MIT Faculty Newsletter, Vol. XXXII No. 1, September/October 2019web.mit.edu/fnl/volume/321/fnl321.pdf · MIT Faculty Newsletter September/October 2019 3 of Women Faculty at MIT,”

in this issue we offer “A Letter to President Rafael Reif and Provost MartySchmidt Regarding Epstein” (page 8); “A Motion to Establish an Ad Hoc FacultyCommittee to Protect Academic Integrity” (page 9); “New Atlas Process Paves Wayfor Supporting Undergraduate Research Innovation” (page 15); and “A Case for Mid-Semester Feedback” (page 17).

MITFacultyNewsletter

Vol. XXXII No. 1September/October 2019

http://web.mit.edu/fnl

MassachusettsInstitute ofTechnology

continued on page 18

The Hard Roadto Recovery

The MIT-NepalInitiative: Four Years On

continued on page 10

Jeffrey S. Ravel and Aaron Weinberger

TH E I N STITUTE FACU LTY M E ETI NG

held Wednesday, September 18 was elec-tric and historic, filling the Sala de PuertoRico with both faculty and observers. Themeeting almost certainly marked aturning point away from the dubious anddamaging policies the Administration hasbeen following, in courting a SaudiArabian monarch who was crediblyaccused of criminal acts, a convictedsexual predator, and other discreditedplayers. Hopefully this will allow MIT to returnto the principles, values, and academicintegrity that our educational and researchproductivity and credibility rests upon. Itshould also enable increasing the recogni-tion of the contributions and values ofwomen faculty, building on the advancesthat followed from the HopkinsCommittee report (“A Study on the Status

EditorialSeptember FacultyMeeting Calls forMajor Changes inInstitute Policy

continued on page 3

Maclaurin Buildings; Great Dome

O N 2 5 A P R I L 2 0 1 5 , an earthquakewith a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richterscale struck the South Asian country ofNepal, killing over 9,000 people andinjuring more than 23,000 others.Aftershocks continued in the followingdays and months, including a 7.3 magni-tude quake on May 12 that killed orinjured another 2,700. Hundreds of thou-sands of people were made homeless,with entire villages flattened across manydistricts of the country. Centuries-oldbuildings were destroyed at UNESCOHeritage sites throughout theKathmandu Valley. It was the worstnatural disaster to strike Nepal since the1934 Nepal-Bihar earthquake that regis-tered 8.0 on the Richter scale and resultedin the deaths of over 10,000 people. In the immediate aftermath of thatearthquake, Nepali students at MIT

Ceasar McDowell

R E V E L AT I O N S OV E R T H E PA S T

several weeks have left many at MITfeeling unwilling accomplices in theharming of children and the degradationof women. [You will not see his name nor thenames of others who have admitted theircomplicity in this article. They are not theissue that has MIT in moral turmoil. Weare.] MIT took money from a convictedLevel 3 serial sex offender who preyed onyoung girls. MIT provided him access tothe campus. MIT crafted an acknowledg-ment gift for him. MIT dismissed objec-tions raised by members of thecommunity. And MIT attempted to coverup its involvement through lies, omis-sions, silence. Once the silence was broken thingsbegan to happen. There were resigna-

2

Vol. XXXII No. 1 September/October 2019

Robert BerwickElectrical Engineering & Computer Science

Manduhai BuyandelgerAnthropology

Nazli ChoucriPolitical Science

Christopher CumminsChemistry

Woodie FlowersMechanical Engineering

*Sally HaslangerLinguistics and Philosophy

*Jonathan King (Chair) Biology

Helen Elaine LeeWriting and Humanistic Studies

*Ceasar McDowellUrban Studies and Planning

Fred MoavenzadehCivil & Environmental Engineering/Engineering Systems

*Ruth Perry (Vice Chair)Literature Section

Nasser RabbatArchitecture

*Balakrishnan RajagopalUrban Studies and Planning

Robert RedwinePhysics

Warren SeeringMechanical Engineering

David LewisManaging Editor

*Editorial Subcommittee for this issue

AddressMIT Faculty NewsletterBldg. 10-335Cambridge, MA 02139

Websitehttp://web.mit.edu/fnl

Telephone 617-253-7303Fax 617-253-0458E-mail [email protected]

Subscriptions$15/year on campus$25/year off campus

01 The MIT-Nepal Initiative: Four Years On Jeffrey S. Ravel and Aaron Weinberger 01 The Hard Road to Recovery Ceasar McDowell

Editorial 01 September Faculty Meeting Calls for Major Changes in Institute Policy

From The 04 On the Responsibilities of InstructorsFaculty Chair Rick L. Danheiser

In Memoriam 07 Patrick Henry Winston Adam Conner-Simons and Rachel Gordon 08 A Letter to President Rafael Reif and Provost Marty Schmidt Regarding Epstein

09 A Motion to Establish an Ad Hoc Faculty Committee to Protect Academic Integrity

11 It Is Difficult to Know What to Do Edmund Bertschinger

12 Two Donors, Two Deaths, Two Responses Kerry Emanuel, John E. Fernández, Raffaele Ferrari, Susan Solomon, Robert van der Hilst

14 Report on the Faculty Classroom Survey Spring 2019 Mary Callahan

15 New Atlas Process Paves Way for Supporting Undergraduate Research Innovation Lesley Millar-Nicholson and Ian A. Waitz

15 Nominate a Colleague as a MacVicar Faculty Fellow

16 Hayden Renovation Update: Key Dates for the Fall Chris Bourg

17 A Case for Mid-Semester Feedback Ian A. Waitz

M.I.T. Numbers 20 from the Faculty Classroom Survey Spring 2019

contentsThe MIT FacultyNewsletterEditorial Board

Photo Credit: Page1: Beyond My Ken – Wikimedia Commons; Page7: Jason Dorfman, MIT CSail; Page18: Prim [a hiking guide];

Page19: Jackie Xu.

MIT Faculty NewsletterSeptember/October 2019

3

of Women Faculty at MIT,” MIT FacultyNewsletter, Vol. XI No. 4, March 1999). Thereforms needed will require changes in gov-ernance that elevate the role of the faculty,students, and staff and end the running ofthe Institute from the top down. In addition to the cogent statementsfrom many individual faculty, a group ofsenior women faculty read a dramaticopen letter, identifying their critiques ofthe Epstein affair and grievances,excerpted following and printed in itsentirety below (page 8).

“We write as senior women faculty members(current and emerita) of MIT to share ourdeep distress over the MIT/Epstein revela-tions and our profound disappointment inlearning of the apparent complicity ofadministrative leadership. We write also toencourage efforts to uncover the truth aboutand learn from the current crisis. This letteris a call for integrity and action.

“From various departments across MIT, weare gravely concerned about the situationthat has emerged: Institute leaders, faculty,and lab directors at MIT may have violatedcampus fundraising procedures. They cer-tainly violated Institute values not only byaccepting money from, but also by invitingonto campus Jeffrey Epstein, a “level three”(high risk of repeat offense) registered sexoffender. MIT cultivated a relationship withEpstein over time that rewarded, empow-ered, and elevated him. With the approvalof administrative leadership, faculty andstaff attempted to conceal that relationshipfrom those they knew it would disturb.Some students and staff who were asked tocollude were made to feel morally compro-mised. Taking Epstein’s money suggested awillingness to turn a blind eye to the impactof his crimes, which included procuring theprostitution of a minor. The fact that thissituation was even thinkable at MIT is pro-foundly disturbing, and is symptomatic ofbroader, more structural problems, involv-ing gender and race, in MIT’s culture. It istime for fundamental change.”

Another group of senior facultybrought forth a Motion to Establish an AdHoc Faculty Committee to ProtectAcademic Integrity, to establish standardsof accountability and transparency and adue diligence process to prevent sucherrors in the future. This committee offaculty volunteers would avoid the conflictof interest inherent in all current bodiesappointed or hired by the President, bysharply limiting participation frommembers of the current Administration.Excerpted following and printed in itsentirety below (page 9), it will be consid-ered at the October meeting of the Faculty.

Therefore be it Resolved:

That the MIT Faculty establish an Ad HocCommittee of the Faculty on ProtectingAcademic Integrity, composed of Facultyvolunteers independent of theAdministration, to draft a statement of MITvalues and standards, reflecting the responsi-bilities incumbent upon MIT as a globaluniversity, and the procedures to be followedby the Institute in receiving outside funding.The mission of the Committee shall includethe establishment of a robust due diligenceprocess for review of all fundraising at MITincluding a review of ongoing relationshipsin the light of MIT values, and establish-ment of standards for Institute agreementswith outside agencies, governments, andindividuals, drawing on examples of bestpractices around the world.

