Another university so conceived

Another university so conceived
Opening of International University–Bremen
harkens back to Rice’s opening in 1912
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BY MARGOT DIMOND
Rice News Staff

International University–Bremen’s opening last month bore a strong resemblance to the opening of Rice University nearly 90 years before. That was no accident, said Rice historian John Boles, the William P. Hobby Professor of History.

“IU–B’s opening was very consciously modeled after the Rice opening,” he said, explaining that like Rice, IU–B first opened to students, then two weeks later followed with a major three-day opening ceremony and academic symposium. And like Rice, the “extremely high quality” of the opening ceremony was designed “to make a statement about the ambitions and goals of this new university.”

Boles believes they succeeded in this endeavor: “You couldn’t have attended without saying this is a remarkable achievement.”

IU–B is Europe’s first private, independent research university. It was founded in collaboration with Rice University. With English as its language of instruction, the university has attracted students from 48 countries.

The celebration began Sept. 19 with a preopening dinner for IU–B’s students, faculty and staff in the Bremen Town Hall. The event was hosted by Bremen Mayor Henning Scherf, who spoke warmly of the contributions made by Rice President Malcolm Gillis and others toward making the university a reality. Later in the evening, Scherf and Gillis visited the tables for spirited discussions with the students.

On Sept. 20, the 1,400 invited guests were greeted by 75 student volunteers — recruited and trained by Greg Marshall, director of Rice’s Office of University Relations. Marshall is helping IU–B set up an ambassadors program like the one at Rice. The students also gave tours of IU–B’s beautiful campus, which was originally built in the late 1930s as a mobile anti-aircraft base.

The first students at IU–B are “adventurous and creative and very much aware that they are pioneers,” noted Boles. The original enrollment goal for the first year was 100 students; more than 130 students had enrolled by opening day.

The keynote address was given by former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt, who began his talk by condemning the terrorist actions in the United States. He affirmed Germany’s undivided solidarity with the American people. He recognized Rice’s role in the creation of IU–B, and praised the new university as one answer to the challenges of globalization, saying, “now more than ever, we need universities such as IU–B.”

The opening ceremonies also included presentations by Fritz Schaumann, IU–B president; Scherf; Josef Hattig, the senator for economics and ports in Bremen who was an early promoter of IU–B; Jürgen Timm, rector of the University of Bremen, the city of Bremen’s public university; Reimar Lüst, chairman of the IU–B board of governors; and Gillis.

In addition, there were videos profiling the new students and their first experiences at IU–B and a scientific dialogue by Neal Lane, university professor at Rice and former science adviser to President Clinton, and Ernst-Ludwig Winnacker, biochemist and president of Forschungsgemeinschaft (similar to the National Science Foundation).

Translation devices were made available to all of the guests. The ceremony was broadcast live in Bremen, and Schmidt’s talk was broadcast nationwide.

That evening, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, conducted by John Axelrod of Houston’s Orchestra X, performed an original composition, “X-Caliber,” at the Bremen Musikfest. The piece was composed by Anthony Brandt, Rice assistant professor of composition.

On Friday, IU–B hosted an international symposium featuring a wide range of topics presented by a selection of internationally recognized scientists — among them Michael Hammond, dean of the Shepherd School of Music. The symposium was designed to highlight the possibilities of interdisciplinary research.

“IU–B is a great example of a sword transformed into a plowshare — a military base has become a center of learning with great promise,” Gillis said. “IU–B begins its existence with a campus setting unique in Europe, with a vigorous new faculty and highly capable students displaying a strong pioneering spirit. There is as yet nothing like it on the European continent. The new university is off to a truly auspicious beginning.”