The Heights 03/25/2013

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A night on the Eagle EMS ambulance reported by the hour, B10

Five original works by BC students are premiered in Bonn Studio Theater, A10

Men’s hockey travels to Providence to face Union in the NCAA Regionals, B1

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HEIGHTS

THE

The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College

established

1919

Monday, March 25, 2013

Vol. XCIV, No. 16

CSOM named sixth best US business school

New citizens naturalized at BC

Admins warn BCSSH about ‘Safe Sites’

BY ELEANOR HILDEBRANDT

BY DAVID COTE

News Editor

Editor-in-Chief

The Carroll School of Management (CSOM) was ranked No. 6 among United States undergraduate business schools in Bloomberg Businessweek’s annual review, released last week. The ranking is calculated based on five different areas: a student survey, the schools’ academic quality, rankings by employers’ recruiters, the rank of MBA feeder schools, and graduates’ starting salaries. This year marks the third time in the past five years that CSOM has ranked in the top 10—it placed No. 9 both last year and in 2010, with a dip to 16th place in 2011.

Richard Keeley, CSOM associate dean for undergraduate studies, explained how the rankings are calculated. The results of the surveys from the past three years combined form 30 percent of the overall rank, with the most recent year, 2013, accounting for half the score and the other two years, 2012 and 2011 accounting for a quarter each.

“Ironically, this is the point on which we have done the worst,” Keeley said. “[The survey] covers everything. You would think it would be focused on, ‘How satisfied are you with the instruction? Do you think the material is current? How about career services?’ And all of that is covered, but also it says, ‘Well, what do you think of the building? And how about food on campus? Are you satisfied with extracur-

On Friday, Mar. 15, the University administration sent an email to the residents of all rooms identified as Boston College Students for Sexual Health (BCSSH) “Safe Sites,” indicating that students in those rooms could be in violation of University policy if they were found to be distributing condoms to the general student body. The letter, signed by Paul Chebator, dean of students, and George Arey, director of the Office of Residential Life, further indicated that residents of these rooms could be subject to disciplinary action.

“It has been brought to our attention that your residence hall living unit has a ‘Safe Site’ logo on your door that identifies your living unit as a ‘safe sex site,’” the letter to Safe Site residents read. “It is our understanding that this indicates that you are distributing condoms to the general student body from this location. It is incumbent upon us as University administrators to advise you that the distribution of condoms on campus is not in concert with the mission of Boston College as a Catholic and Jesuit university.”

The BCSSH website currently lists 13 different rooms as Safe Sites. Students can go to any of the rooms listed for access to free sexual health resources, including male and female condoms, dental dams, and lubricant, as well as sexual health pamphlets and information on STDs, birth control, and consensual deci-

See CSOM Ranking, A4 GRADUATES’ MBA STARTING FEEDER SALARIES SCHOOL 10 % RANK % 10

STUDENT SATISFACTION

% RECRUITER % 30 30 30 % RANKINGS

ACADEMIC QUALITY

MAGGIE BURDGE / HEIGHTS PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

‘Businessweek’ calculations for business school rankings broken down (above).

ALEX GAYNOR / HEIGHTS EDITOR

During the naturalization ceremony last Thursday, 94 immigrants—including a BC freshman—became U.S. citizens.

BY JOHN WILEY Heights Editor “Well, good afternoon, fellow citizens,” said the Honorable George A. O’Toole, a Massachusetts district judge and BC ’69, addressing 94 United States citizens naturalized in Robsham Theater on Thursday.

The naturalization ceremony marked the start of a symposium titled “Migration: Past, Present, and Future.” The 94 naturalized at the service represent 42 countries,

and among them was Chuda Rijal, A&S ’16, whose family immigrated to the United States from Bhutan. The event was presided over by O’Toole, and served as an official session of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts—such ceremonies are customarily held in community venues, rather than courtrooms. As part of BC’s sesquicentennial celebration, the event served as reaffirmation of the University’s commitment to immigrant populations, an important ideal in its founding.

“In the very early years, we were a school that was founded specifically for immigrants and the children of immigrants to try to bring them into American society and help them advance their own family fortunes over the generations,” said James O’Toole, Clough Millennium Chair in History at BC, who is currently writing a history of the University as part of the sesquicentennial celebration. He is also

See Naturalization, A4

See BCSSH Letter, A4

UGBC campaigns underway, primary begins today

BY ELEANOR HILDEBRANDT News Editor Primary voting begins today on OrgSync for the 2013 UGBC Presidential and Vice Presidential elections, and after voting ends tomorrow, one ticket will be eliminated from the running.

The three teams—Tim Koch, A&S ’14, and Chris “Trugs” Truglio, CSOM ’14; Molly McCathy and Ricky Knapp, both A&S ’14; and

Matt Nacier and Matt Alonsozana, both A&S ’14—have been focusing on spreading their platforms to the student body throughout the last week. All teams have been holding dorm walks, attending on-campus events, and utilizing social media to spread their names.

Campaigning since last Wednesday’s official debate has not been smooth sailing, however. Disparity sprang up around a second, town hall-style UGBC debate, originally planned for last Thursday, Mar. 21. Bellarmine

Law Society, along with other Registered Student Organizations (RSOs), intended to host a second debate to focus on the teams’ specific policy proposals and plans for RSOs. “Due to UGBC’s new Constitution, we are specifically interested in the plans these teams have for the Vice President,” said Bellarmine representative and senator Chris Marchese, A&S ’15, in an email that he sent out with co-representative Bryan White, A&S ’15.

A few days before the debate was sched-

uled, however, White informed The Heights that the McCarthy-Knapp and Koch-Truglio tickets had both declined to participate, and the debate had thus been cancelled. He said that both teams said that they were focusing more on campaigning in dormitories. “We feel that while dorm walks are an important aspect of the campaign, RSOs play a central role in both the election and in UGBC,” White

See UGBC Campaign, A4

Former Irish president to be Burns Scholar in fall

Three BC juniors compete for Truman Scholarship

BY ANDREW SKARAS

Loughrin, Luangrath, Manning all finalists

Asst. News Editor Every year, the Burns Library and the Irish Studies program invite a renowned scholar, writer, or artist in the field of Irish culture to come to Boston College for either a semester or a full year to teach, give lectures, and conduct research in the library’s extensive collection as the Burns Library Visiting Scholar in Irish Studies.

For the fall of 2013, the Burns Visiting Scholar will be Mary McAleese, president emerita of Ireland.

McAleese is coming to BC through the work of Thomas Hachey, University professor of history and executive director of the Center for Irish Programs, with the help of Rev. Liam Bergin, adjunct professor of theology and former rector of the Irish College in Rome.

“I received a phone call while on vacation in Maine, asking if it may be possible to

host Dr. McAleese here at BC for a special sesquicentennial event,” Hachey said. “It was not possible because of [her] schedule for an event in this year. I lamented the fact and expressed this fact to my good friend Rev. Bergin. I knew that he knew her personally and asked him if he would introduce me electronically.”

Bergin has known McAleese for many years and saw her frequently during his tenure as rector. In addition to his professional connection, he also is personally acquainted with the family, as he presided over the marriage of McAleese’s daughter when she got married in Rome.

“It is a combination, I think, of her own academic background and her experience as being president that make her a very interesting proposition here for BC,” Bergin said. “She is a professor of law by trade and held senior positions at Trinity College, Dublin. She brought her legal expertise with her as she became president and used

BY GABBY TARINI Heights Staff PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF NEWS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Mary McAleese, president emerita of Ireland, will join the University in the fall. it in many ways.”

Before McAleese began her study of law, she grew up in Belfast during a time of great social and political instability.

“She grew up as a victim of the Troubles in Northern Ireland,” Bergin said. “She was marked in a good sense—that it should end, as opposed to that it should be revenged. Her whole thing has been to create bridges—as bridges across the religious and political divide. She emerged

See McAleese, A4

Three juniors at Boston College are finalists for the Harry S Truman Scholarship, awarded to outstanding students who intend to pursue careers in government or elsewhere in public service. The scholarship is awarded on the basis of merit to students who will be college seniors in the next academic year and who have significant potential for leadership in government.

Each scholarship awards $30,000 for a two or three-year graduate study.

The three students from BC competing for the Truman Scholarship are Brooke Loughrin, Joseph Manning, and Narintohn Luangrath, all A&S ’14. All three candidates have impressive academic records and have held leadership positions in public service organizations.

Luangrath is an International Studies major and philosophy minor, as well a first-generation American citizen. Her parents are from Thailand and Laos and came to the U.S. to study on academic scholarships. She says that her family’s immigrant background has inspired her interest in issues related to forced migration, namely, the asylum process and subsequent refugee resettlement.

Luangrath says that if she receives the scholarship, she will put the money toward the joint Juris Doctor (JD) and Master of International Affairs (MIA) program at Columbia University’s Law School and School of International and Public Affairs.

“An MIA degree would allow me to contextualize my legal training in an international affairs framework, particularly when crafting policy while considering the normative construction of human rights over time,” Luangrath said. In terms of politically related extracur-

See Truman Finalists, A4

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Monday, March 25, 2013

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A Guide to Your Newspaper

Women in Business Panel Governor Deval Patrick

Global Zero Panel

Today Time: 8 p.m.

Location: Fulton Honors Library

Global Zero is hosting a panel on international arms control and nuclear weapons in current issues. Steven Pifer, the former U.S. Ambassador to the Ukraine, will speak with Donald Hafner, Vice-President of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

Friday Time: 5 p.m.

Location: Murray Function Room

Tuesday, April 2 Time: 11 a.m.

Location: Robsham Theater

Boston College Graduate The Boston College GraduWomen in Business and The ate School of Social Work Council for Women of Boston presents Deval Patrick, the College present “Networks, Mentors, and Sponsors,” a 71st Governor of Massachusetts. Patrick will address panel on finding and leveraging relationships for women the challenges of promoting an inclusive government in business. in his lecture, “The Politics and Policies of Inclusion.”

Erin Brockovich shares life experience “I thought for a while that Superman was gonna come and save me, but I gotta tell you, he ain’t f—in’ coming.”

The students who packed the Heights Room at Boston College last Thursday to hear Erin Brockovich speak quickly learned that their speaker was not one to mince her words.

Brockovich came to speak at BC about perseverance and female empowerment as part of the first annual Boston College Women’s collaboration.

As a single mother with no formal legal education, Erin Brockovich brought American energy powerhouse Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) crashing down to the tune of a $333 million lawsuit. Her incredible accomplishments were memorialized in the 2000 Oscarwinning movie, Erin Brockovich, which starred Julia Roberts.

Brockovich spoke extensively about her upbringing and how it instilled within her the values and the strength she would use to being down PG&E later in her life.

“In high school I was named the girl ‘least likely to succeed,’” Brockovich said. “My dyslexia caused everyone to judge me and stuff me in a box.” Brockovich was not destined to remain in the box forever, however.

She described a psychology teacher who allowed her to take exams orally. “She let me come outside the box, she didn’t want to keep me in there,” Brockovich said. “It allowed

ALEX GAYNOR / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Brockovich sued Pacific Gas & Electric as a single mother with no formal legal education. me to start a process of beginning to believe in myself.”

Brockovich also emphasized the importance of intuition and gut feeling.

She told students that these instincts were the driving force behind her decision to get justice for families affected

by PG&E. In 1992, Brockovich discovered that PG&E had allowed the leakage of a contaminant called Chromium 6 into the well water of Hinkley, Calif. for over 30 years. Many residents of this small desert community were suffering from ailments ranging from chronic nosebleeds to cancer.

“I didn’t need law school to tell me that two-headed trout in green water wasn’t good for me,” Brockovich said. “I had the choice to do something about it and I did.”

Brockovich credited lessons from her mother with her relentless search for the truth in Hinkley.

“Every time I came home with a D

or an F my mother used to say to me, ‘Erin, where is your stick-to-itiveness,’” Brockovich said.

“Stick-to-itiveness” is defined as “the propensity to follow through in a determined manner” or “dogged perseverance.”

Brockovich’s stick-to-itiveness paid off in Hinkley: In 1993, 634 Hinkley residents hired Brockovich to sue PG&E. The case was settled for $333 million, the largest settlement in U.S. history ever paid in a direct action lawsuit.

Brockovich explained that her father instilled in her the importance of integrity, honesty, and loyalty.

“In Hinkley, I knew someone was lying about something somewhere,” Brockovich said. “I couldn’t put my finger on it but I knew.” She was referring to PG&E’s insistence that the Chromium 6 in the water was not directly related to the company’s actions.

“I began to feel perplexed at the same time—a lie, why is it that a lie would be

POLICE BLOTTER Thursday, March 21

8:25 a.m. - A report was filed regarding suspicious circumstances in Walsh Hall.

12:05 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a suspicious circumstance in Boston College Police Headquarters.

10:52 a.m. - A report was filed regarding found property in the Mods.

4:34 p.m. - A report was filed regarding harassing telephone calls in Walsh Hall.

8:53 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a student needing medical assistance in the Flynn Sports Complex. The student was later transported by cruiser to a medical facility.

12:36 a.m. - A report was filed regarding vandalism in Duchesne East dormitory.

8:19 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a student needing medical assistance in Edmond’s Hall. The student was later transported to a medical facility.

12:37 p.m. - A report was filed regarding an activated fire alarm in Joyce Hall.

College Corner NEWS FROM UNIVERSITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY

BY DEVON SANFORD Assoc. News Editor Students at Harvard University have been accused of studying questions for the National Academic Quiz Tournament (NAQT) in advance of the competition. From 2009 to 2011, Andy Watkins, a member of Harvard’s academic quiz “A” team, viewed pages that displayed the first 40 characters of forthcoming questions, according to the Huffington Post.

Watkins, who graduated in 2011, accessed an administrative website containing information about questions on which he competed as a Harvard student, according to tournament officials. NAQT stripped Harvard of four titles, one title each from 2009 and 2010, and two titles from 2011. The University of Minnesota now claims two championships, and the University of Chicago and Virginia Commonwealth Unviersity each have one.

Watkins had worked for the quiz

tournament after graduating from Harvard and admitted to accessing the web pages.

“I regret my breaches of question security,” he said. “It will surprise no one that my mental health as an undergraduate was always on the wrong side of ‘unstable.’ But that does not excuse my actions, nor does it ameliorate the damage done ... I did compete in good faith.”

NAQT said in a statement that there was not evidence that Watkins took advantage of the access to help in game situations.

“We have neither direct nor statistical evidence that Harvard directly benefited from the security breach,” organizers said. “However, it goes against competitors’ expectations of fair play.”

NAQT has launched a review of security following the discovery of cheating in previous years. Organizers have found no signs of similar behavior in approach to this year’s tournament. 

Editorial General (617) 552-2221 Managing Editor (617) 552-4286 News Desk (617) 552-0172 Sports Desk (617) 552-0189 Metro Desk (617) 552-3548 Features Desk (617) 552-3548 Arts Desk (617) 552-0515 Photo (617) 552-1022 Fax (617) 552-4823

EDITORIAL RESOURCES

bothering me so much, how bad could it be,” Brockovich said. “On one of my long drives home from Hinkley I began to wonder what I was doing—honestly, I made no money, I had three kids—but I had that sinking gut feeling that someone was hiding something.”

As a result of her parent’s lessons and her own experiences, Brockovich developed the concept of “RAM,” which she shared with students last Wednesday.

“RAM means to do or achieve by pushing obstacles out of one’s way,” Brockovich said.

She explained that “R” stands for realiz ation—realiz ing the power of yourself and your decisions before you figure out where you need to go.

“We all want a hero and we are all looking for a hero, but we all need to be in the business of saving ourselves,” Brockovich said.

“A” stands for assessment—the process of taking documentation not in what you have, but who you are.

“Don’t be afraid to reassess your skills and beliefs—rip it up, tear it down, and remodel,” Brockovich said. “We are afraid of remodeling only because we are afraid of failing.”

Finally, “M” stands for motivation, the difference between talent and success.

“We all know someone who was someone who was not very talented or gifted but succeeded through perseverance despite all odds,” she said. “Hello, I’m standing right here!” 

3/20/13-3/22/13

Wednesday, March 20

Editor-in-Chief (617) 552-2223

Business and Operations General Manager (617) 552-0169 Advertising (617) 552-2220 Business and Circulation (617) 552-0547 Classifieds and Collections (617) 552-0364 Fax (617) 552-1753

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BY GABBY TARINI Heights Staff

The Heights Boston College – McElroy 113 140 Commonwealth Ave. Chestnut Hill, Mass. 02467

2:42 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a traffic accident in the Commuter Lot.

Friday, March 22 2:41 a.m. - A report was filed regarding an underage intoxicated BC student in Cheverus Hall.

3:43 a.m. - A report was filed regarding lost property in O’Neill Library.

—Source: The Boston College Police Department

News Tips Have a news tip or a good idea for a story?

Call Eleanor Hildebrandt, News Editor, at (617) 552-0172, or e-mail news@bcheights. com. For future events, e-mail, fax, or mail a detailed description of the event and contact information to the News Desk.

Sports Scores Want to report the results of a game? Call Austin Tedesco, Sports Editor, at (617) 5520189, or e-mail sports@bcheights.com.

Arts Events The Heights covers a multitude of events both on and off campus – including concerts, movies, theatrical performances, and more. Call Sean Keeley, Arts and Review Editor, at (617) 552-0515, or e-mail arts@bcheights.com. For future events, e-mail, fax, or mail a detailed description of the event and contact information to the Arts Desk.

Clarifications / Corrections The Heights strives to provide its readers with complete, accurate, and balanced information. If you believe we have made a reporting error, have information that requires a clarification or correction, or questions about The Heights standards and practices, you may contact David Cote, Editor-in-Chief, at (617) 552-2223, or e-mail eic@bcheights.com.

CUSTOMER SERVICE Delivery To have The Heights delivered to your home each week or to report distribution problems on campus, contact Jamie Ciocon, General Manager at (617) 5520547.

Advertising The Heights is one of the most effective ways to reach the BC community. To submit a classified, display, or online advertisement, call our advertising office at (617) 552-2220 Monday through Friday.

The Heights is produced by BC undergraduates and is published on Mondays and Thursdays during the academic year by The Heights, Inc. (c) 2013. All rights reserved.

CORRECTIONS The following corrections are in reference to the issue dated March 21, 2013, Vol. XCIV, No. 15.

The article titled “Irish World Dance comes to Boston” should have included Liam Connolly and Caitlin Mann, both A&S ’13, in the list of students representing Boston College Irish Dance Team.

The “Voices from the Dustbowl” photos for Jon Boudreau and Jovani Hernandez were switched.

VOICES FROM THE DUSTBOWL “What would you like to find in an Easter egg?”

“Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup.” —Brendan Sweeny, A&S ’16

“Laffy Taffy.”

—Ryan Shannon, A&S ’15

“Money.”

—Kevin Thompson A&S ’14

“Sour patch watermelon.”

—Claire Walsh,

LSOE ’16

The Heights

Monday, March 25, 2013

A3

Stick-toit-iveness

Unofficial BC frat celebrates founding

By Samantha Costanzo Special Projects Editor

Taylour Kumpf Along with probably many members of the female population at Boston College, I found the recent Heights article, “Female BC Students Report Lower Self-Confidence When Leaving College,” unsettling. Perhaps even more unsettling is the fact that the statistic wasn’t shocking. Despite my lack of surprise, however, the news has been difficult to digest. My gut feeling has been confirmed, and now I’m left wondering why this is the case and what we, as females, can do about it.

Addressing the question of why female seniors leave college with less confidence than they had as freshmen, the article suggests a number of possible explanations, including body image issues, career uncertainty, and of course, the scapegoat of all scapegoats, the elusive hookup culture. After reading the article in its entirety, one thing becomes very clear: The issues related to female self-confidence extend beyond the classroom.

Low self-esteem in the female population is not just an academic problem—it’s a social and cultural one as well.

While I cannot fully explain why women have lower self-confidence, I do believe that for most of us, it’s a head game. Too often women let outside influences affect their opinions of themselves, whether those influences are other women, men, or just society in general. In order to change this statistic, we have to look inside. As women, we need to convince ourselves that we’re beautiful and accept the bodies we’re born with. We need to believe that we are capable of accomplishing whatever we set our minds to. And we need to acknowledge that, in reality, women are also to blame for the pervasiveness of the “hookup culture.” We allow it to happen, or secretly like it. Its existence is not simply the fault of the men we so often like to blame.

Really, it wasn’t until this past week that I had a solid answer as to what we, as females, can do about our self-esteem issues. My answer happened to come in the form of Erin Brockovich. (For those of you who don’t know, Brockovich is a real life, inspiring woman, not just the name of that movie Julia Roberts starred in.)

Brockovich spoke in the Heights Room last Thursday about perseverance and female empowerment as part of the first annual Boston College Women’s Collaboration (How appropriate, right?).

And all I can say is I was completely blown away.

What’s most inspiring about Brockovich’s story is that she began as the underdog. Growing up in Lawrence, Kan. with dyslexia, Brockovich was placed in a box.

In high school she was named the girl “least likely to succeed,” and she nearly let that socially imposed box cave in on her. Fortunately, she had two parents who always believed in her abilities and pushed her to realize her potential. Addressing a room full of women, she said, “Every time I came home with a D or an F, my mother would say to me, ‘Erin, where is your stickto-it-iveness?” It wasn’t until she internalized her mother’s message and began to believe in herself that things changed.

Now the woman is truly a force of nature. Brockovich, the stubborn, single mother of three, is an American hero whose “stick-to-itiveness” has fueled her determination to expose injustice and lend a voice to those who do not have one. She is a modern-day David who loves to fight with the Goliaths of our time. She thrives on being the voice for those who don’t know how to yell. She is a rebel and a fighter. She is a woman from whom all females can take a cue because, ultimately, she is you and me, and all we can control in this life is our own outlook. Self-confidence comes from within.

Taylour Kumpf is a senior staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at news@bcheights.com.

eun hee kwon / Heights staff

The WRC panel invited an alumna, a student, a professor, and an administrator to discuss issues women face.

WRC panel emphasizes role of feminism in modern world

By Jennifer Heine Heights Staff Feminists from Boston College, past and present, gathered on Thursday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Women’s Resource Center (WRC).

The event, “Still Fighting the Good Fight,” welcomed a panel of sp e akers rang ing f rom a professor to a current undergraduate to discuss the meaning of feminism on campus and advocate for change.

The panelists included current WRC staff member Colby Campbell, A&S ’14; assistant history professor Arissa Oh; WRC alumna, founder of Boston College Students for Sexual Health, and current Harvard Law student Rachel Lamorte, BC ’10; and former WRC director and current graduate assistant at the Center on Violence Against Women and Children at Rutgers School of Social Work Sheila McMahon. Vice Provost for Faculties Patricia DeLeeuw moderated the event.

Although each panelist takes on a specific focus in his or her work—body image and racism for Campbell, the plight of working mothers for Oh, reproductive justice for Lamorte, and sexual violence for McMahon—they shared a common bond with regard to the use of the term “feminist.” As DeLeeuw wondered, “Why has feminism become the f-word, when we’re talking about issues of social justice here?”

S ome panelists acknowledged the difficulty of identifying as a feminist. “I was one of those people who always said, ‘I’m a feminist but…’” Oh said.

“Now I feel like when I define

myself as a feminist it’s almost a subversive act.”

“I have a really interesting relationship with the term ‘feminist,’” said Campbell, the only male on the panel. “Identifying with it has been difficult just because of the backlash from my peers.”

He added, “I think the reason that there is so much debate over the term ‘feminism’ itself is that there’s a conflict about what the term means as an ideology.”

Lamorte expressed a similar sentiment. “Language is often the most difficult thing to get past,” she said. “In talking to my female friends about how I define myself as a feminist and why they don’t, we feel largely the same way. We want the same things. For a lot of them, the sticking point is the word itself.”

This definition of feminism as a historical movement rather than a current issue hinders its acceptance by the younger generation. “People feel like the word is an anachronism,” Oh said. “People associate it with the 1970s, Gloria Steinem, bra burning, and they think it’s over.”

Panelists also noted the patriarchal nature of Catholicism as a contributor to this difficulty. “I don’t think anything can change until women are given a greater role in the Catholic Church,” Lamorte said. “When you experience oppression in some way, it makes you stronger. Still, it was clear to me that as a woman at this institution I was not valued. I never felt like I was a full part of the community.”

Beyond religion, they re-

ferred to the sexism that exists in the collegiate culture as a whole. “In this culture, there are very specific ways to be a woman,” Oh said. “You have to talk a certain way, look a certain way, act a certain way. I couldn’t imagine how you wouldn’t end up with lower self-esteem, if you’re trying to conform to this specific image of womanhood.”

“I think it’s also important to note the representation of leadership on campus,” Campbell said. “If you don’t see people like you acting as leaders, then it’s hard to see yourself in these roles.”

The panelists agreed that education can help reverse these trends. “I wish I could get them into the classroom to think about these things,” Oh said.

“This isn’t a woman’s issue, this is about society, about justice. It shouldn’t be optional—it should be part of the core curriculum.

For me, what I care about is producing critical thinkers , people who understand that there are axes of power: class, race, gender, sexuality. It’s part of our job as educators.”

“Education by itself doesn’t create behavior change, but it is the first step, absolutely, in effecting change,” McMahon said.