And be it further Resolved, That the stan-dards, policies, and procedures include: a)Compliance at all times with applica-ble local, state, and federal civil and criminallaws and to ensure adherence to applicablerules of international law in all their exter-nal and financial engagements. b)Revised conflict of interest rules toensure that Faculty members or researchersat MIT do not leverage fundraising for MIT-based research when it is for their personalgain unrelated to benefit for the MIT com-munity or the public. c)Protections and safeguards for whistle-blowers that reveal wrongdoings or viola-tions of policies.

d)Public notification of any proposed giftor engagement with a donor above $100,000,with comments invited from the MIT com-munity within a reasonable period.

And be it further Resolved, That the MITFaculty requests the Chair of the Facultyensure implementation of this resolution, inorder to achieve the above goals; and furtherurges the Chair to ensure that the Ad HocCommittee is provided adequate funds forstaff support, and that it reports regularly tothe MIT Faculty, and the Faculty PolicyCommittee, on the measures to be adoptedas urged in this motion.

Though there was a call for the resig-nation of President Reif alone, we thinkthat much of the senior leadership sharethe blame for the rot that has set in, andthat there will be calls for other resigna-tions in the days to come.

Faculty Newsletter Editorial BoardMember Patrick WinstonProf. Patrick Winston, who passed away inJuly, was a longtime member of theEditorial Board of the Faculty Newsletter.His attention and concern for MIT poli-cies and culture was unique, and he wasan invaluable member of the Board.Patrick was one of the few facultymembers willing to challenge MITadministrators, Department Chairs, andCommittee Chairs, and to bring forthreports, updates, or proposals. He broughtthat instinct of looking beneath thesurface of issues to the Faculty Newsletter,and we will all miss him greatly. (See InMemoriam, page 7.)

Prof. Lloyd Resigns One of the faculty who received financialsupport from Jeffrey Epstein, and in factvisited him in jail in Florida, was Prof.Seth Lloyd, who had been elected to theFaculty Newsletter Editorial Board. Prof.Lloyd offered his resignation to theEditorial Board, in part not to inhibit ourdiscussions of Epstein gifts. We acceptedhis resignation.

Editorial Subcommittee

September Faculty Meetingcontinued from page 1

MIT Faculty NewsletterVol. XXXII No. 1

4

Rick L. DanheiserFrom The Faculty ChairOn the Responsibilities of Instructors

I N J U LY I B EGAN my appointment asChair of the Faculty. Joining me as facultyofficers are Professor Duane Boning ofEECS as the new Associate Chair, andProfessor David Singer of Political Scienceas the new Secretary of the Faculty. We arehonored to have been elected to serve asyour faculty officers for the next two years.Regular readers of the Faculty Newsletterare aware that it is the privilege of theChair of the Faculty to prepare a columnfor each issue of the Newsletter. As I writethis, my fellow officers and I have onlybeen in office for a few weeks and we arestill in the process of identifying key issuesand setting our priorities for the next twoyears. Some of the topics we have beendiscussing and hope to consider in thecoming year include the Institute’s inter-national engagements, faculty benefits(including availability and support forchildcare and for faculty housing), pro-motion and tenure, graduate studenttuition, the new Schwarzman College ofComputing and its impact on theInstitute, and last but certainly not least,the General Institute Requirements andplans for a task force on the undergradu-ate academic curriculum. In my future columns in the Newsletter Iintend to address these more substantivematters, but in this first column I would liketo focus on a more mundane, albeit impor-tant and timely topic here at the beginningof the semester: term regulations.

Term Regulations: Read and Obey!Every semester the faculty officers receivea number of complaints from students –either directly or via the Undergraduate

Association (UA) – about classes violatingterm regulations. The UA maintains awebsite through which students canreport violations with the option toremain anonymous, and the UACommittee on Education sends an emailto all undergraduates several times overthe course of each semester summarizing

the term regulations and reminding themof the process to report violations. One of the responsibilities of thefaculty officers is to enforce these Rulesand Regulations of the Faculty. At thebeginning of each semester I send anemail to all instructors summarizing thekey rules that affect how we teach. Thesefall into three categories: (a) gradingguidelines, (b) restrictions on assignmentsand exams, and (c) the scheduling ofexams, quizzes, and review sessions. Fulldetails on the rules and regulations thataffect teaching can be accessed via theFaculty Governance website athttps://faculty governance.mit.edu/rules-and-regulations. In this column I wouldlike to discuss some of the most commonviolations that have come to the attentionof the faculty officers in recent years, witha focus on rules that impact the assign-ment of grades.

Grading on a Curve. . . is strictly forbidden! For a few reasonsI have devoted most of this column to adiscussion of this particular rule. First, themistaken view that grades are curved iswidely held among students. I have fre-quently encountered eyerolls and skepti-cism when informing students that

grading on a curve is prohibited at MIT.And the fact is that curving (and therelated “scaling” of grades) does happen,as we know from complaints received bythe faculty officers in the past. Somefaculty practice “curving” simply out ofignorance of the MIT rules, but a compli-cating factor is that grading on a curve isan accepted and common policy at manyother institutions. Some new faculty joinus having been students or having taughtat places where grading on a curve isgeneral practice and they assume thatcurving grades is legal here too. A source of occasional confusion withregard to complying with this rule is thatvarious people have different interpreta-tions of just what constitutes grading on acurve. Aware of this confusion over thedefinition of curving grades, the facultyofficers proposed expanding and sharpen-ing the wording in Rules and Regulations

For a few reasons I have devoted most of this column toa discussion of this particular rule. First, the mistakenview that grades are curved is widely held amongstudents. I have frequently encountered eyerolls andskepticism when informing students that grading on acurve is prohibited at MIT.


5

with regard to grading this past spring.After receiving input from relevant com-mittees (FPC, CUP, CGP, and CAP), weintroduced the new wording at theInstitute Faculty Meeting on March 20and it was approved by vote of the Facultyon April 17. The new wording in thesection on grading (Regulations of theFaculty Section 2.62, see https://faculty-governance.mit.edu/rules-and-regulations#2-62-1) states:

“The grade for each student shall be deter-mined independently of other students in theclass, and shall be related to the student’smastery of the material based on the gradedescriptions below. Grades may not beawarded according to a predetermined dis-tribution of letter grades. For example, gradesin a subject may not be allocated according toset proportions of A, B, C, D, etc.” The definitions of grades are then out-lined in section 2.62.1:

A Exceptionally good performance,demonstrating a superior understanding ofthe subject matter, a foundation of extensiveknowledge, and a skillful use of conceptsand/or materials.

B Good performance, demonstratingcapacity to use the appropriate concepts, agood understanding of the subject matter,and an ability to handle the problems andmaterials encountered in the subject.

C Adequate performance, demonstrat-ing an adequate understanding of thesubject matter, an ability to handle rela-tively simple problems, and adequatepreparation for moving on to moreadvanced work in the field.

D Minimally acceptable performance,demonstrating at least partial familiaritywith the subject matter and some capacityto deal with relatively simple problems, butalso demonstrating deficiencies seriousenough to make it inadvisable to proceedfurther in the field without additional work.

I hope that the revised definition isclear! In explaining the MIT grading policyto my own classes I have always found ithelpful and clarifying to tell the studentsthat what this boils down to is that everystudent in the class has the potential toreceive an A (always the hope of the teach-ing staff!) although everyone could poten-

tially get a C . . . it is just a matter of howwell they have mastered the material. I also hope that everyone agrees thatthis is the only policy that is fair andmakes sense at MIT and that to grade on acurve would be contrary to Institutevalues. Why should the evaluation of onestudent’s level of mastery of the materialin a class be influenced by the level ofmastery demonstrated by other students?Do we not want to encourage students tofocus on mastering the subject, not oncompeting with their classmates?Criterion-based grading avoids pittingstudents against each other and leads to aheathier atmosphere in which the stu-dents can appreciate that the instructorsare rooting for all of them to get an A. From the point of view of instructors,it is certainly much easier to grade on acurve, which is perhaps why it is sopopular at other institutions. In some uni-versities curving is regarded as a tool tofight grade inflation. A curve can also be ameans of ensuring fairness in cases whereclasses are divided in various sections withdifferent instructors and different exams(perhaps offered in different semesters).Grading on a curve then ensures that stu-dents are not disadvantaged by taking aclass with a particular instructor, or in onesemester rather than another.

Of course implicit in our MIT policy isthe assumption that instructors can dis-tinguish between (for example) A-leveland B-level performance. The pithy MITcriteria quoted above are helpful in defin-ing grade borders, and I have alwaysfound it pretty clear how to recognizewhat constitutes A-level work in a course.

