[1024] in UA Senate
Re: [IMPORTANT!!!!] They're trying to cut REX. What do we do?
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (William Steadman)
Thu Jan 27 19:36:02 2011
Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2011 19:35:57 -0500
From: William Steadman <willst@MIT.EDU>
To: "Alec Lai (UA Secretary-General)" <ua-secretary@mit.edu>
Cc: Jessica Chen <jessicachen.dbhs@gmail.com>,
"Janet Li (UA Public
Relations Chair)" <ua-pr-chairs@mit.edu>,
Suan Tuang <stuang@mit.edu>, ua-senate@mit.edu,
Lauren Jefferson <darkangel6541@gmail.com>
In-Reply-To: <AANLkTimviY_OJuYoihqW9PQFX7S52QCELctooBNDS9tJ@mail.gmail.com>
Alec did a great job with the minutes. Sent them to senior-house.
Again, what are we going to do? We need to figure out our plan for the next
meeting.
Senior House is having an emergency meeting tonight about this. This is the
exactly right moment to have a constituency event.
What are senators doing about this?
Quoting "Alec Lai (UA Secretary-General)" <ua-secretary@MIT.EDU>:
> Top of page 7 in the draft minutes addresses this. That's all she said
> about it I believe.
> Top of page 8 had a good counterargument.
>
> On Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 1:45 PM, Jessica Chen
> <jessicachen.dbhs@gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> Did anyone answer as to what led them to believe students are being tired
>> out by Orientation and would prefer to shorten it. I understand their
>> concerns but where did it come about that Orientation length is a problem.
>>
>> Just curious
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> ~Jessica Chen
>> MIT 2014
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 1:40 PM, Alec Lai (UA Secretary-General) <
>> ua-secretary@mit.edu> wrote:
>>
>>> Summary and Draft Minutes for the meeting are already up. They are also
>>> in a special box on the ua.mit.edu home page for easy access.
>>>
>>> Alec
>>>
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 1:38 PM, Janet Li (UA Public Relations Chair) <
>>> ua-pr-chairs@mit.edu> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Good work, Suan! I hope all other senators have also emailed out to
>>>> their constituencies to notify them of these significant changes to
>>>> orientation and REX that are currently being discussed.
>>>>
>>>> If not, please do so immediately, as it is of utmost importance that we
>>>> keep the student body as up to date as we can on these kinds of crucial
>>>> issues.
>>>>
>>>> Janet Li
>>>> MIT Undergraduate Association <http://ua.mit.edu/>
>>>> Public Relations Chair
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 8:34 AM, Suan Tuang <stuang@mit.edu> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi Senate,
>>>>>
>>>>> This is an email regarding changes in REX from the New
>>>>> House REX Chair.
>>>>>
>>>>> Thank you very much!
>>>>>
>>>>> Best,
>>>>> Tuang
>>>>>
>>>>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>>>>> From: Lauren Jefferson <laj51714@mit.edu>
>>>>> Date: Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 5:01 AM
>>>>> Subject: Re: [IMPORTANT!!!!] They're trying to cut REX. What do we do?
>>>>> To: Suan Tuang <stuang@mit.edu>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Tuang,
>>>>>
>>>>> Just as a warning, this is really, really long:
>>>>>
>>>>> I don't like the idea of shortening REX. Sure, planning events would be
>>>>> easier because there would be fewer, but my dorm (Desmond) is really far
>>>>> from everything. Unless people have a reason, they don't usually come all
>>>>> the way out to New/Next house, which will definitely hurt our REX
>>>>> possibilities. I think it took me until the end of REX to get
>>>>> over how far
>>>>> the walk was. I personally didn't even make my decision to stay
>>>>> in New House
>>>>> until the last day of REX. I'd rather people who I live with to actually
>>>>> want to live there, rather than grumbling about having no other choice.
