Rice University Statistics for Prospective Undergraduate Students
Annotations
Faculty Facts and Distinctions
(as of September, 2000)

The information presented in this Annotation represents Rice University management's description of procedures and definitions used to compile and determine amounts presented on the page of statistics concerning faculty facts and distinctions. This information is presented to assist the reader in understanding that page.

Rice University, a small, private, and highly selective research institution in Houston, Texas, has created Statistics for Prospective Undergraduate Students . Detailed definitions and descriptions, sources, and methodologies used in this compilation are described in this and other appropriately linked pages of annotations and apply specifically to this web site. Different time periods reflect unique or official reporting dates and are used to present the most current information available.


Rice had a total of 569 full-time equivalent (FTE) faculty as of September, 2000. FTE faculty included deans, administrative officials who have tenure status, visiting faculty, faculty fellows, and part-time faculty. The calculation for FTE faculty included counting the part-time faculty as one-third of full-time faculty; this full-time equivalent faculty number was used to calculate student-to-faculty ratios (located in the Enrollment and Class Sizes section below.)

Tenured and tenure-track faculty (professors, associate professors, assistant professors, deans, and administrative officials who have tenure status) are all full-time and total 449; they comprised 91% (449/492) of the full-time faculty. Instructors and lecturers, and artist teachers (43) comprised 9% (43/492) of the full-time faculty. Rice also employed 178 adjuncts.
 
 

Notes to calculations:
Full time equivalents
481 full time faculty (481 = 244 professors, 92 associate professors, 102 assistant professors, 12 instructors, 28 lecturers, and 3 artist teachers) 
+ 11 deans and senior administrators with tenure and tenure status 
+ 17 faculty fellows 
+ 10 visiting faculty 
+ 50 FTE of part time (144/3) 
 569 
 
Tenure and tenure-status faculty:
449 = tenured and tenure track faculty (438 full time faculty + 11 deans and senior administrative officials with tenure status) 
492 = 481 full time faculty + 11 deans and senior administrative officials with tenure status 

The percentage of full-time faculty with the doctorate or terminal degree in the field is 98% (472/481).


Notes to calculations:
472 = number of full-time faculty with the doctorate or terminal degree in the field 
481 = number of full-time faculty 

Policies regarding academic appointments; tenure; terms of appointments; offers and acceptances; renewals; promotions;
leaves of absence and effect on tenure; and termination of appointments, sanctions short of termination, and suspension
can be found at http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~presiden/Policies/
 

Sources: Faculty data are maintained in two databases: (1) the Banner (Banner) Financial and Human Resources Systems database (an Oracle-based system for managing financial and human resource activities of Rice), operated by Administrative Services; and (2) the Provost's faculty database, administered by and in the office of the Director of Faculty Administration in a Macintosh FileMaker Pro spreadsheet. Data became static as of October 1, after which time two reconciliations occurred. The first reconciliation was conducted by the Systems Analyst in Administrative Systems between the Banner faculty database and a copy of the Provost's faculty database, where the two files were merged to create one comprehensive faculty database. Once this occurred and major problem areas identified and resolved, the Office of Institutional Research (OIR) received a copy of the comprehensive database, at which time the second reconciliation began. OIR sorted, created parallel fields for comparisons to previous year's data in order to determine certain categories, and reconciled each category with either the Systems Analyst, Human Resources, or Assistant Provost for Faculty Administration.

Numbers were determined by the Office of Institutional Research and verified with the Assistant Provost for Faculty Administration. Percentages were calculated by the Office of Institutional Research.
 
 

Faculty Distinctions for Current and Emeriti Faculty

Awards and distinctions were compiled from several different sources. First, awards and distinctions, and the respective recipient(s) of each, were requested from each academy, agency, foundation, or association; in some cases, national databases are available and were accessed for this same purpose. Second, requests were made from each faculty member's respective school dean to submit to the Office of Institutional Research a list of faculty with their respective awards and distinctions. Third, searches were made on the Rice faculty website by the Office of Institutional Research regarding awards and distinctions. At this point, lists were compiled for each award or distinction with the recipient, using all sources. The next step was to verify that each faculty member who is on any of the lists was either a current Rice faculty member or held emeritus status; this was done by going to the Fall 2000 faculty database (described above) and verifying any variances with the Director of Faculty Administration. In some cases, an understatement of the number of distinctions was possible if a faculty member achieved an award or distinction before coming to Rice. The granting academy, agency, foundation, or association may have listed the faculty member and his or her award or distinction under the university's name with which the faculty member was affiliated at the time the award or distinction was granted.

