Rice update as campus reopens

Rice University is open for business and classes have resumed as the campus continues to recover from the effects of Hurricane Ike.  Students, faculty and staff who are unable to return to campus because of storm-related problems are being excused through Wednesday.  Please note that the city of Houston has changed its curfew hours to midnight to 6 a.m. until further notice. In addition, Rice is offering a range of services and information to help the campus community.
See a comprehensive list here.

Rice is “back on our feet”

Rice University reopened Tuesday with an estimated 75 percent of faculty and staff returning to campus for the first day of business since the full force of Hurricane Ike hit Houston Saturday. Classes resumed Tuesday afternoon, and regular schedules, with a few exceptions, were planned for the rest of the week. Faculty, staff and students who are unable to return to campus because of difficulties caused by the storm have been excused, with no charge to their benefit time, through Wednesday. As President David Leebron told a packed auditorium of faculty members Tuesday morning, "Others are watching to see how we demonstrate both resilience and compassion . . . We're quickly back on our feet to carry out our basic mission, and we're helping others who are in difficult circumstances.

Work crews continued to clean up the campus and repair damaged buildings. The campus has ample food and water supplies for its students who live in its nine residential colleges, and the Faculty Club, Fondren Library and other campus venues have reopened for business. Meanwhile, hundreds of students, faculty and staff have volunteered to help with relief and recovery efforts throughout Houston. Already five shifts of volunteers have been organized to help distribute food and water to impacted families through the Houston Food Bank, and other opportunities to help or donate are available at www.rice.edu/service.