To-do maintenance: $2.1 billion required
It’s no secret that MIT invests in cutting-edge research centers while many existing buildings and their environs fall into disrepair. Not far from the gleaming new Media Lab, Koch Institute building, and Sloan School building, rusty windows, cracked sidewalks, and leaky basements are hard to miss.
20 attend dining protest
For the first week in what seems like all semester, few public words have been spoken about dining. No new petitions have been sent out, no Undergraduate Association resolutions have been passed, and no new tweaks to the plan have been made. It’s been a week since the last dining protest. Perhaps students have finally accepted the administration’s word that it is committed to moving ahead with the most recent version of the plan, perhaps they’re even mostly satisfied with it, or maybe they’re just busy studying for finals.
UA rep to HDAG quits in frustration
Undergraduate Association dining committee chair Paula C. Trepman ’13 resigned on Tuesday, criticizing the House Dining Advisory Group’s “sense of paternalism” and the “lack of general student input” into new mandatory house dining plan planned for fall 2011.
MIT announces yield %
Around 64 percent of prospective freshmen chose to accept their offers of admissions to MIT, roughly the same fraction as did last year, according to Dean of Admissions Stuart Schmill ’86.
Silence over drunk prefrosh continues
The Department of Residential Life is investigating a Campus Preview Weekend incident during which a prospective freshman was found intoxicated and unconscious outside McCormick, according to Bexley housemaster Robert M. Randolph. “[It]appears she may have gotten the alcohol … in Bexley,” Randolph wrote in an e-mail to the <i>bexley-residents</i> mailing list.
NW35, EC, and Next House are open for summer
East Campus, Next House, and the Phoenix Group section of Ashdown will be the only three dorms open to undergraduate students over the sumer, Dean for Student Life Chris Colombo announced in an e-mail yesterday.
Pres. candidate loses Senate seat
At 9 p.m. last night, UA presidential candidate Ian P. Tracy ’11 was officially removed from his seat in the UA Senate for lack of attendance at Senate meetings, according to Senate speaker Tim Stumbaugh ’12.
MIT to limit summer housing options
MIT plans to close most dorms to undergraduates over the summer, according to Dormitory Council President Abdulaziz M. Albahar ’10. The change from keeping all dorms open to undergraduates, as in past years, should save MIT about $500,000, Albahar said.
INTERVIEW St. Kitts PM Douglas talks with The Tech
<i>Prime Minister of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis Denzil L. Douglas visited MIT to speak about Caribbean countries’ efforts to invigorate their region’s science and technology agenda at the MIT Caribbean Students’ Conference on Saturday. After the interview, he sat down with </i>The Tech<i> to speak about his background in politics and medicine and his economic development achievements in his country.</i>
Scientists in Washington
In Washington, D.C., “Bill knows everyone, and everyone knows Bill,” said Albert J. Swiston G, president of the MIT Science Policy Initiative student group.
S^3 Dean Simonis Laid Off in Late June, Faculty Express Concern About Process
<i>This occasional feature follows up on news stories long past their prime. In this edition: the dismissal of long-time Student Support Services Dean Jacqueline Simonis and what caused the faculty uproar over her departure.</i>
Student Support Services Under Evaluation by New Task Force
A task force has been charged with reviewing Student Support Services, and it will turn in a report to Chancellor Phillip L. Clay PhD ’75 within the next few weeks.
Streamlined HASS Requirements May Make Debut for 2014 Frosh
Starting perhaps as early as next fall, MIT will introduce its new Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences requirements, which were simplified after a faculty vote last spring.
Alpha Tau Omega Expelled from IFC Pending Appeal; New Fraternity Joins
The Alpha Tau Omega fraternity was expelled from the Interfraternity Council last Thursday but has appealed this decision and is waiting on the results, according to ATO’s president DeRon M. Brown ‘10. Brown wrote in an e-mail that ATO does not know when it will receive a decision on its appeal. He said he is also uncertain if ATO will participate in rush, which starts Saturday.
Some MIT-Area Restaurants Unclean
Cambridge restaurant inspections may have you thinking twice the next time you pick up a sandwich from your favorite MIT lunch joint. While the city does not require that restaurants post health inspection ratings prominently in their facilities, it maintains an online databases of health inspection results, including those eateries located on campus.
Urban Studies and Planning Students Walk In on Dept. Committee Meeting
Last Wednesday, a group of over 10 students in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning walked in on a faculty committee meeting at the Black Sheep Restaurant in Kendall Square to demand a clearer mechanism for student input into future of the department and the handling of budget cuts.
MIT Seniors Face Tough Job Market; More Plan to Go to Graduate School
MIT seniors are facing bleaker career outlooks than their predecessors as on-campus recruiting is down over 30 percent from last year, fewer graduating students have secured jobs, and more students are applying to graduate school as a backup option.
In Wake of GIR Defeat, Back to Drawing Board
President Susan J. Hockfield announced at the faculty meeting on Wednesday that the motion to revise the General Institute Requirements had been defeated, eliminating any lingering uncertainties among faculty about whether the motion had passed by the required margin. Now, faculty and administrators have gone back to the drawing board to craft an improved plan for amending the GIRs.