All of the panelists emphasized the potential for change within every individual. “Students who come to BC are so smart, are so talented, and have so much to offer, and you’re at a point in your life when you can really make a difference,” McMahon said. “ This is an institution that prides itself on social justice. If that’s true, we should do something about it,” De Leeuw said. n

The tale of how the first chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon (SigEp) was founded 112 years ago at Richmond College is a familiar one to the fraternity’s thousands of members across the country. It might resonate most strongly, however, with the Boston College students who have finally succeeded in establishing their own chapter.

Carter Ashton Jenkens, sensing that something was missing from the student organizations already present at Richmond College, gathered a group of young men together to begin the process of founding a new fraternity. He envisioned an organization that would be different from all others, based on virtue, diligence, and brotherly love instead of family connections and socioeconomic status. Despite reluctance from the college’s administrators, Jenkens and his classmates succeeded in creating the first-ever chapter of SigEp. History repeated itself on Friday night, when the Sigma Phi Epsilon Massachusetts Iota chapter, the first ever to be comprised entirely of BC students, received its national charter.

Although the fraternity is not recognized by or affiliated with the University, it is now recognized by the national SigEp office as an official chapter.

The Massachusetts Iota chapter began as a colony in 2009, when Matt Freedman, a BC graduate student who had been a part of SigEp as an undergraduate at Texas Christian University, saw the potential for a chapter at BC. With some help from SigEp headquarters and a small group of then-undergrads, SigEp began recruiting students. Despite some early setbacks, the chapter now has 50 members, according to its website.

The Massachusetts Iota chapter achieved national recognition after a trial period of only three years, one of the fastest chapters ever to do so.

“Building a fraternity is a very hard thing,” said Ryan Nick, president of the Massachusetts Iota chapter and A&S ’14. “You have to convince people to join a club that’s unlike anything else.”

The process was made more difficult because, like the fraternity’s founding members over a century ago, SigEp Massachusetts Iota faced resistance from the University.

“It’s not the type of institution we choose to be,” said Dean of Students Paul Chebator, when asked about why there are no fraternaties on campus. “Fraternities and sororities were often used as ways of separating people and discriminating against people based on a variety of things … I think

BC is meant to be an inclusive community.”

Chebator said that while the goals of the fraternity are noble, the inherently exclusive nature of Greek life means that it is unlikely that the University will ever officially recognize fraternities and sororities.

Josh Cohen, vice president of communications for the fraternity and A&S ’15, said that he initially joined SigEp because its goals and interests lined up with his own.

“One brother called it a one-stop shop for everything you need in college,” he said.

SigEp’s main goals are to make sure that every member is a scholar, an athlete, a leader, and a gentleman. This combination of traits, called the “balanced man ideal,” sets SigEp apart from not only other student organizations, but from other fraternities as well, according to its members. Further setting it apart is the fact that the fraternity makes a priority of not hazing new members and is the only one in the country that does not have a pledging process. Each member is initiated with the rights of a full brother, and alcohol is never present at recruiting events.

“We want to shatter the frat stereotype,” Nick said. “Our goal is to shape each member to be a better person.”

In addition to self-improvement, the chapter is also active in philanthropic service to the community. The fraternity founded the Alex Grant Memorial 5k Race after Alex Grant, a BC sophomore and member of the then-colony, passed away in March 2011. The race benefits the Alexander Maxwell Grant Foundation, which was founded by Grant’s parents to provide scholarships for musically gifted but disadvantaged students.

Although Grant’s passing was shocking and tragic, it brought the group closer together and reminded them of what they stood for.

“This chapter does not need University recognition or, for that matter, a charter,” said Chapter Councilor Jake Davey. In the wake of the tragedy, he said, “all they needed was each other.”

In their speeches during Friday night’s ceremony, members past and present urged their fellow brothers to continue this tradition of service, self-improvement, and unity.

Tyler Schenk, a founding member of SigEp Massachusetts Iota and BC ’12, presented current students with two challenges moving forward: to work to improve the image of Greek life at BC, and to continue innovating in order to avoid dying out.

“Let’s always try something new,” he said. “We must not only make ourselves proud, but make the campus we grew up on proud as well.” n

Backgrounds program cultivates conversations on diversity

By Eleanor Hildebrandt News Editor

A small group of students is taking the initiative to have serious, in-depth discussions about issues relating to diversity in the areas of race, sexual orientation, gender, religion, ability, and socioeconomic status.

Backgrounds, which is based around student-led discussion sessions, is in its pilot semester at Boston College. “A lot of students have their own interests, and they don’t stop to take the time to think about the interests of other students,” said Ricky Knapp, co-coordinator of the Campus Awareness department within UGB C and A&S ’14.

“This brings together students who are interested in all different types of topics, and has them engage in discussion that they wouldn’t normally engage in with their peers on campus.

If they’re interested in issues of sexual orientation, they can have these conversations—as well as in the context of class, or gender, race—it just expands the conversations that they’ll have.”

Knapp and co-director Nanci Fiore-Chettiar, a member of FACES and A&S ’15, formulated the program along with co-di-

rector Andrew Engber, A&S ’15. The three based the idea for Backgrounds off of the Dialogues on Race series (DOR), which is run by the Office of AHANA Student Programs (OASP) and FACES. Like DOR, Backgrounds is based around small student groups that meet for two-hour sessions for six weeks; unlike DOR, Backgrounds considers diversity issues besides race. The first half of each session focuses on talking about the issues in general, and during the second half, participants relate such diversity issues to their experiences at BC. Sessions are on Wednesdays, from 5 to 7 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m., and began on Mar. 13. Each session consists of 12 students, who were admitted on a firstcome, first-serve basis. According to Knapp and Fiore-Chettiar, both sessions were filled within two days, and a wait list began soon after. Backgrounds has run two sessions so far, and will continue through the end of the semester. The sessions are run by four undergraduate facilitators, with two assigned to each session: Jane Barry, LSOE ’14; Kristin Gordon, A&S ’15; Kate Saxton, A&S ’15; and William Hwang, A&S ’15.

Planning for Backgrounds began last semester, while Knapp was abroad, Fiore-Chettiar said.

The co-directors conferred with on-campus resources such as Campus Ministry for religion, the Campus School for ability; the GLBTQ Leadership Council for sexual orientation; the WRC for gender; and FACES for race. The three co-directors of Backgrounds coordinated with Jennifer Wanandi, director of the Community Relations Department of UGBC—of which the Campus Awareness division is a subset—and A&S ’13. Wanandi had previously begun a similar program for inclassroom diversity efforts, also called Backgrounds—however, as the committee was no longer active, the name transferred to this semester’s pilot program.

Backgrounds is currently a program of the UGBC, implemented through the Campus Awareness division of the Cabinet. While the program’s management may change in the fall under the new UGBC structure, the current directors are hoping to expand Backgrounds nonetheless. “In the new UGBC, there does exist a new Campus Awareness committee,” Knapp said.

“ W h at th e n e w C a mp u s Awareness does will probably be more solidified once they figure out what each division is going to be,” Fiore-Chettiar added. “Right now, UGBC is meeting with policy committees to try and form all the different divisions. We really hope that it will continue through [UGBC], because we think that it’s a really important program. If, for some reason, it doesn’t work out—I’m really hoping that’s not the case—then we’ll find another avenue.”

Although Backgrounds is still in the early stages, Knapp and Fiore-Chettiar have received positive feedback from participants and are looking into expanding the program in the future and even trying to institutionalize it. “I think that conversation in general is a really important part of raising awareness about different issues and different experiences, and I think that one of the unique things about [Backgrounds] is that you can learn about sexual orientation or race or gender in the context of how there’s oppression or privilege—all those other different aspects—but I think the fact that it’s unique to Boston College … the dis-

cussions that come out of that are a way to make sense of the culture that we live in, but also to become more aware of how other people experience those differences,” Fiore-Chettiar said.

“It’s really about either affirming your own beliefs, or challenging them with other people’s opinions. “ We’ve met with OASP a couple of times, and they’ve said that if this program goes well, and they can see results from it and think that there is interest, they would be interested in speaking with us about maybe running it through their office at some point,” Fiore-Chettiar said.

Although the directors are pleased with the program so far, they are open to revising Backgrounds and expanding the program to a classroom setting.

“I think the really great thing about keeping it among students is that you’re able to talk about things that you might not necessarily feel comfortable talking about with professors or faculty,” Fiore-Chettiar said. “Obviously the core is taking awhile … so this is a long-term vision kind of thing, but really what we want to do is bring this program to as many people as possible.” n

The Heights

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Monday, March 25, 2013

Truman Scholarship finalists discuss plans for continuation of studies Truman Finalists, from A1 ricular activities, Luangrath has served as an intern for the Irish Human Rights Commission in Dublin, is the former director of BCTalks, and worked as an Undergraduate Research Fellow for Jonathan Laurence in the political science department.

Loughrin is a political science major and Islamic civilization and societies minor. She says that one of her motivations for entering into public service is to promote broader understanding of the Middle East in order to

facilitate more informed public debate about the region. Loughrin plans to use the scholarship to pursue a Master of Arts in Law in Diplomacy (MALD) at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. “My aspirations for graduate studies reflect a desire to continue an interdisciplinary curriculum in international affairs,” Loughrin said. “I would gain breadth of knowledge through coursework across the school’s three divisions, International Law and Organizations; Diplomacy, History and Politics; and Economics and International Business, while also acquiring depth of knowledge in my

chosen areas of concentration.”

At BC, Loughrin is the Editor-in-Chief of Al-Noor, the BC Middle Eastern and Islamic journal. She is currently also serving as the firstever U.S. Youth Delegate to the UN. Loughrin travels around the U.S. and abroad to speak to youth about how they can become more engaged in the work of the UN, as well as how they can organize grassroots initiatives in their own communities.

The final candidate for the scholarship is Manning, a political science major and environmental studies minor. He hopes to focus

his career on mitigating anthropogenic climate change by promoting the development of renewable energy resources and decommissioning fossil fuels. “In my opinion, this is the single most pressing issue facing my generation, and I hope to be on the frontlines, creating political change and tangible solutions,” Manning said.

Manning says that he will use the scholarship to pursue a graduate program in public affairs and environmental management at a university like Duke, Yale, or Columbia. In order to connect BC to the larger environmental movement, Manning served as the External

Robsham hosts new citizens Naturalization, from A1 brother of George A. O’Toole. “It’s appropriate we reconnect with the very early years of the school.”

“The very first school year was 1864, 1865, so right at the end of the civil war. About 60 students were enrolled at one time or another in that year,” O’Toole said. “About six of them were immigrants themselves, they had been born abroad, either in Ireland or Germany, and come to this country as youngsters with their parents. About two-thirds of them were students who had been born here, but both of their parents had been born abroad and immigrated, and pretty nearly all the rest were students whose either mother or father had been born abroad. So immigrants were everywhere at BC in the early years, and in fact, the founding of BC is done to try to help those very people.”

Tuition for BC was purposefully less expensive than surrounding universities in the early years to encourage the enrollment of immigrant groups—it was kept to $30 a year. Additionally, most of the Jesuits involved in founding BC were immigrants, including BC founder Rev. John McElroy, S.J., who immigrated from Ireland, and BC’s first president Rev. Johannes Bapst, S.J., who immigrated from Switzerland. This pattern of serving immigrants continued into the 1940s,

but heavily declined in the decades following the legal restriction of immigration imposed in the 1920s.

Today, the number of immigrants and children of immigrants enrolled at BC is unknown—this information can no longer be tracked for political reasons. Tuition for the 2013-14 academic year is set to reach $44,870, and although this price may discourage some immigrants from attending BC, O’Toole remains optimistic about BC’s commitment to immigrant groups.

“Costs go up, the tuition has to rise connection with that, but that’s why I think it’s good BC has also made the commitment every time we raise tuition, that we also raise financial aid,” he said.

The ceremony Thursday featured a performance of “The Star Spangled Banner” by the BC bOp! jazz ensemble. The ROTC Color Guard performed the posting and retirement of the colors, and UGBC vice president Kudzai Taziva, who immigrated from Zimbabwe himself, led the Pledge of Allegiance. George A. O’Toole and University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J., both prepared remarks for the occasion.

“In some sense, your citizenship is special, because it comes to you not as an accident of birth, but as a result of a thoughtful and informed choice you have made,” O’Toole said.

“You don’t just happen to be American citi-

BCSSH reply to University BCSSH Letter, from A1

alex gaynor / heights editor

The 94 new citizens took their oath of allegiance in Robsham Theater on Thursday afternoon. zens—you decided to be. And that fact infuses your citizenship with a special mentality for it.

But in another, and I think far more important sense, your citizenship is no different, by the tiniest bit, from anybody else’s.”

He proceeded to individually recognize the 42 countries represented at the event. The families and friends of the immigrants, BC faculty members, and undergraduate students who made up the Robsham audience cheered for the immigrants as they stood waving miniature American flags and gesturing toward the guests at the event. The occasion brought several of the audience members and new citizens to tears.

Leahy noted the occasion as a twofold

reminder of both roots and promise.

“It is momentous,” he said. “You have become citizens of the United States, but we at Boston College through you are reminded about our past and the call we have to continue striving to be this particular institution in higher education that started in a very simple way. We’re called to be true to our roots just as you are called to be true to yours, and we’re also invited to use our gifts for the good of all, and in doing that we, I am convinced, will help make our world more alive, more in peace, and more blessed. So I thank you, for today, for reminding us of our roots and calling to mind again the promise we all have as citizens and people who are blessed by God.” n

Teams forgo second debate, work to share platforms UGBC Campaign, from A1 said in an email. “We tried to compromise with the two teams: we offered to change the event to be a vice president debate only.” According to White, the McCarthy-Knapp and the Koch-Truglio teams declined to participate in a vice presidential debate—which would have been between Alonsozana, Knapp, and Truglio—as well.

“We received an invitation to participate in the event hosted by the Bellarmine Law Society; however, given the timeframe and the circumstances … we decided to spend our time in a more interactive capacity with the student body,” Koch and Truglio said in an email. They continued on to detail the ways in which their ticket would address RSOs’ concerns if elected. “Student Organization (SO) funding is a crucial issue that needs to be addressed,” they said. “A streamlined funding process needs to be developed by SOFC, the Student Assembly, the Vice President of Student Organizations, and the Vice President of Financial Affairs in order to do so … Another change we hope to implement is the creation of an ad hoc committee in the Student As-

sembly that will work with the Vice President of Student Affairs in collaboration with SOFC to allocate the Student Activities Fee in a more fiscally responsible way and in a manner [that] reflects students’ interests. One of the goals of this committee will be to advocate for greater funding of student organizations.”

McCarthy and Knapp responded as well, stating that, after discussions with the Bellarmine Society, they came to believe that the subject matter of the debate would be focused more on the new UGBC structure than on RSOs. “We anticipated these questions would be addressed in the EC sponsored debate (and I think it’s important to note that both example questions with which we were provided were) and therefore decided that since there is only a limited campaign period this year, it was important to reach out to the student population that is not as engaged in the UGBC election process,” they said. “We made sure to ask questions before making a decision, but after realistically evaluating the situation, we determined that dorm walking, attending club meetings, and speaking at events would result in more informed voters than attending the debate.”

In addition, the McCarthy-Knapp and Koch-Truglio campaigns addressed their reasons for not attending the Bellarmine debate in a joint letter. The letter reiterated the teams’ separate reasons for not attending. “This second debate was scheduled to be moderated by the Bellarmine Law Society, not the nonpartisan Elections Committee,” read the letter, which was signed by all four candidates.

“While we are confident in the professionalism and sincerity of the Law Society, the heavy involvement of some other campaigns in the formation of the event and its questions gave us pause. We were eventually assuaged of all concerns by the leadership of the Law Society, but it did initially inspire hesitation in both campaigns in the legitimacy of an impromptu debate.

“Ultimately, we decided to use what limited time we have to engage with those who are less involved. It is our hope that by reaching out to these students, we can foster an awareness of the important issues that affect all members of the BC community.

“Again, we thank the Bellarmine Law Society for the invitation. We all agree that had the timing been different, we would have jumped

on such a wonderful opportunity. We hope that the Law Society continues this tradition in the years to come, to ensure that all candidates are qualified to represent the diverse interests of Boston College students.”

The Nacier-Alonsozana team expressed their continuing focus on RSO issues. “We were very disappointed that the Bellarmine Society had to cancel the RSO debate last Thursday,” Alonsozana said in an email. “Matt and I firmly believe that UGBC will be much better when working together with RSOs especially in regards to programming and outreach.”

The debate is not the only challenge that teams have faced. All three of the teams had hung banners in the Academic Quad—on Friday night, however, the banners were vandalized. In addition, due to a lack of clarification between the Elections Committee and ResLife, there was an unintentional 24-hour ban on dorm walks. “The issue has since been resolved,” said Carter Bielen, co-chair of the UGBC Elections Committee and A&S ’13, in an email. “The candidates are allowed to campaign between 9 [a.m.] and 9 [p.m.] in the residence halls.” Bielen added that no team has incurred sanctions thus far. n

CSOM ranked in top 10 undergraduate business schools CSOM Ranking, from A1 riculars?’ All of this stuff goes into it, and it’s really a question of how loudly your students clap … by that token, our students are hard to please.” CSOM ranks 15th nationally, with Notre Dame first in this area.

Another 30 percent of the score is based on academic quality, which takes into account five equally weighted areas: students’ SAT/ACT scores, the studentfaculty ratios, the average class size in core business classes, the percentage of business majors with internships, and the number of hours spent on classwork per week. Both the internship statistics and the class hours are self-reported by students. CSOM has a student-faculty ratio of 22.5:1 with 1,956 students enrolled full-time.

“Our student to faculty ratio—22.5 students for every faculty member,” Keeley

said. “That’s one thing we’re not going to be able to change, unless the University allows us to do two things. One, reduce the size of the School of Management, and they won’t let us do that—or two, dramatically increase the number of faculty we hire. Now, in fact, they’ve been good to us in terms of increasing our faculty size, but to get it down to this level, of 10 to a student? We’re really going to have to go up, and that’s not going to happen. BC doesn’t want to do that—that’s really not good for us.” The academic quality category also includes the average size of core business classes, which is 37 students in CSOM, and an average SAT score of 1355.

According to the Businessweek website, 93 percent of CSOM students have internships, and students report spending 16.2 hours per week on classwork. BC ranks 9th in academic quality, behind Notre Dame at No. 6 and Wake Forest at No. 1.

Twenty percent of the ranking is based

on recruiter rankings—the employers who hire students after graduation. “They ask us to provide the names of those employers who hired the most of our students in the previous year, and in each case to provide the names of the regional recruiters who handle those firms,” Keeley said. Businessweek then constructs a set of employers, different each year and evaluates the students from each school. Surveys from the recruiters are combined from the past three years, similar to the student surveys.

The MBA feeder school rank counts for 10 percent of the rank—the quality of the programs that business school graduates choose to attend. BC ranks No. 11, behind Washington University in St. Louis at No. 1. “Now in that measure we don’t do badly,” Keeley said.

The last 10 percent of the survey looks at the starting salary of business school graduates. According to Keeley, technical

schools typically do well in this area—all in all, CSOM ranks as the undergraduate business school with the 9th-best paid graduates, with a starting salary of $60,000. This area is, however, affected by fluctuations in pay that are dependent upon region—firms in New York and Boston typically pay more than those in Chicago, for instance.

Keeley anticipates that CSOM’s jump in the Businessweek rankings will affect its yield this year. “Among the people who have been accepted into the Carroll School, I think the yield is probably going to go higher,” Keeley said. “If we’ve got more people and the University wants to accommodate them, then I think you’ve got to make the argument—to do that well, you need more faculty … actually, I think what’s accounted for our rise—although it’s still not where I want it to be—in terms of student satisfaction, is that the people here are terrific.” n

McAleese to lecture, conduct research at Boston College McAleese, from A1 as a person who wanted to work for peace and reconciliation. ‘Building bridges’ was an overriding motto for all her life.”

One of the difficulties that Hachey faced in bringing McAleese to BC was her busy schedule. After finishing her term as president in 2011, she went to Rome to begin studying for a Licentiate of Canon

Law at the Gregorian University. Because of her commitments to that program, she will not be teaching a class while she is at BC. “Instead of giving a seminar which would meet one day a week, she will give lectures in many different disciplines,” Hachey said. “She will have to leave campus at the end of September for a week to go to Rome to take exams. While this is clearly unorthodox, we have made

Affairs director of EcoPledge, a student-run club on campus that aims to raise awareness of and combat environmental issues. Manning has also worked as the Chair of the Executive Committee of the Sierra Student Coalition, an organization of 44,000 students nationwide who are committed to addressing climate disruption, and represented the group at four United Nations Climate Conferences.

Interviews for the finalists are being held in various locations around the country during the month of March. The 2013 winners will be announced on April 11. n

exceptions in the past for distinguished guests. For example, the former Taoiseach of Ireland [prime minister] Garrett FitzGerald did the same thing—he came here for a time, gave guest lectures, but didn’t teach a course.”

In addition to her lecturing responsibilities, McAleese will be conducting her own research, drawing on the vast Irish resources of the Burns Library. As the Burns librarian, Robert O’Neill is respon-

sible for helping her get settled into her research at BC. In addition to doing their own research, the scholars also draw from their own expertise to advise the Burns librarian on developing the library’s collection in Irish culture.

“I think it’s a great tribute to BC that a person of her distinction would accept this chair,” O’Neill said. “This underscores the respect this position and chair has held.” n

sion making. Safe Sites are intended to be easily located by interested students and are distinguished by a Safe Site symbol placed on each room’s external door.

The specific resources provided at Safe Sites are provided by funding from the Advocates for Youth, the Great American Condom Campaign, and the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts. Despite being composed by BC students, BCSSH is not a registered student organization, and is supported by the above organizations.

In a press release made public last night, Lizzie Jekanowski, chair of BCSSH and A&S ’13, argued that the University’s attitude towards condom distribution is putting the health of students at risk.

“Young people have a right to the health care services and information that will allow them to make the best decisions for their health,” Jekanowski said. “By banning the distribution of condoms on campus, even in the privacy of students’ own dorm rooms, Boston College leaves a dangerous void in student health education, resources, and programming.”

The University has long maintained the stance that condom distribution violates the Jesuit, Catholic tradition of BC, so BCSSH condom distributions have typically been limited to areas off BC’s campus, such as the sidewalks near College Road.

Both the letter from Chebator and Arey and statements by University Spokesman Jack Dunn furthered this argument. “We would call your attention to the BC Student Guide which indicates that Boston College students have: ‘The responsibility to respect the values and traditions of Boston College as a Jesuit, Catholic institution,’” the letter read. “The distribution of condoms is not congruent with our values and traditions.”

“As a Jesuit university, there are certain Catholic commitments that we are called to uphold,” Dunn said. “All we ask of our students is that they respect these commitments and the values upon which they are founded. If this group of students chooses not to comply with University policies, they will face disciplinary sanctions.”

Jekanowski, however, took a different view on sexual health in light of the Jesuit, Catholic tradition. “It is expressly because we have the privilege of attending a Jesuit Catholic university so dedicated to the development of the self—both the body and the soul—that we find it both appropriate and necessary to advocate for these sexual health issues that are an integral aspect of that process,” Jekanowski said.

“Young people, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, have a need for and fundamental right to healthcare that, if the University refuses to meet it, groups like BCSSH must be allowed to fill. We will continue to uphold these values under the fundamental student rights guaranteed by the university in our student guide.”

It is unclear what immediate effects the letter will have on the BCSSH Safe Site program, as the presence of the logo itself does not necessarily indicate a violation of policy, a fact noted by Chebator and Arey in their letter.

“While we understand that you may not be intentionally violating University policy, we do need to advise you that should we receive any reports that you are, in fact, distributing condoms on campus, the matter would be referred to the student conduct office for disciplinary action by the University,” the letter read.

BCSSH maintained in their press release that the letter constituted a threat to the future of their program, due to the fact that the “administration threatened disciplinary action if the students were to continue dispensing materials and information to their peers.”

Upon receiving the letter, members of BCSSH consulted with Sarah Wunsch, staff attorney of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts. “I believe that Boston College is violating the rights of these students by threatening disciplinary action against them,” Wunsch said in the BCSSH press release.

Regardless of the potential setback to their Safe Site mission, Jekanowski said that she and the other members of BCSSH look forward to continuing to advocate for students and working with the administration to accomplish their goals.

“We look forward to taking this opportunity to work with Boston College, and to continue what has been a respectful and positive relationship with our administration,” Jekanowski said. n

CLASSIFIEDS Monday, March 25, 2013

THE HEIGHTS THE HEIGHTS

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Monday, March 25, 2013

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The Heights

A6

Core should adopt the Backgrounds program

Monday, March 25, 2013

QUOTE OF THE DAY When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionably.

-Walt Disney (1901-1966), American animator

The diversity-focused seminars would return meaning to the cultural diversity requirement The pilot semester of Backgrounds, a discussion series focused on diversity and run by students, began on Wednesday, Mar. 13, when two groups of 12 students met to talk about issues of gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, ability, and socioeconomic status. These two sessions will meet every Wednesday for the remainder of the semester, devoting half of each meeting to the discussion of the issues in general and the remainder relating the topics to life at Boston College.

Co-directed by Ricky Knapp, A&S ’14, Nanci Fiore-Chettiar, A&S ’15, and Andrew Engber, A&S ’15, the Backgrounds program seeks to facilitate conversations around all types of diversity and, in doing so, combat frequent criticisms about the homogeneity of the BC community.

