The Heights will return on April 12, 2012. Enjoy your Easter Break! Marathon prep
Robsham rises ‘Up’ Frozen four preview
features
ARTS & rEVIEW
sports
Runners and spectators alike prepare for all that Patriot’s Day has to offer, C8
Boston College dancers unite for a dazzling showcase of agility and skill, C1
The men’s hockey team prepares for its first round match up with Minnesota, B1
Monday, April 2, 2012
Vol. XCIII, No. 19
BCAAUP writes to Leahy, BOT asking for investigation By David Cote News Editor
In response to growing national and international interest in the Belfast Project legal case, the Boston College chapter of the American Association for University Professors (BCAAUP) has sent a letter to the Board of Trustees and the president, as well as started a petition to create a third party committee to investigate the research that occurred during the Belfast Project. In the letter, BCAAUP suggested that the committee include “a representative of the American Historical Association; an expert on archival management or oral history; a journalist who is acquainted with questions of journalistic ethics or methods of historical research; and the chair of the History Department.”
The letter, endorsed by a vote of the membership of BCAAUP on Feb. 27 and dated Mar. 3, was released to the public after BCAAUP received no response from the president’s office or the Board of Trustees. “Father Leahy has asked David Quigley [Dean of Arts and Sciences] to respond to the members of the executive committee of BCAAUP who sent the petition,” said University Spokesman Jack Dunn. Quigley’s response to the BCAAUP is forthcoming. “In light of recent press reports about the Belfast Oral History Project, we write to you out of a concern for the reputation of Boston College. Recent reports have raised serious questions about the research procedures of the Belfast Oral History
See BCAAUP, A4
joseph castlen / heights editor
More than 650 high school students came to campus this weekend for student-taught classes as part of the fourth BC Splash program.
57% feel that morale has been declining
making a splash High schoolers flood BC for a variety of student-taught classes By Andrew Skaras Heights Staff
Boston College was inundated with over 650 high school students this Sunday for the fourth installation of BC Splash. Running from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., the program brought together high school students with BC undergrads for a day of unorthodox classes. With a large diversity of topics, the classes explored academic interests that do not always come up in traditional classes and gave
BC undergrads an opportunity to teach others about their passions. Started at BC by Hanyin Chang, A&S ’12, in the fall of 2010, BC Splash is modeled on MIT Splash. Although the first semester had only 250 students, the program has grown substantially every semester since its inception. More important to Chang than the numbers, however, is the environment and the mission: “Education for Students by Students.” “When I was in high school, I par-
ticipated in MIT Splash and had a blast,” Chang said. “When you are in high school, you don’t have a lot of choices of what you can take. I enjoyed the close interactions with college students on topics that they were passionate about. When I enrolled at BC, I wanted to create the same sort of platform here at BC.” When he was a sophomore, Chang began the planning that saw its first fruits in the fall of his junior year. This
See Splash, A4
By Darren Ranck Heights Senior Staff
Rui Soares, A&S ’13, received the Archbishop Oscar A. Romero scholarship on Saturday evening in the Yawkey Athletics Center for his outstanding efforts in leadership and academia, as well as his contributions to the Latino community. The scholarship, which is awarded to the student who best follows the example set by Romero, celebrated a landmark 20th birthday, and the ceremony honored the legacy of both the students who created it and its namesake. Marina McCoy, a member of the schol-
arship committee, introduced Soares as a lasting example of Romero’s preaching. “Rui embodies the ideal of what Archbishop Romero once preached: ‘Aspire not to have more but to be more,’” McCoy said. Soares, a pre-med student, tutored in the 4Boston program and currently serves as the program director and resident assistant for the Multicultural Leadership Experience. He plans to apply for medical school and fulfill his dream of becoming a physician. “I want to especially help the Latino community because this is where I come from and want to help through medicine,” Soares wrote in his application. Receiving the award coincided with Soares’ 21st birthday, and he took the time to thank his parents for giving him life and support. “Being a first-generation American and college student is hard work, but not once
See Romero Scholarship, A4
Faculty responds to survey Heights Editor
photo courtesy of sang lee, mts
Rui Soares, A&S ’13, received the Archbishop Oscar A. Romero scholarship this weekend.
