Background

Between August 2019 and January 2020, MIT’s leadership provided updates on the Epstein matter to the Institute community. Below is an archive of communications about the matter and details about two relevant ad hoc committees.

President Reif’s letters to the community

• Learning from the Facts and Taking Action

  January 10, 2020

• Preliminary Fact-finding About MIT and Jeffrey Epstein

  September 12, 2019

• Updates on Media Lab

  September 9, 2019

• Fact-finding and Action on the Media Lab

  September 7, 2019

• Jeffrey Epstein and MIT

  August 22, 2019

News stories

• MIT Releases Results of Fact-Finding on Engagements with Jeffrey Epstein

  January 10, 2020

• MIT Announces Updates on Fact-Finding and Reviews of External Engagements

  October 31, 2019

• Two Committees to Examine MIT’s Outside Engagements

  October 15, 2019

• MIT Community Members Invited to Attend Campus-Wide Forums

  September 29, 2019

Remarks

• Institute Faculty Meeting

  September 18, 2019
  President Reif

Ad hoc committees

In October 2019, MIT announced two ad hoc committees, one to examine the Institute’s outside engagements, the other to review its policies and processes for soliciting and accepting gifts.

In an October 11 letter to the faculty, Chair of the Faculty Rick Danheiser detailed the charge and membership of the Ad Hoc Faculty Committee on Guidelines for Outside Engagements, which will define a set of values and principles, consistent with MIT’s mission, to guide the Institute’s assessment of outside engagements.

Four days later, Provost Martin Schmidt sent a similar letter detailing the Ad Hoc Committee to Review MIT Gift Processes, which will examine the Institute’s current gift processes, recommend enhancements, and identify opportunities to communicate MIT’s processes for gift acceptances clearly to the Institute community.

The committees are expected to deliver interim reports early in 2020 and final reports by June 1, 2020. Additional details are available on MIT News.