Many people accuse the students at BC of associating with only people who are like themselves. Such tendencies render impossible serious discussions about diversity with those who do, in fact, represent diversity. By consulting with a variety of campus groups that deal specifically with the types of diversity Backgrounds hopes to highlight, the directors have put in the work to create a structure and a curriculum that is well-informed and attractive to a wide range of students. If successful, the program will provide a forum in which students—all of whom may relate to each of the diversity topics in different ways—can gather and discuss how they see these problems manifested at BC. Only from truly productive conversations that include all points of view will effective solutions arise.

The Backgrounds program would be even more beneficial if it were implemented as a part of the core curriculum.

One of the most frequently criticized aspects of the current core is the cultural diversity requirement, which, despite being “aimed at developing students’ appreciation of other ways of life,” does little to affect how most students view or

interact with the problem of diversity at BC. The majority of courses that satisfy the cultural diversity requirement allow students only to explore a different culture via a textbook, while remaining safely in their comfort zone during their dayto-day life. The goal of the requirement should be to train students to embrace diversity as a learning opportunity—no matter where or in what form they may encounter it—and not to shy away from it in favor of the familiar. As it exists, the cultural diversity requirement does little to foster the integration of the wide range of cultures that already exist on campus.

The unfortunate result is thousands of individuals who have all taken a cultural diversity course, yet come together to form a community that often struggles to embrace diversity.

Establishing Backgrounds as a core class would work to solve this problem.

Such a move would vastly increase enrollment in the program and therefore the diversity of the discussions, and most likely result in lessening the taboo nature of many of the topics. In addition, it would allow students to learn about different cultures, genders, sexual orientations, and religions directly from fellow students who experience them in such different ways. This will not only educate students but also establish these types of conversations as something necessary, fruitful, and common.

The directors should take advantage of this period of renewal for the core, and push for Backgrounds to be added to the curriculum as a cultural diversity class, taught particularly to underclassmen by interested professors from a variety of departments. If this were to happen, however, it is essential that it remain in the small, seminar form that it is now. The real benefit of this class arises from the kinds of conversations that will hopefully occur, and that element must not be lost if BC is to be truly transformed.

CSOM’s rank promises growth for the school

Despite high ranking, CSOM must evaluate the statistics behind it in order to continue improving Last week, Bloomberg Businessweek ranked Boston College’s Carroll School of Management (CSOM) the sixth best undergraduate business school in the nation. This recognition is not only a tribute to the work that CSOM faculty and staff have done, but is also advantageous to the University as a whole. CSOM’s elevated rank will likely attract higher caliber applicants and increase the yield of those students admitted. This in turn will boost the University’s prestige and its reputation as a quality institution.

The breakdown of the score presents a more complicated picture than just a top-10 business school, however. On one hand, in a job market that is still fluctuating, the news that CSOM graduates are both highly regarded by employers

and highly paid when they leave BC is heartening.

There are areas in which CSOM can improve, as indicated by the Businessweek ranking criteria. The most recent survey revealed that BC is 15th in student satisfaction nationwide. As significant as CSOM’s new rank can be when it comes to attracting students and building a name for BC, it is clear that it is important not to focus solely on numbers. An undergraduate education is composed of more than class sizes and starting salaries—if there are ways in which students are dissatisfied, they should make their concerns known to administrators while they are here to help improve the CSOM experience for coming classes.

BC must take advantage of McAleese’s presence Ireland’s former president brings firsthand knowledge of a situation important to many at BC Mary McAleese, president emerita of Ireland, will spend the fall of 2013 at Boston College as a Burns Scholar.

The University’s tradition of bringing a renowned Irish scholar, writer, or artist to campus for a semester or a year is one of the premier ways through which BC continues to honor its Irish roots.

McAleese is an exceptional addition to the list of Burns scholars, as her career exemplifies a commitment to social justice and reconciliation in the face of deep-rooted sectarianism.

Her presence on campus is a limited opportunity, and students and faculty, as well as McAleese herself, must make the most of the semester. She will find herself

Heights

on a campus where many individuals are extremely informed and passionate about the situation in which she has been a major player, and the Burns Library and Irish studies program must keep this in mind. They must ensure that McAleese’s presence and the lectures she will give are adequately publicized, because the interest in her story certainly exists.

Too often, Burns scholars go relatively unnoticed by students during the time they are on campus. By encouraging active involvement on the part of both McAleese and the community, the Burns library and Irish studies program will enrich the University and gain worthy attention for an important tradition.

The

The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College Established 1919 David Cote, Editor-in-Chief Jamie Ciocon, General Manager Joseph Castlen, Managing Editor

Editorial

Kendra Kumor, Copy Editor Eleanor Hildebrandt, News Editor Austin Tedesco, Sports Editor Michelle Tomassi, Features Editor Sean Keeley, Arts & Review Editor Tricia Tiedt, Metro Editor Mary Rose Fissinger, Opinions Editor Samantha Costanzo, Special Projects Editor Graham Beck, Photo Editor Lindsay Grossman, Layout Editor

Brennan Power / Heights Illustration

Letters to the Editor The following letters are in response to “Resolution calls for divestment” by Eleanor Hildebrandt, originally published on 3/21/13:

Refusal to divest will harm future students The crisis of planetary climate change is the most significant problem that humans have ever encountered.

And we don’t have much time to turn things around. BC students and their children and grandchildren will live in a very different world if we fail. If we continue in a “business as usual” mode, climate scientists predict more extreme weather resulting in floods, droughts, failed crops, more disease, climate refugees, and more disputes (aka: wars) over land and water. Millions of people living in poverty and adding the least to climate changing pollution will bear the brunt of the effects of our excess—an injustice we are called to address. The urgency of the issue requires immediate action. However, because as Americans we are embedded in a culture that touts materialism and independence, and because we are governed to an unsettling degree by elected officials with a goal of being re-elected (funded by corporate lobbyists) rather than promoting the common good, we have done very little to address the major cause of our climate predicament—the extraction, processing, and burning of fossil fuels.

In response to comments from Mr. Jack Dunn, Director of the Boston College Office of News & Public Affairs, in regard to BC Fossil Free’s request for the Board of Trustees to divest BC’s endowment from fossil fuel interests, I find Mr. Dunn’s suggestion to focus on campus sustainability rather than divestment to be inadequate (“Resolution Calls For Divestment: BC Fossil Free And Senate Urge BC To Divest From Fossil Fuels,” 3/21). While efforts to reduce energy use on campus are entirely admirable and necessary, the climate crisis requires far more radical actions in proportion to the serious nature of the problem.

A university endowment fund invested in fossil fuel interests for the benefit of future students and programs is an oxymoron—how can we risk harm to future students and the physical plant by choosing investments that result in more carbon being poured into the atmosphere? In addition, at a more pragmatic level, financial advisors are

beginning to question the future returns from fossil fuel related stocks. If more enlightened government regulations are instituted (such as a carbon tax, more required energy efficiency, or support for renewable energy development), the demand for oil, coal, and natural gas would fall as would the economic return on their stocks.

I’m very proud of the student members of BC Fossil Free. In the Jesuit tradition, they have a strong sense of and commitment to social and environmental justice, as witnessed by the petition on their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BCFossilFree. Similar student groups at over 300 universities (including Fordham, Holy Cross, Fairfield, and Georgetown) are asking to meet with administrators about divestment from fossil fuel interests.

As Mr. Dunn states, “Placing restrictions on investments is rare and requires a clear and compelling case that a company is engaged in practices opposed to the moral and ethical principles guiding Boston College.” I urge President Leahy and the Board of Trustees to enter into dialogue with students, faculty and alumni who strongly believe that a compelling case can be made to limit the University’s participation in climate disruption due to their support of fossil fuel corporations. At some universities, such as Harvard, Boards of Trustees have met with student groups to discuss the possibility of gradually divesting from fossil fuel stocks. I believe this discussion needs to happen at BC of all places, an institution whose website claims that its investments reflect “the ethical, social, and moral principles inherent in its mission and heritage.”

This is the time of year when class gifts are being requested by the BC Office of Development. In my case, I’m a member of the 50th anniversary class. I never thought much before about how my contributions to BC are invested in order to benefit future students and programs.

But now I would like to know.

Frances Ludwig BC ’63

Catholic identity requires BC’s divestment from fossil fuels On March 13, 2013, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergolio, S.J., became the first Jesuit to be elected as head of the Roman Catholic Church. While Boston College has rightly celebrated this joyful event, the University is now faced with the challenge of substantively acting on the ecological message of the new pontiff and the Catholic Church’s authentic teachings on climate change.

Shortly after his election, Pope Francis explained that he chose his papal name to honor St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of those who promote ecology, because Francis “loves and guards creation,” and humanity currently has “a relationship with creation that is not very good.” Days later, Pope Francis then reiterated the importance of creation care six times in his homily at his papal installation Mass.

In one of the most pointed remarks, the Holy Father said, “Please, I would like to ask all those who have positions of responsibility in economic, political, and social life, and all men and women of goodwill: let us be ‘protectors’ of creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment.”

Given the status of BC as a premier Catholic, Jesuit institution, the University is in a unique “position of responsibility” to integrate Christian creation care into the life of the University. Although this responsibility must be lived out in a multitude of ways, one of the most important is through the management of the University’s endowment portfolio. This is particularly true in view of the Church’s authentic teaching on climate change and the role that fossil fuel corporations play in its proliferation.

The Catholic Church has explicitly and repeatedly identified climate change as a moral issue due to the fact that the consequences of climate change—which include food and water stresses, increased drought, higher disease rates, and more frequent severe weather events—are compromising key commitments of the Christian, Catholic faith (http:// catholicclimatecovenant.org). In particular, Blessed Pope John Paul II, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the U.S. Confer-

ence of Catholic Bishops, and the Society of Jesus recognize that the effects of climate change are compromising the Catholic commitments to protect and defend human life and dignity, exercise a fundamental option for the poor and vulnerable, and care for God’s good gift of creation. Based on this, the Catholic Church has called on people of faith and goodwill to meaningfully address climate change.

In order to avoid runaway global climate change, the majority of scientists agree that the average surface temperature of the planet must not rise more than two degrees celsius above pre-industrial levels. In order [to] achieve this, scientists further maintain that humanity can only emit 565 additional gigatons of carbon dioxide by the middle of the 21st century. Despite this, fossil fuel corporations currently possess 2,796 gigatons of carbon dioxide in their reserves—and plan [to] burn it all in the myopic pursuit of economic profit.

Given this situation, the University has an unequivocal “responsibility” to divest from the 200 publicly-traded fossil fuel companies in order to remain faithful to its stated Catholic, Jesuit mission. Divestment from fossil fuel corporations is clearly and wholly consistent with the stated Ethical Guidelines that purportedly guide the BC Trustee Investment and Endowment Committee, and the UGBC Senate recently passed R13.12.13, A Resolution to Call on the President and Board of Trustees of Boston College to Divest the University’s Endowment from Publicly-Traded Fossil Fuel Companies. Given this, University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J. and the BC Board of Trustees have both the precedent and obligation to pursue total and expedient divestment of the University’s endowment from fossil fuel corporations in order to fully live the school’s Catholic, Jesuit mission.

The Heights welcomes Letters to the Editor not exceeding 400 words and column submissions that do not exceed 700 words for its op/ed pages.

The Heights reserves the right to edit for clarity, brevity, accuracy, and to prevent libel. The Heights also reserves the right to write headlines and choose illustrations to accompany pieces submitted

to the newspaper.

Submissions must be signed and should include the author’s connection to Boston College, address, and phone number. Letters and columns can be submitted online at www.bcheights.com, by email to editor@bcheights.com, in person, or by mail to Editor, The Heights, 113 McElroy Commons, Chestnut Hill, Mass. 02467.

Caroline Kelly LSOE ’16 Nathan Nesbitt GA&S ’19

Business and Operations Maggie Burge, Graphics Editor Elise Taylor, Blog Manager Mary Joseph, Online Manager Henry Hilliard, Assoc. Copy Editor Connor Farley, Asst. Copy Editor Devon Sanford, Assoc. News Editor Andrew Skaras, Asst. News Editor Chris Grimaldi, Assoc. Sports Editor Marly Morgus, Asst. Sports Editor Cathryn Woodruff, Asst. Features Editor

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The Heights

Monday, March 25, 2013

A7

NBA: The King James Bible

Bud O’Hara Please Wallow In ‘The Depths’ - Our first Thumbs Up goes out to ourselves and all the lovely editors of The Heights. If you’re reading this, you probably noticed that the first section of our newspaper was a little different this time… Yes, we kind of jumped the gun on the whole April 1st thing, but why wait? Also, we don’t have an issue until the 4th. But yes, we like to think we’re pretty funny. And while some of it (read: the classifieds page) probably won’t make any sense to you, we ask you to use The Depths for a good laugh today as we cleverly mock the oft-quoted administration and lovingly poke fun at the best university in the world.

Big Brother And Boston - Mike Bloomberg is in the process of installing a surveillance system in New York City that is planned to cover every inch of the metropolis. Hmm… Good. While this is terrifying for all our alums who up and move to the Big Apple after graduation to work at Deloitte, we can at least take comfort in the fact that this will never happen in Boston. Boston works hard to appear as if it is still run by a town hall of old white guys straight off the boat from Ireland who have never heard of computers. New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago may be competing for “City of the 21st century,” but Boston has secured “City of the 17th century,” and if you think that that’s not something to be proud of, you can just get out. If you don’t believe us that Boston is perfect as it is, ask anyone who grew up within a 50 mile radius of the city.

The Puppy President - What hobby has George W. Bush taken up to fill the (decidedly small) void in his life where his duties as president once nestled? Why, painting dogs, of course! A few pictures of different works of his have been released online, and let us say that they are not too bad. Some might even say he should have discovered this passion earlier, dropped out of college, and abandoned all political aspirations because he is that goddamn good at it and it’s a downright shame the world has had to wait this long to bear witness to his talents. Also, according to his brother Jeb, he’s apparently looking for new models, so if you’ve got a particularly cute dog that you would like a beautiful portrait of, you know who to hit up. We’re hoping this catches on amongst other expresidents, and they all manage to put aside their difference and paint together in harmony, because that would just be hilarious.

Gettin’ Old - We suddenly understand why our parents looked at our sevenyear-old selves with such confusion and disappointment when we belted the lyrics to Britney Spears songs in their faces. Kids just can’t recognize good entertainment even if it hit them in the face and then stole all of their Halloween candy. The proof: Saturday’s Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards. Some of the most heinously undeserved accolades include Kristen Stewart’s Favorite Movie Actress award and One Direction’s Favorite Music Group blimp trophy. Nothing has ever made us feel so instantly old. We’ve found ourselves actually thinking, “What’s wrong with kids these days??” as if we were the parents in Bye Bye Birdie. That Bye Bye Birdie reference did not help the situation.

But there’s good news too. All is not lost, as the coalition of Nickolodeon watchers 10 years our junior at least had the good sense to vote Wipeout as Favorite Reality Show. They do have some sense.

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You might say March Madness started a day early this year. You’d be wrong of course, but you might say it. On Wednesday night, LeBron James and the Miami Heat came back from a 27-point deficit in the second half, and even went up six, to beat the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers. Yes, the Heat are far and away the best team in professional basketball and are in the midst of a 25-game winning streak. And yes, it would have been the perfect story if the Cavs—the team that King James so publicly betrayed, shaming their city in the process—brought down the mighty Heat, but they didn’t. Because, after all, the NBA right now, and probably since James’ infamous “Decision,” adheres only to one narrative—that of the basketball messiah and multimillion-dollar human, Mr. James.

It’s no secret that the NBA is less popular than our nation’s most beloved hoops event of the year—the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship. Frankly, it’s some of the best damn entertainment that major media has to offer year in and year out. March Madness offers a complicated narrative, it unfolds as a multidimensional television series taking place over a month’s time. There’s something in college hoops for everyone to latch on to. We forge attachments to bracket picks, hometown teams, Cinderellas, heroes, villains, even mascots and color schemes. And while its basic narrative structure doesn’t change much each year—a 12-seed upsets a five, a lights out 3-point shooter carries a small school deep, and ultimately a school with a storied history, million-dollar contracted coach, and a starting five of future NBA All-Stars wins it all—we don’t stop watching, and the surprises and upsets never cease to keep us glued to the TV. It seems to me that it’s the variation, the different names and faces, of that narrative

that makes it so enticing. Of course, underneath all that there’s this illusion that we suspend ourselves in during March Madness, in which we ignore the corporate undertaking, and strictly economic event that the NCAA tourney has become. When we watch March Madness we believe, genuinely believe, that we are watching the purest-display of sport possible—that to these amateur athletes more is at stake than perhaps for any other athletes. And maybe that’s true, or at least buzzer beaters and teams’ post-game elation or deflation tells us so.

Yet, we never say the same about our nation’s professional league. We don’t find ourselves suspended in the same illusion.

NBA players are performing a job, they are professional entertainers, and we cannot overlook the fact that they value the prolongation of their livelihood as much as anything. That said, a good basketball game should be a good basketball game regardless—full of drama and heroics—which Wednesday’s Heat-Cavs game was. But the emotional ride wasn’t the same—it was harder to get invested in than the college games played a day later. It seems to me that there is something about the inevitability of a James’ victory that detracts from the theatre.

That’s to say, this game felt like a contrived, and necessary scare in the Heat’s run at history—a movie moment where the hero looks to be doomed, but rises up to his own heroism in order to achieve greatness.

Since LeBron left Cleveland the NBA has been the Heat and LeBron show. Sure, Kevin Durant and the Thunder are major players, and even the aging Kobe Bryant and the Lakers garner some attention, but it all comes back to James and the Heat. LeBron is of course the NBA’s best player, and the Heat the league’s best team, so it would seem justified that they dominate the coverage. But something about that coverage, something about the League’s narrative over the past three years is starting to feel constructed.

If we flashback to “the Decision,” we see the beginnings of this tired story. LeBron, the golden child of Cleveland betrays his city in ruthless fashion to join a sinister team clad in red and black. He joins forces with

two other superstars—and their looming championship seems evident. They make the finals that year, and lose, much to the avail of the NBA’s audience. We don’t want to see bad guys win. Then, in their next season, the Heat play with a conveniently located chip on their shoulder. They’re rendered human after all the pageantry and fireworks of the team’s formation. And human again, they prevail—LeBron’s Michael Jordan comparisons start to look manifest. Now, in their third season together, the Heat have assumed the dominance everyone expected of them.

That first two years felt much like the game on Wednesday night—a dramatic twist in an ultimately inevitable story. The main reason it’s inevitable is because of LeBron.

He’s the Chosen One (it’s tattooed on his back), and the NBA needs him to reach his potential. His story is the League’s moneymaker—the foundation of its for-profit entertainment product. And it’s based on Michael Jordan’s—the most lucrative asset the NBA has ever possessed.

Jordan was the first player-as-commodity in a U.S. sports culture that has since become entrenched in the phenomenon.

His was a wildly successful financial model for the NBA and corporations like Nike and Gatorade. Jordan’s early failures—not making his high school team—and his final dominance is the stuff of legend. Since his high school days, LeBron has been touted as the only real successor to his Airness.

Sure, Kobe Bryant has had his name thrown in the mix, but ultimately the League’s financial success falls on LeBron with all his dynamism and charisma. It’s now LeBron’s time for Jordanian dominance, the fruition of the story that we’ve long expected. While we generally fall for this story, this time, the LeBron version, is starting to feel a bit too contrived, too well-marketed. There’s no illusion—we’re not watching pure-sport, or the sheer sublimity of Jordan, but instead it’s a movie we’ve seen before.

Bud O’Hara is a staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at opinions@ bcheights.com.

My demands Suzie Scordino Alright, so Boston College has the 41st largest endowment in the country topping at $1.6 billion in June of 2012. That’s all fine and yada yada, yay BC, but I would like to make a statement regarding where an itty portion of this money should go in order to eliminate some small daily frustrations of BC students, and you better listen.

Crapsody. I watch, stifling incoherent gasps of objection, as the wrapist takes the contents of my “wrap” from being comfortably situated to a tortured, mangled, hanging-out-of-the-sides, uneatable mess. BC’s wrapping stations, named “Wrapsody,” mislead you into expecting a sing-songy experience concluding in an artfully crafted wrap that is delightful to eat, doesn’t fall apart all over your lap, and doesn’t induce anxious nail biting. This is not the case.

There is no melodic rhythm to this wrapping act (which could be titled “I’m bad at this” or “My fingers don’t work”) only muffled, “Gahhbubbbstopthisisterribles” coming from students watching the painful display. I propose (although it’s ridiculous that this has not already become a student-wide violent protest) a wrap-training program for all BC Dining employees, and honestly anyone who wants to beef up their sandwich-making skills. BC should engage in a partnership with Chipotle to turn employees from novices, wrapping like they have no thumbs, into experts, swaddling your desired meats, vegetables, and condiments like a snuggly baby … that you then eat (I’m sorry, this is a terrible analogy). But really, BC, step up your wrap game. I know you can do it. (Also, shout out to Ana in Eagles Nest: “Wrapgician of the Century.”)

Damp clothes. Anybody else touch your clothes after an hour in the dryer and say, “Hmm, well, jeans, I don’t know

Imbroglio

what you’ve been doing in here, but it certainly wasn’t drying!” If you can fit all your clothes in there with ample room, you would think that the machine would dry the clothes the same way that the washer washes them—sadly, it does not. I want turbo dryers with “Torch Heating Technology That Makes Clothes Really Dry But Doesn’t Light Them On Fire.” Not sure if that exists or not, but BC needs to get on it.

I miss that fresh-out-of-the-dryer feeling of warm clothes. Now when I look at the dryers all I see is disappointment. Two hours to dry my stuff is a little ridiculous.

Squeaky chairs. “Hi, it’s me!” “This class isn’t fun!” I wish I spoke “chair” because it would be interesting to know what the squeaks and pips from the Fulton and Merkert lecture hall chairs are screeching about all class long. To be honest, I don’t really like being reminded that I’m sitting.

It’s irritating and it makes my ears ring and my face cringe and it’s not exactly a prime way to go through class. Therefore, I am requesting that all chairs be oiled on a regular basis.

Clogged showers. “Wading in my shower is really fun! I love seeing all the soap collect around my ankles! Yum!” said no one, ever. I don’t know if this is a hair problem or … okay, it’s probably a hair problem, but I have really long hair and I don’t want to take the blame for this. Sorry, bye! Anyway, I want a Drano stipend for each dorm building to facilitate the water into the drain and not around my feet.

Broken water. I really don’t even know what to say, but the fact that out there in BC land there is constantly a broken filtered water spout in some dining hall is not okay. In the dining halls these are not just a primary source of free water, but the only source. (Unless you’re about to dip into those Eagle Bucks and buy a Dasani from the vending machine ... but you need those E-Bucks for laundry, which you have to do double cycles for because the dryers are too nice to your clothes and do not heat them with the wrath of fiery demons.) So please, let’s invest in titanium unbreakable water fountain spouts.

Hot nights. My room feels like the

inside of a mouth (gross) when the window is closed, and when I leave it open for too long I get a little cold. Talk about problems, right? I live a very hard life. But really, we can all agree that during the winter with the heat on and during the warm months with the heat from outside, our rooms are often sweaty barns. I am suggesting ceiling fans for the dorm rooms. Now I know that this is an expensive suggestion with the installation, upkeep, and electrical costs attached to this, but I’m really hot sometimes.

Improper utensils. So for the month of March it’s been a fruit extravaganza with your traditional fresh strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries teaming up with exotic mangoes, papayas, guavas, and pineapples. Really fun, right? Well not for those of us who are trying to cut and decore a whole pineapple with plastic knives.

I totally understand the reasoning behind withholding machetes from students, I’d say it’s quite fair, but I’m going against tough pineapple skin with a dull plastic knife, and it would be really great if you could help me out.

I’m not sure how I’m going to get my demands funded. I may see if I can get Fr. Leahy to enjoy “A Day with a Student” (aka Torture-Fest with Suzie … but he doesn’t know that) where we begin at 6 a.m. sharp.

No breakfast. Clogged shower. Damp clothes. Four Fulton lectures with squeaky chairs. He will not be given water ... only access to a cup and the broken filtered water fountain. He will be given a “wrap” and will not be able to eat it unless it has been so wrapped that nothing escapes the bottom (the Eagles/Lower/Mac employees will be given 10 tries to feed Fr. Leahy ... they will undoubtedly fail). And then when he has reached his breaking point, starving, cold, and frustrated, I present him with a papaya and one of our teethless plastic knives. And thus, the power of perspective may be able to turn these demands into changes.

Suzie Scordino is a staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at opinions@ bcheights.com.

BY KALEB KEATON

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

Don’t push my buttons!

Monica Sanchez We have all encountered an individual—whether it be a friend, a colleague, a significant other, a co-worker, or a relative—who says or does things he or she knows will upset you or make you angry. Ever wondered why your family members know exactly how to push your buttons? Well, they’re the ones who create them. They know precisely what your likes and dislikes are, maybe even better than you yourself. My family members can undoubtedly drive me to the point where I feel like a 4-year-old again, unable to control my emotions. For instance, when I’m stressed about my schoolwork or an upcoming dance competition, one might expect some comforting words like, “Everything is going to be fine,” or “Don’t worry. You’ll get everything done in time.”

