Boston College Chronicle

PUBLISHED BY THE BOSTON COLLEGE OFFICE OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

MARCH 17, 2022 VOL. 29 NO. 12

Turning Point Two years after the COVID lockdown, the University’s response to the pandemic is shifting

BY SEAN SMITH CHRONICLE EDITOR

Two years ago this month, Boston College cancelled on-campus classes, closed its residence halls, and suspended campus events and activities as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold across the United States. In the coming months, the University would enact a series of health and safety protocols and guidelines aimed at minimizing the virus’ impact on the BC community, and enabling a cautious return to in-person classes and campus life.

Now, BC has reached a major turning point in its battle against COVID-19, according to the University’s chief health administrator.

Dr. Douglas Comeau, director of University Health Services (UHS) and Primary Care Sports Medicine, said that while continuing to remain vigilant, BC is changing

INSIDE 2 Around Campus

Frates Center dedication; BC to rock Bach (and Beethoven).

3 New Chair

Theodore Papageorgiou named as the inaugural Felter Family Assistant Professor in Economics.

8 Questions for the Chief

BC historian Heather Cox Richardson interviews President Biden.

its COVID-19 University-wide testing program, protocols, and guidelines, as the BC and wider communities learn to live with the virus and move from a pandemic to an endemic.

“Basically, the long-term treatment approach for COVID-19 will be more like current influenza, or strep, or mononucleosis,” said Comeau in an interview earlier this month. “COVID-19 may never go away completely, but we can treat it with a symptom-based approach and on more of a person-by-person basis, being particularly mindful of those who are most vulnerable to the virus.”

In a letter last month to the University community, Comeau and Vice President for Human Resources David Trainor outlined the latest COVID-19 related developments: transitioning from required asymptomatic PCR surveillance testing, ex-

Continued on page 5

Scenes from a pandemic: Masks, social distancing, testing and vaccine clinics, and an emphasis on campus hygiene, health, and safety typified life at Boston College when COVID-19 came. photos by peter julian, caitlin cunningham, and lee pellegrini

Lynch School to Introduce Formative Education Dept.

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

The Lynch School of Education and Human Development will launch a new Department of Formative Education (DFE), an unprecedented academic discipline in American higher education, which will serve as a hub for school- and campuswide efforts to understand and advance formative instruction, announced Stanton E.F. Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Lynch School.

“We are thrilled to be launching the new Department of Formative Education,” said Wortham. “Across the Lynch School, it will bring together scholarly expertise about holistic, purposeful human development.

We will work with students to share our ex-

pertise and to develop a new generation of scholars and practitioners who explore how to develop whole human beings who lead fulfilled lives.”

The innovative department, scheduled to open in June, stresses the development of whole human beings for lives of meaning and purpose. The DFE builds on both Boston College’s longstanding formative approach to higher education that integrates intellectual, social, ethical, and spiritual development and the Lynch School’s research on the cultivation of character, the expansion of imagination, and realization of purpose—in and out of the classroom, and across the lifespan.

“Too often, we discuss education in narrow, instrumental terms,” said Christopher

Continued on page 5

Woods College Will Launch Program in Applied Analytics

BY PATRICIA DELANEY SENIOR DIRECTOR FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

In today’s business world, understanding the vast amount of information generated by technology systems—and using it productively—can mean the difference between success or failure.

A new graduate program at the Woods College of Advancing Studies will help professionals interpret, evaluate, and effectively apply this growing sea of data.

The M.S. in Applied Analytics program, set to launch this fall, will offer students a comprehensive focus on all aspects of data analysis, as well as grounding in machine Continued on page 7

Police violence can affect anyone, but there are additional consequences to consider if that violence is perceived to occur because of one’s skin color or ethnicity.

–bc school of social work asst. prof. robert motley jr., page 4

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Around Campus

University Will Formally Dedicate Pete Frates Center This Month The dedication of the Pete Frates Center, the 31,000-square foot indoor baseball and softball facility on Brighton Campus named in honor of the late BC baseball captain and 2007 graduate, will take place on March 26 at 11:30 a.m.

Frates, who died from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) at age 34 in December of 2019, was a leader in the search for a cure, most notably through his role as an inspiration for the Ice Bucket Challenge campaign.

The center, completed in November of 2020 with the support of the Yawkey Foundation and other donors, features locker rooms, hitting tunnels, strength and conditioning space, a hospitality area, and an indoor turf field.

During the March 26 event, University President William P. Leahy, S.J., and the Frates family will deliver remarks. Also in attendance will be William V. Campbell Director of Athletics Patrick Kraft and University Trustee Associate John L. Harrington ’57, M.B.A. ’66, H ’10, P ’82, ’89, ’94, former CEO of the Boston Red Sox

and namesake of the Harrington Athletics Village at Brighton Fields, of which the Pete Frates Center is part.

Following the dedication, the Boston College softball team will play the University of Virginia at 1 p.m. while the Eagles baseball team hosts Louisville at 2 p.m. At that time, tours of the Frates Center will be offered. Refreshments will be available.

—Christine Balquist

The Pete Frates Center on Brighton Campus is named for the late BC baseball captain (above left) who was a leader in the battle against ALS. photos by christopher huang (frates) and lee pellegrini

Birthday Bashes for Bach and Beethoven at BC Next Week Works by two legendary figures in classical music will be celebrated on campus next week, as the Boston College Music Department pays tribute to Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven on the occasion of their respective birthdays.

“A Concert on Bach’s Birthday,” cosponsored by the Jesuit Community, will be held on March 21 at 7:30 p.m. in St. Mary’s Chapel. The event honoring one of the most accomplished composers in history will feature part-time faculty member Peter Watchorn—an expert on the history of the early music revival during the 20th century whose areas of specialty include the music of Bach—on harpsichord.

Na’ama Lion, well known in the Boston area as a versatile performer on historical flutes, will play baroque flute. They will perform “Flute Sonatas” in E minor (BWV 1030) and B minor (BWV 1034), and Gustav Leonhardt’s transcription for solo harpsichord of the “C Major Violin Sonata (BWV 968).”

