Boston College Chronicle

The Boston College

Chronicle Published by the Boston College Office of News & Public Affairs october 2, 2014 VOL. 23 no. 3

•Actor Jeremy Jordan comes to Robsham, page 2 •Boston mayor greets BC students in Ireland, page 2

•Law professor organizes forum on charity, page 2 •John Fish is trustees chair; four new members join board, page 3 •Filipino president speaks at BC, page 4

•A BC welcome for new Boston Archdiocese superintendent of schools, page 4 •Clough Colloquium to host former Greek leader Papandreou, page 4 •Psychology Dept. research aims boosted by grants, page 5 •Social Work’s Sudders to oversee integrated health training program, page 5 •Photos: Healthapalooza, page 6 •Welcome Additions: meet new faculty, page 7 •Robsham begins fall slate with “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” page 8 •Ireland’s Phil Coulter to present benefit concert at St. Ignatius, page 8

Trainor Chosen As New Human Resources VP

By Jack Dunn Director of News & Public Affairs

David P. Trainor, an experienced human resources professional and current president and CEO of Emeriti Retirement Health Solutions, has been named vice president for human resources at Boston College. He succeeds Leo Sullivan, who stepped down to transition to a new role as senior advisor to the president.

Trainor spent 14 years in higher education human resources at Iowa State University (ISU) and in the Connecticut State University System (CSUS) before be-

tions, a non-profit company that provides retirement health programs and health care administration to more than 50 colleges and universities throughout the United States. Prior to joining Emeriti, he served as associate vice president for human resources at ISU, where he was credited with improving operational efficiency through technology and innovation.

He had previously served as executive assistant to the chancelDavid P. Trainor lor and associate vice chancellor coming CEO at Emeriti. He will for human resources and labor assume his position on Oct. 20. relations at CSUS, which encomSince 2013, Trainor has led passes Central, Eastern, Southern Emeriti Retirement Health Solu- and Western Connecticut State

universities and serves more than 36,000 students. Prior to working at CSUS, he was associate vice president for human resources at Eastern Connecticut State University.

“David Trainor is a respected and experienced human resources professional with a clear understanding of our academic mission and Jesuit, Catholic heritage,” said University President William P. Leahy, SJ. “He possesses the knowledge, skills and values necessary to enhance our human resources area and continue our longstanding commitment to the personal care of all employees. I Continued on page 3

Study: Lynch School Program Boosts Low-Income Schools

Gretchen Ertl

INSIDE

ously thought to be beyond the reach of educators and offer new insights into reducing the achieveA 10-year study by Lynch ment gap.

“The American Educational ReSchool of Education researchers has found that by addressing the search Journal has published the out-of-school factors that stifle first rigorous study of the ability learning, high-poverty schools of optimized student support to produce dramatic improvement affect the academic performance in their students’ grades, stan- of students living in poverty, through a model dardized test scores “This study is a call that is easily adaptand long-term acaable in public, demic success. to action to change private or charter Researchers the way we address schools at an anfrom City Connual cost of about nects, launched the achievement gap $500 per student,”

by Lynch School and the ‘poverty said Walsh. faculty in 2001, “This study is followed 7,948 gap’ in our most a call to action to low-income Boschallenged schools.” change the way ton Public Schools students between –Mary Walsh we address the achievement gap 1999 and 2009 and and the ‘poverty found the negative gap’ in our most educational effects of poverty on learning could be cut nearly in half challenged schools.”

The initiative’s “optimized stuby City Connects’ novel approach to student support services. The dent support” model focuses on researchers reported their findings academic support and also conrecently in the prestigious Ameri- nects students with health care, can Educational Research Journal. mental health services, family City Connects founder and di- supports and after-school enrichrector, Kearns Professor of Urban ment. Traditionally, “student Education Mary E. Walsh, said support” has been viewed as the the findings show it is possible for work of school counselors or soContinued on page 3 schools to take on factors previBy Ed Hayward Staff Writer

Grammy nominee Chris Isaak performs at last Friday’s Pops on the Heights Barbara and Jim Cleary Scholarship Gala in Conte Forum, which raised a record $5.2 million for student scholarships. More photos on page 8.

One Last ‘Dean’s List’

Much-loved BC tradition has a final chapter

By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor

The notes would appear regularly on Mary Lou Connelly’s desk during the course of a year, each one containing the name of a book and its author, and a request to put the note “in the files for the Dean’s List Committee.” Gradually, the notes would accumulate over weeks and months in the folder where Connelly put them, until finally, their author – Connelly’s boss – decided

it was time to make use of them.

Over three decades, the product of those notes became a muchloved Boston College annual tradition: The Dean’s List of Recommended Reading, compiled by William B. Neenan, SJ, who served the University for 32 years in major administrative positions, including as academic vice president, before his death last summer.

Like its creator, the Dean’s List had a straightforwardly humble Continued on page 6

QUOTE:

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He’s the president of the country where my parents were born. As a first-generation Filipino-American, you’re kind of removed, but this helps you understand a little bit more about the culture and the country.”

–Julian Mondonedo ’15, page 4

T he B oston C ollege

Chronicle october 2, 2014

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A ROUND

C AMPUS

‘DO IT BIG’ “Always take risks, in your life, in your career,” Tony-nominated actor Jeremy Jordan advised Boston College students during a recent campus visit. “Do it big, because that’s what people remember.”

That advice – the best he’s been given, according to Jordan – has paid off for the 29-year-old native Texan, who was in Boston this summer performing the lead role of J.M. Barrie in the Broadwayaimed, critically acclaimed musical adaption of “Finding Neverland.”

Jordan shared his show business experiences and offered entertainment industry insights at the invitation of the Boston College Dramatics Society, which hosted his appearance at Robsham Theater.

Actor Jeremy Jordan during his talk at Robsham Theater, organized by the Boston College Dramatics Society. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

“By bringing in Jeremy Jordan, we wanted to give aspiring actors and theater lovers the opportunity to interact with a working professional in their chosen field,” said publicity coordinator Matthew Giggey ’15.

“The turnout was wonderful,

and Jeremy did a fantastic job answering questions, giving practical advice and sharing inspiring words with the attendees. He even was kind enough to take pictures with each person after the discussion.”

Jordan’s other impressive career accomplishments include starring in NBC’s “Smash” and earning a Tony Award nomination for his work in “Newsies.” He will appear in a film version of the musical “The Last Five Years,” set for release in February following its successful Toronto Film Festival premiere in late September.

