Nearly 1,000 Earth and planetary explorers from the greater Houston area attended Rice’s K-12 Earth and planetary open house at Rice Memorial Center’s Grand Hall May 3. The event was held by the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, the Rice Space Institute’s Center for Planetary Origins to Habitability and the Office of STEM Engagement in partnership with Houston Independent School District and NASA.
The inaugural cohort of Rice’s RISE (Responsibility, Inclusion and Student Empowerment) program received a commemorative stole to wear at commencement, symbolizing their participation in the pre-matriculation initiative.
Rice’s Campus Services and Sustainability recently was recognized by Keep Texas Beautiful with its Beautify Texas Award in the Outstanding Program of the Year category. The department was honored for its “Give a Hoot! Donate Your Loot!” move-out collection campaign coordinated by the Office of Sustainability and Housing and Dining.
Rice conferred more than 250 doctoral degrees during its 112th commencement May 10 at Tudor Fieldhouse. Doctoral candidates along with friends, family and loved ones gathered for the ceremony, which included the awarding of doctoral regalia, congratulatory remarks, cheers and a few moments to reflect on this milestone.
Rice University’s Middle Eastern and North African Student Association (MENA) celebrated the rich customs of its student members’ traditions during Sahra Night, held at the Rice Memorial Center’s Grand Hall April 26.
Rice will congratulate almost 3,000 students who have dutifully earned their college diplomas during commencement weekend May 9-10. For more information, including updates to the policies and procedures for commencement events, please visit the Rice commencement website.
Following a year full of increased activity for Moody Experience programs, Andy Osborn, program manager of educational initiatives, welcomed campus partners and students April 28 at Cohen House to celebrate student impacts and thank campus collaborators for their contributions throughout the year.
Catherine Clack, Rice’s associate vice provost in the Office of Access and Institutional Excellence and director of the Multicultural Center, is retiring in May, providing a capstone to her long and productive career with the university.
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.
Rice University recognized six outstanding staff members with the 2025 Staff Excellence Award during the annual staff appreciation event April 23, celebrating their extraordinary dedication and service to the university community.
Victoria Langlais, senior assistant dean of human resources and administration in Rice’s George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing, was named this year’s winner of the Elizabeth Gillis Award for Exemplary Service at President Reginald DesRoches’ annual event celebrating staff accomplishments April 23.
A team of students from Rice is developing a mobile app to “make happiness a daily habit.” Named Sprout Wellness, the technology’s goal is to provide users with positive psychology-based activity plans to foster social connection, improve well-being and decrease depressive symptoms. It is available for download from the Apple App Store and will soon be available on GooglePlay.
