The Student Newspaper of Worcester Polytechnic Institute
I n T h is I s su e ... The Pats are back ......... 2 Beyond the Margins...... 6
Volume Twenty-five, Number Fifteen
Tuesday, September 9, 1997
Admissions preparing for Open House
Practice is perfect for Labonte ECE professor named first Professor of Practice at WPI Courtesy o f WPI News Service
by Mike Smith Assitant Director o f Admissions
Robert C. Labonte, a visiting associate pro fessor of electrical and computer engineer ing since 1992, has been named the first Pro fessor of Practice at WPI. According to Pro vost John F. Carney III, the professorship was established last spring to attract distin guished p ro fessio n als, exem plified by Labont6, to WPI to teach and share their ex-
Labonte's long and distinguished career includes more than 30 years with MITRE Corp. pertise. “You could say it’s a talent bridge to connect proven leaders in industry and gov ernment with academia,” says Carney, who notes that in the future there may be as many as six Professor of Practice on campus, with funding coming partially from the Provost’s Office and from the requesting departments. Labont6 ’s long and distinguished career includes more than 30 years with MITRE Corp. Before he retired from the company in 1993, he conducted research and develop ment associated with the implementation of provably secure computer access controls
N EW S SE R V IC E P H O T O
Professor Robert C. Labonte, named first Professor of Practice at WPI.
and equipment for sensitive U.S. government systems. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in electrical engineering from WPI in 1954 and 1960, respectively. In addition to teaching, he is a member of the
Greeks may become networked by Sarah Walkowiak Class o f ‘00 Over the summer, a proposal was made to network the fraternity and sorority houses at WPI. This $400,000 proposal would allow the Greek houses to offer network connections to their residents which would include access to the WPI network. Applications such as UNIX, TCP/IP, courseware, and Internet applications could be accessed from the network connec tions. Several rumors have been circulating about the cause and nature of the project. At press time, the decision to add network connections was not confirmed. The project was presented to a committee of the Board of Trustees for possible approval on September 8th. There have been mixed reactions on campus about the possibility of networking the houses. Some members of the non-Greek community feel that it is unfair for the university to spend money on a project which seems to directly benefit only one group of people.
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News .......................................................... 2 Announcements................................ 2, 10 Sports.............................„....................2 Arts & Entertainment............................. 4 Computing ...........................................5, 7 Commentary........................................ 6, 7
However, the proposal may offer a potential solution to the housing problems on campus. Such an action would benefit the student popu lation of WPI. The Greek houses provide ap proximately 20 % of potential campus housing. Many students who wish to live in the Greek houses choose not to because o f the lack of network access. If the houses were wired, they would be able to better accommodate students who wished to live there. This would open up more on-campus housing to other students. Another concern is the cost o f the project. The university would be responsible for the initial cost of the project, but the cost would be later reimbursed. The cost would be covered by network access fees and funding from the Greek organizations. Greek organizations that wish to gain network access would also have to meet some hardware requirements, such as providing a “wiring closet” and power supply. More information regarding the funding and details of the project may be obtained by ac cessing the project w ebsite at: http:// alum.wpi.edu/+GAC
Contents West Street House .................................... 6 Graduate Student Organization........... 7 Club C om er ............................................. 8 Classifieds.............................................. II Comics.....................................................11 What's Happening................................ 12
ECE Undergraduate Program Committee and the ECE Projects Committee and advises up to five Major Qualifying Projects each year. He directs WPI’s Space Experimentation Pro gram and chairs the Publications Committee.
Admissions activities for WPI’s Class o f2002 are in full swing. The Office of Admissions is currently preparing for the first Open House this year. The program is scheduled for Friday, September 12. These days are designed to give prospec tive students an opportunity to visit our cam pus and take a close look at what makes WPI such a unique and special place. Many WPI students, faculty and staff have volunteered to share their enthusiasm for and experiences at WPI with visiting students and parents. The activities will begin in Harrington Audi torium with a presentation of the WPI Plan. Visitors will then have the opportunity to at tend multiple academic presentations and aca demic department tours as well as tours of the campus, residence halls, and the Music and Theater departments. Presentations from Ad missions, Financial Aid, CDC and Global Pro grams will take place throughout the moming. ROTC and Athletics will be featured in the afternoon, after lunch. Throughout the day, families can stop by the Lower Wedge which will be converted to a “drop-in center”. Repre s s Admissions, continued to page 2
Major Selection Program does more than help choose a major by Kim James MSP Peer Advisor Coordinator Have you ever wondered what your future holds and what steps should you take to get there? If the answer is yes, then you’re not alone. Most of us, at some point in our lives, seek guidance with respect to our future. We usually turn to our family and friends to help us make these decisions, but times are rap idly changing and they are not always aware of the changes. For example, how many of your friends and family have extensive knowledge about all the ma jors and minors here at WPI? And how many know about the job market and the options for co-op and internships? And how many of them are truly objective and can help you make decisions based on who you are and not who they want you to be? Luckily, there is an office on this cam pus providing the information you need to make a well informed decision about your future: The Major Selection Program. The MSP was originally designed to sim ply aid undecided Freshm en and Sophomores in their selection of a major,
but now it’s much, much more. The MSP offers several services to students includ ing, but not limited to, assistance in se lecting a major, personal evaluative tools, special trips to different firms and corpo rate settings, and one-on-one counseling. The goal o f the MSP is to help you in de fining yourself and set goals for the fu ture, which ultimately results in the selec tion of a major. The M SP holds a sem inar every Wednesday from 2:30-4:00 in SL 104, fo cusing on different aspects of self defini tion, goal setting and decision making. You can still get enrolled (course: FS 1000) and take advantage of this opportunity. This week’s activities will include a presenta tion on “Making a decision or keeping your options open”, given by Ann Garvin, Di rector of Academic Advising. You may also stop by the Career Devel opment Center, located in the lower level of the Project Center, to make an appoint ment to meet with one of the counselors. (We can also be reached via em ail, msp@wpi.edu, to answer any questions or schedule an appointment.) So, why make life more difficult? Let the MSP gang help you chart your future!