This report is arranged to reflect the three main areas of activity in the Office of the Dean of Students and Undergraduate Education or ODSUE: academic and financial information services (the Bursar's Office, the Registrar's Office and the Student Financial Aid Office; Student Information System); academic support services (Undergraduate Academic Affairs; Admissions; the Educational Council; Career Services and Preprofessional Advising; Counseling and Support Services; and the Office of Minority Education), and campus life services (the Campus Activities Complex; MIT Card, Housing and Food Services; Committee on Discipline/Student Conflict Resolution and Disciplinary Procedures; and Residence and Campus Activities; the Reserve Office Training Corps; and the Department of Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation). The report begins with an overview of the transition to the fully integrated dean's office.
TRANSITION AFFINITY TEAMS
In the months since the creation of the new office, we have moved forward to realize administrative efficiencies. Staff members from different offices came together in affinity teams, each with a leader, to carry out the transition projects based on common processes:
Currently, the many departments making up the new office are spread all over the campus. The goal of the Administrative Facilities project is to develop a space plan that will consolidate these facilities and thereby support the integration of the office.
The communications affinity team's goal is to create a comprehensive strategy for communicating with students, faculty and other members of the MIT community. This involves mapping present communications and publications, understanding student services' communications needs, and developing strategies for meeting them.
The goal of the Facilities Management project is to create a management program that provides a high and consistent level of maintenance for all the major facilities managed through the office: Athletics, the Campus Activities Complex, and Housing (including independent living groups).
The goal of the Financial Operations Planning and Management project is to provide the office with standardized financial tools (including SAP) and access to financial information. The office will use these improvements to set priorities, identify opportunities for revenue generation, and improve cash management.
While some parts of the new office have participated actively in fundraising, many others have not. There has not been a long term, comprehensive strategy to raise funds for common educational needs, both academic and campus-based. The goal of this project is to develop and implement such a strategy.
The goal of the Human Resources project is to implement consistent and equitable human resources practices that support staff satisfaction while advancing the mission of the new organization. These include descriptions of responsibilities and performance criteria for all positions, as well as fair standards for compensation and rewards.
The goals of the Information Technology project are to provide information management tools and processes for hardware, software and networking; to prioritize systems developments; to provide technical training; and to improve data management throughout office.
The goal of the Social and Identity project is to develop a strong sense of community and purpose among the more than 400 staff members who now make up the new office, and to improve office wide communications (for example, through the electronic newspaper, View from the Dome, spearheaded by Catherine Taylor.
The new dean's office will require skills and competencies that support change and encourage staff creativity and development. The Training and Development project will identify these skills, provide the training programs needed to develop them, and develop the standards to measure their effectiveness.
SPECIAL PROJECTS
We have also pursued a variety of special projects, many of them started under the auspices of Student Services Reengineering, to improve educational support services for students and faculty. The special project teams range from ones that are already well advanced to ones that are just getting underway. The most advanced effort to date is the Financial and Academic Services Transition (FAST), which combines student academic and financial information services that were previously dispersed among several offices. Also well along is the Residential System Integration Team, which is bringing together operational and programmatic activities in residential and campus activities. Other major projects are Cocurricular Integration, Career Assistance Redesign, and the redesign of graduate admissions and food services. Projects to integrate and enhance educational support and personal support services have also started during the past six months; both promise to have far-reaching effects.
Teams have been trained in project management, so that they have developed scope statements, work schedules, budgets, and metrics for measuring success. Team leaders coordinate the new initiatives with other teams and with existing offices. To emphasize this coordination, in this report we have integrated the special projects descriptions within the office reports.
This report summarizes an extraordinary amount of activity and change in the months since the formation of ODSUE. This record is even more remarkable considering that it has been accomplished at a time when staffing has generally been reduced, mainly due to the early retirement incentive plan, and when three leadership positions--the registrar, the dean of admissions, and the director of career services and preprofessional advising--are vacant. Separate search committees have been established for each position with a common staff support team.
The office seeks to win the respect of the MIT community as an organization that bears significant responsibility for the overall quality of the educational experience of our students. This goal was emphasized by our visiting committee, which joined us on April 1-2. The occasion, heralded by a late-season blizzard, was made more dramatic than usual because we knew we were witnessing the emergence of a new organization that could potentially play a major role in shaping the educational future of MIT. The following report describes how we are beginning to meet this challenge.
Rosalind H. Williams
FINANCIAL AND ACADEMIC SERVICES TRANSITION
FAST began the year as a reengineering effort and became part of the Office of the Dean of Students and Undergraduate Education when it was expanded in October 1996. The goal of FAST is to improve student access to administrative transactions and to reorganize the offices of the Registrar, Bursar and Student Financial Aid into an improved client-focused service organization. Originally included in these reorganization plans, the Student Information System Department (SIS) will now take on a broader enabling function for the entire new organization.
A team of administrators and MIT Student Information System (MITSIS) developers created an integrated graduate awards appointment system that enables departments to make graduate awards online and electronically notify students instantly about their funding. The new system has reduced the error rate significantly and has eliminated 70,000 pieces of paperwork. The team also developed standard reporting procedures for all departments to use with the system. The report applications were the first widespread implementation of MIT's new data warehouse, where stored data from different administrative functions are available for integrated reporting.
Centrally located on the Infinite Corridor, the new Student Services Center facility provides one-stop shopping for many financial and academic services, saving students both long journeys to the far reaches of the campus and visits to several offices to settle one piece of business. The pilot has served thousands of students a month and has significantly reduced traffic in the Bursar, Registrar and Student Financial Aid offices. The expanded, full service center opens in Building 11 in August 1997.
Students now have access to personal financial and academic information via WebSIS (Web Student Information System) on the World Wide Web. They can check their grades, registration status, and progress toward fulfilling the general Institute requirements; they can update addresses; and they can review their student account statements, their financial aid status (requirements tracking and award information), and loan information from anywhere in the world where they have Web access.
Starting in May, all continuing students were able to pre-register with WebSIS The system allows students to build their schedule grid using the integrated subject listings/schedule and automatically pre-register their choices. Students can also enter emergency contact and religious preference information.
The accuracy, layout and language of the Bursar's bill has been significantly improved, and the time it takes to credit MassPlan loans has been significantly reduced.
During the coming year, FAST will complete its reorganization efforts. The four FAST offices will be centrally located in one place. The expanded Student Services Center will open in August, offering more efficient services to undergraduate and graduate students.
The new processes our staff are now developing will make it possible for students to complete registration and financial transactions in a single location, assisted by staff members who are able to provide a wide range of services previously reserved for the independent offices.
Stanley Hudson
The mission of the Bursar's Office is to organize tuition, loans, and related fees; to counsel student and alumni borrowers on payment options; and to assist the vice president for finance and treasurer in evaluating and selecting student loan funding sources.
MIT continued to participate in the federal William D. Ford Direct Stafford Loan Program. Because the federal government changed loan services, administering the program remained stressful. MIT also provided resources to develop and deliver on-demand printing of promissory notes for Perkins and MIT Technology Loans.
At the end of FY97, student loans receivable equaled $64,741,296. Of this total, $17,405,564 came from MIT loan funds established by alumni and friends; $27,707,995 came from federal support of the Perkins Loan Program; and $19,627,737 was borrowed from the Student Loan Marketing Association.
In 1996, MIT's cohort default rate on Perkins/National Direct Student Loans was 1.3 percent; and on Stafford/ Guaranteed Student Loans 2.8 percent. We take pride in the good performance reflected in these rates.
The Bursar's Offices continues to support systems work and business procedures for handling the Stafford, Perkins and MIT Technology Loan programs. Our programmers also devoted time to developing the capability to accept electronic funds transfer for families with Parent Loans to Undergraduate Students, a process that has eliminated much paperwork, and worked on the development of WebSIS.
In addition to their collaboration in setting up the Student Services Center, our staff began analyzing the tasks affected by reorganization and relocation of the FAST offices. We continue to revise the MIT student account statement to further eliminate paperwork. By promoting WebSIS on the student statement, we were able to reduce the number of student telephone and e-mail questions.
Bringing in BankBoston as MIT's student account payment lockbox provider, we were able to offer better service and more timely fund transfer to MIT accounts. We have increased the number of services that can assess charges on student accounts (such as Tether and the Copy Center), with the hope that centralized billing will result in more efficient billing and payment.
Student tuition, fees and other charges totaling $266,549,760 were billed, (4 percent greater than last year). Servicing approximately 10,000 student accounts required 292,165 transactions to the student accounts receivable system. Income from late payment fees was $249,074; income from finance charges was $182,932.
There were 184 active Parent Loan Plan (PLP) accounts. A total of $1,538,378 was disbursed during the year and $1,624,052 in principal was collected. The PLP receivable at the end of the fiscal year was $1,895,316.
While Jolanda Farah, Lynn Flury, Chandra Wilds, and Gerry Purdy have all left MIT, we have been joined Heather O'Brien and Neeta Purohit. Kenneth Weekes replaced Ms Farah as assistant bursar. Erin McCoy became senior office assistant; and Tina Abbott became an assistant to the bursar. Sarah Hernandez, previously assistant to the bursar in alumni services, replaced Kenneth Weekes in student services.
Carolyn Bunker
The Registrar's Office promotes MIT's educational goals by collecting and disseminating enrollment, registration and graduation information; by implementing and enforcing academic and administrative policies related to these activities; by maintaining and issuing academic records for students and alumni; by developing and communicating subject, schedule and curricular information; by managing classroom space; and by publishing for these areas. The Registrar's Office works with the faculty, Institute and faculty committees, departments, staff and students to assist in developing educational policies and procedures in accordance with Institute policy and local, state and federal laws.
In 1996-97, student enrollment was 9,947, compared with 9,960 in 1995-96. There were 4,429 undergraduates (4,495 the previous year) and 5,518 graduate students (5,465 the previous year). The international student population was 2,144, representing eight percent of the undergraduate and 33 percent of the graduate populations. These students were citizens of 104 countries. (Students with permanent residence status are included with US citizens.)
There were 3,085 women students (1,749 undergraduate and 1,336 graduate), compared with 3,013 (1,705 undergraduate and 1,308 graduate) in 1995-96. In September 1996, 451 first-year women entered MIT, representing 42 percent of the freshman class of 1,074 students.
There were, as self-reported by students, 2,753 minority students (1,997 undergraduate and 756 graduate) at the Institute, compared with 2,630 (1,980 undergraduate and 650 graduate) in 1995-96. Minority students included 422 African Americans (non-Hispanic), 41 Native Americans, 564 Hispanic Americans, and 1,726 Asian Americans. The first-year class included 509 minority students, representing 47 percent of the class.
