The MIT Quarter Century Club (QCC), comprising staff and faculty members with 25 years of employment at the Institute, inducted 99 new members at a March 13 ceremony at the Samberg Conference Center. This year’s class includes 77 inductees from the Cambridge campus and 22 from Lincoln Laboratory. The late Sergeant John Carr of the MIT Police was inducted as an honorary member. In addition, the club recognized 38 members who mark their 50-year anniversary with MIT this fiscal year.
QCC President Yvonne L. Gittens along with the club’s board of directors hosted the event. Also welcoming inductees were fellow QCC member Eric D. Evans, director of Lincoln Laboratory, and Lorraine A. Goffe, vice president for human resources.
The luncheon’s keynote speaker, QCC member Philip S. Khoury, associate provost and the Ford International Professor of History, honored inductees and members of the 50-year gold class. Khoury’s presentation focused on MIT’s uniqueness, in particular its commitment to being a meritocracy, and how MIT has changed, within and beyond the classroom, over the 25 years since the inductees started working at MIT. He also spoke on a topic near and dear to his heart, MIT’s outstanding architecture and public art collection. Lorraine A. Goffe closed the ceremony by offering appreciation for members’ commitment to MIT and the tremendous value of their Institutional knowledge.
Following the induction, new member Claudia LaBolitta-James, assistant to the department head for the Department of Physics, reflected on the swift passage of time and a special history shared by MIT colleagues, “For me, joining the QCC is a wonderful acknowledgement by MIT of my service with the Institute. Twenty-five years here have literally flown by and meeting other QCC members and sharing our work and social histories at the induction luncheon was a wonderful and uplifting experience."
The club awards a recognition gift to new inductees and hosts three annual events, which provide an opportunity to promote good fellowship among long-term employees of the MIT community.
A special resource available to retired QCC members is the William R. Dickson Retiree Education Fund, established to honor Bill Dickson, senior vice president of the Institute, upon his retirement in 1998. This scholarship program supports retired members in the pursuit of their educational, hobby, health, wellness, and fitness instruction. Retired QCC members interested in learning more are encouraged to contact the Quarter Century Club at qcc-reply@mit.edu or 617-253-7914.
The club was formed by a union of two organizations: the Silver Club, founded in 1946, for female faculty and staff; and the Quarter Century Club, founded in 1950, by a group of men from among the hourly personnel. In 1970, membership of the QCC expanded to include faculty and all staff. Finally, in 1974, the clubs were merged into one Quarter Century Club to encompass the entire Institute community. Today, the club is comprised of 4,374 active and retired members; 182 members have served the Institute for more than 50 years.
New QCC member Thomas Hrycaj, administrative officer at the Plasma Science and Fusion Center, said of his induction: “I was pleased to participate in the Quarter Century Club’s induction luncheon and appreciated the recognition of having reached 25 years of service. It was a pleasant reminder of my good fortune of being affiliated with such a great institution that is a positive influence in the world.”
The Quarter Century Club office is located in MIT Building E19-711. Individuals may contact the club at 617-253-7914 or by email.
