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Monday, September 22, 2014
Vol. XCV, No. 31
BCVC hosts alums to talk tech startups
Dupont joins BC as Burns Librarian
‘Innovation Hub’ event features panel of three BC tech entrepreneurs
BY CONNOR FARLEY News Editor
Following the retirement of former Director of the Burns Library Robert O’Neill at the end of the 2013-14 academic year, Christian Dupont joined Boston College as the new John J. Burns Librarian and associate university librarian for special collections as of Sept. 2. Internationally renowned for its extensive special collections, catalogue of University Archives, and breadth of primary sources for research, the Burns Library houses over 200,000 volumes and more than 700 manuscript collections—all which now falls under the direction of Dupont, who began his career in librarianship as a graduate student at the University of Notre Dame. “It has been often said that special collections of rare books, manuscripts, and archives function as a sort of laboratory for research involving original documentary sources,” Dupont said in an email. “It is certainly true, and over the years a number of faculty members have brought their classes to Burns Library to expose their students to our unique holdings. Some professors have even involved their students in creating
See Dupont, A3
BY MUJTABA SYED Heights Editor
EMILY SADEGHIAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR
Yesterday, President of the Philippines Benigno S. Aquino III discussed the political dynamic of his career.
AQUINO RETURNS TO BOSTON BY JULIE ORENSTEIN Assoc. News Editor More than 30 years after his family came to Boston to take refuge from political persecution, President Benigno S. Aquino III of the Philippines, speaking at Robsham Theater yesterday, recalled memories of his time living just outside the gates of Boston College on Commonwealth Avenue. “It was here in Boston that I experienced my first snowfall,” Aquino said. “I acquired the ability to adapt to a changing environment, I learned to cope with the uncertainty having had to possibly wonder when and if we could go back, if we could go back. “It was here that we were given a sense of normalcy.” From 1980 to 1983, the Aquino family lived in selfexile in Boston, escaping oppression from then-president Ferdinand Marcos. Marcos, a primary political opponent of Aquino’s father, Benigno Aquino, Jr., was widely accused of
complicity in the elder Aquino’s assassination in 1983 when he returned to the Philippines from his exile. Aquino’s mother, Corazon C. Aquino, was catapulted to the presidency in 1986 following a revolution that toppled Marcos’s authoritarian regime. She served as president of the Philippines—the first female to serve in that role—until 1992. Due to their efforts to combat corruption and bring democracy to their nation, and their local ties, the University chose to rename the formerly titled AsianAmerican Scholarship as the Benigno and Corazon Aquino Scholarship in 2010. “We award the scholarship in recognition of their commitment to justice, democracy, and the service of others,” said University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J. in his remarks at the event. “Our presence here reaffirms
See Aquino, A3
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF NEWS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS
Christian Dupont joined BC on Sept. 2 as the new director of the John J. Burns Library.
Career Fair kicks off job recruiting BY JENNIFER SUH Heights Staff
Over 100 employers spoke with thousands of Boston College students at the Career Fair last Thursday at Conte Forum. “The team did a nice job of tweaking the fair to ensure that the majority of organizations were recruiting students from all majors for positions in their organizations,” said Joseph DuPont, associate vice president of student affairs for Career Services, in an email. “There are all sorts of opportunities out there for students of all majors.” The event was sponsored by Cambridge Associates, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, GE, Liberty Mutual, Oracle, PwC, RBS Citizens, and TJX. “I think the students at the BC Career Fair are probably the most prepared of all [the students at] the schools that we go to,” said Nicole Guelcher, campus recruiter at TJX, who also noted the large number of schools she visits on a regular basis during the recruiting season. “Great preparation
See Career Fair, A2
JORDAN PENTALERI / HEIGHTS GRAPHIC
BC named top contributor to TFA BY NATHAN MCGUIRE Asst. News Editor Boston College is once again among the top universities contributing alumni to Teach for America (TFA), a nonprofit that places recent graduates in high-need school districts across the country, according to an August report released by TFA. Twenty-nine members of the 2014 graduating class joined TFA after they received their diplomas in mid-May. Although the same number of BC graduates joined the corps the year before, this year BC contributed the fifth-most alumni to TFA among medium-sized schools (between 3,000 and 9,999 undergraduates). Only Howard University, Vanderbilt University, George Washing-
ton University, and Harvard sent more graduates. O th e r to p - co nt r i b u t i n g Je s u i t schools include Georgetown (27) and Saint Louis University (17). In total, 5,300 new graduates from 850 colleges and universities joined TFA over the summer and have begun teaching in high-need classrooms across the nation. According to the Office of News and Public Affairs, about 400 Boston College alumni have served in TFA since its founding in 1990. Teach for America is a nonprofit that aims to “eliminate educational inequity by enlisting high-achieving recent college graduates and professionals to teach.” Individuals apply to the program through a competitive application
process and, if accepted, commit to teaching for two years in a low-income community in one of 50 regions across the country. New corps members begin with five weeks of intensive training in the summer. During four of those weeks, they teach summer school courses alongside experienced teachers who provide coaching and feedback. Additionally, TFA hosts lesson-planning clinics and curriculum sessions designed to help corps members develop effective teaching methods. Corps members are placed in highneed districts, but are not required to have a teaching certificate, as districthired teachers are. Members receive the
See TFA, A3
Last Thursday night in the Fulton Honors Library, three Boston College alumni shared their experiences with starting their own companies, the challenges of giving up a full-time corporate job, and their advice for students aspiring to start their own businesses. Organized by the information systems department and facilitated by members of the BC Venture Competition (BCVC) executive board, the panel included Nick Rellas, BC ’13, Maurya Couvares, BC ’06, and Ryan Selkis, BC ’08. Bridget Akinc of the marketing department—a veteran of multiple highgrowth technology companies—moderated the panel. Rellas, the most recent graduate among the three speakers, is the cofounder and chief executive officer of Drizly, a web- and app-based alcohol delivery service that has spread to half a dozen cities across the U.S. Drizly has raised $5 million in venture capital to date, and has been covered extensively by media outlets such as Bloomberg and BostInno. Couvares co-founded and serves as the executive director of ScriptEd.org, a non-profit that currently provides technical training for underserved high school students at 15 schools in New York City and has plans to spread to Boston in the near future. Couvares has also spoken at a TedX about her vision and progress with ScriptEd. Selkis, most notable for his involvement in numerous projects surrounding the digital currency Bitcoin, has founded multiple companies and was named “Bitcoin’s Most Insightful Journalist” in May at the first annual Bitcoin Industry Awards. After working in venture capital for the first three years of his professional career, Selkis founded Good Benefits, Inc., a firm that focused on creating a 401(k) style option for employees and companies to fund charitable gifts directly from paychecks. He founded and is currently the CEO of Inscrypto, a company that seeks to act as the FDIC of the Bitcoin industry. Before describing the specific stories of how each of their most significant companies was formed, each of the panelists spoke about their educational background and how their passions began to develop. Rellas spoke to one particular class, Strategy and Policy,
See BCVC, A3
DREW HOO / HEIGHTS STAFF
Nick Rellas, co-founder of Drizly and BC ’12, discussed strating his company.
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The Heights O’Neill Plaza will once again host Healthapalooza today from 10:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. The annual event, sponsored by the Office of Health Promotion, will feature representatives from wellness programs across campus, free snacks, and hands-on activities.
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Monday, September 22, 2014
Tonight at 8 p.m., Lean In at Boston College will host its first general meeting in McGuinn 121. The meeting will serve as the campus kickoff for the academic year with a livestream discussion with Lean In founder and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.
This semester’s first iteration of BC Ignites, hosted by UGBC, will take place Wednesday night at 7 p.m. on O’Neill Plaza. The event’s focus will be mental health and how stress, anxiety, and depression affect BC students’ lives.
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No mercy Professors delve into Islamic State crisis for Jameis By Carolyn Freeman Heights Staff
Chris Grimaldi Role model—defined by Merriam-Webster’s dictionary as “a person whose behavior in a particular role is imitated by others.” If you’ve picked up a newspaper or turned on a television sometime over the past couple weeks, you’ll probably agree that this definition hasn’t fared too well lately, particularly on the gridiron. After widespread fallout from the NFL’s mishandling of domestic abuse, headlines have again been dominated by Florida State quarterback and Heisman Trophy incumbent Jameis Winston—and again, for the wrong reasons. Winston’s public outburst last week earned him a sideline suspension during one of the biggest games of the season. This incident involving America’s most notable college football player comes in the wake of sexual assault allegations and a shoplifting citation. Yet, in a New York Times story on the issue by Marc Tracy, Winston is provided with a defense—“being as visible as Winston is at a young age cannot be easy.” For all I know, life is tough when you’re a prospective No. 1 draft pick and future recipient of a multi-million-dollar signing bonus. “Play good football, and don’t get in trouble” sounds like a simple tradeoff, but it’s way tougher than it sounds. To Winston and his defenders, I have this to say—cry me a river. He is the face of a national pastime. He has a future of fame and financial security waiting in front of him that most kids can only dream of. And you want me to feel sympathy for him? It’d be very easy for any of us to rip into Winston and his conduct. But just this once, let’s turn the spotlight away from him and onto our society’s double meaning for the word “role model.” There are some who would say that we should judge those we esteem solely by their performance on the field and not by their actions off of it. These people probably agree with former NBA player Charles Barkley, who explained, “just because I dunk a basketball doesn’t mean I should raise your kids.” Maybe this camp speaks for the majority of our society. It wasn’t so long ago that 73 percent of Americans approved of President Bill Clinton following impeachment, believing that what someone does in the “privacy of the Oval Office” shouldn’t affect a job rating. But our beliefs don’t match up with our rhetoric. If you’re telling me that Winston deserves to keep his Heisman Trophy because he is the best college football player in the country, then why does the award’s mission statement claim to also symbolize “the fostering of a sense of community responsibility and service to our youth?” On one hand, we want our idols to embody a moral standard that runs deeper than a spot on the field or the responsibilities of an executive office. On the other, we want to give them a free pass because they’re only human. But stars are only stars because we deem them so—those who complain about being idealized are the direct recipients of the public’s esteem. And they must remember that being a role model is no choice, but a responsibility. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. If the crown is too heavy, then take it off.
Chris Grimaldi is a senior staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at news@bcheights.com.
Last Thursday evening, political science professor Ali Banuazizi and history professor Julian Bourg spoke at the Eagle Political Society’s first topic meeting, “ISIS and the American Response.” The two professors provided background on the situation before delving into the United States’ options and then opening the floor for student opinions. Ultimately, a s B anuaz i z i noted throughout the lecture, the issue of the Islamic State’s militant control in Syria and Iraq will need to be solved internally from those in positions of power in those countries. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, commonly referred to as ISIS, rose to power due to two main reasons, according to Bourg: the American invasion of Iraq and the Arab Spring. The beginning of the insurgency commenced when the provisional authority of Iraq dissolved the Iraqi army, which left tens of thousands of young men armed and unemployed, Bourg said. “The emergence of ISIS is the result of a perfect storm of two
interlocking events,” he said. The governments in Iraq and in Syria are very autocratic and corrupt, which means that they are many people striving for justice and freedom, Banuazizi said. “In this part of the world we are dealing with populations that in many ways are desperate for those fundamental opportunities in life particularly when it comes to the youth,” he said. The rise of ISIS was not unexpected: Iraq has seen a slow rise in fundamentalism and extremism. The present leader of ISIS was once involved in Al-Qaeda. He now controls a territory that spans roughly one-third of Syria and one-third of Iraq, Banuazizi said. “It was not a sudden phenomenon. It arose very gradually in Iraq as well as in Syria,” Banuazizi said. “He has been doing this over the past several years and finally came up on the intelligence radar.” The goal of President Barack Obama’s administration is to degrade and then destroy ISIS. The administration plans to do this by bombarding the group’s sites. On Sept. 19, the Senate voted to approve Obama’s plan
to arm Syrian moderates to assist in the fight against ISIS, he said. “At least we have the makings of a credible coalition which we can support,” he said. “We have quite a fight on our hands.” It is going to be very difficult
“We have the makings of a credible coalition which we can support... we have quite a fight on our hands.” - Ali Banuazizi, professor of political science to truly defeat ISIS with airstrikes alone because there will always be a new group to take its place, Banuazizi said. “What will happen after we defeat ISIS?” he said. “This is not going to be the end of the story, because other groups are likely to emerge. Unless we have
a strategy that addresses many of the underlying issues and creates realignment in the issue we are not going to solve the problem.” There is always a possibility that the United States’ effort to defeat ISIS will only lead to more problems. With no longterm strategy, the U.S. is forced to adapt their smaller tactics, Bourg said. “The shadow that haunts all of this is the term ‘blowback,’” he said. “Without a strategy, there’s a danger in small tactical efforts leading to unintended consequences and creating greater problems still.” One takeaway from the discussion could be that the U.S. should do nothing, Banuazizi said. However, this could worsen the situation by making it possible for ISIS to extend its sphere of influence. Intervention is inevitable. However, the problem truly needs to be solved by people in the affected areas, he said. “This is very complicated, and wherever we insert ourselves may be right, may be not, but ultimately these issues have to be resolved in the region by the people themselves,” Banuazizi said. “This is not our fight.” n
BC Career Fair provides insight on job market Career Fair, from A1 as far as dress, resume, questions that they ask, research they’ve done, so I’m impressed.” Among the companies at the event were Barclays, Heinz North America, Hill Holliday, KimberlyClark, PNC, Teach for America, Toyota, Saks Fifth Avenue, and the U.S. Navy. “There are a more diverse group of candidates here in terms of what they’re looking for than, say, Bentley or Bryant, which are two other schools I recruit at,” said Nathan Ballentine, director of recruiting at New York Life. “This has I think a more diverse group of graduating seniors in terms of what they’re looking for for permanent positions.” “I think people here are a lot more eager, very upfront—‘I’m in this business major, and this is what I want and what do you have to offer’—which is a little different, but it’s great,” said Christina Lockett, account manager at Proctor and Gamble. “People are very passionate.” One of the most popular features at the career fair was the LinkedIn photo booth, where students could have free, professional photos taken of them for their profiles. Career Center staff members were also present throughout the event to help students navigate their way around the extensive array of company booths. “The career fair brings together employers from many industry
sectors which gives students an opportunity to engage in career exploration,” DuPont said. “In the course of conversations with employers, you can start thinking about whether you are interested in a particular type of work and whether you want to learn more about that industry. It is important to engage in this process of discernment and discovery throughout college which is why we encourage students from all class years to attend.” The Career Fair is open to students of all classes, and the Career Center suggested two ways for students to approach the career fair: low-key or more focused.
Students with a low-key approach could attend to explore possible careers in a variety of industries, while students with a more focused approach could attend to talk with potential employers about jobs and internships. “To be honest, I didn’t know what I was expecting , but I am happy with the turnout of potential employers,” said Sam Oh, A&S ’17. “I felt like before coming into this, I didn’t have much confidence in knowing and seeing how many options that I’d have, but after coming to this, I feel much more reassured.” Th e C a r e e r C e n t e r h a s planned more events to follow
the career fair: Careers in Health Care on Oct. 1 from 5 to 7 p.m. in Higgins 300; Career Night for the Arts on Nov. 13 from 7 to 9 p.m. in the McMullen Museum; International Careers Networking Event on Nov. 18 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.; and Nursing Fair and Career Day on Dec. 8 from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. “If I could relay one message to students it would be that we know that BC students are at all stages in the career process,” DuPont said. “Whether you are figuring out what you might be passionate about, want some resume advice, or need help refining your job search, we are here to help.” n
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CORRECTIONS
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Representatives from employers spoke with BC students seeking jobs and internships at the Career Fair Thursday.
What is your biggest regret of the weekend? “Getting sick.” —Angela Jin, CSOM ’17
“There’s so many.” —Christian Petro, A&S ’15
“Invited way too many people to that Mod.” —Neil Quigley, CSOM ’17
“Not getting two brownies like my roommate did.” —Carly Pickett, A&S ’18
The Heights
Monday, September 22, 2014
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Grads discuss leadership in tech BCVC, from A1
john wiley / Heights Editor
photo courtesy of the office of news and public affairs
Dupont, who specializes in rare collections and archives, will seek to enhance University research resources.
Dupont to refine digital archives Dupont, from A1 exhibits and digital humanities projects.” Having served as a director for large academic special collections libraries at the University of Virginia and Syracuse University prior to joining BC, and as a curator and reference librarian at the University of Notre Dame before that, Dupont noted one of his goals as Burns Librarian includes improving resources for student research at BC. “I want to greatly expand those opportunities and to partner with faculty in creating learning encounters aimed at developing and assessing targeted critical thinking skills such as artifactual literacy and archival intelligence,” Dupont said. “I also want to support more independent research, including senior theses and dissertation projects, as well as musical and dramatic performances and filmmaking. “And I want to contribute to a social media environment through which students can share the discoveries, insights, and excitement that come from working with our materials and our talented staff,” he said. Dupont’s own research specializes in the reception of Dante and Italian culture in America,
and he currently serves as the secretary and librarian for the Dante Society of America—an academic focus he credits to his time as a graduate, and later pursuing his master’s of information science at Indiana University. In addition to his focuses on Dante, Dupont said he also currently publishes on the reception of phenomenology in France—the subject of his dissertation research—and actively contributes to library management publications as well as helping shape international standards for the development of special collections libraries archives. Having also worked with other companies such as Atlas Systems, a library software development company where he spent the past six years building out an online user access management system for special collections and archives called Aeon, Dupont said his experiences in adjusting to technology in the field of library management have prepared him for his new role at BC. “These administrative experiences provide a strong foundation for the day-to-day responsibilities associated with my new role as Burns Librarian and associate university librarian for special collections,” Dupont said.