In 1996-97, the Institute awarded 1,165 bachelor's degrees, 1,414 master's degrees, 16 engineer's degrees, and 514 doctoral degrees -- a total of 3,109, compared with 3,155 in 1995-96.
In addition to our normal services, over the past year our staff have:
Josephine Eisner retired after more than 30 years of dedicated service to the Registrar's Office. David McNeil was promoted to analyst programmer I; Daniel Darling and Jennifer Smith were promoted to administrative assistant; Phoebe Minias, Iria Romano, and Lisa Rung were promoted to assistant registrar; and Nancy Swallow was appointed administrative assistant. Aran Parillo left his position as administrative assistant and Susan Cobb transferred to the Foreign Languages and Literatures section of the Department of Humanities. J.D. Nyhart served as acting registrar for the year and the office deeply appreciates the wisdom and support he provided. The entire staff thanks him for his many caring and thoughtful contributions.
More information about this department can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://registrar.mit.edu/
Elizabeth C. Bradley, Mary R. Callahan, J.D. Nyhart, Constance C. Scribner
The mission of the Student Financial Aid Office is to develop and maintain fair and equitable financial aid policies and practices that assure equal access by all students qualified for admission to MIT. Activities that advance this mission include counseling students and parents in all financial aid matters; managing grant and loan funds from outside agencies; stewarding undergraduate scholarship endowment funds; managing on- and off-campus student employment opportunities; and serving faculty and administrators on all matters pertaining to financial aid policies.
HIGHLIGHTS
The Financial Aid Office continued its involvement in reengineering. We implemented new processes to improve efficiencies when evaluating financial aid applications. A number of staff participated in the FAST developments, which are all bringing significant changes to the office.
MIT continued its participation in the Federal Direct Loan Program. Students have appreciated its simpler application and awarding process. The political issues that threatened its continuation have been resolved, and MIT will continue to use this federal loan-delivery option.
The federal process of re-authorizing the Higher Education Act began during the year, to be completed in FY98. Significantly, proposals for student aid that will have the largest effect on students across the country are part of proposed tax bills rather than the Higher Education Act. MIT participated in a number of meetings with professional organizations and congressional representatives to advocate for proposals that would benefit students and families.
Table 1. Scholarships and Grants
(all figures in thousands)
(Awarded to undergraduates with need)
|
Source |
1994-95 |
1995-96 |
1996-97 |
|
Pell Grants |
1,276 |
1,183 |
1,159 |
|
SEO Grants |
1,903 |
1,970 |
1,913 |
|
ROTC Scholarships |
770 |
601,601 |
715 |
|
Scholarship Endowment |
10,854 |
12,021 |
13,269 |
|
Current Gifts |
873 |
773 |
986 |
|
Direct Grants |
3,071 |
3,311 |
3,160 |
|
Unrestricted Funds |
16,165 |
14,965 |
12,908 |
|
Total Grants Awarded |
34,912 |
34,824 |
34,110 |
Table 2. Loans
(Received by needy and non-needy students)
|
Source |
1994-95 |
1995-96 |
1996-97 |
Awarded to Undergraduate Students
Technology Loan Fund
2,146
2,061
2,118
Perkins/Nation Direct Loans
3,767
4,411
4,315
Stafford Loans to Needy Students
8.090
8,642
8,818
Stafford Loans Beyond Need
457
475
517
Other Loans to Students
130
99
96
Sub-Total
14,590
15,688
15,864
Awarded to Graduate Students
|
Technology Loan Fund |
2,851 |
4,577 |
4,631 |
|
Perkins/Nation Direct Loans |
47 |
177 |
21 |
|
Stafford Loans to Needy Students |
4,954 |
5,668 |
5,325 |
|
Stafford Loans Beyond Need |
2,756 |
3,562 |
3,963 |
|
Other Loans to Student |
28 |
97 |
184 |
|
Sub-Total |
10,636 |
14,081 |
14,124 |
|
Total Loans to Student |
25.266 |
29,769 |
29,988 |
Table 3. Parent Loans
|
Source |
1994-95 |
1995-96 |
1996-97 |
|
Federal Parent Loan |
2,337 |
2,421 |
2,966 |
|
MIT Parent Loan Plan |
1,755 |
1,515 |
1,550 |
|
Mass. Ed. Finance Authority (MEFA) |
999 |
1,889 |
2,104 |
|
Other Parent Loans |
189 |
113 |
51 |
|
Total Loans to Parents |
5,280 |
5,938 |
6,671 |
Parent loans increased at 12 percent each year since 1994-95. The largest increase has come from participation in the Massachusetts Education Financing Authority's Mass-Plan Loan Program. These loans provides support at very favorable rates to parents from all over the country for students studying in Massachusetts .
STUDENT EMPLOYMENT
The off-campus job market was clearly favorable for MIT students. Together with on-campus jobs, there were more than enough offerings. High-end jobs were on the rise and there was a decline in clerical positions; employers are seeking more technical and engineering skills.
2,880 undergraduate students worked on campus earning $5,671,771 in 1995-96. The MIT student minimum wage was increased to $7.25 as of June 1, 1996 (not including UROP). This is the first increase since June 1991.
The College Work- Study Program allocation remained about the same as last year; one third subsidizing work done by undergraduates and two thirds subsidizing graduate student teaching assistantships.
The Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, and the regulations of November 30,1994, require that each institution participating in the Federal College Work Study Program (FWS) beginning July 1, 1994, must spend at least 5 percent of its FWS allocation to compensate students employed in community service activities. In the second year of this program, the participation has doubled. Now more than one hundred students are using their skills to enhance the lives of others. The Student Employment Office (SEO) has been working on a large grant proposal that has the potential for bearing fruit next year.
The SEO designed a state-of-the-art Web site. Jobs are posted to the Web daily; students can also sign up for the "On Call" lists online. Now students can browse through the job listings at their leisure, selecting topics of interest. The SEO site was touted at the National Student Employment convention as a model for others who were designing sites.
STAFF CHANGES
Donna Kendall resigned as associate director to take a position at Bentley College. Lisa Wright resigned from her position as network coordinator and administrator to move with her family to Pennsylvania.
More Information about the Office of Student Financial Aid and the Office of Student Employment can be found on the Web at the following URLs: http://web.mit.edu/finaid/ and http://web.mit.edu/seo/ respectively.
Stanley Hudson
Now a part of UESA, the department had new responsibilities stewarding information technology for this expanded office. The work of our staff was critical in the many successful projects discussed in the transition and Financial and Academic Services Transition sections of this report, specifically, the Student Services Center pilot, the development and implementation of Web-based preregistration, online graduate awards and appointments, and WebSIS. In addition, our staff have been working with MIT Information Systems to upgrade desktop computing throughout UESA. They also work with the MITSIS administrative users steering committee which formed to provide SIS assistance in setting priorities and planning.
SIS also began a major effort to use new technology to improve the ways it provides new functionality to users. This involves a cross-organizational team of information technology professionals from within MIT. Expert consultants help the project team with product knowledge and methodology guidance.
This year SIS finally reached its staffing goals. After a challenging and lengthy search we were able to add three highly skilled and experienced analyst/programmers to the department: Roberta Crumrine, Kevin Kelleher and Virginia Tulloch. We met out short term needs with consultants. This combination of MIT personnel and outside assistance created a highly skilled and responsive development team that continued to provide a high level of system maintenance and development support.
More information about this department can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/siso/
Robert A. Rippcondi
Undergraduate Academic Affairs (UAA) introduces freshmen and transfer students to MIT academics and supports the interdisciplinary aspects of MIT undergraduate education. This year saw many changes within UAA. Foremost was the retirement on October 1, 1996, of Professor Travis R. Merritt, dean of undergraduate academic affairs, after years of exemplary service to the MIT community.
Dean Merritt was replaced by a new dean for undergraduate curriculum. When Professor Kip Hodges assumed this position on January 15, 1997, he reorganized UAA to create a more collaborative environment. The key elements of this design are virtual offices that encompass like processes. They are "virtual" in the sense that they do not correspond to physical offices staffed by a specific group of administrators. In fact, many UAA staff members work in more than one virtual office. The virtual offices are: the Office of Academic Information; the Office of Curriculum Development and Faculty Support; the Teaching and Learning Laboratory; and the Undergraduate Academic Resources Center. In addition, two activities demand not only the time of many UAA staff members but that of other offices as well. These are the Independent Activities Period (IAP) and Residence/Orientation Week (R/O). To support these, UAA has established two seasonal task forces.
OFFICE OF ACADEMIC INFORMATION
The Office of Academic Information was established in the spring of 1997 to provide students with academic information resources. Many of its first efforts are directed at incoming freshman. For example, it has placed the Freshman Handbook and R/O information online. The office is working with the IAP Task Force to automate IAP registration and other IAP administration. All of these activities are part of the goal to develop a comprehensive "academic navigator" Web site that will provide students, faculty and staff with a wide variety of academic information.
OFFICE OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT AND FACULTY SUPPORT
The OCDFS supports curricular change throughout the Institute. It provides staff support to faculty committees; nurtures new projects that ultimately find a home in academic departments; and promotes communication among faculty in different departments. It also encourages dialogue among faculty, students and staff for improving academic policies and curricula.
Over the past year, supporting the Committee on the Undergraduate Program, and the Committee on the Writing Requirement, the office has helped the faculty take initial steps for replacing the proficiency-based writing requirement with a more substantial experience-based curriculum. Recognizing the merits of this initiative, the National Science Foundation awarded MIT a two-year grant of $200,000 to support its development.
UAA administers the Class of 1951 Fund for Excellence in Education and the Class of 1955 Fund for Excellence in Teaching. These funds are a source of generous faculty support for curriculum development activities. From the many proposals it received this year, the program awarded nearly $70,000 for projects in the coming year. This year the Class of 1972 created a new fund for Educational Innovation.
Following extensive discussions with faculty and students, the Curriculum Development Program has assumed responsibility for administration of the subject evaluation system. The new system will return one-page summaries to departments and faculty shortly after the end of term. The office provides evaluation results to students so they can produce their own subject evaluation guides.
A major focus of curriculum development is coordination of the undergraduate science core. It collects science-core syllabi, quiz schedules, and enrollment and end-of-term grades information, and distributes these materials to core lecturers and related support offices. It also sponsors meetings among science core instructors. This year, Professor Arthur Steinberg used half of each session to lead a provocative and lively debate on topics related to teaching freshmen.