From my mom, I often receive the exact opposite. She would take the tough-love approach and say, “Get it together,” or even, “You’re obviously not managing your time well.” Come on. Those responses just make me want to throw up my

When you react in an emotional, or even childish way to something that happens to annoy, frustrate, and/or infuriate you, your ability to appropriately deal with the situation goes out the window. arms, plop down on the floor crisscrossapple-sauced, and pout like there’s no tomorrow. For a young adult in college, that’s obviously not acceptable behavior.

But how do you stop people from pushing your buttons?

When you react in an emotional, or even childish way to someone or something that happens to annoy, frustrate, and/or infuriate you, your ability to appropriately deal with the situation goes out the window. I’ve found from personal experience and that of others that there are certain ways to keep your emotions in check. For instance, if you’re planning on or are anticipating an interaction with someone who consistently pushes your buttons, prepare yourself in advance. Try to think about what exactly it is about this person’s personality, behavior, and/or actions that gets under your skin, whether it’s worth your getting upset, and how you might save face if the situation presents itself. Maybe even walk away from the situation for a few moments or throw in a couple of “woosahs” to calm down and keep your emotions from rising out of control.

Button-pushers drive us crazy. Ironically enough, a button-pusher is more likely than not someone who matters to you. Avoiding the person or simply abandoning one’s relationship with him or her may seem like a good idea at times. In high school, I paired with my best friend for an AP English project. Pairing up with her, I knew she wasn’t one to care for deadlines much, which always drove me up the wall, since I know how smart she is. Just as I had hoped against, she didn’t do any of her part of the project on time, placing me in a really tight spot. Instead of completely cutting ties with her out of my frustration with her inconsiderate behavior and actions, I took a step back and considered how she really was never one to care for high school classes and schoolwork (she’s much more of a creative type, now thriving in her element of fashion in Los Angeles), and how great of a friend she’s been otherwise. Thank goodness I did, because I couldn’t imagine my life without her friendship. One cannot simply put an end to a relationship shared. This person might be irritating or annoying, but, almost always, your button-pusher is connected to you either by blood, love, faith, or money. If so, one might argue that it’s worth the trouble to consider the ways to better your relationship—how to alleviate those plausible stresses and frustrations. I know it’s tough to take the high road, but making the effort to respond rather than to react can be much more beneficial than one might expect in the end.

Monica Sanchez is a staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

The Heights

A8

Monday, March 25, 2013

Strangely charismatic, Franco convinces in ‘Spring Breakers’

By Sean Keeley

Arts & Review Editor Spring Breakers is a movie of lurid excess and absurdity existing somewhere in the strange netherworld between pop, art, and trash. Unsuspecting multiplex audiences everywhere, attracted by the star power of James Franco, Selena Gomez, and Vanessa Hudgens, will likely go in expecting a raunchy college Spring Breakers: comedy. Art house auHarmony Korine diences, Muse Productions drawn in by the pedigree of director Harmony Korine, may expect a high-minded, earnestly moralizing movie about the decadence of today’s youth. Spring Breakers doesn’t conform to either of those stereotypes, but neither is it completely independent of them. It’s a unique hybrid, a strange fever dream of a movie—laugh-out-loud funny and disturbing in equal measure.

In a triumph of subversive casting, squeaky-clean Disney Channel stars Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens star alongside Ashley Benson and Rachel Korine as a quartet of rowdy college girls trying to scrape up the money to bus down to Florida for spring break.

When they come up short, they decide to rob a

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fast-food restaurant—only the first suggestion of their violent tendencies. Their hedonistic pursuits appear to be cut short when they’re arrested at an out-of-control party, but in swoops Alien (James Franco), a local drugs and arms dealer who bails the girls out and makes them part of his posse. A simple spring break trip threatens to extend indefinitely as the girls get caught up in a lifestyle of sex, crime, and amoral thrills.

Harmony Korine first burst onto the film scene as the writer for 1995’s Kids, an infamous NC-17 shocker about teenage sex and AIDS, and went on to court further controversy with low-budget efforts like Gummo and Trash Humpers (which is about exactly what its title suggests). Spring Breakers strengthens Korine’s reputation as a provocateur, but it exchanges his usual low-rent aesthetics for a more expensive look.

That’s not to say this is a conventional movie, by any stretch. Though the narrative arc of the movie is clear enough, certain stretches approach surreal abstraction. The movie’s opening scenes establish the desperate, empty rituals of the girls’ school life, while the outrageous party scenes are shot as an abstract blur of shaking body parts and flowing alcohol. Intersplicing fuzzy footage and strangely colored shots with a pounding dubstep

soundtrack courtesy of Skrillex, Korine creates a shrewdly cinematic evocation of a blackedout rager. From there, the movie only gets weirder, repeating some of its visual and aural motifs (including the creepy whispering of the words “spring break” and a banal cell phone conversation between Gomez’s character and her grandmother) to the point of absurdity. Yet all these motifs serve a point, establishing the hallucinatory and nightmarish quality of the movie or serving as an ironic commentary to the action we witness. The high point of Spring Breakers is certainly a perverse slow-motion crime montage set to the sounds of Britney Spears’s “Everytime.” You may never hear the song the same way again.

For all the cinematic sensationalism on display, though, most will leave Spring Breakers talking about James Franco—and rightly so. For someone with such a reputation for appearing indifferent or bored, Franco seems uncommonly engaged here, committing himself fully to his bizarre role. Decked out in cornrows, tattoos, and grills that render him almost unrecognizable, Franco is a creepily charismatic figure, at once comical and terrifying. His strange vocal inflections and mannerisms contribute to the movie’s strangeness just as much as Korine’s showmanship. It’s fascinating to see what Franco can do with

photo courtesy of muse productions

Korine’s sensational and unconventional ‘Spring Breakers’ defies all cinematic expecations. an apparently simple scene like the one in which he shows off all his money and guns while jumping on his bed shouting “look at all my s—t!” Like so much of Spring Breakers, it’s repetitive but compelling, pulsating with a strange and fascinating energy.

Many will argue that Spring Breakers is flashy but empty provocation, designed to elicit a quick shock and soon be forgotten.

That doesn’t give the movie enough credit.

Spring Breakers does have a larger point of view, exposing the inherent ugliness and danger inherent in a culture based on pure carnality. Yet the movie doesn’t just wag a judgmental finger at its characters—it immerses viewers in their world and makes all the debauchery fun for a while. Only with time does the movie become numbing, as an escape into paradise becomes a nightmarish vision of hell. n

‘Admission’ denied audience’s acceptance

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Box office report title

photo Courtesy of relativity media

Despite reliable performances from Fey and Rudd, ‘Admission’s’ screenplay fails to capitalize on their unique, comedic charm.

By Ryan Dowd For The Heights Admission, staring Tina Fey and Paul Rudd, is about saying yes—to another person, a situation, your past—and that there’s no secret formula to getting into college, to living your life. But Admission also teaches us Admission: that there’s no secret Paul Weitz Relativity Media formula to making a good movie, and that sometimes we have to say no to even two of our favorite actors.

No offense, Tina and Paul.

Admission is an interesting film for other reasons than actually being an interesting film. Admission should set the stage for a compelling marriage of Fey and Rudd, of the 21st century’s two foremost forces, schools some might say, of comedy—the Judd Apatow School and the Lorne Michaels/Saturday Night Live school. Well, compelling Admission is not.

In Admission, Fey plays Portia, an admission’s counselor at Princeton at the most important juncture of her career, up for a promotion the next year. Rudd plays John Pressman, the first-year principal at Quest, a newly chartered, back-roads high school. Through John’s feverish insistence, the straight laced Portia makes several visits to Quest and eventually develops a

B+ C

relationship with both the adventurous John Pressman and a peculiar, albeit brilliant Quest student Jeremiah (Nat Wolff ) interested in Princeton, whom Portia thinks may be her long-lost son.

Admission comes at a not necessarily critical but interesting juncture in Tina Fey’s career. Having just wrapped up 30 Rock, one wonders where she’ll wind up next. But if Admission is any indication, it may not be as a movie star. Fey has always been brilliant in projects she’s written (30 Rock, SNL, Mean Girls) but has been forgettable in projects she didn’t write (Date Night). While Fey remains parked at the great crossroad of her career, Rudd has just hit the freeway. Rudd, the embodiment of the Apatow man-boy, has solidified himself as the premier Hollywood regular guy. He’ll be a gentle, sarcastic romantic lead in another 10 romantic comedies before 2023.

This comedic marriage creates a movie that is occasionally funny, sometimes sad, and not all that entertaining. The problem lies not in the performances of Fey and Rudd but in the execution of director Paul Weitz and writer Karen Croner. Weitz has made a living on funny, yet poignant films (American Pie, About a Boy)—Croner had not a screenplay produced since 1998. Almost all of the jokes revolve around how hard it is to get into Princeton and how unfair the college process can be. To a college audience still fresh off rejections, these

jokes may not be all that funny.

The film labors along from visit to visit, from one wry Rudd smile to the next, and for a film that promises the stellar comedic pairing of Fey and Rudd, there are hardly enough scenes of them together to form any sort of pairing. The film focuses more on Portia’s relationship with the peculiar Princeton, hopeful and possible son Jeremiah than handsome John Pressman.

This results in a severe lack of character in Rudd’s character as opposed to Fey’s, as she struggles to somehow get Jeremiah into Princeton, all but dashing any notion of fairness in college admissions.

The film in a larger scope fails because it tries molding Fey’s quick, critiquing humor with Rudd’s boyish, sarcastic charm, but Admission cannot capture its stars’ respective voices. Weitz and Croner frankly fail to channel the distinct humor of Fey and Rudd. Fey and Rudd, by no fault of their own, resemble shadows of the selves that have made them household names. Admission does have important things to say about growing up, growing old, and growing into yourself, but it does not say it with any sense of urgency or comedy. Admission plays like an indie film that doesn’t quite know it’s an indie film.

Fans of Fey and Rudd will still find the film pleasant, maybe even enjoyable, but Admission will be a blip on the radar of both their careers. n

weekend gross weeks in release

1. The croods

44.7

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2. olympus has fallen

30.5

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3. oz the great and powerful

22.0

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4. the call

8.7

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5. admission

6.4

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6. spring breakers

5.0

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7. the incredible burt wonderstone

4.3

2

8. jack the giant slayer

3.0

4

9. identity theif

2.5

7

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7 photos courtesy of Google images

bestsellers of hardcover fiction 1. The StoryTeller Jodi Picoult 2. Gone Girl Gillian Flynn 3. Alex Cross, Run James Patterson 4. A week in winter Maeve Binchy 5. Breaking POint C.J. Box

6. the Striker Clive Cussler 7. bloodfire quest Terry Brooks 8. Calculated in death J.D. Robb 9. Frost Burned Patricia Briggs 10. Damscus countDown Joel C. Rosenburg Source: New York times

The Heights

Monday, March 25, 2013

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‘New Voices’ highlights student playwriting New Voices, from A10 boxy screen structure in “The Nightingale,” recounting a medieval tale of forbidden love.

Two narrators, a guitar, and a clarinet color scenes of princes and knights, upholding traditions of chivalry, and enduring moments of despair. The charm of “The Nightingale” is in its intentional crudeness, the great comedy of false lives lived in a wooden box. It suggests all actors indeed are shadow puppets of a sort, projected edifices of fictional characters, taking life on a mysterious screen—a screen separating a living audience from the contrived work of the storyteller.

“Let Me Go Ever,” written by Kyle N. Brown, A&S ’14, painted a bizarre portrait of liminality and closure, the unresolved sentiments of a high school romance resurfacing in a surprise encounter. Eddie (Dustin Pazar, A&S ’15) is ready to move out of his old apartment, leaving with it the mementos collected in a relationship with Robin (Sarah DeVizio, LSOE ’14), only to have her unexpectedly front him at an open house for the apartment. What ensues is a riddling conversation full of double entendres and wistful reflection. The chemistry between Pazar and DeVizio was one of marked contrast, his introverted tendencies at unspoken war with her outwardness, making “Let Me Go Ever” a worthwhile study of character and relationship psychology.

How much can 16 gigabytes tell about a person? “16 Gigs,” written by Margaret Kearnan, A&S ’14, was an imaginative story of two coworkers, the quirky, fluttery Carrie (Kathryn Raskin, A&S ’15) and the pragmatic,

level-headed Paul (Charles Gabrielson, A&S ’13). Drawn to Paul by seemingly insignificant office happenings—in which she observes his subtle kindness—Carrie gives Paul a gift of a flash drive with 16 gigabytes of herself, what she describes as “an application for you, for me, for you and me.” This story of office romance in the digital era tackles some lofty themes, like personal fulfillment, identity, and gender relations. “16 Gigs” strays from highfalutin language, however, and instead vies for hilarity and wit with a genuine sense of purpose, and standout performances from Raskin and Gabrielson infuse the crafty writing with skillful timing and nuance.

“A Night in the Low Light” is the visceral masterwork of Chris Couchoe, A&S ’13, an inspired telling of life after death, set in a endless black expanse of thought and abstraction. It examines the absurdity of humanity, an advanced species of space monkeys capable of rendering themselves miserable as they live plentiful lives. Are most humans simply a waste of space?

How are Sarah Palin and Gandhi both part of the same creation? These questions are posed in Couchoe’s otherworldly timeless void. Andrew Gaffney, A&S ’16, and Ben Halter, A&S ’16, brought to life this disturbed vision with great vivacity and wonder. The result was chilling.

Did New Voices 2013 break into the registry of of canonical theater? Only time can speak to this—but certainly this show achieved more than its simple promise of sounding something new. A collection of honest contributions to theater, New Voices spoke loudly and had powerful things to say. n

Photo courtesy of the office of news and public affairs

Actor Chris O’Donnell BC, ’92, narrated Aaron Copland’s famous ‘A Lincoln Portrait’ at the Sesquicentennial Concert on Saturday.

Sesquicentennial Concert captivates Symphony Hall, from A10 O’Donnell read powerful quotes of the 16th president intermingled with descriptions about Lincoln’s achievements. In the background, the sound of violins built in momentum and the timpani’s crescendo transitioned with seeming effortlessness into a soft melody of flutes. The piece featured the familiar melody of “Camptown Races” and inspirational words from the Gettysburg address, for example, “these dead shall not have died in vain.”

The “Hallelujah Chorus” served as a climax in first half of the concert, which Finney passionately conducted and invited everyone in the audience to participate.

The second part of the concert left the classical attitude behind to adopt the jazzy

tones of BC bOp! The change in mood was apparent with musicians bopping their head and tapping their legs to the beat while conductor Sebastian Bonaiuto did not overconduct, instead marking cues of when to come in and when to back off, but mostly letting the musicians’ jazz take the lead.

Patrick Andrea, CSOM ’13, demonstrated his talent as a featured soloist in “Groovin’ Hard” and “Decoupage” with amazing trills and jazzy scales. Another truly memorable soloist was Nathan Walkowicz, LSOE ’13. He began the song “Testimony” sans any other musicians and broke into an awesome scat in the middle of the song, which left the crowd cheering loudly. BC bOp! was a fun contrast to the orchestra as one could tell they were really having fun with their pieces and little touches like the trombones throwing their silencers to the beat.

The University Wind Ensemble played two Leonard Bernstein pieces, one of which was a powerful medley of dances from West Side Story. The recognizable tune had the clarinet section snapping just like in the film and a whistle marking a change in song. The Wind Ensemble ended with BC’s fight song “For Boston,” America’s oldest college fight song, composed by T.J. Hurley in 1885. The atmosphere during this last piece said it all.

Everyone stood up and sang together, roaring the words louder as they went.

Walkowicz summed it all up, saying “Events as special as this are not only a result of the countless hours of practice, nor the work of our fantastic E-Board, nor even the continued influence of our musical directors—it’s an amalgamation of 150 years of dedication to a language all people deserve to hear.” n

Shovelhead delivers a riotous show Shovelhead, from A10 pus. They covered everything from “Bootay in Voute” to “hepatitis in 90”, getting laughs from students and visiting audiences members alike. The cast appealed to the experiences of an average BC student, poking fun at “Stressie Jessie”, the girl who just seems to be involved in every possible extra-curricular and just can’t understand why anyone else would enjoy free time.

The cast also gave a literal interpretation of The Sound of Music, with Friedrich acting as the voice of reason. As he attempts to usher the von Trapps into a waiting car to escape the Nazis, they refuse to do anything but sing about their favorite things, until Friedrich is forced to declare the reality of the situation: “The hills are alive with the sound of Nazis!”

The first half of the show was capped off with the revival of Che-Chi, the sausage vendor. This sketch stood out as a show-stealing

opportunity for Luis de Armas, CSOM ’14, who portrayed the vendor as a hopelessly stereotypical Mexican gangster. De Armas nailed everything from the accent to the mannerisms in a performance that drew laughter from every member of the crowd. The sketch was balanced in its depiction of stereotypes, as Bradley, the out of place software designer who had somehow found his way into CheChi’s “gang.”

After a brief intermission, the Shovelheads turned their focus of gender stereotypes next. Three girls enroll in a women’s comedy class, only to discover they are to be taught by the most sexist and ridiculous teacher possible, one who repeatedly refutes women’s abilities to be comedic actresses. The sketch would be wildly offensive, if not for the fact that the performers, including the male teacher and his male comedian side kick, are all female actors.

Perhaps the most poignant sketch of the

night was the satirical depiction of a BC admissions tour. Led by Willy Wonka himself, who welcomed perspective students to “a world of social segregation,” the tour brought to light some of BC’s most embarrassing but brutally honest issues. An obsession with fitness, lack of diversity, and the financial background of the student population were all poked at in a way that allowed the audience to essentially laugh at themselves.

Hello … Shovelhead! displayed a cast of varied but generally promising talent.

Standouts include de Armas, Morgan Fry Pasic, A&S ’13; Madlyn Dionne, LSOE ’13; and Meg Showalter, A&S ’13, but everyone on the cast clearly has comedic talent. Indeed, it seemed as though the leads were typically divided among the fore-mentioned five, leaving the remaining cast members a bit underexposed. Still, Shovelhead’s greatest hits provided for an overall entertaining and well-organized show. n

emily Stansky / heights staff

Hello ... Shovelhead!’s show on Friday night was a runthrough of their best scenes, including a perverse Winnie the Pooh skit.

Graham beck / heights editor

JCBC’s culture show ‘Harumatsuri’ celebrated traditional and modern Japanese dance.

‘Harumatsuri’ delights JCBC, from A10 different types of Japanese martial arts that are centered around the sword, was a powerful demonstration of a long standing component of Japanese culture.

The “Soran Bushi” dance was performed to a song of the same title, which is one of the most famous traditional songs in Japan. It has been said that the fishermen of northern Japan first sang the song, and the choreography reflected the fisherman traditions in depicting ocean waves, and the labor of fishing in rough seas.

The audience was very much a part of the show as well. The judo demonstration excited the audience, and even frightened a few. But don’t worry—these guys are pros. In fact, the demonstrator, Spencer Augustine, A&S ’14, is a first-degree black belt and ranked fifth in juniors martial arts in the U.S. He even brought up three volunteers who learned how to throw someone to the ground. A dance group outside of BC, 10tecomai, presented a style of dance called “yosakoi,” a style defined by its a mix of Japanese and other cultures, both past and present. Their graceful display of both powerful and fluid movement got the audience pumped. The group got the crowd to chant and dance along to their final number, which added an interactive and personal touch to the culture show

as a whole.

The second half following the intermission was equally as exciting as the first, this time focusing more on the fusion of Japanese and American culture.

It began with a set by the Japanese Music Act, featuring three modern Japanese rock songs. The group asked the audience to stand up to give their performance a music festival feel, an added hype factor to their enthusiastic performance. JCBC invited the local breakdancing group Bon Kyu Bons to perform. Breakdancing has become huge in Japan (who knew?) and this group’s Japanese fusion performance was extremely lively and showed how talented these guys are. They could definitely gain some profit breaking on the streets of New York.

The show capped off with a modern dance performance, which featured four routines. First the girls performed, then the fellas, and the two groups combined for two numbers: “You Belong With Me” and “Brave It Out.” Following the show was a reception with a smorgasbord of Japanese bites, the best way to top off the comprehensive event. This year’s show was extremely relevant given the centennial of the cherry tree gift to the U.S., as well as the tragic earthquake, and was overall an excellent medley of both traditional Japanese and modern Japanese-American culture. n

New improv group urges ‘ACT-tion’ at debut show in Fulton

By Sean Keeley

Arts & Review Editor This past Thursday night in Fulton 511, a fledgling improv group took its first steps to recognition with its debut performance at Boston College, “ACTtion: What Would You Do, BC Edition.”

Unlike traditional comedy troupes on campus, such as My Mother’s Fleabag and Hello … Shovelhead!, ACT-tion seeks to inspire more than just laughter. Dealing with issues of race, identity, and other relevant social issues at BC, ACT-tion tries to foster discussion about diversity issues on campus through its comedy.

It is a bold gambit, for although good comedy can provoke real thought on social issues, comedy that is too deliberately message-oriented can often be simply dull. Thursday’s performance proved that there is definite comedic talent to be found in ACT-tion, but that

the group needs to better hone their skills and methods to pursue their twin goals of laughter and reflection.

The show began 20 minutes late with an intro by Andy Petigny, associate director of The Office of AHANA Student Programs. Petigny explained that ACT-tion was a collaborative effort, the idea originating from a session of Dialogues on Race. With the guidance of Dialogues on Diversity, an external training company that uses theater as an educational tool, and Barbara Papalios, LGSOE ’14, Petigny assembled the group’s seven members from various comedy groups and AHANA organizations around campus.

The show ’s lively host was Ron Jones from Dialogues on Diversity, who encouraged audience participation from the start with a game of Simon Says. After thus loosening up the crowd, the first skit took place, in which three students make the mis-

taken assumption that the tall black man in their class is an athlete. Freezing the skit at this moment, Jones elicited audience participation to discuss what was happening on stage, and offer suggestions as to what the characters could say in response.

A second skit dramatized a loaded confrontation between a shy, introverted loner and his drunken roommate, a scene dramatizing the prevalence of the drinking culture and the realities of peer pressure.

As the show progressed, Jones repeatedly stopped the action to bring forth audience responses from the sometimes-reluctant crowd, playing back scenes in new variations based on their comments. The problem with such an approach is that it doesn’t let the comedy breathe, instead constantly grinding the action to a halt. Improvisational comedy is fundamentally based on spontaneity, surprise, and

letting things play out freely. Much of Thursday’s show felt less like vibrant improv and more like simplistic 48HOURS skits tailored to evoke obvious life messages.

Still, the individual performers often shone. Lou Wilson, A&S ’14 and a member of My Mother’s Fleabag, showed off his natural comedic talent as he dropped hilarious one-liners with ease and delivered a convincing impression of the drunken students so often encountered on the Comm. Ave bus. Papalios, the graduate student who helped organize the group, had a nice bit as a racially insensitive student who asks an Asian if she can speak English.

All the performers pulled off their roles with conviction, and the audience grew progressively more responsive and amused as the show went on.

The evening closed on a serious note with a series of intertwining skits based on real posts from the BC Con-

fessions Facebook page. Touching on everything from the “BC Lookaway” to concerns about sexual orientation and anorexia, this final section was disturbingly relevant and provoked some good discussion in a post-show Q&A session.

Ultimately, ACT-tion’s first show demonstrated latent promise and talent but problematic execution. Towards the end of the show, Jones summed up the group’s mission by saying, “We’re trying to see what we can do to not just sustain but to elevate the dignity of people at BC.” That is a worthy undertaking, one that always needs to be pursued on campus, and the members of ACT-tion should be commended for such ambition. Still, it is worth asking whether improv comedy is the best way to achieve such change—and whether mixing comedy and social awareness can serve to inevitably trivialize both. n

ARTS&REVIEW THE HEIGHTS

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MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2013

THE FINER THINGS

Censorship is subjective ARIANA IGNERI Individual expression. Artistic license.

Creative freedom.

With such phrases describing the world of art—including mediums of all types—it seems as if the artist is liberally permitted, almost encouraged, to approach anything, essentially, as an artistic subject.

No bars. No shackles. No chains.

But are there really no laws when it comes to art? Do writers, painters, and musicians, truly have the right to express themselves in whatever way they deem fit? Are there no subjects or topics that should be restricted when it comes to art?

The practice of censorship addresses the status of the artist and his work, exhibiting that though he’s no prisoner, he’s certainly not an entirely free man either. And despite the connotation of “limitlessness” that surrounds art, censorship demonstrates that art is always and inevitably put on trial, judged in the context of political, religious, and moral correctness.

In China for example, Andy Warhol’s iconic series of paintings on Communist leader, Mao Zedong, was banned this past winter from being featured in galleries in Beijing and Shanghai while on a 26 month-long Asian tour celebrating the 25th anniversary of the artist’s death. Apparently, these particular pieces of Warhol pop art were censored because of “political sensitivity.” But does the Chinese government’s rejection of Warhol’s prints invalidate his work? Was it a topic that he shouldn’t have pursued or, perhaps, handled differently?

