A Faculty Resident is a member of the faculty at MIT who has chosen to live with students on campus.  This is not an uncommon practice at colleges, but MIT has taken it a step beyond just simple residence.  While MIT had Faculty Residents in place long before Burton-Conner was opened as a dormitory, the current Housemaster system had its initial debut at Burton-Conner. 

Prior to 1958 the Faculty Resident at a dorm was a resident of the dormitory and was often around for the students to talk to and open up to.  They had limited funds to spend on the dorm and their main purpose was solely to live at the dorm in case problems arose.  In the years leading up to 1958 MIT began to wonder if the system could be improved upon and, if so, how this improvement would be implemented.  In 1958, MIT created a new position to replace the Faculty Resident and used Burton-Conner as its guinea pig.  That year Howard Bartlett was appointed as the first Housemaster of Burton-Conner and the first at MIT.  The Housemaster was a new name for the Faculty Resident, but more importantly it came with specific, clearly designated duties as opposed to the vaguely specified duties of the Faculty Resident. 

According to the Housemaster “Charter of Responsibilities,” two of the Housemasters responsibilities were to contribute to and “share in the life and spirit of their living group”, and to be there for the students and not the Institute.  This is not to say that Faculty Residents did not contribute to dorm life, or care about the students.  On the contrary, many of the ideas for what a Housemaster should be, came from earlier Faculty Residents.  The reason for the change was to give the Housemaster a clearer idea of what his or her relationship should be to the students, as opposed to having them guess in each new circumstance. 

From my personal experience, the most important job of the Housemaster is to be there for the students.  In the words of the Charter of Responsibilities, “In any given situation the Housemasters are expected to weigh the interests and the welfare of the students, both as individuals and as members of the MIT Community.  Their allegiance to the students is seen as part of their responsibility to the Institute.”  This is important for the students to know because it adds a personal element to the more impersonal “corporate” side of MIT. 

I knew that Professor Roe Smith would be there to listen to my problems and, if needed, connect me with the right people so that I could deal with my problems with minimal effect on my grades.  I knew that if I went to his wife, Bronwyn Mellquist, she would be quick to give me a hug and listen to what I had been going through.  This was especially important my sophomore year, when my family back home was in the middle of a weeklong battle with wildfires.  Roe and Bronwyn both stopped by to check on me and make sure I was holding up okay.  Although incredibly worried and stressed, all I needed was an adult to talk to and tell me everything was going to be okay.

Housemasters are respected members of MIT’s faculty and are often tenured professors; as such they have a lot of experience to draw upon when offering advice to students.  The Housemaster is also part of the dorm community and this puts them in the perfect position to offer advice and have that advice taken seriously.  Based upon their experiences with Housemasters, many students find it easier to approach them than other faculty members. 

a.John T. Rule (1950-1953)

In 1950, John T. Rule served as the first Faculty Resident of Burton-Conner.  Two years later in the spring of 1953, he retired from this position.  In 1950, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Course in General Science and Engineering and served until it was discontinued in 1957.  He also served as the Administer of the Section of Graphics from 1938 until 1956; this position has also been discontinued.  After serving at Burton-Conner, Professor Rule became the Dean of Undergraduate Education and Student Affairs at MIT.  It was during his time as Dean that the current Housemaster system was implemented. 

b.Laurens Troost (1953-1956)

Professor Laurens Troost replaced John Rule as the new Faculty Resident at Burton-Conner.  Laurens Troost grew up in Rotterdam, Netherlands where he met his wife, Martha Christina Versluijs, through their mutual interest in music.  Professor Troost started playing violin when he was seven years old and eventually took two years of professional training.  He received his engineering degree from Delft Institute of Technology, in 1919.  During World War 2, he left the town of Wageningen, and took refuge near Utrecht.  In the summer of 1951, he accepted an opportunity to come to the United States and spent a semester at MIT and another at Berkeley before coming back to MIT as a Professor and the Department head of Ocean Engineering.

