The Boston College
Chronicle Published by the Boston College Office of News & Public Affairs february 11, 2016 VOL. 23 no. 11
Woods College Strategic Plan Producing Change
INSIDE honored for 2 •Freshman designing town seal
By Sean Hennessey Staff Writer
Lee Pellegrini
•Groome presents “GodPods” series •Photos: “Sing It to The Heights” auditions
3 •LSOE’s Hargreaves to receive award
•BC research classification is upgraded •University sets Black History Month schedule
4 •Barnett co-leading
STEM career initiative
5 •MLK Scholarship to be presented Feb. 16
6 •Nugent, students cre-
ate digital guide for new McMullen exhibition •Michele Norris to speak on race in the US •Obituary: Philosophy professor Thomas Owens
7 •Welcome Additions; BC in the Media; Briefings; Nota Bene; job listings
to host Ensemble 8 •BC Plus Ultra •Photos: Student Involvement Day
The Woods College of Advancing Studies is in the midst of a major transformation, with several recent and ongoing initiatives that include a new master’s degree in cybersecurity policy and governance, a redesign of its undergraduate program, and the appointment of a board of advisors composed of industry leaders, senior administrators and academics. The college also plans to offer the University’s first fully online master’s program next fall. “It’s been a busy year-and-ahalf or so, but we are very confident in the direction things are moving,” said WCAS Dean James Burns, IVD, who was appointed permanent dean in September of 2014 after serving as interim dean for two years. “The level of expertise we’re getting at the Woods College, combined with the new initiatives we’re introducing, make this a really exciting time for students to be hereand for faculty to be teaching with us.”
Winter weather returned with a vengeance to campus over the past week. Facilities Services staff were busy clearing walkways last Friday, and the storm’s wet, heavy snow snapped off tree limbs, including this one in front of Bourneuf House. (Photo by Sean Smith)
Sky’s the Limit
Freshman puts his entrepreneurial talents – and his drones – to work helping scientific researchers By Sean Hennessey Staff Writer
While many students returned from the semester break with stories of vacations taken or jobs worked, Boston College freshman Branick Weix had something unusual and inspiring to share: his weeklong trip to Costa Rica to help researchers track endangered sea turtles. Through his company, SkyLink Productions, the Minnesota native partnered with the nonprofit group Seeds of Change and used an array of drones to help researchers study nesting turtles on a remote peninsula of the Central American country. “It was amazing to know that I could help in a small way,” says Weix, a member of the Carroll School of Management Honors Program. “Hopefully, I can help more and figure out future solutions for them.” Weix’s idea was to see how well a pre-programmed drone could help survey the population and nesting habits of those species. On the first night, Weix attached an infrared camera system to a drone so researchers could follow the turtles as they came ashore to lay their eggs. That night brought some unexpected drama when a Leatherback turtle tried to lay eggs
near the beach’s entrance, and too close to the high-tide line. Researchers jumped into action, with Weix and his camera capturing the drama – which can be seen on his website [http://branickweix.com/blog] along with other moments from his sojourn. “The high tide coming in the next day was most likely going to wash away the nest, so we moved it away from the high-tide line and
Photo of a sea turtle hatchling taken by Branick Weix ’19 while aiding researchers in Costa Rica.
away from poachers as well,” says Weix. “We were able to get the eggs, count them, dig another hole, put the eggs in, and then cover Continued on page 4
QUOTE:
Woods College Dean James Burns, IVD
The newly appointed board of advisors, made up of senior University administrators and chaired by former University Trustee John M. Connors ’63, has played a valuable role in supporting WCAS’ new degrees and programs, said Fr. Burns. “The committee has been extremely helpful in reviewing and guiding our strategic planning effort, a five-year project that’scurrentlyunder way. We’re focusing on 10 strategic initiatives and are already making headway in sucContinued on page 5
Congressman Neal, Mayor Walsh to Visit BC Feb. 22 Massachusetts Congressman Richard E. Neal and Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh will share their insights on Ireland’s 1916 Easter Rising at an event in Gasson 100 on Feb. 22 at 6 p.m. The event, titled “Reflections on the 100th Anniversary of Ireland’s 1916 Easter Rising,” is sponsored by Boston College and the Boston College Center for Irish Programs. Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley will offer opening remarks. The Easter Rising occurred on Easter Monday, April 24, 1916, when a group of Irish nationalists proclaimed the establishment of the Irish Republic and, along with some 1,600 followers – including 100 women in support roles
– staged a rebellion against British rule in Ireland. The rebels seized key buildings in Dublin and fought with British troops before the insurrection was suppressed. The British executed the leaders of the Rising, an act historians say turned the rebels into martyrs and spurred a previously indifferent Ireland in support of the cause of Irish Independence. The Easter Rising will be widely commemorated on both sides of the Atlantic during this centennial year. Neal, an avid historian, is a longtime guest lecturer at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Walsh, a 2009 graduate of the Woods College of Advancing Studies at Boston College, and the son of Irish immigrants from County Continued on page 5
“[If] I were to point to one critical investment, it would have to be in our faculty, and not just in their productivity of scholarship, but in the quality of their innovative and high-impact research.” –Vice Provost for Research and Academic Planning Tom Chiles, page 3