Digital Solutions for Social Good

It’s no secret that Rice students are problem-solvers. But for RiceApps, a student group building web applications, solving problems is about more than just finding solutions.

“There are two primary objectives of RiceApps,” says junior Adam Zawierucha, one of the current leaders of the student club. “The first is to build community-based projects; the second is to provide an opportunity for students to develop technical and product skills.” Founded in 2013 by Waseem Ahmad ’13, a former president of the Rice Computer Science Club, RiceApps has previously launched projects such as the popular Rice Public Art app, downloadable from the Apple App Store.

Here are three recent releases.

Rice Carpool: “The existing solution to carpooling was a spreadsheet that got sent around every break. Someone would make a row for their flight and other people had to manually scroll through to see if any of the rides fit. It was a mess,” says Shreya Nidadavolu ’22. With Rice Carpool, a student can download the app and search their departure or arrival time to easily find rides. Currently, rides to and from George Bush Intercontinental and William P. Hobby airports are available.

HATCH: “Every Rice student uses Banner and Degree Works. Hatch is a combination of both, created for a better course registration experience,” explains sophomore Quang Nguyen. From their phones, Rice students can register for classes, view degree plans, search professor evaluations and more in a compact one-page view.

Houston Food Bank: “The Houston Food Bank … needed a new website to easily publish and update recipes,” says senior Manaal Khan. RiceApps helped fix bugs, create a new styling, and adjust the website for desktop and mobile viewing. “When a food bank patron receives a box of food, they can search the ingredients and find simple, healthy, cost-effective recipes.”

— Emma Korsmo ’24