Website's for distinction categories included the following:

The Nobel Foundation is a private institution established in 1900 on the basis of the will of Alfred Nobel. By the terms of the will, the Nobel Prizes in Physics and Chemistry have been awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (RSAS) since 1901. The RSAS is an independent, non-governmental organization whose objectives include the identification and reward of outstanding scientific achievements.

For their discovery of fullerenes, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry to:

(as of 1-13-99)
Professor Robert F. Curl, Rice University, Houston, USA
Professor Sir Harold W. Kroto, University of Sussex, Brighton, U.K., and
Professor Richard E. Smalley, Rice University, Houston, USA
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is a non-profit organization established under private law by the Federal Republic of Germany. Named in honor of the German natural scientist and explorer, the Foundation was founded in 1860 to commemorate his life work and to sponsor research travel abroad by German scholars. The Foundation also assists foreign scholars pursuing postgraduate studies in Germany through Humboldt Research Fellowships and Humboldt Research Awards.

Humboldtians (26) who are currently on the faculty at Rice University are:

 
(as of 3-29-01)
Andrew R. Barron 
Wilbur E. Billups 
Robert E. Bixby (Emeritus) 
Phillip R. Brooks 
Franz R. Brotzen (Emeritus) 
C. Sidney Burrus 
Peter C. Caldwell 
John W. Clark, Jr. 
William Cook 
Steven Cox 
Robert F. Curl 
Robert C. Haymes (Emeritus) 
Mark Alan Kulstad
Eugene H. Levy

Andreas Luttge 
Rex B. McClellan 
F. Curtis Michel 
Donald Ray Morrison 
C. Robert O'Dell 
D. Spanos 
Frank K. Tittel 
Raymond O. Wells, Jr. 
Kenton H. Whitmire 
Joseph B. Wilson (Emeritus) 
Richard Brian Wolin 
Harvey Yunis

 

  The Academy of Arts and Letters honors the achievements of American artists who excel in any of the fields of arts and literature and has been doing so since 1898. Three yearly exhibitions draw on an extensive permanent collection of memorabilia and works by members.

Rice University has one (1) faculty member who has won the Academy Award in Literature:

                (as of 8-5-99)
                Edward Snow

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) is an honorary society that recognizes achievement in the natural sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities and conducts a varied program of projects and studies responsive to the needs and problems of society. The Academy's membership, which is elected, represents distinction and achievement in the entire range of the intellectual disciplines and professions. Its 3,300 Fellows and 550 Foreign Honorary Members are divided into four classes--the physical sciences, the biological sciences, the social arts and sciences, and the humanities and fine arts. Among its Fellows are 168 Nobel Prize laureates and 58 Pulitzer Prize winners. The Academy recognizes achievement not only in election to membership but in the awarding of prizes.

Rice currently has the following seven (7) faculty who are members of AAAS:

(as of 9-23-99)
Robert F. Curl
Michael M. Carroll
William E. Gordon (Emeritus)
Norman Hackerman (Emeritus)
James L. Kinsey
Richard E. Smalley
Edith Wyschogrod
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS, pronounced "Triple-A-S") is a nonprofit professional society dedicated to the advancement of scientific and technological excellence across all disciplines, and to the public's understanding of science and technology. AAAS is among the oldest societies in America, having been founded in Philadelphia in 1848. Many of today's most prestigious and influential scientific societies have their historical origins in AAAS.

Rice has the following nine (9) faculty as fellows; and in 1997, Rice University's Richard A. Tapia (Computational and Applied Mathematics) was the recipient of the AAAS Mentor Award for Lifetime Achievement.