Gasson 100 will be the venue two nights later, March 23, at 7:30 p.m., for “Beethoven 250 + 2,” celebrating the iconic composer two years after his 250th birthday. The Music Department had planned a series of special events to mark

ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Jack Dunn

SENIOR DIRECTOR FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Patricia Delaney EDITOR

Sean Smith

The music of Johann Sebastian Bach, left, and Ludwig van Beethoven will be showcased in two upcoming campus events. images via nicku/shutterstock (left) and arcady/shutterstock

the milestone prior to the pandemic, according to Professor of the Practice Jeremiah McGrann, a Beethoven researcher who is assistant Music Department chair, and “Beethoven 250 + 2” is the remnant of the original celebration scheduled.

The first of those concerts in 2020 was

CONTRIBUTING STAFF

to include Beethoven’s song cycle “An die ferne Geliebte (To the Distant Beloved)” with McGrann on piano and tenor Michael Burgo, former head of music at St. Ignatius Parish and long-time Music faculty member. “We have now surrounded it with other pieces,” said McGrann,

Christine Balquist Phil Gloudemans Ed Hayward Rosanne Pellegrini Kathleen Sullivan

Chronicle

PHOTOGRAPHERS

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

Caitlin Cunningham Lee Pellegrini

including Beethoven’s “Ghost Trio”—not Beethoven’s original title, he added— which will be played by Eastern, Slavic, and German Studies faculty member Tony Lin (piano), with BC seniors Adrian Lee (violin) and Matt McCahan (cello).

Rounding out the program is Shostakovich’s “Cello Sonata in D minor.”

While an “eclectic concert,” according to McGrann—who will discuss the works at the event—“the Beethoven pieces are two of the composer’s masterworks from his designated Middle Period. The ‘Ghost Trio’ was written in 1808 alongside the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies and has the power, energy, and sense of evocation typical of those works. ‘An die ferne Geliebte’ shows Beethoven moving into a more Romantic phase by 1816.”

Though it is appropriate to mark Beethoven’s birthday with a concert, “one never needs a reason to perform Beethoven,” said McGrann, who notes that there is another Beethoven milestone in 2027, the 200th anniversary of his death.

Masks are required at both concerts, which are free and open to the public. For information, email concerts@bc.edu.

—Rosanne Pellegrini

The Boston College Chronicle (USPS 009491), the internal newspaper for faculty and staff, is published biweekly from September to May by Boston College, with editorial offices at the Office of University Communications, 3 Lake Street, Brighton, MA 02135 (617)552-3350.

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Papageorgiou Is First Felter Family Professor New chair established in appreciation of Economics Professor Richard Tresch

BY ED HAYWARD STAFF WRITER

Assistant Professor of Economics Theodore Papageorgiou has been named the inaugural holder of the Felter Family Assistant Professorship, a faculty appointment established in honor of retired Professor of Economics Richard W. Tresch.

The professorship is the result of a gift from John Kenneth Felter ’72, M.A. ’72, in recognition of the role Tresch played in his life and the lives of thousands of other economics majors he taught during a 49year career at Boston College.

“I am humbled to join the growing group of endowed chairs at Boston College who, to me, represent the absolute highest level of scholarship and service to this community,” said Papageorgiou, whose scholarship focuses on labor economics, international trade, and macroeconomics.

“This recognition means a great deal to me, especially since I’m the inaugural holder of this chair.”

Papageorgiou joined Boston College in 2019 after teaching at McGill University for four years. He earned a doctorate in economics at Yale University. Since joining BC, he has taught Macroeconomic Theory to undergraduates and Labor Economics to graduate students.

“My current research focuses on both labor economics, as well as transportation economics,” said Papageorgiou. “My research in labor economics currently focuses on better understanding the process through which workers and employers meet each other and how this process changes over the business cycle. With respect to transportation economics, I study oceanic shipping and delve into the fundamental question of understanding the role of transportation markets in international trade.”

The professorship expands on Felter’s philanthropic support for the Economics Department and the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences. He has already established the Felter Family Endowed Faculty Fellowship and the Felter Family Economics Department Doctoral Fellowship.

To this day, Felter said, Tresch’s teaching, mentorship, and ongoing friendship continue to influence his life and work as an attorney and teacher. Retired from the Boston firm Ropes & Gray, Felter has taught at Harvard University and last fall offered the course Cross Currents: Thinking about Law and Economics (and Psychology) at BC. “What I found so interesting about his Principles of Economics class was not only the substantive subject matter, but also

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Trustees Set 2022-23 Tuition The Board of Trustees has set undergraduate tuition for the 2022-2023 academic year at $62,950, as part of a 3.86 percent increase in tuition, fees, room and board, bringing the overall annual cost of attendance at Boston College to $80,296.

In recognition of the University’s commitment to providing access to students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, the trustees voted to increase need-based undergraduate financial aid by 4.43 percent, or $6.7 million, to a total of $157 million.

Boston College remains one of only 21 private universities in the United States that is need-blind in admissions and meets the full-demonstrated need of all undergraduate students.

Overall, more than 67 percent of

Boston College undergraduates receive financial aid. The average need-based financial aid package is projected to exceed $52,000 in 2022-2023.

The Board of Trustees also set tuition for graduate programs for the 2022-2023 academic year, including Boston College Law School ($63,130), and the full-time M.B.A. program in the Carroll School of Management ($59,030).

Boston College is ranked 39th in the “Best Value Schools” category among national universities by US News & World Report, and placed 19th in Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine’s most recent ranking of the top 50 “Best Values” among American private universities.

—Jack Dunn

BC Surveys Faculty and Staff Theodore Papageorgiou, a scholar of labor economics and macroeconomics who is the inaugural holder of Felter Family Assistant Professorship. photo by chris soldt/mts

Dick’s teaching style,” said Felter. “He was a master of the Socratic method. He challenged students to apply economic theory to real-world situations. After taking that class, I switched my major to economics.