According to Dupont, Aeon has been implemented by more than 40 institutions—among them Harvard College and the Massachusetts Historical Society—and the library is currently seeking to hire a new associate director to head the University’s digital initiatives, which encompasses BC’s efforts to digitalize print sources and provide access to already-digital resources, such as email archives and other electronic media. “The opportunities I have had to collaborate with colleagues at a wide range and scale of institutional types have greatly contributed to my understanding of how technology can be used to enhance library and archives services,” he said. Among those new digitalization efforts, Dupont said, are efforts to collect research pertinent to the University’s Jesuit mission and Catholic identity. “I will also want to explore new areas of collecting that relate to BC’s curricular strengths and unique character and mission,” Dupont said. “For instance, I envision opportunities to expand our acquisition of research materials pertaining to the labors of the worldwide Jesuit community in its pastoral, societal, and educational dimensions.” n
BC among top universities placing alumni in Teach for America corps TFA, from A1 same pay and benefits as beginning teachers in the district, in addition to transitional funding packages to help ease members’ transition into their placement. Currently 10,600 individuals serve in TFA in high-need schools in 35 states and the District of Columbia. About two-thirds of those in the corps are graduating seniors, while the other third come from a professional background. Since its creation in the early ’90s, TFA has been the subject of great praise and criticisms. In a recent op-ed published in The Washington Post, Wendy Kopp, founder and chairwoman of TFA, responded to criticisms that TFA teachers don’t help students learn, a common concern often voiced by district-hired teachers. Because TFA teachers are not required to have a teaching certification, many in the education community—especially
non-TFA teachers, who must complete two-year certification programs before being permitted to teach—argue that TFA teachers are neither qualified nor prepared to teach in America’s toughest schools. “In my experience Harvard students have increasingly acknowledged that TFA drastically underprepares its recruits for the reality of teaching,” wrote recent Harvard graduate Sandra Y.L. Korn in a column published in The Washington Post. Korn was asked to join the corps a number of times by TFA campus recruiters, but she declined. In her op-ed, Kopp argues that TFA’s summer program and its network of support suffices in preparing teachers for the classroom, and she points to a 2013 study by Mathematica Policy Research that found “TFA members moved their students forward an estimated 2.6 months during one school year” as evidence that the organization ben-
efits students. B eyond the debate about classroom preparedness, criticism about TFA’s retention rates has also put Kopp on the defensive. According to Education Week, within five years, only 15 percent of TFA teachers remain in their original placements. Kopp argues, though, that 64 percent of alumni currently work full-time in education. In March, the organization unveiled a pilot program intended to provide a limited number of teachers with a year of training before they enter the classroom and to emphasize the importance of teachers staying in the classroom beyond their two-year placements. “We need to keep our minds open to change and innovation as we continue to find new and better ways to do right by kids,” TFA C EO Matthe w Kramer recently told Education Week. “Teaching beyond two years cannot be a backup plan—it has to be the main plan.” n
which almost single-handedly convinced him not to pursue a career in investment banking in order to pursue a career more in line with the operational growth of a company. “I fell in love with the idea of growing a company, of analyzing a competitive landscape, finding a niche, and attacking it,” Rellas said. “That’s pretty much how I fell into this three-year wild ride that I’ve been on.” Amidst anecdotes like staying in the library on weekends to read Harvard Business School case studies, Rellas emphasized the importance of analyzing companies and their strategies as the driving factor behind his eventual realization that Drizly could plug a currently underserved and largely nonexistent market. While working for New England Coffee during his time at BC, Rellas recalls having an overwhelming sense of frustration due to the realization that such a large coffee producer featured such a small amount of technology that made life easier for employees. Upon having a conversation with his supervisor in which he was told that the coffee industry was too heavily regulated to use large amounts of technology, Rellas set out to find out why largely regulated, recession-proof industries could not benefit from considerably higher amounts of technology infused at each level of the value chain. Eventually, Rellas pursued
the idea of Drizly when he considered why alcohol could not be delivered and found that most consumers believed the process to be illegal. Selkis’ story, on the other hand, began with three years of full-time venture capital work in which he spoke with thousands of entrepreneurs, coming to the realization he eventually wanted a more operational role at a growing company. His inspiration for Good Benefits, Inc. came from his finance background and interest in stimulating charitable giving, eventually aiding to grow the economic pie by allocating money to charities that eventually would never have left retirement plans and other investment vehicles. Couvares also held full time positions for years before founding ScriptEd. After teaching middle school students in Philadelphia as a participant in Teach for America, she felt her talents could be put to better use outside of the classroom. After working for a law firm to coordinate after school programs for a high school in New York City, Couvares moved into a position with the same firm to coordinate all pro-bono work and related data. It was at this point that she improved upon her own technical weaknesses, and gained inspiration for ScriptEd to provide technical training for young students who would ordinarily never get it. “I started thinking a lot about the kids that I would work with for a really long time, and how
they were obsessed with the technology around them but never said that was what they wanted to do when they grew up,” Couvares said. “That was really strange to me, and it had a lot do with the fact that they just didn’t have resources in their schools to teach them about technology.” After describing each of their stories as well as the lessons they had learned, the panelists were asked in closing to address the shrinking percentage of millennial getting involved in startups, per a recent study. “If you don’t have an idea that you’re completely obsessed with, go with the best available job and pay off your student loans in the meantime,” Selkis said. Couvares echoed the sentiment, indicating she had promised herself she would not leave her full time job until she fully paid off her student loans. Rellas, the lone member of the panel who pursued his venture immediately after graduating, agreed with the others before offering a caveat that encapsulated the tradeoff he had to endure by not joining the workforce. “The only reason I got to where I am now is because I made some sacrifices,” he said. While the panelists agreed on the value of financial security before starting companies, they were united in expressing the importance of chasing lifelong passions through entrepreneurial ventures when the circumstances become appropriate. n
drew hoo / heights staff
Last Thursday, the information systems department featured a panel of three alums who started their own businesses.
Aquino reflects on time in Boston Aquino, from A1 the links between Boston College and the Philippines, and also recognizes, in a very special way, the critical role President Aquino has played in meeting his mission for greater stability.” Leahy went on to introduce Aquino—himself a product of Jesuit education—as a “distinguished leader imbued with zeal, tenacity, and vision,” who consistently serves as a voice for the poor, an advocate for dialogue and peace with neighbors, and a friend to the U.S. He also noted that the Filipino leader was named one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2013. Aquino spoke of his feelings in the immediate aftermath of his
father’s assassination, the lowest point for his family, he said. His instinct was to want an eye for an eye, to exact revenge on Marcos for what he believed he had done, but he eventually realized he could not only make decisions for himself. “The solidarity from Boston College and the people here was a precursor to the solidarity displayed by millions of Filipinos,” upon their return to Manila, Aquino said. “I spent a lot of time at St. Ignatius Church when I had questions that seemingly did not have answers.” When he returned to St. Ignatius all these years later to celebrate Mass before delivering his speech, he said, he felt that he had found somewhat of an answer. Aquino went on to describe the progress his country has made since
he took office in 2010, including economic growth that has made the Philippines a more attractive location for investment. He also highlighted reduced corruption in the government, expanded public works projects, and increased educational opportunities. “The task now is to make sure that the people who have been left in the margins for so long are given a significant boost up … so that they may be able to catch up with rising tide of progress in the Philippines,” he said. In attendance at the event were Filipino-American students, leaders, and other members of the BC community, along with dignitaries from both countries, among them U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg. n
emily sadeghian / heights editor
Dupont, who specializes in rare collections and archives, will seek to enhance University research resources.
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Troubleshooting Teach for America Among schools with 3,000 to 9,999 undergraduates, Boston College ranked No. 5 for the most Teach For America (TFA) recruits last year, placing 29 undergraduates in teaching positions at public and charter schools around the country. TFA is a highly selective program, with acceptance rates historically below 15 percent. Accepted applicants receive five weeks of training before being placed in some of the country’s most challenging classrooms. Those placed through TFA are required to accept their first assignment regardless of location, and are paid the same wage as starting teachers in the same district, plus the costs of relocation. This funding for relocation means it costs more to place a TFA trainee in front of these classrooms than it would to place a graduate of the Lynch School of Education with four years of profession-specific training. Graduates placed through TFA have no bargaining power and no say over where they work, making it less attractive for TFA teachers to remain in their placements long-term. BC’s continued support of TFA is incongruous with its investment in the teaching profession, and is ultimately damaging the country’s already troubled public education system. Because of the large fees associated with recruiting a TFA teacher, the costs of their training, as well as the lobbying TFA does at a national and local level to create spots for its teachers—often at the expense of positions for tenure-track professionals—employing TFA recruits is quite costly. The pecuniary cost to society of 100 TFA recruits is $8.2 million over five years, compared with the $2.2 million for traditional teachers, according to a 2014 report from the University of Colorado-Boulder’s Education and the Public Interest Center. Notably, only about 30 percent of TFA’s funding comes through tax dollars, per the same report, versus 70 percent from foundations, individuals, and corporations. Even taking this comparison into consideration, the taxpayer still bears a greater burden in the case of a TFA recruit than for a traditional educator. The report goes on to detail that 28 percent of TFA recruits will remain public school teachers after five years, compared with 50 percent of traditional
Monday, September 22, 2014
educators. Only 5 percent of TFA teachers are still in their initial placement after seven years. TFA’s goal to “eliminate educational inequity” is unlikely to be achieved with such unusually high attrition rates. A 2013 study by Mathematica, now frequently cited by TFA, demonstrated that the achievement in mathematics for students in TFA classrooms was 2.6 months ahead of those in traditional settings. These figures, although initially somewhat compelling, begin to break down once it is pointed out that the study excludes the third of TFA teachers placed in charter schools, and the educators examined do not represent the diversity of the TFA corps—80 percent of the TFA teachers sampled in the study were white, compared to only 45 percent of the incoming corps members nationally. It also contradicts over a decade of research pointing to the inefficacy of TFA, according to a 2010 study from UC-Boulder’s Education and the Public Interest Center. Furthermore, even if the Mathematica findings are taken at face value, investments in smaller class sizes may close the gap in student achievement far more cost-effectively than TFA. Top BC graduates from all educational backgrounds should consider entering the teaching profession, and considering the strong focus on service here at BC, it is not surprising that 29 graduates from the Class of 2014 chose to join the TFA corps. Those interested in teaching and public education, however, would be better served working toward a master’s degree in education or pursuing their certification through avenues less costly to the nation. Long-term measures such as bringing down class size, reducing teacher turnover, and offering wages to educators competitive with those in industry are paramount in closing the achievement gap in our public schools. BC would not tout its contributions to a program that placed graduates with five weeks’ accounting training in a major accounting firm—largely because the University values accounting as a profession, not as a service opportunity. Teaching in public schools is not a service opportunity. It is a career, and American universities should start treating it as such.
A starlit or a moonlit dome disdains / All that man is, / All mere complexities / The fury and the mire of human veins. -William Butler Yeats (1865 - 1939), Irish poet, Nobel literature laureate
ANDREW CRAIG / HEIGHTS ILLUSTRATION
THE ONLINE BUZZ Printing reader comments from www.bcheights.com, the Online Buzz draws on the online community to contribute to the ongoing discussion. In response to “Here’s To Everyday First Days” by Alex Gaynor, which ran on 9/4/14: Nicely said. The truth is, you have more first days ahead of you, than you’ve lived to date. That’s something to consider! Some of them may even involve a school or two. As for the year ahead, dive in, yes. Savor this one. Breathe in every aspect of it as deeply as you can. This fall will fly. It always does. The leaves will begin turning. It will be Homecoming. Then Thanksgiving, followed by exams. Diving in whole-heartedly is one of the two
most important things you’ll do at BC this year. The other is ending well. Before you can take good first steps in a journey, you take last steps in another one. In my life, seizing the magic of a next first day, has always been easier when I’ve taken the time to make those last steps on an earlier path, sure. Some of that comes from the savoring I mentioned. Another chunk of it involves pausing, not just to wonder, or say goodbye, but to give everyone that’s made the place special–sacred, is what it’s become–their due. Have a wonderful year! —ANDY PARKER
After a semeseter off, BC re-Ignites This Wednesday, UGBC will be staging another installment of BC Ignites in O’Neill Plaza. This semester’s edition of the popular UGBC program will focus on mental health. It will feature Thomas McGuinness, director of University Counseling Services, as the keynote speaker. As a topic that is often neglected in higher education, it is encouraging to see a public conversation on the issue. Since its inception in the fall of 2012, UGBC has organized three BC Ignites events. The first focused on race, the second on GLBTQ issues, and the third coincided with last fall’s Love Your Body week. Last spring, a fourth iteration on socioeconomic status was planned, but it was cancelled due to organizational problems. It is reassuring to see that, even after that setback, UGBC remains committed to continuing the tradition of BC Ignites. Connor Bourff, vice president of Student Initiatives and A&S ’15, has said that UGBC has plans to reschedule the BC Ignites on socioeconomic status for later this semester. UGBC should be sure to follow through on those plans,
as socioeconomic status is undeniably significant to Boston College students but is infrequently addressed. What has made BC Ignites so successful is the engagement of the student body with these initiatives. This is seen most clearly on the part of the speakers. It takes a lot of courage to stand before a large number of peers and discuss matters that are intensely personal and possibly painful, as the case has been with each of these topics. Those who choose to share their perspectives deserve immense respect from the student body—they provide a voice to many students who feel similarly, but cannot speak publicly about the issue at hand. The success of these events also depends on the participation of the student body. So far, there has been good attendance by the BC community. Students should make a point to stop by this edition of BC Ignites on the O’Neill Plaza on Wednesday to show their support and to learn some things about the issue of mental health that will not be voiced in the classroom.
The views expressed in the above editorials represent the official position of The Heights, as discussed and written by the
Editorial Board. A list of the members of the Editorial Board can be found at BCHeights. com/opinions.
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The Heights
Monday, September 22, 2014
A5
The Project that students forgot
Delphina Gerber-Williams Apple Juice - Like most people in this fair world, we normally enjoy a nice glass of orange juice for breakfast in the morning. Of late, we have switched things up. Due to the copious quantities of apple juice on this campus, we have recently been starting our days with a tall glass of apple juice. Really though, there seems to be apple juice everywhere, and we do not mind it at all. A United Kingdom - Last Thursday, Scotland voted to remain in the UK. Although we at TU/TD are neither English nor Scottish, we Thumbs them Up on that decision. Although rocky at times, the union between the two nations has been incredibly successful over the course of the last three centuries. If Scotland had decided to break from the UK, both Scotland and the countries that remained behind would have had greatly diminished roles on the world stage. Plus, it is highly unlikely that Scotland would have been economically better off on its own. After all, Alan Greenspan and Paul Krugman both thought it was a bad idea. We might not know a lot, but we do know that if Greenspan and Krugman ever agree on anything at all, they are probably right about it. #CelebrityDivorces - Yes, we know that this might sound inconsistent given a recent Thumbs Down, but hear us out. Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger are getting divorced. This has to be good for Avril long term—she married the frontman of Nickelback, for Pete’s sake, Nickelback! Who in her right mind could think that was a good decision? More importantly, however, is the fact that this makes Avril available. Although this doesn’t do much for us now, we know our middle school selves would have been thrilled. Brown Bears - The impressive grizzly is a part of this class of bears. They are rather beautiful creatures, really.
In the past year, we have witnessed our country plummet in its Global Press Freedom Ranking, the U.S. Supreme Court refuse to step in on behalf of a Pulitzer Prize-winner facing jail time for protecting a source, and concern over Internet freedom growing. We’ve discussed freedom of the press, feared the NSA, and worried about all of our Facebook conversations going public. But where were we, the Boston College community, when confidentiality, protection of sources, and the integrity of academic freedom were being fought over by the U.S. Department of Justice, three senators, six congressmen, and three nations, right here on our campus? Last May, BC announced that it would return recorded interviews from the controversial Belfast Project to its participants. This not only marked the end of a string of legal disputes involving BC, the UK, and the U.S. Department of Justice, but also the death of a groundbreaking research project. Starting in 2001, the Belfast Project was aimed at documenting the three-decade ethno-nationalist conflict that wracked Northern Ireland from the 1960s to 1998, known as The Troubles. Organized by Executive Director of the Center for Irish Programs Thomas Hachey, then-Burns Librarian Robert O’Neill, Irish journalist Ed Moloney, and former Irish Republican Army (IRA) member and historian Anthony McIntyre, the project consisted of interviewing 46 former paramilitary fighters from both sides of the conflict. The project directors intended each interview to remain sealed until the death of the respective interviewee. In 2010, the first interviews were published in the book Voices from the Grave, by Ed Moloney. These interviews, with former IRA leader Brendan Hughes and former Ulster Volunteer Force member David Ervine, were only made public because of their deaths in 2008 and 2007, respectively. Shortly after, the British government contacted the U.S. Department of Justice, seeking two interviews from the project that might shed light on a murder committed during the
Secret Service - A man armed with a knife jumped over the fence and made it into the White House before he was stopped by the Secret Service. Were they all on coffee break? Was somebody manning the surveillance cameras taking a nap? iPhone Mania - Also in the category “Things That Have Happened in the World Since our Last Column” is the launch of a new iPhone. Like every other iPhone launch, there were people camping out overnight outside of Apple stores, and some stores saw queues forming that went around the block—in Manhattan, the line went around several blocks. In Australia, the first person in Perth to get his hands on the phone could not keep his hands on it and dropped it on live television. Our real question is, however, why are we as a species still doing this? These phones are no longer hot commodities. Yes, we get it, this version is bigger and better than ever. But is this really reason to camp outside a store for several nights? Do we have nothing better to do with our time? Have we bought this much into the Apple mythology?
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subpoena, Senators Chuck Schumer, Scott Brown, and John Kerry, along with six other congressmen, wrote to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling for a withdrawal of the subpoena. And the students of BC remained silent, uninformed. When I questioned my peers about the project, I got the resounding response, “What’s that?” As academics across the nation followed the fate of these tapes this spring, where were the BC students? It is our full-time job as students to learn, to immerse ourselves in the pursuit of knowledge. We are the next generation of researchers. And yet, there were no big conversations on campus about the project that might redefine future research. Why weren’t we concerned with the questions circling our campus, the future of our own academic freedom? Furthermore, why has BC refused to be open with its students about the project? The University never participated in a dialogue with students over the legal disputes. The Belfast tapes case raises many questions. What degree of freedom should academic research have? How responsible are researchers and their universities in protecting interviewees who reveal sensitive information? At what point does the pursuit of justice supersede the pursuit of truth and knowledge? I am not suggesting that the student body of BC had the ability to decide the fate of these tapes, but we should have at least known and taken part in the discussion. Despite McIntyre’s efforts, the relevant tapes were turned over. “There has been a shadow cast over this type of research,” Richard English, a professor of politics at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, told The Chronicle for the aforementioned article. Many scholars, English said, have expressed apprehension about pursuing projects like this, for fear of it coming to naught. The Belfast Project is dead now—there will be “no more books, no more revelations,” as McMurtrie put it in her article. And for McIntyre, “It is the single most devastating thing that ever happened to me,” he told The Chronicle. “It can never be used now. It’s all done for nothing.”
