Ellen Butler has become friends with a number of the custodians in Anne and Charles Duncan Hall, the campus building where she works. Two years ago, Butler decided to help them unleash that talent and expand their life options. She is the founder and director of a program called Step Ahead, which allows Rice's maintenance staff to develop a variety of office and computer skills. Butler and her volunteers also have created a test for the Immigration and Naturalization Service citizenship exam for participating custodians, many of whom are Hispanic immigrants. Step Ahead's volunteer teachers are Rice students who work with about six or seven Step Ahead students per semester.
Classes usually take place during the lunch hour.
Butler's supervisor, Ken Kennedy, the Ann and John Doerr Professor in Computational Engineering, donated a computer lab in Duncan Hall to Step Ahead, and it serves as the program's headquarters. One of the Step Ahead students is Frances Castillo, a native of Mexico and a Rice custodian for 10 years. During the informal class, she practices her English spelling and writing and has learned to type and send e-mail. Castillo's teacher is Shiliang Chang, one of Step Ahead's most dedicated volunteers. Chang graduated from Rice in '99 and currently attends Southwestern Medical School in Dallas.