In the Media

Driving equity

After affirmative action ban, one small Massachusetts college plots a course to maintain racial diversity – wbur

Jul 17, 2023

Many in the Olin community are dismayed by the decision to roll back affirmative action.
“Personally, I felt really sad about it, frankly,” said Susan Hartley Brisson, the school's director of admissions. “It seems like it’s a giant step backwards for us, in many ways.”

Healey-Driscoll Administration Releases Joint Statement in Response to Supreme Court Decision on Race-Based Admissions – Mass.gov

Jun 29, 2023

We will continue to break down barriers to higher education so that all students see themselves represented in both our public and private campus communities. Massachusetts, the home of the first public school and first university, will lead the way in championing access, equity, and inclusion in education.

Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen warns of algorithmic dangers – The Washington Post

Jun 08, 2023

She writes that Olin “believed integrating the humanities into its engineering curriculum was essential because it wanted its alumni to understand not just whether a solution could be built, but whether it should be built.”

Leading transformation

Best Value Colleges – The Princeton Review

May 22, 2023

The best value colleges list is based on a combination of institutional and student survey data, including academic rigor, affordability, and career outcomes for graduates, among others.

Top Colleges for High-Paying Jobs in Software – The Wall Street Journal

May 05, 2023

The software ranking includes software engineers and computer scientists in any industry, according to Matt Sigelman, president of Burning Glass. It is differentiated from the technology ranking, which spans all job titles employed exclusively in the tech industry, and the data and applied science analysis, which includes specific data-centric roles across all industries, he says.

Leading transformation

Top 25 Colleges for Electrical Engineering – DesignNews

May 04, 2023

College Factual, a college evaluation and rankings service, compiled the top college electrical engineering programs. The criteria listed includes the number of degrees awarded, highest degree available, and median starting salary, where available.

President Barabino

Opinion: We won’t win the CHIPS race if women and people of color stay on the sidelines – CNN

May 04, 2023

As women leaders who have broken ground in STEM and higher education, we know well the isolating feeling of being the “only” in a room — whether as the only woman or the only person of color, or both. But more than just a feeling, the cognitive load of being an “only” can negatively affect performance.

President Barabino

AAAS and Cuban Academy of Sciences Reflect on the Future of U.S.-Cuba Scientific Cooperation – AAAS

May 04, 2023

Gilda Barabino, president of Olin College of Engineering and chair of the AAAS Board, provided an overview of the U.S. scientific enterprise. She focused on trends in nondefense research and development (R&D) spending, particularly on the two main topics discussed during the symposium: public health and environmental issues.

All-Women Group of University Presidents, Deans of Engineering from Six of America's Leading Research Universities Issue an Open Letter Supporting the CHIPS and Science Act – PR Newswire

Apr 20, 2023

The letter details steps that higher education institutions in partnership with government and industry must take to support the legislation's ambitious goals to grow - and critically to diversify - the semiconductor workforce, and at the time of publishing is signed by leadership from Brown University, Dartmouth, Indiana University, University of Rochester, University of Washington, University of California – Berkeley, and Olin College

Lessons Learned: Stories from Women Leaders in STEM – PR Newswire

Mar 30, 2023

A new book published by the American Association for Physician Leadership, Lessons Learned: Stories from Women Leaders in STEM, addresses the lack of women in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) through the first-person accounts of notable women who have excelled in a range of STEM-related leadership roles.

President Barabino

AAAS President Gilda Barabino: Humanity Is Core to Science – AAAS

Mar 04, 2023

During her presidential address, Barabino urged attendees to look beyond the definition of “humanity” that refers simply to the condition of being human and focus on a humanity that encompasses values such as compassion, understanding, kindness, interconnectedness and inclusion.

The Impact of the Maker Movement – SWE Magazine

Feb 24, 2023

Daniela Faas, Ph.D., associate professor of practice and director of fabrication and laboratory operations at Olin College, says a major component of a makerspace is not denying any user anything. Whether it’s the student in the materials science class who is making a cheese knife out of cheese, someone working on a Valentine’s gift, or a student who wants to try the rotary laser cutter, all use is encouraged. “A lot of it is just the sense of not saying no,” said Dr. Faas.

Higher Ed Institutions, STEMM Organizations Should Act to Change Cultures to Support Inclusive Excellence and Dismantle Barriers Created by Systemic Racism and Implicit Bias – National Academies

Feb 14, 2023

“The concepts of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion are not goals for which a simple checklist will indicate success,” said Gilda Barabino, president of Olin College of Engineering and professor of biomedical and chemical engineering, and co-chair of the committee that wrote the report.

Why it's so hard to make salt water drinkable – PBS

Jan 31, 2023

Though there’s a range of efficiency in both methods, thermal desalination requires roughly 10 times as much energy as reverse osmosis, says Emily Tow, a mechanical engineer at Olin College of Engineering who studies water desalination and reuse.

Faculty

Asteroid Measurements Make No Sense – The Atlantic

Jan 26, 2023

These can be helpful images, but the approach has its limitations. “You can be into sports, but if you’re not into U.S. football, these football fields make no sense,” Carrie Nugent, a planetary scientist at Olin College

Leading transformation

Raising Your Voices Focus of the 36th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast – Framingham SOURCE

Jan 17, 2023

More than 200 people attended the Greater Framingham Community Church’s 36th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial celebration breakfast at the Verve Hotel in Framingham on Monday morning. The keynote speaker was Olin College President Gilda Barabino.