University
Cover to cover: The Class of 2024’s four years at Tufts, reviewed
By Chloe Courtney Bohl | May 19Look back on the highlights of the Class of 2024's time at Tufts.
News
News
The Daily Class of 2024, in their own words
By Estelle Anderson, Ishaan Rajiv Rajabali, Shannon Murphy, Michael Onysko, Teagan Mustone, Matthew Sage, Rebecca Barrie and Josué Pérez | May 19As Tufts’ newspaper of record, the Daily sees many students contribute to its black-and-white newsprint pages, but not all work their way up to its masthead. The Daily staff spoke with eight members of the Class of 2024 who have all served on the newspaper’s managing or executive board and left their mark on the organization’s history.
News
Incoming TCU President Joel Omolade champions inclusivity
By Almer Yu | May 18“If you’re not on the table, you’re on the menu,” Joel Omolade says. “And I really want to make sure that more students are able to be a part of that table, to be a part of the conversations that are happening.”Omolade will serve as president of the Tufts Community Union Senate for the 2024–25 academic year. In an interview with the Daily, he looked ahead to his term as president, pledging to embody the ethos of his “Better Starts Now!” campaign and prove his commitment to bringing meaningful change to the community.
University
Timeline of 2023–24 student activism for divestment from Israel
By Almer Yu and Josué Pérez | May 18Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the subsequent bombing and ground invasion in Gaza sparked widespread protests and activist demonstrations on campuses across the country, including at Tufts University. Throughout the last eight months, students have urged Tufts to divest from its Israeli connections and acknowledge a genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. The following article provides an overview of recent activism on campus.
University
SMFA professors of the practice hold first contract negotiations
By Samantha Eng | May 17Professors of the practice at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts held their first-ever bargaining session with the university on April 24, seeking a contract that would guarantee wage increases, enhanced research support and more transparent employment policies, among other negotiations. This marks the first time that SMFA professors of the practice have initiated a bargaining agreement since Tufts merged with the SMFA in 2016.
University
Search underway for new dean of the School of Arts and Sciences
By Shannon Murphy and Carly Cohen | May 17Tufts has begun the search for a new dean of the School of Arts and Sciences to succeed Dean James M. Glaser. Glaser, who has been the dean of the School of Arts and Sciences since 2014 and a Tufts faculty member since 1991, will assume the position of executive vice president and provost at Santa Clara University in July.
University
Historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta establishes Tufts chapter
By Rose Hollander | May 17This semester, Incorporated, the Delta Chi chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority — a historically Black sorority — opened at Tufts. The chapter currently has just five members and the Zetas will seek new sisters in the fall.
News
Outgoing TCU President Arielle Galinsky talks Senate initiatives, relationship with administration
By Matthew Sage | May 16Arielle Galinsky, the Tufts Community Union Senate President, sat down with the Daily to reflect on her fourth and final year on student government, highlighting accomplishments and responding to criticism.
News
Affirmative action for the rich? Reexamining legacy admissions in a post-affirmative action world
By Grayton Goldsmith | May 16It’s no secret that the college admissions process is in turmoil. Regardless of political conviction, higher education has become a prime target for those who are disgruntled with both the current state of American society and its projected future. What was once deemed the “great equalizer” is now viewed by many on both sides of the political spectrum as distinctively elitist, further entrenching socioeconomic divides rather than breaking down barriers.
University
Tufts denies Medford Alpha Epsilon Pi’s affiliation request
By Michael Onysko | May 16In March, several Tufts students approached the university with intentions of reestablishing the Medford Alpha Epsilon Pi Eta Deuteron fraternity chapter on campus. Tufts denied the request to officially recognize AEPi, and the chapter remains unaffiliated with the university.
University
Faculty told to prepare for upcoming budget cuts
By Ella Kamm | May 15Due to budget challenges at the university level, administrators and deans of the Schools of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering have instructed faculty to prepare for budget cutting measures that will aim to address financial challenges forecasted in the fiscal year ahead.
