The Heights, May 1, 2023

Best Men’s Basketball Teams. Now, They Worry They’ve Been Forgotten.

They Played for

Lacrosse Wins First ACC Championship

6–22. That was No. 4 Boston College lacrosse’s all-time record against one of its biggest foes, No. 6 North Carolina, before Sunday’s ACC Tournament Championship game.

“You know, having those painstaking losses in other years can be a part of the process for this year, too,” BC head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein said. “It doesn’t have to be the end all be all when you lose, it’s part of it. And I think those girls carry those memories with them, and it leveraged them today.”

On a quest for its first-ever ACC title, the

After Anti-Drag Protest, NNHS Principal Reacts

think it’s an attribution to the hard work that we do to prepare them here at school and with their families.”

Students at Newton North plan the programming for cultural diversity initiatives such as ToBeGLAD Day, according to Turner.

No. 1-seed Eagles ran into none other than No. 3-seed North Carolina in the championship game. The holder of six straight ACC Tournament titles, the Tar Heels had taken down BC in four of the last five ACC Tournament Championship games and entered the game on a four-game win streak over the Eagles.

But BC snapped the streak Sunday, as it came back from a three-goal third-quarter deficit and held the Tar Heels’ scoreless in the final quarter of play to hoist the ACC Championship trophy for the first time in program history.

See Newton North, A4 See

Seniors Reflect on Identity

The Class of 2023 is the final graduating group that remembers a pre-Covid BC. Seniors reflect on four years of changes.

PHOTO COURTESY OF KELLY COUGHLAN

This Week’s Top 3 Events

The Center for Student Wellness is hosting “Songs & Stories,” which features live music and student performances to kick off the inaugural mental health awareness week at BC. The event will take place on Monday from 7 to 9

Breaking Down 2022–23 UGBC Budget

By Olivia JOung News Editor Will MarTinO Asst. News Editor

UGBC’s budget for the 2022–23 academic year was $362,450.

It was $362,450 of funding for everything from on-campus programming to student advocacy work to leadership stipends. It was also $362,450 that sparked student discourse and Herrd posts about the amount.

Here’s how it was spent this past year.

The budget is broken down into UGBC’s eight divisions: Executive Council, Communications, Student Initiatives, Student Assembly (SA), Environmental Sustainability, the AHANA+ Leadership Council (ALC), GLBTQ+ Leadership Council (GLC), and the Council for Students with Disabilities (CSD).

According to Andy Bonilla, UGBC director of finance and CSOM ’23, UGBC spent approximately 86 percent of its budget for the 2022–23 fiscal year.

“First full year back on campus, we did a lot of great things, particularly in student initiatives,” Bonilla said. “Like, they really picked up from last year where there was a lot less work which they actually did.”

Though UGBC did not spend its entire budget this year, numerous divisions such as the Executive Council, GLC, and Environmental Sustainability will see increases in their individual budgets for the upcoming 2023–24 year. UGBC’s entire budget will increase by $15,050, totalling $377,500.

In addition to the new 2023–24 funds, the remaining 14 percent from this past year’s budget will go into a rollover fund for the upcoming academic year, UGBC President Lubens Benjamin, CSOM ’23, said.

“The way that we operate with any rollover money—like any that we had this year—is we don’t use it unless there happens to be some big need or an event goes way over cost, and we’ll dip into that reserve fund,” Benjamin said. “Otherwise we try our best not to and kind of stick to our allocation that was given to us.”

Starting in the 2023–24 academic year, however, the administration may begin factoring rollover funds into UGBC’s actual allocation amount to account for inflation and rising costs, according to Benjamin.

“Let’s say we have $10,000 in rollover, but we asked for 360k— they might only give us 350 from the student allocation just to take up the rollover just because I think a lot of the other [organizations] requested a lot more money this year,” Benjamin said.

According to Benjamin, the Office of Student Involvement (OSI) primarily manages the rollover fund.

“Yeah, we keep that very tight between basically just me and the advisor,” Benjamin said.

Executive Council

This year’s Executive Council budget of $55,750 included stipends to the president, vice president, UGBC leadership, and the OSI graduate assistant, as well as $5,000 for UGBC’s annual fall retreat.

According to Spagnola, the president and vice president stipends have stayed the same over the past few years at $4,000 and $3,500, respectively. A $10,000 stipend is also divided between 13 other members of the Executive Council, including directors of each division, SA committee chairs, and the UGBC chief of staff.

“So it was kind of based on that …leadership breakdown within the organization responsibility,” Spagnola said. Bonilla said other universities

give more money in stipends for its student government executive board in comparison. Christian Guma, BC ’21, and Kevork Atinizian, BC ’22—the 2020–21 UGBC president and vice president, respectively—also reduced stipends during their tenure.

“We were talking about this at one of our meetings recently— you know, the whole discourse on maintaining these stipends,” Bonilla said. “But at the end of the day we do work actively throughout the week talking to administrators and putting on new initia tives, advocating—so in many ways, it’s just … a way to kind of reflect the added effort we

success as well.”

Student Initiatives also funded a shuttle to Boston Logan International Airport for Thanksgiving and Easter Breaks, free merchandise at athletic events, feminine products across campus, student wellness programming, and supported the annual Women’s Summit, Bonillo and Benjamin explained.

This year’s budget also included a roughly $12,000 allocation for Ice

The 2022–23 SA budget increased by roughly 31 percent from the year prior to account for a pilot initiative to provide a laundry subsidy for Montserrat students, according to Benjamin.

“In creating the budget for Student Assembly for this year, in the back of my head, I thought of the Montserrat laundry subsidy because I knew that the University would like more data on it than what we had at the end of last year,” Benjamin said.

The SA passed a resolution allocating $3,000 of its remaining budget this year to the Montserrat Coalition to provide laundry supplies and machine fees for low-in -

“There’s definitely room next year for increasing their presence among the different environmental clubs on campus,” he said.

AHANA+ Leadership Council

The AHANA+ Leadership Council (ALC) had the largest budget this year with an allocation of $132,000, of which it spent just over 94 percent, according to Bonilla.

Most of ALC’s expenses went toward ALC Showdown—according to Benjamin, the total cost of the event runs around $130,000–135,000. Accounting for ticket revenue, the ALC allocated $60,000 toward the event this past year.

“Showdown is a great example of showing our growth as an organization over the last two years and going into this third year following the pandemic,” Spagnola said. “It just shows us I think the rise in the presence of UGBC in the community.”

Other highlights to ALC’s work within the budget included the ALC Ball, which was allocated $50,000, and culture club collaborations, which were listed as a line item for the first time this year.

espe cial ly as a leadership team.”

utive Council’s budget for this up coming year will see a significant increase due to additional line items like the President’s Roundtable Conference and DEI movie nights that were previously under different divisions, according to Bonilla.

Communications

The Division of Communications was allocated the second lowest budget, $7,150, which it did not spend in full this past year. According to Bonilla, this was primarily due to a gradual shift to using more digital media for promotion rather than physical fliers or posters.

Benjamin also added that marketing costs for major events and initiatives are already included in those respective budgets.

“Like with Show down—that commu nications price tag has already come in cluded … for the num ber that we have for Showdown,” Benjamin said. “So all the marketing materials that we use [are] accounted for in the Showdown budget that we have for the year.”

Student Initiatives Student Initiatives spent roughly 95 percent of its allotted $58,700 budget this year, according to Bonilla.

“I think, you know, Meghan [Heckelman, vice presidential elect and LSEHD ’25], who was in charge of the division as a whole—she did a lot of great work this year,” Bonilla said. “She had some of the bigger events like Victoria Garrick in the fall, [and] Project Life was a big

Jam, which returned for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Ultimately, however, the University decided against hosting Ice Jam again this academic year, Bonilla said.

“Sometime in the middle of the fall semester, the administration realized that … they wanted to have it more like every few years and maybe not once a year,” Bonilla said. “But at this point, it might have just been like a one-and-done thing.”

“I think this year having specific line items for culture club collaborations between UGBC and the culture clubs … fosters trust among the culture clubs among each other and with ALC,” Benjamin said.

come students at its meeting last

As UGBC’s newest division, Environmental Sustainability spent just under half of its budget during its second year.

“So they spent more than they did last year, but they still haven’t hit that like 90, 95 percentile that we usually hope for,” Benjamin said.

According to Bonilla, the division’s largest programming initiatives from the past year include Green Week and its partnership with the Schiller Institute for the Eagles Sustainability Competition. They also organized a “thrift swapping shop,” installed compost bins in two residence halls, and distributed free plants to students occasions.

“They’ve sort of hit their stride with increasing their presence, creating more collaborations with other groups on campus, and just getting a name for

Student Assembly

The SA had a $5,900 budget in the 2022–23 year, the smallest of all the divisions.

“I think this year we … operated a lot in the first semester without really even touching the budget,” Spagnola said.

Some of the initiatives the SA did utilize their budget for were World Cup watch parties, funding for NARCAN on campus, tabling incentives on campus, and a senators’ dinner.

Spagnola added that some of the division’s most notable advocacy work came at no monetary cost to UGBC.

“The Sustainability Action Committee is all the climate advocacy groups on campus, and their meetings obviously come without a price tag in our budget,” Spagnola said. “So that’s something that’s an unmeasurable cost to our organization.”

Benjamin said the Division of Environmental Sustainability still has potential to grow in the coming year.

GLBTQ+ Leadership Council

The GLBTQ+ Leadership Council (GLC) was allocated $51,100. It spent roughly 96 percent—the highest percent across all eight divisions, according to Bonilla.

“Obviously on the advocacy side, we’re still working day in and day out to really make sure that we see a change as well on the administrative side,” Bonilla said. “But I think in terms of what we put on for the students who identify as queer, I think we did a lot of great things this year.”

The highest costing line item on GLC’s budget this year was the GLC Formal, which was allotted $25,000.

“I think to really spice up the space itself, given that it is a little bit of an older venue relative to other potential areas, they put actually about an extra $9 [or] 10,000 into GLC Formal,” Bonilla said.

GLC’s budget was also used for its Lambda dinners as well as Pride Week programming, which is funded in tandem with the Division of Student Affairs.

Council for Students with Disabilities

The Council for Students with Disabilities (CSD) only used about 60 percent of its total budget allocation, according to Bonilla.

“With the Council for Students with Disabilities, things that typically happen in a year, they just seemed to not happen this year,” Benjamin said. “Just for no reason, whether that be scheduling conflicts with the Campus School or just falling by the wayside honestly.”

Bonilla said CSD received the largest line item addition in the proposed 2022–23 budget for the event “CSDisco,” which ultimately did not happen. Bonilla said the timeline of CSD’s collaborations with Best Buddies and the Campus School for the event led to the CSDisco’s cancellation.

“If you take CSD and the work they’ve done as a whole at least my past four years here at UGBC, this year’s kind of seemed like a blip for them,” said Benjamin.

Bonilla said that planning U.S. Paralympian Noelle Lambert’s visit and two Dinner in the Dark events were notable successes of the CSD during the past academic year. n

2022-23 UGBC Breakdown

2023–24 UGBC Breakdown

SA Votes To Change Its Name to the “Senate”

By Will MarTino Asst. News Editor

The Student Assembly (SA) voted to change its name to the “Senate” in a resolution passed at its final meeting for the 2022–23 academic year on Tuesday night.

“Right now our body is known as the Student Assembly, which is a little bit of a misnomer since we’re not really like an assembly, we’re more like a senate,” said Community Relations Committee Chair Joshua Golden, MCAS ’25. “And also, ‘SA’ is a really unfortunate acronym.”

The resolution was passed by the required supermajority of all seated members, counting any members not present at the meeting as an abstention vote. With the name change, current SA representatives will now be referred to as “senators.”

According to UGBC Vice President Julia Spagnola, MCAS ’23, the SA used to be referred to as the Senate.

“This body was formerly known as the Senate,” Spagnola said. “That was changed my sophomore year, so that was changed in 2020 to Student Assembly. So it hasn’t been Student Assembly for that long.”

Trent Liesching, a SA representative who voted against the change, shared his concerns that changing the name back after a short period of time may cause confusion for administrators.

“I think teetering back and forth

is just going to make it more confusing for them, which, you know, I think is kind of the most important thing that we have to keep in mind,” Liesching, MCAS ’23, said.

Jonah Kotzen, UGBC president-elect and MCAS ’24, responded that the name change would be publicized on the UGBC Instagram and made clear to various administrators during meetings over the summer.

“Word will get around regarding that, and I even think that by publicizing this name change, it could bring even further publicity to our body,” Kotzen said.

Kotzen added that the name “Senate” would be more representative of the group’s role in passing UGBC legislation.

“I think it’s also easier for the everyday student to understand that versus ‘Student Assembly,’ as well as the everyday administrator, personally speaking,” Kotzen said.

The SA also unanimously passed two other resolutions.

Katie Garrigan, the SA’s Montserrat Coalition representative and MCAS ’25, sponsored a resolution allocating $3,000 of the SA’s remaining budget to the Montserrat Coalition to fund laundry supplies and machine fees for low-income students.

“The amount of money allocated to each student will be on a case-bycase basis with no more than $40 allocated to a student,” it read.

The other resolution—sponsored

by Jessica Orrell, SA representative and MCAS ’26—allocated $1,000 of SA’s remaining budget to supply NARCAN, an emergency medication used to rapidly reverse an opioid overdose, to residence hall directors, pending approval from the Office of Residential Life and BC’s administration.

“If this money is not able to be spent on purchasing physical NARCAN, it will be allocated towards funding and publicizing multiple NARCAN training events,” the resolution read.

Prior to the passing of all three resolutions, the SA began its meeting in an executive session—limiting attendance to members of the SA

only—to confirm UGBC’s executive team for the 2023–24 academic year.

The executive team confirmations were as follows:

Aidan Seguin, MCAS ’25 – director of the GLBTQ+ Leadership Council Yosan Tewelde, MCAS ’24 –director of the AHANA+ Leadership Council Heidi Yun, MCAS ’24 – director of the Council for Students with Disabilities

Julia Tobey, MCAS ’24 – director of the Communications Division Sahithi Thumuluri, MCAS ’25 – director of the Financial Affairs Division

Anna Quinn, LSEHD ’26 – director of the Student Initiatives Division Alex Lermond, MCAS ’24 – director of the Division of Environmental Sustainability

During its executive session, the SA also created a seat for a representative for the Division of Environmental Sustainability, appointing Lindsay Meier, MCAS ’26, to the position.

As the meeting came to a close, Spagnola thanked members of the SA for all their work within the past year.

“It’s been an honor to be able to be in this body, and I have a lot of faith in what it can do,” Spagnola said. “So I thank you for this opportunity, and it’s been the greatest honor.” n

CSA, JCBC Condemn BC Instagram Post

ree M an Asst. News Editor

The Boston College Chinese Students Association (CSA) and the Japan Club of BC (JCBC) released a joint statement on Wednesday condemning the BC Instagram account for using a stock image to promote their upcoming formal.

Jasmin Yu, CSA public relations chair and MCAS ’26, said a freshman representative sent an image of BC’s post to the CSA executive board group chat, where members began to realize the picture was taken from the internet.

“Everyone kind of at first laughed, like, ‘Yeah, that’s not us,’ but then someone was like,

‘Where would they find it, it looks like a stock image,’” Yu said. “So they searched up ‘Asians celebrating,’ and that was the first image that showed up.”

The clubs’ statement called for a public apology on the BC Instagram account, as well as an acknowledgment of the mistake and the importance of cultural sensitivity. The statement also requested that BC implement a review process for selecting images when promoting future events and offer cultural sensitivity training for its staff.

The University issued the following statement to The Heights

“A BC student worker posted a stock photo on BC’s Instagram account,” the statement read.

“Once it was discovered to be a stock photo, it was removed and replaced with the organizations’ flyer. We regret any distress the posting caused to any member of the community.”

According to Yu, the BC Instagram account posted more personalized photos—with pictures of actual members—to promote other clubs’ events on the same day it advertised the CSA and JCBC event.

