Boston College Chronicle Nov 1, 2012

The Boston College

Chronicle Published by the Boston College Office of News & Public Affairs november 1, 2012 Vol. 21 no. 5

INSIDE

TRUNK-ATED

Photos by Sean Smith

•BC Club fundraiser for Poe statue, page 2

“Religion and the Liberal Aims of Higher Education”

University to Host Major Forum on US Higher Ed universities apart from their secular peers, when both are committed to offering a liberal education.

“We are thrilled to host a disPresidents of leading American universities will convene at Boston tinguished group of scholars and College next week for a two-day university presidents to consider an conference that will address the issue at the very heart of BC’s hischallenges and distinctive contri- toric enterprise,” said Boisi Center butions of religiously affiliated col- for Religion and American Public leges and universities to the edu- Life Associate Director Erik Owcational enterprise in the United ens, who is leading the conference with Boisi ProfesStates.

sor of Education “Religion and Celebrating THE and Public Policy the Liberal Aims Sesquicentennial Henry Braun. of Higher EducaA highlight of tion,” which is being held as part of the University’s the conference will be the Nov. 9 Sesquicentennial Celebration, will panel, “The View from the Top,” take place Nov. 8 and 9 in the featuring School of Theology and Heights Room of Corcoran Com- Ministry Dean Mark Massa, SJ; mons. The conference is free and University of Notre Dame President John I. Jenkins, CSC; Bryn open to the public.

Participants in the conference Mawr College President Jane will also include scholars and writ- McAuliffe; and Wheaton College ers, who will discuss what charac- President Philip G. Ryken. Later teristics set religious colleges and Continued on page 5

By Rosanne Pellegrini Staff Writer

•Police cars now carry QR code, page 2 •Doctoral program boosts Math Dept., page 3

Boston College escaped severe damage from Hurricane Sandy Monday, but did sustain a number of broken trees, including a linden tree on Linden Lane (above) and a few minor power issues. University administrators credit several departments and personnel, notably Facilities Services, BC Police, Dining Services, Residential Life and Emergency Management, for their work.

•Student-athlete grad rate ties for third, page 3 •Palliative care for veterans; BC Veterans Day event, page 4 •Schlozman on America’s ‘Unheavenly Chorus,’ page 5

Firm to Assist Core Renewal

By Jack Dunn Director of News & Public Affairs

•Iatridis to be honored at GSSW, page 5 •Lynch Leadership Academy goes to DC, page 6 •Simons Fellowship for BC’s Meyerhoff, page 6 •New international higher education initiative, page 6 •BC reaches out to Sudanese church, page 8

The University’s effort to review and revitalize the undergraduate core curriculum will be assisted by an international consultancy firm that specializes in using human-centered design principles to foster institutional innovation.

Institute for the Liberal Arts Director Mary Crane has announced that the Core Renewal Committee will partner with Continuum, a leader in innovative thinking and design, whose clients range from MIT to the National Institutes of Health.

In a letter to faculty, Crane and her fellow Core Renewal co-chairs David Quigley, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and Andy Boynton, dean of the Carroll School of Management, stated that working with Continuum represents the best way to renew Boston College’s undergraduate core curriculum, which has been in place since the early

1990s.

“Because Continuum’s approach is interdisciplinary, and uses empathetic listening, attention to narrative, analysis, design and prototyping, we believe that it is a good fit for the liberal arts, and one that will result in a set of innovative, distinctive and intellectually serious experiences for students and faculty,” said Crane.

“Continuum has been charged with helping us to look again at the overall rationale for and goals of the core, to pilot some innovative disciplinary courses, and to help develop structures for ongoing innovation.”

Added Quigley, “I have become convinced that partnering with Continuum gives us our best chance of learning from the broadest range of voices on campus, and of designing a core that is truly meaningful for our students and faculty, and that aligns with our University’s distinctive mission.”

Continuum has set up an office in Gasson Hall, where they will

Theatre Dept. lecturer Susan Thompson with Col. David Clark ’81 at Arlington National Cemetery during a ceremony marking the anniversary of the truce that ended the Korean War.

Love and War

BC faculty member brings her parents’ Korean War correspondence to the stage

By Rosanne Pellegrini Staff Writer

The moving Korean War correspondence shared between two young sweethearts, who later married, has been brought to life — and the stage — by their daughter, Theatre Department lecturer Susan Thompson.

Based on the couple’s love letContinued on page 3

QUOTE:

ters, Thompson wrote a play titled “Unforgettable: Letters from Korea” with assistance from students Alexandra Lewis ’14 and Matthew Giggey ’15. The play premiered in July at Arena Stage in Washington, DC, sponsored by the Department of Defense’s Commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of the Korean War and the Gathering of Korean Continued on page 4

“Although the level of corruption in American politics is fairly low by world standards, no other democracy finances elections like we do. The rules allow for a great deal of unregulated use of money in politics.”

—Moakley Professor of Political Science Kay Lehman Schlozman, page 5

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Members of the Boston College community interested in hosting international students for Thanksgiving have until tomorrow, Nov. 2, to register with the Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS). Online registration is available at http:// bit.ly/WEbpVY. Through the OISS Thanksgiving Host Program, now in its 21st year, BC faculty and staff members may invite one or more international students for a Thanksgiving meal. No overnight stay is required.

Last year, 24 faculty and staff members hosted 38 BC international students, some of whom were accompanied by their spouse and children.

For more information, send e-mail to riechman@ bc.edu or call 617-552-8005.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

Carroll School of Management Dean Andy Boynton does the cake-cutting honors at an Oct. 18 celebration marking the school’s 75th anniversary. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)

A day for warriors

Welcome return The Boston College Club recently hosted a fundraiser in support of an effort to install a permanent work of art celebrating Edgar Allan Poe’s connection to Boston, the city of his birth.

Hosted by Boston College Club co-founder and board member Jack Joyce ’61, the Oct. 17 event featured BC students who read, discussed and sang works connected to Poe and Boston. WBUR-FM arts reporter Andrea Shea also took part. More than $1,200 was raised at this first public fundraiser for the Poe Statue Project, which drew some 50 attendees. Some funds had been raised prior to the event.

“It was a terrific launch party, and we look forward to moving the project ahead,” said Professor of English Paul Lewis, who chairs the Edgar Allan Poe Foundation of Boston.

“The project has reached an exciting phase,” he added. “In July, the Boston Art Commission gave preliminary design approval for ‘Poe Returning to Boston,’ a sculpture by Stefanie Rocknak.”

The tasks ahead, he said, involve “completing engineering studies and raising the approximately $150,000 it will take to finish and install the piece.”

Rocknak — who also attended the BC Club event — describes

FULTON FESTIVITIES

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ment and public safety agencies nationwide must rise to the level that our society and community are on.