I was also fortunate to take Dick’s graduate Public Finance course and he agreed to supervise my Scholar of the College independent study. So, I took full advantage of opportunities to learn from the master.”

Tresch, beloved by his students and the 1996 Massachusetts Professor of the Year, retired in 2018. A citation from Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker at the time acknowledged Tresch as a “preeminent teacher, stalwart administrator, contributor to the social science of economics, an esteemed author, and public-sector theorist.”

Boston College’s endowed assistant professorships support early-career faculty with additional funds for research and professional development.

The Felter professorship supports an assistant professor with demonstrated excellent teaching skills within the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences, with a preference for a faculty member in the Economics Department.

“We are grateful for Ken’s ongoing support of the Morrissey College as an alumnus, philanthropist, and teacher,” Morrissey College Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J., said.

“The Felter Family Assistant Professorship is essential to fostering the kind of worldclass teaching and research in which our faculty take great pride. It is fitting recognition for Theo Papageorgiou’s accomplished scholarship and our Economics Department.”

—University Advancement contributed content to this story

Boston College will conduct its triennial survey of faculty and staff in an effort to gain a better understanding of the work climate and overall professional experiences of University employees.

The Faculty & Staff Experience Survey, co-commissioned by the provost and dean of faculties and vice president for human resources and administered by the vice president for institutional research and planning, was distributed recently to all BC employees.

The survey, which follows Faculty & Staff Experience surveys that were administered in 2015 and 2018, will solicit feedback from faculty and staff on a wide range of topics, with the ultimate goal of enhancing employee satisfaction. All information submitted by employees is anonymous.

Vice President for Human Resources David Trainor said the survey is an extension of the University’s commitment to assisting employees in their professional development.

“Boston College has a longstanding culture of planning and assessment that helps to inform its managerial decisions,” said

Trainor. “This survey, which identifies areas of strength and areas that require greater support, is an important tool for determining priorities regarding the development of our employees.”

The survey will be offered confidentially to more than 4,000 BC faculty, staff, and administrators, both online and through a paper version for employees without access to computers. The survey will be available in Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese, and should take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete. The deadline for responding to the survey is April 29. The results will be shared with the University community in the fall.

Trainor said that Boston College is committed to conducting a Faculty & Staff Experience Survey every three years in an effort to help members of the BC community to thrive professionally.

“Surveys help to shape professional outreach efforts and focus our attention on areas of concern,” he said. “We are fully committed to making the BC work experience as satisfying as possible for all of our employees.”

—Jack Dunn

University Still Among Fulbright Leaders Boston College continues to be among the nation’s top producers of student Fulbright award winners, according to a recent report by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Sponsored by the Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs to support academic exchanges between the United States and more than 150 countries around the world, the Fulbright U.S. Student Program provides grants to college graduates, graduate students, and early-career professionals for individually designed study or research programs and English teaching assistantships abroad. Almost 600 U.S. colleges actively participate in the Fulbright Program.

BC was ranked 15th among doctoral institutions; 14 BC students were offered

Fulbrights during 2021-2022, out of 65 who applied for the program.

Brown was first among doctoral institutions, with 29 Fulbright awards offered. Other colleges and universities included Georgetown, Harvard, and Notre Dame (26 apiece); Princeton (22); Columbia, Stanford, and Yale (21 apiece); Northwestern (17); NYU (16); MIT (13); BU and Tufts (11 apiece); and University of California-Berkeley (10).

A 2020 Chronicle of Higher Education study found that BC was one of 16 doctoral institutions in the U.S. to have made the list of top Fulbright-producing colleges and universities each of the previous 10 years.

—University Communications

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Touched by Violence BCSSW faculty member Robert Motley’s area of research is something he and his family have experienced personally

BY SEAN SMITH CHRONICLE EDITOR

For Boston College School of Social Work Assistant Professor Robert Motley Jr., there has always been a personal dimension to his research, which examines the intersection of racism, violence, and trauma for Black emerging adults and associated adverse mental and behavioral outcomes.

Growing up on the west side of Chicago, he says, he was exposed to both community- and police-based violence, some of it involving friends and acquaintances.

Shortly after moving to St. Louis with his now-wife, Jamie D. Motley, and starting graduate school at Washington University in St. Louis, the Michael Brown shooting took place in nearby Ferguson, Mo., sparking an emotional, nationwide debate on police interactions with Black men.

“Police violence can affect anyone, but there are additional consequences to consider if that violence is perceived to occur because of one’s skin color or ethnicity,” said Motley, whose dissertation at Washington University-St. Louis was based on interviews with 300 Black college students in St. Louis who had personally experienced or witnessed police violence, or watched it on video. “There are quantifi-

photo by caitlin cunningham

“The data is there: Seeing racism-based police violence has a particularly harmful effect on Black emerging adults,” says Motley.

“It’s important for us to be aware of that impact and to be able to provide a culturally responsive intervention.” able harmful effects, even if the person was an observer of the violence, and these can endure for a significantly long time.”

But then came last summer, and Motley was touched by violence in a way he could scarcely have imagined.

In August, only weeks after Motley joined the BCSSW faculty, his cousin was shot and killed by an unlicensed security

CSON Dean Will Speak at Laetare Sunday Boston College’s 71st annual Laetare Sunday celebration—the BC Alumni Association’s oldest tradition—will take place on March 27 and feature an address

by Connell School of Nursing Dean Katherine E. Gregory.

Laetare Sunday is the fourth Sunday of Lent and marks the season’s midpoint.

The day will begin with Mass at 9:30 a.m. in Conte Forum, with University President William P. Leahy, S.J., presiding. A brunch will immediately follow.

Gregory, who received a Ph.D. from Boston College in 2005, assumed the deanship of the Connell School last July.

She is a nurse leader known for her collaborative partnerships with clinicians and scientists and her research into intestinal disease in preterm infants.

