Boston College Chronicle by Boston College

The Boston College

Chronicle Published by the Boston College Office of News & Public Affairs march 31, 2016 VOL. 23 no. 14

Boston College Scientists Track Ancient Retroviruses

INSIDE first responders earn 2 •BC praise and thanks

By Ed Hayward Staff Writer

•Model UN program draws raves

•Promising start for new speaker series Bilder wins major 3 •Law’s history prize •A comeback for ’Blacks in Boston’ conference •Another Frozen Four •Photos: Peace Corps celebration

4 •Alan Wolfe reflects

on Boisi Center years

conference 5 •Biennial on history of religion is this weekend

wins Romero 6 •Lester Scholarship •Photo: Boston schools head speaks on campus

•Welcome Additions; BC in the Media; Expert Opinion; Jobs; Nota Bene •’Big Data’ discussion •Photo: BC Club makes donation

•Poet Afaa Michael Weaver to visit

Members of the Boston College Irish Dance student group perform to the accompaniment of BC Irish Studies music faculty members Jimmy Noonan and Sheila Falls at Monday night’s concert commemorating the 1916 Easter Rising, one of Ireland’s most important historical events. More photos on page 8. (Photo by Justin Knight)

Balance and Rhetoric

Kaveny’s books reflect her interest in complex relationship between the religious and secular in US

Lee Pellegrini

By Ed Hayward Staff Writer

The need for a space in American society where religious and secular opinions can co-exist, and the enduring role of religiously inspired political rhetoric, are the topics covered in two new books by Darald and Juliet Libby Professor Cathleen Kaveny, who holds appointments in both theology and law. Kaveny, who joined the Boston College faculty two years ago from the University of Notre Dame, said both books – the compilation of columns titled The Culture of Engagement and the history Prophecy Without Contempt: Religious Discourse in the Public Square – derive from her fascination with the history, language and place of religiouslyinspired debate and discussion in a country that pledges fealty to God yet remains committed to the separation of church and state. The Culture of Engagement, a collection of her columns for Commonweal magazine, examines the need to recognize the viewpoints of religious tradition and secular, liberal democratic tradition can meet for substantive, critical and collaborative discussions about the issues of the day.

There are millions of viruses found among all living things and in all parts of the world. New viruses emerge, while others die off and disappear. They leave behind no bones or physical artifacts to pick through. Only recently have genome sequencing and high-volume data analysis offered scientists a chance to look back millions of years at ancient viruses — a form of scientific detective work often referred to as “paleovirology.” A team led by Professor of Biology Welkin Johnson took one

Ignite Awards Supporting Variety of Faculty Research By Siobhan Sullivan Staff Writer

Studies on attention allocation, improved sleep for hospitalized patients, cesarean delivery rates, and a gene mutation that places women at higher risk for cancers are just a few of the projects being conducted during the 2015-16 academic year by Boston ColCathleen Kaveny

“Over the years as I wrote these columns, I focused on topical issues of the day and often they were infused with certain social, political or cultural tensions,” says Kaveny. “I’m interested in how in today’s society you are supposed to engage as a religious person who is an American and who takes seriously the claims on moral positions in a person’s life.” Somewhere between the need for religious traditions to assimilate into American culture and the nation’s resistance to movements viewed as highly sectarian or “on the fringe,” there should be a middle ground where divergent perspectives can co-exist, even thrive in the presence

lege faculty supported with funding from the University’s Ignite Awards. Designed to foster and fund research initiatives at BC, the grants awarded by the Office of the Vice Provost for Research help full-time tenure-track and nontenure track faculty advance their research and compete for external Continued on page 6

Coming Up a Little Short

Despite disappointing end, women’s hockey coach Crowley feels 2015-16 season was something special By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor

If you’re a coach, you have to look at the big picture, no matter how gratifying the win or wrenching the loss, and try to get your team to see it, too. But when that loss is the only one of the season, and it comes in a national championship, the task can be formidable. That was the situation facing Boston College women’s hockey coach Katie Crowley when she gathered her team in the locker room followContinued on page 4 ing their 3-1 loss to Minnesota in the

QUOTE:

such long look back and revealed the global spread of an ancient group of retroviruses that affected about 28 of 50 modern mammals’ ancestors some 15 to 30 million years ago. One of the most extensive viral evolutionary reconstructions undertaken generated a “family tree” that shows a virus that jumped from one host species to another and crisscrossed all but the polar regions of the globe during its lifetime. Just as a paleontologist might reconstruct a dinosaur skeleton from a few fossilized bones dug from the Earth, Johnson and his Continued on page 5

March 20 NCAA Championship. Crowley was dealing with her own disappointment, of course, but she knew it was important for her to take on a coach’s other persona, that of a teacher and mentor. So what do you say? “To be honest, I hadn’t thought that far ahead – how to handle it if we lost,” said Crowley last week as she sat in her office reflecting on the Eagles’ 40-1 season. “It’s just not what you do. But I knew there were things I wanted them to think about. This was the best season in BC women’s hockey history: We won Continued on page 5

“In an era that has seen the rise of the bombastic and the irrational, Alan [Wolfe] has consistently offered a thoughtful and humanistic take on our politics and our culture. I’ve long admired his writing and speak for his many colleagues in thanking him for what he and the Boisi Center have meant to the University community.” –Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, page 4

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Chronicle march 31, 2016

A ROUND conference,” says Fitzsimmons, “but like to keep it a surprise for the delegates.” Suzanne Larson, library media specialist at Seekonk High School in Massachusetts, says her students relish the chance to meet peers from around the world while they seek “to solve real-world problems, grapple with issues that face our world, and work together to accomplish more than any one individual could achieve alone. Model UN provides a training ground to teach students to think flexibly, collaborate and find solutions.” The Midnight Crises Events are a particular favorite, Larson adds, because they “provide fun, sometimes silly twists on the politics that

Delegates at the Eagle MUNC gathering earlier this month.

this year, included a keynote speech from astronaut Bill Shepherd, a Navy SEAL and the commander of the first mission to the International Space Station. “EagleMUNC was created with the idea that MUN could be a more innovative experience for the delegates,” says Billy Fitzsimmons ’16 who, as secretary-general, is in charge of the club [eaglemunc.org]. “We believed that most Model United Nations conferences at other universities offered the same types of committees, but we dared to be different.” Among the innovations was a 40-hour simulation in which the delegates are suddenly confronted with intense geopolitical situations that put them “in the shoes of highlevel decision-makers,” Fitzsimmons explains. Many of the MUNC committees held “Midnight Crises Events,” such as the possibility of a war involving three members, the discovery of a “spy” (secretly a BC student posing as a delegate), and last-minute complications in the opening of a Disney theme park in Shanghai. “We inform the advisors of Midnight Crises Events before the