UAA assists faculty members and faculty committees in academic policy making and policy enforcement. The office provides staff support to the Committee on the Undergraduate Program (CUP), Committee on the Writing Requirement, the Committee on Academic Performance (CAP), and the IAP Policy Committee. UAA staff are ex-officio members of the CAP, the Committee on Discipline (COD), the Committee on Curricula, and the Committee on Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid. In addition, many UAA staff members advocate on students' behalf before the COD and the CAP. Our staff has played a major role in facilitating re-establishment of the Committee on the First Year Program, a subcommittee of the CUP.
Environmental and internal organizational changes occurring in recent years have created an intense demand for more information about our students. One of the most important mechanisms for gathering information is the Educational Studies Working Group (ESWG). Convened by Alberta Lipson and Norma McGavern of UAA, the ESWG brings together people from many parts of the Institute who share an interest in educational studies. During the 1996-97 academic year, the ESWG's:
The Office of Curriculum Development and Faculty Support oversees the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP). A major goal of the UROP program this year was to turn the CUP's recommendation for $10 million of new funding into action. A significant step was taken toward this goal by the establishment of a Paul Gray Endowment Fund for UROP. At a gala celebration in honor of Dr. Gray on May 17, it was announced that the fund had already raised $2.4 million. Contributions to the UROP endowment fund are up by 35 percent, and several new UROP funds have been established.
Despite these successes, UROP continues to feel financial pressures. UROP's hourly pay rate rose from $7 to $7.50 an hour.; consequently, fewer students were awarded direct UROP funds this year. Overall academic year participation in UROP was up modestly (3 percent) from the previous year: 740 students worked for credit, and 1,444 worked for pay. An extensive Web site for UROP was redesigned this year (URL http://Web.mit.edu/urop). The redesign has eliminated the need for an annual hard copy publication, but a biennial UROP Directory for 1997-1999 is in its final production stage and will be ready for distribution before R/O Week in the fall.
The yearly Pre-Calculus Math Diagnostic has become a valuable tool in evaluating the high school math backgrounds of our students and providing students and their advisors with guidance about physics and math subject selection. In addition, the program administers the Freshman Essay Evaluation to entering freshmen and transfer students.
UAA is the temporary home of the Writing Initiative, a pilot project jointly funded by the School of Engineering and the School of Humanities and Social Science. Under the leadership of Dean Williams, the faculty director, the Writing Initiative has developed several instructional models that have already been incorporated in the preliminary design of the new communication requirement. Dean Leslie Perelman, co-director of the initiative, is responsible for recruiting, training and supervising graduate writing fellows, working with faculty to develop new six-unit companion writing subjects, and administering the program.
The Writing Requirement Office continues to administer and coordinate the two phases of the current MIT writing requirement. Both Phase One paper submissions and enrollments in Phase One writing subjects increased substantially from previous years. 319 students completed the requirement by submitting papers. Another 425 students completed Phase One through subjects offered by the Program in Writing and Humanistic Studies and the English as a Second Language Program in Foreign Languages and Literatures. An additional 89 students completed Phase One writing subjects even though they had already satisfied Phase One. These increases are largely attributable to the CWR's decision in August 1996 to raise the level of proficiency necessary for passing the essay evaluation, and the increase in the number of students enrolling in writing subjects as a prerequisite for admission to medical school.
Of the students receiving the S.B. degree during the 1996-97 academic year, 45 percent satisfied Phase One through the Freshman Essay Evaluation or College Board Tests, 18 percent by submitting a Phase One paper, and 37 percent through a Phase One writing subject. For Phase Two, 43 percent completed the requirement through the Undergraduate Technical Writing Cooperative, 29 percent by submitting a paper to their departmental writing coordinator, and 28 percent by receiving a grade of B or better in a Phase Two writing subject. Unfortunately, two seniors failed to graduate solely because of the writing requirement. Both of these students are currently working on completing the requirement for graduation on the September 1997 S.B. degree list.
TEACHING AND LEARNING LABORATORY
Growing out of the Teaching Resource Network (TRN), the Teaching and Learning Laboratory will expand TRN activities, undertake innovative programs and launch major research efforts. The laboratory's goals are to improve teaching at MIT, and to contribute to an understanding of the process of learning in the sciences and engineering. Its Web site is http://Web.mit.edu/uaa/www/trn/index.html.
The laboratory organized fall orientation for MIT's new faculty and graduate teaching assistants, expanding it from one to three days to deepen discussions of teaching issues and add new topics. The laboratory also participated in several department-based workshops on improving teaching. In addition, the IAP series "Better Teaching @ MIT" offered eight interactive workshops attended by a record of almost 500 faculty, graduate students and undergraduates.
One of the dominant trends in engineering education is the use of team-based and active learning techniques. With grants from the Class of 1951 Fund for Excellence in Education and Class of 1955 Fund for Excellence in Teaching, the laboratory's director, Professor Mary Boyce, developed a curriculum for the course "Mechanics of Materials II" (2.002). Innovations included the development of a Shoe-Box of Experiments, the creation of a teamwork workshop and manual, the use of graduate student facilitators, and the design of team-based, open-ended laboratories.
In 1995, EECS alumnus Stephen Kaufman pledged $500,000 to build a classroom equipped to videotape instructors as a way to help them improve their teaching. Scheduled to open in January 1998, the Kaufman Classroom will allow the laboratory to expand its Classroom Videotape and Consultation Program. In 1996-97, the program videotaped 65 faculty and other teaching staff (principally graduate student TAs). Laboratory staff have received excellent feedback on the program from those who participated. With the opening of the Kaufman Classroom, both the quantity and quality of taping will increase dramatically.
UNDERGRADUATE ACADEMIC RESOURCES CENTER
The Undergraduate Academic Resources Center provides support for the freshman program. It manages R/O, the freshman advisory program, study skills sessions, and choice of major presentations. It also provides academic information and advice to students at all levels. Center staff are working on the development of an Academic Information Center/Educational Support Office that will integrate staff and services from outside the current UAA.
The Class of 2000 was advised primarily through the highly successful Freshman Advising Seminar (FAS) system. The number of seminars remained at 125; accommodating almost every freshman who was interested. Only 11 percent of freshmen were advised by 29 non-seminar based advisors. The program's advisors included 98 faculty members, 16 non-faculty teaching staff, 14 researchers, 41 administrators (including six deans), and 2 graduate students, assisted by 209 associate advisors. The findings of the Committee on the Undergraduate Program Subcommittee on Freshman Advising support the current mixed system of FAS and non-seminar advising. The subcommittee also recognized the continuing difficulty that center staff have getting enough faculty to serve as FAS leaders, and recommended additional recruiting help, perhaps through monetary incentives.
During the 1996-97 academic year, the Associate Advising Steering Committee recruited and trained associate advisors; named three students Outstanding Associate Advisors; participated in bi-monthly study skills sessions; and held three "Choice of Majors" presentations, a "Choice of Majors" fair, and an "Ask An Alum" meeting.
This was the second year in which freshmen performing at non-passing level, and their advisors, received Fifth Week Flags in the form of e-mail messages or letters from their instructors encouraging students to meet with them. Center staff are continuing efforts to automate and expand the flag system.
Undesignated sophomores are at particular risk in the MIT educational system; without commitments to specific academic departments, they receive relatively little attention. The Center strongly encourages students to choose majors, assuring them that they can change departments later. Nonetheless, 39 sophomores began fall term as undesignated. By the end of the fall term, that number had come down to 26; by the end of the spring term 8 students still had not selected a major.
The number of incoming transfer students continues to decrease. Twenty-five transfers accepted admission in the fall, four in February. In the fall four transfers exercised the pass/no record option for the science core; two transfers exercised it in the spring.
In the fall, 65 Wellesley students registered for 73 subjects at MIT; in the spring 121 Wellesley students took 140 MIT subjects. During fall and spring semesters 113 MIT students took 119 Wellesley subjects; 89 of those took Religion 108 taught at MIT as a HASS Distribution subject.
ORIENTATION TASK FORCE
R/O was directed successfully under the leadership of two student interns: Erica Fuchs, publicity and personnel manager, and Judie Kim, logistics manager. They were supported by 39 student volunteers. Professor Mario Molina and President Vest spoke at the R/O convocation, followed by a new program, "Tech Trek," and "survival skits" designed to introduce residence selection. Parents Orientation was augmented by the addition of several new open houses. The traditional President's Reception at Walker Memorial was widely attended.
IAP TASK FORCE
This year, over 787 classes were scheduled during IAP, a significant increase over the 700 courses offered last year. IAP '97 brought about 1,500 undergraduate and 832 graduate students back to campus during January. The number of courses offered for academic credit (83 in 1997) continues to increase. The IAP Student Board introduced an "IAP Expo" in November, giving the MIT community a chance to preview some upcoming IAP activities. In the tradition of previous years, the fifth annual Charm School educated students and their elders in etiquette. The now-legendary commencement ceremony featured a rousing speech by President Vest and a rendition of the Charm School Alma Mater sung by the Chorollaries. It is estimated that Charm School '97 was attended by 400-500 students; 143 earned degrees in Charm, including 65 Ph.D.s.
Kip V. Hodges
The mission of the Admissions Office is to attract undergraduate applicants from the broadest socioeconomic and international backgrounds whose academic and personal accomplishments and promise meet the expectations of the MIT faculty; to convey an authentic image of MIT to the public; to coordinate the admission of graduate students; and to provide perspective on demographic and secondary school curricular changes.
Normally, our admissions activities are dominated by outreach efforts. This year, however, the primary work of the Admissions Office was internal: We began the year with a 40 percent turnover of office staff due to early retirement, job changes and death. Last summer we examined of our four databases as a prelude to student services reengineering. In November we ran the Graduate Admissions Redesign Team that led to recommendations for redesigning the graduate admissions database. Between these activities, the training of new staff members, and participation in other reengineering efforts, we had little time for our usual activities.
As a result, freshman applications were down 2 percent to 7,836, although this is still the third highest figure ever. The percentage of females in the entering class dropped to 38 percent from 42 percent; the percentage of enrolling minority students went down slightly to 17 percent from last year's high of 18 percent, with lower numbers of African and Mexican Americans enrolling, but a higher number of Native Americans and Puerto Ricans. On the positive side, however, we did a better job of identifying, recruiting, admitting and enrolling "academic superstars," with 54 percent enrolling in this year's entering class. Overall, our total yield of 56 percent, combined with an admissions rate of 24 percent, makes this the second most selective year in our history.