Artistic censorship is limited not only to political concerns, though—it’s also based on religious objections. Last July, the infamous pop artist Lady Gaga was banned from singing in Indonesia due to protestations from Islamic conservatives. Because of the sexual nature of her performances, Gaga was forced to cancel the biggest stop on her “Born This Way Ball” Asian tour, founded on assertions that her concert would religiously corrupt the country’s youth. So if Gaga is censored by some countries and accepted by others, how does that affect her title as a musical artist, if it does at all?

Moral correctness, however, seems to possess the greatest influence when it comes to censorship decisions—at least in the U.S. Within the scope of the first amendment, which protects our expressive freedoms, the government can filter artistic work interpretable as slanderous, libelous, pornographic, or, most commonly, “obscene”—in other words, offensive or disgusting by accepted standards of morality and decency. The album artwork of Kanye West’s 2010 release, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, is an ideal example.

Portraying a highly instigative image of a nude man and a naked, female phoenix straddling each other, the design was created by George Condo. The record was banned by certain stores, and the album cover was censored, blurred, and even changed by others. Condo, in fact, claimed in an interview that West wanted “something that [would] be banned.”

Knowing that, then, should artistic leniency be granted to someone who is not only an artist, but also an outright provocateur?

Through the years, a countless number of musicians have undergone moral scrutiny for their artistic expressions, but it’s been authors and their books that have faced the brunt of censorship since the very beginning. Both Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men were notoriously banned on social grounds, and Kate Chopin’s The Awakening was censored due to moral concerns. Interestingly, these novels are all classics—representatives of the finest aspects of American literature. So, what does that reveal about censorship? About art?

Ben Franklin once said, “If all printers were determined not to print anything ’til they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed.” And he’s entirely correct: art will unavoidably affront some people, taking on subject matter that is questionable at times, but it’s up to the artist to determine how to approach that truth. In the end, it’s not just a question of free expression and its relation to censorship—it’s a question of good taste, of judgment—because even censorship is subjective. So, maybe the artist is imprisoned, sentenced to some degree to critical decency, but it’s him alone who’s in possession of the lock and key to free himself—he just needs to know when, where, and how to do so appropriately.

Ariana Igneri is the Assoc. Arts & Review editor of The Heights. She can be reached at arts@bcheights.com.

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3 ALEX GAYNOR / HEIGHTS EDITOR

1. ‘Let Me Go Ever’ recounts chance encounter at open house. 2. Shadow puppets tell story of forbidden love in ‘Nightingale.’ 3. ‘Marcel at Alice’s’ charges tea time talk with political significance.

‘New Voices’ offers resounding student works in Bonn

BY JOHN WILEY Asst. Arts & Review Editor Classic theater is the grandma of the performing arts family, content in retelling the same old stories, taking liberty to change only the smallest details. But this art of enduring truths serves only as a fabric, a quilt of a sort, collecting new patches as the old ones rip apart with age. Not every patch will make it onto the quilt, and indeed, most new works are buried beneath this expanse of old ones, often barely penetrating the tough fabric of theatrical works. But when these new voices do surface, it is an act of bravery unlike any other, an uncommon moment of glorious upheaval. New Voices 2013 celebrated just this occurrence in Bonn Studio Theater

last weekend, premiering five original short works written by Boston College students, placing them atop a firm pedestal of talented student performers.

The five works were prefaced by a cabaret-style performance of “Something Fun,” an original song written by Patrick Lazour, A&S ’13, and his brother Daniel, and sung

by Sarah Goldstein, A&S ’13. Marked by a great emotional vulnerability, Goldstein’s performance indeed served as a reminder of the voices of many writers, sounding alone and exposed on stage that night.

“Something Fun” also introduced a central theme of New Voices 2013—the complexity of relationships. “Couldn’t we see we were sinking / as soon as the fun turned to thinking?” Goldstein sang. The song tells

the story of fleeting romance, colored by a worldly wisdom.

The first of the five new works, “Marcel At Alice’s” at face value was a redrafting of the classic fighting-over-the-bill schtick—three women argue over whose responsibility (and privilege) it is to pay for their daily tea time in the short play written by Timothy N. Kopacz, A&S ’13. Reducing “Marcel at Alice’s” purpose to that of a typical theater gag, however betrays the strange, cryptic quality of the work. At depth, it’s an elaborate political metaphor, examining the complex relationship between reason and passion in seemingly trivial decision-making. It suggests that questions of who pays the bill are not too different from deciding on something like a tax code. “It’s tea! It’s money! Neither

of these things matter,” Dory yelled (Caroline Portu, A&S ’16), the passive optimist of the three women, who resolves this daily tradition of teatime is something far greater than money and tea involved.

Should the tea be shared? If the tea is shared, who pays for it? How do our relationships with each other change who should pay the bill? Is it fair for one person to pay for all the tea, and that to always be the case?

“Marcel At Alice’s” has more to say about the Occupy Movement and the recent rhetoric involving the 99 percent than three women struggling over a check.

Lively shadow puppets, strung together with wire and string, were projected onto a

See New Voices, A9

Japan Club culture show dazzles

BY BERNADETTE DERON For The Heights This past Saturday the Japan Club of Boston College put on their annual culture show. This year marks the centennial anniversary of Japan’s gift of the cherry tree to the U.S., which was the theme of the show. The title of the production, Harumatsuri, is the Japanese word for the annual spring festival in Japan, and JCBC definitely brought the feel of this Japanese tradition to life here on campus.

Before the show even started there were tables set up where audience members could play traditional Japanese games, take photos with life-size anime cut outs, or write a

message to the victims of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan in 2011.

The culture show coincidentally fell just days after the second anniversary of this tragic natural disaster, which was the largest magnitude earthquake to hit in Japan’s history.

Instead of being in chairs, the audience was seated on the floor in true Japanese fashion.

The actual show kicked off with a colorful parasol dance performance, a traditional display of Japan’s culture. The first half of the show incorporated many traditional elements of Japan’s rich history. The sword performance, which incorporated many

See JCBC, A9 PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF NEWS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS

The University Chorale was one of four groups playing at Symphony Hall on Saturday.

Music groups play Symphony Hall for Sesquicentennial

BY JEN O’BRIEN For The Heights

GRAHAM BECK / HEIGHTS EDITOR

JCBC’s culture show ‘Harumatsuri’ was held Saturday night in The Heights Room.

Shovelhead digs up big laughs Comedy group scores with its greatest hits

BY EMILY MALCYNSKY For The Heights “Piglet is a pervert.” This one-liner may revolt, confuse, or offend any Pooh-bear loving individual, yet it is among the tamest of claims Hello … Shovelhead! made in their “Best of Shovelhead” show this past Friday night. Many of the sketches were simply outrageous, such as a humping Piglet and a wildly sexist drama teacher, yet Shovelhead’s cast gave it their all, and delivered an overall excellent show.

This weekend’s performance returned to Shovelhead’s most successful sketches from shows-past, including Che-Chi the Mexicansausage-gangster and a Willy Wonka parody of a Boston College admissions tour. By choosing

I NSIDE ARTS THIS ISSUE

to revisit past favorites, the Shovelhead cast was able to deliver laugh after laugh. The show opened with a family of four seated in a restaurant at Disney World, and at first the audience seems hesitant to buy into the comedy. But the seemingly PG scene becomes suddenly risque when an overly eager and loud father confronts Piglet, who has been vigorously grinding against the man’s wife when she turns her head.

Piglet is undeterred my the man’s aggression, while the waiter and the manager attempt to dismiss the man’s accusations. The stand out in this sketch was the father, whose over-the-top expressions and exclamations pulled out the first laughs from the crowd.

Shovelhead kept the crowd responsive by following their longer sketches with brief scenes, such as a bit about weekend sexual encounters in the various dorms of Lower Cam-

ACT-tion debuts in Fulton

See Shovelhead, A9

A new improv group attempts to combine comedy and social issues............................................A9

When the lights dimmed and back doors closed at Symphony Hall on Saturday, the University Chorale and Symphony Orchestra took the stage to perform the alma mater to kick off another momentous sesquicentennial event.

This prestigious honor to perform in such a world-class venue brought together four Boston College musical groups: the University Chorale and the Symphony Orchestra, both conducted by John Finney, and BC bOp! and the University Wind Ensemble, conducted by Sebastian Bonaiuto.

University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J., introduced the sesquicentennial event by discussing the event’s significance to the students and alumni alike and how the BC community is analogous to a family.

He reminded the nearly full house that this year not only marks the 150th anniversary of the founding of the college but also the 100th anniversary of the college’s move to Chestnut Hill from the location in the South End which was regionally close to Symphony Hall. Additionally, this academic year also marks the 100th anniversary of the BC Glee Club, the predecessor of the Chorale, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

With Beethoven’s name inscribed in the gold decoration above the stage, the BC

Spring Breakers

Harmony Korine’s latest film is one surreally disturbing trip....................................................A8

Symphony Orchestra fittingly presented a breathtaking rendition of Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67.”

Symphony Hall is considered one of the world’s top three best concert halls in terms of acoustics, next to Musikverein in Vienna, Austria and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Additionally, its architecture is considered one of the top 10 most beautiful in the world. Symphony Hall was constructed in the late 1890s with a revolutionary architectural design, overseen

by Harvard physics professor Wallace Clement Sabine, who ensured that the concert hall maximized its acoustical potential.

A highlight and honor for many BC students was the celebrity appearance of Chris O’Donnell, BC ’92, who narrated over the orchestra during Aaron Copland’s “A Lincoln Portrait.” Rev. T. Frank Kennedy, the music chairman and previously one of O’Donnell’s professors at BC, introduced the BC alum.

Kennedy knew O’Donnell from when he taught him in the Perspectives program. Kennedy joked that he had heard many excuses in his days, but Chris’ was unique—“I’m late because I was flying from L.A.” Now O’Donnell is known for his roles in the CBS television series NCIS: Los Angeles and his role as Robin in two Batman movies—Batman & Robin in 1997 and Batman Forever in 1995.

See Symphony Hall, A9

Bestsellers...............................A8 Box Office Report........................A8

SPORTS THE HEIGHTS

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Monday, March 25, 2013

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MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2013

[ men’s hockey East regional ]

OPENING CLOSE TO HOME The Boston College men’s hockey team has a first round matchup with Union College on Saturday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Eagles are the No. 2 seed in the Providence regional, and with a win would face the winner of No. 1 overall seed Quinnipiac and Canisius.

BC VS. UNION SATURDAY MAR. 30 9 P.M. PROVIDENCE, R.I. Frozen Fours

2

Quinnipiac

Tournament Appearances

ECAC

27-7-5

REGULAR SEASON WINNING PERCENTAGES Leading Goal Scorer

Eric Hartzell

0-1

Save Percentage

All-Time Tournament Record

.934

J. Samuels-Thomas:

0

14

.756 Boston College

32

Hockey East

Tournament Appearances

22-11-4

Leading Goal Scorer

Frozen Fours

.912

Steven Whitney:

23

32-9

Parker Milner

Tournament Record

Save Percentage

26

(Under Jerry York)

.649 Union College

2

21-12-5

Tournament Appearances

ECAC

Frozen Fours

1

Leading Goal Scorer

Troy Grosenick

Wayne Simpson:

16

.928

2-2

All-Time Tournament Record

Save Percentage

.618 Canisius

0

19-18-5

Tournament Appearances

AHA

Frozen Fours

0

Keegan Asmundson

Leading Goal Scorer

.951

All-Time Tournament Record

Save Percentage

Kyle Gibbons:

20

0-0

.512

Eagles fall to BU in Hockey East semifinal BU’s Jack Parker wins final game against BC

BY CHRIS GRIMALDI Assoc. Sports Editor

STACY BENGS / AP PHOTO

Senior goaltender Corinne Boyles notched 36 saves to contain Minnesota’s potent offense, but allowed the game-winner in overtime.

BC drops overtime thriller at the Frozen Four

BY CHRIS GRIMALDI Assoc. Sports Editor

For the third straight season, the Boston College women’s hockey team had fought its way to the Frozen Four semifiMinnesota 3 nal. Standing in the Eagles’ 2 way of their Boston College first national title game in program history, however, was a 39-0 Minnesota squad poised to defend its home ice.

“That’s a great team,” said head coach Katie King-Crowley, “it’s a great atmosphere here, and I am really proud of my team.”

Despite playing the nation’s most dominant team down to the wire, the Eagles came up just short in a 3-2 overtime defeat on Friday night in Minneapolis, Minn.

Braving the Gophers’ stifling defense on the ice and home crowd advantage in the stands, BC quickly launched an aggressive offensive attack on Minnesota goalkeeper Noora Raty. After strong attempts to score from the slot by freshman Haley Skarupa and sophomore Emily Field were smothered by Raty, BC’s Caitlin Walsh was denied by the crossbar. When the dust settled heading into the first intermission, both

I NSIDE SPORTS THIS ISSUE

squads found themselves locked in a scoreless duel.

Yet the Eagles drew first blood early in the second frame, as Field beat the Gopher’s undefeated goaltender for her 16th goal of the season and a 1-0 BC lead. The power-play score not only gave Crowley’s squad a pivotal advantage, but also further solidified Field’s role as a dependable catalyst.

“Emily is only a sophomore, and I thought she had a great game today,” Crowley said. “She scored some huge goals for us down the stretch. She’s done

See Women’s Hockey, B4

Brazis moves past BC baseball

After a solid BC career, Matt Brazis is making his way through the Mariners system........B2

The last time the Boston College men’s hockey team lost in the Hockey East tournament at TD Garden, its six Boston University 6 current seniors had yet to play Boston College 3 a game in an Eagle uniform.

Yet Friday night’s Hockey East semifinal matchup against Boston University derailed BC’s hopes for a fourth consecutive tournament championship, as the Terriers mounted a late scoring barrage to capture a commanding 6-3 victory.

A game that the Eagles had led by two goals and controlled for nearly two periods had slipped away after BU responded with five straight scores.

“It’s a 60-minute game,” said associate head coach Greg Brown, “but tonight it looked like it was two halves.”

The Eagles came roaring out of the gates to start the game, keeping the puck in BU’s zone to fuel a relentless attack on Terrier goalie Sean Maguire. After nearly 19 minutes of scoreless hockey, however, BC finally capitalized on its lopsided shot advantage. With his team on the power play advantage, junior Bill Arnold came flying down the wing and sent a searing wrister into the defenseless corner of BU’s net for the game’s first score.

After holding the Terriers to seven first-period shot attempts while notching 18 of their own, the Eagles picked up right where they left off to begin the

Position battles emerge in spring ball

Football players will be competiting for starting roles as spring practices begin.................B4

second frame. Captain Pat Mullane was leading a BC charge down the ice with the puck when he spotted Quinn Smith. The senior led Smith with a perfect cross pass toward BU’s crease, allowing his sophomore teammate to effortlessly redirect the puck past Maguire and into the net for a 2-0 Eagle advantage. More than half way through the second period, BC seemed to have complete command of the game’s momentum.

“I thought for those first 30 to 35 minutes, we played as well as we’ve played all year long,” said associate head coach Mike Cavanaugh.

Yet playing in what could’ve been the last game of legendary head coach Jack Parker’s career, the Terriers came storming back. Sophomore Evan Rodrigues catalyzed the BU offense with a shot hesitation that buckled his defender Smith’s knees and fooled goaltender Parker Milner. Just over two minutes later, teammate Matt Lane followed suit with one of several BU breakaways past a collapsing Eagle defense.

The rookie beat Milner at the net to draw even at two, even though BC still owned an overwhelming shot advantage of 30-12.

Already with their backs against the wall, the Eagles were made more vulnerable when freshman Michael Matheson headed to the penalty box with a few minutes remaining in the second period.

A fired-up BU squad immediately capitalized on the advantage, as Matt Grzelcyk crossed a pass toward the point to a

See Men’s Hockey, B3

Sports in Short............................B2 BC Notes....................................B5

The Heights

B2

Monday, March 25, 2013

Grokenberger and Puestow follow unique paths to BC tennis

By Andrew Klokiw Heights Staff

At their respective ages of 12, Billy Grokenberger had never heard of Boston College and Klaus Puestow had never picked up a tennis racket, facts that make their status as the Boston College tennis team’s only two seniors even more unbelievable.

Through a circuitous, some would say lucky, series of events, these two have become the leaders of one of BC’s rising athletic programs and best of friends on and off the court.

Like most kids growing up in Germany, the Munich native Puestow had little interest in anything other than the national sport, one that involved a much bigger black-and-white ball. While soccer was the foremost sport in his heart, Puestow’s mother had different ideas for his sister.

Following the adage of “mother knows best,” his sister’s lessons, and his self-professed lack of foot speed, would put him on a winding course that would ultimately end in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

“Actually, it was funny because my sister had tennis lessons that were paid for ahead of time, and one day she decided she didn’t want to go anymore,” Puestow recalled. “So my mom kept asking me if I wanted to try tennis.

I didn’t really know at first, because it was all soccer in Germany.

“So I just went because they were paid for.

I was wearing all of my soccer gear when I got on the court to play for the first time. I liked it and the guy said that I had some talent, even though he was probably only trying to make me feel better. That’s how it started.”

Puestow would stick with tennis and eventually link up with a local club and an American coach who pointed him in the direction of the U.S. in an effort to prolong the German’s playing career.

After landing in Miami, Fla. Puestow was made aware of BC’s tennis program and coach Scott Wilkins. Thankfully for both parties, Wilkins liked what he saw enough to make Puestow only his second freshman in his 2013 recruiting class.

Though the recruitment of Grokenberger to the Heights was a bit more straightforward, it was not an easy process. Grokenberger, one of seven siblings, was set on following in the footsteps of his older brothers, Blake and Chase, who had successful tennis careers at

Jordan Pentaleri / heights editor

Stanford and USC, respectively.

As a native of Santa Barbara, Calif., Grokenberger never gave much thought to coming out east for college, until Coach Wilkins went out west to seek him out.

“In high school I never had the intention of coming out East,” Grokenberger said. “I kind of had an idea where I was going. I was pretty certain I was going to USC, because my senior year in high school they won the NCAA championship. They’d always had a really strong team, so I had to choose between being a part-time player there or coming to BC. “I could see what coach Wilkins was trying to establish with a great group of guys. I ultimately chose BC over USC, and USC has won the national championship the past four years, but at the same time I knew what I signed up for and this has been an amazing experience for me to help BC build a program.”

Wilkins added of bringing Grokenberger into the fold, “For Billy, I went out

to California and went to find him, which I’m certainly glad that I did. I saw him in a tournament and I liked the things that he brought to the court, along with his family’s impressive tennis pedigree.

“If I didn’t go out there and see him in that tournament, he may never have found his way out here, because he was looking at those California schools. But I am thankful to him that he did give it a chance out here.”

Whatever the circumstances surrounding their coming to Chestnut Hill to play for Wilkins, Grokenberger and Puestow have been an integral part of improving the profile of a program that does not receive much help otherwise.

Tennis is one of BC’s sports that is not able to give out scholarships, but still competes in the highly competitive ACC against squads that are fully outfitted with scholarship players.

As one of the squad’s two captains, Grokenberger has seen the strain that this has put on the program, but is also able to highlight

the positives.

“This is a huge aspect,” Grokenberger said of lack of scholarship money. “A lot of people want to come to BC to play, but it’s obviously expensive and hard to get into. We’ve done really well with what we got. I think the year before [he and Puestow] got here was the first time that BC ever won an ACC match, and I think that since then, we’ve been very competitive in winning an ACC match last year.

“Being in the ACC is definitely difficult, but it’s a challenge that we’ve all signed up for.

None of us are here on scholarships, but we’re all here because we love tennis.”

To hear the two seniors talk of it, the ACC match in which Grokenberger referred to from last season was their defining moment on the court in their four years at BC. The match, played in late March of last year, saw No. 51 Miami come to play the Eagles at Longmeadow, Mass.

“On our best day, we know that we can beat pretty much anyone,” Grokenberger said. “This was just one of those days. We won all three

of our doubles matches, Klaus won his singles match, and it wasn’t that we just beat them, we beat them handily. It was just awesome to see all of our efforts come to fruition.”

On that day last March, Grokenberger would, like he has so often done over four years, win his doubles match—while Puestow captured a singles victory en route to a 5-2 BC victory. This match in particular was perfect in highlighting the pair’s respective on-thecourt strengths.

“I always knew initially that Billy would be a doubles player and that his singles game would gain in confidence as he got older,” Wilkins said of each player’s skill set. “Klaus was just the opposite as his singles game was stronger where his doubles game was lacking.

His game has now evolved, because now he has more confidence in his senior year.”

As the pair leads the team into ACC play one last time, they recognize that it will be their last go-around with the sport they love.

With Grokenberger off to Chicago next year and Puestow returning to Munich, both to work in the financial sector, there is not much room for tennis in each player’s future.

“I’m probably going to hang up the rackets after this season,” the captain said. “Realistically, I’m not going to be playing too much with work next year.”

Puestow echoed those sentiments when he said, “I’m going back to work in Germany.

That’s what I wanted to do all along, even though I went to school here. I always knew that I was going to go back.”

With their respective careers on the Heights coming to a close, Grokenberger and Puestow have eight more ACC matches to prove that BC tennis is in a better place now than when they arrived four years ago. Though the paths they took to BC could not have been any more different, the two seniors share the same goal to close their tennis careers.

With a knowing smile and a chuckle from Puestow, Grokenberger put perfectly into words how much BC tennis really means to the pair. “If we get an ACC win, especially at home, maybe I’ll take my clothes off and streak.”

Though tennis is not known as a clothing optional sport, anyone who has followed the ups-and-downs of this program for the past four years would easily forgive the euphoric gesture that would mark Grokenberger’s and Puestow’s leaving behind of tennis and BC for pastures anew. n

Brown to coach for U.S.

By Chris Grimaldi Assoc. Sports Editor

Alex Gaynor / heights editor

Despite posting a strong offensive output against the Tarheels, the Eagles could not find an answer to defense against UNC’s attack.

Eagle offense unable to outduel UNC

By Emily Malcynsky Heights Staff

SPORTSininSHORT SHORT SPORTS

The Boston College women’s lacrosse team displayed superb offense in Saturday’s road game against the No. 3 North Carolina Tarheels.

Yet the Eagles fell 19-11 despite outscoring the Tarheels 8-7 in the second half.

Sophomore Mikaela Rix had five goals herself.

The first 15 minutes of the game didn’t look good for the Eagles, as North Carolina led with a score of 7-0. Rix put Boston College on the board with a well-aimed shot from the center of the arc. After the

Tarheels responded with another goal, sophomore Covie Stanwick of the Eagles came from behind the goal to bring the score to 8-2.

The last few minutes of the period ended with UNC posting four more goals while junior Kate McCarthy scored once for BC. The first half ended with BC trailing by nine, a gap that widened in the first minutes of the second half when UNC managed to score four more times unanswered by the Eagles.

Finally, Stanwick delivered a pass to Rix that allowed her to bring the score to 16-4.

Stanwick then scored two goals for BC by wrapping around the net both times.

ACC Women’s Lacrosse Standings Hockey East Standings

Team Team Maryland

BostonCarolina College North New Hampshire Duke

Conference Overall Conference Overall 3-0 11-0 11-6-1 2-0 10-5-1 2-1

10-6-1 Boston University 1-2 Boston College 8-6-3 Providence 0-2 Virginia Tech 8-6-2 UMass Lowell 0-3 Virginia

14-7-2 9-1 15-6-2 9-1 13-9-1 4-5 10-10-4 6-4

Merrimack

8-6-2

14-7-2 5-5 10-10-5

Massachusetts

6-9-1

9-12-2

Vermont

4-9-4

7-13-4

Northeastern

4-10-3

7-12-3

Maine

3-9-4

7-14-4

UNC scored once in between Stanwick’s two shots to continue their lead over the Eagles with a score of 17-6.

The Eagles did not waver in their strong attack on the Tarheels defense in the final minutes of the game. Despite UNC scoring twice more, BC finished out the game with a five goal streak. Three of the goals were scored by Rix while Stanwick and junior Cali Ceglarski each scored once.

In addition to outscoring the Tarheels in the second half, BC’s sophmore goalie Emily Mata had a total of eights saves out of 33 shots compared to North Carolina’s five saves out of 16 shots. n

In his ninth season alongside Jerry York on the Boston College men’s hockey team bench, associate head coach Greg Brown has been named an assistant head coach for the 2014 U.S. National Junior Team.

Brown will be joining a coaching staff that includes Minnesota’s Don Lucia, David Lassonde of Denver, and St. Cloud State’s Bob Motzko. Lucia, the head coach of the Gophers and a two-time NCAA national champion, will helm the squad as head coach.

These four accomplished leaders in college hockey are tasked with leading some of the United country’s brightest young hockey stars in the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship lasting from Dec. 26, 2013 until Jan. 5, 2014 in Malmo, Sweden.

The U.S. has tallied three medals in the last four years of competition, including golds in 2010 and 2013 along w ith a bronze in the 2011 tournament.

Aside from his contributions to a couple of National Junior Evaluation Camps, the position will be Brown’s first experience as a coach for Team USA. During his time as an assistant to the legendary York, Brown has helped lead the Eagles to six Hockey East tournament titles, five Frozen Four appearances, and three national titles

Numbers to Know Numbers to Know

63 4

The number of minutes it took for 400 number Minnesota to defeat BC men’s in Friday The of losses that the night’s overtime matchup. hockey team has since the start of January.

50 5.6

The number of points sophomore The average final deficit the this Johnny Gaudreau has that tallied men’s basketball team has suffered season for the men’s hockey team. in ACC play. Before Saturday, that number was 3.5.