Delphina Gerber-Williams is a staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.
In search of a real education
Andrew Millette
Black Bears - We hear these are quite prevalent in Maine. We think they are out to get us.
Troubles. After deliberation, the University agreed to hand over Hughes’ interviews, but kept the interviews of Dolours Price on the grounds that she was, at that point, still alive. Eight months after the initial subpoena, the British government issued a second subpoena, now requesting all of the interviews in the BC archive that contained information about the abduction and death of Jean McConville. The subpoenaing of the tapes threatened the project. One of the first academic endeavors to reveal new details on the Troubles through interviews with former IRA and unionist members, and the only of its scope, the Belfast tapes had the potential to shed light on the sensitive and complex problem of sectarian violence. The possible ramifications of the subpoenas, however, ran far deeper than the tapes. Traditionally, academic research is granted higher protections from the law so that knowledge and truth can be pursued for the advancement of society. These subpoenas threatened this notion and challenged the idea that academic freedom is essential to the vitality of our society. The subpoenaing of the tapes also threatens further research. As University Spokesman Jack Dunn told WBUR radio, reported by NPR in May, “Clearly, this could have a chilling effect on oral history projects.” Without protection, researchers will face uncertainty from those who gather information from confidential sources and the sources themselves. In defense of his own work and academic freedom, McIntyre even claimed that a researcher is actually obliged to destroy his or her material before giving it to a person who could bring it harm, according to an article by Beth McMurtrie published in The Chronicle of Hgher Education in January. He also offered to take the archive into his possession in order to keep it from law enforcements, risking jail for the sake of research. Initially on the same page as McIntyre, BC attempted to protect the files, appealing the subpoenas several times. As proceedings continued, the administration decided to distance itself “from the reckless rhetoric of Ed Moloney and Anthony McIntyre,” as Dunn put it in an interview with McMurtrie for the aforementioned article. While BC was distancing itself from McIntyre and Moloney after the second
In the small conference rooms in Fulton where I often seek solace and no one expects me to wear shoes, a question struck me the other day: What have I really learned in college? Economics? I hope I can say I understand something about my major now. Philosophy? I can sling around heavily paraphrased Aristotle quotes with the best of them. But I will admit that, by this point, some concepts from Intro to Micro are hazy, and I’m probably actually quoting Plato 50 percent of the time I think I’m discussing Aristotle. I attended a great conference last year in which the keynote speaker’s refrain was “people make people successful.” At the time, that phrase didn’t strike me as profoundly as it does now. I believe that people not only make people successful, but also fulfilled. If I have to boil down my collegiate experience into one lesson, I can pick this one out with surprising ease and clarity. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking the library has all of the answers. When I first entered Boston College, I thought that if I just locked myself in Bapst and memorized entire textbooks that I would outwork others and be academically successful, and that in the times I released myself from academic captivity I would join a million clubs, become everyone’s friend, and find social success—how silly freshmen can be. There will come a time when you may want to write a thesis, and you will need to have good relationships with professors in order to find a willing advisor. There will come a time when you want to apply for that Fulbright, or to grad school, and an advisor or letter of recommendation will make all the difference. When you want to score that sweet
summer internship, don’t think applying to something on Eaglelink will actually get the job done—you better have your network together. Simply taking classes by crushing textbooks and acing tests isn’t good enough. Building relationships isn’t all about the favors you can ask, however. More importantly, there are incredibly smart professors here to learn from—not getting to know them beyond their lectures is a shame. Students can learn much more from office hours than they can from the classroom. Intellectual fulfillment doesn’t come from a textbook, but it can come from a great conversation. Most professors are trying to cram as much material as they can into the short number of class hours they are given. They don’t have time to share the awesome insights they have that don’t directly relate to the course material. Some of the best conversations I have had with professors have actually revolved around subjects far from the professor’s field. Part of the beauty of attending a school where most people buy into the liberal arts philosophy of education is that it is possible to have a great conversation about philosophy with an economics professor, and open your mind up to connections previously unseen. Someone who has dedicated his or her life to amassing knowledge naturally has a lot of amazing insights to discuss, but very few of them fit neatly into the syllabus that needs to be covered. In planning to take over every club at BC, make sure to stop and ask yourself if you are actually happy. Finding social fulfillment isn’t about having an iCal where all the colors of your appointments bleed together endlessly in a rainbow of sadness, but rather developing real relationships with people. If you are constantly running from meeting to meeting and don’t have time to actually talk to anyone, will you really end up with more than just a large number of acquaintances? Social stress should be making sure to write down all of the stupid things your friend did in college to embarrass him at
a wedding toast years later, not a beeping phone that dictates your overcommitted life. College is one of the few times in life when you are given enough free time to get to know your fellow students incredibly well over four years. This is a gift meant to give you life-long relationships with people smart enough to attend BC. Someday down the road when you need advice making a critical life decision and need someone to call, your college friends will give you good advice, while your time as president of the underwater basket weaving club probably won’t provide any answers. From the short experiences I have had in the “real” world over summer internships, the same thinking absolutely applies. Putting your head down and becoming a spreadsheet master doesn’t do any good when promotions come around if your boss doesn’t know your name. Social skills are incredibly important even in just landing a job or internship. A student with a 3.5 GPA who has put in the effort to call everyone in the office and has made a good impression will get an interview over a student with a 4.0 who hasn’t taken the time to speak with anyone any day. I wish I had learned this sooner. I believe that we are fundamentally social creatures. Most people would agree that in terms of social fulfillment, building strong relationships is needed. If I’ve learning anything at BC, it is that this nature has a crucial impact on academic and professional settings as well. It’s amazing how little a 4.0 will get you if you have no one to vouch for you and have missed out on life-changing conversations. Modern society places so much emphasis on GPAs and SATs as if they are the key to success. If you look back on your college experience and your proudest achievement is your MCAT score, then I think you’ve missed the point entirely.
Andrew Millette is a senior staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.
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 necessarily 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.
Rethinking Ray Rice Owen Lyons I thought things were changing. After the death of Robin Williams this summer, I really thought we would make strides as a society regarding mental health issues and their negative consequences. Although it required the suicide of one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors, I believed people would start to see mental illness as a tangible, destructive presence that needed to be dealt with at every level. After reading that 16 U.S. Senators wrote a letter to Roger Goodell demanding a zero-tolerance policy for domestic violence, though—banning someone from the league after his first offense—I realized we have a lot of work to do. Caring about someone’s mental health is easy when he is a small, charming white man who had a lonely childhood and self-destructed out of a need to be loved. But for the NFL to adopt this policy would make a clear statement: It cares about revenue, not about its players or their families. It has no qualms about glorifying violence and making billions of dollars off of it, but does not hesitate to abandon a player if he cannot properly control it. Let me first say that I in no way condone the actions of Ray Rice or any domestic abuser, and the NFL’s former policy, which banned Rice for only two games, is inexcusably inadequate. Simply suspending a player for six weeks for the first offense and then implementing a lifetime ban for the second, however, seems like an ineffective policy as well. It ignores the fact that many NFL players have anger management issues that need to be treated, and many come from backgrounds that provide them with no ability to control their anger. As a result, these struggles with anger follow them to their adulthood, with repercussions far more severe than those of small childrens’ temper tantrums. In addition, there is little incentive to subdue their anger, as it contributes to their success in football. This isn’t news to the NFL. Many prominent players, including Dez Bryant, Chad Johnson, and Ndamukong Suh, have struggled with managing their anger, and slapping them with fines or suspensions has not been effective. The lives and careers of these men are centered on football. Taking that away, the one place where they can unleash their aggression and ability, is not the solution. A lot of these men are not the type who turned down consulting jobs and law school to play in the NFL—Rice worked his tail off to make it to the NFL so that he could provide for his family. One mistake, as egregious and unforgivable as it is, should not end all of that, especially when it is the result of an inability to control oneself. This is not the 1919 White Sox throwing the World Series. The causes of domestic violence are some of the same attributes that make these players so successful: violence and aggression. Ironically, it seems as if the person who understands this best is the abused party, Rice’s wife. Criticizing the media, she opted not to press charges and instead defended her husband publicly. Perhaps she realizes something that these senators do not—that Rice struggles with anger issues beyond his control, and that a player recognized as a man of character by those who know him has enormous flaws that harm his life and relationships. Hating the sin does not require hating the sinner. So yes, suspend Rice and all domestic abusers in the NFL. Suspend them for a full season if you will, and require them to complete training in anger management. The current rule, which suspends them for six games, does not allow ample time for a rehabilitation process, nor does it seem fitting for such an egregious act. Allow them to return to the league as an example of how someone can overcome personal issues and how the league is interested in truly fixing these issues instead of merely punishing violators for the sake of revenue. Michael Vick did it, and now he does terrific work to help combat the maltreatment of animals. After multiple incidents, banishment from the league is an appropriate punishment—sometimes the only solution is to remove someone from that kind of violence altogether. But solving the league’s problems should take a tone of cure and rehabilitation as opposed to retribution and punishment. The solutions to these problems begin with addressing their cause, not seeking vengeance for wrongdoing.
Owen Lyons is a staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at opinions@ bcheights.com.
THE HEIGHTS
A6
Monday, September 22, 2014
Neeson’s ‘Walk Among the Tombstones’ is almost worth the trek BY SEAN KEELEY
Heights Senior Staff At this point in his career, Liam Neeson is practically a genre unto himself. Since the runaway success of Taken in 2008, the 62year-old Irishman has reinvented himself as an unlikely action star, regularly appearing on our screens to take on Albanian kidnappers, Alaskan wolves, or airline hijackers. Some of these movies (like Taken and its sequel) are pretty standard-issue shoot-em-ups. Others (like 2011’s A WALK AMONG THE stark, TOMBSTONES existenScott Frank tial wilderness drama The Grey) aim to do something a little more ambitious. But they are all anchored by a familiar Neeson persona: the world-weary, hardened hero, quiet and good-natured on the exterior but ready to beat you down with righteous anger at the slightest provocation. To be fair, that description could apply to a number of action stars, but Neeson brings something unique to his roles, a kind
of weighty gravitas that can elevate even the silliest material by his mere presence. Neeson’s latest thriller, A Walk Among the Tombstones, is a somber affair that tries to tap into the brooding melancholy that is at the heart of his appeal. At the same time, though, it seeks to satisfy audience cravings for a violent, Taken-style revenge flick. The film that emerges is thus something of a compromised product—in part an old-fashioned, character-driven detective story, and in part a movie that lives in the shadow of Taken. Neeson plays Matt Scudder, an alcoholic former cop now working in New York as an unlicensed private detective. Haunted by a job gone horribly wrong eight years ago, Scudder now takes on investigative odd jobs, largely for people who don’t want to involve the police. One such client is Kenny Kristo (Dan Stevens), a big-time drug trafficker whose wife was kidnapped and murdered, even after he paid the ransom. Scudder’s pursuit of her killers leads him to the trail of two serial killers, with a long history of kidnapping, torturing, and murdering women. Credit where credit is due: for much of its runtime, A Walk Among the Tombstones sets itself apart with its patient pacing and
moody tone. This is not a frenetic action film, but instead a more measured affair, driven by the subtleties of Neeson’s performance and the grey, wintry cinematography of Mihai Malaimaire, Jr. Director Scott Frank, who adapted the film from Lawrence Block’s novel, gives A Walk Among the Tombstones a deliberately anachronistic feel—not only is the movie set in 1999, which allows for plenty of Y2K references, it hearkens back to classic detective dramas of the 1970s. Still, at some point A Walk Among the Tombstones morphs into a different kind of movie. Perhaps it is when the film starts following the serial killers, two utterly evil and thoroughly uninteresting sociopaths who provide just the kind of guilt-free revenge targets that populate the Taken movies. Or perhaps it is when we realize that women in this movie—just as in Taken—exist solely to be subjected, tortured, and killed, helpless victims who can only hope to be rescued. Or perhaps it is the film’s tired final scenes—a graveyard shootout and bloody, dark basement fight—which remind us that we have seen this all before, and which finally push A Walk Among the Tombstones definitively into the realm of cliche.
PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSAL PICTURES
Frank’s crime-thriller mostly follows the format of the ‘Taken’ films, with a few artistic touches. One senses that Frank and Neeson were striving for more than that. The movie occasionally employs self-conscious artsy touches, as when it overlays a voiceover from Scudder’s AA meeting with the climactic shootout, attempting to connect the mystery’s resolution with Scudder’s personal redemption. Another prominent subplot involves Scudder’s mentoring of a homeless black teen named TJ (Brian “Astro” Bradley). This provides some good character fodder, but also feels rather forced—a screenwriter’s imposition that is
disconnected from the main story and designed to make us feel good about our hero for shepherding a lost youth. A Walk Among the Tombstones consistently makes gestures toward being a serious and interesting movie. With talents like Neeson and Frank onboard, it periodically convinces you that it is indeed that. But the attempt doesn’t quite come off, and in the end, formula wins out, leaving the movie as little more than a darker, grislier update of Taken.
‘Maze Runner’ puts a twist on dystopian genre
PHOTO COURTESY OF 20TH CENTURY FOX
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First-time director Wes Ball weaves elements of action and dystopian genres in ‘The Maze Runner,’ based on James Dashner’s 2009 book. BY RYAN DOWD Heights Staff
Wes Ball walks in to give his pitch for The Maze Runner. “It’ll be like Lord of the Flies meets Lost.” The studio execs shuffle excitedly. “Will it be like The Hunger Games?” one asks, mouth watering. “Umm, I guess,” Ball answers. And off we’re thrown into the world of The Maze Runner. That’s the general impression the film gives the viewer. A young crew led by first time director Wes Ball, first time writers, and young budding stars set THE MAZE RUNNER out to Wes Ball make a good film. Unfortunately, the audience’s expectations are likely to preempt anything this team tries to do with the film. You just can’t get all those damn dystopias out of your head. Ball and company don’t get extra points for being inexperienced—but then again, a more professional, more “Hollywood” version of this film might have been intolerable. We’ve just seen it before—boys left to fend for themselves, the outside world in total chaos. It’s a shame, because The Maze Runner has a frenetic energy, is well paced, and actually infuses some heart into this quickly decaying dystopian genre. The film follows a group of boys living within a “maze.” They’ve carved out a sufficient lifestyle and have established order in the glades that lie at the center of the maze. Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) emerges without his
memory and amid much exposition joins a band of brothers who have gathered together in sterling self-sufficiency. But Thomas doesn’t want to stay in the glade, scraping out a scavaging existence. He’s curious, and that’s dangerous for the group. The maze isn’t safe. There are things out there in the night. The film falls into an episodic pattern of basically search and destroy. Thomas and some of the crew go through a bit of action, before Thomas returns to search for what has gone wrong. This surely upsets the dynamic within this fragile band of lost boys, and Thomas soon faces dangers from outside and within. The plot is further thickened when (gasp!) a girl emerges from the tunnel. She seems to know Thomas, because he’s the main character and because they seem to share some secret past. The film progresses evenly and intensely. The film wouldn’t work as well without O’Brien. No one runs and falls quite like O’Brien, who has had his practice on MTV’s Teen Wolf and the feature film The First Time, which is about exactly what you think it’s about. Given that most of the action involves throttling through the maze and around corners, O’Brien puts those talents to task, and his flailing limbs in midseason form. He’s in nearly every shot. He carries us through confusion, disorientation, curiosity, and action. He doesn’t say much, but it’s him we watch throughout the film. The surrounding cast is equally engaging. Thomas Brody-Sangster (the kid from Love Actually and Game of Thrones) quickly asserts himself as a voice of measured reason, probably because of his accent.
Aml Ameen (Lee Daniels’ The Butler) plays the band’s leader Alby with a powerful physical presence. Kaya Scodelario depicts the film’s lone girl with a sufficient amount of “girlness.” She’s not asked to do much. She advances the plot and introduces a new dilemma, and then, one of the film’s best scenes involves her and O’Brien’s Thomas as they try to sift through the absurdity of their situation. One thing that separates this dystopian genre from its vampire past and superhero cousin is just how uncomfortable much of it is. There’s not much room for humor when you’re fighting and clawing for the right to live free. And The Maze Runner follows suit. Ball’s camera remains unsteady throughout most of the film. It’s not “found film” unsteady, but it’s jittery, waiting for the next catastrophe to hit. This puts us on edge, which also heightens the action. Ultimately, it’s hard to talk about The Maze Runner without talking about everything that came before it. It’s not as epic as The Hunger Games. It’s not as frustratingly weird as Lost. It’s a group of dudes trying to get through a maze. Considering the way the film’s set up, they could conceivably sit in that maze forever, which would make for a boring, endless film, but they don’t. They venture into the wild, inhabited by bio robotic scorpions, in search of home—a place where you can wear something other than a tattered, long sleeved Henley. The Maze Runner isn’t overpowered by “the system.” It focuses on the boys, how they interact, and how they’re heroic. This is the best part about a genre takeover—the smaller movie that gets the small things right.
WEEKEND GROSS
WEEKS IN RELEASE
1. THE MAZE RUNNER
32.5
1
2. A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES
13.1
1
3. THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU
11.9
1
4. NO GOOD DEED
10.2
2
5. DOLPHIN TALE 2
9.0
2
6. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
5.2
8
7. LET’S BE COPS
2.7
6
8. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES
2.7
7
PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER BROS.
PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSAL PICTURES
BEST SELLERS OF HARDCOVER FICTION 1. PERSONAL Lee Child 2. SOMEWHERE SAFE WITH SOMEBODY GOOD Jan Karon 3. FESTIVE IN DEATH J.D. Robb 4. THE CHILDREN ACT Ian McEwan 5. THE WITCH WITH NO NAME Kim Harrison
3
6. THE BONE CLOCKS David Mitchell 3 7. THE SECRET PLACE Tana French 8. THE KING’S CURSE Philippa Gregory 9. THE EYE OF HEAVEN Clive Cussler and Russel Blake 10. COLORLESS TSUKURU TAZAKI AND HIS YEARS OF PILGRIMAGE Haruki Murakami SOURCE: New York Times
Even its strong cast can’t save the comedy ‘This Is Where I Leave You’ BY TYLER WILKINSON For The Heights
This is Where I Leave You follows Judd Altman (Jason Bateman)—a man who usually takes the safest and most planned route—as his life quickly deteriorates into hell. Judd learns that his wife has cheated on him during the past year with THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE his b oss , YOU and soon Shawn Levy after he learns this, his somewhat estranged father passes away. He returns home to his mother ( Jane Fonda), a sexually liberated woman with recent implants, his highly dysfunctional brothers (Corey Stall and Adam Driver) and sister (Tina Fey), to sit shiva. As the week progresses, Judd reconnects with an old flame (Rose Byrne) and other acquaintances, but each one of the family members’ personal and relationship problems evolves into a huge disaster that threatens the stability and sanity of the family. This film might be one of the best
comedic ensemble casts in recent memory. Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, and Kathryn Hahn are all in their natural element with family dram-coms. Their natural talents make this sentimental tale believable with its tender and funny moments. A poorly written and redundant script hinders the potential of these actors and characters, however. The dialogue fumbles all over the place. Fey especially does not seem to embody the character well with the dialogue given to her. The only two actors to truly flower within the script are Adam Driver and Rose Byrne. Driver plays a toned-down version of his Girls persona, which adds an important quirkiness to contemporary American cinema. Byrne takes on a very different role from her usual alpha-female role. In this film, she plays a slightly strange and awkward girl next door, but she does a stellar job at fulfilling this role. The plot itself is formulaic, cliched, and predictable. There are many instances when one can easily guess what happens next, ranging from fake-out
punches to driving off in a car and leaving someone behind. The story is stale—a dysfunctional family forced to be together due to the death of a relative is a very common theme in American film. This theme usually works well if the problems among the various family members are differentiated to add some variety and spice to the film. This movie focused on the relationship issues of nearly six members of the family. The lack of variety clearly hindered the potential for the film. By the time the film was finished, every single type of relationship problem or sexual orientation was explored, and the film lost any direction it had whatsoever. It felt almost as if some of the relationship problems were added for shock value, even though they do not move the plot or add any emotional depth. Despite the muddled advice on love and relationships, this film did end on a somewhat happy note with a very meaningful message—that we should never take life too seriously and consider ourselves a failure when it does not pan out the way we want, no matter how
PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER BROS.
Jason Bateman and Tina Fey fail to transcend the cliche plot of ‘This Is Where I Leave You.’ safe of a path we take. Life is chaotic, superfluous, and fluid—we should be as malleable as it is suggests the film. Even more important than the life lesson, the film shows the value of forgiveness. When someone transgresses, it is valuable to realize that we have transgressed against the person ourselves. For instance, if a significant other cheats, it is both a culmination of the opposite party’s infidelity and the lack of love
within the relationship itself. At the end of the day, the This is Where I leave You still lacks many of the storytelling components that help keep an audience’s attention. It is a feelgood movie but definitely not one of the must-see comedies of the year. Our eyes should be focused on Oscar season and the many other good films that are just on the horizon. Plus, Jason Bateman will return soon in Horrible Bosses 2.
The Heights
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Monday, September 22, 2014
Clare Kim / Heights Staff | Alex Gaynor / Heights Senior Staff
Friday’s Acappellafest featured The Acoustics, Against the Current, B.E.A.T.S., The Bostonians, The Dynamics, The Heightsmen, The Madrigals, Shaan, The Sharps, and Voices of Imani, with all proceeds going to The Morgan Center.
Acappellafest touts a talented ensemble of BC a cappella acts University music groups perform together in Robsham Theater for benefit concert From Acappellafest, A8 formance. As soon as the first soloist, Sylvia Sanchez, sang her first note, we knew we were in for something good and we got just that—a soulful and fun performance. The next Christian group was Against the Current, and Esther
Chung, CSON ’17, nailed her first song with Tim Lee, A&S ’17—a mashup of “Unashamed/Till I See You.” Tara Sung, A&S ’15, belted out the group’s next song, “Shake It Out” by Florence and the Machine, and she had one powerful, amazing voice. The Bostonians were up next and, as
always, they delivered—the soloists were not only great vocalists, but surprisingly avid rappers, too. Sami Middleton, A&S ’15, sang “Problem” by Ariana Grande and it was one of the best performances of the night. Travis Russell, A&S ’18 and one of The Bostonians’ newest members, then sang “Summer” by Calvin Harris, and he had the perfect voice for it. The BC B.E.A.T.S. then brought some soul to the stage with a great rendition of “Who Did That to You?” by John Legend. The Madrigals switched it up by bringing in some Renaissance flavor. The group harmonized together beauti-
fully, and their lack of solos emphasized how well they work as a whole. BC Shaan made Bollywood more accessible through their piece sung by Kiran Mani, A&S ’15. Amidst all of these great performances, though, the audience were once again reminded of why it gathered in the first place—for The Morgan Center. Rod and Nancy Zuch, the founders of the center, took the stage with their daughter, Morgan. Morgan was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the age of 2 in October 2000 and because of her condition, she
could not interact with other children. Morgan was deprived of normal social interaction and learning experience in the classroom. It was because of Morgan’s experience that The Morgan Center was started—to give the children back a piece of their childhood. Morgan recounted her experience, describing how her world was turned upside down. Today, Morgan is in remission, and she’s been cancer-free for 10 years. She’s now 16, an honor student, and on the rowing team. Her family only hopes the same for all of the children they serve every day. n
The best of Juice’s Saturday show From Juice, A8 All right, perhaps this wasn’t technically part of the performance, but incidentally, good entertainment gets even better with giveaways—it’s a formula daytime television nailed down decades ago. At the SuperFan Zone, where Juice was performing, the University was giving away BC apparel with reckless abandon. Frequent announcements of raffle winners by the band’s violinist/vocalist Christian Rougeau, A&S ’17, added a certain character to the performance. No free cars have been given away by BC Athletics just yet, but we’ll have to check back on that after Parents’ Weekend. 3. “Get Lucky” in Alumni Up all night to get lucky? Well, tailgating early day games then is probably a less-than-fond experience for you. Fortunately, catering was serving chicken and waffles with Juice, as well as a few other decent detox foods. Meanwhile, the
band was covering Daft Punk’s 2013 hit, “Get Lucky.” A crowd favorite, the song showed off the band’s depth of vocals. Most young, unsigned bands have a front man who (hopefully) is into singing, but as for the rest of the group, best turn the microphone down. Juice has at least three vocalists who, given the song, could be mistaken for the front men. This added a lot of flavor to the chorus of “Get Lucky,” which was originally sung by Pharrell Williams. 2. Changing Keys In A Cover Of Beyonce’s “Love On Top” Even Beyonce can, at times, struggle singing Beyonce, with one of the most challenging repertoires in pop music. So, when Juice took on Beyonce’s “Love On Top,” fearlessly navigating the song’s many key changes, you better believe it was a big moment at Alumni. Entire segments of the crowd broke into dance— and it was hardly even noon at this point in the performance. Stevens remarkably
mustered up the vocal firepower to sell the song to the crowd, and Rougeau’s work on the electric violin dissuaded any leftover doubts about an all-male band covering Beyonce. 1. Original Song “How You Gonna Do Me Like That” Guitarist Kamau Burton, A&S ’17, and violinist Rougeau double as rappers, and evidently, they are quite good at it. Original song “How You Gonna Do Me Like That” showed off the two playing back and forth with verses. Interestingly, the original numbers at Saturday’s show might have gotten an even stronger response than the covers—defying conventional wisdom when playing for a crowd who isn’t necessarily familiar with you, it’s best to draw them in with other artists’ material. It was nice to see students connecting so well with the band’s own songwriting. All things said, a little Juice before the three-hour game felt just right. n
John Wiley / heights editor
Juice’s lengthy performance on Saturday drew large crowds before the BC-Maine football game, offering a mix of original songs and covers.
Dave Griffin / heights photo
Tony nominee Jeremy Jordan spoke in a lecture for the Dramatics Society in Robsham Friday.
Jordan talks Broadway From Jeremy Jordan, A8 places that I didn’t want to go to. What I wanted to do was go and live in New York and be there for at least six months, establish roots, and then I could go somewhere else.” Working as a cater-waiter is convenient for aspiring actors, but might just crush your soul. “After the first couple months, it was a little tough. I started doing cater-waiting. It was awful. It’s a great job if you want to be flexible and you want to still be able to audition, but then it sucks your soul—because it’s one of two things. Either you like serving people in massive dining halls or they’re so rich they don’t care who you are or you are walking around carrying plates of food to a bunch of drunk people who don’t care if they run into you and you spill your food over, so that sucked.” All performance jobs are not created equal. “After I quit cater-waiting, I played music for little kids. I did this program in New York called Little Maestros, where it’s like this rock band that does classes for rich family kids, and it costs a ludicrous amount of money, and we didn’t get paid to much of it, so I had to learn like 14 songs and play guitar and sing to this kids who couldn’t understand a single word I was saying. I ended up getting fired from that because I accidentally said something that I did not mean to say. All that considered, it was only a year and a half.” Open calls are a good place for young actors to try their luck. “Even though I had an agent, I went to an open call for Rock of Ages. I used to go to a lot of open calls for Broadway stuff because
sometimes it’s the only way to get in the door, and I went in an open call for this show that I had no business being in—there was no part for me. And they called me back a couple months later for swing because I was just not right enough for four different roles, so I could actually fit into all of them, and I got it.” Callbacks are not a time for subtlety. “I went to Telsey for the Rock of Ages callback, which, if you go to New York as an actor, is the mecca of auctions, and I sang “Open Arms” or something. Then a few month later, they called me back and I had to learn sides for different characters and I was in a particularly positive, good mode that day and I just decided to go balls to the wall and I was head banging and knee sliding and breaking things in the audition room—I’m pretty sure I broke a coat rack. I don’t know why there was one in there. I just remember finishing this crazy rock song panting and sweating. At the table, they were just like, ‘Woah, what just happened?’ I was like, ‘Hey! That’s me.’” Stand up for your character as a young actor. “With Smash, it was a big learning experience. I did a movie once, but I was bright-eyed and bushy tailed, and did everything everyone told. Then throughout the course of Smash I learned to stick up for myself. As an actor on a TV series, it’s a day-to-day thing, and it’s so fast that you have to really look out for yourself. They change directors every episode, the writers are around, but they don’t have a whole lot of say, and sometimes there are so many cooks in the kitchen that your character gets jostled around. You have to keep it on a trajectory so your character has a through line, is understandable, and people don’t hate you.” n
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ARTS&REVIEW MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2014
THE FINER THINGS
Aristotle & ‘Friends’
The BC Acoustics host annual charity concert, uniting campus a cappella groups
Acappella
LIZ HOLMAN | FOR THE HEIGHTS ARIANA IGNERI If he hadn’t lived in ancient Greece, I think Aristotle would’ve been friends with Rachel, Ross, Monica, Chandler, Joey, and Phoebe. He probably would’ve had to ditch the toga, and they might have had to try to be a bit more virtuous, but I bet they all would’ve enjoyed hanging out on the big orange couch in Central Perk together. It’s been 20 years, today, since the first episode of Friends aired on NBC in 1994. It’s also the first day since the beginning of the semester that I won’t be discussing the Nicomachean Ethics in class. So, in honor of the show’s anniversary and as a result of my Aristotelian frame of mind, I can’t help but wonder whether the philosopher known for his understanding of friendship would’ve gotten along with the characters from one of television’s most successful sitcoms. (These are the kinds of things you think about when you’re a Perspectives major.) Aristotle describes three different kinds of friendship in his book, categorizing relationships as being based on pleasure, utility, or the good, which he says is the highest and best form. He talks about friendships of pleasure first—basically all of Joey’s “How you doin’?” one night stands, Rachel’s sexy Italian boyfriend Paolo, and Ross’s infamous “WE WERE ON A BREAK” mistake with Chloe the copy girl are instances of relationships formed not out of genuine love and goodness, but, instead, out of human desire that is often shallow and fleeting. While these sorts of relationships may be nice for some time, Aristotle says they never last—if you don’t believe it, just think about who ends up with whom in the show’s finale. Spoiler alert: Paolo and Chloe have nothing to do with it. For Aristotle, a true friendship isn’t one of pleasure, nor is it one in which you’re looking to gain something from the other person—think Monica dating Ultimate Fighting Champion Pete Becker just because he was rich. That’s a friendship of utility. Although she did the right thing and broke up with him in the end, Monica initially agreed to go out with Pete because he took her on fancy dates to Europe and bought her nice presents. She was getting something out of the relationship and didn’t value it for what it was in and of itself. Real friendship is a little like Phoebe’s lobster idea. Both have to do with two people caring so much for each other that they put their own needs behind those of their partner. They take on the world hand in hand—or in Phoebe’s explanation, claw in claw—and they try to be the best they can be together. It took a while for Ross and Rachel to figure it out, but after a couple divorces, a baby, and an almost move to Paris, they learned that sincere love and friendship have to be selfless. Monica and Chandler discovered it when she proposed to him (you go, girl), Phoebe realized it when she had her brother’s kids (this sounds weird, but it’s not as weird as you think), and Joey got it when he gave up Rachel so that she could be with Ross. Being a good friend isn’t easy. It took the show’s characters 10 seasons to put what Aristotle wrote more than 2000 years ago into practice. They had to work at it. Friendship is something we all have to work at—no matter where we’re from. Call it goodness, love, or whatever you want, but at its core, it’s always the same thing. Aristotle might not have said it in exactly these words, but I think even he’d agree: A friend is someone who’ll be there for you—someone for whom you can be there, too.
Ariana Igneri is the Assoc. Arts & Review Editor for The Heights. She can be reached at arts@bcheights.com
Boston College’s a cappella groups came together last weekend for their annual Acappellafest—a night of great entertainment for an even greater cause. Hosted by the BC Acoustics, the event is a showcase of all of the a cappella groups which put on a stellar performances in order to raise money for The Morgan Center, a charitable organization dedicated to providing preschool age children with cancer the opportunity to learn and socialize in a safe environment. Children undergoing chemotherapy have suppressed immune systems and often cannot attend normal schools without risking a potentially lifethreatening illness. The Morgan Center gives these children a place to learn, grow, and make friends while taking special precautions to limit their exposure to germs. The Acoustics kicked off the show with a charged performance that set the bar for the nine remaining a cappella groups—none of which disappointed. The Acoustics had three songs in total, showcasing its impressive vocal and beatboxing talents. Highlights included when the talented Julia Gill, CSON ’17, sang Britney Spears’ “Hold it Against Me” and Matt Michienzie, A&S ’17, beautifully sang the lyrics, “you are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” The Heightsmen were up next, and they brought back an old favorite, “Buy You a Drank,” sung by David Goebel, CSOM ’16, with the rap stylings of Harrison Daubert, A&S ’15. The Dynamics followed with their rendition of “Prime Time” by Janelle Monae—sexy, playful, and haunting. AJ Hernandez and Kristina Rex, both A&S ’15, sang the duet and you could almost feel the sexual tension between the two soloists. The Sharps brought some major sass to the stage with “Hit ‘Em Up Style” performed by a relentless Maggie Rogers, A&S ’16, who had a great voice and an even better attitude. Voices of Imani followed with a fun gospel per-
t s e f 2014
See Acappellafest, A7 CLARE KIM / HEIGHTS STAFF | ALEX GAYNOR / HEIGHTS SENIOR STAFF
Tony nominee Jeremy Jordan shares lessons in show business BY JOHN WILEY Arts & Review Editor Tony-nominated actor Jeremy Jordan stopped by Robsham Theater on Friday afternoon, sharing his experience breaking into show business after graduating from Ithaca College in 2007. Hosted by the Dramatics Society, the lecture explored Jordan’s experience with moving to New York City, open call auditions, starring in NBC’s Smash, and getting nominated for a Tony for his work as Jack Kelly in Newsies. The 29-year-old Texas-
native is now starring as lead J.M. Barrie in a musical adaption of Finding Neverland—the production is showing in Cambridge through the end of the month. He will also appear in a film version of the musical The Last Five Years, set for wide release in February following a successful premiere at the Toronto Film Festival this month. Here’s what Jordan had to say about making it in the entertainment industry. Your career will be defined by risk. “I had learned a lot in college not to take the safe route, because I tend to always think
outside the box—sometimes I think too far outside the box and would have to be reeled in. But I think it’s always more interesting to take the different route, if there’s a choice you feel like you can make. In any aspect of theater, always make it or try it, because it’s better to fall down swinging than peter out by doing what is on the page.” What you do in college doesn’t matter so much as what you do on stage. “The real training comes when you’re doing shows, and you’re out there in the real world experiencing the lows—and then the
highs come eventually.” Moving to New York is important for making a name—even if you plan to make a career elsewhere. “I was lucky we had a showcase in New York with our graduating class, and I got an agent from that—I sang a song from Urinetown. Yeah, that was helpful. They got me into appointments, but I actually didn’t really get many things off the bat. I had a few tiny little things that were taking me to crazy, weird
See Jeremy Jordan, A7
Highlights from Juice’s Saturday show in Alumni Stadium BY JOHN WILEY Arts & Review Editor It’s been less than a semester since Juice handily won top honors at Battle of the Bands 2014—a major upset, considering most members of the eight-piece band were then only freshmen. The innovative hip hop, rock conglomerate has gained a large following at Boston College remarkably quickly. Saturday, Juice performed a lengthy concert at Alumni Stadium as fans geared up for the football game. The warm September morning lent itself well to the performance, and the turnout for Juice was especially strong. At points later in the set, near a hundred fans in Alumni had stopped to watch. The Heights breaks down the five best mo-
I NSIDE ARTS THIS ISSUE
ments of Juice’s Saturday show. 5 . C o v e r o f K a ny e We s t ’s “ He y Mama” Recorded by Kanye West in 2005, “Hey Mama” has remained a cult favorite among his fans. Juice’s cover of the song added a soulful component to the mix, with lead vocalist Ben Stevens, CSOM ’17, adding impressive riffs to the relatively simple melody. Juice’s massive line of strings (three guitars, one bass, one violin) helped transform the sentimental source material into something of a jam, making the song feel like the band’s own. Bonus points for dancing along on stage. 4. The Giveaways
See Juice, A7
‘A Walk Among The Tombstones’
Liam Neeson stars in a movie with kidnapping, vigilante justice, and nothing really new, A6
JOHN WILEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR
Christian Rougeau, A&S ’17, was one of several vocalists featured in Juice’s performance.