“I was kind of taken aback because all the other stories had more personalized photos, while ours was clearly a stock image,” Yu said. “It also kind of went off on Herrd, too, and other people were reacting the same way. So it just kind of showed the lack of

respect for the culture clubs.”

When CSA and JCBC realized the picture used in the story was from Google, several representatives from each club direct-messaged the BC Instagram account. Yu said the administrators of the account sent the same response to every representative.

“We’re sorry this slide was posted in error,” the message read. “We apologize and it’s been taken down.”

According to Hana Vogeley, JCBC AHANA representative and MCAS ’26, representatives from JCBC asked the BC Instagram account to post another story promoting the formal after the original post was removed.

“They said it was posted in

error, so we were like, ‘That’s okay, we understand, but we still do want to get our formal to be publicized and out just like any other club event,’” Vogeley said.

Vogeley said when the new story advertising the formal was uploaded later that day, it was a picture of the graphic each club had posted on its own Instagram page.

The clubs’ joint statement concluded by calling for a more inclusive space for minority students at BC.

“We hope that by addressing this issue and opening the conversation, we can work together towards a more inclusive safe space for students of color at this school,” the statement read. n

Guider Analyzes Role of Religious Women

By alexis ThoMas Heights Staff

Over the past half-century, the number of nuns in the United States has dramatically declined, according to Margaret Eletta Guider, O.S.F., an associate professor of missiology and professora ordinaria at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry (STM).

“In 2022, there were reportedly fewer than 4,200 nuns in America, which is a 76 percent decline over 50 years,” Guider said.

“At the rate sisters are disappearing in the United States, one estimate said that there will be fewer than 1,000 nuns left in the United States by 2042.”

The STM hosted Guider on Thursday as part of the annual women in theology and ministry lecture, which was titled “Women Religious and the Transformation of Theological Education.”

Guider explained that the objective of her lecture was to reflect upon the contributions that Roman Catholic religious

women in the United States have made to theology and theological education. To illustrate their contributions, Guider said she wanted to discuss the historical collective contribution of women in the field of theology, rather than women’s individual achievements.

“I want to focus more on [collective] contributions than individual contributors in tracing some of the events and exigencies that led at least in part, to the emergence of their prophetic voices and vision, in order to demonstrate the signif-

icance their ever-widening circles of influences locally, nationally, and internationally,” Guider said. Guider then encouraged the audience to reflect on how women have influenced their theological experiences.

“Many of them you may be able to call to mind, having known them as your teachers, mentors, colleagues, or administrators,” Guider said. “Others may be known through their writings, recorded presentations or reputations. Or, perhaps along the way, you may have acquired some measure of their wisdom and knowledge.”

According to Guider, women could not practice freedom of religion until the American Revolution. At this point, many professional schools for women began to open, creating a network for religious women.

“The emergence of professional schools for nurses, teachers, and secretaries in the evolution of academies into junior colleges and eventually four-year liberal colleges, women religious created an extraordinary educational network, parallel only by what they created in health care and social services,” Guider said.

According to Guider, the

demand for theologically trained women increased as religion played a larger role in American society in the early 1900s.

“In the decades of the early 20th century as vocations to religious life in the United States were on the rise, congregations were entrusted with the faith formation of children and young women within their educational institutions,” Guider said. “[Religious women] found ways of getting around the hard and fast rules that denied them access to formal theological education.”

Guider ended her talk by discussing what the future for religious women in the United States may hold amid the decline in the number of nuns.

“One of my colleagues reminds us that this is not a phenomenon that we have not seen before in the life of the [Catholic] Church,” Guider said. “But we may just have to wait. What crisis, what challenge, what gift of the Holy Spirit might in a way spontaneously lead the foundation of new communities of women religious? Hopefully, some of them will be theologians and theological educators who will carry forward the legacy of those who have gone before them.” n

CHRIS TICAS / HEIGHTS EDITOR

The SA voted to change its name to the “Senate” in its final meeting for the 2022–23 academic year. B y l ucy F

NEWTON

Community Members, Principal Speak Out After Protest of Newton North Drag Performance

"It's a really positive day and an opportunity for our students to put on an event,” he said. “These are student-run events—put on an event for their school in the same way that, you know, some of our cultural groups do, like our Black Leadership Advisory Council and our Asian Culture Club.”

The day is an opportunity for students to learn and to take leadership roles, Turner said.

“We believe in students having a lot of autonomy to be able to, to create and to take leadership roles,” he said. “And so at our school, these cultural days are, you know, an important tradition in our school where

students organize and invite speakers and they put on an event. There's a lot of learning that happens for them and an opportunity for them to, you know, to send a message of what they—who they are.”

The protestors said that the performance is not suitable for children, and that it imposes an inappropriate ideology on students, according to NBC Boston.

Kevin Ohi, a professor in the English department at Boston College who specializes in queer theory in literature, said claims of the performance pushing a certain point of view on attendees are misguided.

“It seems to me again, that there's something disingenuous about claims

of indoctrination,” Ohi said. “This is the same kind of language one saw about homosexuality you know 20, 30, 40 years ago—that people who were just trying to live their lives were indoctrinating people.”

Turner said he had a similar experience to the ToBeGLAD day protests when he worked at Lexington High School.

“I was a teacher in Lexington 20 years ago and you know, as gay marriage was being discussed, there were, you know, groups that were you know, that were, were protesting these kinds of events,” he said.

Protesting inclusive programming like Newton North’s perpetuates violence and is destructive to children, according to Ohi.

“I think the gesture is itself a kind of violence directed towards children and that it is depriving them of the ability to express things that they actually feel," he said. "It doesn't seem like one could ask them how they feel about these questions, sort of beginning to accuse sexual minorities of doing things to them."

Ohi said the protestors should think about the impact of their actions on LGBTQ+ children who already feel they are unable to express their identities.

“I don't know what's going through their heads, but one thing they're per-

haps not thinking about is the effect that this has on LGBTQ+ children or people," Ohi said. "I did see online the response of the superintendent in Newton and it seemed to me that she took that tact, saying she needs to think about those students also."

Newton Public Schools parent Jess Wilson, who first became aware of Newton North’s ToBeGlad Day celebration this year because of the pushback, said she found the protesting of the events to be frustrating and unnecessary.

“One of the biggest things that was bothering me was the mischaracterization of the whole thing as a drag show,” Wilson said. “You know, it included a drag performance as part of a showcase, it was not a drag show … it’s just regular order of business at a school—showcasing diversity and, you know, celebrating self-expression.”

The presence of a drag performance at the celebration is a positive thing, rather than a negative one, she said.

“Drag is art, it’s creativity and self-expression, and the examination of societal roles and a send-up of all the harmful taboos,” Wilson said. “And if you’ve gone to a drag show, it’s a fabulous place.”

Wilson also emphasized the importance of educating people about drag, given its mischaracterization

as inappropriate and sexual from dissenters nationwide.

“There’s a huge history of drag within that realm in entertainment, like, think of Mrs. Doubtfire and all that,” she said. “Drag is as wholesome and as American as apple pie … saying that drag itself is sexual is like saying that all comedy is raunchy because stand-ups in nightclubs tell dirty jokes.”

Advocating for programming such as Newton North’s ToBeGlad Day celebration ensures that all students feel safe and supported, according to Wilson.

“When parents and educators cave to or even help to ignite that bigotry and that fear, those kids who already felt isolated by their differences, then they have nowhere to turn,” she said.

Turner said the response from students and staff to stand up for principles of inclusivity made him proud.

“I think that it's easy to articulate your values when things are quiet, but when things are, you know, when there's challenging moments, that's when you have to really stand up for your values, and I think that the school did,” he said. “I'm really proud of our students for taking the chance and putting on something like this, and I'm really proud of our students and staff for the way that they engaged that event." n

Little Luke's Offers Homestyle Breakfast Food

By Henry BlancHette Heights Staff

Upon completing a walk along the Newton Upper Falls Greenway, one might find themself at Little Luke’s Cafe, a quaint spot serving up breakfast, lunch, coffee, and pastries.

The cafe opened in March to positive feedback from the residents and members of the community, according to owner Phil Emmanuel.

“So far, it’s been really positive,” he said. “People are excited that there's a local place back open.”

Little Luke’s breakfast menu offers a range of sandwiches along with pancakes, bagels, and muffins, the latter of which have been particularly popular, according to Emmanuel.

“The cappuccino muffins are very popular in the morning, and [the] breakfast sandwiches,” he said.

The lunch menu features a variety of sandwiches, including the Little Luke’s signature, which includes roasted lamb and basil pesto on a brioche roll, store employee Hannah Masterman-Beras said.

“For lunch sandwiches, the Little

Luke's, the Haymarket, and the Eliot chicken salad are really popular,” she said.

In addition to being one of the more popular sandwiches on the menu, the Haymarket with roast beef is Masterman-Beras’ personal favorite.

“The Haymarket’s my favorite because the horseradish aioli is really good,” she said.

Emmanuel said he enjoys the Little Luke’s sandwich, a dish which is named for the cafe’s namesake and his older brother.

“When this building became available, I wanted to name it after my brother, Luke,” he said.

According to Emmanuel, the “little” in Little Luke’s name references a childhood nickname that he received from spending so much time with his older brother.

“I used to hang around with my brother everywhere he went, so all his friends started calling me Little Luke,” Emmanuel said. “He’s since passed on, so I said this is a great opportunity to name it Little Luke’s, kind of a little bit about him and my family.”

Emmanuel said his Greek upbringing served as a large inspiration for him to open the cafe.

“I lived in Greece for about threeand-a-half years, when I was five years old to about eight years old,” he said. “That was a huge inspiration for me.”

According to Emmanuel, spending time in the kitchen with his mother and other relatives during his childhood helped to develop his love for cooking.

“Me and my little brother Nick, we hung around my mother and all the older women, and all the older women were always cooking,” he said. “It was a big influence on me … especially when we were living in Greece.”

Going forward, Emmanuel said he plans to add ice cream and lemonade to the menu on May 27 as the weather improves.

“We're going to be doing ice cream, soft serve sundaes, things like

that coming the 27th of May,” he said. “And we'll be extending our hours for Saturday and Sunday.”

Masterman-Beras said she’s proud to work at Little Luke’s thanks to the positive feedback she’s received from guests so far.

“They’ve just been commenting on our customer service and saying that it’s nice,” she said. “I’m pretty proud of, like, the food that we serve.” n

City Councilors Review New Zoning Maps

By connor Siemien

Newton Editor City officials and members of City officials and members of Newton’s Zoning and Planning Committee detailed feedback- driven updates the committee made to an overhaul of the city’s zoning maps during a meeting on Monday.

The new zoning maps are part of updated zoning laws of the city’s village centers, which have not received any major zoning updates in over 30 years.

“Between the release of version 1.0 and tonight, we did a lot of outreach,” Zachary LeMel, long range planner for Newton’s planning and development department, said. “We did info sessions for each village center that were well attended, and

these maps are snapshots of what we heard during those sessions.”

LeMel said there were several main themes that came up during this feedback period, including the need for the zoning maps to comply with MBTA community guidelines, prioritize open and green spaces, and factor in economic development opportunities.

The second version of the zoning map proposal does comply with MBTA community guidelines, according to LeMel.

As part of an economic development bill enacted in January 2021, Massachusetts has multi-family zoning regulations for all MBTA communities, which are cities and towns that surround or are nearby T stops.

The new guidelines require all of

the communities to have at least one zoning district “of reasonable size” that allows multi-family housing if the cities want to remain eligible for state funding, according to the commonwealth’s website.

Ward 5 Councilor-at-Large and Chair of the Zoning and Planning Committee Deborah Crossley asked about the MBTA community compliance and how the city will balance zoning with adhering to the rules set out by the MBTA.

LeMel said the planning and development department said this was a challenge, but the committee’s proposed zoning maps allow for village centers to change and evolve to stay compliant.

“We believe we’ve done that for our village centers in version 2.0 and, in addition to that, provided

a pathway towards MBTA compliance,” he said.

A large portion of the meeting centered on multi-residence transit zones, which are areas surrounding T stops where the only construction of buildings is for multi-family units, according to the planning and development department’s presentation.

Ward 8 Councilor-at-Large and Vice President of Newton City Council Richard Lipof raised questions about the exact feasibility of this zoning proposal, and talked about potential areas of dissatisfaction with the zoning process.

“[Multi-residence transit zones] may get us what we need with the MBTA communities, it may make people happy who don’t want too many units, it makes people unhappy that want more units, but do not

really see this as a vehicle to get it,” Lipof said. “So, this is the underlying dissatisfaction, I think, on different levels with what’s going on here.”

Currently in Phase 4—and with a public hearing scheduled for late June, according to the presentation—the zoning maps still do not address all concerns, and may fall short in satisfying everyone’s input.

“I applaud you for bringing this forward—it does solve some things but not everything and in the end I don’t know if we’re going to be able to have everything,” Lipof said.

“You’ve definitely made progress but I think you hear from a lot of people that there are questions about the battle between the underlying [zoning] and the [multi-residence transit zones], and what we really get for it." n

The performance was part of Newton North's ToBeGLAD

Super Dough Turns Parking Lot Into a Pizzeria

By Brendan O’Friel Heights Staff

Operating out of a trailer in Newton Upper Falls, Super Dough Pizza Co. only serves 50 handcrafted pizzas a day. But it does so with an extreme attention to detail.

“I’m the only one that’s stretched any pizza here ever,” owner Ian Maschal said. “I’ve made every single pizza we’ve ever sold by myself.”

Maschal said the time and dedication he puts into his craft sets his business apart from other pizza places. The dough is slowly fermented without using any yeast.

“If we’re going to sell pizza on Friday, we have to start the process on Tuesday,” he said.

Maschal said there have even been times when he has decided to close when the temperatures the night before were too low or too high, caus-

ing the dough quality to fall below his standards.

“The dough does stand out,” Jessica Maschal, Ian Maschal’s wife, said. “Being sourdough, it has like a really nice airiness to it, but you can still get like a nice crispy bottom.”

Since it’s just him in the trailer making pizzas, Ian said he caps orders at 50. Any more than that would spread him thinner than his pizzas already are.

The restaurant’s trailer is in a rented-out area of the parking lot of Upper Falls Beverage Store.

“My goal was to find like a big parking lot somewhere in a high-traffic area,” Ian said.

Ian is originally from Long Beach Island, N.J. He said his family has a background in the food industry there.

“My mom owned an ice cream store,” he said. “My uncle had a fudge shop and a chowder shop.”

He started working at restaurants

on Long Beach Island as a teen, which he said invigorated his desire to pursue a culinary career.

Ian attended culinary school at Johnson and Wales, but attributed most of his culinary skills to his time working at fine dining restaurants in Boston, like Sportello and Menton.

He has also helped with the opening of other restaurants in and around Boston, such as with Bar Mezzana, Boston Chops, Eventide, and Ivory Pearl.

With all this experience, Ian was looking for a way to work for himself. He had aspirations of operating his very own restaurant—one that served food that was not necessarily fancy but high quality, accessible, and tasty.

“Ever since … I’ve been moving further and further away from fine dining,” he said. “I enjoy eating fancy meals sometimes. I think it has its place, but it’s just not the food that like

relates to me or talks to me.”

Jessica spoke about how the couple wanted an affordable option for opening the business.

“Starting your own business is quite expensive,” she said. “The ability to do that without having to like get investors involved was to do something mobile like a food truck.”

Jessica has a full-time job overseeing sales and marketing at a shellfish distribution company. Still, she helps out with Super Dough’s private events and offers moral support to her husband, according to Ian.

Ian and Jessica share a love for food as well as experience in the restaurant industry. They met while working together at a seafood market in New York City 15 years ago.

“Food is a passion of ours,” she said.

Jessica spoke about what the opening of Super Dough has meant for the two of them.

“It’s something that’s been, you know, kind of a lifelong dream come to fruition,” she said.

Two of the most ordered pizzas, according to Ian, are the Sweet Tomato Pie and the O.G. Roni.

“I think the O.G. Roni is probably like our namesake. It’s a good example of what we do because it’s a pretty light pizza,” he said. “It gets cooked with no cheese on it at all and then it gets finished with stracciatella that’s at room temperature.”

