The Heights, Dec. 6, 2021

OPINIONS

Remembering WCAS Dean Rev. James A. Woods, S.J.

By megan Kelly News Editor

The decades-long tenure of Rev. James A. Woods, S.J., namesake of the Woods College of Advancing Studies, was marked by a forceful commitment to transforming the lives of the countless students who stepped into his office.

Woods retired after 44 years at Boston College to the Campion Center in Weston, Mass., where he passed away on Nov. 20.

As dean of the Woods College, Woods’ legacy is distinguished by the immense care and attention he paid to the individuals he knew and advised, according to Drew Havens, who arrived at Woods’ office in McGuinn Hall in 2007.

Havens, BC ’11, said he faced health and academic problems at the University of Colorado, so his mother, a BC graduate herself, directed him to Woods College. In the dean’s office, Woods reviewed the course catalog with Havens and found classes he thought were a fit for him.

“At the time, I didn’t have the perspective of really a strong mentor figure in academics,” Havens said. “I

really wanted to make him proud.”

Havens made the dean’s list at Woods and transferred into the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences, where he completed the rest of his degree in two years, he said. He graduated with honors from both BC and later, Georgetown University Law Center. Now, Havens serves as a public defender in Los Angeles.

“I am grateful for the opportunity the Woods School gave me to commit to a life of service,” he said.

“[Woods] was also very caring and loving and had a love for service and giving back to others. That’s the Jesuit way.”

The priest’s dedication to his community had an immense impact on individuals within the BC community, University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J., said in a release. Woods began his 44-year tenure as dean in 1968, making him the longest-serving dean in BC’s history.

“Fr. Woods was such a force for good at Boston College from the time he arrived on campus, always positive, caring, and helpful to those around him,” Leahy wrote. “Many benefited from his encouragement,

Newton Bans Nips

By Connor Siemien

For The Heights

The Newton Licensing Commission banned liquor stores and other retail businesses from selling “nips,” alcoholic beverages less than or equal to 100 milliliters, after June 30, 2022, Mayor Ruthanne Fuller announced in her update on Nov. 18.

With the ban, the city looks to eliminate environmental waste created by the miniature bottles, according to Emily Norton, a Ward 2 councilor who advocated for the ban.

“You can’t walk anywhere, really, without seeing, especially, nip bottles on the streets or in our parks or along the river,” Norton said.

Newton is not the first Massachusetts city to adopt the ban. Chelsea,

Wareham, and Mashpee have already banned the sale of nips or have a ban taking effect in the near future, according to a post by Green Newton, a local sustainability group.

Norton said eliminating the bottles is an easy way to cut down on pollution in the city. There was no study measuring the environmental impact of a potential ban in the city prior to its passage, according to Norton.

“I’ve been working on … reducing plastic pollution in general as a counselor and [in] my day job … so I really wanted to address that and when I heard that Chelsea had banned nips I thought ‘Well, why wouldn’t we be able to do that?’” Norton said.

especially to pursue education and earn degrees at BC. He enjoyed life, and I will always remember him as a faithful Jesuit and priest.”

Woods, who was 90 years old at the time of his passing, displayed the utmost commitment to his students, according to Sarah Piepgrass, assistant director of academic services in

Woods College.

He was the sole academic adviser at the college, she said, and stayed in his office until 10 p.m. each night so Woods College students—often working a day job or studying on a non-traditional schedule—could meet with him.

“With the students, he was a

combination of, I would say, cheerleader and taskmaster, depending on what they needed,” Piepgrass said.

This enthusiasm gave students the impetus to persevere in their education, Piepgrass said.

See Woods, A2

ARTS Student band Photo Negative played for a lively crowd at Paradise Rock Club on Saturday.

Columnist Sophie Carter argues that public transportation should be free.

Chestnut Hill, Mass.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LEE PELLEGRINI

p.m.

Roger the Beagle, Tuukka the Goldendoodle, and more members of the visiting therapy dog team in the Law Library hallway across from the main entrance on Monday and Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

BC Delegation Reflects on Experience at COP26

By Julia KiersznowsKi Assoc. News Editor

A group of Boston College faculty and students returned to campus with a host of new knowledge and perspectives about environmental policy after the University was invited for the first time to COP-26 in Glasgow, Ireland.

COP-26 is an annual United Nations conference on climate change that hosted around 25,000 people and 120 heads of state this year.

BC’s team, which was given observer status alongside other top research universities, attended negotiations, panels, and presentations focused on climate policy that took place from Oct. 31 to Nov. 12.

Philip Landrigan, director of BC’s global public health program and Global Pollution Conservatory, helped organize BC’s delegation.

Not only was BC’s invitation important as a recognition of its status as a research university, but the conference was also a transformative experience for the faculty and students that attended, he said.

“It was an extraordinary educational experience, both for the faculty and the Boston College students who were over there, just being in that space breathing the same air as people who are making these decisions is huge,” he said.

Julia Horchos, MCAS ’23, is one of the students who attended the conference.

She said that when BC found out just a month before the conference that it would be able to attend, it was a scramble to coordinate all of the plans.

“There were like 30,000 people rushing to Glasgow, which isn’t a super big town, to get housing for two weeks, so me and another student ended up staying in Edinburgh and we took the train in every day,” she said.

The BC delegation split up into two nine-person teams, one going the first week and one the second.

David Deese, a political science professor who led the second week’s delegation, said their first day at the conference was overwhelming—tens of thousands of demonstrators were on the streets of Glasgow to call for

leaders to make effective climate policy decisions.

“The first day was truly an emotional rollercoaster,” Deese said. “Once we arrived in Glasgow, there were good-spirited demonstrators everywhere. They were very peaceful, but it was a little bit overwhelming. And it made me feel like, ‘Where do I belong here? Should I be with the protestors or should I be in the conference?’”

The first two days Horchos was at the conference was the World Leaders Summit, where leaders such as President Joe Biden and Prince Charles spoke.

Horchos said it was frustrating that those with observer status—which is what university delegations are given—did not have clearance to attend those meetings.

“It was marketed like it was supposed to be this inclusive opportunity, and when it comes down to it, a lot of people who need to have their voices heard—mostly young people—aren’t able to get into those meetings, which is kind of frustrating,” she said.

Deese said entering the conference

was overwhelming because of how many different events there were to choose from.

Different countries and NGOs had their own pavilions where they would hold meetings and give presentations on various topics.

“Once we got in, it was totally sensory overload,” Deese said. “There were pavilions galore from many different countries [and] many different non-profits. … There were dozens and dozens of presentations and panels and briefings throughout each day.”

Cynthia Ma, MCAS ’22, said she applied to attend the conference because as an environmental studies major, her interest lies in the intersection of the environment and health.

She thought it would be a great opportunity to see how policy development in this sector happens at a global stage.

“Since there are so many things happening, I chose to focus on environmental health because it’s the most appealing to me,” Ma said. “So, I went and spent a lot of time at the World Health Organization pavilion and the

[Sustainable Development Goal 7] pavilion.”

Ma said the pavilion was the most fascinating for her because it focused on the health, energy, and gender nexus.

The presentations discussed household air pollution in developing countries, which happens to be Ma’s thesis topic.

Landrigan also pursued his passions through the conference, appearing virtually on a conference panel about ocean degradation and pollution.

“I would describe it as a thrilling experience to be on a world stage and have the chance to talk about something about which I’m very passionate and to present it to this audience of very distinguished, influential people,” Landrigan said. “And the hope is that by putting this information in front of the world’s policymakers … it’s the best way to bring about change.”

Read the rest of this story at www.bcheights.com

Longest-Serving Dean in BC History Passes Away at 90

Woods, from A1

“He could look you in the eye and say ‘You’re going to do this,’” she said. “‘You’re going to be fine. And it’s not going to be easy, but we’ll help you and you’re going to do it.’”

Woods retired from his position as dean in 2012—a farewell that was marked by a four-hour “Celebration of Gratitude” in Conte Forum in April of that year.

“Thousands of Woods College graduates cite him as the person who was most responsible for their professional success because he took the time to listen to, support, and encourage them on their respective journeys,” Associate Vice President for University Communications Jack Dunn wrote in an email to The Heights. “He was a wonderful dean and Jesuit.”

Dunn said that over the years he had the privilege to witness Woods’ interactions with prospective Woods College students.

“He was a great listener who was

always supportive, and whose counsel was so greatly valued because it was based solely on a sincere desire to help the individual to succeed,” Dunn wrote.

Woods’ contributions extended beyond the classrooms and offices of Woods College. Prior to his appointment as dean, Woods served as university registrar, centralizing and computerizing registration and financial aid before such methods were popular.

He later oversaw the creation of a 30-course undergraduate hybrid program in 1971. Twenty-five years later, the “Evening College,” as it was formerly called, added a graduate school and rebranded as the “College of Advancing Studies.”

In May of 2002, a donation from Katharine B. and Robert M. Devlin honored Woods as the college’s official namesake.

Woods’ decades-long career was also distinguished by numerous accolades. In 1996, Boston University awarded him with the Ida M. Johnston Alumni Award, which rec-

ognizes outstanding achievements in implementing higher education programs. Woods also received the Leadership Award in 2005 from the Association of Continuing Higher Education for his stewardship of diverse learning communities.

“His legacy is providing … a topnotch Boston College education to anyone who seeks it out at an affordable cost,” Havens said.

Paul Marzagalli met Woods between his junior and senior years in high school—in the summer of 1992—while he was attending a high school experience program at BC.

Woods, dean of the Evening College at the time, was one of the first people to welcome him to campus. From the outset, Marzagalli observed that Woods was an open and caring leader.

“He was your prototypical Jesuit,” Marzagalli said. “He was smart [and] approachable, mentoring as almost a default state. He helped set the tone of the people around him.”

It was Marzagalli’s participation in this summer program, the BC Experience, that inspired him to put BC at the top of his college list. In fact, he even attributes his experience with Woods as a reason that he’s a double BC alum, graduating with an undergraduate degree in 1997 and a masters in 2005.

Marzagalli said he also gained an appreciation for the dean through Woods’ relationship with his father, DeWayn Marzagalli, who began taking classes at the College of Advancing studies during Marzagalli’s sophomore year at BC. DeWayn Marzagalli, WCAS ’02, was a federal law enforcement officer whose relationship with Woods began in academic advising meetings about his degree, Marzagalli said.

The relationship grew beyond academics, according to Marzagalli,

and the two became close friends. Marzagalli said his father graduated with a degree in philosophy in 2002, the same year that the college added “Woods” to its name.

“He represented the idea that if you went to a Jesuit school, they would do their best to get your best out of you,” Marzagalli said.