‘Maze Runner’
The industry gets behind yet another dystopian young adult film, A6
Bestsellers...............................A6 Box Office Report........................A6
SPORTS
B1
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2014
BC football measured in bird species
CONNOR MELLAS Somewhere in between eating an entire sleeve of Ritz crackers and shoveling down a whole box of Bagel Bites in the wee hours of Saturday night, I found myself deep in thought about the Boston College football team. And birds. For some reason, I was thinking about birds a lot. When I woke up a few hours later with crippling stomach pains, a drier throat than an out-of-work Tatooine water vapor harvester, and a concerning lack of regret about my actions, I realized that birds are a pretty underrated metric for ranking things, and I have no idea how good this BC team really is, despite its 3-1 start to the season. Context firmly established, here is a list of hypothetical scenarios and accompanying bird comparisons for Steve Addazio’s team now that a quarter of the season is already gone. Scenario No. 1: BC wins at least two games out of these three—Colorado State, NC State, and VTech—and becomes fringebowl eligible, but loses out the last block of the season and is sent to another hell-hole like Shreveport, L.A., where The Heights’ Photo Editor and I were almost shanked in a grocery store. Taking a win over Wake Forest basically for granted and assuming a loss against Clemson, BC could conceivably go 4-1 over its next five games before it has to play Louisville, Florida State, and Syracuse in November. More likely, however, is BC’s chance of going 3-2 in this stretch and facing Louisville with six wins—Addazio was extremely concerned about BC’s lethargic start against Maine. The Eagles live and die by the run, and if Murphy can’t get things going with his feet, it’s unlikely his arm will get the job done. If one of these teams can slow the ground game, BC is in trouble. This is the Cackling Goose scenario—you wouldn’t hate it if it showed up on your lawn, all things considered, but if it developed a pattern of hanging around, your dad might chase after it with a Wiffle Ball bat on a Saturday morning. Scenario No. 2: Someone chokes during the next halftime pizza-eating contest and Brad Bates himself sprints onto the field to save the victim before riding off into the sunset on a motorcycle as “Danger Zone” plays and women and men swoon. I’d call that a Quetzal scenario for two reasons. One, the Quetzal is extremely rare, and two, the Quetzal’s plumage shares an uncanny resemble with Bates’ hair. Scenario No. 3: The Pitt games proves to be a fluke, and BC shows it’s significantly better than anyone anticipated. The Eagles are 5-1 going into the Clemson game, and Murphy goes off again on national television, breaking away for another patented long-range, fooled-y’all touchdown. He runs another one in from short range, and he throws the ball respectably enough. Josh Keyes hits Deshaun Watson hard enough to cause an on-field disintegration, and BC knocks off the Tigers at home to go 6-1 and force Murphy’s name into the Heisman discussion. Compare this scenario to the Christmas Island Frigatebird—you’re almost definitely never seeing it, but it would be pretty dang cool if you did. Scenario No. 4: BC keeps sustaining offensive line injuries, and the offense falls apart. Left guard Bobby Vardaro collapsed in a heap of pain and was helped off the field in the third quarter against Maine, and while he did get back in the game, the extent of his injury is unknown. Right guard Harris Williams is still out with a fractured right ankle—BC is getting thin on the line, quickly. This is the crow scenario—it looms sinisterly off to the side, causing anxiety, but no matter what you do, you just can’t get the damn thing to go away. Scenario No. 5: The Eagles knock off No. 1 Florida State and win the rest of their games to become the official upset kings of
See Birds, B3
Joining
THE PACK EMILY FAHEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR
Addazio’s perfect problem of too many running backs grows more complicated CONNOR MELLAS
500 yd
Sports Editor Midway through the third quarter of Boston College’s 40-10 snowballing demolition of Maine, a faint smell of burning wafted through the press row. Fear not—as of now, the press box still looms over Alumni. Given the lack of an actual inferno, there is only one plausible explanation for the smell. A few hundred feet below, on the sideline, BC head coach Steve Addazio’s head was beginning to melt as he grappled with the best problem a football coach can have: How do you distribute carries among an influx of young, talented, and eager ball carriers? “You can only bring so many guys along so quick, that’s why everybody’s impatient,” Addazio said. “We got Jonathan [Hilliman] going, now we’re getting Marcus [Outlow] going, we’re just trying to expand it, and the freshmen, they wanna go, they wanna go, but you’ve gotta pick your spots. “It’s hard to get them all going now, you got [Tyler] Rouse, you got Myles [Willis], and the next problem is keeping everybody going,” he said. “But it’s a
See Perfect Problem, B3
BC’s Rushing Yards Leaders 241 yd
TYLER MURPHY
JON HILLIMAN
208 yd
MYLES WILLIS
155 yd 136 yd 110 yd
SHERMAN ALSTON
TYLER ROUSE
MARCUS OUTLOW
Offense struggles early, before finding its groove ALEX FAIRCHILD Asst. Sports Editor
EMILY FAHEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR
BC’s offense got the job done against Maine in the end, but struggled with a sluggish start.
Trap games, letdown games—these terms are thrown around at nearly the same frequency with which Boston College runs the ball (64 times in Boston College 40 Saturday’s game Maine 10 alone). The y evoke a sense of trickery in the mind of the favored team, eliciting a psychological conflict for players and coaches once they become aware of the situation. For BC, the danger of losing focus came true quickly, and the hazard of the letdown game held true during the first quarter of the football team’s
game against Maine, as the Eagles got off to a sleepy start. BC’s coaching staff called a timeout two plays into the game, after Tyler Murphy fumbled on the first snap and Myles Willis ran for a yard. On the subsequent play, Tyler Rouse ran for three yards, and BC was punting from its own 25. Trouble was brewing. The Eagle defense forced Maine into a three-and-out to give the offense a fresh chance, but Murphy was sacked for a sevenyard loss. Two plays later, he was picked off by Randy Samuels. Before the Eagles could decide whether they were caught in a trap
See Maine, B3
Your week of slowly and painfully hating football
AUSTIN TEDESCO Come on, don’t do this. Is a cheap beer aisle really the place to consider your values? Just take the Bud Light up to the counter and pay for it. It’s already in your hand. Who cares that it says NFL all over the box and on all 24 cans? Are you really going to put it back for something else because of three letters? What’s changed? Alleged domestic and child abusers may be playing this weekend. The league office and the
I NSIDE SPORTS THIS ISSUE
franchises alternate between not caring enough about that fact and pretending to care so much post-backlash that there’s no way the care is genuine. But it’s just football and this is just beer. You know you’re going to watch on Sunday, and especially on Monday. That’s when the Eagles play. Just buy the Bud Light. Don’t put it back. What difference does it make? Okay, this is better. It’s college football. BC and USC. This doesn’t feel as dirty. Has it really come to this? Sure, you think these athletes are exploited, but only to the degree that things could be better and fairer for them. Whether they get a $2,000-a-year stipend or freedom to transfer schools as they wish feels like it matters less tonight. It still matters, but definitely less.
Women’s Soccer: No redemption
BC failed to avenge its Elite Eight loss to FSU in a 2-0 loss on Sunday................................B2
Tyler Murphy runs into the end zone, and the students run onto the field, and it’s cool. It’s really cool. After the game you write about two exciting freshmen, and you’re proud of it, and people seem to like it, and everything feels cool again. You definitely don’t hate football. Stop it. Just watch the game. Why wouldn’t you? Do you care any less what happens to Philly? Of course you don’t. You championed dog-fighter Michael Vick signing with this team—you bought his freaking shirt—but now you might take a stand sitting alone on your couch on a Monday night. Why? You watch the game. Dear lord, Darren Sproles is amazing. This is fun, right? Football can still be fun? You drift in and out during the game.
Field Hockey: The streak survives
No.11 BC beat Colgate 6-3 to keep its winning stretch alive.........................................B2
Every time Jon Gruden starts talking about Ray Rice or Adrian Peterson, you feel your hand grab the remote, but you never actually click away. Philly wins. You nod, clap a few times, and then get up from the couch, relieved you made it through the whole game. You didn’t hate those three hours, right? You don’t even believe the league should punish players like this. Let the legal system handle these issues. Blame the courts when things go wrong. You don’t need the NFL and Roger Goodell to be your moral arbiter. Maybe that’s the problem—they’re trying to be. Someone shouldn’t get suspended for the season for barely failing
See Column, B3
Men’s soccer..............................B4 Sports in Short.........................B2
THE HEIGHTS
B2
Monday, September 22, 2014
No. 5 FSU shows BC up on Newton
WOMEN’S SOCCER NOTEBOOK
McCaffrey needs assistance
BY JIM HIIL Heights Staff
BY ALEX STANLEY
The Boston College women’s soccer team suffered its second consecutive loss, as No. 5 Florida State earned a 2-0 victory at the Newton Campus soccer field on Sunday. “It w a s a 2 Florida State pretty close Boston College 0 game,” said BC head coach Alison Foley. “There wasn’t a ton of chances either way. Two teams sticking with game plans.” Florida State was aggressive and effective, as it established an upfield zone within the first few minutes of play. Employing a tiki-taka style, FSU repeatedly pushed the ball deep into BC territory. The team also kept the Eagles’ passing game under duress and consistently regained possession on the opposite side of the pitch. The FSU attack was further aided by early foul calls against members of the BC team. These fouls derailed the Eagles’ few drives at the contest’s start. One such foul came around the 14th minute, when a promising run by sophomore forward Hayley Dowd, who had worked the ball to the edge of the FSU box, ended in an extended tussle and an exasperating loss of possession. With their strong upfield presence, and with the security provided by early foul calls, the FSU players primed themselves for an early strike. This first blow came in the 18th minute, when the Seminoles’ Cheyna Williams capitalized on a faulty clearance by freshman goalkeeper Darien Dunham. Dunham, who replaced an injured Alexandra Johnson, mistakenly tossed the ball into the path of the charging Williams, who reached it with an outstretched boot. The FSU forward quickly made the errant pass bounce into the back of the BC net, and seized a 1-0 lead for her team. Nearly two minutes later, with the match in the 20th minute, the Eagles’ Rosie DiMartino
Heights Staff
Stephanie McCaffrey is the perfect No. 9. She wears the number on her back as the embodiment of all traits traditionally coveted in a player with the No. 9 jersey. She is quick, physical, and tall. She can hold the ball for lengthy periods of time, and on top of that, she has a bag of tricks under her sleeve that are good enough to fool any defender. She put all of this on display when the Boston College women’s soccer team lost 2-0 to No. 5 Florida State on Sunday afternoon on the Newton Campus soccer field. There is one piece missing for McCaffrey to truly help BC, however—a No. 10. Well, Allyson Swaby does wear the No. 10, but she plays on defense and is not the typical attacking playmaker that normally sports that number. McCaffrey needs someone who can feed her passes for the runs that she makes. She needs someone who she can pass to and combine with in the attacking portion of the field. The Eagles set up their formation with four defenders, five midfielders and one striker. That one striker is McCaffrey, who plays above a typical flat-line, fourperson midfield. Beneath those four midfielders, who already sit somewhat deep, is Jillian Lutz, who plays in between the defense and midfield. While FSU possesses the ball, McCaffrey roams about 30 yards above the other 10 players, who sit in a compact, defensive shape. When BC sprung its counterattack against the Seminoles, the ball ended up at McCaffrey’s feet, and she had to showcase her lone brilliance, as she did not have a nearby teammate to work off. In the first half, this worked splendidly for McCaffrey. Despite the fact that FSU had a majority of possession and outshot
EMILY FAHEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR
Stephanie McCaffrey tallied just one shot against the No. 5 Seminoles in Sunday’s match. came close to tying the game. Receiving a pass from senior forward Stephanie McCaffrey, the sophomore player launched a powerful volley towards the opposing team’s net, but FSU goalkeeper Cassie Miller leapt, batted the shot down with both hands, and then grabbed hold of the ball. The Eagles would once again come close to leveling the score midway through the first half. After moving the ball forward, junior midfielder Lauren Bernard took a shot that careened off the corner of the FSU net’s crossbar and hurtled out of bounds. In spite of a few solid efforts on goal, like those from DiMartino and Bernard, the BC players would remain unable to tie the game—and unable to prevent FSU from scoring again. On 41 minutes, the Seminoles’ Marta Bakowska-Mathews gained control of the ball after a poor BC possession. She then completed a pass to teammate Berglind Thorvaldsdottir, who sent a shot looping into the Eagles’ net, giving the Seminoles a 2-0 lead. The FSU players would enter the second half with this 2-0 advantage, and they would hold it until the game’s end.
For the Eagles, who were unable to retake the lead, their second half offense was, much like the first, defined by a series of half-chances. While foul calls had caused the BC team to offensively struggle in the initial 45 minutes, offside calls gave the squad troubles in the final 45 minutes—disrupting what could have been major scoring chances. On the defensive end, the Eagles were largely able to prevent the Seminoles from establishing the same offensive presence they had in the first half, and the Eagles also succeeded in following certain parts of their initial plan. “We had a very particular game plan,” explained Foley. “We cut off spaces where they’re really dangerous. Normally it’s a team that gets tons and tons of flank service. They didn’t get into those positions to serve.” But the mistakes of the first half would continue to haunt the BC squad, preventing the team from prevailing against its conference competitor. “[On] two mistakes, they capitalized,” Foley said. “We obviously created the first one, with not doing a good job clearing the ball. Those things you can’t set tactics up to prevent.”
BC by five, McCaffrey did all she could as the sole point of attack for the Eagles. Of BC’s four shots in the first half, McCaffrey set up two and took one herself. The ball found her feet a number of times, and she managed to maneuver around defenders patiently until she could either find space for herself or pass it off to a teammate racing down the wing. One of these passes led to the Eagles’ best chance of the game. McCaffrey received the ball, held onto it and found some space for herself. She then passed it off to Lauren Bernard who was racing down the left wing. Bernard took a hard shot with her left foot and crashed the shot off of the crossbar. These sorts of plays were nonexistent in the second half, as FSU played tighter defense on McCaffrey, giving her very little space to work with. The Eagles recorded no shots for the entire second half. “[Playing against McCaffrey] causes you to adjust your game a little bit, and certainly they were very aware of her,” head coach Alison Foley said. Foley added that she spoke with McCaffrey, and told her that this might be a game where she does not get on the score sheet, but is forced to pull together the attack and let other players shine. Foley was complimentary of her ability to do this. Toward the end of the game, the left wing and right wing started playing in a higher attacking position, but neither was able to complement McCaffrey to the extent needed to win the game. Star striker McKenzie Meehan has been out injured for this entire season, so she may be the missing link. But, this does raise the question of whether or not this team can compete with top teams without Meehan’s presence. McCaffrey’s brilliance is enough to compete with most teams, but against the No. 5 team in the country, she needed a No. 10.
Eagles top NY foes
Volleyball suffers loss
BY VICTORIA JOHNSON
BY MARLY MORGUS Assoc. Sports Editor
The Boston College field hockey team was showing off its shiny teeth this Sunday as it brushed past the Colgate University Raiders. The team kept its momentum going from Saturday’s OT triumph in order to prevail 6-3 and capture its seventh win of the season. The Eagles flew out of the gates early against Colgate and went up 1-0 when senior Emma Plasteras netted a goal. Five minutes later, the lead was increased when sophomore Eryn McCoy scored her first goal of the season. Colgate fought back when Eliana Brown scored off an assist by Whitney Jones, 11 minutes into the game. One and a half minutes later, the game was tied when Giuliana Kafaf set up Emily Brash’s goal. Even after a demanding game the day before, the Eagles were still able to take the lead when senior Katlyn Souc y scored. The Raiders answered with less than two minutes remaining before halftime, leaving both teams tied 3-3 going into the second half. After a series of fouls to open up the second half, BC received a penalty corner. Emma Plasteras shot on goal but Colgate’s keeper, Amanda DiDomizio, saved it. Sophomore Leah Frome was able to capitalize off this opportunity and rebounded a deflection, giving the team a 4-3 lead. After 15 minutes of play in the
Sunday marked the final non-conference matchup for the Boston College women’s volleyball team as it met up with Harvard on Sunday for a hometown battle across the river in Cambridge. While the Eagles were able to climb back from an early two-set deficit, they were unable to complete the comeback, falling to Harvard by a final score of 3-2 for their fourth five-set loss of the season. In the first set, the Eagles jumped early for a 3-0 lead, but the Crimson fought back. BC tallied 14 kills and Harvard put up 18, but neither team established a sizable lead. Harvard won the set 25-23. With one set of action gone, the teams put forth similar performances in the second. The Eagles had 13 kills to the Crimson’s 14 in the second, but the tiebreaker, which gave Harvard the eventual 26-24 advantage, was in errors, of which BC committed eight to Harvard’s three. Down two sets, the Eagles were in a sudden-death situation, but BC took the next set in commanding fashion in a 2513 win. This time, BC had 18 kills and just three errors. After the Eagles took the fourth set 25-23, the game was forced into a fifthset tie-breaker. The Eagles tied the set at 12 and took their first lead of the set, only to be surpassed again, unable to hold onto their brief, narrow lead and eventually falling by a score of 16-14 to lose the match.