Gregory’s research is supported by both the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Nursing Research. A fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, she serves as an assistant in biology in the Mucosal Immunology Lab at Massachusetts General Hospital and as a senior scientist in pediatric new-

Katherine Gregory Ph.D. ’05 photo by caitlin cunningham

born medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). She is the neonatal editor of the Journal of Perinatal and Neonatal Nursing.

A member of the Connell School faculty from 2006 to 2014, Gregory helped to establish BC’s Haley Nurse Scientist Program, which funded scholarly activities of both CSON faculty and clinical nurses at BWH. She served as the inaugural Haley Nurse Scientist.

For more information about Laetare Sunday, and to register, go to the Alumni Events Calendar at https://alumni-events. bc.edu.

—Kathleen Sullivan

guard at a Memphis, Tenn., gas station.

According to police, Alvin Motley Jr. was a passenger in a car driven by his girlfriend when she parked at the gas station. The security guard, former police officer Gregory Livingston, got into a dispute with Motley over the volume of the music playing on the car stereo. The vision-impaired Motley—who was unarmed, with a beer can and cigarette in hand—left the car and approached Livingston, who shot Motley in the chest. In December, Livingston was indicted for first-degree murder.

Interviewed by a TV station when the indictment was announced, Robert Motley recalled his cousin as having “a beautiful spirit about himself, and a real, real great concern about the well-being of his family and the ones he loved. He would give the shirt off his back.”

Reflecting more recently on his cousin’s death, he said, “You know that something like this is certainly possible. But that doesn’t make it any easier to bear.”

The tragedy of last summer has added further impetus to Motley’s work, which is aimed at developing intervention and treatment programs to aid Black emerging adults (defined as ages 18-29) who have experienced or witnessed racism-based police use of force. Motley says his research also can aid in law enforcement officer training.

Early on at BCSSW, Motley—who received a bachelor’s degree from Northeastern Illinois University and an M.S.W. from the University of Illinois-Chicago— established the Racism-based Violence Injury & Prevention Lab, which serves as a wellspring for research and related activities based on his scholarship. Motley and his lab colleagues published an article last month in Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, which is produced by the American Psychological Association—the latest in a series of papers Motley expects

to release in the coming months, including one concerning safety and social mobility among Black emerging adults in Boston.

There is still a lack of understanding— and acceptance—in the general public of trauma’s real, demonstrable impact on the individual, said Motley, and the healthrelated implications of experiencing racism in daily life. He cites the Race-Based Traumatic Stress Symptom Scale, created in 2007, as a valuable tool in assessing the emotional impact of racism through factors such as depression, anger, hypervigilance, low self-esteem, disassociation, and intrusive thoughts.

A less-explored aspect of racism-based police violence—and one particularly relevant to the Black emerging adult population—is the role of social media, said Motley, which can widely share such incidents through TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms. Black emerging adults, who are likely to experience or witness police violence five to seven times in their lives, also may view as many as 34 such videos in a 12-month period, according to his research in St. Louis.

“Most of these young people, with a median age of 20, are still in the midst of important intellectual and emotional development,” said Motley. “They have a high rate of exposure to this kind of violence, whether in person or through social media. It’s vital that health practitioners have measures in place to assess how someone in this demographic has been affected by this exposure, what kind of intervention he or she might need, and how effective it is.”

Information like this also should be part of the orientation for police officers, added Motley, who is working with an agency that provides training for law enforcement professionals: “It’s valuable knowledge that officers should incorporate into their interactions with youth.”

It’s not lost on Motley that many of the Black emerging adults his work encompasses have likely seen videos of his cousin’s death. He doesn’t expect, nor does he want, “people to stop videoing.” But he believes strongly that social media outlets should be more diligent in providing content information and warnings for such violent material and, where warranted, censor certain posts.

“The data is there: Seeing racism-based police violence has a particularly harmful effect on Black emerging adults,” said Motley, who is writing a book dedicated to Alvin’s memory. “It’s important for us to be aware of that impact and to be able to provide a culturally responsive intervention.”

In the meantime, Motley and his wife, who works at Wellesley College, feel at home in the Greater Boston area, and enjoy going to movies, concerts, and sporting events. “I’m delighted to be part of BC, and the BC School of Social Work community in particular. BCSSW has offered me the ideal support and circumstances for what I want to accomplish, and I look forward to many fruitful years ahead.”

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BC Shifting Focus As Pandemic Eases Continued from page 1

cept for BC students, faculty, and staff with University-approved medical and religious vaccination exemptions; continued testing of students with COVID-19 symptoms at UHS and isolation of those who test positive; and the offering of a walk-in PCR test once a week for asymptomatic students, faculty, and staff at the Connell Recreation Center at least through March 31.

Comeau and Trainor also reported that 99.5 percent of BC students, faculty, and staff are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and 100 percent of those eligible and authorized to be on campus have obtained booster shots. No member of the campus community has been seriously ill or hospitalized because of COVID-19 this academic year, they added, and no known virus transmission has occurred in any classrooms or laboratories. They also reiterated that BC continues to be mindful of the mental health of the campus community and sensitive to minimizing COVID19-related anxieties.

With the Baker administration urging colleges and universities to return to “near normal conditions” and focus on longterm endemic management strategies while strengthening mental health supports for students and personnel, BC administrators—in consultation with Boston and Newton public health officials—felt that the circumstances justified a change in the University response to COVID-19, said Comeau.

“The degree of cooperation from the BC community has definitely helped to mitigate the potential effect COVID-19 could have had here,” he said. “While it doesn’t completely prevent the transmission of the virus, COVID-19 vaccination compliance makes transmission more difficult, helps minimize chances for community members to contract the virus, and reduces the likelihood of getting seriously ill or hospitalized.

“With their consistent cooperation, BC students, faculty, and staff have enabled

“Obviously, we should not become lax or overconfident, but the BC community as a whole should feel good about how we’ve handled this challenge together.”

—Dr. Douglas Comeau

us to achieve one of the lowest infection rates among Boston-area higher education institutions, while having as normal an academic year as possible.”

