[223] in peace2
Re: McDermott Court Construction (fwd)
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Payal Parekh)
Mon Apr 24 10:29:47 2000
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 2000 10:28:23 -0400 (EDT)
From: Payal Parekh <parekh@pimms.mit.edu>
To: peace-list@MIT.EDU, voelker@MIT.EDU, eapsstudents@MIT.EDU, save@MIT.EDU
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The response I received from Chuck Vest. We have a meeting with Ruth
Davis, the communications manager in the Facilities Dept at 11:00 am
payal
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 2000 09:52:54 -0400
From: "Charles M. Vest" <cmvest@MIT.EDU>
To: Payal Parekh <parekh@pimms.mit.edu>
Cc: cmvest@MIT.EDU
Subject: Re: McDermott Court Construction
*** Hi. We postponed the work scheduled for this morning. I went over a
little after 6:00 this morning to listen to and talk with the assembled
students. Vicky Sirrianni, director of facilities then met with them. We
are very empathetic with these concerns, but the options are limited and we
may or may not be able to chenge the placement of the trailors serving as
faculty offices during the rennovation of the Chemistry laboratories. I am
the first to agree that this was not appropriately discussed up front.
Nonetheless, we will all have to deal with substantial disruptions over the
years ahead while, among other things, we created more of the badly needed
informal and green spaces through the Stata project, movement of parking
underground, etc. Urban campuses are difficult when construction and
rennovation are undertaken. --Chuck Vest ***
>Dear President Vest:
>
>I am writing to you to prevent the destruction of McDermott Court for the
>building of temporary faculty offices. Currently, this small piece of
>grass is one of the few, and by far the most popular, places on the east side
>of campus, where students and other members of the community can play
>frisbee, lie in the grass, or eat lunch in the sunshine. Without this
>small plot of grass, the east side of campus, which is already rather grey
>and depressing, will basically be one large expanse of concrete. I
>understand the need for temporary offices due to construction, but feel
>alternatives should be considered.
>
>Furthermore, I am appalled that the MIT administration did not seek
>student input for this decision and did even inform students or faculty
>of this decision. As a graduate student in the EAPS department and a
>Graduate Resident Tutor in East Campus Dormitory, MIT is
>not only a place for me to learn, but it is my home and the community I am
>a part of. I would hope the administration would recognize that students
>are an integral part of the MIT community and our voices must be heard.
>You stated in your Report for the Academic Year 1998-99,''Colleges and
>universities teach by their actions as well as through their curricula.
>Faculties and administrations alike owe it to their students to visibly
>deal with important discussions and decisions in a way that displays a
>conscious effort to act responsibly, morally and ethically. Much of the
>lesson will be contained in what we choose to think about, to do, and not
>to do. We owe our students open discussion, serious consideration of
>various points of view, and clear explanations of decisions made.'' I ask
>you to please keep your word by organizing a committee comprised of
>students, staff, and faculty to consider alternatives to destroying
>McDermott Court for "temporary" offices.
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Payal Parekh
>
>
>
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Payal Parekh
>MIT/WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography
>Program in Atmosphere, Oceans, and Climate
>parekh@pimms.mit.edu
>
>MIT WHOI
>54-1511A Clark 461, MS #25
>Cambridge, MA 02139 Woods Hole, MA 02543
>617.253.2922 Tel: 508.289.3236
> Fax: 508.457.2193