That means when the majority of our community is utilizing social media or webbased research for information we must be up to the signs of the times, and be transparent.

“We certainly take pride in being one of the first few agencies here in Massachusetts that has Caitlin Cunningham begun utilizing QR codes. QR codes will serve a great purpose for our community in having direct access to their police department. Our overall goal is to ensure that our community knows of the services we offer, how to contact us when needed, and to have access to crime prevention information to help keep them safe.”

BCPD worked closely with the Stoughton Police Department, which recently implemented the same program in its community, for guidance on the project.

—Melissa Beecher

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The Boston College Police Department is the first police department in Boston – and second in the state – to implement QR Code technology on its cruisers.

QR (short for “quick response”) codes are twodimensional barcodes that have quickly become commonplace on advertising and promotional materials. When a user scans the code with a smartphone, they are immediately taken to an informational website. The BCPD QR codes are linked to the department site [http://www.bc.edu/bcpd] and Facebook page [http://www.facebook.com/bcpolice].

BCPD Sgt. Jeffrey Postell said the department’s revamped website and quick access takes community policing to the next level: Users may now request services for Crime Prevention Education, print forms for bike registration and contact officers via e-mail.

“We have embraced technology,” said Postell. “Law enforce-

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BCPD goes QR

The Boston College football team wore custom-made uniforms by Under Armour for their Oct. 27 game in Alumni Stadium against Maryland in support of the Wounded Warrior Project, which provides services for injured US military personnel and their families. Following the game, the jerseys were auctioned off with 100 percent of proceeds benefiting the Wounded Warriors Project. See http://www.twitpic.com/ b7nd6v for photos and links.

A recent fundraiser at the Boston College Club will help support an effort by Prof. Paul Lewis (English), at center in above photo, and others to install a statue of Edgar Allan Poe, right, in Boston.

the statue as “a life-size figure in bronze, approximately 5-foot8 tall. Just off the train, Poe is walking south towards his place of birth. With a trunk full of ideas — and worldwide success — he is finally coming home.” The goal is to install the sculpture in the spring or summer of 2014.

Her sculpture was selected from a group of three finalists who were culled, following a call to artists, from 265 proposals from around the world.

According to Lewis, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino has said that “Poe Returning to Boston” will “inspire residents and future writers alike for generations to come.”

CORRECTION

Poe Foundation of Boston organizers praised the sculpture: “With its energetic stride and iconic images—including the wellknown face, a raven, and a tell-tale heart—this statue will both delight Poe fans and provide a new focal point for the celebration of Boston’s rich literary heritage.”

A non-profit organization, the Poe-Boston Foundation seeks to honor Poe in the city where he was born and to promote cultural tourism in general. For more information, see www.poeboston.org or contact Lewis at paul.lewis@ bc.edu.

—Rosanne Pellegrini

A story in the Oct. 18 Chronicle regarding Economics faculty members Tayfun Sönmez and Utku Ünver was accompanied by an incorrect photo. Chronicle regrets the error. Below is a photo of Sönmez.

Photo by Lee Pellegrini

The Boston College

Chronicle

Director of NEWS & Public Affairs

Jack Dunn Deputy Director of NEWS & Public AFFAIRS

Patricia Delaney Editor

Sean Smith Contributing Staff

Melissa Beecher Ed Hayward Rosanne Pellegrini Kathleen Sullivan Michael Maloney Photographers

Gary Gilbert Lee Pellegrini

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. Periodicals postage paid at Boston, MA and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: send address changes to The Boston College Chronicle, Office of News & Public Affairs, 14 Mayflower Road, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467.

Contact Chronicle via e-mail: chronicle@bc.edu.Electronic editions of the Boston College Chronicle are available via the World Wide Web at http://www. bc.edu/chronicle.

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Math PhD Program Adding Up to Success

Continuum Aids Renewal

By Kathleen Sullivan Staff Writer

Only two years after its establishment, the Mathematics Department’s doctoral program is already having a positive impact.

The PhD program has drawn not only top students from around the world interested in pursuing mathematics at the highest level, but also a high caliber of faculty and unprecedented research funding. In fact, according to Mathematics chairman Professor Solomon Friedberg, the department currently has the highest number of faculty members holding external grants in its history.

“Good things are happening in the department,” said Friedberg. “We are attracting outstanding scholars and teachers who will have an impact at the University for years to come. They are coming to us from the very best schools.”

This fall, the department welcomed Assistant Professors Ian Biringer, Maksym Fedorchuk and David Treumann, all of whom have been awarded funding for their research from the National Science Foundation (NSF). They joined other NSF-funded Assistant Professors John Baldwin, Dawei Chen, Dubi Kelmer, Joshua Greene and Eli Grigsby, who won a NSF Career Award last spring.

In addition, Friedberg and Professor Avner Ash have received a National Security Agency grant and Professor Ben Howard was awarded new NSF funding, while Professor G. Robert Meyerhoff was selected for a Simons Fellowship [see page 6].

The department enrolled its third group of PhD students this fall, bringing the total number of doctoral students to 15.

“We’re very excited about the quality of these students. They are coming from places like Stanford, Johns Hopkins, Williams, as well as foreign universities,” said Friedberg, who expressed gratitude for the University administration’s support of the department. “It’s a very competitive program. I’m fielding inquiries from all over the world.”

“There is no doubt that the [Mathematics] department is among the strongest at Boston College,” said Provost and Dean of Faculties Cutberto Garza. “This can be credited to the superb leadership of Sol Friedberg and to the faculty’s commitment to outstanding scholarship, research,

Mathematics Department chairman Prof. Sol Friedberg (facing camera) with colleagues Maksym Fedorchuk, left, and John Baldwin: “We are attracting outstanding scholars and teachers who will have an impact at the University for years to come.” (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

and service to BC and the wider academic community. It is clear that the intellectual energy in the department — among faculty and students alike — is at an all-time high. It will be exciting to see what the next few years will bring.”

The rising academic profile of the graduate program has also enhanced the undergraduate program, noted Friedberg, who said the number of undergraduates going on to graduate studies has increased, as has the number of undergraduates taking graduatelevel courses within the department. There are currently some 240 math majors, 74 of them in the rigorous bachelor of science track.

The department has also introduced two new honors courses for undergraduates, Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra.

Undergraduate mathematics majors are taking advantage of research opportunities both on and off campus, according to Friedberg. Six math majors attended summer research and training programs at prestigious institutions

such as Brown, Cornell and Princeton. Last academic year, three students attended the Nebraska Conference for Undergraduate Women in Mathematics.

Next April, Boston College will host the Spring Eastern Sectional meeting of the American Mathematical Society, at which a number of Mathematics faculty members will participate.

In yet another development, last year the department established the BC Math Alumni Network, a resource for mathematics majors to seek out career advice and mentoring from some 60 alumni who are putting their math degrees to use in fields such as teaching, finance, information technology, archaeology and medicine.

