Student Life - Baitman's Institute

✧ 𝒮𝓉𝓊𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝒧𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝒶𝓉 𝓑𝓪𝓲𝓽𝓶𝓪𝓷’𝓼 𝓘𝓷𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓽𝓊𝓽𝓮 — 𝒯𝓇𝒶𝒹𝒾𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃, 𝒞𝑜𝓂𝓂𝓊𝓃𝒾𝓉𝓎, 𝒜 𝒯𝑜𝓊𝒸𝒽 𝑜𝒻 𝒪𝓇𝒹𝑒𝓇

Student life at Baitman’s balances quiet structure with personal discovery. From our well-appointed residence halls to our rotating calendar of student-led lectures, traditions, and societies, the Institute offers an environment that rewards curiosity — and contains it thoughtfully.

Students may join any number of clubs, guilds, and fellowships, or simply spend their time in the library atrium, where respectful discussion is encouraged and public displays of unreason are gently redirected.

Whether through the arts, the athletic field, or the weekly discussion on metaphysical insurance reform, Baitman’s student life fosters a calm, purposeful rhythm — guided by legacy, not novelty.

✧ 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒫𝑜𝓁𝓎 𝒫𝑜𝓈𝓉 — 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒪𝒻𝒻𝒾𝒸𝒾𝒶𝓁 𝒱𝑜𝒾𝒸𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝒶 𝒞𝒶𝓁𝓂𝓁𝓎 𝒟𝒾𝓋𝒾𝒹𝑒𝒹 𝒞𝒶𝓂𝓅𝓊𝓈

Published continuously since 1911 (with a brief pause during the Great Indexing Error), The Poly Post serves as the Institute’s official student-run newspaper and primary outlet for campus news, reflection, and correction.

Each edition includes faculty commentary, moderated opinion, lightly reviewed field reports, and cultural coverage ranging from fencing meets to philosophical garden thefts. While satire occasionally seeps in, the paper remains committed to dignity and legibility — at least on even-numbered pages.

Edited, printed, and distributed by students in the basement press suite of Old Maynard Hall, The Poly Post continues its mission of thoughtful communication, principled ambiguity, and mild institutional accountability.

✧ 𝒪𝒫𝒮𝑀 𝟪𝟩.𝟨 𝐹𝑀 — 𝒮𝓉𝓊𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝑅𝒶𝒹𝒾𝑜 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝒯𝒽𝑜𝓈𝑒 𝒲𝒽𝑜 𝒦𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒯𝑜 𝒮𝒶𝓎

Operating softly since 1932, OPSM 87.6 FM serves as the Institute’s student-run broadcast outlet, transmitting original programming from beneath the east conservatory stairwell — where the acoustics are oddly ideal.

From late-night symposium coverage to early morning tape-delay discussions on ethical evaporation, OPSM remains a space for unfiltered student voice, restrained creativity, and the occasional sound check that becomes a show.

Programming is lightly reviewed, occasionally transcribed, and historically unarchived — making it one of the most trusted platforms for temporary truth on campus. With a signal that reaches as far as the third courtyard and portions of parking structure C, OPSM continues its quiet service to the listening few.

✧ 𝒜𝓉𝒽𝓁𝑒𝓉𝒾𝒸𝓈 𝒶𝓉 𝓑𝓪𝓲𝓽𝓶𝓪𝓷’𝓼 — 𝒟𝒾𝓈𝒸𝒾𝓅𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑒, 𝒯𝓇𝒶𝒹𝒾𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒞𝑜𝒷𝒷𝓁𝑒𝒹 𝒮𝒽𝒾𝓃 𝒢𝓊𝒶𝓇𝒹𝓈

Baitman’s Athletics has long embodied the Institute’s enduring philosophy: movement with purpose, competition with restraint, and uniforms that resist modern fabric standards.

Our student-athletes participate in a wide range of historically adjacent sports — from interpretive rowing and gentlemen’s stickball to bare-knuckle boxing and crochet-based croquet. Each team is advised by a dedicated faculty member, many of whom once played semi-professionally or simply never left the field.

With a focus on personal discipline, ambiguous scoring, and above-average pageantry, Baitman’s Athletics provides students with not just exercise, but identity — passed down from one season to the next, mostly unwashed.

✧ 𝒮𝓉𝓊𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝒞𝓁𝓊𝒷𝓈 𝒶𝓉 𝓑𝓪𝓲𝓉𝓶𝓪𝓷’𝓈 — 𝒪𝓇𝑔𝒶𝓃𝒾𝓏𝑒𝒹 𝒮𝑜𝒸𝒾𝒶𝒷𝒾𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓎, 𝒢𝓇𝒶𝓈𝓈-𝓁𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓁 𝒫𝓊𝓇𝓅𝑜𝓈𝑒

Baitman’s offers a wide range of student organizations designed to foster belonging, encourage polite ambition, and occasionally produce minutes. Clubs are formed through tradition, interest, or administrative oversight, and span the intellectual, the athletic, the speculative, and the improbable.

Students may choose from longstanding groups like the Poly Historical Society, the Indoor Astronomy Circle, the Ephemeral Band, or the Unified Dice Consortium. New clubs are reviewed by committee and quietly added to the roster once their acronym passes ethics review.

✧ 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒶𝒸𝓊𝓁𝓉𝓎 𝑜𝒻 𝓑𝓪𝓲𝓽𝓶𝓪𝓷’𝓼 — 𝒢𝓊𝒾𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒮𝓉𝓊𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓈 𝒲𝒾𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃 𝒯𝒽𝑒𝒾𝓇 𝒞𝑜𝓂𝒻𝑜𝓇𝓉 𝒵𝑜𝓃𝑒𝓈

The faculty of Baitman’s Institute are selected not only for their expertise, but for their stamina, stillness, and ability to teach under complex lighting conditions. Many have held the same office for decades — not out of stagnation, but out of profound spatial loyalty.

Drawn from a range of disciplines both recognized and under review, Baitman’s faculty lead by quiet example and meticulous footnote. Office hours are held regularly, occasionally announced, and almost always observed by tradition alone.

✧ 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒞𝒶𝓂𝓅𝓊𝓈 𝒮𝓉𝑜𝓇𝑒 — 𝑀𝑒𝓇𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒹𝒾𝓈𝑒, 𝑀𝑒𝓂𝑜𝓇𝒶𝒷𝒾𝓁𝒾𝒶, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝑀𝒾𝓁𝒹 𝒲𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝒟𝒶𝓂𝒶𝑔𝑒

Located just beneath the West Rotunda and adjacent to the emergency eyewash station, the Baitman’s Institute Campus Store offers a rotating selection of officially branded apparel, commemorative goods, and lightly compromised academic materials.

Students and guests may browse a curated collection of Baitman’s crested sweatshirts, experimental tote bags, athletics pennants, and the occasional reclaimed textbook bearing only superficial fire damage. Poly the Possum plushes are seasonally available, as are select items from the Institute’s archival vault — all properly tagged and dried.

Store hours remain flexible, with closures occurring during periods of high humidity, inventory shifts, or sudden staff reflection. No bartering permitted. Store credit valid only within store.