[the students] are working on in the committee.” Seekonk juniors Brittney Keeley and AudreyRose Wooden speak glowingly of MUNC. “EagleMUNC gives us an opportunity to have serious conversations with people and partake in an educated and factual debate and still have fun,” says Keeley. Adds Wooden, “You truly have a completely immersive experience, all thanks to the amazing EagleMUNC team that cares about every single delegate no matter how many of us there are. It lets us know that, despite how the media portrays our generation, we’re in good hands.” The Seekonk delegates’ praise underscores EagleMUNC’s mission to promote education, leadership and innovative thinking. “In this day and age, it is important for everyone, especially high school students, to develop an awareness and appreciation of the greater world,” says Amelie Trieu ’18, head of the EagleMUNC External Affairs Department. “Model United Nations teaches students about important issues, and by extension, encourages them to become global citizens.” –Siobhan Sullivan

Director of NEWS & Public Affairs Jack Dunn Deputy Director of NEWS & Public AFFAIRS Patricia Delaney Editor Sean Smith

Contributing Staff Melissa Beecher Ed Hayward Sean Hennessey Rosanne Pellegrini Kathleen Sullivan Siobhan Sullivan Photographers Gary Gilbert Lee Pellegrini

LAUDING THE LIFESAVERS A special event in the Corcoran Commons Heights Room last week reunited Eagles football fan Gregory Fulgione with the first responders who helped to save his life after he collapsed Oct. 31 at Alumni Stadium. The first responders – members of Boston College EMS, Boston College Police, TeamOps and Armstrong Ambulance — were also recognized at the March 23 event by St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, where Fulgione was treated. Fulgione, a father of an alumna and football season ticket holder since 1982, went into cardiac arrest at the start of the BC-Virginia Tech game. He was initially aided by a family friend and members of TeamOps, the organization that provides security and guest relations for BC Athletics event. The first EMTs on the scene were Nicholas Favazza ’18, Rachel French ’17 and Andrew Bourque ’18, members of BC EMS. Favazza used an AED (automated external defibrillator) on Fulgione. “It was the first time I used an AED on a real person,” said Favazza, who has been with BC EMS since the spring of 2015. Bourque, on his first-ever shift for BC EMS, assisted Armstrong Ambulance personnel with the bag valve by setting up the oxygen tank. After treatment in the hospital and a rehabilitation facility, Fulgione was able to return home in December in time to celebrate his 86th birthday. Fulgione attended the reunion

Lee Pellegrini

EagleMUNC, an organization of more than 100 Boston College undergraduates who plan and run a Model United Nations (MUN) Conference for high school students, broke its own record this month when its annual gathering hosted more than 650 students from around the world. What began as a one-day meeting in Gasson Hall four years ago is now a three-day event at the Westin Copley Place Hotel, where the delegates serve on various committees. EagleMUNC was named the “Most Innovative” conference by Best Delegate, a website that ranks MUN teams across the country. The conference, which had “Liberty and Security” as its theme

Gregory Fulgione and his wife Eleanor at last week’s event honoring first responders who saved his life last fall in Alumni Stadium.

event with his wife of more than 60 years, Eleanor, his three children and son-in-law, and the family friend who was the first person to start CPR on Fulgione. “[This event] has presented me with a golden opportunity to meet you and thank you,” Fulgione said to the first responders in attendance. St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center presented a silver bowl to each member of BC Police, BC EMS, TeamOps and Armstrong Ambulance involved with the save of Fulgione. According to BC EMS President Kevin Zirko ’16, this was the first cardiac arrest save for BC EMS since it was established in 1997. A student-run organization, BC EMS provides emergency response coverage at more than 400 events per academic year. The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Association honored Zirko, French, Bourque and Favazza for

The Park Street Corporation Speaker Series kicked off last week with an address in Robsham Theater by Dr. Paul Farmer (in photo), co-founder and chief strategist of Partners In Health, an international non-profit devoted to providing direct health care on behalf of those in poverty. Sponsored by Park Street Corporation and Boston College’s Institute for the Liberal Arts, the series is designed to engage students in the exploration of values and ethics related to health and health care practices. “I thought the opening event was wonderful,” said Professor of English Amy Boesky, the series co-director. “Paul Farmer began a conversation we hope to continue over the years, asking us to consider optimism as

Frank Curran

A MODEL CONFERENCE

C AMPUS

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a fundamental component of social change. His energy and generosity were evident from the moment he set foot on campus. I love that he emphasized the ‘human connection’ within the fields of medicine and

their life-saving work at the 2016 National Collegiate Emergency Medical Services Foundation conference in Philadelphia. Praising the first responders, St. Elizabeth’s Chief of Emergency Services Dr. Mark Pearlmutter – who treated Fulgione at the hospital – said “every link in the chain of survival played a role. Each link is essential and the skills and coordination of each of those links and transition of care demonstrates the importance of the pre-hospital team that’s assembled here today. “It begins with increased community awareness and education. The BC community is a stellar example of this. The first responders to Mr. Fulgione played an integral part in his being able to join us today.” Fulgione’s daughter, Lynne Garcia ’86, said her father is looking forward to next football season and is “doing better than ever.” –Kathleen Sullivan global health equity. He’s set a high standard that we hope to meet in the coming years.” “In 2004 I proposed Paul Farmer as the inaugural speaker for the First Year Convocation,” said series codirector Cansisius Professor James Keenan, SJ, director of the Jesuit Institute. “He came, saw and conquered then in 2004 and he did it again for the Park Street Corporation series. He’s a man whose life is heroic, and whose words are engaging and uplifting. With his talk last week, he helped us in expanding Boston College’s place among schools in the medical humanities.” For information and updates about the series, see www.bc.edu/offices/park-street-series.html. –Office of News & Public Affairs

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Photos by Lee Pellegrini

US Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy III (above) – whose great-uncle President John F. Kennedy issued an executive order establishing the Peace Corps – came to campus March 18 to speak at a special event commemorating the organization’s 55th anniversary. Also at the event was Peace Corps Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet, who spoke with BC alumna Anne Gillian Freedman ’13 from Peru via Skype (right) about her experiences living and working overseas.

