GoKawiilHello, everyone.
It’s been a while since I’ve spoken with you all.
But the Institute is facing ongoing challenges in two related areas: funding, and our talent pipeline.
So I thought you’d appreciate hearing the facts.
First, funding.
For more than a year, we’ve all worked on responding to extraordinary new and sustained pressures on our budget (due largely to the heavy new 8% tax on our endowment returns, a burden for MIT and only a few other peer schools).
Across the Institute – centrally and in local units – it was clear to everyone that change was imperative, and you all took the challenge head on. That required serious effort and sacrifice. Some units are still working through the process, and I know the cuts have been painful.
But please know that your efforts have been incredibly valuable – and I appreciate everything you’ve done to get us here.
Through all of this, of course, we’ve kept our eyes on Washington. In February, we heard welcome news regarding Congressional appropriations: Funding for many research agencies had been at least partially restored.
The news seemed encouraging enough that I started hearing people ask if maybe these new developments in DC meant that we could step back from some of the budget cuts at MIT or at least feel confident that we’re past the storm.
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