“It is a way for us to share with our present students the wide range of opportunities that exist for math majors,” said Friedberg.

“Math is a universal construct and our alumni have a wonderful level of achievement.”

Contact Kathleen Sullivan at kathleen.sullivan@bc.edu

BC Student-Athlete Grad Rate Is Tied for Third in Country

Boston College, along with Northwestern University, tied for third in the nation for overall Graduation Success Rate (GSR) in all sports among FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) schools, according to data released by the NCAA this week. The 97 percent that both schools registered was topped only by Notre Dame (99) and Duke (98).

In addition, the football team’s score of 94 was tied with Miami, Fla., as tops in the Atlantic Coast Conference and third in the nation, making BC one of only nine FBS programs in the country to receive a football GSR score of 90 or better. Besides BC and Miami, the others were Notre Dame (97), Northwestern (97), Rice (93), Duke (92), Penn State (91), Rutgers (91) and Stanford (90).

Seventeen BC sports teams received a perfect GSR score of

100: men’s and women’s fencing, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s skiing, men’s and women’s swimming, women’s basketball, women’s rowing, women’s field hockey, women’s ice hockey, women’s softball, women’s soccer, women’s tennis, women’s track and women’s volleyball.

The NCAA developed the Graduation Success Rate as part of its academic reform initiative to more accurately assess the academic success of studentathletes. The rate holds institutions accountable for transfer students unlike the federal graduation rate. The GSR also accounts for midyear enrollees and is calculated for every sport.

More information about the GSR report may be found at the NCAA’s website, www. ncaa.org.

—Boston College Athletics

Continued from page 1 engage in a five-stage Core Renewal process through the spring of 2013. The first four weeks, called the alignment phase, will involve in-depth interviews with faculty, students, administrators, alumni, parents and prospective students, where they will gather information from these stakeholders to gain an understanding of both the challenge of Core Renewal and the University’s goals and priorities. An interactive website will be launched to enable faculty to offer input and submit feedback during the course of the project.

The second phase, discovery, will include interviews with approximately 20 faculty and 10-15 students to gain an understanding of their needs and motivations, as well as research on best practices at leading peer institutions and key trends in higher education. The Core Renewal team has scheduled two town hall meetings, Nov. 5 from 3-4 p.m. in Fulton 511, and Nov. 13 from 4:30-6 p.m. in Devlin 101, for faculty to learn more about the project and Continuum’s unique approach.

During the third phase, analysis, Continuum will work with the key stakeholders to define a vision for the core and opportunities for the ideal core experience and innovation mechanism. This phase will include a series of work sessions with departmental faculty, as well as students and other stakeholders, to create a shared ownership of the new vision.

The fourth stage, envisioning, will enable Continuum to articulate and evaluate the new core curriculum and innovation mechanism from the perspectives of the stakeholders, with the goal of providing a detailed pilot plan for two to three

core innovation mechanism ideas to be launched in 2013.

During the final stage, deployment, Continuum will use a range of strategies to prepare the renewed core curriculum experience for deployment and implementation during the 2013-2014 academic year.

In addition to Quigley and Boynton, the Core Renewal team includes Professors Tom Chiles (Biology) and Juliet Schor (Sociology), Associate Professor Gail Kineke (Earth and Environmental Sciences), as well as Professor Emeritus of Philosophy Richard Cobb-Stevens and Akua Skarr, director of the Academic Advising Center. Crane, Boynton and Quigley worked with Provost and Dean of Faculties Cutberto Garza and then with University President William P. Leahy, SJ, who ultimately approved the project. An advisory team of 17 faculty and administrators will also meet monthly to assist in the effort.

The team will also consult with the vice presidents for Student Affairs and University Mission and Ministry throughout the course of the project, Crane said.

“It is a credit to Boston College to partner with Continuum— a firm whose core competence is helping world-class organizations innovate successfully—and to invest in further strengthening our established core to more vividly reflect the University’s academic excellence and rich Jesuit, Catholic mission,” said Boynton.

Added Chiles, “The core should be the marquee program that distinguishes Boston College from peer institutions. Working with Continuum and BC faculty, students and administrators, I believe that we can meet this goal.”

Symposium at BC Will Examine Economic Disparities in the US Members of the Boston College community can attend a discussion tomorrow afternoon on growing economic disparities in the United States with Scott Winship, who is director of the Brookings Institution’s Social Genome Project.

The event, which takes place at 4 p.m. in Devlin 101 and will be moderated by History Professor Heather Richardson, serves as a precursor to this year’s Mass Humanities Symposium, which will be held on campus the following day (Nov. 3), at which Winship will be among the featured speakers.

Winship’s research focuses on measuring and understanding trends in living standards, economic volatility, mobility, inequality, opportunity, and insecurity. Under his direction, the Social Genome Project is building a microsimulation

model intended to improve policymakers’ understanding of mobility and simulate the long-term effects of policy interventions.

Each fall, Mass Humanities, a state-based affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, gathers scholars, journalists, and public officials for public conversations examining fundamental aspects of the US democratic culture.

This year’s symposium on economic inequality runs from noon5 p.m. in the Heights Room of Corcoran Commons.

Admission to the symposium is free, but registration is required; to register or to find more information, see http://masshumanities.org/ symposium, or contact Dan Soyer at ext.2-8928.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

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Palliative Care for Veterans the Focus of Campus Event The care of veterans — whom Boston College, along with the rest of the nation, will officially honor later this month [see story below] — was the focus of an educational event held last week in the Yawkey Center and attended by about 100 nursing students, faculty members, nurses, and other care providers.

“Care of the American Veteran: Palliative Care” was sponsored by the Northeast Regional Veterans Administration Nursing Alliance (NERVANA), a consortium of VA hospitals in Boston and Bedford and six schools of nursing, including the Connell School of Nursing.

Attendees heard about the specific hospice and palliative care programs available to veterans through the VA Boston Healthcare System, as well as the psycho-social concerns and spiritual needs of veterans and their families at end of life.

Speakers also presented research findings on what factors were considered important to veterans at end of life and assessments from the Bereaved Family Survey about the quality of the care and areas for improvement.

“What a wonderful time, right before Veterans Day, to think about things that are so important to us like palliative care,” said Connell School Dean Susan Gennaro in her welcoming remarks.

At the VA, palliative care, provided by an interprofessional team that includes a physician, nurse, social worker, chaplain, and a mental health provider, is specialized supportive medical care for patients with serious illness in order to relieve suffering and improve quality of life, according to presenter Dr. Lara Michal Skarf, director of palliative care for VA Boston Healthcare System.

“Over 600,000 veterans die each year, but only 21,000 die in VA hospitals. So wherever you practice, the care of the American veteran is going to be part of your practice,” Dr. Skarf told the audience.