“The real training comes when you’re doing shows, and you’re out there in the real world experiencing the lows – and then the highs come eventually,” Jordan told the audience. “With ‘Smash,’ it was a big learning experience. Theater is a lot more satisfying for the connection with the audience.

“Theater people are a special breed,” he said, “because they’re interested in the human connection.”

His appearance drew BC faculty members and students, as well as some students from area colleges and universities.

Among his other words of wisdom: “You’re not going to get everything unless you’re Meryl Streep,” and “You can never be too patient, but you have to temper that patience with aggression and drive.”

Discussing his role in the hit Boston production at the American Repertory Theater, which ended Sunday, Jordan said: “The thing I loved most about ‘Finding Neverland’ is how challenging it is. You want to be challenged or else you won’t feel any personal growth. It has forced me to grow up as an actor.”

–Rosanne Pellegrini

NEW ON BC YOUTUBE youtube.com/BostonCollege “Pops on the Heights: Seeds That You Sow”

Six BC students share their stories about the role financial aid played in their lives in a video (produced by News & Public Affairs Videographer Sean Casey) that premiered at last weekend’s Pops on the Heights Scholarship Gala, which raised $5.2 million.

Director of NEWS & Public Affairs Jack Dunn Deputy Director of NEWS & Public AFFAIRS Patricia Delaney Editor Sean Smith

Contributing Staff Melissa Beecher Ed Hayward Sean Hennessey Rosanne Pellegrini Kathleen Sullivan Michael Maloney Photographers Gary Gilbert Lee Pellegrini

During his recent tour of Ireland, Woods College of Advancing Studies graduate Boston Mayor Marty Walsh visited National University of Ireland-Galway, where he met with NUI-Galway President James J. Browne (to the right of Walsh in photo) and a group of Boston College juniors studying there: Natalie Metz, Amanda Beusse, Morgan McDonald, Kevin Kane, Seamus Cassidy, Sarah Black, Ingrid Marquardt and Veronica Bonney. The BC students were excited to meet the mayor – whom they described as “very personable, easy-going and friendly” – and talk about their classes (such as Irish folklore and literature, psychology, economics and archeology) and experiences in and around Galway. Walsh and his fellow Eagles also discussed BC sports, including the current football season. (Photo courtesy of National University of Ireland-Galway)

CHARITY CASES What, exactly, constitutes a charity? Do current laws enable philanthropy to serve the common good?

Those were just some of the questions examined at a recent Boston College Law School conference, the first ever to analyze prospects for meaningful reform in philanthropy.

The conference brought together 32 of the country’s most distinguished experts in philanthropy for a day of rich and nuanced conversation.

“Many legal scholars and policy experts believe that it is time for a thoughtful assessment of the tax code’s capacity to really promote philanthropy,” said conference organizer BC Law Professor Ray Madoff, one of the country’s top experts on charities and philanthropy. “The US tax system provides generous subsidies for charitable donations. However, too little attention has been paid to whether the country is enjoying sufficient benefit from these generous subsidies.”

The last time US laws governing philanthropy were addressed in a comprehensive way was with the passage of the expansive Tax Reform Act of 1969, said Madoff. But phi-

The Boston College

Chronicle www.bc.edu/chronicle chronicle@bc.edu

lanthropy has changed significantly in 45 years.

“The very number of non-profits has increased dramatically,” she explained. “New or newly adapted structures for giving, like donor-advised funds, have gained a currency that could not have been contemplated under the 1969 law and have been addressed only occasionally in legislation since that time.”

It is this changing environment that has prompted discussion on whether Congress should revisit the rules. In fact, the prospect of lowering or eliminating the charitable deduction has been raised by both Democrats and Republicans no fewer than five times in six years. Both the US Senate Committee on Finance and the US House Ways and Means Committee have explored revision of aspects of the law.

In that context, the two-day conference examined a variety of topics, among them what makes an organization “charitable” and whether all charities should be treated the same.

Participants discussed whether the payout rules for private foundations should be modified, and if perpetual private foundations are as effective as

limited life private foundations.

“The US tax code is unique. Over the nearly 100 years since the inception of the charitable deduction it has done great good,” said Madoff. “But tax laws are only as effective as they are current. For instance, our regulatory notions of what constitutes a charitable gift have evolved to a point where they are really quite lenient.

Some might say it’s a model of letting a thousand flowers bloom. But you want to make sure that everything that is blooming is in fact a flower.”

Conference participants, along with Madoff and BC Law colleagues Professor Brian Galle and Adjunct Professor William Bagley, included prominent philanthropy historian Stanley Katz; Lewis Cullman, who has given away more than $500 million of his fortune (and whose Cullman Foundation co-sponsored the conference); economists Gene Steurle and Jon Bakija, who regularly testify before Congress about charitable giving; and non-profit leaders such as Greater Boston Food Bank President Catherine D’Amato, and representatives from the Ford, Barr, Rhode Island and Hewlett foundations.

–Sean Hennessey

The Boston College Chronicle (USPS 009491), the internal newspaper for faculty and staff, is published biweekly from September to May by Boston College, with editorial offices at the Office of News & Public Affairs, 14 Mayflower Road, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467 (617)552-3350. Distributed free to faculty and staff offices and other locations on campus.

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T he B oston C ollege

Chronicle october 2, 2014

Trustees Welcome New Chair, Members Researchers See Positive John F. Fish, chairman and CEO of Suffolk Construction Inc., began his term as chairman of the Boston College Board of Trustees at the Sept. 26 Board meeting, held in Burns Library.

Fish, the first non-alumnus board chairman, has been active on the board since 2006, having most recently served as vice chairman and as a member of the executive, nominations and governance, and buildings and properties committees. He has also spearheaded the dramatic increase in revenue generated from the annual Pops on the Heights Barbara and Jim Cleary Scholarship Gala, which raises money for financial aid at Boston College.

In addition to his work at Suffolk, Fish serves as the chairman of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and vice chairman of the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

A graduate of Bowdoin College, Fish is the father of Christina Fish, who earned her law degree from BC Law in 2013.

The University also announced the appointment of four new trustees at its September meeting: Paul Coulson is the founding director of Yeoman International, a structured finance provider he established in 1981. A graduate of Trinity College Dublin with a bachelor’s degree in business, he got his start in business at PricewaterhouseCoopers in London and Dublin where he worked for five years before founding his own accounting firm. In 1998, Coulson became chairman of Ardagh Group, transforming it from a small, single-plant operation into a leading global packaging company. Over the past 30 years he has been involved in

John F. Fish

the creation and development of other businesses, including Fanad Fisheries and Sterile Technologies.

