DESCRIPTION
Rice Engineering Alumni (REA) is the oldest alumni affinity group at Rice and supports, honors, and connects Rice Engineers before and after graduation.
Gifts to REA have a direct impact on Engineering current students and alumni (see our Annual Report). Individual donations support initiatives such as:
$50,000+ in annual grants and awards to students
$20,000 in annual sponsorship of the OEDK
Sponsorship of student projects in organizations such as OwlSpark and Students for the Exploration of Space
Capital projects (including $50,000 in recent years toward the renovation of the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering undergraduate teaching lab)
Regional alumni events in San Francisco, Boston, Austin, and Washington, D.C.
In 2022, the REA (as part of broader DEI efforts to promote the success and retention of engineering students at Rice) also hosted its second annual Summer Engineering Experience (REA-SEE), a summer internship program that matches students to pre-selected companies and funds their first-ever professional engineering experiences. This program hopes to match about 20 students across 15 companies this coming summer.
Please consider donating to help REA reach its goal of fundraising at least $20,000 to sustain and enhance these programs for the benefit of both students and alumni. REA relies on individual sponsors to support our DEI programs, provide financial assistance to high-achieving students, sponsor student engineering projects, and fund alumni events.
Please contact Rushi Bhalani for questions or more information at rushi.bhalani@gmail.com.
WHAT IS THE 24-HOUR CHALLENGE?
The 24-Hour Challenge is Rice University’s annual day of giving! On April 4, 2023, the Rice community will unite once again for a shared purpose — to put their support behind the extraordinary young Owls who strive for excellence, the teachers who inspire and one brilliant community that seeks to build a better world. Gifts can be directed to a school, residential college, research initiative, student club or any area on campus that means the most to you.
WHAT IS THE GOAL?
To bolster our effort, David Courtwright Ph.D. ’79 and Shelby Miller, former Rice art librarian, have generously offered a supporting challenge: When 4,400 donors make a gift of any size on April 4, they will donate $300,000 toward need-based scholarships.