This year we have developed an electronic presence that offers applicants a choice of application venues. Currently, students can apply through a downloadable Web application provided by CollegeEdge and located on the MIT homepage, or with a floppy disk version of our application provided by College Link. Soon we will have a paperless version available as well. We are also underwriting the production of a "virtual reality tour" of MIT accessible through the MIT homepage. Designed by two MIT graduate students in conjunction with the Publishing Services Bureau, the tour is one of only three in the world with ours being the first fully interactive site.
We finished the year developing a new, comprehensive recruitment plan for next cycle. As part of this plan, the admissions staff is developing closer ties with the other offices, including especially the Student Financial Aid Office. We are also strengthening links to our most closely affiliated clientele, magnet high schools, and have begun the Admissions Office beautification efforts which we hope will give our visitors a more favorable impression. Improved recruitment efforts targeting women and minority students have begun, as well as those designed for "academic superstars."
On a sad note, we recently had a leadership change with the departure of Michael Behnke, who has taken a vice president position at the University of Chicago. During his 11 years as director of admissions, he brought a high level of professionalism to MIT admissions. While we will miss him, he has left us in a strong position to continue our successes at attracting and enrolling the best students in America.
More information about the Admissions Office can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/admissions/www/
Marilee Jones
The Educational Council comprised 1797 alumni this past year, representing MIT in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and 47 foreign countries. The group included 370 women and 58 minorities (37 Blacks, 9 Puerto Ricans, 11 Mexican-Americans, and 1 Native American). Educational counselors conducted 6859 admissions interviews, and held countless conversations with prospective MIT students and with local school personnel. Of all MIT applicants who were eligible for an interview, 87 percent were interviewed by a local educational counselor.
We continued our reduced presence in local college fairs. Educational counselors attended fewer than twenty college fairs. Although the Admissions Office uses a direct contact approach to develop an applicant pool, some counselors feel that it is worth attending the college fairs of certain schools. We support those who choose to attend.
MIT Open House Meetings were held throughout the United States in the fall. Local educational council members assisted members of the admissions staff in arranging 111 central meetings in 96 cities. Attendance at central meetings continues to be strong at many locations because of the invitation layout and our use of a direct mail service to handle invitation production and mailing.
Educational council groups held meetings for newly admitted students in 41 cities throughout the United States. Twenty-seven of these meetings were held during MIT's spring break. Kathy Breland organized panels of current students to speak at each meeting. Dianne Goldin from Resource Development assisted in arranging the meeting at the MIT Faculty Club. We appreciate Goldin's enthusiasm and involvement in this important endeavor.
The MIT admissions videotape continues to be popular. Requests have come from 59 high schools, three colleges, 11 educational counselors, 34 prospective students, five MIT offices, and one current MIT student. We have sold fifteen copies.
The MIT Alumni Award program is in its seventh year. The award, given to high school juniors for outstanding achievements, especially in areas of math and science, was sponsored by three alumni this year. MIT alumni and MIT alumni clubs can sponsor an award for $25. The award winners receive a certificate in a leather MIT case and a year's subscription to Technology Review. Next year, we plan to publicize the award to increase alumni participation.
Two personnel changes should be noted: Brian Ellis was promoted to assistant broker for the Publishing Services Bureau. Brian formerly served as administrative assistant for the Educational Council. Daniel Terminello recently joined the Educational Council office as administrative assistant.
More information about the Educational Council can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/admissions/www/educoun/index.html
Vincent W. James
The mission of the Office of Career Services and Preprofessional Advising is to help students and graduates develop the career-related expertise they need to achieve their professional goals. The office provides comprehensive resources to enable this process, and it integrates career development into the academic mission of the Institute, working collaboratively with academic deans, faculty and administrators.
This has been a watershed year for the office, requiring that a skeleton crew survive the "four R's"-- retirement, reengineering, reorganization and reduced staff -- with resources already stretched thin by the highest level of demand and activity in our history. Against this backdrop, the office implemented major changes including expanded programming, more proactive marketing of services, new or enhanced collaboration with academic and administrative departments, and broader use of technology.
As part of Institute-wide reengineering, the Career Assistance Redesign Team, composed of students, staff and faculty, created recommendations to meet our customers' changing needs for career assistance. The team conducted best practice research, compiled survey information and held community meetings. A high point of the effort was the increased Institute-wide recognition of the importance of career services. In January the team presented its recommendations: The bottom-line message, cited as a prerequisite for any enhancement of current services, was the critical need for additional staff.
ON-CAMPUS RECRUITING
The most visible sign of the increased activity in the Career Services Office was the on-campus recruiting program. This year 2031 students participated in the office's on-campus recruiting program. This number included 1187 undergraduates (including pre-seniors interviewing for summer positions), 567 master's candidates, 257 doctoral candidates and 20 postdocs. For the fourth consecutive year, the market for new graduates was literally record-breaking, as evidenced by the number of employers recruiting on-campus-- 715 compared to last year's high of 637. The fact that we are nearly fully booked for the fall semester makes it obvious that this number will increase again next year.
Demand continued to be strongest for students in computer engineering and computer science. They were recruited by every sector of the economy, from firms producing computer equipment and software, their customers in every industry who put it to use, and to consultants paid to help them. Whether growing or downsizing, employers vied for the new graduates who could help them compete by making optimum use of information technology. There simply were not enough computer engineering or computer science students to fill employers' schedules.
While the demand for hardware skills did not match the demand for software skills, it was also a sellers' market for electrical engineers. Many of the opportunities have been in the area of communications for such products as wide area and local area networks, modems, video systems, wireless systems, and file server architectures. The market for mechanical engineers was also strong, with some major firms, including Boeing and Lockheed Martin, returning to MIT after several years of diminished on-campus recruiting.
INITIATIVES
The office launched new initiatives and improved existing programs improved in an effort to reach a broader range of students, connect with academic and administrative departments, and create more opportunities for students to learn career development skills. Changes included more workshops to instruct students on interviewing and writing CV's and resumes, participation in career fairs, a program on study abroad and work abroad in collaboration with the MIT-Japan, -China and-Germany programs (attended by more than 70 undergraduates), career panels by alumni and the office's first Academic Administrators' Open House. Two already popular programs for the School of Architecture and Planning, the Architecture Firm Open House and the Department of Urban Studies and Planning Alumni Career Forums, were expanded to involve alumni and other practitioners in student career advising.
While the Internet and the Web have not replaced on-campus recruiting as some predicted, this year the office took important steps to make most of our paper systems readily accessible to students on the Web. Efforts include contracting with Jobtrak, an online job database. The office has also researched a software that would enable students to register for and schedule their on-campus interviews electronically, and make it possible for recruiting organizations to advertise their recruiting visits online.
The office continued to offer programs targeted especially to three constituencies while planning for significantly enhanced programs for these groups in the near future: graduate students, engineering students seeking guidance in finding "non-engineering" jobs where they can use more than just technical skills, and Ph.D.s who are turning to the office for assistance in exploring nonacademic options. During IAP the office hosted a series of talks on "Opportunities for Ph.D.s Outside the Laboratory," mainly by MIT alumni, on fields including management consulting, investment banking, environmental consulting, intellectual property, and policy analysis. This spring, with the help of an MIT alumna who helped organize the series, we sponsored "A Brief Introduction to Business for Graduate Students and Postdocs" with talks by members of the Sloan School faculty. Staff also met with members of the Graduate Student Council to discuss ways we can market our services more effectively to graduate students and to seek their input on topics for future seminars.
In response to the perception that students get "lost in the crowd" on busy recruiting days, the office piloted a peer advisors program, hiring students to greet and assist our customers as they enter the front door. This was well received and we hope continue it this year. Through a new corporate luncheon series, administrative staff enhanced their professional development as they learned about specific industries and companies.
In an effort to increase the rate of return on the "post-graduation questionnaire" we send to graduating students, staff collaborated with the Alumni Association and the Planning Office. The three offices revamped the questionnaire, and designed a strategy to administer it and follow up on it. A stronger survey response will enable us to better respond to those inside and outside MIT who need information about the deployment of MIT graduates in the economy.
MEDICAL SCHOOL
The office was almost as busy this year working with students and alumni interested in medicine as it was welcoming employers. Nationally, the medical school applicant pool rose from a total number of 46,591 applicants in 1995-96 to a total of 46,968 in 1996-97. While the numbers have continued to rise, the increase is considerably less than in previous years. The extraordinary interest in medicine has not coincided with an increase in places available. Consequently, gaining admission has become more difficult and stronger credentials are now needed for acceptance.
MIT remains an excellent choice for premedical studies and, despite higher criteria for acceptance, our students continue to do exceptionally well. In 1996 there was a total of 213 MIT applicants, compared with only 99 in 1988. This past year, 117 seniors applied to medical school and 71 percent gained admission. The number of alumni applicants has doubled since 1988 and nearly tripled since 1986; this year 85 MIT alumni applied to medical school. In 1996 the overall rate of acceptance of MIT applicants and re-applicants was 62 percent.
STAFF CHANGES
The most profound change was Robert Weatherall's retirement in June 1996. Beside directing the office for the past 26 years, Bob did much of the one-on-one advising of students interested in engineering, computer science, the physical sciences, finance, and engineering. It has been impossible to fill his shoes. In addition, Ann Davis Shaw, an associate director in OCS for eleven years, left in July to join the Office of Minority Education as assistant dean.
More information about this department can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/career/www/
Elizabeth A. Reed
The mission of Counseling and Support Services is to provide personal counseling to all students in a highly competitive and stressful environment. Such counseling will seek to dignify each individual student in his or her efforts to learn within both academic and personal contexts. Personal support includes counseling students on a range of issues, including academic, psychological, interpersonal, financial, and even career matters.
1996-97 proved to be an extremely demanding year. A number of students experienced psychiatric crises or severely disruptive personal issues; many lived in campus housing and several ultimately required hospitalizations. After the previous year's suicide, many members of this community were justifiably anxious about students who appeared to be at risk. This heightened awareness enabled CSS and mental health staff to identify individuals who may have not made an effort on their own to seek assistance. Voluntary withdrawals because of medical and deeply disturbing personal issues also increased. The counseling deans teamed with mental health staff and other parts of MIT Medical, as well as with MIT faculty, house masters, student family members, campus police, chaplains and hospital staff to meet the needs and requests of students and other people within our community. Nightline and Contact Line, the MIT's two peer hot lines, continued to receive supervision and support from staff members in this office. CSS also presented workshops, training sessions, and small group sessions to address student and staff needs.
