag said. “We need to keep
Sports Mini #14
refining that part of our game to make sure we maximize our chances in every match.”
As a senior and captain, de la Bassetiere plays a key role in leading the team, both on and off the court. His focus is on setting the right example for his teammates.
“As a captain, I want to leave everything out there this season,” de la Bassetiere said. “This is my last year playing college tennis, and I want to make it count. Whether it’s singles, doubles or just being there for my teammates, I want to contribute in every way possible.”
His leadership has extended beyond matches, emphasizing the importance of preparation and mental toughness.
“I always tell the guys that how we practice is how we play,” de la Bassetiere said. “We need to bring intensity every day so that when we step on the court for a match, we’re already prepared.”
The Owls will face three ranked opponents this month: No. 15 Texas A&M University, No. 56 University of Tulsa and No. 53 University of Memphis. Then, from April 17-20 the team will compete in the American Athletic Conference Championships in Memphis, Tennessee.
Before those matchups, the Owls will host Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi March 6 at the George R. Brown Tennis Center.
“We’re focused on every match in front of us,” de la Bassetiere said. “[A&M] Corpus Christi is another opportunity for us to build momentum, and we’re ready to bring the energy.”
The competition between now and April is what Ustundag called a “critical stretch”.
“Texas A&M will be a big test,” he said. “And then we shift focus to conference play. Every match is important.”
During this stretch, the team is looking forward to playing Texas A&M according to de la Bassetiere.
“Playing [Texas A&M in] College Station will be tough, and then we have Tulsa and Memphis, two strong conference opponents,” de la Bassetiere said. “These are the types of matches that prepare us for the postseason.”
As the season progresses, the men’s tennis team continues refining its doubles play and maintaining consistency across the lineup in preparation for the conference tournament. For de la Bassetiere, the goal remains simple.
“We want to compete at the highest level,” he said. “Every match, every practice is an opportunity to get better. That’s our mindset going forward.”
