Members of the Rice community gathered in the Multicultural Center Courtyard for a vigil titled 'Honoring Our Martyrs' on October 18. The vigil was held in remembrance of the martyrs lost in Palestine, Chicago, and Southern Lebanon in the past week. Rice Students for Justice in Palestine organized the event and shared details on their Instagram post on October 16.
In other news, Rice University has recently made several announcements and initiatives. The university broke ground on Sarofim Hall, a new building that will serve as a hub for performing arts on campus. Jim Blackburn, a professor of environmental law at Rice, commented on the importance of water supply in the region. Rice University was also mentioned in NASA's new space robotics campus, highlighting the university's involvement in space research and technology.
Furthermore, Rice's Wiess School of Natural Sciences launched the Center for Nanoscale Imaging Sciences, which will focus on advanced imaging techniques at the nanoscale level. This new center will contribute to the university's research capabilities in the field of nanotechnology.
Rice University continues to expand its presence in the space industry. Philippe Baptiste, president and CEO of France's National Center for Space Studies (CNES), visited Rice University on March 18 to advance cooperation in space exploration and foster global partnerships [e335da0b]. Baptiste, Rice President Reginald DesRoches, and Director of Aviation at Houston Airport System Jim Szczesniak signed a letter of intent to deepen partnerships between CNES, Rice, and Houston Spaceport. The collaboration aims to strengthen relationships in education, trade, business, and industry development. Rice University has a history of collaboration with NASA and has been fostering relationships with France's space industry. Rice is set to host the 36th annual Space Studies Program run by the International Space University, solidifying its position in the global space community [e335da0b].
Rice University's OpenStax has been awarded $90 million by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to build and lead SafeInsights, a research hub for inclusive learning and education research. SafeInsights aims to conduct extensive, long-term research on effective learning predictors while protecting student privacy. It will serve as a central hub for a multidisciplinary team of 80 partners and collaborating institutions, including major digital learning platforms. The project is funded through NSF's Mid-scale Research Infrastructure-2 program and represents the largest research award in Rice's history. SafeInsights will generate research-informed insights about teaching and learning to create tailored programs, pedagogies, and policies. The project will focus on supporting all students, particularly those from underrepresented and low-income backgrounds. SafeInsights will capture a comprehensive picture of the learning process by instrumenting large-scale digital learning platforms for research, enabling a deeper understanding of the factors that influence learning outcomes. The project will protect student privacy through an innovative architecture that allows large-scale information about learning to be available for research without revealing protected information to researchers. The aggregate insights about learning will undergo careful human oversight to ensure data security. OpenStax has the experience and capacity to lead this effort, thanks to prior awards from NSF, Institute of Education Sciences, and philanthropic funders. SafeInsights will collaborate with funder networks to leverage its national research and development infrastructure and expand its reach.
Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy has received a $1 million gift from Harry Yan and Weiman Gao to establish the Neuro-Policy Program. The program aims to address brain health challenges and promote economic opportunity through interdisciplinary approaches. Rice University will leverage partnerships within the Texas Medical Center to pursue research in neuroscience, neurotechnology, brain health, and neuro-policy. The Neuro-Policy Program, led by Harris Eyre, will focus on reducing brain and mental health disparities, optimizing cognitive development and performance, and fostering innovation. The program's key projects include advising Texas legislative efforts, creating a Texas Brain Capital Dashboard, collaborating on the Texas Brain Health Plan, and advancing U.S. brain capital policy and investment. The program aims to position Texas as a leader in brain health and mental health outcomes while supporting economic growth. The $1 million gift was inspired by a Baker Institute event on brain health and was granted by Yan and Gao, who prioritize enhancing education and healthcare. The program is expected to yield deliverables by 2026 [b6b0f26f].
Rice University's director of digital media, Sam Rice, has won four awards from College Sports Communicators in the 2023-24 Creative & Digital Design Contest. Rice's videos on equestrian and baseball were named the best in Division III. His equestrian hype video from the 2023 NCEA championship placed third, and his video on baseball's Brandon Pond placed fifth. Rice also led the design of Lynchburg's visual element suite for the 2023-24 school year, which was selected as the second-best in Division III. The contest received over 1,600 entries, with 697 from the University Division and 921 from the College Division. Rice graduated from Lynchburg in 2021 and has been the director of digital media since August 2023.
In addition, the Center for Instructional Innovation at Augusta University in Augusta, Georgia, has won a Silver Telly Award in the Health and Safety (Non-Broadcast) category for their educational video titled 'Healing Herbert: A Story of Compassionate Clinical Care.' The video, created by Arthur Takahashi, Andrew Everett, and Jeff Mastromonico, tells the story of Herbert Ball, a patient who survived head and neck cancer and credits his compassionate health care providers for his recovery. The award recognizes the care and creativity of the Center for Instructional Innovation and their impact on students at Augusta University. The Telly Awards, established in 1979, honors excellence in video and television across all screens. This year, more than 12,000 entries from 50 states and six continents competed for the award [629f3f7c].