<p>Coueur: Californians have quirks? </p>
<p>Hmmm...I'll have to think about this between my afternoon Starbucks and my evening chardonnay.</p>
<p>I figured that it was political, TheDad. My point was that this is a stereotype. Though I trust that your daughter is extremely bright and well-informed, I think that she ought to know that Rice has a pretty even split between liberals and conservatives, as does the neighborhood that Rice is in, before she completely eliminates it from consideration. Interestingly, Houston was Kerry's top donor city in Texas, and Rice's zip code was the top zip code for donations in Houston. Rice includes active Democrat and Republican groups, pro-life and pro-choice groups, etc. Near Rice there is an office of planned parenthood: Rice students both volunteer and protest there. Not all of Texas is conservative, and if your daughter is a moderate, that is how she will be viewed. I consider myself a moderate, voted for Kerry, etc. and I have not felt the least bit bothered by the political climate on or off campus. Not all Texans are extremists or even moderate conservatives, not by a long shot. This is precisely why I suggested a visit.</p>
<p>Given that she has many other options, I understand that this is not a priority for you or her, however, I just wanted to make it clear to others on the board.</p>
<p>I think Rice has a lot of the same image problems that Duke does. They're both considered conservative yet are more liberal than anyone thinks. Just look at the voting results for Durham.</p>
<p>TheDad-
I echo what Jenskate said- my s. became active in the Young Democrats on Campus and campaigned for Kerry on and off campus. He didn't get pummelled, didn't have eggs thrown at him, nor was he cursed at. When I was there over parents weekend, it seemed to me that I saw many more Kerry signs in student dorm windows than Bush signs. Rice has its own voter precinct, which was predominantly Democratic. Even though Bush senior lives somewhere in Houston, I would not consider the folks in the academic/medical corridor around Rice and Rice village anything other than moderate to liberal. I thought my s. would have shown a preference for the more liberal schools in the NE, but I couldn't tell any difference about the political climate of the NE schools and Rice, not even Brown struck me as any more obviously liberal, and this is coming from someone who marched in the moratoriom against the Vietman war. I am sure your daughter will do well wherever she is-- but please advise her, when the opportunity avails itself, that she would have fit in well at Rice.</p>
<p>They may be the only foot ball marching band (with strings and winds) that does not march.</p>
<p>Jym, it's moot because D is in finals at her first year at Smith (though Smith is <em>not</em> split evenly between liberals and conservatives). </p>
<p>Jenskate, your description is what I would have expected of Rice proper and, yeah, making it clear for other readers is fair game. And again, D's concern was the broader community...broader than just the area around the school. "Choice" and gay rights are hot button issues for my D and she didn't want to half to feel like she was swimming upstream all the time. And again, fwiw, I would have argued with her had her list of candidate schools been short. And as it is, her emphasis shifted from universities to LAC's as her search went on, though I would have thought that Rice, along with Tufts, might have been survivors on that basis alone.</p>
<p>Thedad-
Oops- I forgot that-- and I think I knew that. But your d. might be interested in the attached article about a gay AA female at Rice who was selected as one of the top 10 college women in October's Glamour magazine. <a href="http://students.rice.edu/students/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=5946%5B/url%5D">http://students.rice.edu/students/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=5946</a></p>
<p>Houston Sucks!!</p>
<p>i'm conservative :)</p>
<p>Jym, interesting article, impressive young woman. But for D, the more salient point is that half of her House is gay and she takes near-mortal offense on their behalf. Also, where we live and with even the faintest connections to the entertainment industry, it's impossible not to know gay people and she has all her life. Then there's the world of ballet. For her, it's a civil rights issue more than any one person's story. Sorry...this is getting way OT from Rice per se.</p>
<p>Thedad-
While we may be straying a bit off course, the original question was "what is Rice good for?" As we answer this and many other questions about schools on CC, we try to provide new information, observations and insights, but we also contribute to the perception/image/reputation that each school has. This can be good and bad. The undergrad LAC I attended went coed over 30 years ago, but on this very list I read that males considering this former 7 sisters school are still faced with the question "isn't that a girl's school?" How do we help update the image of a school?? Texas still carries the stereotype southern conservative image (perhaps appropriately deserved) but Rice is an island within that that should be viewed in its own right. This is probably true for many colleges, which, traditionally have a blend of political and sociological beliefs. If we can help a student look at what a school is, we should also help dispell the myths about what it is as well. I speak from experience, as I wasn't as well versed about Rice as I was about the NE schools, and I wasn't at first as excited at its addition to the list of schools to look at. But once we researched a bit more and visited, we found it to be an excellent "fit" for my liberal son, and a far better fit than the ivies, MIT, Cal Tech, etc that he was also considering.. To answer the original question, Rice is a school that offers support, comfort and tolerance to many differing views. It is a pretty laid back campus. While many students have many passions, it isn't an "in-your-face" environment. The residental college system and subsequent lack of a need for frats prevents the cliques that form at other schools. It is very easy to quickly "fit in". The college system provides an instant family network. People have opinions, but they aren't militant about it. There has been some adjustment to the new president, and the departure of a very well-loved administrator, but the student response has been more diplomatic than would have occurred in my 70's era college protest days.
I am glad your daughter has a strong passion that helped influence her school choice. That is as it should be, and Northampton is a good place for that. No fun feeling like a fish out of water in any environment.
Rice is a school for bright, hard-working students who want the perfect blend of the opportunities of a large university with the feel of a small liberal arts college. And it's significantly more reasonable tuition , thanks to one of the largest university endowments, is certainly a nice added plus.</p>
<p>The residential college system is pretty good. Rice also sits in the middle of museum district, accross the street from one of the largest park in Houston with a zoo, and a nice out-door theater with many good programs, a train ride away from down town and theater district and sports venues, and few blocks away from world renowed medical center.</p>
<p>(The class room chairs are nice too). The small classes are taught by profs and it is relatively easy to double-triple major.</p>
<p>Simba can speak to this better, but you get the best of the weather during the school year (unlike the NE, unless you're a skier). It'll be beach hot until Oct - but hey, you can go to the beach - winter lasts a couple of weeks and then there's a long spring. You'll get a whole new perspective on what is meant by "downpour". The rodeo is super fun.</p>
<p>My D is a Rice soph. She went to boarding school jr and sr years of hs and swore she would not come back to Texas. She was choosing a college for music but it needed to have strong academics. Rice turned out to be the best fit, especially when she showed up for her late January audition (having flown from snowy Michigan) and found the Rice kids wearing flip flops! That sealed the deal. She finds Rice to be quite liberal and fairly diverse. She loves Houston (finds it superior to her home town of Dallas). She has taken advantage of the public transportation and the museums and concerts. She has also enjoyed Rice's liberal alcohol policy, but has not abused it. K.</p>
<p>Yes and next year cangel can say what % of college cost was for warm clothes......congrates on darthM.</p>
<p>karen-in-bigD: is your D in shepherd? If not then how is she pursuing music? (Big D is a better looking place than H - we are ugly and fat)</p>
<p>D is in Shepherd- vocal performance. She chose Shepherd over all the top voice programs in the country (except for Julliard where she did not get in). She needed to be in a university setting, so I was pleased with her choice and so is she.</p>