(as of 9-10-99)
Randall G. Hulet
Jordan Konisky
Ken Kennedy
John L. Margrave
Larry McIntire
John S. Olson
Frederick B. Rudolph
G. K. Walters
Raymond O. Wells, Jr.
According to its web site, the mission of the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is to "advance humanistic studies in all fields of learning in the Humanities and the related social sciences and to maintain and strengthen relations among the national societies devoted to such studies." The ACLS carries out its mission in a variety of programs across many fields of learning, with the awarding of peer-reviewed fellowships at the core of ACLS activity. Membership in ACLS is restricted to organizations, with three types of memberships: Constituent Learned Society (national or international organizations in the humanities and social sciences that focus on a broad but discrete field of humanistic inquiry), Affiliate (organizations and institutions whose goals and purposes are closely linked to ACLS and serve to increase the community and the effectiveness of those actively working on behalf of the humanities), and Associate (colleges, universities, research libraries, and other scholarly institutions).

Rice University has the following 8 faculty as ACLS fellowships:

(as of 9-23-00)
William A. Camfield 
Richard Grandy 
Deborah A. Harter 
Michael R. Maas 
Joseph Manca 
Meredith A. Skura 
 Martin J. Wiener 
Philip R. Wood
The American Philosophical Society, this country's first learned society, has played an important role in American cultural and intellectual life for 250 years. An eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, the American Philosophical Society promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and community outreach.

Rice has three (3) faculty members who have received American Philosophical Society awards:

            (as of 3-24-00)
                Judith Brown
                William Camfield
                Daniel Sherman

The American Physical Society (APS) is an organization of more than 40,000 physicists worldwide. Serving on the Executive Committee of the Texas Section of APS are two Rice faculty members: Naomi Halas (Electrical and Computer Engineering) and Stephen D. Baker (Physics).

In addition, Rice has a total of eight (8) faculty as fellows:

(as of 3-24-00)
Randy Hulet
Eugene H. Levy
J. L. Margrave
F. C. Michel
R. E. Smalley
R. F. Stebbings (Emeritus)
Frank Tittle
G. K. Walters
The Guggenheim Foundation provides fellowships for advanced professionals in all fields (natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, creative arts) except the performing arts.  The Foundation selects its Fellows on the basis of two separate competitions, one for the United States and Canada, the other for Latin America and the Caribbean.  Guggenheim Fellowships are grants to selected individuals made for a minimum of six months and a maximum of twelve months.  Since the purpose of the Guggenheim Fellowship program is to help provide Fellows with blocks of time in which they can work with as much creative freedom as possible, grants are made freely.  No special conditions attach to them, and Fellows may spend their grant funds in any manner they deem necessary to their work.

The following thirteen (13) Rice University faculty have received fellowships:

            (as of 8-5-99)
                Max Apple
                Judith Brown
                William Camfield
                Jane Chance
                Helena Michie
                Robert Patten
                Basilios Poulos
                Daniel Sherman
                Meredith Skura
                George Smith
                Geoffrey Winningham
                Susan Wood
                Edith Wyschogrod

The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) is the world's largest technical professional society. Founded in 1884 by a handful of practitioners of the new electrical engineering discipline, today's Institute is comprised of more than 320,000 members who conduct and participate in its activities in approximately 150 countries. The men and women of the IEEE are the technical and scientific professionals who make revolutionary engineering advances, which reshape our world. The technical objectives of the IEEE focus on advancing the theory and practice of electrical, electronic and computer engineering and computer science. Through its membership, IEEE provides leadership in areas ranging from aerospace, computers, and communications to biomedical technology, electric power and consumer electronics.

The following 11 Rice University faculty are fellows:

The mission of the Institute of Medicine is to advance and disseminate scientific knowledge to improve human health. The Institute provides objective, timely, authoritative information and advice concerning health and science policy to government, the corporate sector, the professions and the public.

The following two (2) are Rice University faculty are members:

                  (as of 9-26-00)
                  G. Anthony Gorry
                    Alvin R. Tarlov

The National Academy of Engineering (NAE), established by a Congressional act of incorporation signed in 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln, is a private, independent, nonprofit institution that not only advises the federal government, but also conducts independent studies that examine some of the most important contemporary topics in engineering and technology. The NAE's leadership continues to provide a forum for the spirit of the engineering profession, building the bridge between science and society. The NAE is also a member of a larger Academy complex, made up of four distinct yet interdependent institutions: the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine, and the National Research Council.

