Create Opportunities for LIDS Students and Researchers
For a lab like LIDS, with its emphasis on producing foundational theory and research (as opposed to more traditional deliverables), a healthy discretionary fund is especially important — a vital way we sustain the dynamic and supportive intellectual environment that is our hallmark, attracting the best students, faculty, and researchers in the world.
The LIDS Discretionary Fund supports:
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Our Students. LIDS students change the world. As we provide them with the intellectual foundation for their success, we are also continually looking for ways to enhance their educational experience. Discretionary funds are used in support of this goal, and can go towards:
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Fellowships
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Mentoring programs
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Community-building activities
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Professional development opportunities
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New Research Ideas. A global leader in the information and decision sciences, LIDS stays at the forefront of the field by inspiring new directions in research — prioritizing the exchange of ideas, cross-cutting collaborations, and the freedom to explore. Discretionary funds are a pillar of these efforts, and can go towards:
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LIDS-hosted conferences, workshops, and symposia
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Bringing visiting scholars to the lab, from leading researchers to postdocs
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Communications initiatives
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Pressing Needs and New Initiatives. The freedom to channel resources where they can be used best allows us to invest in our community with impact, while maintaining the intellectual values that make LIDS so special. Discretionary funds can support a range of core needs and new ideas as they arise, such as:
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Alumni engagement initiatives
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The renewal and evolution of the lab's physical space
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Technology enhancements
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To discuss giving opportunities contact Jennifer Donovan at jdonovan[at]mit[dot]edu.
To make a donation to the LIDS Discretionary Fund online, please click on the button below.
Give to LIDS Discretionary Fund
To give by check, please (1) make the check payable to MIT (2) inlcude 'LIDS Discretionary Fund 3891130' on the memo line (3) include a note with your name and address (if different from the contact information on the check) (4) mail to:
MIT Annual Fund
Office of Records
600 Memorial Drive, W980200
Cambridge, MA 02139-4822
The Michael Athans Fellowship Fund
This fund supports outstanding first-year graduate students in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. The fund was created in honor of Michael Athans, as a recognition of his profound contributions to the field of systems and control. A decades-long member of LIDS, and an inspirational director of the lab, Michael’s vision and achievements have had a remarkable reach—his work has influenced generations of practitioners.
Michael Athans Fellowships are a way to extend this influence even further, supporting the field’s next generation of leaders, mentors, and theoreticians. Fellowships are given with preference for students working in LIDS areas of research: the mathematical foundations of estimation, control, and optimization of complex systems, or related fields.
For a brochure with additional information, please click here.
To make a donation to the Michael Athans Fellowship Fund, please click on the button below.