The Heights October 29, 2018 by The Heights

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THE

The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College

EST. 1919

WWW.BCHEIGHTS.COM

MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018

ON THE VERGE

EARLY EXIT

ARTS

SPORTS

The cast of On The Verge opens up about the play’s deeper meaning and their creative spirits.

Women’s soccer hadn’t lost at home this season until Clemson arrived for the ACC Quarterfinals and knocked them out.

A16

A11

Student Experience Survey Released Today After demands, survey seeks to measure campus climate BY JACK GOLDMAN News Editor Boston College is launching the first Student Experience Survey next week, the University announced Thursday morning in a release. Survey data will be available this spring, while more “segmented analysis and extensive reporting” will be available in fall 2019. “The survey will seek input from students on a range of campus experiences, including diversity and inclusion, faculty-student interactions, and services to BC’s 9,300 undergradu-

JONATHAN YE / FOR THE HEIGHTS

In Fifth-Annual Red Bandana Game, BC Catches Miami Off Guard

The Eagles logged 209 yards in the ﬁrst quarter, en route to a 27-14 win.

Ballot Question One May Impact CSON Placements If passed, will inforce stricter patient limits for registered nurses BY COLLEEN MARTIN Copy Editor Stricter patient limits will be enforced for Massachusetts’s registered nurses if voters check “yes” on Ballot Question One in November. The question, which has divided nurses, was supported by a financial study by Judith Shindul-Rothschild, a nurse and professor in the Connell School of Nursing. One clinical site has told the Universit that it cannot discuss placements until after the election, according to dean and professor of CSON Susan Gennaro. If ratios are required, the site will not be able to take on students for clinicals this spring, due to the short time in which it would be required to get its ratios in place. The report, which was released in September, estimated that the change would cost the state

$23,618,869.33 in fees, based on salary increases and the number of hospitals that will be required to make major changes. A conflicting report, released by the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association, estimated that it would cost $1.3 billion the first year, and $900 million per year after that. The number the association reported was unreasonable, because it is unlikely that nurse salaries will increase as much as they were estimated to in this study, Shindul-Rothschild said. The financial component of Question One could affect BC student nurses, some of whom fear that clinicals could be taken away if hospitals can’t afford to take on student nurses. Sean Clarke, associate dean for undergraduate programs and professor in CSON, has studied policy and patient outcomes and agrees that it could put pressure on the nursing program. CSON does not have an official stance on the issue, as per Gennaro.

See Question 1, A3

See Survey, A3

AHANA+ PERCENTAGE ACROSS CLASSES

30 20

ates,” according to the release. Student Affairs, University Mission and Ministry, and the Office of the Provost are sponsoring the survey, which will be administered by the Office of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment. The survey will be confidential and take 15 minutes to complete, according to the release. It will cover a “wide range of areas and is designed specifically for Boston College” according to Kelli Armstrong, vice president for planning and assessment. A student experience survey was among the demands put forward last fall by students who organized the “Silence is Still Violence” demonstration

28%

2018

31%

33%

2021

2022

29.6%

26%

2019

2020

NICOLE CHAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Class of 2022 is 33 Percent AHANA+ Incoming class sees 28 percent acceptance rate, 27 percent yield BY CHARLIE POWER Assoc. News Editor Thirty-three percent of the Class of 2022 identifies as AHANA+, according to statistics from a University release. International students make up 8 percent of the class. The acceptance rate was 28 percent, and yield held steady at 27 percent, consistent with past figures.

AHANA+ identification means African Hispanic Asian, Native American, and any other minority population on campus. “We continue to compete with the best institutions in the country for the best students in the country,” Vice Provost for Enrollment Management John Mahoney said in the release. “It’s a challenge, obviously, but Boston College is experiencing such strong momentum in regards to our academic reputation, and the results are very encouraging.” Thirty-one percent of the Class of 2021 identifies as AHANA+, while the

Class of 2020 is 29.6 percent AHANA+. The Class of 2019 is 26 percent, and the Class of 2018 was 28 percent. Mahoney said in the release that he was encouraged that BC is succeeding in its efforts to become a more diverse university. In 1996, 20 percent of the freshman class identified as AHANA+. “Our undergraduate admission staff has steadily increased its outreach throughout the world as well as the U.S., and will continue to build on that work,” Mahoney said in the release.

See Class of 2022, A3

Gov. Malloy C. Shawn McGuffey Encourages Difﬁcult Conversations prof. explores Returns to AADS free speech and BC Law inclusivity at BC Connecticut gov. will begin at Rappaport Center in January BY ISABELLA CAVAZZONI For the Heights Almost 40 years after he left campus, outgoing Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy, BC ’77 and BC Law ’80, will return to Boston College Law School—although this time, it won’t be as a student: He will begin teaching at the Rappaport Center for Law and Public Policy in January, just under two weeks after wrapping up holding political office. With Malloy’s extensive background

See Malloy, A3

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

BY OWEN FAHY Heights Staff The “die-In” that took place earlier this month commemorated the one-year anniversary of the “Silence is Still Violence” protest—one of the biggest demonstrations in University history. The recent protest and the year since “Silence is Still Violence” have given students time to think and reflect how BC has grown, and where it still has room to improve. One of the attendees, sociology and African and African diaspora studies professor C. Shawn McGuffey, was handing out fliers on behalf of the Black Eagles, an anonymous advocacy group on campus for students of color. “I was just there to pass out ma-

NEWS: Cold War Spy Guy

Bill Plunkert BC ’65 shares his story as a cold war spy......................................................A2

terials because they were afraid of sanctions, which I think is terrible,” McGuffey said. “[Students] always feel like they can be sanctioned. They’re really fearful of the sanction process—I really think BC could work on its sanctioning process.” Student activists took to the Quad to draw attention to injustice and issues they saw with inequality in the BC community on Oct. 18. This was different from the demonstration in 2017, which was in response to a string of racist incidents on campus. “What really inspired me about [the die-in] is that it was proactive,” McGuffey said. “These protests happen in a response to something like a racist incident that occurs, but here, these students were being proactive, they weren’t waiting for something to occur.” Following this month’s protests, the Black Eagles issued a series of demands. These demands included

NEWS: Dems vs. Republicans

improvements to the DiversityEdu module and an increase in diversity on campus, among other things. “Some of the students that have taken [DiversityEdu] don’t think it’s very good, but the fact that we have one I think is progress,” McGuffey said. “I do think a lot of the core

courses are diving into the issues of inequality, so hopefully what is lacking in [Diversity]Edu you can pick up in your core courses.” Students want to know what’s next, according to the professor. They don’t

See McGuffey, A3

CELINE LIM / HEIGHTS EDITOR

The die-in, organized by the Black Eagles, took place Oct. 18 on the Gasson Quad.

BC Dems and Republicans debate hot-button issues........................................................................ A2

INDEX

NEWS.........................A2 METRO..................... A5

The Heights

TOP

things to do on campus this week

Hans Olson, the assistant undersecretary of Homeland Security for Massachusetts, will speak on protecting the critical infrastructure systems that are essential to the country’s operation. His talk will be at 4 p.m. in the Heights Room on Tuesday.

Monday, October 29, 2018

Off-Campus Student Living is throwing a Halloween (1978) and Halloween: Return of Michael (1988) double feature at Coolidge Corner Theater on Wednesday from 7 to 10 p.m. Tickets are five dollars.

The finals for the Shea Center’s Elevator Pitch Competition will take place at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday in the Heights Room. The 15 finalists will have 60 seconds each to convince both the audience and judges to invest in their business ideas.

NEWS Cold War Spy Bill Plunkert, BC ’65, Returns to Campus BRIEFS

Corcoran Center Case Competition

Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy III will join five other panelists on Nov. 5 at 5:30 p.m. in Fulton 511 to kick off a housing case competition hosted by the Corcoran Center for Real Estate and Urban Action. Teams of three to five students will be able to compete in the semesterlong competition, titled “The Future of Housing,” for the $5,000 grand prize. The competition is focused around the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which is a tax credit that provides incentives for the utilization of private equity in the development of affordable housing. According to the Corcoran Center, it provides over 50,000 units of housing for families earning less than 60 percent of of the median income for their area. Competitors will participate in workshops with industry executives to learn about the program and prepare for the case competition in the springtime, where they will present a solution for a hypothetical LIHTC project to the panel of judges. “In the competition, students will be analyzing a real housing deal,” Neil McCullagh, the Corcoran Center Executive Director, said to the Chronicle. “They will need to present their best understanding of policy and their analysis of the deal outlined in the case.” Across the United States, over 125,000 units of affordable housing are lost every year as housings costs rise faster than income levels.

BC Prof. Reflects on Vatican’s PR Following Cardinal Donald Wuerl’s resignation earlier this month, Joseph Professor of Catholic systematic theology Richard Gaillardetz weighed in on CBS Boston about the controversy surrounding the news and the coming consequences. Wuerl resigned as archbishop of Washington on Oct. 12, months after a Pennsylvania grand jury report named him as one of many church leaders covering up abuse in the Catholic Church. Despite stepping down from the archdiocese, Wuerl announced that he would still serve in several influential Vatican positions, drawing criticism. Two such positions include the Congregation for Bishops, which oversees the selection of most bishops, and the Sacred College of Cardinals, which elects the new Pope. “We have to look at this in context. The Catholic Church today is probably facing the most significant crisis to its identity and credibility since the Protestant Reformation,” he said. “In that situation, every move by the Pope is looked at under a microscope.” Gaillardetz explained that a large part of the difficulty stems from Wurel’s previous reputation as a reformer, which is reflected in the grand jury report. “He removed 18 priests from active ministry and he actually got in a fight with the Vatican because he wanted to remove a priest and they were resisting it,” said Gaillardetz. “He was at the forefront of bishops meeting with victims, he was involved in developing the 2002 Charter [for the Protection of Children and Young People], it’s a difficult situation.” At the same time, he admitted the need for accountability beyond the lowest level of leadership. The resignation announcement, made by Pope Francis, also drew the ire of those who thought that he gave Wuerl too much credit for stepping down and spoke too highly of him. “I’m a huge fan of Pope Francis, but frankly up until this year he’s been kind of tone deaf on questions of clerical sexual abuse,” he said. “I still think he’s got a learning curve and there are times where he’s just tone deaf to how some of this language is heard by people who are justly outraged by what’s going on.”

By Isabella Cavazzoni For The Heights

Bill Plunkert, BC ’65, lectured on his experience with the CIA as a Cold War spy in Moscow this past Thursday in Gasson Hall. It was Plunkert’s third time speaking at Boston College and Andy Boynton, dean of the Carroll School of Management, said he intends to continue bringing Plunkert back to share his story. The spy opened his lecture by talking about his first day coming to BC. He had never taken a plane before, so he took an overnight train from St. Louis, then his first taxi ever, before arriving on the steps of McElroy Commons. By the end of his freshman year, Plunkert recognized the University as his home. “By BC being inviting, inclusive, and understanding, it gave me the confidence that I can try, I can fail,” said Plunkert. “By the time I graduated I was able to embrace what I call ‘trapeze moments.’ Where you leap into something new and it’s exhilarating and exciting and you never wonder what would have happened if [you] had never let go. BC gave me the security for that.” Plunkert proceeded to give the context of the war and the extent to

which the United States felt the war had the potential to be detrimental to democracy itself, as well as how Adolf Tolkachev, a Russian willing to leak information, deserved the most credit in terms of bravery. Tolkachev was the leading engineer and weapons development specialist in the Soviet institute for aircraft weapon systems. He had access to specialized information and he was willing to give it away to the CIA. “Part of the reason was because [Tolkachev]’s wife’s father was killed by Stalin under claims that he was a Nazi sympathizer, which was not true,” Plunkert said. “Tolkachev never forgot this. He loved his wife and his wife loved her father and he held that pain against the regime. “[ Tolkache v] understood that communism took away from human beings that which makes a human being a human being. It took away their free will. It took away their choice. Tolkachev could sense that this was inhumane and he wanted to end that system.” In order to access the information Tolkachev was willing to give, Plunkert had to manipulate his way past the intensive Soviet surveillance that was surrounding Moscow. After three months of preparation, Plunkert

and fellow CIA members came up with a plan. Plunkert and his team had to set the stage for the operation three weeks prior to the meeting with the KGB under a false pretense that Plunkert and his partner were going to a birthday party, when in fact Plunkert was meeting a Soviet leaker. Plunkert planned to use a specific turn in a road to change into a disguise and leave the car to obtain the information. The required time frame for all of this to be successful was 25 to 30 seconds. “We got into the car going to the birthday place and everything looks good,” Plunkert said. “But there’s roadwork so they close one lane and all the cars start butting in and it ends up the surveillance car is right behind us. I couldn’t look into the rearview mirror but I could see the car’s lights so I knew it was pretty close. Just as we were going into the second turn and Carl, the chief of station, hits me and tells me to get out. As I put both my feet on the sidewalk the lights from the surveillance car hit me.” Plunkert’s disguise had worked, and he continued on walking through the December streets of Moscow in his disguise as an old Soviet man. For his disguise Plunkert had to wear a

pair of Soviet glasses, which wouldn’t have been a problem if his breath moving through the plastic mask wasn’t causing them to fog up, and he wasn’t walking directly toward a pair of KGB guards. “I was so scared I can’t tell you how nervous I was,” Plunkert said. “I had to memorize about 10 yards of the sidewalk and then exhale. My glasses would fog up and then I’d hold my breath again. Then my glasses would clear and I’d memorize the next 10 yards and so on.” He was able to make it to a secluded place to change his disguise and take public transportation to meet Tolkachev. His prize for making it through the evening was a shoebox filled with films of confidential Soviet documents. This information, according to Plunkert, changed the Pentagon’s approach to protecting NATO from the Soviets, and prevented nuclear war. “We could now defeat the Soviets attacking NATO with conventional weapons—we did not have to rely on nuclear weapons as the Soviets had anticipated us doing” said Plunkert. “Adolf Tolkachev is a hero and all of our lives were affected by his courage, his ideology and his persistence. That is the kind of thing that takes place and nobody knows about it.” n

College Dems, Repubs Debate As Midterms Loom By Scott Baker For The Heights

Boston College’s College Democrats and College Republicans faced off in a debate hosted by the Eagle Political Society (EPS) on Tuesday. The contentious debate took place just weeks before the high-stakes midterm elections. The president of EPS, Zach Lynch, MCAS ’20, expressed dismay at the increased divisiveness and politicization that are occurring in the realm of politics. “Hyper-partisanship has come to rule the roost and personality has, kind of, come to the fore over policy in many respects,” he said. “The purpose of tonight is to try and reverse that trend so that we can recenter the debate on the issues that matter.” The first question of the night was directed to the Republicans, asking what they believed was wrong with health care in the United States. Dan Moyer, MCAS ’20, fielded the question, calling for a free market health care system. In the response by Democrats, Clint Keaveny, MCAS ’19, came out on the attack, characterizing the current health care system as an immoral and inefficient system. “We just can’t afford those treatments unless you’re wealthy,” he said.

“They talk about America first, that’s not America first.” Keaveny continued talking after his time ran out, speaking over the pounding of the gavel and the objections of EPS. The Republicans then demanded a rebuttal, which they were eventually granted after pointing out that the Democrats had gone over time. The debate become even more combative when the topic turned to abortion. The College Democrats called for Roe v. Wade to be codified into state law. The Republicans at first gave a careful response to the sensitive subject, using arguments based on the legality of the issue rather than concentrating on the morality issues surrounding the controversial Supreme Court decision. In the Democratic rebuttal, however, Gabby Kastrunes, MCAS ’22, brought up her concerns over the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Kastrunes was interrupted several times during her rebuttal by Christian Guma, CSOM ’21, of the College Republicans. Kastrunes brought up that Kavanaugh had called birth control pills abortion pills, at which point Guma interrupted her. A heated back-andforth began between several different members of both clubs as the Eagle Political Society struggled to regain

control over the debate. The Republicans claimed Kavanaugh’s comment was taken out of context. One of the College Democrats called this a familiar response, referring to the infamous Donald Trump Access Hollywood tape. The debate continued devolving into chaos, with a shouting match occurring between the two clubs over the rights of a fetus. The moderators paused the debate to warn both sides to be civil. “The purpose is to try and engage in a civil debate and try and talk to the people about what is going on and we can’t do that if we’re talking over each other,” said Harry Wang, MCAS ’19, of EPS. One of the more memorable parts of the debate was when the sides turned to the topic of taxes. The College Republicans gave a measured response, expressing concern about the stability of an economy that places high taxes on the rich to fund social programs. “When you’re taking out taxes from the people at the top, they’re creating jobs at the bottom, and that helps middle class families, that helps poor people,” said Carlos Duran, MCAS ’21. The College Democrats characterized Republicans as greedy liars who have manipulated the country into

thinking they are the party of fiscal responsibility. “They’ve acted in the direct opposite of their goal,” Keaveny said. “They say they want to reduce deficits? No, they fought tooth and nail to pass the tax cut that ballooned the deficit. No, they’re not the party of fiscal responsibility, they’re the party of rich people.” Another College Democrat criticized the Republican party for being neither fiscally conservative nor fiscally responsible, due to lowering tax rates while raising spending levels. The two sides appeared to find common ground on the issue of universal higher education. The Democrats argued that everyone should have access to higher education, but it should only be free for those who can’t afford it. Additionally, access to vocational schools and community college should be expanded. “You know, I think we agree on something,” Duran said. The moment of agreement did not last long, however. Keaveny responded with a brazen criticism of the Republican Party. “I do hope you guys agree, but I’d like to point out that your party as a whole doesn’t agree,” said Keaveny, as the rest of his response was drowned out by the groans of the audience and the objections of the moderators. n

POLICE BLOTTER: 10/24/18 – 10/25/18 Wednesday, Oct. 24

Thursday, Oct. 25

10:19 a.m. - An officer filed a report regarding a fire alarm activation at St. Clements Hall.

11:53 a.m. - An officer filed a report regarding harassing phone calls at Stuart Hall.

1:08 p.m. - An officer filed a report regarding a fire alarm activation at St. Clements Hall.

9:29 p.m. - An officer filed a report regarding found property at Conte Forum.

4:42 p.m. - An officer filed a report regarding a fire alarm activation at Lyons Hall.

10:59 a.m. - An officer filed a report regarding a suspicious person at O’Neill Library.

4:54 p.m. - An officer filed a report regarding a traffic crash on Beacon Garage Level 2.

—Source: The Boston College Police Department

CORRECTIONS What’s the best Halloween costume you’ve seen? “I saw someone dressed as the boogie man from the Nightmare Before Christmas.” — Ellie McKenney, MCAS ’22

“I saw someone dressed up as the yellow Teletubby.” — Brent Harding, MCAS ’22

“There was someome dressed as a chicken nugget who was wearing a chicken mask and a Denver Nuggets jersey” — Drew Zielinski, CSOM ’22 “I saw two people dressed together as a bee and a beekeeper.” — Julia Labdwehr, MCAS ’22

Please send corrections to eic@bcheights.com with ‘correction’ in the subject line.

The Heights

Monday, October 29, 2018

Question One Could Affect BC Nursing Students’ Clinicals Question 1, from A1 “If they’re hard-pressed for money, they’re going to be more likely to either … take fewer students … or they might start charging,” Clarke said. Clarke isn’t sure that clinicals will be closed—he said that it’s impossible to know what the outcomes of the question being passed will be. Shindul-Rothschild disagrees with the idea that clinicals will be affected, citing the fact that she goes to the clinicals with her students, meaning hospitals get one registered nurse free of charge. She noted that the last time she was there, there were 10 admissions, which she was able to assist in. “Boston College, I think, brings a lot to the table, which enables us to keep our clinical placements,” she said. Shindul-Rothschild said she thinks that, if anything, it should ease the workload of nurses so they can be better mentors to student nurses. Gennaro noted that they have received word that the question could in fact impact clinicals. “We have had one clinical site tell us they

cannot talk about clinical placements until after the election as the short time to get ratios in place would mean they couldn’t take students in Spring semester if this passes,” Gennaro said in an email. “We think many other clinical sites might do the same if this passes (and in fact the statewide database for requesting clinical sites has asked clinical areas to post if they will not be able to accept students in the Spring). We don’t know yet if there will be a longer impact.” Beyond clinical placements, opponents of Question One have said that hospitals may have to choose which services they are able to continue to offer. Gennaro said that care for vulnerable populations—like homeless patients—could be compromised in some hospitals. Some voters have expressed fears that they will lose local care if the ballot question passes. “These wild claims that people will be turned away from emergency rooms, hospitals are going to close, there’s no reason that that should happen. None,” ShindulRothschild said. “They’re scare tactics. And unfortunately I think they’re working.” Shindul-Rothschild has pointed to California as an example of how Massachusetts nursing could run. California was the first

state to enforce these stricter patient limits. Shindul-Rothschild said she carefully examined the similarities and differences in health care systems between the two states, and she said believes it is a close enough match. She noted that it’s the closest thing Massachusetts can get to a test subject. “I can say, confidently, that no hospital closed in California when this happened,” she said. “This was the same rhetoric used there.” A report said that hospitals that closed in California after the introduction of the ratios were already not financially solvent, and the ratios could not have had an affect on forcing those hospitals to close given the previous financial issues. Clarke said he feels the states were too different to be compared on this issue. He said that people are reasonably unsure of what to expect from the ballot question. While he said he doesn’t want to fearmonger, Clarke expressed his concern about hospitals being able to continue services, and he isn’t sure that the practice will actually improve working conditions for nurses. He said nurses are split almost evenly about whether or not they would like to see this question passed.

