Featured obituary
Trustee Emeritus and former Board Chair M. Lee Rice ’48, Hon. Sc.D. ’83 of Westminster, Maryland, died on June 11, at the age of 99. For over 40 years, he dedicated himself to supporting the mission of the college with generosity and compassion.
After serving as an electronic technician in the U.S. Navy during World War II, Rice earned a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics on the Hill. The college later honored him with an Honorary Doctor of Science in 1983.
He engaged in graduate studies in mathematics and operations research at the University of Maryland, College Park, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Graduate School from 1948-54.
A scientist-turned-executive professional, Rice holds many patents, including the co-invention of the solid propellant rocket system for the Polaris missile and a meteorological sounding rocket, now displayed at the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum.
He started out in 1950 at Atlantic Research Corporation as a mathematician, became a rocket scientist, and ended his tenure there as president. In 1960, he earned a National Capital Award for Outstanding Young Applied Scientist of the Year.
Rice went on to serve as vice president and later president of the Ogden Corporation and transitioned to president and CEO of Ogden Transportation Corporation. In 1980, he earned a Maritime Award from The Marine Society of the City of New York. After retiring in 1983, Rice was president of the Shipbuilders Council of America for three years and developed his own consulting firm. His last professional role was as president of Green Sea Ventures.
Across nearly three decades, Rice served on over 10 alumni committees at the college. He served as a member of the Board of Trustees from 1980-2005, chairing the board from 1991-96, and continued to serve as a trustee emeritus after 2005, including chairing the largest and most successful capital campaign in the college’s history.
In 1996, Rice supported restorations to Peterson Hall and named the Esther Prangley Rice Gallery after his late first wife. Along with his second wife and McDaniel President Emerita Joan Develin Coley, he supported the renovation of Coley Rice Lounge in 2022. His most recent contribution, in 2025, was to the Education Department in honor of Professor Emeritus Skip Fennell.
For his volunteerism, philanthropy, and love for the college, he earned four alumni awards: the Meritorious Service Award in 1998, Alumnus of the Year in 2000, a Trustee Alumni Award in 2004, and the 2024 Founders Award.
Rice was born July 16, 1925, in Washington, D.C., and grew up on a farm in Montgomery County, Maryland. He was a keen photographer and built his own photography studio, which he donated to McDaniel College.
He was predeceased by his first wife Esther Prangley Rice, sister Ann Rice Jett ’44, cousin W. Kelley Rice ’49, and his cousin’s wife, Eileen Weeks Rice ’49. He is survived by his wife Joan Develin Coley; his four children, Joseph Rice, Helen Rice Summers, Stephen Rice, and Lawrence Rice; as well as his stepson, David K. Coley. He leaves 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.