Editor's Note

Fall 2024
By Lynn Gosnell

It’s been a while since we last published an issue of Rice Magazine, and we’re so pleased to bring you a brand new and expanded publication this fall.We have three big updates to share. 

First, meet Amy Kinkead, who joined the Office of Public Affairs as senior graphic designer and Rice Magazine art director last April after the promotion of Alese Pickering to creative director. If you’re a local, you’ve seen her work in Houstonia and the Houston Chronicle. We were drawn to Amy’s wide-ranging talents in creative visual storytelling and her thoughtful approach to editorial design.

Working at Rice is a kind of homecoming for Amy — both her mother, Jane, and her grandfather, William, are alumni!  

Which brings us to our second update. Owlmanac, the beloved publication and home to alumni classnotes since 1997, is now a part of Rice Magazine. Much care and consideration has gone into this merger — as our team and development and alumni relations have worked together to ensure that the process retains its integrity. We are extremely grateful to our volunteer class recorders for sharing their feedback and advice. Owlmanac is now the largest department in Rice Magazine and will include not only classnotes and ARA news, but also a variety of alumni profiles and book reviews in every issue.

Owlmanac, the beloved publication and home to alumni classnotes since 1997, is now a part of Rice Magazine. Much care and consideration has gone into this merger — as our team and development and alumni relations have worked together to ensure that the process retains its integrity.

Finally, we’re moving from a quarterly to a thrice yearly publication. In recent surveys, we’ve learned that more and more Rice Magazine readers prefer to read our stories both in print and online (though print is still tops!). So to take full advantage of both formats — we needed to reduce our frequency. Our commitment to continue bringing you unique stories, cutting-edge research and campus news won’t waiver, and we look forward to sharing more updates as this new schedule unfolds. 

In this issue, you’ll find stories of a campus in the midst of milestone changes — notably in the redesign of the Academic Quad, which opened Sept. 12. Our features also include a profile of a young alumna’s Watson Fellowship and a package of stories about Rice’s teaching, research and community engagement with the 2024 voting and election season.

As always, our Sallyport department features stories of students and campus life, and Wisdom delivers news of research, discovery and innovation from across campus. Whether you’re turning the pages or scrolling our website, we hope you read our stories and learn something new about Rice. 

Kind regards, Lynn  

We love reader feedback. Drop us a note at ricemagazine@rice.edu.