In the words of Justice Potter Stewart(concerning another matter), “I know itwhen I see it.” Admittedly, however, defin-ing grade borders can be challenging,especially for less experienced instructors,and consultation with colleagues canoften be helpful in this connection.

OK – now time for a quiz! In each ofthe following scenarios, are we dealingwith a violation of the MIT policy ongrading or not? Answers are provided atthe end of the column. Warning: some ofthese cases are not very clear-cut and areincluded to stimulate discussion.

(1) An instructor defines the gradeborders for the first several assignments ina class based on the MIT grading criteriawith the result that 25% of the class fall inthe “adequate” or lower range (C orbelow). Just prior to drop date nearly all ofthese students drop the class. The remain-ing students continue to perform at a“good” (B) or “exceptional” (A) level. Atthe end of the semester, the instructorassigns 10-20% of the class a grade of C.

(2) An instructor analyzes the gradedistributions in previous semesters for asubject and finds that in each case the

continued on next page

In explaining the MIT grading policy to my own classes Ihave always found it helpful and clarifying to tell thestudents that what this boils down to is that everystudent in the class has the potential to receive an A(always the hope of the teaching staff!) althougheveryone could potentially get a C . . . it is just a matterof how well they have mastered the material.


6

distribution was 25% A, 50% B, and25% C/D/F. To ensure fairness relative toprior years, the grade distribution forthe new semester is set to correspond tothis distribution.

(3) Upon examining the distributionof scores after an exam the instructorchooses the letter grade borders so thatthey fall at breaks between significantnumbers of scores in the list.

(4) After composing an exam, aninstructor decides that a score of 80% rep-resents exceptionally good performance,superior understanding, etc., in otherwords, A-level work. Upon grading theexams, however, the instructor finds thatone question was worded in a confusingand misleading fashion and most studentsanswered it incorrectly. Consequently, theinstructor revises the A/B border to 75%to take this into account.

One more recommendation withregard to prudent policy. It is my experi-ence that it is best to provide studentsduring the course of the semester with aletter grade for each exam and assign-ment. This allows students to have anaccurate idea of what letter grade they areheaded for and minimizes disputes overgrades at the end of the semester.

The Take Home Messages• Don’t grade on a curve! Review and

understand the MIT policy on gradingand consult with colleagues (and thefaculty officers) if you have any questions.

• Clearly communicate your gradingpolicy to your students. We need to disa-buse students of the notion that they arebeing graded on a curve and that a class-mate’s success can detrimentally affecttheir own grade in a subject. In my largerclasses I have found many students to beobsessed with learning what the classaverage was on an exam. I inform themof the average, but I always use this as anopportunity to reiterate and emphasizethat the class average has no bearing onthe letter grade assigned to their numer-ical score.

• In the case of subjects taught by differentfaculty in different semesters, communi-cation between instructors is essential toensure that students are being evaluatedon a similar basis.

I have run over the space allotted to meby the editors, but I would like to closewith a few words about other aspects ofthe term regulations. As Associate Chair ofthe Faculty over the past two years it wasmy observation that the most commonviolations of term regulations involved (a) scheduling the due date for an assign-ment after the last day of classes, and (b) having an assignment due in a classwith a final exam after the “Last Test Date”.These are violations of Regulations 2.52and 2.53, respectively, and typically are dueto instructors who simply are not familiar

with those regulations. Occasionally,however, the violation has arisen due toquestions concerning the definition ofwhat constitutes an assignment, and this isa question that will receive attention fromFaculty Governance in the future.

The answers to the quiz follow:

(1) I consider this to clearly be a case ofcurving grades and a violation of MITpolicy. I provided this example because ithighlights a major and common concernof those students who have the impres-sion that some instructors at MIT gradeon a curve.

(2) This is curving and violates MITpolicy on grading although I appreciatethe instructor’s intent. It is not necessarilythe case that grades were curved in theprior semesters, but in any event twowrongs don’t make a right.

(3) A gray area. If the letter graderanges are set primarily based on the MITcriteria, and then fine-tuned with refer-ence to where there are breaks in scores,then this might be acceptable.

(4) Another gray area, but I wouldargue that this does not constitute a vio-lation of policy since the grade bordersare still being set based on the instruc-tor’s judgment of the level of mastery ofmaterial.

On the Responsibilities of InstructorsDanheiser, from preceding page

Rick L. Danheiser is the Arthur C. CopeProfessor of Chemistry and Chair of the Faculty([email protected]).


7

Adam Conner-SimonsRachel Gordon

In MemoriamPatrick Henry Winston

The following is slightly abridged from theoriginal which appeared in the July 19,2019 MIT News.

PAT R I C K W I N S TO N , A B E LOV E D

professor and computer scientist at MIT,died on July 19 at Massachusetts GeneralHospital in Boston. He was 76. A professor at MIT for almost 50 years,Winston was director of MIT’s ArtificialIntelligence Laboratory from 1972 to 1997before it merged with the Laboratory forComputer Science to become MIT’sComputer Science and ArtificialIntelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). A devoted teacher and cherished col-league, Winston led CSAIL’s Genesis Group,which focused on developing AI systemsthat have human-like intelligence, includingthe ability to tell, perceive, and comprehendstories. He believed that such work couldhelp illuminate aspects of human intelli-gence that scientists don’t yet understand. “My principal interest is in figuring out

what’s going on inside our heads, and I’mconvinced that one of the defining fea-tures of human intelligence is that we canunderstand stories,” said Winston, theFord Professor of Artificial Intelligenceand Computer Science, in a 2011 inter-view for CSAIL. “Believing as I do thatstories are important, it was natural forme to try to build systems that understandstories, and that shed light on what thestory-understanding process is all about.”

He was renowned for his accessibleand informative lectures, and gave ahugely popular talk every year during theIndependent Activities Period called“How to Speak.” “As a speaker he always had his audi-ence in the palm of his hand,” says MITProfessor Peter Szolovits. “He put atremendous amount of work into his lec-tures, and yet managed to make them feelloose and spontaneous. He wasn’t flashy,but he was compelling and direct.” Winston’s dedication to teachingearned him many accolades over the years,including the Baker Award, the Eta KappaNu Teaching Award, and the GraduateStudent Council Teaching Award. “Patrick’s humanity and his commit-ment to the highest principles made himthe soul of EECS,” MIT President L. RafaelReif wrote in a letter to the MIT commu-nity. “I called on him often for advice andfeedback, and he always responded withkindness, candor, wisdom and integrity. Iwill be forever grateful for his counsel, hisobjectivity, and his tremendous inspira-tion and dedication to our students.”

Teaching computers to thinkBorn Feb. 5, 1943 in Peoria, Illinois,Winston was always exceptionally curiousabout science, technology and how to usesuch tools to explore what it means to behuman. He was an MIT-lifer starting in1961, earning his bachelor’s, master’s anddoctoral degrees from the Institute beforejoining the faculty of the Department ofElectrical Engineering and ComputerScience in 1970. His thesis work with Marvin Minskycentered on the difficulty of learning,setting off a trajectory of work where heput a playful, yet laser-sharp focus onfine-tuning AI systems to better under-stand stories. His Genesis project aimed to faithfullymodel computers after human intelli-

gence in order to fully grasp the innerworkings of our own motivations, ration-ality, and perception. Using MIT researchscientist Boris Katz’s START natural lan-guage processing system and a visionsystem developed by former MIT PhDstudent Sajit Rao, Genesis can digestshort, simple chunks of text, then spit outreports about how it interpreted connec-tions between events. While the system has processed manyworks, Winston chose “Macbeth” as aprimary text because the tragedy offers anopportunity to take big human themes,such as greed and revenge, and map outtheir components. “[Shakespeare] was pretty good at hisportrayal of ‘the human condition,’ as myfriends in the humanities would say,”Winston told The Boston Globe. “So there’sall kinds of stuff in there about what’stypical when we humans wander throughthe world.” His deep fascination with humanity,human intelligence, and how we commu-nicate information spilled over into whathe often described as his favorite academicactivity: teaching. A past president of the Association forthe Advancement of Artificial Intelligence(AAAI), Winston also wrote and editednumerous books, including a seminaltextbook on AI that’s still used in class-rooms around the world. Outside of thelab he also co-founded AscentTechnology, which produces schedulingand workforce management applicationsfor major airports. He is survived by his wife KarenPrendergast and his daughter Sarah.

Adam Conner-Simons is Communication andMedia Relations Officer, Computer Science &Artificial Communications Lab HQ([email protected]);Rachel Gordon is CommunicationsCoordinator, Computer Science & ArtificialCommunications Lab HQ ([email protected]).