After 16 Years, ‘Blacks in Boston’ Returns Boston College faculty mem- gration, not only in terms of who bers will be joined this Saturday immigrates to the United States, by other prominent scholars from but also with regard to immigrants’ around the country and com- support of their home countries munity organization leaders for a and contributions to the US,” she discussion on Boston’s immigrant said. populations in the city. Among the topics presenters will The daylong event, “Blacks in explore are definitions of “black” in Boston: Black...and Immigrant,” sending and receiving countries; will be a revival of the African citizenship and belonging for black and African Diaspora Studies Pro- Americans; cultural contributions gram’s (AADS) “Blacks in Boston” to the receiving country; connecconference series, tions to home, such last held on cam- “Conference planners hope as remittances; impus in 2000. More migration as a black participants will become more than 250 attendees civil rights issue; will gather in Gas- aware of the complexities of and waves of black son 100 to hear 11 US immigration, not only in immigration in presentations that New England from explore black immi- terms of who immigrates to the the Caribbean, Afgration from cultur- United States, but also with rica, and Central al, historical, legal, and South America. regard to immigrants’ support personal, political, The morning public health, and of their home countries and session will feature social perspectives. keynote speakers contributions to the US.” Organizers – from the Network –Rhonda Frederick of Immigrant & who note they are still receiving reAfrican American quests for information and admis- Solidarity – D. Feraiya Williams, sion to the free, public event, even Trina Jackson and Luz Zambrano though registration is closed – say – who will present “It Takes Revothis year’s theme is designed to lutionary Relationships to Build a engage current issues in the US Movement.” Violet M. Showers immigration debate, and to explore Johnson of Texas A&M University what black immigrants and immi- will give the luncheon keynote, gration bring to this discourse. “More Than Winthrop’s City on “Taking on an issue of such na- the Hill: Centering Black Migrational relevance highlights AADS’s tions in Boston’s History.” interdisciplinary emphases, thereby Frederick will be among a numencouraging black students, stu- ber of BC faculty members serving dents of color, as well as students as panel moderators or speakers, invested in issues of social justice, along with Lynch School of Edupolitics, and history to consider cation Associate Professor Leigh the racial, international, and local Patel, Professor of History Mariimplications of US immigration,” lynn Johnson, Associate Professor according to Associate Professor of of Sociology C. Shawn McGuffey, English Rhonda Frederick, AADS AADS faculty member Abel Djassi faculty member and former direc- Amado and Professor of English tor, who spearheaded the initiative. Robin Lydenberg. “Conference planners hope parThe “Blacks in Boston” conferticipants will become more aware ence, conceived of and launched in of the complexities of US immi- 1983 by former BC Black Stud-

ies Program Director Amanda V. Houston, “defined Boston College and the Black Studies Program [renamed AADS in 2006] in the New England area,” according to Frederick. “Featuring speakers prominent in the US civil rights movement and academia, ‘Blacks in Boston’ built its regional, national and international reputation. That these conferences were initiated here at Boston College was one of Black Studies’ most significant accomplishments.” AADS faculty, staff and students were integral to the planning of the conference, said Frederick, also citing support from the Institute for the Liberal Arts and Center for Centers, as well as from alumnus and University Trustee Associate Juan Concepcion. For more information, including the full schedule of events and participants, see http://bit. ly/1LGV0f5. –Rosanne Pellegrini

Hockey’s Off to the Frozen Four – Again The Boston College men’s hockey team earned a trip to their 25th Frozen Four, and 12th under coach Jerry York, with a 3-2 win over Minnesota-Duluth last weekend. The Eagles will play Quinnipiac in the national semifinal next Thursday, April 7, at 5 p.m. in Tampa, Fla., with the winner taking on either Denver or North Dakota for the national championship on April 9. The semifinal will be shown on ESPN2, the title game on ESPN. For news and updates, see bceagles.com.

Boston College Law Professor Mary Sarah Bilder has won the Bancroft Prize, considered one of the most prestigious honors in the field of American history, for her book Madison’s Hand: Revisiting the Constitutional Convention. Bilder, who is the Lee Distinguished Scholar at BC Law, joins such eminent historians as Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., George F. Kennan, Daniel J. Boorstin, Samuel Eliot Morison, Jill Lepore, Drew Gilpin Faust and James T. Patterson who have been awarded the Bancroft Prize, presented each year since 1948 by the trustees of Columbia University to honor books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas. In Madison’s Hand, Bilder shows how James Madison revised his notes on the Constitutional Convention in the years prior to his death in 1836, four years before their publication. Madison’s writings on this key historical event have long been viewed as an important insight into the making of the US Constitution, and heretofore viewed as impartial and uniformly accurate. Bilder’s analysis indicates that Madison made significant changes to the notes, some for the sake of clarity, accuracy or greater detail on the proceedings, but others that show a concern for his political position and public image – such as reshaping perceptions on his support for slavery. Madison’s Hand has been widely praised by constitutional experts and legal historians, and was featured prominently by publications such as the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal. The book was also named a George Washington Prize finalist. “This is a great honor,” said Bilder last week. “I don’t think of myself on the same level as a Schlesinger, Kennan or Faust; I’m just very happy to be recognized in this way.” The experience of poring through Madison’s papers, Bilder said, has given her a “complicated” but more expansive view of Madison. “In the past, for me Madison was a statue, a painting,” she said. “Now I see him more as a person, one with a lot of flaws – I find him more accountable on the issue of slavery – but also a lot of characteristics that served him well in the task of founding a country. “Additionally, this project

gave me a deeper understanding of the struggles on the part of Madison and others in the ‘Framing Generation’ to create a workable political system.” Americans have typically regarded aspects of their political and legal history – particularly where the Founding Fathers are concerned – as constant and unchanging, said Bilder. But as the revelations in Madison’s Hand make clear, the reality is differ-

Lee Pellegrini

CELEBRATING 55

Law’s Bilder Wins Bancroft Prize for Book on Madison

“In the past, for me Madison was a statue, a painting,” says Bilder. “Now I see him more as a person, one with a lot of flaws – I find him more accountable on the issue of slavery – but also a lot of characteristics that served him well in the task of founding a country.” ent, if perhaps difficult to accept. “It’s like the moment you realize your parents are just people like everyone else,” she said. “Acknowledging that the framers of the constitution didn’t have all the answers means we need to take responsibility for addressing difficult constitutional issues; the system won’t work without our participation. “Madison and others in the Framing Generation thought the governing process was important and interesting, not a wind-up toy that ran on its own with minimal attention. Fortunately, I’m finding young people are increasingly interested in the framers’ era, so hopefully that augurs well for our future.” Bilder will receive her award at the Bancroft Prizes dinner next month, hosted by the Department of History and Columbia University Libraries. Read a BC Law Magazine interview with Bilder at http://bit. ly/1UH98WP. –Boston College Law School; additional material by Sean Smith

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World of Change A lot’s happened since Alan Wolfe came to BC to direct the Boisi Center. And that’s one of the things he has relished about the job. By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor

About 20 years ago, Alan Wolfe recalls, he wrote an op-ed for The New York Times Magazine about what he saw as an increased general level of tolerance in the US, with one notable exception. “I said that the US had become more tolerant, but not toward gays,” recalls Wolfe, a professor of political science and director of Boston College’s Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life. “I thought that the unease and opposition on the part of many people toward gays and same-sex marriage was not going to change significantly. “Boy, was I wrong,” he laughs. The growing acceptance, and eventual legalization, of gay marriage is one of a number of worldshaping events and trends that have occurred during Wolfe’s 17year tenure as the inaugural Boisi Center director, which will conclude this summer. The Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal, 9/11, the 2008 financial disaster – these, along with gay marriage and many other thought-provoking issues and trends have been the subject of events, programs, courses, seminars, publications and other forms of outreach by the center. Its activities have drawn on the talents and perspectives of many eminent figures in politics, government, religion, journalism, the arts and other fields – not least Wolfe himself. So, whatever the outcome of his other predictions, Wolfe has been dead right on one thing: When he