David Griffith ’68 is president and CEO of M. Griffith Investment Services Inc., an investment firm founded by his family in 1947 that today manages assets in excess of $1.7 billion. Following graduation from BC with a bachelor’s degree in finance, he enlisted in the US Army Reserves. He has been active in many community organizations in the Greater Utica/Rome, NY, area as well as with Boston College. Griffith was the co-chair of the Reunion Gift Committee for the Class of 1968 for each of the last four reunions, and in 2011 received the John J. Griffin Alumni Association Award in recognition of his volunteer service to the University.

Kathleen Flatley Ix ’88, a managing member of her family’s commercial real estate development company, also is a founding board member of the Irish Famine Memorial Fund, which provides financial or material support to alumni and other

individuals associated with BC who are committed to alleviating poverty, disease, famine and illiteracy around the world. A teacher for several years at public and private elementary schools in Massachusetts and Connecticut, Ix holds a bachelor of arts degree in communications and a master’s degree in education from BC. She is a founding member of the Auxiliary group of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, a lay religious order of the Catholic Church whose mission is to care for the sick and poor and to defend the Catholic faith.

Robert Keane, SJ, ’71 is rector of the Jesuit Community at Boston College, where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy and French literature. A Boston native, Fr. Keane most recently served as the director of special projects in mission at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. From 1989-2012, he was a commissioned officer and chaplain in the United States Navy, ministering to sailors and marines worldwide, including in the Persian Gulf, South America, Iceland, Japan, and West Africa.

He also served on the faculty of University of Dallas and Holy Trinity Seminary as well as Holy Cross. Fr. Keane holds a master of arts degree in French language and literature from Middlebury College and the University of Paris (the Sorbonne); a master of divinity degree from the Weston Jesuit School of Theology, now part of the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry; and a doctor of ministry degree with a specialization in pastoral care and counseling from Southern Methodist University.

–Jack Dunn and Kathleen Sullivan

Trainor to Join BC as Human Resources VP Continued from page 1 look forward to working with him.”

Added Executive Vice President Patrick Keating, “I am pleased that David has accepted our offer to become Boston College’s next vice president for human resources. He has extensive experience in higher education human resources and an understanding of how technology and innovation can strengthen the human resources process. I welcome David to the Boston College community.”

Trainor said he is delighted to become vice president for human resources at Boston College, and humbled to succeed Leo Sullivan, whom he acknowledged as a nationally respected leader in

the field.

“I am grateful and honored to be entrusted with this responsibility,” said Trainor. “This opportunity at BC was the only higher education human resources position for which I would leave Emeriti. The impact that Boston College has on the world, its focus on the formation of its students and the commitment of its faculty and staff are aspects that are very attractive to me.”

Trainor received a bachelor of arts degree in history from the College of the Holy Cross and a law degree from New England School of Law. He is active in several professional associations, having served on the national board of directors of the College

and University Professional Association for Human Resources, and the board of directors of the Society of Higher Education Senior Human Resources Executives, and as a member of the Society of Human Resources Management. An attorney, he is also a former member of the Labor and Employment Division of the Massachusetts Bar Association.

A father of three, he lives in Tolland, Conn., with his wife Darlene. He has served on the local board of education in Tolland, where he also coached youth football.

Contact Jack Dunn at jack.dunn@bc.edu

3

Impact from City Connects Continued from page 1 cial workers. The City Connects model is coordinated by a trained professional within each school who leverages community- and school-based services to address each child’s unique needs.

Students who participated in the program during elementary school earned higher English-language arts and math grades than their peers in non-City Connects schools, according to the report.

Furthermore, students from City Connects schools continued to earn higher grades and

In 2013-14, across all City Connects sites, more than 17,500 students were linked to 105,000 services and enrichment opportunities provided by school districts and 600 community partners, Walsh said. Through the work of an on-site coordinator – a trained school counselor or social worker – City Connects provides each student with a tailored set of services, typically three or more supports or enrichments per student.

That support is having dramatic effects that reach into

Kearns Professor of Urban Education Mary E. Walsh, the founder and director of City Connects. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)

performed significantly better on state standardized tests in math and English-language arts during middle school.

City Connects has grown to serve 20,000 students in 63 public, private and charter schools in Boston and Springfield, Mass., New York City and Dayton and Springfield, Ohio.

As part of a rigorous longitudinal evaluation built into the City Connects initiative, a team of researchers from BC and other universities studied nearly 8,000 Boston Public Schools students for a decade. Among the key findings: •For students who attended elementary schools implementing City Connects, by eighth grade their performance on statewide standardized tests was 17 percentile points higher in math and 13 percentile points higher in English-language arts compared to their peers outside the program.

•By seventh grade, the positive effect of City Connects on both math and English-language arts standardized test scores was equivalent to nullifying approximately half the effects of poverty on a child’s academic performance.

•Students who attended City Connects schools in grades K-5 were about half as likely to drop out of high school as students who were not part of the program.

middle and high school, years after the intervention, Walsh said.

City Connects students were 50 percent more likely to be admitted to Boston’s competitive exam schools, 45 percent less likely to repeat ninth grade, 25 percent less likely to be chronically absent, and about half as likely to drop out of high school, according to Walsh, who directs the Center for Optimized Student Support at the Lynch School.

As policymakers at the state and national levels focus on new ways to close the achievement gap, the City Connects results reveal that classroom efforts will not succeed unless schools address the out-of-school factors affecting students — especially students living in poverty.

“Schools have always made efforts to address students’ out-ofschool needs,” Walsh said. “This report shows that using evidence to inform practice, making effective use of community resources, and tailoring a plan for every student can alter trajectories for children. It has implications for changing the way school counselors, social workers, and other student support staff meet the needs of students.”

Information about City Connects is available at http://www. cityconnects.org.

Contact Ed Hayward at ed.hayward@bc.edu

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Chronicle october 2, 2014

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BC Hosts New Archdiocese Schools Head Filipino President Recalls ‘Formative Years’ in Boston Speaking to a Robsham Theater audience on Sept. 21, Philippines President Benigno S. Aquino III recalled his Jesuit education and the long-standing ties between his family and Boston College dating back to the early 1980s when they lived on Commonwealth Avenue, just steps from campus.