Super Dough typically changes one or two pizzas weekly according to the season. For his spring pizzas, Ian recently received some fresh produce

from California.

“That’s when I start to really love the pizza because it’s just bright, light, easily digestible flavors,” he said.

Super Dough also sells chocolate chip cookies with toffee and sea salt from pastry chef Brian Mercury, who Boston Magazine selected as the top pastry chef in 202.

“They’re super good,” Ian said. “I probably eat at least a quarter of the cookies that I buy from him.”

While Ian said he enjoys his parking spot, the trailer doesn’t always stay parked outside of Upper Falls Beverage Store. Sometimes Ian takes his trailer to breweries, where the business does exceptionally well. The trailer also travels around to cater private parties, which is when Jessica is able to lend a helping hand.

“It’s very nice,” she said. “It’s a moment where you can get like a lot more personal and intimate with your clientele.”

Super Dough has at least one private event every weekend and multiple weekly. Clients receive the privilege of enjoying not only the food but the hospitality that both Ian and Jessica provide.

“It’s a business that we take very to heart,” she said. “It’s a passion project, it’s something that we really take a lot of care with, and I think that translates not only into the food but into interactions.”

Super Dough Pizza Co. is located at 150 Needham St. Lot 1A. Hours change weekly and are posted at https://superdoughpizzaco.com. To place an order, call (617) 548-1098. n

NPS Reallocates Funding to Music Programs

By ella sOng Asst. Newton Editor

The updated fiscal year (FY) 2024 Newton Public School (NPS) budget reallocates funding to the fourth grade strings and fifth grade orchestra programs following community pushback to their initial elimination in the first proposed budget.

Save Newton Strings, a group of parents, guardians, students, alumni, and community members opposed to the proposed cuts, led the effort to reintegrate funding for the programs back into the budget.

“This was a marvelous example of community participation, and an important educational matter, and social and developmental matter,” Paul Levy, Ward 6 School Committee member, said. “I, for one, am really pleased that people felt that it was so important to their children’s lives and education that they came out and let their feelings be known by the hundreds.”

Interim NPS Superintendent Kathleen Smith presented the original proposed FY24 budget on March 29,

and Newton parents and educators rallied in protest of the budget cuts shortly after. NPS parent and cello teacher Kate de Bethune said her experience teaching NPS elementary school students informed her advocacy through Save Newton Strings.

“[The students] come to me in fifth grade because it is recommended to them that they get a private teacher, and I’ve truly come to appreciate the excellent foundation that they receive in this outstanding program,” de Bethune said. “There’s just no getting around it—it’s a wonderful thing.”

Save Newton Strings helped organize Stringfest—an orchestral performance by NPS students to advocate for the preservation of elementary strings—and an online petition, which had 1472 signatures at the time of publication.

“We feel that the ripple effects of this cut will be deep and long-lasting,” the petition reads.

The campaign also encouraged community members, including NPS elementary school students, to contact School Committee members and

Newton city councilors.

“A lot of the kids, especially fourth graders, were like, ‘What can we do?’”

NPS music teacher Olivia de Geofroy said. “They wanted to act, they wanted to tell anyone who was listening that they didn’t think it was okay.”

Levy said he has received an outpouring of communication protesting the programs’ elimination from students, parents, and educators as a part of the Save Newton Strings campaign, including communication from current NPS students.

“I beg of you not to cut the Strings Program,” reads one email from an NPS elementary school student. “I enjoy playing my instrument and I have learned a lot this year.”

The original budget’s elimination of the elementary strings program would have cut 1.5 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions and saved $98,000, which many residents found to be relatively small in the face of a $4.9 million deficit and not worth the loss of the entire program, according to de Bethune.

“It’s the only program that was

slated for elimination outright,” de Bethune said. “And you know, Newton is also a city with an incredibly rich musical heritage, and particularly around string players. You know, many luminary string players have lived in Newton in their lives.”

The new proposed budget, which was approved by the School Committee at its meeting on Thursday, raises fees for 10 different programs, including raising the fee for elementary band and orchestra programs from $150 to $200, according to Thursday’s

presentation.

According to de Geofroy, the positive impact of accessible music programs in public schools is what makes fighting for them important.

“[The orchestra] helps them build relationships with each other,” de Geofroy said. “There’s like the intrinsic benefits [the kids] get from it that are musical and non-musical, and then there’s the community benefits they get from it, musical and non-musical. So I just think that there’s a lot to be said for making music for your friends.” n

Countryside School Construction Plans Submitted

By annie li Heights Staff

The Countryside School Building Committee unanimously voted to submit its Preferred Schematic Report (PSR) to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) during a meeting on Tuesday night.

“The preferred schematic report

really is just identifying, as we’ve discussed previously, that the northern corner of the site is basically where we want the building to be,” said Josh Morse, commissioner of public buildings in Newton. “The site plan itself is still not fully developed.”

The location of the current school building has been a key concern among city officials.

The current school building is situated in a flood zone, according to the City of Newton’s webpage on the Countryside School project.

A report on existing conditions documents damage to the school’s mechanical, electrical, and plumbing equipment from chronic flooding.

The new site farther to the north would place the school building on higher ground and away from South Meadow Brook, the wetlands, and the flood zone, according to the project webpage.

If the PSR is approved, the committee will begin working on a schematic design package for evaluation by the MSBA.

“It will take quite a bit of time,” Morse said. “We’ve got a lot of work left between now and then to work with our design review committee, our city council, the community, the building committee, the Countryside School, the staff, everybody.”

In a special override election on

March 14, Newton voters passed a temporary tax increase to help fund a total of $5.8 million in improvements to Countryside Elementary School and Franklin Elementary School. Countryside will receive $2.3 million in funding from the override vote.

The school has not received substantive investment for 65 years, according to the existing conditions report.

In addition to moving the building outside of the flood zone, the renovations will address Countryside’s lack of restrooms accessible by wheelchair, inaccessible doors, and the need for space for small group instruction, special education, and support staff.

The redesign also aims to create a school that can accommodate the growing student population. Countryside’s enrollment is expected to exceed 400 students in coming years, the city’s website reads.

The Countryside School Building Committee hopes to seek site plan

approval in the fall of 2023, according to Morse.

“We’re targeting the end of the fall right now,” he said. “Things like where the parking lots are, where the ball fields are, where the playground sits, pedestrian access, accessibility, topography, stormwater—all of those things still need to be worked on in great detail over the next six to eight months.”

Construction on the new Countryside building is projected to begin in the summer of 2025 and end in the summer of 2027.

“Every time we start a new school building project, I explain to the community that the incredible educators are providing an amazing educational experience despite the challenging facility they’re in,” Morse wrote in a letter to the community. “However, this is not how it’s supposed to be. School buildings are supposed to foster, comfort, nature, and nurture educational, social, and emotional growth.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF IAN MASCHAL

Owner Ian Maschal left his career in fine dining to create Super Dough Pizza Co. with his wife, Jessica.

M AGAZINE

College Experience With an “Asterisk”: Seniors Reflect on COVID-19 Impacts

B y E liza H E rnandE z Projects Editor

c lifford Editorial Assistant

Like many Boston College seniors hoping to take full advantage of their remaining days on the Heights, Kristen Donnelly said she and her friends have a bucket list to tackle before graduation.

This bucket list, Donnelly explained, is particularly important to her because the COVID-19 pandemic prevented her from doing many of the activities and tasks earlier in her undergraduate years.

“It’s very stressful because it’s like the clock is ticking down and I feel like I just started college,” Donnelly, MCAS ’23, said. “Especially because we didn’t have those full four years after all, so it does feel a bit unfair, but I can’t really do anything about that.”

COVID-19 pandemic, seniors reflected on how relationships and culture at BC have changed.

Many seniors define their classwide identity not by the isolation COVID-19 caused, but instead by their class’ growth and resilience through unconventional times.

The Pandemic’s Aftershocks

After nearly four years of adapting to COVID-19 testing protocols, mask mandates, and vaccine requirements, there are many permanent changes in everyday student life—ranging from increased use of BC Dining’s GET Mobile Ordering to permanent masking requirements at University Health Services.

Having experienced BC’s evolution amid COVID-19, many seniors feel the social culture on campus reflects the lingering impacts of the pandemic.

Even though the University largely rolled back its COVID-19 regulations, Donnelly said BC’s social life is slightly different. Students are still recovering from the challenge of maintaining oncampus connections during the height of the pandemic, she said.

“It was just so much easier to socialize before, and I’m sure every school would be able to say that,” Donnelly said. “But there was just no worry about being able to make friends and new connections and also be a part of different activities.”

Before COVID-19, Jake Asato, MCAS ’23, said the University placed less restrictions on social events. The Mods used to be the go-to spot for parties, but today, he said, the Mods party scene is much more tame.

“Every weekend, even if I wasn’t going into the Mods, I walked past Lower or something and it’d be kind of loud and people would be walking everywhere,” Asato said. “And then after COVID-19, now, I’ll walk through on a Saturday night it just feels like a Tuesday.”

through a decline in students’ engagement.

“Even now that COVID-19 has calmed down, I think people are very used to not coming, if that makes sense,” Donnelly said. “So yeah, it’s very difficult to bring that engagement back up.”

Hannah Yoon, co-president of the Student Health Equity Forum of BC (SHEF) and MCAS ’23, said she has talked to several other senior club leaders who have noticed lowered club attendance post-COVID-19. Despite the SHEF leadership team’s emphasis on advertising SHEF’s events and adding incentives for attendance, Yoon said the club believes there is a general attitude shift toward academic clubs after the onset of COVID-19.

“I think maybe because of COVID-19 and how we were, you know, really restricted and confined to our roles, and geographical locations even, I think the student body attitude is kind of ‘have fun, enjoy life while it lasts,’ which is important,” Yoon said. “But also I think it’s reflected in the student body’s engagement in activities that are more academic or like academic extracurricular activities.”

Reflecting on COVID-19’s impacts on classroom interactions, Yoon said professors are more understanding and lenient when students have to miss class due to illnesses.

“Post COVID-19, most professors post lecture slides— and some still even post Panopto lecture recordings for students to review,” Yoon said. “Many of my professors emphasize that if you’re sick, [you shouldn’t] come to class.”

said it was challenging to figure out how to adapt and accommodate students amid constant change.

“I think it was a time of uncertainty, a time when we had to work really quickly and hard to adapt both pedagogically as well as personally to the challenges that we and our students were facing,” Lamoureux said.

Lamoureux said he saw a range of reactions among his students, from resilience to an understandable difficulty with handling virtual classes.

“What I was seeing when I was talking to students in meetings was some anxiety, some concern,” Lamoureux said. “And then also their isolation, some frustration with the change in lifestyle or a change in what their expectations were for what college is supposed to look like.”

This feeling of isolation also applied to the workplace for Michael Britt, MCAS ’23, who began working for BC Dining in McElroy Commons during the January of his freshman year. He worked there throughout his sophomore year.

“You’d just have two people working at each line kind of isolated together in a way, but they never interacted with each other compared to how it was in the two months I worked there before COVID-19 protocols,” Britt said. “That was when it felt a lot more isolating.”

Cross Conrad, CSOM ’23, has worked as an Resident Assistant (RA) since his sophomore year. He said RAs felt pressured to help their residents during the pandemic, but it was difficult due to social distancing restrictions. Despite this, Conrad said he thinks the Office of Residential Life’s housing policies have fully returned to their pre-pandemic state and that his RA duties are no longer affected by the pandemic.

with COVID,” Mogan said. “We definitely saw students who struggled during COVID to engage in healthy ways or to be successful during these difficult times, and I think that all was normal.”

Finding “Silver Linings” and “Deepened Connections”

When talking to students in his senior capstone class, Lamoureux said he is impressed by their ability to remain positive. Though the pandemic posed many challenges to current seniors, some have found “silver linings,” Lamoureux said.

The Class of 2023 had just come back from its freshman year Spring Break when it received an email notifying all BC students they must evacuate residence halls within just a few days to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Following the news, many students felt confused, anxious, and sad about leaving campus—even one year after they had to pack up and go home, students were still coping with the new reality of their BC experience.

As the last class that will remember what BC was like before, during, and after the onset of the

Today, Asato said BC is still feeling the residual effects of COVID-19 through its party scene.

“The social life is not as lively as it used to be,” Asato said.

Another lingering impact of COVID-19, Donnelly added, is a decline in club participation and meeting attendance.

Donnely said she recently joined Active Minds at BC—a club aimed to foster campuswide conversations about mental health—when the first COVID-19 cases appeared at BC. Because the club was just established in 2019, Donnelly said Active Minds is still feeling the impacts of COVID-19

Yet, even though Conrad said his job as an RA is back to normal, he still feels heavily affected by COVID-19 because he missed out on many typical college experiences.

“Even if [Res Life] policies are the same as they were pre-COVID, the impact still hits our class,” Conrad said.

Tom Mogan, interim associate dean of the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences and former vice president for student engagement and formation, said even though BC policies have generally returned to normal, he does not want to downplay the struggles students faced because of COVID-19.

“I don’t want to say that there weren’t some real challenges

“One of the things that I found many students say was that there were a few silver linings to COVID-19,” Lamoureux said. “They deepened connections with a few individuals … they became really close with them, maybe perhaps to an extent that they hadn’t before.”

Conrad said this year is the first of his college experience that feels somewhat normal, mostly because of school policies. Because BC has largely returned to its pre-COVID-19 procedures, Conrad said he feels like he gets to have a regular senior year.

“I think this year it’s all getting better again,” Conrad said. “I think this is the first year where we’re really starting to get some return to normalcy.”

Britt said he thinks his peers are more intentional about their relationships and look to invest time in quality friendships after the isolation of the COVID-19 lockdowns.

“Coming out of the pandemic, people really were emphasizing maintaining their personal relationships that had faltered throughout the pandemic,” Britt said. “And I think that was a culture that was really nice to see in a really endearing way.”

Because her friends at BC are from different places around the country, Donnelly said she lost an opportunity to see them when students were sent home in 2020. As the University lifted COVID-19 regulations and started to allow in-person gatherings, Donnelly

See Class of 2023, A7

Jeffrey Lamoureux, a psychology and neuroscience professor and director of undergraduate studies for the psychology department,

PHOTOS COURTESY OF KRISTEN DONNELLY, MAGGIE LEAHY, AND HANNAH YOON

“Every weekend, even if I wasn’t going into the Mods, I walked past Lower or something and it’d be kind of loud and people would be walking everywhere ... and then after COVID-19, now, I’ll walk through on a Saturday night it just feels like a Tuesday.”

“I think it was a time of uncertainty, a time when we had to work really quickly and hard to adapt both pedagogically as well as personally to the challenges that we and our students were facing.”

“I think this is the first year where we’re really starting to get some return to normalcy.”

said she prioritized making time for friends on campus.

more of a zest for playing and just being a part of the team too,” Fogarty said. “Even the social aspects of it, like between dinners and stuff, are a lot of fun, especially when you’ve had to go without it.”

After the senior class’ experience of isolation, Yoon said she is thankful the campus culture is still lively despite the challenges building connections online posed.

“I think the student body has done a really good job of still being as connected as we are, despite the obstacles that we faced being online,” Yoon said. “For the current junior class, as freshmen, they were completely virtual for their first year of college and I can’t even imagine how daunting it must have been.”

Natalie Mutter, CSON ’23, said the Class of 2023 is trying to embrace the quintessential aspects of the college experience after losing so much time to socialize.

“I think just recognizing how valuable those connections are, especially because when you’re at college, it’s so different from being in high school where you know that you’re all coming from the same hometown and if you’re not at school, you could find a way to be with them,” Donnelly said.

Amanda Fogarty, president of Women’s Club Field Hockey and CSOM ’23, said morale among her teammates shifted in a positive direction after the peak of the pandemic—because they missed out on playing and bonding time, her teammates were eager to spend time together once restrictions were lifted.

“I think people have much

“I think by our junior fall, we were ready to party—to be together again and celebrate,” Mutter said.

Mutter said she feels lucky to be able to participate in traditional BC senior activities.