BC has endured some minor spikes in the number of COVID-19 infections during the past two years, mirroring positivity trends in the community around BC and at other universities and colleges at the time. But Comeau notes that these have been short lived and countered by the University’s nimble approach to its coronavirus protocols, such as an expeditious and thorough contact tracing program that enabled the University to quickly isolate students who tested positive and quarantine their close contacts.

Remaining nimble, studying trends, and learning more about the nature of COVID-19 also helped the University guard against major outbreaks: When the Omicron variant was peaking late last year, for example, the University—mindful that students would be traveling back to BC from various locations across the United States and the world for the spring semester—announced a temporary masking period from January 14-31, a requirement for students

to obtain a PCR test 72 hours prior to returning to campus, and updated isolation and quarantine protocols.

“The focus, especially for this academic year, has been to be as close to ‘normal’ as possible,” said Comeau. “All along, BC has carefully weighed options for achieving that end in the context of what we’ve observed and learned about COVID-19.

Not having to require masks, for example, led to a better classroom experience for students and faculty. So, while acknowledging that COVID-19 will remain a part of our lives, we will continue to move toward a pre-pandemic setting.”

Meanwhile, added Comeau, UHS has integrated many pandemic-driven practices into its operation, including a more expedient and responsive phone triage system and an efficacious use of telehealth resources.

But it’s not just UHS that has learned from the pandemic, he said: Many students are purchasing their own at-home COVID-19 antigen tests and showing increased self-reliance in monitoring their health and that of their friends, acquaintances, and roommates.

“In general, most Americans seem to

be at least more mindful about protecting their health, and being aware of those around them. Will that lesson stick? One would hope so.”

Of late, Comeau has reflected on when he was named UHS director in the summer of 2020, still trying to comprehend the nature of the pandemic while determining how to combat it—as were the colleagues he worked with in shaping BC’s short- and long-term COVID-19 strategies.

“Having been at Boston Medical Center before assuming my current role, my colleagues and I treated hospitalized patients with no known underlying medical problems who subsequently died from this coronavirus. It was a lot to take in,” he said. “When I transitioned full-time to Boston College, I did not know many individuals outside of UHS and the Athletics Department, but that changed very quickly. What I found were so many individuals from a wide range of departments and divisions that were willing to step up, and gladly spent time and energy to help the BC community. If we hadn’t had this team, we wouldn’t have gotten the job done.

“Obviously, we should not become lax or overconfident, but the BC community as a whole should feel good about how we’ve handled this challenge together.

We’ve been a very motivated University, one that’s progressed from the disappointment of sending students home in the spring of 2020; to operating with necessary restrictions—but as close to normal as possible—during the heart of the pandemic during 2020-2021, particularly with our decision to remain in-person on campus; and then to near-normal operating conditions right from the start of the 2021-2022 academic year to this day.

“That is something to look back on and to appreciate. It’s also something that calls us to pay tribute to and be thankful for the spirit of caring and cooperation that is so prevalent in our BC community.”

New Department to Lead Formative Education Efforts Continued from page 1

Higgins, an associate professor in the Lynch School’s Teaching, Curriculum, and Society department who will chair the DFE. “We can no longer afford to treat education like a technical matter, tinkering with means to a given end. Boston College and the Lynch School want to help reinspire a national conversation about the ends themselves.

What does it mean to be educated? How do we form ourselves to lead flourishing lives and foster just communities?”

To address such questions, the DFE draws on the resources of the humanities and interpretive social sciences, noted Higgins.

“Grounded in the disciplines of anthropology, history, philosophy, and social psychology, DFE faculty bring expertise not

only in the various components of holistic education—aesthetic, civic, moral, socialemotional, spiritual, and vocational—but also in areas such as educational change, design thinking, sociocultural development, technology and education, multimodal literacy, professional ethics, comparative education, and transformational dialogue,” he said.

At the heart of the pioneering department is the existing Lynch School undergraduate major in transformative educational studies (TES), which offers students the opportunity to examine fundamental educational questions arising during this time of social and educational transformation, reflect on the arc of their own formation, and dedicate themselves to improving the quality

of human experience and making society more just. TES serves students interested in exploring careers from classroom teaching, curriculum design, and policy analysis to educational roles in journalism, law, museums, and non-profit and non-governmental organizations.

Higgins, who directs the TES program, joined the Lynch School in 2019 after 13 years at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. The author of The Good Life of Teaching: An Ethics of Professional Practice, and the upcoming Integrity: Essays on Formative Higher Education, he also co-directs the Formative Leadership Education Project, which was recently awarded a grant from the Kern Family Foundation to support a nationwide network of institutions imple-

menting character education initiatives, and to create professional learning communities fostering holistic professional development for formative educators and leaders.

“We are building a community of teachers and learners devoted to recalling education to its humane roots, and exploring the myriad ways that human beings make use of formative resources to forge lives worth living,” he said. “We want to catalyze a conversation about the educational dimensions of our contemporary grand challenges, from environmental and health crises to entrenched forms of inequality and new threats to democratic self-governance. These are crises of meaning, purpose, and value.”

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Two Selected for National Academy of Education

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

Lynch School of Education and Human Development faculty members Matthias von Davier and Andy Hargreaves were recently elected to the prestigious National Academy of Education (NAEd), an honorific society whose members and international associates are chosen on the basis of outstanding scholarship related to education.

They will be among 17 new members inducted into the academy during its annual meeting this November. Boston College was the only university with two representatives in this current cohort of honorees, and now has a total of six NAEd members.

“We are very pleased that the National Academy of Education has recognized the exemplary scholarly accomplishments of our colleagues Matthias von Davier and Andy Hargreaves,” said Stanton E.F. Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Lynch School, and an NAEd member. “Their high-quality, high-impact research has made a substantial difference in their academic fields, and for educators and children around the world.”

Von Davier is the Lynch School’s J. Donald Monan, S.J., University Professor in Higher Education, and executive director of the TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center, which conducts regular international comparative assessments of student achievement in mathematics, science, and reading on behalf of the Netherlandsbased International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement.