The following twelve (12) Rice University faculty are members:

(as of 3-28-01)
Robert Bixby (Emeritus)
Michael M. Carroll
William E. Gordon (Emeritus)
J. David Hellums
George J. Hirasaki
Ken Kennedy
Riki Kobayashi (Emeritus)
Larry V. McIntire
Angelo Miele (Emeritus)
Ronald P. Nordgren
Richard A. Tapia
Anestis S. Veletsos
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) was created specifically for the purpose of advising the nation's leaders on the scientific issues that frequently pervade policy decisions, in addition to its sister organizations in the National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine, and the National Research Council. These non-profit organizations provide a public service by working outside the framework of government to ensure independent advice on matters of science, technology, and medicine. The nation's top scientists, engineers, and other experts volunteer their time to study specific concerns, the results of which have inspired some of America's most significant and lasting efforts to improve the health, education, and welfare of the population. NAS is an honorary society that elects new members to its ranks each year.

The following seven (7) Rice University faculty are members:

(as of 9-23-99)
Joseph W. Chamberlain (Emeritus)
Robert F. Curl
Quentin H. Gibson
William E. Gordon (Emeritus)
James L. Kinsey
John L. Margrave
Richard E. Smalley
The National Endowment for the Arts provides national arts education leadership through grants, research, forums, and policy.  The NEA serves the public good by nurturing the expression of human creativity, supporting the cultivation of community spirit, and fostering the recognition and appreciation of the excellence and diversity of our nation's artistic accomplishments.  NEA fellowships include the Arts Endowment Literature Fellowships for the encouragement of new work; the American Jazz Master Fellowships that recognize artistic excellence, significant contributions to jazz, and overall impact on the music field; and National Heritage Fellowships for which excellence of artistry, authenticity of tradition, and significance within their art forms are the criteria.

Rice has six (6) faculty who have received NEA fellowships (two have received multiple fellowships):

(as of 8-5-99)
Karin Broker
Brian Huberman
George Smith (2)
Edward Snow
Geoffrey Winningham (2)
Susan Wood
The National Endowment for the Humanities is a federal agency that provides grants to individuals and institutions.  The grants support research in the humanities, educational opportunities for teachers, preservation of texts and materials, translations of important works, museum exhibitions, television and radio programs, and public discussion and study.  NEH grants are awarded on a competitive basis.  In the previous fiscal year, the Endowment funded about one out of every six applications received.

Nine (9) Rice University faculty have received NEH research fellowships:

                (as of 8-5-99)
                William Camfield
                Jane Chance
                Anne Klein
                Helena Michie
                Robert Patten
                Daniel Sherman
                Meredith Skura
                Martin Wiener
                Harvey Yunis

The National Humanities Center is the country’s only independent institute for advanced study in the humanities.  A private, nonprofit institution, the Center exists to encourage excellent scholarship and to affirm the importance of the humanities in American society.  The fellowship program identifies talented scholars at a breakthrough moment in their work, and provides financial support and a stimulating environment for the best new work in the humanities.  Each year, up to 40 scholars, selected by rigorous peer review, come to the Center’s Archie K. Davis Building for year-long residencies from across the United States and around the world.

Fellowships have been awarded to four (4) Rice University faculty:

            (as of 8-5-99)
                Michael Maas
                Robert Patten
                Daniel Sherman
                Edith Wyschogrod

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) consists of 17 institutes and associated centers and divisions. It is one of the agencies of the Public Health Service which, in turn, is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service. NIH is the federal government's primary agency for the support of biomedical research and is the largest such organization in the world. Rice University had 27 active NIH grants and awards in fiscal year 1998.

The following five (5) current faculty members are NIH Fellows:

(as of 9-10-99)
Jordan Konisky
J. S. Olson
Ronald J. Parry
Dale Spence
James M. Tour
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent U.S. government agency responsible for promoting science and engineering through programs that invest over $3.3 billion per year in almost 20,000 research and education projects in science and engineering. The NSF Awards List shows 123 awards for fiscal year 1999 (October 1, 1998 - September 30, 1999), 104 awards currently active at Rice University, and a total of 537 NSF awards to Rice since the mid-1980s.