News
Daniel Dennett, Tufts professor emeritus and renowned philosopher, passes away at 82
By Nicholas Prather | May 15On April 19, Daniel Dennett, University and Fletcher Professor of Philosophy Emeritus, passed away at the Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine. His death was caused by complications from interstitial lung disease.
University
Will Tufts follow in other universities’ footsteps with an AI major?
By Maggie Monahan | May 15In February, the University of Pennsylvania announced it will begin offering an artificial intelligence major, open for enrollment in fall 2024. The major will be offered through Penn’s School of Engineering. Several other universities have announced AI-specific degree programs in recent years; MIT began offering one in fall 2022 and Carnegie Mellon has had one since fall 2018. Although Tufts computer science students have the option of focusing their studies on AI, Tufts currently does not offer an AI-specific degree program, but that could change in the future, according to Kyongbum Lee, dean of the School of Engineering. When developing new AI-based courses, he hopes to focus on ethics in computing and “how to make AI curriculum more accessible” to all students, rather than just those pursuing math-based degrees.
University
Fletcher’s Fares Center hosts conference on US-Middle Eastern relations
By Samara Haynes | May 15The Fares Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies at The Fletcher School held its International Conference on April 18 and 19, featuring guest speakers from universities across the globe, from Harvard University and Boston College to Cairo University and Radboud University.
University
BREAKING: Bárbara Brizuela to serve as interim dean of School of Arts and Sciences
By Matthew Sage | May 7Bárbara Brizuela, the current dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, will serve as the undergraduate school’s interim dean, as announced by the Office of the Provost on May 7. Brizuela, a professor in Tufts’ Department of Education for 23 years, will continue to serve in her current role while overseeing operations at Tufts’ largest undergraduate school.
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BREAKING: ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ ends without deal with university
By Matthew Sage | May 3Protesters began dismantling the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” on the Academic Quad Friday night. The encampment, starting on April 7, had stood on the Academic Quad for nearly a month.
University
‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ enters third day under trespass warning
By Matthew Sage | May 3The “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” has grown, despite the university’s warning on Tuesday that protesters will be considered trespassing if they do not leave the Academic Quad. Now, almost 50 tents and a makeshift barrier built from tables, chairs and other items surround the encampment’s “Apartheid Wall.” Student protesters, who erected the encampment on April 21, have previously vowed to remain on the quad and continuously demanded the university heed calls for Israeli divestment.
University
LIVE UPDATES: University president meets with students, negotiation results unknown
By Tufts Daily News Staff | April 30The university has confirmed that a meeting between protesters and University President Sunil Kumar occurred today.
University
In university-wide email, Tufts leadership demands that protesters take down ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’
By Estelle Anderson | April 29In an email sent to Tufts community members on Sunday evening, university President Sunil Kumar and four other university leaders addressed the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” for the first time since student protesters erected it on April 7, requesting that the tents be taken down to allow the university to prepare for Commencement. Shortly after, Tufts Students for Justice for Palestine reaffirmed in an Instagram post that they will not leave the Academic Quad until the university divests from Israel, ends the sale of Sabra and other Israeli products at Tufts dining locations, “acknowledge[s] the genocide in Gaza” and “apologize[s] for previous statements.”
Local
Medford and Somerville collaborate on new Area Plan for Broadway Corridor
By Nicholas Prather | April 29Medford and Somerville have partnered to create a new Area Plan for the Broadway Corridor, a one-mile stretch of street along the border between Medford and Somerville. Created with the help of community feedback and support from the Horsley Witten Group, the plan will address zoning challenges that have made it a challenge to develop the corridor.
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SMFA courses canceled over low enrollment numbers
By
Evan Vezmar and Eli Brigham
| December 8
Jewish students, unfiltered
By
Sadie Roraback-Meagher
| December 4
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