The Heights November 19, 2019

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Tuesday, November 19, 2019

HEIGHTS CENTENNIAL ISSUE, SEE B1-B6 Student-Athlete Requests Jury Trial Over Suspension “John Doe” alleges a previously unreported confidentiality breach.

By Jack Miller News Editor The Boston College student-athlete whose initial suspension was overturned by a judge in August is now requesting a jury trial against the University.

The student, “John Doe,” is bringing a suit against the University in which he alleges that investigators erred in finding him responsible for engaging in a non-consensual sexual encounter with another student, “Jane Roe,” in November 2018.

The investigative report, which was completed this summer, didn’t conclude that Doe had known or should have reasonably known that Roe was incapacitated by alcohol, but rather found him responsible because Roe did not give “clear and voluntary agreement” to sexual intercourse, a separate issue from her level

of intoxication, according to court documents.

Many of the issues raised in Doe’s demand for a jury trial also appeared in his request for preliminary injunction earlier this year.

Doe’s argument in his request for injunction was that BC’s “single investigator” model did not test the credibility of the complainant or of the witnesses because Doe did not have an opportunity to present questions that the investigators would be required to ask in interviews. Doe has argued that this deficiency violated his right to fundamental fairness, which is inherent in all contracts under Massachusetts common law.

In cases of reported sexual misconduct, the University’s policy is to conduct an investigation that allows for the parties to sit for interviews, put forth evidence, name witnesses, and review the evidence collected.

The questions the investigators ask of the two parties and witnesses can be informed by previous testimony,

See Jury Trial, A3

Leahy Sought Injunction to Stop Webster Woods Vote The mayor is trying to take the land from BC via eminent domain.

By Colleen Martin Metro Editor The Newton Community Preservation Committee (CPC) has voted to fund taking Webster Woods via eminent domain. Seven out of eight committee members voted to provide the $15.7 million that have been approved to acquire the land at Tuesday night’s CPC meeting. The vote will now go to the City Council, which will discuss the mayor’s proposal at its meeting on Nov. 25—a vote could occur during the first week of December.

A complaint and request for preliminary injunction was filed on Nov. 5 in Middlesex Superior Court. If granted, this injunction

would have prevented Tuesday’s planned meeting from occurring. The complaint states that the CPC violated an open-meeting law when it held “executive sessions” about Webster Woods which, unlike the rest of the meeting, were not open to the public.

The plaintiffs listed include University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J.; Joseph Quinn, a professor in the economics department and dean of the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences from 1999 to 2007; and Linda Reilly, executive director of operations in Auxiliary Services and a BC faculty member since 1976. Auxiliary Services is made up of nine business functions, including the bookstore, BC Dining Services and Eagle Print services. Christopher K. Barry-Smith, an associate justice, denied the plaintiffs’ request on Tuesday.

See Webster Woods, A5

Photo courtesy of BC athletics

Headed to the Final Four Sarah Dwyer’s seven saves earned BC a win over Louisville and a rematch with No. 1 UNC.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

FEATURES: CSOM in Tanzania

Students travel to Tanzania, climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, and meet local tribes............ A4

Jack Miller / heights editor

Students, Faculty React to Koch Proposal Some faculty have suggested creating an advisory board to protect academic integrity.

Protesters cited Koch’s support for climate change skepticism and outright denial in their opposition.

By Owen Fahy

By Madeleine Romance

Asst. News Editor

Asst. Investigative Editor

Owen Fahy Faculty within the Boston College political science department are considering creating an advisory board to oversee a controversial potential program backed by the Charles Koch Foundation.

The political science department voted to approve the potential collaboration with Koch—the billionaire owner and CEO of Koch Industries, which manufactures and refines petroleum—last spring. A second vote, held at an October faculty meeting, approved a two-page “vision statement” for the program, which is now with the Office of University Advancement.

