<p>@Ottoline:
I don’t quite remember that post, though I’m flattered that you regard my opinions so highly that you recall them better than I do. If I remember, I advised against approaching your freshman roommate with the expectation that your roommate will be your best friend — if so, you will almost certainly be disappointed. Best friends rarely make the best roommates — though there are many exceptions. You will make friends, and your roommate will make friends, and if those friends overlap, then great. If not, then that’s okay, as long as you and your roommate get along fine. After all, your room is where you sleep, not where you live.</p>
<p>@momof3sons:
re: revitalizing theater — Each college at Rice has its own budget set aside for theater productions. When I became Lovett’s theater chair Lovett hadn’t had a production in two years. Over the next two years, we put on the musicals I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change and Cabaret, respectively, as well as a student-written show and a night of two one-act plays. Coordinating Lovett’s student-run theater program is just one of the many opportunities for leadership I’ve had at Rice.</p>
<p>re: the college system — No, I actually was never kicked off, but even if I had been I wouldn’t think any less of the college system. You have to remember that your residential college is more than where you live — it’s your home. It’s more than just a building — it’s a community. I hope I made clear in my post everything that I have gotten out of the college system, but I can be a bit more direct. The two things that distinguish Rice’s residential college system from any other in the country (including Yale’s and Harvard’s) is that 1) we don’t have freshman dorms and 2) the colleges are completely student-run. The first one is very important because it means that you are a member of your residential college — and a relevant, contributing member of your residential college — from day one. It also means that you have a support network of upperclassmen who are your friends and mentors, and that you similarly get to be a mentor to the underclassmen when you’re a junior or senior. The second one is especially important because it means that at Rice, more than at any other school, you are able to directly shape your own experience. Each college gets a budget of $40K+ with which to do whatever they want. This budget is spent on theater productions, social events, capital improvements, fun activities, philanthropic endeavors — whatever we want. At Rice, you are more than just a student — you are a member of this community.</p>