Boston College Chronicle

PUBLISHED BY THE BOSTON COLLEGE OFFICE OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

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Oceans at Risk

‘Friendsgiving’

STCPS to BC

BC’s Global Observatory on Pollution and Health warns that ocean pollution is getting worse and poses a threat to humanity.

BC Dining Services hosted Thanksgiving for students remaining on campus during the break.

An alum, an undergrad, and a prospective Eagle reflect on their connections with Saint Columbkille Partnership School and Boston College.

photo source: wikimedia commons

DECEMBER 3, 2020 VOL. 28. NO. 7

PUBLISHED BY THE BOSTON COLLEGE OFFICE OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

‘A Rhythm to Work With’

Inaugural Engineering Chair Named

As the semester’s end nears, BC departments point to collaborations as key in protecting campus from COVID

BY OFFICE OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS STAFF

BY ED HAYWARD STAFF WRITER

Glenn Gaudette, a biomedical engineer who has pioneered the use of plants as scaffolding for heart regeneration, has been named the inaugural chair of Boston College’s new Engineering Department, which will integrate BC’s liberal arts focus with a human-centered engineering curriculum to prepare students to find solutions that address critical human needs.

Gaudette is the William Smith Dean’s Professor of Biomedical Engineering and executive director of the Value Creation Initiative at Worcester Polytechnic In-

Glenn Gaudette

photo by lee pellegrini

stitute, where he has taught since 2004.

His research, supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, aims to develop a treatment for the millions of Americans

Continued on page 4

In two-and-a-half weeks, on December 21, final exams will conclude, residence halls will close, and the 2020 fall semester at Boston College will officially be over.

The semester began on August 31 amidst concern and uncertainty over the COVID-19 pandemic, and its potential impact on the health and well-being of BC faculty, students, and staff, as well as on academic, administrative, and service operations. Five months earlier, the coronavirus had forced the University to suspend in-person classes for most of the spring semester.

But broad-based planning and preparations during the summer enabled the University to resume operations for the fall while protecting the health of the BC community. Face masks were required in classrooms and common areas throughout campus, which were reorganized as necessary to ensure social distancing. Faculty taught classes in a mix of in-person, online, and hybrid modes. Dining halls redesigned their layouts and provided additional grab-and-go items. An on-campus COVID-19 testing program for students and employees was introduced.

And life at BC went on. Not without some anxiety and trepidation: The Uni-

Continued on page 6

Building Community for First-Generation Students New component of BC F1RST program helps ‘first-gens’ continue their transition to college life

BY SEAN SMITH CHRONICLE EDITOR

For first-generation college students, arriving on campus represents a milestone, a triumph over considerable odds. But it’s also only a beginning, and the rest of the way isn’t necessarily any easier.

That’s why, according to student affairs professionals and other experts, “first-gens” fare best when they have resources, including caring, committed campus staff, to help them face educational, social, and economic

BC F1RST resident Alexandra Kabo ’24, right, talks with Hardey Hall Resident Assistant Idris Council ’22, center, and Resident Director Mchenold (Marco) Aurelien. photo by peter julian

challenges markedly different from those of fellow undergraduates.

At Boston College, the newest such support, created by Learning to Learn, is BC F1RST, one of eight Living and Learning Communities (LLCs) administered by the University’s Office of Residential Life; LLCs such as Multicultural Learning Experience, Sustainability, and the Shaw Leadership Program offer the opportunity for students with shared interests or backgrounds to live alongside and regularly interact with one another. Fifteen first-year students make up the inaugural BC F1RST LLC cohort, which is housed in Hardey and Cushing halls on Newton Campus.

The BC F1RST LLC, an extension of BC’s similarly named college transition pro-

Continued on page 12

COVID-19 is a once-in-a-century event, but the next century is coming. Regional crises like natural disasters and wars cause similar social and economic disruptions. The more we understand how this affects children, the better we can plan.

– asst. prof. joshua hartshorne (psychology/neuroscience), page 7

Chronicle

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December 3, 2020

Around Campus

BC Sophomore Publishes Novel She Started Back in Seventh Grade In middle school, Louise Faitar ’23 and her friends founded the “New Lands Club,” a forum for discussing the various islands around the world they most wanted to visit. Early favorites included the aptly-named Kangaroo Island, located off the southern coast of Australia, and the United States territory American Samoa. On a less exotic note, everyone also wanted to visit Hawaii.

The talk of distant places piqued Faitar’s adolescent imagination. What if there was an island that didn’t exist on any maps?

And what if that secret island was populated by an organism similar to humans, but not quite human?

“It was a long shot and it didn’t make a lot of sense in the beginning, but as I thought about this more and more, a whole story developed,” recalled Faitar, a neuroscience major. “And then after I started writing, I just couldn’t stop.”

Seven years later, Faitar’s long-shot idea became a 471-page book, available for purchase on Amazon. The Evanescence of Fog, which Faitar self-published in July, tells the story of a distant island nation invaded by an army of genetically modified wolverines. While under siege, the island’s king turns to an unlikely cast of characters for help, including a 10-year-old girl, a pygmy unicorn, and a mentally unstable musical genius.

Though categorized as science fiction fantasy, The Evanescence of Fog is also loose-

Louise Faitar ’23: “I would read books and think, ‘OK, I really enjoyed this, but if I were writing it, I would do things differently.’ I really wanted to write the kind of book I would enjoy as a reader.” photo by peter julian

ly autobiographical. Half of the book takes place in Williamsville, NY, where Faitar grew up, and features a band of (human) middle school protagonists.

“The two halves come together in an

interesting way,” said Faitar. “There’s a connection between what’s going on in New York and what’s happening in the Pacific Ocean.”

Faitar has been writing since elementary school, when she began penning poems as a way to improve her English (her family spoke Romanian at home). A voracious reader, she took inspiration from the oftendark children’s books in the A Series of Unfortunate Events novels and later, the Harry Potter series. In high school, she sped through the required texts with an author’s critical eye.

“I would read books and think, ‘OK, I really enjoyed this, but if I were writing it, I would do things differently,’” she recalled.

“I really wanted to write the kind of book I would enjoy as a reader.”

Faitar began rewriting The Evanescence of Fog a few years ago, elevating her middle school concept and preparing it for publication. When COVID-19 forced college students to return home last spring, she doubled down on her efforts. Receiving the first bound copies of her book this summer was “surreal,” she said.

“I still can’t believe I was able to follow through and do this,” she said. “Some people told me the idea was too crazy or that I was too young to be writing, but others told me, ‘I really like the style and how you write,’ and those were the moments that kept me going, even when I didn’t really

Six Years, 200-Plus Websites, and a Project Completed A six-year project to redesign Boston College’s websites wrapped up this week, as the Office of University Communications, in partnership with Information Technology Services, launched the 205th and final website on Tuesday.

The web team has now completed a redesign for all of BC’s websites including each of the University’s eight schools, as well as its administrative divisions, such as Facilities Services, Human Resources, Auxiliary Services, and Student Affairs.

“The website is the face of the University to the world and we take this responsibility very seriously,” said OUC Director of Web Services Scott Olivieri. “Our primary goal is to represent Boston College as a world-class institution. We also want to authentically represent the people of Boston College, the University’s values, mission, and future direction.”

To redesign a website, the web team of ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Jack Dunn SENIOR DIRECTOR FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

OUC designers, developers, writers, and videographers worked with the vice presidents or deans of the appropriate division or school to learn their needs and goals for their site. The team then analyzed page views and Google search data to identify navigation issues, conducted focus groups with students and administrators to understand how the website serves them, and reviewed industry trends and best practices.

After this information was collected, the team and their partners within the division or school collaboratively revamped the website by building an information architecture, designed pages using templates and components, selected appropriate images and videos, and wrote and edited the language. This process took up to four months for the larger schools and divisions, involving about four hours of meetings each week.

“Just about every corner of BC has a

CONTRIBUTING STAFF

Christine Balquist Phil Gloudemans Ed Hayward Rosanne Pellegrini Kathleen Sullivan

Chronicle

PHOTOGRAPHERS

www.bc.edu/bcnews chronicle@bc.edu

Patricia Delaney EDITOR

Sean Smith

web presence,” said Olivieri. “This has afforded us an amazing opportunity to meet terrific colleagues and learn the innerworkings of so many departments, centers, and schools.”

With the redesign process complete, the web team will now help to refresh these new websites by revising text, adding new images and videos, and optimizing the use of new components.

“We’ll always have new tools to build, new sites to create, and new problems to solve,” said Olivieri. “It’s what makes it such an exciting job.”

In 2019, Boston College’s web presence was recognized by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, which selected it for a Circle of Excellence award.

—Christine Balquist

Lee Pellegrini Peter Julian

know where the story was going.”

At Boston College, Faitar is able to combine her love of literature with her interest in science. Originally a biology major, Faitar switched to neuroscience after losing a close friend to mental illness last year.

“It put things into perspective,” she said.

“There are people struggling out there who, because of the stigma around it, are not able to get the help they need. Hopefully I can help in the future.”

Alongside her science classes, Faitar is continuing her hobbies (she plays slide guitar and violin and practices Isshin-Ryu style karate) and taking full advantage of BC’s liberal arts offerings, stretching her creative muscles in modernist and medieval literature courses. So far, none of her texts have been set on a secret island, but they have exposed her to new genres and styles of writing.

“I didn’t read a lot of Virginia Woolf in high school, and I definitely didn’t read Djuna Barnes, so that was a new experience,” she said. “It gave me some ideas about what I’d like to write in the future.”

—Alix Hackett is a senior digital content writer for the Office of University Communications

Clarifications on Design Thinking Story Clarifications regarding the story in the November 12 Chronicle about Lynch School of Education students who participated in the ACC “Humanity & Design Thinking Workshop”: •Five Lynch School students were among the 17 overall workshop participants.