Alan Wolfe: “A lot of programs in political science don’t ask the big questions in the way we do here, with a focus on faith, philosophy and the human tradition. It’s been a case where my interests and the things I wanted to explore dovetailed with BC’s mission.” (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

arrived at BC, he expressed confidence that the center would be a valuable resource for discussion and research on the relationship between religion and public policy. Now, as he prepares to step down, Wolfe feels the center has fulfilled its promise. “It’s been a wonderful experience,” says Wolfe, who will retire from BC in early 2017. “I thought BC would be an excellent home for the center, and that’s how it’s turned out.” Praising the University’s leadership and support – notably President William P. Leahy, SJ, center benefactors and namesakes Geoffrey ’69 and Rene (Isacco) Boisi ’69, and late College of Arts and Sciences Dean Robert Barth, SJ (under whose administration the center began) – Wolfe explains that BC’s Catholic and Jesuit intellectual tradition fit the center’s aims, and his own. “A lot of programs in political

science don’t ask the big questions in the way we do here, with a focus on faith, philosophy and the human tradition. It’s been a case where my interests and the things I wanted to explore dovetailed with BC’s mission.” A daylong conference in honor of Wolfe, “Religion and American Public Life: The Calling of a Public Intellectual,” will take place April 14 in Gasson 100 [see separate story]. Sifting through memories and impressions from his Boisi Center years, Wolfe recalls moments that transcended the intellectual dimension of the center’s conversations. “We had a program on ‘conscience clauses’ – how to balance obligation versus conscience – and there was a wonderful, moving discussion with a Brigham & Women’s Hospital physician who dealt with Jehovah’s Witnesses, and on faith-based community initiatives with Rev. Bryan

Alan Wolfe’s tenure as director of Boston College’s Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life will be celebrated April 14 with a daylong conference in Gasson 100 featuring a bevy of distinguished speakers in fields such as political science, history, law and education. Among those taking part in “Religion and American Public Life: The Calling of a Public Intellectual,” which begins at 8:45 a.m., are Harvard University MacArthur Prize-winning developmental psychologist Howard Gardner, University of Texas legal scholar and US Constitution analyst Sanford Levinson, Princeton University political and social historian Ira Katznelson and William Galston, former advisor to President Bill Clinton and now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Author and expert on secularism Susan Jacoby, Fuller Theological Seminary Professor of Faith and Public Life Richard J. Mouw and Harvard Law Professor Randall Kennedy – whose research interests include regulation of race relations – also will be at the conference. Wolfe’s BC colleagues Professor of Political Science Susan Shell and Professor of Economics Joseph Quinn will serve as moderators, respectively, for the panel discussions “Return of the Study of Religion and Political Science” and “Public Scholarship Today.” University President William P. Leahy, SJ, and Boisi Center Associate Director Erik Owens will offer a welcome; Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley will provide an introduction to the conference’s closing event, a keynote conversation between Wolfe and Gardner. A reception will follow at the Boisi Center. For event information and registration, see the Boisi Center website at www.bc.edu/boisi. –Office of News & Public Affairs

Hehir, who always contributed so much. “There was another program on the plight of American sisterhood, with religious women in full habit and others who were completely secular, and it was fascinating.” Wolfe also noted that Fr. Leahy had asked him to sit on the committee for Church and the 21st Century that organized events and programs addressing issues related to the clergy sexual abuse scandal after it had come to light. “As a result, BC was able to play an important role in this critical period of reflection and change for the Catholic Church.” Boisi Center Associate Director Erik Owens will serve as interim director for the 2016-17 academic year before the post is assumed by current School of Theology and Ministry Dean Mark Massa, SJ. “I like and respect Fr. Massa, and think he’ll do a wonderful job with

the center,” says Wolfe. “Alan Wolfe’s leadership of the Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life has engaged the most important political and intellectual questions of our age and brought a remarkable slate of leaders and scholars to the Boston College campus,” says Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, who will be among the speakers at the April 14 event. “In an era that has seen the rise of the bombastic and the irrational, Alan has consistently offered a thoughtful and humanistic take on our politics and our culture. I’ve long admired his writing and speak for his many colleagues in thanking him for what he and the Boisi Center have meant to the University community.” For information on the Boisi Center, see www.bc.edu/boisi. Contact Sean Smith at sean.smith@bc.edu

For Libby Professor, Religious-Secular Debate a Fascinating One

Continued from page 1 of each other, she says. “Most American Catholics participate not only in their religious tradition, but also in the secular, liberal, democratic rightsbased tradition that currently dominates American political life,” Kaveny writes in the book’s introduction. “We cannot stand completely outside either our American identity or our Roman Catholic identity. The best we can do is to achieve some critical distance in order to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of both identities.” In Prophecy Without Contempt, Kaveny looks at the endurance of the jeremiad – a fiery brand of political rhetoric inspired by religious belief, from which it draws both linguistic style and moral substance.

Specifically, Kaveny set out to examine the jeremiad’s use of “prophetic indictment,” a firm denunciation on moral grounds that stands in stark contrast with the tempered language of practical deliberation and policy analysis. It is a style of speech that asks listeners to take a stand: the right one. To employ prophetic indictment in political speech is to claim to speak from a position of unassailable authority – whether invested by God, reason, or common sense – in order to accuse opponents of violating a fundamental law. The jeremiad has been employed throughout history – by figures as disparate as its namesake, the Biblical prophet Jeremiah, Puritan preacher John Winthrop in his “City on a Hill” sermon, and

the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in his landmark “I Have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963. At its best, prophetic indictment can unify opposing politi“We cannot stand completely outside either our American identity or our Roman Catholic identity,” says Kaveny. “The best we can do is to achieve some critical distance in order to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of both identities.” cal groups, Kaveny says. King exemplifies the use of prophetic rhetoric to facilitate reform and reconciliation rather than revenge. At its worst, prophetic indictment

divides and punishes. “Prophetic indictment is a form of ‘moral chemotherapy,’” says Kaveny. “It can be strong medicine against moral cancers threatening the body politic, but administered injudiciously, it can do more harm than good.” What particularly interested Kaveny in the role of religiouslyinspired rhetoric was the expression of personal belief in the public square – literally a town square, a ship’s deck or a preacher’s pulpit at the time of the nation’s founding. Today, the public square is an ever-expanding space powered by instantaneous global electronic communication. As a result, we may now only catch short, sharp glimpses of the public square and hear only pieces of the rhetoric,

Kaveny says. “Prophetic indictment was central to our particular understanding of ourselves as a nation. We were a Puritan nation modeled on Israel. We had a particular relationship to God, which came with particular responsibilities, but also particular blessings,” Kaveny says. “We don’t have that narrow vision of the country any longer. Still, there is a notion of the moral responsibility of the United States, if not before God, then to a broader moral universe. Along the way, the jeremiad has evolved to have a bigger and a shifting notion of what America should be.” Contact Ed Hayward at ed.hayward@bc.edu

