From: "president@rice.edu" <president@rice.edu>
Sent: Thu Apr 04 17:29:17 CDT 2013
Subject: Note to the Rice Community

Dear Rice community:

A recent article on the Sports Illustrated website has kindled discussion on our campus, and elsewhere, about the departure last summer of several basketball players, and whether those departures had anything to do with discriminatory or insensitive treatment. In recent conversations, some have raised broader questions.

Let us start by reiterating unequivocally how much we value the extraordinary diversity of our community, and especially of our student body. That diversity includes almost every dimension: ethnic, racial, religious, socio-economic, geographic, sexual orientation, and philosophic and political perspectives.

We aspire to create a tolerant and inclusive environment for all members of o ur community, and provide several options to people who wish to raise concerns about discrimination or other inappropriate behavior:


*Undergraduate students may communicate to their college master, coach, dean of undergraduates, director of multicultural affairs or Russell Barnes in the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
*Graduate students may communicate to the dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies, school dean, department chair or EEO/Affirmative Action.
*Faculty and staff members may communicate to deans, supervisors, Human Resources, Internal Audit, the General Counsel's office or EEO/Affirmative Action.
*EthicsPoint is an external resource availabl e by phone and online and available to any student or employee who does not feel comfortable reporting their concerns in person or wants to remain anonymous: http://www.rice.edu/ethics.

We encourage you to take advantage of these resources if needed, and we will investigate any information regarding discriminatory treatment or an intolerant atmosphere and take appropriate action.

We now find ourselves dealing with a very complex and sensitive situation that requires careful attention to the privacy of our students and staff. However, based on our investigations to date, we would like to share some information that may help correct some falsehoods and clarify misunderstandings about the departures of the basketball players.

First of all, when allegations of discrimination arise we take them seriously and investigate them carefully. That was the case when such allegations were made by a former assistant basketball coach whose contract had not been renewed, and subsequently repeated to the NCAA on behalf of two former student-athletes he was close to. After we first received notice of the former coach's allegations, we hired an outside law firm to conduct an investigation into those specific accusations. That investigation found no evidence of discrimination.

After the two basketball players obtained our consent to transfer to other schools last summer, those schools filed applications that repeated those allegations with the NCAA for a waiver of a rule that would have required the athletes to sit out a season. Based on our investigation, we filed our response to the NCAA demonstrating that the allegations of discriminat ion were false.

By its own admission, the NCAA granted the waiver without conducting an investigation or interviewing anyone at Rice. Indeed, in a subsequent letter, the NCAA stated that the “decisions were not a judgment on the athletics environment itself or any individuals,” “the decisions were not based on whether the student-athletes' allegations are true or not” and “the [NCAA] staff did not determine, nor attempt to determine, that the environment in the Rice athletics department is ethnically or religiously intolerant.” The waivers were granted solely on the basis of what the NCAA called the students' personal perceptions of an intolerable environment. We expressed our extreme displeasure to the NCAA for its careless and bewildering handling of this matter.

We are limited in what we can say because of the privacy requirements and legal action being pursued by the former assistant coach. We continue to believe his case to be unfounded and intend to defend ourselves in appropriate legal forums. But if new information surfaces, we will as indicated above investigate further and take appropriate action.

Meanwhile, we wish our former student-athletes great success in their academic and athletic careers, and we are grateful for what they contributed to Rice during their time here. We also want to thank the Student Association, the Rice Thresher and others for providing forums for discussion of the serious issues raised by this situation.

Although these allegations are hurtful, they provide an opportunity to remind ourselves of the importance of upholding the values that should gu ide us every day: Responsibility, Integrity, Community and Excellence. Our doors are open and we welcome more discussion of this important issue.

Respectfully,



David W. Leebron John S. Hutchinson
President Dean of Undergraduates

Would have been nice if this had been the statement released last fall when the waivers were granted. At least it mentions why Rice is not in a position to say more and that the NCAA did not conduct an investigation before granting the waivers.

Nice note. Wish it got the same attention as Sports Illustrated gave Kazemi's article

Drama, negativity, and allegations gets the news, folks. We all know that. It's what the media lives for. Disgusting if you ask me. The media in this country has no conscious, nor do they face any true system of checks and balances. Nice response by our President for the most part.

I just wish the NCAA would be honest that they did no investigation instead of making Rice look like racists.