•The design thinking workshop was developed at meetings of the 2019-20 ACC Academic Leadership Network, a multi-institutional program formed to develop academic leaders, share best practices and benchmarking, and foster collaboration among ACC universities.

•BC faculty participation was supported by the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculties, and each BC design thinking academic option was developed in collaboration with the vice provost for research and academic planning and the associate vice provost for design and innovation strategy.

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Chronicle

December 3, 2020

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BC-Led Report Details Risks from Ocean Pollution

BY ED HAYWARD STAFF WRITER

Ocean pollution is widespread and getting worse, and when toxins in the oceans make landfall they imperil human health and wellbeing, according to a new report by an international coalition of scientists led by Boston College’s Global Observatory on Pollution and Health and the Centre Scientifique de Monaco, supported by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation.

To remediate ocean pollution, the report recommends a series of short- and long-term measures, such as banning coal combustion and the production of single-use plastics, controlling coastal pollution, and expanding marine protected areas.

The study is the first comprehensive examination of the impacts of ocean pollution on human health. It was published in the December 3 online edition of the Annals of Global Health and released at the Monaco International Symposium on Human Health and the Ocean in a Changing World, convened in Monaco and online by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, the Centre Scientifique de Monaco, and Boston College.

“Simply put: Ocean pollution is a major global problem, it is growing, and it directly affects human health,” said Professor Philip Landrigan, MD, the director of the observatory and of BC’s Global Public Health and the Common Good program. “People have heard about plastic pollution in the oceans, but that is only part of it. Research shows the oceans are being fouled by a complex stew of toxins including mercury, pesticides, industrial chemicals, petroleum wastes, agricultural runoff, and manufactured chemicals embedded in plastic. These toxic materials in the ocean get into people, mainly by eating contaminated seafood.”

Landrigan said, “We are all at risk, but the people most seriously affected are people in coastal fishing communities, people on small island nations, indigenous populations, and people in the high Arctic. The very survival of these vulnerable populations depends

Global Observatory on Pollution and Health Director Philip Landrigan, MD photo by gary wayne gilbert

on the health of the seas.”

The oceans cover more than 70 percent of the earth’s surface. Despite their vast size, the seas are under threat, primarily as a result of human activity, according to the report, drawn from 584 scientific reports detailing the following: •Pollution of the oceans by plastics, toxic metals, manufactured chemicals, pesticides, sewage, and agricultural runoff is killing and contaminating the fish that feed three billion people.

•Coastal pollution spreads life-threatening infections.

•Oil spills and chemical wastes threaten the microorganisms in the seas that provide much of the world’s oxygen supply.

Among the report’s key findings: •Mercury pollution has become widespread in the oceans, accumulating to high levels in fish. Once in the food chain, this contamination poses health risks to children and adults.

•Coal is the major source of mercury pollution, its toxins vaporizing into the air as it burns and eventually washing into the oceans.

•Pollution along the coasts by industrial waste, agricultural runoff, pesticides, and human sewage has increased the frequency of

Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs).

•Plastic waste—entering the oceans at a rate of more than 10 million tons each year—is the most visible component of ocean pollution.

•The waters most seriously impacted by ocean pollution are the Mediterranean Sea, the Baltic Sea, and Asian rivers.

“The key thing to realize about ocean pollution is that, like all forms of pollution, it can be prevented using laws, policies, technology, and enforcement actions that target the most important pollution sources,” Landrigan said. “Many countries have used these tools and have successfully cleaned fouled harbors, rejuvenated estuaries, and restored coral reefs. The results have been increased tourism, restored fisheries, improved human health, and economic growth. These benefits will last for centuries.”

The report recommends transitioning rapidly from fossil fuels to renewable energy—wind, solar, tidal, and geothermal power—and preventing mercury pollution of the oceans by eliminating coal combustion and controlling all industrial uses of mercury; reducing plastic production and imposing a global ban on production of single-use plastic; and promoting effective waste management and recycling.

In addition, the authors call for reducing agricultural releases of nitrogen, phosphorus, and animal waste, as well as industrial discharges and human sewage into coastal waters; supporting robust monitoring of ocean pollution; extending regional and international marine pollution control programs to all countries; and creating, expanding, and safeguarding Marine Protected Areas.

The report is being released in tandem with the Declaration of Monaco: Advancing Human Health & Well-Being by Preventing Ocean Pollution, which was read at the symposium’s closing session.

Endorsed by the scientists, physicians, and global stakeholders who participated in the symposium in-person in Monaco and virtually, this declaration summarizes the key findings and conclusions of the Monaco Commission on Human Health and Ocean

Pollution. Based on the recognition that all life on Earth depends on the health of the seas, the authors call on leaders and citizens of all counties to “safeguard human health and preserve our common home by acting now to end pollution of the ocean.”

In the report’s introduction, Prince Albert of Monaco wrote that the findings can be used to mobilize a global resolve to take the steps to begin to curb ocean pollution. “The link between ocean pollution and human health has, for a long time, given rise to very few studies. Taking into account the effects of ocean pollution—due to plastic, water and industrial waste, chemicals, hydrocarbons, to name a few—on human health should mean that this threat must be permanently included in the international scientific activity.

“This document on Human Health and the Ocean, prepared with the contributions of the Monaco Science Centre and Boston College, substantiates that pollution of the ocean is not inevitable,” he added.

Additional partners in the symposium include the Government of the Principality of Monaco, the World Health Organization, UN Environment, International Agency for Atomic Energy, Monaco Oceanographic Institute, French National Centre for Scientific Research, Mediterranean Science Commission, European Marine Board, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography, under the High Patronage of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco.

“Our Global Observatory on Pollution and Health at Boston College is extremely proud to have been able to partner with the Centre Scientifique de Monaco and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation to produce this report and develop the Declaration of Monaco,” said Landrigan. “This work advances the mission of the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society at Boston College to use scientific research to benefit society, and it fulfills Pope Francis’ call in Laudato Si’ to care for our common home and to protect the poor and the vulnerable among us.”

Schiller Institute Hosts Forum on Environmental Racism The Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society addressed the critical issue of environmental racism and the struggle for environmental justice nationally and globally at a highly anticipated Boston College Forum on Racial Justice in America event Tuesday.

The virtual event, conceived by the Schiller Institute’s Seidner Executive Director Laura J. Steinberg and planned by a committee of 18 faculty, staff, and students from throughout the University community, featured renowned environmental sociologist David Pellow, the Dehlsen Chair and professor of environmental studies, and director of the Global Environmental Justice Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara, and the Rev. Mariama WhiteHammond, a prominent advocate for ecological and social justice and the founding pastor of the New Roots AME Church in Dorchester, Mass.

Pellow presented an overview of the challenge of environmental racism and an exploration of some of the most important dimensions regarding environmental justice. Drawing on years of research as well as personal participation in the environmental justice movement, he offered measures for promoting transformative change both here in the United States and abroad.

Hammond addressed ecological justice, local struggles with environmental racism, and opportunities for change within the Greater Boston area based on a lifetime of community engagement.

Steinberg served as moderator for the discussion, the first in a series of events on the topic to be scheduled throughout the coming year.

“As the Boston College community rises to the challenge of confronting racial injustice in America, the Schiller Institute is taking on the battle against environmental rac-

ism,” said Steinberg prior to the event. “As one of the links in the chain of structural racism, environmental racism reaches deep into the lifeblood of communities, causing an accumulation of environmental harms that threaten the health of residents, robbing them of open space, and eroding the value and cohesion of neighborhoods.

“The Schiller Institute, in fulfilling its mission to address complex social problems in a holistic and deeply engaged manner, is undertaking a concerted effort to explore the origins of environmental racism, examine its role as a manifestation of structural racism, understand and acknowledge the full extent of environmental racism’s damage to communities of color, and, most importantly, to equip BC students, faculty, and allies with the insight, know-how, and opportunities to actively work to combat the scourge of environmental racism.”

Interviewed last week, Forum for Racial

Justice in America inaugural director Vincent Rougeau said the event, which closed out the forum’s fall schedule, was a muchneeded conversation on a societal threat that too often victimizes people of color but is largely ignored by policy makers and political leaders.

“Study after study has shown that there are deep racial disparities when it comes to exposure to environmental hazards, both natural and man-made,” said Rougeau, dean of the BC Law School. “The concept of environmental racism reminds us that racial biases embedded in the structure of society are critical factors in determining who is most likely to suffer harm from environmental degradation, and addressing this harm is a critical part of the work that Boston College plans to do through the Forum on Racial Justice in America.”

—University Communications

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December 3, 2020

Engineering Dept. Beginning to Take Shape Continued from page 1

suffering from myocardial infarction and other cardiovascular diseases. His work is also focused on the cultivation of protein products as sustainable food sources with reduced environmental impact.

“I am excited and grateful for this opportunity to build and lead the Engineering Department and its Human-Centered Engineering Program at Boston College,” said Gaudette, who will begin his new post January 1. “Our faculty and students will be focused on creating deep learning in the discipline, combined with a mindset that we will use engineering to do better for others, to make the world a better place for the greater good. That is what this new program is all about and that is what I am really excited about.”

At WPI, Gaudette has been awarded more than $8 million in externally funded grants as a principal investigator and coPI, including projects that offered research experiences for undergraduates and K-12 teachers. Gaudette, who holds four patents, is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering.

Developed in part as a response to the high level of interest in engineering among BC applicants considering majors in STEM fields, the department’s new human-centered engineering major will integrate BC’s liberal arts core curriculum with foundations of engineering, design and systems thinking applications, and service-focused capstone experiences.

The new engineering program coincides with the launch of BC’s Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society in a state-of-the-art science and engineering center slated to open in the fall of 2021, the centerpiece of a $300-million investment in the sciences at Boston College.