Woods College Dean Karen Muncaster attested to Woods’ ability to take students under his wing and support them in both their personal and academic lives.

“Sometimes he would teach them, sometimes he would yell at them,” Muncaster said. “If they needed money, he would take it out of his own pocket.”

Woods would give out money that he raised or collected—by hunting for soda cans and turning them in for cash—to students for any reason, whether it be for textbooks or a babysitter, she said.

“It’s his vision that propels us now,” Muncaster said. “His vision was anybody who’s capable should be able to get a BC degree, no matter what their circumstances.”

Muncaster said that, beyond the countless lives he affected, Woods’ legacy also continues in new pro -

grams within the college, such as a service learning initiative Woods College plans to pilot in the spring.

“These are people who are smart, but life has just tripped them up,” Muncaster said. “And his thing was, ‘No, these are people who it’s our obligation as men and women for others to ensure that these students have an equal shot at an outrageously wonderful, rigorous Jesuit education.’”

Piepgrass said Woods never let appearances hold anyone back—he would help anyone find a way to do the work, all while maintaining a clear grasp and positive view of reality. Even as he neared retirement, this commitment never waivered, she said.

“In many ways, it’s easy to say, ‘be a man for others,’” she said. “But if anybody called him up and needed him … there was no hesitation.”

Marzagalli and Havens echoed Piepgrass’ sentiment, testifying to his widespread and extensive impact.

“They say never meet your heroes,” Marzagalli said. “He is the case where you meet him and your experience lives up to these expectations.” n

Meet

On Wednesday at 12

in Lower’s Newton Room, Urmi Dutta and Ronelle Carolissen, both psychology professors, will share stories of people marginalized through colonialism in the Global South.

Head to the Heights Room on Monday from 6 to 9:30 p.m. to visit BC’s pop-up thrift shop. The event, hosted by UGBC’s Environmental and Sustainability Division, BC’s Fashion Club, and EcoPledge, will be a fun way to shop sustainably from fellow Eagles.

Woods worked at the Woods College of Advancing Studies for 44 years.

STEVE MOONEY / HEIGHTS STAFF

Woods passed away on Nov. 20 at the Campion Center in Weston, Mass.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LEE PELLEGRINI

McDargh Shares Stories of Hope for World AIDS Day

By Natalie arNdt For The Heights amy Palmer Asst. News Editor

AIDS is not just an epidemic of tragedy but an epidemic of compassion, according to John McDargh, an associate professor of theology at Boston College.

“The stories I want to tell about [AIDS] are really the stories of what I saw of an epidemic, not just of tragedy, but also of courage and heroism and faithfulness, stories that often aren’t told enough,” he said.

McDargh shared those stories with the BC community on Wednesday—World AIDS Day—during a prayer service of hope hosted by Campus Ministry.

“So I want to talk a little bit about AIDS not from the perspective of science, but from the perspective of the heart—what it was like … when it was officially identified,” McDargh said.

McDargh told the story of the first BC student with AIDS—John Huffman. McDargh said Huffman was taking his intro to theology course when he was first diagnosed.

“What happened in those days is

people would go in, as he did because he had this really bad cough that didn’t seem to want to go away, and they gave him a diagnosis of AIDS,” he said.

Huffman tried to continue at BC, but ultimately decided to go home to California, McDargh said.

“His boyfriend did not do the ‘I’m sorry, this wasn’t part of the deal, I’m out of here,’’’ McDargh said. “It was ‘If you’re going to California, I’m going to California.’”

Huffman’s boyfriend stayed with him until the end, McDargh said, and after Huffman passed, the family made him a quilt.

The quilt became a part of the National AIDS Memorial Quilt in D.C., which is comprised of individual quilts.

According to McDargh, it has been a way for communities stricken by AIDS to capture people’s names and tell their stories.

“These quilts were just heartbreakingly beautiful and very, very particular,” he said.

McDargh noticed one man standing near a quilt for a long time.

McDargh later found out that the family of the man’s partner would not tell him where they buried his

partner’s body, so this was the only grave he had to visit.

The quilt is a prime example of the ways communities can rally together and take action, McDargh said.

“I have been thinking about the way in which people live lives of solidarity, and often the diagnosis or discovery that one had HIV was something that propelled people into a kind of passion and action,” he said.

McDargh told the story of another man, Bob Corey, who was diagnosed with AIDS.

Corey had been seeing a Catholic spiritual director who refused to continue counseling him after learning about his diagnosis.

McDargh said he ended up counseling Corey until the end of his life.

“I’m sure for every lady who got out of her seat or man who got out of his seat and said ‘I’m out of here,’ I know there are a great many more who said ‘I’m not going anywhere,’” McDargh said.

McDargh reminded attendees that there was an epidemic of courage and compassion amid the AIDS epidemic, and that is the story he wants people to know.

“The thing about these stories

is they really are about courage,” he said. “They really are about people showing up … and that maybe is the thing that we’ll want to take away from this.”

The talk was followed by a prayer service and a time for reflection.

Claire Johnson Allen, associate director of the BC Women’s Center, read Essex Hemphill’s “When My Brother Fell” and provided reflections on the poem in the context of World AIDS Day.

Ayana Henry, MCAS ’24, said McDargh’s talk helped her gain a new

perspective on an issue she did not know much about prior to the event.

“I think hearing the narratives— the personal narratives—really put faces to … what I thought was a general topic, and I thought that was really good,” Henry said. “The talk kind of helped me to view AIDS in a different way and a more compassionate way because it’s realizing that this actually affects real people.”

Read the rest of this story at www.bcheights.com

Sarr Talks Racism, Whiteness in U.S.

By Sofia laBoy For The Heights

CAROLINE CANNON / FOR THE HEIGHTS

Christmas Tree Lighting Brings Holiday Spirit to BC Campus

B y o livia S troNg Heights Staff

Christmas has officially arrived on the Heights. In a night full of hot cocoa, carols, giveaways, and photo opportunities, Boston College’s annual Christmas tree lighting brought the holiday spirit to campus.

“I’m just so excited because I like Christmas and BC is allowing me to really get into the Christmas spirit, even though finals are about to happen and there’s this impending doom,” Genna Goggins, MCAS ’24, said.

Students gathered outside on the O’Neill Plaza on Wednesday night to enjoy the event, which was organized by the Campus Activities Board (CAB). The tree lighting was a highly anticipated event—offering students a night to escape their workloads ahead of finals.

Eleanor Norberg, Lynch ’25, expressed her gratitude for the event. She said she believes the Christmas tree lighting was a needed break.

“I just think this is a great break from the stress of finals season,” she said. “I’m glad that it was put together

for us.”

As classes got out and the Quad filled, an electricity returned to campus that had been snuffed out in recent years due to COVID-19 limitations.

Students were drawn to the excitement of games and giveaways, enduring the cold temperatures to enjoy sipping hot chocolate while listening to Christmas carols.

Sophia Flotta, MCAS ’25, enjoyed the music and spirit that radiated campus during the event.

“Walking through the Quad with the music, it just put a smile on my face,” Flotta said.

Performances from the Heightsmen and the Boston College Dynamics opened the night.

They offered entertainment to students before the official ceremony began.

An inflatable slide offered students an opportunity to have fun and race their friends while waiting in line for a stuffed animal or t-shirt.

CAB offered plenty of photo opportunities throughout the night, including standing within a snowglobe,

posing with an ice sculpture of Gasson Hall, or sitting on Santa’s lap.

Each of these attractions was a hit, drawing in crowds of people.

Eventually, the call of photo opportunities and games could no longer take students away from what they were really there for: the Christmas tree lighting.

As a crowd gathered around the tree, University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J., addressed the crowd.

“I am grateful to all of you for being here and joining in, for helping our community be strong in the midst of all the pressures that come from COVID-19,” Leahy said.

Leahy explained how the tree lighting ceremony connects to BC’s mission.

“We gather for this ceremony and it reminds us about the roots of Boston College, our heritage as a community of faith that is built around the belief in the saving mission of Christ and what we all share no matter what our faith is,” he said.

As the magic words “let there be light” echoed throughout the Heights, the tree lit up, calling a start to the

In light of recent court cases, Akua Sarr discussed the role whiteness plays in racism in the United States, asking students to consider their relationship with whiteness in their personal lives and the media.

“Whiteness and white racialized identity is at the core of understanding racism in America,” Sarr, the vice provost for undergraduate academic affairs, said. “It is this normalization of white racial identity that has created a culture where non-white people are seen as inferior.”

On Nov. 30, a group of students and faculty members gathered for a talk on the social construction of whiteness led by Courageous Conversations, a program that aims to ignite dialogue about race and identity at Boston College. Sarr said that the kind of language used in relation to whiteness—terms such as white supremacy, white privilege, and white fragility—is often misunderstood.

“We’re not using these terms to try to make white people feel ashamed,” Sarr said. “It’s not about putting others down. It’s not about white hatred. When we’re talking about whiteness and the social construction of whiteness, we’re referring to the way that white people’s customs and beliefs operate as a standard by which all other groups are compared in this country.”

The organizers then showed a video clip from the 1996 movie A Time to Kill. The movie deals with racial tensions and equality in the judicial system, telling the story of a Black father who shoots his daughter’s rapists.

The event organizers separated the room into five tables of students,

each led by a member of Courageous Convesations who initiated dialogue. Each group later shared what its table discussed.

Most groups examined the parallels between the events in the clip and flaws in the current judicial system by discussing the murders of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd as well as the Kyle Rittenhouse case. Additionally, tables talked about the movie’s flawed representation of white saviorism in the media.

Another event organizer played a clip titled “It’s Impossible to Imagine Trump Without the Force of Whiteness.” In this two-minute video published by The Atlantic, writer Ta-Nehisi Coates argued the rise of former President Donald Trump was rooted in tribalism and white supremacy.

Once again, the students had separate conversations about the video before regrouping to reflect on their discussions.

Many groups said the video highlights how the Trump presidency used whiteness to establish power by appealing to white Middle American voters who were discontent with the previous presidency.

Some tables argued that Trump tried to associate whiteness with patriotism and that Trump’s rhetoric on the promotion of whiteness allowed for events such as the U.S. Capitol storming on Jan. 6.

Sarr then asked everyone in the room to acknowledge their own privilege and prejudices. Often, Sarr said, we do not think of ourselves in terms of the privilege and power we have.

Read the rest of this story at www.bcheights.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN MCDARGH John McDargh saw the effects of AIDs at BC throughout the epidemic.

Newton Home Prices Boom Amid the Pandemic

By Victor Stefanescu Asst. News Editor

The median sales price of single-family homes has nearly doubled in Newton in the last 10 years, according to a report that the city’s Assessors’ Office released on Nov. 15.

