News

Local

Somerville to construct $2.5 million Poplar Street Pump Station

By Olivia Field | April 14

Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley announced last month that she had secured $8 million of federal funding for the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, which she represents, and that $2.5 million of that funding will be allocated for a Somerville project called the Poplar Street Pump Station. The project is slated to begin construction in fall 2022 and will provide critical stormwater management infrastructure to the city.

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University

BREAKING: The Mods and quarantine hotels near capacity, students may have to isolate in residence halls

By Flora Meng | April 13

Tufts announced revised COVID-19 isolation procedures in an email to the university-wide community on April 13 as The Mods and hotel rooms used for isolation neared capacity.

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University

Tufts unable to divest completely from Russia due to exposure through commingled funds

By Skyler Goldberg | April 13

Tufts University Executive Vice President Mike Howard discussed divestment from Russian securities — which currently amount to $5.7 million out of the approximately $2.5 billion in Tufts’ endowment — at a special session of the University Faculty Senate on March 23. Howard said that fully divesting from these securities would be “too risky for the endowment,” but that the university is working with its investment managers, who are seeking to minimize their funds’ exposure to Russian money.

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University

Congressman Peter DeFazio talks democracy, term limits, youth activism in Solomont Speaker Series event

By Emily Thompson | April 13

U.S. Congressman and Tufts alumnus Peter DeFazio, D-Ore, spoke about his work as the chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and his time in Congress with Professor and Chair of the Department of Political Science Deborah Schildkraut as part of the Tisch College Solomont Speaker Series. DeFazio (A’69) has represented Oregon’s 4th Congressional District for 36 years and plans to retire at the end of his current term. Although originally scheduled to speak at Tufts in person, DeFazio joined the event via Zoom from his office because he recently tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.

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University

TCU Senate budgets over $2.6 million to student organizations for FY23

By Tess Harmon | April 12

The Tufts Community Union Senate held their annual Budget Day — allocating $2,608,225 to over 200 student organizations for the 2023 fiscal year — and heard two resolutions in a meeting on Sunday night in the Sophia Gordon Multipurpose Room.

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University

This Week in COVID-19: Cases rise following spring break, Tufts reinstates mask mandate

By Flora Meng | April 12

COVID-19 cases have increased on the Medford/Somerville campus following students’ return from spring break. The University reported 28 new cases on Saturday and 68 the day before. This marks the second time Tufts has reached the highest recorded number of cases in a day. The average number of COVID-19 cases in a day increased by around 10% in the past week, with an average of 29 students testing positive each day in the week before Saturday. 

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University

New temporary dormitories on Professors Row to house 150 first-years this fall 

By Zoe Kava | April 11

Temporary housing at the current site of The Mods will be used to house 150 first-year students in fall 2022, Dean of Student Affairs Camille Lizarríbar informed the Tufts community in an April 8 email. Construction of three separate buildings, which will house 50 students and three resident assistants each, will begin once the university’s plan is approved by the City of Somerville.

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Local

Somerville police staffing study sparks controversy over speed of reform

By Michael Weiskopf | April 11

Local activists and some elected officials have criticized a recent study of Somerville Police Department’s staffing. The City of Somerville announced on March 8 that its Racial and Social Justice Department had contracted a consulting firm to conduct a study on the Somerville Police Department’s staffing procedures, prompting frustration over the speed of police reform in Somerville.

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University

CIRCLE finds climate change as top issue driving youth political engagement

By Rohith Raman | April 11

The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life recently released a report titled “Youth Concern About Climate Change Drives Civic Engagement.”

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Local

Green Line Extension contributes to increased displacement risk of Somerville tenants

By Madeline Wilson | April 8

The MBTA Green Line Extension officially began service with the opening of its Union Square Branch on March 21, 2022. The addition extends the Green Line’s service from Lechmere station to the new Union Square station in Somerville. The Medford branch of the GLX, which will terminate at the Medford/Tufts station currently under construction next to the Joyce Cummings Center, is slated to open in summer 2022.

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University

TCU Senate organizes 'Prom Re-envisioned' for Class of 2024

By Aditya Acharya | April 8

The Tufts Community Union Senate will host a prom for the Class of 2024 on Friday evening at the Boston Marriott Copley Place. The event was created to recreate the experience of a high school prom for sophomores who missed theirs in 2020 due to the pandemic.

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University

TCU Senate reboots Menstrual Product Project

By Evelyn Altschuler | April 8

The Services Committee of the Tufts Community Union Senate is restarting its Menstrual Product Project, an initiative that places free menstrual products in restrooms around Tufts’ campus. The project began in 2019 but was paused during the pandemic. Arielle Galinsky, Services Committee chair and a Class of 2024 senator, described the goals of the project. 

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University

BREAKING: Tufts will not ease mask requirement as planned

By Chloe Courtney Bohl | April 7

Tufts will not ease its indoor mask mandate or end its required surveillance testing protocol by April 15 as previously planned, University Infection Health Control Director Michael Jordan informed the community in an April 7 email.

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University

Tufts medical students celebrate match day

By Coco Arcand | April 7

Fourth-year students at the Tufts University School of Medicine found out which residency programs accepted them last month on Match Day. This year’s Match Day marked the first time that students were able to celebrate their matches together in person since the COVID-19 pandemic began two years ago.

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Local

Fare-free buses are a possibility for Medford and Somerville

By Ella Kamm | April 7

A bill proposed by representatives of Medford and Somerville that would establish a one-year fare-free bus pilot program within the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is moving through the Massachusetts House and Senate, having recently been referred to the Joint Committee on Transportation.

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University

Alumni Association honors 12 seniors

By Elizabeth Zacks | April 7

Disclaimer: Alex Viveros is the current investigative editor and science editor of The Tufts Daily. He also has served on the Daily’s Managing Board, ultimately as editor in chief. Viveros was not involved in the reporting, writing or editing of this article.

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University

California man arrested after threatening calls prompted manhunt

By Ethan M. Steinberg | April 6

A California man who claimed to be carrying a pistol in a female student’s dorm room last May was arrested on Thursday, U.S. Attorney Rachel Rollins’ office said, following an investigation from federal prosecutors that lasted more than 10 months.

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University

Tufts moves to lift mask mandate, enters new phase of pandemic response

By Flora Meng | April 6

Dr. Elissa Perkins, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and Emergency Medical Research Director at Boston Medical Center, explained why it is currently safe to lift mask mandates.

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University

BREAKING: Warby Parker co-founder Neil Blumenthal will deliver Class of 2020 Commencement address

By Zoe Kava | April 6

In an email sent to the Tufts community on Tuesday,University President Anthony Monaco announced that Neil Blumenthal (LA’02) will be Tufts’ Class of 2020 Commencement speaker. The co-founder and co-CEO of Warby Parker, Blumenthal was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, and Fast Company has listed himas one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business. 

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University

Chaplaincy ‘Food & Faith’ event offers reflection, community building

By Madeline Mueller | April 6

On Monday night, the University Chaplaincy offered an opportunity for graduate and undergraduate students to gather in Barnum Hall for dinner and small-group discussion in an event called “Food & Faith: A People’s Supper.” The event, organized by the Interfaith Student Council, was co-sponsored by the Interfaith Community of Faith, Exploration, and Engagement; the Palmier; and the Fletcher Initiative on Religion, Law, and Diplomacy.

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