“Glenn is a highly innovative engineer, a gifted teacher, and an educator who asks

his students to look thoughtfully at the needs of the world as they endeavor to solve the complex problems we face in the 21st century,” said Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J. “He is uniquely qualified to lead an en-

major in human-centered engineering is an important milestone in the life of the University, and I’m pleased to welcome Glenn Gaudette as the inaugural department chair,” said Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley. “His leadership in

Siddhartan Govindasamy, left, and Avneet Hira—who arrives in January—join chair Glenn Gaudette in the new Engineering Department. photo at left by lee pellegrini

gaging new major that will ask its students to integrate a rigorous engineering curriculum with the formative Core curriculum that is at the center of our distinctiveness as a Jesuit liberal arts university.”

Anchored by a human-centered, inclusive approach and design-thinking methodologies, engineering study at Boston College will be bolstered by a global viewpoint, ethical underpinnings, and distinctive capstone projects that address real-world challenges. The new major is marked by several distinctive characteristics, including human-centered design, an engineering core, and an emphasis on reflection. A 20-credit Engineering Fundamentals Studio course in sophomore year will anchor the degree program as a year-long exploration of central engineering topics.

“The launch of our undergraduate

the field and his compelling vision for what engineering can mean at Boston College position him well to lead the program over the next many years.”

Gaudette said WPI’s emphasis on project-based education will enliven the blueprint set forth for the new major at BC. “Incorporating project-based education into this new program and integrating it with BC’s holistic approach to education creates a really powerful combination,” said Gaudette. “Looking at the future of engineering education, that is what we need.

When you combine project-based learning, technical knowledge, and the mindset that BC is so well known for, it empowers you to educate students for the greater good.”

Gaudette received international media attention for developing a method to regenerate human heart tissue, demonstrated

by stripping a spinach leaf bare except for its veiny skeleton and using that natural scaffold to grow heart tissue.

However accomplished his research, Gaudette takes great pride in his teaching.

He counts being named Outstanding Faculty of the Year by the Kern Family Foundation as one of his greatest honors. With funding from the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network, he leads the Value Creation Initiative to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset in his students.

As the University hires an initial cohort of engineering faculty, Quigley said Gaudette will work closely with colleagues in the Schiller Institute and across campus to advance innovative research and teaching programs in service of the common good.

Two additional faculty members have been hired as the University prepares for the first engineering majors to begin their studies next September.

Siddhartan Govindasamy joined the University this year as a professor of engineering. He earned a Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science at MIT, and came to BC from the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering, where he taught courses on analog and digital communications, probability, information theory, and wireless applications.

In January, Gaudette and Govindasamy will be joined by Avneet Hira, who comes from MIT, where she is a research scientist at the Scheller Teacher Education Program and Education Arcade. In that role, Hira designed and researched educational technology and teacher professional development to teach in open-ended project-based settings. Hira earned a Ph.D. from Purdue University’s School of Engineering Education following earlier training and work in aerodynamics.

For more on the Boston College Engineering Department, see bc.edu/engineering

Mathematics Chair Joins BC Colleagues as AMS Fellow Professor and Chair of Mathematics G. Robert Meyerhoff has been selected as a fellow of the American Mathematical Society, a coveted professional and academic honor.

An association dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, the AMS chooses fellows for outstanding contributions to the creation, exposition, advancement, communication, and utilization of mathematics. Among other purposes, the AMS Fellows program supports the advancement of more mathematicians in leadership positions in their own institutions and in the broader society, and creates an enlarged class of mathematicians recognized by their peers as distinguished for their contributions to the profession.

A Boston College faculty member since 1993, Meyerhoff pursues research involving the three theories on the geometric structure of the universe, Euclidean, spherical, and hyperbolic. His work focuses specifically on understanding the nature of

G. Robert Meyerhoff

photo by peter julian

hyperbolic 3-manifolds by analyzing their size or volume. Utilizing the research of numerous 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.

In 2012, Meyerhoff was awarded a fellowship by the Simons Foundation, a New York City-based private institution that sponsors programs to advance the frontiers of research in mathematics and science.

“I’m delighted to receive this honor from the American Mathematical Society,” said Meyerhoff. “I’ve been fortunate to have spent the bulk of my career at Boston College. BC’s decision to build strong and focused groups in math and to start a Ph.D. program has greatly benefitted my work: Three of our doctoral graduates have been working with me and have been instrumental in the success of these ventures.

“The atmosphere at the BC Mathematics Department is terrific, and I’ve had many, many productive math conversations with the Geometry and Topology group here.”

“Rob Meyerhoff has made fundamental advances in geometry, focusing on the

study of 3-manifolds,” said his colleague, McIntyre Professor of Mathematics Solomon Friedberg. “His 2009 jointly published paper is described in Math Reviews as ‘a milestone in the study of orientable hyperbolic 3-manifolds of low volume.’

This recognition for his groundbreaking work is well-deserved.”

Meyerhoff joins Friedberg and departmental colleagues Professors Avner Ash, Martin Bridgeman, and Tao Li as having been selected as an AMS fellow.

“Professor Meyerhoff’s selection as an AMS Fellow is a fitting recognition of his distinguished scholarship,” added Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J. “With Rob joining a group of four other AMS Fellows in our Mathematics Department, it is clear that Boston College is making a remarkable contribution to leadership in the discipline. Congratulations to Rob and to the whole department.”

—University Communications

Chronicle

December 3, 2020

5

BC Partners with VetLink to Expand Access for Veterans

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

Dining Services staff prepared to serve Thanksgiving dinner at Walsh Hall. photos courtesy of BCDS

Thanksgiving at the Heights Boston College Dining Services hosted a ‘Friendsgiving’ feast for students remaining on campus A sumptuous, traditional Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings was on the menu for Boston College students who remained on campus for last week’s holiday.

The special feast featured such classics as slow-roasted turkey breast with sausage bread stuffing, savory gravy, whipped potatoes, cranberry sauce, green beans, squash, dinner rolls, and desserts—including apple and pumpkin pies—to satisfy any sweet tooth. Vegetarian and gluten-free options also were available.

“Honestly, it’s the best food I’ve ever had at BC,” said David Chuba ’23. “They really pulled out all the stops and did a great job.”

An additional Thanksgiving treat came later during the holiday break: University Trustee Susan Martinelli Shea offered to donate payment for the Thanksgiving meals purchased by Boston College students, whose meal plan accounts will be refunded the amount of the dinner.

For guests at the all-you-care-to-eat dinner, BC Dining prepared some 200 pounds of fresh turkey, eight gallons of gravy, and 150 pounds of potatoes. To add a festive holiday touch, the Carney Dining Room in McElroy Commons was festooned in seasonal decorations and set with china and tablecloths.

Three Thanksgiving dinner seatings were offered between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., to limit the number of diners at a given time, and pandemic safety protocols were in place, including a mask requirement, appropriately spaced tables limited to six students, and physical distancing in queuing for the meal.

BC Dining Services surveyed some 1,500 students who indicated that they would remain on campus during the long holiday weekend, according to director Beth Emery. While the majority planned to join friends or family in Massachusetts, the University sought to accommodate all who opted for Thanksgiving—or “Friendsgiving,” as Emery called it—dinner at the Heights.

Other members of the BC community—faculty, administrators, and staff—could opt to let BC Dining do their holiday cooking as well. A cost of $65 included dinner for four with leftovers, and supported a special Curbside for a Cause initiative: With each purchase, four meals

were donated by BCDS— in conjunction with the Office of Governmental and Community Affairs—to local organizations for families in need.

According to Emery, approximately 30 BC Dining team members worked on Thanksgiving to provide food and service at McElroy Commons, Walsh Hall, and St. Mary’s Hall for the Jesuit community.

“Our team members that worked on Thanskgiving were thrilled to serve students a traditional meal with holiday cheer,” she said. “Students and BC community members provided wonderful feedback about the meal and we have received many compliments on the Thanksgiving Curbside for the Cause. Many remarked that the servings were plentiful and that the food was delicious.”

“We treat the BC campus as the students’ ‘home away from home,’ so an on-campus celebratory feast—gathering of family and friends—is fitting for Thanksgiving,” said Auxiliary Services Associate Vice President Patricia Bando.

“Although our students have gone through so many challenges during this pandemic, there is so much that they and all of us have to be thankful for, including good health, good food, friendships, educational opportunities, and the future,” she added.

—Rosanne Pellegrini

Boston College has partnered with Service to School’s VetLink program, which expands opportunities and access for highly qualified veterans transitioning to higher education.

According to Director of Undergraduate Admission Grant M. Gosselin, BC will seek to increase the number of veterans enrolled in undergraduate degree programs at the University through the new partnership with S2S. “Boston College proudly welcomes all veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, and we’re committed to helping the men and women who have served, and who continue to serve, our country with the academic support, resources, community, and career development services that are the hallmark of a BC education,” said Gosselin. “Our partnership with Service to School reflects our commitment to expanding access and opportunity for student veterans of the armed services, and supports our strategic goals of building a more inclusive, hospitable community.”

Executive Vice President Michael J. Lochhead convened a Veteran’s Advisory Group last year to explore ways in which BC can provide a more welcoming and supportive experience for veterans. The partnership with S2S—which collaborates with institutions of higher education to build awareness of how veterans’ military service has prepared them for success in academia—is a direct result.

“Service to School was one of the first initiatives that was highlighted by the Veteran’s Advisory Group as a top priority in bringing highly qualified veterans to Boston College,” said Lochhead. “There is

much about the BC mission and values that I think will resonate with veterans, and I look forward to welcoming them in increasing numbers to the Heights over the coming years.”

Recognizing that many veterans have professional and family responsibilities, the University offers numerous full- and part-time undergraduate and graduate programs, including evening programs at the Woods College of Advancing Studies and a part-time M.B.A. program through the Carroll School of Management, notes Gosselin. A U.S. veteran or active duty service member is eligible to use U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs education benefits toward certificate as well as undergraduate and graduate programs.

Among the other select colleges and universities that have joined with S2S to form VetLink are Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, MIT, Notre Dame, Princeton, Stanford, and Yale.