In a candid, personal reflection, Aquino recalled seeing his first snowfall in Boston, competing for a hot shower with his siblings and watching his father choose to return to lead their country’s pro-democracy movement – a decision that would cost the elder Aquino his life just moments after his plane landed in Manila in August 1983.

The president, speaking to an audience drawn largely from the Filipino-American communities of the northeast, admitted he had longpostponed the opportunity to return to Boston. “‘Let me make sure my emotions are in check before I make

His time in Boston, even during the darkest days following his father’s assassination, helped prepare him for a career focused on uplifting his nation.

“I consider my time here as amongst my most formative years, fortifying me for the continuation of the struggle, and arming me with relevant experiences,” he said.

Aquino was elected to office in 2010, leading an archipelagic nation of nearly 90 million people, including more than 70 million Catholics. His mother, Corazon, served as the nation’s first woman president from 1986 to 1992, after assuming leadership of the pro-democracy movement following her husband’s assassination.

Prior to his speech, Aquino made a short visit to his family’s former home and then attended a Mass celebrated by University President William P. Leahy, SJ, at St. Ignatius Church.

Aquino’s visit extended a longstanding relationship between his family and the University, which

Philippines President Benigno S. Aquino III speaks with University President William P. Leahy, SJ, in Robsham Theater. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)

a homecoming,’” he recalled himself saying.

Aquino, who was educated by the Jesuits at Ateneo de Manila University, kept his emotions in check, but vividly recalled the years from 1980 to 1983, when his family lived in Chestnut Hill as his father, Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., recovered from heart surgery.

“It was here in Boston that I experienced my first snowfall,” Aquino said. “I remember that I had to sleep in thermal underwear, to which I added a track suit put in a sleeping bag under various blankets and sheets, and which I topped with a comforter.”

He relished being the family’s jack-of-all-trades – driver, dog-walker, carpenter, plumber and mechanic. Life in Boston stood in stark contrast to the Philippines under martial law, declared 42 years ago to the day of his Robsham appearance.

“It gave my family a sense of normalcy to be here in what can only be described as very abnormal times back home,” he said. “Every aspect of life was controlled there by the dictator.”

annually awards the Benigno and Corazon Aquino Scholarship.

Current Aquino Scholar Thinh Nguyen ’15 and prior recipients Matt Alonsozana ’14, Lucilla Pan ’14, Krysle Jiang ’13 and Gururaj Shan ’12 attended the event, as did leaders of the Philippine Society of Boston College.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said society co-president Julian Mondonedo ’15. “He’s the president of the country where my parents were born. As a first-generation Filipino-American, you’re kind of removed, but this helps you understand a little bit more about the culture and the country.”

Introducing Aquino, Fr. Leahy spoke of the values the president’s parents shared.

“We award the scholarship in recognition of their commitment to justice, democracy, and the service of others,” Fr. Leahy said. “Our presence here reaffirms the links between Boston College and the Philippines, and also recognizes, in a very special way, the critical role President Aquino has played in meeting his mission for greater stability.”

University President William P. Leahy, SJ, Boston College faculty, and local Catholic educators and supporters were on hand Tuesday night at a reception for the Archdiocese of Boston’s new superintendent of schools, Kathleen Power Mears.

The Cadigan Alumni Center gathering – hosted by the Barbara and Patrick Roche Center for Catholic Education and the Lynch School of Education – welcomed Mears to her new post as the leader of the archdiocese’s 119 schools, which will educate more than 40,000 students this year. Mears comes to Boston after serving as executive director for elementary schools for the National Catholic Educational Association.

“There is a tremendous level of excitement surrounding Kathy’s arrival and the Roche Center and the Lynch School are thrilled we will be working closely with Kathy and her team to strengthen Catholic education in Boston,” said Roche Center Executive Director Patricia Weitzel-O’Neill, who served on the archdiocese’s search committee.

“The ties between Boston College and the Catholic schools of the archdiocese are long-standing and in many cases serve as national models of university-school partnerships,” Weitzel-O’Neill said prior to the event. “The Roche Center is excited to introduce Kathy to BC and to the faculty and staff at the Lynch School.”

Roche Center partnerships with Boston-area Catholic schools include the Emmaus Series, the Leadership Team Initiative and the Urban Catholic Teacher Corps educator preparation program.

Weitzel-O’Neill said she hopes to add local schools to the center’s nationwide Two-Way Immersion Network for Catholic Schools (TWIN-CS), which supports duallanguage immersion programs in 12 schools in 11 states.

In addition, the Lynch Leadership Academy, a joint effort of the Carroll School of Management and the Lynch School, offers a yearlong executive development program to Catholic school principals and their counterparts in public and charter schools. The Lynch School-founded Boston Catholic Connects initiative helps Catholic schools deliver a new model of student support services.

Catholic schools in the Boston area and beyond are engaged in standards-based education reform efforts, implementing inclusive governance models, launching new professional development programs for educators, and embrac-

Roche Center for Catholic Education Executive Director Patricia WeitzelO’Neill, left, talks with Kathleen Power Mears, new superintendent of schools for the Archdiocese of Boston, and her husband Brian, at a reception Tuesday night in the Cadigan Alumni Center. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)

ing marketing initiatives focused on enrollment and fundraising.

Weitzel-O’Neill and Roche Center Associate Director Kristin Melley said Mears has launched innovative initiatives focused on professional development, teacher evaluation, special education, educational technology and using the internet and social media to improve communication and collaboration between Catholic educators.

“Kathy is all about the kids,” Weitzel-O’Neill said. “She really cares about students and makes that a driving force in her work to help Catholic schools achieve academic excellence and fully develop their Catholic identity.”

The archdiocese’s 2014 annual education report identified crucial challenges as expanding early education programs, retaining more

students between kindergarten and first grade, helping teachers earn advanced degrees, reducing principal turnover and reducing the numbers of high school students who leave Catholic secondary schools.

Weitzel-O’Neill said Catholic school systems across the country face the same issues. Mears’ leadership style is uniquely suited to help Boston-area schools overcome these challenges.

“Kathy brings positive energy and a creative sense of the future that is one-of-a-kind,” said Weitzel-O’Neill. “I think the archdiocesan schools are poised to take the lead nationally. I don’t see the challenges, so much as opportunities for Kathy.”