The median sales price in the city in 2021 through September increased by 91.3 percent since 2012. Ten years ago, the median sales price of a single-family home was $784,010, compared to $1,500,000 this year.

For Rick Lipof, vice president of Newton City Council and chair of the Land Use Committee, the rising sales prices are both positive and negative for the city.

“We want opportunities for all, and I get that and that’s the negative,” Lipof said. “But I also am getting a little tired of feeling guilty or bad about it. Because who wants to live in a city where values are going in the other direction? If that was happening, it would mean that something was wrong with our city, that our school system was faltering, that crime was increasing.”

Four factors make Newton attractive to potential homeowners, according to Lipof, who also owns Lipof Real Estate Services.

“We’re made up of villages,” Lipof said. “We don’t feel like a city. We’re close to Boston. We have an incredible school system.”

The increase in sales prices in Newton reflects trends throughout Massachusetts and the country.

In Massachusetts, the typical value of a single-family home increased from $305,000 in January of 2012 to $595,000 by August 2021—an increase of 73.5 percent, according to Zillow.

The median sales price increased by 17.8 percent more in Newton than in the rest of the state.

Lipof said the higher increase in Newton compared to the rest of Massachusetts is partly the result of the pandemic.

More home buyers are choosing to purchase homes in the suburbs, Lipof said.

“People stayed and didn’t put their houses in the market,” Lipof said. “But we still had that group of people who were desperately trying to get into the suburbs to have the deck, to have the backyard, to have the school system, to make that move sooner than they would [before the pandemic] because they wanted to get out of the city.”

Median sales prices of single-family homes in the United States increased by 94.1 percent from 2012 to August 2021—from approximately $187,400 to $363,800— according to Statista.

The increase in median value in Newton is 2.8 percent larger than the U.S. increase.

The biggest year-to-year increase in Newton, within the 12-year period, occurred during the pandemic. Sales prices increased by 15.7 percent between 2020 and September of 2021 to $1,500,000.

In addition to the effects of the pandemic, new and refurbished homes in Newton are attracting homeowners, according to Melvin A. Vieira Jr., the president-elect of

the Greater Association of Boston Realtors and a realtor with RE/MAX Destiny.

“You have the housing stock being turned to new, you have more buyers in the market, and you have … people who, … want to move back in the neighborhood,” Viera said.

Within Newton, the Assesors’ Office valued median sales prices highest in West Newton followed by Chestnut Hill, according to the report.

Single-family homes were assessed lowest in Nonantum, according to the report. No single-family homes sold for under $400,000, according to the report.

Vieira said that rising sales prices push people out of Newton.

“Without housing, without keeping people within the communities, you lose the community,” Vieira said. “It’s not a community anymore. It’s just a group of people.”

Creating housing through affordability programs is one way for the city to combat rising costs, Lipof said.

“We approved a whole new neighborhood that’s going to be built on Needham Street called Northland,” he said. “These developments come with 17 and a half percent of the units being truly affordable and under affordability programs. And we’re proud of that, but we need to create the middle market units.”

In addition to affordable housing, Lipof said Newton should approve developments bringing middle-rung housing, ranging from $350,000 to $750,000, to the village centers.

One way to add this middle-tier housing, Lipof said, is for the city to build taller buildings.

“I’d like to change our zoning, where we will allow more height and therefore units above all of our retail buildings in all of our city centers,” Lipof said. “That’s the way it was back in the 1920s.”

Newton homes are also staying on the market longer, according to Vieira.

He said homes are averaging 58 days on the market now, as opposed to just 20 days in 2020.

Vieira encouraged potential sellers to be intentional about their listings.

“Anybody who’s putting their home on the market, my suggestion to them is [to] make sure they price it right and price it accordingly so they can get it sold,” he said. n

City Councilor, Businesses Reflect on Nips Ban

Norton said that one Newton business she spoke to, Marty’s Fine Wines, showed support for the ban.

But not all local alcohol vendors were as enthusiastic about it.

Eric Gharzaryan, owner of Newton Warehouse Wine & Spirits on Centre Street, said nips help keep his store in business.

“We actually stay in business based on [the nips], wine, and others, but [the nips] make up 10 or 15 percent [of our sales],” he said.

Gharzaryan said the ban presents both potential benefits and drawbacks.

He said he is unsure if the ban really will benefit the environment.

“I truly believe … it’s the size [of the bottle] on the ground that is going to get bigger, rather than being a 50 [milliliter] it’s going to be 100 milliliter plus.”

Additionally, Gharzaryan said the ban could encourage customers to drink more.

“[The ban] has a bright and dark side,” Gharzaryan said. By eliminating the 50 [milliliter], you’re forcing me to drink more, because the size is bigger,” Gharzaryan said.

For Gharzaryan, the ban’s future effects on his business are uncertain, but

he said his business would “rise again.”

“I’m not sure how [business] is going to be after [the ban],” Gharzaryan said.

“Hopefully the larger bottles will cover the end of the business, but we’ll see what happens,” Gharzaryan said. “… I don’t think we’re going to get destroyed, … but it’s definitely going to lead to a dent on our financial end.”

Looking to the future, Norton said that she hopes Newton serves as an example for other jurisdictions in Massachusetts.

The city is the biggest in the state to approve such a ban, she said.

“I am hoping that this will serve as an example to othewr communities [so] that they’ll want to [implement a nips ban],” Norton said. n

Nips, from A1

Green Newton praised the new ban.

“We can look forward to fewer of these bottles littering our roadways and

parks, and result in less plastic pollution in our environment … through the initiative of Councilors Alison Leary, Andrea Kelley, and Emily Norton,” read the post.

CONNOR SIEMIEN / FOR THE HEIGHTS

Poster outside a Newton liquor store promotes responsible disposal of nip bottles.

PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Liquor Stores in Newton will be banned from selling nips after June 30, 2022.

LIZ SCHWAB / FOR THE HEIGHTS

The median sales price of single-family homes has nearly doubled in Newton in the last 10 years.

Pop-Up Art Shop Opens In Newton for the Holidays

By Josie McNeill Asst. Metro Editor

Just in time for the holiday season, the New Art Shop is open at Trio Newton with an array of local, handmade products for gifting. The pop-up store, open Friday through Sunday from Nov. 19 to Dec. 12, is meant to pilot an arts cooperative in Newton before the shop opens permanently at Trio.

“We’re sort of doing a soft launch thing [at] the market with the nine shopping days leading up to the holidays…”

Emily O’Neil, executive director of New Art said. “And our hope is that at the end of the nine days, we’ll find that the opportunity was successful and people really liked doing it.”

The shop, which sells items from handmade bracelets to pottery and knitwear, aims to promote local artists whose work could not easily be sold during the pandemic. All of the art sold at the shop is made by artists from Massachusetts, with about 60 percent from Newton, according to O’Neil.

“These are real people making real work,” O’Neil said. “And creating a showpiece or a place for people to exhibit creates visual value of the role of arts and culture in the community.”

One artist displaying work at the shop, Ellen Weinberg, started doing pottery 10 years ago as a hobby to fill her free time.

“I’m a retired physician, and when I was still practicing I was looking for something to do outside of my practice, and then as I retired I got more interested in it,” Weinberg said.

According to Weinberg, her pottery has been selling out quickly at New Art. She also loves the venue of a pop-up shop because she has the opportunity to meet the people buying her art.

“I love the idea of putting my pieces into people’s homes, so it gives me great joy to meet people who are potentially buying my pieces,” Weinberg said.

Another benefit of the shop, according to Weinberg, is that a percentage of the profits go toward the New Art Center, a non-profit organization for arts education.

“We’re very much a community

arts organization, so we offer both paid programming and free programming on a scholarship basis, so we are looking to make art inclusive,” Aimee Anderson, a member of the Board of Governors for the New Art Center, the organization that owns the shop, said.

According to O’Neil, the prices of the products at the shop range from $10 to $3,000, with an average cost of about $30.

According to Anderson, the board chose artists to feature in the shop based on their website and social media presence in addition to their artwork.

“We were just really looking for a good mix of different kinds of art and also at different price points—so, things that could be gifted—because this is a holiday popup, and we wanted an opportunity to hang some of the 2D art that is more traditional to the New Art Center,” Anderson said.

The New Art Center’s location at Trio was originally used as an overflow classroom for arts classes, according to O’Neil. During the pandemic, the center realized that the Trio space would be more beneficial as a shop that could promote

local artists.

“We realized that it would be a better use of space to turn it into a co-op store where we can meet the need that we saw in the community of selling work locally,” O’Neil said.

O’Neil emphasized the importance of showing support at the pop-up shop

for the artists as well as the future of the New Art store.

“We just need people to come shop local and you know the success of the next shopping days will really help us evaluate how to make this a formal program to really support the community,” O’Neil said. n

Double Zero Arrives in Boston’s Plant-Based Food Scene

By Anthony Yang For The Heights

Double Zero, a New York-based vegan pizzeria and wine bar that opened on July 9, brings innovative doughs and Italian-inspired recipes to Newbury Street. Beyond the pizza, the restaurant offers customers an inviting atmosphere, according to Cristopher Wagner, the vice president for development at Matthew Kenny Cuisine (MKC).

“Double Zero provides a familiar and approachable atmosphere, where most people enjoy gathering over pizza and wine,” he said.

Double Zero is Matthew Kenny’s first project in Boston. The plant-based celebrity chef’s company has holdings in 25 cities around the world, according to its website. Like the other restaurants belonging to the company, Double Zero invites in everyone, Wagner said.

“Our Double Zero brand and entire company are plant-based, and this was one of our first brands to be replicated in [multiple] cities,” he said.

The interior of Double Zero feels warm. Comfy chairs surround lengthy high top tables that seem to be built for congregating. Speakers booming rap music and an open kitchen create an en-

ergetic vibe inside. Panels of wine bottles lining the walls remind customers that they are in a wine bar. Nothing in the restaurant seems to be out of place, nor any of the menu items.

“The cuisine of Double Zero is Italian, with a focus on innovative pizzas,” Matthew Kenny said. “We draw inspiration from classic dishes but use our unique approach and technique to replicate flavors and sensations, but only using plantbased ingredients. We also offer pastas, calzones, salads, and incredible desserts.”

Double Zero prides itself on its signa ture dough, Kenny said.

“We do not have a signature pizza,

though we do have a signature dough, and I believe that is something that makes our pizza so unique and cravable,” Kenny said.

That dough is light and crispy. The truffle pizza, featuring wild mushrooms, cashew cream, kale, and lemon vinaigrette, has an acidic tang to it. The best part? The pizza gives customers a unique flavor profile without that bloated feeling.