8

A Letter to President Rafael Reif andProvost Marty Schmidt Regarding Epstein

September 16, 2019

To President Rafael Reif and ProvostMarty Schmidt:

W E W R I T E A S S E N I O R WO M E N

faculty members (current and emerita) ofMIT to share our deep distress over theMIT/Epstein revelations and our pro-found disappointment in learning of theapparent complicity of administrativeleadership. We write also to encourageefforts to uncover the truth about andlearn from the current crisis. This letter isa call for integrity and action.

From various departments across MIT, weare gravely concerned about the situationthat has emerged: Institute leaders,faculty, and lab directors at MIT may haveviolated campus fundraising procedures.They certainly violated Institute valuesnot only by accepting money from, butalso by inviting onto campus JeffreyEpstein, a “level three” (high risk of repeatoffense) registered sex offender. MIT cul-tivated a relationship with Epstein overtime that rewarded, empowered, and ele-vated him. With the approval of adminis-trative leadership, faculty and staffattempted to conceal that relationshipfrom those they knew it would disturb.Some students and staff who were askedto collude were made to feel morally com-promised. Taking Epstein’s money sug-gested a willingness to turn a blind eye tothe impact of his crimes, which includedprocuring the prostitution of a minor.The fact that this situation waseven thinkable at MIT is profoundly dis-turbing, and is symptomatic of broader,more structural problems, involvinggender and race, in MIT’s culture. It istime for fundamental change.

You have appointed the Goodwin Procterlaw firm to investigate fundraising practicesand MIT personnel involved in this situa-tion. This investigation follows a series ofloudly-voiced concerns about MIT’s accept-ance of funding from controversial sources.While the ethics of fundraising are cruciallyimportant to us, we also strongly believe thatthe significant gender and sexual implica-tions of the MIT/Epstein relationship mustnot be lost in these financial investigationsand discussions.

Epstein’s victims, survivors, and theirfamilies have experienced additionaldegradation and damage because ofMIT’s actions, as have our students,faculty, and staff. By allowing Epstein’sMIT relationships to flourish, the Institutefailed in its obligation to provide a safeand supportive environment. Knowingthat Epstein was invited to campus offices,survivors of sexual assault, rape, and/orsexual abuse – of whom there are many inthis community – have been shaken.How can MIT’s leadership be trustedwhen it appears that child prostitutionand sex trafficking can be ignored inexchange for a financial contribution?

Working to address its long history ofgender inequity, MIT has enacted somepositive measures over the years to attractand retain women students and facultyand to support them on campus. Yet thoseefforts are now at risk of being eroded.Epstein’s clandestine donations and visitsto MIT are a stark reminder that “cuttingedge” spaces of “technological innova-tion,” at MIT no less than elsewhere,remain exclusionary zones of privilege.[https://medium.com/@zephoria/facing-the-great-reckoning-head-on-8fe434e10630;https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/11/opinion/epstein-mit-media-lab.html]

Too often, academic fundraising effortsand the projects that follow reinforce,rather than dismantle, gendered andracialized hierarchies. [https://thetech.com/2019/08/29/joi-ito-needs-to-resign] In2019/20, there are 1,066 faculty membersat MIT. Only 266 of them are women (178are tenured; 88 are untenured; of allwomen only 21 are women of color). TheEpstein situation has prompted many toquestion MIT’s commitment to meaning-ful inclusion. Members of our communityhave been left feeling undervalued,deceived, and unsafe.

How will MIT respond? MIT leadershipregularly describes and celebrates the factthat our values and diversity are essentialto building a better world. Yet, to our greatand heartfelt dismay, MIT’s relationshipwith Epstein exposes a void where basicvalues should prevail, a cultural crisis thatthe administration must work to repair.Much needs to be done: from a thoroughreview of resource development practicesand the inclusion of broader faculty par-ticipation in and oversight of fundraising,to providing robust support and resourcesto the women on campus. But that is justthe beginning.

Former MIT President Chuck Vest isremembered for conducting a genderequity study in 1999, led by ProfessorNancy Hopkins, and implementingmany of its recommendations. How willthe current MIT administration beremembered?

Sincerely,

Editor’s Note: At press time there were70 MIT women faculty signators. To viewthe letter online and to add your name see:https://concernedatmit.weebly.com/.


9

A Motion to Establish an Ad Hoc FacultyCommittee to Protect Academic Integrity

The following Motion was introduced at theSeptember 18 Institute Faculty Meeting andwill be discussed and voted upon at theInstitute Faculty Meeting in October.

Whereas, The Massachusetts Institute ofTechnology (MIT) is committed to devel-oping and maintaining an ethical envi-ronment in which faculty, students, andstaff are able to truly advance its missionof working ‘for the betterment ofhumankind’; and

Whereas, The recent revelations concern-ing funds received by the Media Lab fromMr. Jeffrey Epstein, from the SaudiArabian government and its agencies,along with other past and ongoingdonors, require clarifying MIT’s values,and establishing a meaningful due dili-gence process for ensuring transparencyand accountability in all fundraisingactivities; and

Whereas, MIT strives to be an institutionguided by scientific temper and objectiv-ity, with a commitment to facts and therule of law, and therefore exhibits thecourage to correct its mistakes, as whenMIT acknowledged the need to improvethe treatment of women faculty in the1990s; and

Whereas, The values that guide MIT’sfaculty, students, and staff should never betraded or sacrificed for short-term mone-tary gains or vague promises of futurebenefits; and

Whereas, The MIT community, espe-cially the Faculty, needs to have greatervoice in reviewing fundraising and invest-

ment decisions at MIT with a view toensuring that they are fully aligned withMIT’s goals and values; and

Whereas, There will be increasingdamage to MIT’s standing as a leadingeducational and research institution ifcurrent trends involving fundraising con-tinue without significant changes;

Therefore be it Resolved:

That the MIT Faculty establish an Ad HocCommittee of the Faculty on ProtectingAcademic Integrity, composed of Facultyvolunteers independent of theAdministration, to draft a statement ofMIT values and standards, reflecting theresponsibilities incumbent upon MIT as aglobal university, and the procedures to befollowed by the Institute in receivingoutside funding.

The mission of the Committee shallinclude the establishment of a robust duediligence process for review of allfundraising at MIT including a review ofongoing relationships in the light of MITvalues, and establishment of standards forInstitute agreements with outside agen-cies, governments, and individuals,drawing on examples of best practicesaround the world.

And be it further Resolved, That the stan-dards, policies, and procedures include:

(a) Compliance at all times with appli-cable local, state, and federal civil andcriminal laws and to ensure adherence toapplicable rules of international law in alltheir external and financial engagements.

(b) Revised conflict of interest rules toensure that Faculty members orresearchers at MIT do not leveragefundraising for MIT-based research whenit is for their personal gain unrelated tobenefit for the MIT community or thepublic. (c) Protections and safeguards forwhistleblowers that reveal wrongdoings orviolations of policies. (d) Public notification of any proposedgift or engagement with a donor above$100,000, with comments invited fromthe MIT community within a reasonableperiod.

And be it further Resolved, That the MITFaculty requests the Chair of the Facultyensure implementation of this resolution,in order to achieve the above goals; andfurther urges the Chair to ensure that theAd Hoc Committee is provided adequatefunds for staff support, and that it reportsregularly to the MIT Faculty, and theFaculty Policy Committee, on the meas-ures to be adopted as urged in thismotion.

And be it further Resolved, That thisMotion will be discussed and voted on atthe October 2019 regular meeting of theMIT Faculty.

Respectfully submitted: Robert Berwick, IanCondry, Christopher Cummins, SallyHaslanger, Jean Jackson, Jonathan King,Roger Levy, Ceasar McDowell, Ruth Perry,Nasser Rabbat, Balakrishnan Rajagopal.


10

tions. The Administration launched aninvestigation. Members of the communityheld protests and demanded transparencyand change in how MIT solicits andreceives funds. MIT’s Senior womenfaculty demanded integrity and action,and faculty sought a resolution for anindependent faculty-led investigation. While varied in tone and scope, theseefforts have focused energy on the struc-tural and ethical failures that broughtMIT to this moment. This structural failure is rooted in oursystem’s failure – its limited transparencyand community oversight. Calls for reme-dies range from independent faculty gov-ernance, to open donor records, to amechanism for the community to rejectand the Administration not to pursuefunding from individuals or organizationsthat represent values antithetical to thoseof MIT. The lack of clarity and specificity inour values is another failure. For many inthe MIT community, the recent revela-tions coupled with the courting ofMohammad bin Salman, the honoring ofHenry Kissinger, the naming of a collegeafter Stephen Schwarzman, and the deepinvolvement of David Koch in MIT gover-nance are all evidence of a clash betweenvalues and goals. A conflict where the goalof raising more money wins because thevalues that guide the taking of funds areneither clear, enforceable, nor collectivelyshared and agreed upon. These are substantial failures of theMIT system. But we cannot address themwithout attending to what I believe is themost critical failure: The loss of trust,safety, and security in the community thathas resulted in a profound sense ofbetrayal. MIT needs to provide as much ifnot more energy and resources into howto recover from this social trauma as it willput into investigations and reforms.Recovery cannot happen without reform.And reform alone is not sufficient forrecovery.