“Boston College has a distinguished history of acting upon the call to serve, and continues to do so by developing future leaders dedicated to enriching the lives of others, attributes that are truly aligned with the ethos of our nation’s veterans,” said Jim Selbe, chief operating officer of Service to School. “This great institution adds another level of depth and breadth to a partnership of colleges and universities committed to creating a veteran-inclusive campus and community.”

Founded in 2011 by three military veterans and an admissions expert, the San Francisco-based S2S has grown to become a national non-profit that connects military veterans and service members with mentors to ensure veterans are being admitted to and attending the nation’s best colleges and graduate schools.

Just before Thanksgiving, Boston College baseball and softball teams got their first looks at the newly finished Pete Frates Center. Located on Brighton Campus adjacent to the Harrington Athletics Village, the 31,000-square foot indoor baseball and softball facility features locker rooms, hitting tunnels, an indoor turf field, strength and conditioning space, and a hospitality area. photo by lee pellegrini

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December 3, 2020

In a Semester of COVID Questions, Continued from page 1

versity recorded a spike in the number of positive tests (73) during the week of September 7-13; another uptick occurred before Thanksgiving break, with 67 positives reported during November 16-22, out of a total of 11,225 tests conducted. But these proved to be outliers: As of Monday, the University had conducted 118,118 tests of BC community members since August 16 with a total of 418 positive cases (including 87,422 undergraduate tests with 397 positives); the University’s cumulative positivity rate stood at 0.353 percent.

While all members of the University community contributed simply by wearing masks, washing hands regularly, and social distancing, the work of Facilities Services, Dining Services, Health Services, and Residential Life was crucial to carrying out BC’s COVID-19 plans and protocols.

These employees had to adapt to changes in some of the most basic aspects of their jobs, whether cleaning and sanitizing campus buildings, preparing and dispensing food, providing health care, or helping students maintain a positive campus living environment. These efforts to keep COVID at bay required continual communication and coordination among their respective departments, and with others throughout the University.

“Everything big we asked for, we got— the University really came through,” said Associate Vice President for Facilities Services Robert Avalle. “The rapport we built with departments and offices in academic, administrative, student affairs, and other areas—Dining Services, Health Services, ResLife—was so critical. It gave us all a rhythm to work with going into the semester.”

“The partnerships have been amazing,” agreed Associate Vice President for Residential Life and Special Projects George Arey. “Facilities, Health Services, Dining Services, Athletics, BC Police—they’ve all been incredibly helpful across the board, and we’ve enjoyed great communication.

We’re hopeful the work we’ve done together this semester will put us in good stead for the spring semester.”

At the epicenter of the University’s COVID-19 testing and contact tracing programs is Dr. Douglas Comeau, director of University Health Services (UHS) and Primary Care Sports Medicine, and his staff. Following the early September spike in coronavirus cases, BC significantly augmented its weekly testing, with an increased focus on infection trends on- and off-campus, as well as individuals identified through tracing, according to Comeau.

The UHS testing team involves a combination of UHS employees, per diem nurses, and athletic trainers, working Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. They have been conducting 8,000 to 9,000 tests per week among students, faculty, and staff, on average, with results reported in between four to 26 hours. Rather than using an observed swab—self-collected by the patient under the observation of a medical professional—BC utilizes the CDC-recommended nasal swabbing test,

BC Facilities Services staff worked all hours to keep high-traffic areas of campus sanitized. photos courtesy of faclities services

which Comeau characterizes as the “better way” to assess whether an individual is COVID-19 infected.

Health care professionals and individuals trained through a Johns Hopkins-developed program serve as BC’s contact tracers.

When BC experienced the rise in positive tests in early September, UHS was able to identify and test individuals with whom those testing positive had interacted; most tested positive.

“Our aggressive contact tracing protocols identified individuals who were affected and enabled us to quickly isolate them, which effectively resulted in a downward trend,” said Comeau. “Given our rapid response and teamwork, we’re operating at a faster pace than other colleges and universities in Greater Boston.”

UHS has continued to conduct symptomatic and asymptomatic testing for all members of the BC community, with symptomatic and asymptomatic tests conducted at a BC microbiology lab and other asymptomatic tests through the Broad Institute, Comeau explained. Students living on and off campus who test positive are immediately isolated for 10 days at Pine Manor College and Hotel Boston, where they are assisted by UHS and Residential Life staff.

Comeau and his UHS colleagues also have shared their expertise to help offices and departments formulate and implement safety measures. That includes Facilities Services, which in addition to applying its own intradepartmental protocols has carried out University-wide projects, such as reconfiguring classrooms to promote social distancing—right down to the “Don’t sit here” notices on some seats—constructing plexiglass barriers in customer service areas, and installing hand sanitizer dispensers

in various parts of campus. Other tasks were less visible but no less important, like modifying the HVAC infrastructure of campus buildings to increase the circulation of fresh air.

Facilities Services’ ongoing, and most formidable, charge was to thoroughly clean and sanitize classrooms, residence halls, and other high-traffic, high-use areas of campus. A key asset was the department’s custodial/housekeeping third shift: about 75 staff members cleaning and disinfecting almost 30 buildings a night, including the University libraries, Connell Recreation Center, athletic facilities, academic areas, and science buildings—more than 200 rooms/areas in all, ranging from classrooms

and auditoriums to bathrooms to elevators.

Cleaning and sanitizing residence halls multiple times a day necessitated some changes in routine for housekeepers and custodians, given that more students were likely to stay in the buildings than in prepandemic days. Staff had to clean lounges first—since students would typically use them throughout the day to participate in virtual classes—or start out on bathrooms and showers early in the shift. Students staying put in the residence halls also meant a higher volume of trash to be collected. Some additional custodial and housekeeping staff were assigned to residential areas to ensure the cleaning/sanitizing schedules stayed on track.

For BC Dining Services Director Beth Emery and her staff, dealing with the pandemic has been “like starting a new restaurant. It’s been a radical change. We had to reinvent how we serve students, our menu, and all of the safety precautions.”

The heightened safety and sanitation measures—employees required to wash hands every 30 minutes; dining halls closed between meal periods to sanitize all tables using an electrostatic gun; customers mandated to use hand sanitizer before entering serving areas—also meant reconfiguring dining halls for social distancing and to expedite the flow of traffic. BCDS changed its menus to focus on quick-serve meals and self-service options such as salad bars were removed in favor of grab-and-go items.

While the pandemic has limited interaction between dining staff and students, said Emery—something many BCDS employees miss—it has prompted expansion and creativity in other respects. BCDS has increased the capacity of orders and menu options that can be placed using the GET mobile application. More students are ordering their meals ahead of time, sometimes up to seven days in advance. At Hillside Café, students can pick up mobile orContinued on next page

COVID-19 testing at the Connell Recreation Center earlier this semester. The University Health Services testing team—employees, per diem nurses, and athletic trainers—has been conducting 8,000-9,000 tests per week among students, faculty, and staff.

photo by lee pellegrini

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December 3, 2020

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BC Worked Hard to Find the Answers Continued from previous page

ders in newly installed lockers; a QR code on their phone enables them to open the locker. The weekly farmers market, which offers local produce as well as breads and cheeses, has expanded operational hours and remained open later into the semester this year due to increased demand.

And even with masks and plexiglass shields, Emery notes, staff have found ways to give that personal touch, such as by placing stickers with inspirational quotes on cups and to-go containers.

“It’s all about student satisfaction and trying to do everything we can while considering the challenges of the pandemic and all of the restrictions that the board of health and the state require of us,” said Emery. “We constantly ask, ‘How can we make this the best possible experience for the customers?’”

The in-depth orientation on COVID safety the ResLife staff undertook dur-

ing the summer prepared them for a big test even before the semester actually began: supervising the move-in of undergraduates to campus. What is normally a boisterous, often hectic (if generally goodspirited) event became far more orderly and regimented—“and de-densified,” said Arey. Students signed up in advance for a 60-minute block in which they were given an on-site COVID test and then moved into their residence hall, where they had to quarantine until their test results were complete; they were provided 24 hours’ worth of meals.

An even bigger challenge for the ResLife staff was to uphold their mission of fostering community and fellowship among the approximately 7,400 students living on campus, said Arey.

“We had to adjust our programming, obviously: We couldn’t do the usual kind of big-group, in-person activities. It was

incumbent upon our resident directors, resident assistants, and graduate assistants to be creative and find ways to connect with students, check in with them and see how they were doing.”

Given the pervasive anxiety about COVID, Arey said, ResLife also sought to anticipate as many questions and concerns staff might encounter (“What if my roommate tests positive?”).

“The resident directors were exemplary in keeping the RAs and GAs upbeat and focused, and that positive nature has really helped the staff.”

When students were found to have tested positive, ResLife staff had to provide empathy and reassurance while also helping to begin the quarantine/isolation process, a particularly compelling instance of interdepartmental collaboration. In this, according to Arey, UHS was indispensable, as was the BC Police Department, whose staff transported

students to and from quarantine/isolation housing. The Dining Services catering staff prepared and delivered meals for quarantined students, a job that entailed many last-minute requests and required flexibility.

Facilities Services picked up and delivered laundry for students quarantining in their rooms.

Even as the semester concludes, these and other departments are looking ahead to the next one and the demands that it will bring—Facilities Services, for example, is readying for a busy athletics maintenance schedule and the planning and preparation for summer capital construction.

“In ResLife, we’ll be assessing what worked and what didn’t, doing a full review of our protocols, and looking to communicate adjustments in early January,” said Arey. “But we also feel it necessary to shut down for a bit, so our staff can relax and decompress. It’s been a non-stop semester.”

Hartshorne Studies Pandemic’s Impact on Language Development

BY ROSANNE PELLEGRINI STAFF WRITER

In a new, nationwide study to determine how the disruptions from COVID-19— including school closings, online classes, canceled playdates, and parents juggling work and schooling—are changing children’s language learning environments, researchers from Boston College and the University of Maryland are going straight to the source: engaging parents as “citizen scientists.”

