As Tufts continues to increase its enrollment numbers, some students have faced unexpected — and unwanted — results with the housing lottery system. While first-year students are assigned dorms late in the summer, returning students seeking on-campus housing must enter a random drawing.
Monroe France started his position as the first vice provost for diversity, equity, inclusion and justice at Tufts on April 3. Since then, he has met with students, faculty and staff across the university to discover DEIJ opportunities and challenges. The Daily spoke with France about his experience getting to know Tufts and the importance of his office in higher education.
From hosting a farmers market to placing first aid kits around campus, the Tufts Community Union Senate launched a variety of pilot projects this academic year, making it what some senators say is one of the most productive years in recent history.
Unionization is on the rise in the Greater Boston area, with workers at independent cafes and major chains alike fighting for more rights in the workplace.
The Tufts University part-time lecturers union, represented by SEIU Local 509, is currently engaged in a pay negotiation process on behalf of part-time lecturers who work at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts.
Somerville released its first-ever Bicycle Network Plan on April 11 to build an 88-mile system of connected bike lanes throughout the city. The network, which will be completed within the next few decades, would make Somerville the only municipality in Massachusetts besides Cambridge to establish a citywide bicycle network.
Kate Walsh, Massachusetts secretary of health and human services, appointed triple-Jumbo Robert Goldstein (LA’05, M’12, GBS’12) as the state’s commissioner of public health on April 4. Goldstein’s time working with the Sharewood Clinic as an undergraduate and medical student shaped his commitment to helping underserved communities access medical care, he told the Daily a week into his tenure.
Kendra Field, associate professor of history and director of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy at Tufts, co-curated a new exhibition at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, D.C.
For responding to issues of sexual misconduct or discrimination and harassment on campus, Tufts has departments including the Center for Awareness, Resources and Education and the Office of Equal Opportunity. However, despite being organized and managed differently, there remains confusion in differentiating the offices.
Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and Somerville Mayor Katjana Ballantyne spoke at Somerville High School on April 24 to discuss the Green New Deal and its local implications.
Tufts Community Union Senate presidential candidates Arielle Galinsky and Wanci Nanaparticipated in a forum hosted by the TCU Elections Commission on April 25. During the forum, Galinsky and Nana, both juniors, fielded questions from ECOM and attendees of the forum.
Rapper, activist and educator Dee-1 spoke about hip-hop as a force for social justice, education and community engagement on April 19 as part of the Tisch College Solomont Speaker Series.
Armed conflict broke out in Khartoum, Sudan on April 15 as the national army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces battle each other for control of the country. Fletcher School students Eliab Taye and Chepkorir Sambu offer perspective on the humanitarian crisis in Sudan along with Professor Chidi Odinkalu.
The Cummings/Hillel Program for Holocaust and Genocide Education hosted its annual “Survivors Speak” panel on April 19. This year’s panelists included artist Jack Trompetter, author Consolee Nishimwe, businesswoman Jasmina Cesic and activist Bol Riiny, who spoke about their experiences as survivors of the Holocaust and the genocides in Rwanda, Bosnia and South Sudan, respectively.
Nikita Bhat, Carolina Lopes and Sarah Norris are three of the students working to create a club gymnastics team at Tufts. They are currently in the process of gauging interest and writing a proposal to submit to the Club Sports program over the summer.
A Solomont Speaker Series event with rapper and activist Dee-1 was disrupted by messages containing racial slurs on April 19. University President Anthony Monaco and Dayna Cunningham, dean of the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, condemned the incident the following morning in an email to the Tufts community.
This year, Tufts accepted its “most compositionally diverse” class yet, citing student identities, especially racial identities, as an indicator. However, in October 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States heard arguments regarding the future of race-conscious college admissions in cases between Students for Fair Admissions Inc. and Harvard College, as well as SFFA and the University of North Carolina.
Tufts Community Union senators Itamar Oelsner and Jose Armando recently launched a petition to establish a permanent Disability Center on campus. Oelsner, elected in February, is the TCU Senate’s first disability community senator; through the proposed center, he and Armando hope to provide a physical space where students with disabilities can feel supported.
The Tufts Community Union Elections Commission released the results of 2023–24 TCU election on April 19. 1,309 people voted, representing 20.14% of TCU members. The final Class of 2026 senator will be decided in a runoff between Anand Patil and Savannah Thompson during the TCU presidential election. The results are as follows:
The TCU Senate passed a resolution during their weekly meeting on April 16 calling on the Tufts Department of Public Safety and Tufts University Health Service to compensate all Tufts Emergency Medical Services student members. The senate also passed a resolution calling on the university to invest in outdoor pedestrian infrastructure, citing safety concerns on multiple streets around campus.