“We had the whole football season, tailgating in the Mods,” Mutter said. “I’ve really enjoyed the senior events that we’ve had like the 100 Days Dance, and I’m glad that we were able to squeeze in an extra Marathon Monday in. I feel really lucky about that and I’m going to miss BC a lot.”

Though the Class of 2023 had a somewhat limited college experience, Mogan said it has shown

resilience in the way it has treated its last years at BC. Instead of giving up, Mogan said the senior class has taken full advantage of its time here.

“The last two years, they’ve really been trying to soak up as much of BC as they could,” Mogan said. “And so, to me it just seems like there’s even more of a desire to connect with one another and to connect with BC.”

Forming a Unique Identity and Learning Life Lessons

Yoon said the experience of attending BC before, during, and after the onset of the pandemic taught her the importance of valuing herself and her mental health. She also realized that health and friendships are more important than getting good grades or completing work, Yoon said.

to value both your physical health and your mental health.”

Similar to Yoon’s newfound perspective on the importance of self-care, Donnelly said she has adopted a more optimistic perspective on the future and stresses less about what is to come.

“I do think that every graduating class probably has experienced similar things, and a change of identity, and the development of it,” Donnelly said. “But for me, during COVID-19 I did experience a big shift in my mindset on college and just my young adulthood in general.”

Regarding the experience of her entire class, Emily Torpey, CSOM ’23, said the senior class’ identity is not defined by COVID-19, but it definitely plays a role in the way her fellow seniors experienced college.

“Your friends, the clubs you’re a part of, and your major and all that still very much defines your senior BC experience,” Torpey said. “I think there’s a strong asterisk there of how our class is different.”

to be extremely resilient, creative, and I’m just so impressed with how they were able to manage the difficulties associated with going to college during a pandemic.”

And she hopes other seniors feel the same way.

“You know, we all go to BC, we’re all excellent students, we take rigorous courses, and a lot of times we overextend ourselves because we are such driven students,” Yoon said. “And you know, I think coming out of COVID-19 and reflecting on that period as a senior looking back, I think it’s important

Mogan said he has grown to admire the senior class’ perseverance in dealing with the effects of COVID-19. As a resident minister in the Mods, Mogan hosts dinners with his residents where they share insights from their college experience.

“I have the utmost respect for the seniors who are graduating this year because they really, for two years, did not have the typical college experience,” Mogan said. “But I would say that they proved

In addition to keeping up commendable attitudes throughout the pandemic, Mogan said he also noticed how the Class of 2023 gives back to BC more than previous classes. This year’s seniors are especially enthusiastic about mentoring underclassmen and being leaders for them, Mogan said.

“They’ve given a lot to BC,” Mogan said. “One of the things that I’ve always been impressed with in terms of my experience at BC, is how much the seniors are willing to give back … and I think it’s been even magnified with this class.” n

Another Year Down: How To Savor College Memories

By Lily Boyd Heights Staff

As the cherry blossoms bloom and finals week approaches, the spring semester is nearing a close.

It can be hard to fathom how eight months have passed since we moved into our dorm rooms in August and began this year of our college experience. I often ask myself the same questions: Where did the time go? How can this many months feel like a week or two?

It is important to savor every college memory, but our brains can only recall so much detail. To solve this dilemma, here are some tips to cherish your year on the Heights.

A Memory Box

Ever since middle school, I’ve repurposed old shoe boxes to hold mementos, symbols, and trinkets from the year past. I leave them under my bed or in some rarely visited drawer, and then I happily rediscover them months later. To make one of your own, take an old unused box, preferably a shoe

box, and gather any little items or photos that remind you of the year you want to remember.

Next, decorate the outside with photos, paint, and a label indicating what the box is commemorating. Then, compile your items and place them inside your box.

You can organize the items in a certain way, perhaps in chrono -

logical order, but that’s up to you. Decorate the inside however you like, this is your year! Lastly, my favorite part, store the box away and let yourself forget about it. Finding it again is such a joyful experience!

box, for a scrapbook you’ll want to assemble any tokens of your year. Print out any articles, photos, stickers, or decorations to attach to your book.

Scrapbooking is also a great activity to do with friends! The

leaving letters within the book is a sweet way to encapsulate your feelings at the time the book was created. With friends, you can take turns writing letters to each other or adding comments on pages. Or, if this is an activity you prefer to execute alone, mark up your book with comments to your future self.

Playlist

Go back, scroll through your Spotify, Apple Music, or whatever platform you use and accumulate any songs you loved this year, heard at a party, or were introduced to by a friend. Turn these meaningful tunes into a playlist of the year. You can also listen to this while making your memory box or scrapbook. A few years down the road, listening to this playlist again will make you feel the nostalgia and remind you of a younger self.

Scrapbook

A scrapbook is a classic and easy way to put your memories to the page. Similar to the memory

more minds the better—together, you can ensure no crucial memories from the year are left out. Whether a group activity or solo,

The headliner of my freshman year playlist is “DOGTOOTH” by Tyler, the Creator because it reminds me of the beautiful spring days on campus. Have fun listening! n

Class of 2023, from A6

“And you know, I think coming out of COVID-19 and reflecting on that period as a senior looking back, I think it’s important to value both your physical health and your mental health.”

“One of the things that I’ve always been impressed with in terms of my experience at BC, is how much the seniors are willing to give back … and I think it’s been even magnified with this class.”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MAGGIE LEAHY

“I think there’s a strong asterisk there of how our class is different.”

Greenfield Applies Civil Rights to Corporate Law

By spencer sTeppe Asst. Magazine Editor

After getting pickpocketed in Rio de Janeiro, finding a girlfriend in Ecuador, and watching Bruce Springsteen perform in Argentina, Kent Greenfield decided to attend law school.

Greenfield received his undergraduate degree at Brown University and worked in politics in his early 20s, but he could not decide if he wanted to be a teacher or a lawyer. Following a year of travel in South America, Greenfield said he chose to go to law school instead of pursuing a master’s degree in education.

“I figured if I got a law degree, I could then teach,” Greenfield said. “Going to law school was the choice that opened more doors.”

Reflecting on his decision to go into law, Greenfield said his upbringing had a large influence on him. Greenfield was raised in a small town in Kentucky, where his dad was a minister and his mom was a school teacher. His parents always showed concern and compassion for other people, and Greenfield said he tries to carry these values into his work as a law professor who fights for human rights.

“It’s pretty understandable that I ended up as a teacher that tries to use my efforts in service of something—in service of issues that I care about and justice that I want to pursue,” Greenfield said.

After graduating from the University of Chicago Law School and working as a corporate lawyer for a year, Greenfield became a professor at Boston College Law School, where he has worked for over 27 years.

“I still remember the dean calling me with the offer and being so thrilled,” Greenfield said. “I moved into my office at BC and I’ve been in the same building ever since.”

colleagues.

Finnegan Schick, one of Greenfield’s students and BC Law ’24, said Greenfield’s greatest strength is creating a space in his classes for students to share their opinions about divisive issues.

“Professor Greenfield gives space in his classes for the kinds of human and humane conversations that are honestly necessary when we’re talking about charged political issues,” Schick said.

Additionally, Greenfield added that BC allows him to explore a wide variety of topics within the law field. Most law professors are forced into a narrow branch of academic work, Greenfield said, but he has studied everything from corporate law to constitutional law to economic theory.

“This place has really given

nesses as holders of rights,” Greenfield said.

The 2022 Supreme Court case 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis also combines issues of corporate and constitutional law, Greenfield said. This case involves a Colorado woman who runs a business creating wedding websites. She argued that her company should not have to make websites for same-sex couples due to freedom of religion. Yet, the state of Colorado prohibits businesses from discriminating based on sexual orientation.

“The state’s interest in non-discrimination in the marketplace is conflicting with the business’s claimed interest in only producing these websites that are consistent with their underlying religious beliefs,” Greenfield said.

about corporations.”

Greenfield submitted his brief with the help of two of his students—Cory Greer, BC Law ’24, and Therese Juneau, BC Law ’24. Juneau said that working on this project was especially significant because Greenfield taught her constitutional law class, so she could apply insights from the class into a real case.

“After taking constitutional law, and then you get to put your hands on something that’s being filed with the Supreme Court … is kind of like a really thrilling moment,” Juneau said.

Juneau said she was intimidated to work on the document at first because of its importance, but Greenfield made her feel like her contributions were valuable.

“The trust that he places in his students and the confidence

field said he made the same argument he did in the 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis case: The Supreme Court does not need to grant religious freedom to for-profit businesses.

Greenfield said he continues to teach at BC because he feels free to be transparent about his opinions in his professional work while also engaging in productive dialogue with students and

me the chance to do all the kinds of things that I want to have in my daily life,” Greenfield said. “Because I don’t want to just be one thing—I want to be a bunch of things.”

Though Greenfield has researched many subjects, he is an expert in constitutional and corporate law. He said that most of his work involves issues of civil rights and corporate governance.

Greenfield’s two areas of expertise have become increasingly intertwined, he said. According to Greenfield, this is a direct result of the 2019 Supreme Court case Citizens United v. FEC , where the Supreme Court ruled that corporations should be granted freedom of speech. Greenfield said that because of this ruling, his recent work has combined issues of constitutional and corporate law.

“The reality is that the Court is seeing corporations and busi-

In June 2022, Greenfield submitted an amicus brief—an argument in a court case filed by a third party—in the 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis case. Greenfield then traveled to Washington, D.C. in December 2022 to listen to the case’s oral arguments.

In his brief, Greenfield argues that companies are separate from the individual who runs them. This means that, according to Greenfield, 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis is not questioning the business owner’s personal freedom of religion. Instead, the case asks if freedom of religion should be granted to a corporation that is required to adhere to the state’s non-discriminatory law.

“This is one of those areas actually where my interest in corporate law and constitutional law have really come together,” Greenfield said. “Because now, you can’t talk about first amendment stuff without also talking

that he instilled in me to be able to put my thoughts or just suggestions—that was really uplifting to me,” Juneau said.

Though the 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis case involves issues of corporate law, Greenfield said the case is mostly about human rights and non-discrimination. These topics are familiar to Greenfield because of his prior work experience, he said. In fact, Greenfield submitted a brief on the 2018 Supreme Court case Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission , which he said is a strikingly similar case to 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis

“The key case that most people will remember is the Masterpiece Cakeshop case,” Greenfield said. “It was about a bakery, and the bakery refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple.”

In the brief he authored for Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission , Green-

“The problem with Masterpiece Cakeshop and the problem with 303 Creative … is that the claim is actually from the individual—it’s the individual authorizing their religious views,” Greenfield said. “And the company and the individual are not the same.”

Though both Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission and 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis are recent cases, Greenfield said he has advocated for the expansion of LGBTQ+ rights for 20 years.

In 2003, Greenfield sued the Pentagon over its anti-gay policies, and in 2006, Greenfield was the plaintiff in Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights, Inc ., the Supreme Court case that resulted from his lawsuit.

Though Greenfield lost this Supreme Court case, he said that he does not view it as a defeat because this case eventually led to a much broader recognition of LGBTQ+ rights.

“We were essentially saying that the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy was discriminatory,” Greenfield said. “Even though we lost that battle, I think that the war was eventually won.”

Both in his work fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and working as a teacher, Schick said that Greenfield cares a lot about honoring people’s personal identities. According to Schick, Greenfield’s compassion and humane disposition are what make him stand out—as a lawyer and as a professor.

“I think that Professor Greenfield embodies the best of BC Law,” Schick said. “When I was thinking about where to go to law school, I heard about all of the good qualities that BC Law had, and I think that Professor Greenfield has demonstrated to me that those are true.” n

Homemade on the Heights: Mediterranean Salad

By Jenny Fox Heights Staff

Now that we’ve reached the point in the semester when the winter

gloom subsides, not only does my attitude change but so does my palette. With sunny and beautiful days on campus, I am constantly in the mood for dishes that feel like an

appetizer to the rapidly approaching summer season. One of my favorite meals I can whip up in a few minutes with low effort is a Mediterranean-inspired salad.

Mediterranean salads are light and refreshing. They make a great snack, side dish, or meal.

This flavorful salad is made up of ingredients that hold up well in the fridge, so you can make a large batch to keep on hand and enjoy throughout the week. You can also make a small batch to enjoy on the spot, which I often do because of how simple and foolproof this dish truly is.

All the ingredients necessary to make this salad can be found at

Lower. Even the special add-ins that elevate this dish to the next level are available at the salad bar, so there’s nothing standing in your way to try this out the next time you are looking for a fresh and nourishing dish.

Dish: Mediterranean Salad

Ingredients

1 tomato, cut into wedges

1 cucumber, diced

¼ red onion, sliced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Optional: kalamata olives

Optional: feta cheese crumbles

Instructions

1. In a bowl, combine tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion.

2. Add olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.

3. Toss the ingredients until well coated and combined.

4. Add in optional toppings. n

Kent Greenfield has researched many subjects in law, but his expertise lies in constitutional and corporate law.

PHOTO COURTESY OF KENT GREENFIELD

“Professor Greenfield gives space in his classes for the kinds of human and humane conversations that are honestly necessary when we’re talking about charged political issues.”

“The trust that he places in his students and the confidence that he instilled in me to be able to put my thoughts or just suggestions—that was really uplifting to me.”

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

The Supreme Court’s Diversity Battle

on Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. Harvard and SFFA v. University of North Carolina later this year, potentially reversing 45 years of this established legal precedent and impeding the social progress that comes with diverse enrollment in elite colleges.

petitive institutions continue to prioritize privileged groups, like legacy candidates and children of donors—achieving racial diversity would become very challenging.

The Supreme Court’s conservative majority is setting itself up to overturn affirmative action in college admissions this year. Without it, racial diversity in higher education will be permanently damaged— unless Boston College and other top universities radically change their admissions selection criteria.

Growing up in a predominantly white community, I would often hear white parents express frustration and disappointment when an elite university rejected their child. Some of these parents attributed the rejection to affirmative action—assuming their child was a victim of a system that prioritizes diversity over merit. In their eyes, their child was the perfect applicant, but their spot was taken away by a minority student in the name of reparations. Heaven forbid the student of color has any merit.

This belief is often unfounded and perpetuates negative attitudes toward racial minorities in higher education. Still, it has aspects of truth within it.

According to Cornell Law School, “Affirmative action is defined as a set of procedures designed to; eliminate unlawful discrimination among applicants, remedy the results of such prior discrimination, and prevent such discrimination in the future.” Under affirmative action, the “prior discrimination” that white America imposed on people of color calls for equitable practices, so centuries of systemic racism are factored into the admissions process by providing some favorability to students of color over white students.

This will likely change very soon. The Supreme Court is set to make a decision

While racial identity is not the most significant factor in college admissions, affirmative action is necessary to ensure diverse classes are admitted every year to elite universities. These classes benefit from diversity—students who come from different backgrounds can learn from one another, and students who are uplifted due to affirmative action can dramatically improve their earnings after graduation. The question, at this point, is not whether or not affirmative action will be overruled—it is, to what extent is the court willing to remove race as a factor in college admissions?

The Supreme Court has two options, one more strict than the other:

They can get rid of the racial “check box” on applications and only allow for the consideration of race and ethnic identities within essays and listed activities.

They can rule to criminalize any consideration of race at all.

No matter what, higher education institutions everywhere will have to rethink much of their processes. To grow diversity after this drastic overturn, candidate attributes that correlate with certain racial identities must be given more weight. Colleges can target ZIP codes with low socio-economic status with the hopes of attracting more applicants of color. They might also monitor certain extracurricular activities that are common among students of color, like certain sports and dance groups, student governments, and racial or ethnic affinity clubs. Some universities may become entirely test-blind because standardized tests are greatly dependent on resources available to students. This will not be an easy makeover.

In a realistic scenario where the Supreme Court prohibits any use of race as a factor in college admissions—but com-

No matter how many remedial practices BC takes to maintain some diversity, the end of affirmative action means representation of underprivileged racial groups on campuses will decline, leading to less diversity overall.

The truth is, I do not know exactly what will happen when the court votes on this case. What I do know is the Supreme Court would not protect all people under the promise of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” by overturning this decision. In a sense, the Supreme Court is turning back to old American traditions—because the Founding Fathers excluded many peoples from this promise too. The opposites of those three ideals were inflicted upon people of color in this country for far too long, and so legislation like affirmative action should actively reconcile centuries of despotism.