In 1953, Laurens Troost decided that he wasn’t meeting as many students as he would like to be meeting.  He hoped that by becoming a Housemaster he could become a better department head by better knowing the students.  Troost and his wife brought their musical interests into Burton-Conner and were very supportive of the fine arts at Burton-Conner and around the rest of the Institute.  Figure 7 shows the Troosts at the All Tech Sing supporting the Burton-Conner team led by Tom Kudzma, class of 1956. 

c.Neal Hartley (1956-1958)

Shortly after the Troost family moved out, Professor Neal Hartley moved in.  Prior to joining the MIT History department as a Professor in 1946, Professor Hartley was an officer in the US Naval Reserve.  Afterwards, he served as an Institute Archivist serving from 1966 to 1976.

Professor Hartley was well known by a few students at Burton-Conner, and he often invited them to his house.  Figure 7 is a picture given to me by Lewis “Lew” Cohen class of 1958.  The picture was taken at Professor and Mrs. Hartley’s house in Maine after a nice lobster dinner prior to the start of Lew’s senior year.  According to Lew, “The pipe was a Prof. Hartley constant, removed only at ceremonial occasions and, presumably, for sleeping.” 

d.Howard Bartlett (1958-1963)

In the fall semester of 1958, Professor Howard Bartlett moved into Burton-Conner as the first Housemaster, replacing the old Faculty Resident system.  Howard and Helen Bartlett were tasked with determining how the Housemaster would fulfill his role in the House.  Bartlett felt that the dorm should be, “not just a place to sleep” and that this could be accomplished, “by fostering a pleasant social and intellectual life away from home.”  Professor Bartlett first met with the Burton House Committee to learn about Burton-Conner so that he could smoothly integrate himself into the house.  The figure below shows Professor Bartlett sitting in on a Burton-Conner House Meeting. 

The Barletts stayed at Burton Conner for five years, longer than any of the previous Faculty Residents, but they ended up leaving to go to India to help with the setup of Birla Institute of Technology in 1963. 

e.David C. White (1963-1968)

David C. White, a Professor of Electrical Engineering at MIT, stayed on as the Housemaster from 1963-1968.  The Presidents Report of 1968 said that David C. white served as a, “dedicated and imaginative contributor to the Housemaster-tutor system.”  After serving as the Housemaster for 5 years Professor White followed Professor Bartlett to India to help with the setup of the Birla Institute of Technology.  

f.Herbert Woodson (1968-1972)

Professor Herbert Woodson, another Professor of Electrical Engineering, took over for Professor David C. White.  Herbert Woodson was also an alumnus of MIT, graduating in 1952 and living on-campus at the Westgate housing.  Herbert Woodson served from 1968-1972 including during the year of Burton-in-Exile. 

g.James Bruce (1972-1977)

“Lifer” is a term used for someone at MIT who has or will spend all of his or her life at MIT.  It is usually reserved for the Professor who started as an Undergraduate student, went on to become a Graduate student and after receiving his or her advanced degrees from MIT eventually decided that they wouldn’t be happy anywhere but MIT, and so they come back as a Professor. 

While not a complete lifer, James Bruce comes pretty close.  In 1964, after receiving his SM in 1960 in Course XVI and then his SCD in 1964, again in Course XVI, James Bruce joined the MIT Faculty.  Four years later he became an Associate Professor and in 1973 was promoted to full professor.  In 1971, before becoming a full professor he was the Associate Dean of the School of Engineering, and later served as its Dean from 78-79. 

During Professor Bruce’s time as Associate Dean of the School of Engineering he lived with his family at the newly renovated Burton-Conner as the Senior Housemaster.  After his term as Housemaster he was awarded the Gordon Y Billard Award for, “untiring contributions to MIT in administration, engineering education and devotion to students.” 