SPORTS in SHORT
For The Heights
GRAHAM BECK / HEIGHTS SENIOR STAFF
A sweep of Syracuse and Colgate helped the Eagles continue their six-game win streak, as they enter the meat of their conference schedule. second half, the Raiders’ Eliana Brown received a green card penalty, resulting in a two-minute suspension. The Eagles used the one-man advantage to increase their lead by two when Plasteras scored off the pass from the team’s eighth penalty corner opportunity. One minute later, BC took the ball down field and AshLeigh Sebia crossed it in front of the goal. Freshman Brooke Matherson was able to redirect Sebia’s shot into the net, giving BC a 6-3 lead. The rest of the half proved to be less significant as possession altered between each team. BC was able to close the game with a score of 6-3. On Saturday, the No. 11 Eagles got their first win of the weekend against No. 4 Syracuse in overtime. The Orange came out strong and led 1-0 after a goal
ACC Women’s Soccer Standings Team
Virginia Tech Virginia Florida State North Carolina Syracuse Duke Wake Forest Clemson Boston College Notre Dame Pittsburgh Louisville NC State Miami
Overall 10-0-0 9-0-0 8-1-0 4-2-1 4-3-3 5-4-0 3-4-1 7-1-1 7-3-0 5-3-1 4-5-0 3-5-0 2-5-2 2-7-0
Conference 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0
by Emma Russell in the first three minutes of the game. The Eagles answered two minutes later when sophomore Emily McCoy scored a goal off a penalty corner with the assistance of Plasteras and Soucy. For the rest of the half the teams went back and forth fighting off shots and penalty corners without a breakthrough. The first half left the teams tied 1-1. An early penalty corner in the first half gave BC an opportunity to get ahead. With the help of Romee Stiekema, Plasteras was able to net her first goal of the season and give the Eagles the lead. However, with less than 12 minutes to go, Syracuse came back to tie off a penalty corner goal by Annalena Ulbrich.
It seemed like the Eagles might have a shot to capture the win when they had a penalty corner with three minutes left in the game. Their attempt was unsuccessful and left both teams tied 2-2 at the end of regulation. For the third time in their last three games BC went into overtime. The Eagles challenged the Orange and came out strong on the offensive end. Plasteras’s shot was blocked three minutes into OT. BC used this momentum to force a penalty corner. After the ball was inserted, Soucy passed the ball to Stiekema who recorded her first career goal as the Eagles went on to upset Syracuse on their home turf.
Numbers to Know
1915
Quote of the Week
“I’ve been hooping all my life, so that definitely comes into play, sort of like getting a rebound or a jump ball. It was good, I liked it.” — BC running back Marcus Outlow
Before Saturday, the last year Maine’s EMILY FAHEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR football team scored a touchdown Emily Fahey / Heights EditorCupicatuidet L. Fulessedo, querfecta, nihilicii ineri fic against BC.
1
Tyler Murphy’s rank in rushing yards amongst Divsion I quarterbacks.
7 The number of goals the men’s soccer strike-duo Phil Sandgren and Isaac Normesinu have scored this season.
The Heights
Monday, September 22, 2014
B3
An influx of talented runners means a good headache for Addazio From Perfect Problem, B1
Emily Fahey / Heights Editor
Freshman back Jon Hilliman went off for two touchdowns against Maine, building on his performance vs. USC.
good problem.” Through four games, BC’s running back strategy has pulled a 180 and barreled in the opposite direction of Addazio’s primarily singleback strategy of 2013—carries are coming by committee, and the ball is going in every direction. On Saturday, six BC players rushed for a gain, and the Eagles ended up piling on 413 rushing yards after a slow start to the afternoon. Hilliman, a grown man-sized freshman, broke out with two touchdowns in BC’s upset of the University of Southern California, and his momentum shows no sign of wavering. Hilliman carried the ball 21 times against the Black Bears for 98 yards and two touchdowns. While Myles Willis remains BC’s nominal starter, Hilliman runs like a veteran and has clearly gained the coaching staff ’s trust just four games into his rookie career. His USC-breakout partner, Sherman Alston, electrified Alumni again and made the most of his five carries, averaging 11.4 yards and two-ankles-broken per feint. Addazio spoke a great deal about needing to find explosive players—and 5-foot-6 Alston
continues to prove he’s a box of nitroglycerin. Game by game, the freshman talent continues to emerge. Maybe it was BC’s woeful performance against Pittsburgh, or maybe it was the plan all along, but Addazio’s rookies have excelled when given opportunities. Addazio’s first commitment at BC, Outlow, finally got a shot against Maine. The Black Bears’ defense was already worn down by the time Outlow got in the game, but he ran with confidence and power, taking 14 carries for 107 yards and an average of 7.6, showing off a pair of soft hands in the third quarter, leaping to make a 28-yard catch. “I’ve been hooping all my life, so that definitely comes into play, sort of like getting a rebound or a jump ball,” Outlow said. “It was good, I liked it.” Outlow fell into a rhythm with freshman backup quarterback Darius Wade in the fourth quarter with outside and power running, and was unlucky not to convert on a series of goal-line carries. “Aching me as we speak,” Outlow said with a grimace. “This is something I’m not going to forget until I get that next opportunity next week, so it’s definitely going
to eat at me, but it’s going to be good eating, you know, at me. It’s going to stay in the back of my head, and the next time I get that opportunity, I better get it in.” The craziest part of BC’s versatility on the ground is that the Eagles’ rushing leader isn’t even a running back—quarterback Tyler Murphy’s run for 500 yards and five touchdowns in four games. He’s continuously shown a tremendous capacity for deception, bamboozling cameramen, fans, and defenders en route to long distance gallops—he’s broken off a run of more than 50 yards in three of four games. If Murphy can get it going, it seems the rest of the backs are quick to follow—against Maine he catalyzed BC with a 71-yard touchdown in the first quarter. BC is 3-1, and that’s largely due to the run game, and of course, the defense. Six BC players have over 100 rushing yards each, already, and Addazio’s biggest problem is finding a way to maximize the talent at his disposal. It’s a tricky problem, but a hell of a good one to have, and a way better one than he could have been facing if he had gambled wrong on his rookies. So far, Addazio’s bets are paying off. n
BC will cherish each win but is concerned about persisting issues From Maine, B1 game or a letdown game, they were down 7-0, as the Black Bears took advantage of their hosts. “We were lethargic,” Addazio said. “We made a bunch of mistakes, which is my responsibility, so I’ve gotta go back and take a look at our preparation.” Despite their first-quarter struggles, the Eagles were able to get their act together in the second half to pummel the Black Bears in a comfortable 40-10 triumph. BC had to establish its ground game and struggled to do so until Murphy found a hole on a read, which he exploited en route to a 71-yard sprint to the house. Murphy has been a star on the ground and was one of the top rushing quarterbacks in the country heading into the game. The other part of the dual-threat quarterback’s game has yet to kick into full gear. He was able to find Josh Bordner over the top on a 48-yard touchdown pass, but other than that Murphy mainly failed to hook up with his receivers. Outside of the second quarter touchdown pass, Bordner and David Dudeck were the two wideouts who made catches, combining for 32 yards. Due to kinks with the passing game, the Eagles went back to their trademark style of pounding the ball. “You’ve got to level yourself back out and do what you do best, and regain your momentum back, and that’s exactly what we did,”
Addazio said. Games against lesser teams are about taking care of business, and once the run-game was established, the Eagles were able to lock down the proceedings. Taking a 19-10 lead into the break, BC needed a statement drive to get things under control. Murphy & Co. started the half with an eight-minute, 15-play, 74yard trek to the end zone, which
“We were lethargic. We made a bunch of mistakes, which is my responsibility, so I’ve gotta go back and take a look at our preparation.”
-Steve Addazio BC Football Coach
killed the game off and put BC ahead by 16. Jon Hilliman was integral to that drive, finishing it off with a touchdown. The Eagles followed up their possession by extending the advantage to 23 less than three minutes later. Despite the positives, Addazio was disappointed in his team’s start. “We were afraid of this,” Addazio said. “We were afraid of coming into
this game after that tremendous emotional high a week ago. You’re set up for that. No matter how much you say, you just are set up for that kind of half. It’s not acceptable and it’s my job, and that’s just the facts.” Addazio said that he never felt concerned about his team’s ability to win the game, but he did become aggravated by the poor start. Center Andy Gallik said the team needs to cut off the slow starts, perhaps by warming up better, and Murphy echoed those calls. “We’ve kind of struggled in previous games with starting fast and that’s something we’ve gotta figure out and fix,” Murphy said. “I thought we were focused, but probably need to come out with a little more energy and you try to fight that.” The standard for success has been established, though. In the middle of the press conference, after talking about the defense, Addazio paused. “The level we played at a week ago is the level we have to play at all the time,” he said. “That’s it, that’s just it.” He knows his team can play at a level required for ACC success, but that has to come on every snap and drive, not just the ones after the second quarter begins. “I learned a long time ago, cherish the wins,” Addazio said. “You start not cherishing the wins and you start nit-picking too much on that, you’re missing the boat there. But having said that–what needs to be fixed, needs to be fixed.” n
Emily Sadeghian / Heights Editor
Tyler Murphy has been phenomenal for BC so far this year, could he follow scenario No. 3 against Clemson?
BC must fear a Southern Cassowary From Birds, B1 the world and then win a National Championship. Drake buys a BC jersey, and Addazio is allowed to make any recruiting video he wants with an unlimited budget from this point forward because he is the chosen one—Addazio the Redeemer. Tyler Murphy reaches behind his head and unzips himself, revealing he was Chase Rettig all along. We admit we were wrong and plead for mercy, but he shows none, smiting us on the spot. Put this down as the Tuscaloosa Tie-Dye Rabble Rousing Two For One Curved Beak Hen, because it, just like the above scenario, exists only in my head. Scenario No. 5 A: BC knocks off No. 1 Florida State and then loses to Syracuse at home thanks to a missed extra point or shanked short-range field goal. Articuno
scenario—it’s extraordinarily rare, but you know there’s the slightest of chances. Scenario No. 6: The darkest timeline. Tyler Murphy goes down with a lower body injury and is declared out for the season. With the amount of running he’s done and the dangerous situations he’s been in already, this is a legitimate concern. Murphy unnecessarily jumped into a tackle against Maine, and Alumni collectively gasped in fear. If Addazio loses Murphy, he loses the ship. Darius Wade is going to be really good, but throwing him into the read-option fire would be terrible for his development and might put him on an injury track. Given the amount of fear inspired by the threat of losing Murphy, this scenario is named after the Southern Cassowary, one of the most dangerous birds on earth. Ac-
cording to Wikipedia, its “blade-like claws are capable of killing humans and dogs if the bird is provoked.” Stay away, Cassowary. Stay away. Scenario No. 7: Addazio’s team finishes the season with the most rushing yards in the country. It’s very possible—BC is No. 3 in the nation right now and fifth in yards per game, and as seen on Saturday, Addazio seems to have a running back up his sleeve for every day of the week. Barring injury, they’re only going to get better with age. Call it a hawk—it’s cool, and there’s a decent chance you could see one. Scenario No. 8: I am fired from this job. Pigeon scenario—you’re going to see it.
Connor Mellas is the Sports Editor for The Heights. He can be reached at sports@bcheights. com
A love of football turns to hate From Column, B1 a drug test when another player gets two games because there’s video of the aftermath of him punching his wife and another player misses zero games because there’s no video of him allegedly dragging his wife by the hair through their home and threatening to kill her. That shouldn’t all reverse course because there’s another video and there are more accusations and sponsors release statements to please the public. Punishments and stances on abuse shouldn’t be determined by the bottom line. SI’s Peter King says Goodell “has determined that he will be a leader in the domestic-violence space,” after Anheuser Busch slaps the league on the wrist. You hope you never have to hear another word from those two morons
again, but you know you will. You hate football because you hate the football media and you hate the people in charge. That doesn’t mean you have to hate the players, too. Sproles, Jamaal Charles, LeSean McCoy—you don’t hate them. Why can’t you just enjoy watching them? Why does it matter? You watch another college game. Again, it’s not as hard as the NFL games have been. Then some kid your age cuts across the middle and gets leveled by a linebacker. A few years ago you’d stand up and scream. Now you hold your breath. The kid stands up. You change the channel midexhale, but when there’s nothing else on, you flip back to the game and keep it on until the end. You can handle this. Your kids are never going to play football. You know that for a fact. But how are you going to
keep them and their developing brains off the field if they see you always watching, always wearing burnt orange, always talking about recruiting and game plans and highlights and why this coach or that coordinator needs to get fired? You hate football. You hate what it’s doing to you. You hate what it will do to you. You watch Thursday and Friday and Saturday and Sunday and Monday anyway. You watch less—every week and every year you watch a little less—but you still watch. You know it’s going to be a slow and painful death. But you also know now that this relationship with football is, eventually, going to die.
Austin Tedesco is an editor for The Heights. He can be reached at sports@bcheights.com
THE HEIGHTS
B4
Monday, September 22, 2014
Change of system falls short in Eagles’ loss to No. 9 Louisville BY ALEX FAIRCHILD Asst. Sports Editor
One of the greatest pity lines in all of sport is, “We really deserved to win.” But 99.99 percent of the time, if a team does not 3 Louisville win, it simply Boston College 2 did not do enough. Sure, one call could have gone another way, but coaches and players often forget about or try not to talk about the opportunities they squandered or changes they failed to make. So when Phil Sandgren said, “We deserve more than this, we could have won last week, we could have won against Harvard, then we could have won today,” he was wrong. The Boston College men’s soccer team could have a pair of ACC victories in the bag, be without a loss, and be in the top 25. Even though the Swedish striker scored two stunning goals against No. 9 Louisville, poor marking on an overtime set piece subdued the Eagles to a 3-2 defeat on Friday night on Newton. Against the Cardinals, head coach Ed Kelly changed his team’s system from a diamond midfield to a 4-4-1-1, which looks likes 4-2-3-1, because the outside midfielders push high up the pitch and pinch inside. The team’s shape was similar to the system it played last season, and it matched up well with the visitors. “ We’re playing like 4-4-1-1, but we just kept tucking in to take care of their midfielders,” Kelly said. “I thought we stole the ball. I thought we had chances.” Ken Lolla’s team plays a 4-2-3-1 with very fluid attackers. Last week at Duke, the Cards shredded the Blue Devils, who use a diamond midfield. Thanks to an attacking full back pair of Tim Kubel on the right and Shane Campbell on the left, the Cards decimated the visitors. Ben Strong and Andrew Brody served as a lethal pairing on the wings that took advantage of the lack of natural width John Kerr’s diamond concedes. The two attackers are versatile and skilled, while the attacking midfielder and striker change places often to confuse the opposing back four.
To account for the opposition, Kelly diverted from his system and put Sandgren up top by himself, dropped Zeiko Lewis behind, and played Diego Medina-Mendez and Isaac Normesinu out wide. For Sandgren, getting back into goalscoring form was no easy task, as he struggled with his fitness. He couldn’t get a game in Sweden, after sitting last season out due to transfer rules. “We’re seeing that Phil can do it and then we can make variations of it,” Kelly said. Sandgren has a lot of confidence in his abilities, which is extremely important for a striker, especially one who decides to hit a half-volley from the right flank about 25 yards from goal. The 6-foot-1, 207-pound forward did that on Friday night, and somehow the ball found its way over Louisville keeper Joachim Ball and in the top corner on six minutes. Even though the Swede will tell you he’s scored plenty of gorgeous goals in his career, against one of the nation’s best teams, you won’t see many better than his first against the Cards. The system helped sustain the Eagles’ place in the game throughout the first half, though a corner was whipped in during the 22nd minute. Alex Kapp, who has stood out for the Eagles all season, made three consecutive saves, before Ricardo Velazco headed the ball in from point-blank range at the far post to level the match. But BC would keep pressing. Sandgren worked extremely hard to frustrate the Cards’ back four by closing them down, along with Normesinu, Lewis, and Medina-Mendez. Four minutes after the Cards leveled, Sandgren pressed one of the Louisville center backs on the left side, won the ball, and unleashed a laser strike that cannoned off the near post and into the opposite side-netting. “I’m happy to be scoring again,” Sandgren said. “I’m happy with my own performance. I’m happy with the team’s performance.” Kelly’s team carried through the rest of the first half by limiting wing play from the full backs. “We did a great job of sliding in and picking up people and making the right
BRECK WILLS / HEIGHTS GRAPHIC
THE 411 ON THE 4-4-1-1 After playing with a diamond 4-4-2 in its first five matches, the Eagles’ system was shredded apart by Clemson, which marked Henry Balf out of the game. Duke played the same system against Louisville and the Cardinals’ 4-2-3-1 gave them a 5-0 victory. Head coach Ed Kelly combatted Louisville’s system by playing with a 4-4-1-1, with two wide players that could pinch inside and higher up the field in defense. In addition, Giuliano Frano partnered Balf in midfield, which gave extra protection to the back four against the opponent’s lethal and fluid attack, which consists of the central attackers interchanging positions and full backs pushing forward. full back make the game,” said Kelly, whose change in shape put pressure on Louisville’s midfield pivot, giving the pair few chances to find Kubel. BC failed to hold onto its halftime lead, though, as Will Vitalis unzipped the BC back line and midfield with a simple ball to Ben Strong. The transfer from Virginia Tech made no mistake inside the area, slotting the ball by Kapp to level the match at two goals apiece. The Eagles were able to put the No. 9 team in the land on the back foot. With a flurry of chances in the last 10 minutes,
which was highlighted by a Sandgren shot that Ball tipped over the bar, BC went into extra time with momentum in its favor. Atobra Ampadu drove from center back into the 18-yard box only to be stuffed by Ball, and Lewis failed to put away the rebound. Lewis did well to make a run behind the visitors’ back four, but his cross could not find a body. Two minutes after Lewis’ attack proved fruitless, the Eagles gave up a free kick deep on the right flank. Campbell whipped the ball in and BC did not pick
up the tall guy with the strange hairdo at the back post. That man was substitute Nolan Moore, whose outstretched foot made contact with the ball to send it into the net. Moore’s goal provided the touch of death from the Cards, who walked away with the overtime victory. Had that foul not been made, or had Moore been marked a bit better, then the Eagles might have had another opportunity to upset the Cardinals. If they were able to finish off the No. 9 team in the country in extra time, then they would have deserved to win the match.
