‘A
good problem to have’
Housing,
course sections and faculty mentor program expand for incoming class

BY AMY HODGES
Rice
News staff

When Rice
University discovered the Class of 2015 would be the largest incoming class in
its history, it was “a good problem to have,” but also called for some
action.

The new
freshman class was originally intended to be just one student larger than last
year’s class of 949 students, but ended up at 1,002. That required special provisions
to ensure there would be enough housing, introductory courses and faculty
mentors to accommodate the students.

	JEFF FITLOW
	President David Leebron mentoring students during O-Week.

First off was ensuring
that campus living space was available for every freshman. “It was
important to make sure every freshman who wanted to live on campus was able to
do so,” Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson said.

Hutchinson
credited Associate Vice President of Housing and Dining Mark Ditman, Ditman’s
staff, and Yesenia Montoya from his own staff for the hard work they put in
over the summer to make sure that all freshmen interested in living in the
residential colleges were accommodated. According to Ditman, finding extra
living spaces for the large freshman class was “a good problem to
have.”

“Unlike
at many other universities, our students really want to live on campus,”
Ditman said. “I think that really says a lot about the great undergraduate
experience Rice offers its students.” 

Ditman said that
some upperclassmen agreed to move out of the residential colleges to make room
for incoming students. Others agreed to live three students to a room instead
of two, or to move into space not originally intended as student rooms. Housing
and Dining also accelerated a remodeling project at Will Rice College that will
increase the number of beds there by three.

With housing
taken care of, it was also important to make sure the incoming freshmen had
access to the courses they need to fulfill their introductory course
requirements. Hutchinson and his staff worked with deans from the different
schools to identify where more introductory course sections were needed.

“We have
submitted requests for additional courses, teaching assistance and resources as
needed,” Hutchinson said.

Hutchinson also
recruited extra mentors for the newly established Faculty Mentor Program. The
program, which began this week, is part of Rice’s commitment to close
student-faculty interaction. Each mentor advises and develops relationships
with seven or eight students throughout the year.

“The
program is something that my staff and I have been talking about for a
year,” Hutchinson said. “We decided to implement the program in late
spring, and when we learned about the increase in enrollment, the priority
became even higher to ensure our students get the attention they need.”

Hutchinson
said the program has proved popular with faculty members. “We’ve had
really good participation overall, with approximately 130 faculty members
signed up.” In addition, Rice President David Leebron, Provost George
McLendon and a number of deans and associate deans, including Hutchinson, have
signed up to be mentors.

All in
all, Hutchinson is confident the students in the incoming class have everything
they need to hit the ground running as new members of the Rice community,
thanks to the collaboration between his staff and the leadership of the various
colleges.

“Everyone
I’ve spoken with this week really feels like this class is full of energy and
enthusiasm and is well-prepared to embark on their collegiate journey,” he
said.