After leaving Burton-Conner, James Bruce stayed at MIT and became the Director of Information Systems and later the Vice President for Information Systems.  He maintained this for nearly 20 years before retiring and becoming an MIT Professor Emeritus.  While Vice President of Information Systems Professor Bruce, led MIT as it expanded its network from non-existent to nearly 30,000 devices on MIT’s network in 2002. 

h.Julian Beinart (1977-1991)

Professor Julian Beinart lived with his family as the Housemaster for Burton-Conner from 1977 until 1991.  Professor Beniart was originally from South Africa and students often remember his apartment as being decorated with a good deal of African art.  The Beinarts raised their children while at Burton-Conner and alumni may recognize the then-young Peter Beinart as a political commentator and author. 

Julian Beinart’s work focused on city design and he has done work on many international projects.  In addition to architecture, he is interested in the arts and music.  He has worked on recordings of African music and African art exhibitions in two museums in England. 

Although no longer a Housemaster, Julian Beinart is still a professor of Architecture at MIT.  Shawn Buckley the Assistant Housemaster living in Burton 1 remembers Professor Beinart as an insightful man and being able to see not only what was there, but also what was missing. 

i.William Porter (1991-1995)

William and Lynn Porter took over for Julian and Doreen Beinart in 1991 and served for four years, leaving in 1995.  While they were Housemasters, questions arose as to what the former Dining Hall would be used for.  Burton-Conner wanted to keep it in under BC’s control while the Institute wanted to use it for their own purposes, effectively taking away all control over the use of the room from the residents.  The Porters helped Burton-Conner retain control of the Dining Hall so that it could be used for dorm purposes and other student-related uses.  As a thanks for the efforts of William and Lynn Porter, the Dining Hall was renamed the Porter Room.  Prior to living at Burton-Conner, William Porter was Dean of Architecture (1972-1981) and then Department Head of Architecture (1987-1991). 

j.Halston Taylor (1995-2004)

Halston Taylor came to MIT in 1982 as an assistant with men’s Track and Field.  In 1990, he took over as the head coach.  Halston Taylor is still at MIT and has served as the director of MIT’s Track and Field programs.  Coach Taylor has received many commendations for his coaching and for good reason; he has coached 135 All-Americans and 13 national champions. 

While Housemaster at Burton-Conner, he put that same dedication that he had as a coach into being a part of BC.  Matt Abernathy, class of 2006, recalls Halston as a very strong guy likely because he taught the weight training PE class.  In addition to his being strong, Matt remembers him as a genuinely fun guy to be around. 

k.Merritt Roe Smith (2004-Present)

After publishing his book Harpers Ferry and the New Technology in 1977 and having it nominated for a Pulitzer Award in History, Merritt Roe Smith came to teach history at MIT.  In 2004, Merritt Smith and his wife, Bronwyn Mellquist, became the Housemasters at Burton-Conner.  All of the students know Merritt Smith, as “Roe” and many never realize that his first name is Merritt.  

Roe and Bronwyn offer many exciting events for students and are always there for students who are having a rough time.  Every semester on the Tuesday of finals week a line begins to form outside of the Housemaster apartment as students take a study break to eat desserts with other sleep deprived students.  This becomes quite a large event as the residents and the occasional alumni shuffle through the apartment picking up every conceivable type of dessert and either eating it there with their friends or going back to their room to continue studying.  Bronwyn’s apple crisp is by far the main attraction in the dessert line and some students show up solely for it. 

One thing that Roe is known for are his late night rounds about the dorm.  While they don’t occur every night, they do occur almost every weekend.  Unlike the night watchmen who go around checking to make sure the students are safe and ovens are off, Roe goes around checking in on the students.  He talks to and hangs out with the students and has even been known dance at parties.

At the culmination of each year, Roe and Bronwyn invite all the residents to a dinner/dance cruise of Boston harbor.  Roe is often found on the dance floor at this event and often squares off with some students in a friendly dance competition.  The most recent of these dance-offs pitted him against Malcolm Jones, class of 2010, to the tunes of a Chuck Berry-Will Smith mash-up.  Roe declares the winner, and shockingly has never lost a dance-off.