The vision statement, which was composed by members of the political science department, is titled “New Perspectives on U.S. Grand Strategy and Great Power Politics” and describes a program that would “challenge received wisdoms” and address the costs associated with current U.S. foreign policy.

The vision statement also lists several potential uses for the funds, including a lecture series, fellowships for graduate students, and a five-year joint hire in the political science department and international studies program.

Students in both majors have faced difficulty in class availability.

Growth in political science majors have outgrown department hires in recent years, and the international studies program has a cap on the number of students allowed to enroll in the major.

Koch is famous for donating to conservative and libertarian think tanks, politicians, and scholars who favor and promote deregulation and climate change denial.

According to recent tax filings, the Charles Koch Foundation donated $5,000 to BC in 2015, 2016, and 2017, each time for “general operating support.”

Kay Schlozman, a political science professor, was the first to propose the creation of an advisory board to mitigate concerns that accepting funding could jeopardize the academic freedom of the department.

“Knowing that advisory boards connected to centers and institutes are common in academic institutions including at Boston College, and knowing that the proposal for Koch funding would probably generate controversy on campus, I suggested that my colleagues in International Relations might want to establish an advisory board once their project gets going,” Schlozman said in an email to The Heights. “The existence of an advisory board might help to defuse any conflict that might emerge over the matter of accepting funding from Koch.”

The advisory board, which would likely consist of faculty from both inside and outside the department, would monitor the program and report potential infringement on academic freedom, according to Gerald Easter, chair of the political science department. Easter said that the advisory board would also play a role in deciding whether to renew the agreement past its current five-year lifespan.

“The proposal is based on a five-year grant, so at the end of that time the advisory board, of course, would write a lengthy, thoughtful report, which would suggest whether the University

Newton teachers are lobbying for contract negotiations with the city.................................... A5

and Haley Hockin

For The Heights Over 100 protesters stood outside O’Neill Library on Thursday night to protest the Charles Koch Foundation’s potential involvement with the Boston College political science department. Students, faculty, and alumni gathered in opposition to Charles Koch’s support of climate change denial and in support of University divestment from the fossil fuel industry.

The political science department has twice voted to approve the potential collaboration with Koch—the billionaire owner and CEO of Koch Industries, which manufactures and refines petroleum.

The first vote, which took place last spring, followed a discussion on whether to accept or deny the money on principle. Koch, along with his late brother David, is famous for donating to conservative and libertarian think tanks and scholars who promote deregulation and climate change denial.

In a second vote, held in early October, the faculty agreed to send a two-page “vision statement” to the program development stage. The Office of University Advancement is currently preparing a proposal to submit to the Koch Foundation.

Members of the political science department wrote the vision statement, titled “New Perspectives on U.S. Grand Strategy and Great Power Politics,” which describes a program that would “challenge received wisdoms” and address the costs associated with current U.S. foreign policy.

The vision statement also lists several potential uses for the funds, including a lecture series, fellowships for graduate students, or a five-year joint hire in the political science department and International Studies program.

According to recent tax filings, the Charles Koch Foundation donated $5,000 to BC in 2015, 2016, and 2017, each time for “general operating support.”

At the hour-long demonstration, which was organized by Climate Justice at BC (CJBC), history professor Prasannan Parthasarathi began his speech by saying that Koch Industries is one of the nation’s biggest polluters and has been fined by the government in the past for environmental law violations, including major oil spills.

Parthasarathi noted that the Kochs have been a central topic of discussion in his ongoing course, “Planet in Peril,” which he co-teaches alongside sociology professor Juliet Schor. The class studies ecological challenges and the history of human impact on the environment, according to the BC course directory. “[In my class], students learn that Koch Industries is one of the nation’s biggest polluters,” Parthasarathi said. “It dumps chemicals into our waterways, spills oil on pristine lands, and releases toxins into our air. The company has been fined repeatedly, but it has not changed its ways.”

