Graduating Class: '10

Jennifer Zhou Cheng

Problem Sets and Poetry: How MIT Made Me Who I Am Today
I returned to MIT last week after a “mental absence” spanning an entire Chinese zodiac cycle of 12 years. I say mental because I haven’t relived or engaged in an emotional way with my MIT days since graduation despite having passed through the ‘Tute a couple of times.

So what brought me back to MIT? I was there to attend my first meeting as a member of the humanities visiting committee. The committee, mostly made up of distinguished scholars and industry giants, serves the important function of inspecting and advising on the quality of education in certain subjects within MIT’s School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. Members include a former president of a top liberal arts college, Ivy League professors, successful entrepreneurs, executives of major corporations, and then me – an unemployed straggler (I was appointed while still employed). I am honored to have the chance to serve MIT, my beloved alma mater… read more