MIT
MIT Faculty Newsletter  
contents Vol. XIX No. 5
March / April 2007

This issue features several articles on the steps the Institute has been taking to ensure a more diverse campus. There is also Teach Talk on "Getting More Learning out of Lecture and Recitation Time."

Spotlight
Diversity at MIT
Why Diversity Matters
Karl Reid leads off our articles on diversity with both an historical review and a current analysis of the importance of diversity on university campuses.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Visiting Professor Program
A brief overview of this important program and articles by one current and one past participant.
Faith vs. Facts in the
Pursuit of Fairness at MIT

Michel DeGraff questions process and decision making in the Prof. James Sherley tenure and grievance reviews.
 
The Saga of the Struggle for Survival of the Faculty Newsletter
For almost 19 years the MIT Faculty Newsletter (FNL) has provided a forum for expression of faculty concerns and views, a major channel of communication . . .
Editorial
The Management of Change:
Institute Facing Key Issues in the Immediate Future
In the course of time every major institution faces challenges, the management of which will shape its future – in theory and in practice. The management of change . . .
From the Faculty Chair
The More Things Change the More They Stay the Same
Steven Lerman
One of the interesting things about serving a second term as Chair of the Faculty is the opportunity to look back on some of the articles I wrote for the Faculty Newsletter.
Teach Talk
Getting More Learning out of Lecture and Recitation Time
J. Kim Vandiver
Most MIT faculty have never received formal training in teaching, and the demands on our time make it difficult for us to go to the research to look for best practices.
Why Diversity Matters
Karl W. Reid
Until the 1960s, many U.S. universities expressed little concern for the paucity of minority students attending their institutions. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 . . .
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Visiting Professor Program
" MIT established the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Visiting Professor Program to enhance and recognize the contributions of outstanding scholars. The program . . ."
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Visiting Professor Program
Desired End State: Reaching The Goal
William M. Harris, Sr.
During a recent luncheon meeting with a distinguished faculty colleague (everybody in this environment claims such classification), I was asked what were the . . .
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Visiting Professor Program
MLK, MIT, and Me: A Personal Essay
Ainissa G. Ramirez
My visit to MIT as a Martin Luther King Visiting Professor was brief but rewarding. This visiting position afforded me new collaborations in thin film shape memory . . .
Recruiting Underrepresented Minority Graduate Students to MIT
Mandana Sassanfar, Steve Bell, Chris Kaiser
Underrepresentation of minorities at MIT has been a recurrent issue. The perception that MIT is not as accessible to, or as supportive and welcoming of minorities is a . . .
Filling the Pipeline
Christopher Jones
"One of the greatest challenges to filling the pipeline is identifying qualified candidates. Occasionally we find underrepresented minority students who fit the . . ."
Faith vs. Facts in the Pursuit of Fairness at MIT
Michel DeGraff
On March 8, 2007, Prof. Thomas L. Magnanti, Dean of Engineering and Institute Professor, wrote a letter about Prof. James L. Sherley’s tenure and grievance . . .
MIT Poetry
Ode to William Wells
David Barber
William Wells, this is to tell you that the morning wet
Still beads the leaves with precision and abandon.
Comes now your beloved creeping damp, even as I write.
In Memoriam
Stephen M. Meyer
We have the sad duty to report that on December 10, 2006, our friend and colleague, Stephen M. Meyer, died after a long and heroic battle with cancer.
CMI – A Bold Experiment in International Partnership
Edward F. Crawley
CMI, the Cambridge-MIT Institute, was envisioned as a bold experiment in international university cooperation. From the perspective of many of our faculty, . . .
Letters
Response to Prof. Sussman's Call for Interdisciplinary Research
Barry J. Smernoff
After reading your contribution to the February 2007 special edition of the MIT Faculty Newsletter devoted to responses to the report of the Task Force on the UG . . .
Letters
Appreciation for Special Edition Faculty Newsletter
Warren Seering
I am writing to express my most sincere appreciation for your efforts in assembling the recent Faculty Newsletter about the report of the Task Force on the . . .
Letters
Cutting the Pie of Undergraduate Education
Ed Levine
Wow. What a mission the Task Force undertook. The articles in the Newsletter offered many thoughtful responses. Basically, the problem is that the pie can be cut many . . .
Letters
Getfit@mit with the FNL
Lauren Rosano
Thank you for supporting the 2007 getfit@mit fitness challenge. The response to getfit@mit has been outstanding this year. Almost 2400 members of the MIT . . .
M.I.T. Numbers
Underrepresented Minorities at MIT
M.I.T. Numbers
MIT Faculty: Women and Underrepresented Minorities
   
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