Theo Weller is a deputy news editor for the Daily. He is a sophomore interested in political science, and can be reached at theo.weller@tufts.edu
Tufts Buddhist Chaplain Ven. Vineetha Mahayaye was one of seven men arrested on Saturday by the Boston Police Department’s human trafficking unit for allegedly attempting to pay for sexual acts. Mahayaye resigned from his position at Tufts, which he had held since December 2024, on Monday.
The U.S. Department of Education released a new portal on Feb. 11 displaying data on foreign funding of American universities, including Tufts. The data, which includes disclosures of foreign contributions of $250,000 or more, reveals that Tufts receives more foreign funding from Saudi Arabia-based funders than from any other country by a wide margin.
A federal appeals court overturned a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit against the Saving on Valuable Education student loan repayment plan on March 9, which was created by the Biden Administration. This decision will increase strain on borrowers, including those in the Tufts community.
The Department of Education released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Jan. 29, announcing its intention to restructure the student loan system in an attempt to lower the cost of higher education.
Last fall, Tufts entered the next stage of its ELEVATE strategic visioning initiative, aiming to promote “institutional inclusive excellence,” according to the project’s website. Following its official launch in Oct. 2024, the ELEVATOR Ambassador program was rolled out after a year of community sessions and feedback to create specific plans for Tufts’ improvement.
Concerned Tufts staff members have distributed a petition in conjunction with Tufts Labor Coalition demanding that no workers be laid off as part of Tufts’ Operating Model Transformation, an initiative restructuring the university’s administrative functions.
New York City’s recent mayoral race, which ended Tuesday, drew attention across the country — including from the Tisch family, one of Tufts’ biggest donors. Over the past six months, the family contributed over $1.3 million to Fix the City, a super PAC focused on opposing the mayoral candidacy of Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist who ultimately won the election.
Polls have closed across the City of Somerville as it holds its municipal election Tuesday. The mayoral, City Councilor At-Large, City Council Ward 7 and Ward 3 School Committee races will be decided.
Two questions will appear on Somerville’s Nov. 4 general election ballot: one proposing to extend the mayoral term from two years to four, and the other proposing updates to the city charter, which has remained largely unchanged since 1899.