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Continued from page 1 team relied on “viral fossils” – bits of viral genetic sequences that persist today as now harmless codes embedded in the DNA of species that once played host to the viruses. “You can think of the virus sequences that are in nearly every human genome as molecular viral fossils,” says Johnson, whose research combines traditional, molecular virology with evolutionary genetics to study how viruses adapt to their hosts. “They hold the secrets to viruses that are now extinct, but in the same way that bones can be used to reconstruct human evolution, these sequences can be used to reconstruct when and where these viruses existed and what species they infected,” says Johnson, chairman of the Biology Department. Retroviruses are abundant in nature and include human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV-1 and -2) and human T-cell leukemia viruses. The scientists’ findings on a specific group of these viruses called ERV-Fc, to be published in the journal eLife, show that they affected a wide range of hosts, including species as diverse as carnivores, rodents, and primates. The distribution of ERV-Fc among these ancient mammals suggests the viruses spread to every continent except Antarctica and Australia, and that they jumped from one species to another more than 20 times. The study also places the origins of ERV-Fc at least as far back as the beginning of the Oligocene epoch, a period of dramatic global change marked partly by climatic cooling that led to the Ice Ages. Vast expanses of grasslands emerged around this time, along with large mammals as the world’s predominate fauna. “Viruses have been with us for billions of years, and exist everywhere that life is found. They

Caitlin Cunningham

On the Trail of Retroviruses

“Viruses have been with us for billions of years, and exist everywhere that life is found. They therefore have a significant impact on the ecology and evolution of all organisms, from bacteria to humans,” says Johnson (above). “Unfortunately, viruses do not leave fossils behind, meaning we know very little about how they originate and evolve.” therefore have a significant impact on the ecology and evolution of all organisms, from bacteria to humans,” says Johnson. “Unfortunately, viruses do not leave fossils behind, meaning we know very little about how they originate and evolve.” Using “fossil” remnants, the team sought to uncover the natural history of ERV-Fc. They were especially curious to know where and when these pathogens were found in the ancient world, which species they infected, and how they adapted to their mammalian hosts. To do this, they first performed an exhaustive search of mammalian genome sequence databases for ERV-Fc loci and then compared the recovered sequences. For each genome with sufficient ERV-Fc sequence, they reconstructed the sequences of proteins representing the virus that colonized the ancestors of that particular species. These sequences were then used to infer the natural history and evolutionary relationships of ERV-Fc-related viruses. The studies also allowed the

team to pinpoint patterns of evolutionary change in the genes of these viruses, reflecting their adaptation to different kinds of mammalian hosts. Perhaps most interestingly, the researchers found that these viruses often exchanged genes with each other and with other viruses, suggesting that genetic recombination played a significant role in their evolutionary success. Johnson says the findings may be able to help researchers who are studying contemporary viruses, their jump between species and their emergence in new parts of the world. “My hope that what we’ve learned here can open up the door for this line of research so the methods and approach the team used becomes something researchers in the lab can use to examine other viruses, including those we live with today.” Read more about the work of Johnson and his colleagues at elifesciences.org/content/5/e12704v1. Contact Ed Hayward at ed.hayward@bc.edu

BC Hosts Conference on History of Religion Graduate students from Boston College and other institutions from across the US will present and discuss research on topics concerning Christianity, Judaism, Islam and other faiths dating from centuries ago to present day, at the Biennial Boston College Conference on the History of Religion, which will take place April 1 and 2 in Stokes Hall. Principally organized by BC graduate students in history, the conference will focus on issues pertaining to religion and public life – a subject of considerable

public discussion in the wake of Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment, the US Supreme Court decision on gay marriage and other events, organizers note: “At various moments, religion has generated both wide consensus and great divisions in America and around the world. This conference seeks to explore what happened when ostensibly ‘private’ religion entered the public sphere, and to interrogate such distinctions.” R. Marie Griffith, director of the Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington

University in St. Louis, will give the keynote address at 3 p.m. on April 1. The conference will consist of panels grouped around such topics as evangelicals in 20th-century US, religious networks in public life, churches and the Great War, liberal Protestants and public action, public and private sacred space, and transnational genealogies of anti-Muslim sentiment. For more information, and to register for the conference, go to http://bit.ly/1MbOMU8. –Office of News & Public Affairs

40-1 Season No Lost Cause

Continued from page 1 the Beanpot Tournament, plus the Hockey East regular season and tournament, went to the Frozen Four for the fifth time in six years, and for the first time, reached the final. Moreover, our senior class is the winningest in team history. “I had to let them know how proud I was of all 23 of them for accomplishing so much for the women’s hockey program. Eventually, they’ll look back and realize what they did, and – despite the disappointment of coming up short – they’ll take pride in it.” Crowley had good reason to believe the 2015-16 Eagles would be a contender for the national title.

Crowley and her colleagues know their job is also to nudge these students toward adulthood. “Through the year, we talk a lot about how life is different once you graduate. Mostly, it’s little things along the way. Our associate head coach Courtney Kennedy is really good at this: She’ll do something like ‘OK, this is how you have to wrap the bag the bread’s in, or else it goes stale.’ That gets them laughing, and maybe not taking themselves too seriously.” The Eagles took their work on the ice seriously, winning the Beanpot – regarded as a good benchmark because of its championship-

Katie Crowley behind the BC bench. (Photo by John Quackenbos)

Their predecessors had compiled a 34-3-2 record, and went 27-0-1 before their first loss; they fell to Harvard in the national semifinal. Despite losing five seniors, she said, the team’s core – including Alex Carpenter ’16, winner of the 2015 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, the top honor for college women’s hockey – was solid. “Our seniors from 2014-15 had passed on some great leadership qualities, so I knew we had an opportunity for another big year,” said Crowley. “Sometimes, there’s a temptation to wipe out the previous year, but you can’t always say, ‘Just forget about it.’ We knew we had other goals to attain, like the Beanpot and Hockey East. Also, because of last year, not losing wasn’t exactly something new.” Hockey is a long season: The team’s first formal workout is the third week of September, when winter seems a long way off. Even as they work on their game, Crowley notes, the players “are taking challenging classes, doing service in the community, and just trying to be college students.” So there’s no predicting when, how or if the team will develop the much-discussed “chemistry” so often regarded as the key to marshaling skills, temperaments and energies into a cohesive unit. Crowley leans on the team’s captains and other leaders to foster solidarity on and off the ice – whether just hanging out together, or perhaps heading off to a bowling alley on a road trip. Even as they’re getting the team to stay focused on the next game,

type atmosphere, Crowley said – by a combined score of 15-0, and keeping the momentum all the way through the national semifinal, when they battled back from a 2-0 deficit to beat Clarkson and head to the final. Minnesota built a 3-0 lead until the Eagles scored with a little under six minutes left. “After the third goal, I told them, ‘Look, we have enough time,’ and then we got a score almost immediately, so I hoped that would get any doubt off their minds. There were opportunities, but it just didn’t happen. Still, they gave their full effort the whole game.” The timing of the Easter break this year was fortuitous, Crowley said, allowing players to spend time together and boost one another’s spirits. There will also be the traditional end-of-year team dinner, at which the six departing seniors will be feted. “One of the beautiful things about this team is how close-knit it is,” Crowley said. “I knew that, even though the final game was disappointing, these young women care so much about each other and would help see each other through. “And the fact is, coming into 41 games prepared and ready to play, winning 40 of them – and coming close to that 41st one – is something I think is amazing. I feel good about the team’s chances next year, but whatever happens I will always look on this season as a very special one.” Contact Sean Smith at sean.smith@bc.edu

