OWL Team
Magister
Dr. Nancy Niedzielski
Biography:
Hey Lovett! Nancy Niedzielski here -- so excited to be your college magister! I'm the current Chair of the Department of Linguistics, where I've been a faculty member for 25 years. I'm a native Michigander, growing up in a small town called South Lyon, which is sort of in the Detroit area (you may have heard of 8 Mile, thanks to fellow Michigander Eminem; I grew up on 7 Mile). While I love the Great Lakes, coneys, and the Detroit Lions, I've grown to love Houston almost as well in my 25 years here.
I have two grown kids: my daughter Keelia lives in Houston, and my son Keegan and his wife Niki live in Denver. I live with Audrey, a beautiful and crazy dog, and Hattie, a straight-up crazy cat. I'm a first-generation college grad, having received a Bachelor's in both Theatre and Technical Writing, then a Master's in Linguistics, from Eastern Michigan University. I then had to choose between taking a position at Chicago's Second City, or continuing on in Linguistics; based on a complex set of calculations, in 1996 I received a PhD in Linguistics from UC Santa Barbara. During grad school, I began working for Panasonic's Speech Technology Laboratory as a speech scientist, and continued on at the lab (even getting a few patents for some technology used in things like Siri and Alexa). I came to Rice in 1999 as a member of the Department of Linguistics, and I'm currently serving my second term as Chair of that department. My main areas of study are human speech perception, language variation, and acoustics, and while I continue to work in speech technology (for instance, I did a stint at NASA on the Robonaut project), my current interests are moving toward language issues in the legal arena. I have worked for two decades as a forensic linguist, and this is no doubt what moved me in that direction.
As I mentioned above, I love Houston, Texas. I love cooking and anything, really, to do with food, so Houston is a great place to land for that: the restaurants, the markets, the food festivals -- all just fabulous. Houston also has a world-class art scene, which I regularly take advantage of -- big fan of the Houston Ballet, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and the Houston Grand Opera. I'm also a bit of a sports fanatic (especially football), and although I have nothing against the Houston professional teams, my real loyalties lie with the Detroit teams -- especially the Lions. I have to say, though, that going to Rice games, attending Rice performances, seeing Rice art exhibits -- this is really what gets me. I'm so impressed with the talent and dedication it takes to catch a 50-yard pass, swim a 200-yard butterfly, sing an aria -- and to be able to have such talented people in my personal orbit is such a thrill. A few other things: I love nature, I love dogs, I play the oboe, I write comedy, I love the Great Lakes, I love coffee. And I love the Detroit Lions, if I haven't mentioned that yet.
Please always feel free to reach out, with serious things like academics, adjusting to Rice, navigating university life, or anything else you'd like a sounding board for. I'm also happy to bake something, talk about food, tell you about some really big lakes, or complain about the refs. I'm glad you're at Lovett, and honored to become a part of what Lovett will be for you.
Contact Information:
Description of Position: College Magisters are tenured faculty members who live, with their families, in houses adjacent to each college. Magisters are a supportive resource for students and oversee all aspects of student life. They encourage broad cultural and intellectual pursuits, ensure the effectiveness of the college's self-governance, and care for their students' wellbeing.
College Coordinator
Akindele J. Akindutire
Description of Position: College Coordinators are staff members who serve as daytime contacts for students within their assigned college. They typically keep a 9-5 schedule and complete administrative office duties for the college. The college coordinator's office is the nerve center of the college, a main meeting place where students stop by to chat and get answers to questions on everything from how to pay a parking ticket, replace a room key or when to meet important deadlines.
Biography: I’m Akindele J. Akindutire, the College Coordinator for Lovett College. My office overlooks the Lovett Quad, where I get to see students coming and going, catching up with friends, relaxing, playing music, or just taking a breather between classes. You’ll pass by my office on the way to most things fun or important—so don’t be a stranger. It’s a great place to ask a question, pick up mail or packages, grab supplies, mail a letter, get something notarized, or just hang out with some music and good vibes.
I’m a U.S. Navy veteran who’s passionate about organization, community, and making people feel seen and supported. I might not have every answer, but with a background in business and computer systems, I’ll help you navigate whatever comes your way at Lovett, Rice, or Houston.
Resident Faculty Associate
Dr. Ozaki-Sensee
Description of Position: Faculty Resident Associates (RFAs) are members of the faculty who are crucial to the Rice University college system, assisting Magisters in supporting the intellectual, social, and cultural activities within the college. They are especially involved in college courses taught by Lovetteers, and are resources to Lovett students as mentors with a faculty perspective.