It was nice letter and all, but I sure wish Rice would have been more proactive at the very beginning in getting our side of the story out. I realize there are some legal aspects that can't be discussed; however, we let the story evolve and paint us into a corner in a very defensive position. I am just wondering if Leebron's letter was released to the press.

(04-04-2013 10:17 PM)MaronealOwl Wrote:  ... I am just wondering if Leebron's letter was released to the press.

I was going to check the Chronicle web site for it. But then I just started laughing at my own foolishness.

(04-04-2013 10:17 PM)MaronealOwl Wrote:  It was nice letter and all, but I sure wish Rice would have been more proactive at the very beginning in getting our side of the story out. I realize there are some legal aspects that can't be discussed; however, we let the story evolve and paint us into a corner in a very defensive position. I am just wondering if Leebron's letter was released to the press.

+1

(04-04-2013 10:17 PM)MaronealOwl Wrote:  It was nice letter and all, but I sure wish Rice would have been more proactive at the very beginning in getting our side of the story out. I realize there are some legal aspects that can't be discussed; however, we let the story evolve and paint us into a corner in a very defensive position. I am just wondering if Leebron's letter was released to the press.

I believe the answer is no - it is not on the Rice website under the news release section just before midnight Houston time.

But there is a story about a grated soap dispenser. (Actually, it's kind of cool, though a bit of an odd concept.)

Looks like the angle here is that Rice believes the allegations are false because they stemmed from a disgruntled employee - Morcos. Much has been said about that slime so I understand the position as someone who had an axe to grind. Too bad RG hasn't done anything to endear himself to alumni and athletes or he might get more of a benefit of the doubt.

Question: given the damage to the Rice "brand," so to speak, why hasn't Rice filed a defamation suit?

(04-04-2013 11:36 PM)HooCares Wrote:  Question: given the damage to the Rice "brand," so to speak, why hasn't Rice filed a defamation suit?

Exactly. Something is amiss.

I mean, this is a joke. A player files for an eligibility exemption on the basis of allegations that bring Rice into disrepute. The school then turns around and says, "Even though he made some pretty serious accusations against our AD, we welcome this player back with open arms to finish his degree. No hard feelings. Oh, but we have found his claims to be essentially baseless; nevertheless, we will cheerfully accept that he dragged Rice through the mud so he could go get some minutes elsewhere."

DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE?!? Someone is flat-out lying. No doubt about it.

This issue is still not being handled properly. Greenspan is still employed at Rice. Morcos was ethically challenged before he arrived at Rice, and few can claim he is innocent in trying to dismantle the Rice MBB team in retaliation for not having his contract renewed. Kazemi and Oraby were primarily opportunistic in their transfers, but where is the official acknowledgement that Greenspan is a complete failure at his position and a harmful, loathsome character??

For some reason, I think Greenspan is on a four-year contract, although I don't know why he isn't employed at will. I certainly hope the Rice administration isn't just going to let Greenspan serve out his contract and then simply decline to renew it in March 2014 or so. That's the wimpy way out, and Rice will suffer under a black cloud for another year. Greenspan's simple lack of performance justifies his dismissal, and it would be very sad if this 'discrimination' spat actually kept him in his job because Rice doesn't want to appear to give in to pressure from a lawsuit.

(04-05-2013 12:23 AM)Wiessman Wrote:  

(04-04-2013 11:36 PM)HooCares Wrote:  Question: given the damage to the Rice "brand," so to speak, why hasn't Rice filed a defamation suit?

Exactly. Something is amiss.

I mean, this is a joke. A player files for an eligibility exemption on the basis of allegations that bring Rice into disrepute. The school then turns around and says, "Even though he made some pretty serious accusations against our AD, we welcome this player back with open arms to finish his degree. No hard feelings. Oh, but we have found his claims to be essentially baseless; nevertheless, we will cheerfully accept that he dragged Rice through the mud so he could go get some minutes elsewhere."

DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE?!? Someone is flat-out lying. No doubt about it.

In Kazemi's defense, he hasn't spoken at all about this, nor did he contribute to the story.

In the NCAA's defense, they didn't leak the story, and have told everyone who asks, pretty much the same thing.