Contact Ed Hayward at ed.hayward@bc.edu

Papandreou at Robsham on Oct. 8 A central figure in the European financial crisis, former Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou will share his unique perspective on the state of the Eurozone, along with the mounting challenges to democratic governance, at a special appearance in Robsham Theater on Oct. 8 at 4 p.m.

Papandreou, whose appearance is part of the Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics Clough Colloquium, will discuss the causes behind the Greek crisis, how the failure to find a solution will have dire economic and geopolitical implications for Europe and the world, and why the Euro crisis is the inevitable result of an incomplete monetary union.

The Minnesota-born Papandreou was prime minister of Greece from October 2009 to November 2011, during the height of the global financial crisis. For his stewardship in introducing austerity through massive cuts in government expenditures, he was named as one of Foreign Policy magazine’s “Top 100 Global Thinkers” in 2010 for “making the best of Greece’s worst

Wikipedia

By Ed Hayward Staff Writer

By Ed Hayward Staff Writer

George Papandreou

year.”

“A year-and-a-half ago, Andrew Ross Sorkin’s appearance at the Clough Colloquium offered a view of the financial crisis from the perspective of American policy makers, Wall Street institutions, and their critics,” says Carroll School of Management Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies Richard Keeley, program director for the Winston Center. “Prime Minister Papandreou’s appearance will offer an unusual opportunity to learn from someone who led a nation while markets and institutions across the world roiled.”

–Sean Hennessey

T he B oston C ollege

Chronicle october 2, 2014

Recent Grants Strengthen Psychology’s Focus on Research

By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor

Three Psychology Department faculty members have received grants to support research in diverse areas such as the interaction of different brain regions during spatial memory, the development of key aspects of religious cognition, the cognitive and neural basis of prosocial behavior, and the brain’s regulation of social play behavior.

Understanding social play Assistant Professor Alexa Veenema is the recipient of a five-year National Institutes of Health RO1 award of $1.7 million. The grant will enable her to study the neural circuits underlying social play behavior in juvenile rats and how these neural circuits differ between males and females. Social play is a highly rewarding behavior and has been shown to be important for the development of social skills in humans and rodents, Veenema explained.

Veenema’s lab seeks to build on its discovery that the neuropeptide vasopressin modulates social play differently in male compared to female rats. More detailed knowledge about this sex-specific regulation of social play in rats may help understand typical and atypical social play behaviors in human children. Social play deficits are seen in neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism, that show a strong sex bias in prevalence, she noted.

“Understanding how social behavior is regulated by the brain is essential in gaining insights into normal as well as abnormal social functioning,” said Veenema, who expressed appreciation to her lab members and Psychology Department colleagues for their assistance in her obtaining the grant, which she described as the most sought-after for scientists in medically oriented research labs. “Ultimately, we hope that our research will contribute to the development of more effective treatment of the symptoms and/or causes of social behavior deficits in

(L-R) Psychology Department chair Prof. Ellen Winner, postdoctoral associate Brendan Gaesser, Prof. Elizabeth Kensinger, Asst. Prof. Alexa Veenema, Assoc. Prof. Scott Slotnick and Asst. Prof. Liane Young. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

humans.”

Science of morality Assistant Professor Liane Young and her postdoctoral associates Larisa Heiphetz and Brendan Gaesser, as well as Professor Elizabeth Kensinger, were awarded two grants from the John Templeton Foundation that will aid her Morality Lab’s continuing study of the science of morality.

A three-year, $261,130 grant will fund research led by Heiphetz on children’s and adults’ religious cognition to better understand the development of reasoning about God’s mind. This interdisciplinary project, melding developmental psychology, the cognitive science of religion, and personality and social psychology, will examine how perceptions of God’s mind change across development, how God’s mind is perceived as unique, and the relationship between religious cognition and the ability to reason about humans’ mental states, according to Young.

“These studies will enhance scientific understanding of religious cognition and unite disciplines that have, up to now, remained largely separate,” she said. “This research will lead to enduring impacts in three areas: motivating significant new lines of inquiry into religious cognition; promoting interdisciplinary research;

and building awareness of the links between religious cognition and morality.”

In addition, Young’s lab received a two-year, $145,000 Templeton Science of Prospection Award for a project spearheaded by Gaesser that focuses on cognitive and neural means by which prospection can be used to foster prosocial behavior – voluntary behavior benefiting other people or society as a whole – in adults. The project involves four studies that investigate the mechanisms by which episodic simulation can be used to facilitate empathy for people in need.

“We hope that, in addition to revealing how episodic stimulation and memory can promote empathy and prosociality, this project will guide future research targeted at alleviating empathic deficits in patient populations such as autism spectrum disorder or Alzheimer’s disease,” said Young. “More broadly, this project will lay the foundation for research at the intersection of prospection, memory, and moral psychology.

“These two grants help to expand our research program beyond what might strictly be considered to be ‘moral psychology,’ to two topics closely related to morality: how people reason about God’s mind and

Boston College undergraduates came to Conte Forum Sept. 18 for the annual Career Fair, where they had the opportunity to speak with more than 100 employers. The event was sponsored by Cambridge Associates, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, GE, Liberty Mutual, Oracle, PwC, RBS Citizens and TJX. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

how simulation of good deeds affects participants’ willingness to perform those good deeds,” she added. “The critical links between religion and morality and between moral judgment and moral behavior are ones we hope to explore in pursuing this grant-funded research.”

Spatial memory Associate Professor Scott Slotnick’s three-year, $200,000 grant from the Dana Foundation will fund an investigation into how frontal and visual sensory regions interact during spatial memory. Slotnick’s team will integrate three different brainimaging techniques – the first time such a method has been used – in an effort to study spatial and temporal mechanisms of brain region interactions. This work could be helpful in diagnosing and tracking treatment of brain injuries or diseases that affect the frontal lobe including stroke, Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, schizophrenia, depression and attention deficit disorder.

“This is a particularly prestigious and competitive grant – and particularly competitive this year, with less than 10 percent of submissions receiving approval,” said Slotnick.

“The grant is very meaningful for me because this project is on the

5

cutting edge of cognitive neuroscience research. This type of research is very difficult to get funded from traditional government agencies that typically support next-step projects rather than future-thinking projects.”

Professor Ellen Winner, the department chair, said the grant awards and the projects they support reflect the strong research-oriented direction the department has taken during the past decade.