MIT Will Publish All Faculty Articles Free In Online Repository
Faculty voted unanimously this week to approve a resolution that allows MIT to freely and publicly distribute research articles they write. MIT plans to create a repository to make these articles available online.
Overall Reaction Mixed, But Vocal Segment Opposes Meal Plan
Hastily-produced signs decorated the walls of the Infinite on Monday, highlighting phrases from a proposal to revamp dining that students found objectionable.
Majority Vote on GIRs Isn’t Good Enough at Special Faculty Mtg.
The faculty defeated a motion to revise the General Institute Requirements on Wednesday. The vote, 81 to 69 in favor of the motion, lacked the three-fifths majority required to amend the rules and regulations of the faculty, which govern the current GIRs.
Faculty Will Vote on Plan to Change GIRs At Meeting This Week
The MIT faculty will vote on a proposal to change the General Institute Requirements at the faculty meeting this Wednesday. Professors’ opinions and concerns about the proposed changes vary widely, and many may never be discussed on the meeting room floor before the vote happens. Despite these concerns. most professors will probably vote in favor of the proposal because they support the plan’s general goals.
Curriculum Changes Proposed
MIT worked toward revamping its General Institute Requirements in 2008. Possible curriculum reforms would simplify the structure of the HASS requirement, add flavors to core science classes, and introduce pilot versions of broad-themed humanities classes geared towards freshman.
Student Dies After Collapsing at Marathon
Kjell A. Tovander ’09 died on Sunday after collapsing during the Route 66 Marathon in Tulsa, Okla.
AYCTE Pilot for Simmons Dining Canceled Amid Controversy Over Implementation
Simmons residents were officially informed on Thursday that their dorm would return to an a la carte dining system in the fall, reversing a July 24 announcement that a new trial of the “all you care to eat” buffet system would be tested instead.
Some At MIT Faced Problems At Voting Locations
Some members of the MIT community encountered problems at voting sites Tuesday, mostly as a result of a Cambridge-wide glitch that left thousands off the official lists of eligible voters.
Proposed Changes to GIRs Would Revamp HASS Requirements
Motions to implement changes to the General Institute Requirements, including the addition of more varieties of core science subjects and the elimination of HASS-D designated subjects, will be made at the next faculty meeting in November.
EmTech Conference Attracts 900, Features Cutting-Edge Products
Did you notice the swarm of people in suits taking over Kresge Lawn with their huge white tent and fancy LCD name tags?
Barbara Liskov Named Institute Professor
Associate Provost for Faculty Equity Barbara H. Liskov became an Institute Professor, achieving the highest faculty rank at MIT, on July 1.
Amid a Peruvian City’s Debris, Visions of Rebirth
In August 2007, earthquakes devastated the small coastal town of Tambo de Mora, located just south of Lima, Peru. This spring break, about three dozen students, myself included, traveled to the town as part of CityScope (4.001/11.004) to learn how we could help its residents.
sMITe Finishes Third At Boston Sectionals, Qualifies for Regionals
The MIT women’s ultimate frisbee team, “sMITe,” came in third out of twelve teams at the Metro Boston Women’s Sectionals last weekend in Lancaster, Mass. The team qualified for the New England Regional competition on May 3.
Fin. Aid Boosted; No Tuition For Families Earning Under $75K
MIT announced on Friday that students whose families earn less than $75,000 per year — approximately 30 percent of the student body — will no longer pay tuition. To cover these and other new policies, MIT’s financial aid budget will rise to $74 million, a $7 million increase over last year’s budget.
MIT Drafts Response To Senate Inquiry On Endowment, Tuition
MIT is compiling data to respond to the Senate Finance Committee’s request for information about the school’s endowment, financial aid, and tuition rates.
RIAA Sends Institute 19 Settlement Letters Alleging Infringement
Nineteen members of the MIT community have been asked by the recording industry to preemptively settle lawsuits for allegedly downloading music illegally on peer-to-peer networks, according to a Jan. 10 Recording Industry Association of America press release.
IFC Elects Leaders; No Rush Chair Found Yet
On Wednesday, Alberto Mena ’09 and Reid C. Van Lehn ’09 were elected president and vice president of the Interfraternity Council, respectively. Mena said that one of his primary goals is to improve IFC transparency and communication.
Schmittlein Is New Sloan Dean, Hopes to Develop More Hands-On Learning
David C. Schmittlein will become dean of the MIT Sloan School of Management on Oct. 15 after working for 27 years at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, including, most recently, seven years as the school’s deputy dean.
$160 Million Raised In Campaign So Far Campaign to Raise $500 Million in Total
Since its launch in 2006, the Campaign for Students has raised $160 million out of the targeted $500 million over five years.
Freshman Class FEE, Math Diagnostic, ASE Results Don’t Surprise
Freshmen in the Class of 2011 fared comparably to last year’s freshmen on the Freshman Essay Evaluation, Advanced Standing Exams, and Math Diagnostic for Physics Placement.