Submitted on behalf of Administrative Council, Discussion Table 16
Brainstorm question - What costs does MIT guarantee and what do we cut when faced with hard choices?

Essential cost
• Residences, communal spaces; more common areas in dorms
• Non-academic spaces that are participatory: Athletic center, Theater,Dining halls
• Support for the research enterprise; labs, etc

Potential areas for cutting/hard decisions
• With addition of introductory “online learning” year, reduce time on campus for undergrads to 3 years
• Reduce number of lecture halls/classrooms
• Fewer professors? Fewer administrators?
• Scale down all facilities if smaller number of people on campus
• Reduce physical libraries (increase 24-hour study spaces)
• Lower subsidy for parking (make drivers pay more)
• More housing for faculty (fewer commuters, income from rent)