Parthasarathi also said that Gerald Easter, chair of the political

See Protest, A3

See Board, A3

METRO: Teachers Stay Quiet

Asst. News Editor

INDEX

NEWS.........................A2 METRO..................... A5

Vol. C, No. 23 MAGAZINE..................A4 ARTS...................... A9 © 2019, The Heights, Inc. OPINIONS................... A6 SPORTS.................. A12 www.bchelghts.com 69

The Heights

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TOP

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things to do on campus this week

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The Manresa Experience Program Fall Lecture will continue today at 6:15 p.m. in the Heights Room with Steve Pemberton, BC ’89 and author of A Chance in the World: An Orphan Boy, a Mysterious Past, and How He Found a Place Called Home.

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Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Professor Guy Beiner will be lecturing about topics covered in his new book, Forgetful Remembrance: Social Forgetting and Vernacular Historiography of a Rebellion in Ulster, on Thursday at 12:00 in Stokes South 376.

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“Bob Ross Paint Night” is being hosted by the McMullen Museum of Art on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in the museum.

Students who attend will be provided with all necessary materials in order to follow along with one of his tutorials.

NEWS The View from BU: Alt-Right Almost Arrives at BC BRIEFS Lower’s New Green Space

Boston College is transforming the area previously occupied by the Flynn Recreation Complex into a large green lawn, with pedestrian pathways, three tennis courts, and one basketball court, along with a newly designed parking space.

These additions are intended as a temporary use for the site, as BC plans to eventually construct a University Center in this area, according to an emailed statement from Mary Nardone, associate vice president for Capital Projects Management.

The new space will “help tremendously to provide a softer and greener landscape,” as the University has been lacking in big green spaces, especially on Lower Campus, Nardone said. The parking and recreational courts will be located closer to the Margot Connell Recreation Center.

The construction project also consists of improvements that aren’t visible to the naked eye. BC is installing a large stormwater detention system underneath a portion of the site, which it hopes will alleviate the chronic flooding near the Yawkey Athletics Center that occurs during intense rainstorms, according to Nardone.

On-site construction will be very limited with winter approaching, as the snow will get in the way of construction progress. BC hopes for construction to start back up in March and for the project to be completed in June 2020.

Other than the impending weather, the project has faced few challenges, especially since the demolition of the Plex last summer went very smoothly, according to Nardone.

Student Formation Conference Boston College hosted a conference titled “Formative Education: Mapping the Terrain,” on Nov. 14 and 15 in Gasson 100. The conference examined the state of student formation on campus and invited other colleges and universities to participate.

The two-day event was coordinated

by Professor Dennis Shirley and Associate Professor Cristiano Casalini, both of whom are faculty in BC’s Lynch School of Education and Human Development. The Lynch School and the BC Institute for the Liberal Arts sponsored the event.

“This conference [was] a spectacular opportunity for all of us at Boston College to learn more about the past, present, and future of educating whole human beings to care for the whole world,” Shirley said in a University release. “Drawing upon the Jesuit, Catholic intellectual tradition and entering into critical dialogue with those from other spiritual and secular orientations, the conference [gave] all of us a rich venue for ‘mapping the terrain’ of formative education as we continue to evolve in this foundational dimension of the Boston College mission.”

The University release cited the role of campus ministry and servicebased learning as examples of its commitment to formative education on campus.

Along with the deans of BC’s schools, Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley; Vice President for University Mission and Ministry Rev. Jack Butler, S.J.; and Vice President for Student Affairs Joy Moore spoke on panels at the conference.

James Arthur, the director of the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham School of Education in the United Kingdom, and Michelle Dillon, the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and professor of sociology at the University of New Hampshire, also made an appearance.

Timmy Facciola More than 100 students showed up last week to protest conservative podcast host and author Andrew Klavan, calling his rhetoric discriminatory. But it turns out that it was not discriminatory enough for the alt-right.