The office also devoted a strong effort to working with the Committee on Academic Performance (CAP) and helping the committee to review matters where academic and personal concerns intersected. Counseling and Support Services coordinated a meeting with CAP and MIT Medical. Dr. Mark Goldstein and Dr. Peter Reich were invited to speak with the CAP about medical policies and procedures, particular examples of confidentiality and the unique relationship that MIT Medical shares with counseling deans. This was an informative and productive discussion that helped committee members to gain a better understanding of how and why certain sensitive information is conveyed from Institute medical professionals to CSS. It was also an opportunity to address relevant CAP policy issues and to refine the overall process.
CSS continued to work closely with the CAP on matters concerned with readmissions, learning disabilities, medical conditions, and voluntary and involuntary withdrawals. CAP Chairman Dan Nyhart remarked at the conclusion of the final CAP meeting that he believed CSS efforts with faculty advisors had measurably improved and facilitated the committee's deliberative process.
Richard Goldhammer, learning disabilities specialist, is currently assisting 39 MIT students who have documented learning disabilities. He has been exceptionally effective since assuming this position -- only one of these students is on academic warning. The office continued to collaborate with Disabilities Coordinator Barbara Roberts and assisted with areas that concerned academic issues, transportation problems and parental concerns. Ayida Mthembu initiated a "Problems of test-taking" group consisting of student development administrators, faculty and mental health professionals.
Lynn Roberson's work with women students continued to expand. She advised or facilitated activities with Mujeres Latinas, Color Creations, and the Graduate Women's Support Group. She and Kim McGlothin advised the Freshmen Women's Group. Lynn also collaborated with Margot Tyler of the graduate office and facilitated a group for "30-something" graduate students. Ayida Mthembu coordinated the annual Black Women's Brunch and a Latina Brunch. She also was involved with the planning and organization of the Women of Color Writers Series (October through April). CSS staff presented workshops on rape awareness prevention, working with advisors, adoption and self-esteem.
Lynn Roberson, who ably served as the primary office contact during the past year, and Dean Henderson continued to represent CSS on the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Issues Committee.
The office was active in the "Meeting of the Minds" sessions at New House and worked to broaden outreach to students in that living group. The office supported Kwanza, Black History Month and Hispanic Month activities. Jacqueline Simonis conducted training and discussion sessions with department administrators. The office conducted awards selection for the Institute-wide Dr. Martin Luther King Celebration. Nightline peer counselors met with Dean Henderson to discuss the effect of race, ethnicity, gender on counseling. Dean Henderson participated in the campus Holocaust Memorial. LUCHA invited counseling deans to attend meetings and present information. Ayida Mthembu continued her work with the Campus Race Relations Committee.
Associate Dean Arnold R. Henderson, Jr., succeeded Jacqueline Simonis as CSS section head, freeing Associate Dean Simonis to undertake an extensive Institute-wide assessment of personal support services for students. Ayida Mthembu was promoted to associate dean. Lynn Roberson was promoted to program administrator for women students. Rachel Pilla was promoted to senior office assistant. After more than nine years of dedicated and exemplary service, Heather Trickett, assistant to the dean, left the Institute in March to pursue new professional goals.
Arnold R. Henderson, Jr., Jacqueline R. Simonis
The mission of the Office of Minority Education is to provide effective academic enrichment programs to enhance matriculation, promote higher retention and excellence in underrepresented minority (African American, Mexican American, Native American and Puerto Rican/Hispanic) students' academic and general educational achievements, and to encourage their pursuit of higher degrees and professional careers. OME's mission embraces a strategy to address academic and graduation gaps between underrepresented minority and non-minority students at MIT.
Project Interphase is a rigorous eight-week academic program that covers physics, calculus, chemistry, writing, physical education and a myriad of co-curricular activities. Admitted students enroll in the program prior to their first year at MIT; this year Project Interphase enrolled one-third of the admitted underrepresented minority students who decided to attend MIT, a total of 59 students. The ethnic and gender profiles were consistent with previous years, and also closely reflected the minority freshmen class of 2000. 42 percent were African Americans, 28 percent Mexican Americans, and 22 percent Puerto Ricans. This is a slight drop in overall participation of Latino students. Native American and other Hispanic students remain the lowest represented group. This year's program realized a drop in the number of women participants. Women represented 32 percent, an 8 percent drop from previous years.
Project Interphase continues to develop ways to improve and prepare students for the fall term and beyond. Twenty-one participants, 35 percent of 59 students, received advance placement credit for 18.01. In writing, students were referred to the Writing Center and encouraged to complete Phase I of MIT's writing requirement. As a result, the writing component experienced the highest number of students, 34 participants or 57 percent of 59, passed Phase I. These positive outcomes reinforce the worth and success of the program.
This year, Program XL continued to be an effective academic enrichment program for first-year underrepresented minority and non-minority students. Participants were divided into small interactive study groups around core subjects. These groups met twice a week both semesters. All study groups were coordinated by XL facilitators, who are upperclass and graduate students from a broad range of ethnic backgrounds. The participation of the Class of 2000 during the 1996-97 academic year was consistent with previous years. 109 students participated in the XL Program in over 27 study groups--68 students in the fall, 41 in the spring. 55 students (80 percent) completed the fall program, 28 (70 percent) the spring.
The Tutorial Service Room continues to provide academic support to a significant number of underrepresented minority and non-minority students. The number of student users grew as the result of better marketing. Last year, the TSR provided academic support to 724 students, for a total of 2,427 service hours. Freshmen and sophomores continue to represent the majority TSR users. The number of women using the TSR has increased over the last three years. At present, they account for 58 percent of the TSR users. Male use of the TSR has declined over the same period. The OME employed over 118 tutors from an array of ethnic backgrounds and disciplines, and offered tutoring help in over fifty subjects.
For over 25 years, the Second Summer Program has balanced MIT's academic sagacity in an array of engineering and science disciplines. SSP enriches and supports students' intellectual growth while assisting them to develop a keen sense of their professional possibilities. Program interns explore fields of interest, while making real contributions in their assigned workplace. This year, SSP's 42 participants were divided into teams, and each team was required to design and build a device for an urban school playground or a household. Teams present their products at an engineering design competition. Through the support and direction of Professor Alex Slocum of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, the program's academic officer, the winning team's product was circulated to various companies for further development.
After completing the SSP Engineering Design Workshop, participants entered an intensive interviewing process with companies that are members of the OME's Industrial Advisory Council for Minority Education (IACME). Nineteen students were placed with 11 companies in engineering intern positions. MIT faculty continue to strengthen its partnership with the OME/SSP by volunteering to visit interns on-site. Faculty and administrators will visit 19 students during the summer months and will report on the students' experiences.
The purpose of the Industrial Advisory Council for Minority Education is to help ensure greater retention and higher academic achievement of MIT's underrepresented minority students. To that end, members of IACME provide financial support to enhance the OME's academic and professional development programs that assist our professional student organizations: AISES (American Indian Science and Engineering Society), NSBE (National Society of Black Engineers) and SHPE (Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers). This year, the OME contributed over $9,000 to professional and cultural organizations.
During the academic year, members of IACME took a leadership role in discussing a variety of issues that impact the academic success of underrepresented minority students at MIT. Several members were concerned about UROP opportunities for underrepresented minority students as well as their experience in various departments during their sophomore year. These discussions culminated in a town meeting held with President Charles M. Vest. The meeting was extremely successful, and it provided Dr. Vest with feedback from private industry on some of the issues regarding minority education at MIT.
The primary aim of Secrets and Strategies for Academic Success is to expose underrepresented minority students to the Institute's network of academic and support services. This year, coordinators of the SSAS program observed a significant increase in participation by underrepresented minority students in both the fall and spring sessions. The topics presented were: "Time Management," "Ways to Develop Effective Study Skills," "How to Choose a Major," "Planning for Graduate School," and "How to Succeed at MIT." Overall, the SSAS Program had an outstanding year.
The Office of Minority Education Student Advisory Council provides a mechanism for minority students to bring their concerns to the director of the OME. OMESAC's membership consists of a cross- section of underrepresented minority students' professional and social organizations. This year OMESAC forged new grounds in working with Campus Activities Complex and Residence and Campus Activities to ensure that minority student organizations were aware of the new Metal Detector Policy. It assisted organizations in planning and staffing campus parties. The council also heightened minority students' awareness of the meaning of creating a sense of community by working together on major projects that benefited the minority community.
The OME continues to be a repository for information for internships and scholarships that target underrepresented minority students. This year, the OME facilitated partial and full scholarship support for over thirty minority students, with amounts ranging from $1,000 to $26,000 to be applied to tuition, room and board, fees and books.
In collaboration with Counseling and Support Services, the Office of Career Services and Preprofessional Advising, the Graduate Education Office, and the Office of the President, the Office of Minority Education held its twentieth annual Minority Awards Banquet at the end of 1996-97 academic year. Over two hundred faculty, administrators, staff and students attended to recognize the achievements and accomplishments of MIT minority students. Graduate and undergraduate students received academic and community service awards for their contributions for improving the quality of life for minority students at MIT. Associate Provost Philip Clay presented the undergraduate academic awards.
Assistant Director Ruben Morfin-Ramirez left the office to pursue a master's degree. The search committee for the assistant director of the Office of Minority Education, chaired by Professor Wesley Harris, completed its process and submitted final report on May 16. The committee was unable to recommend finalists for the position. Milagros M. Oquenda-Morales joined the office as senior office assistant.
Leo Osgood, Jr.
In keeping with the mission of the department, during the past year the Campus Activities Complex (CAC) provided event planning, support and supervision for over 12,500 events with a combined attendance of approximately 345,000. Major events included the dedication of the Rosalind Denny Lewis Music Library, the New England Board of Higher Education conference, the annual Whitehead Symposium, the North American Power Symposium, the Biotech Symposium, the Wet Ice conference, Spring Weekend, the College Bowl Tournament, the Alpha Chi Omega Lip Sync, the European Club Career Fair and two celebrations for Paul and Priscilla Gray.
HIGHLIGHTS
Throughout the year, we devoted significant attention to improving student and community life through renovation and improvements to CAC facilities. The Kresge renovations for the Americans with Disabilities Act and life safety issues were approved, and construction has begun. The portions of the project addressing program needs is awaiting final approval. Improvements to the condition of all CAC facilities continued to be a priority. We added additional lounge seating, improved building lighting, and increased our attention to repair and/or maintenance needs.