This Supreme Court decision comes at a time when dozens of bills in 15 states are seeking to ban diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in public colleges. Private institutions like BC may have the room to continue fostering these inclusive spaces. But, when a new bill bans books with diverse characters, and the Supreme Court might rule that racial consideration for college admissions is unconstitutional, the peace of mind of these universities must take a hit. Any initiative aimed at promoting diversity, equity, or inclusion for underserved communities is at risk in this political climate. The elimination of race-conscious policies at top universities like BC will ensure a decline in racial diversity on college campuses. If these schools do not implement fundamental changes to their admission process to include underrepresented groups, this diversity will decline even more.

Seasons of Change

and luscious. Temperatures are warm, rains are abundant, and you feel vibrant. In short, life is good. But then all of the sudden it’s October. The sky is gray and the air is cold. Your leaves are dying, and some are falling off. Think of how frightening that must be (assuming you have consciousness in this tree body of yours).

the other side.

That is not to say the old tree does not mourn the falling of its leaves every year. But, the old tree acknowledges that the changes fall and winter bring are necessary to start a new chapter of life.

And so this is my message for my final column with The Heights.

Congratulations, Gloria!

One of the Boston College community’s favorite dining workers, Gloria Garcia Revolorio, was recognized this past week with the Mary Kaye Waldron Award at the Ever to Excel awards ceremony. Known campus-wide for her smile and enthusiastic “tap please!” at the register, Gloria brightens the days of countless BC students. With her congratulatory post receiving over 1,500 likes on Instagram and 1,200 upvotes on Herrd, students are happy to see Gloria finally recognized for her kindness and hard work. So, thank you Gloria—we are so grateful for you!

Student Creativity

As we know, BC is home to a group of smart students. What don’t we always acknowledge? How creative we are! From the variety of handmade items sold during Arts Fest to the end-of-year performances showcasing our diverse talents to the projects that emerge from the Hatchery on a daily basis, BC has an extremely creative student body. Even if you don’t feel like a particularly creative person, pull out a coloring book or some dorm room karaoke and try your hand at something artsy. If nothing else, it is a great way to let off steam.

Out-LAW-ed

With finals week fast approaching, students are packing O’Neill, Bapst, classrooms, and dorm study rooms in an attempt to find a quiet place to study. The one place they can’t go? BC’s Law Library. And for the undergraduates stuck on Newton, nothing seems more inconvenient. Trekking to crowded Main Campus to study can be stress-inducing for these students, and using the Law Library would be so convenient. So please, let us share this space. We have so much to do, and we promise we won’t be disruptive!

It is now starting to really hit me that I am a graduating senior with only one month left in my college career. The end-of-year festivities have begun—and some have even passed me by. As you might expect, planning for events like the Commencement Ball, Dance Through the Decades, and graduation itself is putting me in quite the reflective mood.

Although there are some definite waves of sadness that go along with leaving college, I do find some peace in the fact that I am starting a new chapter, progressing along in the stages of my life.

Change is good. Change is natural. And yes, change is incredibly scary—but I think it is supposed to be at times.

If you’re familiar with my columns over the past few years, then you will know it is about time I make a nature reference.

So, imagine being a sapling, perhaps a young oak tree, in your first year of life. In the summer, your leaves are green

But this is what must happen. This is what allows the sapling to survive the harsh winter and facilitates its future growth. And the leaves do come back. Granted, they’re not the same leaves that were lost before, but they are new leaves.

Now stick with me here (tree joke— hah). If you were to ask an old tree if it were scared during this time of intense change—as summer turns to fall and its appearance changes drastically—I think the tree would say no, that it is not scared. Instead, it is prepared for what’s to come.

And perhaps my conception of trees paints them as wiser than they really are, but let’s face it—they’ve been on this planet a lot longer than we have. They’ve certainly earned their wisdom, having survived 420 million years worth of change on this earth.

So yes, I think an old tree would not be worried about the dramatic seasonal changes it goes through. The old tree would know that although winter seems to drag on, spring will inevitably be on

Graduation is beautiful in the way it signals another season in my life. I’m going to live in places completely unfamiliar to me and do work unlike anything I have ever done.

I will have my winters in times of difficulty, and I will just as surely have my summers in times of joy.

Still, even with all of the new opportunities graduation brings, there are reasons to be sad. Just as the old tree annually grieves its leaves falling, I too can grieve leaving the place I’ve called home for the last four years.

But without this change, I wouldn’t be able to start my life’s next adventure. I would never get my new leaves.

So, now I leave you with this. Allow your leaves to grow but also allow them to die. There are times when change is the best thing for you, whether you think it is or not. Change is life—just look at the trees.

Last TUTD of the School Year

With the close of the school year comes a lot of lasts—last class, last latenight conversation with your current roommates, last dining hall meal, and the last Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down of the year. We at TUTD love getting to share the good and bad of BC with you every week, and we will miss you this summer. But never fear, we will be back next fall, and we already have a lot of ideas for you. So this summer, keep us in mind and do your own little TUTD activity— acknowledge the bad but continue to look for the good, every week.

ElisE Jarvis

GRAPHICS BY ALYSSA ANDERSON / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Elise Jarvis is a columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at elise.jarvis@bc.edu.

alli HargrovE Alli Hargrove is a columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at allison.hargrove@bc.edu.

BC’s Class of 2027: Key Advice To Make the Best of Your Freshman Year

Congratulations, Class of 2027, and welcome to Boston College! Over the next few months, you’re bound to have a lot of questions. So, before you arrive on campus, The Heights Editorial Board wants to ensure you’re prepared to make the best of BC.

Classes

One of the first major challenges you’ll face is course registration. As you probably know, BC has a hefty core curriculum, but don’t be intimidated. You can use AP and IB classes to fulfill requirements.

BC offers many unique and engaging classes specifically crafted for first years. For example, Complex Problems and Enduring Questions courses allow first years to fulfill two core requirements in one class that combines two subjects.

If you’re worried about your philosophy and theology requirements, we encourage you to check out the Perspectives and PULSE programs. These year-long, popular classes allow you to complete multiple core credits through discussion or service.

Before you register, explore Cornerstone Seminar Programs and consider taking one. Classes like The Courage to Know and First-Year Topic Seminars provide students opportunities to engage in reflection and connect with other first years.

Mainly, though, don’t worry! You have four years and 40-plus classes to take at BC. That is plenty of time to explore all of your interests. Taking an elective just for fun won’t keep you from graduating.

Newton Campus

First of all: If you were placed on Newton Campus, don’t worry. A short, 10-minute bus ride may divide your dorm from the Chestnut Hill Campus (or “Main,” as you’ll call it)—but there is genuinely so much value to living in your own community.

To make the best of Newton, get acquainted with the bus schedule and install TransLoc. This app tracks the Newton bus so you can get to and from your dorm on time.

Bus aside, living on Newton gives you access to an otherwise unknown part of the BC experience. So take advantage of everything unique to Newton Campus: Make friends on the bus, go on trips to the restaurants in the City of Newton, and use all of the study, dining, and recreation spaces available to you. But watch out for the geese!

Bean Town

Despite being our namesake, BC is (mostly) not in Boston. It’s largely in Newton, but the city is in our backyard. So start exploring!

The first thing to figure out is how to get into the city, which means getting acquainted with BC’s Shuttle Routes and the T. You can get on the B line of the T on Lower Campus or use the Common-

wealth Avenue bus to get to the C line in Cleveland Circle as well as the D line at the Reservoir stop.

For most trips into Boston, we recommend using the bus to get to the Reservoir stop—it is faster than the B and C lines.

Another great advantage of being a BC student? Discounts for events in the city! All BC students can get free tickets to great museums like the Museum of Fine Arts and the New England Aquarium. And thanks to our student status, we can get Student9s—$9 tickets for Red Sox home games at Fenway Park.

Social Life

You don’t have to love your social life when you first get here.

Inevitably, you will hear some friend groups plotting their housing for the next three years as early as October. But there’s no need to rush. Instead, try to find friends through dorm programming, clubs, or athletic events, and introduce yourself to new people across campus.

You don’t have to be friends with floormates, but it’s an easy place to start. Attend your RA’s dorm programs (if only for the free stuff), keep your door open at the start of the year, and greet neighbors in the hallways.

Student organizations can be a great way to find friends who share your interests. Before coming to campus, you can read online about the clubs that interest you and find them on social media. Then, you can meet them in person at the Student Involvement Fair during the second week of school. Our advice? Sign up for way too much, attend interest meetings, and narrow it down to the clubs that excite you the most.

BC’s sports teams might not always be winners, but rooting for the Eagles can be a great way to meet people. To attend (almost) all of BC’s exciting basketball, hockey, and football home games, we strongly recommend you buy the Gold Pass before the discount window closes in July. It’s the best deal you’ll get—unless you’re in the Montserrat Coalition, which means you will get free tickets.

But our strongest note of advice is to get out of your room. Never be afraid to chat with strangers in your dorm, study with acquaintances from class, or eat with new people in dining halls.

Campus Resources

BC’s campus offers tons of free, “hidden” events, programs, and learning experiences that we wish we knew about in our first years. Here are just a few.

BC offers otherwise paid online services for free, including Microsoft Office, subscriptions to major newspapers like The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, career resources like LinkedIn

Learning and Handshake, and streamable movies and TV shows.

The Margot Connell Recreation Center (known as “The Plex”) is a gym with almost every fitness-related amenity you can think of, including group fitness classes every day.

The Connors Family Learning Center offers free tutoring services to all BC students, and it is particularly useful for students with learning disabilities. BC’s Career Center provides free coaching services to improve students’ resumes, cover letters, and networking skills.

The Thea Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center provides a multitude of resources, events, and full-time staff for students of color and is adding new programming for LGBTQ+ students starting next year. University organizations also host a variety of prominent, thought-provoking speakers, from politicians to influencers.

Miscellaneous

Now that we’ve filled you in on the big things, we’d like to offer a few final tricks of the BC trade.

First up is dining. Here’s the deal—don’t stress, but get to know your dining plan. It’s divided into two parts: Your Residential Meal Plan money (that’s the big number!) can be used at all the main dining halls, while your Residential Dining Bucks (the smaller number) are for all the specialty stores and coffee shops on campus. Don’t use your Residential Dining Bucks all up right away. To make the most of BC Dining, track your balances through the GET Mobile app, take advantage of the Dining Menus, and frequent the What’s Open? page.

Next up we have financial aid and work-study. Be sure you understand your loans and the financial aid resources available through the Office of Student Services before you arrive on campus. If you have a work study or are interested in working on campus, start exploring BC’s job listings—and bring your passport and social security card with you to school so you don’t run into trouble when applying. Wait to buy textbooks until you know you’ll need them, and look for options online or at the library that might be cheaper than the BC bookstore.

Lastly, acquaint yourself with the academic calendar, check out the resources on the back of your Eagle One Card, and download Herrd: BC’s anonymous social media platform. You could also give us—your independent student newspaper—a follow @bcheights on Instagram to stay up to date with the latest from campus.

We’ve thrown a lot at you, so take it in bits and pieces. BC students have a lot of love about their first year. So take a deep breath, smile, and start getting to know your new school—August will be here before you know it.

YNFA: Wilderado Makes Music for Dreamy Folk Enthusiasts

By Kieran WilSon Heights Staff

If you’re a fan of groups like The Lumineers, Caamp, or Mt. Joy, California-based and Oklahoma-born Wilderado might just be the band for you.

Max Rainer, lead singer and guitarist, and Tyler Wimpee, guitarist and backup vocalist, met in college and began to write and play songs together. Justin Kila eventually joined the duo on drums. The group’s sound is a unique blend of indie, stomp-and-holler, and folk music, driven by electric guitars and Rainer’s daydreamy vocals.

The three first collaborated extensively in a small Malibu, Calif. neighborhood, which resulted in the band’s first two EPs, Misty Shrub and Latigo, both released in 2017. The tracks from these first two EPs clearly laid the groundwork for what Wilderado has grown into.

“Rubble to Rubble,” which was released on Latigo, is one of the band’s top songs on Spotify with over 17 million streams. It showcases a simple and warmly strummed acoustic guitar and is chock-full of rich imagery about helping a significant other and then seeing that bond blossom into something richer.

“Dogs,” from Misty Shrub, is a very lively song, with driving electric guitar accompanied by Rainer singing about long mornings and

late nights.

“I can still hear my father’s voice / Telling me that I should slow down,” he sings toward the end of the song.

At this point, the guitar breaks down and gives way to a dreamlike synth, which gradually builds back up to a deafening array of drums and guitar until the song abruptly ends with another peaceful synth.

“Talking About Love to a Cigarette” is another song released in 2017 in a collection with other singles. It marks a contrast to much of Wilderado’s discography because of its subdued nature.

Rainer sings about a relationship that he is unhappy in, while his vocals are accompanied by a somber piano and more ethereal synths. He ends the song by painting a lonely picture of himself.

“Found myself sitting by the water again / Talking about love to a cigarette / Both of us burning down / While the smoke goes on to rest,” Rainer sings.

The band released another EP, Favors, in 2018 and continued releasing singles until its debut album, Wilderado, came out in 2021.

From this self-titled project comes “Surefire,” the group’s most successful song to date. This track, with over 35 million streams on Spotify, spotlights a mellow but crunchy electric guitar, supported by a clear and repeated drumline.

The lyrics find Rainer expressing his struggle with time, and as the

chorus swells, he passionately sings.

“Oh my, oh my / Surefire, the setting sun is gonna set on me,” Rainer sings.

“Help Me Down” is another standout from Wilderado and is rich in lyrical imagery:

“I wish I had a stone / To throw at something real / A treasure of my own so I could feel / I dropped an anchor in the sand / And watched it drag on through the sea / The shackles are off my hand but I ain’t free,” Rainer sings.

The subdued energy of the song is created by a clear and bright acoustic guitar, which later gives way to a hazy and relaxing synth.

“Help me down, don’t pick me up / Give my hands a bit of luck / Just a way to hear I’ll love you while you’re gone / I need a way to hear I’ll love you while you’re gone,” Rainer sings to end the song.

On April 28, the band released a live album with 12 songs taken from some of its recent concerts, and these tracks provide not only new takes on its songs, but also a great insight into just how well Wilderado transitions from the studio to live shows.

So, if you’re in the mood for an up-and-coming band with folk influences and abstract, but thoughtful lyrics, then make sure to listen to Wilderado.

‘Beau Is Afraid’ Portrays Unpleasant Family Bonds

By Sofía TorreS Heights Staff

Beau Is Afraid.

The title of Ari Aster’s new A24 movie prompts an immediate question: What is Beau afraid of?

Beau Is Afraid, which premiered on April 14, begins with Beau’s (Joaquin Phoenix) birth—a disturbing scene in which the viewer is forced to witness a newborn’s first glimpse of the world through less than halfopened eyes.

The audience is placed in the mother’s womb, then taken out of it. Through a foggy and shaky scene, viewers see the umbilical cord being cut and faintly hear the screams of Beau’s mother as he is taken away from her. The mother frantically asks the doctor why her baby isn’t crying, a question that foreshadows the unhealthy mother-and-son relationship that forms the basis of the movie.

While the mother-and-son relationship is compelling and executed by impeccable acting, the three-hour long nightmare of a movie in which absolutely nothing good happens to the protagonist is draining.

Phoenix plays a middle-aged man who cannot make a decision for himself. His father died while conceiving him, which is why he’s

still a virgin and why the only woman in his life is his mother. He relies on his therapist and his medication to endure the surrealist world that Aster builds for him.

Beau’s daily life is filled with tragicomic events: he lives in a neighborhood where a deceased body has been laying in the middle of the street for days, where a naked man spends his days stabbing people, and where a man tattooed from head to toe often chases him to his door. But these are certainly not the most bizarre things that occur in the movie.