“If you go talk to the nurses in the street, you have basically a 50/50 chance on this,” he said. “And even those nurses, you start to run the provisions of ballot Question One by them and they are unsure of how it would affect their day-to-day work.” Passage of the referendum would drastically change the way the nurses work, according to Clarke. In order to keep in line with patient limits, breaks would need to be accounted for when making schedules. Clarke said that nurses would no longer be able to go to the washroom and ask their coworkers to look in on their patients, because that would skew the ratio. He’s concerned that hospitals will begin to focus more on avoiding the fine that comes with breaking the ratio than on patient care. That’s not to say he believes it will change the quality of the nurses. “Am I saying that I think nurses would neglect their patients?” he said. “No, I’m not saying that at all. Nurses will always try their best. I think, some of what brought about all of these initiatives was the idea that maybe nurses work too hard sometimes, and against their own, and their patients’ interests.”

Shindul-Rothschild has said that opponents of the question are those who do not know what it means to be a nurse on the ground. “The people who are spending the money against this, and it is the [Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association], they’re not there taking care of the patients,” she said. “They are removed.” “Right now Massachusetts ranks near the bottom nationally for poor patient care, and patients that have to be readmitted to the hospital because they did not receive the proper care upon their first admission,” David Schildmeier, director of public communications for the Massachusetts Nurses Association, said in an email. He noted that 2,000 official reports from this year detailed instances where nurses documented shifts “where they were given an assignment that jeopardized the safety of their patients.” Responses to concerned nurses included “Do the best you can,” “we have no one to send you,” and “whatever.” Schildmeier said that if the question does not pass, nurses will have to use their union in order to protect their patients. “Long and costly strikes” may be necessary, he said. n

McGuffey Calls for Admin. Transparency on Inclusivity Measures McGuffey, from A1 want administrators to check the boxes on last year’s demands and move on, thinking everything is fixed. So an issue such as DiversityEdu needs to be followed up on by students, in order to be proactive and hold the University accountable. McGuffey said he believes that a once-per-month update of some sort from the University would put students at ease—understanding exactly how administrators are taking on progress on the many fronts where students are asking for progress would do a lot to bridge the gap in mistrust between students and University administrators. “That way they know the University is

making a good faith effort to address these issues,” McGuffey said. Administrators indicated confusion in the wake of the “die-in,” because they felt they had made it clear they were open to having more conversations. McGuffey, noted that the fear among students doesn’t have as much to do with individual administrators, but with the culture surrounding discussion on campus as a whole. “BC has a really good rhetoric around social justice,” he said. “Part of the Jesuit tradition that they really talk about is being men and women for others, so I think BC has a really good groundwork for doing really progressive work, and also for inclusion, because when you think of being men and women for others, others

is all women and men.” But the University’s shortcomings include a lack of transparency and the fear students have of sanctions being handed down for vocalizing their opinions, according to McGuffey. He said he believes BC can work on its sanctioning process for protests—he pointed to Georgetown’s process for handling protests. McGuffey noted that although BC does a good job of talking about social justice in other places, the institution’s fear of internal criticism has created a difficult environment for students to feel free to speak. The Undergraduate Government of BC is currently working on trying to implement a “Red Square” concept that Georgetown has adopted in relation to

protests. In the square, students don’t have to fear University sanctions. At BC presently, students must go through the Dean of Students office in order to get a permit for a demonstration. McGuffey noted that in order to make the campus more inclusive, the University needed to take a closer look at “who we’re leaving out of the conversation” on the needs of students. He specifically cited the wealth of the student body as being an issue that needs to be faced head on. In a New York Times report from this past January, BC was noted as one of the 38 schools that has more students from the top 1 percent of earners in the United States than it has from the bottom 60 percent.

To McGuffey, the lack of openness surrounding the financial struggles of some students versus the financial security of others has fostered a tense environment surrounding students’ economic status. He sees that tension as a good example of an area where BC can work to improve the nature of conversations on campus—no matter how difficult. “I feel that students are almost so afraid of offending people that they don’t have any conversations at all,” McGuffey said. “I’ve had some students come to me and say, ‘I want to talk about this but I’m afraid of saying the wrong thing.’ “That’s what college is for—we’re here to say the wrong thing so we can have these conversations.” n

Malloy Returns to BC Law After Two Terms as Conn. Governor Malloy, from A1 dedicated to public service as a lawyer and politician, his return to BC Law with comprehensive professional experience fits the Rappaport Center like a glove. Malloy’s presence will give law students a first-hand look at careers in public service, bringing local and state government experience to the heart of the center. After graduating from BC Law, Malloy prosecuted cases as an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn before receiving a partnership at a Connecticut-based law firm. Born and raised in Stamford, Conn., Malloy subsequently ran successfully for mayor of Stamford, serving in his hometown from 1997 to 2005. Though Malloy lost his first gubernatorial election in the primaries, he later secured his spot as governor of Connecticut in 2010. He won a second term in 2014, running against Tom Foley, his Republican opponent in 2010, for the second time, snagging the victory with just over 51 percent of the vote. Malloy’s gubernatorial term will

end in January of 2019, and he will begin teaching on Jan. 14. BC Law School Dean Vincent Rougeau first invited Malloy to give a commencement address to law graduates before approaching him with a position at BC Law. Malloy’s address in 2014 touched many, including Rougeau, as he told his story of making a successful career after struggling with dyslexia through his law education. “It’s a very compelling story about personal fortitude and struggle and help within a community,” Rougeau said. “I think many people were very, very moved by it.” Malloy has suffered from physical and learning disabilities, including dyslexia, since he was a child. After his dyslexia diagnosis, Malloy began to learn the skills he needed to succeed and eventually graduated from BC magna cum laude. As governor, he focused his attention on a diverse range of political issues. Malloy targeted creating jobs and expanding small business initiatives during his first term, according to Connecticut’s official state website. His efforts helped to add ap-

proximately 70,000 jobs to the private sector during his first four years in office. Other political accomplishments include increasing education funding for local schools, addressing income inequality, and extending affordable health care. Rougeau feels Malloy’s immediate public service experience is irreplaceable and will bring a unique element of public involvement to law school students. “His service was not without controversy and difficulty, which is part of what many people who enter public service have to face,” Rougeau said. “And so I think he has a lot to offer in terms of describing the kinds of choices people in public service often have to make, some of which will make them very unpopular, but are choices that they feel must be made.” Malloy leaves office with a 72 percent disapproval rate in his state, bringing up the rear as the least popular governor in the country, according to a Morning Consult poll. Elisabeth Medvedow, executive director of the Rappaport Center, explained that the

overarching theme for discussion in the center this year is “challenges to constitutional democracy,” and topics such as impeachment and consequences of criminal convictions will be explored. Medvedow, who will be working closely with Malloy, feels that Malloy’s experiences as a public servant “fit] right into our mission for the year.” “We probably won’t ever have another political person who has such an intimate, deep, and immediate knowledge of what it takes to run a state and what matters to citizens of communities,” Medvedow said. Malloy is one of four prominent political figures BC Law has brought in to teach based on their professional experiences. Former Governor of Maryland Martin O’Malley and retired Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Justice Jerry Hines previously held classes at the school. This year, retired justice Bob Courtney took a teaching position, and Malloy will follow. Still, Malloy is the first of these politicians to teach so soon after holding office. “The direct correlation between municipal leadership and coming here to share his

insights and knowledge with Boston College is pretty extraordinary,” Medvedow said. Malloy’s seminar class, titled The Intersection of Law, Politics, and Public Policy, will be offered in the spring semester to law school students. His time teaching at BC Law will be kicked off with a public address open to the entire BC community, though the date of the address is still to be determined. Medvedow will also work closely with Malloy as he develops programs in which he will either moderate or serve on a panel. Rougeau expressed optimism in Malloy’s singular ability to bring new insight to the table at BC Law, citing specifically Malloy’s learning disabilities before coming into office and his ability to make tough calls as a public servant. “You know, there are many different ways to use a law degree, and he demonstrates a number of them in his career,” Rougeau said. “He has a lot to offer to offer to somebody. He can tell them about his personal journey, about his professional journey, and about the role of service.” n

Class of ’22 More Diverse University Introduces Student Survey Class of 2022, from A1 In terms of size, the Class of 2022 has a total of 2,327 students. The Class of 2021 has 2,412, while the Class of 2020 has 2,319. Grant Gosselin, director of undergraduate admissions, said in the release that the Class of 2022 is one of the most talented and diverse classes ever enrolled. Combined SAT scores for the middle 50 percent of the class range from 1340 to 1480—the mean

was 1392, according to the release. The middle 50 percent of ACT scores ranged from 31 to 34—the average was a 32. Mahoney cited the renewal of the core curriculum and the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society as especially attractive aspects of BC in the eyes of high school students applying for admission. Mahoney also noted that information sessions on the core have been well-attended at admitted student sessions. n

Survey, from A1 in response to multiple racist incidents on campus. The DiverstyEdu module introduced this year was another of the demands. The release cites the incidents as the primary reason administrators and Undergraduate Government of BC leaders of the agreed to conduct a

student experience survey. The Black Eagles, led by anonymous students who have only identified themselves as advocates for minority populations on campus, included the need for a student experience survey in their demands sent to administrators last week after they organized the “die-in.” Issues pertaining to both the classroom and outside of it will be a part of the survey, which was created

by a “university-wide committee,” according to Armstrong. “The Student Experience Survey is a vital tool in assessing the campus environment,” interim Vice President of Student Affairs Joy Moore said in the release. “The feedback from students will help us to identify areas where we are doing well, as well as those areas where we should focus greater attention.” n

THE HEIGHTS

MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018

Ambrosia For the Ears

Robert Ambrose, BC ’90, has transformed the chaos of post-grad career confusion into beautiful music. BY BROOKE KAISERMAN Assoc. Magazine Editor While overseas in Germany, a jazz musician turned Navy sailor acquired a stereo. This stereo voyaged across the Atlantic Ocean and arrived in the picturesque New England suburb of Wethersfield, Conn., located just outside Hartford. “Music was always a part of our house,” Robert Ambrose, BC ’90, said. Of all the new sights, smells, and sounds that confronted 3-year-old Ambrose, he specifically remembers the sounds of the stereo his father had brought back from Europe, as the spinning records crooned sentimental tunes. He and his father would sit in front of it, swaying to the seemingly endless melodies. This early experience with music would prove to be the first of many for Ambrose, who is now the director of bands at Georgia State University and a world-renowned wind ensemble conductor. Ambrose has always felt greatly supported by his parents in his musical career. While he never saw his father’s jazz career in action, Ambrose’s father would speak to the myriad of his musical endeavors as a student at Boston College, which Ambrose would later attend himself. “They provided probably what must go down in history as the greatest support network ever,” Ambrose said. “They are just fantastic parents.” Ambrose attended his local high school in Wethersfield, which had a cutting-edge and all-encompassing guitar program. But formal guitar lessons gave way to rambunctious rock band jams and sessions in the recording studio with his fellow classmates turned bandmates in the late afternoon hours of the languid days of the 1980s. When it came time to submit his college applications, Ambrose applied to five East Coast schools—University of Connecticut, University of Hartford, University of Vermont, Boston University, and Boston College. His future was unnervingly uncertain career-wise, and Ambrose hoped that the push to attend college would point him in the right direction. “Back then, the idea of the gap year didn’t exist—no one ever did that,” he said. After Ambrose received his high school diploma in 1986, the limiting possibilities were three-pronged—college, work, or the military. He acknowledges now that taking some time to collect himself and confront the coming years with a clear head would have been helpful, but Ambrose has no qualms about the trajectory his life has taken since his decision to attend BC. In addition to BC’s prestigious reputation, Ambrose felt a personal connection to the college—his childhood had been peppered with autumn road trips into Chestnut Hill to cheer on the Eagles in Alumni Stadium. “I definitely felt an affinity for BC—it just felt right,” Ambrose said. “Although I didn’t really know what I wanted to do before, during, or after.” As soon as Ambrose entered the University’s hallowed halls, he made a spur-of-the-moment decision to major in computer science. He worked hard in the rigorous program, while music remained his cathartic, creative outlet. At the time, BC did not have a performance degree in music, but it still offered classes on the subject—Ambrose took four courses in the field and acquired a concentration. One of Ambrose’s first friends at BC had also been in a rock band in high school, so the two married their talents and soon found a drummer to complement the screams of their guitar strings. Now, all they needed was a place to make music, which turned out to be a lecture hall in Lyons Hall—room 423—which they transformed into a studio. There they would jam for hours on end, the strains of their melodies filling the room and seep-

ing into the hallway. One day, these melodies reached the ears of a bass player, who opened the door and peered in. “Hi, I’m a bass player, and I don’t hear any bass,” he said. “Do you need bass?” He soon joined the group, rounding out the sounds of the other three players. “Suddenly, we had a rock band,” Ambrose said. The ensemble took its talents all over campus and beyond, playing at the local clubs and bars sprinkled around the surrounding suburbs. One of its usual spots was Great Scott, a popular music venue and bar that still stands on the corner of Commonwealth and Harvard avenues. The venues would be packed with Eagles, who made sure to consume a healthy amount of beer while savoring the sounds. Wherever they went would transform into the night’s hotspot, making the rock band a much sought-after hire. Throughout his four years at BC, Ambrose also participated in the jazz ensemble BC bOp! and played in the pit orchestras for theatre productions including Evita, Hair, and Jesus Christ Superstar. He formed a lasting connection with major players in the field such as Sebastian Bonaiuto, BC’s first full-time director of bands. While he grew more engrossed in his musical endeavors, his conviction in his major embarked on a rapid decline. “I probably knew after maybe my sophomore year that computer science wasn’t going to be my thing, but I was having so much fun at BC,” he said. “I had a great group of friends, we had a band, and I was doing okay in school.” While Ambrose was certain that his coming years would not be spent in a cramped cubicle with fluorescent lighting and a single potted plant, he didn’t know that they would be in music either. The main feeling that gnawed at him upon graduating BC was confusion. Ambrose was in limbo, and his only plans for the future were to travel to Europe with a friend. After six weeks of adventuring and procrastinating plans for his future, Ambrose arrived back in Boston with a degree he was unenthused about and an apartment that he shared with several roommates on Gerald Road. When he realized it was finally time to face his fears and figure out his next step, he decided to move back home. “I came home, and I just sort of hit rock bottom,” Ambrose said. “I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.” After doing a little soul-searching, Ambrose felt confident that his passion rested in music, but he didn’t know exactly how to craft it into a career. He figured he had to start somewhere if he wanted to achieve his goal of forming meaningful connections through teaching music. His B.A. in computer science, however, was a shaky foundation for such an ambition to rest on. Consequently, Ambrose went to the Boston Conservatory, met with the chair of the music education program, and laid out his credentials—or lack thereof. While he had trifled with his guitar strings for several years, his fingers had never touched a wind instrument, and he had virtually no classical training—yet he wanted to be a band director. Upon hearing this, the chair of the program was unimpressed. “They very kindly slammed the door in my face and said, ‘not interested,’” Ambrose said. With an

staunch belief in his vision, Ambrose walked across the street to the New England Conservatory—and got the same answer. A few days later, he arrived at Boston University ready to make what he hoped would be his final case. Walking in the door at 855 Commonwealth Avenue, Ambrose strolled up to the front desk and asked for Richard Caldwell, the chair of the music education department. He was sent up the stairs to the second floor of the building and walked into Caldwell’s office. After just five minutes of hearing him speak, Caldwell decided to take a chance on Ambrose, and promptly made him an offer that would change the trajectory of his life. “I mean, no application, no audition, nothing. … This guy just took a chance on me, and that allowed the next steps of my life to happen. Had he just slammed the door in my face, who knows where I’d be right now?” Ambrose had finally landed his lucky break. He attended Boston University and completed his master’s degree in music education in 1993, and after three years of rigorous study, he was finally ready to embark on his long-awaited music career. His first job was at a high school in Monson, Mass., by Springfield, teaching music to the high school band and chorus. Ambrose’s time in Monson was personally rewarding, but logistically challenging. In addition to a brutal hour and 20-minute commute from his home in Newton to Monson and back, Ambrose played in multiple rock bands down in the city, keeping him constantly spread too thin across the two towns. His work soon came closer to home when he moved to his next job at Norwood High School. Ambrose served as the school’s band director for three years before attending Northwestern University, where he began working on a doctorate in music education. While participating in the program, Ambrose was assigned as a graduate assistant to Mallory Thompson, Northwestern’s director of bands. She would be integral in his path to becoming a world-renowned conductor. Ambrose soon discovered that the University’s music education program was largely research-based—it was not exactly hands-on, which is what he’d had in mindThompson recommended that Ambrose audition for the conducting program and complete a different doctorate—one in wind conducting. He decided to take her up on the suggestion and switched gears after one quarter. Shortly after he finished his doctorate in 2001, Ambrose was hired as the director of bands at Georgia State University in Atlanta, where he has worked for 18 years. He has enjoyed this position alongside his wife, who has worked at the university for 16 years as a flute professor. He also enjoys the position of director of re-

cruitment. “I think the thing that defines Robert Ambrose is he’s incredibly thoughtful. … He’s in-depth in his study and preparation for teaching and guiding. He is thoughtful in the way he approaches his musicians that he works with,” said Chester Phillips, Ambrose’s colleague at Georgia State, associate director of bands. “He loves people, and he loves relationships. He’s thoughtful about those relationships, and I think that helps him to really relate to his students and his colleagues.” For almost two decades, Georgia State has provided Ambrose both his full-time job and the backdrop for a myriad of independent musical endeavors. “The way it works in my profession is you … build a reputation, you go out and you do guest conducting, and then someone else hears about you, and your career hopefully grows that way—and that’s how that’s happened,” he said. One such project was spent co-conducting the Metropolitan Atlanta Youth Wind Ensemble for a few years alongside Laura Moates Stanley, director of bands at Brookwood High School. In working with Ambrose, Stanley noticed his desire to form lasting connections with others, both on and off the podium. “He truly is not in this for himself. He’s really in this for other people,” Stanley said. “I don’t think that Robert is a director of bands just because he wants to be—I think he truly does it to serve others.” Over the years, Ambrose has participated in a multitude of these separate projects. He founded the Atlanta Chamber Winds, as well as the National Chamber Winds in Washington, D.C. While the Atlanta Chamber Winds join together once a year for a concert performed by their prestigious members, the activities of the National Chamber Winds are more regular. As a conductor, Ambrose is the critical decision-maker in crafting each piece’s sound, which he does by providing an informed interpretation of the score and effectively communicating this evaluation to the performers. “The person standing on the podium conducting makes an enormous difference in sound,” Ambrose said. “If I go up there and conduct a group and someone else conducts them, they’ll sound very different … based on the way we move, based on our interpretation of the music, based on ... how we talk to the musicians.” To produce the best-sounding notes, Ambrose relentlessly pours over the sheet music and makes one decision after another. He’s constantly asking himself questions: How should this phrase sound? Who should play louder here? Should the flute use vibrato or not? “It would be really interesting to map sort of the brain activity that’s going on.” “You go from euphoric, and you have these incredible sensations and chills going up your spine from the sounds, to total panic, depending on the situation you’re in.” Guest conducting also comprises a large part of Ambrose’s vibrant musical career, as it takes him around the globe

and is responsible for his astronomical annual mileage, which amounts to about 125,000 frequent flyer miles per year. “In many ways [guest conducting is] like a relationship with a person,” Ambrose said. “The more you know them, the easier it’s going to be move towards a common goal. My goal when I’m guest conducting is to try to bridge that gap as quickly as possible by the way I talk to the musicians and the way I interact with them. I’m trying to get to a place where they open their hearts and their souls, and from that point we can kind of have this relationship.” He mainly guest conducts in Finland, Taiwan, and Canada. While he feels a connection with all three countries, Ambrose keeps Finland especially close to his heart. His seemingly unusual musical partnership with Finland arose from a grant he received to bring a few Finnish musicians to Georgia State in 2012. Since that time, he has been to the country four times as either a guest lecturer, conductor, or teacher, and he has received nearly 20 Finns in Atlanta. “There’s this really heavy symbiotic relationship between me and the Finnish music world that kind of keeps growing and keeps developing,” Ambrose said. The quaint country of Finland has become a second home for Ambrose, who has interacted with roughly 80 people from the country through music—most of whom he now considers friends. Having always felt extremely welcomed in the country, Ambrose has adapted to its picturesque buildings, culture, and food—specifically black sausage and Kalakukko, which is Finnish fish bread—with ease. His ability to learn the language, however, has proven to be more difficult. “It’s virtually impossible,” Ambrose said. “It’s so hard I can’t even describe it. But I’ve learned it enough that the last time I was there, I was teaching a conducting workshop, and everyone spoke Finnish, and I could survive.” Luckily, this language barrier doesn’t translate into the musical sphere—in Finland, Ambrose has guest conducted the Finnish Navy Band and a myriad of community bands, taught conducting workshops, and even published a few arrangements—in which Ambrose adapts pieces played by an orchestra and rearranges it so that a wind ensemble can play it. “Most people wouldn’t think of someone having a musical relationship with Finland, but that’s where mine happens to be,” said Ambrose. Ambrose’s most significant achievement in music, however, was an invitation he received to guest conduct the United States Army Field Band—one of the most elite military bands, based in Washington, D.C. Ambrose is the only civilian in history to have toured with a group of this nature and stature, and he spent 10 days on the road with them and the musicians in the band. But it’s more than just the tremendous prestige, or the frequent travels, or even the stimulating conversation for Ambrose. The core of his love for music will always be the meaningful connections it has allowed him to form. “I’m in music because I like to connect to people. And that’s the vehicle through which I do it. … It’s the connections that I’ve been able to have, the heart-to-heart and soul-to-soul connections with so many people that comes from really great music-making that is what drove me to it and what keeps me inspired.” 

