Her world was rocked, however, when, as an eight-year-old, she felt the floor shake in her father's church. Two blocks away, a Ku Klux Klan bomb had exploded at a Baptist church killing four young black girls, including a schoolmate.
By this time, Rice could already be considered a remarkable child, due to her determination and dedication to succeed.
Despite the difficulties, expectations were high and she has since said: "My parents had me convinced that, well, you may not be able to have a hamburger at Woolworth's but you can be president of the United States."
Taught to play the piano by her mother from the age of three, Rice joined the church choir at four and became a fluent reader of music at five. She would get up at 4.30am (which she still does, to embark on her daily fitness regime) and then start practicing her music.
Her family moved to Denver in 1967, when she was 12, and, by the time she was 15, Rice was regarded as one of America's brightest teens and enrolled at the University of Denver, where she graduated with a degree in political science, aged just 19. A master's degree followed at 19 and a Ph.D at 26.
How clever is she? As a youngster she underwent psychological testing which revealed she was a genius with an extraordinarily high IQ.
Bush's former national security advisor also speaks Russian, French, German and Spanish - although her fluency in Russian was tested when a schoolgirl asked her on Moscow Radio: "One day you will run for president?" Rice replied: "President, da, da" - before quickly changing her answer to the more intelligible "Nyet, nyet, nyet" ( "No, no, no").
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