Class of 1992 revives Goat’s Head tradition by Mike Shorr On Friday April 27th, the class of 1992 led by Mike Shorr, Dave C ortese, Ellen M adigan, and B ernadette C arraway revived the G o at’s Head T radi tion. The last class to successfully steal the G oat’s head was the class of 1984 who kept the G oat’s head in h id ing for several years. This tradition was initiated by the class o f 1893 who had a m ascot, a living, breathing goat. The upkeep of the animal became too great for the original goat keeper, G om pei Kuwada. Therefore it was killed and the
head was stuffed and mounted. A bronze replica o f this G oat’s head, which is now the coveted trophy for the w inning class o f the traditional freshm an-sophom ore rivalry com peti tion, was presented to the Tech C oun cil in 1928. Follow ing 1928, the tradi tions associated with the com petition have been re-enacted with varying success. The w inning class is determined by the outcom es o f the traditional rivalry events. This year, the class of 1992 swept all three com petitions - the rope pull, the paddle rush, and the basket ball game. Following the homecom ing
football gam e, the rope pull was held at Institute Pond. W ith the freshm en obviously outnum bered, it was no sur prise that the class o f 1992 won with ease. The second battle, the paddle rush, was still no obstacle for the sophom ores despite the now even numbers. This was also the case for the final event, the halftim e basketball game. The sophom ores’ speed and agility could not be matched by the freshman class. W ith no doubt in anyone’s mind, the rightful victors of the traditional freshm en-sophom ore rivalry were the sophom ores. All that
The Student Newspaper of Worcester Polytechnic Institute Volume 1 8 , Number 1 2 Tuesday, May
was left was to obtain the G o at’s head. W ith much concern and apprehen sion directed toward the true ability o f the sophom ore class in obtaining the G oat’s head, the Alumni O ffice can now rest at ease. Following num erous certain reports of how the class o f 1992 accom plished the feat, the G o at’s thigh now bears the num ber 1992. There is much speculation to the circum stances that led to the event, but all that is truly known is that the G oat’s head was relum ed exactly 92 m inutes after its m ysterious disappearance. This was the finale to the class o f 19 9 2 ’s efforts
in returning class traditions back onto the Tech campus. W e the m em bers o f the class of 1992 hereby invite any succeeding classes to accept this challenge, if they are worthy, to uphold the continuation o f the traditional WPI games. By chance, if they are successful in all three events, like the prestigious class o f 1992, we wish you the best o f luck in obtaining the G oat’s head and right fully engraving your class year as tra dition states.
See page 7 for related photo
1 ,1 9 9 0
New Provost talks about campus issues by Jeffrey S. Goldmeer Associate Editor During the last week o f March, W P I’s new Provost, Diran A pelian, was on cam pus for a series o f m eet ings. Dr. Apelian met with students and faculty to discuss cam pus issues. During his visit, I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Apelian. The follow ing is an excerpt of this interview. The perception (by undergradu ates) that the adm inistration views them only as a source of income: “The first thing to do is to diffuse that idea, m aybe to make a big hole out there in the field and bury that notion. It is a terrible notion. I come here w ith a new perspective and see a shared identity am ong the faculty; a com m it ment to education. I see the faculty dedicated to educating the under graduates as well as having aspirations to do graduate research and pursue the frontiers o f knowledge creation.” “The projects are so labor intensive com pared to any other curriculum that I’ve see in engineering education. By the sheer im plem entation o f the plan that exists here, there is a real devotion to do it.”