Their recently launched KidsTalkapp [www.kidtalkscrapbook.org], a language scrapbooking tool, helps parents create timelines of their children’s evolving speech development by recording their conversations— not only for their own family archives but to provide data to help developmental psychologists better understand language development and how it may be affected by the pandemic.

“A lot of parents are concerned that being away from school and peers will negatively affect their kids’ development,” said Assistant Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience Joshua Hartshorne, head of the University’s Language Learning Lab and one of the study’s principal investigators. “But the truth is, we don’t know. The effect could be small.

It could be huge. There could be none at all.

The only way we can find out is to measure.”

Hartshorne is collaborating with Yi Ting Huang, associate professor of hearing and speech sciences at the University of Maryland. Funded by a National Science Foundation Rapid Response Research grant, theirs is the first web-based platform for collecting language samples from families, which are usually conducted through specialized equipment in labs or homes.

With their labs closed last spring due to the coronavirus pandemic, the researchers pivoted to the online platform to reach parents directly. As parents themselves, they sought to create a project that would shed light on what families have been going

University Language Learning Lab Director Joshua Hartshorne photo by peter julian

through, and involve them as stakeholders.

“Families are facing enormous stress right now, and this changes how we interact with each other,” Huang said. “If we understand the different ways in which this crisis is impacting families more precisely, we can develop better ways to support parents and children.”

Through their website and the launch of a mobile phone application, Huang and Hartshorne invite participation from parents with children ages one to eight. Their collaboration includes providing short audio recordings of interactions with their children—a “digital language scrapbook”—and the completion of surveys about their families. Participants choose their level of engagement, which can range from a few minutes to a few hours each week.

Voices are powerful vehicles for remembering, and language scrapbooking facilitates learning about the science of language and child development, Hartshorne and Huang explain on the KidTalk website. These scrapbooks “offer a window into how language develops, both within and across children.

Over time, you will make a timeline of your

child’s changing speech. We will combine your data with those of others, and send out updates about our findings.”

Not only is language scrapbooking a fun activity for young children, but scrapbooks may be shared with extended family members during this time of social distancing.

Leveraging mobile phone technology to facilitate parents’ collection of speech samples increases the amount of child development data that may be collected and provides the researchers with a broader and more diverse population, which is more difficult to achieve with research conducted in the lab.

The goal is to collect data from hundreds of thousands of families from across the United States, including children in all 50 states and spanning all social and economic backgrounds, with the ultimate aim of building a database representing six million families.

“If we can encourage parents to participate, we can collect a lot of data right in the home and study the different phenomena

we haven’t been able to really investigate before,” Huang said. The study, she added, could provide a new lens through which to examine how changes in socio-economic status (SES) may affect speech acquisition and language development.

“Even high SES families may be experiencing new social and economic stress right now,” Huang said. “So, we may be able to see the extent to which that stress affects kids independent of typical cultural and race factors.”

Huang and Hartshorne say the results of their study will have important applications: It will generate knowledge to help policymakers support families after COVID-19.

The long-term impact of the work goes beyond the present pandemic, they said.

“COVID-19 is a once-in-a-century event, but the next century is coming,” Hartshorne said. “Regional crises like natural disasters and wars cause similar social and economic disruptions. The more we understand how this affects children, the better we can plan.”

A bright spot on the Main Campus this fall has been the Bapst Library’s original cupola, which was restored as part of a seven-month project to replace the Bapst roof and facade. Boston College Capital Project Management staff Kevin Ruby, Michael Hayes, and Matthew Emanuelson worked on the project with McGinley Kaslow & Associates, Lee Kennedy Co. Inc., and Gilbert & Becker Roofing & Sheet Metal.

photo by peter julian

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December 3, 2020

‘The Color of Creatorship’ What do the controversies over ‘Blurred Lines’ and a pro football team’s name say about intellectual property law? The answer, explains BC’s Anjali Vats, has to do with race—and it’s complicated.

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

Intellectual property law may seem an improbable context for studying issues of racism in American history and culture. But Boston College faculty member Anjali Vats asserts in her recently published book, The Color of Creatorship: Race, Intellectual Property, and the Making of Americans, that the evolution of United States copyright, trademark, and patent law is not racially dispassionate, and has been greatly impacted by how we understand American citizenship.

Furthermore, Vats argues that U.S. intellectual property (IP) law continues to be shaped by racially exclusive categories, as evidenced by well-documented and publicized controversies over music, pharmaceuticals, and traditional knowledge. A key factor, according to Vats, is an underlying national belief that milestones like the civil rights movement and the election of Barack Obama made America into a postracial, “colorblind” society.

Addressing copyright, trademark, and patent law over a period of 200 years, The Color of Creatorship aims to “understand how race operates in those legal spaces over time, and across eras of purported racial progress,” said Vats, an associate professor of communication and African and African Diaspora Studies, with a courtesy appointment at BC Law School. “What we see are the same ideas about race repeated over time: People of color are formally excluded as knowledge creators.

“My intent was to ask what kind of stories IP tells, and where we see race, and what race looks like in the context of doctrinal decisions,” said Vats, who teaches courses in the areas of race, rhetoric, law, and media studies. “Because if we’re talking about practicing IP law, there are legal tests involved, and if courts apply those legal tests, they should theoretically get raceneutral or racially colorblind outcomes.

But in practice, that’s not really how the law works. The deck seems to be stacked against people of color.”

Vats examines what she calls “intellectual property citizenship”: that the logic of racism and IP law—and the outcome of IP decisions—is best understood in terms of who is viewed as a good or bad “IP citizen.” Over time, she explained, the figure of the white inventor or innovator has been integrated into the national ideology as a crucial contributor to the nation’s moral and economic development—a good IP

citizen.

To illustrate IP citizenship, Vats cites a 2018 federal appeals court decision upholding a copyright infringement verdict against white singer Robin Thicke, along with producer Pharrell Williams and producer/rapper T.I. (Clifford Harris Jr.)—both of whom are Black—over Thicke’s controversial 2013 song, “Blurred Lines.” The court agreed that the song was copied from the late Marvin Gaye’s 1977 classic “Got to Give It Up.” Jurors originally awarded Gaye’s family more than $7

filed for trademark protection, but the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office declined, citing the Urban Dictionary definition of “slants” as racist and the federal statute that prohibits protection for disparaging trademarks.

The group filed suit, and the Supreme Court ultimately ruled for The Slants, saying denial of the band’s registration rights was content-based discrimination under the First Amendment, and therefore unconstitutional.

The decision effectively halted an attempt by five Native Americans to bring

“If we’re talking about practicing IP law, there are legal tests involved, and if courts apply those legal tests, they should theoretically get race-neutral or racially colorblind outcomes. But in practice, that’s not really how the law works.

The deck seems to be stacked against people of color.”

—Anjali Vats

million; the award was later trimmed to a still-historic $5.3 million.

It would seem a positive outcome, said Vats: Thicke, accused of promoting misogyny in “Blurred Lines,” is judged a “bad” IP citizen for borrowing from Gaye, a Black American and civil rights icon, who becomes the centerpiece for the case.

But Pharrell and T.I. are effectively “erased” as IP citizens, she said, and the supposed redemption of Gaye overlooks his troubled history with women and contentious views on gender politics.

“Part of the reason Gaye ‘wins’ is because he stands for the success of the civil rights movement and the validity of colorblindness in America, even though he had demons that we can’t necessarily fairly dismiss,” said Vats. “In short, it’s complicated, although we think this is a clean case.”

Another case study addresses trademarks in a period of post-racial creatorship. An all-Asian, Oregon-based rock band called The Slants sought to protect its name and

suit under the disparaging-trademark clause against the National Football League’s Washington team, which used “Redskins” as its name and mascot despite the objection of many Native Americans. Although Washington subsequently announced it would drop “Redskins” and will decide on a new name in 2021, the case is troubling because it demonstrates that post-racial ideology implicates all areas of law, and sometimes produces “divide-and-conquer moments,” according to Vats.

“Intellectual property law itself is structured to protect whiteness, by pitting people of color against each other, as in the ‘Blurred Lines’ case,” she explained. “In the end, indigenous peoples won—not because intellectual property law shifted, however, but because it was costly and gauche to keep the ‘Redskins’ name. Relying on the market to produce anti-racism is a dangerous strategy that historically ends in more racism. So I would argue that although we got a good outcome, it didn’t happen

through a sound process.”

Historically, according to Vats, patents have served as “explicit and implicit mediators of national conversations about citizenship, personhood, and slavery,” particularly given “America’s desire to articulate its identity around work ethic, ingenuity, discovery, and progress,” a characterization she credits to Northeastern University law professor Jessica W. Silbey, who calls patent cases “the nation’s origin stories.”

Much of our imagery of what constitutes “Americanness,” said Vats, is tied to the view that “we’re innovative, rugged people with lots of ideas. So patent law becomes a central element of not only the mythos of American identity—the unique creativity of Americans—but also the American dream.”

Unfortunately, she said, that mindset has led to what’s called “bioprospecting” and “biopiracy,” where scientists in the West have been awarded patents for medications and applications based on effective treatments or solutions created by indigenous peoples from inexpensive natural sources—and costing exponentially far more than the original remedies.

But there has been pushback, she noted: India responded to the cultural appropriation, and economic exploitation of yoga by the West by creating a database which catalogues indigenous knowledge and blocks patents.

“If we want to remake the way we think about IP, we have to be able to talk about the way that race works within it,” said Vats. “Critical race theory shows us where race is calcified within the law, that formal equality can give rise to racism, that’s the problem we’re trying to solve.

“I want us to start asking as a practice, ‘How do we re-write policies in ways that are more racially just? How do we work alongside IP law to break it? What does it mean to be ‘IP fugitives’?