Kenny said the COVID-19 pandemic put a pause on the restaurant’s construc-

that we have included at this Double Zero location,” Kenny said. “Some of those include QR menus and ordering and enhanced delivery options.”

In the future, Kenny said he looks forward to offering more plant-based options in Boston.

“We just want to thank the Boston area for such a warm welcome and showing the need for great plantbased options,” Kenny said. “We look

noodles,” Gupta said. “You know, we never tried it before. We like a lot of Thai food and all you know, but we never tried any kind of Japanese cuisine. I wanted to introduce the kids to some kind of a different cuisine as well.”

The restaurant, located on Beacon Street and wedged between Sycamore

The menu is down to earth as well. Just a front and a back, the restaurant advertises only six ramens ranging from $12.50 to $14.50 before any add-ons. The restaurant serves three appetizers: a pork bun, fried oysters, and Japanese deep fried chicken, all priced under $7.

The spicy miso ramen, a trademark bowl at restaurants throughout the Boston area, tasted more balanced than

it looks like the ambience is nice, the location is nice,” he said. “If the food continues to be like this, and with the good service, I’m sure, you know, it’s going to be a good one.” n

JOSIE MCNEILL / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Prints, crafts, and artisan clothing fills the floor of the New Art Store.

AGAZINE

Homemade on the Heights: Baked Brie With Jam

By Emma hEaly Sports Editor

The weeks separating Thanksgiving and Christmas have always been a favorite time of mine. As those weeks passed during my first year at Boston College, I found myself longing for the comfort of watching lake-effect snow fall outside my kitchen window while holiday treats turned golden in the oven. As I grew more and more homesick, my saving grace came in the form of a visit to a friend’s house for our version of Christmas dinner in the middle of finals week. Lake-effect snow is unique to the Great Lakes region, but at that dinner, I returned to the cozy feeling I was so used to finding at home.

Part of the reason for that feel-

ing was something entirely foreign to me: baked brie. As we sat around exchanging secret Santa gifts, my friend’s mom placed a dome of perfectly cooked puff pastry on the coffee table in front of us. As she cut into it, melted brie combined with raspberry jam poured out, and the five of us devoured it in what felt like seconds. This version of baked brie has just three ingredients—puff pastry, a wheel of brie cheese, and raspberry jam—but its simple recipe is deceptive, as the dish packs a punch for any holiday party.

DISH: Baked Brie with Raspberry Jam

INGREDIENTS:

1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, slightly thawed

1 wheel of brie cheese, approximately 8 ounces

Raspberry jam to your liking

RECIPE:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a baking sheet.

Lay out the puff pastry on the prepared baking sheet.

Place 1 wheel of brie (any size, but the one I used was approximately 8 ounces) in the center of the puff pastry.

Spread raspberry jam on top of the wheel of brie. I prefer a generous layer of jam.

Fold the corners of the puff pastry into the center.

Bring up the other edges of the puff pastry to the center so that it completely covers the brie. You may

By Erin FlahErty For The Heights

The onset of COVID-19 forced many office workers to quickly adapt to the work-from-home lifestyle. But who’s to say that these workers will return to the office as conditions return to normal? Furthermore, who’s to say that work-from-home workers actually have to work from their own homes?

ing the new normal of working from home sparked an idea for Brett and Harrington—they started renting properties with their friends through Vrbo and Airbnb for four to eight weeks at a time. This would allow them to live and work together in locations away from home—essentially, they organized a group “workcation.” These trips became the inspiration for the creation of their company, Dryfter.

The now-cofounders of Dryfter met during their sophomore year at Boston College when Harrington transferred into BC and was placed in Brett’s room in Vanderslice Hall. But starting a business together hadn’t always been the end goal, they said. After graduation, Brett, a computer science major, went on to work for a computer software company, while Harrington, an economics major, entered the financial services industry.

It wasn’t until COVID-19 forced both out of the office that the pair pivoted their careers to begin developing Dryfter. After experiencing “workcations” themselves through renting Vrbo and Airbnb properties, Brett and Harrington saw the opportunity to design properties tailored to a remote worker, rather than just a traveler.

Ensuring that their properties are properly configured for remote workers is a key part of Dryfter’s value proposition, they said. Harrington and Brett make sure that their properties have a dedicated co-working space, private offices for calls, quality monitors, and a strong internet connection.

need to seal the edges by pinching them together.

Flip the puff pastry with the brie inside upside down, setting the seam side down on the baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 35 to 40 minutes or until it has formed a golden-brown dome. Cool for 5 minutes before serving with your choice of crackers. n

BC Alums Reimagine Remote Working With Dryfter

These were the questions that Daniel Brett and Robert Harrington, both BC ’18, found themselves asking as they observed how the pandemic was redefining preconceived notions of what it means to be a remote worker. Brett and Harrington were not alone when their jobs moved from in person to remote— all of their friends shared the same fate.

As the pandemic wore on, navigat-

“Dryfter, as succinctly as possible, is a dedicated housing platform for remote workers,” Brett said. “People are going to want to spend extended periods of time in cool and interesting geographies across the U.S., and they want to make sure that wherever they are, whatever property they’re at, regardless of the size of the group, it’s well equipped for working from home.”

“Our whole goal is, regardless of what property you’re at in the Dryfter network ... and regardless of the size of the group that you’re with, [is that] you’re going to have a pleasant working-from home-experience,” Brett said.

Dryfter is targeted toward individuals that Brett and Harrington refer to as “Dryfters” or digital nomads—workers that have no strong geographical ties and therefore can travel to wherever they want to work from.

Niche categories of workers, such as freelancers or entrepreneurs, certainly fit these definitions before COVID-19, but the pandemic has expanded the breadth of the digital nomad community, especially for professions in the technology field, Harrington said.

So far, there are two Dryfter properties—one in Austin, Texas and one in Boulder, Colo.—but more are in the works. When brainstorming cities for their properties, Brett and Harrington said that they don’t look to tier-one metropolitan areas, but rather cities that are located near popular recreational activities. For example, a Dryfter who is

interested in skiing could work from the Boulder house and have access to the area’s skiing locations.

“So far, we’ve had some really, really interesting guests,” Harrington said. “We have a group of New Zealand entrepreneurs that are living in our Boulder house currently and launching their U.S. operations as well as … Tesla workers in Austin that came down to do some onsite work.”

Although neither co-founder was directly involved with the entrepreneurship community while they were students at BC, Harrington mentioned that he was able to take classes outside of his major that sparked his interest in entrepreneurship. One of those courses was Entrepreneurial Management in the Carroll School of Management.

“I thought it was really cool to … learn everything that goes into setting

nesses,” Brett said. “So I think that’s been really encouraging to see and kind of cool that … there are some exciting platforms and programs coming from the Boston College alumni and community.”

Brett and Harrington originally went through the SSC Venture Partners program with another idea that involved working with local restaurants to create meal kits to sell to local residents. They pivoted to creating Dryfter at the start of 2021 when they realized how valuable a targeted housing platform would be for the growing digital nomad community.

Although Brett and Harrington didn’t go through the SSC Venture Partners program with Dryfter in mind, the access the pair had to valuable connections, resources, and crucial mentors from the program later helped Dryfter get its footing, they said. Justin Robinson, BC ’11 and co-founder of Drizly,

up a business,” Harrington said. “ I think that’s kind of what really sparked my interest in this world.”

But after graduating, Brett and Harrington became involved with BC’s entrepreneurial community. Around the end of 2020, they became involved with the SSC Venture Partners incubator program, which provides undergraduate and post-graduate students with a network of entrepreneurs and investors who aid the start-up process.

“Recently with the Boston College community, [we’ve] seen a much stronger network … as it relates to entrepreneurship and startups and starting busi-

an alcohol delivery service which was recently acquired by Uber, has acted as a key mentor for Brett and Harrington since they started Dryfter in June of 2020, they said.

Through Robinson, the co-founders connected with Rich Kim, BC ’15, who invests in early stage companies like Dryfter and has been a key mentor, investor, and adviser to Brett and Harrington.

The warm, salty brie melts perfectly into a puddle of tart raspberry jam. Read the rest of this story at www.bcheights.com

Dryfter lets customers work remotely while enjoying a vacation-like stay.

GRAPHIC BY ANNIE CORRIGAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR

PHOTO COURTESY OF ROBERT HARRINGTON AND DANIEL BRETT

PHOTO COURTESY OF ROBERT HARRINGTON AND DANIEL BRETT

PHOTO COURTESY OF ROBERT HARRINGTON AND DANIEL BRETT Harrington and Brett started Dryfter after the pandemic shifted working conditions.

By Mitch collins For The Heights

On Saturday evening, Robsham Theater was abuzz with activity and anticipation for the second and final showcase of Boston College’s Week of Dance. A culmination of an intense week of workshops and rehearsals, the performances exhibited the talents of BC’s numerous student dance groups.

Fuego del Corazón kicked the performances off with an energetic and electrifying performance to a medley of songs.

Franciel Guillen, dancer in Fuego and MCAS ’22, said that the show celebrates an important part of BC culture.

“It’s a must watch. Either you go to the workshops, the performances, or dancing with the scholars. It’s an essential part of going to BC,” Guillen said. “You can’t graduate without attending Week of Dance.”

The BC Dance Ensemble (BCDE) followed, showing off their expertise with a graceful routine to James Bay’s “Hold Back the River.” Each group brought high levels of energy with their own unique dance style. Synergy Hip Hop Dance

Company gave a passionate performance and related to the audience with a dance to the popular TikTok song “Best Friend,” by Saweetie and Doja Cat.

Transitioning from the field of Alumni Stadium, The Golden Eagles Dance Team stepped on stage next, inspiring the spirit it usually evokes at football games. Then came the Dance Organization of BC (DOBC) with its first appearance of the evening, mesmerizing the audience with its expertly synced routine.

Some groups chose to enhance their routines with themed costumes and music. Full Swing followed with its first performance of the night, themed around 1980s dance workouts to a medley of hits from the decade.

BCDE exhibited a winning mixture of poise and attitude as its members danced to a variety of Nelly Furtado tracks. Making their routine stick out with creative choreography formations, BC On Tap gave a sparkling performance with a miniature tap dance battle.

Phaymus Dance Entertainment followed with brilliantly energetic choreography to Beyonce’s “Upgrade U.”

Full Swing returned to the stage for

a traditional swing routine to Dua Lipa’s “Levitating.” Masti brought breathtaking energy as they danced to the beats of Bollywood tunes. BC Irish Dance also brought intense energy that spread to the audience as members danced to the Dropkick Murphys’ “Shipping Up to

Boston.”

