When Caroline Genco became provost ad interim of Tufts in January, one former employee of the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice knew they couldn’t stay at the university.
The School of Engineering announced that it is sunsetting the ABET accreditation for its Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering program in an email sent to BSBME students on Sept. 19
Carol Joyner, director of the Labor Project for Working Families at Family Values at Work Action, spoke with Tufts students on Sept. 22 as part of the Civic Life Lunch Speaker Series hosted by Tisch College. Joyner discussed her more than two decades of work on issues surrounding workers’ rights, including advocating for paid leave and for more comprehensive child care for workers.
TCU Senate elected new members to the Allocations Board, heard updates from community senators and discussed recent conversations with the Tufts administration during its second session of the year on Sept. 25.
Members of the congressional ‘Squad’ spoke to a crowd of supporters at the Somerville Theatre on Saturday evening. Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, who represents Somerville in the U.S. House of Representatives, was joined by Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush at the sold-out event.
Tufts Climate Action held a rally last Friday at the Mayer Campus Center Lower Patio to demand that the university fully divest from its fossil fuel holdings. The rally drew 50–75 attendees, making it one of the largest climate demonstrations on Tufts’ campus in the last three years, organizers said.
Reducing food waste while supplying hungry students with free snacks? Talk about a two-in-one. Tufts’ “free food” email list, spearheaded by the Eco Reps group, resumed operation earlier this month after a pandemic-induced hiatus, and in just a few weeks, the email group has already offered up pastries from Tatte and Sugar and Spice as leftover food from community events.
As the Tufts community returns to campus and adjusts to the fall semester, the new school year brings new guidance surrounding COVID-19 protocols. All eligible Tufts community members are required to receive a bivalent COVID-19 booster shot by Dec. 2, as announced in a Sept. 16 email from University Infection Control Director Michael Jordan and Medical Director of Health Service Marie Caggiano.
Lorgia García Peña, Mellon professor in the Department of Studies in Race, Colonialism and Diaspora at Tufts University, discussed her new book Translating Blackness on Sept. 22. García Peña read excerpts from the book, followed by a panel discussing the importance ofits findings and arguments.
David Hogg, a gun control activist who survived the 2018 Parkland school shooting, visited Tufts on Sept. 19 in the first installation of this year’s Tisch College Alan and Susan Solomont Distinguished Speaker Series. At the event, Hogg discussed his path to civic engagement, the importance of putting pressure on the government and the steps that young people can take in order to support the gun control movement.
Tufts announced in June that it would begin construction on two new housing properties for upperclassmen on 50 Winthrop St. and 2–4 Capen St. in Medford. In a virtual meeting with the Medford community that month, Tufts also revealed plans to demolish the buildings currently in those lots. The project is set to start construction in fall 2022 and finish in August 2023.
At the beginning of the fall semester, Dewick-MacPhie Dining Center opened a new food line that offers vegan kosher food. The new station increases the availability of food for students with dietary restrictions.
Students and community members staged a protest outside a Central Intelligence Agency recruitment event in Cohen Auditorium on Friday afternoon. The event, which was sponsored by the Tufts Career Center, was not disrupted by the protest.
Residents of Somerville gathered on Sept. 17 for a rally in support of safer streets at Seven Hills Park in Davis Square. The event was held in response to the death of Stephen Conley, a Somerville resident who was fatally struck by a car door while riding his bike on Broadway on Aug. 12.
In late August, the Somerville City Council unanimously passed a home rule petition creating a net-zero fossil fuel emissions policy for new construction projects and major renovations in the city. The policy was introduced by Councilors Ben Ewen-Campen and Lance Davis with support from Somerville Mayor Katjana Ballantyne.
An update to parking permit regulations and parking lot access was announced to the Tufts community in an Aug. 17 email. The email emphasized that all parking lots require a Tufts University permit to park and clarified which students — 3rd and 4th years — are able to purchase these permits. Additionally, cameras have been placed in more lots and parking areas on campus to ensure that these regulations are adhered to.
The Rev. Mariama White-Hammond, chief of environment, energy and open space for the City of Boston, visited Tufts University on Sept. 8 in the first installment of this year’s Hoch Cunningham Environmental Lecture series. White-Hammond joined to discuss the ways that Boston is acting as a Green New Deal city and the importance of centering environmental justice communities in climate work.
On Aug. 17, the Somerville Community Land Trust held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its first property acquisition at 7 Summer St. By maintaining community ownership of the property, the SCLT hopes to increase the availability of affordable housing in Somerville.
Editor’s note: Trent Bunker was a former staff writer at the Daily. He did not contribute to the writing or editing of this article.
Incumbent State Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven won the 27th Middlesex District Democratic primary on Sept. 6, defeating opponent Jason Mackey. Uyterhoeven, who is currently running uncontested in the general election, won with 87% of the vote and is on track to continue representing the city of Somerville in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