Beau’s never-ending paranoia takes a momentary pause whenever he is inside his apartment—where he can hear about the horrors that are happening right outside his door and

window, but not directly experience them. Things quickly change when Beau’s keys are stolen, and all of the horrific events and people from outside move into his home, appropriating his only safe space, apart from his therapist’s room.

On the day of this initial tragedy, Beau was supposed to travel and visit his mom, Mona Wassermann (Patti LuPone), who he hasn’t seen in months, something he confesses to his therapist with guilt and shame. What follows is Beau’s long and gruesome journey to his mother—a character that slowly unveils as the true antagonist of the movie.

Beau fits the Jungian description of a man-child.

“He hopes to be caught, sucked

in, enveloped, and devoured,” Carl Jung, a psychoanalyst says of the man-child in his book Aion: Researches into the Phenomenology of Self. “He seeks, as it were, the protecting, nourishing, charmed circle of the mother, the condition of the infant released from every care. ... No wonder the real world vanishes from sight!”

This parallel to Beau is evident through his conformity to the disastrous conditions in which he lives. He conforms through his recent calling list, which consists of his mom and therapist, through his lack of life outside his apartments or therapy room, and through the trembling and childish voice he uses, especially while talking with his mom.

But Beau is not to blame—at least not fully. Mona is the type of mother who needs her children to need her and who will go to extremes to make sure that they do. She is the type of mother who creates insecure and dependent children to stay relevant.

The result is an eternal infant in an adult body, who sobs like a little child, gets on his knees, and kisses his mother’s feet in search of forgiveness and protection from the scary, threatening world, even though most—if not all—of the catastrophes that have followed him have been caused by her.

“I wanted to make a movie that was like a video game but where your character can’t do anything and none of the buttons work,” Aster said in TIME

He certainly accomplished that. But it is not a pleasant thing to witness.

The horror of Aster’s new movie is that it loses its audience within the overwhelming amount of tragedies that the protagonist survives, while the premise of the devouring mother and the manchild is undermined and receives the attention it deserves at the ending n

of the indie artist’s dreamy voice and self-reflective lyrics that create a soothing mood.

The National ft. Taylor Swift “The Alcott”

Thundercat & Tame Impala “No More Lies”

Alice Phoebe Lou “Open My Door”

Kennedy Shares Narrative From the Troubles

For The Heights

According to author Louise Kennedy, the experiences she had as a child living through the Troubles inspired her most recent novel, fostering the creation of a narrative that touches on family and a divided country.

“I drew very heavily on my family’s story, or my own childhood,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy read excerpts from her novel, Trespasses , at the Connolly House on Friday.

Trespasses has been shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction and has received rave reviews from The New York Times and The Washington Post

among others.

This event, which was organized by Guy Beiner, the Sullivan Professor in Irish studies at Boston College, featured notable attendees such as Charles Seelig Professor of Philosophy Richard Kearney, who had given readings of his own novel Salvage a month earlier, and Susan McKay, an Irish author and journalist who was recently appointed Ireland’s press ombudsman.

Marjorie Howes, associate professor of English and Irish studies at BC; Andrew Elliott, director of the Northern Ireland Bureau; Katherine Reardon, a master’s student in BC’s English department; and McKay each contributed to a brief introduction

about Kennedy and her novel, each of them praising her work.

After this, Kennedy read from her novel.

Trespasses is told from the perspective of Cushla Lavery, a 24-yearold Catholic woman in Ireland at the time of the Troubles, and it is largely about her affair with Michael Agnew, a married Protestant more than twice her age.

In the excerpt she read, Kennedy emphasized the effect of religious and political divisions in Troubles-era Ireland while retaining a light, sometimes humorous outlook.

“Most of the men who drank in the pub did not get ashes on Ash Wednesday, or do the Stations of the

Cross on Good Friday, or go to Mass on Sunday,” Kennedy said. “It was one thing to drink in a Catholic-owned bar; quite another to have your pint pulled by a woman smeared in papish warpaint.”

After her reading, Kennedy spoke about the influences her own childhood had on the world of Trespasses

She grew up as a Catholic child in a town that was 90 percent Protestant and worked in her family’s bar, which was frequented by both Catholics and Protestants.

“I was kind of aware that we didn’t really fit where we were,” Kennedy said.

All of these experiences were passed on to her protagonist Cushla,

Kennedy said.

Kennedy also described the difficulties of writing and publishing a novel.

For a novel like Trespasses, which focuses on a specific time and place, she was especially concerned about authenticity.

“Because I left when I was 12, I thought everybody in the North [of Ireland] was just going to … say ‘It wasn’t like that,’ or ‘You didn’t elaborate properly,’ and I was really, really worried about that,” Kennedy said. A question and answer session followed, during which Kennedy responded to audience questions about the story of Trespasses and her writing process. n

BC Alumni Artists Discuss Expression in Panel

B y l eah s T i T zel Heights Staff

Forging a career in the arts can be daunting, and few know this better than queer stand-up comic Cameron Esposito, BC ’04.

“I had no idea what my future would be,” Esposito said of her time at Boston College. “I didn’t know my future existed. And I was very loud, very fun, and hiding in plain sight, because one of the best ways to hide is to be extremely big.”

As part of the 25th Annual Arts Festival, three alumni artists returned to campus as panelists for The Artist’s Journey. The alumni

panel took place on Friday and featured Esposito, Lulu Wang, BC ’05, and Betsi Graves, BC ’04.

The panelists discussed topics ranging from their experiences at BC to their future projects and passions.

They began by sharing some of the motives behind their art, which ranges in medium.

“I’m a very outspoken person, and I was when I was here at BC, and that was challenging here at BC,” Esposito, who said she had only returned to BC once since graduating prior to the panel, said.

“But I really believe in dismantling systems of power. It’s literally the

whole thing I’m doing, and I can’t believe I get paid to do that.”

Graves and Wang shared similar drives behind their work, explaining how art can create a space for those who need a voice.

“I come from a dance place,” Graves, who founded Urbanity Dance, an inclusive nonprofit arts organization in Boston, said. “For me, I think that the act of taking up space with our bodies is quite a revolutionary and profound act … I’m really interested in investing in others.”

Wang, a filmmaker and director, said much of her art is inspired by finding impactful ways

to tell others’ stories. Her film The Farewell partly depicts her own family’s story, but also the experiences of others who often are not represented in film.

“That’s what’s exciting about the arts,” she said. “It’s like, nobody fits in. We need the voices that don’t fit in. That’s exactly the point.”

The alumni also offered pieces of advice for current BC students looking to make an impact, whether through art or other fields.

All three acknowledged the pressure that comes from navigating college and how they dealt with it as they found their way to careers in the arts.

“I definitely felt the struggle while I was here, in that it felt very much like I was being bubble-wrapped,” Graves said. “It’s very easy to think of, you know, the ‘BC bubble,’ but at the same time they tell you, ‘go light the world aflame.’”

Esposito had a similar experience and talked about finding a balance between college as a safe space versus knowing when to push the boundaries.

She said as a queer person on campus, she recognized that despite her struggle, she still had opportunities just by being here.

“I think that the ability to tear stuff down often comes from being able to be part of the group that benefits from the things that

need to be torn down,” Esposito said. “And so that is something that everyone in this tent can go do, because you have this opportunity. It is right in front of you.”

When Wang was a student, she said she saw BC as an opportunity to break away from the status quo.

Although she didn’t discover her passion for film until her senior year, she said that the people and freedom she encountered at BC inspired her choice to pursue it.

“When I was at BC, I was just trying to escape my parents and my family and expectations in general,” Wang said. “And I was also trying to find my identity as an artist. So it was confusing, it was exciting … I was just doing a million things. I felt like I was kind of free, in a way.”

After changing gears to discuss the current projects they’re working on, including Wang’s upcoming TV show and Esposito’s new stand-up tour, the panelists ended their conversation with advice.

Specifically, they offered advice they wished they had given themselves 20 years ago, sitting as students at BC.

“You have to trust your gut,” Wang said. “If you need time to explore, do it. You know, this is the time for that exploration, and so just keep exploring. Keep an open mind, and keep an open heart.” n

Arts Walk Displays the Essence of Student Art

By Tarisa VaThanakul Heights Staff

When walking through Robsham Theater, one would not normally expect to experience art beyond theatrical performances. Nevertheless, during Arts Festival each year, a variety of paintings, photographs, and sculptures decorate Robsham and other buildings across campus—not unlike displays in the Museum of Modern Art.

Throughout the weekend of Arts Fest, Boston College Art Council opened up the opportu -

nity for students to share their artistic side with dance and music performances, film screenings, and art displays.

The entrance of Robsham Theater was adorned with students’ and alumni’s artwork on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, ranging from small agricultural sculptures to thought-provoking literary writing.

The first section for viewers to engage with at the Arts Walk galleries in Robsham featured a 3D-like painting with burnt-out frames, black-and-white photography, and sculptures of pink

pastries.

The creative diversity of BC students was immediately recognizable in the eclectic selection of displays.

“The Sandman,” a black-andwhite photograph taken by Lauren Foster, MCAS ’23, captures a little boy playing in the vast landscape of an empty beach.

The composition and the colorless pigment of the photography—and perhaps the large picture frame—makes the photograph stand out in the room.

“Piano Lessons” by Emma Colby, MCAS ’25, stuck out as one of the literary works on display. Whereas many viewers are often stopped in their tracks by large, radiant paintings, “Piano Lessons” catches artistic eyes because of its complex language, yet simple story.

Walking through each section, there seemed to be a motif of naturalistic paintings. “Bubble Earth” by Katelyn Flynne, LSEHD ’26, is a realistic, yet original depiction of Earth that may have a deeper meaning. Flynne may have been showing how the Earth is surrounded by a big bubble, capturing the irony of the world’s perfection and safety.

“Lungs,” a painting by Cina He, LSEHD ’25, captures the beauty of a growing tree with a blended

background of a pink sunset.

“Oh, the branches look like lungs,” Jadon Lee, a viewer of Arts Walk and CSOM ’26, said.

Lee’s comment connects the meaning of the art with its title—lungs are delicate and decayable like the growth and deterioration of branches. Another artwork by He at the Arts Walk was a photograph of a blue-filtered upside down road.

“Coming from China and having spent my teenage years in Argentina, the constant moving trained me to grab onto slippery moments before I leave for the next destination,” He said.

The photography is a naturalistic insight into the industrialized world, but with a twist of artistic skill to perhaps make viewers question the picture’s realistic features.

“With the color edit, I wanted to explore the idea of transience, the moment I did not see by taking the photo, and archival memory, the process of editing and creating a sort of ‘tangible’ memory I guess,” He said. “These two pictures made me ask myself how much of what I remember is what I want to remember and how that added value and emotions can feel so saturated at the moment while it is fresh.”

Toward the right of the art stands was a collection of ceramic bowls, which gave viewers of the Arts Walk a completely different viewing experience.

“Sahara” is a captivating and utilitarian ceramic collection—the bowls’ bizarre shell-like shape and spots and bumps are fitting for IKEA’s fall furniture accessories. n

STAFF

Art featured across campus highlighted the creativity of the BC community.

Three alumni panelists discussed the experience of engaging with art at BC and how they have grown since.

“DON’T JUST IGNORE ME.”

Following former Boston College men’s basketball head coach Al Skinner’s 2010 firing, several BC alumni expressed their dissatisfaction with their relationship with the program. According to some, the relationship was only further damaged by specific incidents of disrespect and has yet to be repaired.

Feb. 5, 2005

The Eagles win their 20th straight game to start the 2004–05 season 20–0, a programbest start. The win earned BC a No. 4 ranking as one of only two undefeated teams remaining in college basketball.

Feb. 19, 2005

The Eagles defeat No. 6 Syracuse in Conte Forum, moving BC to No. 3 in the nation, its highest ranking in program history.

March 24, 2006

The No. 4-seed Eagles fall to No. 1-seed Villanova 60–59 in the Sweet 16— the program’s ninth Sweet 16 appearance. BC has not reached that round since.

March 30, 2010

BC Athletics

Director Gene DeFilippo fires

Al Skinner after 13 seasons.

Skinner led BC to eight NCAA tournaments and posted 10 20-plus win seasons.

By Jack Bergamini Assoc. Sports Editor SouraBh gokarn Copy Editor

A group of former Boston College men’s basketball players gathered at halftime in the Conte Forum function room during the Eagles’ game against Georgia Tech on Feb. 27, 2016. They spent time catching up, reconnecting, and exchanging phone numbers.

John Oates, a three-year starter at BC from 2004–08 and one of the players in attendance, said he was thrilled to be back at his alma mater. But as the second half neared and players began to finish their meals, that attitude quickly soured when a representative from the program announced the players needed to leave the room.

Nobody took issue with the announcement, according to Oates. He said players, such as Jon Beerbohm, Louis Hinnant, and Biko Paris, were busy catching up and were taking their time to go back into the arena.

“And they made another announcement like ‘Guys, you really got to get back to your seats,’” Oates said. “And we’re like, ‘Totally, we’re out of here, one sec.’”

Oates said they were not fast enough for the staff’s liking.

The pinnacle of that run came in the 2004–05 season when BC started 20–0 and rose all the way up to a program-record No. 3 in the country. Its success continued the following season when the Eagles advanced to the Sweet 16—their sole appearance of the 21st century and first appearance in more than a decade.

Heights. “We are constantly looking for ways to cultivate and strengthen our relationships with our alumni base. I am always happy to meet with any former player to discuss our basketball program or answer any questions.”

F ormer players Oates, Joe Trapani, Tyler Roche, and Tyler Neville were looking forward to returning to the Heights to watch BC take on No. 1 Duke in 2017. But when they approached the athletics department for tickets they presumed would be free, they said they received a surprising response.

That’s a common feeling among the alumni. Many former players said BC’s alumni relations fall short of those at other universities.

“When you look at other athletic departments, I mean, once you’re in, you’re in,” Southern said. “I mean, like, you’re in for life.”

“The [Boston College Police Department] came in and they were like ‘Everyone clear the room now!’” Oates said. “So yeah, we got kicked out of the room by the BCPD.”

Oates is not alone in feeling disrespected by the program since graduating. Eight other former players—ranging from program greats to walk-ons from BC’s 2000s teams—told The Heights that BC has failed to celebrate former players’ accomplishments, rarely used players’ connections to help the current program, and even ghosted them when they offered mentorship to the team throughout the past 10 years.

Led by former BC head coach Al Skinner, the Eagles developed into a gritty, underdog program where NCAA Tournament appearances grew routine in the 2000s—BC made seven appearances from 2001–09.

BC eventually fell to No. 1-seed Villanova by a single point in an overtime heartbreaker, but in the almost two decades since, the program has not seen that type of success.

Since former Athletics Director Gene DeFilippo fired Skinner in 2010, the program has cycled through three different coaching staffs and five different athletics directors. The Eagles have not reached the NCAA Tournament since 2009.

Amid the team’s instability and decline, Skinner-era alumni have reported growing distant from the program.

“When we would try to have a relationship with the BC basketball program, it was very one-sided,” Oates said.

Players like Tyrese Rice, who played at BC from 2005–09 and is the fifth-highest scorer in school history, said that they have rarely visited since graduating. Sean Marshall, who played at BC from 2003–07 and holds the record for both most games started and played in BC history, said he has only been back to campus once.

Such a distance has created uncertainty as to whether players would even be welcomed back if they wished to return, some players said.

“I’ve been wanting to come, you know, I just don’t know what the right time—I don’t even know if I’ll be able to get into the place, right, because there has been really no connection,” Josh Southern, who played at BC from 2007–11, said.

According to BC Athletics Director Blake James, the program does value its alumni.

“The Boston College men’s basketball program has a rich tradition of excellence and our men’s basketball alumni serve as the foundation for that success,” James said in a statement to The

“They were asking us to pay full price for the ticket,” Trapani, who played at BC from 2008–11 and started every game during his career in Chestnut Hill, said. “And yeah, it just did not, it didn’t sit well with any of us.”

The group said it ended up getting tickets for 30 percent off, paying around $20 each, which left the alumni largely unsatisfied.

“We’re like ‘Are you f—king kidding me,’” Oates said.

And it wasn’t even about the money—it was about the principle, according to Roche.