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, last year’s Week of Dance events were canceled, and the weekend’s shows marked a return to this annual tradition for dance groups.

“It was also just nice to be in a performance space, especially after last year. We really missed the crowd,” said Gia Mitcham, dancer in Masti and MCAS ’23. “I think we all forgot how much of an adrenaline rush the crowd can give you during a performance.”

Documentary Screening Shares Gun Violence’s Effects

By Josie Mcneill Asst. Metro Editor

Philadelphia is often called the “City of Brotherly Love,” but it is also a city where gun violence threatens the everyday lives of its youth.

In the documentary Our Philadelphia , filmmakers Kashmir Alston, Melvin Floyd, and Jaylen Frisby, three former students at Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School, explore how their classmates cope with the trauma of gun violence.

The filmmakers interviewed other students at Boys Latin after the deaths of three of their classmates in separate shootings, within two years.

Nora Gross, the producer of the film and Boston College visiting assistant professor of sociology, led the screening of the documentary

on Friday. She began the event by talking about her Enduring Questions class, Grief and Resistance: Social Responses to American Gun Violence.

“As we’ve been discussing in my class, gun violence does not just wreak havoc on a body, wounding it in ways that transform how someone can live, or pulling life from it completely,” Gross said. “It injures communities, communities of friends, classrooms, school communities, neighborhoods.”

Our Philadelphia begins with the students telling what seems to be different perspectives of the death of one classmate, but the audience is left in shock as a sentence flashes across the screen: “It sounds like one story, but we’re all speaking about different friends.”

In the film, one student, Elijah McFarland, speaks about how common it was to hang out with a

classmate one day and see them die the next. At one point, he lists the names of people he has known who were killed by gun violence, counting them off on his fingers.

The film also addresses how gun violence affects mental health, as many of the students said they experienced depression.

Other students said the death of their classmates motivated them to work harder to be able to leave the place that caused them so much trauma. The documentary shows that gun violence will continue to affect generations of people unless major changes are made.

The screening was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Robert O. Motley, Jr., BC professor of social work. The panel also featured Frisby and Christina Cho, a former Boys’ Latin teacher.

The panel discussed topics such as what changes could be made to

cities like Philadelphia to permanently stop the type of trauma students like Frisby experienced.

“And I think that by bolstering our community organization involvement, we would have been able to reach more students for a longer period of time,” Cho said.

Frisby also said that stopping the trauma that stems from gun violence depends on support systems

people have in their lives. According to Frisby, the effects of gun violence could be mitigated with compassion and support from others.

“Honestly, it just comes down to us loving each other ... understanding that we are human beings first and foremost,” Frisby said. “That at some point, at any point, we can always come back together and unify no matter what situation.” n

Photo Negative Shines at Famed Paradise Rock Club

By Paterson tran For The Heights

A long line stretched from the front doors of famed Paradise Rock Club down Commonwealth Ave. as eager fans waited to be admitted into the venue on Saturday night. The club’s

“Wall of Fame” exhibits the dozens of music legends that have performed in the venue, from Etta James to Aerosmith.

The Boston College student band, Photo Negative, joined the ranks of groups that have taken the stage at Paradise Rock Club, as they performed

for a sold-out crowd on Saturday. Photo Negative opened for the band, Juice, which is composed of BC alumni.

Photo Negative, along with the Boston-based band, Couch, opened for Juice on the tour for its new album, Boy Story. Amid blue and pink strobe lights and large signs held by fans, Pho-

to Negative dominated with its stage presence, performing both original songs and covers. The band covered songs including Tom Petty’s “American Girl.”

Photo Negative’s original works drew loud cheers. The band showed off new and upcoming releases, including, “NBN,” “Whatever Floats Your Boat,” and its latest track, “Ant Song,” released at midnight last Thursday.

The band’s music rocked the hall with passionate vocals. Guitarist and vocalist Matthew Hogan, CSOM ’22, had his guitar string break before the band’s final song, but he recovered quickly and told the crowd he was grateful he didn’t forget his backup guitar.

The pop soul band, Couch, followed Photo Negative, performing renditions of “Toxic” by Britney Spears, along with original songs, such as “Stand Up.”

Juice’s dynamic set, colorfully illuminated and blending rock and hip-hop, debuted Boy Story, its new album, in its entirety

Hogan said that Photo Negative got the opportunity to open the show when they had a lucky encounter with some band members of Juice at a BC football game tailgate. BC Athletics hired Photo Negative to perform at the

Family Weekend football game against Missouri on Maloney Lawn, Hogan said.

Photo Negative, has been together since the fall of 2019. Nicholas Straub, bassist and MCAS ’23, remarked on the growth that would accompany the Saturday show.

“This semester’s been really good for the band because we’re finally able to [perform] more,” Straub said. “It used to be just in basements and with friends we know. … We’re in charge of it more—we know what to play.”

Hogan expressed his enthusiasm for the increased visibility he said he hopes follows the Paradise Rock Club show.

“It’s our biggest crowd to date,” Hogan said. “We usually max 100 people.”

Alongside Hogan and Straub, the band consists of Benjamin Crandall, guitarist, vocalist and CSOM ’23, Éamon Laughlin, drummer and MCAS ’22, and Stephen Ventura, saxophonist and CSOM ’22.

“As far as next semester goes, because we got the Juice opener, I’m just going to keep reaching out with people I want to open for, play with,” Hogan said. “It’s pretty much a shoot for the moon … the hope is someone to maybe notice our music.”

Masti, a Bollywood fusion dance troupe, took the stage for its lively performances backed by energizing music.

ADITYA RAO / HEIGHTS STAFF

DOBC rounded out the night with a routine to Sia’s “Cheap Thrills.”

The five members of Photo Negative commanded the historic venue, playing a variety of cover songs and originals.

LEO WANG / HEIGHTS STAFF

Panel members discussed changes they want to be made in their community.

‘Passing’ Presents a Vibrant Adaptation of Beloved Book

a toy store, shopping for her two children on an unusually hot day.

Dressed in all white, Irene keeps her gaze low and her cartwheel hat lower, aware that no one in the

store has recognized her as a Black woman. Just when the audience learns that Irene keeps a low profile to avoid racist treatment, Irene sits in the grand dining room of the Drayton Hotel, right in the view of a platinum blonde who cannot seem to look away. Irene tenses up until this mysterious woman says, “Of course I know you, Rene.”

The new film Passing , released Oct. 27 on Netflix, follows Irene and her childhood friend Clare Kendry (Ruth Negga) as they navigate the world and their relationship with their racial identities in 1920s Chicago and New York City. Both are African American women, but Clare “passes,” presenting herself as a white woman, while Irene does not. The film—directed by Rebecca Hall—is a vibrant adaptation of Nella Larsen’s novella with the same title, which was published in 1929.

The opening introduces the crux of the film: Clare’s choice to leave behind her childhood in Harlem and pass as a white woman, leaving Irene to question Clare’s decisions and her own personal identity. The adaptation beautifully tells the story with bravura as it asks important questions about racial identity.

As the story progresses, Irene and Clare’s complex relationship unravels, as Clare begins following Irene around her Harlem neighborhood in hopes of reconnecting with her racial roots. The theme of colorism—discrimination against people with dark skin—arises when Clare is admired by Irene’s family, including from her faithful husband Brian (André Holland). What transpires is a rich series of dialogue that includes a jumbled mix of envy, second thoughts, and social politics.

The cast of Passing develops

complex emotional dimensions for each character and offers viewers insight into the characters’ individual motivations. Thompson delivers a poignant performance as she communicates Irene’s conflicted feelings towards her old friend Clare and is a delight to watch on screen. Negga relies on an ostentatious vocal inflection and spot-on facial expressions to give the audience a persona that exudes confidence, a direct contrast to the more reserved Irene.

Finally, the steady directorial hand from first-time director Hall creates a gradual buildup of conflict in the film, but the pacing never feels sluggish as more details about the women’s lives arise. Hall holds each audience member’s hand, effortlessly guiding them from scene to scene as Irene’s and Clare’s stories unfold. n

Adele Returns With Emotional Fervor on New Album

By Charley Conroy Heights Staff

It’s going to be impossible to avoid 30 by Adele for at least the next few months. Her songs will likely dominate the radio stations and popular Spotify playlists. One of the biggest artists in the world has come back with a new record released on Nov. 19, after her album 25 set the world on fire. 30 doesn’t quite live up to the hype of her previous record, but Adele still manages to make a dramatic return to the music world—delivering an emotionally rich catalogue of songs.

Although Adele has proven herself to be one of the best vocalists of the last decade, one of the most disappointing aspects of 30 is the singer’s vocal performance. It’s not that she sounds bad on 30. It’s just that she doesn’t push herself as far as she has in the past. There

aren’t many of the standout moments that Adele is known for, such as the memorable crescendos in the choruses of “Rolling in the Deep” and “When We Were Young.”

Adele’s new songs don’t build up to sudden high notes or intense moments of drama. “Easy On Me” is one of the few tracks where it sounds like she’s giving an iconic Adele vocal performance, but the backup vocals and instrumentation drown her out at times.

Despite falling short with her vocal performance, the new album highlights Adele’s lyrical evolution as she explores new topics in her songs. Multiple songs on 30 are concerned with the struggles of being a parent. “My Little Love” paints the picture of a depressed mother trying desperately to hide her pain from her son. Recurring feelings of exhaustion and pain arise in Adele’s lyrics. She writes about the painful

experience of her recent divorce with “Love Is A Game” and “Woman Like Me.” With her soulful voice, she expresses frustration with the growing emotional disconnect between her and her partner.

Adele also adds an experimental element to the album by adding natural soundbytes to some of the songs. In “My Little Love,” Adele uses voice recordings of her son to depict their close relationship and ends the track with a powerful voicemail. It’s an interesting look into the singer’s personal life, depression, and her relationship with her son. In an interview with Vogue, Adele said that the choice to include this audio was inspired by rappers Tyler, the Creator and Skepta.

Adele’s 30 might stick around longer than it should. There are not a lot of the big moments she’s known for and the second half of the album

becomes repetitive. But, the occasional moments of high drama and the raw emotion on a lot of these

tracks make the inevitable next year of Adele on the radio much more manageable. n

Best Non-Holiday Movies To Watch This Season

By Katherine Canniff Assoc. Arts Editor

It is that time of year, folks. The time of year when the weather is getting cooler and gray dorm room walls are bedecked in multi-colored lights and tinsel. I already know that visions of curling up on my couch—surrounded by slightly tacky but sentimental holiday decor—to watch a movie will provide sustenance during the next two treacherous weeks of final essays and exams.

