Adam Epstein '05

It has been quite a summer so far, and yes I mean the heat. Thankfully the office is air conditioned, so if you’re visiting WPI you can have a reprieve even if it is brief. Finally today it is cooler (forecast to be low 80s) and drier! Anyway, here is some of what I’ve been doing since I last wrote:

• On my second monitor, I keep visible the constructions cameras for the new Sports and Recreation Center. The progress in just two months is amazing!
• In June I saw Seth Godin speak in Boston. He told the audience that we should blog every day. I don’t agree that I should blog every day, but certainly I need to do better than once every few months.
• The second session of our summer program Frontiers began yesterday. I created a video slideshow of session one that was shown at the closing ceremony on Friday.
• Starting tonight we’re hosting welcome BBQs for the newest members of the WPI community, the Class of 2014 and their families. I hope to see you at some of them! By the way, did I mention that classes start one month from today?
• We’re also welcoming hundreds of families to campus for our Summer Academic Visit Days beginning this morning.

So a quick catch up post to get back in the swing. Stay tuned for much more as the academic year approaches!

As I’ve mentioned several times before, Commencement is my favorite day at WPI. It is such a celebration of the accomplishment of the students, and I am lucky to get to know many of them in my job. Again this year I played a role in the coordination and execution of the ceremony, but the day is really about the graduates. Congratulations to the Class of 2010!

This year, I created two time-lapse movies of Commencement; one is of the day of the ceremony itself, and the other is a few days prior capturing the event setup.

Commencement day:

Commencement setup:

Yesterday was my birthday. You may recall that last year some of the interns in the Admissions Office decided to wrap my door and many of the objects in my office in plastic wrap.

Not to be outdone, this year some students came into the office early this afternoon, sat me down, made an announcement, and performed an original song in front of the staff and visitors in the office! Check out the video below.

There’s a constant in both of these: Admissions Intern Kristen. Kristen is only a junior, so I better stay on my toes for next year. Check out her blog for more fun.

By now I’m sure you have heard the news: the notable groundhogs of the world saw their shadow this morning. Yes, folks, sight of a shadow is said to bring with it six more weeks of winter. Personally, I am ecstatic about this news. Winter is my favorite season, and I’ll gladly take another twelve—let alone six—weeks. But not everyone feels the same way I do. To make up for it, here are some exciting things that will happen in the next six weeks for WPI students:

• Valentine’s Day: February 14, strong positive and negative associations depending on the situation.
• Academic Advising Day: February 18, no classes.
• Last day of C-Term: March 5, self explanatory!
• Spring break: March 6–13, self explanatory.
• First day of D-Term: March 15, last term of the year & exactly two months before Commencement.
• Robert Goddard Day: March 16, celebrating the first liquid fueled rocket launch by WPI alumnus Robert Goddard.

Let’s hope for some snow mixed in with what remains of winter. I know I will be.

One of the really great things about college is that there are literally hundreds of events each year held on campus that are open for you (and often, faculty and staff) to attend. You’ll find concerts, discussions, movies, dances, festivals, lectures, networking, leadership seminars, and even the occasional political event. One such event happened a few weeks ago at WPI.

You are probably familiar with the recent especial US Senate election in Massachusetts. This election on January 19, 2010 was surely one of the most if not the most publicized and contested in my time living in Massachusetts. Even with the hype surrounding the election, I was very surprised when I learned that the Democratic candidate, Martha Coakley, selected WPI as the location she wanted to hold a rally just days before the polling. Normally I’d have thought that having such an event on campus would simply add a little buzz on a Friday evening, but this event was to include former President Bill Clinton!

The inclusion of Bill Clinton was really something special—a former president coming to WPI and speaking in a building I can see from my office! Politics aside, I had to go to this event! The Great Hall of Alden Memorial was nearly at capacity on Friday evening, January 15, and I went armed with a camera. You can see some of the photos I took below including some very close-up shots to President Clinton. Unfortunately I was just a few feet too far back in the crowd when he was shaking hands at the conclusion of the event.

Seeing (just some) of the logistics of this event was my favorite part. Security was, of course, especially tight. WPI, Worcester, and State Police were visible all afternoon in addition to Secret Service. What is usually a building that’s free to roam through, Alden Memorial was on lock down. In my opinion, a minor inconvenience for such a rare event!