What’s required for community recovery at MIT?I put MIT in the title of this sectionbecause of the prevailing sense of MITexceptionalism that pervades the commu-nity. But in this situation, MIT is like anyother human social system and society.MIT’s path to recovery requires paying

attention to and honoring what all humansystems dealing with trauma must con-front in an equitable and just manner. Letme list a few, in no particular order. Naming – The community, particu-larly those most victimized by the issue,must name and frame the trauma thecommunity is facing. Truth – Without being compelled,those who have participated in the harmdone to the community must reveal theirrole in the events that created the trauma. Listening – Those who have facilitatedharm must listen to those harmed. Consequences – Those who mostdirectly initiated and facilitated the harmmust atone for their actions or inactions. Atonement – To apologize is notenough. Those involved must ask for for-giveness, understanding that forgivenessmay not be given. Amnesty – The community needs apathway for forgiveness and amnesty. Shift in Power – Those entrusted withthe decision that caused the harm can nolonger fully or collectively hold that power. Transparency – Hidden practices thatfacilitate this trauma must default to aposition of openness. Time – Individuals and groups requiretime, space, and resources for recovery. Urgency – What can happen now musthappen now regardless of the pain to theindividual and the institution. Purging – The community will need ameans of purging itself from people andpractices that enabled the trauma.

Remembering – The communityneeds to provide a means always toremember what created the trauma andhow it has recovered. There is no easy path forward. Thesteps are complicated, and at times at oddswith each other. But they must all be con-sidered. No group is more affected by this

than our students. I have heard fromundergraduate, graduate, and post-doc-toral students who are concerned aboutwhat this means to them and their future.They feel betrayed – some by direct expe-rience, some by association. In certainparts of our campus, distrust is theprimary operating sentiment.

We do not have to be defined by thistrauma. Instead, we can be identifiedby how we approach it.Last week, students, faculty, and staff gath-ered in the City Arena at DUSP(Department of Urban Studies andPlanning) to reflect on the impact andmeaning of the past month’s revelations.The packed room reminded me of asimilar gathering in DUSP two days afterthe Boston Marathon bombing. Somehad been there when the bomb went off,others just heard about it on the news. Allexperienced the lockdown that occurredin Cambridge and felt the impact of thedeath of eight-year-old Martin WilliamRichard and Officer Sean Collier. Manyspoke of the trauma from being anunwilling victim and sometimes perpe-trator of planned, unexpected, unwar-ranted, or thoughtless violence. From aformer Israeli soldier, who asked “Do I killthese four men in my line of sight becauseof the threat they may pose?” to a womanwho survived a brutal rape, the bombingmade visible the deep trauma so manypeople live with from day to day.

The Hard Road to RecoveryMcDowell, from page 1

The loss of trust, safety, and security in the community . . . has resulted in a profound sense of betrayal.


11

As we sat in a circle listening to thesestories, a young veteran spoke up abouthis experience with violence in the streetsof Los Angeles and the desert of Iraq. Hespoke with a deep passion that disruptedthe quiet reflection of the group. “Wecan’t just sit around and talk about this. Ifthings are going to change, we have toshift something fundamental in ourselvesto stop the massive violence in ourworld.” He continued, “For me, it is thefollowing commitment I have made tomyself and that I tell each person I amengaged with: I Will Not Harm YourChildren.” Then he stopped.

His words struck a chord. Over thenext few days, the community crafted hiscommitment into a collective obligationfor the department. While we never for-mally adopted this statement, it is worthrecounting today:

I will not harm children. As a member ofthe DUSP community, I commit to live bythis statement. I will do this by asking thefollowing question before I act in the world:Will this action, policy, investment, etc.harm children? If harm to a child is a possi-bility, how can I change what I am about todo so that I do not harm a child?

I agree to take on this commitment andto work to embed this commitment into themission, practice, teaching, and research atDUSP.

Perhaps we need to put this commitmentin front of the entire MIT community. Ifadopted and practiced, we may never findourselves blindly (but willingly) making deci-sions that make us unwitting accomplices inharming children. If adopted and practicedwe can find our way to recovery.

Ceasar McDowell is Professor of the Practiceof Civic Design, Department of Urban Studiesand Planning ([email protected]).

Edmund BertschingerIt Is Difficult to Know What to Do

September 18, 2019

IT I S D I FFI CU LT TO K N OW what todo. The senior leadership team must havefound it difficult to balance pros and consof taking money from Epstein, theKingdom of Saudi Arabia, and other badactors. They must have struggled withcomparing tangible benefits with intangi-ble costs, with deciding where to draw theline, and with the choice to cross over thatline without appearing to do so. I’m heart-broken that the senior team apparentlyspent more time discussing concerns aboutEpstein’s reputation than about MIT’s,when they took the drastic step of accept-ing money from a disqualified donor. How many other times has this hap-pened? Who are the other disqualifieddonors? Was money taken from them?

Has the leadership team consulted withcommunity members outside their privi-leged circle, including sexual assaultvictims, to understand the impact of theirdecisions? What happened to thosepeople who expressed concerns? The new College of Computing hasadopted a mission statement calling it toaddress the social and ethical aspects ofcomputing. That is putting the cart beforethe horse. We need to address the socialand ethical aspects of leadership. We wantour students to take ethics classes, butwhat about our leaders? How many of oursenior team understood that taking dirtymoney to do clean work means destroyingthe community’s trust? What do excel-lence, integrity, meritocracy, boldness, andhumility mean now? Whose responsibilityis it to make the world a better place?

To my friends who want to focus onthe positive – for everything there is aseason, and a time for every purpose. Idon’t feel ready to focus entirely on thepositive, and I am not alone. Listen to thewords of Martin Luther King, Jr., who saidthat the greatest stumbling block forAfrican Americans is not the Ku KluxKlanner, “but the white moderate, who ismore devoted to order than to justice;who prefers a negative peace which is theabsence of tension to a positive peacewhich is the presence of justice.” It is difficult to know what to do. But itis not difficult to know when one’s per-sonal values, and a community’s statedvalues, have been violated.

Edmund Bertschinger is Professor of Physicsand faculty affiliate, Program in Women’s andGender Studies ([email protected]).


12

Kerry EmanuelJohn E. FernándezRaffaele FerrariSusan SolomonRobert van der Hilst

Two Donors, Two Deaths, Two Responses

The following article also appeared in theSeptember 19, 2019 The Tech.

A S W E W R I T E , T H E S TO RY of theMIT Media Lab’s connection to JeffreyEpstein is front page news. Not long afterEpstein’s death, it transpired that ourMedia Lab had accepted substantial dona-tions from or engineered by Epstein eventhough Epstein’s record of sex traffickingof minors, particularly underage women,was by then established in a court of law,so much so that he was marked as “dis-qualified” in MIT’s donor database. As therevelations mounted, Joichi Ito resignedas director of the Media Lab and as anemployee of MIT, and several faculty andstaff resigned in protest. On behalf ofMIT, Rafael Reif issued an eloquent meaculpa, promised to donate the equivalentof what MIT had accepted from Epsteinto charitable causes, and (on the day ofIto’s resignation) announced that MIThad hired a legal team to do a thoroughinvestigation of the affair. MIT is takingthis issue very seriously, as it should. While all this was happening, anothermajor MIT donor, David Koch, alumnusand lifetime member of the MITCorporation, passed away of naturalcauses. Unlike Epstein, Koch was notinvolved, so far as we are aware, in anycrime or major personal scandal and hadgiven generously to MIT in support ofunequivocally good causes, such as cancerresearch and the MIT childcare center;indeed, our cancer research center isnamed for him and we all take pride in itsmission and accomplishments.

