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President's Message
“Our students are amazing.” That is a phrase I have heard often from faculty since the beginning of my involvement with Rice. Indeed, both the objective and subjective “amazingness” of Rice students was one of my main attractions to Rice. But what exactly makes our students amazing? Of course, we are privileged to attract some of the most outstanding students from across the nation and, increasingly, from across the world. (This fall’s entering undergraduate class has twice as many foreign students as previous classes.) They are outstanding as measured on the usual numerical criteria such as SAT or ACT scores and on their high school grade point average or class rank. But that is not what makes them amazing—rather it is that they explore, they create, they contribute, and they excel. Let me start with exploration, because without it, our students cannot realize their potential. They must reach outside the familiar and explore themselves and the world. Our job at the university, in large part, consists of maximizing students’ opportunities for exploration, in the classroom and outside of it. In this issue, we take note, in particular, of the international explorations of some of our students, funded both by Rice fellowships and scholarships such as the Wagoner and national competitive awards such as Fulbrights and Watsons. Our students will use this support to study in places from Argentina to Vietnam. The second amazing thing about our students is their creativity and imagination. Two of our schools are devoted, in large measure, to such creativity, namely the School of Architecture and the Shepherd School of Music. But our students are creating all across the campus, from the college-based theatre to the establishment of R2, a student-run magazine for student writing. It is no surprise, given the creativity of our students, that we find our alumni engaged in a wide range of creative endeavors, from writing novels to producing movies. Our cover story in this issue focuses on the third exceptional element of Rice students, contribution. I was so moved and inspired when I attended a student presentation of the work of Engineers Without Borders, and I felt privileged when the group asked me to address a national meeting of EWB held at Rice. This is a student-created and student-led effort at Rice. It is wonderful to see our students recognize that the opportunity to obtain knowledge and develop skills at Rice also creates an obligation to contribute. Our students have changed the lives of people in Central America, in particular, and, in so doing, have learned valuable skills and life lessons. On another scale, many of our students, especially our graduate students, contribute to the pathbreaking research that takes place at Rice and helps advance human knowledge and understanding. The research teams that produced nanocars in Jim Tour’s laboratory and nanorice in Naomi Halas’s laboratory (with physics professor Peter Nordlander), mentioned in this issue, included graduate students. All this might be enough to make our students amazing, but beyond that, they excel. They excel in their drive to explore, they excel in their creativity, they excel in their contributions, and they excel in their learning. Creating the opportunity for such excellence, regardless of the financial backgrounds of our students, is costly. In this issue, we cover the recent announcement of a $100 million campaign for scholarships. The college system at Rice also has been a key feature in creating a climate for the pursuit of excellence and exploration, and we are very pleased to announce an expansion of the college system in anticipation of the growth of the university in the years to come. It is graduates and friends like Burt and Deedee McMurtry whose engagement and support make the “amazingness” of our students possible.
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