President Reginald DesRoches welcomed hundreds of Rice University staff members to a morning breakfast and recognition ceremony April 23 at Tudor Fieldhouse. Themed Supporting You, Celebrating You, the gathering highlighted the university’s successes and staff’s accomplishments during the previous year and a glimpse into Rice’s trajectory in the coming years.
“I want to begin by saying thank you for everything you do. You pour your hearts and souls into this university, and it shows,” DesRoches said. “Rice’s staff is the foundation of this university. Without your commitment to excellence and dedication to our mission, Rice would not be what it is today. Everything you do is important and necessary to our continued success, even when people don’t see it.”
The annual gathering kicked off with a nod to service milestones. DesRoches acknowledged first-year employees before commemorating anniversaries in five-year increments, including a special nod to Joseph Hatfield, facility manager and library/project manager at Fondren Library, and Johnnie Thomas, maintenance technician, for 40 years of service; Serafin Valdivia, grounds specialist, for 45 years of service; and Linda Keating, original monograph/special formats cataloger, and Adela Perez, research accountant, for 50 years of service.
The ceremony continued with Amy McCaig, senior national media relations specialist in the Office of Public Affairs and chair of Rice Staff Council’s staff recognition subcommittee, who presented this year’s staff excellence awards.
“It’s truly a pleasure to recognize the outstanding contributions of our Rice University staff with the 2025 Rice Staff Excellence Awards, which celebrate Rice’s unsung heroes who truly embody the university’s values of responsibility, integrity, community and excellence,” McCaig said.
The committee received more than 100 staff member nominations — more than a 30% increase from last year. This year, the committee experienced an unprecedented tie, and as a result, it rewarded six individuals instead of the usual five for staff who have gone above and beyond their respective roles.
Recipients include Charles Brown, custodian II; Anna Julia, department administrator for art history; John Martinez, catalog and scheduling assistant for the registrar; Tonyamas Moore, operations specialist with the dean of undergraduates; Nubia Quintanilla, custodian II; and Anita Walker, chemistry course administrator.
“It’s been inspiring to see so many individuals being nominated for their hard work, dedication and contributions to our community,” McCaig said.
In addition, DesRoches highlighted five staff members as well as two teams recognized by the Board of Trustees during the last year: Tanner Gardner, Anne Tai, Larry Perez, Veronica Villasenor, Caitlin Lindsay, the organizational and talent development team and the human resource information systems team.
DesRoches followed by introducing the namesake of the Elizabeth Gillis Award for Exemplary Service. The award is one of the highest honors a staff member may receive for their dedication and service to the university.
In a celebration of 25 years since the award was first created, Gillis took the stage to announce this year’s recipient: Victoria Langlais, senior assistant dean of human resources and administration in the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing.
“Victoria’s influence extends across Rice University, where she has earned a reputation for her collaborative approach and dedication to improving processes,” one of her 17 letters of recommendation read.
“She frequently partners with key campus offices, including the provost’s office; the Office of Operations, Finance and Support; Human Resources and the vice provost’s office for academic affairs. In these partnerships, Victoria brings the unique perspective of the School of Engineering and Computing, helping to shape university policies and procedures that benefit all divisions. She does not hesitate to dive into the details when necessary and is always ready to go beyond her job description to find solutions to complex problems. Her presence in university committees and task forces has brought a positive, solution-oriented tone to discussions, fostering a spirit of cooperation and shared purpose.”
DesRoches also mentioned the Y. Ping Sun Award for Outstanding Community Engagement, which honors members of the Rice community who have provided devoted service to Houston. This year’s winner is Robert Stein, the Lena Gohlman Fox Professor of Political Science .
Following suit, Danielle King, associate dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies and associate professor of psychological sciences, recognized the staff’s important role at Rice.
She shared three key thoughts, including that people make the place, staff are essential to the everyday happenings of Rice and a reaffirmation that staff are always deserving of recognition.
“It is because of you that we are able to function as a university,” King said.
The staff appreciation event was punctuated by a Q&A session between Staff Council’s chair Janine Berrill, DesRoches and Kelly Fox, executive vice president for operations, finance and support. Topics ranged from various ways throughout the year staff are celebrated, total rewards, performance evaluations, Perch Perspective and how staff can support the university’s strategic plan Momentous.
The session offered an opportunity for leadership to provide insight into the current adjustments and upcoming plans for Rice employees’ benefits:
In fiscal year 2025, the university:
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Invested $1.3 million in staff salary market adjustments
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Lowered medical and dental premiums
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Increased personal time off for hourly staff
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Enhanced support for new parents
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Increased tuition benefits for employees and dependents
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Added a new employee assistance program
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Grew Rice Health and Well-Being services
Rice achieved the following results during fiscal year 2026:
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Lowered medical insurance costs
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Offered more affordable dental insurance rates
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Continued focus on competitive staff compensation
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Offered futher support for dependent tuition
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Fully subsidized doctoral student insurance
The staff appreciation ceremony also served as a moment to remember those who died in the previous year and noted their years of service to Rice, including Dalton Andrepont (seven years), Leslie Bartosh (six months), Scott Dow (11 years), Duc Pham (31 years), Kelly Quin (31 years) and Michael Smith (13 years).