There’s a litany of classic holiday stories that we can all watch around this time. But holiday movies to me don’t have to explicitly be about Christmas. They’re the entertaining movies that you want to watch after a long day of giving gifts, catching up with family, and eating too many cookies.

To watch if you’re disappointed that there isn’t any snow on the ground and it wasn’t a White Christmas:

Fargo No snow in the forecast? Take a trip to Minnesota with this quirky

mystery film courtesy of Joel and Ethan Coen. Frances McDormand stars as the practical yet compassionate detective trying to solve the case of a highway murder. There are multiple entertaining storylines woven together in the film, such as car salesman Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy) coping with the ramifications of his shady career dealings. The Coen brothers transform a normal town and the mundane routines of its residents into the scene of a crime while adding plenty of dark humor throughout the film. This acclaimed art-house film will keep you guessing about the motivations behind characters’ actions. Despite the characters’ flaws, viewers will still find themselves rooting for each of them as they make poor life choices and face the consequences. It’s

the perfect combination of mystery and artistic filmmaking with impressive cinematography that captures the bareness of the vast Midwestern landscape and the run-down town of Fargo. The film offers an entertaining watch that will still stimulate your crit-

Around the holidays, there’s always a scramble to buy the perfect presents for your friends and family. We often get lost in the need to acquire the trendiest new clothes. This iconic 2006 film gives viewers a peek into the inner workings of the fashion world. Anne Hathaway plays the ambitious Andrea Sachs who stumbles into an assistant position at a magazine and is then at the beck and call of her intimidating boss, Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep). Sachs’ evolution reveals the value that our culture places on style.

it’s plausible that I might.”

Beyond this more serious message, the clever script is packed with snarky insults and captivating dialogue. With an entertaining storyline, this movie engulfs viewers in the exclusive world of fashion and could be a thought-provoking end to a day of gift giving and receiving.

To watch with your younger cousins when they’re lingering at your house and are on a sugar high: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

ical eye after a day of lounging around.

To watch if you need another reminder of the world of consumerism that we live in:

The Devil Wears Prada

Asking for those Dr. Martens boots this holiday isn’t just about adding a few more inches to your height. They’re also a status symbol. They say “I may not listen to punk music but I look cool enough, so

Regardless of whether you’ve seen the Harry Potter movies once or 15 times, they’re always entertaining and comforting. Harry finds himself unwillingly enrolled in the Triwizard Tournament, competing in dangerous magical challenges and, as usual, accidentally making enemies along the way. The fourth movie in the series exudes a particularly satisfying amount of holiday cheer with its Yule Ball scenes. I hereby petition to replace Boston College’s senior year formal

Read the rest of this story at www.bcheights.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF NETFLIX

PHOTO COURTESY OF COLUMBIA RECORDS

B

Irene Redfield (Tessa Thompson) walks deliberately through

GRAPHIC BY ANNIE CORRIGAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Following Michelle Wu’s election as the mayor of Boston in early November, a bold policy proposal that would have been considered impossible a few years ago is finally on the agenda—making public transportation free in the City of Boston. Wu spearheaded the idea of a fare-free MBTA back in early 2019 with an ambitious op-ed in The Boston Globe, and was met with a hostile response from the powerful figures of Beacon Hill, who derided the idea as “fanciful.” Now, as mayor, Wu has a real chance to enact this policy and make Boston a greener and more equitable city.

Americans spend more than 15 percent of their budget each month on transportation costs, with families shelling out an average of 17.1 percent of their budget on transportation. Additionally, people are increasingly reliant on public transportation—since 1997, public transportation ridership has increased by more than 20 percent. Those who are reliant on public transportation for mobility are often low-income, as evidenced by the city of Lawrence, Mass., where 90 percent of riders make less than $20,000 a year. All of these facts make the increasing costs of riding public transportation a major concern for quality of life and social mobility in American cities and towns.

Transportation should be free like the

public goods in our society, such as public schools, firefighters, and parks. Access to public transportation allows riders to get to work, continue their education, go to the doctor, and get to stores to shop and boost the local and national economy. When people have access to mobility, their quality of life improves, and the social benefits to the community as a whole are tangible. Being able to travel on the bus or train to get to a good paying job has the potential to change the trajectory of an entire family’s life. Though the $2.40 to ride the T seems like a small fee, if someone rides the T to and from work five days a week, the price tag adds up to about $1,200 a year. For a family on a tight budget, that cost can be a major barrier to mobility. Making public transportation free could help to alleviate some of that pressure and allow for low-income people to get to work or school and achieve upward mobility.

The environmental benefits to fare-free transportation are also a convincing reason to take a second look at this bold policy proposal. Boston has the worst rush hour traffic in the country which congests the city with traffic and lengthens commute times. If the T were free and therefore more accessible, there is a real possibility that there would be fewer cars on the road. This takes the pressure off congested city streets and highways, and also helps to cut emissions and pollution from too many cars on the road. According to the Carbon Free Boston report, drastically reducing the number of cars on the road is key to the city’s ability to meet its emissions goals. Other cities have proven that a fare-free transportation system increases ridership—in Olympia, Wash., 60,000 more people utilized public transportation, and in

The T Should Be Free The March(ing Band) for Class Credit

Lawrence, Mass., ridership has seen a 24-percent increase since the elimination of fares. In Boston, the fare-free Silver Line has helped reduce congestion around Logan Airport since 2012. These policies empirically work to get more people to utilize public transportation.

The most common objection to a farefree system is that it eliminates a source of funding for public transportation, raising the question of who is going to pay for it. IT is also expensive to upkeep a fare collection system, however, as the city has to pay to purchase and maintain the machines to pay for tickets and collect fares, and people have to be hired to sort through the cash collected as fares. Collecting fares is also inefficient in that it slows down boarding times—I think back to all the times I have been stuck at a T stop because there is a line of passengers waiting to board, digging around in their bags for cash. Additionally, the public transportation budget is composed mainly of state, local, and federal funds, with fares making up only a small portion of the funding. In Boston, only 20 percent of the MBTA budget comes from fares, and it is very doable to make up the difference from other sources. Some have proposed making up the difference by instituting a two-cent raise in the gas tax, which could have the added benefit of dissuading people from using their cars as frequently.

Even if the gas tax proposal is not enacted, it would be a worthwhile investment to disperse the tax burden to all of us. Doing away with fares on the T would benefit the

Back to School

Being back on campus after the break is like a breath of fresh air. Sharing a room with siblings back home for a few days is enough to make students who once longed for the comfort of their own beds leap for joy at the thought of snuggling into their raised twin-XLs. There might be family tensions or boredom at home, but simply missing the beauty that is Boston College is enough to remind students that school is a true home away from home.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales

You’ve probably heard the squeak of shiny new shoes, the jingle of new jewelry, and the rustle of crisp new puffer jackets across campus this week, marking yet another year of successful Black Friday shopping sprees. The Friday after Thanksgiving is the perfect opportunity to get the most bang for your buck by taking advantage of the countless sales in stores and online. Keep an eye out because some Cyber Monday sales are still going strong, so if you missed the initial in-store anarchy, have no fear, there’s bound to be something left for you! And be sure to mark your calendar for the day after Christmas—prices are sure to drop then, making for another day of (slightly) guilt-free money spending.

Boston College football has been hit or miss this year. As a member of the marching band this season, having to play during major losses can make it difficult to enjoy my Saturdays. To cheer us up after such disappointing games, our band director often repeats a cute mantra:

“Whether the Eagles win or lose, the band always wins.”

I’ve discovered that this is far from the case. BC’s administration has denied the band commonplace academic and financial opportunities that would recognize the time and effort that its members put forth. Being members of one of the most decorated college marching band programs in the Northeast, students in the BC Marching Band (BCMB) should receive some form of academic or financial reward—whether through scholarships or class credit.

BC is the only institution in the Atlantic Coast Conference that does not provide either scholarships or class credit to members of its marching band. Out of the 14 non-BC teams in the ACC, 10 of them provide at least one credit hour per semester for marching band students, while eight provide annual scholarships for each member of their bands. Five of these 14 schools even offer both financial stipends and class credit for marching band members. From these statistics alone, it is clear that BC is lagging behind by providing

neither form of support to its own band.

If the BCMB is just an extracurricular, one might ask the question: Why should marching band members of any college receive more support than members of other student organizations? The reason, as will be made clear soon, is the immense time commitment. Having been a part of several student organizations at BC, I can say with confidence that the BCMB is one of the most time-intensive non-sport organizations that you can join. Like any other college marching band program, our season begins with a 10-day “band camp” in August, which involves 13-hour days of constant playing, learning drill, and marching in preparation for the upcoming football season.

This momentum continues throughout the season, as we practice twice a week for three hours apiece during the fall semester. We must also attend special events for the band and miss other opportunities as a result. Every year, the BCMB performs at all home football games, Superfan 101, Pops on the Heights, and, oftentimes a bowl game. Attendance at these events is mandatory, which means that BCMB members miss other extracurriculars, tailgating, and even much of their Thanksgiving Break and Winter Break. All for the band. The amount of sacrifice required in the BCMB necessitates compensating marching band members with some form of academic or financial support.

While both scholarships and class credit are lacking in the BCMB, implementing a scholarship program would be difficult. Given that the BCMB regularly has over 170 students, providing each member an annual scholarship would mean that tens of thousands of dollars would need to be raised every year by the program to give to students. Without a major donor or income source

to use for such a fund, forming a lasting scholarship for the BCMB as it exists would be nearly impossible.

Still, class credit is a very reasonable goal for the band. After all, the vast majority of ACC teams provide marching band as a one- or two-credit music elective. Most of these programs are either in a pass/fail format or allow students to opt out of receiving credit if they fear it will harm their GPA. If adopted, either of these methods would be a stress-free way to give BCMB members more flexibility in their schedules while being rewarded for their time in BC’s largest student organization. The academic administration at BC should not be concerned that giving class credit to the BCMB could take students away from other arts and music programs—marching band is an exhausting effort that I would highly doubt any non-marching band students would consider doing in place of a proper arts class. It has a defined culture, both mocked and admired by many, and is simply harder to do than other arts classes that one could take to fulfill their arts core. BC, like its ACC counterparts, can reasonably include marching band as a music elective with class credit.

The Screaming Eagles are often lauded as the “most visible student organization on campus.” As a mediocre trombone player in my freshman year, I would tend to agree—not for myself, but for the many amazing band members I’ve met in just a few months. The BCMB dedicates hundreds of hours every year in practices for the purpose of entertaining thousands of students every game day, and has been missing out on proper compensation for years. It’s time to let the Screaming Eagles be

Moody Weather

A new, nastier, and nose-biting chill in the air welcomed students back to school after Thanksgiving, along with a few mild flurries. Together they officially signified the start of the winter months. That new nip in the air during morning walks to class might have students running for their full-length parkas, but constant vigilance is always required to keep up with the ever-changing weather. One bitter winter day can easily be followed by a balmy spring-like one. Check the weather constantly or risk sweltering in your layers during those afternoon walks to class.

