Clubs and activities

Latinx students were celebrated at the first MIT Latinx graduation celebration at the Media Lab on May 31, reports Arrman Kyaw for Diverse Issues in Higher Education. “It was an honor to plan the first Institute-wide Latinx graduation ceremony, a process that began over a year ago with the mission to recognize not only the academic achievements of our community but also this large milestone within our culture and heritage,” says Isabella Salinas ’23, president of the Latino Cultural Center.

Fast Company reporter Amelia Hemphill spotlights the work of Alicia Chong Rodriguez SM ’17, SM ’18, and her startup Bloomer Tech, which is “dedicated to transforming women’s underwear into a healthcare device.” “Our big goal is to generate digital biomarkers,” says Chong Rodriguez. “Digital biomarkers work more like a video, so it will definitely allow a more personalized care from the physician to their patient.”

After almost 50 years, the MIT Juggling Club, which was founded in 1975 and then merged with a unicycle club, is the oldest drop-in juggling club in continuous operation and still welcomes any aspiring jugglers to come toss a ball into the air, reports Stacy Kess for Cambridge Day. Through the years the club has “attracted a cross-section of humanity: young, old, students, professors, people who changed the course of the world, artists, writers, performers and the juggling-curious,” writes Kess. 

NBC 1^st Look host Chelsea Cabarcas visits MIT to learn more about how faculty, researchers and students are “pioneering the world of tomorrow.” Cabarcas meets the MIT Solar Electric Vehicle team and gets a peek at Nimbus, the single-occupant vehicle that team members raced in the American Solar Challenge from Kansas City to New Mexico. Cabarcas also sees the back-flipping MIT mini cheetah that could one day be used in disaster-relief operations.

Washington Post columnist Karen Attiah emphasizes the importance of representation in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” which featured Riri Williams (Ironheart) as a Black female engineer at MIT. Attiah notes that she is “grateful that ‘Black Panther 2’ exists to show us what #BlackGirlGenius looks like.” 

Parents reporter Tanay Howard writes that “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” offers up powerful role models, in particular Shuri and Riri Williams (also known as Ironheart), who is depicted as an MIT student. “Seeing Shuri and Riri Williams do their thing in Black Panther is not only an exciting dynamic for Marvel comic readers but an inspiration to Black girls and women,” writes Howard.

The MIT Chorallaries, a co-ed a cappella group at MIT, compete in WGBH’s Sing That Thing! competition. “I have always been really interested in music, but also really enjoyed doing math and science in school,” explains third-year student Madeline Wong. “I feel like they are both integral parts of my life and I couldn’t have one without the other.”

AP reporter Collin Binkley writes about Swapfest, an event hosted by the MIT Radio Society, in conjunction with the MIT UHF Repeater Association, the MIT Electronics Research Society, and the Harvard Wireless Club, “where tinkerers from across New England go to buy and sell the gadgets they can't find in stores.” 

MIT students launched a balloon the size of a small house as part of the Global Space Balloon Challenge last weekend, reports Amanda Hoover for Boston Magazine. The group’s balloon was dedicated to Shriners Hospital for Children in Boston, "flying high to raise support and awareness for the institution and its patients.”

The Boston Globe reports on the MIT football team’s victory in the first round of the NCAA Division 3 playoffs. The Engineers kicked a field goal to force overtime, “then got a 13-yard touchdown pass from Peter Williams to Seve Esparrago to pull out a 27-20 victory over Husson.”

Wall Street Journal reporter Ben Cohen takes a look at the revival of the MIT football program, which after being disbanded in 1901 was resurrected as a student-run squad in 1978. “They deserve a lot of credit for where we are today,” says MIT President L. Rafael Reif of MIT’s founding football players.

When students at MIT banded together in 1978 to form a football team, another group of students came together to start the Institute’s marching band, writes Ben Cohen for The Wall Street Journal. “You have to have a marching band if you have a football team,” said marching band co-founder Tom Gaul.

Rheana Murray of ABC News spotlights the undefeated MIT football team. "It's nice to see our players get this kind of attention for what they're doing on the field because they are all-stars, if you will, off the field," says Head Coach Chad Martinovich. "I am really proud of them and happy for them."

Kyle Plantz profiles MIT’s Underwater Hockey Club for USA Today. “It’s social, it’s an exercise, it’s competitive, it’s a great workout, it’s a three-dimensional sport,” says Underwater Hockey Club organizer Martin Jaspan.