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Green-focus is pretty much the only new thing to campus.

While the town meeting was filled with much of the same stuff (CLASS, new hires, research, etc.). Only a few really noteworthy pieces of information though:

• Several buildings are going to be part of a sustainability initiative that involves metering energy usage. Buildings with varied ages and states of the buildings are being included in the pilot, with a designated “sustainability advocates” for each building to encourage accountability. I’m not sure who worked on this (SSTF, maybe?) but awesome job, if it really works out!
• There was also a discussion on initiatives related to biking on campus as related as sustainability as well as thefts on campus. As a part of this conversation, Dr. Jackson has offered to buy a professor a bike since his was stolen, which was pretty cool too.

Otherwise, I was kind of disappointed at the lack of news. Maybe someone will cause a ruckus in the near future. We can only hope, I suppose.

As per “2010’s” request, there were three questions besides the second point above, which was also a question:

• The first question was about minority student enrollment and why it isn’t higher. Dr. Jackson responded that it is something that’s important to the Institute and something they are working on.
• Another question was about what RPI is doing to help graduates with the job search. The answer was trying to expand the alumni network links as well as the CDC is working to expand recruiting companies on campus.
• Finally, a professor asked why manufacturing isn’t as emphasized as IT or biotechnology; however, I didn’t catch the answer. Anyone able to help me out?

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Time to bring back Pizza Bella and Pizza DaVinci!

Clubs that are used to getting pizza from off-campus locations can rejoice! A new amendment to the purchasing policy has allowed clubs to purchase pizza, soda, candy, bagels, and other random foods from vendors other than Sodexo. The only catches are you have to allow enough time for Martha to go through the Financial Division and you have to have a valid reason for purchasing from someone other than Sodexo. Once you get the item approved, it’s on the exempt list and you don’t have to ask again.

There are still some changes that are not met with happiness from students since it makes other purchases more difficult, like declining balance cards, but I guess this is a start.  See the jump for the whole e-mail from President of the Union Mike Spitz announcing the change: Read more…

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I think this is a little more appropriate than a potpourri of pot.

I know that I’ve taken a bit of a hiatus since the whole Student Handbook fiasco has been going on,  but The Poly’s use of marijuana as its front page photo struck me as wildly inappropriate–prompting me to dig deeper into the issue. So lots of reading and a meeting with Dean Smith later, here our take.

First of all, for those of you who haven’t been filled in on the major changes, here’s a recap of the two new sections causing controversy:

• “Involuntary Withdrawal for Drug Addiction:” allows the Institute to judge whether a student is addicted to a substance or not and bypass the typical judicial process, as well as inform the student’s parents about such determination (but only if you are claimed as a dependent!). This is only for “egregious” and extreme cases (for example, if it poses a threat to safety or student interests).
• “Rules for Maintenance of Public Order:” requires students to gain administrative permission to protest no less than seven days before said rally/protest to allow for safety of students in the rally to be provided (Note: Dean Smith and GM Ben Hunt are working toward language that would allow for exceptions).

After attending the forum with Mark Smith (which was sparsely attended), I have vastly different opinions than what I had read in The Poly and from the Student Senate (proving it’s always best to do the digging yourself). Follow me after the jump for a little perspective on the matter: Read more…

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I guess this will be the only language they'll know how to say "good-bye" in ...

People are beginning to question SUNY Albany’s committment to its motto, “the world within reach.” According to Inside Higher Ed, the university announced Friday that it will be ending admissions to all its language programs in French, Italian, Russian, and classics–with only Spanish left after all the current language students graduate. This leaves 10 tenured faculty members with only two years of employment to help current students finish degrees before they will have to move on to a new place. 20 adjunct faculty members are likely going to be in the same boat.

Sound familiar? I thought so, too. SUNY Albany had become a resource for some of RPI’s students who wanted to pursue classes in languages after the Institute cut its language program in 2009. I really have to wonder why the language program is always the focus of budget cuts; the programs have merit in introducing students to other cultures and becoming world citizens, instead of the stereotypical “ignorant American.”

While RPI is supposed to be continuing the language program through the Center for Social and Cognitive Networks, I’m not quite sure what Albany will do about the cut. Approximately 500 students enroll in French alone each year, according to the article.

Maybe RPI can reach out to Albany on a collaborative effort with the Center for Social and Cognitive Networks–either for faculty-sharing with the Center or some sort of distance learning for SUNY Albany students? Though I may just be naive to the way that private and public schools can interact, it would give an opportunity for students from both campuses to benefit from the foreign language classes.

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