Unconventional students at Rice 2018: Diversity of thought

Born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley in a mostly Mexican-American community, Austin Figueroa felt a cultural shock when he entered Rice.

“Rice was a fairy tale for me,” he said. “Coming from one of the lowest-income communities in the country, it was very different coming to Rice and seeing a different way of living and thinking.”

Figueroa, who is graduating with a degree in mechanical engineering, has been passionate about music since he was little. Under the stage name Kid Fig, he continued making music at Rice and described his experiences as a Hispanic American through a mixture of English and Spanish raps.

Growing up around old-school lowrider cars sparked his love for mechanics. “I told my father I loved cars, and I wanted to be a mechanic,” Figueroa said. “He told me I wanted to go farther than that – I should be a mechanical engineer. And it stuck.”

Figueroa credits Rice’s culture for encouraging him to pursue whichever paths he wanted.

“People often refer to Rice as a bubble and I agree, but it’s also that persona of a bubble that makes Rice so great,” he said. “Diversity of thought, culture and religion is accepted. At Rice, you’re encouraged to take the first step down whichever path you choose.”