Welcome to Simmons!

We are the Simmons housemasters and, yes, we actually live in Simmons. The other members in residence of the Simmons team are ten MIT graduate students, four residential scholars, one Residential Life Associate, and team family members.

Simmons is a fascinating place to live and work, and we take special pride in its student-run house government. Our governance is that of a New England Town Meeting, which occurs every other week. Each resident has an equal voice to bring his or her ideas to the House, or to recommend change. We find that this structure puts new ideas on the table all the time and efficiently puts resources in the hands of people who want things to happen quickly. There are no sub-committees through which proposals must filter, so there is a lot of action at house meetings. Want to build a workshop, install surround sound in the MPR, build an indoor Zen garden or throw an all dorm BBQ? Get government approval and funds at the next meeting. Want to take in a home game tomorrow night at Fenway, along with 15 other SIMs? No need to wait for the next meeting: our Social Chairs have a slush fund they can allocate to support spur of the moment ideas. Things happen fast in Simmons. And, we like it that way!

So, what do the Simmons Housemasters do? We host events for our residents, including weekly study breaks and Resident Scholar programs, monthly Sunday brunches, and exam week breakfasts. We also help the Simmons Hall house government achieve its community goals, we advise students on academic and personal issues, and we are a liaison between students and the MIT faculty and administration.

The Simmons Housemasters are old hands at MIT. John and Ellen did their doctoral work at MIT, and John is now Professor of Chemistry and Biological Engineering. Ellen had a long and successful career working at Boston/Cambridge area pharmaceutical companies. We have two children: Amy, a graduate of Dartmouth College and aspiring photographer; and Nolan, a high school Junior interested in particle physics and mixed martial arts. Housemasters since 1995, we lived at New House for seven years and then moved to Simmons Hall in 2002 to help “boot up” the new Simmons community. And, we are still here!

Steve Hall is the Associate Housemaster, and an MIT lifer — he arrived in 1977 and never quite figured out how to leave. He is a Professor in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and became Associate Housemaster in 2008. He has two children: Mike, an aerospace engineer, graduated from the University of Michigan (Go Blue!) a year ago. Caitlin is attending Penn State, trying to figure out what her calling is. To quote Steve: “Simmons is a terrific community, and although I’ve only been here a year, it feels like home.”

All of us look forward to Simmons Hall’s 8th year and to meeting you!

- John and Ellen Essigmann, Housemasters

- Steven Hall, Associate Housemaster

Special Note: At Simmons having dinner together will be an important part of the community. Specifics are still in development but all residents will pay a dining hall subsidy. The subsidy will entitle Simmons residents to an approximate discount of 50% on most items in the dining hall and night cafe. Translation - a hearty meal will cost you around $3 or $4.