“Not that we need to get free tickets, but I don’t know,” Roche, a former team captain who played at BC from 2006–10, said. “I thought it was crazy. Like, I should be able to go to any game.”

James discussed BC’s ticket policies in response to the players’ accusation.

“Our BC men’s basketball alumni are very important to us,” James said. “We have had a policy in place for several years that provides two complimentary tickets to any home game, within any NCAA guidelines. Any former player can contact our box office and make that request.”

Some ACC schools such as Clemson, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, and Virginia have alumni-specific positions in their online athletics staff directories, while BC does not. On its athletics website, BC mentions its alumni programs through information about the alumni connector newsletter and the Varsity Club. BC also has an Assistant Director position for Athletics Annual Giving listed on its “Join Our Team,” tab on its alumni website.

Dan McDermott, who served as BC’s director of basketball operations from 2014–22, was viewed by many players as their final connection back to the school, according to Roche. Since his departure, that connection has been largely snapped, Roche said.

Even when BC has tried to communicate with its alumni from this era, the focus is mostly on fundraising. The outreach comes in a disorganized, lazy manner, according to players.

“When they send out an email, it’s like a shitty email that a third grader could write,” Neville, a former BC walk-on and player from 2003–07, said.

Neville raised this specific point to the program in early 2022, responding to a newsletter email they sent out.

But Trapani said after the incident his relationship with the program has never been the same.

“That was kind of a tipping point where I really started distancing myself from the program,” Trapani said. “I don’t think I’ve been back to a game since.”

The incident only further proved to alumni that BC did not treat them with the respect they deserved, according to Oates.

“I don’t know of any basketball program, like big basketball program, that treats their alumni like this,” Oates said.

“You’re kind of miffed when you just get like a really uninspiring newsletter or reached out for a donation from the program when there’s no effort to build camaraderie or facilitate any type of rehabbing the relationship between these old alumni and the program,” Trapani said.

This type of outreach could easily be improved, Neville said, especially considering BC has an extensive network of student-athlete alumni who want to help the program.

“You have this network of people that would probably want to give you money, if you just spent an ounce of time doing it,” Neville said. “And they do negative.”

See Basketball, A14

PHOTOS COURTESY OF JOHN OATES, CRAIG SMITH, AND JARED DUDLEY

“There’s so much stuff and history behind everything, and just to not be acknowledged, it just, it sucks.”

“The slap in the face for us was the firing of Coach Skinner.”

“It’s all about just putting us as a priority.”

“I don’t know of any basketball program, like big basketball program, that treats their alumni like this.”

Basketball, from A13

Oates added that before the 2022 ACC Tournament in the Barclays Center, he reached out to the program to see if he could potentially receive free tickets for John Jay High School varsity basketball, where he serves as volunteer assistant coach in Cross River, N.Y.

Oates never received a response, so he emailed a second time. But once again, he received no response, he said.

“Not even like a ‘no,’” Oates said. “Tell me to go f—k myself. Don’t just ignore me.”

For Oates, the incident represents a broader issue with the program.

“We feel neglected and mistreated by the basketball program,” Oates said. “Nobody’s going to donate. Nobody is going to be involved because we don’t feel like it’s reciprocal.”

The coaching and administrative instability that followed Skinner’s 2010 firing—a move which several players still look down upon—is at the root of the disconnect with alumni, according to some players.

“The slap in the face for us was the firing of Coach Skinner,” Rice said.

And as the Steve Donahue, post-Skinner era began in Chestnut Hill, several alumni said their relationship with BC began to collapse.

“Once Skinner left, it was just like the communication line was just kind of cut,” Roche said.

Things were never the same, according to Marshall.

“Everything went downhill,” Marshall said.

The relationship grew even more distant once Jim Christian was hired as BC’s head coach in 2014, according to some players.

“Over time, you know, I tried to build a relationship with Jim Christian and tried to build a relationship with those guys and get back in there and try to help and there was just no—it didn’t seem like there was really any interest in getting old alumni involved with the current program,” Trapani said.

Marshall said he received a similarly cold response when he sought to connect with Christian and his staff.

“They just didn’t care anything about us,” Marshall said.

Craig Smith is BC’s all-time leading rebounder and second all-time scorer. He said he has a better relationship with the team than some of his former teammates, but he agreed that BC needs to do a better job bringing players back together.

“We need to start building certain things towards the alumni, because we have some pretty strong alumni and some great guys that can actually help the program,” Smith said.

Smith was a major catalyst of BC’s 2005–06 Sweet 16 team, but still has not seen his jersey number raised to the rafters at Conte Forum. In fact, the last time BC retired a player’s number was for Troy Bell, BC’s all-time leading scorer who most recently played for the program in 2003.

“We should have more involvement, guys’ jerseys should be retired, just to be honest,” Smith said. “Especially myself and [Jared] Dudley.”

Dudley, who was the ACC Player of the Year in 2007, sits at sixth on

BC’s all-time scoring list, and was a 14-year NBA player and 2020 NBA champion, also expressed a desire to see his number retired alongside his deserving teammates.

“There’s no, like, events for guys to get back,” Dudley, a current assistant

BC was a phenomenal four years. I had tons of success. But I kept going up there wanting to meet with the AD … it wasn’t like they reached out to me. It was me reaching out to them. Because it didn’t matter who the coach is or who the AD is, I’m always going

“I’m gonna give Anthony Goins his credit—I feel like me and him kind of talk the most out of the coaching staff,” Smith said.

Marshall believes he drew Goins’ attention back in January 2022 when he tweeted about helping bring the

game and feel like I’m coming home and be able to show them the locker room and show them the practice facility and take them into the gym and walk around Conte. But like, based on how they interact with us, and the treatment we’ve gotten in the past, it doesn’t seem like it would be that kind of experience.”

Not only did BC produce successful basketball players from those 2000s teams—players that went on to play in the NBA and overseas—but it produced others that became successful in the business world, with connections that they want to use to help the current program.

“Those are connections that would really benefit players and alumni that are coming up that need help with getting a start in life outside of basketball,” Trapani said.

Rice, who played 11 years of overseas basketball where he earned the EuroLeague MVP in 2015, expressed a desire to serve in some sort of mentorship role for the current players.

coach for the Dallas Mavericks, said. “There’s no, you know, even like when it comes to retiring numbers, I don’t even know how it works. … I look at all these different players, different colleges get their numbers retired. It shouldn’t be 10 plus years, 50 years old, getting your number retired.”

Even more jarring to players is the lack of celebratory reunions for the program’s 2005–06 Sweet 16, program-record 28-win squad.

“There’s so much stuff and history behind everything, and just to not be acknowledged, it just, it sucks,” Marshall said. “It just makes us not want to tell people that we went to BC.”

Marshall said that while he and his teammates from the 2000s are upset about their relationships with the program, the absence of reunions may also hurt the present-day team.

“If you don’t even see your former players coming back, why would you think this is a place that you would want to be, too, as a present player,” Marshall said. “I just keep coming back to it—it’s like they don’t care.”

Most said that given the program’s lack of success over the last 10 years, it is surprising it would not want to highlight the team’s past accomplishments.

“You have all these guys who were active and want to have a relationship with the program, and active during that time when BC was actually considered a player in the ACC,” Oates said. “And then it’s been a lot of rough years. And despite that, you know, they’re not even trying to hang on to the glory of the past.”

But while the majority of players have had little to no contact with the program since graduating, that experience is different for one player—Dudley.

Dudley, perhaps the program’s most popular and vocal alumnus, said he has maintained a good relationship with the program since graduating in 2007 amid countless coaching and administrative changes, largely because of him reaching out to the program—not the opposite.

“My experience is different than other guys,” Dudley said. “Obviously

to be associated with Boston College, regardless.”

Other players, like Neville, see Dudley in good standing with the program solely because he is, and always will be, the face of the program.

“The only thing they do is they cater to Matt Ryan and Jared Dudley,” Neville said.

Dudley, however, said he urged his teammates to begin to reach out themselves instead of waiting for BC to do so as a possible way to improve the relationships between both sides.

“Some people don’t remember John Oates,” Dudley said as an example. “So if you’re new coming in, it’s very rare for people to go back 10 basketball teams, calling every player … anytime you have a lot of different coaches or a lot of different ADs, sometimes a lot of stuff will fall through the cracks.”

Dudley said Skinner’s firing was the start of trouble for BC. What cost BC even more, according to Dudley, was not hiring one of its assistants from Skinner’s coaching tree to be its next head coach, such as current Northeastern head coach Bill Coen or current Georgetown head coach Ed Cooley.

“They had an opportunity to keep it in the family if they wanted to,” Dudley said. “When you have a program that successful, you keep it in the family, and that’s how you would keep the alumni going. … They chose to separate themselves from Al Skinner and everyone who’s associated with them. It’s still hurting BC to this day, 16 years later.”

Dudley’s suggestions for potential improvements will only go so far unless the program is willing to reciprocate the effort as well, he said.

“It’s all about just putting us as a priority,” Dudley said.

Since Earl Grant became the program’s head coach in March 2021, relationships have slowly but surely started to improve, especially in terms of reaching out to alumni— something assistant coach Anthony Goins has made a priority, according to some players.

Rice, Marshall, and Smith, in particular, said they have been in contact with Goins.

program back to what it once was after North Carolina defeated the Eagles 91–65 on Jan. 2, 2022. Goins reached out about two weeks after the tweet, according to Marshall.

“He just wanted to build that relationship, because there was none with former players,” Marshall said. “I’ve been in communication with him ever since, probably for the past year and a half.”

Marshall said Goins now regularly sends him BC gear and offered to pay for a hotel for him and his family to come back and visit Chestnut Hill.

“He’s the only one who really seems serious about having us get involved with the program,” Marshall said. “He wanted to hear us out, understand the culture that we built there and how they could build that culture back to today’s team.”

It’s a step in the right direction—a direction toward a relationship the alumni desperately want to restore with a program they still love, according to Marshall.

While the relationship is not what they want it to be, nearly all nine players said they would be happy to help the program today.

“If they really want to change something and if they really want to try to build something, they need to make an attempt to bring some of us back,” Rice said. “Bring us back in there and let us work with some of these guys. Let them hear some of our opinions of what made us successful, just to have an understanding that BC basketball is not like any other other place, any other school in the ACC.”

James said he is looking forward to bringing back alumni for next season.

“With the level of excitement for the upcoming 2023-24 season, I look forward to welcoming our Eagle alumni back to Conte Forum,” James said.

Despite the strained relationship, all nine players praised the time they spent in Chestnut Hill, which they said makes their current tension with the program even harder to swallow.

“We love BC basketball,” Oates said. “Speaking personally, I would love to bring like my kids and my wife to a

“My door’s always open,” Rice said. “They know that they could contact me to come back up there and if they really wanted to and if they really put forth the effort, I know I could get guys to come back up there. … Everybody’s literally a call away and a date away from us all being back at BC again.”

Oates works in digital marketing, Neville is the head of marketing and macro analyst at Corriente Advisors, Trapani is a senior account executive at Indeed.com, and Roche is a risk manager at the Dane Group—all roles that could be of help to the current players and their success, in any path they desire, the four players said. They want to be this help.

“I think we would be more than willing to mentor and help somebody coming out of college,” Trapani said.

Neville criticized the program for failing to utilize them.

“If you want to actually, like, excel, why not use your network?” Neville said. “And they don’t do it at all. They don’t give two shits.”

Marshall, in particular, pointed out BC’s failure in providing post-graduate resources specifically for athletes.

“When you go to BC, once you leave as an athlete, it’s over,” Marshall said. “There’s no, like, there’s no help with anything in life. I have so many friends that went to UCLA and USC, that played there, and, like, when they’re done with basketball, you have people that you talk to. If you need help, they help you out. But with BC, it’s just, it’s just not that. It’s just not. It’s just like once you’re done, ‘Hey, thank you for what you did here and go on and live life without Boston College for the rest of your life.’”

Yet Marshall, who co-founded an NBA skill development training company with former NBA player Darren Collison, said he would still love to become involved with the program as well.

“I really do wanna help in any way that I can help,” Marshall said. “I’m always for it.”

Roche said he hopes the relationship can be repaired.

“This was such a big part of our life,” Roche said. “Such a happy part of our life. So that’s kind of the goal. We just wanna be a part of it again.” n

Tyrese Rice (right) played at BC from 2005–06 and is BC’s fifth-highest scorer of all time. He said he has only been back to BC once since graduating.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CRAIG SMITH

Jared Dudley and Craig Smith (pictured above) were integral members of BC’s 2005–06 Sweet 16 team.

Student-Filmed ‘Birdball’ Brings Unique Perspective

and Behind-the-Scenes Action to BC Baseball

By Graham Dietz Sports Editor

In the top of the fourth inning of Boston College baseball’s series closer at Pepperdine, senior outfielder Daniel Baruch discovered the perfect sunflower seed.

“I think that was like one of the most perfect moments of the show,” Cyrus Rosen, MCAS ’25 said. “He’s just setting it up perfectly. He’s like ‘yeah, if [Barry] Walsh gets a hit, I’ll eat this thing.’”

Looking down at his right arm— sporting chrome shades and the classic BC baseball cap—Baruch moves his wrist to the side, just so he can pick up the seed from the dugout railing.

Bobbing their heads up and down, Baruch’s teammates, Andrew Roman and Bobby Chicoine, listen to his proposal.

“That’s a perfect sunflower seed,” Baruch says. “Now, what are the odds I eat it?”

It isn’t all too often Rosen gets to capture a moment this innocent and warm on camera, he said. But this particular one just could not miss, according to Rosen, no matter what Baruch did with the seed. These are the kinds of moments that videographers Rosen, Matthew Ionescu, MCAS ’25, and Runzi “Harley” Cheng, MCAS ’23, capture for BC baseball’s Birdball docuseries.

“Ok, this dude’s about to eat a sunflower seed off the ground just for the pure joy of Walsh getting a hit,” Rosen said. “Like, you can’t make that up. That’s how when you film someone, you bring them back down to Earth.”

Baruch wanted as much reassurance as he could get.

“That’s a nice one,” Roman says, fully zoned in.

And then comes Chicoine’s verdict.

“If Barry gets a hit, you gotta eat that,” Chicoine says.

Stalling for just a split second as the camera pans onto his fingers holding the seed, Baruch didn’t need to hear anything else. He was in full agreement with the proposal. If Walsh got the hit, he was putting the seed straight into his mouth.

“That’s like a dare you make with someone on the third grade playground,” Rosen said. “And then boom, next thing you know, Walsh hits a f—king dinger.”

With a medium-framed shot, Rosen flips the camera around in

anticipation of the hit that would keep the narrative alive. Loading his front leg off the ground with California palm trees in the backdrop, Walsh swept his bat under the ball, raking a shot to deep right center.

“That’s a homer!” Baruch said, waiting for the ball to leave the park, scanning it through the clouds. “Yeah!”

Listening through Baruch’s point of view (POV)—Rosen has him mic’d up—the ball goes over the right field fence, tying up the game for the Eagles. The camera flips back and forth between Baruch’s reaction and Walsh’s trot to home plate. There’s a highenergy celebration waiting for him in the dugout. The whole squad exerts a ferocious “boom” as Walsh struts back down the steps.

“That was one of the tastiest sunflower seeds I’ve ever eaten!” Baruch says, putting an emphasis on the “e” in “eaten.”

Independently hired by BC head coach Mike Gambino, the trio coordinates the shots, clips, and scenes behind Birdball and sends them off to an independent offsite production company, MadFish Productions, to compile and produce the film, according to Ionescu. The trio said the operation is perfectly in sync with the Eagles’ historic season this year, and the videographers have become just as much a part of the BC baseball family

family, go in there and get some food!’”

Ionescu said. “So he makes a huge emphasis on making sure everyone feels, you know, together. It works so well for the film we’re putting together.”

Rosen and Cheng started working for Birdball under different circumstances—Rosen said he happened to tag along to Harrington Athletics Village with a professor in the engineering department who is partnering with BC to establish a baseball engineering biomechanics laboratory, and Cheng met Rosen through Hollywood Eagles, a student film club. Cheng said he was introduced to Gambino shortly after that and hopped on board.