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Ignite Grants Continued from page 1 funds or turn their research into a publication. A look at some Ignite Award winners and their projects: •Psychology Department Senior Lecturer Gene Heyman is developing a new way to quantify attention and studying how efficiently people allocate attention between competing stimuli. “Attention plays an important role in mood and complex cognitive tasks [but it’s] difficult to study,” says Heyman, whose team published a paper, presented two talks at national scientific meetings and analyzed results from a study conducted last summer. “Without the Ignite Award funds we would not be able to conduct these studies,” said Heyman, who hopes to use his published results and the results of current studies to write a grant proposal for further developing the approach to studying attention. •Looking to improve the quality of health care during childbirth, Connell School of Nursing Assistant Professor Joyce Edmonds is examining the influence of nursing on cesarean delivery rates. “Our long-term research goal is to understand the relationship between nursing and birth outcomes in order to improve the quality of health care for women and infants during childbirth,” says Edmonds. Edmonds says the Ignite grant allowed her to “extract, aggregate, and analyze routinely collected birth and nursing data from the labor and delivery electronic health records,” resulting in a published article about her findings. In addition to publishing new findings, Edmonds used her research to apply for a National Institute of Health external federal grant with collaborators from the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. •Professor of Sociology Sharlene Hesse-Biber, director of the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, is researching the BRCA mutation, a genetic predictor of heightened cancer risk. “Testing positive for the BRCA mutation places women at a high risk for developing breast cancer, ovarian cancer and other hereditary cancers,” she says. Despite the profound ramifications of BRCA testing, Hesse-Biber says there is a lack of research into the impact of the test and its results on women. Hesse-Biber recently published a Qualitative Health Research journal study about the experiences of women who tested positive for the BRCA mutation. With the Ignite grant, she hopes to develop and

provide a model of understanding about how women make medical decisions. “The funding I have received will be a tremendous means toward clinically meaningful work for me with regard to making an impact on the field of cancer predisposition and an opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue with healthcare professionals,” she says. •Connell School Associate Professor Lichuan Ye used the Ignite grant to begin her research project “Sleep Promotion Toolkit for Hospitalized Patients (SLEEPkit),” which she describes as a “health information technology intervention. “Improving sleep for hospitalized patients is an essential clinical need,” says Ye. “Inpatient sleep disturbance has been linked to clinically relevant and detrimental outcomes such as delirium and falls, both of which are known risk factors for morbidity, mortality, prolonged hospital stays and increased hospital costs. “This project will lay the groundwork for making inpatient sleep promotion effective and feasible which will ultimately change current clinical practice related to patient sleep.” The support of the Ignite grant led Ye to external funding and will allow her to continue to work on, and pilot, SLEEPkit. Other 2015-16 Ignite Award recipients include: •Lynch School of Education Professor of Counseling, Development and Educational Psychology Rebekah Levine Coley, “Poverty and Place: The Intersection of Income and Urbanicity and Youth Health Risk Behaviors.” •Associate Professor of Chemistry Jianmin Gao, “Rigid Peptide Macrocycles as Synthetic Receptors for Membrane Lipids.” •Professor of Biology Daniel Kirschner, “Chasing the Constituents of Nerve Myelin Using Neutron Diffraction.” •Professor of Hispanic Studies Elizabeth Rhodes, “Assault in the Archives: Complex Trauma in Early Modern Religious Writing by Catholic Women.” •Visiting Assistant Professor of Sociology Kyoung-yim Kim, “Olympic Games, Transnational Politics of the Environment, and Ecological Injustice: Japan-Korea Comparison.” Read more about the 201516 Ignite Award recipients at www.bc.edu/research/vpr/news/ f2015/2015-ignite.html. Contact Siobhan Sullivan at siobhan.sullivan@bc.edu

Romero Winner Eyes Advocacy as Vocation By Kathleen Sullivan Staff Writer

Maura Lester McSweeney ’17, whose life has been marked by Jesuit education and involvement in advocacy work on behalf of social justice issues, has been awarded the 2016 Archbishop Oscar A. Romero Scholarship. The scholarship, which covers a portion of senior year tuition, is awarded annually to a Boston College junior who has demonstrated superior academic achievement, extracurricular leadership, community service and involvement with the Hispanic/Latino community and Hispanic/Latino issues both on and off campus. A philosophy major with an international studies minor, Lester received the award at a March 19 ceremony hosted by the Romero Scholarship Committee. Also recognized were Romero Scholarship finalists Peter Laboy ’17 and Jenny Penafiel ’17, as well as alumna Eva Maynard ’97, who received the Rev. John A. Dinneen, SJ, Hispanic Alumni Community Service Award. Lester’s parents moved from the US to Nicaragua in the 1980s to conduct missionary work. Today, her mother, Anne McSweeney ’79, is a translator, and her father, Mark Lester, is co-director of the Center for Global Education and Experience, an immersion and study abroad program. Lester was born and raised in Nicaragua. “My future’s in Nicaragua. Everything I do is aimed at ‘How is this going to help me work back at home?’” said Lester. “I want to do something related to human rights.” After attending Jesuit school for 12 years in Nicaragua, Lester applied to three Jesuit universities, ultimately choosing to attend Boston College. She cites two experiences during freshman year that would greatly influence her time at BC and her career aspirations. The first was her Perspectives course with Kerry Cronin. “It was my favorite class. I loved it more than any other class,” said Lester. “The readings fascinated me. The discussions fascinated me.” She became a philosophy major, following the Perspectives track. The other was her exposure to advocacy work, via the Ignatian Family Teach-In. Lester has traveled with Campus Minister Donald MacMillan, SJ, to Washington, DC, the last three years to advocate for issues such as humane immigration reform, an increased minimum wage and demilitarization of Central American borders. “It has been a big part of learning how I can be a useful person