Yet, without diminishing the gravity ofEpstein’s despicable acts, it is important torecognize that David Koch damagedglobal human welfare on a massive scaleand for many generations to come. Withhis brother Charles, he funded an exten-sive and highly effective disinformationcampaign designed to protect the Koch

industries’ core business. This endeavorhas set back, perhaps catastrophically, anyserious attempt to avoid the worst conse-quences of global warming. The existenceof this campaign is well documented (see,for instance, this article in the New YorkTimes: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/23/opinion/sunday/david-koch-climate-change.html) and involves, among otherthings, a concerted effort to misinformthe public about climate science and tosmear the reputations of dedicatedclimate scientists throughout the world.The campaign has been highly successful,judging from the rapid collapse (datingback at least to the administration ofGeorge W. Bush) of bipartisan support formeasures to curb greenhouse gas emis-sions. As we watch the terrible conse-

quences of climate change unfold, fromthe rapid demise of glaciers to massmigrations to wildfires and more intenserainstorms and hurricanes, one nameremains foremost in our minds: Koch. MIT’s response to David Koch’spassing could not have been more differ-ent from its continuing response to the

Epstein revelations. In a glowing obituarypublished by MIT News, there is not onesingle mention of Koch’s organized cam-paign of disinformation or its devastatingconsequences. Such an omission is notonly an affront to members of the MITcommunity who care deeply aboutclimate and the environment but alsocarries reputational risk beyond campus,especially when a major donor is also alifetime member of MIT’s governingboard. Indeed, in a strong critique ofMIT’s obituary, the Los Angeles Timescalled it, accurately enough, a whitewash. In this case our concern is not the phi-lanthropy itself. In fact, the undersignedthink that MIT was right to accept Koch’sdonation for cancer research and a child-care center though we must carefully

Yet, without diminishing the gravity of Epstein’sdespicable acts, it is important to recognize that DavidKoch damaged global human welfare on a massive scaleand for many generations to come. With his brotherCharles, he funded an extensive and highly effectivedisinformation campaign designed to protect the Kochindustries’ core business.


13

examine the reputational benefits derivedfrom donors in making such gifts. Themoney has been used for excellent pur-poses, and as a bonus it thereby becameunavailable for disinformation efforts. Butit was wrong to whitewash Koch’s legacyin the obituary and ignore his central rolein accelerating climate change – forintegrity and credibility’s sake we shouldacknowledge the ethical price we paid inaccepting his money and forever beinglinked to his legacy. These recent events bring to the forethe difficult and delicate question of theethics of accepting certain donations toour mission, especially now when so muchof what we do depends on such donations.On the one hand, we cannot and shouldnot hire investigators to pry deeply into thepersonal lives of everyone who donates toMIT. On the other hand, we cannot acceptdonations from known criminals. Inbetween these two straightforwardextremes lies a gray area that we also haveto deal with on a regular basis. At themoment, there seem to be few groundrules in play with decisions about whetherto accept donations made behind closeddoors on what appears to be an ad hoc,case-by-case basis with no meaningfulinput from the community. Yet everyemployee of MIT is a beneficiary of dona-tions and by turning a blind eye to thesource of donations we may be unwittingaccomplices to the Epsteins and Kochs ofthis world. Shouldn’t we at least have aserious discussion about the framework inwhich MIT solicits and accepts donations? The world is watching us, and so areour students. One group of students, FossilFree MIT, is organizing a campaign to ridthe campus of the Koch name altogether

and called out MIT’s hypocrisy in its rela-tive treatment of the Epstein scandal andthe Koch obituary. Whether or not oneagrees with these students’ tactics, we mustbe concerned with the impression made

on our students in condemning one donorfor personal crimes and entirely overlook-ing the destructive transgressions ofanother, especially when the latter involvesdisinformation and attacks on science . . .the very antithesis of MIT’s mission as aneducational institution. So, what should we do? MIT cannotand should not involve the community inevery decision about every potentialdonation. But we can and should have aserious formal discussion about the ethicsof accepting donations (and while we areat it, the ethics of investing) with the aimof providing at least some guidelines. Theissue is complex and not amenable tosimple decision trees, and it may all boildown to an uncomfortable calculus of theethical costs and benefits of donations andinvestments.

We owe it to ourselves as faculty and toour students to undertake this difficult con-versation, which could also set an examplefor other institutions with educational andcharitable missions. Rafael Reif shared in a

recent email that the senior administrationis “assessing how best to improve our poli-cies, processes and procedures to fully reflectMIT’s values.” We welcome and support thisaction but urge the administration to go onestep further and include the creation of aforum in which the whole community canengage in this conversation.

Kerry Emanuel is Co-Director of the LorenzCenter ([email protected]);John E. Fernández is Director of the MITEnvironmental Solutions Initiative([email protected]);Raffaele Ferrari is Chair of the Program inAtmospheres, Oceans, and Climate([email protected]);Susan Solomon is Founding Ex-Director ofthe MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative([email protected]);Robert van der Hilst is Head of theDepartment of Earth, Atmospheric andPlanetary Sciences ([email protected]).

MIT’s response to David Koch’s passing could not havebeen more different from its continuing response to theEpstein revelations. In a glowing obituary published byMIT News, there is not one single mention of Koch’sorganized campaign of disinformation or its devastatingconsequences. Such an omission is not only an affrontto members of the MIT community who care deeplyabout climate and the environment but also carriesreputational risk beyond campus, especially when amajor donor is also a lifetime member of MIT’sgoverning board.


14

Mary CallahanReport on the Faculty Classroom SurveySpring 2019

TH I S PAST S PR I N G, the Registrar’sOffice, in collaboration with InstitutionalResearch, prepared and administered aclassroom survey to 798 lecturing faculty.The survey, last given in 2008, wasupdated to incorporate input from theTeaching + Learning Lab, the Office ofDigital Learning, and the Sloan School ofManagement. Two hundred and nine ofthese faculty members responded. The objectives of this survey were to:

• evaluate the current state of class-rooms at MIT;

• assess how well the inventory alignswith teaching approaches;

• identify new strategies for overalldesign and development;

• collect input to update design stan-dards for future renovations of class-rooms and lecture halls;

• better understand technology needsto support current and future pedagogies;

• provide data to other relevant departments.

HighlightsAlmost three-quarters of respondentswere very or somewhat satisfied with theirclassroom. The majority were able toteach in the classroom they requested andspent less than five minutes traveling to itfrom their office.

Approximately 70 percent of those sur-veyed regularly use a computer in theclassroom and found that their space mettheir technology needs, though most indi-cated that there were not an adequate

number of electrical outlets. While almosthalf of respondents indicated that it isimportant to have lecture capture tech-nology in their classroom, 75% indicatedthat they are not interested in using it. More than half of respondentsconduct small group activities in the class-room, and while most believed that thereis enough space for active learning, fewerthought that it was easy to rearrange therooms to suit their teaching style.

Next StepsAlthough the gap between the current anddesired state of our classrooms is relativelysmall, there is always room for improve-ment. We have been adding additionalelectrical outlets as part of our recent ren-ovations, and the current renovations willinclude movable furniture so that instruc-

tors can more easily transform their class-rooms into active learning environments.We have also been researching new typesof chalk, to address noted problemserasing chalkboards.

Our classrooms support multiplemodes of teaching. In order to maintain,and improve upon, this level of satisfac-tion, we will continue to gather input andfeedback from faculty to inform the reno-vation process. A comprehensive effort toinvest in classroom maintenance and ren-ovation greatly improves the teaching andlearning potential of the Institute. If you have any questions or com-ments, please feel free to reach out to me.The full results of the survey can be foundat https://tableau.mit.edu/#/views/2019ClassroomSurveySummary/ProjectDetails. See M.I.T. Numbers (back page) forsome survey results.

Although the gap between the current and desired stateof our classrooms is relatively small, there is alwaysroom for improvement. We have been adding additionalelectrical outlets as part of our recent renovations, andthe current renovations will include movable furniture sothat instructors can more easily transform theirclassrooms into active learning environments.

Mary Callahan is the Registrar and Sr. Associate Dean ([email protected]).


15

Lesley Millar-NicholsonIan A. Waitz

New Atlas Process Paves Way forSupporting Undergraduate ResearchInnovation

STARTI N G I N FALL 2019, all under-graduate students applying for theUndergraduate Research OpportunitiesProgram (UROP) will be asked to sign anInventions and Proprietary InformationAgreement (IPIA). This is not a change toMIT’s Ownership of Intellectual PropertyPolicy. Students will continue to own theirintellectual property except when working ongovernment or third-party sponsoredresearch projects, using significant MIT fundsor facilities, or in other limited circumstances(for example, a Beaver Works course). While signing and collecting the IPIA(MIT Policies and Procedures 13.1.4) is notnew, the move to incorporate the IPIA

form into Atlas as part of the UROP appli-cation process is. The benefits of thisprocess change are threefold: [1] Improved IPIA collection ensuresthat MIT is complying with U.S. govern-ment and sponsored research require-ments when the work involvesundergraduate researchers. [2] The Atlas form will remove theburden of IPIA collection from facultyand staff. [3] Interacting with MIT undergradu-ate students as they pursue researchopportunities provides a touchpoint foreducating them on the development andownership of intellectual property.