“Scott, Elizabeth, Alexa and Liane all arrived at BC during the past 10 years, and they represent the success of our faculty in pursuing supported research,” she said. “What’s particularly interesting is their work, collectively, is a cross-section of neuroscience, one of the most vibrant areas of psychology today. Alexa’s research on animal behavior is at the basic level, and absolutely vital to the studies Scott, Elizabeth and Liane do in human behavior – which has all kinds of potential applications, even beyond psychology.

“It’s very exciting to see the range of scholarly endeavors within our department earning such recognition.”

Contact Sean Smith at sean.smith@bc.edu

Sudders Awarded Grant for Health Services Integration Boston College School of Social Work Associate Professor Marylou Sudders has been awarded a $664,000 grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration of the US Department of Health and Human Services to fund a program that Erik Jacobs will provide critical on-the-ground training for 53 second-year master’s level students at the BC School of Social Work. The program will also provide vital support to local health care providers and agencies adapting to new requirements set forth by the Affordable Care Act to better integrate behavioral and physical health services.

“Professor Sudders is an ideal person to direct this exciting training program,” said BCSSW Associate Dean of Research David Takeuchi, the co-principal investigator on the grant. “As past Massachusetts com- Marylou Sudders missioner of mental health, she has a broad view of the landscape, has deep insights about problems and potential issues in the delivery of mental health care, knows emerging policy issues, understands the mental health needs of the state, social work, and of students, and can access her extensive networks across the state to meet the training goals of this new grant.”

Over the course of two to three years, students will receive experiential inter-professional behavioral health training in primary care settings. Examples of organizations accepting highly specialized student placements include: Boston Children’s Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission, and Revere Public Schools (these placements are part of BC Social Work’s comprehensive field education program).

Students will also be required to participate in class sessions with nationally recognized clinical and policy leaders in integrative healthcare.

–This story was provided by the Boston College School of Social Work; to read more, see bcsocialworkblog.com/category/nowbcsw.

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Chronicle october 2, 2014

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THE DEAN’S LIST New titles in bold

Photos by Lee Pellegrini

A Final Chapter for Fr. Neenan’s List

Continued from page 1 ethos: “These aren’t the Great Books,” he said in a 2000 interview, “but an answer to the question, ‘Neenan, have you read any good books lately?’”

Fr. Neenan’s passing saddened the BC community, but Dean’s List aficionados – especially Connelly, who served as Fr. Neenan’s secretary for 30 years before retiring in 2011 – can take some solace in the fact that he managed to complete his 2014 entry [see sidebar].

“One important thing about the Dean’s List is that so many of the books on it are grounded in the choice of morals,” says Connelly.

“There is a secret lesson in most all of them – nothing that will hit you over the head, but once you get it, you are left very satisfied. And that was Fr. Neenan’s style, after all.”

The 27 titles on each year’s list included fiction and non-fiction works, some of them well-known historical, literary or popular titles (The Great Gatsby; Mary, Queen of Scots; Lord of the Flies; Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man; The Greatest Generation), others somewhat more obscure. Boston College-affiliated authors also made regular appearances on the list, which was first published in Boston College Biweekly (the Chronicle’s predecessor) in September of 1983.

“I loved the Dean’s List,” says Professor of English Elizabeth Graver. “We shared many favorite authors, among them James Agee, Virginia Woolf, Wallace Stegner, Anne Fadiman, Annie Dillard and Marilynne Robinson. Bill quietly included my own novels [Unravelling, The Honey Thief and The End of the Point] a number of times, never telling me ahead of time. What company to be in!

The books he was drawn to were often at once poetic and probing, interested in inner life and the human condition, alert to pain but also beauty.

“Bill and I were casual friends, but the list was something else: a glimpse into what mattered most to him. A gift.”

Like many readers of the Dean’s

List, College of Arts and Sciences Associate Dean Clare Dunsford – who was “surprised, delighted and honored” when her memoir Spelling Love with an X appeared on the list – found Fr. Neenan’s recommendations an outstanding resource.

“One book I would never have known of or read without seeing it on the list was Sigrid Undset’s Kristin Lavransdatter. Several years ago

Fr. Neenan (shown in 1983 at top in 2007 above) and his recommended books made an annual appearance in Chronicle over three decades.

I got the flu, a really bad case that put me out of work for 10 days or so. As I began to recover but was still weak, I started to read that book and was enchanted. It took me from my sickbed to medieval Norway in an almost physical way.

I went on to read the whole trilogy.

I can’t remember if I ever told him, but I think I did.”

Going on anecdotal evidence alone, Kristin Lavransdatter may have made the biggest impression on Dean’s List followers; Connelly, for one, says it was among her favorite selections from the list.

O’Neill Library Course Reserves Manager Cindy Jones had purchased the trilogy before she knew Fr. Neenan, but decided to give the books away after he told her that he preferred the more recent translation.

“Since Fr. Neenan’s death, I have printed out the cumulative Dean’s List, and in his honor I plan to read everything that’s on it,”

says Jones. “When I read Kristin Lavransdatter – the better translation – I will be thinking of him all the way through.”

As with most any long-enduring institution, the Dean’s List has its own folklore and legends. First, there is the unchanging number of exactly 27 books each year – “the mystical three-cubed,” he explained in a 2000 Chronicle interview. Also, Fr. Neenan would note only new arrivals to the Dean’s List, never the books that had been removed: “I once asked him whom he had dropped this year,” recalls Professor of Economics Joseph Quinn, “and he said, ‘I can’t say.

Reputations would be ruined and lawsuits might follow.’”

And then there is the matter of the aforementioned “Dean’s List Committee.” It was hardly a secret that the committee had a membership of one. Yet Fr. Neenan delighted in perpetuating the myth of its existence; he would typically receive suggestions for additions by promising that he would “pass it

James Agee, A Death in the Family Kingsley Amis, Lucky Jim Scott Anderson, Lawrence in Arabia George Bernanos, Diary of a Country Priest Bill Byrson, One Summer – America, 1927 Robert Bolt, A Man For All Seasons Albert Camus, The Fall Ron Chernow, Alexander Hamilton Clare Dunsford, Spelling Love with an X Joseph Ellis, His Excellency: George Washington Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby Jane Gardam, Last Friends Lisa Genova, Still Alice Elizabeth Graver, The End of the Point Graham Greene, The Power and the Glory Patricia Hampl, The Florist’s Daughter James Martin, SJ, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything David McCullough, Truman Alice McDermott, Someone Henri Nouwen, The Return of the Prodigal Son John O’Malley, SJ, The First Jesuits Michael Shaara, The Killer Angels Wallace Stegner, Collected Stories Sigrid Undset, Kristin Lavransdatter Robert Penn Warren, All the King’s Men Garry Wills, Saint Augustine Simon Winchester, River at the Center of the World

on to the Committee.”

