Around Campus BC Students Get a Valuable Lesson in Civics on Recent Trip to Capitol Hill

Recently, four Boston College students with a passion for public service traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with the University’s extensive political alumni network and discuss issues facing the BC community.

The trip marked the 10th annual visit to Capitol Hill for the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Advocacy Days Program, through which student representatives from ACC institutions meet with legislators, governmental officials, and professional staff to discuss student financial aid, undergraduate research funding, and other issues affecting higher education.

Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences seniors Julia Spagnola and Devianna Smith and sophomore Onur Toper, and Woods College of Advancing Studies senior Ishaan Kaushal sat down with United States Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh—who recently announced he will leave the Biden admin- istration to become head of the National Hockey League Players Association—and U.S. Representatives Stephen Lynch (DMass.) and Bobby Scott (D-Va.), all of whom are BC graduates. Additionally, the students met with senior legislative and operations staff—also BC graduates—in Lynch and Scott’s offices, as well as Senator Edward Markey (D-Mass), an alumnus of BC and BC Law School.

What struck Toper about the individuals was how they have continued to uphold Jesuit principles from their BC years.

“It was evident that BC alumni on the Hill integrate Jesuit values like cura personalis in policymaking, which testifies to their being ‘men and women for and with others’ in all aspects of life, and especially in public service.”

Walsh left a particular impression on the students. Speaking with him, said Toper, “gave me a new appreciation for

Formative Ed. Advocate to Speak March 15

Boston College will host a talk on March 15 by Kevin McArevey, a Northern Irish school principal whose use of formative education to make a difference in his students’ lives is the subject of the award-winning documentary “Young Plato.”

The film will be screened at the event, which takes place at 7:45 p.m. in Devlin 101, and is sponsored by the Irish Studies Program and Philosophy Department.

McArevey is head of the Holy Cross Boys’ Primary School (HCBPS) in Ardoyne, North Belfast, an inner-city, working-class community that is still dealing with traumatic social and economic effects of Northern Ireland’s troubled past: violence, poverty, drugs, and sectarianism. In 2001—three years after the Good Friday Agreement—a riot broke out in Ardoyne when loyalists sought to prevent pupils at nearby Holy Cross Girls’ Primary School from making their way to school as they passed a contested area.

Since taking the reins at HCBPS, the energetic, Elvis-loving McArevey has

ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Jack Dunn

SENIOR DIRECTOR FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Patricia Delaney

EDITOR

Sean Smith sought to instill in his students, who range from four to 11 years old, the lessons of ancient philosophy and inspire them to think critically about the world in which they live—and to look beyond boundaries and limitations. In turn, the boys challenge their friends, parents, and neighbors to forsake violence, prejudice, and the mythologies of war and conflict.

“Young Plato,” the nickname by which McArevey is known, depicts his interactions with HCBPS students—both in groups and one on one—and staff, as well as scenes of a typical day at the school, including its “philosophy board” for solving disputes and other problems.

Since its release in 2021, the film has been shown at numerous festivals and received several honors, including the Independent Film & Television Alliance documentary award.

For more information, email irish.studies@bc.edu.

—University Communications executive leadership not only in the federal government, but also in state and local governments across the country.”

For Smith, meeting Walsh was among the high points of the trip to Washington, which she described as “one of the most formative moments” in her BC experience: “I really valued his kindness and honesty. I felt inspired by the conversations we had with him.”

Smith also was inspired by the number of BC alumni who work in the nation’s capital (“BC students have such a strong network to utilize”), and felt her time and participation in the trip would prove useful as she prepares to work for the Morgan Stanley Legal & Compliance Division.

“The trip not only exposed me to the opportunities available to students to participate in civic engagement, but also allowed me to better understand the people behind policy creation and implementa- tion.”

While networking was a main component of the trip, the BC students made it a priority to thank officials and legislators for their efforts in supporting federal research funding, financial aid, and Pell Grants. Toper said the D.C. visit “solidified my interest in public service and helped to broaden my understanding of, and engagement in, public policy matters affecting students at BC.”

The experience is not only important for those passionate about public policy or civil service, noted Director of Government Relations Jeanne Levesque, who emphasized that the student delegation represented the University and that their discussions had potential implications for their peers at the Heights. “All of these issues affect the whole student body,” she said.

—Meghan Keefe is a junior in the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences

REMINDER: IT Data Center Offline for Part of Weekend

Information Technology Services reminds the Boston College community that the IT data center will be offline overnight this Saturday, March 4, 8 p.m., through Sunday, March 5, 4 a.m. This outage is related to Information Technology’s infrastructure resilience testing. Services that will be unavailable during this time will include the Agora Portal, EagleApps, and file shares/shared drives (NetApps). However, many other services will be unaffected, including the BC website [www. bc.edu]; Gmail and all of Google Workspace, including Drive, Docs, Meet, etc.; Canvas (available at bostoncollege.instructure.com); Eagle VPN; remote desktop; and BC wired and wireless networks.

If you have any mapped drives/servers configured on your computer, restart before connecting on Sunday morning or later.

If you have any questions, contact your local technology consultant (faculty and staff) or the BC Help Center at 617-552-4357 (2-HELP) or help.center@bc.edu.

CONTRIBUTING STAFF

Phil Gloudemans

Ed Hayward

Rosanne Pellegrini

Kathleen Sullivan

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Caitlin Cunningham

Lee

Pellegrini

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