1836

The number of saves by goalie The number games thatrecorded the women’s Corinne Boyles against the Gophers’ ice hockey team went unbeaten before high-scoring offense. losing to Mercyhurst on January 19.

during arguably the most successful era in BC hockey history.

Most recently, Brown has manned the bench along with fellow associate head coach Mike Cavanaugh during York’s medical absence. Their most recent work in York’s stead came this past we ekend in the Hocke y E ast tournament semifinal.

Before joining York’s coaching staff in 2004, he enjoyed a brilliant career on the ice as a defenseman for BC from 1986-90.

In three years on the team, Brown established himself as a two-time Hobey Baker Award finalist and only one of two individuals to win Hockey East player of the year twice. He owns a final stat line that includes 24 goals and 96 assists–120 points–in 119 games played.

The former BC captain missed the Eagles’ 1987-88 season to play for the U.S. National Team and eventually compete for the squad in the 1988 Wi n t e r O l y m p i c s i n C a l g a r y. I n addition to being one of only four defensemen selected for the Hockey East All-Decade Team in 1994, Brown was inducted into the BC Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 2004 after enjoying a 12-year professional career.

Brown is part of a family with close ties to BC hockey. His older brother Doug Brown also starred for the Eagles from 1982-86 before a 15-year NHL career, and his nephew Patrick Brown is a junior on York’s current squad. n

Quote of the Week Quote of the Week

“Like I said at the “Thank you Itoam ourjust beginning, fans who supported extremely proud us of our this weekend. Truly the team, and of what this most loyal in the counteam has meant to our try. We still believe in program.” our team and so should ——BC’s Pat Mullane Women’s hockey(via coach you” twitter) in reaction to a tough Katie King-Crowley on Friday’s Frozen Four loss

weekend for the men’’s hock-

The Heights

Monday, March 25, 2013

B3

Graham Beck / heights Editor

key stats

20 5 14

More shots on goal tallied by BC than BU Unanswered goals scored by the Terriers

Graham Beck / Heights Editor

quote of the Game “I don’t know if we got complacent, but they got a few lucky breaks and we didn’t catch those breaks. I think we got away from what made us successful for the first 35 minutes.”

- Pat Mullane Men’s hockey Senior captain

Consecutive tournament wins for BC’s seniors before Friday

Standouts

Memorable Play With BC leading midway through the second period, BU’s Evan Rodrigues used a hesitation move with the puck that buckled defender Quinn Smith’s knees and fooled Parker Milner. The goal catalyzed a decisive 5-0 Terrier scoring run.

Prime Performance Danny O’reagan

Pat Mullane Graham Beck / Heights Editor

Graham Beck / Heights Editor

Captain Pat Mullane suffered his first Hockey East tournament defeat as an Eagle, while Danny O’Regan notched a goal in BU’s scoring outburst.

Hockey Notebook

Terriers rally to move ahead in tournament

By Greg Joyce

Heights Senior Staff For the first 30 minutes of Friday night’s Hockey East semifinal, Boston College looked like it was on its way to its fourth straight championship game.

The Eagles were dominating Boston University in the shot column, and had a 2-0 lead.

It could have been an even bigger lead, but Terrier freshman goalie Sean Maguire kept his team in it with save after save to hold down the Eagles until the BU offense finally came alive.

That happened midway through the second period, and when it did, the Terriers struck like lightning.

“I thought the game was so out of hand in the first half,” said BU head coach Jack Parker. “I thought my guys were uptight.

I thought we were getting outskated. Our goaltender really stood tall.

“Forget the fact that we were outshot, we were tentative. And then it was almost like we got the goal to make it 2-1 and the opposite happened. We got after them pretty good.”

BU went on to score five unanswered goals, thanks in part to the role of special teams. The Terriers went 3-for-7 on the power play, while the Eagles went just 1-for-7 “We came back from the dead,” Parker said. “The game could have been a lot worse in the first half. We hung in there, hung in there, and then got a little bit of

life and took advantage of it.”

Maguire finished with 44 saves, including 17 in the first period to tide over his team until the offense could get going. “[Maguire] has been unbelievable,” said BU forward Danny O’Regan. “The first period could have easily been 2-0 or 3-0. [BC] was just relentless the whole game, and [Maguire] has been unbelievable throughout this whole stretch.”

The Eagles had multiple scoring opportunities on Maguire during their seven power plays, but only got one into the back of the net thanks to the netminder ‘s 24 blocked shots “I thought BC, even when we stopped them, they got an awful lot of shots in, and they got an awful lot of shots in on the power plays,” Parker said. “Our goaltender played great. We blocked a lot of shots.”

BU strategy works The Terriers got multiple breakaways and odd-man rushes throughout the second half of the game, as their strategy of stretching forwards worked successfully.

“That’s part of their game plan and we knew that,” Cavanaugh said. “Sometimes there are ebbs and flows in the game and they got some energy off the Rodrigues goal and the Lane goal. Then they started stretching guys. A couple were good bounces, but credit to them. That’s the style they wanted to play and that opened it up and got them going.”

BC had hoped to adjust to BU’s style of play heading into the third period down 3-2, but an early five-minute major on Johnny Gaudreau put the Eagles back on their heels for too long, while the Terriers added another goal during the elongated power play.

“I did think that when we came out in the third period, we were going to be able to stem that,” Cavanaugh said. “But unfortunately we had to kill that penalty early on.”

BU scored on both of their power plays in the third period, killing any comeback attempt that the Eagles were trying to mount.

Parker lives to see another day At least for one more day, Parker’s career lived on. While the Eagles had the chance to end Parker’s career on Friday night, the Terriers made sure their coach would have one last game at TD Garden.

“It wasn’t really spoken before the game, but especially after the first period, we realized that, such a great coach, we weren’t going to let him lose to BC at the Garden in his last game,” O’Regan said. “We were willing to do whatever it took.”

The Terriers went on to lose Saturday night to UMass Lowell 1-0 in the championship game, signaling the end of Parker’s historic career. He leaves college hockey with 897 career wins. n

BU freshman goalie Sean Maguire recorded 44 saves despite the Eagles relentless attack. He maintained BU’s lead although BC held a 20-shot advantage over three periods.

BU cools down a hot BC start Men’s Hockey, from B1 waiting Garrett Noonan, who one-timed a shot past Milner for a 3-2 Terrier lead.

After scoring three goals on the BC defense in under eight minutes, BU never looked back.

“I think it was almost two completely different games,” Brown said. “The first half, we were controlling a lot of the play, dictating the tempo, and then basically right from their first goal by Rodrigues their bench got a whole lift. It seemed like they started asserting themselves better than we were after that.”

The Eagles’ second-half nightmare carried into the third period, however.

With Johnny Gaudreau in the penalty box for a five-minute major, BC was unable to survive a Terrier advantage that resulted in an Ahti Oksanen power-play score.

Before the Eagles could regroup and establish any cohesion on the offensive end, BU struck for a fifth straight time and the third time on the power play. Freshman Danny O’Regan corralled a rebound off of Milner’s pads and forced the puck into the net, attaining a three-goal lead the Terriers never relinquished.

Following a 35-minute span in which BU barely brought the puck into BC’s zone, Milner and the Eagle defense were suddenly overmatched by an opposing offense that rattled off five unanswered goals and countless breakaway attempts.

“I think they were just stretching guys,” Cavanaugh said, “and that’s part of their game plan and we knew that. Sometimes there’re ebbs and flows in the game.”

BC showed signs of life later in the final

frame, fighting for a chance at a playoff comeback. Senior Steven Whitney collected a loose puck and snuck it behind Maguire for his 26th goal of the season, shrinking the deficit to 5-3.

Yet on a night defined by lost momentum and unfortunate bounces for the Eagles, BU’s Rodrigues capped his team’s victory with a rink-long, shorthanded goal into BC’s empty net. Despite owning a shot advantage of 47-27 when the final horn sounded, Mullane’s squad found itself on the short-end of a three-goal deficit.

“I don’t know if we got complacent,” the senior captain said, “but they got a few lucky breaks and we didn’t catch those breaks. I think we got away from what made us successful for the first 35 minutes. Nothing changed. I don’t think any of the guys stepped back. We still attacked, but maybe the bounces didn’t go our way tonight.”

Though denied their shot at a thirdconsecutive Hockey East tournament title, the Eagles remain alive in the NCAA playoff hunt. Yet as they prepare for regional competition set to take place next weekend, Mullane understands that the path toward the Frozen Four will allow for no more second chances.

“I think that with every loss, there are positives that come out of it,” he said. “We still have another game. I don’t know if we can that next week if we come out and have a little letdown like that, but I think it’s nice to be able to go back and have practice Monday and know that we can take some lessons from that game, use them to get better, and hopefully limit those errors that we made tonight next weekend.” n

The Heights

B4

Eagles battle for position in spring Austin Tedesco Since head coach Steve Addazio took over at Boston College, he hasn’t spent much time watching film from the 2012 season. His Temple squad had some overlap with the Eagles, as both teams played Army, and Addazio has watched that tape, but besides that game Addazio has spent his time looking forward to 2013.

“I’ve only gone forward, because I’m here,” Addazio said after BC’s first spring practice on Tuesday. “We’re going to get this thing right, and so it’s like we’re going to mold the clay, we’re going to work, we’re going to get better, we’re going to improve—wherever we are is not important. It’s where we get to.

I feel good about the fact that we can put in a lot of change and I think we can improve and there is great room for growth.”

With Addazio not using last year as a measuring stick for the BC roster, there is open competition at every position.

“No, it’s all open,” Addazio said when asked if he has any sort of depth chart yet. “You go out there on day ones and sometimes guys kind of find their way and where they are, but it really is open.”

Despite that, some positions are more open than others.

Quarterback, for instance, shouldn’t be much of a battle.

Addazio is giving it time before he cements rising senior Chase Rettig as the starter, but Rettig will have the job on day one. It would be unfair for Addazio to say he’s only looking forward and then give the keys to Rettig on day one without some sort of evaluation period.

“It’s great when you have a guy that has a great mindset and he does,” Addazio said. “I like his demeanor right now.

He’s all about being a leader for the team and he’s all about getting better every day. I don’t see a lot of egos out here. I don’t see any of that and that’s really good. That’s important. A lot of quarterbacks are getting reps, but Chase, I thought, came out here on day one and threw the ball pretty well and he’s got amazingly a pretty good grasp of what we’re trying to get done—for day one.”

There also shouldn’t be great competition in the backfield, but for different reasons. Deuce Finch, Andre Williams, and the injured Tahj Kimble all do different things with the ball.

Finch, when he’s performing at his best, may be the most talented back, but these three

will likely be used more as a committee based on matchup and situation.

Rising seniors Alex Amidon, who set single-season records in receptions and yards in 2012, and Johnathan Coleman should have the No. 1 and No. 2 spots locked down at receiver, but after that it’s open. Addazio is looking for play-makers, and anyone can break out.

“We’ve got to be able to make some plays,” Addazio said. “We’ve got to be able to see what skill players can make plays. That’s yet to be determined. Those are some of the things that are on my mind right now. I say okay we’ve got to play great defense, we’ve got to be able to run in the football, and in all of those equations there, who are our playmakers? Who do we have to get the ball to? How are we going to do that?”

Rising junior Spiffy Evans is the likely candidate for the third option, but Harrison Jackson has plenty of potential to take that spot. Addazio has also made it clear that he is going to place a significant emphasis on special teams, so Evans will have to work to keep his spot on the return squad.

Kaleb Ramsey, Connor Wujciak, Mehdi Abdesmad, and Kasim Edebali are getting the first reps on the defensive line, but Dominich Appiah showed flashes of good play and Malachi Moore will be fighting for time as well. Both of them have the potential to steal a starting role.

Kevin Pierre-Louis and Steele Divitto are the strongest members of the defense, anchoring both ends of the linebacker corps. Tim Joy and Sean Duggan will fight to replace Nick Clancy in the middle, and after a strong finish to the 2012 season Joy has the upper hand.

The biggest question mark for BC lies in the secondary. Al Louis-Jean is back after a foot injury and should be the Eagles’ top cornerback. The most likely option to line up on the other end is C.J. Jones, stepping in for Manny Asprilla who struggled with coverage last year. Sean Sylvia and Spenser Rositano have the edge at safety, but Dominique Williams, Josh Keyes, and even James McCaffrey can all make a play for a spot in the secondary.

Starting tomorrow, there are 12 more practices before the spring game. Addazio expects to have a much better grasp of the team’s talent and how to use it after that point, but for the next four weeks everyone will be fighting for position.

Austin Tedesco is the Sports Editor for The Heights. He can be reached at sports@ bcheights.com.

Graham Beck / heights Editor

Deuce Finch looks to lead the BC backfield in 2013-14 under Steve Addazio.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Opening round in providence set

Graham beck / heights editor

The men’s hockey team took in the NCAA Tournament selection show last night. The Eagles open with Union College in Providence this Saturday.

Stacy Bengs / Ap Photo

After taking an early 1-0 lead, the BC women’s hockey team fell to the undefeated Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Frozen Four semifinal on Friday night.

Eagles come up short in OT with Gophers Women’s Hockey, from B1 a great job for us, and she just brings energy to the ice every day, whether it is in practice or in a game. You could see that today.

She was fired up for this game, and you could tell. I thought she was great.”

Meanwhile, BC goalie Corinne Boyles continued to shutdown Minnesota’s offense between the pipes, denying shot after shot to maintain her team’s tenuous lead heading into the third period. For 40 minutes, the senior had done something few other keepers have been able to achieve against a potent Gopher scoring arsenal led

by Patty Kazmaier trophy-winner Amanda Kessel.

“I thought Corinne played a tremendous game,” Crowley said.

“She has been great all year.”

After being silenced by BC’s smothering defense, the Gophers

entered the final period with a sense of urgency to keep their undefeated season alive. Minnesota’s Hannah Brandt tipped the puck from the point and into the back of the net to draw even at one. A barrage that included 16 third-period shots resulted in another Gopher score when Becky Kortum put a rebound over the goal line to capture a 2-1 lead.

Displaying their signature resiliency, the Eagles battled back two minutes later. After a shot was deflected by Raty on a BC breakaway, Lexi Bender quickly flicked the puck into the unguarded side of the net to tie the game at two. Both defenses closed regulation with stifling efforts, and BC headed into overtime with a chance for a title-game berth on the line.

Yet Minnesota wasted no time in taking a step toward defending its national championship. Sarah Davis took hold of a loose puck

and fired it toward the net while an off-balanced Boyles tried to dive back into position. BC senior defenseman and team captain Blake Bolden dove in front of the open goal to stop the puck, but her attempt was to no avail. Minnesota had notched the gamewinner and punched its ticket to a Frozen Four championship matchup.

“I think I just stepped out a bit much,” Boyles said of the overtime goal after recording 36 saves on the night, “and she made her way around. It was a tough go, but I’m still really proud of the team.

Everybody played great in front of me, and there are certainly no regrets coming out of that.”

Though the loss marked another heartbreaking end to BC’s season at the Frozen Four, Crowley refused to let the game’s final score stand in the way of her pride for the Eagles.

“I am just extremely proud of

my team. That was a heck of a hockey game, and I’m extremely proud of the way our players came out and played 63 minutes of hockey.”

The strides BC made this season, including a team record in victories, will leave an impact on Crowley’s program far past Friday night’s overtime classic.

“This is probably one of the closest teams that we’ve had at Boston College,” Crowley said, “and you could see that on the bench. You could see that in the locker room in between periods. You could see the kids grow up right in front of you all season long. To see the way they backed each other in this game was phenomenal … Like I said at the beginning, I am just extremely proud of our team, and of what this team has meant to our program.” n

The Heights

Monday, March 25, 2013

B5

Brazis transitions from amateur to professional play after BC

By Stephen Sikora Heights Staff

As a freshman at Boston College, relief pitcher Matt Brazis led the team with 23 appearances out of the bullpen, and he followed that up with a successful sophomore year. He turned it up in ACC play in 2011, with five saves and a 1.62 ERA in 13 contests.

Despite the strong start to his BC career, injury problems derailed what should have been a breakout junior season.

At the end of a disappointing 2011 season at BC in which Brazis went 0-4 with a 5.79 ERA, the right-hander from Tampa thought he had blown his chance to play professional baseball. He missed five weeks after pulling his hamstring early in the season and tried to come back three times, each with diminishing results.

“I tried pitching with [the injury] and ended up re-pulling it like three more times,” Brazis said. “I ended up losing a lot of velocity, because I didn’t really have my back leg and wasn’t able to push off with my right leg. I was topping out at 87-88 [mph] instead of 90-93.”

He also suffered from a drop in confidence after a couple bad outings and started thinking negatively on the mound.

But that changed senior year, when he was able to stay healthy except for a taking a line drive off his knee early in the season.

By the time he made it back in the middle of the season, he was throwing 94 mph consistently, and despite knowing scouts were in attendance, Brazis was able to relax and think positively once on the mound.

In the end, Brazis recorded a 3.18 ERA and had 13.2 strikeouts per nine innings, he knew he had a decent shot at getting drafted, but didn’t have much idea of where. The MLB draft lasts three days, with rounds 16-40 being covered on the third day.

Brazis and his immediate family gathered together in the family room, waiting for the phone to ring. He didn’t have anything akin to a draft party—while he figured his name would be called at some point, he still didn’t know for sure. Brazis had his phone on him at all times waiting for the call, but he wasn’t the most antsy family member on the day.

“My dad was getting pretty nervous and everything,” laughed Brazis. “He tried not to show it, but you could easily tell.”

In the 28th round, Brazis was picked up by the Seattle Mariners.

After going through the process of talking with the scout who had the responsibility of drafting him and getting the details about travel and his contract, Brazis headed to Pulaski, Vir. for his first assignment in the Appalachian League.

Out of the 28 batters Brazis faced pitching on that Mariners rookie ball team, he

Graham Beck / Heights Editor

In the minor leagues, the focus is not on winning, as it was at BC, but on developing players.

struck out 19, and allowed only one batter to reach base. There’s an advanced statistic called fielding independent pitching (FIP), designed to estimate a players ERA using solely home runs, base-runners allowed, and strikeouts. While a FIP is standardized to the league average ERA—usually around 4.00—Brazis posted a negative 1.36 mark.

After only seven games Brazis, was already on his way to the next level where the right-hander dominated once again: 32 strikeouts in 19.1 innings, and only two runs allowed. Quite the statistical achievements for a 28th round pick from a school that doesn’t currently feature a player in the major leagues.

“It felt pretty awesome.” said Brazis. “I definitely was not expecting to have that type of summer. The Appalachian League is pretty even keel to ACC competition.

We were playing against younger kids and everything, but never thought I’d have as much success as I had this summer.”

His strong performances led him into a share of the closing role on each team.

At his first stop, Brazis and another player shared the closer role from the start—one would pitch one day, the other the next. After his call-up to Clinton, Brazis started out pitching in low leverage situations— games where the team was up seven runs or down by five. Yet, after his continued dominance, he was trusted at the end of games, and eventually settled in as one of two closers once again.

Despite what seems like a seamless transition given his success on the mound, there were quite a few adjustments Brazis had to go through. One of those was playing with new teammates and coaches after his four years at BC, where he developed a close bond with his fellow Eagles.

On his first stop at rookie ball almost everyone was new and going through the same process. But once Brazis was promoted to single-A ball, he was the new guy on the team for the first time in his career.

“When I went up, that team had been playing together for four months, and everyone else had probably known each other for a year on top of that,” Brazis said. “It’s not easy being the new guy on a team that’s been together for that long. At the same time, you get used to it because it happens and everyone else has been in the same situation. Everyone on my team so far has been really nice and I’ve made some really good friends.”

Unlike when he was back at Chestnut Hill playing at Shea Field in front of the hometown fans, Brazis isn’t a college athlete anymore—baseball is his job. While his friends are out in the business world or attending graduate school, Brazis’ sole focus is baseball all the time. A typical day involves getting to the ballpark around one and leaving after the game around 11 p.m.

“It’s a nice feeling going through a game and not having to worry about studying for a test or getting your homework

Top ranked Tar Heels down BC

done,” Brazis said. “At the same time, it’s a big grind. In school we’d have five games a week—which seemed like a lot at the time—but you’d have some time to relax and socialize, go out with your friends. In pro ball you don’t get to do that as much.”

Another change for Brazis is a new coaching staff and, ultimately, a new perspective on the game. While the goal in college is to win as a team, that’s not always the case in the minors, where the number one priority of each organization is player development.

If their team happens to win a minor league championship, it’s an added bonus, but often a star player that’s helped them get there had already been promoted to the next level or the major leagues.

“It’s more about winning now in college, whereas [in the minors] it’s more about the progression of the actual player,” said Brazis. “It’s a big difference—everything’s more tailored to individual players getting better instead of the team. It’s been an interesting switch.”

“The game’s a lot more relaxed—it’s more easy going. We’re here to get our work in, obviously winning makes the games more fun, but at the end of the day it’s about you getting better as a player.

That’s probably the newest thing to me, is how important it is to get better as a player.

You don’t want to fall behind the learning curve—you want to stay ahead and get better everyday.”

When asked about the changes in coaching, Brazis is quick to point out the

great staff he had during his time at BC, and he’s taken in a great deal of instruction from his new coaches in the Mariners organization.

“The coaches here are the best of the best,” Brazis said. “They’ve been guys that have played in the major leagues for 10, 15 years. My pitching coach has helped me out with mechanics, getting a better feel for my changeup.”

So what’s next for Brazis? He’s currently on hand as a minor league extra in spring training, ready to be called upon if the situation arises. While he won’t make the major league team, Brazis is hopeful to be called up to Seattle’s high A ball team in the Cal league, and if he has success there, the next stop is AA. If a player can hold his own at that level, he has a good shot at making the MLB. In the past 50 years there have been only three pitchers from BC to make the majors. Joe Martinez, Chris Lambert, and Brian Looney have combined for a 7.27 ERA in 94 innings. Each was a higher draft pick than Brazis, but none had close to the dominating performance that Brazis put on display last summer. For a player that thought he blew his chance at professional baseball after an injury-riddled junior year at BC, Brazis is just happy to be in his current situation.

“It’d be really great to go to either one of those places,” Brazis said. “I think so far they think pretty highly of me.”

A negative 1.36 FIP will do that. n

Eagle Roundup

Tennis falls in ACC play

By Marly Morgus Asst. Sports Editor

score of 6-1.

Salonen plays in the No. 4 spot for BC and defeated UVA’s Li Xi handily by a score of 6-1, 6-4. Her win, despite notching the only point for the Eagles, was not the only success of the day. BC also won the No. 1 doubles match, the team of Alex Kelleher and Jessica Wacnik defeating their opponents 8-5, but only one point is rewarded to the team who wins the majority of the doubles matches, and the Virginia teams came out on top in the No.’s 2 and 3 doubles matches.

Defeats in all of the other singles matches left the Eagles high and dry as they were closed out by the Cavaliers in their second conference loss of the season.

Also in action this week was the men’s golf team which traveled to Tallahassee, Flo. for the Seminole Intercollegiate at which they competed with 10 other collegiate teams. Florida State, who hosted the tournament, was victorious on the weekend, winning by seven strokes over close second Mississippi State.

BC finished in the last place 11th spot with a final tally of 919 strokes.

The highest finisher for the Eagles was sophomore John Jackopsic, who finished tied in 42nd place with 223 strokes, +7 over three rounds. Behind him was Ryan Coughlin, who tied for 51st place, 12 over par. n

The Eagles were defeated by the Tar Heels twice this weekend in their third ACC series.

In a 7-0 loss to Virginia Tech last weekend, the Boston College men’s tennis team was not only matched up against the No. 59 ranked team, but also against two players who rank in the International Tennis Association’s top 100. The number one and two players for the Hokies, Andreead Bjerrehus and Amerigo Contini, are ranked No. 91 and No. 73, respectively.

This was the first ACC matchup for the team this season, and it caused them to drop one match below .500, as their record now stands at 5-6.

The defeat was not without close losses, as the No. 5 singles match saw Billy Grokenberger of BC forcing a third set after a 6-3 defeat then 7-6 loss in the first two, but the final set was eventually decided in Virginia Tech’s favor with a final score of 7-5.

The doubles team of Grokenberger and Matt Wagner also put up a strong fight, especially in the first set, which was decided by a score of 8-7, but they were dominated in the second by a score of 7-2.

The following Friday saw the No. 72 women’s tennis team in a match with the No. 32 University of Virginia squad.

Despite the valiant effort of freshman Heini Salonen, the team came away with its third loss of the season by a

a bright spot for the Eagles came in the form of freshman Austin Solecitto, who had his best outing of his career so far.

The highly-touted freshman from New Jersey pitched a scoreless ninth, bouncing back after having allowed 11 runs in just two innings prior to Saturday.

Despite the second game being much closer, the Eagles could not come away with their fourth win of the year. At the end of three innings it was tied at one as both pitchers started off well.

John Henessy scored for the Eagles in the first inning to match the one run put on board by the Tar Heels in the first frame, and two scoreless innings ensued.

In the top of the fourth, however, UNC scored twice off of BC’s Andrew Chin who allowed a double and two singles, and consistent scoring during the final

The team of Wagner and Grokenberger was among those that put up the biggest fight.