Faculty are encouraged to talk withstudents who are interested in UROPs orcompleting UROPs in their researchgroup about the importance of appropri-ately identifying and protecting intellec-tual property, while emphasizing that thisnew practice is not a change to our poli-cies or to the environment for undergrad-uate innovation and entrepreneurshipthat exists on campus.

Lesley Millar-Nicholson is Director,Technology Licensing Office([email protected]);Ian A. Waitz is Vice Chancellor forUndergraduate and Graduate Education([email protected]).

Nominate a Colleague as a MacVicar Faculty Fellow

P R OVO S T M A R T I N S C H M I DT I S

calling for nominations of faculty as 2020MacVicar Faculty Fellows. The MacVicar Faculty Fellows Programrecognizes MIT faculty who have madeexemplary and sustained contributions tothe teaching and education of undergrad-uates at the Institute. Together, the Fellowsform a small academy of scholars commit-ted to exceptional instruction and innova-tion in education. MacVicar Faculty Fellows are selectedthrough a competitive nominationprocess, appointed for 10-year terms, andreceive $10,000 per year of discretionary

funds for educational activities, research,travel, and other scholarly expenses. The MacVicar Program honors the lifeand contributions of the late MargaretMacVicar, Professor of Physical Scienceand Dean for Undergraduate Education.

Nominations should include:• a primary nomination letter detailing

the contributions of the nominee toundergraduate education,

• three to six supporting letters fromfaculty colleagues, including one from hisor her Department Head if the primaryletter is not from the Department Head,

• three to six supporting letters frompresent or former undergraduate stu-dents, with specific comments about thenominee’s undergraduate teaching,

• the nominee’s curriculum vitae,• a list of undergraduate subjects, includ-

ing the number of students taught, and• a summary of available student evalua-

tion results for the nominee. For more information, visit registrar.mit.edu/macvicar or contact the Registrar’sOffice, Curriculum and Faculty Supportat x3-9763 or [email protected]. Nominations are due by Friday,November 15, 2019.


16

Chris BourgHayden Renovation Update:Key Dates for the Fall

PLAN S FOR TH E HAYD E N LI B RARY

renovation are proceeding apace; ourvision for a more inclusive and accessiblelibrary space for MIT that enables morelearning, research, and interaction istaking shape. I look forward to sharing thedesigns with the community this fall. Throughout the summer, we havebeen busy planning, moving staff, andreadying for the library’s temporaryclosure in December, so that we can mini-mize disruption during the fall term. Weremain committed to supporting theresearch and study needs of the MIT com-munity while Hayden is closed. We areproviding access to collections and serv-ices accessible at other library locations oncampus and via our partnerships withHarvard Library and other Ivy Plus insti-tutions. You can find further details aboutservices and collections at other MITlibraries and about accessing Harvard andother area libraries – for browsing andborrowing – at libraries.mit.edu/hayden-renovation. Here are some important dates to notefor the fall term:

October 9: Register for Harvard LibraryprivilegesAll MIT community members can visitand borrow from Harvard simply by reg-istering. We have arranged for on-site reg-istration at Hayden Library on October 9,10 am – 2 pm. Just bring your MIT ID andgovernment-issued ID, and log intoBorrow Direct via Touchstone; then youcan go directly to the Harvard card office(Smith Center) to get your borrowingcard. You can also visit Harvard’sPrivileges Office and ID office at your

convenience. Learn more atlibraries.mit.edu/harvard.

November 1 and 15: Reserves requestdeadlinesThe deadline for the Libraries to putmaterials on reserve for the fall 2019 term

is November 1. The deadline to requestmaterials for IAP and spring 2020 coursereserves is November 15. We recommendMIT faculty and staff submit their coursereserves requests as soon as possible inadvance of the Hayden closure to ensurewe can provide timely access to requestedmaterials. Learn more at libraries.mit.edu/reserves.

December 15: Access to Hayden generalcollections closesFrom December 15 until fall 2020, wecannot provide access to book collectionsin the basement. I shared the reasons forthis decision back in June; you can readthem at libraries.mit.edu/hayden-renova-tion. Access to more than 90% of the mate-rials in the Hayden basement will continueto be available from Borrow Direct andother sources. Use our Ask Us service(libraries.mit.edu/ask) at any time if youhave trouble locating what you need.

December 19: Access to Hayden studyspaces closesReading room and 24/7 space will beaccessible through closing time onDecember 19.

December 20 – Fall 2020: Access to all ofHayden closedHayden Library will be closed during therenovation starting at closing time onDecember 19. We will reopen when therenovation is complete, sometime in thefall of 2020. During this time, the libraryand the collections will not be accessible.

We are grateful to our partners inFacilities and Campus Planning who havehelped us to minimize the time needed forthe project so that Hayden will be closedfor a single semester. Thank you for yourpatience during the closure and for yoursupport for this renovation that promisesto improve the Hayden Library experi-ence for all. If you have questions aboutthe renovation, please contact the projectteam at [email protected].

Throughout the summer, we have been busy planning,moving staff, and readying for the library’s temporaryclosure in December, so that we can minimize disruptionduring the fall term. We remain committed to supportingthe research and study needs of the MIT communitywhile Hayden is closed.

Chris Bourg is Director of Libraries([email protected]).


17

Ian A. WaitzA Case for Mid-Semester FeedbackHow faculty can check in on student learning in real time

FACU LTY AN D I N STR UCTOR S AR E

likely most familiar with end-of-termevaluations. While incredibly useful, theyare not designed to address a need I’veheard about from many students: theability for an instructor to make a fewtweaks or changes as a class is running. The collection of mid-semester, form-ative feedback from students can be anextremely effective way to gain targetedand specific information about whataspects of the subject support their learn-ing and which aspects hinder (or do notsupport) their learning. It can be relatively quick and easy toincorporate these evaluations – which caninclude just three or four questions. Forexample:

1. What in the class so far has helpedyour learning the most?

2. What in the class so far has hinderedyour learning?

3. What can I do to improve yourlearning in the subject?

4. What can you do to improve yourlearning in the subject?

Additional guidance and templates canbe found online (https://sites.google.com/view/mid-semester-feedback/). At appro-priate junctures you can ask students to

respond to paper-based questions in classor use digital tools (like Qualtrics) togather feedback. Keep it simple. Be sure tomake sure that student feedback is keptanonymous.

This practice offers numerous benefitsfor those teaching. For example, mid-semes-ter feedback is intended solely for theinstructor for the purpose of readjusting thecurrent offering of the subject to improvestudent learning. It allows instructors tomake considered decisions about potentialchanges to the subject in response to the stu-dents’ feedback – again, in real time. Perhaps most important, the act ofproviding feedback to instructorsprompts students to reflect on their learn-ing in the subject, and to consider howtheir own behaviors in the class areimpacting the learning process. Thismetacognition is crucial for students’growth as learners.

Some MIT faculty and instructorsalready solicit and use feedback from theirstudents throughout the semester viaMUD cards, exit tickets, and/or their ownmid-semester feedback surveys – and to

them, I say, keep up the great work. Finally, my office will host a lunch(likely during IAP 2020) for faculty andinstructors who wish to discuss lessonslearned from mid-semester feedback. Thank you for all that you already dofor our students and for being open totrying new experiments. If you would likesome help getting started with mid-semester feedback, I encourage you to callupon the experts in the Teaching +Learning Lab.

Ian A. Waitz is Vice Chancellor forUndergraduate and Graduate Education([email protected]).

Perhaps most important, the act of providing feedback toinstructors prompts students to reflect on their learningin the subject, and to consider how their own behaviorsin the class are impacting the learning process. Thismetacognition is crucial for students’ growth as learners.


18

began to collect money to help their coun-trymen and women. They also contactedPresident Reif to request that MIT organ-ize a more durable effort to help. As aresult, the Administration authorized theMIT-Nepal Initiative. We published anarticle detailing the first six months of ouractivities in the November/December2015 issue of the Faculty Newsletter. Thecurrent article is a follow-up to thatreport. Over the last several years we haveundertaken projects with Nepali partnersin the areas of WASH, Housing, andEducation. This work has been generouslysupported by the MISTI-India Program,D-Lab, the Abdul Latif Jameel Water andFood Systems Lab (J-WAFS) and theDeshpande Center, the Abdul Latif JameelWorld Education Lab (J-WEL), theCenter for Art, Society, and Technology(CAST), and the Office of the AssociateProvost for International Affairs.

