Rice University's School of Social Sciences will celebrate 40 years inside the hedges with a series of events scheduled for Feb. 27 and 28.
A dedication ceremony celebrating the grand opening of the Patricia Lipoma Kraft '87 and Jonathan A. Kraft Hall for Social Sciences will be held from 2-4 p.m. Feb. 27 at Kraft Hall. The event will include brief remarks and a reception. To register, call 713-348-1111 or email dpevents@rice.edu.
The following day, Feb. 28, seven Social Sciences faculty members representing each of the school's departments will offer five-minute lightning talks about their respective areas of research and expertise. Interim Dean Susan McIntosh will host the event, and a light lunch will be served.
Featured faculty will include Andrea Ballestero, an associate professor of anthropology; Flavio Cunha, the Ervin Kenneth Zingler Professor of Economics; Nancy Niedzielski, associate professor of linguistics; Rick Wilson, the Herbert S. Autrey Professor of Political Science and a professor of statistics and psychology; Mikki Hebl, the Martha and Henry Malcolm Chair of Psychology and a professor of management in the Jones Graduate School of Business; Ruth Lopéz Turley, professor of sociology, director of the Houston Education Research Consortium and associate director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research; and Clark Haptonstall, professor and chair of the Department of Sport Management. To RSVP, visit https://bit.ly/2wu5YD8.
Following the lightning talks, David Rhodes '96, former senior advisor/president of CBS News and a member of Rice's Board of Trustees, will headline the 40th Anniversary Distinguished Alumni Lecture titled "The State of the News (Especially on Television) — and its Future." The lecture is scheduled for 3 p.m. in the event space on the ground level of Kraft Hall, and a reception will follow. To RSVP, visit https://bit.ly/2HG9KvJ.
All of the events are open to the public.
"The School of Social Sciences has made a remarkable impact during its 40 years on campus," McIntosh said. "Its growth as manifested in Kraft Hall points towards an even more exceptional future."
For more information on the anniversary celebration, visit https://socialsciences.rice.edu/40th-anniversary.