By Stephen Sikora Heights Staff

It’s been a trying season for the Boston College baseball team. With a rough start already under its belt, the team was set to take on the No. 1 team in the country, the University of North Carolina, in a three-game series.

Originally scheduled to play their first four home games of the year, the Eagles were forced to move the series to the Tar Heels home turf rather than hosting the games in Chestnut Hill.

“They were bummed not be to be able to play at home,” said head coach Mike Gambino. “But at the same time they just wanted to play. They want to work, want a chance to get better. [The team] would have been more bummed not to be able to play at all.”

To top it off, BC was swept in a Saturday doubleheader and had their chance for redemption vanish when rain cancelled the third game of the series.

In the first game of the doubleheader UNC’s Kent Emmanuel (4-1) held a perfect game into the fifth inning. He finished the outing allowing a mere three base runners, all on singles, and struck out seven batters over the course of eight innings. Emmanuel lowered his ERA to 1.17, fourth best in the ACC. “I can tell you one thing both [UNC starters] did. They pitched ahead,” Gambino said. “They got ahead early and that made a huge difference.”

B C ’s star ter Eric Ste vens (0-5) matched Emmanuel’s zeroes for the first four frames, but gave up three runs in the fourth inning and five in the fifth. UNC’s Brian Holberton’s three-run home run in the fifth, his team-high fourth long ball of the year, made it 6-0.

The six-run lead, given BC’s offensive struggles, put the game out of reach, and UNC scored three more times in the eighth for 19 hits on the day and an 11-0 victory.

Stevens gave up 12 of those hits in one of his worst starts of the season, but

Graham Beck / Heights Editor

While Brazis had to balance baseball and academics at BC, the game is now his sole focus.

Graham Beck / Heights Editor

four innings kept the Tar Heels at a comfortable margin despite BC’s offensive attempts. The Eagles only scored once off of UNC starter Benton Moss (6-0) the rest of the game, as he stayed undefeated on the year with a seven inning, one earned run performance.

On Sunday, the game that wa s originally scheduled to start at noon was pushed back to three, and then cancelled due to rain. Any hopes that BC had for redeeming their performances the previous day were drowned. The winless series extended the Eagles’ ACC losing streak to eight games this season, and 10 games overall.

"We're disappointed, we all are," Gambino said. "But we're not despondent. They're not giving up on the season by any means." n

Graham Beck / Heights Editor

The Heights

B6

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Monday, March 25, 2013

The Heights

Monday, March 25, 2013

Health&Science

Redefining the super human

Joseph Castlen Everyone loves a good superhero movie. While it may seem juvenile, there is a reason why people will line up to see men and women wearing ridiculous costumes go on to do things no ordinary person could ever do. Even Harry Potter and the Jedi Knights of the Star Wars franchise fit the superhero bill, although their respective genres seem to fall more under the category of fantasy and science fiction rather than that of superhero action-flick.

One of the reasons these films are so popular is that people wish they had the superhero abilities themselves. Who, in their youth, hasn’t dressed up as Superman, Spiderman, or some other superhero for Halloween? And I am pretty sure that most kids, after reading or seeing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, started waiting for an owl to show up at their door with an admission letter to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Some of the most common dreams people have are those that involve flight. Anyone who has had one of these dreams knows how exciting they are—to fly anywhere you want, whenever you want, is a great feeling. Or at least that’s what your brain is telling you, after all, it has never actually flown before, so how would it know?

And as fun as these types of dreams are, it is equally as disappointing when you wake up and realize that you are bound to the laws of gravity just like everyone else.

The fact of the matter is, if we could fly, or lift cars, or turn ourselves invisible, it would be pretty freaking cool. Of course, we cannot do all of these things, and although there is always a chance—looking at you, science—we probably never will be able to do them.

Even some animals seem to have it nicer than we do. Birds, for example, majestically fly from one place to another with no trouble at all (we can ignore for now the fact that most of them seem to get their main source of sustenance from eating worms). Geckos, among other animals, can climb on walls, and chameleons and octopi can make themselves disappear in mere seconds. Why is it that these animals get all the cool abilities when it seems all we can do is walk and talk?

Well, the first thing to note is that our abilities to walk and talk are not of no consequence. Bipedal movement, as opposed to quadrupedal (most large animals) or octopedal (spiders), allows us to free up our hands for more important tasks. The ability to talk is arguably more important, making it possible for us to organize and develop advanced social structures.

We can’t see in the dark, but we can see in color.

Upon closer inspection, it actually becomes quite clear that we didn’t get the short end of the evolutionary stick after all. If animals are capable of dreaming, then it is likely that they dream about things like sitting at a desk, or typing on a computer. So while we may not be able to run the Kentucky Derby in two minutes, the thoroughbreds in that race would be hard-pressed to sort a set of blocks by shape and color, a task most human children are capable of by the time they turn four (take that, Seabiscuit).

It is understandable that we take all of our abilities for granted. How can we really appreciate that which we have never lived without? At the very least, however, we can imagine a world without our basic human attributes and realize that life would be dramatically different without them. It is still indisputable that if we could fly, our lives would improve in more ways than just not ever having to take the Million Dollar Stairs ever again, but those stairs would be a lot worse if we didn’t have a special system located in our ears for keeping our balance when we walk.

You don’t need to be able to breathe underwater to rescue someone who is drowning, as many “non-super” heroes will tell you every day. They may not get all the glory, but firefighters and other emergency response personnel are heroes of their own sort. While you may not see it in the movies, our own regular human powers can be pretty cool, and that is something worth talking about.

Joseph Castlen is an editor for The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

B7

Observing EMTs on scene EMS, from B10 Faherty pulls out of the driveway and starts heading toward the incident in CLXF. This time, they arrive on the scene before the police and begin talking to the RA that called in the incident. It turns out to be another routine alcohol intoxication incident and the police soon arrive on the scene. After taking vitals and assessing the patient’s cognizance and mental awareness, they decide to recommend to the officers to find a way to take him to the infirmary to avoid the ambulance.

Thomas Atkinson, deputy chief of police, calls up the infirmary and finds a way for him to be fit in there. He and the other officer at the scene put the freshman in the back of the squad car and they are gone by 2:30 a.m.

Faherty and Weil head back to the car to put their gear away and finish the report.

While Weil is writing up the report, a call comes on the radio that an ambulance is needed at infirmary—the student ended up needing to go to the hospital. By the time

Faherty and Weil arrive on the scene, he is already loaded up and the ambulance is ready to go. They share some words with the police and then quickly return to the car, ready to leave the scene.

At 2:50 a.m., Faherty and Weil make the call to return to Maloney for the rest of their shift. Both admit that it was a relatively quiet night. Over the 7050 man-hours served by Eagle EMS this year, 243 patients have been seen. Tonight, there were only two.

Upon arrival, they pull the equipment out of the trunk and lug it back up to the office together. The next hour passes quietly—Faherty doses while Weil watches House.

4:00 a.m. Sunday morning.

Weil calls in to sign Eagle EMS out for the night. Faherty puts the radios away, while Weil puts his jacket back. They look over the reports before filing them and head back down. The only duty left for them is to park the car in the garage and head home, thus ending another night in the life of an Eagle EMS EMT. n

Andrew Skaras / heights editor

Chris Faherty and Seth Weil begin and end the night shift as dedicated members of EMS.

Departments collaborate to aid students with disabilities Disability Resources, from B10 to assess the materials they are using in class, and advise them on how to make them accessible,” she said. “This involves materials such as ones available through Blackboard Vista and/or course reserves.”

Instructional Design and eTeaching Services, in tandem with the Disabilities Service Office, work in conjunction with the University Libraries and Media Technology Services to facilitate a seamless distribution of services and materials to students and faculty.

“We work very closely with O’Neill Library to make sure articles and books are available for students when they need it,” Durrett said. Betsy McKelvey, head of the digital Library programs and Naomi Rubin, digital imaging assistant, work with a team of work-study students on the second floor of O’Neill, utilizing innovative technology to digitize text. In the lab, they use a Zeutschel scanner, a machine that makes it possible to digitize even the most sensitive materials at high processing speeds. Although this digital technology is used for many other purposes, it is convenient for the digitization process

for visually impaired students. The ABBYY FineReader software they have allows them to turn the scans into searchable and editable formats. The audio composed can then be read on the students’ JAWS computer program. “We have the equipment, the scanners, and ABBYY. We are a production facility—like people would go to a printing press; we are providing that sort of production service,” Rubin said.

A very significant amount of coordination and organizing goes into making sure each disabled student is accommodated.

Many students with disabilities are accompanied in their classes by a note taker, and in some cases a reader (who is usually a diligent student in the class hired to describe to the student what is being taught, whether it is a graph or a map, or an equation).

For hearing impaired students, the Disabilities Service Office hires American Sign Language Interpreters. The ASL interpreters must be certified by the state, and it is preferable that they be nationally certified as well. ASL interpreters will also accompany students to appointments and events outside of their class schedule—professor office hours or sessions on

thesis writing.

On top of technological and functional care, Durrett and her team work to provide a personalized plan for each student with a disability. “One of the things that this unit tries to do and I think we do a good job with it, is meet the student where they are and try to work with them to get the services to them,” Durrett said. She noted that there is a wide range of student personalities and their diligence in receiving the care that is available to them. Students are always welcome to drop into Durrett’s office if they are having an issue, but some are less proactive about utilizing all the resources at their fingertips. In this case, Durrett will call the student to review his or her course schedule, and try to anticipate any kinds of issues that might arise in prohibiting he or she from keeping up with the rest of the class. “It’s a balancing act,” Durrett said. “For the student who is floundering, we work with them on a calendar, and when they come to our office we make sure we are prepared for them.”

The actual numbers of visually and hearing impaired undergraduate and graduate students at BC is surprisingly low.

Yet the numbers are deceiving when one

graham beck / heights editor

Rosemary Concepcion and Thien Dam utilize the Zeutschel scanner to begin the process of converting printed texts to audio format.

takes into account how much coordination goes into accommodating each student on a daily basis, that there is never a dull moment at the Disabilities Service Office.

Maintaining the right level of services people need in order to have academic success is a crucial part of the puzzle.

Another vital step in the process is ensuring the faculty members are on board with the technology and their students’ individual needs. Durrett and her unit meet with faculty regularly to discuss logistics about what parts of the curriculum will be emphasized more, and which documents will need to be prepared. In addition, they are in close contact with the students’ academic advisors.

Johnson remarked how the bulk of their work is completed in July and August for students who have visual or hearing conditions. ASL interpreters are hired in the summer, and student course schedules for the upcoming semester are finalized in advance in order to coordinate all the necessary logistics.

Durrett noted how imperative the technology is in giving disabled students the necessary aid to succeed. “We are seeing students that 20 years ago would not have made it to college because the coordination and the technology wasn’t available,” she said.

A main objective of theirs is to provide students with resources that allow them to compete with their peers on an equal level.

“Our goal is to level the playing field so that our students can have access to materials just the way their peers have access to materials so they can be successful in their college careers,” she said. “It is not that they are getting more than others. Rather, we are bringing them up to the same level as everyone else. They still do all the same work, we’re just making sure that all the resources they need are in place so that they can do the work,” she said.

“Another one of our goals is to take away the stigma that goes with the word disability. We have a lot of students with physical, medical, and psychological impairments that may disrupt their daily lives, but that’s not all of who they are,” Johnson said. “They are still BC students. I spend time telling people that even though its disability services, its for students who may need to get on that level playing field and they need these accommodations.” n

Professor profile

Russell challenges students to take a role in teaching

By Erin Cahill For The Heights Professor James Russell is one of those professors who immediately inspire you with his intelligence. If you take a look at his PEPs, what stands out is the students’ praise of his vast knowledge and clear excitement about the information. Another professor once said that Russell is a big guy in the field of emotion in psychology. Russell put his hand over his head as if to gauge his height and jokingly and humbly said, “Well no, I’m not that big!”

At the University of California, Los Angeles, Russell studied environmental psychology, which is, as he described it, “the study of how people are influenced by the large-scale environment.” He worked with his advisor, questioning how parts of a city, for example, create certain moods or feelings.

After some work on that, Russell shifted his focus to the more fundamental questions about the nature of mood and emotion. He came to Boston College in 2001, after 25 years at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. When asked why he left, he explained they had mandatory

retirement at that time and he said he “decided that [he] wanted to continue working until [he] was ready to stop.”

Over the last decade, Russell was not able to identify any distinct changes specifically in the student body. Since the beginning, he claims he has “encountered really excellent students with tremendous motivation.” He particularly enjoys being able to get to know and work with undergraduates that volunteer in his Emotion Development Lab. As for the psychology department, Russell said it “has changed tremendously.” After a large number of people in the department left who had been here for many years, there was an opportunity to hire young people and the very best. So they did. “We brought in people who were absolutely excellent,” he said, and now the “young cohort” is made up of people “who are really top notch and wonderful people to work with. It is a growing department and exciting to be in.”

He mulled over the question of which is his favorite class to teach, and came to the conclusion that the undergraduate class he created for BC, Culture and Emotion, is his favorite.

The enrollment is usually small, around 20 students, allowing for discussion about the topic of culture as well as the fundamental nature of emotion, and how the two are related. He then explained that the way he structures his classes varies tremendously, usually depending on size. For a large lecture class, such as his Personality Theories class, he says there really is “not much to do other than lecture and try to encourage discussion.” Russell is one who is able to provoke thoughtful discussion among the students, keeping everyone interested and attentive even during the midday lull in the ever so comfortable seats of Gasson 305. One day, he even split the room in half, asking students to debate with each other either for or against Freud and his theories.

In smaller seminars, he is able to ask even more of his students, particularly to contribute to the teaching. He believes that “teaching material is the very best way to learn it.” No matter what the size of the class may be, it is obvious that Russell is determined to interact with students and create both a comfortable and stimulating classroom environment.

Russell is all for challenging his

students’ preconceptions about the topics he teaches. For specific issues within those topics, he admits he loves when students come up with counterexamples. He also enjoys when BC students challenge his thinking in his lab. “There’s one student who speaks Arabic, another student who speaks Malayalam, which is a language in India, and another student who speaks Korean,” Russell said. What this allows for is constant reminders that the way emotion is spoken about is often different in other languages, so what he looks at in his lab “may be unique to our culture or at least our language.”

When asked for his advice for students wondering what they can do with a degree in psychology from BC, Russell exclaimed, “I wish I knew!” His best advice would be “to plunge in and do something and really give it your best.”

He added that there’s no harm in taking time to figure out what is really best for you personally.

Until anyone else figures out exactly what the future holds, taking interesting classes with exceptional professors that encourage critical thinking like Russell seems to be a great way to spend your undergraduate years here at BC. n

The Heights

B8

How-To

Monday, March 25, 2013

campus chronicles

Shed winter Top choices for sesquicentennial commencement speaker pessimism Kevin Toomey

Aimee Choi Waking up on the first day of spring to flurries of snow outside the window didn’t feel too right. The parades of weather disasters of winter 2012-13 have definitely taken a toll on everyone’s tolerance for the cold—no matter how beautiful our snow-covered campus may be. Unexpected school delays during the last weeks of March may make up for the 20-degree mornings, but I’m sure some sunshine and warm weather will bring on smiles all over the campus.

Since magically turning up the temperature outside isn’t exactly possible, we can definitely start to bring some spring into our lives by changing what we can: Wear Color: Even in the miserable, rainy, 20-degree weather—not to mention the complementary Boston winds— seeing some bright colors around campus always highlights my day. The dreary winter atmosphere may not be as obvious when we surround ourselves with warm colors. Psychologically proven, colors in the red group—pink, red, purple—bring warmth by stimulating the mind and bringing forth exciting energies. Green is shown to bring peace to the mind with its therapeutic effects, while yellow and orange are known to bring cheerful, warm moods to the observer. While we may feel more inclined to dress in darker, muddier colors to go along with the winter weather, bringing out your colorful sweaters and accessories may just begin to spread the spring warmth all over campus!

Good Food, Good Company: Heard of Restaurant Week? Take advantage of this special offer to venture out into the city of Boston for some delicacies. Boston isn’t one of the oldest cities in the country for no reason, it’s booming with hidden treasures of restaurants, cafes, bookshops, and dessert places! Staying in every day and night because of the depressing weather will only make winter seem longer. Although it may take some effort to put nice clothes on, make a reservation, and get a group down— initiation is key! Go down to Coolidge Corner and grab a cup of tea, walk down Beacon Street, teeming with intricate shops. Sit down at Athan’s Bakery, dig into their famous tiramisu and catch up with a friend or two. Food adventures into Boston will definitely ease some of that winter-coma and excite you for the soon-to-come spring.

Physical Exercise: It’s too easy to cuddle in bed and watch a show when it’s so dreary and wet outside, but such actions will only make you lazier. Running around the Reservoir may be a stretch when it’s below freezing outside, but don’t let that push off exercising until warmer weather. If you’re not much of a Plex-maniac, you can still take advantage of some fun classes offered at the Plex and grab a few friends to try out Zumba or yoga. Getting some exercise to loosen up your tense muscles from the cold will work in your favor to warm up for the spring, and of course, prepare your body for spring/summer clothing.

Music: You may have heard that music can have different effects on your brain, but did you know that it also dramatically influences your mood?

Whether you are aware or not, our moods and feelings are very sensitive to the type of music we listen to. Music can also have an effect on altering your attitude—calming music is seen to increase people’s sincerity, care, and kindness.

The cutting wind in the morning doesn’t exactly hype up my mood before my 8:30 a.m. lecture, but it would be worth my time to relax some of my tensions and crankiness from lack of sleep with good music and have a better outlook on my day. So find that perfect energizing music for your taste and begin relaxing from the midterm-week stress that seems to never go away. Little steps to have a positive attitude during the winter can really go a long way.

Spending most of the day stuck inside classrooms with the sun setting as early as 5 p.m., a typical Boston College student cannot help but feel drained during the winter. Unfortunately, the most we can do in this situation is to pray for spring to come faster. It is undoubtedly painful to bear the winter storms here even with layers of North Face jackets, but we shouldn’t let the weather take away our smiles along with the sunshine. Let’s get out of our dorms a little more, go down to the Plex, have some tea, strike up more conversations during dinner, and warm up our cold winters with each other’s company—of course, everyone, don’t forget to wear your colorful sweaters.

Aimee Choi is a contributor to The Heights. She can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

Being a senior, I have mixed feelings about Commencement. And by mixed feelings I mean I don’t want to leave and I’d gladly move back into my old room in Keyes basement if it meant four more years of college life.

That place hardly had a window. But I’d still love to run it all back. The real world seems like a scary place.

Yet the one thing I am really looking forward to is hearing a commencement speech addressed to my classmates and I. I’ve been hearing about being a part of Boston College’s sesquicentennial class since convocation, and when it comes to the speaker at BC’s 150th graduation, I’m expecting someone big. The speaker is supposed to officially be announced in April, but I have my own speculations and hopes on who it will be. So, in honor of keeping it “sesqui,” here are my top five possibilities for commencement speaker: 5. Amy Poehler. She’s a graduate of BC and she’s hilarious. Plus, she’s

already given one of the funniest of these types of speeches I’ve heard when she spoke at Harvard’s 2011 Class Day. In it, she gave a shoutout to the Heights, referring to BC as “the Harvard of Boston.” I think she meant to say that Harvard is the BC of Cambridge, but I’ll let it slide if she comes back to her alma mater for this year’s commencement.

4. Kevin Garnett. It’s only 10 or so stops on the green line from The Garden. But I am sort of nervous about this pick. On the one hand, any speech

by The Big Ticket is going to get you going. If you don’t get goosebumps listening to him talk about a playoff series then you simply don’t have a pulse.

On the other hand, the man could very well excite the crowd into a riot. We could all end up acting like KG right before tip-off—banging our heads against the podium and pumping ourselves up for post-graduation family dinners. I’m just picturing myself getting my diploma, shaking Fr. Leahy’s hand, and then punching myself in the chest as hard as I can. It’s unlikely KG could find the time to write a speech

between yelling at Brandon Bass and talking to himself about defending Lebron. But I think the man himself said it best: “Anything is possible.”

3. Jessica Chastain. If you haven’t seen Zero Dark Thirty, then this is a strange pick. Also, go see it. The scene where she convinces her higher-up to go through with her plan to raid bin Laden’s compound might be one of the most intense things I have ever seen, and one of the most convincing.

I’d run through a brick wall for that woman after she gave me a speech like that. In fact, I wish she would come to commencement and give the same type of speech about seeking gainful employment. I’d be a neurosurgeon by July. And I’m an English major.

2. Pope Francis. The day they elected him pope, there were news vans all over campus. The only assumption can be that they came to hear from the student body, who are ipso facto the experts on Jesuits in New England and perhaps nationally. I don’t think it’s too much to ask for him to come give some love to the pinnacle of Jesuit education. Plus it’d be sweet to see

that pope-mobile rolling down Campanella. The driver would probably go the wrong way on the one-way on his way out, like cab drivers always do, but I think it’s cool if you’re the pope.

1. Arnold’s Grandpa. That’s right.

Like Hey Arnold! Arnold’s grandpa.

This might be my biggest longshot, seeing as he’s a cartoon character, but it’s definitely possible. If Tupac’s hologram can perform at Coachella, we can definitely get Grandpa on stage for one speech. Plus, Southampton College had Kermit the Frog as their commencement speaker in 1996. I learned much more from Grandpa than I ever learned from that frog puppet. If there’s one thing the entire sesquicentennial class has in common, it’s a love for that show. He’d know how to keep it short and sweet too.

Sometimes these things can drag on a bit. “Ladies and gentlemen of the class of 2013: never eat raspberries.” That’s really all I need to hear.

Kevin Toomey is a staff writer for The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

Unsung hero

Freshman starts music career with ‘Soul-hop’ tracks

By Alison Takahashi For The Heights William Bolton is a Boston College freshman that ironically only earned half his credit as this week’s “Unsung Hero.”

That is not to say that he is any less of an example to other students, but it is an undeniable truth that this boy can sing, and sing he does. As a member of BC’s musical guild, he performs regularly at the “old Chocolate Bar” in McElroy and remains a favorite musician among listeners. Before his act even begins, there’s an unmistakable quality about Bolton that one cannot miss.

His markedly individual sense of style, from his green skinny camo pants to his animal print backpack, seems to outwardly defy the stereotypes often associated as the “norm” of BC culture. It isn’t until Bolton turns on his beats, grabs the mic, and says, “Hello I am Times New Roman,” that you fully realize just how unique this student is. He uses his passion for music as a way to connect and relate to other BC students, with the hopes of eventually pursuing a career in the musical industry at large.

When asked when he first remembered being drawn to music, Bolton nostalgically laughed and replied, “When my parents forced me to go to one guitar lesson seven years ago in the sixth grade. I was so excited after that one session that I knew I had to continue.”

Bolton carried out this endeavor, attending lessons once a week for three consecutive years, though he confirms that the greater portion of his playing time did not occur during lessons, but after school for hours on end. “The first time I remember actually enjoying music was when I would ride to school with my brother. It was only a 10-minute drive, but he was always listening to Radiohead and I fell in love.”

His older brother shared a similar interest in music, having purchased recording software to produce his own albums until

he left home and headed off to college when Bolton was a junior. This brings to mind the saying, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Since all of his brother’s materials were ripe for the taking, Bolton set out to see what he could do with what was leftover. During his senior year of high school, Bolton taught himself the art of beat-making, a skill many have no knowledge of, and likely will never have any knowledge of.

“I feel like every artist makes their beats a little different because of different software,” Bolton said. His interest to pursue this skill was inspired by G-EZ’s self-produced beats. Taking samples from songs that catch his attention, Bolton admits, “I listen to music differently than I used to.

My ear is subconsciously always looking for songs I can make music from. I frequently go on Pandora, Spotify, and listen to old records,” he said. Bolton even once included a song in the movie Back to the Future as a sample for one of his bubbly sounding songs, “High Maintenance.”

Having recently released his latest record, Detroit 2 Boston, under the artist name, “Times New Roman,” he describes the process of recording music and confirms that he does in fact do this in his BC dorm room. “I bought a mini keyboard, a mic, and always have a guitar. The set up is a smaller version of what I have at home.”

When it comes to creating music, Bolton says, “I start with the sample 75 percent of the time, and I layer on everything else: drums, bass, and whatever the beats need. The vocals and lyrics come last.” His method sounds like some fusion of a recipe and a mathematical equation, though his means of writing lyrics are less systemized.

Sometimes writer’s block gets in the way for a little while, but usually things run smoothly when he puts his pen to paper.

“The lyrics depend on the beat and what I believe the song should be about.” His three most common themes are centered around

photos courtesy of william bolton

Bolton performs often on campus and just released his latest record, ‘Detroit 2 Boston.’ girls, pump-up, or exciting tracks, as well as deeper, more personal concerns.

The tracks, “Faded” and “Detroit 2 Boston,” off his newest album, stand out to Bolton as the songs that every BC student can easily relate to,Graham especially freshmen.

Beck / Heights Editor The two highlight college as an incredibly significant transitional period that has many joys and complications that come along with it. Oftentimes, when you listen to Bolton’s lyrics closely, you see that he too is like any other student trying to make sense of the occasionally overwhelming college situation.