“There are some unique chal-

lenges involved in delivering palliative care to veterans,” said Dr. Michael Charness, VABHS chief of staff. “Their experiences even 50 or 60 or 70 years before have an impact on how they seek closure in their lives.

“We have invested in palliative care because we believe it’s extraordinarily important. We believe that our patients deserve to have dignified deaths and the kind of care that they have earned from the sacrifices they have made for us,” he added.

The palliative care presentations resonated deeply with CSON senior Kayla Manczurowsky, who has worked as a student nurse at the VA since the summer. “I care for veterans who face a variety of diagnoses, many being a terminal illness. The colloquium reinforced the importance of being present to the pain and suffering patients experience at the end of life.

“Symptom management is just as important as addressing emotional and spiritual needs at this time. Improving quality of life, preserving dignity, and allowing veterans to experience what [social worker/palliative care coordinator] Kathleen Dunn described as forgiveness through ‘healing of the heart’ are elements of care that I will implement in my nursing practice.”

NERVANA was formed by Cecelia McVey — a 1972 alumna who is the associate director for nursing/patient services at the VABHS — to create a partnership between the academic community and the VA in an effort to improve the care of American veterans.

Other higher education institutions involved in NERVANA are Northeastern University, Regis and Simmons colleges, UMass-Boston and UMass-Lowell. Its ongoing education colloquia series has focused on issues such as traumatic brain injury, homelessness, post-traumatic stress disorder and aging, among other topics.

—Kathleen Sullivan

1980 Alumnus Lt. Col. Harrington to Speak at Veterans Ceremony Massachusetts Army Reserve National Guard Lieutenant Colonel George J. Harrington ’80, will be the featured speaker at Boston College’s 12th annual Veterans Day Remembrance Mass and Ceremony on Nov. 12.

The event begins with a 9:30 a.m. Mass at St. Ignatius Church, followed at 11 a.m. by the Remembrance Roll Call Ceremony at the Veterans Memorial on the Burns Library Lawn. A shuttle bus will provide transportation from St. Ignatius to the memorial.

Harrington, who is commander of the 79th Troop Command (Homeland Security), graduated from officer candidate school in 1987. The recipient of a Bronze Star Medal, he has been deployed to Bosnia and Guantanamo, and twice to Afghanistan.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

Alexandra Lewis ’14 and Matthew Giggey ’15 helped Theatre lecturer Susan Thompson write a play based on her parents’ Korean War correspondence. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

Letters of Love in a Time of War Continued from page 1 War Veterans.

Supported by BC Undergraduate Research Fellowships, Lewis and Giggey worked with Thompson to transcribe and research the archival letters written during the war between infantry platoon leader Dwight Thompson and Cleora Barnes, then a University of Connecticut senior. Her parents were married just days after her father’s return from Korea in August, 1954.

The BC students traveled to the nation’s capital over the summer for the performance with Thompson and the Boston-based Pilgrim Theatre Company, of which she is one of three core artists. Directed

by Pilgrim member Kim Mancuso, the cast features other actors and musicians from the troupe and Lewis as the protagonists’ daughter.

The show interweaves her memories with portrayals of Dwight and Cleo (who is played by Thompson), both young and old, and integrates song, letters and poetry.

In the play’s program, Thompson wrote: “My parents’ love for each other was forged, in part, by their separation during the Korean War. So were essential elements of who they became. During 1953 and 1954 they grew up. My mother discovered a life-long love of city planning and historic preservation that would sustain her through multiple moves and two wars.”

Because “the Korean War is often called ‘The Forgotten War,’” Thompson notes, “we are playing with the idea of forgetting and remembering.” A depiction of Cleo at age 70 with Alzheimer’s and Dwight caring for her at age 74, she explains, is “a parallel to being in the trenches during the war.

“But most of the show is the young couple, very much in love and separated by war.”

Appropriately, the production had its genesis at BC’s 2011 Veterans Day service, when Thompson — immersed in reading her parents’ letters — attended the cer-

emony and met the Korean War Commemoration Committee director, Col. David Clark ’81. They formed a plan to stage the play as part of the nation’s 60th anniversary observance of the Korean War, which run through 2013.

Lewis and Giggey sometimes were the first to read the letters during their work on the project. They also “collected images and maps that help us more clearly lay out where Dwight and Cleo were at any given month,” according to Thompson.

“I had a wonderful time working with Susan and Alexandra on such a unique and interesting project,” said Giggey. “It is an incredible feeling that I helped to create a play with such great significance. It was clear to me that the veterans really appreciated our work and it was fascinating to hear their stories. Getting to work with professionals at Arena Stage was an educational experience and further strengthened my love of the arts.”

In Washington, the students had the opportunity to meet the war veterans and to attend a special ceremony for the Korean War at Arlington National Cemetery.

“I am so honored to have been able to perform for the veterans,” Thompson said. “Many of them are over 80 [years old]. I have reconnected with some of the men my father served with in Korea and heard first-hand about the conditions in the trenches. They have even told me stories about my father that I have never heard.”

And Thompson has since received correspondence from veterans who saw the show in Washington. “I was most moved by them telling us, ‘You got it right! That was how it was!’”

Of the performance, she said:

“Alex was perfect for the ‘daughter’ character, not only because she is a talented actress, but because she knew the material and had put all those hours into the letters.”

A Theatre major with an American Studies minor, Lewis is the daughter of actors David Anderson Lewis, of BC’s Information Technology Services Department and Patricia Riggin, a Theatre Department faculty member.

Giggey, Thompson said, is “a tech wiz and so enthusiastic. He built a powerpoint slide show for the piece based on archival family and other photos. He is the ‘I can do it’ crew member.” The Carroll School student was a technical designer for the production.

Asked to speculate on what her late parents would think of the play, Thompson says: “I think they kept these letters and treasured them because they were part of their history. My father and mother both loved history and I think they realized, even as they were writing, that those were momentous days.”

She also has a cache of correspondence between her parents from the Vietnam War, “when they were married and my mom had four children. The Vietnam letters will be another project.”

The project received support from Boston College and the Commonwealth School (where Thompson also teaches). For more information, contact Thompson at www. susantheater.com or Pilgrim Theatre at http://pilgrimtheatre.org.

A local performance featuring excerpts from the production will be held on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, at the Acton Jazz Cafe from 4-5 p.m.

A benefit for the American Legion’s Operation Comfort Warrior Program, the suggested donation is $10.

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American Democracy’s Broken Promise Not all political voices are equal, says Moakley Professor Schlozman

By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor

A presidential election is often trumpeted as a showcase for American democracy, an occasion to affirm the United States as a nation where all people, and their concerns and preferences, are given equal consideration in the political system.

But American democracy is failing to live up to its promise, according to Moakley Professor of Political Science Kay Lehman Schlozman.

