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Pillar 5

Student, Faculty and Staff Development

We are committed to recruiting, retaining and advancing students, staff and faculty from populations that reflect the identities represented in our city, nation and world. As part of this commitment, we will enhance the cultural competency of our students, staff and faculty in ways that prepare them to engage and contribute as inclusive leaders, teachers, scholars, advocates and/or allies in today’s dynamic workplace environment.

Student Development

Career Development Office

Student Conference Support

“Empowered To Choose Her Own Path,” May 31 – June 4, 2025
At The Consortium’s 2025 Orientation Program (OP), incoming Rice Business student Taylor Smith found more than just professional momentum. She found community, clarity and the confidence to pursue a career that’s truly her own. With support from the Rice Business Career Development Office, Taylor managed a demanding lineup of networking and recruiting events, even balancing overlapping opportunities with real-time guidance from advisors and connections to alumni.

And her dedication paid off. After a series of meaningful conversations and mock interviews with CDO career advisor Gloria Ratliff, Taylor received a summer offer from PepsiCo.

From managing high-stakes schedules to making space for students to explore new directions, our team shows up where it matters most. Taylor’s story reflects what we value deeply at Rice Business: investing in each student’s journey and empowering them to pursue work that aligns with who they are and where they want to go.

Rice Business Leading by Example

“Showing Up and Directing the Conversation,” June 13-14, 2025
At this year’s Forté MBA Women’s Leadership Conference, Rice Business didn’t just show up — we helped lead the conversation. With two of our career advisors, Mariella de Alba Ortiz and Shelley Richard, moderating key industry panels alongside top MBA talent and alumni, our presence was felt across the conference. But more importantly, it was our students who made the biggest impression.

From building connections to boldly exploring career paths, the incoming Class of 2027 showed the drive, talent and heart that defines Rice Business. Guided by the Career Development Office and supported by a powerful alumni network, they’re stepping into the MBA experience with confidence, ready to lead and lift others as they rise.

This is how Rice Business shows up: together, with purpose, and when it counts most.

Houston Healthcare Trek

“Alumni-Powered, Impact-Driven,” March 28 and April 18, 2025
Thanks to the support and generosity of our alumni, the Rice Business Healthcare Trek returned for the first time in six years and with incredible impact. From candid career insights at Texas Children’s Hospital to behind-the-scenes access at MD Anderson, alumni played a key role in connecting students with Houston’s healthcare innovation ecosystem.

Guided by the Career Development Office and made possible through strong alumni engagement, this trek reflects the power of community in action — opening doors, building networks and inspiring the next generation of healthcare leaders.

Graduate Strategic Partnerships

Rice Business is dedicated to making academic experiences inclusive and forward-thinking. We’re proud to support all our students through strategic partnerships with local and national organizations. These alliances provide opportunities for career prep and programming. 

Consortium for Graduate Studies in Management

  • Rice Business joined as the 19th school member in 2017. 
  • Lina Bell, executive director for the Office of Belonging and Engagement, is a board member. 

    • Consortium Orientation Program (OP), Summer 2025
      This program is led by our external partner, The Consortium, to facilitate meaningful connections with the incoming students, to network more broadly among other MBA programs, and to begin engaging with corporate partners supporting the conference in hopes of securing career opportunities. Three teams at Rice Business — the Office of Belonging and Engagement, the Career Development Office, and the Recruiting and Admissions Office — collaborated to support the preparation of this program for all incoming Consortium students, including setting expectations about the conference experience. Support to students included career advising, pitch development and career expo strategy.

      The Rice Business team welcomed incoming Consortium students and prepared them for the MBA career fair. We were joined by alumni Ian Nobmann ’24, Jaylen Patel ’22, Roberto Schuldes, PMBA, Molley Sheriff ’24, Tapo Tuteja ’24, Daenera (Dana) Marissa Vazquez ’24, Karen Verboski ’24, and Mark Stanton Watson ’23 who provided valuable advice and support to our incoming Consortium students.

FORTÉ Foundation

  • The Class of 2027 Forté Cohort comprised 33 women in the Full-Time and Professional MBA programs.
  • 17 prospective students attended the Forté MBA Women’s Conference in Denver, June 13–14. Conference attendees explored career paths, connected with recruiters and mentors, and sharpened career skills.

