Ad Hoc Committee on Arts, Culture, and DEI Activating the Arts and Humanities President Reif’s letter to the MIT Community on July 1, 2020 outlined the steps that MIT will take to address systemic problems regarding racial equity at the Institute. As part of the commitment to confront our history, challenge common assumptions, and incorporate previously marginalized voices, he called for an ad hoc committee to activate the arts and humanities in this effort. Provost Martin Schmidt has appointed John Dozier, Institute Community Equity Officer, and Philip S. Khoury, Associate Provost and Ford International Professor of History, to co-chair this committee. Letter to the MIT Community Addressing Systemic Racism (July 1, 2020)Institute Commitments The Charge, Our Next Steps The arts are an essential part of the Institute’s culture, and they have great potential to help move it toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive future. The committee will examine the campus as an artistic expression of MIT’s values and learning environment and recommend ways to deepen our understanding of the Institute’s history and project a more equitable vision for the future through digital, performing, physical, and visual experiences. In addition, the committee will propose nimble and flexible programs to recruit artists of color and broaden the diversity of artistic talent showcased at MIT. Gathering information on current and future MIT educational and research activities in the arts, culture, and DEI domain are an important part of this effort, as well as identifying resources to support them. Letter to the Recommend an approach Committee Members John DozierInstitute Community and Equity Officer, Office of the Provost (co-chair) Philip S. KhouryAssociate Provost and Ford International Professor of History (co-chair) Azra Aksamija’11 PhD, Associate Professor, Program in Art, Culture, and Technology (ACT) Markus J. BuehlerMcAfee Professor of Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering Fontini ChristiaProfessor, Political Science Madhurima Das’18, graduate student, Mechanical Engineering Michel Anne-Frederic DeGraffProfessor, Linguistics Martha EddisonSpecial Assistant and Senior Communications Strategist to the President Peter Godart’15 ’18 M.S., PhD candidate, Mechanical Engineering Annika GomezPhD candidate, Microbiology Kelvin Green II’22, Physics and Literature, UA Officer on Diversity Paul HaDirector, List Visual Arts Center John HarbisonInstitute Professor, Music and Theater Arts Jade Ishii’22, Civil and Environmental Engineering Caroline A. JonesProfessor of the History of Art and Associate Dean, School of Architecture and Planning Katherine HigginsExecutive Director of Arts Initiatives and MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology Leila W. KinneyExecutive Director of Arts Initiatives and MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology William LockettPostdoctoral Fellow, MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology Tod MachoverMuriel R. Cooper Professor of Music and Media and Head, Media Arts and Sciences Trinity Manuelito’23, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science John OchsendorfClass of 1942 Professor, Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering Eto Otitigbe’99, Assistant Professor of Sculpture, Brooklyn College Daniela RusAndrew (1956) and Erna Viterbi Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Director of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) Alicia Carina SanchezExecutive Director, Foundation Relations Charles ShadleSenior Lecturer, Music and Theater Arts Alex K. ShalekAssociate Professor, Chemistry; Institute for Medical Engineering and Science Craig Steven WilderBarton L. Weller Professor of History