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The Rice Thresher
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We're excited about the new library. The campus needs the versatile, beautiful and functional central building that the rebuilt library will eventually be. But as we've learned with the recent burst of construction on campus, tearing up buildings can be disruptive to the lives of students, faculty and staff who have to live and work at Rice. Here are a number of issues related to library construction that we think should be addressed, along with a few possible solutions: n As Fondren Library is torn down, the number of quiet, safe and well-lit places to study on campus will be reduced sharply. At night, keeping academic buildings and the Student Center open 24 hours a day would help, but quiet places to work during the day will be few and far between. One possibility might be to use the old Wiess College building, which will then be empty. The former dorms could be used as study rooms until the evening hours when academic buildings clear out. n Currently, about 70 computer workstations are available and frequently in use at Fondren. They should be distributed to new labs, perhaps in Rayzor Hall, or added to old labs so students who want to get away from their rooms or who don't have computers can have a place to work. Furthermore, access to e-mail near study spaces is a convenience we're not sure students can do without. n Part of the appeal of the library as a study space lies in the number of people around, even in the middle of the night. Some students are hesitant about pulling an all-nighter in an empty academic building, especially since some of these buildings lack accessible phones. This problem might be solved by having an attendant in academic buildings at night and installing more phones. n On a purely practical level, Fondren is central to campus in a way that the temporary library will not be. To reduce the number of extraneous trips across campus, we would like to see drop boxes for returning books in each of the colleges. n To reduce traffic in the temporary library, we think a Web-based book retrieval system is a great idea. However, if it takes more than 24 or 30 hours to get a book, it will inconvenience students a great deal. We'd also like to see the option to have books delivered by campus mail if a student or faculty member requests it. These are but a few of the logistical problems that will result from tearing down Fondren and building a new library. We suggest creating a committee composed of students, faculty members, and members of the library, Information Technology and University Police staffs to discuss the problems that will arise - whether with study spaces, security or computer access - from the construction project. A group like this would be able to think about solutions from all angles and hopefully head off problems before they arise.
Keeping IM sports alive College guidebooks talk about Rice's high level of student participation in intramural sports. While not in danger of extinction, Rice's IM sports program has troubles, and we think increasing the student fee from $10 to $15 per year could go a long way in fixing them. The program has been working at a budget deficit since its beginning eight years ago, which has required the staff to cut corners. Equipment for most sports is old and worn out, but we don't think that's where the real problem with IM sports lies. The problem lies in the officiating program. Because of low wages for game officials, the staff has difficulty finding people who are willing to be officials. A sparse budget also means less training for officials, especially because many come and go frequently. Many officials have little to no training. What's often misunderstood is that incompetent officiating can cause problems much worse than the wrong team winning a game. Above all, an official must be able to maintain control of a game - if he or she cannot do so, the risk to the players involved increases dramatically. Players will break rules to get an advantage if they can get away with it, and often breaking the rules involves overly aggressive play that can result in injuries. Rice's IM program is a vital part of our community, and we should do what we can to ensure that it is preserved - and that it does everything it can to keep its participants safe. With the fee increase, we hope that we can be sure every official in every game is adequately trained. We believe the IM sports referendum failed in the General Elections because few voters understood its purpose, not because the student body as a whole was opposed to it. To pass, 20 percent of the student body must vote on the referendum, and two-thirds of the voters must vote yes. If the student body as a whole is genuinely opposed to the referendum, it shouldn't pass. But we don't think that's the case. Take the time to understand where the referendum comes from, and make sure to vote, especially because Spring Elections often suffer from very low voter turnout.
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This document may be distributed electronically, provided that it is distributed in its entirety and includes this notice. However, it cannot be reprinted without the express written permission of: The Rice Thresher, Rice University MS-524, PO Box 1892, Houston, TX 77251-1892, USA. The Thresher Online Project -- ethresh@listserv.rice.edu |