    • Forté Conference Annual Conference, Summer 2025
      This program is led by our external partner, Forté; however, both the Career Development and Recruiting and Admissions offices collaborated to support the preparation of this program for all of our incoming female students who registered to attend. The purpose of the conference is to facilitate meaningful connections with the incoming students, to network with women more broadly among other MBA programs, and to promote engagement with corporate partners supporting the conference.

      Mariella De Alba Ortiz, senior associate director of the Career Development Office, moderated a panel of supply chain and operations professionals. Shelley Richard, associate director of the Career Development Office, moderated an investment banking panel. Alumna Takeya Cloud served on a separate investment banking panel the Recruiting and Admission and Career Development offices provided on-site support for all Rice Business women including sessions and activities that promoted personal and professional development.

Management Leadership for Tomorrow

  • Recruiting and Admissions staff supported Management Leadership for Tomorrow’s (MLT) Summer Seminars at Georgetown McDonough School of Business and University of California Berkeley, Haas, (Summer 2024), where they networked and helped MBA candidates clarify the admissions process.

National Black MBA Association, Inc.

  • Rice Business participates in the College Partnership Program.

    • National Black MBA Conference (NBMBA) & Career Expo – Fall 2024
      This event supported current students attending NBMBAA Career Expo, including career advising, pitch development and career expo strategy. Career sessions in collaboration with Black Business Student Association and two Career Development Office staff were available for on-demand coaching throughout the event during the conference/career expo. NBMBAA conference participation is open to all students.

    • Conexiones Virtual Grad Fair – Summer 2024
      The Recruiting and Admissions Office (RAO) participated in the Conexiones Virtual Grad Fair (July 2024), which offers students interested in graduate school a chance to speak and connect to representatives of prestigious business schools. This virtual event is designed to provide prospective MBA candidates with a comprehensive platform to explore their options, gather detailed information about various programs, and make informed decisions about their future educational paths.

Reaching Out MBA

  • Educates, inspires and connects lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender graduate business students and school clubs through its year-round events, including the annual Reaching Out LGBT+ MBA & Business Graduate Conference.

    • Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA) Conference & Career Expo - Fall 2024
      The Career Development Office (CDO) and Office of Belonging and Engagement offered conference support to current students attending ROMBA Career Expo in Los Angeles, CA, including career advising, pitch development and career expo strategy.

PhD Project

  • For over 30 years, The PhD Project has helped change the future workforce by providing students a model of achievement and businesses a powerful way to enrich the talent pipeline. The PhD Project helps support the development of business PhDs from increasing the number of brilliant educators from all communities.

Business School Engagement Collaborative

  • The Business School Engagement Collaborative was formed in 2022 with a mission of advancing access, opportunities, and belonging in higher education.

Undergraduate Student Engagement

EmpowerHer: Together We Thrive, Fall 2024
EmpowerHer is a community-building event for women at Rice Business hosted by the Office for Belonging and Engagement. The event invites undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty and staff to connect, engage in thoughtful tabletop conversation, share their experiences and resources, and grow in community with one another.

Beyond BUSI: Mini Mentoring Mixer, Spring 2025
Beyond BUSI is a series of quarterly programs for undergraduate students. These programs are centered around three core values: community building, resource sharing and development. This year, we hosted a mini mentoring mixer for undergraduates to connect with MBAs and receive counsel on their current academic experiences and future career endeavors.

Other Student Development Events

Roy and Hazel Zeff Memorial Fellowship 
Since 2001, the Roy and Hazel Zeff Memorial Fellowship has been awarded to one graduating Rice University senior annually. The fellowship, named after Professor of Accounting Stephen Zeff’s parents, Roy and Hazel Zeff, is a one-year grant for purposeful, independent exploration and travel outside the United States, awarded to graduating seniors to enhance their capacity for resourcefulness, imagination, openness and leadership and to foster their humane and effective participation in the world community.

Recent Recipients:

  • 2025 Mark Perkins
  • 2024 Rusty Ludwigsen
  • 2023 Katherine Wu
  • 2022 Sofia Flores-Rojas

MBA Veteran’s Career Conference & Expo, Fall 2024 
The Career Development Office (CDO) offered conference support to current students attending MBA Veteran’s Career Conference and Expo. We were joined by alums Kianti Brown, Aneketh Gurumurthi, Lia Santos and Monique Peters.