He formally joined BC in 2020 after serving as the Distinguished Research Scientist at the National Board of Medical Examin-

Andy Hargreaves and Matthias von Davier photos by caitlin cunningham and lee pellegrini

ers (NBME).

Prior to his appointment at the NBME, von Davier was a senior research director at the Educational Testing Service’s Research & Development Division, and co-director of ETS’s Center for Global Assessment, leading large-scale psychometric research and operational analysis for international comparative studies such as the Programme for International Student Assessment, and the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies.

He also served as the psychometric advisor delegated by ETS to serve as a member of the project management team of TIMSS & PIRLS. Last July, the American Educational Research Association (AERA) named von Davier an AERA Fellow, one of 19 exemplary scholars in the 2021 cohort. His areas of expertise include item response theory, latent class analysis, diagnostic classification

OBITUARY

Albert Beaton Jr.; CSTEEP Director, Augustus Long Prof.

A Mass of Christian Burial was held yesterday for Albert E. Beaton Jr., the inaugural Augustus C. Long Professor of Education at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development, and a former director of the Lynch School’s Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy (CSTEEP), who died on March 8 at age 90.

Dr. Beaton began his illustrious fivedecade educational testing and teaching career as the managing director at Harvard University’s Littauer Statistical Laboratory in 1959 and as an IBM Research Fellow after earning a bachelor of science degree in education from the State Teachers College at Boston and a master of education degree from Harvard University (he later received an Ed.D. from Harvard). While at the Educational Testing Service (ETS) for 27 years, he held several senior research and data analytics positions at the world’s

photo by gary wayne gilbert

largest private nonprofit educational testing and assessment organization.

After having taught at Boston College during 1960-1961, Dr. Beaton rejoined the faculty in 1990, and served as the director of CSTEEP for five years. While Dr. Beaton headed CSTEEP, he directed a groundbreaking, six-year international research assessment of math and science curricula that evaluated student proficiency at three age levels. The project, known as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), examined more than one million

models, and the analytical methodologies used in large-scale educational surveys.

Von Davier has authored and coauthored more than 130 research articles, chapters and research reports, and edited five books. He holds four patents in areas such as survey analysis methods, parallel computing, test sequences analytics, and mixture modeling. His past honors include the ETS Research Scientist award, the National Council of Measurement in Education Brad Hanson Award for Contributions to Educational Measurement, and the American Educational Research Association’s Division-D award for Significant Contributions to Measurement and Research Methodology.

Hargreaves, a renowned international expert on education reform and its impact, and the former Thomas More Brennan Professor, formally retired in 2017 after 15 years at BC. He continues to serve as students from nearly 60 countries, including the United States, Russia, Japan, Hungary, Peru, Zimbabwe, and Korea, drawing considerable global interest from policy makers since the measurement of a country’s student achievement in mathematics and science is often considered a barometer for its potential economic status.

TIMSS was the largest global testing study ever undertaken, the most well-funded inquiry of its type, and served as a basis for reshaping math and science education worldwide.

Dr. Beaton was appointed the Augustus C. Long Professor in 2002, two years before he ended his BC teaching career. He was named the Augustus C. Long Professor Emeritus in 2005.

In October of 2006, Henry Braun, then the newly-named Boisi Professor of Education and Public Policy and Education Research, presented the 13th annual Boisi Lecture on Testing and Educational Policy in honor of Dr. Beaton, an unprecedented individual tribute in the history of the series. Braun said he was honored to have the opportunity to celebrate the life and work of Dr. Beaton, who had first recruited Braun for the ETS—the start of Braun’s

a research professor in the Lynch School’s Teaching, Curriculum, and Society department, a visiting professor at the University of Ottawa, and honorary professor Swansea University (UK). Out of 20,000 qualifying American education scholars, Hargreaves was ranked No. 15 in this year’s EduScholar Public Influence Rankings for his efforts to shape educational practice and policy.

He is a life member and the former president of the International Congress of School Effectiveness and Improvement, an education adviser to the First Minister of Scotland, and a former advisor to the premier of Ontario. Hargreaves is co-founder and president of the Atlantic Rim Collaborative, a group of nations committed to broadly defined excellence, equity, wellbeing, inclusion, democracy, and human rights in education. He is currently developing and researching a national network of schools that serve high-needs populations through play-based learning; implementing inclusive education policies; and building global education policy networks to advance humanistic values.

Hargreaves’ Changing Teachers, Changing Times is among the most mentioned research books on teaching by a living author in all languages. His most recent books include Well-Being in Schools: Three Forces that will Uplift Your Students in a Volatile World and Five Paths of Student Engagement —both co-authored with Lynch School colleague Dennis Shirley—and Moving, a Memoir of Education & Social Mobility.

In addition to von Davier, Hargreaves, and Wortham, Lynch School faculty members previously inducted into the NAEd include Henry Braun, Marilyn CochranSmith, and Diana Pullin.

27-year career in research administration.

“I say this not only because of my respect and affection for Al, but also because there is no one else who has had such an impact on my professional life than Al Beaton.”

Dr. Beaton contributed numerous articles to a variety of professional journals, and co-authored several publications pertaining to psychology and human assessment, and the National Assessment of Education Progress. He served as the director of data analysis for the Educational Opportunity Survey Study, the National Longitudinal Study, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, and the International Mathematics and Science Study.

Dr. Beaton is survived by Joan, his wife of 63 years, and his son, Douglas. He was predeceased by his son, Albert Beaton III. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Home for Little Wanderers, 10 Guest Street, Boston, MA 02135, or at www.thehome.org. Notes of condolence may be sent to 308 Main Street, Norfolk, MA 02056.

—University Communication Read the full obituary at https://bit.ly/ albert-beaton-obituary

7

Chronicle

March 17, 2022

New Program to Provide Valuable Insights into Data Continued from page 1

learning and artificial intelligence. Both full- and part-time students will be able to complete the hybrid program fully online, fully on campus, or in any mix of the two.

