Fall at Last

Fall 2023
By Lynn Gosnell

Welcome to another jam-packed, thoughtful, awe-inspiring, newsy, globe-trotting, informative — and stylish — issue of Rice Magazine. We’re not kidding. Our fall quarterly brims with the energy that befits the arrival of a new academic year.

First, welcome to the Class of 2027. Our newest undergraduates arrive during a time of growth and change at Rice. Did you know they hold the record for the lowest-ever admittance rate? Check out “The Big Number,” the first in our new series highlighting the numbers behind Rice’s news.

About the cover: This fall marks the launch of a new era in Rice athletic competition. To mark the Owls’ flight up to the American Athletic Conference, Art Director Alese Pickering collaborated with David Pillen, associate athletic director, to invite student athletes to Tudor Fieldhouse’s East Gym for a photo shoot marking the occasion. Veteran photographer Jeff Fitlow captured the action for the six-page cover design. Read the accompanying story, “Welcome to the American,” then go online for some “behind the scenes” extras — including a dancing Sammy.

Welcome to the Class of 2027. Our newest undergraduates arrive during a time of growth and change at Rice. Did you know they hold the record for the lowest-ever admittance rate?

Were you a Girl Scout? I count the experiences of camping, earning badges, taking part in service activities and singing humorous songs as among the most formative of my city childhood. We at Rice were already familiar with alumna Noorain Khan’s extraordinary work in philanthropy at the Ford Foundation, but we had never featured the consequential advocacy of this former Rhodes scholar. When Khan was named national board president of the Girl Scouts of the USA in July, we knew we had an even better story, “To Serve Is To Live,” to share.

After a summer of torturous heat, we’re happy to report that Rice’s Betty and Jacob Friedman Holistic Garden is thriving — not only as an abundant source of vegetables, herbs and fruit for our campus and community but also as a classroom and research field site — and a natural space to cultivate emotional well-being. We are delighted to feature the work of horticulturalist Joe Novak, his staff and Rice students in “How Our Garden Grows.”

This is our highlight reel. Dig deeper for stories on the Rice Thresher’s new editors, student fashion, Rice Provost Amy Dittmar’s strategic vision, innovative research from faculty and more accomplishments of extraordinary alumni — all this and a recipe, too.

Illustration by Paddy Mills