To the Editor:
Many students look forward to the Wednesday delivery of The Poly, to catch up on news, sports, or maybe just the comics. I, on the other hand, and many others, also read through the EdOp section to see which issues are having the most impact on the campus. In last week’s issue, for example, the staff editorial dealt with the proposed legislation affecting Division III athletics, a proposal that threatens the rich history of RPI hockey. Yet, it managed to miss or misconstrue many of the facts that were contained in the sports news article on the back page of the same issue. With resources that close at hand, there is no reason for the factual basis of an editorial to come into question.
If this most recent issue were the only case of an editorial missing the whole truth, one could write it off to the hectic beginning of the semester, to getting people back in the newspaper mindset. However, this is not the first time in recent months that The Poly has published a staff editorial without knowledge of all the facts. This summer the editorial board stated their opinions on the progress of the campus construction projects, “Campus projects must not hinder students’ mobility.” In one instance, the editorial states that the construction of the biotech building “seems to be behind schedule.” In fact, if anyone from The Poly had attended any of the monthly construction meetings, they would know that the construction of the biotechnology building is one of the few campus projects that is still on schedule. The College Avenue reconstruction and the parking garage projects, however, are both behind the originally stated deadlines, owing the severity of this past year’s winter.
As for the construction putting a crimp in accessing parts of campus, the fenced in boundaries of the project are constructed for the safety of the public. All buildings on campus are still accessible.
Finally, there is an issue with the general theme of the editorial. If one reads the editorial, the overarching claim is made that projects should be organized with the convenience of the students in mind. Since students are on campus all year round, when could construction projects take place and not impact the students? Residence hall projects have to take place over the summer, since that is the only time when the halls are not occupied. Asking that residence hall renovations are completed over three summer months is a daunting enough task without asking that it be done in such a way that there is no outward evidence of the renovation. One would have to do away with those pesky safety fences again, the ones that protect the public. It seems to me that the impact and safety of students were foremost on the minds of the campus planning department and construction companies when schedules were developed.
Over the years The Poly has proved to be a positive, constructive, and informative voice in the RPI community. The staff editorials, which speak to this community and express the opinions of the paper itself, can be the strongest measure of that voice. As editors, and elected officers of The Polytechnic, you have chosen to accept the responsibility not just of running a club and newspaper, but also of being an accurate and reliable source of information to the student body. The failure of the editorial board to research and understand the issues reflects poorly on the editors, and undermines the credibility of the paper as a whole. I urge the editorial board, from the Editor in Chief on down, to act with responsibility when speaking with the voice of the paper.
Michael Brown
ALUM
