William Marsh Rice University, also known as Rice University, is a private research university in Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, it spans 300 acres. The university consists of eight constituent schools in the fields of architecture, business, continuing studies, engineering, humanities, music, natural sciences, and social sciences. Established in 1912 as William M. Rice Institute for the Advancement of Literature, Science and Art after the murder of its namesake William Marsh Rice, Rice has been a member of the Association of American Universities since 1985 and is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity". Rice competes in 14 NCAA Division I varsity sports and is a part of the American Conference.