Faculty and Staff Development

Faculty Development

Staff Development

Office for Belonging and Engagement Sponsored Events

Continuing the Conversation

Rice Business is dedicated to making learning experiences inclusive and forward-thinking. We’re proud to support staff through learning opportunities. Developed by the Office for Belonging and Engagement, these staff-focused workshops encourage learning, community building and dialogue around belonging..

Previous topics include:

  • Info Overload, with well-being expert Christina Eldrige
  • Paris Olympics 2024: Team Dynamics in Action
  • The Unwritten Rules of the Workplace: Boundary Setting and Solutions
  • Wellbeing and You

Pride Bingo

The Office of Belonging and Engagement hosted our annual Pride-themed bingo for faculty and staff. The event acknowledges the contributions of our LGBTQIA+ community and helps foster an inclusive and welcoming workplace.

Office of Technology

The Office of Technology’s Instructional Technology and Design Services (ITDS) team is dedicated to enhancing the teaching and learning environment at Rice Business through the effective utilization of current and emerging technologies.

Resources

TTLS has instructional resources available at business.rice.edu/EdTech; selected resources are detailed below.
Instructional design templates

The above templates are newly improved and have all been created and reviewed for accessibility as part of the design process.

Digital Accessibility

Rice University aims to make digital information accessible to all, including those with disabilities.

The Rice University Digital Accessibility site includes information and resources on improving digital access.

The UDOIT Cloud tool has been made available to all instructors at Rice and is in the menu of all JGS Canvas course templates. UDOIT simplifies the process of identifying and resolving accessibility issues throughout a Canvas course from a single, convenient location. Instead of conducting an accessibility check on each page, UDOIT scans the entire course and generates a comprehensive report of all accessibility issues. UDOIT offers explanations, learning resources and tools for reviewing and addressing these issues.

The following links provide accessibility information for software and services used at Rice Business:

ADA Statement

Students who have a documented disability that may affect academic performance should:

  1. Make sure this documentation is on file with the Disability Resource Center (Allen Center, Room 111 | adarice@rice.edu | 713-348-5841) to determine the accommodations they need.
  2. Contact each of their instructors to discuss accommodation needs.

Professional Affiliations and Certifications

Rice Business is dedicated to making academic experiences inclusive and forward-thinking. We’re proud to support all our staff members through partnerships and professional affiliations with affinity organizations locally, regionally and nationally. These partnerships and professional affiliations provide opportunities for learning and development, as well as elevation of diversity, equity and inclusion among staff in higher education. 

    • Business School Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Collaborative (BUSDEIC), University Membership Representative
      Since 2022, Dean Porter has served as the Rice University Charter Membership representative to the BUSDEIC.
    • Consortium for Graduate Studies in Management (Consortium)
      Lina Bell, executive director of the Office for Belonging and Engagement, serves as a Consortium board member since 2017.
    • International Association of Accessibility Professionals
      Hussain AbdulHussain, senior instructional technologist in the Office of Technology, is a certified professional in accessibility core competencies (CPACC) through the International Association of Accessibility Professionals.
    • MBA Career Services Employer Association  
      Jennifer Applebee, associate director of recruiting and employer relations in the Career Development Office, has served as co-chair of the DEI Resource Group since 2022 and has been a member of the resource group since 2021.   
    • National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE)
      Since 2022, Dean Porter has been a member of the NADOHE, the preeminent voice for chief diversity officers in higher education. 
    • Prospanica
      Marie Bergeron, director of experienced hires and alumni, and Mariella De Alba Ortiz, senior associate director of career education and advising in the Career Development Office, served as Prospanica Board members.
    • Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education, Gulf Coast Region Chapter
      Timoteo Modrow, assistant director of student experience, served as the VP of Communications for the Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education’s Gulf Coast Region Chapter. He presented at the 2024 annual conference and received the Mentor-Mentee Award.
    • Career Services & Employer Alliance (CSEA) 
      Emile Chamoun-Farah is a member of Career Services & Employer Alliance (CSEA) where he serves on the Global Conference Committee and Website Redesign Committee.
    • MBACSEA Career Services Bootcamp Certification 
      Emile Chamoun-Farah earned this certification in June 2024

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