>>>>>
>>>>> Also, this smashes the scheduling for things like the East-Side,
>>>>> West-Side parties, and MacG/New/Next party. If I'm interpreting this
>>>>> correctly, there is only one night included in REX. That would
>>>>> mean that, if
>>>>> all three parties were to run, these three groups would be directly
>>>>> competing against each other, resulting in three smaller parties
>>>>> than usual
>>>>> and general money wasting. Also, there's the problem with actually seeing
>>>>> the dorms. Most people don't tour every dorm, but there's 12 dorms that
>>>>> participate in REX. If you wanted to see them all, it would take
>>>>> 12/30 hours
>>>>> out of your REX, ignoring the fact that there would likely only
>>>>> be time for
>>>>> one or two sets of tours, which would result in limiting the
>>>>> number of tours
>>>>> anyone could take. Also, there's the problem that it takes ~20 minutes to
>>>>> get between EC, Random, and/or Next, or at least it did when I first got
>>>>> there. If you include the orientation events, which I (stupidly) went to
>>>>> instead of REX events, food time, and the radical idea that freshmen
>>>>> actually want to have fun before they're thrown into long lectures and
>>>>> endless p-sets, you would have to clone yourself to get everything in. I
>>>>> seriously regretted not going to my own dorm's events because they
>>>>> conflicted with Orientation ones, when, in the long run, learning
>>>>> more about
>>>>> my dorm matters a lot more.
>>>>>
>>>>> Norman said in the article that CPW, the i3 videos, and the residence
>>>>> materials would be good indicators for housing selections. During
>>>>> CPW, the
>>>>> main things I did involved scoping out free stuff. I had minimal, if any,
>>>>> thoughts about which dorm I was going to live in IF I decided to
>>>>> go to MIT,
>>>>> and what I originally thought I wanted was completely different
>>>>> from what I
>>>>> actually wanted. We're supposed to be selling why MIT is the best
>>>>> school in
>>>>> the world, not why our dorm is the best dorm in the world. Although an
>>>>> awesome dorm is *a* reason why you should go to MIT, it shouldn't be *the
>>>>> *reason why you should go to MIT, especially since you're not
>>>>> guaranteed to live in that dorm. The biggest problems about the i3 videos
>>>>> are that they occasionally do not accurately portray a dorm's culture and
>>>>> that the deadlines are announced way too late, or during the
>>>>> middle of the
>>>>> busiest time of the semester. As an example, I think Desmond has used the
>>>>> same one for the past 5 years (although we're making a new one)
>>>>> because we
>>>>> just haven't had time, and the culture has so drastically changed
>>>>> that it's
>>>>> almost hilarious. I have a lot of friends who ran screaming from their
>>>>> first-choice temp dorm because they weren't what they expected. I
>>>>> think the
>>>>> one thing that was the most accurate was what was written in the
>>>>> residence
>>>>> hall booklet, but you can't really get an accurate feel for a
>>>>> culture with
>>>>> just a page or two of writing (only half a page if you're in New House,
>>>>> too...). Dorm cultures at MIT aren't just subtle differences,
>>>>> either - it's
>>>>> very possible to just not be able to cope with a dorm situation.
>>>>>
>>>>> I'd have to argue that, short of joining a sorority, my dorm has been
>>>>> the biggest factor in how I've survived MIT so far. Like I said
>>>>> before, it
>>>>> took me almost the entirety of REX to decide that I was happy
>>>>> with my dorm,
>>>>> and if I had any less time, I would have definitely adjusted out. I think
>>>>> that whole problem with shortening REX is that it's been
>>>>> established over so
>>>>> many years that the events that everyone looks forward to have
>>>>> just fallen
>>>>> into that time frame. Giving us a third (even less if you count
>>>>> that dorms
>>>>> do events on Thursday and Friday because some FPOPs end early) of
>>>>> that time
>>>>> just means that some people will get the short end of the stick,
>>>>> including
>>>>> the freshmen. They make the argument that events could start
>>>>> early, but the
>>>>> only reason events ever started early was because there were
>>>>> either enough
>>>>> people there that weren't in FPOPs or their FPOPs had already ended, the
>>>>> latter being a pretty useless argument if all the FPOPs are going to end
>>>>> early. Also, my experience with FPOPs was that I would finish my FPOP, go
>>>>> back to my dorm, drag myself up the stairs, shower, and collapse into my
>>>>> bed, with little or no energy to do anything else. I know other
>>>>> people felt
>>>>> the same way, too - a lot of FPOPs are either physically or mentally
>>>>> draining. If the faculty is worried that the freshmen are going
>>>>> to be worn
>>>>> out when the semester begins, then events shouldn't start at 8 am or make
>>>>> mandatory events take up 5 hours of our day and just have people
>>>>> talking at
>>>>> us. I lost more sleep to waking up early for orientation events
>>>>> than I did
>>>>> to staying up for REX events.
>>>>>
>>>>> We may have the longest orientation in the country, but we also have one
>>>>> of the hardest schools, and one of the the heaviest freshman workloads,
>>>>> regardless of pass/no record. I think Orientation was the last time I've
>>>>> legitimately had fun without worrying about classes, p-sets or grades,
>>>>> *including* IAP and December break. Our really long orientation is
>>>>> arguably one of the best things about MIT - getting to meet
>>>>> people who share
>>>>> your interests, free food, and no stress.