The department improved the level of customer service by cross training student receptionists and schedulers to more effectively assist with event-related questions. Through training programs and improved communication efforts, the service staff have gained a better understanding of the mission of CAC and have been able to provide quality service to the MIT community.
The department's student employment program expanded to include staffing of the Coffeehouse with over one hundred students and two graduate interns. This new integrated student employment system standardizes hiring processes, position descriptions, salaries and training across the department. We created and piloted an evaluation process designed to recognize outstanding job performance among the student staff.
During the past year, the CAC assumed direct management responsibility of the Stratton Student Center Gameroom and the Coffeehouse. The addition of these enterprises is a result of the dissolution of the Student Center Committee. It complements existing business areas, such as the Source (information desk and box office) and the CAC Vendor Program. Combined, these areas constitute a nucleus of business activity that provides the MIT community with a variety of goods and services, as well as a funding source for the CAC Program Board and other non-budgeted department expenditures.
In addition to these CAC-managed enterprises, the department also serves as the property manager for fifteen Stratton Student Center retail tenants. Although the portfolio of retail tenants maintained full occupancy throughout the year, we anticipate that some tenant turnover will occur next year because of lease expirations and options terms that will not be exercised.
PROJECTS AND GROUPS
The first year for the CAC Program Board included developing a structure, formulating program areas, encouraging student participation, and increasing active membership from four to twenty students. The Program Board co-sponsored a series of small events featuring MIT student musicians, poetry readings and "open mic" nights in the Coffeehouse to create opportunities for relaxation and interaction within the MIT community. Special social events, open to all MIT community members, included the electronic music series "Phases" and the annual "Battle of the Bands". The CAC Program Board also worked with the Undergraduate Association Social Council, Residence and Campus Activities and other campus organizations to develop the successful Spring Weekend.
The past year has proven to be one of consistent improvement for the Coffeehouse. The Coffehouse implemented a new management structure, including a graduate assistant a food service consultant. These changes have allowed the Coffeehouse to better evaluate their financial status as well as the product and pricing mix in an effort to better serve customers and the entire MIT community. The Coffeehouse will continue to expand the potential to serve the community in a cost effective manner.
With 130 new student members, the Hobby Shop's membership this year reached 310. In addition to popular seminars and individual instruction in project design and construction, it offered a new seminar, "Woodwork Design and Fabrication", which was taught in association with the Edgerton Center. The broad range of Hobby Shop individual projects included medical and research instruments, a CCD camera adapted for a telescope, and a variety of wooden furniture and accessories. As a laboratory for invention and construction, students in Courses 2, 4, 15, 21, as well as UROP and Freshmen Seminars, used the shop facilities for class projects. For the first time, Hobby Shop students exhibited their work in the Wiesner Student Art Gallery.
The Student Art Association reached capacity enrollment this year with 1,082 students. Traditional classes in ceramics, painting, drawing, intaglio printing, photography and videography were offered. Two additional classes in bead making and wood block and lino printing were held during IAP. The second annual Schnitzer Prizes in the Visual Arts were awarded to first place winner Francisco J. Ortiz G, second place winner Benjamin C Matteo `97, and third place winner Xingheng Wang `99. The Wiesner Student Art Gallery exhibited a variety of student art work, including photography, Chinese painting, origami, ceramics, woodwork, sculpture, drawing and painting. Works of the winners of the List Fellowships and Schnitzer Prizes highlighted the exhibition season.
The Office of Special Community Services continued to support wide variety of important community activities. The MIT Activities Committee (MITAC) organized over sixty five events, attended by approximately 4,000 members of the MIT community. The MITAC Executive Board, composed of office staff and the co-conveners of the campus MITAC Committee and the Lincoln Lab Committee, met regularly during the year and established policies and procedures. In addition, a new MITAC staff person from Lincoln Laboratory began sharing the responsibility of running the MITAC Lincoln Laboratory Office.
The MIT Quarter Century Club currently has over 2,700 members, made up of employees, retirees and honorary members who have achieved twenty five years or more of service to the Institute. During the year, the thirteen member board of directors revised and updated the 1990 Quarter Century Club's constitution and bylaws. The events held during the past year include the summer picnic, which had an attendance of over 800 members and guests. The Silver Club High Tea was attended by seventy members, while the annual Holiday Gathering hosted over 300 members. The induction luncheon welcomed 100 of the 121 new members this year.
The 1996 United Way Campaign surpassed the goal of $300,000 set for this year; there were approximately 1,200 people who contributed a total of $303,000 while the number of Leadership Givers that donated $1,000 or more increased from 58 to 69. For the first time, retirees were solicited for United Way contributions. A volunteer United Way Steering Committee was formed to provide vision and guidance to OSCS staff in carrying out the annual campaign. Composed of Institute staff members from across the MIT community, the committee helped to develop programs aimed at increasing participation and increasing the level of gifts. The committee also helped to plan and organize community awareness activities.
Organized in 1994, the Association of MIT Retirees is open to everyone who has retired from the Institute, regardless of length of service. The current membership consists of over 670 retirees. Over a dozen programs took place during the year with speakers discussing various subjects related to health and other areas of interest. An Association of MIT Retirees directory was created in the fall for those that wished to be a part of the organization. Listing information for the directory was supplied from questionnaires sent to all recent New England based retirees. A database was also set up for all Association members and is updated as various changes occur within the membership.
Approximately 700 retirees were honored at the Retirement Dinner held in September. Before the event, a retirement dinner committee, comprised of representatives of various MIT offices, implemented innovative ideas and suggestions to make the dinner a memorable one. Retirees in the class of 1996 were sent a voluntary "Historical Questionnaire" from the Association of MIT Retirees that requested historical information and their impression of MIT. As a result of the completed questionnaires returned, a video called "Video Retrospective" produced by MIT Video Productions, was shown during the program. A total of 36 retirees as of 1996 talked about their MIT experiences in their own words.
More information about the Campus Activities Complex can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/campus-activities/www/
Phillip J. Walsh
COMMITTEE ON DISCIPLINE/STUDENT CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES
This year marks the first complete year for the new conflict resolution system. This written, specific set of guidelines provides students and other members of the community with a variety of avenues for resolving complaints and dispensing discipline. The system was implemented in part to help widen the involvement of the office in the disciplinary process so that the system would be understood by all involved as both rational and comprehensive, involving both students and staff, with clearly defined parameters. To a degree we have accomplished this purpose.
Betty Sultan has overseen the evolution of the new system and the establishment of hearing panels within the office. Not all the bugs are out of the system but we are well on our way to an improved, rational system that with the Committee on Discipline (COD) offers the community a process we can live with.
Chaplaincy
The chaplaincy at MIT continued to make good use of Building W11, the Religious Life Center. Interfaith dialogue is alive and well, and plans are under way for expanded conversations during the coming year on the notion of cosmology within the great faith traditions.
In the fall the chaplaincy cosponsored a panel discussion on the religious right and their influence on the upcoming election. Speakers included Dr. William C. Martin from Rice University, Dr. Preston Williams from Harvard Divinity School, Dr. Charles Stewart from MIT, and Dr. Haddon Robinson from Gordon-Cromwell Theological Seminary. The occasion was prompted by the public television series, With God on Our Side. Dr. Martin authored the book of the same name that accompanied the series.
During IAP, Dr. Peter Gomes from Harvard Divinity School spoke regarding his best-selling book, The Good Book. The chaplaincy is stable with appropriate procedures in place for welcoming new chaplains. Last August, Dr. Constance Parvey became the new Lutheran Chaplain, a role she played in the 1970s when she was the first Lutheran chaplain on the campus. She left here to go to work in Geneva with the World Council of Churches and has now returned to MIT to complete her career. Father Tom Holohan left the Catholic chaplaincy at the end of June and Father Paul Reynolds will begin work in August. Sister Mary Karen Powers underwent open heart surgery during the winter, returned to work in June but will leave her ministry here in August. She will be greatly missed for she was the first woman to serve in the Catholic chaplaincy at MIT and she drew on her extensive Hospice skill to open new avenues of service in our Infirmary.
The Boston-Cambridge United Ministry in Higher Education sponsored the meeting of the Gay-Lesbian Caucus of the United Church of Christ in the summer of 1996 on our campus. Because of the willingness of MIT to host events that some campuses find controversial, we have become a center of intellectual activity equivalent to what occurs in other areas of Institute life. The Technology and Culture Seminars also contributed to this vitality by bringing a wide range of speakers to campus. Directed by the Episcopal chaplain, The Reverend Jane Gould, this effort has wide influence and support on campus.
Speakers
This past year we had four speakers on campus co-sponsored by the Dean's Office. Dr. William Martin and Dr. Peter Gomes have been mentioned. Dr. Charles Murray was here during IAP, co-sponsored by the Political Science Department from which he had graduated. Dr. Florence Ladd, who headed the Bunting Institute at Radcliffe College until her retirement in June, was also invited back to campus to read from her new novel, Sarah's Psalm. Dr. Ladd had previously worked at MIT. This event was co-sponsored by the Women's Studies Program. These efforts mark a revived effort on the part of this office to initiate cooperative ventures with other areas of the Institute. Students are now actively seeking ways to bring to campus and we have offered both support and a model by which it can be done.
Community Matters
The death in October 1996 of Benjamin Hammond, a student in the Graduate Program in Speech and Hearing, a joint Harvard-MIT program, was a profound loss to the community. A graduate of Harvard College, Ben Hammond was an exceptional talent lauded by those who taught him and those who counted him a friend. He died of heart failure resulting from a defect that had been thought to be under control.
IAP ended with a bit of a scare for students who feared they had been exposed to tuberculosis. Over two hundred students were tested for the disease in two residence halls. A much smaller number were given the opportunity to take treatment that would all but insure they would not develop the disease. This incident reminds us of how vulnerable communities such as ours are to diseases once thought fully contained. Sudden death and exposure to serious illness are only two tests of the resilience of our community; we respond well to such tests because we are a diverse and able people bound together by shared educational goals. We may justly be proud of our strength even as we regret those events that ask us to depend upon it.
Robert M. Randolph
The department is dedicated to providing adaptive, high-quality student-oriented physical education, athletics, recreation and intramural programs that encourage opportunities for participation, competition, confidence and leadership through enhancing the athletics and health fitness environment. The department's association with other units in the Dean's Office is proving to enhance the quality of education experiences for student-life and learning, and community services at MIT.