Schlozman and her longtime collaborators Sidney Verba and Henry E. Brady are the authors of the recently published The Unheavenly Chorus: Unequal Political Voice and the Broken Promise of American Democracy. The trio has been engaged in a groundbreaking, extensive and detailed study of how citizens from a range of social, economic and ethnic backgrounds participate in the political process, results of which they presented in their 1995 book Voice and Equality: Civic Voluntarism in American Politics.

The Unheavenly Chorus extends the authors’ earlier work — and the metaphor of the “voice” as a symbol of civic participation. “The title for the book was inspired by a quote from E.E. Schattschneider, a mid-20th century political scientist,” explained Schlozman. “He wrote, ‘The flaw in the pluralist heaven is that the heavenly chorus sings with a strong upper-class accent.’”

Bringing together evidence about individuals and organized interests active in Washington, Schlozman, Verba and Brady show the extent and resilience of classbased political inequality in America. From many perspectives, their analysis demonstrates the power and durability of advantage that accrues to the affluent and welleducated with respect to political voice: persistent through time; handed down across generations; perpetuated by multiple processes, including the way that recruitment to political activity exaggerates the existing biases in political voice; and reproduced through political participation on the Internet.

“People who know about recent growth in economic inequality assume that large class-based gaps in political voice are a new phenomenon,” Schlozman noted, “but they have been a feature of American politics at least since the early 1950s, which is as long as we have had surveys to measure them.

“There have been ups and downs in participatory inequality,

but far more important than any small changes in the level of socioeconomic inequality in political activity is the continuing participatory advantage enjoyed by the well-

Kay Lehman Schlozman: “Democracy is supposed to be a level playing field where we are all equal, but we have to ask if that’s really the case.” (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

educated and affluent. That said, the increasing emphasis on campaign money may be ushering in an era of enhanced dominance in electoral politics of the well-heeled.

“We turned over every rock looking for a way out of the dilemma, but we kept finding the same thing over and over. We were optimistic about technological change. The Internet and social media have opened up new possibilities for communicating with large numbers of people and mobilizing them to become active in politics. Requests for political activity are now less likely to arrive by phone than digitally.

“Still, in spite of the promise of the Internet to democratize political participation, the pattern of class stratification characteristic of those who undertake political

activities offline is no less pronounced among those who take part online.”

The authors also found that the high levels of education and income overrepresented among political activists are reinforced by the thousands of organizations active in politics in Washington. Only about one-eighth of these organizations are voluntary associations with individuals as members; most are institutions, which can include corporations, universities and museums, and are heavily tilted in the direction of business, said Schlozman.

“So it is all the more difficult for ordinary people to make their voices heard.”

In addition, a series of judicial decisions during the past five years, most of them by the Supreme Court, “has led to a situation where it’s easier for market inequalities to be replicated in politics,” Schlozman said.

“Although the level of corruption in American politics is fairly low by world standards, no other democracy finances elections like we do. The rules allow for a great deal of unregulated use of money in politics.

“Democracy is supposed to be a level playing field where we are all equal, but we have to ask if that’s really the case.”

Schlozman notes that the research and writing of The Unheavenly Chorus was aided considerably by undergraduate students, 27 of them from Boston College.

“The collaborative spirit of the book was an important part of the enterprise,” she said. “These students were in the trenches, and they helped trouble shoot as we collected data. And, in the end, I think the experience had a part in producing several future political scientists.”

Celebrating THE

Sesquicentennial BC Is Host for ‘Religion and the Liberal Aims of Higher Education’ Continued from page 1 that day, University President William P. Leahy, SJ, will conclude the conference with closing remarks.

The speakers, according to Owens, “will bring deep historical knowledge, personal experience and philosophical reflection to bear upon one of the thorniest questions in contemporary higher education: Are the formative goals of religion and liberal education at odds? What role should religiously affiliated colleges and universities — and liberal arts colleges and universities — play in an American higher educational landscape dominated by secular pre-professional training?”

Owens and Braun, respectively, will deliver the day’s opening remarks on Nov. 8 and 9.

“This symposium offers the BC community a unique opportunity to sit in on, and participate in, a series of conversations about the different flavors that religiously affiliated institutions impart to liberal education,” said Braun, adding that the event will build on questions raised by Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust at the inaugural Sesquicentennial Speakers Series lecture Oct. 10.

“Distinguished leaders in higher education are going to discuss a broad range of issues of great importance to all undergraduate institutions with a commitment to liberal education.”

Wake Forest President Nathan Hatch, who will present the keynote address on Nov. 8, and former University of Richmond President Richard Morrill, who will deliver the Nov. 9 keynote, will join other educational lead-

ers from Columbia, Harvard and Yale, among others, at the conference.

Other panel topics at the conference include “Historical Perspectives” and “Dynamic Tensions,” with New York Times columnist Mark Oppenheimer and Vanity Fair magazine editorat-large Cullen Murphy serving as moderators.

“This isn’t just an academic event for scholars of religion and education, but rather a chance for all of us at Boston College to think about what we do, collectively,” Owens said. “We hope that everyone with a stake in BC’s educational and religious vitality will come to some or all of the conference sessions, and that they will contribute their own considered opinions to the conversation.”

The event “is both a celebration of BC’s historical successes as a Jesuit, Catholic liberal arts university and a call for the very best thinkers of our generation to help us reflect on BC’s mission in the years ahead,” Owens said.

“BC’s leaders have made major commitments to the project of liberal education in recent years, from the creation of the ILA to the upcoming dedication of a huge new humanities building in Stokes Hall. It is an exciting time to be at Boston College.”

While the conference is free and open to the public, advance registration is requested by organizers. For details, including the full conference schedule and participant information, see http:// tinyurl.com/9q3j2xa.

Contact Sean Smith at sean.smith@bc.edu

GSSW’s Iatridis to Be Feted Nov. 12 Former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis will be the guest speaker at a special Nov. 12 event to honor retiring Graduate School of Social Work Professor Demetrius Iatridis.

Dukakis’ talk, “Celebrating a Lifelong Commitment To Issues of Policy, Planning and Poverty,” which will be followed by a panel discussion, takes place at 4 p.m. in the Heights Room of Corcoran Commons.

Iatridis, a GSSW faculty member for 45 years, is an expert in social policy, social welfare and urban development issues, and social policy in Cuba and Eastern Europe. He has organized international conferences on the social policy implications of Eastern Europe’s transition to market economy, and authored Social Policy: Institutional Context of Social Development and Human Services and Social Policy Planning: Theory and Practice.