“Like all of the Woods College graduate programs, the MSAA responds to market needs,” said Woods College Dean Karen Muncaster. “We follow the research.

It shows that demand for data analytics skills has soared, and shows the need for a strong, industry-aligned academic program to help professionals acquire those skills.

Woods College is particularly qualified to meet that need.”

“Digital transformation and data-driven strategies are the hallmark of every industry today,” said Aleksandar Tomic, associate dean for strategy, innovation, and technology at the Woods College, who will direct the new program.

Whether it’s a company’s daily operations, marketing efforts, interactions with customers, or management of staff, data is now front and center, he said—but making effective use of it to enhance overall efficiency and competitive advantage remains a daunting task, resulting in a nearly insatiable need for analytics talent.

“This new program will meet employer demand and address the current dearth of analytic talent in the market, while also complementing our existing offerings,” Tomic said.

In particular, the MSAA will draw on the strengths of the Woods College’s successful M.S. in Applied Economics program, also led by Tomic. Launched in 2015, the MSAE—now among the top 25 economics master’s programs in the United States in terms of enrollment—prepares students to evaluate policies and programs, develop forecasts, understand consumer behavior, and analyze market efforts, all with an emphasis on ethical decision-making.

According to Tomic, however, research shows that today’s professionals also require a deeper dive into more focused analytics offerings, notably in the area of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI).

“The new MSAA will fill these gaps,” he said, “producing graduates capable of working on the cutting edge of ML/AI, as well as collaborating across the business to drive impact.”

Core courses will include mathematical methods for machine learning, software tools and platforms, AI algorithms—including ethics and governance—and Big Data econometrics. Elective choices include regression models, data visualization and communication, ML product management, advanced AI algorithms, and predictive analysis and forecasting.

The Woods College also will offer an MSAE/MSAA dual-degree option for professionals who wish to strengthen their grounding in both arenas.

“This program is an obvious fit for us,” said Tomic. “Boston College has a strong brand advantage in its reputation for academic excellence, its exceptional student and career services and alumni network,

the contributions of industry leaders, who share their expertise and experience as advisory board members for both the MSAE and the new program, as well as in MSAA course development and as teaching faculty in their respective areas.

“AI and ML are growing across many industries. Organizations need to deeply understand the approaches, challenges, and best practices to ensure successful implementation. However, there is a significant gap in skills to build and use this technology,” said Nurtekin Savas, vice president and head of enterprise products and platforms machine learning and data science at Capital One. “The Woods College is in a unique position to address this successfully due to its experience in delivering theory and application in complex and quantitative topics.”

“Digital transformation and data-driven “Information and data produced in strategies are the hallmark of every industry today’s globally connected world requires today,” according to Woods College Associate highly-skilled professionals trained in powDean Aleksandar Tomic, director of the M.S. erful methods to uncover otherwise hidden in Applied Analytics program. trends, properties, and time-horizons,” said Paul R. Garvey, a distinguished chief sciphoto by chris soldt/mts entist at MITRE Corporation, a nonprofit organization that operates federally funded and its vibrant community. At the Woods research and development centers for the College, we can build on the strengths of U.S. government, and an adjunct faculty our successful MSAE program as we offer a member in the Boston College Departstrong, distinctive MSAA curriculum, and ment of Mathematics. provide the real-world connections students “The BC M.S. in Applied Analytics is seek, through our professional practitioner designed to meet the challenging needs faculty, dedicated advisory board, and track in such fields as healthcare, business and record of career and academic coaching. finance, government and industry,” Garvey “These strengths have enabled us to said. attract students in otherwise crowded marDerya Isler, who will advise and teach in kets such as economics; we are confident the area of machine learning product manthat this will translate well to the new pro- agement, is product leader at Instagram. gram.”

“As we see the proliferation of consumer The MSAA’s curriculum is buttressed by apps, the need for data is growing expo-

nentially,” Isler said. “From analyzing the market, to understanding the user base, from daily operations to predicting future demand, companies depend on having high-quality data as well as having people and technologies to drive insights from that data. Today, most of the practical skills we expect from people are gained through work experience and there is a gap where new graduates do not have the relevant data analytics experience that put them ahead in the game when they start a career, MSAA program will close this gap and help students to gain relevant skills and experiences in data analytics that will make them more relevant in a fast-changing market.”

“The MSAA is a world-class program spanning the breadth and depth needed for practitioners and leaders in today’s marketplace—from hands-on skills development to responsible and ethical governance,” said MassMutual Head of AI Governance Ra’ad Siraj, who will help develop and deliver an AI ethics and model governance course.

“Boston College’s and the Woods College’s reputation will make this a marquee, sought-after program.”

Jobs 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.

Help Desk Specialist Technology Consultant Program Director, Ever to Excel

OBITUARY

Business Analyst

Law Professor Catharine Wells Boston College Law School Professor Catharine Wells, a nationally recognized expert on pragmatism and its relationship to American legal theory, died on March 7.

Dr. Wells joined BC Law in 1995 as associate dean for academic affairs, after having taught at the University of Southern California. From 1976-1984, she had held a number of posts in the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, including as assistant attorney general and director of the Division of Public Charities. She also chaired the National Association of State Charities Officials and served on the advisory committee to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue on Tax-Exempt Organizations.

At BC Law, as the Law School Fund Research Scholar, Dr. Wells taught and wrote in various areas, including Pragmatic Legal Theory, Feminist Jurisprudence, and Civil Rights Theory. She also taught American philosophy in the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. Wells was lauded for her 2020 book, Oliver Wendell Holmes: A Willing Servant to an Unknown God, described by one critic as “elegantly written and filled with sparkling insight about the inner life of one of America’s greatest judges.” She also authored academic articles published in Harvard Law Review, the Michigan Law Review, University of Southern California Law Review, and the Northwestern Law Journal. Her topics varied.

“The loss of Catharine is a terrible shock for all of us,” said Interim BC Law Dean Diane Ring. “She made significant contributions to both this law school and to legal scholarship, but more than that, she was a cherished colleague and friend over the many years we have worked together. I will miss her sharp mind, quick wit and enthusiasm. My thoughts are with her family and friends during this difficult time.”