Biography: Howdy, Y’all! I am Ozaki-Sensee (Sensee, for short). I teach Japanese at CLIC at Rice University. Originally from Tokyo, most of my teenage years were spent outside of Japan - mostly USA but some time in Germany, Turkey, and England. My curious and fun-loving nature has invited me to meet interesting people from all over the world as well as to eat different types of food from different cultures as well, some of which I regret having tried. As an RA at Lovett College, I hope to create and share many memorable fun experiences with Lovett students. Some of the things I want to try to do with the Lovetteers are (a) cooking and eating, (b) enjoying music, and (c) having some fun activities - let me keep the details to myself until they are verified with the Lovett representatives but expect a great deal of fun!
My Ph.D. from Indiana University Bloomington is from the Department of Literacy, Culture, and Language Education. My BA major and Ph.D. minor are both in the Arabic language and cultures. In addition to the languages I was exposed to from immersion as a teen, I studied Spanish and taught myself Swahili and Yoruba. If anyone is interested in singing in different languages, let me know! Maybe I can join you! Also, if you are from Texas and know how to speak one of the Texan dialects, please teach me how to speak it.
If you see me in the Commons or in the Quad, say “Sensee” or “Konnichiwa” to me so that we can get to know each other. It may take me a while before learning everyone’s name, but I will get there eventually. I am excited to have a chance to chit chat with you or have deep conversations about life for some wisdom to support each other in making life a little easier.
Contact Information:
Resident Associates
Ari Hudson & Haseeb Rehman
Description of Position: Living among the students, Resident Associates are positive community facilitators, role models, and they provide guidance and leadership to college members. RAs encourage and contribute actively to the intellectual, cultural, and social life of the college, develop a clear understanding of university policies and procedures, including emergency response protocols, and assist the college magisters and other university officials in responding to students in need.
Biography: Hi Lovett!! We are Haseeb & Ariana (or Ari, for short), the new Lovett RAs! We’re so pumped and honored to be joining you in the Toaster very soon! Coincidentally, one of our cats is even named Toasty :) and he is joined by Biscotti, his little sister (and arch nemesis). You might find Toasty exploring the world on his leash, and Biscotti will immediately be on your lap if you come by for a visit!
Ari is an Assistant Director of the Rice Emerging Scholars Program (RESP) within Student Success Initiatives. A lifetime educator, she can also be found teaching UNIV 110! Haseeb is in medical device sales. We both love the people-centric elements of our work, alongside purposeful analysis.
Other things we love: cooking, going on walks, coffee, animals, going to the gym, traveling to new places, trying new foods/restaurants, going to games and shows, being around people, and watching shows (we’ve recently been really into Severance, Next Level Chef, 1923, and The Bear).
Ari was born in El Paso, and grew up on a farm about an hour outside of Houston. She ventured to Dallas for her undergraduate studies at SMU, where she studied Human Rights, Corporate Communication and Public Affairs, and Spanish. Upon graduating, she moved to New Orleans to begin her teaching career, and then to Houston a few years later. In between her moves, she spent a year traveling through Asia, Europe, and Africa with her best friend! Back in the H, she continued to teach while obtaining her Master of Science in Education with a concentration in School Leadership from Johns Hopkins. She continued her work in education as an Assistant Principal before transitioning to her work here at Rice. Haseeb is a Houston native (having lived in both Alief and Kingwood), and a proud first-generation Pakistani-American. Before working in medical device sales, Haseeb led as a realtor in Houston.
Things Ari loves: being outdoors, going on runs, discussing human rights topics, dancing, musicals/plays/operas
Things Haseeb loves: baseball (and sports in general), wildlife documentaries, all things healthcare, cars, gaming
We can’t wait to get to know each of you and we can already tell we’re going to LOVETT here (get it?). See you soon! :)
Resident Associates
Devin Mays & Eli Greene
Description of Position: Since there is not a third RA apartment in the Toaster, Devin and Eli will serve their first year on the OWL Team is a nonresidential format. They will be attending Lovett events and be full OWL Team members while continuing to live off campus. Next year, they will move into an RA apartment in New Lovett. They're so excited to be joining us, and we are so glad they will join the Lovett community to see life before our big move. This is a nontraditional format for onboarding new RAs, but Eli and Devin will be great additions to Lovett as we all transition together into the new building.
Biography: Hi Lovett! We are Eli Greene and Devin T. Mays.
We are both artists teaching here at Rice in the Department of Art, Devin teaches sculpture & performance while Eli teaches photography. Eli is from California and Devin is from Detroit. Our path to becoming practicing artists and educators was not a straight one. Eli studied architecture as an undergraduate at Cornell while Devin studied Business and Marketing at Howard University. We met in Chicago 8 years ago where we both completed our MFA studies in studio art practice at the University of Chicago.
We love engaging with Houston’s amazing art scene, from taking in live music at nameless sound and ice house radio to getting lost in the encyclopedic collection at the MFAH, we are excited to share in this wandering with you all. It’s been clear to both of us from early on that there’s just something very special about the Lovett community — we are sincerely happy to join the owl team and to have the chance to get to know each of you over the years.
One more thing — GO LIONS!