Bulls come back to top BC’s effort
Eagles open season in Providence
BY JACK STEDMAN
BY TOM DEVOTO
For The Heights
Heights Staff
Ask any soccer coach or player what the toughest lead to hold is, and the answer is automatic: 2-0. After a dominant first half, 3 USF highlighted by Boston College 2 two unassisted goals from senior captain Stephanie McCaffrey, the Boston College women’s soccer team found itself in that position and seemingly in the driver’s seat. In a tale of two halves on Thursday night, however, the University of South Florida regained the momentum just after the break and went on to win 3-2, snapping the Eagles’ six game win streak. Just 31 seconds into the game, a miskick from a USF defender fell to McCaffrey on the left side of the field, who broke inside and ripped a shot into the top corner for a goal, her fifth of the season. The Bulls responded well by pressing hard, and senior holding midfielder Demi Stokes looked strong on the ball, but USF failed to do anything in the final third, forcing through balls and giving away possession more often than not. In the 15th minute, a defensive misplay nearly cost USF again, this time due to miscommunication between goalie and defender. The keeper was forced to come out and head the ball back into pressure, but the Eagles could not find the open net. Neither team had many quality opportunities in front of goal, but the Eagles made the most of their few chances. In the 26th minute, McCaffrey notched her sixth goal of the year and doubled the Eagles’ lead with another stunning solo effort, this time beating the keeper with a low, hard shot to the opposite corner from just inside the box. The Bulls immediately brought in backup goalie Kat Elliott, who didn’t see too much action for the remainder of
To open its 2014-15 campaign, the Boston College women’s tennis team traveled south to Brown University in Providence, R.I. to compete in the Brown Invitational. The other participants in this event were Boston University, University of Rhode Island, UMass-Amherst, Stony Brook University, Rutgers University and Providence College. Last year, the Eagles finished at No. 3 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division I Northeast Region rankings, and looked to continue their regional dominance this season. The highlight of the Invitational for the Eagles was the first career collegiate victory of Asiya Dair on Friday morning, as she was able to come away with the easy two-set win (6-3, 6-0). The highly touted freshman from Kazakhstan is currently ranked No. 10 in the ITA Preseason Newcomer rankings; it marks the first time a BC player has ever been ranked in the Newcomer division. Her ranking could rise with a strong showing early in the season. Up next, the Eagles will get a bit of a breather before heading out west to California for the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships. The tournament is held in Pacific Palisades and runs over a full week from this Saturday to the following Sunday. The top doubles team of senior Jessica Wacnik and sophomore Lexi Borr are expected to come out of the gate strong this season. Currently, the duo ranks No. 21 in the country. Wacnik, Borr, and Dair have qualified to participate in the Championships with some of the best college tennis talent in the country. The trio enters as prequalifying singles, while the Borr and Wacnik sit as the third alternate pair for the main draw–doubles division.
GRAHAM BECK / HEIGHTS SENIOR STAFF
Senior captain Stephanie McCaffrey had two unassisted goals against USF, but the Bulls came back to win it by a final score of 3-2. the half. BC failed to get leading scorer Hayley Dowd and top midfielder Lauren Bernard involved in much of the play, with only McCaffrey standing out in the first 45 minutes. The half ended with BC up two. Five minutes into the start of the second half, Bulls defender Cristina Ferral scored the coveted third goal of the game, stunning the Eagles for her first of the season. She received a pass off a short corner from midfielder Olivia Chance and whipped a ball in toward the goal, which beat BC’s Alex Johnson and dipped under the bar, finding the side netting. “It was a very uncharacteristic goal for us, to have it go in directly off a corner,” said BC head coach Alison Foley. “I think we got a bit shell-shocked, and
I don’t think our response to that was very good.” With the visitors now in control, USF’s leading goalscorer Leticia Skeete tied the game up 30 seconds later with a left-footed shot from distance that curled inside the far post, bringing her season tally to four. The tide of the game continued to turn in favor of the Bulls when Johnson went down with an injury after colliding with Skeete in the 62nd minute, forcing freshman backup Darien Dunham, who had only played 13 minutes this year, to enter the game with the score tied and her team on the defensive. She was immediately called into action and came up with a big save, sliding to deny USF midfielder Sarah Miller a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
For the next 10 minutes, the Eagles had control over the run of the play. McCaffrey continued to be the Eagles’ lone offensive threat, winning a corner and then a free kick from the corner of the box, but BC couldn’t convert. USF eventually netted the winner in the 78th minute off a corner kick, when a ball sent in from Stokes found an unmarked Miller’s head at the penalty spot, with the senior easily heading in the goal. The Eagles nearly equalized in the final minutes, but a looping header off a corner that went back across goal hit the woodwork, and USF was able to hold on for a 3-2 victory. “Sometimes it’s the kiss of death to score so early,” Foley said.
Thursday, January 17, 2014 Monday, September 22, 2014
THE HEIGHTS THE HEIGHTS
B5 B5
Thursday, January 17, 2014 B6
The Heights The Heights
B5 Monday, September 22, 2014
CLASSIFIEDS Thursday, January 17, 2014
Monday, September 22, 2014
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Directions: The Sudoku is played over a 9x9 grid. In each row there are 9 slots, some of which are empty and need to be filled. Each row, column and 3x3 box should contain the numbers 1 to 9. You must follow these rules: · Number can appear only once in each row · Number can appear only once in each column · Number can appear only once in each 3x3 box · The number should appear only once on row, column or area.
The Heights The Heights
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FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Monday, September 22, 2014
PROFESSOR PROFILE
A two-week Breen examines impact of media and the Web grace period BY SYLVIA WAGHORN
ROCIO GONZAELZ Excited. Anxious. Happy. Scared. Free. The mixed emotions kept coming and going as I prepared to embark on my semester abroad in Barcelona. I remember going to the study abroad fair last September and always knowing that Spain was the destination at which I so desperately wanted to spend a semester away from Boston College. Students who spend a semester in a different country end up saying how life changing their experiences had been, and I was ready to leave and be transformed. Imagine, then, my surprise when I step foot in the Barcelona airport and then head to my dorm to be engulfed by an immense feeling of loneliness and anxiety. It may have been the jetlag or the fact that I had been traveling for over 20 hours, but suddenly I just wanted to be back at BC with my friends. My roommate and I have called it the two-week grace period. We knew our deadline for arriving had expired, but were waiving any penalties that presented themselves as negative feelings toward our experience until we acclimated to life here. We always hear the great aspects of studying in a different country, but we don’t talk about those moments when we feel helpless and alone. I remember my first night here when my roommate and I decided to take a walk along the beach around midnight because it was just a five-minute walk away from our dorm. That is one of the great aspects of being abroad: the spontaneity. We sat on the sand and watched the “Catalanes” swim in the Mediterranean or people having dinner along the beach because Europeans don’t believe in early dining. We kept walking and passing people and were awed by the beautiful architecture and vibrant life-style. I remember stating how this was the perfect city, and I could easily see myself falling in love with its majestic feel. Suddenly, we were lost with no phone, no map, no money, and no idea how to get back to our dorm. In that moment I felt helplessness take over again, walking aimlessly in pajamas for over two hours playing a guessing game as to where we were. As I think back on that first day, I can say that it was a test of not only our physical, but also emotional strength. To be lost on our first day in the middle of the night in a place we’ve never been definitely challenged us to be independent and rely on each other in a way we’d never done before. That first night wasn’t the only time we got lost, and the more we got lost, the more impatient I became. Not only was my lack of patience evident in how I never knew where I was, but also in how everything was in Catalan. We joked that it was mixture of Spanish, Italian, and a hint of French. The one thing I thought I would have no problem with, the language, frustrated me most when I had to order from a menu in a language I’d never heard. These things wouldn’t have bothered me normally if I were a tourist for two weeks. I am not a tourist, however—I am a temporary resident of this country, and by becoming this I have to change my mindset, be more flexible, and adapt to the unexpected. I have to accept that people here aren’t as structured and organized as the people I’m normally surrounded by at BC. My two-week grace period is almost up. I found a place to do my weekly groceries, know where the nearest metro station is, found that small quaint spot in the city where I feel at peace, but nevertheless still feel very much alone in a foreign country. At my host university the other day, however, they presented us with the following quote by Wendell Berry: “Nobody can discover the world for somebody else. Only when we discover it for ourselves does it become common ground and a common bond and we cease to be alone.” It got me thinking, and maybe this might not be the transformative experience I initially thought of, but it will definitely bring me back to BC with bright shining eyes to view my place in the world in a different manner. All I have to do is fail fast and fail often, but most importantly be comfortable with the idea of being uncomfortable.
Rocio Gonzalez is a senior staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at features@bcheights.com
For The Heights
WHO: Marcus Breen
This fall, Boston College welcomed Marcus Breen to the communication department as the director of the media lab. Breen’s interest in communication and media started from a young age. He was born in Melbourne, Australia into a very musically engaged family. Breen was raised in a Baptist home, a religion in which music plays an integral role. His music-filled childhood had a big role in his eventual decision to pursue a career in music media. After completing his education, Breen became a journalist. It did not take him long to find his niche writing about music and the arts. “I found there were very few people who were specializing in what I was interested in,” he said. “So, once I became a journalist, things just sort of fell into place.” Breen’s career as a journalist included time working for The Hollywood Reporter in Australia, where he got the opportunity to meet many interesting and influential people in the film and music industries. During the 1990s, Breen moved into the academic field, working as a researcher and consultant. It was during his time as a consultant that Breen first made visits to the U.S. Although Breen was an adult by this time, his childhood had been heavily influenced by stories of America. “My grandmother came from Ireland to Boston, had children in New York, then moved back to Australia,” Breen said. “So, we grew up hearing stories about the East Coast, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State building.” These stories instilled a strong interest in the East Coast in him from a young age. After making many trips for consulting, Breen made the official move in 1996 to the
TEACHES: Mass Communication Ethics EXPERIENCE: Has been a researcher, journalist, and consultant and recently published a book on the impact of the Internet. FUN FACTS: Breen’s son attends Northeastern University, and his wife teaches at Boston University. EMILY SADEGHIAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR
U.S., and he has lived here intermittently ever since. He moved to North Carolina with his wife and children, where he began working for the communications department at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. One notable class Breen taught while at UNC was a class on new technology in the year 1996. It is hard for a college student today to imagine a time when the Internet was not a part of daily life, but Breen was teaching at a time when the World Wide Web was a new concept. “Everything was changing, we had to take students to computer labs and show them how to use the Internet,” he said. The introduction of the Internet had a big impact on Breen’s career path. A main focus of his work became the cultural and social responses to the Internet. He wanted to know how the music and film industry were impacted by new technologies. Breen’s latest book, Uprising: The Internet’s Unintended Consequences, focuses on
the Internet’s impact on our lives. Specifically, Breen looks into how individuals in the private space of their own computer have changed. “What do we mean now by being private?” Breen asked. “The definition of the word has changed.” With sites like Facebook and Twitter letting the world into an individuals’ entire life, this changed look on privacy is more evident than ever before. Although this is Breen’s first year at Boston College, this is not his first time teaching at a Boston school. Breen spent time at Northeastern as well, where he taught one of his favorite classes, Dialogue of Civilization. This class was a faculty-led summer program that allowed Breen said he to return to Australia with a small group of students to learn about Australian media and industry. The program was a month long, and Breen loved that the trip allowed him to become so close with the students he taught. Breen’s Boston connections do not end there. He shared the fun fact that his son
currently attends Northeastern, and his wife teaches at Boston University. “We are excited for hockey season,” Breen said, noting the intense rivalry that always arises between the three Boston schools. Regarding his time at BC so far, Breen has nothing but good things to say. “The students have been wonderful, the faculty very supportive,” he said. “Everything works here, which isn’t always the case elsewhere.” This semester, he is teaching several communications courses, including Mass Communication Ethics and New Media in Society. On top of being a professor, Breen is the director of the department media lab. “There is a review of the media lab happening in the next 12 months that will feed into the decisions that will be made about the facilities and the role of the department beyond,” Breen explained, adding that this review has the potential for opportunities for something quite different and exciting to happen in the department.
BC2Boston helps students break the BC bubble From BC2Boston, B10 off-campus opportunities within the first few months of school. Beyond the Max Brenner dinner, the group is offering tickets to The Lion King on Broadway, Red Sox and Celtics games, Cards Against Humanity night at Improv Asylum, a haunted Boston tour, and potentially a concert at the House of Blues. Trips sponsored by Beyond Boston to New York City, Gloucester for fishing, Salem, and Honey Pot Hill Orchards will also take place within the coming months. Because CAB is so new, its committee is avidly looking for new members and participants. Although a CAB website is
not yet in existence, the group plans to have an area for suggestions and commentary about past and future events. Until then, students and potential members can email any board member with suggestions, as well as attend CAB’s open weekly board meetings that take place every week in Carney Hall. “We are really so excited about what we do,” Newall said. “We are so open to any suggestion. The people that we see that are coming to the meetings and events are the people we want on the board.” Cocce agreed, “We all spend a lot of our time here, like a lot of our time, planning these events, so we really want the events to be things people want to go to,” she said. “We love new, crazy
ideas, and we want ideas that are out of the box.” When asked about what the BC community should expect from BC2Boston in the future, Cocce said, “We are really hoping to expand our events. We want as many kids as possible to go to all of our events, so we’re really going to work to make sure that everyone who wants to come can come to our events.” Although it strives to include as many students as possible, tickets are limited and are sold on a first-come, first-serve basis. Sold through the Robsham ticketing office, the tickets go on sale on a specific date at 8 a.m. Cocce offered a piece of advice to anyone who is really determined to participate in a certain event. “Pro tip for
CLUB SERIES
all the BC2Boston hopefuls out there,” she said. “Set your alarm for 7:50 in the morning, go online, sign into your account click on campus activities, click on BC2Boston. As soon as it hits 8 a.m. click refresh and click the button on the event.” Although they wish to give a ticket to every student who wants one, Newell and Cocce did not deny that they feel great when tickets for an event sell out. “We get so excited when we sell out an event for more reasons than one,” Newall said. “Not only does it mean that we’ve been successful and picked an event that the students love, but it means that we are actually responding to student interests. It gives us the warm and fuzzies.”
FEATURING BC’S STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
BC Hillel connects students to Jewish tradition through Shabbat dinners, holy day events BY KATHRYN SEWALL For The Heights
Boston College Hillel is BC’s only Jewish religious club on campus. One of BC Hillel’s main missions is “serving the social, cultural, and religious needs of Jewish students and enriching the campus culture for all,” said Amanda Haltmaier, BC Hillel secretary and A&S ’15. One activity that BC Hillel is most renowned for is its weekly studentcooked Shabbat (the Jewish Holy Day of rest) dinners every Friday at 6 p.m. in the Gabelli second-floor lounge, which all students, Jewish and nonJewish, are welcome to attend. “We have a couple hundred members, our board is around 15 people, and weekly attendance is usually around 50 people for our Shabbat dinners,” Haltmaier said. This year, BC Hillel has four or five international Jewish exchange students from various countries that attend its events. The club takes informal attendance at each dinner, so students don’t have to sign up beforehand and do not have to have any previous affiliation with the group to attend.
BC Hillel also helps its Jewish students get in touch with local temples if they are interested, but this is not required. “We help link our Jewish students with temples in the surrounding area nearby if they’re interested in going to more services than BC has to offer,” said Mollie Solon, co-president and CSOM ’15. Other events that BC Hillel hosts include religious services during Jewish holidays in the Multi-Faith Chapel near 66 Comm. Ave.; a yearly Hanukkah party featuring specialty foods such as Latke potato pancakes and Dreidels in December; a large Passover religious service and catered event; and special freshman outreach programing and Shabbat events. They also host “Schmooze with the Jews” meet-and-greet meetings with Jewish faculty and members of BC Hillel, and they organize social and religious events with Hillel clubs at other Boston-area universities such as BU and MIT. Last year, BC Hillel hosted a meditation and religious service alongside the BC Buddhism Club. “We work to plan events and do things with other faith clubs on campus at BC, such as the Buddhist club, and have plans to
keep doing similar things with other religious cultural clubs this year,” Haltmaier said. The club’s leadership emphasizes that being Jewish is not a requirement for attending any events put on by BC Hillel. “The majority of the people who come to our weekly Shabbat dinners are actually not Jewish, but are interested in getting to know the Jewish community and learning more about what it means to be Jewish and our culture,” Salon said. “For our High Holy Day religious services, such as Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah, mainly only Jewish students come to those events in the Multi-Faith Chapel behind 66.” “It’s not about establishing and defining a Jewish community,” Haltmaier added. “We’re more about enriching the cultural environment of BC as a whole.” One upcoming event hosted by BC Hillel is for the Jewish holiday Sukkot, which will take place from Oct. 8 to 15. Sukkot is a Jewish holiday in remembrance of times in ancient Israel when Jews would build huts—called sukkahs—for use as temporary shelter during the harvest season. BC Hillel will assemble its own sukkah
on Stokes lawn during the Sukkot holiday and will host an event inside of the structure called “Pizza in the Hut” on Wednesday, Oct. 8. This year, BC Hillel is looking to expand awareness about the organization. “One of our goals includes increasing our presence on campus,” Haltmaier said. “A lot of people don’t know what Hillel is, and we want to work to change that. We are always looking to add new members, and we are always happy to have more people take an active role in Hillel. Students who are interested can just show up to any of our events—we have a signin sheet at each event where they can write down their email addresses to stay up to date on our activities.” Members of BC Hillel have formed a community and have found their own niche within a predominantly Jesuit Catholic university. “All of my [non-Jewish] friends are really supportive and interested in my faith, and they all make a huge effort to attend my events, and they have come to our Passover event every year, which I really appreciate,” Haltmaier said. “What better way to show loving your neighbor than being accepting and curious about other faiths?”
