Liberal arts undergrads may choose things like French or Arabic to fulfill their language requirements, but all students should have a dictionary to help them navigate the unique language of Tufts. Here are the ABC's of living and learning on the Hill that you'll need to know to get by:
Orientation week will be a whirlwind, but the next four years will go by faster than you can say, "Oh my, there's an elephant on the railroad tracks!" There are plenty of ways to make the best of your time on the Hill, and here are a few to keep in mind before you find yourself in a cap and gown.
Beyond Boundaries: The Campaign for Tufts, the largest university-wide capital campaign in Tufts history, has come to a close having reached its $1.2 billion goal.
Tucked away in the corner of the second floor in Ballou Hall, where the slick marble floors, meticulously maintained carpets and extra-high ceilings are more reminiscent of a grand hotel than an administration building, hangs a painting titled "Portrait of an Unknown Man." It is just outside the office of Provost and Senior Vice President Jamshed Bharucha, who has established himself as a key player in the university's increasing prestige in his nine years on the Hill.
A new student-run event will offer Tufts undergraduates a fully clothed way to celebrate the end of classes next December.
A month after a heated debate over the federal budget brought the government dangerously close to a full shutdown, members of the Tufts community can breathe easier knowing that the budget cuts were less severe than anticipated for local nonprofit service organizations and need-based federal financial aid for college students.
Members of the task force on Africana studies are set to deliver their final conclusions on the future of the study of the African Diaspora at Tufts near the end of this month, with the administration prepared to use its recommendations in making a decision on the issue by September.
Tufts Medical Center officials in the early hours of May 6 narrowly avoided a nurse's strike that had been planned to begin hours later. Administrators reached an agreement on a contract extension agreement with the union for Tufts Medical's 1,200 nurses, according to Barbara Tiller, a nurse at Tufts Medical and chair of the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) bargaining unit.
It came as a surprise to many of my friends that I waited until the last week of my senior year to hole up in Tisch Library for the first time. It's not that I've never been immersed in Tisch culture — I've met people for coffee in it; I've used its printers; I've rented its DVDs; I've taken classes in it; I've made out in its book stacks; I've smoked on top of it; I even, to my dismay, once saw someone in the back room of its media center jerking off behind his computer in the dark, probably (hopefully) thinking he was not in plain sight of those walking by its roof.
The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate this year supported changes to multiple areas of campus life, including the function and logistics of the body's community representative position, improved communication between the Senate and the student body and cost-cutting measures for students.
With the exception of engineers, almost every student at Tufts is all too familiar with Olin Hall, the tall brick building at the top of the Hill that houses the university's foreign language departments. In an effort to prepare students for an increasingly global and connected world, Tufts requires that every student in the School of Arts and Sciences become proficient in a language other than English by taking at least six classes in a foreign language or culture before graduation. But due to the structure of the requirement and the wiggle room it leaves to avoid actual language classes, the value of the requirement has been questioned, leaving many students to wonder — is the walk to Olin worth it?
One university president. Five deans. A provost, an associate provost and the chief executive of a teaching hospital. All are stepping down this year or have left their positions in the last year and a half.
Students and faculty are working to overcome administrative hurdles to gain approval for a non-Tufts study abroad program in Cuba in an effort to align student travel and study in the country with recently passed federal law.
Well, this is a little awkward. I had a whole Jumbo-sized load of Tufts nostalgia that I spilled out into what I thought was a goodbye final column a couple of weeks ago. Looks like I spent it a little prematurely. Now I don't really have much left to say except maybe something along the lines of, "Hi Tufts. It's been … um … something. Don't bother calling. Cheers!" However, the wigs behind the scenes laughed and told me that was a little too short.
Beyond Boundaries: The Campaign for Tufts, the university-wide capital campaign initiated by University President Lawrence Bacow early in his tenure, is on the brink of completion with 99 percent of the $1.2 billion total raised thus far.
Construction on the Steve Tisch Sports and Fitness Center, the second phase of a three-part plan to revamp Tufts' athletic facilities, began in April and is on track to open to students at the beginning of September 2012.
It sounds trite, but Commencement exercises make me feel really nostalgic. I think this nostalgia is partially due to the fact that Commencement is the last time an entire graduating class will be together, but I also find myself feeling a sense of nostalgia for the more distant past. One would think our current Commencement traditions link us Jumbos throughout the ages, right?
Tufts Roundtable Commons, an interactive news website created and run by a group of Tufts students, has reached 200 bloggers and users. Since the website's redesign in October 2010, the average number of visits per month has increased to just under 9,000.