The song, “Faded,” not only calls attention to the drinking and hook-up culture students come to terms with at college, but it also asks the listener to disregard the peer pressures they may face and make their own decisions, based on their own volition, on their own behalf. Some lines include: “Society is telling me to push and shove / But I’ll do what I want / Because I’ll find in my fake ways none.” Rather than giving into those around them he sings, “I don’t want to be cool after fool’s gold / I just want to be free, just trying to be me / I’m just trying to be me, not trying to be similar / different’s

more fun, anyways go figure.”

When asked how he would define his unique style of music, Bolton said he has created a new genre that he deems, “Soulhop,” a combination of soul music and hiphop beats. As a student of the BC Carroll School of Management, Bolton aspires to major in marketing, and does so with the intent to better understand the business of making music. “For me, music is not just a hobby. If I’m not able to ‘make it’ as an artist, I’d like to become a producer who produces beats for a ‘bigger name’ musician. I’m getting a business degree, but I don’t want to find myself sitting in an office doing finance,” he said. “Music is just what I do. If I’m not making music, then I’m listening to music.” It is Bolton’s ability to defy odds and relate to BC students on a personal level that makes him this week’s unsung hero.

Bolton will soon be playing at BC’s Arts Fest in O’Neill plaza, so keep your eye out for more information. Be sure to check out his Facebook page, “William Bolton Music,” and download his most recent album, Detroit 2 Boston for free at: http://listentotnr. com/. n

he said, she said I recently submitted a BC Confession about a girl that I have wanted to talk to for a while but didn’t really know her at all, and she was tagged in the post.

Would it be weird to send her a message? I can’t tell if she’d be flattered or creeped out.

A Boston College Confession question: very timely considering how that account has exploded over the last couple weeks. This question really isn’t that different than simply having a crush on a girl and debating whether or not to ask her out, which a lot of students experience at some point in their four years.

Another thing you’ll probably experience at some point is a BC girl say that she wishes more guys would ask girls on dates instead of perpetuating this “BC Alex Manta hookup culture” that they don’t want to be a part of (side note: how is that a BC thing? It’s the same at every college. Can we please start referring to it as the “college hookup culture” instead?). However, I’ve asked numerous girls if they would actually go on a date with a random BC guy who they didn’t know ahead of time, and a decent amount say no. Unfortunately, that doesn’t bode well for you.

Here’s the thing, this could totally go either way. Some girls would be flattered by it and want to get to know you more, but others would be really turned off by it. The fact that you posted about it on BC Confession could also help or hurt your cause depending on what she thinks about the site. It’s tough when you don’t already know the girl because you’re not sure how she is going to react to the situation.

It’s easier said than done, but I say go for it. It might fail, but it might go really well. It’s going to keep bugging you anyways if you don’t say something so go ahead and get it off your chest. If you’re not already friends with her now, then it’s not like you have much to lose anyways. It’s a shot in the dark, but it’s a shot worth taking.

I’m not surprised a question like this has been raised since the sudden popularity of BC Confessions. The fact that you’re even thinking about messaging her says something about the kind of person you are, namely brave, because a lot of people probably would never even consider doing such a thing. The next part of this equation (her) is a bit more tricky. Depending on the type of girl she is, this could be either a hit or miss situation.

Taylor Cavallo Let’s go with the more optimistic option first: let’s say she’s a girl who believes in love at first sight, finding her prince charming, or she’s just an outgoing person who doesn’t mind meeting new people. In this case, you’re golden. I can’t promise a romance out of a friendly Facebook message you might send her, but I’m sure this type of girl would respond. Don’t underestimate how many girls are flattered by the posts about them on the Confessions page or how many girls get a bit giddy at the idea of a secret admirer. The second, less ideal option, would be that she rolls her eyes at the sight of that Facebook message in her inbox, gossips and laughs about it with her friends, and never responds. There are two silver linings to this situation: you didn’t really know her in the first place, so there was nothing lost, and if she reacts this way, she’s probably not the type of girl you want to be with anyway. If you even felt it in your heart and gut to think about doing it, I’d say follow those two organs. They rarely let people down. And who knows, maybe you’ll be the first couple born of BC Confessions. Too bad you won’t know who to thank. Good luck!

Alex Manta is a senior staff writer for The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

Taylor Cavallo is a senior staff writer for The Heights. She can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

THE HEIGHTS

Monday, March 25, 2013

Immersion trips available to all students

B9

EAGLE DATES

EDITOR’S COLUMN

MEET THE DATERS:

Stop waiting on things to change

Service Trips, from B10 -tion of the Jemez reservation in New Mexico. In the fall, Jemez high school students journey to Boston to be hosted

by BC students. In return, BC students then travel to New Mexico over Winter Break to experience the lives of the Jemez people first-hand.

The goal for the Jemez students, according to Jonathan Charlton, A&S ’15, who participated in both programs this past year, is “to see BC students as a symbol for higher education.” Currently in its ninth year at BC, Jemez has drawn in students who love adventure and look to experience a new culture within their own country. At the pueblo, students partake in service placements such as elderly homes, building sites, firewood distribution, and other types of manual labor. In addition to working, a unique feature of the Jemez pueblo is its rich cultural heritage. From traditional buffalo dances, to feast days, to bonfires, students are fully immersed in the Jemez culture. To Charlton, this trip is very unique in the sense that “just by going one hour north of Albuquerque, you’ll find a completely different culture, a different way of life, and a lot of people don’t even recognize that it’s there.”

The Mustard Seed trips, Campus Ministry’s Dominican Republic trip and the Lynch school’s Jamaica trip, seek to expose students not only to the marginalized realities of the respective countries but also to the conditions of the suffering and forgotten within them.

Mustard Seed Communities works with the marginalized, particularly disabled children, in some developing countries.

According to Kasey Jong, CSOM ’14, a leader of the Dominican Republic service trip this past Spring Break, in regard to the workers onsite at Mustard Seed, “They’re a spark of hope in the regions they serve and are a sample of what community should be.” Echoing the words of Jong, Andrew Bishop, A&S ’15, who attended the Jamaica trip in 2012, said that the goal of Mustard Seed is to “give the residents new beginnings.”

The primary focus of both service trips is to volunteer at orphanages for disabled youth, but students on both trips also assist in various community work projects that can range from painting churches, clearing yards, or assisting with construction. Engaging in the community of Mustard Seed Communities is a key factor to both trips, as the involvement in the faith, love, and accompaniment community is what makes many students’ experiences worthwhile. Bishop believes that the “focus on accompaniment makes the program most unique” along with the “emotional refreshment” that one gets from working and being with the youth.”

Regardless of the type, location, or tasks of a given BC service immersion trip, each has been proven to affect students in a multitude of profound ways. By exploring those trips that are less well-known and seeing what exactly they have to offer, students can become aware of an entirely new way of life outside of the infamous “BC bubble” and have a new and exciting answer to the archetypal “what did you do over break?” question. 

NAME: Dana Sarni YEAR: 2016 MAJOR: Communication FAVORITE HILLSIDE SANDWICH: Tuna Melt FAVORITE MOVIE: ‘Titanic’

NAME: Christine Dominas YEAR: 2016 MAJOR: Undecided FAVORITE HILLSIDE SANDWICH: Chicken Club Sandwich FAVORITE MOVIE: ‘Inception’

sounds like the article from one of our favorite high school graduation songs, but I think you can relate. These times have such ethos.

It would be easy to say that these impressions (and the fervor that goes with them) is a character of the unique days or events themselves, but I think there is something inherent in BC that gives a special quality to these experiences.

Maybe I’m just being a nostalgic senior, but these friends and memories are the anchors that keep the past four years of my life in the not so distant past. The memories I’m talking about are marked occurrences, and I think it’s worth believing that they are defined by who we are as BC students, not just what they are as moments in time. They are defined by BC.

It’s no surprise that, in some aspects of their lives, students at Boston College can be resistant to change. We became infuriated when the new mini marts were introduced to campus, lamented the loss of the ice cream and frappes at the Chocolate Bar despite the inclusion of fancy gelato, and can be reluctant to take courses with new professors when we have already become comfortable with a select few. I fall into each of these categories—sometimes it’s just easier to stick with what you know.

Even when the pressure to change is almost overbearing, I still have managed to cling onto a few things that have been widely abandoned by others. I will proudly display my EnV3 that I acquired my sophomore year of high school and feel no shame when people ask me why I don’t just get a smartphone like the rest of the world. I can make phone calls and send text messages, which are the main functions expected of a phone, right?

Then there was the Facebook transitional phase, when you’d see a status every day about how the user had fallen victim to the new timeline format. My profile was one of the last to receive the update—I wasn’t about to change it myself until I was forced to do so. A similar occurrence happened a few days ago, when I was confronted with the decision of whether or not to convert to the new format of a particular website. The one place with all of my favorite things—food, clothes, inspirational quotes, and endless amounts of Ryan Gosling—was threatening to take on an updated look: Pinterest.

A message had appeared at the top of the page indicating that the website would soon be updating for all users, but I had the option to make the change immediately. My first reaction? Absolutely not. How could they threaten to transform the one place where I found refuge to stare endlessly at Nutella cheesecakes and puppies dressed in cute little outfits? I’m already hesitant to move forward when it comes to technology, and I was afraid the new layout would not compare to the simplistic version of the older Pinterest.

Upon further consideration, however, it became apparent that I wouldn’t be able to hold onto the Pinterest of the past forever, just as the Facebook timeline was destined to take over permanently. I decided to take a risk, and I clicked the button that would change everything. “Are you sure you’re ready to change your Pinterest for good?” the message read. Or something along those lines—I was too emotionally unstable at that point to remember exactly what it said. I clicked “Yes” and closed my eyes, expecting some horrible layout to fill the screen of my Mac. As I removed my hands from my face, I was pleasantly surprised. The format was generally the same, with new features—I can click on “pins” and now view the “boards” of that user on the sidebar without leaving the current window, and view similar images pinned by other users. Everything I love about Pinterest, just more accessible and visually interesting.

Although I could write this whole column about why Pinterest is the greatest invention of our age, I’ll spare everyone the details. It’s more about the liberating feeling I had when I decided to actively make the change for myself rather than wait for it to come, out of my control. You may think I’m making a big deal out of nothing, but I’m always one to find symbolic meaning in even the little things (which is why I am, after all, an English major).

Students at BC may be reluctant to switch up routines, but there are also so many things that we are committed to improving. Whether it be UGBC’s proposal to revise the alcohol matrix, or the spirit of volunteerism that seems to permeate a multitude of student organizations, we generally strive to do anything we can to better the lives of the people around us. Maybe it’s time we channel that progressive energy into our day-to-day lives, and do things for ourselves for a change. Don’t just write a BC confession about that guy whose smile makes your day (The key word is “just”—I still want you to write about it for my own entertainment, but don’t be afraid to take the next step, beyond the Internet). Instead of turning down an internship opportunity because it’s typically for older students, write the best cover letter and application essay you possibly can, and you may even have a chance. Who knows—taking a risk to make a change for your own benefit, whether it’s on Pinterest or in real life, just may end up surprising you.

Maximillian Adagio is a contributor to The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

Michelle Tomassi is the Features editor for The Heights. She can be reached at features@bcheights.com.

NAME: Eric Swanson YEAR: 2015 MAJOR: Biology FAVORITE HILLSIDE SANDWICH: New England Classic FAVORITE MOVIE: ‘Good Will Hunting’

A freshman and sophomore embark on a tapas adventure HEIGHTS: How did you prepare for your date? Were you nervous?

HEIGHTS: How did you prepare for your date? Were you nervous?

CHRISTINE: I just got ready by myself because my roommate was gone and all my friends were busy. I didn’t put that much thought into it. I was nervous that it would be awkward more than anything.

ERIC: I collected restaurant suggestions, and made sure to shower. We texted and decided where we would meet up, and I double-checked that I knew how to get to the restaurant.

HEIGHTS: How did your date begin?

HEIGHTS: How did your date begin?

CHRISTINE: We met at the bottom of the stairs and introduced ourselves. That was the only awkward part. Then we went to Barcelona, a tapas bar right off the C line.

ERIC: We met up at the bottom of the Million Dollar Stairs, took the C line to Tappan Street, and we went to Barcelona Brookline, an amazing tapas restaurant. We left BC at 6:15 and got back around 9:45.

HEIGHTS: What was it like when you first encountered your date?

HEIGHTS: What was it like when you first encountered your date?

CHRISTINE: It was a little awkward for the first couple minutes because we had to make small talk and introduce ourselves, but then after that it was fine.

ERIC: It was a little weird just because we had to do awkward introductions. After the initial hello, it was fine.

HEIGHTS: How was the conversation? What did you guys talk about?

HEIGHTS: How was the conversation? What did you guys talk about?

CHRISTINE: He’s pre med and I’m thinking about pre med so we talked a lot about science classes, good professors, and tips for pre med. We both like to travel a lot so we talked about the different places we’ve been to.

ERIC: We talked about everything from our majors and extracurricular activities to our families and what kinds of things we want to do in the future. We also talked about transitioning from freshman year to sophomore year, and what it was like coming to BC.

HEIGHTS: Were there any awkward moments?

HEIGHTS: Were there any awkward moments?

CHRISTINE: Just getting to know each other. After that, there wasn’t a single awkward moment. We always had stuff to talk about since we have never met before.

ERIC: She asked me a lot of questions, and I answered her and asked questions back. We didn’t really have any dead space. The most quiet part was when we were deciding what to order. Neither of us had high expectations about anything, which was nice.

HEIGHTS: How did the date end?

CHRISTINE: We took the Comm. Ave. bus back and then he walked me to Hillside, so I could take the elevator up, and we gave each other hugs goodbye.

HEIGHTS: What does the future hold for you two?

CHRISTINE: I’ll probably see him around because we both go to Bapst a lot, but we lead very separate lives. I don’t know if I’ll see him, but he was nice. I’ll definitely stop and talk to him if I see him.

WANT TO GO ON YOUR OWN EAGLE DATE? CONTACT FEATURES@BCHEIGHTS.COM

HEIGHTS: How did the date end?

ERIC: We left dinner, took the T back, and then took the bus.

We departed at Hillside with a hug.

HEIGHTS: What does the future hold for you two?

ERIC: I’m not really sure. I think we will probably be friends, but I don’t know if I see us going on a second date.

RATE YOUR DATES (1-5) NAME: Christine Dominas

NAME: Eric Swanson

5.0

4.0

CAMPUS QUIRKS

Community fervor defines our BC experiences MAXIMILLIAN ADAGIO I passed a test. I failed a test. We won the game. We lost the game. I’m in a good mood. I’m in a bad mood. It’s Tuesday.

It’s Wednesday. It’s Thursday. It’s Friday…

College students are gluttons for excuses and occasions to drink and be merry. All of us know this kind of party rhetoric— most likely, we’ve used it on ourselves or others before a celebration of, well, pretty much anything. This type of observance is a bi-weekly to quad-weekly-type exercise for college students everywhere.

But for us at Boston College, I think this exercise has a foil—a much more memorable type of experience that isn’t just predicated on drinking and foppery (though those practices tend to surface).

In our college-kid caches of memory exist general recollections of those sameold Mary Ann’s nights, the torpor of midterm grinds, and oodles of filler memory

noodles, but there are also lasting impressions of times unmemorable not for their sameness, but for their outstanding difference. They are unmemorable because the power of that day or event, and the singular feeling you had during it, can’t really be compared to anything else.

They are times like the fake week before school starts, this year’s blizzard, or Hurricane Sandy—days like Marathon Monday, St. Paddy’s Day, or housing decision day. These days leave a mark, and I think it is a mark branded by the BC culture just as much, if not more, than by the event itself.

These special times are always characterized by community fervor. They aren’t usually simply positive or negative—they can be both or neither—sometimes they just happen. This fervor usually gets a little out of control. Its effects are sometimes of questionable integrity—the “riots” on campus after bin Laden’s death and the announcement of his death in

President Barack Obama’s now famous “We Got Him” speech come to mind. But the fervor was there, too, when Nemo rolled through. I remember snowboarding, sledding, and playing in the snow with a few hundred people on a maroon, gold, and white Brighton campus.

Everyone was sharing their … sodas and cigarettes … and having a snow-ball. I remember staying up all night almost every night of the week during the meteor shower my freshman year because I could—mom and dad couldn’t tell me no.

Altogether I am sure that this fervor is good. It is youthful. It can be destructive. It sways our passions. But it is good, and I think it is something important in college. I know my best friends and most of my other friends through these experiences (and, of course, many others). I love having that shared residual zeal for moments when I say to them, “Hey, remember when we [insert memory here].”

Hell, I’ll even tell my kids. I know this

MICHELLE TOMASSI

FEATURES THE HEIGHTS

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Monday, March 25, 2013

MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2013

Supportive services for disabilities

EAGLE EMS A Night in the Life

BY CATHRYN WOODRUFF

A round-the-clock view into the tasks performed by Boston College’s EMT crew

BY ANDREW SKARAS Heights Editor 8:00 p.m. Saturday night.

Chris Faherty, ambulance services coordinator, former president of Eagle EMS, and A&S ’13, clips on his gear as the day shift radios in that they are going off duty.

Seth Weil, member services coordinator and A&S ’13, dons a high visibility jacket and gets ready for the night.

While most Boston College students have not yet started pre-gaming, the EMTs of Eagle EMS are just getting ready for the night. Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, Eagle EMS Unit 420, the Class-5 ambulence obtained by the organization last February, is on call from 8:00 p.m. until 4:00 a.m. Additionally, they are also on call from 2:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. for day shifts on Friday and Saturday.

After the day shift leaves, Faherty and Weil begin the nightly routine. First, they drive the emergency response vehicle over to Brighton campus to run the lights and sirens and inspect all of the gear.

“You wouldn’t go out for the night without looking at yourself in the mirror,” Weil said. “We want to be sure that everything is in order. We don’t want to arrive at a scene and have missing gear.”

After a thorough equipment check, Faherty and Weil head to Late Night. They like to grab some food while things are still quiet around campus. Afterwards, they return to their office on the second floor of Maloney. During their down time at the beginning of the night, they hang out in the lounge of the Student Programs Office to watch TV and chill.

“It’s kind of like a surprise birthday party—minus the fun and games,” Weil said. “There is a lot of waiting and wondering what and when something is going to happen.”

“EMTs are a superstitious bunch,” Faherty added. “You never say the ‘qword’—q-u-i-e-t.”

Faherty and Weil pass the time talking about some of the changes they’ve seen over their years as a part of the organization.

“When we joined freshman year, the organization was very small,” Faherty said.

“It has really changed since then. We now have more responsibility than ever before on campus. We now provide the main coverage for all events on campus—Armstrong just stands by if we need them. Getting the vehicle really changed how much we

are able to do. Now we can respond to more calls.”

Even after all of the changes that have been made and the expansion of the organization, Faherty and Weil still see more in the future, but that is for another generation of EMTs. “It’s really up to the young guys,” Faherty said. “We are all out of fresh ideas—we used them all.”

At 11:00 p.m., the police have a shift change and do roll call—bringing everyone on duty up to speed on what has happened during the day and what is going on around campus at the time. After they are done, Faherty and Weil head down to the police headquarters to meet with Lt. Fred Winslow, the officer running the operation for the night. After chatting with some of the other officers, Winslow lets the EMTs on duty know what is going on for the night.

When there are new EMTs, they get the opportunity to get to know the police, but for veterans like Faherty and Weil, it is an opportunity to catch up with whoever is on duty for the night.

After a half hour in the police station, Faherty and Weil head out to the car to drive around for a little bit. With no calls, they cruise around campus and the nearby neighborhood to get an idea of what is going on around campus, where people are going to and leaving from, and what the night will look like.

“The peak time is from 11:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m., but you really can’t predict what will happen,” Faherty said.

“On a given weekend night, we usually see six to eight calls.”

Driving near CoRo, they receive their first call at 12:10 a.m. The radio reports that there is an intoxicated student in Keyes North. Flipping on the lights, Faherty turns the car around and starts heading toward Newton Campus. By the time they get there, the police are already on the scene talking to the student. The call is routine and Faherty assesses him while Weil takes his vitals.

Based on the patient’s condition, available space at the Infirmary, and input from the Police Department, the decision is made to send the student to St. Elizabeth’s medical center. Weil monitors the patient until care is transferred to Armstrong Ambulance while Faherty speaks to the police on scene. The paperwork is quickly completed on the drive back to Main Campus.

The next couple of hours are slow and Faherty and Weil pass the

Asst. Features Editor

time near the St. Ignatius Church gate and the old St. Thomas More Hall. For a while they talk with one of the police officers, Bobby Connor, BC ’11, who himself was involved in Eagle EMS during his time at BC. While waiting near More Hall, they are joined by the Armstrong ambulance assigned to BC. After briefly chatting with the Armstrong EMTs, Faherty and Weil return to the vehicle, resting during the extended down time of a slow night. At 2:10 a.m., the dispatcher alerts them of another intoxicated student, this time on Upper Campus.

See EMS, B7

JORDAN PENTALERI / HEIGHTS GRAPHIC

The mission of the Disabilities Service Office is to assist students with disabilities at Boston College “in achieving their educational, career, and personal goals through the full range of institutional and community resources.” The office works to ensure that all students with disabilities receive support, services, and accommodations tailored to their specific needs.

Within the Disabilities Service Office, a specialized team works with students who are visually and hearing impaired.

Paulette Durrett, assistant dean for students with disabilities, along with graduate assistants Jessica Johnson and Jessica Goldhirsch, works constantly to make sure students with visual and hearing impairment are provided with the necessary equipment and aid to bring them around campus and to foster success in the classroom.

The Disabilities Service Office utilizes resources such as the Bus Shuttle, the Connors Family Learning Center, Eagle Transport, and Counseling Services.

They work closely with BCPD to fulfill students’ transportation needs—ensuring they can get on and off campus safely.

Students can also be connected with a mobilization specialist to accompany them around campus to help them get their bearings and learn the best routes to class.

Oftentime students with visual or hearing impairment will take their exams in the Disabilities Service Office, where they are provided with a computer, the appropriate software and audio technology, and a comfortable quiet space.

Th e Disabilities Service Offi ce employs innovative technology. In some cases, texts can be electronically enlarged for students. Additionally, “JAWS” is a screen reading software developed for computer users whose vision loss prevents them from seeing screen content. JAWS “reads” aloud what is on the screen. Many visually impaired students have this software on their computers, which makes their material accessible.

Th e Disabilities Service Offi ce also collaborates heavily with Instructional Design and eTeaching Services to ascertain the technological side of working with disabled students runs smoothly.

Beth Clark, director of instructional design and eTeaching services, noted that when her team is advised that there are students with either visual or hearing impairments, they “will work with the faculty who are teaching their courses

See Disability Resources, B7

Experiencing an intersection of culture, faith, and service abroad Immersion service trips provide a meaningful way to spend time away from BC

BY ALEX GAYNOR Heights Editor “What did you do over break?” This is a pretty common question that can be overheard anywhere from O’Neill library to McElroy in the days following a school break. To this the response frequently follows, “Oh, I went on a service trip.”

While many students participate in the wide range of service and immersion opportunities available on campus, some programs haven’t gotten as much attention as programs like Appalachia or Arrupe. The breadth of opportunity that campus groups like the VSLC, Campus Ministry, and other independent groups offer allows for students interested in service and cultural immersion to experience life through a variety of lenses.

One educational immersion trip to the Dominican Republic, run through the Lynch school and the Learning to Learn program, has been described by Sarah Wolfe, LSOE ’13, who participated in this trip in 2011, as an experience that allows BC students to “learn about

the educational disparities that exist within a social, political framework of the Dominican Republic.” It is a chance for students to be “exposed to looking at poverty through an educational lens.” The group typically visits different schools, ranging from rural village institutions to affluent private schools, to assess their status and become immersed in the educational system of the country. In addition to surveying the educational system, the group spends time at an orphanage and also speaks to politicians in the Dominican education department. When asked what set this immersion experience apart from others, Wolfe responded that, it “drew students who I normally wouldn’t have interacted with—a diverse range of students with diverse BC experiences.”

The trip not only changed her “perspective on service and BC culture,” but her “perspective on other cultures” like that of the Dominican Republic.

In the same respects as LTL, ServeUP Intervarsity Christian Fellowship allows students to look at service through a different lens, this one being faith and Christian community. It is a faith-based

I NSIDE FEATUR E S THIS ISSUE

experience and allows service-goers, from many universities around the country, to immerse themselves in the realities of a post-Katrina New Orleans, LA cleaning up and building houses.

According to Marina Iturralde, CSON ’15, who attended the trip this past Spring Break, the goal is to “unite students from across the country in service.” This allowed students to “put the focus on serving others while also developing close friendships and even challenge faith and views on justice along the way.” The immersion experience in New Orleans involves service at various worksites dry walling, painting, insulating, installing gardens, or even demolishing devastated homes to rebuild in the future. In reflecting on her experience, Iturralde remarked that the trip “challenged me to reflect on aspects of my life that I generally don’t give much time to such as faith, the importance of community, and the power of service and justice.”

One does not always have to leave the country to experience a different way of life. The Jemez Pueblo exchange program serves to unite BC students with the Native American popula-

See Service Trips, B9

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARINA ITURRALDE

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARINA ITURRALDE

ALEX GAYNOR / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Students volunteer in New Orleans (top) and Dominican Republic (bottom) service trips.

Unsung Hero A freshman is on the rise after the debut of his new album, chan-

neling his passion for music and production.......................................................B8

Professor Prof ile..................B 7 Eagle Dates................................B9