The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 60, No. 18, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 25, 1973 Page: 1 of 8
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SA-sponsored convocation draws small but vocal group
by LEE SOWERS
Apathy was a popular sub-
ject at Pro/Con-Vocation '73,
held Monday night in the RMC,
as fewer than 5% of the stu-
dent body gathered to conduct
a dialogue between the Rice
community and its student
government. The few who came,
however, were vocal enough
themselves, especially in de-
ploring the others' absence.
The turn-out was split be-
tween those governing and
those governed; there were, in
all, about 40 students represent-
ing the various committees and
governing bodies of Rice and
some 80 interested students
scattered throughout the Grand
Hall, trying to find room to sit
among the 400 empty chairs
and wait for the student body
to arrive, so the meeting could
begin. They never arrived.
SA President Leighton Read
addressed the Grand Hall, and
then turned the platform over
to Craig Collins and Rob Quar-
tel, SA Vice-Presidents, who
mentioned some areas the stu-
dents might be interested in
discussing. These included coun-
seling services, food, activities
and academic policy and re-
form. After these brief address-
es, all the audience began to
raise questions, directing them
!/pf
vho 1
dent government who would of-
fer a response and/or discus-
sion. The exchange of ideas
lasted about two hours and was
generally brisk, lagging several
times, but never becoming to-
tally stagnant. The relative
lack of numbers allowed more
than equal time for anyone who
wished, and the 3-minute speak-
ing limit quickly evaporated.
Those who tired of the rhetoric
filtered to the rear to take ad-
vantage of the refreshments.
Persecuted Freshmen
One brisk discussion started
when a freshman arose and
stated that many people here
had come to Rice to take it
easy, have a good time and get
good grades. It just doesn't
happen that way, he claimed,
and this Was because freshmen
were being persecuted. He
stated further that this persecu-
tion of freshmen caused the
dead social life and apathetic
student body. How can fresh-
men who are forced to weanie
all the time for their good
grades be expected to come to
convocations, etc. ? This atti-
tude was echoed by a large
number of the freshmen pre-
sent, and some upper-classmen
agreed. The majority of those
who had survived the system
for four years were somewhat
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volume 60, number 18
thursday, january 25, 197:!
Rice self-study groups begin evaluation
What is the nature of the
educational experience at Rice
University? What makes the
education worth the cost?
What could be done better, or
done away with?
Rice has begun an eighteen
month self-study to determine
whether the school is every-
thing (or anything) that it
claims to be. This type of study
is required of us every ten
years by the Southern Associa-
_ tion of Colleges and Schools,
our accrediting agency, but the
present study is attempting to
broaden the scope of the self-
study beyond that of the pre-
ceding ones.
Two committees, Academic
Affairs (AAC) and Non-Aca-
demie Affairs (NAAC), each
composed of twelve faculty and
student members, have been
formed to gather data on all
aspects of the university: stu-
dents, faculty, administration,
curriculum, special programs
a n d services, extracurricular
activities, funding, colleges, and
so on.
The basic procedure of the
two committees will be ques-
tionnaire-interview format.
Questionnaires will be sent to
Hackerman plans
campus address
on state of Rice
President Norman Hacker-
man will deliver a "State of
the University Address" on
Tuesday, January 30 at 7:00
p.m. Speaking in Hamman Hall
at the invitation of the Stu-
dent Association, Dr. Hack-
erman will speak briefly on the
financial and academic chal-
lenges facing Rice today and
outline his plans for the com-
ing years. There will be con-
siderable time allowed for ques-
tions. All members of the Rice
Community are invited to hear
Dr< Hackerman next Tuesday
at 7:00 P.M. in Hamman Hall.
all departments and offices on
campus. Following study of the
returned questionnaires, in-depth
interviews and more specific
data - collecting questionnaires
will follow. At present, the ini-
tial "questionnaires are in the
formative stages. In order that
we may conduct the most com-
plete self-study possible, we
urge all members of the R i c e
community to participate in
making inputs. The members of
the committees will welcome
comments, suggestions, ideas,
or questions for study.
Student members of the . AAC
are Debbie Irvine (Jones),
Bryan Kirkpatrick (Wiess),
and Doug Caldwell (grad-ma-
terials science dept.). Student
members of the NAAC are
Emily DeWitt (Brown) and
John Wilkinson (Hanszen). In
puts to these people may be
channeled through their col-
leges or through the SA office,
but new inputs must be re-
ceived soon for adequate study
to be initiated.
less sympathetic.
P.E.: A "Real Hassle"
The discussion of how much
work the Rice degree was
worth, and what else a student
had the right to expect from
Rice, touched off a running
debate as to the quality of Rice,
the Rice student body and the
Rice degree. It lasted, in fits
and starts, throughout the re-
maind^fOf the meeting. The
Amazon (Cathy Keneda, off-
campus Jones) stated that
girls' P.E. was a real hassle,
due to inconvenient timing, and
recommended that a senate com-
mittee be set up to study that
particular requirement.
It was suggested that stu-
dents should be more consci-
entious in the course evalua-
tions at the end of each term
so that by means of these forms
the student body could demand
excellence from its faculty. It
was also suggested that stu-
dents pay closer attention to
the course listings when sign-
ing up for courses, since errors
creep in.
Financial Aid Problem
The quality of the entering
freshmen was cited as proof
that the quality of a Rice de-
gree was ebbing. The average
SAT score has declined. More
people are turning us down,
fewer applying and less of those
are prospective SE's. Case in
point; An exceptional student in
all respects is called by the ad-
missions board, a Blue Chip
Student. Of 124 BCS'c accepted
into the lact class, 90 turned
Rice down. Rice sent out ques-
tionnaires to these students
for the first time, last year,
and those that returned indicat-
ed that 40 c/o had turned us
down because of financial rea-
sons. The issue of Bice's quali-
ty and where it is headed re-
mains an open topic.
(Continued on Page 3)
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An architect's plan, circa 1000, for the Rice Institute.
dean ornitih
Off- campus: "loneliest office m town"
Debbie Irvine has the loneli-
est office on campus. The Off-
campus Committee office was
established last year in the old
Honor Council room. Someone
forgot to change the sign. So,
for four months, Debbie has
spent 18 lonely hours a week
hoping someone would knock.
Thiat does not mean she's
been idle. Off-Campus has been
working on a number of activi-
ties:
Food Service — Off - Campus
has been considering a pea-
nut butter sandwich sedvice
for its members. The plan
would allow quick, cheap
snacks, but would lower lunch
revenues and would probably
have no effect on bread and
milk thefts.
Bike Security — Some people
must be making a living
stealing Rice bikes. Debbie
alone lias lost four. Locked
bikes are carried away bodi-
ly or have their chains cut.
Sometimes small trees are
cut down to take those too
heavy for bolt cutters. Ten-
speed bikes are in especial
danger since tihey are more
valuable and often have de-
tachable wheels. OC recom-
mends using heavy chains
wrapped around something
solid. Ten-speed bikes should
be chained through the frame
and both wheels to a thick
tree or post (this requires
about 6 ft. of chain).
Party—OC will ask each cou-
lege for a $100 contribution
to an unexclusive off-cam-
pus party in March.
Debbie Irvine is in her office
on the third floor of the RMC
at llam-12pm MWF, and 9-
10:50am and 1-2:30pm TT. She
will appreciate ail comments
and suggestions on OC affairs.
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Jackson, Steve. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 60, No. 18, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 25, 1973, newspaper, January 25, 1973; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245152/m1/1/?rotate=90: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.