Tufts in 17

Welcome baby Jumbos! Today, emails go out to the brand new Class of 2017, and those emails come with two crucial implications for someone like me. First, it means new students will be swarming campus with their parents (as though they haven't been already!) - which means I'll get to listen in on all sorts of hilarious tour-guide stories, drop subtle hints that the 2017'ers should join Tufts Mock Trial, and take in my first impressions of the (potential) new classmates. But perhaps more importantly, 2017 decisions mean I'm getting old. This is my third year, 6th semester, and 231st blog post. So the environment seems ripe for a brief retrospective. Presenting: Tufts University, in 17 photographs.

Need more photos? See everything at Peacelight Mosaic.

#4bids: TMT Monopolizes Tournaments

Each year, over 600 teams compete in the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA)'s nation-wide tournament. The season opens with regional competitions in February, where teams strive to come out in the top 7 of 24, earning their way to the next round. Many schools are quickly eliminated. Some send two teams, or three, or even four into the fray, hoping that some combination of members can form a strong enough force to break into the top seven. Each year, Tufts sends four teams into battle, and for the past few years, the Jumbos have stolen a bid, or even two, from New England neighbors. But for the first time in the school's history, Tufts Mock Trial won an unprecedented four bids this month. Every team to compete qualified. Every member of the organization won.

Tufts B and C' celebrate #4bids at the Boston awards ceremony

Tufts Mock Trial Dominates in Season Opening

"All arise!" The sound of pretrial chatter is replaced with sudden silence. The quiet is short-lived, as fourteen seats squeak across the tiled floor and the competitors scramble to their feet. The judges have arrived; court is in session. As the judges unbutton their coats and begin to examine their ballots, attorneys at defense and plaintiff counsel-tables begin to eye one another. If they hadn't done so already, they are sizing up the competition. Behind each team's three attorneys stands a witness, dressed in anything from formal court-wear to an elaborate costume, offering perhaps a hint of the character each will play on the stand. Two time-keepers sit in a box by the judges, clearing their stopwatches and double-checking their time cards. "You may be seated," begins the judge. "Does the plaintiff have any preliminary matters?"