Coming to Rice as a Political Science and History student on a pre-law track, I hoped to pursue advocacy through clubs and research. However, Rice’s course SOCI 433: Making an Exoneree provided me with an incredible, unforgettable experience investigating, raising awareness for, and creating a documentary on a potential wrongful conviction case. 

During Orientation week, speakers from each social science department introduced themselves and their course offerings. The Sociology department announced that Making an Exoneree (MAE), a course originating at Georgetown Law, was expanding to Rice for the first time and would be open to all grade levels. Currently, the course is offered at only five schools across the country: Georgetown, Princeton, NYU, UC Santa Cruz and Rice University. 

After applying and being accepted into the Spring 2026 Cohort, we were sorted into teams of three students and paired with a Georgetown Law student. Each team was assigned to one case and program participant — the incarcerated person whose story we would investigate and share. The course began with an initial investigation into the facts of the case and connecting with our program participant. One of the best parts of the entire program was getting to know our participant, Dan, for the funny and kind person he is. 

In class, we shared our progress and worked through emerging challenges as a group. These updates were followed by guest lectures from criminal defense lawyers, law professors, the founders of MAE, film professors and even a past program participant who was exonerated. Combined, these perspectives helped us acquire the best techniques to build a successful, influential documentary. Outside the classroom, we reviewed case files, evidence and testimonies, gaining a deep understanding of the case. 

Part of the program involved traveling to interview our program participant and their loved ones. Our group traveled to Oklahoma, and as someone from New England, I was excited to explore more of the South and Texas during our short road trips across Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle! After three full days of filming, we returned with over 10 hours of footage and incredible stories about Dan from his family.

Coming to Rice, I expected to gain research and analytical skills, but I never thought I would learn how to film and edit a professional documentary. The final — and most critical — part of the program was condensing those 10 hours into a compelling documentary aimed at raising awareness, supporting upcoming parole hearings and preparing the case for District Attorney review. 

In just three short weeks, we became fluent in Adobe Premiere Pro. Spending many hours in the Digital Media Center in Fondren Library, the teams helped one another navigate the software, alongside guidance from film professors and plenty of YouTube tutorials. Moving from rough cuts to the final version, we were finally ready to present our documentary at the inaugural Rice MAE screening at the end of the semester. It was a night dedicated to sharing the films with our friends and the loved ones of the program participants.

Making an Exoneree at Rice was a challenging yet immensely rewarding experience. It allowed us to not only learn about the justice system, but to immerse ourselves firsthand by advocating for a wrongfully convicted individual. If you are interested in advocacy, law or film, I highly recommend applying for the next MAE cohort! It is an amazing opportunity to make a real-world impact. 

-Veronica Z., Will Rice ‘29 (Published on 9/15/26)