>>>>>
>>>>> The administration says they're trying to work better with the student
>>>>> body to compromise, but given the dining plan situation and the
>>>>> fact that it
>>>>> is still a sore spot for many student, I am interested to see how they
>>>>> respond to student opinions on this subject. It seems like we
>>>>> will have to
>>>>> do a better job in communicating to the administration the importance of
>>>>> REX.
>>>>>
>>>>> ~Lauren Jefferson, New House CPW/REX Co-Chair
>>>>>
>>>>> P.S.: Clarification: Does the article say that 5-day FPOPs will go into
>>>>> the Monday that REX starts? If that's the case, than that's even
>>>>> less fair,
>>>>> especially if ASEs also take time out of REX. Also, I know people
>>>>> who took
>>>>> 3-4 ASEs. If they want to talk about freshmen being burnt out, these
>>>>> freshmen would essentially be taking four finals in one day. That
>>>>> would burn
>>>>> ANYONE out.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 2:51 AM, Suan Tuang <stuang@mit.edu> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Hi New House residents and New House Exec,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I hope that by now the New House Exec
>>>>>> knows what has been going on in the UA regarding Chancellor
>>>>>> Clay's charge to
>>>>>> shorten the Orientation<http://tech.mit.edu/V130/N64/orientation.html>.
>>>>>> This basically cuts the REX events from 3 days to 1 day. I strongly
>>>>>> recommend that New House Exec (especially the president and REX
>>>>>> chair) know
>>>>>> what exactly is going on and take appropriate actions regarding
>>>>>> this change
>>>>>> as it will have a strong impact on our future residents and
>>>>>> potentially the
>>>>>> culture of our dorm. I have forwarded the email sent to me by the East
>>>>>> Campus President-elect James Douberley.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this matter.
>>>>>> Remember, this change will affect the REX activities (remember all those
>>>>>> free foods), but not the orientation events will not be cut. As someone
>>>>>> pointed out during the Senate Emergency meeting, "they are
>>>>>> basically taking
>>>>>> away the fun parts of Orientation."
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The changes will come directly from UAAP and if you are interested,
>>>>>> feel free to contact the Senior Associate Dean and Director
>>>>>> Julie Normal at
>>>>>> Rm 7-103 and her email is jbnorman@mit.edu. <jbnorman@mit.edu>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Thank you very much!!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Hope everyone is enjoying the last days of IAP!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Best,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Suan Tuang
>>>>>> UA Senator, New House
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>>>>>> From: James Douberley <flipdog@mit.edu>
>>>>>> Date: Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 12:59 AM
>>>>>> Subject: New House President
>>>>>> To: stuang@mit.edu
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Hey Tuang,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I'm wondering who the new president is at New House? I know your
>>>>>> election happens in theory at the end of the fall term and the
>>>>>> new president
>>>>>> should have taken office already, I'm just curious as to who
>>>>>> that is. The
>>>>>> presidents of a number of other dorms are having discussions
>>>>>> regarding the
>>>>>> situation with REX and Orientation, and we'd like the
>>>>>> involvement of the New
>>>>>> House president, if he's interested.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Since Max Mann didn't show up to a single DormCon meeting this term,
>>>>>> right now we have nobody to contact at New House, even though
>>>>>> we'd love to
>>>>>> be working alongside you all more. So if you could put me in
>>>>>> touch with the
>>>>>> new president, it would probably be for the benefit of us all.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> -James Douberley (EC President-elect)
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> --
>>>>>> Suan Tuang
>>>>>> Massachusetts Institute of Technology
>>>>>> Class of 2014
>>>>>> <tel:+14075955672>(407) 595-5672 <tel:+14075955672>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> Lauren Jefferson
>>>>>
>>>>> Massachusetts Institute of Technology
>>>>> Class of 2014
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> Suan Tuang
>>>>> Massachusetts Institute of Technology
>>>>> Class of 2014
>>>>> <tel:+14075955672>(407) 595-5672 <tel:+14075955672>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Best,
>>> Alec C. Lai
>>> Secretary General
>>> MIT Undergraduate Association
>>>
>>> ua-secretary@mit.edu | (440)454-2942 <tel:+14404542942>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Best,
> Alec C. Lai
> Secretary General
> MIT Undergraduate Association
>
> ua-secretary@mit.edu | (440)454-2942
>