A remembrance of Dr. Wells is available at https://lawmagazine.bc.edu/2022/03/ remembering-catharine-wells.

—University Communications

Administrative Coordinator Academic Advisor, Undergraduate Programs Assistant Director, Member Services Director, Catholic Religious Archives Program Email Marketing Specialist Assistant/Associate Director, Alumni Operations Executive Education and Advisory Content Developer Campus Minister Speech/Language Pathologist Resource Acquisitions Assistant Assistant Director, Biology Labs Residential Life Administrator Staff Psychologist or Social Worker Lead Teacher, Pine Manor College Laboratory Safety Specialist Student Services Associate Post-doctoral Research Fellow (multiple positions)

8

Chronicle

March 17, 2022

Q&A: Heather Cox Richardson

Chatting with the President As someone whose scholarly writings have explored the impact and legacy of the presidencies of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Dwight Eisenhower, among others, Professor of History Heather Cox Richardson got the opportunity of a lifetime last month, when the White House invited her to interview President Joe Biden. Richardson, who has gained a national following in large part through her online newsletter, “Letters from an American” [heathercoxrichardson. substack.com] sat down with the president on February 25 to talk about American democracy and its struggles. The nearly 30-minute interview was posted on Richardson’s YouTube channel, and can be viewed at youtu.be/ R6Ks3BnFymQ. Last week, Richardson spoke with Chronicle about her stint as presidential interviewer.

Up until that day in the White House, who would you say was the most famous person you had interviewed?

Richardson: Hmmm. I don’t do a lot of interviews, but I do work with some impressive people. Just a few days before the interview with the president, I got to be part of a discussion with Russia specialist Fiona Hill, which was amazing. As far as interviews go, though, the ones I really remember from the podcasts I’ve done are the people—generally scholars—who are all stiff at first, and then as they warm up drop some truly brilliant observations. I have gotten in the habit of asking at the end of any recorded interview of which I’m in charge: “Is there anything else you’d like to add?” People usually say, “No, not really,” and then they often say, “except...” and they launch into an incredible revelation.

Had you ever had any previous interaction with Joe Biden, even in passing?

Did you have a sense—maybe from other people—of what he would be like to interview?

Richardson: No. I had never crossed his path in any way. And I didn’t really have a sense of how he might interview. I did go into it thinking that he might not be as warm and forthcoming as many have said, so I was prepared to work much harder than I did. That was wrong; he was lovely.

You’ve got a chance to interview the President of the United States.

How do you prepare? What do you ask? A Boston College historian talks about her recent visit to the White House.

Professor of History Heather Cox Richardson sits with President Joe Biden on February 25.

VIDEO STILL

And honestly, anyone who has run class discussions for 30 years has a pretty good sense of how to shape a conversation, so needing advice on directing him never even occurred to me. So long as you do your homework on a topic, you’re generally pretty good to go in a discussion of it.

Where exactly did the interview take place, and in real time, how long were you there for?

Richardson: We recorded the interview in the China Room, which was wonderful for a historian. It is a warm room, red to match the dress in the portrait of Grace Coolidge on the wall, if I recall correctly.

The wall opposite the fireplace is lined with cabinets displaying the plates for the former presidents’ china sets, and they are remarkably reflective of some of the president’s wives. Mrs. Johnson’s plates, for example, have wildflowers on them, and she is famous for—among other things— supporting public engagement with Texas’s many native wildflowers.

We were together in the room for about

BC Scenes Appa Mass

PHOTOS BY JUSTIN KNIGHT

Participants in the Appalachia Volunteers Program—known as “Appa”— gathered in St. Ignatius Church on March 4 for the traditional Appa Mass in preparation for their service work during spring break week. Some 250 students traveled to 26 different locations around the country to work alongside underresourced communities.

40 minutes. Set-up time was much longer, of course.

Did any of his answers or comments surprise you?

Richardson: Well, yes, but that’s likely a reflection of my own current research obsession. I really wanted to hear him talk about the theory of representation in government, which is central to a project I’m working on, and he didn’t seem terribly interested in that.

It struck me later that to people not as far down that rabbit hole as I am, the answer to it seems pretty obvious. Other than that, I didn’t really have any expectations of what he might say.

That’s the fun of interviewing. What you really want is someone who is willing to engage, and he was. It’s a nightmare when people essentially give “Yes” or “No” answers, and you have nothing to work with.

Aside from being boring, that just feels hostile when you listen to it.

If you had had more time, what other things would you have liked to explore

with him?

Richardson: This is a great question, because I suspect I come at today’s politics from a different perspective than a journalist. First of all, because of what I do with “Letters from an American,” I am extremely well versed in any information coming from the White House that is public knowledge.

So there is zero point in me asking anything that I can find elsewhere—there is a lot publicly available if you know where to look.

And there is no way lawmakers are going to hand over information that is not public knowledge to someone like me.

So, what I want to get from someone like President Biden is how they think about what they are doing. I study the larger trends of American history, and how people think is absolutely crucial to them. You don’t have to agree with those positions, but you definitely need to know what they are and why lawmakers think what they are doing is important.

That sort of public conversation was central to American politics until the late 1960s, and I would like for us to get it back.

Anyway, if I really could interview the president at length, it would be about his role in history, and the things he has seen and participated in over his long career. He took over the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee after segregationist South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond, for example, who opposed using the federal government to protect civil rights. What was that like?

How has the judiciary changed?

And Biden has also been profoundly involved in foreign affairs throughout his time in office, a deep engagement that I think is behind his administration’s strengthening of NATO and support for the extraordinary coordination of opposition to Russian president Vladimir Putin’s recent attack on neighboring Ukraine. How has our engagement in foreign affairs changed since the 1970s? What were the key moments from the perspective of an insider? Who were the key players?

I mean, I could go on for hours. He has been a witness to history, and as a historian, I want to hear it all.

—Sean Smith