PHOTO COURTESY OF ROBERT AMBROSE

The Heights

Monday, October 29, 2018

TOP

things to do in Boston this week

On Tuesday, Boston activists and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students will come together for a gun violence prevention panel, with a particular emphasis on how citizens can become involved in the movement. The event will be hosted at Emerson College’s Cutler Majestic Theatre.

On Saturday, cheese lovers will flock to Somerville to celebrate the 5th Annual Massachusetts Cheese Festival. The event will showcase awardwinning artisan cheesemakers from the state, who will hold workshops and demonstations, and sample cheese throughout the day.

On Sunday afternoon, the Boston Cyclists Union will be organizing the third annual Taco Tour. The event will take attendees on a bike ride to the best taco joins that Greater Boston has to offer. Tickets must be purchased in advance and cover all food and beverage costs.

‘We Will Not Be Silent’ Explores Complexities of War By Colleen Martin Copy Editor

A girl in a button down dress and Oxford shoes sits on a metal chair, arms cuffed behind her back. The three walls around her are blasted apart, suspended in midair, with a door on the most intact wall leading out to a bare hallway. On it stands a man, dressed in a gray uniform. He stands so that his left arm—or, more importantly, the bright red band with the swastika on his left arm—is clearly visible. The guard is approached by a man in a suit. After a salute, they pass each other by, leaving the man in the suit to enter the interrogation room. He, Kurt Grunwald (Tim Spears), bounds into the room and goes to shake Sophie Scholl’s (Sara Oakes Muirhead) hand, only to realize it’s being held behind her back. He quickly takes the cuffs off, making small talk with the girl being held in a Nazi cell. Scholl has been arrested for distributing anti-Nazi leaflets at her university—something the Nazis believe indicates she is the leader of the White Rose, a non-violent and intellectual resistance group. When Scholl denies that she was involved in the distribution of antiNazi leaflets, Grunwald becomes enraged. And so begin the back-and-forth and Grunwald’s personality changes

that seemingly come out of nowhere. Grunwald transitions back into a friendly, “good cop” persona, only to scream when Scholl doesn’t tell him what he needs. Moments later, he’s literally lying on the ground, looking up at Sophie sitting in a chair and pleading with her to help him spare her life. “Just because I work here, doesn’t make me a monster,” Grunwald says. His first standout line is an early indication of what seems to be the purpose of the character of Grunwald: to humanize the role of the Nazi. The majority of the play consists of scenes between only Grunwald and Scholl—their characters are equally developed. Grunwald has just as many personal characteristics as Sophie: She speaks of her father, and Grunwald tells a story of his son who was killed in action during the war. This play isn’t a story of a young woman being interrogated for a crime she committed to defy one of the most horrific regimes in human history—it is a show of the power dynamics and fear that come into play on both sides. As much as Scholl fears for her life and the lives of the other people in the White Rose, Grunwald fears what will happen to him and his family if he doesn’t follow the orders of the Gestapo. While this narrative may have been intended to show the difficulties

Andy Brilliant / Brilliant Pictures

We Will Not Be Silent tells the story of Sophie Scholl, a member of the White Rose, who as a young girl stood up against the Nazis in WWII Germany.

of war, and the fact that there can be goodness on both sides, this comes too close to humanizing the Nazi over the revolutionary. At times, Scholl is frustrating: Grunwald is practically begging her to take a way out. She seems to have a chance to live, even to continue her resistance work when she leaves, but she chooses not to. It’s important to remember, however, that Grunwald is in control. He

isn’t powerless or helpless, and he certainly isn’t deserving of pity or respect. Throughout, though, it seems that showing his supposed compassion is the most important thing. Scholl is only able to show her depth during the scenes with her brother, Hans Scholl (Conor Proft), when she actually voices her human concerns about her death, her family, and her cause. When Scholl finally breaks, scream-

ing about her desire to live and all the things she has to live for, she becomes relatable. Unfortunately, it comes a bit too late in the show to have any real or lasting impact. While We Will Not Be Silent works to show the complexities of war and of the people who live in it, it falls short, leaving the audience wondering who Grunwald really is, and what the three days he spent interrogating Scholl meant for either of them. n

City of Boston Unveils Holiday Logo Designs to Celebrate Diversity By Chloe McAllaster Assoc. Metro Editor

It’s not often that a city can be identified solely by the first letter of its name. In Boston, however, the letter “B” does act as a source of pride—in its sports teams and its city government alike. The City of Boston is channeling

this pride in one of its most recent campaigns to foster inclusion: the creation of custom “B” logos that celebrate a diverse range of holidays. “We created the Boston ‘B’ as a way to make us feel a little bit more friendly and approachable,” said Sebastian Ebarb, design director for the City of Boston. According to Ebarb, these logos are

graphic by City of boston

The 11 “B” logo designs commemorate a diverse range of holidays, from local to national.

one of the first visual steps in creating a dialogue with the public. He underscored the importance of creating a professional, yet friendly, relationship between the city and its residents. “We recognize that one of our key goals is to be equal parts warm and official because we want people to actually enjoy working with their government,” he said. To meet this end, the city’s digital team and the Office of Arts and Culture reached out to local artists, students, and residents a year ago to develop the logos, which the city will use on its social media channels. Artists submitted logo designs that depict a specific holiday, inspired by the suggestions provided by the design team or their own ideas. A panel of reviewers from the digital team, the Office of Arts and Culture, and the Diversity Office selected the designs with the most potential to fulfill the vision of the campaign. They then worked with individual artists to ensure the designs met the city’s quality standards.

While varying widely in style, all logos utilize the familiar uppercase, underlined B logo that city residents have come to recognize as representative of their city government. By the end of the project, 11 logos emerged as finalists and were unveiled this October. These designs will be featured over the coming year, beginning with National Migrants Day on Dec. 18. The other holidays celebrated in the logos are Christmas, Chinese New Year, Vietnamese New Year, Valentine’s Day, International Women’s Day, Evacuation Day, Earth Day, Arbor Day, Dorchester Day, and National Ice Cream Day. These holidays reflect all aspects of Boston’s diversity, from ethnic differences to religious affiliations to the love of cold treats. “One of the great things about Boston is how diverse and open it is in the largest sense of the word diversity,” Ebarb said. “We have people who celebrate different holidays, who are interested in different things.” In many ways, the artists reflect this

range of diversity. According to a blog post by the digital team, the artist of the Vietnamese New Year logo, Thi Le, is a Boston Public Schools student. She was inspired by the way Boston looks in the winter, which reminds her of her Vietnamese hometown. Some holidays, like Evacuation Day and Dorchester Day, are only celebrated in Boston. In the blog post, John Branagan, designer of the Evacuation Day logo, expressed an interest in state holidays that take place on the same day as national ones. Evacuation Day is celebrated on March 17, or St. Patrick’s Day. “We’re really fortunate that we have such a great community here in Boston that comes from so many different walks of life,” Ebarb said. Artists of all genders, professions, backgrounds, nationalities, and ages contributed to the campaign, making it truly representative of the city’s broader diversity. “We’re attempting to show that there’s a place for everyone here in Boston,” Ebarb said. n

The Curveball in Boston: A Sacrilegious Analysis of Baseball Alessandro Zenati I’ve been living in Boston for long enough now to know that sports are a religion in these parts. The home-field choruses of diehard fans establish sporting events as both a sacred as well as a secular experience. It’s a way of life that has served to mold social norms and create a collective culture that is imbued with the spirit of fandom. For instance, I’ve come to understand that a sure-fire way to receive verbal and non-verbal signals of disapproval is to wear a Yankees jersey on Red Sox game days in full public view. Far more egregious is the execution of this act while fully cognizant of the history of the rivalry, driven by superstition in the case of the Curse of the Bambino, as well as

the larger struggle for a foothold in American athletic tradition. Yet, for all the ways that Boston has knit its “title town” narrative into the fabric of the city, there’s still one Boston sports team that has never tickled my interest despite standing as perennial top-performers: the good ‘ol Red Sox. Now perhaps I should begin by defending myself a bit. My aversion to the Red Sox actually has nothing to do with the team itself and everything to do with the sport of baseball. Don’t get me wrong, there is something truly special about sitting in the stands at Fenway Park on a cool summer night and becoming part of the acoustic cacophony that emerges from the crowd—a family in the balcony seating above can be heard singing “Sweet Caroline” prematurely before the the seventh inning, while a vendor negotiates the price of a pack of cracker jacks with a gentleman wearing a Red Sox jersey over his work attire. Particularly for people who

have grown up in families that have almost religious ties to the Red Sox, carrying on the tradition is a natural process in becoming a true Bostonian. Here’s the thing though: I grew up in a family that couldn’t care less about baseball, and I’m not a true Bostonian. So you might be wondering what my deal is after all, why I can’t just loosen up and try to find something enjoyable in baseball. I have tried but, after a handful of nights and god knows how many hours spent waiting patiently in cramped seats for something moderately stimulating to happen, I have also given up. Listen here, I’m not discounting the fact that there are some genuinely gifted athletes that bless the baseball diamond, such as Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, and Yasiel Puig— notice how the extent of my baseball knowledge prohibits me from revealing much more about these players. However, at the same time, there are other “athletes” that are not so

gifted, in that they are clearly on the team for the sole purpose of crushing the baseball into the stands and trotting around the bases at a leisurely pace. To this point, the designated hitter position is a subtle hint that certain players are, on the average, quite one-dimensional in their skillset. But who am I to judge? My little league debut was also my farewell game, after I clumsily hit my shin during an errant swing of the bat and conceded that I would only injure myself more if I were to continue. The fact is that I struck out and didn’t go on to make oodles of money playing in front of packed stadiums. On top of this confusing mix of athleticism and one-dimensionality, there is the dizzying flurry of different performance statistics painstakingly analyzed by fantasy baseball aficionados and coaches alike. For batters, there’s the GPA (Gross Production Average) and GBFR (Ground ball fly ratio) while

a pitcher’s performance is picked apart based on WHIP (Walks and hits per inning pitched). I get it, baseball is a complicated sport with lots going on, even though it looks like nothing is happening all the time. Perhaps Billy Beane and his moneyball tactic might disagree with me, but a simpler set of performance metrics might actually be to the sport’s advantage and turn baseball critics like me into diehard fans. It might. Even with the Red Sox vying for the World Series title in Sunday night’s deciding game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, I can barely name a player on either team. Believe me, I’m aware of this sacrilegious behavior. But in all honesty, I’ll probably just catch a few at-bats on TV and let my roommates handle the emotions for me.

Alessandro Zenati is the metro editor for The Heights. He can be reached at metro@bcheights.com.

The Heights

EDITORIAL

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Dialogue Is Necessary for Effective Execution of Student Demands

Just over a year ago, Boston College students organized the “Silence Is Still Violence” march in response to race-related incidents that occurred on campus. At the same time, a group of students released a list of demands for the University, aiming to make it a more inclusive institution. Fulfilling one of the demands from last year’s list, BC is releasing the Student Experience Survey on Monday. As the administration continues to respond to the items on the list, the University has proven that it has been hearing the concerns OF students of color. Whether or not these executions are implemented to the students’ standards, however, is a different story. Thinking about the Black Eagles’ response to DiversityEdu, the survey may not satisfy expectations. The information gathered in the Student Experience Survey, while an important step by the University, must be comprehensive enough to

Monday, October 29, 2018

achieve the desired impact on the student body. (Writing on Sunday, we haven’t yet seen the contents of the survey.) The Black Eagles’ letter earlier this month says that the campus climate survey was planned in a committee last semester with the expectation that it would be released this year. “The BC administration nor the committee have given a clear timetable on the survey,” the group wrote. “Again, expectations were not met.” But the University was already preparing to launch the survey. Their letter indicates that some students have not been informed of important developments regarding demands made last year. Perhaps a solution is public transparency from BC on its plans. Students have proposed a town hall meeting, and sociology and African and African diaspora studies professor C. Shawn McGuffey suggested monthly progress reports, but the major decisions regarding this topic are

“Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.” - Edgar Allen Poe

being made behind closed doors. BC isn’t clearly communicating its strategy, so student activists don’t really know what’s going on, and thus they haven’t found that the University has implemented satisfactory measures. It becomes increasingly important that these demands are executed effectively as classes continue to diversify: The Class of 2022 is BC’s most diverse so far, with 33 percent of its students identifying as AHANA+. The expectation is that BC should be in conversation with students while making these decisions so that they can be implemented in the most satisfactory and effective way. BC should consider putting an administrator in a public position to serve as a figure with whom students can honestly discuss the processes and pending programs the University hopes to implement—these decisions are too important for there to be space for ambiguity or ambivalence between students and administrators.

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The Heights

Monday, October 29, 2018

A SocietyValuing Feelings Over Facts Thinking informed with facts and more like personal

The introduction of this space between

truths which help shape the foundations

right and wrong, true and false, allows

of our personalities, representative of

for everyone’s opinion to be at least kind

who we are as people, illustrative of our

of “right” while the only people who are

particular tribe. My opinions are no longer

“wrong” are the people who disagree,

things ripe for judgement and discussion,

the people in the other tribe. Similarly,

but rather they are opportunities for the

because of this phenomenon and our

fundamental aspects of myself to be “right”

ever-increasing inclination to judge our

In an age of “fake news” and “alter-

and to be considered “right” by the people

opinions as extensions of ourselves, we are

native facts,” it’s hard to know what to

around me. I am me, and “me” is made up

positioned to consider any opposition as a

believe. We seem to be in an age where

of opinions validated by other people like

personal attack made by an enemy of the

people want to think for themselves and

me.

collective.

Kate Colombo

tea - Tea saved my life this week. With sickness plus midterms plus my killer procrastination skills, every night needed at least one mug of tea, often more. I might have had to do a lot of dishes then, but it was worth it. It’s relaxing for a stressed mind, it’s soothing on a sick body. You get the best of both worlds (wya Hannah Montana). The best solution for overwhelming distress is probably tea (probably not, but it definitely helps). when they sell real water bottles in lower - If you’re the type of person who has so many extra dollars on your meal plan at the end of a semester but you don’t have enough friends to buy meals for, this is a dream. You get this nice BC water bottle that’s trying to be a S’well but isn’t actually, and you get to use your stupid dining hall money to buy it. Sorry if you’re already running low on your funds. This doesn’t really apply to you. Don’t worry, though, I’ve got a thumbs down about Lower for you below.

think critically, but also want all of their

This line of thinking has been called

ideas to be validated by external sources.

“post-truth” by writers of the Boston Globe,

political spectrum to see this in effect.

We want to believe what is cool to believe,

the Washington Post, and countless other

There are many Republicans who view

to believe what the system doesn’t want

journalists discussing this lexical evolu-

themselves as people who prefer smaller

us to believe, to believe what’s right but

tion after the Oxford dictionary called it

governments and prioritize individual

without needing to defend its rightness.

2016’s “word of the year.” According the

freedoms over the good of the state as a

This is not an atypical desire: When we are

dictionary’s editors, post-truth is “relating

whole. Many Democrats, likewise, view

proven wrong, this correction is accom-

to or denoting circumstances in which

themselves as people who prefer a greater

panied by a host of emotions—embarrass-

objective facts are less influential in shap-

scope of regulation and prioritize the good

ment being among them.

ing public opinion than appeals to emotion

of a community over individual liberties.

According to Susan Krauss Whit-

and personal belief.” Stemming from a kind

On the surface, this delineation of ideolo-

bourne, a doctor and writer for Psychol-

of cynicism which is skeptical of even the

gies sounds like two equally valid ways of

ogy Today, “Humiliation is defined as

idea of objective truth, this form of rheto-

stratifying the priorities of a state. How

the emotion you feel when your status is

ric displaces the importance of truth and

can something this seemingly moderate

lowered in front of others. You may feel

replaces it with “what is true for me.”

lead to the vitriolic aggression between the

annoyed with yourself when you make a

unacknowledged benefits. It gives us the

rather than viewing any disagreement as

less others are around to witness it, that’s

opportunity to be more sensitive to other

just a disagreement, we see it as a conflict

all you’ll feel. You generally need someone

people’s feelings and to consider lived

between two opposing teams, and we are

else on hand in order to feel humiliated by

experience as a necessarily genuine repre-

supposed to pick a side. Suddenly, Republi-

mistakes.”

sentation of reality from another person’s

cans don’t want small government, they’re

perspective. We are forced to acknowledge

“religious nutjobs” who support “fake

likely compounded by the technological

the nuance and multiplicity of complicated

news.” They’re “misogynists, racists, and

age and our ability to have the right answer

issues, recognizing that maybe no one

homophobes.” And Democrats don’t want

at our fingertips at any given moment—if

person is completely “right” or “wrong”

more regulation, they’re “bleeding heart

you can Google it, you no longer have an

on the issue. This can be very good, given

libtards” and “members of the deep state”

excuse to be wrong. Because we’re aware

that historically we have discounted lived

and “baby-killers.” We are tribal, defin-

of how easy it is be right and how difficult

experience as little more than anecdotes,

ing ourselves as much by those we stand

it is to be wrong about any given piece of

exceptions that prove the rule. We have

against as those we stand with. We crave

information, we feel all the more mortified

regarded feelings as the wimpy things that

this conflict, this circus, because we want

when we don’t have the answers.

get hurt when you “can’t handle” whatever

to be right and fear being wrong.

This sensation is, in my estimation,

sations, then, we can be intimidated by the lack of definitive rightness. This has led

the coffee lids in lower - They do their job, for a little. But when that singular drop of coffee weasels its way through the supposedly secure cup-lid seal, your entire day becomes significantly worse because you have to walk around with one or two drips of coffee on your shirt for the rest of the day. Fundamentally, this is a flaw that really makes it so that Lower’s coffee lids don’t quite meet the definition of a lid. But they also make the coffee taste like plastic. Since it’s so ungodly hot, something happens to the plastic so that it somehow transfers its awful and probably toxic essence into the drink you need to survive. nascar - It’s loud. It’s obnoxious. It’s dangerous. But fundamentally, it’s literally just a bunch of cars driving around in circles really fast. Sure, I bet that’s really hard. There are a lot of cars, and they’re all trying to be the first one, and it’s easy to lose control when you’re driving so fast. But there’s nothing enjoyable about that. It’s only interesting during the last 10 seconds of a close race, or when something bad happens. But that’s terrible to say because the drivers can get seriously injured if something goes wrong. They should just make it like Mario Kart. That’d be fun to watch.