Continuing interest in the upgrading of all facilities, combined with a generous financial commitment from Maurice ('49) and Lynn Katz, resulted in the initiation of one major project: the West Tennis Courts were completely renovated. MIT provided funding for the installation of a state-of-the-art fabric tennis skin to replace the much-deteriorated existing tennis bubble. In addition, all courts received a plexi-pave resurfacing, completing the deferred maintenance of the entire facility. Significant progress was made toward the development of the central athletics facility that includes a 50-meter swimming pool, health-fitness center, sports medicine facility and additional locker rooms. Professors John Benedick and Gordon Kelly led a department initiative that enjoined Assistant Planning Director Michael Owu for several campus visits to view "state-of-the-art" 50-meter pool facilities. Sports medicine employees, including members of our partnership team from the Medical Department, offered their expertise and perspective on the sports medicine facility. Finally, Professor Halston Taylor worked diligently with the planning group to provide guidance not only for the central athletic facility weight training and fitness facility, but also to guide the renovation of the existing health-fitness area planned for the summer of 1997. Substantive improvements were made in the athletics training area that include an additional ice-making machine and the replacement of a whirlpool turbine. Patients and staff enjoyed the addition of air conditioning in the training room, and improved air exchange on the whole enhanced that area as well as the pistol/rifle range. The strength of town and gown relationships continue to be reinforced as MIT served as host to more than 40 outside events in Athletics Department spaces.
While actual sale of athletics cards remained depressed during this fiscal year, systems were put in place to enhance the ease with which cards could be purchased. Computer tracking of sales and better record keeping identified card-deficient users of our facilities. Our recent reconciliation of physical receipts and deposit records for card sales revealed the procedural control recommended by the Audit Department's on-site visit in 1996.
Registrations for 1996-97 were 8264, which is 334 higher than in 1995-96. Undergraduates taking classes for credit numbered 4890, while 3374 (undergraduates, graduates, staff, spouses, alumni) registered as non-credit students. Sixty-five courses were offered, with the highest registrations coming from aerobics, skating, weight training, aquatics and tennis. IAP had a record enrollment, with 1815 registrations for the 34 offerings. No students were denied graduation solely due to the physical education requirement. Eleven courses on a fee basis are to be offered during the summer of 1997. We employed 15 full-time physical education instructors and 45 part-time instructors. Registration for classes through the department's computerized lottery (PELOTT) system proceeded almost flawlessly. This system has processed nearly 14,000 students since its inception in 1995. For the fourth consecutive year, our physical education full-time instructors trained and led approximately 100 student leaders through another successful MOYA Project, an R/O lead-off activity.
Intramural participation reached new highs as 9,332 students exhibited their loyalties in competing for their dormitory floors or fraternity houses in 16 activities. Club Sports program needs were analyzed and financial support guidelines were established and implemented, resulting in more equitable distribution of funding. Of the 39 programs registered this year, more than 12 competing club sports received financial assistance.
The actual number of outstanding performances by our student-athletes is too great to comprehensively mention in this document. Highlights of the 1996-97 academic year, however, are as follows:
More information about the Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation Department can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/athletics/www/Intercol.html
Richard A. Hill, Candace L. Royer
By offering a range of services to the MIT community, we accomplish our mission--to assist MIT in its daily efforts. The MIT Card office provides identification, access and customer transaction services. The Housing and Food Services office aims to provide efficient management of housing facilities, budget, food service and sales revenue.
Because of early retirements this past year, we redesigned our management structure. Our goal through this transition was to produce better services at less cost with fewer staff.
MIT CARD OFFICE
This year, the office provided an MIT Card to 1,937 new employees. Two departments took advantage of our off-site service, where our staff takes photos at the department's headquarters and then delivers the completed cards. We also provided 2,450 temporary ID cards for summer conference participants for to give them access to dormitory, meal-plan, and parking services.
As the number of uses for the card increases, so does the number of users. In addition to students, employees and their spouses, members of the Corporation, contractors working at the Institute, new Lincoln Lab employees, and retirees can all now use the card.
The Card Office has undergone some changes in the past year. The office itself has moved to a more accessible location on the first floor. To accommodate new uses, the office has begun negotiations to purchase new hardware and software products that will allow quicker updates to the security system, more flexibility, and shorter response times.
HOUSING OFFICE
The Housing Office continued to develop its management team concept. The principle remains to produce better service at less cost to MIT.
We continued to develop a new house manager job description that meets evolving residence management goals. In addition to everyday management duties, our house managers serve the residential community in other critical ways, attending dormitory and executive committee meetings, tutor training sessions, house meetings, and even social gatherings; they come work with alumni, conference services staff, and R/O workers. We continued to build this central position description to better reflect the authority and responsibility of the UESA residence life program.
We continued our effort within budget constraints to produce the best possible renovation and maintenance program, addressing customer needs in a swift, professional and cost-effective manner. We acted in order to insure that our students had a positive experience. Estimated cost for the fiscal year is $3.7 million in renovations and maintenance in the residential system.
Program Highlights
|
Roof Replacement |
W1, 62-64, E55, W61 |
|
Window Replacement |
NW61, W61 |
|
Waterproofing/Painting |
E55, W7, W1, W13, 62-64, W4 |
|
Bathroom Renovations |
E55, 62-64, W13, NW61, W4, W51, W61, W70, W71, W85 |
|
Kitchen Renovations |
E55, W51, W85 |
|
Plumbing and Mechanical |
E55, 62-64, W1, W13, W4, W51, W61, W70, W71, W84, W85 |
|
Electrical Renovations |
E55, 62-64, W1, W4, W51, W85 |
|
Paint Program |
All dorms |
We began to build a data base that would allow access to off-campus rental listings on the MIT community intranet. We have slated this program start-up at the beginning of the fall term. This office continued to provide a valuable service to MIT students, staff, faculty and visitors. Many service users are from other countries. The demise of rent control in Boston, Cambridge and Brookline, coupled with a strong economy, has made the off-campus rental market one of the worst in the country. The vacancy rate was down, meaning there were fewer apartments advertised than this time last year.
Because of the tight off-campus rental market, there were far more applicants for campus housing than in the past several years. We accommodated the majority of first-year graduate students who applied for campus housing. Those not accommodated wanted specific buildings or apartment types that simply were not available. The addition of new five-year degree program and the increase in the class size at Sloan School of Management are further taxing the limited graduate and family housing resources. This year we accommodated 27 percent of the graduate students on campus, down from 30 percent two years ago.
HFS continued to increase its use of MITSIS. All residence houses and house managers and central department offices like Food Services, the MIT Card Office, and Evening and Nightwatch Dorm Patrol management used MITSIS for billing, checking registrations, addresses, and other tasks. With this system, we can locate any student 24 hours a day and seven days a week in case of emergency. House managers worked with student room assignment chairs to input up-to-date room assignments much faster and with more accuracy than ever before.
FOOD SERVICES
MIT was a 1997 test site for Pan Geos Fresh Flavors of the World. The following dining locations featured components of this new program: Walker, Pan Asia; Networks, Wraps; Lobdell, Juice Bar; Next House, Pasta Kitchen. Two breakfast carts were implemented at Next House and Burton House with improved student satisfaction. Semester customer satisfaction surveys in all dining locations showed improved ratings from prior year. The Dome Cafe, on the fourth floor of Building 7, opened in September and received great customer satisfaction response.
MIT Dining Committee meetings were open to the community and were well attended with excellent response from our customers. Our Campus Dietitian, nutrition interns and Lobdell Student Manager focused on healthy eating by highlighting healthy options, providing nutrition booths for Nutrition Month and working with the student group CHEW (Choose How to Eat Wisely).
Our UESA Dining mission continued to improve overall customer satisfaction in all dining locations as measured by the customer. Proposals developed to accomplish the mission included:
A one year contract was negotiated with Aramark for the fiscal year ended . We began negotiations with Aramark for an additional one year contract to expire July 1, 1998. This negotiation is ongoing.
Lawrence E. Maguire
AIR FORCE ROTC
The Air Force Reserve Officers' Training Corps (AFROTC) program at MIT provides challenging and comprehensive leadership and academic training for students attending MIT, Harvard, Tufts and Wellesley. We continue to recruit and commission men and women as second lieutenants in the United States Air Force. Year-end enrollment in AFROTC as of June 1997 was as follows:
|
|
Freshmen |
Sophomores |
Juniors |
Seniors |
Total |
|
MIT |
13 |
12 |
12 |
5 |
42 |
|
Harvard |
1 |
4 |
4 |
1 |
10 |
|
Tufts |
1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
|
Wellesley |
6 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
|
Total |
21 |
17 |
17 |
7 |
62 |
The assortment of special cadet activities continued unchanged from previous years and included a freshman orientation program emphasizing Air Force knowledge, physical fitness, and drill; an Air Force Dining-In, a formal dinner with guest speaker; and the Tri-Service Military Ball, parade, awards ceremony, and commissioning ceremony at the USS Constitution.
Highlights of the year include:
Colonel William D. Rutley
ARMY ROTC
The purpose of the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) is to provide instruction and training in military science subjects, to include a focus on leadership development. When coupled with the completion of a bachelor's degree, this training qualifies selected students for commissions as officers in the Active Army, Army Reserves, or Army National Guard.
This year a total of 67 students participated in our program. At year's end 64 students were enrolled. Of those 64 students 20 (31 percent) were minorities, including 9 women.
|
|
Freshmen |
Sophomores |
Juniors |
Seniors |
Total |
|
MIT |
3 |
9 |
5 |
6 |
23 |
|
Harvard |
4 |
3 |
3 |
7 |
17 |
|
Wellesley |
4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
6 |
|
Tufts |
5 |
8 |
2 |
3 |
18 |
|
Total |
16 |
21 |
11 |
16 |
64 |
Of the 23 enrolled MIT students, 15 are on scholarship, while 5 of the 8 non-scholarship students won scholarships this year.
In the 1996-97 academic year, we commissioned highly qualified graduates who promise to represent our program well in both the active US Army and the US Army Reserves. In the spring, scholarship selections were announced with ten Tier 1A ($22,000 annually) scholarships awarded to prospective freshmen at either MIT or its cross-enrolled schools, worth almost $900,000 for four years. Additionally, 13 two or three year scholarships were awarded to freshmen or sophomore students already on campus, amounting to almost $400,000 in awards.
This year the Army ROTC Department commissioned 12 new second lieutenants, three of whom were from MIT. Of the 12, five are entering the reserves, and seven will be reporting to active duty.
Social highlights for this year included a formal military ball where cadre, cadets, and guests dined and danced. Army ROTC sponsored the annual Tri-Service Awards Banquet with 87 cadets and midshipmen receiving awards from 37 organizations. Army ROTC supported the MIT Community Service Fund by participating in the 4-mile road race around the Charles River Basin. Tri-service commissioning ceremonies at Tufts, Harvard, and for MIT, at the USS Constitution were memorable events marking the transition to officer.