I know that there were many students in attendance at the event, and since it was open to the public, some of them were right up front and had the chance to meet the former president. When you get to college, make sure you study and keep up with academics. But don’t fall victim of not taking advantage of all of the wonderful opportunities outside of your classes—you never know what type of event will be happening or who will speak on your doorstep!

Please note that WPI did not endorse a candidate in the election, and Martha Coakley’s campaign independently reserved the space on campus and paid for all associated costs. I am writing about it as an example of an intriguing event on campus that WPI students, faculty, and staff had the opportunity to attend.

The final application deadline for fall 2010 admission is just days away: February 1 to be precise. To apply for regular decision, be sure that you submit your application online by 11:59pm on Tuesday night or that your paper application is in the mail and postmarked no later than Tuesday. Of course, I don’t recommend waiting until Tuesday at 11:30pm to start your application, but if you plan to apply to WPI and haven’t yet, you better get moving!

We want you to make us work! Our office processes and thoroughly reviews every application we receive, so the more we get, the more work we have to do. Your applications will keep us busy for the next several months, and that is just what we want!! Serious. :)

Apply now!

Photo courtesy of bionicteaching on Flickr.

This morning I looked at xkcd as I do every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning. I almost always get a kick out of xkcd, and today was no exception (after all, I work at WPI and I graduated from here so xkcd is right up my alley!) Today, however, the the comic resonated with me in a different way than usual: the topic is about FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), something in which I have not been involved but something with which I have come to be quite familiar. Many WPI applicants, students, and alumni have been members of FIRST (read more about FIRST and the annual championships).

Anyway, today’s comic relates to the newly announced Breakaway game. To FIRST participants: good luck, and we hope to see you at the inaugural WPI Regional or the Championship!

By the way, if you are looking to grab my attention and impress me in your application, mention xkcd. :)

Image posted under Creative Commons license from xkcd.

Well, it’s been a while—in fact an entire term at WPI—since I last posted. This time of year is my busiest with respect to travel, and the past six weeks have been no exception. As I write this, I’m at the airport in Phoenix, AZ waiting to board a plane back to the east coast. I’ll sleep in my own bed on Tuesday night for only the third time this month!

I really enjoy my travel schedule for a few reasons not the least of which is the actual areas to which I have the privilege of going! This month I’ve been to Denver, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Seattle, San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles, San Diego, Tucson, Phoenix, and many smaller cities and towns among them. Add in the end of September, and the grand total is fifteen states, ten flights, over two dozen hotels, nearly 80 high schools, about 40 interviews, thousands of miles driven, and one set of keys locked in a rental car! Talk about a whirlwind!

It’s great to visit so many places and meet so many wonderful students, but the downside and challenge is covering all of that area in such a short amount of time. I could easily double the amount of time to visit more high schools and interview more students, but it just isn’t feasible!

If we didn’t have the chance to meet on the road, I’m sorry! If you’re from any of the states for which I am responsible (see above) and you’d like to connect for an interview, I will be happy to schedule a time for us to speak on the phone. Please get in touch.

My next few days will be spent traveling locally in Massachusetts, and then my schedule is complete on Friday just in time for Halloween which happens to also be Homecoming at WPI. The next week will be a transition period as a catch up and chance to unwind from travel and gear up to begin reviewing applications. I’m eager to see yours!

And, interpret as you will, the following from Robert Frost:
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

This morning over 900 young women and men are arriving at WPI and officially becoming the newest members of the WPI Community as part of the Class of 2013! Many members of the student body, faculty, and staff got to know these students over the past months and years as they navigated the college visit, application, and decision making processes. We are all proud of their past accomplishments, and we are excited they are joining our community. Yet again we have broken records: the largest class ever at WPI, the most well qualified academically, and the most diverse geographically and ethnically. The class also has some great accomplishments already, and I’m sure they’ll continue to achieve greatly at WPI.

