Spring weather is (briefly) here
Temperatures are going to drop off later in the week, so get out there and enjoy the nice weather while it lasts.
Half-term add date, in-person learning, MIT Awards
Access to academic and research spaces and in-person learning begins March 1.
Q-Week extended due to students out of compliance with testing and violations reported
Q-Week restrictions were lifted noon Feb. 23 after undergraduates complied with testing requirements Feb. 22, and no positive cases were detected .
UA Sustain releases fall undergraduate survey findings
Respondents also reportedly felt that MIT “does a good job” providing sustainability education and “furthering climate research.”
DEI strategic plan, MIT-China relations, vaccine roll-out discussed at February faculty meeting
Provost Martin Schmidt PhD ’88, Vice President and General Counsel Mark Divincenzo, Vice President for Research Maria Zuber, Jamison, and Associate Provost for International Engagements Richard Lester provided updates on Professor Gang Chen’s legal case over allegations of federal grant fraud and resources for faculty considering international collaborations.
MIT Student Worker Alliance organizes virtual rally for dining hall workers
The rally began with a series of student and dining worker speakers and ended in breakout rooms where students and workers discussed their experiences with racial discrimination or harassment at MIT.
2,129 undergraduates move into dorms Feb. 13–15, experience Q-Week
Regarding her first COVID-19 test on campus, Miner wrote that testing at the Johnson Athletic Center “was also incredibly fast given the influx of first-years moving in.”
Q-Week, PE classes, UROP Extended Direct Funding deadline
Q-Week for on-campus students runs until Feb. 22.
First-year international students advised to follow Institute guidance when registering for classes
First-year international students are advised to follow the Fall 2020 guidance on registering for in-person coursework determined by the International Students Office (ISO), according to a Feb. 8 email from Vice Chancellor Ian Waitz.
2021 Commencement ceremony to be held online
Reif stated that after consulting with the “Commencement Committee, student leaders, the deans, and the senior leadership team,” it was determined that early June was too soon to plan a large campus gathering.
Local 26 files charges against Bon Appetit over warning issued to shop steward
The MIT Student Worker Alliance has organized a rally for dining workers that will take place on Feb. 22 over Zoom.
Graduate students must return to the US to maintain appointments, some exceptions allowed
The International Students Office wrote that this is in accordance with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) 5-Month Temporary Absence Rule, which was suspended for Spring and Summer 2020.
Country covered in snow
Be careful when you’re out walking at night — it gets slippery!
MIT granted permission to vaccinate extended MIT community
Stuopis and Waitz wrote that Massachusetts’ vaccination phase, as determined by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and “how regularly and in what volume” MIT receives doses from the state influence whether individuals can receive vaccinations.
Back to Boston, bundled
For those of you arriving back to campus on Friday or Saturday, there is a chance to see some snow on Saturday night!
2,425 undergraduate students to live on campus in Spring
Housing numbers “[continued] to shift slightly each day” as some students took “advantage of the extended cancellation deadline” through Feb. 7.
Mechanical engineering professor Gang Chen arrested on grant fraud charge
Chen was charged by criminal complaint with wire fraud, failing to file a foreign bank account report (FBAR), and making a false statement in a tax return.
Biden nominates Sloan Professor Gary Gensler for SEC chair
If confirmed by the Senate, Gensler will face a variety of challenges, including how to address market volatility, financial applications like Robinhood, and the rise of retail investors.
All on-campus undergraduate students will receive reusable utensils
The SSC also recommended that MIT “offer disposable utensils and disposable bags only when requested by the student.”