<p>During this past move-in weekend, I chatted with a Rice Engineering Prof. He mentioned President Leebron's proposal of expanding the size of Rice. Anyone care to elaborate a little? I didn't think much of this topic until my son mentioned it over the phone (he seems to be concerned). How serious is this proposal and how it will impact the school?</p>
<p>Thanks,</p>
<p>This proposal is indeed very serious. You can read about it at Leebron's "Call to Conversation" website:
<a href="http://cohesion.rice.edu/administration/presidentsoffice/c2c/index2.cfm%5B/url%5D">http://cohesion.rice.edu/administration/presidentsoffice/c2c/index2.cfm</a></p>
<p>cave-dweller,</p>
<p>Reading President Leebron's letter makes you wonder why the expansion wasn't done earlier. He proposed x1.3 times expansion to about a 3600-3800 student body.</p>
<p>Thanks for the link,</p>
<p>cave_dweller
Did you send that through the rice link? I was under the impression that the site was open only to the Rice community. As a parent, I was having trouble accessing it fromthe Rice website, but your link took me right to it and it opened right up!</p>
<p>The link is open to the public...just go to the "undergraduate" or "graduate" portal on the rice.edu main website and there will be a link to Leebron's "Call to Conversation"</p>
<p>cavedweller-
I had done that a few days ago-- it says you have to have a special secured link through the Rice website (I forget the exact terminology). No matter...</p>
<p>we had a huge student association organized all-campus bbq today at the front lawn, and we got to talk to leebron too.</p>
<p>basically, he plans to increase enrollment 30% and start a few housing projects that could have 80% of students living on campus (up from current 73%) in a few years down the road. the plans include 1-2 new residential colleges, upgrading some old ones, and a possible off-campus Rice-owned apartment building (near campus of course) that will enable students booted off campus another convenient housing option.</p>
<p>This is not a big secret:</p>
<p>From Houston Chronicle article 7-5-05 --</p>
<p>A question of size
The 93-year-old university is not known for rapid change. The debate over its size is it too small to be great, or is it great because it is small predates Leebron and Gillis. </p>
<p>With roughly 2,900 undergraduates, Rice is the smallest of the nation's top research institutions and the second-smallest participant in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's highest level of competition, Division I-A.</p>
<p>Leebron and the trustees are willing to expand the student body, perhaps to 3,800 undergraduates. Such growth would require at least two new residential colleges and a hiring boom to maintain its 5-1 student-faculty ratio.</p>
<p>"In going from tiny to small is a great challenge," said Bob Stein, a political scientist and dean of the School of Social Sciences.</p>
<p>Leebron said his intention is to keep Rice smaller than Stanford and Duke, universities that are more than twice its size and consistently ranked better. But he thinks the current size is "perhaps an important obstacle to further achievement" and that a larger student body would provide extra resources needed to lift some academic departments to national prominence.</p>
<p>"Rice is always going to be small," said Crownover, the board chairman. "The question is, what is the adverb we use in front of small?"</p>
<p>In a way, Leebron wants to move Rice from labels such as "hidden gem" and "the best value in higher education." He would prefer the university to be at the forefront, and to be known for more than the quality of education in relation to the cost of tuition.</p>
<p>Another recent article regarding Rice:</p>
<p>Houston Chronicle 8-21-05 --</p>
<p>Rice received a record 8,106 applications for admission last fall, producing a freshman class of 727 students. But the university's inability to attract more applications this year troubled administrators, who want the private research institution to be a destination for top students from Texas and beyond.</p>
<p>About 53 percent of Rice's undergraduates are from Texas. David Leebron, the university's president, has said he wants 60 percent of the student body to come from out of state.</p>
<p>when does he plan on doing this?? this fall?</p>
<p>I think he is trying to build a consensus right now. It will probably take a while before any thing happens.</p>
<p>Leebron has said he won't suddenly admit more students without having the campus prepared for them, including adequate housing so that more students aren't forced off-campus. So it will take some time.</p>
<p>While the plan to increase the enrollment by 30% is a long range plan, the enrollment is alredy slowly creeping up. I believe it is up to over 2900 undergrads (it has been around 2800 in the past), and housing continues to be a delicate issue,with about 25% of students living off campus (some by choice, many not by choice).</p>