We are disappointed with the unilateral nature of Joe Shepherd’s decision to make major changes to Rotation and the House System at Caltech. The House System and strong undergraduate self-governance are unique aspects of Caltech and critical pieces of the pipeline that turns Caltech students into future leaders and innovators. Strong undergraduate self-governance can only thrive if the Administration is willing to work collaboratively with students to address issues that directly impact the undergraduate experience, particularly the aspects of that experience that mold us into a community that survives long into our years as alumni.
Contrary to these principles, Dean Gilmartin has confirmed that the Rotation changes made in the Bechtel memo were deliberately made without input from current students, and that Shepherd intended to withhold that aspect of the plan from students until its public release. What is worse, the Bechtel memo claimed student support for the proposed changes that simply is not present. Many students who were quoted in the Bechtel memo have stated that their words have been taken out of context to misrepresent their actual position. Reviewing the original source material confirms that these student complaints are well grounded in fact.
IHC has confirmed that it was unaware until the night before release that Rotation would be addressed in the Bechtel memo and was “surprised by the proposed changes.” IHC’s members “were not expecting the rotation procedures to be unveiled in the” Bechtel memo. This failure to solicit student input has harmed the relationship between students and the Administration. Caltech should be working hand-in-hand with students to find solutions to common problems, rather than blindsiding them with potentially profound changes to a central aspect of the Caltech undergraduate experience.
In 2016, substantial changes to the structure of Rotation were implemented. These changes were made with the help and support of the faculty (particularly the social science faculty) and are supported by academic research. The goal of these changes was to prioritize the preferences of Caltech’s arriving freshman as they enter our community. These changes are a model of how the process should have worked.
IHC and other student representatives, with the visible support of a large fraction of the student body, have expressed dismay with the process used to reach this point, wedded to a continuing commitment to work with the Administration to identify and address issues arising from Rotation, as well as other aspects of Caltech life. The Student Defense Initiative supports those efforts and stands ready to lend assistance as needed.