To the members of the Class of 2013: Welcome—officially! I hope you will seize the opportunities at WPI and make the most of them. If or when you need help, don’t be afraid to ask. Above all, I wish you each the best of luck and extend a warm welcome to the WPI community:

Babadee, Jeffrey, Wilmann, Nouran, Jeremy, Christopher, Nicholas, Ting Ting, Jeffrey, Shuimiao, Philip, Jose, Jacob, Qiying, Autumn, Lindsey, Victoria, Ryan, Jennifer, Nathaniel, Alan, Nicholas, Aaron, Ryan, Benjamin, Derek, Donal, Madeleine, Benjamin, Vincent, Tanya, Sean, Caitlin, Laura, Timothy, Anthony, Sarah, Nikole, Lindsey, Joseph, Drew, Dennis, Zachary, Nicole, Nikole, Christopher, Klevis, Caroline, Emmanuel, Angel, Patrick, Runzi, Brian, Hui, Wyatt, Ryan, Chang, Linjun, Karin, Joshua, Rachele, Xiao, Daniel, John, Richard, Michael, Jameel, Nhi, Scott, Michael, Drew, Matthew, Christopher, Corey, Dustin, Joseph, Paul, Jennifer, James, Patrick, Junbo, Conrad, Ricardo, Claudia, Tyler, Alfredo, Daniel, Gregory, Maksim, James, Jack, Wesley, Lauren, Sidney, Devin, Jenny, Kathryn, Ryan, Deborah, Wenxuan, Ennio, Kandace, Daniel, Robyn, Silvia, Bryan, Alexandra, Amanda, Mathew, Timothy, Stephen, Lucien, Alex, Samantha, Yanxin, Benjamin, Erik, Shane, Johan, Joshua, Corey, Shawna, Rohit, William, William, Matthew, Daniel, Carlie, Ryan, Alexander, Blair, Nicholas, Joseph, Christopher, Christine, Kassondra, Tudor, Michelangela, Brandy, Kimberly, Emily, James, Alexander, Ian, Matthew, Kevin, Kai, Matthew, Kelly, Brian, Courtney, Michael, Richard, Hosung, Zachary, Earl, Zephyr, Abdulla, Tuhina, Samantha, Kassandra, Sebastian, Giles, Max, Alexander, Joaquin, Maria, Sean, Jeremy, Meredith, Ivy, Michelle, Jonathan, Maureen, James, Gabriel, Elyssa, Daniel, David, Srinivas, Roxanne, Linhai, Matthew, Anders, Cara, Justin, Adam, Adam, Raymond, Nathanael, Brendan, Max, Stephan, Bryan, Timothy, Jeffrey, Anthony, Chelsea, Cynthia, Nicholas, Katherine, Sarah, Marissa, Thomas, Steven, Ben, Cody, Rebecca, Michael, John, Katrina, Emily, Daniel, Claire, Philip, Andrew, Paul, Yimin, Adam, Prashant, Lauren, Michael, Nikole, Michelle, Kasif, Maria, Anthony, Jonathan, Alex, Kevin, Frank, Christopher, Michael, Jessica, Carl, Michael, Phuoc, Stephany, James, Gregory, Elizabeth, Kevin, Jeffrey, Thomas, Julian, Alexander, Robert, Raymond, Michael, Angela, Daniel, Adam, David, Daniel, Jonathan, Danielle, Timothy, Andrew, Thomas, Mark, Nathan, Nataniel, Thomas, Justin, Jaime, Brittany, Ryan, Daniel, Marco, Victoria, James, Thomas, Josephine, Justin, Drew, Patchara, Dylan, Gregory, Adam, Andrew, Derrick, Cassandra, Neil, David, Georgi, Sarah, Robert, Shawn, Ngoc, Gallagher, Stephen, Ji-Hun, Xavier, Thomas, Chris, Hillary, Richard, Ignacio, Ryan, Jonathan, Chenchen, Samuel, Evan, Nancy, Sarah, Dale, Xu, Christopher, Geoffrey, Taylor, Serena, Eric, William, Noor, Cory, Christopher, Arten, Alexander, Kristen, Shaine, Amber, Nicholas, Stasia, Kristina, Sydney, Shashank, Scott, Julie, Joseph, Frederick, Sabrina, Zhen, Samuel, Anthony, Katherine, Mario, Brian, Caitlin, Theresa, Francisco, David, Christopher, Christa, John, Daniela, Darius, Jessica, Kelsey, Aaron, Andrea, Chelsea, Meagan, Xianjing, Bangyan, Joshua, Kevin, William, Randal, Patrick-Joseph, Katherine, Jeffrey, David, Kellie, Caleb, Yusuf, Patrick, Katharine, Ajay, Joshua, Geordie, Nuri, Daniel, Benjamin, Joseph, Glen, Michelle, Jennifer, Sasha, Jeremy, Justin, Emily, Jocelyn, Bailey, Andrew, Adam, Joseph, Bradley, Joshua, AlJohn, James, Ryan, Matthew, Emilee, Corey, Meghan, Jonathan, Courtney, Robert, Igor, Nicole, Jonathan, Nesa-Maria, Lauren, Jonathan, Bereket, Griffin, Christopher, Sofia, Anthony, Jacob, Joseph, Ijeoma, Ross, Guanyu, Erin, Jillian, Brandon, Jay, Michael, Jacqueline, Alexander, John, Matthew, Zaki, Cesar, Christopher, Katherine, Rinaldo, Nisha, Erin, Jeffrey, Lazaro, Lukas, Brian, Felipe, Alexander, Joseph, Spencer, Niroshni, Raymond, Stephen, Jason, Emily, David, Joshua, Andrew, Chelsea, Michael, Patrick, Aviv, Jonas, Sandesh, Jake, James, Jessica, Edward, Erin, John, Cody, Macauley, Janneth, Evan, Renee, Jennifer, Sean, Mathew, Jian, James, Zehao, Richard, Daniel, Daniel, Zachary, David, Cassiopia, Andrew, Shubham, Ashley, Sean, Samuel, Laura, Nathan, Christopher, Gregory, Paolo, Pattipong, Daniel, Mason, Adam, Robert, Peter, Elante, Ryan, Abigail, Eric, Thomas, Devin, Brandon, James, Cian, Korapat, Nediva, Max, Nicolas, Lauren, Petra, Claude-Reynald, Nicholas, Xuanya, Sarah, Adrianna, Jesse, Brian, JungMi, Pak, Brendan, Alex, David, Jonathan, Frank, Chuqiao, Marinela, Peter, Zijian, Patrick, Matthew, Eric, Khanh-Nhan, Shaun, Simon, Nicholas, Christopher, Kevin, Brandon, Andelle, Andrew, Jessica, Jared, Stephen, Sergey, Brian, Codi, Eric, Hussein, Dunia, Jared, Hayley, Heather, Shannon, Devon, Melanie, Dean, Nathaniel, Katherine, Susan, Kyle, Benjamin, Michael, Paul, Fred, Nicholas, David, Naveed, Ye, Roni, Wilfredo, Patrick, Nathaniel, Bryan, Jennifer, Autumn, Christopher, Valerie, Peter, Seth, Virginia, Breanna, Cassandra, Amy, Jessica, Michael, Xueyang, Cody, Charles, Elliott, Christian, Gabriela, Brent, William, Danielle, Adam, John, Sonya, Michael, Daniel, Cullen, Howard, Colin, Tyler, Blake, Arben, Erin, Thomas, Kevin, Lauren, Kevin, Lucas, Jerone, Tory, Jonathan, Ethan, Jeremy, Noelle, Daniel, Eric, Bryan, Congyi, Samantha, Bianca, Julie, Derek, Fabrice, Aaron, Nicholas, Emily, Anthony, Caitlin, Miye, Evangelos, Cordell, Fangjie, Connor, David, Cing, Joseph, Christopher, Gregory, Mingnan, Gregory, Victoria, Catherine, Stephen, Matthew, Aileen, Robert, Jessica, Jennifer, Heather, Ryan, Nicholas, Yidi, Brittany, Andrew, Thomas, Yunwen, Nicholas, Jacob, Hailey, Keegan, Robert, Joseph, Daria, Daniel, Kerrin, Melinda, Alicia, Edward, Michael, Andrew, Erika, Neel, Shelby, Daniel, Farrah, Bobbie Jo, Cindy, Eben, Thomas, Marc, Jighjigh, Elizabeth, Lee