“Then we need to change the stories that we tell about race in the context of IP law,” she said. “There are entire cultural narratives getting erased by unscrupulous and illegal IP practices. And even though we have seemingly race-neutral laws, there is a pernicious, false conviction that people of color are less creative and less expert.

We must ‘decolonialize’—by which I mean unseating the stubborn and deceitful belief that people of color are not ‘full people’ who are capable of creating intellectual property.”

Chronicle

December 3, 2020

Students Take Part in Simulated Exercise on WHO, COVID Crisis

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

Boston College undergraduates had the opportunity to weigh in on President Trump’s controversial decision to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO)—just as if they were on the front lines of the conflict.

The 59 students took on the role of delegates from the United States, 13 other countries, and two non-governmental organizations as they expressed concern about Trump’s announcement before a special session on WHO’s COVID-19 response and institutional reform, as directed by the World Health Assembly, WHO’s governing body.

It wasn’t an excursion into virtual reality, but a simulation held as part of the Global Public Health Law class this fall, taught by BC Law Professor David Wirth, Professor of the Practice Mary Ann Chirba, and graduate teaching assistant Joseph Manning, a third-year BC Law student. Chirba acted as World Health Assembly co-chair, as did Wirth, who also was foreign minister and CEO, while Manning portrayed the secretariat.

The students—divided into fourmember delegations representing nations ranging from Brazil to South Africa—and the faculty co-chairs were deadly serious in their negotiations around the truly grave, global issues that surround the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Health Regulations (IHRs) that govern nations’ pandemic response, and the United States’ withdrawal from WHO. Global Public Health Law is one of three required courses in the University’s 18-cred-

it minor in Global Public Health and the Common Good, the first initiative of BC’s Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society. Distinctive features of the minor include its strong emphasis on the ethical, moral, and legal foundations of global public health, and its highly interdisciplinary faculty, drawn from the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences, Connell School of Nursing, Lynch School of Education and Human Development, School of Theology and Ministry, BC School of Social Work, and Carroll School of Management, as well as BC Law. “This simulated, multilateral negotiation provides a marvelous opportunity for our students to become immersed in the greatest public health emergency of our time,” said Philip J. Landrigan, MD, director of the Global Public Health and the Common Good program. “It allows them to experience, under the tutelage of internationally respected experts, the complex, but critically important process of international negotiation. It also enables our students to realize that these apparently abstract deliberations have life-and-death consequences in the real world.”

“Our students learn that the fine details of operative instruments have broad ramifications for public health, both domestically and globally,” added Chirba, who is the John C. Ford, S.J., Distinguished Scholar.

“They also learn—the hard way—that however small a textual change might be, it most likely resulted from a great deal of ‘heavy lifting.’”

At the outset of the simulation, Wirth— in character as co-chair—explained the goal of the discussions was to establish “basic principles” ahead of more detailed elaboration of IHR texts, and described the negotiation process: three rounds of formal sessions over four weeks; communication between delegations “is encouraged,” he said, particularly among countries sharing geographic or political concerns and “where forming coalitions would be wise.”

The student delegates grasped Wirth’s unspoken message: Your country is in peril.

Mary Ann Chirba: The simulation was a “much-savored opportunity” for students to work together on complex problems. photo by caitlin cunningham

You need to determine what positions you should you take, and what reforms in global health policy your delegation should propose to protect your citizens against COVID-19 and other pandemics.

Wirth is no stranger to international convenings and diplomatic language, having attended the 2018 Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP24) in Poland as an official academic. In the next phase of the simulation, he invited delegates to make opening statements, each of which were based on the students’ research and intended to reflect their respective country’s actual status and concerns.

Like Wirth, the students had to speak in the style and format of international negotiations. Lynch School junior Ginny Alex, one of the delegates representing Antigua and Barbuda, proclaimed deep concern over the U.S. withdrawal, “and sincerely hope that the U.S. will reconsider its position…especially given that our economy and pandemic response [are] substantiated by wealthier nations.”

Alex’s fellow delegate, Morrissey College

9

senior Julia Cardwell, said she and her colleagues hoped to represent “a consortium of similarly situated and like-minded Caribbean states, and as such, we hope to be in a position to articulate positions that otherwise might have little voice in the process.”

Closing the delegation’s remarks, Connell School senior Emily Aarons urged that the negotiation be “sympathetic to the capacities of all member states” while successful in “reducing the consequences of any future public health emergencies of international concern on global trade, travel, and the spread of infectious disease.”

After the 12 other delegations and representatives from the two NGOs, Doctors Without Borders and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, each made their statements, Wirth welcomed amendments to the IHRs, edited in real time. This set the stage for two more rounds of negotiations that would take place in the weeks ahead.

While the class turned to other domestic and global public health topics—including vaccines, opioids, and the Affordable Care Act’s fate before a reconfigured Supreme Court—the simulation continued outside the classroom: Delegations continued to consult among themselves, engaged with other groups, and met with the chairs and secretariat as they pursued compromise consensus.

In an interview, Wirth lauded the class’ work: “After completing this exercise, our students are prepared to go out and negotiate for the State Department or another foreign ministry. They have done at least as good a job as is typical in actual multilateral practice—and probably better!”

“We have an ambitious agenda,” said Chirba, adding that studying public health issues in the midst of a global pandemic presents a special challenge. Through the simulation, which she noted had given the undergrads a “much-savored opportunity” to work together, “our students develop professional skills, deepen personal insight, and realize firsthand that with persistence, mutual respect, and commonality of purpose, we truly can solve complex problems.”

Biologist Is Awarded Grant to Study Childhood Celiac Disease Assistant Professor of Biology Emrah Altindis has received a three-year, $300,000 grant from the G. Harold and Leila Y. Mathers Foundation for research into childhood celiac disease.

Altindis and his team will explore the role of gut microbes and serum metabolites in the autoimmune disease, which is an immune reaction to eating gluten—a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye—that results in damaging the small intestine.

“We are grateful for the very generous support of the Mathers Foundation and delighted to receive the foundation’s recognition for our work on pediatric autoimmune diseases,” said Altindis.

This is the second award the Altindis lab has received from the Mathers Foundation, which sponsors scientific research to advance knowledge in the life sciences with potential translational applications.

Last year, he received a $300,000 award to support his research into Type 1 diabetes, marking the first award to a BC researcher

Emrah Altindis

photo by peter julian

from the foundation.

The project, titled “The Role of Gut Microbes and Metabolites in Childhood Celiac Disease Pathogenesis,” will explore the link between the gut microbes and metabolites and the onset of pediatric celiac

disease.

The Altindis lab recently completed the first longitudinal human gut microbiome and metabolome study analyzing pediatric celiac disease samples and comparing them to healthy matched controls.

“We showed that the composition of the gut microbiome and serum metabolome of the children who will eventually develop the disease are completely different and proinflammatory years before diagnosis when compared to healthy infants,” said Altindis, who also holds an adjunct appointment at Joslin Diabetes Center and Harvard Medical School. “This award will build upon our prior work and we will determine the underlying mechanisms of the pediatric celiac disease pathogenesis in the context of gut microbes and metabolome.”

Celiac disease is estimated to afflict three million Americans and tens of millions of individuals throughout the world. Yet there is little clear understanding of the environmental triggers of this chronic disease ex-

cept for the role of gluten, said Altindis.

Similarly, there is no alternative treatment to a gluten-free diet, nor any way to prevent the disease, he added.

“Successful completion of the project will contribute an important missing element in our knowledge of the microbes and their role in celiac disease pathogenesis,” Altindis said. “These studies will constitute a new link between gut antigens and celiac diseases, with the potential to ultimately provide new tools including vaccines, antibiotics or probiotics for prevention and treatment of the disease.

“We are very excited to start our experimental work and feel privileged to have the support of the foundation,” he added.

“I would like to thank our collaborators, Noah Palm, Michael Kiebish, and Johhny Ludvigsson and their teams, my postdocs, and students. Without their support and hard work, this grant would not be possible.”

—Ed Hayward

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December 3, 2020

The Road from ‘Saint C’ to BC The University has forged strong ties to Brighton’s Saint Columbkille Partnership School in the past 14 years. Meet three young men who have a connection to both places.

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

The term “triple eagle” usually refers to an alum of Boston College High School, Boston College, and BC Law or one of the University’s other graduate programs, but there’s another school with strong BC ties emerging as the “nest” for future avians: Saint Columbkille Partnership School.

Saint Columbkille (STCPS), founded in Brighton in 1901 and reestablished in 2006 through a partnership between BC, the Archdiocese of Boston, and Saint Columbkille Parish, now serves more than 400 pre-K through grade 8 students.

Committed to Catholic educational and religious traditions, STCPS offers a rigorous and comprehensive model of excellence in early childhood, elementary, and middle school education. In 2018, STCPS was designated as a laboratory school of the Lynch School of Education and Human Development—the only such arrangement between a university and a city of Boston elementary school—which increases the collaboration between the school’s teachers and BC faculty and students to engage in more intensive research and instructional experiences.

Sharing STCPS as their academic incubator are three young men, each perched on an ascending rung of life’s ladder, and all with a connection to BC. Jonathan Pierre is a graduate of BC High (2011) and BC (2015) who started at STCPS in seventh grade following the closure of Our Lady of the Presentation in 2005. He was raised by a single mother

Jonathan Pierre, who graduated from Boston College in 2015: “BC helps you develop as a whole, complete person. You can’t put a dollar value on BC’s education.” At Saint Columbkille, he says, “there are special people.”

profound impact on my life. The countless relationships with special people since my adolescence make me feel like I grew up a spoiled kid.”

Current BC senior Carlos Tamayo started at STCPS in sixth grade, though he previously attended the Gardner Pilot Academy in Allston. He is the first member of his native Colombian family to attend college.

“I didn’t regret changing schools at all,” said Tamayo, who graduated from BC High in 2017. “St. Col’s holds each student to high standards but in a warm and welcoming environment.”