“If he knew I had a new book coming out, he’d tell me – with that Neenan twinkle in his eye – that the ‘Committee’ intended to take it under very serious consideration for inclusion on the list,” says Professor of English Suzanne Matson, whose novels The Hunger Moon, The Tree-Sitter and A Trick of Nature made the list. “Afterward, when I thanked him, he’d smile broadly and assure me that he ‘nothing to do with it; it was all the Committee.’”

Lacking in this year’s Dean’s List, unfortunately, is the preamble Fr. Neenan penned to introduce new titles and, as was often his wont, to offer insights on reading,

writing and the state of human affairs – all delivered with quintessentially Neenanesque touches of humor and concern – as well as ironic, self-deprecating references to his creation.

“The Dean’s List is not copyrighted,” he wrote in the 1998 edition. “Please feel free to refer to it without attribution, post it on the refrigerator or simply employ it for some more pedestrian purpose.”

A cumulative list of Dean’s List selections is available at http://bit.ly/ YdzV3F. Some individual Dean’s List editions, with introductions, may be found by searching http:// www.bc.edu/googlesearch.html.

Contact Sean Smith at sean.smith@bc.edu

HEALTHY OUTLOOK Photos by Gary Gilbert

The Office of Health Promotions’ annual Healthapalooza event last week on the Plaza at O’Neill Library brought together a number of Boston College departments, offices and programs to offer information about health, wellness and safety. Above, Eagles EMS member Stephen DeAngelo ’17, right, talks with Matthew Toma ’17 about EMT techniques. Right, Environmental Health and Safety Fire Safety Officer Thomas Keough instructs freshman Josh Behrens on fire extinguisher operation.

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Newsmakers

Monsignor Liam Bergin, a visiting professor at the University since 2011, has been named professor of the practice in the Theology Department. A native of Ireland, he studied and taught in Italy for 24 years and served as rector of the Pontifical Irish College in Rome for 10 years. During this time he was also a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University, where he had earned a doctorate in sacred theology. Monsignor Bergin holds a bachelor of science degree in mathematics and chemistry and a higher diploma in education. His primary interests are in ritual and sacrament and eschatology. A priest-in-residence at St. Brigid-Gate of Heaven Parishes in South Boston, he is teaching Exploring Catholicism and Root, Rite & Reason: Understanding Sacraments.

Dianne Feldman, a lecturer in the Carroll School of Management who began teaching part-time in the Accounting Department in 2008, has a background in financial and operational auditing. She specialized in strategic and operational consulting at Andersen Consulting and Origins Technology and provided business consulting services while at the Tower Group. Feldman also has worked as a tax preparer and offered consulting services to textbook publishers. Her expertise is in business process reengineering of accounting and financial operations, with a focus on the financial services and manufacturing industries. Feldman, who earned her MBA with a concentration in accounting from Bentley University, will continue to teach Managerial Accounting and has added the courses Intermediate Accounting and Financial Statement Analysis.

Assistant Professor of Mathematics Brian Lehmann pursues research in birational geometry and rational curves, and this semester is teaching Introduction to Abstract Algebra.

Lehmann was a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan and Rice University prior to arriving at Boston College. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Yale University, a certificate of advanced study from Cambridge University and his doctorate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and taught at MIT, Yale and Rice. His honors include an NSF Graduate Fellowship and a Barry Goldwater Scholarship. ­–Kathleen Sullivan, Sean Hennessey and Sean Smith Photos by Lee Pellegrini

HERE’S THE SCOOP

KTUU-TV News of Anchorage, Alaska, reported on a 17-year-old born with a chromosome abnormality who had been bedridden but is going to school for the first time with the help of EagleEyes, assistive technology initiated

by Carroll School of Management Egan Professor of Information Systems James Gips.

Interviewed by New England Cable News, Prof. James Cronin (History) discussed Scottish voters’ resounding rejection of independence in a historic referendum last month.

Data from the newly released US Census Bureau report on income, poverty and health insurance offer a mix of good news and bad news – and an underlying story about priorities, wrote Assoc. Prof.

Tiziana Dearing (Social Work) in the Huffington Post.

Prof. James Bretzke, SJ (STM), discussed Pope Francis and the Catholic Church’s views on marriage in an interview with Fox News Boston.

WGBH News featured the “Digital Dubliners” project of Assoc.

Prof. Joe Nugent (English) and his students.

Assoc. Prof. Eric Dearing (LSOE) discussed schools’ homework poli-

Prof. Robert Bloom (Law) – flanked by WBUR reporter David Boeri and film producer Joe Berlinger in photo at right – was among the panelists at a discussion on the documentary “Whitey: USA v. James J. Bulger” held Sept. 16 at Robsham Theater. Watch a CNN video of the event at http://cnn.it/YNhgeZ. Photos by Caitlin Cunningham

cies in an interview with Fox News Boston.

BC BRIEFING American Studies Program Director Prof. Carlo Rotella (English), a self-professed “tech crab,” wrote an op-ed piece for the Boston Globe about the pleasures of LibriVox,

NOTA BENE Associate Professor of Fine Arts Sheila Gallagher was among 102 artists – described as “rare creative talents that could change the art world” – chosen from 10,000 nominees selected to show at the exhibition “State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now” at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark. Crystal Bridges Curator Chad Alligood visited the studios of nearly 1,000 nominated artists, including Gallagher, around the US before selecting the exhibitors. Gallagher appeared on a CBS Evening News feature about the exhibition.

Brennan Professor of Education Andrew Hargreaves has been named an education advisor to Premier of Ontario Kathleen Wynne and Minister of Education Liz Sandals.

Hargreaves was named along with three Canadian education experts to their expertise as the Canadian province implements a new strategic plan to improve its schools.

Office of AHANA Student Programs Director Ines Maturana Sendoya joined her Student Affairs colleagues in serving up refreshments at an ice cream social held recently to celebrate the Student Affairs’ division’s new headquarters on the fourth floor of Maloney Hall. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)

This year’s New England Intercollegiate Geologic Conference, which takes place Oct. 10-12 at Wellesley College, is being held in honor of James W. Skehan, SJ, founder of BC’s Department of Geology and director emeritus of the Weston Observatory.

which builds a sense of community where he hadn’t realized one could be found.