Like Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down? Follow us @BCTUTD

two parties that we see today? It’s because

mistake or fail to know an answer, but un-

Thinking about more nuanced conver-

On the one hand, this may have several

One only need examine the current

task is at hand, or as things that inherently cloud our judgement.

In a world where feelings are more valid than facts and our feelings are

On the other hand, though, this also

organic, important, and worthy of expres-

to a shift in language over the years—it’s

creates a void in the conversation where

sion, our opinions are therefore extensions

very rare that I hear a fellow student say

objectivity was—a space to be populated

of ourselves. To disagree with an opinion

“I think” when defending their position,

by disinformation, misinformation, and

is to disagree with the foundations of one’s

but rather “I feel”: “I feel like Age of Ultron

worse, non-information (such as the

personhood, and that is dangerous.

was worse than Infinity Wars,” or “I feel like

recent trend among corporate entities

standardized testing is a scam.” This kind

to release memes and other entertaining

of visceral language positions us to regard

non-sequiturs on social media rather than

our opinions less like malleable ideas we’ve

information to advertise their product).

Kate Colombo is an op-ed columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

Escaping the Conventional Flow

Vaughn Feighan When’s the last time you watched your favorite childhood movie? The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Frozen, Aladdin, Cinderella, and Hercules—they’ll all be cherished as some of the most influential films of our childhoods, at the very least. There’s no need, however, for them to be left behind in our elementary school years. We should re-watch these movies as young adults because we need to dive one league deeper to find that they function on more levels than we could originally comprehend. Finding Nemo is about more than a fish trying to find his son: It is about finding oneself outside the flow. During these four years at Boston College, as we search for jobs/study for tests/ party until the early hours of the morning, we have so much to do and so little time to do it. The job market is becoming exponentially more competitive—which is why we go to college in the first place—and we are told that we must adjust. We keep raising the bar for ourselves, but at the same time, we also are striving to preserve those things that we feel are at the core of our beings. Thankfully, our culture provides a simple path to “achieve success” so that our collective can be “the greatest on Earth”: Be an American. A contributor to the National Museum of American History’s website, A More Perfect Union, says that being an American is “being brave, being proud of this Country, and being confident that we will succeed. Being an American is an honor not a privilege.” These things are true, but while we try to succeed and be Americans, we lose sight of those things which make life worth living in the first place because the “American” current is so strong.

I recently re-watched Pixar’s Finding Nemo with my younger sister. If you know the movie, then you know Crush, the surfer-dude sea turtle who rescued Marlin from the jellyfish field. We are introduced to the chilled-out bro-turtle when Marlin wakes and finds that he is traveling through the East Australian Current as he searches for his son, Nemo. In this scene, there are thousands of turtles floating in a massive, foamy, cylindrical current as they make their way around Australia. Although Marlin thinks that the EAC is where he wanted to be, and indeed it is because it will provide a form of transportation that will efficiently get him to his son, Crush tells him that the current is going to sweep them past Sydney—specifically 42 Wallaby Way. Marlin has two options. First, he can ride with the subdued turtles until he gets close enough to Sydney, exerting little to no effort while hanging on to Crush’s shell. He risks, however, missing the city completely because the water will be moving so quickly that a single extra second “in the current” can dispel him toward a completely different part of the Australian coast, requiring even more effort to make it to Sydney. The second option is riskier: Marlin can leave the protection of the current somewhat immediately and propel himself into the vast blue ocean beyond. The East Australian Current represents our lives. At BC (and practically every other similar institution) we are learning the tools to figuratively maintain our position inside the current—to be part of the workforce— while experimenting to find where we fit best instead of finding what best fits us. After all, college is about preparing us for the real world, which is synonymous for the working world. But currents have no end: They go around and around. Going with the flow is ultimately detrimental to our personal well being because “the flow” is a stream of thoughts/actions/norms/values that ensnare us all. We lose our innate sense of individuality. Many of us, myself included,

rarely venture outside the current because the emphasized and innate aspects of our culture—money, power, prestige, influence—are goals that we can measure and concretely obtain. These alone can give us a purpose and something to strive for. We tell ourselves that the current is literally going to take us around the world while, in actuality, the current shows us very little of it. We need to remove ourselves from its conventional flow and swim towards the open water, even though it represents the unknown. Especially at BC, where entities such as the BC Bubble exist, the social constructs and pre-paved pathways are overwhelming, and so incredibly easy to get caught in. The college system separates its student body into a preconceived and regularly enforced system of majors and minors that will “most definitely” lead us down a path that will make us happy. A college degree is the new high school diploma, and a college degree today is necessary to be a valued member of society. Unconventionality and going against the flow are not guarantees for success because they are riskier and harder than the alternative. It is a necessary step, however, should you want to experience the world instead of passing it by behind a veil of bubbles and white water. I originally wanted to end by saying “Just keep swimming,” then realized this was also indoctrinated American culture. “Just keep swimming” tells us that we need to keep a goal ahead of us and not stop swimming until we get achieve it, whereas the real question lies in what we decide that goal should be. Removing ourselves from the current is the only way that we can find out who we are. I guarantee you that when you find those things that excite you, “first you [will be] like ‘whoa,’ and we [will be] like ‘whoa,’ and you [will be] like ‘whoa.’”

Vaughn Feighan is an op-ed columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

The opinions and commentaries of the op-ed columnists appearing on this page represent the views of the author or artist of that particular piece, and not necessarily the views of The Heights. Any of the columnists for the Opinions section of The Heights can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

Success

Shannon Lyons

For a large part of my life, I clung tightly to the notion that successful people “expect the worst, and hope for the best.” Growing up, I shared in this common—albeit irrational—belief that too much optimism was blinding and that thinking too highly of the future would inevitably result in disappointment. In retrospect, I think this attitude first developed when I began playing sports as a child: The first time that I hit a homerun in little league softball, I was completely caught off guard. I do not recall which Dad had been guilted into standing on the mound to toss painfully-slow, underhand pitches that particular day, but I remember vividly the feeling of the metal bat vibrating in my hands as the neon ball went sailing into left field. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Relishing in my glory after the game, I tried to recall exactly what I had done prior to stepping up to the plate: What had I eaten for dinner? What color socks had I been wearing? What song had I listened to on the way to the field? Eventually, I settled on the notion that I had not done anything at all—that I had not expected anything. In fact, though I didn’t necessarily want to admit it, there was part of me anticipating a strike-out or a mere ground ball down the third-base line. And so, at the ripe age of 10, I came to the conclusion that it was best to expect the expectable and that contemplating the “worst-case scenario,” in every situation, would only soften the blow if things did go awry. Fortunately, not all childhood beliefs remain with us forever. Over time, I came to realize that “expecting the worst” was a defense mechanism that was not protecting me at all but was in fact enhancing my own likelihood of failure and misfortune. There is a direct correlation between the nature of our thoughts and the fabric of our individual realites. People often dismiss this notion, prematurely deeming it to be a new age clichè associated with the abstract law of attraction. There is real scientific evidence linking high success rates—in areas like academics, business, and medicine— back to positive thinking, however. In January of 2018 a group of Stanford scientists published a study exploring why elementary-school students, who claim to enjoy math, tend

“...‘expecting the worst’ was a defense mechanism that was not protecting me at all...” to perform better in the subject than those who express an aversion to it. As they expected, the scientists found that students who approached the subject of math with a positive attitude performed significantly better than those who claimed to hate the subject. Moreover, the brain scans showed that a student who is fond of math has a far more active hippocampus than those who possess negative feelings toward the subject. “Based on our data, the unique contribution of positive attitude to math achievement is as large as the contribution from IQ,” the study’s lead author, Lang Chen, said. Of course, we cannot will ourselves to enjoy a subject we naturally dislike. We can, however, hold ourselves accountable for the attitude which we bring to any given subject, situation, or set of circumstances. Too often we forget that we can ignore our own logic and empirical insights—we can resist the urge to assume that our past mistakes will inevitably recur in the future. We are the artists of our own expectations—whatever we can imagine, we can anticipate. And, nine times out of 10, what we can anticipate is what we will get.

Shannon Lyons is an op-ed columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

The Heights

Monday, October 29, 2018

Gabrielle Oliveira Tells Immigrant Stories Between the Statistics As an ssistant professor at the Lynch School of Education, Oliveira’s teaching increases visibility of anthropology at BC. By Andrea Pita For The Heights In 2016, 45 percent of immigrants to the United States were of Latino origin. Five percent were between the ages of 5 and 17. 1.1 million children under the age of 18 live with one Latin American immigrant parent. But Professor Gabrielle Oliveira is more interested in the stories between these statistics. In Motherhood Across Borders: Immigrants and their Children in Mexico and New York, published this summer by New York University Press, Oliveira tells the stories of women who kiss their children goodbye, step out the door, and travel miles across imaginary lines, arriving in the United States with nothing more than a mother’s love and the hope of bountiful opportunity. Through empathetic language and comprehensive anthropological research completed at Boston College, Oliveira has become a voice for immigrant mothers across international borders who feel the strain of separation with every step they take away from their children. While Oliveira is now an American citizen, she is no stranger to the disorienting effects of immigration—Oliveira was born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil. “For a long time, you don’t realize the limbo that you are in, in terms of your identity and how much you want to participate, and how much you feel like you betrayed a country, a land, a people,” Oliveira said. While in São Paulo, she completed her undergraduate degree in international affairs at the Fundacão Armando Alvares Penteado. Leading up to her time as an undergraduate student, Oliveira had intentions of assuming the role of diplomat. She was prepared to live abroad, constantly immersed in travel and work. Oliveira admits that it was always unclear to her whether she would have the opportunity to settle down and start a family. During her sophomore and junior years, she worked with a student-run organization that fostered an exchange program, bringing students to work in Brazil while sending students to other parts of the world. Oliveira soon realized that it would be difficult for her to commit to a position of diplomacy. Disclosing opinions is a crucial part of who Oliveira is—she could not come to terms with the idea of having to censor her words. This shifted the course of her career. She began contemplating pursing work within an international

organization like the United Nations. After completing her undergraduate degree, Oliveira worked in FGV Centro de Estudos em Sustentabilidade, a research center for sustainability studies. She conducted a research project that investigated microfinances within the favelas, or slums, in São Paolo. Her work focused on identifying trends surrounding how people would extract loans, invest money, and complete repayments. Oliveira was faced with surprising results, however, which shifted the focus of her research. Oliveira found that there was a correlation between maternal responsibility and timely payments. Women would be far more mindful of paying back loans and their businesses proved extremely stable as a way of maintaining a secure household. Unlike women, men would be consistent with payments up to the first two years, after which they would squander their money in alcohol and tobacco. These discrepancies led her to investigate gender roles within family units. The research yielded interesting results regarding patriarchy. She said she found that on average, men seemed to be extremely dissatisfied with the success of women within the household. Over time, a man would grow resentful of a woman’s new role in the household and would interfere with her progress. This caused women to eventually fail to commplete payments. Oliveira’s boss at the time encouraged her to apply to Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs as it was one of the strongest programs in the country. After applying to numerous schools, she was admitted to Columbia University to complete an M.A. in international affairs, Latin American studies, and gender. Oliveira made the move to New York at the age of 23. She found herself dissatisfied with the lack of depth dedicated to certain topics within the courses. The shortterm investigation of country’s policies was insufficient for her. She longed for more in-depth investigations into the complexities of distinct countries, instead of just the quick surveys she found in the classroom. This led her to take anthropology classes, which sparked her desire to pursue a Ph.D. in this field at Columbia University’s Teachers College, upon the completion of her master’s. Oliveira continued her research in microfinance during the course of her time at Columbia University. She spent her summers working with an international organization in Mexico called

FINCA, a not-for-profit microfinance organization referred to as the “World Bank for the Poor,” where she focused on studying loans, primarily for women. While conducting her research, she became perplexed by the realization that families were comprised of mostly children and their grandparents. “I was thinking, where are the people in their reproductive age?” she said. Seemingly, the majority of parents had migrated to the United States—this notion intrigued Oliveira. Up to that point, there was a great deal of research on what the migrant experience looked like on respective sides of the border. There was a void in understanding familial connections through borders that had destabilizing effects. “I got really excited and inspired by this idea of looking at how families organize across borders,” said Oliveira. Oliveira conducted ethnography studies, which entailed asking the same questions to the same group of immigrants and children both in New York and Mexico over the course of three years. She was intrigued by the dynamic between parents and their children across borders, which instigated fieldwork in these regions. This would later become the voice of her recently published book, Motherhood Across Borders: Immigrants and their Children in Mexico and New York. Currently working as an assistant professor at the Lynch School of Education, Oliveira shares her knowledge of and curiosity for anthropology with her students. After seeing the job posting, Oliveira saw this as an opportunity to bring anthropology to BC, which does not have a department dedicated to the field. “She’s brought a much-needed visibility to anthropology as a sort of important field that attunes us in education around the people and movement in the context … of all the work we do,” said John Wargo, Oliveira’s colleague and assistant professor in Lynch. The current politics surrounding immigration has made it increasingly difficult to cope with the physical deconstruction of families. Oliveira noted that despite talk of high walls and rigid structures, families across borders vigorously fought to remain united—while they were not physically together, they were able to remain emotionally connected through technology. “That doesn’t take away the pain of separation, it doesn’t take away the longing that children have for their parents,” said Oliveira. Oliveira believed it was important

Sam Zhai / heights staff

Oliveira tells stories of women forced to leave their children to immigrate in her new book. to voice, within her writing, the experiences of these individuals as a family unit struggling to stay together against all odds, rather than as victims of immigration and education policies. Upon further investigation, Oliveira saw that one of the underlying justifications for immigration was access to a better education. This is a central part of the narrative of immigration concerning a mother’s move across borders, which Oliveira spent a great deal of time and research on. For Oliveira, the importance of education always extended beyond the confines of the classroom—education is not only about learning math equations or analyzing literary works, but about a narrative far larger than the institutions themselves. “Gabby really sort of exemplifies and humanizes the social contexts of schooling, but also takes these huge abstract ideas and concepts like immigration and motherhood, and she amplifies the voices behind the condition,” Wargo said. Oliveira noticed that in America, theories of education are generally concentrated within academic settings. The significance of education differs greatly from those in Latin American countries such as Brazil. In Portuguese the meaning of educação, or education, is concerned with the experiences that provide moral and social maturity. “[Education is] a discourse for the betterment of children’s life,” said Oliveira.

It was important for her to write a book rather than an article because she wanted the ability to tell the story of these immigrants from beginning to end. She hoped it would create a more profuse impact on her readers. “You have to be really careful about how you speak about people because there is a power struggle, as well, of me being a professor at a university writing about the lives of vulnerable folks,” she said. Oliveira sees recent immigration scandals as means to implant fear across the world. People will continue to fight for their families, however, and will work for greater opportunity at any cost. The dangers associated with immigration speak to the urgency that families feel for achieving a more stable life. “[Immigrants] are doing this for this for the better future of their children,” said Oliveira. “This is not…the discourse of people being bad or trying to take advantage of the American system.” One of the greatest misconceptions associated with immigrants is the idea that they either fully integrate themselves into society or fail to become part of this nation. The stereotypes that are associated with this are debilitating because they perpetuate that idea that those who are unable to assimilate will not succeed in this country. “Whenever I hear these discourses in education of this deficit narrative, for me, is heartbreaking because the children often internalize [what they] don’t know versus what I know, what I can give, and what I can offer,” she said. n

‘Politics 365’: Talking, Practicing, Teaching, Experiencing Politics The Edward M. Kennedy Institute hosted a panel to explore ways of activating and expanding the Mass. electorate. By Isabel Fenoglio Asst. Metro Editor Boston residents packed into the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate on Monday evening to hear a panel of political experts discuss how to activate and expand the Massachusetts electorate. “Here at the institute one of things we work on everyday is how to increase civic education and understanding and contribute to a healthy democracy and a healthy society,” said Mary Grant, president of the institute, in her opening address. The message of the night was simple: it’s time for individuals to hold themselves responsible for the current political climate and become more active in the political process everyday, not just during major election cycles. “With election day just a few weeks away, there’s a lot at stake and a lot of interest around the midterm elections and what’s coming. But we also know what happens the day after elections is equally important,” Grant added.

In preparation for the midterm elections on Nov. 6, panelists lead a conversation which reflected on the results of September’s primaries and analyzed how Massachusetts can make voting easier and more accessible. The panel of speakers featured Cheryl Clyburn Crawford, executive director of MassVOTE; Wilnelia Rivera, founder and principal of Rivera Consulting; and Nancy Thomas, director of the Institute of Democracy and Higher Education for the Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University. Richard Chacon, executive director of news content for WBUR, served as the moderator. He kicked off conversation by offering statistics surrounding Massachusetts voting patterns. There are currently 4.5 million registered voters in Mass, and 29 political parties and designations, who call themselves everything from the Constitutional Party to the Pizza Party. “These are the highest rates ever in this state, but our turnout rate is going down,” continued Chacon. “For this recent primary in September 2018, the turnout percentage rate was 22 percent. There is a strange dis-

Photo Courtesty of the Edward m. Kennedy Institute

connect, and it is not unique to Mass., but a national problem.” Clyburn Crawford attributed the disconnect to education. “People don’t know what’s really at stake. I don’t think we are doing a good enough job in showing them how to connect the dots so they can make the right decisions,” she said. Clyburn Crawford went on to stress the need for grassroots organizations to continue to register voters, but also educate them on how and where to vote. Rivera argued that the disconnect stemmed from something much deeper. “‘The problem is that most voters see democracy as a spectator sport. You know, you pick your favorite team, you watch the season, and if they aren’t doing that great you say ‘I’m just not going to pay attention anymore,’” she said. Rivera argued that to change this mindset, campaigns must completely remodel how they market and communicate with voters. “The responsibility of those of us who are your political strategists or people on the ground as organizers is understanding the mediums that will get people to listen,” she said. “We cannot wait until elections to talk to people, we need to talk to voters all year round, and we need to talk to everybody,” Rivera said. “Campaigns ignore entire demographics of people they believe won’t vote, and this can’t happen anymore.” Thomas talked about the need for everyday participation on a national level, and outlined a concept she called “politics 365”. “It is the idea that you should be talking politics, practicing politics, teaching politics, and experiencing politics 365 days of the year, not just during an election season,”

Photo Courtesty of the Edward m. Kennedy Institute

There are 4.5 million registered voters in Mass., and 29 political parties and designations. she said. “Elections seasons are wonderful teaching moments, and they are great opportunities to engage people, but it does not stop on election day. Conversation shifted to current legislative reform, and what Mass. government can do to promote voter participation. Clyburn Crawford praised current efforts, citing a civics education requirement passed last July by Mass. legislature. She argued that educating youth is essential towards activating the electorate and creating engaged voters. “Civics in high school, even in elementary school, is critical,” she stressed. “We need to start educating our children much earlier. We need to teach them early on not to be afraid of the process and also how to think and act critically so they can make their own informed decisions”. Thomas argued that the bulk of responsibility lies not only on government,

but individuals to uphold democracy. She identified a major problem with voting: complexity. “There are technical and motivational barriers to voting. If voting is hard, if it’s inconvenient, if the polling places are far away, people don’t do it,” she said. Discussion ended on the growing trend of state legislation and policy making through ballot questions. “Ballot initiatives, I think, really reflect frustration with the political process more broadly. To some extent the need to have them is a reflection on a real weakness if not failure in our government,” said Thomas. “On the other hand, they are kinda cool. I really love the idea of direct democracy and letting every-day citizens come up with ideas and put them on the ballot. The main challenge I think is how to get voters informed about all of them.” n

@HEIGHTSSPORTS

MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018 FOOTBALL

After Five-Week Hiatus, BC Returns to AP Poll Ranked No. 24 BY ANDY BACKSTROM Sports Editor When then-No. 23 Boston College football suffered a 30-13 blowout loss to Purdue on Sept. 22, it looked as if the Eagles’ six-day stay in the AP Top 25—the program’s first appearance in the weekly poll since 2008—would be remembered as nothing more than a blip in the early-season rankings. But on Sunday afternoon, two days removed from BC’s 27-14 victory over Miami, head coach Steve Addazio’s team reentered the Top 25, this time

as the No. 24 team in the country. The news marks the 18th time in program history that the Eagles have earned a spot in the poll multiple weeks in the same season. Friday night’s performance certainly paved the way for BC’s ascent. Not only did the Eagles upend the Hurricanes, but they did so in dominant fashion. BC took Miami’s vaunted defense by storm, using a couple trick plays to fuel a 209yard first quarter. Keep in mind, prior to the weekend, the Hurricanes—at the time, the second-rated defense in the country—were only conceding 237 total

yards of offense per game. The Eagles were just as, if not more, impressive on the other side of the ball. Isaiah McDuffie and Connor Strachan stuffed the stat sheet, Zach Allen and Wyatt Ray collapsed the pocket, and Hamp Cheevers and Taj-Amir Torres picked off Malik Rosier, overshadowing Miami’s turnover chain. When all was said and done, defensive coordinator Jim Reid’s unit held the Hurricanes to 305 yards of total offense. Over the course of the past two games, BC has only allowed 261 yards—on average, 175.8 less than it gave up to FBS teams through the first

BOSTON COLLEGE 27

six weeks of the 2018 campaign. For the first time since 2009, the Eagles have piled up six wins before the month of November. They’re not the only ones to orchestrate a revolutionary season, though. Both Syracuse and Virginia—two teams that haven’t won more than six games in a season the last four years—cracked the AP Poll on Sunday. As a result, the Orange, which clocked in at No. 22, has officially ended its 17year hiatus outside the Top 25. UVA, on the other hand, is making its first return to the poll since 2011. Of course, at this point, Clemson—

one of three undefeated teams in the Top 25—is a mainstay inside the top five, ranking second in the nation for the second-straight week. With a victory over Virginia Tech on Saturday, the Eagles will have themselves a pivotal matchup with the Tigers the following weekend, a game that could very well decide the Atlantic Division winner. But first BC will have to take down the Hokies in Blacksburg, Va.—a Coastal Division foe that has dealt the Eagles their worst loss of the season each of the past two years and, historically, posted a 3-1 record against ranked BC teams. 