I think the NCAA and Kazemi and crew were going through obligatory steps to take advantage of the way the NCAA deals with transfers. I would gather there are similar situations every year (not specifically, but waivers granted for a myriad of reasons) that never get any publicity at all, because the player has less, little or no impact. This was a story because of Kazemi's ability and Oregon's play in the tourney.

If the NCAA petition was an outright lie, I'm not sure why Rice has put up with it. Kazemi has made it clear that he wants to finish his Rice degree, but a lie of this magnitude would certainly be a violation of Rice's Code of Student Conduct. It could result in nonacademic discipline, including suspension and not being eligible to receive a degree.

Of course, such decisions are private, so who knows if anything of this sort is being considered?

I thought the Rice 'brand' is about taking the high ground and trying to rise above allegations and demonstrate how the brand is 'inclusive' even when being 'inclusive' seems to be working against you. Seems like trying to fight it in the mud (i.e., media) is actually going against the brand. Who knows what happened or did not happen but I expected one of the highest academic learning institutions in the world to protect their brand by living its values which in this case is the high road approach Leebron took.

We all may not like it and want to see some 'fight' in it and perhaps some of that 'fight' is happening behind-the-scenes but I would be surprised to see that in public. What is the upside for taking on 20-year old kids in public? What is the upside of taking on racial discrimination claims (esp against Middle Eastern claims in broader geopolitical context) in public? Zero. If anything, it risks fanning the flames, giving the story additional legs, and reinforcing 'stereotypes' about red-neck Texas. Media has moved on already to Auburn and Rutgers. 15-min is up. Story is dead.

Nobody on Parliament knows who is right and what happened. Many want to use these accusations to fire RG (b/c of frustrations on other issues) whether they are true or not. If they prove to be true, then I would agree but last I checked there has been no proof/evidence that they are true. Just accusations. I do hope in private there is a full investigation as we need representatives who are going to live the Rice brand and its values. We have to trust the people in charge to do what is right and by the President of the University saying in public they are baseless has to carry some merit that they have already been investigated. However here, there is way too much judge and jury wanting to act on accusations vs. hard evidence.

(04-05-2013 02:44 AM)Bay Area Owl Wrote:  Morcos was ethically challenged before he arrived at Rice, and few can claim he is innocent in trying to dismantle the Rice MBB team in retaliation for not having his contract renewed.

And Braun chose to bring Marcos into the men's program. No accountability. The AD and coach stay employed.

(04-05-2013 07:19 AM)Owlbert Patrick Wrote:  If the NCAA petition was an outright lie, I'm not sure why Rice has put up with it. Kazemi has made it clear that he wants to finish his Rice degree, but a lie of this magnitude would certainly be a violation of Rice's Code of Student Conduct. It could result in nonacademic discipline, including suspension and not being eligible to receive a degree.

Of course, such decisions are private, so who knows if anything of this sort is being considered?

What's in the waiver might not be a lie. It could be RG made jokes about "terrorists" and it made the environment feel hostile. And that isn't an unreasonable position frankly, even if Rice over all was welcoming, b/c RG is the freakin' AD after all. Maybe RG even was reprimanded and apologized. Kazemi could still use it in the waiver request.

There is a big difference between real discrimination and what is actionable under the statutes, particularly in the "hostile environment" area. It is perfectly reasonable to conclude that Rice is guilty of zero discrimination, but Greenspan created a "hostile environment" through stupidity on his part. I'm not saying that's what happened, because I don't know all the facts, but it is entirely consistent with all the facts that I do know.

Kazemi has essentially alleged hostile environment; Rice has denied discrimination. The two are not mutually exclusive.

(04-05-2013 07:34 AM)WIowl Wrote:  

(04-05-2013 02:44 AM)Bay Area Owl Wrote:  Morcos was ethically challenged before he arrived at Rice, and few can claim he is innocent in trying to dismantle the Rice MBB team in retaliation for not having his contract renewed.

And Braun chose to bring Marcos into the men's program. No accountability. The AD and coach stay employed.

To me it seems that dismissing the AD and coach while legal action is on-going, articles being written, denial letters being sent, positions being taken, etc. would undercut Rice's position as stated in that letter. I would hope that when the dust settles on all of this that appropriate action will be taken based on the ultimate outcome of the situation. There are lots of issues that seem to warrant dismissal but doing so at this point would probably result in Rice having to defend itself in additional lawsuits and respond to more allegations in magazine articles.