Our Mission, Past ProjectsMuch of our activity in the first few yearsof the Initiative focused on defining ourmission and identifying partners oncampus and in Nepal. In terms of ourmission, we quickly settled on two criteria.First, we wished to undertake projects thatwould benefit the people of Nepal, wholive in varied cultural and economic set-tings in cities and rural areas. Second, wewanted to fashion projects that wouldprovide meaningful educational opportu-nities for members of the MIT commu-nity. We wanted to marshal the richintellectual resources of the Institute toattack problems in Nepal, of course. Butwe also wanted to expose our researchersand students to the people of Nepal, totheir warmth and insights, and to the geo-graphical and biological treasures of oneof the most diverse countries on theplanet. Fortunately, the MIT communityresponded to our call with typical gen-erosity and creativity. One of our earliest

efforts paired a research group in D-Labled by Dr. Anish Paul Antony with engi-neering colleagues at KathmanduUniversity. The D-Lab group was inter-ested in extending work they had done inIndia on affordable and sustainable homeinsulation to Nepal. Over the last two IAPterms, Dr. Antony has taken student teamsto Kathmandu, where they have under-gone training with teams of faculty andstudents at Kathmandu University. Onceacquainted with each other, these groupshave traveled to a rural village northeast ofKathmandu, where the teams have inter-viewed villagers about their energy useand collected data about energy loss inprivate homes. The teams have alsostudied gender dynamics and decisionmaking in village families and in the com-munity as a whole, in order to betterunderstand how to craft usable technol-ogy that the residents will adopt. InJanuary 2019 the team installed homeinsulation fashioned from local materials.This team also has been in close contactwith a group in the Building Technologiesunit in Course 4 that has been conductingresearch into improving the performanceof low-cost reconstruction housing in avillage near Gorkha, a town to the west ofthe Kathmandu Valley.

Education is another field in which wehave been active. With support fromMISTI-India and other sources, severalMIT undergraduates of Nepali originshave returned to towns and villages inNepal to develop curricular innovationsfor students in the PK-12 grades. Thesehave included the establishment of a com-puter lab in a rural grade school in theSolukhumbu district, an area in thefoothills of Mt. Everest; a curriculum onsanitation and hygiene for grade schoolersand their parents in the public schools ofPokhara, the second largest urban area inthe country; and a program in science,math, and humanities in a private schoolin Kathmandu that emphasized interac-tive and experiential learning strategies. Adetailed account of each of these pro-grams can be found on the MIT-NepalInitiative website. We are currently syn-thesizing the lessons learned from theseexperiences in an effort to scale up oureducational initiatives so that they canhave a wider impact, as we indicate below.

Current ProjectsWater-Testing and Sanitation: In spring2015, MIT Associate Provost RichardLester provided a small grant to assembleand ship 2,000 water-testing kits to Nepal,

MIT-Nepal InitiativeRavel and Weinberger, from page 1

Evan Denmark ’17, traveled to Nepal over IAP 2017 to make a short video about the BloomNepal School, founded by Ram Rijal ’12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3zxuaIjTq0


19

where ENPHO, a Nepal NGO, used themto test water found in water trucks andfood carts in the Kathmandu Valley. Basedon this initial, successful collaboration,the MIT-Nepal Initiative, ENPHO, and itssocial business spinoff EcoConcern begana project in 2018-2019 to build manufac-turing capacity and marketing networksto sell improved versions of the kits inNepal and elsewhere in South Asia. Thiswork is being funded by a“Solutions” grant from the Abdul LatifJameel Water and Food Systems (J-WAFS) Lab and MIT’s DeshpandeCenter. In fall 2018, Ms. Susan Murcott, aD-Lab lecturer, constituted a team of stu-dents and staff to pursue the project. Afterpreparatory work during the semester,Ms. Murcott and five students went toNepal during IAP 2019. As result of thiscollaboration, ENPHO and EcoConcernhave developed the “ECC vial” and incu-bation kits to detect E. coli bacteria andother contaminants in public watersources. Production and marketing of thekits will begin in Nepal in October 2019. J-WAFS and the Deshpande Center haverenewed the Solutions grant for the 2019-2020 academic year. This second year offunding will allow the MIT team underMs. Murcott’s leadership to continue towork with our Nepali partners, and toexplore manufacturing and sales oppor-tunities elsewhere in South Asia. Education: Building on the work donein this area by our students, as discussedabove, the MIT-Nepal Initiative is nowlooking to create a more comprehensive,scalable contribution to K-12 educationin Nepal. In spring 2019, the Initiativereceived a grant from the Abdul LatifJameel World Education Lab (J-WEL) todevelop and test online learning games forsixth through eighth grade math andscience, in collaboration with the OpenLearning Exchange (OLE) Nepal and theBloom Nepal School. Two MIT students,Abishkar Chhetri and MeghanaVemulapalli, spent the months of Juneand July 2019 at OLE Nepal, working withgame designers and developers to identifyideal platforms and learning pedagogiesto integrate into games. OLE Nepal col-

leagues will travel to MIT in October 2019to continue this partnership. Ethnomusicology: In September2019, the MIT-Nepal Initiative willwelcome to campus Dr. Lochan Rijal, anethnomusicologist at KathmanduUniversity. Dr. Rijal’s visit will be sup-ported by a Visiting Artist grant from theCenter for Art, Science, and Technology atMIT (CAST). Originally a Nepali popmusician, he completed an ethnomusicol-ogy doctorate at Kathmandu Universityand UMass Amherst in 2014 and has beenworking with Kathmandu University stu-dents for the last several years to preserveand foster ethnic musical traditionsthroughout Nepal. He is currently restor-ing a historic heritage site that wasdamaged in the April 2015 earthquake.When completed, this temple complexwill feature performance spaces, studios,classrooms, libraries, and instrument col-lections. While at MIT, Dr. Rijal will offera public concert of Nepali music and hisoriginal compositions played on indige-nous instruments. This event will takeplace on Saturday, October 5th, in LobdellCourt, MIT Building W20. It will be opento the MIT community, Nepali student

groups at other local universities, and thegreater Boston Nepali community. Formore information about the concert, andProfessor Rijal’s residency at MIT, seethe CAST website.

Going ForwardFour years on, we are pleased that we havebeen able to pursue projects that havehelped the people of Nepal and providedexcellent research opportunities and lifeexperiences to members of the MIT com-munity. We are immensely thankful toour funders and supporters at MIT, and toour partners and collaborators in Nepal.We look forward to continuing the workoutlined above, and we are always inter-ested in new ideas and projects. To learnmore about the Initiative, please visit ourwebsite. If you would like to get involved,please contact the Faculty Lead on theMIT-Nepal Initiative, Professor Jeff Ravel.And if you are interested in supportingour work, we urge you to visit our dona-tions page on the MIT Giving site.

In summer 2018, four MIT Interns led a Global Startup Lab (GSL) program in Kathmandu, incollaboration with Kathmandu University and Ncell, a Nepali cell phone service provider. Theinterns, pictured in the Thamel neighborhood of Kathmandu, are from left to right: SureshRajan, Hem Chaudhary, Adhya Rajan (daughter of Suresh), Jackie Xu, Sisam Bhandari.

Jeffrey S. Ravel is Head of the History Section([email protected]);Aaron Weinberger is Special Advisor to theVice President ([email protected]).


M.I.T. Numbersfrom the Faculty Classroom Survey Spring 2019

CeilingMountedVideoProjectorforLaptopPresentations

N=154

HDMIinputsforlaptops

N=148

WirelessConnection N=149

LaptopAudioandVideoAdapters

N=151

AVTouchScreenControls

N=149

LightingPresets N=141

VGAinputsforlaptops

N=145

Electricaloutletsforstudents

N=147

Microphone N=149

LectureCaptureTechnology

N=146

NetworkJack N=136

DocumentCamera N=142

VideoConferencing N=147

DVDPlayer N=149

MITCable N=132

ConfidenceMonitor N=137

CDPlayer N=147

AthenaWorkstation N=143

TransparencyProjectoronCart

N=151

VCR N=147

82%Veryimportant

80%Veryimportant

79%Veryimportant

19%Notatallimportant

69%Veryimportant

26%Somewhatimportant


59%Veryimportant

43%Somewhat important

19%Not at all important

38%Veryimportant



47%Veryimportant



39%Veryimportant



24%Veryimportant



13%Veryimportant



15%Veryimportant



12%Veryimportant




11%Veryimportant







How important is it to have the following in the classroom you teach in:

ColorLegend

Notatallimportant

Somewhatimportant

Veryimportant

Hoveroverasegmntofthegraphtodisplaythecategoryname,count,percent,andifapplicable,thebreakoutcategory.

Source: The Registrar’s Office in collaboration with Institutional Research

Documents

MIT Faculty Newsletter, Vol. XXXII No. 1, September/October 2019web.mit.edu/fnl/volume/321/fnl321.pdf · MIT Faculty Newsletter September/October 2019 3 of Women Faculty at MIT,”