MIAMI 14

RAISING THE BAR

JONATHAN YE / FOR THE HEIGHTS

In the ﬁfth annual Welles Crowther Red Bandana Game, BC upended Miami, recording six wins before the month of November for the ﬁrst time since 2009, in effect, elevating expectations surrounding the program. BY ANDY BACKSTROM Sports Editor . Miami entered Friday night’s game against Boston College football with the second-ranked total defense in all of college football. The Hurricanes—renowned for their big-play ability and “turnover chain”—had tallied 17 takeaways and 81 tackles for loss, 10 more than any other team in the country through the first eight weeks of play. Not only that, but head coach Mark Richt’s crew clocked in at second in the country against the pass and 12th in the FBS against the run. Apparently, the Eagles didn’t get the message. Using a variety of gadget plays, offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler picked apart the Miami defense

on the Eagles’ opening two drives. Anthony Brown spread the ball to an assortment of receivers, and A.J. Dillon—making his return to the lineup after missing the previous two games with a left ankle injury—rumbled through the trenches. By the end of the quarter, the Eagles had logged 209 yards of total offense. To put that in perspective, Miami had only been allowing 237 yards per game all year. Eventually, BC’s productivity dipped, but it didn’t matter. The Eagles’ defense was there to pick up the slack, forcing a pair of third-quarter interceptions. Throughout the entirety of the primetime matchup—the fifth annual Welles Crowther Red Bandanna Game—head coach Steve Addazio’s team

See Football Vs. Miami, A11

BY BRADLEY SMART Assoc. Sports Editor When the ESPN cameras cut to Boston College football head coach Steve Addazio on the sideline after his quarterback Anthony Brown kneeled out the clock on a 27-14 win over Miami, fans were greeted with a beaming, end-to-end smile. It was an understandable reaction for the much-maligned Eagles head coach, who is finally off to a 6-2 start for the first time during his six-year stay in Chestnut Hill and has just clinched bowl eligibility for the third year in a row. It was a big win, without a doubt, especially one for a program that welcomed back its marquee running back A.J. Dillon and was facing one of

the country’s top defensive teams. The primetime game in front of a packed—and loud—Alumni Stadium featured an impressive opening surge from the Eagles, who displayed plenty of poise on the big stage. Here are three thoughts the day after BC’s Red Bandanna Game victory over the visiting Hurricanes. 1) Even at less than 100 percent, Dillon is a force to be reckoned with The fog of mystery surrounding the Eagles’ 245-pound preseason Heisman candidate coming into this week was thick. Yes, Addazio said that he’d be ready for the Friday night matchup, but people

See NOTE Vs. Miami, A12

Men’s Hockey’s Struggles Magniﬁed by Success of Other BC Sports

PETER KIM When I arrived on campus as a freshman just over two years ago, Boston College men’s hockey was one of the best teams on campus. The Eagles had made the Frozen Four the season before, losing narrowly to Quinnipiac, and despite losing 11 players to graduation or the NHL, were once again expected to be a force to be reckoned with. They

INSIDE SPORTS

were ranked No. 5 in the preseason USCHO poll and No. 9 in the preseason USA Today Poll—and with nine players that had been drafted by NHL teams still on the roster, BC was expected to contend for not just the Hockey East regular season title, but another national championship. For a while, it looked as if Jerry York and Co. might do just that. The Eagles were 10-2-1 to begin the season with wins over No. 3 Denver and No. 14 Providence, and reached as high as No. 3 in the polls going into a matchup with Harvard. But BC wound up losing that game, 5-2, in what was a sign of things to come. The Eagles struggled mightily down the stretch, finishing last in the

Beanpot for the first time since 1993-94 and going winless in their last seven games. They also lost in the Hockey East Tournament championship to Massachusetts Lowell, a defeat that kept them out of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008-09. BC’s downward spiral has continued since then. The 2017-18 team lost five of its first six games and went winless in non-conference play, losing to national powerhouses Denver and St. Cloud State, but also to lesser opponents such as Michigan Tech. In the Beanpot, the Eagles slumped to a fourth-place finish for the second consecutive year for the first time since the 1973-74 and 1974-75 seasons, ignominiously losing in the first

round to Northeastern before dropping the consolation to Harvard. Although the team did eventually win the Hockey East regular season title, it was something of a hollow victory. BC failed to make the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year, losing in the conference semifinals in overtime to Boston University. And anyways, anyone who watched the Eagles throughout the year knew that the team wasn’t as good as BU, Providence, or Northeastern—the three Hockey East teams that ended up going to the NCAAs. Despite reeling in one of the best recruiting classes in the country and returning its top-three leading scor-

VOLLEY: Eagles Drop Two Road Matches MHOK: BC Falls Flat Against No. 2 Huskies

ers, BC looks even worse this season. The Eagles are a dismal 0-4, have been outscored 18-5, and still haven’t won a non-conference game since November 2016, a streak of 714 days. It’s safe to say this is a team entering a crisis. And if it can’t stop this recent trend, the spot that the hockey team has occupied in the campus consciousness is at risk. No one is denying that the Eagles, historically, are one of the best college hockey programs in the country, and certainly BC’s most successful team. Men’s hockey remains the Eagles’ only major varsity sport to capture an NCAA championship. It’s that success that has

Losing Interest, A10

SPORTS IN SHORT...........................A10 After snapping a seven-game losing streak, BC’s ACC struggles Despite outshooting St. Cloud State, the Eagles suffered a WOMEN’S SOCCER..............................A11 resumed over the weekend.......................................................A12 7-0 defeat, moving to 0-4 on the season............................ A11 WOMEN’S HOCKEY...............................A12

The Heights

A10

Monday, October 29, 2018

FIELD HOCKEY

Eagles Snap Losing Streak in Senior Day Win Over Rival BU By Peter Kim Asst. Sports Editor

In its last three games, Boston College field hockey has played ranked opponents close, outshooting and drawing more penalty corner Boston Univ. 0 opportunities Boston College 1 than the last three teams it’s faced. Even so, the Eagles have been unable to capitalize, losing all three games by one goal. On Sunday, the story offensively was the same. BC outshot Boston University, 10-5, and had six corner opportunities to the Terriers’ three, but still only managed one goal. This time, however, the defense stepped up, keeping BU off the board to preserve a 1-0 win on Senior Day—the

Eagles’ first shutout since September. The game started quietly, with both sides attempting to grab a foothold. BC (108, 2-4 Atlantic Coast) had the first chance of the game 11 minutes in, when Elizabeth Warner fired a shot on goal that Terriers (10-7, 6-0 Patriot League) netminder Elizabeth Warner was able to push away. The rebound fell to Elizabeth Dennehy, but she wasn’t able to beat Kathleen Keegan, whose second save kept the game scoreless. The Eagles continued to press, and Eva Van de Mierop was the next BC player to find a shooting opportunity, but she saw her shot blocked by a determined BU defender. Warner also created space to shoot, yet couldn’t hit the target, slapping the ball wide. The Terriers didn’t record a shot

until the 33rd minute, when they won two penalty corners in quick succession. The first one was cleared by the BC defense, but on the second, Ally Hammel put a shot on target, forcing Jonna Kennedy into her first save of the game. Seconds later, Hammel landed another shooting opportunity—this time, she failed to test Kennedy, pushing the ball wide. BC had one final corner with no time remaining in the half, but Ymke Rose Gote—one of seven seniors being honored for Senior Day—couldn’t mark the occasion with a goal, as her shot was controlled by Keegan. None of the Eagles seniors came up with the decisive moment in their final home game. That was reserved for freshman van de Mierop. Five minutes into the second half, BC won a penalty corner, and

Haverhals inserted the ball into the circle. Rose Gote stopped it for van de Mierop, and the freshman made no mistake, firing an arrow into the corner past Keegan for her first collegiate goal. BU looked for an immediate response and nearly found it just minutes later, as Kiley Gallagher and Jordyn Beesmer both had shots stopped by BC defenders. Then, with just seven minutes remaining, an effort off a penalty corner from the Terriers’ Petra Hall was saved by a scrambling Kennedy to preserve the lead. Meanwhile, the Eagles had several chances of their own to increase their onegoal advantage, but couldn’t provide any sort of insurance. Haverhals had a shot saved by Keegan, and soon after, Cassidy Atchison’s attempt was deflected out of

danger. Fusine Govaert had one final chance to put the finishing touches on a win, but Keegan came up with another stop in the waning seconds to keep the scoreline close. With the victory, the Eagles closed the regular season on a high note and sent their group of seven seniors—Brooke Matherson, Dennehy, Carly Kauffman, Alyssa Olenick, Rose Gote, Lucy Lytle, and Haverhals—out the right way. The senior class compiled a record of 44-35 during its time on the Heights and helped BC to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2015 and 2016. The group has a chance to send the Eagles back there again, but despite the win, it’s clear they still have some offensive issues to work out if they hope to make a postseason push. n

MEN’S SOCCER

BC Plays to Scoreless Draw Against Syracuse in Regular Season Finale By Mike Malley Heights Staff

Boston College men’s soccer came into the weekend having endured an excruciatingly painful stretch of two weeks of play. The Eagles Syracuse 0 had lost their Boston College 0 last four games, all of which were closely contested, by a combined score of only 7-4, with the loss against then-No. 5 UNC being the only game decided by more than one goal. Interestingly enough, that loss to the Tar Heels would go down as BC’s lone twoplus score regular season defeat. On Friday night, the Eagles battled with Syracuse for 110 minutes before tying the Orange in double overtime, 0-0. With the score deadlocked at zero throughout a full 90 minutes and a pair of extra frames, to say that the match was a defensive standstill would be redundant. While neither side managed to score, both teams had lots of chances and took a handful of shots. It didn’t matter, though—the defenses were up to the task.

The first half was dominated by the No. 20 Orange (7-5-4, 1-4-3 Atlantic Coast), which recorded 13 shots, but Eagles (4-7-4, 2-5-1) goalkeeper Antonio Chavez Borrelli was on his A game. A huge moment came in the 13th minute, when Chavez Borrelli came out of the penalty box to head away a fantastic over-the-top ball from a Syracuse defender. The header only managed to get as far as Syracuse forward Tajon Buchanan, who was standing around midfield. Buchanan tried to lob the ball into the back of the net over Chavez Borrelli, who was sent scrambling back into his own goal, but put a hand up to block the shot just as it was about to cross the line. The ball found itself at the feet of Orange forward Ryan Raposo, who blasted a shot back at the goal, but Chavez Borrelli again showed his athleticism by diving to make the stop. Raposo got the ball back and sent a shot wide of the net to end the sequence with BC lucky to have kept the score tied. The rest of the first half ended uneventfully, with the score tied at zero going into the break. For the most part, Syracuse—which

tallied nine shots compared to BC’s four— also controlled the latter portion of play, but the Orange simply couldn’t get the ball past Chavez Borrelli. The second half saw the game get more physical than the first, which set the tone for the two overtime periods as well. BC’s defense and midfield were not afraid to body Syracuse players off the ball and take the consequent fouls. The Eagles totaled 16 infractions on the game, including two yellow cards, whereas Syracuse only logged five fouls. The pace and craftiness of the Orange forwards were no match for BC’s physicality, and this was a big reason why the Eagles kept a clean sheet. There were no plays of extreme importance in the second half, despite Syracuse’s shot volume, and overtime started with the game still scoreless. The biggest chance in overtime came off a Syracuse corner, when the ball was launched toward the front post and BC forward Simon Enstrom tried to clear it, but his attempt ricocheted off his head in the direction of his own goal. Fortunately for the Eagles, a defender was stationed at the back post and headed it out of danger.

Jonathan Ye / For The Heights

The Eagles couldn’t get anything going offensively in their scoreless draw with Syracuse.

BC created a legitimate scoring chance when junior Trevor Davock made a sublime cut in on his favored right foot, but the forward’s shot ended up in the arms of Syracuse goalkeeper Hendrik Hilpert, and the game concluded in a scoreless draw. BC must now wait to find out what seed it will receive in the ACC Tournament, which will be determined by the outcome of the two remaining conference matches taking place on Saturday night: Clemson

versus North Carolina State and Notre Dame versus Pittsburgh. Sitting in ninth place following their draw with the Orange, the Eagles could only be displaced in the standings if the Panthers were to beat Notre Dame. BC would move down to the 10 seed with Pittsburgh replacing them at nine. BC hasn’t had much luck all season, dropping six one-goal games. Now the Eagles will need it more than ever to make a postseason push. n

Men’s Hockey Must Start Winning Again to Draw Fans Back Losing Interest, from A9 earned the team such a prominent place on the Heights beside traditional major revenue sports teams such as football and men’s basketball. Since football was last in the ACC Championship in 2008, and men’s basketball last made the NCAA Tournament in the 2008-09 season,the men’s hockey team has appeared in the Frozen Four four times and won two national championships. Ironically, that same success now works against the program. Because the team has historically been so good, expectations from fans and students are sky-high. So when the team starts 0-3, people lose interest quickly. That decline in interest was apparent in the home opener this season. Just 3,520 people came out to Thursday night’s game, a marquee matchup against St. Cloud State—the No. 2 team in the country. For some context, 5,263 people watched BC beat Colorado College in the 2016 home opener, and that Colorado College team was unranked. It doesn’t help that the Eagles lost, 7-0, to the

Huskies, further illustrating how much the team has dropped off as of late. Also not helping the hockey team is the emergence of other BC programs, such as football. In the past three years, the Eagles have been 4-4, 4-4, and 3-5 after eight games of play, fighting just to get back in the bowl discussion. This year? The Eagles are 6-2 after a win over Miami in the Red Bandanna Game with their sights set on something greater than just a bowl game. At this point, they’re a Virginia Tech road win and upset victory over Clemson away from a legitimate shot at the ACC Championship. Their rise has made the struggles of the men’s hockey team even more noticeable. With the football team playing better than it has in some time, hype has already pushed the hockey fandom toward the backseat. Men’s hockey’s 0-4 start has only served to move them even farther out of headlines. As another example, look at the men’s basketball team. Just two years after finishing winless in ACC play, the Eagles returned to the national scene in a big way in 2017-18, pulling

off a huge upset of No. 1 Duke at home and winning two games in the ACC Tournament. In addition, Jerome Robinson became the first lottery pick in program history. This season, the Eagles boast another potential lottery pick in Ky Bowman, the team’s first Top-100 recruit since Craig Smith in 2002 in Jairus Hamilton, and a solid supporting cast. Despite Robinson leaving for the NBA draft, excitement surrounding head coach Jim Christian’s team is ballooning. If BC stays hot for the remainder of the football season and ends up being competitive in the ACC in basketball again while the men’s hockey team continues to lose, fans’ attention will undoubtedly continue to shift to those teams, leaving York’s Eagles out of the picture. Now the obvious counterpoint is to question why people can’t follow both teams. And sure, there are certainly people who will continue to follow both teams closely. But for the casual sports fan, winter sports season often means picking and choosing which events to follow. After all, both

hockey teams and basketball teams play multiple times a week during weekdays. That’s unlike football, which plays just once a week on weekends. So BC sports fans will likely follow whichever sport is most talented, most successful, or both. In the past, the men’s hockey team ticked all the boxes, with NHL-ready talent like Chris Kreider, Johnny Gaudreau, and Alex Tuch lining the rosters and repeatedly leading the Eagles to the NCAA Tournament. Even though talent isn’t the problem for men’s hockey right now, the program is certainly starved for success. The team hasn’t won a tournament since the 2015 Beanpot. So until the hockey team returns to the level of fans’ expectations, spectators will look elsewhere to fill their weeknights. That’s not to say that more fans for men’s basketball is a bad thing, or that this isn’t a fixable problem. It’s just surreal to see Kelley Rink, with national championship and Frozen Four banners hanging from the ceilings, with so many empty seats at the start of the season. Let’s be honest, if

the Eagles start to cure their hockey woes, fans will come streaming back and packing the arena full once again. And the team has the right mix of talent and experience, not to mention one of, if not the, best college hockey coaches of all-time in Jerry York, to find long-term solutions and get back to looking like a Hockey East and national contender on a regular basis. But for now, men’s hockey’s shortcomings are a concern to both the long-term health of the program and the team’s popularity and following on campus. Fixing the structural issues of the team and finding out why a team with so much top-level quality has underachieved to a shocking degree this season is a big and necessary undertaking. That said, if the process makes a difference in the win column, it won’t take long for fans to notice the results, for Kelley Rink to fill up once again, and for the men’s hockey team to once again be the pride of BC.

Peter Kim is the Asst. Sports Editor for The Heights. He can be reached on Twitter @PeterKim_4

SPORTS in SHORT ACC Men’s Soccer Standings Conference overall Atlantic Wake Forest 7-1 16-1 Louisville 4-2-2 8-4-3 N.C. State 2-4-2 8-5-3 Boston College 2-5-1 4-7-4 Syracuse 1-4-3 7-5-4 Clemson 2-6 7-8-1 COASTAL North Carolina Duke Virginia Notre Dame Virginia Tech Pittsburgh

6-1 5-3 3-2-2 3-3-1 3-4-1 2-5

12-2-1 10-5-1 9-2-3 9-5-2 9-5-3 7-10

Numbers to know

Consecutive wins for women’s hockey after starting the season 0-2.

Goals scored by men’s soccer in the past three games. The team is 0-2-1 in that span.

Goals conceded by men’s hockey in four games to start the season.

QUote of the week

“I’ll give them that the ball didn’t go in, but there were four PKs.” — Women’s soccer head coach

Alison Foley, on the officiating during BC’s ACC quarterfinal loss to Clemson

THE HEIGHTS

MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018

A11

WOMEN’S SOCCER

Missed Chances, Calls Spell Doom for BC in ACC Quarterﬁnals BY BRADLEY SMART Assoc. Sports Editor Boston College women’s soccer trailed by a goal to Clemson late in the second half of Saturday’s Atlantic Coast quarterfinal, but it had all of Clemson 1 the momentum. Boston College 0 Time and time again, the Eagles would push forward, paced by Jenna Bike’s furious runs down the right flank. The crowd was on their side, oohing at each shot that went wide and at every lastditch Tiger clearance—it seemed inevitable that one of the highest-scoring offenses in the conference would break through with an equalizer. It never happened, though. In a bizarre final stretch, BC saw what had the potential to be a goal off a corner kick reviewed and upheld as a no goal, a blatant handball from Clemson in the box missed, and several physical tackles in the box not called as penalties. The final outcome was a frustrating 1-0 defeat for the Eagles (14-4-1, 6-3-1 Atlantic Coast), one that knocked them out of the ACC Tournament and forced them into a waiting game for the NCAA Tournament seedings that come out on Nov. 5.

