Clinton in Autry, ball passed to faculty’s court
Former President Bill Clinton will step up to the lectern Thursday at Autry Court instead of at Stude Concert Hall, and we could not be happier. (See story, Page 1.) Changing venues for this high-profile, high-security event took a great deal of activism from student groups like the Baker Institute Student Forum and the college presidents. It required great flexibility from Baker Institute planners, as well as staff who will stay overnight after Wednesday’s basketball game to clean up the arena.
Now it is up to students to repay that labor by showing up to hear the former president speak. We have 2,500 seats available to students, and it will be an embarrassment to our community and an insult to all the work put into this event if a noticeable fraction of those seats go unfilled. So grab your Rice ID, leave your cell phone and go see the first president of our generation’s conscious memory.
Unless, of course, you’re stuck in class. Clinton’s speech begins at 3 p.m., doors open at 1:45 and no one will be admitted after 2:30. But more than 50 undergraduate classes are scheduled to meet at 2:30 Thursday, not to mention earlier classes or afternoon seminars. If instructors do not adjust class schedules, a significant fraction of the undergraduate population will be unable to see Clinton or penalized for doing so.
This speech is a once in a lifetime opportunity for most students, and while we cherish the value of every lecture minute, we hope instructors appreciate the importance of this event. And we hope they will acknowledge this importance by canceling 2:30 classes and letting out earlier afternoon classes at 1:45, so students have time to get to Autry and get through security. Of course, it wouldn’t hurt for the administration to step in and make life easier for everyone by making these cancellations campus-wide.
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