The Office of the Dean for HumanitiesThe International School of the Americas’ (ISA) freshman class visited Rice on March 3. They were there to learn about the rich environmental studies offerings at Rice. If that group of 117 highly motivated freshmen is any indication, student interest and enthusiasm for environmental studies are only growing.
The day began with a fleet of buses dropping off students and their chaperones in Baker College commons. It was concluded by a beautiful afternoon tour through the beautiful Baker College campus Betty Friedman Holistic Garden.
After opening remarks by Alex Byrd, Vice Provost for Diversity Equity and Inclusion, and Fay Yarbrough Associate Dean for Humanities, the ISA students were informed about Rices commitment towards a carbon-neutral future by Richard Johnson, Executive Director for Sustainability, and the connection between literature and the environment by Joseph Campana Professor of English, the director at Rices Center for Environmental Studies(which is shared between the schools for Architecture and Humanities).
Taylor Gilliam, a Jones College junior, shared her work with ISA students. She described the documentaries she made about creosote pollution and environmental justice in Houston’s Fifth Ward.
ISA students were treated at lunch to a Rice student-led tour of campus and a delicious al fresco pizza party. Current Owls from ISA visited ninth graders to talk about Rice and their experiences at ISA. The freshmen loaded up with information and filled with brochures, piled onto buses at the end of the day.
Yarbrough, who organized the visit after ISA representatives reached them via email to find out if Rice offered such customized, daylong tours, said Yarbrough.
Yarbrough stated that schools should be able to come to campus to request specific visits. Debakey High School for Health Professions could visit to learn more about the medical humanities program. High School for the Performing and Visual Arts could also be available for visits for creative writing and English. Now we have a model for how that kind of daylong visit might look.