Maura Lester McSweeney ’17 (seated) receives congratulations after winning the Oscar A. Romero Scholarship. (Photo by Justin Knight)

in this world,” said Lester. “Fr. Don has been so influential. He is so committed to working for justice in Latin America and for immigrants.” Lester also is a Catholic Relief Services student ambassador, part of a network of college students committed to social justice, human rights and global solidarity, who mobilize campuses through educational efforts, responses to international crises and legislative advocacy. Last April when an earthquake hit Nepal, Lester and the other CRS student ambassadors quickly organized a point drive that raised $10,000 to support the CRS response in that country. They also organized a screening of the documentary, “A Bridge Apart,” which tells the story of the dangerous journey of migrants from Central America to the US border. Lester said her work with CRS has helped her further hone the advocacy skills she learned through the Teach-In and is preparing her for “the way I’m going to need to think when I’m doing human rights work in Nicaragua.” The Romero Scholarship holds special meaning for Lester. When she was eight, she and her family traveled to El Salvador for the 25th anniversary of the death of Archbishop Romero, who was assassinated while celebrating Mass in 1980. “That was a really powerful experience,” recalled Lester. “I saw

his room, which was very simple. There was a bed, a chair, a crucifix and a desk. I saw his vestments, and the blood stains were still on it.” Earlier this month, Lester took a different type of trip, one that seemed appropriate given her lifetime of Jesuit schooling: a weeklong pilgrimage following the path Saint Ignatius took in Spain during his spiritual conversion. “It was amazing,” she said. Lester cited Campus Minister Margaret Nuzzolese and Volunteer and Service Learning Center Director Dan Ponsetto as administrators who have been particularly supportive of her. “Margaret did JVI [Jesuit Volunteers International] in Nicaragua. She’s someone I can come to with anything. She has been a great friend and great listener. She has pointed me in the direction of a lot of great opportunities. “Dan recommended me for a leadership conference my freshman year. It wouldn’t have been on my radar.” On campus, Lester has been involved in the Organization of Latin American Affairs and has served as vice president and president of Other Americas, an online and print publication on everything Latin America at BC. She has also served as a Spanish tutor. Contact Kathleen Sullivan at kathleen.sullivan@bc.edu

Boston Public Schools Superintendent Tommy Chang talked about his first 100 days on the job as part of a panel discussion held at the Lynch School of Education. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)

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BOSTON COLLEGE IN THE MEDIA An introduction to new faculty members at Boston College

Daniel Bowles

Assistant Professor of German Studies DEGREES: Vanderbilt University (BS); Harvard University (AM, PhD) WHAT HE STUDIES: 20th- and 21st-century German literature, satire, science and fiction, the new German fantastic, and literary translation. WHAT HE TEACHES: German Composition and Conversation; Germany Divided and Reunited; Madmen, Hysterics, & Criminals: Inventing Deviance Your English translation of Christian Kracht’s Imperium was selected by Publishers Weekly as one of the top 10 books of 2015 and has been widely reviewed. How did that opportunity come about, and as a scholar, what is the significance of that project to you? “Based on my previous translations, Christian Kracht asked if I would be interested in tackling his new novel, Imperium. As a long-time fan, I was honored to introduce his writing to an English readership, especially to new students of German, and to work personally with one of the most important and talented living German-language writers. Translating Imperium ultimately permitted me the rare delight of combining my research on contemporary literature with a project aimed at a broader audience — including, I hope, new scholars of Kracht’s oeuvre and of German literature.”

Jaromir Nosal

Natana DeLong-Bas, assistant professor of the practice in theology in the Islamic Civilization and Societies Program, was interviewed about the terrorist attack in Brussels by New England Cable News and WRKO-AM. Boston College faculty continued to provide analysis and commentary on Campaign 2016: Prof. Heather Cox Richardson (History) talked about the GOP’s cyclical history with the Christian Science

Monitor, WGBH News and New England Cable News’ “Broadside,” and discussed the turbulent political climate in Diverse: Issues in Higher Education and on WNYC’s “The Takeaway”; she also reviewed E.J. Dionne’s Why the Right Went Wrong for the Australian Financial Review. Prof. Marc Landy spoke on the widening chasm between Democrats and Republicans on CBS Boston and commented on US Senator Elizabeth Warren’s stance on the Democratic candi-

School of Education Research Professor Philip Altbach, in an op-ed he published in University World News titled “China’s glass ceiling and feet of clay.”

Assistant Professor of Economics Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences DEGREES: Warsaw School of Economics (MSc); University of Minnesota (PhD) WHAT HE STUDIES: International finance, household finance and macroeconomics WHAT HE TEACHES: Macroeconomic Theory, International Macroeconomics (graduate)

Lee Pellegrini

–Ed Hayward and Rosanne Pellegrini Photos by Lee Pellegrini Gary Gilbert

Google Senior Marketing Director Marvin Chow ’95 (above) addressed the University’s second annual Advancing Research and Scholarship Day on March 16 and received a Distinguished Alumni Award from University President William P. Leahy, SJ. Sponsored by the Provost’s Office and the Vice Provost for Research, the daylong program featured panel discussions with Boston College faculty and guest speakers working with big data, a surging field of data analysis defined by high-speed processing of massive data sets from an ever-expanding list of sources. Read more about the event and Chow’s talk at http://bit.ly/1ThasA5.

Cubans are working around a national ban on advertising by using guerrilla marketing techniques, wrote Asst. Prof. Michael Serazio (Communication) in a piece for The Atlantic. Prof. Ellen Winner (Psychology) talked about “the rage to master” – persistence, not anger – found in prodigies, in a ABC News piece about Washington Nationals outfielders Bryce Harper.

Celia Shiau

Assistant Professor of Biology Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences GRADUATE DEGREE: California Institute of Technology (PhD) WHAT SHE STUDIES: Interactions between the immune and nervous systems, particularly the function of macrophages and microglia, cells that defend against a range of pathogens. WHAT SHE TEACHES: Genetic Basis of Human Diseases (graduate) Give us an overview of what your lab is focusing on at the moment. “The Shiau Lab is integrating cutting-edge technologies in live imaging, genetics, genome editing, functional genomics, and cell biology to uncover understanding of innate immune functions in vertebrate development. From single genes to individual cells to whole organisms, we are tackling questions regarding vertebrate biology using the zebrafish model system to reveal and connect mechanisms at multiple scales.”

Center for Irish Programs Executive Director Prof. Oliver Rafferty, SJ (History), discussed the Easter Rising and the role it played in the movement towards Irish independence in an interview with WNYC’s “The Takeaway.” Seelig Professor of Philosophy Richard Kearney discussed the multimedia project “Twinsome Minds” he co-produced with Assoc. Prof. Sheila Gallagher (Fine Arts), and which is currently on an international tour, with The Boston Globe.

EXPERT OPINION

“When predicting the future of Chinese higher education, it is important to recognise the reality of the system as a whole and not be mesmerised by the rapid and impressive achievements of China’s top universities.”

dates with The Boston Herald. Asst. Prof. David Hopkins (Political Science) weighed in on the latest developments in the primaries with WGBH’s “Greater Boston.”