The one thing most companies get wrong when aiming for big innovation is: They haven’t connected their products to the people who might be using them. To do that, a company has to get in touch – deeply – with the customer’s life, wrote Carroll School of Management Dean Andy Boynton in Forbes magazine.

JOBS The following are among the most recent positions posted by the Department of Human Resources.

For more information on employment opportunities at Boston College, see www.bc.edu/offices/hr: Vice Provost for Enrollment Management Technology Manager, Career Center Systems Manager, Lynch School of Education Media, Access, and Technology Support Specialist, Residential Life Law Library Assistant Executive Vice President Assistant Director of Admissions, Law School Digital Scholarship Librarian, O’Neill Library Admissions Assistant, Lynch Graduate School of Education Human Resources Officer/Senior Human Resources Officer Sr. Associate/Associate Director, Parents’ Fundraising, Development

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Chronicle october 2, 2014

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Benefit Concert at St. Ignatius Features Irish Legend Phil Coulter

‘Forum’ Opens Robsham Season Dubbed Broadway’s greatest farce, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” is the first of two productions at Robsham Theater Arts Center this fall.

Set in ancient Rome, the fastpaced, witty and irreverent musical — regarded as one of the funniest ever written — will be performed Oct. 22-26.

In exchange for his freedom, a crafty slave named Pseudolus struggles to win the hand of the beautiful but slow-witted courtesan Philia, for his young master, Hero. The plot unfolds with twists and turns, cases of mistaken identity and physical comedy and showcases the talents of an ensemble of comedic actors.

Taking humor back to its roots, the musical – with classic songs like “Comedy Tonight” and “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid” – combines situations from the time-tested comedies of Roman playwright Plautus (254-184 BC) with the infectious energy of classic vaudeville. Stephen Sondheim composed the music and lyrics and Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart wrote the book.

The following month, the tone shifts to tragedy when “The Trojan Women” takes the stage, Nov. 20-23.

Written by Euripides (480406 BC), one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens,

Photos by Lee Pellegrini

Students do some behind-thescenes work for the upcoming performance of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” at Robsham Theater this month.

the play follows the fates of the women of Troy after the city has been sacked and ruined, and taken over by the Greeks. Their husbands killed, their remaining families about to be taken away and enslaved, the women are informed that lots have been drawn for them and each will be taken to the man who drew for her. What follows shows the intense suffering of Trojan women, their grief compounded when the Greeks dole out additional deaths and divide their shares of women.

Admission for these Theatre Department/Robsham Theater Arts Center productions is $15 for adults, $10 for students with valid ID, seniors, and BC faculty/ staff (one ticket per ID). For ticket information, see www.bc.edu/ Robsham or contact the Rob-

sham ticket office at ext.2-4002.

Details on production teams, cast members and performance schedules are available at http:// bit.ly/1mxMXUL. For other information, contact the Theatre Department at Theatre@bc.edu or ext.2-4012.

–Office of News & Public Affairs

POPS & PARENTS

BC SCENES

Last weekend’s annual Parents’ Weekend included the traditional kick-off event, the Pops on the Heights Barbara and Jim Cleary Scholarship Gala in Conte Forum (left), featuring the Boston Pops conducted by Keith Lockhart (bottom left). Parents and other family members also heard presentations from University President William P. Leahy, SJ, and other Boston College administrators like Athletics Director Brad Bates (near right); found out about student services and programs, including those at the Academic Advising Center (far right); and relaxed in the glorious early fall weather.

Caitlin Cunningham

Gretchen Ertl

Caitlin Cunningham

Gretchen Ertl

Legendary Grammy-nominated musician, songwriter, singer and producer Phil Coulter – who served as a visiting professor of Irish Studies at Boston College for three years – will perform a concert on Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m. in St. Ignatius Church to benefit the Irish Pastoral Centre-Boston (IPC), a non-profit organization that helps Irish immigrants make the transition to life in America.

A native of Derry, Northern Ireland, Coulter has written or cowritten hit songs such as “The Town I Loved So Well,” “Puppet on a String,” “Saturday Night” (a hit for the Bay City Rollers) and “My Boy,” which was performed by Elvis Presley. Since launching his career as a pianist-vocalist 30 years ago, he has amassed 23 platinum records and 39 gold and 52 silver albums. In 2001, he was nominated for a Grammy Award in the New Age category for his album “Highland Cathedral.”

Coulter has performed three times at the White House, presented four sell-out concerts at Carnegie Hall, hosted his own TV series on RTE and was featured on a BBC TV special marking his 60th birthday. He also was active in Irish folk music, producing albums for popular bands Planxty, The Dubliners and The Furey Brothers. More recently, he collaborated on and contributed songs to the “Celtic Thunder” stage production and TV special.

While a visiting professor at BC in the late 1990s, Coulter performed several concerts with Sullivan Artistin-Residence Seamus Connolly, director of the University’s Irish Music Programs, including at the Gaelic Roots summer school and festival held on campus.

Created in 1987 in response to the growing number of Irish immigrants in Greater Boston, the IPC offers programs and services for immigration and citizenship, counseling, drug and alcohol issues, domestic abuse, spiritual and pastoral care, and

family needs.

“The IPC is now uniquely suited and committed to answer the call of the Irish and Irish-American community, to inform and support its constituents with outreach and advocacy, pastoral ministry, senior citizen and adolescent social work programs, and immigration and US citizenship issues,” said IPC Executive Director and event organizer Megan Carroll ’89, JD’92, a former Carroll School of Management faculty member.

“We welcome help in reaching out to generations of the vulnerable and underserved Irish immigrant families.”

Four BC students are currently volunteering at the IPC, working in its social work, immigration, web design and nonprofit administration areas, said Carroll, who expressed appreciation to St. Ignatius pastor Robert VerEecke, SJ, a Jesuit artistin-residence at BC and founder of the Boston Liturgical Dance Ensemble – with whom Carroll performed – for his assistance in organizing the benefit.

“This promises to be a unique and memorable event,” said Carroll, who added that the Charitable Irish Society will present Coulter with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BC Club the following night.

For ticket information and reservations, see http://bit.ly/1riwMtn. To find out more about the Irish Pastoral Centre-Boston, see ipcboston.org.

–Sean Smith

Caitlin Cunningham