Joan, Alex, Steven, Joseph, David, Christa, Tyler, Richard, You, Seth, Stephen, Paul, Andrew, Jesse, Madison, Jessica, Nathan, Joshua, Craig, Meng, Justin, Ricky, James, Jibin, Kun, Ethan, Praphapan, Justin, Evren, James, Drew, Jared, Christian, Caroline, Michael, Seth, Jonathan, Kevin, James, Lukasz, Neil, Rebecca, Aren, Evan, Richard, Duje, Catherine, James, Ian, Julian, Adrian, Andrew, Steven, Shane, Richard, Richard, Alexander, John, Kyla, Anthony, Shelbye, Mikhail, Alexander, Mohammad, Bryce, William, Anthony, Brenna, Alyssa, Jeffrey, Santiago, Ingrid, Stephanie, Leah, Jeffrey, Elisa, Steven, Ryan, Brennan, Hao, Daniel, Barbara, Jenni, William, Emily, Francis, Elise, Evan, Myo, Justin, Stephan, Jacquelyn, Christopher, Erik, Brooke, Maciej, Brittany, Matthew, Sheila, Alyssa, Jason, Matthew, Jeffrey, Rebecca, Alexandra, John, Gabriel, Richard, Christopher, Derek, Chris, Jeremy, Dong-Uk, Ryan, Brian, Elizabeth, Paul, Xiaojing, Kiara, Caitlin, Michael, Catherine, Grant, Joseph, Kaung Myat, William, Ian, Olivia, Jason, Jonathan, Julie, Martha, Rachel, Mark, Jocelyn, Katie, Jeffrey, Andre, Tyler, Ying, Jonathan, Bradford, Benjamin, Devon, Marcela, Somyi, Yunxin, Andrew, Saviniano, Burak, Emma, Lauren, Gabriel, Anthony, Noah, Conor, James, Owen, John, Ryan, Neal, Nathaniel, Megan, Kimberly, Ana, Shane, Syed, Salik, Emily, Nikolaos, Elizabeth, Michal, Bethany, Daniel, Keith, Ryan, Long, Loribel, Robert, David, Brian, Jaimes, Anthony, Edward, Max, Ilea, Jenine, Katelyn, Christopher, Xiao, Emily, Matthew, Brett, Patrick, Michael, Jennifer, Belinda, Kaleigh, Gabriel, Mackenzie, Troy, Jacob, Alessandro, Beth, Joseph, Hairan, Nicholas, Kerrie, Alexandra, Laura, Matthew, Woo Chan, James, Joseph, Shuang, Hannah, Kali, Jacob, Gregory, Chloe, Aaron, James, James, Melanie, Markus, Rebecca, Victoria, James, Justin, Kathryn, Shane, Shaun, Jay, Malessa, Ryan, Emily, Peter, Alyssa, Wan, Matthew, Matthew, Jared, Warren, Joshua, Brett, Kyle Patrick, Heather, Peter, David, Gregory, Margaret, William, Timothy, Timothy, Marissa, Nicholas, Leinal, Brianna, Livia, Bruno, Michael, Joan, Michael, Megan, Elizabeth, Lauren, Amy, Lindsey, Bethany, Jackson, Christian, Amanda, Hanxiong, Todd, Stephen, Jean Paul, Mariah, Tania, Alexander, Julian, Alec, Alberto, Christopher, Yiling, Nathan, Mitchell, Roberto, Paul, Antonio, Daniel, Brian, Nathaniel, Gabriel, and Savan

With the members of the Class of 2013 only days away from their arrival on campus, most of the effort of the Admissions Office has turned toward the next application cycle for the Class of 2014. (Don’t worry 2013ers, you’re in good hands with the faculty and student life staff!)

For those of you about to begin your senior year of high school and considering or planning to apply to WPI, now’s your chance to join the official WPI Class of 2014 Facebook group. This group is a great place for you to meet other students considering attending WPI. You never know, you might even connect with your future roommate or best friend! The group is also a great way for you to ask questions of current WPI students, other prospective students, and the Admissions staff. I look forward to interacting with you there.

While you’re at it, why not become a fan of WPI and WPI Admissions?

Please keep in mind that our official Admissions pages and groups are in no way connected to your application review. With that said, please be respectful when posting in the groups and pages; inappropriate and disrespectful posts will be removed.