What we know
The new 75,000-square-foot facility will be constructed to serve as a dynamic hub for student activities among Rice students and the broader Houston community, according to a March 5 news release.
Features of the new building include a large programming pavilion that opens to the University's Central Quad and a variety fo spaces such as a cafe, coffeehouse, meeting room and study areas; the student services office will also be housed in the new center.
The center will be located on the south side of the Central Quadrangle of the University, next to the Rice Memorial Center and Ley Student Center, strategically placed to create a 'cohesive student center complex,' per the release.
“This new state-of-the-art facility will be much more than just a building; it is an investment in the future of every student, supporting them in pursuit of their passions,” Elle Moody, a trustee of both the Moody Foundation and Rice University, said in the release. “My hope is that it will provide opportunities for our students to form meaningful connections, not only with one another, but also with a vast network of scholars and leaders from local to global communities.”
Project funding
The $115 million project is funded in part by the Moody Foundation and The Brown Foundation.
The Moody Foundation is a charitable organization charted in 1942 by William Lewis Moody Jr. and his wife, Libbie Rice Shearn Moody. The foundation donated $100 million to support the construction of the new student life center, as well as 12 endowments to focus on advancing student opportunity and success. The Moody's donation is the largest single donation in Rice's history, according to the release.
The Brown Foundation, founded in 1951 by Herman and Margarett Root Brown, and Alice Pratt Brown, also donated an additional $15 million to support the project.
A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for May 8, and the new building is scheduled for completion in fall 2027.
- 6100 Main St., Houston
- www.rice.edu