The Heights
Monday, September 22, 2014
BC celebrates Latin culture From Heritage, B10 an Afro-Caribbean arts showcase during Hispanic Heritage Month this year in the hopes that such an event will highlight the unique aspects of Hispanic cultures that make them special. “Hispanic Heritage Month means a month which is very focused on Latino culture here in the U.S., breaking down myths and showing diversity,” Vasquez said. “We might have some similarities, but we don’t all eat the same kind of food.” Even students not directly involved in the planning of Hispanic Heritage Month appreciate the opportunity to share a little something about their cultures. “I know I speak for many of the Latinos at BC when I say that we take pride in our joy, energy, love for our countries, and obnoxiously loud tone,” said Federico Pineda, CSOM ’15 and co-president of the Latin American Business Club. One major misconception that every round of Hispanic Heritage Month organizers sincerely tries to change is that the month’s events are only for Hispanic students. “It’s hard for students that aren’t Hispanic to come out to these events,” Concepcion said. “But we all share the same interests! Whether you like salsa music or Hispanic food or something, you should go.” Vasquez also emphasized that the month’s events are for everyone at BC. “Our job is to make sure you have fun, no matter what,” she said. Hispanic Heritage Month has been at BC since 2009, according to Marcela Norton, who has been on the faculty planning committee since then. “We need to thank one of our students, Bryan Leyva, BC ’10, whose dream was to bring HHM to the Heights and worked very hard to do it,” she said in an e-mail. Since then, it has become an integral part of the BC calendar, Vasquez said. “It’s 150 percent necessary,” she said. “We all know diversity is lacking at BC, and Hispanic Heritage Month makes it so that it’s not like the information isn’t out there. These issues are very important.” In addition to the opening ceremony, the committee has held a Latin Soul Arts Festival and a talk given by Angel Taveras, this year’s keynote speaker and the first Hispanic mayor of Providence, R.I. There will also be a Boston Esperanza 5K race and an event called Bienvenidos, or “Welcome,” a mixer for Hispanic faculty, staff, and students. The closing ceremony, featuring performances by groups both from BC and the outside community, will take place on Oct. 10. “I feel like it’s family,” Bustillo said. “Freshman year I felt so lost because we’re in between these two worlds, where you don’t know which ethnicity you should stand by. BC can be family, Latinos, Hispanic Heritage Month can be family. It gives you a home where you didn’t have one before.” n
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The Heights throughout the century Football Upsets at Boston college
The event will have the traditional setup, which has been implemented since the first edition of BC Ignites. “The way BC Ignites has worked in the past is that you have the keynote speaker and then you have students speak, as well as a cappella performances,” Bourff said. “We have taken that same format because it has worked very well in the past.” Since the event is about mental health, the upcoming edition of BC Ignites will feature the participation of the University Counseling Services. “Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Thomas McGuinness, who’s director of University Counseling Services,” Bourff said. “He’s been in the conversation [about mental health] for awhile, and I think he’s going to give a fantastic keynote about understanding it from the University’s perspective and the perspective of the students.” As a complement to the more formal student speeches, the a capella group The Acoustics will be performing at the event, Bourff added, in order to provide a sense of entertainment and enjoyment to the event. Organizers say, however, that to have optimal participation in the discussion, the event’s aim must be understood clearly. “It is important to understand what BC Ignites’ purpose is,” Bourff said.
My struggle with ISIS
Boston College’s underdog football team has pulled off historic upsets against Notre Dame, Georgetown By Laura McLaughlin For The Heights The forecast did not look good for Saturday, but rain and predicted defeat were held off. The football game against USC was not only exciting and moving, but significant in that it was the first time since 2002 that Boston College has beaten a top-10 team while being unranked itself—a rare occurrence in the history of the game. This is the sixth time BC has accomplished this feat, the last time being in 2002 against an undefeated and No. 4-ranked Notre Dame in South Bend. This glorious win in the “Holy War” was attributed to the defense, which “made up for the offensive ineffectiveness,” according to reporter Jake Berry. Unlike the USC game, it was relatively low-scoring, with a final score of 14-7, but just as full of un-sportsmanlike (yet accurate) jeers of “overrated” according to Allie Weiskopf, who traveled to South Bend in 2002 according to the Nov. 5 issue of The Heights that year. This win brought back memories of BC’s win against the same team in 1993, perhaps even more surprising and impressive, considering Notre Dame was ranked No. 1 then. The Eagles won with a last-minute field goal, and not strong defense, but risk-taking was what “simply outduked #1 ranked Notre Dame to the tune of 477 yards total offense and an in-your-face style of play heretofore unparalleled by a visiting team at South Bend this season,” according to Paul Canalori in the Nov. 22, 1993 issue of The Heights. Besides beating the Irish, BC has been known to upset the status quo as far back as 1940, a highly successful year for the BC football team as it won the Sugar Bowl that year. A picture with the caption, “Entire student body welcomes team bringing Tulane scalp home” in the Oct. 4, 1940 issue, expressed the excitement felt after defeating a highly regarded team that was even praised by the players. Even without seeing televised coverage of the game to create hype, the Oct. 4 issue reported, “for a time it appeared as if the celebration would get out of control as the enthusiastic students surrounded the fire truck and sound truck, singing ‘For Boston,’ and shattering the calm atmosphere of the campus with deafening cheers,” until
there was an announcement that classes would begin on time. This was the kind of crowd that would have stormed the field had it been a home game. The next upset that year came a few weeks later when BC faced Georgetown. Although it may be hard to believe that the Hoyas were once a formidable threat, back in 1940 they were undefeated before losing to the Eagles. After that impressive defeat, BC won against longtime rival Holy Cross 7-0 in a gridlock game in which BC only scored during the last quarter. The victory was the first predicted by the thencoach Frank Leahy, who was typically pessimistic about his team’s upcoming performances. Spurred on by a series of wins, the team won 19-18 thanks to iconic “Chuckin’” Charlie O’Rourke, the famous BC quarterback. Ten wins preceded BC’s game against Tennessee, a worthy match for the Eagles that year, on New Years Day. Not referring to USC, the Eagles “fought like Trojans though they could hardly stand up on their feet,” according to the Jan. 15th issue of The Heights that also said players were getting sick to their stomachs due to the heat, but the team eventually won, allegedly because the players were “a bunch of fellows who had a lot of spirit. “They didn’t want to let their school or their friends down so they just went out and played football even though half of them were on one leg.” The only regret the players probably had was that more of their classmates and alumni weren’t at the game in New Orleans. Had they been there, they would have witnessed star O’Rourke running a 24-yard touchdown. In terms of upsets within games, Doug Flutie’s iconic “Hail Mary” pass is an example of why Super Fans may not want to leave the stadium until the end of the game. A close game like that one, which proves a challenge is more gratifying than an easy blowout, while demonstrating strength, does not necessarily show finesse. In some ways, the most exciting moment of a game is when the tables turn. The importance of spirit cannot be underestimated—as the Eagles’ wins began to mount in 1940, so, too, did the infectious school-wide excitement. Win or not, throughout the years Superfans have been loyal to the team that has experienced dramatic ups and downs. n
BC Ignites focuses on mental health on campus From BC Ignites, B10
Editor’s Column
“We understand what the limitations of a one-night conversation are—it can only do so much, it can only reach so much people. “So, what BC Ignites is about is sparking conversation—that’s actually where the name comes from,” he said. “It’s to spark conversation, many conversations, not to be the only conversation. This one event, this one discussion is not enough, is not sufficient. The idea is to create thousands more conversations, not only in O’Neill Plaza but also in dorm rooms and classrooms across the college. This is just the beginning of a larger conversation.” UGBC plans to continue talking about mental health throughout the year. “We’re bringing the What I Be Project, which is a really interesting photography project, as well as comedian Kevin Breel to talk about mental health, depression, and suicide,” Bourff said. Correspondingly, UGBC intends to organize two other BC Ignites discussions this academic year, something that has not happened since the event was founded in 2012. “We plan to do three BC Ignites this year: one, this upcoming one, about mental health, one about socioeconomic status, and one about race,” Bourff said. The event about socioeconomic status was originally planned for this past spring but never took place, while race
issues were the topic of the inaugural BC Ignites as well. “The event [on socioeconomic status] was cancelled in spring because of organizational problems, and we want to retake it this semester,” Bourff said. He added that organizers are aware that having the event later this semester will necessitate modified logistics.
“The idea is to create thousands more conversations, not only in O’Neill Plaza but also in dorm rooms and classrooms across the college.”
-Connor Bourff UGBC Vice President of Student Initiatives
“We know that hosting the event later in the semester will mean the event would have to take place indoors, because it will be freezing outside, so we’re definitely taking that logistical difficulty into account and looking for ways to better solve it,” Bourff said. UGBC plans to return to the topic of race, which was the topic of the first BC
Ignites discussion, in the spring semester. “We want to get back to the root of BC Ignites,” Bourff said. “We think the discussion about race is a discussion that constantly needs to happen. It’s not enough with that one discussion we had two years ago.” Although the topics of future BC Ignites are left to their successors, current organizers expect that future topics will alternate between new and previously discussed topics. “There are topics that constantly need to be discussed, like race, gender and GLBTQ issues, and other more contingent ones that arise in a particular time,” Bourff said. “So, although it is future organizers who will be in charge of choosing future topics, we think the idea is to alternate, to create a mix between those more permanent and those more contingent topics so as to have many important discussions, not just periodical discussions of just one topic. We want discussions to continue, we want to keep discussing.” Bourff added that he thinks the event is successful in prompting conversations about difficult topics. “Even if just one conversation were sparked, even if the events did not take place or if no one went to them, they would already be successful, because at least someone would be aware,” Bourff said. “And hundreds of people are participating, so there’s no doubt they’re being successful.” n
Kendra Kumor James Foley, Steven Sotloff, David Haines. All dead. All suffered a public death—all because of ISIS. Admittedly, I have been glued to the television since news of Foley’s death surfaced in an execution video. To me, this seems like something out of a Hollywood blockbuster thriller: scripted messages for the victim in the video, asking countries for ransoms in the hundred millions, and blatant propaganda are all things I’ve seen in movie theaters and maybe even history books, but never on my 30-inch-screen in my dorm room. Although I can say I have been an avid watcher of the news on ISIS, or ISIL as Obama referred to it during his speech last week, I still don’t feel like I have even scratched the surface of relevant information concerning this terrorist group. As a citizen of the U.S., one of several countries that has been directly threatened by ISIS, and as a student set to study abroad in a few months in London, England, a country that just heightened its terror level to “severe” for the first time since a bomb threat in 2010, I can’t help but feel the need to take some sort of concrete action. In my struggle to consume as much about ISIS as possible, though, I have felt a sense of helplessness. As a college student in 2014, I like to think that I can effect change on any issue I want, no matter how small a change or how large an issue. But with a group like ISIS, I have felt like I can do nothing but stay glued to the media in my room—which sometimes seems to make matters worse because technically that is exactly what ISIS wants me to do. And even though I like to consider myself well-informed about this group and the overall political situation in the Middle East, I can never be sure of the validity of the information I have been obsessively consuming. Through both my communication and political science classes I have constantly been told to be critical, if not skeptical and almost cynical, toward the media. I realize that no matter how objective a network may claim it is, there is no doubt it frames each and every story whether intentionally or not. So here I am, a seemingly helpless student and citizen, channel-flipping between CNN, FOX, and CBS, possibly consuming incorrect information, and waiting for the next journalist, social worker, or even major city to be threatened by a group whose political, social, and religious roots I study every Tuesday and Thursday in my Rise and Rule of Islamic States class. That is, I was that helpless, confused, and admittedly a little bit scared person until last Thursday night when professor Ali Banuazizi of the political science department and professor Julian Bourg of the history department gave a lecture entitled “ISIS & The American Response” to a full classroom in Stokes Hall. Being in a room full of fellow concerned students (and possibly students who only attended because of a requirement for a certain class or club) helped me understand the current situation better—not to mention the professors’ incredible insights didn’t hurt my understanding either. The fact that I was listening to these two clearly passionate and committed professors talk about ISIS allowed me to trust that the information I was receiving was valid. I felt I could trust their information because they were connected to me personally through the close-knit BC community and not through the hundreds of millions of strangers watching the same newscast. In those moments in the crowded Stokes classroom, I was doing exactly what ISIS doesn’t want me to do. That is, I was uniting with my fellow classmates in understanding the American stance on the group. I was no longer cowering in my dorm room alone. I am now confident in my knowledge of ISIS. I am also confident that I am not alone in my constant monitoring of the group. And finally, and perhaps most importantly, I am confident that I can make a difference in this struggle with ISIS.
Kendra Kumor is the Features Editor for The Heights. She can be reached at features@bcheights.com.
B10
Features Monday, September 22, 2014
BC2Boston makes city affordable New division, Beyond Boston, to plan trips to New York, Salem By Anne Bigler For The Heights Tickets went on sale for BC2Boston’s discounted dinner at the famous Max Brenner’s Chocolate Bar on Friday, Sept. 12 at 8 a.m., and just one minute later, the tickets were sold out. For just $15, students could get a three-course dining experience at the iconic chocolate restaurant. BC2Boston, a committee completely dedicated to planning events within the city of Boston for Boston College students, has planned this same event previously, and both times it was met with phenomenal success. Christine Cocce, director of the trips and excursions committee and CSOM ’16, gave insight on the event selection process. “It’s food,” she said. “But really, it is a specialty restaurant in the middle of Boston that is definitely more upscale and out of the typical student’s price range.” The Max Brenner dinner perfectly exemplifies the goal of BC2Boston, which is to provide students with unique opportunities to ensure that they take advantage of all the perks of going to school near such a bustling city. “We want to get kids off the campus and into Boston,” said Garrett Newell, assistant director and A&S ’15. “We see this all the time, when people get sucked into the ‘BC Bubble’ and never get off campus.” Many students want to know how BC2Boston gets its great deals. Newell has been working with BC2Boston since its inception, spending the majority of his sophomore and junior years working with concert and comedy events at venues like the House of Blues, Royale, and Paradise Rock club. “Our goal is not only to buy something at one event, at one venue, but to establish a relationship with these venues,” Newell said. After years of work, BC2Boston has contacted many Boston venues and established good relationships in order to sell group tickets to BC at significantly reduced rates. “A lot of the venues love the fact that we don’t do this for a profit,” Newell said. “We do it because we love that there are all these things going on in Boston, and they’re helping us give the discounted tickets to students who deserve them.” The BC2Boston committee members appreciate the willingness of the venues to participate. The committee sends thank you notes and Christmas cards to all the groups with which they collaborate, just to remind them of how grateful both the committee and the students are for their services. This year marks the first year that BC2Boston will no longer be a department within UGBC. Instead, BC2Boston is now housed within the Trips and Excursions Department of the new Campus Activities Board (CAB). “All of us decided that it would be much more beneficial to both parties if UGBC really focuses on the policy and student life of BC and CAB focuses on programming,” Newell said. Although UGBC is still in charge of a few campus activities, like the Annual Ball, CAB will take on the task of arranging all types of other activities, from concerts and guest speakers to Homecoming and adventures inside and outside of the city. Cocce said that she and her coworkers are excited about the switch to CAB, and they believe it will allow BC2Boston, as well as other subprograms, to expand greatly. “CAB helps us to have select departments that really can focus on what BC students want,” Cocce said. “Now, we have so much room to grow.” In fact, the department has already grown, as now a sister group called Beyond Boston has been created within the trips and excursions committee to further increase students’ opportunities to get off campus. Although there have been many departmental changes, BC2Boston has hit the ground running, offering numerous
See BC2Boston, B8
Jordan Pentaleri / Heights graphic
bc ignites aims to spark awareness
The discussion forum returns for a fourth installment, on mental health Albert Troccoli | for the heights
After a semester-long hiatus, BC Ignites will return to O’Neill Plaza this Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. to address the subject of mental health on campus. The organizers of the event say the topic is one of growing importance for the BC community. “In the last year alone we’ve seen mental health rise to the top of people’s heads— it’s something they want to talk about and better understand,” said Connor Bourff, the UGBC vice president of Student Initiatives. “We [UGBC] needed to do a better job in connecting students to the conversations that already exist, and we chose BC Ignites as a platform to do so.” Organizers expect a considerable number of people to show up and participate in this edition of BC Ignites. “We’ve had several hundreds of people participating at previous BC Ignites and we’re shooting for that same number,” Bourff said. “Something really nice about doing the event in O’Neill Plaza is that people sort of stumble into it even if they’re not aware of the conversation or are not planning on joining it, and they stop and listen.”
See BC Ignites, B9
Graham Beck / Heights Senior Staff
A BC student performed slam poetry at the GLBTQ BC Ignites forum.
Hispanic Heritage Month fosters sense of community By Samantha Costanzo Asst. Features Editor “Where I live, you greet each other as if you’re family,” said Frankie Bernardo, A&S ’15 and co-chair of Hispanic Heritage Month. “Everyone’s like, primo! Hermano! But when you get to BC, you’re literally fending for yourself now.” Helping to create a sense of family at Boston College, Hispanic or otherwise, is the driving force behind Hispanic Heritage Month, which Bernardo and Yolanda Bustillo, A&S ’16, have co-chaired this year. The celebration of Hispanic culture runs from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, but planning for the events has been in the works since last spring. “The first thing we think of is, ‘How is it going to connect to BC?’” Bernardo said. “While we might like that event, the BC community might not. They’re the first thing that comes to mind.” A student committee and faculty group both help plan events together, said Rosemary Concepcion, A&S ’15 and this year’s public relations director for Hispanic Heritage Month. “The bookends are always the biggest events,” Concepcion said, referring to the opening and closing ceremonies. This year’s theme is Cultura Sin Fronteras, or Culture Without Borders, and Concepcion
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said that it is visible in the amount of collaborations that have happened this year. The Philippine Society of BC will co-sponsor an event that talks about the meaning of identity, and groups like Sexual Chocolate participated in the opening ceremony by adding a bit of Latin flair to their routines. “They’ll dance to salsa music, or in their chant instead of saying ‘SC’ they say ‘chocolate,’’ Concepcion said. Bustillo said that the theme was designed to cast a wide net this year. “It all leads to reaching a broader community, creating lasting messages, and connecting with something global, something international,” Bustillo said. “So Cultura Sin Fronteras is something you see with your heritage at BC, but it also involves immigration issues. It’s very broad.” Maria Vasquez, A&S ’15 and president of the Cuban American Students’ Association, said that taking part in this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month collaborations has been an important step. “We really want to get closer to OLAA [the Office of Latin American Affairs] and work as partners so that we all support each other,” Vasquez said. “Unification is the number one thing.” She and CASA are hoping to put on
See Heritage, B9
Emily Fahey / Heights Editor
Participants in last year’s closing ceremony carried flags to represent their cultures.
Heights Through the Centuries The BC football team’s surprise win against USC isn’t the first upset in the team’s history........................................ B9
Foreign Affairs.........................B8 Editor’s Column............................B9