63% said they were dissatisfied with their role in decision making woogeon kim / heights graphic
By Molly LaPoint
Rui receives Romero award Junior pre-medicine student receives prestigious scholarship
85% support an elevated committee of faculty
This fall, the Boston College chapter of the American Association of University Professors (BCAAUP) conducted its second faculty survey to discern what the concerns of the faculty are with regard to their involvement in University affairs. Members of the BCAAUP began discussing the results at their meeting, on Feb. 27. The AAUP is a national advocacy organization whose “purpose is to advance academic freedom and shared governance, to define fundamental professional values and standards for higher education, and to ensure higher education’s contribution to the common good,” according to its website. The BC chapter began in January of 2010, and currently has over 120 members. Among its chief concerns are the lack of a faculty senate and the fact that the faculty handbook is not overseen or written by faculty members, which Susan
Michalczyk, BCAAUP president, said is rare at similar colleges and universities. “It came about in response to the recognition of faculty that we need a voice,” she said. The survey, which received 285 responses, yielded some interesting information, Michalczyk said. “What our faculty survey demonstrates overall is that there is a lack of respect for what faculty think,” she said. “Some are parts of committees and some do speak, but it’s a very small number.” “I have seen the BCAAUP faculty survey, and was pleased that 285 faculty took the time to participate in it,” said Patricia DeLeeuw, vice provost for faculties, in an interview. “I was struck by a number of its findings, especially the desire among those who responded for more opportunities for collaboration across disciplines.” At the school level, 53 percent of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with their role in decision making, and at the
See Faculty Survey, A4
GLC hosts Candyland-themed annual gala Stowell, McDargh speak on issues of GLBTQ rights By Joseph Pasquinelli Heights Staff
joseph pasquinelli / heights staff
GLC hosted their gala Saturday night at the Back Bay Event Center with the theme “Candyland.”
Saturday evening, the GLBTQ Leadership Council (GLC) hosted its fourth annual Gala at the Back Bay Event Center. The theme of this year’s gala was initially “Katy Perry Candyland” but was later changed to only “Candyland” so students would not think the pop star would be present. Approximately 250 students were in attendance. Fewer students attended Saturday night than last year when tickets for the gala sold out. However, the room did not seem empty because the space was much more intimate than Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts where the event was held in years past. Carolyn McCrosson, GLC president and
A&S ’12, said they changed venues mostly because of budgeting issues. “We decided to change the venue to save money and be more fiscally responsible,” McCrosson said. “The Cyclorama had been a great location in years past but we wanted a location that included more than just the venue in its booking price. We are allocated very little and it makes it very difficult to put on a great event. We definitely have visions of a bigger and better gala in the future. We have learned to work around most of these budgeting limitations. We get creative in terms of decorations, and we try to negotiate prices down with catering and the venue.” As a branch of the UGBC, the GLC “is committed to bettering the quality of life for all students at Boston College especially those who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning.” Their webpage goes on to say that they act as a resource for all organizations that wish to help members of the GLBTQ community gain “equality, acceptance, and understand-
ing” at BC and in the world. The evening began with students sampling hors d’oeuvres before forming a semi-circle on the dance floor to listen to an address from the evening’s keynote speaker Grace Sterling Stowell, executive director of Boston’s Alliance of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth (BAGLY). Stowell, who is transgendered, spoke on the mission and history of BAGLY, including their quest for social justice and equality. She concluded her speech by calling on those in attendance to “work together to make it better.” John McDargh, associate professor of theology, then took the microphone and captivated the audience with his views on the intersection of religion and sexuality. McDargh, who was raised Catholic but has since become an Episcopalian, said that he was not pleased with the message and work of his church. “The Christian Church was a place that was not serving the people,”
See Gala, A4