The perception that research is more im portant than teaching: “It is unfortunate that those kinds of perceptions are being sensed. I think what we want (“w e” m eaning the fac ulty and adm inistration) is quality in scholarship. (The faculty and the administration should be working to gether; no “ us” and “them .”) Teaching at the exclusion o f scholarship is not the wave o f the future, perhaps it w as in the past. Teaching versus Scholarship: “It’s a balance we are talking about, not one versus the other. If you are just doing research and not good teaching that is a terrible thing. If you are only teaching and not involved in scholar ship that is also a terrible thing to do. It is difficult to separate the two; they are so synergistic.” “W hen you stop reading sooner or later you will stop writing and then sooner or later you stop doing research and then sooner or later you stop ex cit ing others and teaching w ell.” “We must be careful not to equate doing research and scholarship with how much money you bring in.” Faculty Evaluations: “It’s ludicrous to have param eters
WPI to require measles vaccination b y Jo Ann VanDyke Asst. Supervisor o f N ursing During the past two years, there has been a significant increase in the num ber o f measles cases reported to the C enter for Disease C ontrol (CD C) including reports of outbreaks on over 70 college campuses. The measles outbreaks of the past two years have indicated that the national im m uniza tion policy is not working. A m ajority of cases have occurred in individuals who have been immunized on or after 15 m onths of age suggesting that a single dose of MMR vaccine m ay not provide adequate protection against measles. For this reason, the N ational Academy of Pediatrics (A AP) and the Advisory Com m ittee on Im m uniza tion Practices (ACIP) have changed their measles vaccine recom m enda tion from one dose to two doses for students bom after January 1, 1957. The M assachusetts Departm ent of Public Health and the A m erican C ol lege Health Association have recom mended that the new im munization guidelines set forth by the A A P and the ACIP be im plemented by all health care providers. In recom m ending the new two dose schedule they further state “any college student w ho has not already received two doses o f measles vaccine (given on or after 12 m onths of
age) by college entry should receive a second dose at that time. Due to the high mobility of college students and the potential for mass exposure in classes and at athletic and social events, colleges have becom e a primary foci o f transmission. On sev eral cam puses this past spring, measles outbreaks forced the cancellation of classes, social activities and athletic events. Based on the above information, W orcester Polytechnic Institute is rec om m ending that all its currently en rolled undergraduates and graduate students check their own immuniza
tion records and secure the recom mended second dose if necessary. Incoming freshman will be required to have the second im munization. W hile we are not im posing this requirem ent on currently enrolled students, we strongly suggest you obtain this for your own protection. The WPI Health Service will not be able to provide the recom m ended second dose, however, we are available to check the health records currently on file for you and apprise you o f your im munization status and needs. If you have any questions concern ing your ow n immunization status please feel free to call WPI Health Services, 831-5520.
Senior Event Correction The Tuesday, April 24, 1990 issue o f N ew speak contained an error in the “ Update on Senior E vents." It should read: Saturday, May 19 - C om m encem ent Cerem ony, Quad 11:00 am.
that evaluate people by one number. For example: 50% teaching and 50% research. It is ludicrous to set such standards.” Success in Academia: “W e m ust m ake sure that the fac ulty here are successful them selves. Success is a very relative (subjective) kind o f thing, it’s very different for each individual. A s an institution of higher learning we are the integral of all faculty m em ber’s successes.” Positive Aspects o f WPI: “The students are dedicated, pro ductive, good work ethics, and inter ested in their fields.” “There is a caring and nurturement o f students through fellows, math hours, etc... It is the little things that in the aggregate make up all o f the quality aspects.” WPI in the year 2000: “The faculty and 1will work hand in hand to achieve the future vision that we will collectively have to put to gether. A strategic plan has been es
tablished and specific goals will have to be m ade on a departm ental basis; what actions are required to achieve these goals.” “A s we enter the third m illennium I would like to see WPI having a pre em inent position in the nation for its undergraduate program. The nation needs a lot o f good engineering stu dents, and there is a dim inishing inter est in technology by the younger gen eration. So part of our job is to turn that around.” O pportunities in G raduate Educa tion (Leaders o f Technology): “T here exists an opportunity to do a sim ilar model with graduation educa tion as was done with the undergradu ate plan; to educate the whole person, not ju st the engineer. We want to be globally com petitive, not fb lose the edge in technology. That will require a hum an resource base; people who are technologically trained on the gradu ate level in a new program m atic, inno
vative approach. I w ould like to see a program like this unique to WPI; one which will serve needs o f country. I am talking about a product of the Ph.D. program. The Ph.D. that will serve the third millennium . A person who un derstands the global econom ics o f our society, who has some management training, perhaps m anagem ent of engi neering and technological issues, who speaks one or two languages.” General Advice: “As an institution w e can not sit back and rely on glories o f the past, but rather advance what we have now and even make it better. I think those people who put the plan together would want nothing but that. They d o n ’t want this thing to becom e an archaic plan, but one that is constantly changing to stay in tune with the de mands and needs of our nation, be cause change in itself is a good thing, it has to occur. We are after all, agents of change.”