For information and registration, send e-mail to joy.velarde@ bc.edu.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

University Chancellor J. Donald Monan, SJ, left, and O’Neill Professor of American Politics R. Shep Melnick, second from left, joined Susan O’Neill and Thomas P. O’Neill III — children of the late Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill Jr. ’36 LLD ’73 (Hon.) — at the Oct. 18 event, “Tip O’Neill and the Evolution of American Politics,” which featured a talk by congressional scholar Thomas E. Mann (right), in celebration of the legendary Speaker of the House’s 100th birthday. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

T he B oston C ollege

Chronicle november 1, 2012

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By Ed Hayward Staff Writer

Twenty-seven principals from the District of Columbia Public Schools and Washington, DC-area charter schools joined the Lynch Leadership Academy’s 2012 class of fellows for a Leadership Summit in the nation’s capital last week. It was the inaugural summit hosted by the academy, the first in the country to bring together principals from the public, Catholic and charter sectors of K-12 education.

The two-day program provided the academy’s 22 mid-career principals from Boston public, Catholic and charter schools and their peers from Washington, DC, with the opportunity to hear from education experts and to visit inner-city schools where principals have raised student achievement. [Washington Catholic schools could not participate because of the demands of an ongoing accreditation process.]

Lynch Leadership Academy Director Thaly Germain said the addition of Washington-area principals to the summit will expand the reach of the academy and also deepen the expertise it can draw on to create leadership development focused squarely on the work principals must do inside their schools, and in the communities that support them.

“Traveling to Washington gives our LLA fellows the chance to see first-hand the effective practices taking root at schools that are like their schools – we want this to be very individualized,” said Germain, who was hired as the academy’s first full-time director in June. “The first day’s Leadership Summit is a new approach where we bring in practitioners with a range of perspectives who have made an impact on student achievement.”

Now in its second year, the Lynch Leadership Academy was created with a $20 million gift from noted philanthropists and BC benefactors Peter and Carolyn Lynch, for whom the Lynch School of Education is named. BC Trustee Peter Lynch ’65, H ’95, and Carolyn Lynch H ’09, set out to create a program that combines mentoring, executive development and networking to support the next generation of school leaders in three crucial sectors of the K-12 system.

The Leadership Summit comes as Washington, DC, public schools are developing a similar program focused on the model developed by the LLA, which is a joint venture of the Carroll School of Management and the Lynch School of Education.

When Germain put the call out inviting Washington principals to the event, nearly 50 responded,

Germain said, a reflection of the growing demand for improved professional development for early- and mid-career principals engaged in jobs many now consider crucial to improved schools and greater rates of achievement for students.

Monday’s Leadership Summit was held at the Hill Center, a facility Germain picked because of the community’s role in converting the Old Naval Hospital into a community center. For today’s principal, Germain said, it’s crucial to make connections with the local community and a diverse set of stakeholders.

Last Tuesday, principals visited public schools and charter schools where principals have had a track record of improved student performance. LLA fellows traveled in small groups to schools in neighborhoods throughout the city.

“Site visits are probably one of the most important things a principal can do and it’s a big challenge for them to get the time to do that,” said Germain. “If you don’t see excellence at work, it’s hard to replicate it. You don’t know what the end point is. The summit and the school visits give principals a chance to see effective practices, so they can implement them in their own schools.”

For more information about the Lynch Leadership Academy, see www. bc.edu/lynchacademy.

BCTalks Back for Second Year The undergraduate lecture series BCTalks will return for its second year with eight student presentations this Sunday, Nov. 4, at 5 p.m. in the Heights Room of Corcoran Commons.

Modeled after TEDTalks, a foundation-sponsored series devoted to “ideas worth spreading,” BCTalks aims to bridge the gap between the academic and social lives of undergraduates, offering them an opportunity to discuss their scholarly interests.

Presentations at this Sunday’s event include: “Rhetoric and the Cult of Athenian Democracy,” Corey Streitwieser ’13; “The F-Word: Why Men and Women Need Feminism Now More Than Ever,” Elizabeth Jekanowski ’13; “A Healthcare Crisis: My Experience in Nepal,” Alana Fruauff ’14; and “From Africa to Boston College: The Experiences of the Underrepresented,” Ailis Peplau ’13.

For more on BCTalks and profiles of the Nov. 4 undergraduate lecturers, see http:// bctalks.weebly.com.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

The Plaza at O’Neill Library was the site for the Oct. 26 Harvest Fest/ Campus Sustainability Day, organized by EcoPledge of Boston College along with several other BC departments and groups. The event included activities such as pumpkin painting (right) and a performance by the band Melodeego. For more on sustainability at BC, see www.bc.edu/sustainability.

Photo by Gary Gilbert

Meyerhoff Awarded Simons Fellowship Mathematics Professor G. Robert Meyerhoff has been awarded a Simons Fellowship to help support his research in hyperbolic 3-manifolds. The fellowship will provide funding for a semester research leave and allow Meyerhoff to take a full-year sabbatical for the 2012-13 academic year.

Established by the Simons Foundation — a New York City-based private institution that sponsors programs to advance the frontiers of research in mathematics and science — the fellowships are awarded based on an applicant’s scientific accomplishment in the five-year period preceding the application and on the potential scientific impact of the leave period. A committee of distinguished scientists advises the foundation in the selection of winners; 50 awards were given for 2012-13.

“Many awards of this type tend to be for mathematicians who are early in their careers,” said Meyerhoff, who joined the

Lee Pellegrini

Lynch Academy Takes Part in Leadership Summit

Boston College faculty in 1993.

“So to find one that is for researchers who have been around for a while is quite welcoming.

I’m very pleased to have been chosen.”

Meyerhoff’s area of research involves the three theories on the geometric structure of the universe, Euclidean, spherical and hyperbolic. His work focuses specifically on understanding the nature of hyperbolic 3-manifolds by analyzing their size or volume.

Utilizing the research of nu-

merous mathematicians, Meyerhoff and his collaborators previously proved that the smallest volume hyperbolic 3-manifold is the so-called Weeks Manifold — the culmination of 30 years of work. His project for the Simons Foundation has the goal of finding the first trillion lowest volume hyperbolic 3-manifolds.

“The Simons Fellowship will be very helpful in my efforts to pursue this research,” said Meyerhoff. “It will be far easier to travel and collaborate with my colleagues at other institutions, and the extra research time will also enable me to do more work with my colleagues at BC.” Meyerhoff added that support from the University, through faculty fellowships and 80-percent sabbaticals, “was a big help to me in producing the body of research that the Simons Foundation based the award on.”

A profile on Meyerhoff and his research is available via the Boston College Libraries website at http://bit.ly/VAQHqK. —Sean Smith

CIHE Launches New Partnership with Seminar The Boston College Center for International Higher Education (CIHE) marked its groundbreaking partnership with the Parisbased Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) by hosting a three-day international seminar last month.

The seminar, held as part of the OECD’s Innovation, Higher Education, Research and Development (IHERD) program, focused on the role of research universities as drivers of the world’s knowledge networks. Some 40 participants from around the world took part, exploring the future prospects of research institutions in developing and middle-income countries.