Pre-Finals Week Slog

It almost seemed pointless for students to come back to campus for a mere three weeks, only to be scattered across the country once more for Winter Break. Those three measly weeks are all that stand between students and their friends, family, and a home-cooked meal. The mountain of work and finals in the next few weeks must be climbed before students can even begin to sink into the

Sophie Carter

tommy roChe

The opinions and commentaries of the op-ed columnists appearing on this page represent the views of the authors of those particular pieces, and not necessarily the views of The Heights

vacation mindset.

Sophie Carter is an op-ed columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at sophia.carter@bc.edu.

Tommy Roche is an op-ed columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at thomas.roche@bc.edu.

GRAPHIC BY LIZ SCHWAB AND ANNIE CORRIGAN / HEIGHTS EDITORS

Necessary Progress

GOING BOWLING

ethan ott

The game is tied 0–0. Brandon Crawford steps up to the plate and slices a twostrike pitch into left field for a single. Kris Bryant, the San Francisco Giants’ hottest bat of the postseason, takes his turn. Under the bright October lights and with 42,000 fans donning orange and black, Dodgers pitcher Julio Urías chokes. He fires five straight pitches out of the strike zone, but Bryant remains in the box. The Giants should have runners on first and second with no outs, a position in which teams score 64 percent of the time.

Instead, home plate umpire Doug Eddings calls two of Urías’ pitches outside the zone strikes. Facing a full count, Bryant goes down swinging for the first out of the inning. The Giants strand Crawford and ultimately lose by one run after a check swing judgment call that set the internet ablaze. For the second straight season, the Giants were sent home early thanks to incompetent officiating.

The 2021 Giants-Dodgers NLDS was the first time the two teams have ever met in a postseason series. They also happen to be the National League’s biggest rivals. They were handily the two best teams of the 2021 season, winning 107 and 106 games apiece. To many, the NLDS was a de facto World Series. It took five games, but ultimately one of the greatest series in baseball history was decided not by clean baseball, but by dirty umpiring.

The question of robot umpires in MLB has been up for debate since long before broadcasts began showcasing every umpiring error with a digital strike zone. For years, traditional baseball fans have argued that the human element of the umpire is part of what makes the game great.

With advancements in technology and generationally declining interest in

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By emma healy Sports Editor By ethan ott Asst. Sports Editor

After opting out of bowl selection one year ago, Boston College football will appear in the 2021 postseason.

The Eagles were selected to face East Carolina in the Military Bowl Presented by Peraton and accepted their invitation Saturday afternoon. The game is set to kick off at 2:30 p.m. on Dec. 27 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md.

“The Military Bowl is a terrific way for our team to cap off the season,” BC Athletics Director Pat Kraft said in a release. “It will be a great homecoming for our players from the DMV and it is home to so many of our BC alums. We look forward to a great bowl trip to Washington, D.C. and playing in Annapolis.”

BC became bowl eligible with a win over Georgia Tech on Nov. 13, but with two losses to close out the regular season, the Eagles finished with a 6–6 overall record.

After securing four straight wins to open the season, the Eagles appeared to be well on track to earn bowl eligibility early in their campaign.

In each of his two seasons at the helm, BC head coach Jeff Hafley clinched a postseason berth, and BC Athletics announced on Monday that he would receive a five-year contract extension. Through two seasons, Hafley’s 12

wins tie him with Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker for second-most wins among head coaches hired in 2020.

Because BC opted out of bowl selection at the conclusion of the 2020 season, the last time BC appeared in a bowl game came in the form of a 38–6 loss to then-No. 21 Cincinnati in the TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl on Jan. 2, 2020.

American Athletic) and are 0–1 so far when playing on neutral territory.

Quarterback Holton Ahlers stood out for ECU this season with 3,126 passing yards and 18 touchdowns while throwing 10 interceptions. He had help offensively from running back Keaton Mitchell, who racked up 1,132 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on the season.

“The first thing I look at is what type of quarterback we’re going to play,” Hafley said. “Looks like he likes to throw the ball. … He’s got a running back who’s had over 1,000 yards. They have a head coach who, in the last three years, has done a heck of a job defensively. … So it’s a coach and a staff and a team that I have a tremendous amount of respect for.”

The Military Bowl will serve as a homecoming for the 13 Eagles from the National Capital Region and is a familiar event for Kraft, as Temple played in the 2019 Military Bowl while Kraft was the school’s athletic director.

Preserving Tradition

aSa ackerly

I have written two previous columns arguing against proposed changes to make sports more exciting—the automatic runner on second in extra innings and expanding the College Football Playoff—and there is a regular theme to my arguments. The main issue with these changes is not that they are ineffective at accomplishing their goals or have some kind of technical failure. Instead, these changes attempt to solve problems that are not meant to be solved.

The automatic runner on second has succeeded at ending games faster but will do little to entice new fans to the game and chafes at the beauty of a sport played without a timer. Expanding the playoff is just another step in a futile battle to center college football around awarding a national champion when the allure of the sport is defined by the opposite.

Adding the automated strike zone falls prey to the same trap. The change would absolutely lead to more correct ball and strike calls and make the game-changing missed calls that plagued MLB last season a thing of the past.

“This bowl game is a reward for all the hard work they’ve been through in the last two years,” Hafley said in a press conference Sunday. “We’re going to enjoy it and at the same time we’re going to go to work because we’re going to go to win a football game.”

BC has never faced East Carolina, but the two teams experienced similar success during the 2021 season. The Pirates finished their season 7–5 (5–3

“I have the opportunity for my friends and my family to come to the game and support me for my last game,” Travis Levy said on Sunday. “The fact that it’s in Maryland is just such a great opportunity.”

East Carolina set the bowl attendance record at the 2010 Military Bowl with 38,060 fans in attendance at its 51–20 loss to Maryland. BC has never appeared in the Military Bowl. n

GRAPHIC BY ANNIE CORRIGAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR

But, baseball is an inexact game. While every other sport is played on a carefully measured surface, baseball stadiums run wild with different dimensions and features. These famous idiosyncrasies—the defensive play of the Green Monster, the great plains of foul territory in Oakland Coliseum, the pesky encroachment of the Tropicana catwalk—are what make baseball great.

College baseball stadiums boast some of these perfect oddities as well. Vanderbilt’s Hawkins Field features a 35-foot behemoth of a wall down the left-field line, and the right field of McLane Baseball Stadium, home to the Michigan State Spartans, uses a small hill as part of its

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Eagles Defeat Notre Dame 73–57 to Open ACC Play

By John Scrimgeour Heights Staff

With free nachos offered for showing up early, and an additional free taco from King Tacos when the Boston College men’s basketball topped 70 points, Conte Forum filled up fast and remained loud for the full 40 minutes. Ignoring the tacos, however, it is apparent that fans are excited for a new era of BC men’s basketball under head coach Earl Grant.

The Eagles opened up ACC play with a 73–57 win over Notre Dame (3–4, 0–1 Atlantic Coast) in the Holy War, the largest margin of victory over the

Fighting Irish in BC history.

Following the win, BC improves to 6–3, and 1–0 in the ACC and remains undefeated (6–0) inside Conte Forum this season.

“Just having our fans behind our back kind of uplifts things,” senior James Karnik said. “They allow us to really have fun out there.”

Karnik opened up the scoring with a 3-pointer from the top of the key, bringing the fans to their feet just 17 seconds into the game. From there, BC extended its lead to 7–0 and never looked back. The Eagles led 37–27 at the half.

BC didn’t let up at any point in the contest, coming out of the halftime break with a 15–2 run to extend its lead to 23 points five minutes into the

second half.

BC set the tone by out-rebounding the Irish, with Karnik finishing the half with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Heightwise, there didn’t seem to be much of an advantage. And Notre Dame’s two bigs in Nate Laszewski and Paul Atkinson Jr. had been rebounding the ball quite well on the season, according to head coach Mike Brey.

“Tonight, however, it looked like varsity versus JV on the glass, and we got what we deserved,” Brey said in his postgame press conference.

Quinten Post, T.J. Bickerstaff, and Karnik were the first three scorers in double figures in the contest. The trio combined for 44 of the Eagles’ 73 points and 25 of BC’s 38 rebounds. Bickerstaff

shot 5-for-9 from the field and 2-for-2 from three for 14 points to go along with his six rebounds. Post added 13 points and six rebounds, and Karnik finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds on 8-of11 shooting from the field.

Despite the dominant performance from BC’s three big men, the most interesting statline of the night came from the Langford duo. DeMarr Langford Jr. and Makai Ashton-Langford each finished with the exact same line of 10 points, four assists, four rebounds, two steals, and one turnover.

For Notre Dame, senior guard Prentiss Hubb came off the bench but finished with a team-high 15 points on 3-of-4 shooting from three. Last time the two teams met, Hubb went for 28 in

the loss to the Eagles on BC’s Senior Day.

Other than Hubb, the team struggled to get going from three. As a team, the Irish shot 8-of-28 from three and 21-of-55 from the field. BC got most of its looks inside, attempting just 13 3-pointers and making six of them.

Following the win, BC will have its longest rest since the season began on Nov. 9, as it doesn’t play again until Dec. 11 at St. Louis (7–1). Grant said he is looking forward to a full week of practice as the team continues “climbing out of the valley,” and improving each day.

“I don’t really like to put the carriage in front of the horse,” said Grant. “We’ll take this win and try to build on it, but we know we need to keep scratching and clawing. We have a lot of work to do.” n

After opting out of posteseason play last year, Boston College football will face East Carolina in the Military Bowl on Dec. 27 in Annapolis, Md. The Military Bowl marks BC’s first bowl game of the Hafley era.

By SouraBh Gokarn For The Heights

With four Boston College women’s basketball players hailing from Virginia, Sunday afternoon’s game served as a sort of homecoming. The quasi home-court advantage, however, did not play out in BC’s favor.

Virginia Commonwealth (5–2) survived a furious comeback attempt from the Eagles (6–2), snapping their four-game winning streak and taking Sunday afternoon’s matchup by a final score of 69–65.

“We know how to get stops in the first quarter,” forward Taylor Soule said. “We know how to communicate on defense, but we just didn’t do it in the first half.”

BC stumbled out of the gate, turning the ball over seven times in the first quarter alone. The many turnovers prevented the Eagles from fully igniting their offense, but some stingy

defense kept the game within reach after one quarter.