He characterized his transition from STCPS to BC High as “smooth” but calls the BCHS Guidance Department as “amazing.”

“You get the help you need in every sense,” said Tamayo, a political science ma-

photos by peter julian

necticut, and former BC head baseball coach Richard “Moe” Maloney. Both coaches frequently brought their respective teams to the after-school program at the Oak Square Y which Pierre and his brother attended, and these encounters resulted in many invitations to attend BC athletic events.

“Those two had and still have a significant, positive influence on me,” said Pierre, who served as a BC basketball team manager while at the Heights, where he earned a B.A. in economics. “They had an STCPS was designated as a labo- immense impact on shaping me into the man I am today. I still talk with Coach ratory school of the Lynch School Moe, and I speak with Coach Cav on a of Education and Human Devel- daily basis.”

Pierre applied to other colleges but opment, increasing the collabora- when he was accepted at BC, “all the othtion between the school’s teach- ers went out the window.

“BC helps you develop as a whole, ers and BC faculty and students. complete person,” said Pierre, a financial advisor at The Bulfinch Group, a comprehensive financial strategies firm in Need(“the most selfless person you’ll ever meet”), ham, Mass., where he works with clients a native of Haiti who enrolled Pierre’s “who look like my mother,” as well as with brother, Emmanuel Jean M.Ed. ’18, and individuals whose net worth may exceed him at STCPS not because the family was $30 million. “You can’t put a dollar value Catholic—they’re Baptists—but so that on BC’s education.” “she didn’t have to worry about anything” Giving back to the community is a while she worked full-time in housekeeping priority for him, and Pierre serves on the at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

Young Professionals Board at Boston’s Doc “There are special people at STCPS,” Wayne, a non-profit, sports-based therapy said Pierre, who grew up in Brighton and program that supports at-risk youth as they Cambridge and traveled an hour by MBTA process and persevere through adversity. bus from home to the school.

“I know my brother [a third-grade Pierre had been on BC’s campus numer- teacher at Young Achievers Science & ous times before enrolling, the result of Math Pilot School in Mattapan] and I dementoring relationships with former BC fied the odds,” said Pierre. “I’m a spiritual hockey assistant coach Mike Cavanaugh, person, and in my mind, it’s not a coinnow head coach at the University of Concidence that so many people had such a

BC senior Carlos Tamayo: “St. Col’s holds each student to high standards but in a warm and welcoming environment.”

jor who has dreams of a career in aviation and traveling the world. “Plus, I grew very close to my teachers, who understood me, and helped me become an upgraded version of myself.”

While holding down part-time jobs last school year, Tamayo volunteered at the Oak Square Y in Brighton, where he worked with teens in the Youth and Government Program, a national initiative designed to nurture and train young leaders, a project in which he participated at BC High.

“It was a dream of mine to attend Boston College,” said Tamayo, who had originally hoped to study in Europe last summer, plans that were dashed by the pandemic. “I’ve received a great education, and I’m so grateful for the opportunity and the generous financial aid that made it happen.”

The youngest of the threesome, 17-yearold Red Molina, is a native of the Philip-

pines whose actual full name is Matthew Exequiel Red G. Molina. His parents shortened his first name to simply “Red” when he was in pre-school, but its derivation has a long history.

“Red” is an abbreviated nod to Frank Reed Horton, the founder of Alpha Phi Omega (APO), the 95-year-old international collegiate service fraternity whose mission is to prepare campus and community leaders, explained Molina. Red’s father, an APO member when he attended college in the Philippines, greatly admired Horton, and named his son after the fraternity’s first national president and college professor.

Molina, now a senior at Cristo Rey, a Catholic coeducational high school in Dorchester, attended Saint Columbkille for sixth through eighth grade, a place that “felt like home” to him.

“They were always there for me,” said Molina, who lives in Brighton and frequently volunteers at STCPS. “Mr. Gartside [William Gartside, former head of school who retired this past year] was very helpful, even helping us find a house.”

Molina has a cousin who attended BC, and he, too, hopes to enroll with an eye toward a major in computer science. But Molina is already part of the University community: He has worked one day per week as an office assistant at BC’s Information Technology Services department for three years.

“Red has been an exceptionally good worker,” said Cindy Pereira, his supervisor and an administrative assistant in business planning and project services at ITS. “He is dedicated, hard-working and mature beyond his years. He has become a part of our team. We are lucky to have him.”

High school senior Red Molina, who works as an office assistant at BC, has frequently volunteered at STCPS: “They were always there for me.”

Chronicle

December 3, 2020

WELCOME ADDITIONS An Introduction to New Faculty at Boston College Michael Glass

Assistant Professor of History, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences DEGREES: University of Chicago (B.A.); City College of the City University of New York (M.S.); Hunter College (M.A.); Princeton University (Ph.D.) WHAT HE STUDIES: Twentieth-century United States; urban history; political history; race and capitalism; inequality.

WHAT HE’S TEACHING: Race and Politics in Modern America; Metropolitan America: Cities and Suburbs in the 20th Century; The Segregated Metropolis.

You taught undergraduate courses through a prison education program in New Jersey—what impact did that experience have on you, professionally and personally?

“Working in the Prison Teaching Initiative was one of the highlights of graduate school. The students were curious and diligent. It is a cliché of teaching that we, as teachers, always learn from our students. But that was absolutely the case. Many of the students were twice my age with a lifetime of wisdom, which made for lively exchanges during the class discussions. I’m hoping to start working soon with the prison education program at BC.” Alyssa Goldman

Ph.D.)

Assistant Professor of Sociology, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences DEGREES: University of Chicago (M.A.); Cornell University (B.A., M.A.,

WHAT SHE STUDIES: Social inequality;

health and health disparities; aging and the life course; social networks; crime and criminal justice system contact; neighborhoods and the social environment.

WHAT SHE’S TEACHING: Crime and Punishment; Intro to Sociology for Healthcare Professions.

Jean-Baptiste Tristan

of Paris (Ph.D.)

Associate Professor of Computer Science, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences DEGREES: Ecole Normale Superieure of Paris (M.Sc.); University

WHAT HE STUDIES: Formal verification;

machine learning; language design and implementation; inference algorithms.

WHAT HE’S TEACHING: Algorithms; Machine Learning for Chemistry (independent study).

You’ve spent almost a decade working at Oracle Labs in Burlington (Mass.): How do you feel this experience has benefited you as a researcher?

“When I obtained my Ph.D., I knew that I loved research and that it was the career

11

BC in the Media

I wanted to pursue. But having done my doctorate in three years, I did not feel mature enough to be an independent researcher and define my own research agenda. I joined Oracle because it offered me exactly what I needed: an environment where I could work on interesting research problems with talented people, all the while allowing me to become more independent and better understand who I was as a researcher and what my objectives were. Working at Oracle allowed me to escape my narrow domain of expertise and gave me the confidence to do interdisciplinary work. Something else significant happened while I was at Oracle: I was invited to lecture two classes at Harvard, and this made me realize that I needed to teach to make my career completely fulfilling.”

Melissa Uveges

Assistant Professor, Connell School of Nursing DEGREES: University of Florida (B.S.); Yale University (M.A., M.S.); Johns Hopkins University (Ph.D.) WHAT SHE STUDIES: Improving the care of children with genetic conditions; the health and care experience of families impacted by genetics conditions; clinical and research ethics; social and cultural factors that influence health.

WHAT SHE’S TEACHING: Ethical Issues in Advanced Practice Nursing What are some of the ethical challenges for advanced practice nurses in today’s healthcare settings?

“Advanced practice nurses (APNs) face a variety of ethical challenges, depending on whether they practice in a clinical, research, educational, policy, or executive setting. In clinical practice, APNs may encounter stakeholder value conflicts over how to proceed with care when a patient’s prognosis or goals of care are uncertain.

In a research context, the APN works to promote the voluntary participation of persons in research, while balancing the risk-benefit ratio of research participation and prioritizing data privacy. In educational contexts, APNs are faced with questions of what ethical content should be taught, and how, to ensure that future generations of nurses are prepared to address moral issues at both the micro and macro level.

On a local, state, or national level, APNs may be involved in advocating for policies that impact patient outcomes, quality of life, or access to care. And in an executive setting, APNs offer leadership by balancing power differentials across roles and encouraging equitable representation of nursing voices at all levels within an institution. Regardless of their practice setting, APNs are guided by the American Nurses’ Association Code of Ethics in their daily practice.”

—Sean Smith and Kathleen Sullivan photos by lee pellegrini and peter julian

Schools need to hire more counselors, asserted Lynch School of Education and Human Development Buehler Sesquicentennial Assistant Professor Betty Lai in an op-ed for The Boston Herald.

Vice Provost for Global Engagement and Canisius Professor James Keenan, S.J., talked about the significance of the sculpture “Angels Unawares”—a replica of which was on display this fall at Boston College—in an interview with Vatican Radio.

What, if anything, should the United States do about the growing alignment between China and Russia? Assoc. Prof.

Timothy Crawford (Political Science) and doctoral candidate Khang Vu wrote on the subject for national security policy journal War on the Rocks.

Prof. Robert Bloom (Law) weighed in on election legal challenges raised by President Trump in an interview on CBS News Boston.

Born between 1997 and 2012, Generation Z is entering the job market for the first time during the COVID-19 crisis. Aleksandar Tomic, director of the Woods College of Advancing Studies M.S. in Applied Economics program, commented in a piece for Al Jazeera that also cited BC Center for Retirement Research findings regarding the effect on graduating millennials of the 2008 recession. Tomic also provided some insights to MoneyGeek on why some states receive more federal aid than others—and

whether the current allocation is fair.

While young children may not be able to articulate the difference, they value deep friendships over casual connections, according to Senior Lect. Barry Schneider (Psychology and Neuroscience), author of Childhood Friendships and Peer Relations: Friends and Enemies, in an interview with The New York Times.

