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The Rice Thresher
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by Meredith Jenkins For the Thresher The Will Rice College private dining room is getting a new name and a new look. The Board of Trustees approved a proposal last week to name the room the Barbara "Babs" Willis Private Dining Room, in honor of the former college coordinator, who retired last year after 33 years of service. Willis was the first college coordinator at Rice after the college system was formed and the only one Will Rice had ever known. "She was here for over 30 years and donated a huge part of her life to Will Rice," Will Rice senior Fletcher Carron said. Before her retirement last year, the masters and members of Will Rice searched for ways to honor her and guarantee that she would be remembered. "Barbara Willis made a huge impact on this community in her more than 30 years of service, and we wanted to honor her for all of her work," Will Rice President Eden King said. "She's going to be a part of Will Rice for as long as there is a Will Rice, and the private dining room [naming] is a way to remind us of that," she said. Senior Curt Petersen, who was Will Rice president last year, proposed the naming of the private dining room after Willis. He, King and Will Rice Masters Dale and Elise Sawyer wrote a letter to President Malcolm Gillis last February asking him to recommend the name change to the Board of Trustees, which has sole authority over naming spaces at Rice. "Naming spaces at universities, either buildings or rooms or other facilities, is generally an honor accorded to significant donors to the university," Sawyer said. "It is somewhat unusual to honor someone in this way for long service to Rice University, so what we were asking was not that typical. "However, we argued that her service had been of such an extent and of such high quality that we thought it set her apart from most employees of the university," he said. Gillis said that this decision was not without precedent. "We honor people in many, many ways who do things other than give money to the university." He said she affected the lives of many. "She is widely known, not just among Will Rice grads but among others as well," he said. Many Will Rice students agree. "She improved the quality of life here more than a donation of money would," Will Rice senior Zack Allison said. The room is being refurbished in addition to being renamed. New carpeting, lighting, furniture, cabinets and a new ceiling have been added, and an LCD projector and screen will be installed soon. "I think they ought to make everyone take their shoes off when they go in there with the nice new carpet and white couches," Willis said. "It's really going to be beautiful." Funds for renovating the room came from college ambiance funds and donations. The room will be used for many purposes at Will Rice, including classes, meetings, theater events and meals. "It's a space used for all kinds of things we do at Will Rice," Sawyer said. "As Babs was a vibrant part of the college, it's important that this private dining room also be a vibrant part of Will Rice." Willis herself agrees. "So many people have used our PDR," she said. "It's a wonderful space for meetings and groups, and it's not just for Will Rice people but people across campus. I think people like to be able to request the room. They'll have to take their shoes off too."
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