The following 42 (unduplicated) current faculty at Rice have received awards, fellowships, and/or associateships (not all categories are listed, and some faculty have received awards in more than one category):

(as of 9-23-99)
CAREER/Young Investigator Awards (17)
 Sarita Adve 
 Richard Baraniuk 
 Enrique Barrera 
 Vicki Colvin 
 Alan Cox 
 Steven J. Cox 
 Peter Druschel 
Spike Gildea
 Naomi Halas 
 Randall G. Hulet 
 Lydia Kavraki 
 Edward Knightly 
 Jordan Konisky 
 Robert D. Nowak 
 Stephen Semmes 
 Pol Spanos 
 James M. Tour 
 

Research/Engineering Initiation Award (6)
Behnaam Aazhang 
Athanasios C. Antoulas 
Walter G. Chapman 
Panos C. Dakoulas 
Marc A. Robert 
Ka-yiu San 

Postdoctoral/Research Fellowships (11)
Corky Cartwright 
Richard Grandy
Joe Hightower 
Jordan Konisky 
David Queller 
Sherrilyn Rough 
Stephen Semmes 
Scott Singleton 
Joan Strassman 
Moshe Y. Vardi 
G. Walters 
 

 

Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, 
Mathematics, and Engineering (1)
 Richard A. Tapia 

Postdoctoral Associateships (3)
John E. Dennis
Ken W. Kennedy 
Willy Zwaenepoel 
 

Research Fellowship (1)
Albert Van Helden 
 

Predoctoral Fellowships (5)
Thomas Cochran 
Jordan Konisky 
Clarence Miller 
John Olson 
Ronald Sass 
 
 

Corporate Research Grant (1)
Albert Van Helden
 

Summer Grant (1)
Albert Van Helden

Research Grant (1)
Martin J Wiener
 
 

 
 
The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a philanthropic non-profit institution, was established by Alfred P. Sloan, Jr. in 1934. The Sloan Research Fellowships were established in 1955 to provide support and recognition to young scientists, often in their first appointments to university faculties, who were endeavoring to set up laboratories and establish their independent research projects with little or no outside support. Over the first 17 years of the program Sloan Research Fellowships were awarded in physics, chemistry, and pure mathematics. In 1972, neuroscience was added to the eligible disciplines, and in 1980 applied mathematics and economics were added. The field of computer science was added in 1993. During 1996, two Sloan Fellows were awarded Nobel Prizes: Robert F. Curl, Jr. of Rice University, a 1961 Sloan Research Fellow in Chemistry, and Richard E. Smalley, also of Rice University, a 1978 recipient in Chemistry. These bring the number of past Fellows who have become Nobel Laureates to 21.

Receiving Alfred P. Sloan Fellowships in 1999 were the following Rice University faculty: Vicki Colvin (Chemistry), Peter Drischel (Computer Science) and Lydia Kavraki (Computer Science); all total, Rice University has 18 current faculty who are Sloan Fellows:

(as of 1-22-99)
Sarita V. Adve
W. Edward Billups
Philip R. Brooks
Marco A. Cinfolini
Vicki Colvin
Alan L. Cox
Robert F. Curl
Peter Druschel
Paul S. Engel
Lydia Kavraki
James L. Kinsey
John L. Margrave
Alexander Rimberg
Stephen W. Semmes
Qimiao Si
Richard E. Smalley
Richard A. Stong
R. Bruce Weisman
These are appointments to boards and committees made by presidents of the United States. The following current full-time Rice faculty have received presidential appointments:

                    1997   Ken Kennedy (Professor, Computational Engineering). Appointed Co-Chair of the
                               President's Advisory Committee on High-Performance Computing and
                               Communication, Information Technology, and the Next Generation Internet.
 

                    1996   Richard A. Tapia (Professor, Computational and Applied Mathematics). Appointed
                               Member of the National Science Board.
 
 

Another Presidential Appointee and his current affiliation with Rice is as follows:
 

                    1993   Neal Lane (Professor, Physics, on leave academic year 1998-99). Appointed Director
                               of the National Science Foundation
 
 

                    1998   Neal Lane (Professor, Physics, on leave academic year 1998-99). Appointed Director
                              of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.
 
 

The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars was established to be a living institution commemorating the ideals and concerns of Woodrow Wilson, president of the United States form 1913 to 1921.  Created by law in 1968, the Center is the official U.S. memorial to Woodrow Wilson.  The Center supports scholarship and links that scholarship to issues of concern to official Washington by offering fellowships and other support to high-level professors, public officials, journalists, professionals and other leaders, giving them special opportunities for research and writing.

Three (3) Rice University faculty have received this fellowship:

            (as of 8-5-99)
                Gayke Stokes
                Martin Wiener
                Joel Wolfe
 
 

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Last updated March 29, 2001.