Donald Trump’s departure will bring some positive changes for American and international higher education, but Trumpism is far from gone, wrote Center for International Higher Education director Hans de Wit and founding director Philip Altbach in a piece for University World News. In a separate piece for the publication, Altbach discussed how the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier has relevance for higher education and society.

Prof. Ray Madoff (Law) spoke with The Washington Post in the wake of reports that billionaire philanthropist Robert F. Smith admitted to hiding profits in offshore accounts and filing false tax returns for 10 years.

In a feature for the American Psychological Association, Janet Helms, Augustus Long Professor at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development and director of its Institute for the Study and Promotion of Race and Culture, discussed her research on how Americans relate to one another across our racial differences.

Nota Bene

Jobs

Associate Professor of Music Ann Lucas, an ethnomusicologist who specializes in music traditions of the Persian and Arabic-speaking Near East, was awarded the Society for Ethnomusicology’s prestigious Bruno Nettl Prize for Music of a Thousand Years: A New History of Persian Musical Traditions.

The prize is given to “the best monograph that illuminates the relationship between the history of ethnomusicology and the history of music writ large.”

Iran’s particular system of traditional Persian art music has been long treated as the product of an ever-evolving, ancient Persian culture. In Music of a Thousand Years, Lucas argues that this music is a modern phenomenon indelibly tied to changing notions of Iran’s national history. Rather than considering a single Persian music history, she demonstrates cultural dissimilarity and discontinuity over time, bringing to light two different notions of music-making in relation to premodern and modern musical norms.

Described as “an important corrective to the history of Persian music” by the publisher, Music of a Thousand Years “is the first work to align understandings of Middle Eastern music history with current understandings of the region’s political history.”

The following are among the recent positions posted by the Department of Human Resources. For more information on employment opportunities at Boston College, see www.bc.edu/jobs.

Dean, Connell School of Nursing Administrative & Records Assistant Speech/Language Pathologist, Campus School Research Economist, Center for Retirement Research Post-doctoral Research Fellow (multiple positions) Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Chemistry Research Scientist, RPCA Director, Finance & Operations, Lynch Leadership Academy Life Skills Teacher, Campus School Part-time Research Associate Classroom Technology Specialist Athletic Maintenance, Supervisor for Grounds/Fields Temporary Office Pool, School of Theology and Ministry DevOps Systems Administrator Research Associate, RPCA

Chronicle

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December 3, 2020

A Community of Living and Learning for First-Gens Continued from page 1

gram, is a collaboration between Learning to Learn and Residential Life to offer initiatives, activities, and services—from guided group discussions on college life and other topics and informal to chat-about-what-youwant gatherings (although these have been constrained or moved to virtual formats because of the pandemic)—that enable firstgens to connect with one another, as well as with BC faculty and staff. These enable BC F1RST LLC members to develop support networks across campus and beyond—including with first-gen alumni—that will help them succeed at BC, administrators say.

One BC F1RST LLC student is Alexandra Kabo ’24, a biology major with a Spanish minor from Silver Springs, Md., who plans to become a doctor. She credits her mother, a Cameroon native who emigrated to America a few years before Kabo was born, as a source of inspiration and persistence.

“America is viewed as a land of opportunity; that was always, and still is, my mother’s belief,” said Kabo. “She taught me that education, wanting to learn, is key—even if you’re not good at it, if you’re trying and you have the will, that’s all the matters. The emphasis on education has always been my foundation since I was a little girl, and I’ve placed high expectations on myself.”

Having attended Catholic schools, Kabo felt Boston College was the best place to fulfill those expectations, and the BC F1RST College Transition Program gave her a good start, introducing her to other first-gens— some of whom are now also part of the LLC—with whom she can share triumphs, setbacks, and handy details about college life.

“Coming from a similar background, our mindset is ‘We’re all in this together,’” she said. “You find out a little information, you share it with everyone else, even if it’s something like how you address a faculty member—if you’re used to calling your teacher ‘Mr.’ or ‘Mrs.,’ you don’t necessarily know you’re supposed to say ‘Professor’ or ‘Doctor.’ I look forward to our small group meetings, because we get to know each other, and be closer to one another.”

For all their commonalities, first-generation students have their own individual stories, and their own dreams and visions for the future. The BC F1RST LLC is part of BC’s efforts to ensure first-gens like Kabo experience the Heights in a way that suits their particular interests, personalities, and needs.

“Working with ResLife to create a BC F1RST LLC just made so much sense,” said Learning to Learn Director Rossanna Contreras-Godfrey. “It’s helped to expand our office’s resources, and those of BC, to first-gen students in a new and important way. College life can be difficult for anyone, and first-gens can have challenges that go beyond financial. Yet these students come with a lot to offer—not just to BC, but the world beyond.”

An average of about 260 first-generation undergraduates have enrolled at BC during the past five years, and in the last decade the percentage of first-gen students in the first-year class has ranged from nine to 11 percent. The University’s commitment to

Alexandra Kabo ’24, left, has enjoyed the camaraderie in the BCF1RST Living and Learning Community, including interactions with Resident Assistant Idris Council ’22, center, and Marco Aurelien, who is resident director for Hardey Hall. Aurelien says of his role in BC F1RST, “I’m their supporter, their biggest cheerleader and want them to feel welcome.” photo by peter julian

recruiting and retaining first-gens is reflected in its multitude of programs and resources, which in addition to BC F1RST and Learning to Learn include Options Through Education, the Montserrat Coalition, and the Thea Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center.

That commitment was strengthened earlier this year by the University’s establishment—through a partnership with Pine Manor College—of the Pine Manor Institute for Student Success, to focus on recruiting and graduating more underrepresented and first-generation students. This year also has seen BC designated as a FirstGen Forward Institution by the Center for First-Generation Student Success; receive a five-year, $1.7-million federal TRIO Student Support Services grant to assist low-income, first-generation students, and students with disabilities; and enter into a partnership with QuestBridge, a highly respected non-profit program that helps high-achieving, lowincome students gain admission and scholarships to the country’s top-ranked colleges and universities.

The BC F1RST LLC relies on a collaboration of administrators and staff to put ideals and plans into action, among them Learning to Learn Associate Director Karl Bell; ResLife’s Assistant Director for Residential Leadership and Learning Samantha Gordon and Mchenold (Marco) Aurelien, who is resident director for Hardey and Cushing halls; Amaris Benavidez, a Lynch School of Education and Human Develop-

ment graduate student who is the graduate assistant for LLCs; Hannah Keeser, a Lynch School graduate student and a graduate assistant with Learning to Learn and ResLife; and Idris Council ’22, a resident assistant in Hardey.

They know—sometimes from personal or familial experience—that first-generation students have little or no points of reference about everyday college life and how to find help or guidance, and that these undergrads can feel self-conscious about their socioeconomic backgrounds; questions like “Do I really belong here?” can run in their minds.

The BC F1RST College Transition Program addresses these and other issues and concerns, and the LLC helps reinforce the message of support: Students are assigned a dedicated advisor at Learning to Learn and receive internship and career advice; first-year BC F1RST members also take the Applications of Learning Theory class, which covers areas like study skills, academic planning, and navigating the University; in addition, they participate in the BC Successful Start financial literacy program.

Administrators and staff say programs like BC F1RST recognize that first-gens often had to be their own counselors and advocates even as they strived for academic excellence—and that now, having achieved their dream of college, they should be able to focus on being students.

Kabo is quick to praise her mother’s dedication and steadfastness, but by middle school, she—a native French speaker—sim-

ply couldn’t help Kabo as much as before.

“At a certain point, I had to take it all on,” said Kabo. “I had to work hard for everything. When it came time for the college search process, I put together a thick notebook of information I collected, for my mother as well as me, and I met with my counselor three times a week. My feeling was, I knew my mother worked hard for me so now I had to work hard for her.”

Council remembers being a first-gen, first-year student like Kabo two years ago, and how Learning to Learn helped him adjust to life at BC—being an RA is “a way to give back and to build leadership skills,” he said. A Harlem, NY, native majoring in philosophy with a minor in management and leadership, Council sees his role as helping create a safe, supportive environment for the BC F1RST community, yet his own experience has taught him that college is a time to be adventurous and expand one’s world.

“My time at BC has been about finding people I feel comfortable with, but who push me to be better. It’s important to learn from others, to have a reciprocal relationship, so that you keep moving forward and find opportunities to see what works. So for BC F1RST students, I try to be positive and optimistic, but also honest and authentic.”

It seems like an inauspicious year to launch a program like BC F1RST LLC, but Bell has a different view. “I think there’s no better time, actually. It gives us an opportunity to talk and work with first-gens during one of the most challenging times for higher education, and forces us to be at our best and most creative. These past several months have made us all appreciate the importance of human interaction—talking face to face, or even just shaking hands.

“So, for us at BC F1RST, developing inventive ways of capturing the quality of that interaction is vital at a time when it’s less possible,” added Bell, noting that Zoom has been a boon to linking BC F1RST students with first-gen alumni.

The personal touch still counts, however, and BC F1RST administrators and staff use it whenever they can. “For me, the thing is being visible,” said Aurelien, a native of Haiti who, along with two of his siblings, were first-gens. “Anytime I see these students— whether they’re hanging out or coming back from Main Campus, or we’re sharing meals or snacks—I celebrate them as if it were their birthday. I’m their supporter, their biggest cheerleader and want them to feel welcome.

“And I pound them with questions. It doesn’t have to be a formal, ‘what-are-yougoing-to-do-with-your-life?’ conversation, just basics: How are you doing? How are you feeling? They know they can talk to me.”

Kabo wishes circumstances were different for her first year at BC, but she is philosophical about it all. “If something is just given to you, you don’t know how to work to get it. And you can even wind up becoming ungrateful that it’s there. So we’re going out of our way to brainstorm and find ways to gather and have fun, yet also stay safe—and I think we’ll actually get more out of this first year as a result.”