The Rensselaer Polytechnic is the weekly student-run newspaper of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...

. It is published every Wednesday during the Institute's fall and spring academic calendars and once during the summer.

Organization

About The Poly

The Rensselaer Polytechnic, which is also called The Polytechnic or The Poly, was founded in 1869; however, The Poly has only been publishing continuously since 1885. It marked its 125th year of service to the RPI community during the fall of 2008. In addition to weekly issues, The Poly publishes a parody issue each semester and an elections issue that endorses student government candidates and provides profiles of registered candidates for all levels of student government. The Poly also produces several special inserts throughout the year, including the Club Directory, Troy Business Guide, men's and women's hockey previews, and Grand Marshal Week recap.

Distribution

The Poly has a circulation of 7,000, with more than 6,000 copies distributed on campus to areas including the Rensselaer Union, dining halls, and academic buildings. The Poly is also delivered to the Rensselaer Technology Park, downtown Troy, and Russell Sage College

Russell Sage College

Russell Sage College is a women's college located in Troy, New York, approximately north of New York City in the Capital District. It is one of the three colleges that make up The Sage Colleges...

.

Financials

Although The Poly has one of the largest club budgets, the paper is entirely funded by advertising revenues and does not receive any Union funding. The Poly seeks advertising from national corporations, local businesses, and RPI departments and clubs. The "Poly Credit" system was developed to encourage club advertising by providing free ad space. Clubs with "Poly Credits" can redeem up to four per issue and use them for designated purposes such as advertising an event or promoting membership.

Major sections

The Poly is organized into four major sections.
News : Includes In the Nation and World, Incident Blotter, Weird Off the Wire, and Rensselaer in Brief.
Editorial/Opinion : Includes staff editorial, staff notebooks, Top Hat, Derby, letters to the editor, President's Corner.
Features : Includes the Community Calendar, comics, reviews, and articles on campus or area events.
Sports : Includes round ups.

Parodies

In 1980-81 a parody of The Poly, named The Folly, was published and distributed anonymously across the campus. Typical of the humor was the 'Sports In Brief' section featuring a scantily clad person performing yoga.

External links

• The Rensselaer Polytechnic web site
• Cover of issue from 1885