Topics included current research networking platforms; new methods of communication; and the challenges facing the creation, expansion, and improvement of knowledge networks in an evermore complex global environment.

Session leaders included academics and researchers of global standing, as well as the CEOs of learned societies and bilateral development partnerships, from Australia, Brazil, France, Hong Kong, Korea, New Zealand, Nigeria, and South Africa. The conference also featured local guests, from BC, Harvard, MIT and UMass-Boston.

The CIHE director, Monan Professor of Higher Education

Philip Altbach, along with Lynch School of Education Professor Joseph O’Keefe, SJ, and IHERD coordinator Åsa Olsson opened the symposium.

A key outcome of the seminar will be the dissemination of its scholarly findings: By agreement with the UK-based Society for Research into Higher Education, seminar papers will be published in the spring 2013 issue of Studies in Higher Education, a leading European higher education journal.

For more about Center for International Higher Education, and its partnership with OECD, see the CIHE website at www. bc.edu/cihe.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

T he B oston C ollege

Chronicle november 1, 2012

WELCOME ADDITIONS Graduate School of Social Work Assistant Professor Summer Hawkins is a social epidemiologist whose research focuses on the impact of policies on disparities in maternal and child health. Hawkins was awarded a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development for the study “Early Determinants of childhood obesity: Etiology disparities policy analysis.” Her current projects involve racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in maternal smoking during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and how state-level tobacco control policies affect maternal smoking during pregnancy. She is the co-author of the article “Do state breastfeeding laws in the USA promote breastfeeding?” published recently in Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

Hawkins earned her doctorate from the University of London, her master’s from Drexel University, and her bachelor’s degree from Vassar College.

Assistant Professor of Psychology Hao Wu earned a PhD from Ohio State University in 2012. Wu’s research interests include evaluation of statistical models in Psychology. Wu is particularly interested in issues such as how to compare multiple statistical models, how to account for the fact that models are not exactly true in reality, and how to handle nonlinear relations or non-normal distributions.

Assistant Professor of Political Science Peter Krause is an expert on international security, Middle East politics, non-state violence, and social movements, and is currently completing a book on the political effectiveness of violence within national movements.

He has published articles on US intervention in the Syrian civil war, the politics of division within the Palestinian national movement, the war of ideas in the Middle East, and a reassessment of US operations at Tora Bora in 2001. Krause teaches International Relations of the Middle East, Terrorism, Insurgency, and Political Violence and Introduction to International Studies. A former research fellow at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies of Brandeis University, Krause holds a doctorate from MIT and a bachelor’s degree from Williams College.

—Melissa Beecher and Sean Smith Photos by Lee Pellegrini “Welcome Additions,” an occasional feature, profiles new faculty members at Boston College.

NOTA BENE Connell School of Nursing doctoral student Rachel DiFazio MS ’96 has been inducted into the American Academy of Nursing, a group of accomplished leaders in nursing education, management, practice and research who serve the public and the nursing profession by shaping healthy behaviors, promoting healthy aging, integrating mental and physical health and strengthening the health care delivery system nationally and internationally.

DiFazio, a pediatric nurse practitioner in the Orthopedic Department of Boston Children’s Hospital, is noted for her outreach to the Russian nursing community. Since 2000 she has co-organized a biennial US-Russian Nursing Conference that offers an integrated learning experience to promote understanding of nursing practice and health care delivery. Nurses from more than a half dozen countries have participated in the conference, which includes site visits to a hospital, hospices, HIV clinic, and mental health center.

7

Newsmakers The Huffington Post featured Brennan Professor of Education Andy Hargreaves as part of its series of interviews with US education thought leaders about major issues facing the nation.

The New York Times interviewed Prof. Edward Kane (CSOM) for his views on whether the change in leadership at Citigroup will protect taxpayers from future bailouts.

BC Law Dean Vincent Rougeau discussed the creation of the position of faculty director of experiential learning — to which it has appointed Paul Tremblay [see page 3] — as part of the school’s effort to prepare law graduates “for every aspect of the practice of law in our global community” in an interview with WSJ.com.

Carroll School of Management Dean Andy Boynton provided a quiz and analysis on the topic “Are You an Idea Person?” in his latest post for Forbes.

Legal Theory Blog recommended a new paper by Prof. Mary Bilder (Law) that seeks to resurrect the official records of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 — and the reputation of Secretary of the Convention William Jackson, whose work has been neglected and dismissed by scholars for the last century.

The Boston Globe “G” section ran a profile of multilingual Presidential Scholar Brooke Loughrin ’14 who — after having volunteered at the Suffolk County House of Correction and Roxbury’s Haley House, lived with host families in India and Iran, studied Persian and Farsi in Tajikistan, spent a summer working at a Senegal HIV clinic and taken a language immersion course in Istan-

On Oct. 19, the Feast of the North American Martyrs, the Jesuit Community of Boston College, joined by the Faber Community, celebrated five jubilarians with a concelebrated Mass at St. Mary’s Chapel. Fathers J. Donald Monan, SJ, William Russell, SJ, and James Bernauer, SJ, marked 70, 60 and 50 years, respectively, in the Society of Jesus, while Fathers Terrence Devino, SJ, and Paul McNellis, SJ, celebrated 25 years in the priesthood. (Photo by Fr. Harvey Egan, SJ)

bul — was recently appointed the first-ever US Youth Observer at the United Nations.

New England Cable News included Taylor Eggleston ’15 – founder of the non-partisan Boston College Eagle Political Society — in a profile of conservative Republican college students by reporter Greg Wayland for his “Greg’s List” segment.

BC BRIEFING Publications Prof. Ourida Mostefai (Romance Languages and Literatures) published “Singular and Exemplary: The Theory and Experience of Citizenship in Rousseau” in Self-Evident Truths?

Human Rights and the Enlightenment (The Oxford Amnesty Lectures 2012).

Honors/Appointments Asst. Prof. Ralf Yusuf Gawlick (Music) received an award of excellence from Global Music Awards, an international composition competi-

obituary

Mary Carey, Fine Arts Admin. Asst.

A funeral Mass was held Oct. 27 at St. Mary’s Church in Dedham for Mary Carey, who worked at Boston College for 31 years, mainly in the Fine Arts Department. Mrs. Carey died on Oct. 23.

Mrs. Carey joined BC in 1972 as a part-time secretary for the School of Education before transferring to Fine Arts in 1977 as an administrative assistant. She became a full-time employee in 1987 and served until her retirement in 2003.

“Mary was a terrific colleague, and a great representative for Boston College,” said Fine Arts Professor Jeffery Howe. “She was unfailing kind, courteous and efficient, a woman of great dignity and sound judgment of character. She managed complicated budgets and people in a straightforward and unflappable man-

ner. Mary could always be relied on to boost department morale with her quiet but wise sense of humor.