(L-R) Boston College alumni Jack Concannon, Jack McKinnon, Owen Lynch, Boston College Club Manager Chris Loper and Jack Joyce recently presented University President William P. Leahy, SJ, with a check for $477,000 from the BC Club in support of inner-city scholarships at Boston College. Since 1998, the BC Club has awarded $7 million in scholarship donations that have funded 80 BC scholarships for inner-city residents. (Photo by Liam Weir)

NOTA BENE School of Theology and Ministry student Antuan Ilgit, SJ, has been chosen to participate in the Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics (FASPE) program, an intensive two-week program that uses the history of the Holocaust as a way to engage business, journalism, law, medical and seminary students in a study of contemporary ethics in their discipline. Fr. Ilgit, who is pursuing a doctorate in sacred theology and studies moral theology and bioethics, is from the Italian Province of the Society of Jesus. Born in Germany to Turkish parents, he is the first Jesuit of Turkish citizenship. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the Gazi University in Turkey, an STB from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, an STL from the Alphonsianum Academy of the Lateran University in Rome, and a master’s degree from St. Joseph’s University. Fr. Ilgit is a member of St. Peter Faber Jesuit Community and serves at St. Leonard’s Parish in Boston. “I look forward to participating in the FASPE Fellowship Program in order to build new friendships with scholars from different beliefs and backgrounds and to dialogue with them particularly on ethical issues,” said Fr. Ilgit. For more about FASPE, see www.mjhnyc.org/faspe. –Kathleen Sullivan

Assistant to the Vice President for University Mission and Ministry Timothy Muldoon reflected on the prayer of St. Patrick in an essay for the Washington Times.

JOBS The following are among the most recent positions posted by the Department of Human Resources. For more information on employment opportunities at Boston College, see www.bc.edu/offices/hr: Dean, Boston College School of Social Work Boston PIC Summer Job, Human Resources Cashier/Line, Dining Services Assistant Director, Intramural Sports and Instructional Programming Carpenter, Facilities Managaement Head Librarian, Digital Scholarship, O’Neill Library Events Assistant, Alumni Chapters, Alumni Association Director, University Counseling Services Assistant Director, C&F Communications and Proposal Development, Corporate Foundation Relations Head of Special Collections Technical Services, Burns Library Director of Career Education, Career Center

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NEXT ISSUE:

A LOOK AT THE 2016 BC ARTS FESTIVAL (April 28-30)

A Special Visitor Puts Poetry in the Spotlight at BC By Rosanne Pellegrini Staff Writer

Despite growing up in poverty in East Baltimore, Afaa Michael Weaver went on to forge a life as an acclaimed literary artist. The award-winning poet, playwright and scholar has earned numerous awards and accolades during his career. Weaver will share his talents with the Boston College community when he appears on campus in April for two events during National Poetry Month: as a guest of the Lowell Humanities Series on April 6 (7 p.m., Devlin 101), and as keynote speaker at the Greater Boston Intercollegiate Undergraduate Poetry Festival on April 19 (7:30 p.m., Murray Function Room, Yawkey Athletic Center), where he will present “Headphones and Speakerphones, Ideas of Voice in Contemporary Poetry.” He began writing poetry about love and social justice as a student at the University of MarylandCollege Park, and by the age of 27, was publishing consistently in small magazines. His verses, often presented as dialogue, evolved into writing plays. “Weaver’s poetic register ranges from a grounded, imagistic lyricism to a compelling use of the vernacular,” said Professor of English Suzanne Matson, the department chair and Intercollegiate Poetry Festival director. “His interests also reach in multiple directions

BC SCENES

It is lunchtime, say the feet clomping out from tarpaulins, metal riggings, walls in progress, men with blue hats in their hands, clothes thick with work. In China this hard march to uplift and wealth is called the time of cruelty, mandatory twelve hour shifts, a mouth of a gift horse for the poor. -excerpt from Afaa Michael Weaver’s “The Workers in Beijing Spring 2005”

— from Chinese spiritualism to African-American history to the richness and complexities of American culture. “We’re delighted that he’ll be visiting BC to share his own work as part of the Lowell Humanities Series, and to deliver a keynote talk at the Greater Boston Intercollegiate Poetry Festival.” An NEA grant recipient, Weaver went on to garner nu-

merous awards including the Pew Fellowship in Poetry. In 2014 he earned the prestigious KingsleyTufts Award; the following year, his book City of Eternal Spring won the Phillis Wheatley Book Award for Poetry at the 2015 Harlem Book Fair. He is also a three-time Pushcart prize winner. The son of a sharecropper who “worked and lived as a factory worker for 15 years,” Weaver has

described his foundation as “deep inside the lives of ‘the folk,’ ordinary African Americans, the working class and the poor. I developed organically, which is to say along an intuitive line.” Weaver’s books also include The Government of Nature, The Plum Flower Dance: Poems 1985 to 2005, Multitudes, The Ten Lights of God, and Water Song. In addition to his 12 books of poetry, Weaver is the author of numerous essays, short fiction, and has had two of his plays produced professionally. Weaver is now the Alumnae Professor of English at Simmons College. [Read more about Weaver at his website, www.afaaweaver.net] This spring marks the 11th consecutive year that Boston College hosts the Greater Boston Intercollegiate Undergraduate Poetry Festival, which celebrates poetry and highlights the work of talented student poets devoted to the craft. Undergraduate student poets representing 25 area schools – including Boston University, Northeastern, Emerson, Salem State, Tufts and Holy Cross – will share their original poetry during three-minute presentations, and a chapbook of their work is published in conjunction with the event. Senior Kwesi Aaron, a major in English and political science from Roosevelt, NY, was selected as BC’s representative poet and will present “North of the City,” which he wrote as a response – “a defense of city life” – to John Updike’s “Com-

ing Into New York.” “In high school, I wrote poetry intermittently, but never really seriously until I came to BC,” said Aaron. “After a summer-abroad workshop in India [Writing Out of Place], I started writing a lot more. For me, poetry is the most raw way of distilling emotion into words. When I write poems, words usually come to me in a flurry. I enjoy the process of tidying up those subconscious thoughts enough so that they may mean something to someone else as well. “I have a great admiration for the professors of the English department, who are passionate about their field and very interested in student development. To be recognized by that same body of professionals is confirmation of that growth, and encouraging for my future endeavors in literature.” Aaron “writes with verve and authenticity,” said Matson. “The poem he contributed to the festival chapbook is a marvel of observation of the natural world infused with a sparking, imaginative intelligence.” The festival is sponsored by Poetry Days and Boston College Magazine. There will be a reception following the program. For more information or to RSVP, contact Gabrielle Otto at ottog@bc.edu. For more about the Lowell Humanities Series, see www.bc.edu/offices/lowellhs.html. Contact Rosanne Pellegrini at rosanne.pellegrini@bc.edu

REMEMBERING THE RISING

Gasson Hall was the setting Monday night for a concert of music, dance and poetry commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rising, a milestone in Irish history. Boston College performers, including members of the University Chorale (at right), BC Chamber Music Society and BC Irish Dance as well as music faculty from the Irish Studies Program, were joined by several special guests – among them renowned Irish musician and composer Charlie Lennon (at left), Irish-American duo The Murphy Beds (above left), retired director of BC Irish music programs Seamus Connolly (above center) and Irish harpist Regina Delaney.

Photos by Justin Knight