“You never want to say anything, but I thought there were a couple of times that looked to me … I’ll give them that the ball didn’t go in, but there were four PKs,” head coach Alison Foley said afterward. “We can’t put our lives in the hands of referees—we know that. I thought we had plenty of other opportunities to score. “ The Tigers (12-7, 6-4) pressed early, catching a higher-seeded BC team off guard. They had a steady stream of chances, forcing goalie Alexis Bryant to punch out one cross and snag another. Courtney Jones created space down the right side with her speed on one lengthy run, and then the Tigers switched the field on their next possession and found a wide-open Miranda Weslake. She was able to cut back inside and get a shot off, but it was denied by Gianna Mitchell. The persistent offensive effort from Clemson eventually paid off in the game’s only goal in the 19th minute. Defender Sam Staab established herself as a deep throw-in threat from the outset, but it was when she mixed it up that BC made a costly defensive mistake. Staab, throwing from the left sideline, went short and found freshman forward Brooke Power, who quickly sent a pass back and made a run. Bike, caught between the two, attempted to close the

passing lane, but Staab’s one-time led Power to the end line. Tracking the ball, she caught up to it and sent a left-footed cross that slipped over over a leaping Kayla Duran and was promptly headed in by Mariana Speckmaier—the sophomore’s 10th goal on the season. After the goal, though, Clemson seemed content to sit back and defend. The Eagles started to push forward on offense, but something was clearly missing. The Tigers denied Sam Coffey any space, allowing her to receive the pass but preventing any movement with it. Olivia Vaughn made long runs, but time and time again, the ball was poked away in the final third, or she couldn’t catch up to a errant through ball. BC’s offense throughout the year has been speed-oriented, but it struggled to find any gaps in the Clemson defense. The final few minutes of the half revealed the Eagles team that would return after the break, though. Jillian Jennings nearly scored on a diving header after Coffey perfectly dropped a pass behind the defense on a free kick taken from near the half. When BC returned, it picked up where it left off. Bike was the primary creator of chances, earning a couple of corners with defense-stretching runs up the right side, then she nearly con-

KEITH CARROLL / HEIGHTS EDITOR

The Eagles outshot Clemson, 19-6, but were shut out for the second time this season. nected on a diving header next to Clemson goalie Sandy MacIver. Bike wasn’t able to find a goal, however, and neither was BC. The Eagles had plenty of looks, but their 19-6 edge in shots was ultimately rendered meaningless. Bike was tripped up in the box in the final few minutes, as was Gaby Carreiro, and while both pleaded for a call, referee John Brady’s whistle stayed quiet. It was a disappointing exit from the conference tournament for Foley’s squad, especially as it dropped its

first home game after going a perfect 11-0 in the regular season. All isn’t lost, though, as 19th-ranked BC is all but assured a spot in the field of 64 for the upcoming NCAA tournament. It’s surely a tough pill to swallow for Foley and the Eagles, who haven’t had a conference tournament win since 2010, but they’ll likely host a first-round game in the sport’s most prestigious event. That’s consolation enough for an overall strong year of conference play. 

FOOTBALL

Aggressive Play-Calling Sets the Stage for Victory Over Miami Football Vs. Miami, from A9 looked far superior to its Coastal Division counterpart, ultimately handing the Hurricanes a 27-14 loss, Miami’s (5-3, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) second-straight defeat. While Ben Glines and David Bailey filled the void in the backfield the previous few weeks, the Eagles (6-2, 3-1) are simply a different team with Dillon carrying the rock—that was evident the moment he stepped on the field Friday night. On BC’s first play from scrimmage, Brown handed the ball off to the sophomore back, and he promptly burst through the trenches for a 25-yard gain. With a bit more acceleration, he could have been gone. “I looked over at Coach [Brian] White and shook my head,” Dillon—admittingly not at 100 percent—told reporters after the game. “I should have just trusted my speed, I was thinking about the ankle on the first run.” Nonetheless, the chunk of yards served as a confidence boost and, more importantly, jumpstarted the Eagles’ best drive of the season. Soon enough, Brown turned to the air, hooking up with Tommy Sweeney for a 14-yard pickup. Two plays later, the redshirt sophomore dumped the ball off to

YARDS

483

another one of his tight ends, Korab Idrizi. Then, after pump faking a pass to Jeff Smith out on the flat, Brown went back to Sweeney in the middle of the field, infiltrating Hurricane territory in the process. Seconds later, Loeffler pulled the first trick play of the game out of his hat: a 27-yard double pass. Brown snapped the ball, took a twostep drop, and fired it to Smith, who was positioned a few yards behind the line of scrimmage. After catching the pass, the former quarterback hit Brown on a wheel route. As soon as the Cliffwood, N.J. native hauled in the reception, he turned on the jets, following his blockers and juking past a few Miami defenders, effectively energizing the crowd, specifically the loudest student section BC’s had all season. The chicanery marked Brown’s third career reception—all of which have come with Smith throwing the ball. “It’s not that hard,” the redshirt sophomore quarterback said. “He puts it in the right place.” Fittingly, it was Smith who capped off the drive—this time as a receiver, bringing a nine-yard pass on a slant route for his fourth receiving touchdown of the year. The 10-play, 88-yard series was a sign of what was to come: fearless and aggressive

play-calling. Just when it looked like BC had all the momentum, DeeJay Dallas returned the ensuing kickoff 52 yards, setting the stage for a Hurricanes scoring drive. In due time, Miami responded with a touchdown of its own. Following an 11-yard scramble, Malik Rosier lofted a 13-yard pass to the back of the end zone. Standing at 6-foot-4 , Darrell Langham elevated and pried the jump ball away from 5-foot-10 cornerback Hamp Cheevers. On his way down, Langham planted his right foot in the paint for six. The Eagles were unfazed—on the next BC drive, Loeffler gambled at midfield, once again resting all of his trust in Smith. Brown faked a handoff to Travis Levy and instead gave the ball to a streaking Smith on the endaround. After sprinting toward the right sideline, the senior stopped, set his feet and aired out a 31-yard pass to a backpedaling Levy. Because of the previous trick play, Hurricanes cornerback Trajan Bandy keyed in on Brown, leaving Levy open down the left side of the field. Near the goal line, Brown surveyed his options off the play fake—nothing was there, so, without hesitation, he tucked the rock and bolted to the left side of the end zone for an easy five-yard touchdown.

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of hot potato with Wyatt Ray, D.J. Scaife Jr., and Mike Harley. Then, on the very next Hurricanes drive, Rosier went back to the slant on 3rd-and-7, but Taj-Amir Torres jumped the route, picking off his second pass of 2018. The turnovers resulted in a 23-yard field goal and a 14-yard Dillon touchdown, extending BC’s lead to 13 with a quarter and a half left to play. A few drives later, however, Brown threw his first interception since the Eagles’ blowout loss at Purdue. Miami nearly capitalized, but failed to convert on fourth down in the red zone. Torres broke up a pass intended for Langham—one similar to the wideout’s first-quarter touchdown reception—all but putting the inter-division game to bed. Miami turned the ball over on downs twice more, and BC ran out the clock. The goal posts came down and for the third time in the Red Bandanna Game’s five-year existence, students stormed the field, celebrating another upset victory. “We’re 6-2, bowl eligible right now for the fifth time in six years,” Addazio said. “The best part about it is nothing was mentioned down in the locker room about it. … As a team, we didn’t mention it—I think that’s significant to where we are right now.”

NOT TO GET DEFENSIVE

OUT OF THE GATE

BOSTON COLLEGE

BC didn’t take its foot off the gas. After forcing Miami’s second punt of the game, the Eagles orchestrated their longest drive of the season: a 21-play, 79 yard series, one that spanned seven minutes and four seconds. Ultimately, BC had to settle for a 21-yard Colton Lichtenberg field goal, but the damage had been done. The Eagles had a 10-point lead and left Miami with about a half a quarter to respond before intermission. Still, that was more than enough time for Rosier to drive downfield, using a multitude of shotgun runs and short passes, namely slant routes. But when the Hurricanes reached the end zone, Dallas was the one behind center, taking a direct snap 10 yards for Miami’s second and final touchdown of the night. Neither team could execute the twominute drill, and BC entered the break with a 17-14 lead and 128-yard advantage in total offense. In the second half, though, it was the Eagles defense that stole the spotlight. BC picked off Rosier twice in the third quarter, in large part thanks to the pressure that the defensive line put on the veteran gunslinger. First, Cheevers came up with his fifth interception of the year—tied for the most in the FBS—after playing a game

237

209

MIAMI YPG ALLOWED PRIOR

BC FIRST QUARTER YARDAGE

MIAMI

YARDS ALLOWED PER GAME, ENTERING FRIDAY

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Michigan, 220.0 Miami, 237.0 Iowa, 258.1

Clemson, 266.3

Miss. St., 282.4

TURNOVERS FORCED BY BC’S DEFENSE, RESULTING IN

POINTS

MEN’S HOCKEY

BC Hits Rock Bottom in Seven-Goal Blowout Loss to St. Cloud State BY JACK COLEMAN For The Heights

There was a patient silence in the air inside Kelley Rink on Thursday night—the kind that accompanies all game situations where the crowd St. Cloud State 7 cannot decide Boston College 0 whether to get up and leave or wait for their home team to show them something, anything. Soon enough, a shot on goal ricocheted and landed right into the waiting stick of St. Cloud State forward Sam Hentges. The freshman then let the puck rip, and it just barely found the back of the cage after bouncing off the pads of Boston College men’s hockey goalkeeper Joseph Woll. With the score now at 4-0, fans began to depart and, before they could even make it out

of their seats, Hentges’ classmate, Nolan Walker, came tearing down the middle of the ice and whipped a shot past Woll. In a matter of seconds the lopsided affair turned into blowout. Any remaining fans left in order to avoid watching what would end up being a 7-0 St. Cloud State shutout. Much of the first period was close, and both teams launched similar shots on net, but it was ultimately the No. 2 Huskies (4-0) who actually lit the lamp. The goal disparity was mostly due to St. Cloud State netminder David Hrenak’s outstanding performance. “Without a doubt in my mind, Hrenak was the difference maker in that game,” Huskies head coach Brett Larson told reporters. “If not for him, that is a 4-4 draw.” Looking at the shots on goal and the subsequent scoreline, it is easy to see where Larson is coming from. With each team

recording 27 shots on net, it was St. Cloud State that found its way past the duo of Woll and Ryan Edquist seven times, while the Eagles (0-4) failed to sneak a shot through the impenetrable wall that was Hrenak. Hentges finished with a hat trick, in large part thanks to a pair of extremely similar scoring plays. One of his scores were mentioned prior, but his first actual goal came about 14 minutes into the opening period. Hentges took a snapshot from the corner—one that happened to bounce right off the waiting goalkeeper’s knee pad and backwards into the goal. On the opposing end, BC struggled to capitalize on a number of chances. One such play occurred when defenseman Casey Fitzgerald came flying down the middle of the ice after receiving a perfectly-placed pass from J.D. Dudek. But the senior’s shot was

deflected by Hrenak, who used his pads to send the puck flying over the cage. Whether it be a near missed puck on a pass, or a shot on goal that went too high or wide, the Eagles managed to botch seemingly every scoring opportunity—a series of mishaps that, in head coach Jerry York’s eyes, directly affected his defense. “I do believe our defensive struggles start with our offense,” he said. “We need to manage the puck better offensively and then our defense will follow.” As the game wore on, it was clear that St. Cloud’s dominance was also attributed to its scrappy play style. It seemed like Eagles were being slammed into the glass left and right, while the intimidating Huskies remained standing. The physicality led to a handful of altercations. For instance, in he first period, David Cotton got right in the face of oppos-

ing St. Cloud forward Nick Poehling. Even freshman Oliver Wahlstrom got in on the action with a scuffle that broke out around the St. Cloud goal. Wahlstrom grabbed senior forward Jacob Benson around the neck and started pulling off his helmet. The fight would be broken up and, at the end of the day, was all for naught. BC, the USCHO preseason No. 12 team in the country, is winless through four games. With 2-3 Merrimack on tap, the Eagles will have a good chance to enter the win column next weekend. But York—who has seen it all in his 46-year head coaching career—isn’t making any assumptions. “Every game is the same,” he said. “Every game has the same potential to be a loss.” Perhaps that’s the kind of the wake-up call that the Eagles needed. 

The Heights

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Monday, October 29, 2018

WOMEN’S HOCKEY

BC Remains Undefeated in Hockey East Play, Rolls Past Maine By Bradley Smart Assoc. Sports Editor

Midway through the second period, Boston College women’s hockey was involved in an intense, scoreless battle with Hockey East foe Maine, an upstart program Boston College 4 that received Maine 1 preseason firstplace votes just two years removed from a 21-loss season. Neither team had created great scoring opportunities, and it appeared as if BC’s six-game win streak was in serious jeopardy on the road. The Black Bears had completely matched BC’s physicality and speed, but, as is often the case against the reigning Hockey East regular season champions, they cracked. A long-distance shot from Cayla Barnes on a power play snuck through

traffic and found the back of the net. From that point on, the sixth-ranked Eagles didn’t look back, fully asserting their dominance over Maine in a decisive 4-1 victory. The game got off to a very choppy start, as three penalties were called in the first four minutes of action, the hallmark of an intense conference matchup. In fact, seven total penalties were whistled during the duration of the opening period—giving each team plenty of time to generate scoring opportunities. Yet, neither squad capitalized on their chances, and both defenses held strong. The rampant penalties continued in the second period, as both teams combined to spend 16 more minutes in the box. This time, though, the Eagles (7-2, 4-0 Hockey East) made the most of their opportunities with an extra skater. About halfway through the second period,

Barnes fired a low shot past Black Bears goaltender Carly Jackson. Not only did this goal give the Eagles the lead, but it served as the impetus for a much stronger BC effort the rest of the contest. While the Eagles seemed to gain energy, Maine (6-2, 2-2) headed in the opposite direction, appearing to run out of steam. Seven minutes later, after a body-checking penalty was whistled on Taylor Leech, BC’s Grace Bizal doubled her team’s lead with her second goal of the season. She followed up a dangerous effort by Kali Flanagan and stuck the rebound in the back of the net. The goal was initially disallowed for goaltender interference, yet after a quick video review, the referee confirmed of Bizal’s shot. Despite the Eagles’ terrific close to the second period, the Black Bears found their second wind and responded passionately in the third. Just moments

after the opening faceoff of the period, Maine’s Vendula Pribylova was stymied on a clear chance by freshman BC netminder Maddy McArthur. Two minutes later though McArthur was unable to keep out a close shot from Maine star Tereza Vanisova. The junior forward confidently converted from just in front of goal, after receiving a brilliant feed from Maggie Blair. While momentum seemed to be shifting in favor of the home side, it was another penalty that undid the Black Bears. After a tripping call on Ida Press, Erin Connolly tipped home a shot from Bizal to restore the two-goal lead for the Eagles. Connolly picked up where she left off, as she was also able to find the back of the net in the last meeting between the two teams. In the closing seconds of the game, reigning Patty Kazmaier Awardwinner Daryl Watts tallied her fifth goal

of the season with an empty netter. For the seventh consecutive game, BC held its opponent to one goal or fewer. This feat is even more impressive considering that Maine had previously averaged four goals scored per contest, and that the Eagles are starting a freshman in goal. BC also demonstrated its tremendous offensive depth, as none of its three leading scorers—Watts, Caitrin Lonergan and Lindsay Agnew—scored during the competitive part of the game, but the Eagles still racked up goals. Sunday afternoon’s contest further established BC’s position at the top of Hockey East. While Maine—a team still receiving votes in the USCHO.com top 10 poll and off to its best start in program history—appeared to be one of the Eagles’ top challengers in the conference, it is clear that BC is simply a tier above them. n

FOOTBALL

Defense Outperforms Miami, Dillon Stars in Return From Injury NOTE Vs. Miami from A9 were right to be cautious—Dillon was a “game-time decision” for each of the last two matchups And, of course, didn’t play. The fog was cleared up almost immediately, though, as Dillon found a seam through the left side of the line and ran for a 25-yard gain on his first play from scrimmage. It was just the opening salvo of a 32-carry night for the sophomore, as he rumbled for 132 yards and a touchdown in his return. It was clear on that opening play, though, that he wasn’t 100 percent—there wasn’t the same speed or physicality he displayed at the start of the year when Miami’s Sheldrick Redwine closed on him and dragged him to the ground. Dillon even admitted to that in his postgame conference, saying, “I should have just trusted my speed—I was thinking about the ankle in the first run.” Despite not playing at full strength, Dillon was still good enough against a stout Hurricanes defense. He only averaged four yards per carry on his other 31 rushing attempts, but that was enough to help carry the offense when he needed to. Dillon routinely touched the ball in succession on first and second downs, and while predictable, largely had results. He converted a first down on BC’s second touchdown drive of the game with runs of seven and four yards, then, on second-and-8, unleashed a Madden-esque 20-yard run to set up a Colton Lichtenberg field goal. At one point, he found himself seemingly trapped behind a blocker some seven yards behind the line

of scrimmage, but in a flash of what Eagles fans grew accustomed to last season, he cut back inside and sprinted forward for a lengthy gain. His lone touchdown was a backbreaker for Miami, too. In the third quarter, Hurricanes quarterback Malik Rosier threw consecutive interceptions that set BC up for short scoring drives. Down three, Miami was able to hold the Eagles to a field goal after the first turnover, but it was Dillon who put them away after the second. Up 20-14, the sophomore back took a handoff from the shotgun, bounced it outside, and ran to the pylon for a 14-yard touchdown that capped the scoring and sucked the life out of any fourth-quarter comeback attempt from the Hurricanes. 2) BC’s defense was better than Miami’s well-known unit All of the attention that Miami’s defense has warranted the last few years, with its “turnover chain” and high-intensity vibe, seemed misplaced on Friday night. Instead, it was Jim Reid’s defense that owned the day, holding the Hurricanes to just two scores while piling up three sacks and two interceptions. The Eagles, protecting a slim 17-14 halftime lead, played their best football when they needed it the most. After the break, Miami had six drives, most coming when the game was within a touchdown. They went as follows—interception, interception, punt, turnover on downs, turnover on downs, and turnover on downs. It was a remarkable performance from the Eagles, who have struggled against quality op-

ponents, namely North Carolina State and Purdue, in weeks past. The list of players to highlight is long, but two in particular stood out—cornerback Brandon Sebastian and linebacker Isaiah McDuffie. Sebastian has struggled at times this year with coverage breakdowns, but he took on a starring role, breaking up a pair of passes and making two tackles, both on third downs. McDuffie, meanwhile, gobbled up anything that came his way in the middle of the field, racking up a team-high 12 tackles, six of which were solo efforts. The sophomore is third on the team in tackles this season, a big step up after appearing in just seven games last season and recording just seven total tackles. There are countless big plays from the unit to single out, but the obvious one that stands out came in the fourth quarter. With BC up, 27-14, Miami had started a drive down the stretch of the third and had methodically moved downfield. The Hurricanes had gotten the ball because of a questionable throw by Brown that Romeo Finley had intercepted around midfield. Five quick plays later—including a Malik Rosier 21-yard scramble—Miami had first-andgoal from the 9-yard line. Rosier grabbed a gain of six on first down, but the next three downs were symbolic of how tough the BC defense was. With a two-score lead and three yards to protect, the Eagles came through. First, Zach Allen, who poked fun at the turnover chain in his postgame press conference, stood up Miami running back Deejay

Dallas for no gain. Then, on third down, Dallas tried to catch BC’s defense off guard with a wildcat run around the right side, but he was dragged down before he could get to the pylon. Finally, in the biggest stop of the day, it was Taj-Amir Torres—a senior that nabbed an interception a few drives earlier—who broke up a pass to the right edge of the end zone to force the turnover on downs. Hurricanes head coach Mark Richt even singled out the play after. “The most disappointing thing is firstand-goal at the nine [yard line], not being able to score the touchdown to put us within six,” he said. “That was tough. Just didn’t happen.” 3) Not to jump the gun, but things are starting to look pretty good for the Eagles Coming into the season, a lot of people looked at BC’s schedule and projected, somewhat tentatively, something around a 5-0 start to the season. Cupcake games against Massachusetts and Holy Cross were easy wins, and it wasn’t exactly a ‘murderers row’ of opponents that followed—Wake Forest, Purdue, and Temple all entered with less than high expectations. After that, though—save matchups with Louisville and Syracuse—the Eagles were staring down a brutal schedule, with five games against opponents that were either in the AP Preseason Top 25 or receiving votes. So, after starting 4-1, an inevitable fall back to earth was expected. That’s not the case. BC struggled