“When she retired nine years ago, we sad to see her go,” added Howe, “but delighted that she would have more time to spend with her beloved dog and ice skating.”

Mrs. Carey is survived by her daughter Elizabeth and son Michael, her brothers William and Arthur McKenney, her sister Rose McKenney, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her husband Leo F. Carey and her sister Catherine Pembroke.

Donations in her memory may be made to the Animal Rescue League of Boston, 55 Anna’s Place, Dedham, Mass.

—Office of News & Public Affairs

tion. He was honored for his “Berlin Suite” for string quartet, an original score composed for Prof. John Michalczyk’s (Fine Arts) documentary “Writing on the Wall: Remembering the Berlin Wall.”

Time and a Half Founders Professor in Theology James F. Keenan, SJ, presented “Responding to Suffering: How moral theology developed after Vatican II and how it will assuredly develop into the future” at the 10th Annual Conference on Contemporary Catholic Healthcare Ethics, Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University, Chicago.

Prof. Dwayne E. Carpenter (Romance Languages) spoke on medieval Spanish legislation regarding religious minorities at the symposium “La condizione giuridica di Ebrei e Musulmani nel diritto comune” in Erice, Sicily.

Prof. Emeritus Dennis Taylor (English) presented “The Retired Faculty Research Seminar at Boston College” at the Association of Retired Organizations in Higher Education Conference, Chapel Hill, NC.

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/: Associate University Librarian Associate Director of Operations, Office of Residential Life HVAC Mechanic, Management

Facilities

Assistant Manager, Dining Services McNair Administrator/Counselor, Learning to Learn Programs Assistant Director, Graphic Design & Production, Office of Marketing Communications Assistant Director, Housing Assignments & Occupancy, Residential Life

T he B oston C ollege

Chronicle november 1, 2012

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LOOKING AHEAD Saying ‘AMEN’ to Peace and Tolerance

“We are not so much replacing artwork but serving to help reconstruct a new and improved church for the people in Khartoum.”

—Khalid Kodi

Fine Arts faculty member leads response to Catholic church-burning incident in Sudan

By Rosanne Pellegrini Staff Writer

A trove of more than a dozen paintings en route to a Sudanese church undergoing restoration after being destroyed by arson comprise a current Bapst Library exhibition advocating universal acceptance and harmony.

The exhibition, on display in the Bapst Gallery through Nov. 11, showcases the work of the AMEN (Artists Movement to Engage Nonviolence) Project, an initiative launched by Sudanese-American artist Khalid Kodi, an adjunct professor of Fine Arts, in response to a Catholic church-burning incident last spring in a residential area in Khartoum, Sudan.

Supported by a number of groups at Boston College, Kodi is working with a multi-religious and multi-ethnic BC team of artists, including students and alumni, most of whom have taken his classes.

The group, which promotes peace and tolerance among all religions, has produced the works as part of a greater effort to rebuild the church, which also served as a prominent educational and residential facility.

The project, Kodi said, is rooted in universal principles of, and commitment to, peaceful co-existence and social justice.

“We are not so much replac-

BC SCENES

Adjunct Professor of Fine Arts Khalid Kodi and several students hung pieces in the Bapst Library Gallery for an exhibition of artwork that will be used in the restoration of a Sudanese church destroyed by arson. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)

ing artwork but serving to help reconstruct a new and improved church for the people in Khartoum.

The works themselves symbolize the unity and strength of religion, but the support network established by the AMEN Project reflects the ideology that we are all just people helping people.”

Over the summer, his team worked on a series of large-scale biblical paintings, which feature iconic religious images representing peace, harmony and tolerance. During the process, they received interest and support from local Sudanese community leaders and artists.

The paintings “range from tradi-

tional to modern, Western to African depictions of religious imagery,” according to Kodi. “We have a recreation of a well-known ‘Madonna and Child’ painting as well as an original work depicting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Some extend beyond biblical images and focus on political and religious leaders-portraits of Martin Luther King Jr. and Saint Bakhita.” Within the next few months the works will be shipped to the Sudan for installation.

Kodi said the focus of his artwork is on “tackling issues concerning social justice and advocating universal tolerance of religion, ethnicity and culture. I closely follow

ongoing issues in Sudan and often work on projects in support of spreading peace.

“When I heard what happened to the church in Khartoum, I knew a big project was needed; Sudanese community leaders, activists, friends and media (such as sudaneseonline. com), were thrilled that the project was underway. It’s this kind of collaborative work that is needed to end violent intolerance.”

In addition to the paintings they created, AMEN Project members conducted interviews with leaders in the fields of education and religion, who addressed the meaning of the church-burning incident, and the response of the AMEN Project.

Among those interviewed were members of the Boston College community, including Center for Human Rights and International Justice Director David Hollenbach, SJ, Professor of Theology and Department Chair Catherine Cornille, Professor of Fine Arts John Michalczyk, Associate Professor of Theatre and Arts Council Chair Crystal Tiala, and part-time Theology faculty member Raymond Helmick, SJ. The interviews are part of the Bapst exhibit, and are available for online viewing on the AMEN Project website, www.amen-projects.com.

“Many departments at Boston College were very eager to support us, including the Theology Department, the Jesuit Institute,

STEP BY STEP

The Center for Irish Programs’ Gaelic Roots series hosted a ceili on Oct. 23 in Gasson Hall, co-organized

by Sullivan Artist-in-Residence Seamus Connolly and part-time Irish Studies faculty member Kieran Jordan, who taught and led participatory dances (above). Music was provided by Connolly and musicians from Boston College and the Boston area, as well as special guest Michael Tubridy — a founding member of The Chieftains — who also gave a sample of his dancing ability (top photo at right). The Boston College Irish Dance student club (bottom right) gave a performance as well. For more Gaelic Roots events, see www.bc.edu/gaelicroots.

the Institute for the Liberal Arts, the Center for Human Rights and International Justice, and more,” Kodi said. “The team of artists dedicated their entire summers to complete the artwork. Everyone involved was so committed to the project — we all just wanted to do what we could to help.”

The Bapst exhibit, he continued, “is crucial not only for raising awareness about global issues, but also to emphasize that the student body has tremendous resources available to them for engaging in such projects. We gained support, both morally and financially, from various departments. So many people on campus played essential roles in developing this project.

“We are living in times of religious tension and intolerance,” he added. “The exhibition aims to spread this sense of collaboration and mutual respect.”

In addition to Kodi, AMEN Project team members include seniors Sean Hackel and Anthony Ford, and 2012 alumni Kyle Craven and Diane Kim. The exhibition is open during regular library hours. A reception will be held on Thursday, Nov. 8, from 4-6 p.m., with an informal discussion from 6-8 p.m.

Contact Rosanne Pellegrini at rosanne.pellegrini@bc.edu

Photos by Christopher Huang