“I was like ‘Oh, what are you doing [at the baseball field],’” Rosen said of what he asked his professor.

“And he was like, ‘Well, I’m pretty much bringing a high-speed video camera, we’re gonna train the pitchers when they’re pitching and see if we can get into the pitching mechanics.’ And I was like, ‘Well, that sounds f—king awesome.’ I was on board right away.”

The trio said the same about Gambino and the feeling of family while shooting Birdball

“He’s a really cool dude,” Cheng said. “Really welcoming. He treats us like we’re literally part of the team. I also talked to Cyrus about this, I feel like he does everything. Which is something I didn’t expect from a coach. He’s the game manager, he’s the coach, he takes care of the facilities, he arranges a lot of stuff.” That doesn’t mean that it hasn’t come without hard and frequent work, Ionescu said, whether BC was on an 18-game road streak or playing at Harrington Athletics Village in Brighton, Mass. One of the videographers is showing up to film most of the time and capture the camaraderie in the clubhouse.

started to become more used to having the camera around emerged in the second episode when power hitter third baseman Nick Wang and infielder Owen Deshazo brought a selfie stick with them to an ice cream shop while playing on the road.

“I’m gonna get a medium cotton candy with rainbow sprinkles,” Wang said, face smushed into the camera lens, dripped out with a backwards hat, chain, and pink hoodie. “Yesterday I got a small cotton candy with rainbow sprinkles and today I struck out three times. So … I gotta get more.”

This shot of Wang was exemplary of the idea of Birdball —getting to

him, and you usually follow the wave of emotion.”

Rosen and Cheng said they are excited about the videography work that Ionescu brings to the team, specifically how he is geared toward creating social media content and taking cinematic b-roll and creating an experience from it on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok for marketing. But without the storytelling side which Rosen brings to the team, there is no Birdball , according to Cheng and Ionescu.

“That stuff was very impressive to me, not something that I do personally with my work,” Rosen said. “But my

as any of the players, coaches, or staff is.

What was initially a hobby for them has become a family, according to the trio, and Ionescu, the leader of the videography team, is currently in his second season working for the Eagles.

“He really makes an emphasis more, just from my experience, he makes a really strong emphasis on making everyone feel part of the team,” Ionescu said of Gambino. “Even though we’re not technically players, or on his roster, or even on his full-time staff, he makes sure that we feel like we’re part of it. He calls us the Birdball family.”

There was a time last year, according to Ionescu, when Gambino exhibited these traits in a way that particularly stood out to him. From that point on, Ionescu knew he wanted to continue working for Gambino until he graduated, he said.

“Last year, I remember Liam, one of our student managers—he does a lot of work—so there was a time last year when Gambino went up to him, he goes, ‘Hey you know you’re part of this family, you’re part of the Birdball

“It’s definitely a lot of pressure,” Ionescu said. “It’s a lot of work, because [if] you don’t get the shot, there’s nothing to use. A lot of athletes use the phrase ‘you gotta be locked in on stuff.’ But you kind of do have to for this too. But you kind of like that, because then you’re always on it.”

The players needed an adjustment period before getting used to the camera being around them often, according to the trio. But the trio said it has already become comfortable with taking a GoPro along with it during road trips to catch POV angles and more intimate shots. Room tours, facility tours, and site seeing are now all common scenes in the docuseries, which can be found on YouTube.

“Yeah, yeah, it was pretty funny,” Cheng said of his first interactions with the team. “Cyrus and I first went to the [Pete] Frates facility trying to film some of the players, and they had that awkward little look, like a peek at the camera and then quickly look away, like a grimace. It was pretty funny. But after a few weeks, they sort of just got used to it. They’re very friendly. They’ll come up and say hi and treat us like one of the boys.”

A classic scene where the players

look into the everyday lives, routines, exercises, and lifestyles of the players.

“There’s different things when we travel,” Ionescu said. “Like say we’re going on a team dinner or when we went to Bristol Motor Speedway— we’re gonna shoot that obviously. But a big thing is giving the players their time to know that they have some time to be free. We’ll give ‘em a GoPro when they wanna go out to dinner, so they can shoot if they want but that’s in their control now. I’ll set it on auto, they press record, start/stop, and it’s all theirs.”

Ionescu said he focuses on the gameday operations—his specialty is shooting highlight film and quick, jolty shots on the field—while Rosen and Cheng said they focus more on the story aspect of the docuseries.

stuff is much slower, in a sense. My kind of style of filmmaking is much more, like, hanging out in the back of the third wall. Kind of playing with zooming in on obstacles facing other peoples’ eyes, finding ways to capture the emotion of these moments in sports as opposed to the hype and excitement. It’s about getting below the surface for me.”

And for the three of them, the recent growth in the presence of sports docuseries—Ionescu and Rosen cited HBO’s Hard Knocks as a catalyst for this trend—is something they think can benefit the image of a team, a player, or a coach. It’s just about finding the right moment to highlight.

“So, catching the moment, really, you’re looking for emotion,” Ionescu said. “One video comes to mind, we’re at Florida State with Chris Flynn pitching … this is gonna be the last time on the mound for him in the game, called strike three, you know you gotta keep the camera locked on it ’cuz he’s gonna have a crazy celebration coming off the mound. So you lock on

“I guess for athletes, especially if they sort of had a reputation already, we will always expect them to be performing at their maximum efficiency,” Cheng said. “But it’s also just important to understand how they’re also students, they have many roles in life, and sometimes there are ups and downs that mess with their performance on game days. And I guess the whole purpose of the documentary is just to show them. Show them who they are.” n

SCREENSHOT BY GRAHAM DIETZ / HEIGHTS EDITOR

BC third baseman Nick Wang leans into the GoPro in an ice cream shop.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CYRUS ROSEN

Cyrus Rosen, MCAS ’25, looks out toward the field while filming a shot.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MATTHEW IONESCU

Matthew Ionescu, MCAS ’25, takes game footage at Virginia Tech.

BC Shut Out 8–0 Twice Over Series

By PeTer CoquilleTTe

For the Heights

Louisville entered its Saturday and Sunday games against Boston College softball having won seven games in a row, while the Eagles were on a four-game losing streak.

The team’s two matchups furthered these streaks, with Louisville (35–14, 15–4 Atlantic Coast) defeating BC (21–28, 3–18) by the run-ahead rule 8–0 on both occasions.

Sunday’s matchup saw BC ace Abby Dunning in the circle facing Louisville’s Alyssa Zabala.

Zabala left the game in the top of the second inning after 1.1 innings after issuing a walk and a leadoff infield hit in the top of the second. This was one of only two hits surrendered by the Louisville pitching staff on the day. Taylor Roby replaced Zabala and recorded the final two outs of the second inning while only throwing three pitches.

In the bottom of the second inning, Dunning walked three Louisville hitters to load the bases. Louisville got the scoring started thanks to left fielder Paige Geraghty’s infield RBI single, giving the Cardinals a 1–0 lead and keeping the bases loaded.

Dunning then issued her fourth walk of the inning, extending the Cardinals’ lead to 2–0. Second baseman Easton Lotus singled to left field to score two more and give the Cardinals a 4–0 lead. Susannah Anderson relieved Dunning and recorded the final out of the second.

Neither team scored a run in the third inning, but Louisville picked up where it left off in the second inning when it tacked on four more runs in the bottom of the fourth. Anderson walked the leadoff hitter before striking out two straight Louisville batters looking. Dunning then walked another

hitter, and with runners on first and second with two outs, Louisville’s Taylor Roby blasted a three-run homer to left center field, bringing the Louisville lead to 7–0.

Another walk followed by an RBI double by Louisville shortstop Daisy Hess extended the Louisville lead to 8–0. Dunning then reentered the game to get the final out of the fourth inning in relief of Anderson.

The Eagles’ offense went down 1-23 in the top of the fifth, ending the game 8–0 due to the run-rule. Louisville’s pitching staff stifled the Eagles’ offense, which batted only .118 on Sunday while getting shut out for the second consecutive game. Dunning and Anderson combined for eight walks over four innings, many of which led to Louisville’s scoring.

Dunning recorded the loss and now holds a 10–11 and 3.98 ERA on the season.

Saturday’s game saw another 8–0 outcome. Amy Kvilhaug gave Anderson the ball as the Eagles’ starter, who entered the game with a 7–14 record on the season.

Similar to Sunday’s game, Louisville initiated the scoring in the bottom of the second inning when catcher Sarah Gordon smacked a home run to left center, giving Louisville a 1–0 lead. While Hess followed the home run with a single, BC catcher Maddy Carpe caught Hess stealing. Anderson managed to get out of the inning without any further damage.

Louisville continued to apply pressure onto the Eagles in the bottom of the third inning thanks to a single and an error from Nicole Giery, which allowed Gordon to reach first base, putting runners on first and second. Hess then singled to left field, allowing an unearned run to score and increasing Louisville’s lead to 2–0.

Eagles Claim First-Ever ACC Tournament Title

“I mean, I instantly cried because now it’s theirs,” WalkerWeinstein said. “And it’s just so inspiring. They made history.”

BC (16–3, 8–1 Atlantic Coast) knocked off the Tar Heels (14–4, 7–2) while battling a downpour of rain in Charlotte, N.C., ultimately coming out on top 11–9.

“It’s for everyone that came before us,” Andrea Reynolds said. “Like all the alumni that have worked so hard to get us to this point, have come so far and to finally bring it home to Boston College, it means the world. We’re so pumped.”

North Carolina struck first at the 12:36 mark, as a Tar Heel freeposition goal slipped past Shea Dolce.

After aggressive defense from both teams, Mckenna Davis found Cassidy Weeks on the run, and she knotted the game at one just under seven minutes later.

But North Carolina took control, as the Tar Heels potted a whopping three goals in under two minutes to establish a 4–1 lead with just four shots on goal. Davis cut the lead to two at the 2:26 mark, but the Tar Heels’ Melissa Sconone responded, beating Dolce with just 11 seconds remaining in the quarter to put North Carolina up 5–2.

The second quarter was a classic call-and-response affair as BC

and the Tar Heels each exchanged two goals apiece. On a player-up opportunity, it looked as though the Eagles’ notched their third goal of the quarter, but Courtney Weeks’ goal was called back after review.

“I respect the officials,” WalkerWeinstein said. “I know they have a tough job, but I think that ball was in.”

BC entered the third trailing by three, but cut the lead to just one goal in a span of 41 seconds.

“We shifted our mindset in the second half, new half,” Dolce said. “We came out hot. We came out fast.”

Hunter Roman caused a North Carolina turnover and the Eagles marched down the field. Reynolds notched the first goal of the second half at the 13:15 mark. Martello added to BC’s total with a goal of her own to make it 7–6.

“Yeah, so obviously we talked some X’s and O’s and stuff and got that out of the way,” Reynolds said of the message at halftime. “But we just knew that we had to dig deep and believe in each other. We knew that we’re all capable of it, it was a really confident and composed atmosphere.”

But North Carolina responded with two goals of its own, and the lead was back up to three at the 7:56 mark.

“We knew what we had to do to win, and we honestly felt like even though we were down that we had the momentum and like we’ve been in this situation before,” Reynolds said. “We had been in worse situations before so we felt

Gambino Optimistic Despite Series Loss

By graham DieTz Sports Editor

It didn’t matter where you were standing or sitting down. When fans at Harrington Athletics Village heard the crack of the bat, they probably knew it was going out of the park. With a 2–0 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning, Joe Vetrano put the hammer to the nail with a solo home run to increase No. 11 Boston College baseball’s lead to 3–0 in the second game of BC’s Friday doubleheader against Clemson. The ball sailed so far, it wasn’t clear when—or where— it landed. After the game, BC head coach Mike Gambino stopped in the middle of his postgame interview and told Vetrano the metrics of his home run.

471 feet, 116 exit velocity. For reference, the hardest-hit baseball in MLB history was only five miles per hour faster, hit by Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees on Aug. 9, 2018.

“No way,” Gambino said when he heard the official metrics of the

home run. “Joe! 471, 116 off the bat!.”

The home run marked Vetrano’s second home run of the afternoon, on a day in which he totaled the most RBIs on the Eagles’ roster.

BC (29–14, 13–11 Atlantic Coast) went 1–1 on the day, defeating Clemson (28–17, 11–10) 3–1 in the second matchup of the doubleheader after dropping the first 9–7.

“471 pull-side,” Gambino said.

“I mean, kid can really, really hit man.” Vetrano’s first home run of the day jolted the Eagles to a 2–1 lead in the bottom of the first inning in the first game of the doubleheader. Despite the loss, his heroics—along with a two-run, two-hit day from Travis Honeyman and a one-run, two-hit day from Nick Wang—put the Eagles into position to make a run. Down 9–5, BC notched two runs in the eighth inning, but three straight flyouts ended the contest in the bottom of the ninth.

Nevertheless, Vetrano’s opposite-side homer is likely still cemented into the eyes of Clemson’s Will Taylor.

Taylor made a quick move on the ball after it was hit, tracking it to the wall. But when he made his leap, hoping for the ball to land in his glove, he came up empty, taking a

yoga pose on the turf. Taylor couldn’t have made a better play—he only grimaced in frustration, slapping his glove.

“He just sometimes gets a little too big, and gets out of himself,” Gambino said. “When he tries to do a little too much, he gets too big. But I mean you see that ball [in the second game], 116 off the bat, you know, he doesn’t have to do too much.”

Going back to the second game of the doubleheader, an unlikely hero emerged who fully put the Tigers’ lineup down. Before Friday night, John West—who owns a 6.08 ERA—had not pitched more than four innings into a game, despite Gambino’s insistence on riding him out as one of the weekend rotation starters.

“I think what you’re watching is, what you’re getting to see is you’re getting to see player development,” Gambino said. “You’re getting to see a player get better throughout the season. I will tell you I think Johnny West is gonna pitch in the big leagues. I believe it, you’re watching him grow and grow and grow. And he did it on short rest this week, allowing us to keep Flynny on Saturday which is huge.”

Through six innings, West al-

lowed just one run on a 70 percent strike rate. He only garnered one strikeout, but using the pitch clock to his advantage, West pitched fast innings. From the first inning to the sixth, West threw 11 pitches, 11 pitches, eight pitches, five pitches, six pitches, and six pitches, respectively, before being taken out after allowing two on base in the top of the seventh.

“That’s the ACC, like 3–1 ball games in the ACC and SEC happen,” Gambino said. “There’s lights out arms all over. So, we don’t like it either—getting carved up—but there are some days it’s just gonna be a battle and a scrap.”

And that’s exactly how the Eagles got out of their hitting slump in the game too—by getting scrappy.

This type of gameplay is exactly what Gambino anticipated at the start of the season and after a massive run which resulted in a ranking for BC for the first time all year. The barrel efficiency is there, even if they weren’t showing up in the batting numbers initially—or conversely, were showing up to an extent that was not sustainable.

pretty good.”

Over six minutes passed before the Weeks twins brought BC within one goal. Cassidy Weeks circled the goal and went low to bring the Eagles back within two with 1:44 left in the third quarter, and Courtney scored with just 20 seconds remaining to make it 9–8 before the final quarter.

“It’s just amazing, we just want to win this for our program,” Cassidy Weeks said of their performance together. “We’ve never brought this home before and being able to be out there together and be able to find each other, but also working with the rest of our team. … It’s just a great, a great win for our team.”

The fourth quarter looked like a totally different contest.

Kayla Martello earned BC’s third straight goal and tied the game at nine apiece. Just over 30 seconds later, Belle Smith gave BC its first lead of the contest. Reynolds extended that lead to two goals, and the BC’s defense shut the Tar Heels down, holding them scoreless en route to hoisting the ACC trophy for the first time in program history.

“It’s unreal,” Reynolds said. “It means so much. I mean, obviously UNC is an amazing team. Great players, very well coached. We know each other so well. We’ve seen each other so many times. They’ve beaten us you know in the, in the biggest stages, so it’s definitely, it’s definitely very emotional and being able to not only win ACC Championship, but beat them. It’s just, it’s amazing.” n

PHOTO COURTESY OF KELLY COUGHLAN