VCU came out firing to start the second quarter and pushed its lead all the way up to nine. Poor ball security and sloppy passes resulted in numerous lost offensive opportunities for BC and granted the Rams easy scoring opportunities.

“Every opportunity we have to score, you have to be able to get a shot off,” head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee said. “Our possessions were 58 to 43 today. It’s hard to win when you give another team that many more opportunities than you have to score.”

Even with a strong start to the second quarter, the Rams could not hold their lead for long, as the Eagles entered halftime with a one-point lead. The second half, however, was when VCU appeared to put the game to rest.

After trading blows through the first minutes of the half, VCU seized momentum midway through the third quarter and restored its nine-point advantage with under 15 minutes to

play. Bernabei-McNamee called for a timeout hoping to regain control of the game, but the opposite ensued.

Following a BC 3-pointer, the Rams went on a 13–2 run that extended well into the fourth quarter, bringing their lead to 17 points. VCU was poised for a resounding victory, but Soule refused to let her team go down quietly.

With Soule struggling recently on the offensive end, Sunday’s game appeared to be more of the same after the Rams held her to six points through three quarters. Soule exploded for 14 points in the game’s final five minutes, however, scoring some tough baskets through several defenders.

“I know I’ve had a rough time on the offensive end in the last couple games,” Soule said. “I knew I had to step it up.”

Her fourth-quarter performance pulled the Eagles within five points. BC seemed primed to complete a comeback win, but junior guard Jaelyn Batts missed a critical late free throw that effectively sealed the game for the Rams.

Aside from her 20 points, Soule also collected eight rebounds, though her otherwise strong stat sheet was blemished by eight turnovers. Sharpshooter Makayla Dickens was BC’s leading bench scorer, with 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting. With that tally, Dickens became the 30th player in BC history to score over 1,000 career points and the second Eagle to have

joined the club this season—the first being Soule. As a team, BC shot more efficiently than VCU, but its 30 turnovers allowed the Rams to take 14 more shots.

“We need to come out in the first three quarters with that kind of fight,” Bernabei-McNamee said. “There’s no reason for us to wait to turn up our intensity and our focus.” n

Eagles Sweep Weekend Series at Maine

nick PuLice Heights Staff

The clock was ticking down, and Boston College women’s hockey found itself just 1:22 away from a deflating 1–0 defeat on the road in Maine. With an empty net and extra attacker out on the ice for BC, netfront traffic ensued in front of Maine’s goaltender, Loryn Porter.

Hannah Bilka—Friday’s overtime hero—took control of the loose puck and fired a shot into the back of the net for another clutch goal to miraculously tie the game up and keep the Eagles alive.

The Eagles carried this momentum into the overtime period. Just

over two minutes into extra time, Bilka carried the puck down the ice and sent a picture-perfect pass to Kelly Browne, whose wrister flew into the back of the net. Behind these late-game heroics, the Eagles (10–7, 8–4 Hockey East) defeated the Black Bears (6–12–1, 4–7–1) by a score of 2–1 to complete not just a weekend sweep, but also a season sweep of Maine.

Maine got on the board early. Just over five minutes into the opening period, Mira Seregely held possession of the puck behind the goal. She completed a net-front pass right on the tape of Alyssa Wruble’s stick. Wruble fired the puck past Levy into the back of the net to put the Black Bears up 1–0.

The majority of the first period

was played in BC’s defensive end. Even though they only outshot the Eagles 11–9 in the period, the Black Bears held possession and generated better scoring chances.

Despite making nine saves, Porter wasn’t truly tested until later in the matchup.

The Eagles’ offense appeared to wake up as the second period of play began, and BC was quickly awarded a power play. Porter denied Gaby Roy’s chance on the doorstep and was a brick wall in net for Maine.

With a conversion rate of just 11 percent coming into the game, struggles on the power play persisted for the Eagles.

Maine nearly doubled its lead on a power-play chance of its own, but Levy made arguably her best

save of the day to keep the score at just 1–0. Ida Kuoppala received a perfect pass, but Levy quickly dove from left to right to make the sprawling save

Late in the second period, it appeared that Porter was injured after getting bumped by Bilka, who was driving to the net. After making the save, athletic trainers checked on Porter, but she remained in the game.

Jenna Carpenter had a great chance to tie the game in the dwindling minutes of the second period, but Porter stopped her shot off a 2-on-1 opportunity.

Seregely almost scored in the third period, but hit the post, bailing Levy and the Eagles out to keep it a one-goal game. n

VCU Holds on for Victory Despite BC’s Late Surge Size, Defense Aid BC in Win Over Rival Notre Dame

By Luke DeMartin For The Heights

First-year head coach Earl Grant announced his arrival into the ACC in a big way Friday night with a statement victory over Notre Dame. Boston College men’s basketball displayed the ideal version of its current brand of basketball, and its defensive effort, grinded-out, half-court offense, and scrappy rebounding prevented the Fighting Irish from ever finding a rhythm.

Solid performances all around carried the team to the finish line.

At no point did the Eagles (6–3, 1–0 Atlantic Coast) trail the Fighting Irish (3–4, 0–1) during the 73–57 drubbing, and the team remains undefeated at home after six games.

Hard in the Paint

Thus far in the season, Grant has adopted a center-by-committee approach, splitting minutes at the position between James Karnik and Quinten Post. On Friday, it did not matter who was in at the five, as both big men had their way against an undersized Notre Dame squad.

The duo combined for 30 points, 19 rebounds—including six offensive boards—and three blocks.

Notre Dame had no answer for the pair of bigs. Karnik and Post shut down the interior on defense, and scored at will from the low post all night. The Eagles dominated the glass, winning the rebound battle 38–27.

For Karnik, the maturation is obvious. He looks significantly more comfortable on offense, and through eight games, he is shooting 55.6 percent from the field, a marked improvement from last year’s number of 43.9 percent.

In Friday’s outing, Karnik had a double-double by halftime and finished the game with 17 points, hitting eight of his 11 field goal attempts. Karnik has led the team in scoring in both of the team’s last two games.

Defense, Defense, Defense

The Eagles knew exactly what to look for on defense against a Notre Dame team that adores the 3-point shot. Thanks to the high-effort perimeter defense, the Irish could never get going behind the arc, shooting just 28.6 percent

from deep.

The shooting woes seemed to stymie their entire offensive game plan, and easy buckets were nowhere to be found all night for head coach Mike Brey’s squad. Overall, Notre Dame shot just 38.2 percent from the field and scored a season-low 57 points. The Eagles’ slow pace on offense, too, prevented the Irish from capturing anything close to momentum, and it wasn’t until the 11:17 mark in the second half that Prentiss Hubb became the first Notre Dame player to reach double-digit points.

Not only were the Eagles aggressive on defense, but they played with a poise and intelligence that kept them out of foul trouble. BC finished the game with just seven fouls. In contrast, the Eagles had nine steals, many of which led to easy baskets on the other end.

New Era

With a crowd of over 6,000, the BC fans came out and supported the team to its first ACC win of the season.

“I thought the student section was amazing,” Grant said in his postgame press conference. “We

of noise and made a huge difference.”

While Grant’s brand of basketball is not the most flashy, excitement looms in Chestnut Hill. Friday night’s environment paralleled the high energy and scrappy play of

the Eagles, who appear to be playing with genuine joy and love for the sport. This game felt like a critical juncture for the program as a whole. Still, it is important to keep expectations tethered, at least for now. It’s only year one with Grant at the helm, so expect a long season. n

had The Sickos in there tonight, a group on campus that was making a lot

BC lost to VCU Sunday afternoon for its second loss of the season. NICOLE WEI / HEIGHTS STAFF

The Eagles started their ACC slate with a 73–57 win over Notre Dame.

ADITYA RAO / HEIGHTS STAFF

Boston College Maine 2 1

Every year, as The Heights welcomes a cohort of new members, it says farewell to another group of editors who have served on its board. Below are their favorite moments from their time on The Heights . Their leadership and initiative have shaped this organization and their work will certainly not be forgotten. The Heights commemorates each of the outgoing board members for their contributions, and it wishes them the best in the future.

“Big 3” Departing Members

Owen Fahy

Editor-in-Chief

Maddy Romance

Managing Editor

We could not be prouder of the work that the 103rd board has accomplished over the last year. Their articles, podcasts, photos, and videos have informed our school community and will stand as a record of what has transpired at Boston College. While we are sad to be moving on, we know that the 104th board of The Heights is prepared to tackle whatever comes next. This newspaper and its departing board members are our family, and we are very grateful to have worked alongside them this year.

Ikram Ali, Owen Fahy, Maggie DiPatri, Maddy Romance, Danny Flynn, Éamon Laughlin, and Maeve Reilly

Eric Shea, Gretchen Haga, Anna Lonnquist, Haley Hockin, Grace Mayer, and Asa Ackerly

Alicia Kang, Grace Beneke, Ethan Raye, and Gabriel Wallen

Seniors

“Finally getting to go to Maine and getting to scream along to ‘Ribs’ at the top of my lungs with everyone!” -Ikram Ali

“Everything that has gone wrong—iHOP, rental cars, and Christmas Dinners—there was joy in the panic.” -Owen Fahy

“Meeting so many of my closest friends—and finally getting to go back to Maine!” -Maggie DiPatri

“The hours on end spent laughing in the office, Maine, and meeting some of my best friends.” -Maddy Romance

“Heights volleyball, Maine traditions, ‘Wagon Wheel,’ office polls, and making some of my best friends at BC.” -Danny Flynn

Juniors

“Chasing an elusive mug and generally losing.” -Eric Shea

“Going from working solo to having an amazing digital team.” -Gretchen Haga “Maine, especially the canoeing.” -Haley Hockin

Sophomores

“Accidentally trespassing on the island in Maine and getting barked at.” -Grace Beneke

“Countless office lunches and everyday interactions with the amazing people that make The Heights possible.” -Éamon Laughlin

“Canoeing with Anna and Haley in Maine, and the Maine trip in general!” -Maeve Reilly

“Watching The Killing of a Sacred Deer in the Heights office with the Arts section.” -Grace Mayer

“Ending up at a South Carolina Cookout at 2 a.m. in the name of student journalism.” -Asa Ackerly

“Eating an entire jar of queso in Maine that was meant for dinner the next night with Stephen, MC, Maeve, and Haley and thinking nobody noticed.” -Anna Lonnquist

“Getting an ego boost from when everyone laughed at my story in Maine.” -Ethan Raye

“Getting to have one last Heights gathering at our Christmas Dinner.” -Gabriel Wallen