Julia hopkins / heights senior staff

against the Wolfpack in a disappointing loss, but has rebounded by recording back-to-back wins, all while looking the part of a marquee bowl game contender. The Eagles thoroughly outplayed the visiting Cardinals to no surprise, and followed it up with a post-bye week resume-building win over a Miami team that has crashed out of the top25 polls since debuting at No. 8. Even their blowout loss to Purdue looks better in hindsight—the Boilermakers entered their Saturday afternoon game against Michigan State winners of four straight, including an upset of then-No. 2 Ohio State. So, on paper, the Eagles are 6-2, won their first big game of the year against Miami, and enter their toughest stretch with Dillon back and momentum on their side. The first opponent is Virginia Tech, another ACC team that has fallen from great heights— The Hokies, who fell to Old Dominion earlier this year in one of the biggest upsets of the season, were blown out by Georgia Tech (yes, Georgia Tech, an incredibly streaky 4-4 team) on Thursday night. VTech is at risk of losing two of its famed streaks, with bowl eligibility being an uphill climb. Yes, that game is on the road, but if the Eagles play as well as they did for long stretches against the Hurricanes, BC could be aiming for its eighth win of the season—a mark it hasn’t reached since 2009—when No. 2 Clemson comes to town on Nov. 10. n

JUlIA HOPKINS / HEIGHTS SENIOR STAFF

BC had plenty of reasons to celebrate on Friday night, with quarterback Anthony Brown (right) accounting for 220 yards of offense, including seven carries for 41 yards rushing and a 27-yard reception. VOLLEYBALL

Eagles Drop Matches to Louisville, Notre Dame on ACC Road Trip By Taylor Covington For The Heights

Coming off a four-match homestand in Power Gym last weekend that culminated in a much-needed win over North Carolina to snap a lengthy losing streak, Boston College volleyball hit the road hoping to tally two more in the win column. The Eagles would have to clean up their offensive strategy if they were to take down Notre Dame and No. 22 Louisville in the next travel stretch. Instead, BC suffered another round of road struggles this past weekend, dropping two close four-set contests. The Eagles (13-11, 3-9 Atlantic Coast) have now dropped nine of their last 10 games, and memories of nine consecutive wins to open the year are slowly fading. The weekend finale—based on Notre Dame’s weak defense that entered tied for last in the conference—was expected to be a battle of the offenses. The Eagles failed to capitalize, however, and instead hit a season-low 0.033 clip on the day, with the Irish recording 20.5 team blocks to BC’s five. The result was as expected—Notre Dame (14-8, 8-4) dropped the first set, but responded with a trio of wins in quick succession. The

Eagles managed just eight points in the second set, a woeful showing that reflected the conference struggles that head coach Jason Kennedy’s team have ran into. In contrast to previous games, however, BC was able to set a fast pace immediately. This was in large part due to Clare Naughton, whose two kills and block helped the Eagles grab an early 3-0 lead. Notre Dame responded by edging the Eagles 6-5 over the next 11 points, but BC clung to the set to maintain a narrow 8-6 advantage. At the first Irish timeout, the Eagles led 12-8, and soon headed to their own bench with a 15-10 lead. BC took the court with a 3-1 run off the break, widening the score to a seven-point advantage. The Irish prepared to come from behind with a 3-2 run, but it proved too late, as BC responded with a 5-2 surge to seal the set, 25-16. It was the only set the Eagles could win against their hosts, though, as the Irish flipped the script in the second frame, controlling the court with aggressive offense. After prompting an early BC timeout, Notre Dame continued to ride the wave off the break, building a seven-point lead. The Eagles answered with a 5-2 run of their own, but the Irish broke down the BC defense

with 13 unanswered points to cinch the second set, 25-8. The Eagles were not prepared to lose their fight, harnessing some of their earlygame energy to come back from a 10-point deficit in the third frame. The effort was deficient in grasping a lead, however, even as four unanswered Eagle points forced the Irish into a timeout. Notre Dame widened the moderate 19-13 lead out of the break by edging BC 6-5, finishing off the frame and taking the game advantage. It seemed as if Notre Dame would take the fourth set unhindered, until BC came from behind once again in a desperate effort to force a fifth frame. The Irish had established an early three-point buffer, and the two teams evenly split the next six points after an Eagles timeout. Notre Dame pulled away, edging BC 4-2 until the Eagles grasped five of the next eight points to trail by three, 16-13. The two offenses continued to trade short runs, and BC scrapped its way to a narrow two-point deficit. Notre Dame took the final three points, however, claiming the game and the set, 25-20. The Eagles experienced a similar start to the weekend, opening with an aggressive game pace against Louisville, and stole the

first set Friday night in Cardinal Arena. The Eagles’ strong offensive showing ultimately fell victim to a sterling Cardinals defense, however, and the result was another conference loss in four sets. The first set was a scrappy win for the Eagles, who found themselves locked in a draw at five in the early going. BC pulled away for a 15-9 lead at the media timeout, only to return to the court and trade points with the Cardinals (17-6, 10-2). With the help of junior Cat Balido, who led the Eagles with 13 kills throughout the match, the Eagles were able to maintain a 22-14 lead. The second half of the frame saw a brief hiccup, as Louisville went on a 4-1 surge to force a BC timeout. The Eagles held onto the set, however, and clinched the win at 25-18. The beginning of the second set mimicked the first, with the two teams trading short runs and tying through 11 combined points. Louisville managed a 3-1 run, but the Eagles responded with their own threepoint surge, taking the lead 15-14. The offenses battled at the net through a 19-19 knot, before Louisville posted a clean 6-1 run to take the set. The Eagles’ defensive strategy began to fray in the third frame, as the Cardinals

grasped an early 4-1 advantage, eventually prompting an Eagle timeout with a 10-4 lead. The break proved beneficial for the Eagles, who hit the court with an 8-4 surge that forced the Cardinals to their bench. BC appeared ready to come from behind, edging Louisville 5-4 over the next nine, but the Cardinals clinched the last seven points unanswered by the Eagles, taking the third frame. BC was prepared to take the game to a fifth set, posting a speedy five points on the Cards within the first few minutes of the fourth frame. The Eagles maintained the five-point gap later at 10-5, until the Cardinals went 6-1 to tie the middle of the set. The two teams evenly split the next eight points before BC harnessed a 19-17 lead. In true form, however, the Cardinals managed a late 8-4 run to take the final set 25-23. The Eagles continue to play on the road with a Halloween game against Syracuse. While Kennedy’s reinvented team got off to a historically fast start in non-conference play, the Eagles still have plenty of room to grow in competing with ACC opponents—it’s clear that BC, understandably, isn’t quite up to par with one of the toughest conferences in the country. n

CLASSIFIEDS

Thursday, January 17, 2014 Thursday, April 7, 2016

The Heights TheTH heeights Heights

Monday, October 29, 2018

Community Services

Newton Centre Episcopal Trinity Parish is seeking to hire assistant Sunday School Teacher. Hours are 9:30 to 11:30 am Sundays. Contact carrieburr42@gmail.com.

Interested in placing an ad or a classified? email ads@bcheights.com

Directions: The Sudoku is played over a 9x9 grid. In each row there are 9 slots, some of which are empty and need to be filled. Each row, column and 3x3 box should contain the numbers 1 to 9. You must follow these rules: 路 Number can appear only once in each row 路 Number can appear only once in each column 路 Number can appear only once in each 3x3 box 路 The number should appear only once on row, column or area.

B5 B5 A13

THE HEIGHTS

A14

MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018

‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’ Spellbinds Viewers BY KERRIANNE RILEY For The Heights If you could mix Stranger Things, Riverdale, and the spooks that arise when watching an Alfred Hitchcock film, the result would be Netflix’s latest release Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Although it may not be as adventurous as advertised, the show sets up a plotline that is appealing to current crowds, channeling a ’50s-meetsmodern-day vibe in its set design, music selection, and fashion, as well as a progressive voice that touches on issues faced by teens nowadays. Starring Mad Men alum Kiernan Shipka as leading teenage witch Sabrina, the show gives a whole new mean-

ing to the Spellman family name. Over the first couple of episodes, “Chapter One: October Country” and “Chapter Two: The Dark Baptism,” the show explains Sabrina’s life in Glendale. In the town over from Riverdale—yes that Riverdale—she is raised by her aunts Hilda (Lucy Davis) and Zelda (Miranda Otto). The quirks of Hilda and Zelda that existed in the ABC show Sabrina the Teenage Witch are not found in Netflix’s take on the Archie comic-based crew, which is a sad loss, but it would not simply fit the theme of the show. Everyone’s favorite boy next door Harvey Kinkle, played by Disney alum Ross Lynch, remains a prominent figure in this revamp. Alongside Harvey

TELEVISION

CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA ROBERTO AGUIRRESACASA DISTRIBUTED BY NETFLIX OCT. 26, 2018 OUR RATING

NETFLIX

are Sabrina’s two best friends Rosalind (Jaz Sinclair) and Susie (Lachlan Watson), who provide strong female voices that help give the show its progressive charm. Rightfully born on Halloween, Sabrina approaches her 16th birthday, which happens to fall on a blood moon eclipse. Her not-so-sweet 16 is when she must accept her life as a witch, something she struggles with because she is technically half mortal, and sign her name and life away to serving the Dark Lord, also known as Satan. By signing her name in her blood, she is to give up her mortal life. Her aunts, who raised her after her parents’ deaths, are faithful to the Dark Lord and urge Sabrina to join the Church of Night. Sabrina notices hesitance from Hilda eventually and has visions of the horrors that will ensue if she chooses to sign herself away. Here is where her character development begins and exceeds expectations. A few notes must be made on the series, especially regarding its sleepiness factor. Although the show is well cast and each shot looks well thought out, the episodes pack too much into them. The duller scenes between the fast-paced antics lose the audience momentarily. The typical quirks that often exist in shows about high schoolers are present, but unlike Riverdale, these quirks are easier to either overlook or appreciate. When the scenes are good, which occurs most often, the show is

worth the viewing. As Sabrina tackles misogyny, the creepiest of creatures, and homophobes, it makes up for the tidbits of lackluster. Despite its handful of bumps, there is much to be praised in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, namely its cinematic elements. Every scene gives off an eerie vibe, with a slight fog and shades of red not only lining Baxter High but also following Sabrina into the woods and her family’s mortuary. The series calls on its sister show Riverdale, set in another town with an ever-present haze. The scenery, paired well with jump scares, helps keep the audience in awe during the slightly unnecessary filler scenes and on edge during the best of it all. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina hits high notes in regard to creating an enticing witchy world to pull the viewers in for the 10-episode season. As she stumbles through being an honest 16-year-old, along with the added mischief of her halfwitch blood, she becomes admirable and real, regardless of her capability to cast a few spells on the principal and bullies. Although outrageous, Sabrina’s journey to take down the Devil provides an opportunity for another series with a strong female lead, who not only has killer retro clothes and quick wit, but also a drive that will have you cheering on Ms. Spellman during her gruesome, humorous, and genuinely entertaining “adventure.” 

Bewitched Ballerinas Stun in ‘Suspiria’ Remake BY JILLIAN RAN For The Heights

At the start of Suspiria, it’s easy to feel somewhat secure. The remake of Dario Argento’s horror flick is set in drab 1977 Berlin, amid the turbulence of left-wing terrorism, and the film is anchored, at least, to the original film’s time and place. But delving into the Markos Dance Academy, things quickly take a turn for the surreal. Within its walls, it’s typical dramatics among the young dancers: ambition, backstabbing, power struggles. Beyond the jostling, though, there is something much darker at play. Arriving at the academy full of sophisticated Europeans, timid protagonist Susie Bannion (Dakota Johnson) is an obvious outsider. Having grown up in a strict Mennonite household in Ohio, she is untrained, yet she possesses a raw talent that intrigues artistic director Madame Blanc, played with cool charisma by Tilda Swinton. In a cringe-inducing scene, Susie dances violently and ferally, her limbs striking the air and her breath coming out of her chest in quick gasps. As she figuratively takes the place of former lead dancer Olga (Elena Fokina), she also physically maims her, snapping her bones and disfiguring her body, destroying her talent with every move she makes. The ferocious competition of the dance

academy is taken to another level by the witchcraft at work. The witches in question, a group of eccentric matrons who lead the academy, seem benignly kooky at first, with their flamboyant outfits and tipsy great-aunt dispositions. But it is soon clear that they are capable of unimaginable brutality, and the contrast between the ordinary and the savage is what makes Suspiria so disturbing. The camera jerks and swoops woozily, zeroing in on details with sudden paranoia. The atmosphere is tense and unpredictable—one moment the matrons are chatting around the dinner table, the next one of them is stabbing herself in the neck. As Susie quickly rises through the ranks of the academy, she encounters signs that something is amiss, but chooses to sell her soul, in a sense, in order to reach her full potential. After all, she has fled her traditional, God-fearing family in order to join what turns out to be a coven. She has willingly crossed the line from austere order to extravagant chaos, self-denial to hedonistic bloodshed. Following a parallel path of discovery is Dr. Jozef Klemperer (speculated to also be played by Swinton, despite the denial of director Luca Guadagnino). He initially dismisses the claims of his patient, former lead dancer Patricia, that the academy is run by witches. But after she disappears, Klemperer soon grows suspicious and

investigates the academy. Klemperer is no match for the coven, though. Even more cruel than being swiftly murdered, Klemperer is lured to the academy by a woman who appears to be his long-lost wife. But to his dismay, his wife vanishes into thin air and is replaced by a floating matron. In the real world, the doctor was in control, dispelling the wild tales of his patients with a firm rationality. But when he comes face to face with the surreal world of the witches, he is powerless. The veneer of normality crumples entirely at the film’s climax, as the world is bathed in crimson light and the dancers writhe around naked in a bloody ritual,

like a Hieronymous Bosch painting come to life. Susie claims her place as the new leader of the coven and purges it of potential enemies, exacting bloody vengeance in a scene made strangely emotional by a melancholy Thom Yorke song. Having been sculpted by the matrons into a formidable witch and skilled dancer, Susie now takes on the role of mother, referring to the other dancers as her daughters. The cycle is completed, and the coven lives on. The coven has no need for men. It is unshaken by the events of the outside world, unrestrained by its laws and rules. All that matters are the women, and the beautiful, terrible power they wield. 

For The Heights

Homeland, 24, Quantico, Designated Survivor. There is no shortage of television shows about counter-terrorism on the air today. Perhaps it is our real-world fear of terrorist threats that has caused the genre to be so popular, or maybe the subject just makes for good television. Whatever the case may be, Netflix decided to bring the hit British counter-terrorism drama Bodyguard to American audiences, and while the market for these juiced-up cop shows is certainly saturated, Bodyguard delivers on all the hype it has received from British audiences. Bodyguard tells us the story of soldier turned London special pro-

tections police officer David Budd (Richard Madden). The first episode wastes no time in getting the action started as Budd intercepts a terrorist train-bombing attempt while off duty with his children. Budd’s calm and collected handling of the situation and prevention of any casualties not only makes for an incredible opening sequence to a show, but also earns Budd a promotion. This promotion stations him as personal bodyguard to Home Secretary Julia Montague (Keeley Hawes). For Americans who have no idea what a home secretary is, it is essentially the British version of the secretary of state. Once Budd transitions from police work to the even messier world of politics, the show truly begins to

TELEVISION

BODYGUARD THOMAS VINCENT DISTRIBUTED BY NETFLIX RELEASE OCT. 24, 2018 OUR RATING

NETFLIX

ADAM MEHAL

‘HEADLIGHTS’ HELLBERG

Hellberg takes a stark departure from much of his other work with his most recent song, “Headlights.” The artist has typically trended toward heavier, more club-friendly electro/trance beats, but “Headlights” certainly has much more of pop flair. It’s mostly successful, with a catchy hook and bouncy but overall quite predictable drop. Leona Lewis (best-known for her hit 2007 single “Bleeding Love”) adequately delivers the vocals, although she isn’t handed anything incredible to work with. The overall production of the song is good, although it’s a bit disappointing that a producer of Hellberg’s caliber did not include any more unexpected musical aspects. It’s very much a straightforward formula, which could either be interpreted as laziness, or an attempt to reform into something a bit more mainstream. While long-time fans of the Swedish producer might feel a little alienated by this new style, it’s possible that he may gain some new followers. 

MUSIC VIDEO JACOB SCHICK

‘MONSTER’

GABBIE HANNA

FILM

SUSPIRIA LUCA GUADAGNINO PRODUCED BY AMAZON STUDIOS RELEASE OCT. 26, 2018 OUR RATING

AMAZON STUDIOS

U.K. Hit ‘Bodyguard’ Defends High Praise Overseas BY JOHN TSIMIS

SINGLE REVIEW

show why it got such high praise in the U.K. Bodyguard delivers political drama akin to that of House of Cards, detective work reminiscent of The Wire, and plot twists on the level of Westworld. Each episode manages to deliver in all three of these aspects as well. Bodyguard is only six episodes long, and each episode gets the most out of its hour-long runtime, unlike most American network dramas, in which audiences are treated to “filler” episodes. The idea of having to wait a week in between these episodes, which consistently have cliffhanger endings, is a frightening one. Being able to binge one episode after another helps Bodyguard’s viewers keep up with its fast-paced plot. Madden’s performance as Budd, unfortunately, has its highs and lows. In some shootout scenes, we are treated to an emotional, yet focused, special agent who commands the audience’s attention. In other scenes however, Budd is more of a mindless lackey just rolling with the witty dialogue other politician characters throw at him. Madden has proven his acting chops in his work as Robb Stark on HBO’s Game of Thrones, but his mediocre performance in Bodyguard was a real letdown. While he succeeds as an action hero, he lacks the charisma of a Jack

Bauer, which would make his character so much better. The better acting performance comes from Hawes, whose portrayal of cold-blooded politician Julia Montague is chilling and eye-catching. Montague is highly targeted by terrorists and the media alike for her aggressively militaristic beliefs. Montague also stands to represent our real-world beliefs in an age of increasing technology and decreasing privacy. Montague’s character provides the intrigue and mystery that helps propel the show to such high levels of tension. While Budd’s dialogue outside of action setpieces was lackluster, Montague was Bodyguard’s x-factor in its political drama. The only problem with Bodyguard is that its subject matter isn’t exactly off the beaten path. Police calling out to each other in code the audience cannot understand, office melodrama, family problems for the hero—audiences have seen all of this time and time again. From time to time these clichés drag Bodyguard down to the mediocre level of daytime television cop shows. Having said that, Bodyguard delivers a powerful and unpredictable plot that makes the audience overlook these clichés as it cruises from being successful in the U.K. to becoming an American hit. 

Just in time for spooky season is Gabbie Hanna’s new music video, which stretches across two of her songs, “Monster” and “Monster (Reborn),” linking them together. While this makes sense given the plot of the music video, it does pad the runtime a bit too much. Coming in at 5:14, “Monster / Monster (Reborn)” is a pretty long video. By the three-minute mark, viewers will likely be tired of the story, and of the song. Hanna’s music video is the modern and half-hearted answer to a “Thriller ”-style project. It’s just not even close to the same level in quality. Audiences watch Hanna as she sits on the ground in the woods striking matches. Suddenly, a little girl runs by. Hanna runs after her in concern, as the girl disappears inside a creepy house. Spliced throughout are shots of Hanna in a room scream-singing the lyrics to the song, as well as shots of a large fire. Hanna explores the house and peruses objects in the rooms, such as pictures and a large teddy bear. She finally finds the child in bed and leans down to check on her. Hanna steps back, revealing a bloody wound on her chest, and the camera cuts back to the girl, who has now transformed into some sort of monster. At this point, the shots of fire begin to make sense. Hanna is shown spreading gasoline around and lighting the house on fire, presumably killing the child-monster in the process. In the “Monster (Reborn)” section of the video, Hanna sits alone in the burned shell of the house. She douses herself in gasoline and, as the song ends, the video cuts to black, and we hear the woosh of her self-immolation. She does this, as the video suggests, to stop herself from becoming a monster too. While the plotline of “Monster / Monster (Reborn)” is semi-interesting, its execution is a little lackluster and derivative. It’s certainly no “Thriller” and it leaves audiences wanting more. 