On- and Off-campus learning opportunities continued to attract cadets who voluntarily trained at Fort Benning, Georgia (Airborne School); Fort Campbell, Kentucky (Air Assault School); and other US posts (troop leadership). Participation continued strong in the MIT Pershing Rifles Company, a group of both ROTC and non-ROTC students dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in leadership and tactics.
Most faculty positions changed this year. The department changed commanders with Lieutenant Colonel Creel retiring in December and Lieutenant Colonel Rooney arriving in March 97. Captain Cho replaced Captain Lewis, and Master Sergeant Velez joined the battalion, replacing Master Sergeant Holley who retired last year. Also, Captain Filosa replaced Major Pettigrew as the Recruiting Officer, and Sergeant Thrall replaced Staff Sergeant Newby as the personnel sergeant.
More information about this department can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://web.mit.edu/armyrotc/army.html
Lieutenant Colonel Robert R. Rooney
NAVY ROTC
The Naval Reserve Officers' Training Corps (NROTC) program at MIT provides challenging and comprehensive leadership and academic training for students attending MIT, Harvard and Tufts. In the 1996-97 academic year, a total of 8 graduates were commissioned. Program enrollment just prior to June commencement was as follows:
|
|
Freshmen |
Sophomores |
Juniors |
Seniors |
Total |
|
MIT |
9 |
10 |
15 |
3 |
37 |
|
Harvard |
10 |
9 |
7 |
4 |
30 |
|
Tufts |
3 |
2 |
3 |
0 |
8 |
|
Total |
22 |
21 |
25 |
7 |
75 |
The Navy's financial assistance totaled approximately $1,624,000 for the year, including about $836,000 for MIT students. Approximately 96 percent of all NROTC students receive full tuition, payment for books, and a monthly stipend. We are expecting total enrollment to rise significantly in the fall with a projected 43 new freshmen entering the program.
Annual activities included freshman orientation held in Newport, Rhode Island, and the Navy and Marine Corps Birthday Ball, where LCDR Andrews, USN, was the honored speaker. The MIT NROTC Color Guard participated in the Boston Veteran's Day parade, as well as in several MIT football games. The midshipman battalion was also active in community service, working closely with the New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans, teaching veterans computer skills. The battalion also helped to restore a local house in working with Habitat for Humanity and performed landscape work for the Boston Park Service.
The MIT NROTC sailing team competed successfully this year. The team sailed to victory at the Georgetown and Cornell regattas and hosted the third annual Beaver Sailing Regatta on the Charles River, where the team was again victorious. The spring semester also included three military excellence competitions at Villanova, Cornell and Holy Cross.
During the summer, all of the scholarship midshipmen participate in active duty training with deployed naval units. This summer, midshipmen are cruising aboard submarines, maritime patrol aircraft, aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, and other vessels.
The MIT NROTC unit hosted the director of Undersea Warfare, Rear Admiral Giambastiani, who discussed technology developments in undersea warfare. The admiral also toured the MIT Tow Tank and received a presentation on the robo tuna and robo pike projects. The Command Master Chief of the Navy, Master Chief Hagan, also visited and discussed enlisted sailors' needs in the fleet.
The culmination of four years of training was reached on June 6, 1997, as four MIT students were commissioned as Ensigns in the United States Navy in a service alongside the USS Constitution. The guest speaker was Chief of Naval Education and Training, Vice Admiral Patricia Tracey.
I will be relieved on August 11, 1997, by Captain Randall Preston, USN. These past three years as visiting professor of naval science at MIT have been both personally and professionally rewarding. It has been a joy to prepare some of MIT's finest students for service as officers in the Navy and Marine Corps. I appreciate MIT's support for our program, especially the renovation of building W59, which will be an excellent facility for our staff and midshipmen.
More information about this department can be found on the Web at the following URL: http://www.mit.edu:8001/activities/navyrotc/home.html
Captain Michael L. McHugh
The Residence and Campus Activities section coordinates and supports the myriad activities related to residence life, student activities, independent living groups, crisis management, conflict resolution and mediation, student governments and public service. These functions provide students with opportunities to develop important life skills outside the classroom, including that of leadership, communications, group dynamics, understanding differences, teamwork, and conflict management.
HIGHLIGHTS
Of particular importance this past year have been the numerous re-engineering and transition efforts that RCA staff have contributed to and supported. Staff have served on teams and in other capacities with regard to Co-Curricular Redesign and Implementation, Housing and Residential Life (HARL), Residential System Integration Team (RSIT), Food Services Working Group (FSWG), and the Presidential Task Force on Student Life and Learning. In addition, a number of staff are serving on affinity and/or oversight teams. The Co-Curricular Redesign team worked throughout the year to produce a plan for a new Student Activities Center. The plan was given to a working group to implement during 1997-1998.
RCA staff handled numerous discipline matters with sensitivity and efficiency. Charges included property damage, harassment, and sexual assault, and sanctions ranged from warning to temporary removal from Institute housing and a three-year suspension. In addition, staff served on or chaired hearing panels in the recently revised disciplinary system.
RCA staff members convened the new Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, Transgender Issues Group which includes LBGT people and allies, fourteen staff members from offices all over the Institute, eight students, and two alumni. Carol Orme-Johnson chairs the group. Task groups have begun working on formulating an official mechanism for responding to anti-gay incidents at MIT, surveying students to assess needs related to sexual orientation and identity, and compiling and distributing a list of resources at MIT for LBGT students. Currently the group is working on activities for LBGT students during R/O. The group also met with the ROTC Implementation Team and with BGALA, the new group of gay and lesbian alumnae.
GenderWorks is a peer training program in gender relations at MIT, founded in 1994 and affiliated with a seminar on sex roles and relationships. This seminar has been taught at MIT for ten years and won the 1997 Sizer award for having made the most significant improvement to MIT education. This year staff and trainers ran fourteen workshops for approximately 400 students and staff. The GenderWorks program has been very successful, with participant evaluations consistently reporting that the workshops helped them better understand the other gender and develop more constructive ways of interacting with them personally and professionally.
Forty-four faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduates became certified mediators by completing the Basic Training in Mediation offered by mediation@mit in both January and June this year. Mediation@mit also produced a video tape of a mock mediation for teaching purposes; the tape used for the first time in the June training. Volunteer mediators have been called on to resolve disputes between individual students and to facilitate a large group exchange of views between opposing organizations.
This past year, undergraduates were again able to indicate their house preferences and receive their assignments using Athena. Over 90 percent of the 726 students who participated received one of their top three choices of residence halls. Temporary assignments also were completed electronically. Crowding for first year students was slightly below recent years, with 120 crowds in the beginning of the semester, compared with 154 the previous year. Over 200 students used the Web-based preference forms for academic year and summer housing requests, as well as cancellations.
The stability resulting from all house masters, and many graduate resident tutors (GRTs), continuing in their positions allowed for particularly well-planned programs and effective response to emergencies in the residences this year. House masters devoted considerable energy and contributed valuable input into the work of the Housing and Residential Life (HARL) team, the Institute Dining Review Committee, and the Task Force on Student Life and Learning. RCA offered training for GRTs and house masters in spite of staff transitions.
Approximately 370 freshmen took residence in one of the Institute's 36 Independent Living Groups following Rush 1996. This was right in line with the ten year average of around 370. In June, MIT completed the renovation of 480 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, a property purchased last spring for use by Sigma Kappa Sorority. This fall, 24 undergraduate members of the sorority will live in the house. This will be MIT's third housed sorority.
The House Fellows Program, now in its ninth year, promotes greater interaction and sense of community between students in the MIT residences and MIT faculty members. This past year, over 20 Fellows were associated with four undergraduate and one graduate house and five Independent Living Groups (ILGs).
Events on campus continued to be strong, with student groups using the major event and party facilities almost every weekend. The metal detector policy continued to be used for major parties, with few problems. A meeting was held to evaluate/communicate with students about using Walker as an event space and the subsequent restrictions at that facility for metal detector events. The event registration process was changed to make it easier for students to register events. RCA and CAC worked together to eliminate steps for students registering events. We are working with the Campus Police, CAC, and individual groups to address continuing problems with event security and planning.
A new alcohol policy form was created this year, and alcohol education is now a part of every registered event that has alcohol.
FINANCIAL OPERATIONS
A policy was developed and implemented by RCA, the Association of Student Activities, the Undergraduate Association, the Treasurer's Office and the Audit Division, to allow recognized student activities to register for an outside bank account in accordance with appropriate MIT procedures. Thus far, over 30 student groups have registered or opened new accounts. This past year, RCA resolved many of students' concerns about the Student Activities Finance Office. Activities have been fully unformed about account activity in their accounts during the past few years. New software and check-writing procedures will enable us to perform account transactions in a more timely and efficient manner.
MIT PUBLIC SERVICE CENTER
The Public Service Center (PSC) contributes to the education of students by providing opportunities for them to experience service and by nurturing committed and sustained involvement with the community. The PSC serves as an umbrella organization for campus groups and individuals involved in or interested in community service.
The year-long CityDays program, a unique partnership with the Cambridge Public Schools, was kicked off on Friday, August 30 in collaboration with the School Department of the City of Cambridge. 450 Cambridge grade school children came to MIT where they were hosted by 800 MIT student volunteers who ran a variety of activity stations ranging from lab tours to sports and crafts.
The CityDays Festival is a nice lead in to the LINKS component of the year-long program, as it extends throughout the school year with a mission of improving the quality of science education in the Cambridge Public Schools. Each volunteer spends 1-2 hours/week at one of ten Cambridge elementary schools. The program had about 120 volunteers during the fall semester and 90 in the spring with 20 ILGs and 8 Residence Halls participating.
KEYs is a student-run program sponsored by the PSC which is dedicated to empowering adolescent girls by promoting self-confidence, increasing self-esteem, and unveiling opportunities for potential career paths. The students ran 1 three-day and 7 one-day programs this year which allowed approximately 160 girls and over 30 MIT students to participate in one or more programs during the year.
In addition, the PSC:
TALBOT HOUSE
Over 500 MIT students visited MIT's Talbot House retreat facility, more than in the previous year. This past year was the creation of an Advisory Board consisting of representative from RCA, UESA, CAC, Alumni Office, GSC, the Safety Office, and Legal Affairs.
Margaret A. Jablonski
MIT Reports to the President 1996-97