All your questions about the Alumni Association are answered by Jeffrey S. G oldm eer Associate E ditor Recently I received a letter from the A lumni Fund asking if I would like to contribute to WPI and the 1989 annual cam paign. I replied to this letter with a letter o f my own, which opened a dia logue betw een m yself and Liz Siladi, the Director o f the Alumni Fund. The goal o f this article is to educate the average WPI student to the “ in’s and o u t’s” o f the Alumni A ssociation. This will be done by answ ering a num ber o f important questions about the association and its function. What is the Alumni Association? Founded in 1891, W PI’s Alumni A ssociation is a service organization w hose purpose is to provide both bene fits and services to W PI. The associa tion is led by a president, an executive com m ittee com posed o f alum ni and students who chair specific program areas, and an alum ni council com prised o f alumni class and regional representatives. There are currently 20.000 members in the association, who are active in 23 alumni clubs na tionwide. As part o f the college’s by laws, at least 15 alum ni are part o f the board o f trustees. W hat services does the Alumni O ffice/A lum ni A ssociation provide students? In general the alumni program pro vides opportunities for alumni and students to be involved with their alma mater. There are several “ services” which are provided to students through the Student Alumni Society - M anag ing your Salary, “G o o d stu ff’ pack ages, hom ecom ing Parade, survival kits and general promotion of tradi tions. The Alumni Office staff can be helpful in providing names and ad dress o f alumni for project or job con
nections as well as for club activities. There is a phone bank available by reservation for groups w ishing to hold phonathons for fund raising or other purposes. The Alumni O ffice also m aintains a complete library o f class yearbooks as well as an inventory of yearbooks for the more recent classes. In addition, the Alumni O ffice pro vides other services, such as enroll m ents in a group term-life insurance program, a new short-term major m edical insurance program for gradu ating seniors, discounts on group travel packages, and a credit card pro gram which will be introduced this fall for all alum ni including graduating seniors. Information on these pro gram s is distributed to alum ni on a periodic basis. The Alumni Association also helps alum ni keep in touch with WPI through publications, including the WPI Journal and The W ire. In addi tion, the Alumni Office also publishes an alum ni directory, offers career developm ent programs, and a listing o f jo b opportunities for alum ni w ish ing to change careers. One o f the m ajor
functions o f the Alumni Association is the organization and m anagem ent of alumni reunion program s and Home coming. What is the Alumni Fund? The WPI Alumni Fund was estab lished by the Alumni A ssociation in 1924 with the purpose of soliciting annual operating support for W PI from alumni of all classes. It is one o f the oldest annual funds in the country. That first fund drive raised $16,600 from 866 alum ni. In 1988-89 the Alumni Fund campaign raised nearly $1.6 million from 5,625 donors. The Alumni Fund provides “ funds to live by” with gifts which are generally unrestricted and can be used through out the year in support o f the Institute’s annual operating budget. Tuition covers less than 70% of the income necessary to meet our annual unre stricted operating budget, and the Alumni Fund is important and neces sary to provide the balance o f income needed to maintain a quality WPI experience for all students. Typical continued on page 3
This is the last issue of the year Newspeak wants to wish everyone a good summer. See y’all in A-term First issue next year is August 28,1990