In the Media

Leading transformation

The Greenway Institute – Making Transformative Engineering Education Affordable – Forbes

Jul 24, 2025

"Olin College of Engineering, founded in 1997 with gifts of $460 million from the F. W. Olin Foundation, was one of the first of these new institutions and developed a new curriculum centered on project-based learning and user-centered design."

How we transform to a fully decarbonized world – MIT Technology Review

Apr 24, 2025

A world powered by electricity from abundant, renewable resources is now within reach.

College team unveils AI-powered robot that could transform how we grow food: 'Truly exciting' – The Cool Down

Mar 27, 2025

"Weeding takes up about 50-75% of the work we do. Some parts of the year, it's just weeding," said organic farmer Tim Laird. "Organic farmers are trying to come up with different ways of combating the weeds." Robotics students from the Olin College of Engineering are helping to find a solution to that.

Banning DEI Is Catastrophic for U.S. Science – Inside Higher Education

Mar 26, 2025

An attack on DEI is an attack on science itself, Joseph L. Graves Jr., Stacy C. Farina, Parvin Shahrestani, Vaughn S. Cooper and Gilda A. Barabino write.

Leading transformation

See Which 20 Colleges Give You the Biggest Bang for Your Buck – Money

Mar 03, 2025

The center analyzed data on the cost of attendance and median earnings for enrollees at 4,600 different colleges and universities to determine each institution’s return on investment, or ROI. Researchers looked at how much alumni earned cumulatively after 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, 30 years and 40 years — minus the cost of attendance.

Engineering for impact

Is a college degree really worth it? Inside the heated debate about the value of higher education. – Boston Globe

Feb 12, 2025

"Schools with robust co-op and internship programs, such as Northeastern University and Endicott College, also posted strong financial results in almost all fields. Others that performed well in the data set include colleges with business or engineering focuses, such as Babson College, Bentley University, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Wentworth Institute of Technology, and Olin College."

Engineering for impact

The Lesson Higher Education Needs To Learn – Forbes

Feb 03, 2025

"Think about what the mastery approach could do in postsecondary education — and is already doing in colleges such as Olin College of Engineering, which uses a project-based model that emphasizes collaboration between faculty and also between faculty and students."

Olin College president plans to step down amid financial strain at the school – WBUR

Jan 10, 2025

The president of Olin College of Engineering will step down at the end of the academic year, a spokeswoman for the school confirmed Friday.

Olin College, whose president is resigning, joins ranks of institutions facing financial and leadership difficulties – Boston Globe

Jan 10, 2025

Gilda A. Barabino, who became the college’s first Black and first female president in July 2020 and only the second leader in its history, plans to exit at the end of the academic year, a spokesperson for Olin confirmed.

To help small New England farms, these students built a ‘Roomba’ for weeds – MassLive

Nov 29, 2024

Some call it a Roomba for weeds. Or a farmhand RoboCop. The students of Olin College of Engineering call their creation the PhoenixBot.

Student

Students at Massachusetts college design lightsaber with engineering skills – CBS News

Sep 13, 2024

A recent graduate of Olin College in Needham, Massachusetts has brought a film icon to life, designing his own lightsaber.

Leading transformation

These solar-powered trash cans you've probably used are made in Mass. – NBC Boston

Aug 14, 2024

The Massachusetts company was the brainchild of four Olin and Babson college students about 20 years ago with a simple goal: to make communities cleaner and greener. Now the business is evolving.

How Fresh-Out-of-College DIYers Built the Star Wars Lightsaber of Your Dreams – Gizmodo

Aug 14, 2024

Just a few months after graduating college, Jacob Uy and his fellow engineers built a lightsaber. Now, plenty of companies will build you a custom saber, “whoosh” sound effects and all.

Leading transformation

Teens Design Innovative Shade Structure At Donnelly Field To Help Cambridge Address Warming World – City of Cambridge

Aug 14, 2024

SHADE was designed by a local youth committee (Cheryl Rateau, Eli Goncalves, Nico Chandler, Samadhi Simmons, Matt Keane, and Amara Henry-Guity) with support from Buildingways, Friday Night Hype, Citizens of the World, Olin College of Engineering, Jennifer Lee, Cambridge Public Health Department and Pneuhaus.

A real lightsaber? This Mass. student turned science fiction into reality – NBC Boston

Aug 04, 2024

Jacob Uy, a recent graduate of Olin College of Engineering, uses the engineering skills he learned in Needham to "become a hero" — the slogan of his company, Herotech.

Perkins School for the Blind aims to spur disability innovation with new database – The Business Journals

Jul 05, 2024

Students from the Olin College of Engineering demonstrate their technologies at the Perkins School for the Blind.