The Boston College
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Chronicle Published by the Boston College Office of News & Public Affairs
INSIDE:
McRoy, 3 Padilla, student-athletes earn honors
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‘Splash’ makes debut at BC
profs, 5 2100Economics yrs. teaching
november 18, 2010—vol. 19 no. 6
Two BC Students in the Running for Rhodes sue advanced studies at the University of Oxford in England. “Amanda and Leon are unusually talented and active,” said Vice Provost for Undergraduate Affairs Donald Hafner, a professor of political science who is the coordinator for the Rhodes Trust Scholarships on campus. “Rhodes Scholarships have a particular orientation in that they are for people who intend to go on in public life in their own communities. The curriculum that we have here is an excellent foundation for students who propose to do that with their lives.” Rothschild, who plans to study for a doctorate in international politics, says that opportunities for academic research at Boston College were key factors in the success so far of her Rhodes application. “After my freshman year,
By Reid Oslin Staff Writer
Boston College seniors Amanda Rothschild and Leon Ratz have been named finalists for Rhodes Scholarships, the oldest international educational fellowships and one of academia’s most coveted post-graduate prizes. Rothschild and Ratz, both political science majors in the College of Arts and Sciences, will participate in the final round of interviews this Saturday with hopes of being among the 32 winners of the prestigious academic honor. Rhodes Scholarship recipients will be announced at the conclusion of candidate interviews in 16 districts across the nation. There are two winners in each district, each earning scholarships to pur-
Amanda Rothschild and Leon Ratz will find out this weekend if they have been selected for Rhodes Scholarships. (Photo by Lee Pellegrini)
Putting Renewed Faith Into Action Community (BIC), a coalition of Catholic parishes, Protestant congregations, one synagogue, a Cape Verdean association and a Catholic college. In her two-anda-half years with BIC, Carreiro has worked to ease the impact of foreclosures on unemployed and troubled homeowners in the city while also tackling issues surrounding youth violence and diversity in the public schools. Her efforts on behalf of Brockton’s low-income and disenfranchised people have been recognized by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development — the anti-poverty program of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) — which selected her as winner of the 13th
She was ‘mad at God,’ but Janine Carreiro’s belief was stronger
Graduate School of Social Work student Janine Carreiro takes pride in her life-long Catholic faith, but acknowledges that it was sorely tested by her two-year stint as a missionary in civil wartorn East Timor. The violence and suffering she witnessed there were bad enough, but Carreiro also discovered that a country-wide rice shortage — so bad she had given her supply to a desperately needy family — had been exploited by government officials angling for political gain, at a time when malaria was killing children in families she had come to know. Seeing so many people beset by circumstances over which they had no control, and with no voice to demand fairness and justice, was beyond traumatic. By the time she had returned to her native Swansea, Mass., Carreiro recalls, she found herself confronting an oft-asked question: “Why did God let this happen?” “I was mad at God, but my faith was stronger,” says Carreiro. “I realized that it had nothing to do with God: He loves us. It is up to us to make a difference in our lives, and in the lives of others.” Carreiro has turned that revelation to action as a staff member of Brockton Interfaith
Suzanne Camarata
By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor
annual Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award. Carreiro was presented with the award at the USCCB annual meeting in Baltimore on Monday. “Janine is a smart, caring, committed and strategic community organizer,” says GSSW part-time faculty member William Allen. “She has skillfully engaged, supported and motivated members of faith communities in Brockton to work to achieve a more just society. She understands the importance of establishing productive working relationships with a wide range of community leaders in Brockton.” When she joined BIC, Carreiro quickly discovered the Continued on page 5
Graduate School of Social Work student Janine Carreiro (second from right), winner of the Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award, works with Brockton faith communities to help people severely affected by the economic crisis.
I got an Advanced Study Grant to study anti-Semitism,” she says. “And, at the end of my junior year, I got a thesis Advanced Study Grant to do research on the genocide convention at the United Nations in Geneva. “The advanced study grants were really important,” says Rothschild, a student in the A&S Honors Program from Sherborn, Mass., who will complete her Rhodes interview in Boston. “I was also able to take graduate seminars in security studies with Professor Tim Crawford last spring, and I was able to use that term paper to do research on genocide, which really kicked off my [honors] thesis. I developed a typology on reasons for why the international community has failed to intervene during genoContinued on page 3
Review Process Making Strides Across University Faculty, administrators cite APR for progress in departments’ operations, services and outreach By Jack Dunn Director of News & Public Affairs
As part of the University’s Strategic Plan and its ongoing effort to improve services and workplace efficiency, Boston College launched the Administrative Program Review (APR) process in 2006 with the goal of reviewing each administrative department within the University. Four years later, faculty and administrators say, that effort is paying tangible dividends through improved operations, enhanced services and expanded outreach in departments ranging from Procurement and Information Technology Services, to Residential Life and University Counseling. Created through the Office of the Executive Vice President and directed by the Office of Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment, APR was designed by a University-wide committee with representatives from each of the vice presidential administrative divisions to create a cyclical programreview process that requires systematic assessment, planning, action and improvement across all administrative units, with the flexibility to accommodate each department’s unique role within the University. “The mission of the Adminis-
trative Program Review is to foster among the University’s administrative departments a culture that values self-examination, quality improvement, strategic thinking and mission-aligned planning,” said Executive Vice President Patrick J. Keating. “APR is a set of activities designed to help managers and employees examine their department’s current operations, make adjustments and establish plans for continuous improvements.” These activities include an internal self-assessment conducted by members of each department, a campus visit by peer experts from other leading universities, the implementation of an action plan for changes based on recommendations from the reviews, and ongoing monitoring and assessment. The process provides the departments with the tools to examine their respective missions and how they align with the University’s mission and Strategic Plan, while also identifying customer needs, opportunities for improvement, and action plans to achieve highquality performance results. Keating says the APR is a natural review process for a University that values assessment and planning, and one that the academic departments have already embraced. “With the announcement of the Strategic Plan in 2006, the Provost’s Office began a review of each academic unit, which prompted us to do the same on the administrative side,” said Keating. “The overall goal is to improve services and efficiency. Continued on page 4