The Heights

Monday, October 29, 2018

‘On The Verge’ Flies Through Space and Time Let’s Get On The Verge, from A16 Aside from the immense enjoyability of working on a smaller production, the size of the play also helped them be more serious about the process as a whole. On a larger production, a cast member might have a back-up, or maybe they don’t rehearse every day. “Especially in big-cast shows, it’s really hard to make bonds with people because it’s only temporary and you’re only with these people for a certain amount of time,” Aboaba said. “But it just so happened to be that this was a group that worked, and fit.” “There’s definitely more responsibility and accountability,” Sheridan began. “There’s no understudies, and we’re each such a huge contributor... but it’s so much more rewarding because we all feel like we’re adding something significant.” The cast cites the amount of time spent rehearsing all together as one

of the best aspects of working on On The Verge. The process for this particular play spans all the way back to the beginning of this school year. Auditions began the first weekend of classes (there were a total of four shows auditioning that weekend, so imagine trying for a few, or all, of them). They casted on Sunday, and started rehearsal that Monday, and haven’t stopped ever since. “The best part of being involved with any show, especially in the BC Theatre department, is getting to spend 20-plus hours a week with your cast,” Schmitt said. “You’re makKAITLIN MEEKS / HEIGHTS EDITOR ing all these new friends and getting Debbie Aboaba, MCAS ’21, treks through terra incognita as her character Alex. that shared experience that you can a very early stage. one thing is clear—the cast of On carry with you for the rest of your “It’s hard to get intimacy and per- The Verge is passionate about theatre, time here, as a freshman, sophomore, sonal connection in bigger shows,” the meaning of this production, and and beyond.” Schmitt added. “I’ve been in two about their own personal friendship The inherent togetherness of On shows with Grant before, but I never and bonds with one another. ToThe Verge is what drove the cast forgot to talk to him in those, it was gether, they are on the verge of the ward. The close-knit group clicked more difficult to connect. Each has best takeaway from any show—the from the start, and that level of per- its own merits.” relationships that last long after the sonability allowed them to bond from Whether a big or a small show, curtain closes. n

POC Art Lab Showcases Culture With Dance, Theatre By Stephanie Liu Heights Staff

The POC Art Lab, presented by the Boston College theatre department and the AHANA+ Leadership Council, delighted audiences with a fantastic showcase of dance, music, theatre, and POC culture in an energy-filled Robsham Theater on Tuesday. Maurice Parent, this year’s Monan Professor in Theatre Arts, presented the first performance. Parent, also the executive director of the Front Porch Arts Collective, which is featured in the showcase explained that the mission of his group is to use theatre and film to explore race and gender through the black and brown perspective, which is often overlooked. The first performance was an excerpt from a longer musical titled Breath & Imagination, which is based on the life of Roland Hayes, an acclaimed classical African American singer. The performer showcased his own powerful voice, belting out beautiful, classical Italian opera pieces that enchanted the audience. Then, cheekily declaring that he would show the power of a classically trained black voice, he sang folk songs, engaging and delighting the audience. The Front Porch Arts Collective then presented three passages from one of the upcoming plays it will be performing, Black Odyssey, which was written by Marcus Gardley. The play is an adaptation of the classic epic poem by Homer, told through the black perspective, where the hero of the story, Ulysses, is reimagined as an Afghanistan War veteran with his wife and his son that he has never seen waiting at home. Ulysses angers the gods and is transported back to the past, exploring black history and culture for 16 years before finally returning to his family. The actors showed three scenes, blending comedy with serious examinations of black culture and history. The first a scene showed Ulysses washed into the past, to when Martin Luther King Jr. had just been assassinated, and he becomes acquainted with a family also floating amid a hurricane.

The second scene featured Ulysses’ son growing up not knowing his father, having a rough first day at his fancy new prep school where the other kids call him “hood,” and taking it out on his mother. The third and final scene featured the prophet Tiresias as an eccentric blind man with a giant afro driving a car and giving guidance to the lost Ulysses. Abruptly, at the end of the Black Odyssey excerpts, two men with swords rushed onto the stage, one of them humorously imploring the audience to do something about the situation. Then ensued a thrilling sword fight, with the two performers dodging blows and knocking swords out of each other’s hands. This performance featured artists from the Front Porch Arts Collective’s rendition of The Three Musketeers, which features predominantly black and brown actors retelling the classic Alexandre Dumas tale of friendship and heroism. Parent then introduced Lakaï Dance Theatre, a dance group currently in residency in New York with its musical The Block, which attempts to tackle the difficult aspects of black culture and use art to understand and overcome them. The Block features urban hip-hop, African diaspora dance styles, slam poetry, rap, banjos, and trumpets. The show is about a block in an inner-city neighborhood and shows the communities that it hosts in their good times and their bad as they explore difficult issues such as toxic masculinity, mental health, and racial profiling in an effort to improve their communities. The excerpt Lakaï brought to BC featured powerful slam poetry, comedy, beautiful singing, and a dance battle. Finally, BC’s own dance groups were given the stage to shine. Phaymus, PATU, and Fuego del Corazon gave dazzling performances that showcased and celebrated the cultures they represent. Phaymus brought a high-energy, urban hip-hop number to the cheers of the audience. PATU showed off African dance styles with a

modern twist, exciting the entire theater. Fuego closed out the show with jaw-dropping spins and lifts, showing Latin fire and ending the entire show on a fabulous split. The POC Art Lab brought not only energy and excitement, but also awareness and discussion to BC’s campus.

Through this celebration and examination of POC art and culture, the art lab enriched BC and acted as a forum of empowerment and community for not only people of color, but also anyone who wanted to learn about other cultures and enjoy the accomplishments that have been achieved within them. n

KAITLIN MEEKS / HEIGHTS EDITOR

The Art Lab presented a mix of culture for people of color through dance, theatre, and music.

Walshe Explores Travers, Oscar Wilde Relationship By Grace Mayer For The Heights

Eibhear Walshe, director of creative writing and senior lecturer at University College Cork, broke down the historical details and inspiration for his book The Diary of Mary Travers: A Novel Tuesday night. Walshe took audiences through the fascinating story of a woman with a tenuous but important link to Oscar Wilde in a lecture he gave in the Connolly House. The initial impetus for Walshe’s fascination with Travers came while working on his book Oscar’s Shadow: Wilde, Homosexuality and Modern Ireland. Walshe repeatedly came across a libel court case he dubs “the other Wilde trial.” This case was between Wilde’s parents, William and Jane Wilde, and a woman named Mary Travers. The Wil-

des were a widely known and admired couple in Ireland (William, a renowned surgeon, and Jane, an acclaimed poet). Mary Travers was a young woman from a poor background, neglected in society. What was the link between them? The 1864 trial illuminated her existence, but after it concluded, she practically disappeared from history. In his novel, Walshe narrows in on three topics: why Travers was so disliked in society, how she was connected to the Wildes, and how this connection ultimately haunted her when Wilde went on trial in 1895—31 years after her own trial with the Wildes. Walshe originally intended to write a biography about Travers. He was limited, however, by the availability of verifiable historical evidence. Instead, he decided to write a novel, his first novel. “One of the things a novel can do is attempt to advance a possible reading

of what we just don’t know: the private emotions behind the public facts,” Walshe said. In writing a novel, Walshe offered his story as one possibility of what could have happened during this time. The story takes shape as a diary, bringing Travers’ voice to life, portraying her as a woman deserving of sympathy, an element lacking in most biographical depictions that portray her as hysterical, jealous, and unbalanced. He adopts the mindset of Travers, of a young woman in the 19th century, channeling the emotion he thinks she felt strongest at the time of Wilde’s trial: panic. “If you’re a writer, you have to make the leap to attempt to live within these voices,” Walshe said. At first glance, the only thing that connects Travers and the Wildes is the trial, but in reality the connection goes back much further. Travers was a patient

of William Wilde. She was taken into the Wildes’ home and was encouraged, especially by Jane, to write. Walshe also strongly suspects she began an affair with William, which is how he depicts their relationship in his novel. This young woman, a nobody from a poor background, is embraced by one of the most well-known couples in Ireland at the time. Things start to go wrong from there. Travers starts to unravel, and she becomes enraged with the Wildes. When Jane can’t stand it anymore, she sends a letter to Travers’ father, which Travers in turn steals and uses to sue Jane for libel. Travers wins her case, but her worth is equated to a farthing, one quarter of a penny. Travers walks away scathed and shunned, with her reputation ruined. And when Wilde is on trial in 1895, she is forced to confront her past. n

A15

Spooky Kaylie Ramirez

All dressed up in the Risky Business-inspired “costume” of a men’s Vineyard Vines button down and Converse (I’m looking at you, freshman year me), you make your weekend pilgrimage to a Mod party, whether you come bearing the coveted Facebook invite on your phone from the Mod across the street or a down coat to keep you warm in your long journey from Upper or even worse, Newton. Just a few raps on the door and you’ve been granted entrance to the promised land. As you wade into a sea of vampires, Donald Trump impersonators—arguably the scariest costume—and animals, the notso-potent smell of Natty Lite instantly hits you and the temperature rises at least 15 degrees. But what’s that sound? “Mo Bamba?” “Bodak Yellow?” “Stir Fry?” Probably. The playlist makes the party at Boston College, and as a seasoned veteran on the Halloweekend scene, I can attest to the fact that BC students hardly try to curate playlists that make it a Halloween party. Halloween parties offer the prime opportunity to wander outside the typical lineup of Drake, Cardi B, and The Killers. Unless you are planning on playing “Shipping Up to Boston” 30 times, there’s no pot of Irish bops to keep a party feeling lucky on St. Patrick’s Day, and “Despacito” can only be played so many times before the tequila starts chipping away at your elementary Spanish skills on Cinco de Mayo. Halloween is a unique holiday in that there is no shortage of spooky anthems that can power you through the 10-day event it is in college. Halloween has long been my favorite holiday: Growing up, my parents always decked the house in cobwebs and candelabras to make it look like the Haunted Mansion ride at Disneyland for their annual Halloween party. My favorite movie franchise was Halloweentown in my preteen days, and part of me always hoped my grandma would pass the family spellbook onto me when I hit puberty— instead her gift to me was the sage advice to stay away from boys. To keep the magic alive into adulthood, I have created my own tradition: For the past five years, I have carefully queued up a playlist of ghastly grooves to get me in the mood for pumpkin spice overdoses and scary movie-induced night terrors at the start of September. Aptly titled “Weird Pumpkin Vibes,” the playlist is a conglomerate of rapturous rock riffs of old and creeping synth beats of new. Some of the songs are overtly scary in content: “Zombie” by The Cranberries, “Sympathy for the Devil” by The Rolling Stones (a song an unnamed roommate of mine said no one knows), and “Monster” by Kanye West. Others boast screen creds on scary movies and scenes from American Horror Story: Stevie Nicks performed Fleetwood Mac’s iconic “Rhiannon” on American Horror Story: Coven—the third season of one of the few shows I religiously watch during their original airtime—and the longtime suspected witch returned to the hit horror series in an episode of American Horror Story: Apocalypse to perform “Gypsy” as Misty Day (Lily Rabe) rose from the dead. The Eagles’ legendary “Hotel California” has long been shrouded in creepy lore: Some thought they saw a demon inside the cover of the vinyl casing when it first came out, while others find the lyrics haunting in their own way. Pretty much any song by Nirvana exudes eerie energy with it, maybe because of the legend surrounding the famous frontman Kurt Cobain’s ascent into the 27 club or maybe because grunge rock is inherently a little threatening. I don’t expect to hear The Animals’ “House of the Rising Sun” or The Zombies’ “Time of the Season” blaring out of packed Mod walls this Halloween, but don’t lose hope for eerie anthems. A DJ took the stage at The Neighbourhood’s show at the House of Blues last month with an eclectic mix of tracks that ranged from Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl” to Cardi B’s “I Like It.” Watching from the rafters with a bird’s eye view of the crowd, I saw a sea of bodies surge and scream the chorus of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” in perfect unison, the height of the DJ’s opening mix. In the presence of goblins and ghouls, don’t be afraid to mix it up this Halloween.

Kaylie Ramirez is the assoc. arts editor for The Heights. She can be reached at arts@bcheights.com.

ARTS

A16

Monday, October 29, 2018

@BCHeightsArts

Feminist Time Warp ‘On The Verge’ Flies Through Decades By Emily Himes Asst. Arts Editor

It’s no surprise that it takes a village to put on a student-run production. But the village that built On The Verge; Or, The Geography Of Yearning was a little different—it’s unusually small, but incredibly close knit. The entire production was created by a group of just 14 students and one alum. That’s a pretty big feat considering the size and heart of the play. On The Verge is directed by Cassie Chapados, BC ’17, whose love for Boston College theatre and the Dramatics Society has kept her involved even after she graduated. She returned to the Heights better than ever, with a year and a half of professional experience under her belt. This is the first time a Dramatics Society production has been directed by a BC alum, and the outcome has been ultimately positive. “It’s been fun,” she said. “It’s super hard to get hired in the industry, so I try to stay involved at BC.” Working under her wing is assistant director Kyle Ronkin, MCAS ’21, whose love for theatre dates back to his pre-BC days. While he has plenty of experience as an actor, On The Verge provided him the opportunity to direct for the first time. “It’s been super helpful as an actor,” Ronkin said. “I learned so much about how to have a good relationship with the cast, and I’ve probably become a better actor from it, too.” Like Chapados was during her time at BC, Ronkin is a member of the Dramatics Society, a student group “committed to developing talent and giving opportunities for theatrical expression in the Boston College community.” “I knew that last spring, there weren’t a lot of students who applied to direct,” Chapados said. “I said, ‘I understand if you think it’s weird,’ but I applied and here we are.” On The Verge is the relevant story of three intrepid females traveling through the fictionalized last unexplored place on earth, Chapados said. She chose On The Verge because of its moral—the play emphasizes choosing what’s best for yourself and highlights the strong bond between three women. It reflects the difference of feeling excited about versus frightened by the future and emphasizes the validity of both. “Throughout the play we experience time in a totally different way,” Chapados said. “It’s really zany and wacky, but it also has a lot of heart.” Throughout the play, three women, Mary (Olivia Sheridan, MCAS ’22), Fanny (Christine Schmitt, MCAS ’20, who doubles as a production manager), and Alex (Debbie Aboaba, MCAS ’21), trek through terra incognita, or unexplored territory. But as they pass through various terrains and

landscapes, and meet several distinct people (all played, quite comically, by Grant Whitney, MCAS ’21), they realize they are not only passing

especially considering the simple, bare set. With this in mind, it was easy for the trio to convince the audience that they weren’t walking around BC’s

thusiastic about the prospect of a play in which three out of four characters were women. “You know it’s going to be a great

MAGGIE DIPATRICK / HEIGHTS STAFF

through space but also through time. The audience members truly have to use their imaginations to understand the gist of the play. The three women illustrated the rough terrains and unique encounters they had while on their journey in a remarkable fashion,

Bonn Studio. Instead, they were cutting through untouched vegetation, mountain climbing in the Himalayas, and leaping over rivers. While most of the cast had never heard of On The Verge, they instantly fell in love with the concept. They were incredibly en-

show when they ask you to yodel in the audition,” Sheridan said. The setup of the studio itself allowed the audience to be fully immersed in the adventure. Seats surrounded the small stage on three sides, and characters would enter and

leave through all four corners, rushing past audience members and often breaking the fourth wall. During the entire play, but most noticeably about halfway through, the three women start finding objects and speaking phrases far ahead of their time (which is never mentioned explicitly, but likely circa-18th century). At some point or another, each finds a rotary whisk, an object so arbitrary that it conjured up laughter from the audience everytime a new one appeared. As they travel through decades, each wants to stop and settle down at a different point. The element of choice is incredibly prevalent throughout—when Fanny falls in love and decides to stay in the ’50s, Mary is sad but decides to keep going, even though she knows they’ll never see each other again. “It’s about the notion of continuing even when you don’t know what will happen next,” Sheridan said. “It’s perseverance and continuing despite nerves or reservations.” Every person involved seems to have a moral or take away from being involved with On The Verge. Similar to Sheridan, Chapados cites the play as a guiding force as she navigates the world after graduation. “Sometimes when you can do anything, you end up doing nothing,” Chapados said in the Director’s Note. “While [the characters] do not always know the right answer immediately, they ultimately always choose what is best for them because they know who they are.” The cast was quick to point out just how much the play mirrored their lives, and those of countless others. Through On The Verge, the group of young actors and directors has grown as people and performers. “The play is about three young women, who over the course of a few months, get to know each other really well,” Sheridan said. “It truly reflects our experience.” Sheridan was quick to note how much On The Verge helped her find her place at BC. She grew to love the Dramatics Society so much in such a short amount of time that she plans on running to a part of the organization’s board soon. “The first few days of college I hadn’t found my crowd yet,” Sheridan said. “Over time, On The Verge has exposed me to the crowd I want to be a part of.” It seems that a production can’t get any smaller, in terms of the amount of people involved, than On The Verge. Most of the actors had never been involved with such a tiny group of people, but they enjoyed the experience tremendously. “In larger shows, you’re not called at the same time as everyone else,” Aboaba said. “But with this, we got to see each other every day.”

See On The Verge, A15

My Mother’s Fleabag Supplies Tricks and Treats at Fall Cafe

By Kaylie Ramirez

Assoc. Arts Editor

Looking for comedic relief at the height of midterm season, students crawled out from the depths of their O’Neill 5 hide-

aways to show up in big numbers at the My Mother’s Fleabag Fall Café on Thursday. The Boston College comedy troupe did not disappoint, filling the hour with hilarious banter and witty improv. Fleabaggers encouraged high audience

IKRAM ALI / HEIGHTS STAFF

My Mother’s Fleabag entertained the audience with witty banter and improv.

INSIDE ARTS

‘POC Art Lab’

participation throughout the night: The comedians crowdsourced topics for their improvised comedy, brought members down from the seats to set the stage for various games, and even sought dialogue for their skits from audience members standing on the makeshift “stage” in the small Gasson lecture hall. A game of “Freeze” opened the café, during which the Fleabaggers pulled a member of the crowd onstage to position the Fleabaggers in odd formations that gave birth to various scenes. The audience burst into laughter when Maya Rao, MCAS ’21, fired off a topical punchline: “You’re going to tape Grandpa’s will to my back, and that’s my Halloween costume?” Nick Edel, MCAS ’19, asked the audience for suggestions of radio stations for the following act, a game in which Fleabaggers Anna Livaccari, MCAS ’20; Ari Malliaros, CSOM ’19; Mike Bamford, MCAS ’20; and Tom Mier, MCAS ’19, had to adopt the role of radio host for their given station. Bamford

belted out impromptu seafaring lyrics as the host of pirate radio while Mier gave those tuning into HGTV radio tips on how to put the finishing touch on their Greco-Roman style living room: the body of a dead man. Mier prompted the audience with the question “What is something you would like to find in antique store for just $2.50?” before settling on the topic of whips for a game of pan left, pan right. Four Fleabaggers rotated scenes to create a total of eight concurrent scenes. Graysen Parish, MCAS ’22, opted to portray a mother with a dance class obsession during one scene. “The whip can only last so long—it has to go out of style,” Parish said, causing the crowd to reply with a combination of laughter and poetry reading-style snaps. Maggie Cetrullo, MCAS ’21, portrayed a murderous husband while playing a game in which Fleabaggers had to conjure up a movie plot based on the first letter of the crowd’s answers to various questions. Edel

‘The Other Wilde Trial’

The BC theatre department and ALC showcased an evening of University College Cork professor Eibhear Walshe spoke art and people of color (POC) culture........................................ A15 about Mary Travers and her relation to Oscar Wilde..... A15

hilariously starred as a member of the dead wife’s book club, exclaiming, “She had next month’s book in her hand!” when he found the dead body. The comedy group rounded out the night of asinine fun with fan favorite game “185 Blanks Walk into a Bar,” a game in which the audience fills in the blank and the Fleabaggers supply the jokes. Sam Harmon, MCAS ’21, stole the show with his consistent joke about a family in Cold War Poland during the segments. Riffing off the topic of TV shows, Harmon took up the identity of a Polish pilot who flew his starving family out of Poland and into “the Westworld.” In the final round of a game that centered on BC Dining specials, Harmon re-assumed his role for a strong ending: Fast-forwarding 20 years, Harmon found himself separated from the rest of his displaced Polish family in West Berlin. Grabbing the arm of his imaginary brother as the wall Berlin Wall fell, Harmon exclaimed, “Finally East Meets West!” n

‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’....................A14 ‘Suspiria’..........................................A14 ‘Bodyguard’..........................................A14