According to a photo tweeted on Oct. 31, neo-nazis and white nationalists wanted to come to Boston College last week to confront Klaven, who was hosted by the Boston College Republicans. The photo depicts a calendar for a so-called “Groyper War”—a deployment of white nationalists to conservative speaking events at universities across the country, organized online by Holocaust-denier and white nationalist Nicholas J. Fuentes. Nov. 5 of the calendar is marked with a photo of Andrew Klavan and says “Boston College” in the box.

Also on Oct. 31, an alt-right account tweeted, “Another successful Groyper operation.

Next one is November 5th at Boston College with host Andrew Klavan of the Daily Wire.”

“Groyper” is a fatter version of the alt-right meme Pepe the Frog, and white nationalists have taken to identifying themselves as a “groyper army.” Led by Fuentes, their apparent goal is to disrupt Q&A segments at talks with prominent conservative pundits from networks Turning Point USA (TPUSA) and Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), which coordinate on-campus student conservative action.

During the Q&A portions of the events, white nationalists have asked a variety of questions. They’re designed to expose the speakers as “not conservative enough,” ranging from politely worded, subverssively racist questions about decreasing populations of white people, to the outright crude—“How does anal sex help us win the culture war [against the left]?”—all in an attempt to elevate Fuentes to the level of the mainstream speakers on-stage.

They frequently demand that the speakers debate Fuentes—whose history of racist comments has barred him from popular conservatism—as part of a larger plan to inject anti-Semitic conspiracies, homophobia, and concern for changing racial demographics into mainstream conservative politics.

There could have been white nationalists lining up among students that night in Higgins 263, had OSI not restricted the event to BC students, which appears to have caused white nationalists to think the event was canceled, leading them to never show up to the intimate venue.

“That event has been cancelled. It got removed from their website,” an alt-right account tweeted, referring to Klavan’s event.

The decision by OSI to restrict the event, which it said is standard for BC events, appears to have kept white nationalists and neo-Nazis from setting foot on campus last week, preserving the integrity of the evening’s conversation. The 30-something seat classroom filled up 25 minutes before Klavan was to begin speaking—and the doors closed too—but Klavan was upset that the venue was not fit to accommodate anyone who might wander in from off campus.

“They wouldn’t let them invite—like everyone else does this—they wouldn’t let them invite people from off-campus, but most people do invite people from off-campus. They made it explicit that they couldn’t invite people from off-campus,” says Klavan in his 8-minute video complaining about the delays that he and BC Republicans faced when dealing with OSI. On Nov. 4, one day before Klavan spoke at BC, a white nationalist asked Texas Representative Dan Crenshaw, who was speaking at a TPUSA event at Texas A&M, a question that was praised by Fuentes online.

“The US Census Bureau has predicted America will be minority white by 2045.

According to a 2014 Pew Research study, 80 percent of blacks, 65 percent of Asians, and 56 percent of Hispanics identify as Democrats,” says the person. “Given that the Democrat Party is destroying American ideals, which I think we both agree on, and given that nonwhites overwhelmingly vote Democrat, how will American ideals be maintained 25 years from now when currently nearly a million nonwhites become citizens each year?”

Another asked him to critique conservative pundit and YAF speaker Ben Shapiro.

Shapiro, an observant Jew, is a frequent target of white nationalist and anti-Semitic alt-right groups, who are vying to take over mainstream conservativism.

To be clear, it’s not Klavan’s fault that white nationalists wanted to protest his event. But one bug of the kind of polarizing, soundbite caliber of conversation of YAF and TPUSA speakers like Klavan is a distant kinship to more austere and less racially aware politics.

White nationalists would never try to steal the stage from academics or cable news personalities because those figures don’t tend to tolerate that kind of discourse.

But when Klavan, like other YAF and TPUSA speakers, claims that European culture is objectively better than others and then dismisses academia as nothing more than a leftist monopoly of truth, he turns away from good-faith conversation and opens himself to engage with racist opinions like those of Fuentes.

Crucial to the persona of TPUSA and YAF speakers is a conflict with the university hosting the event. The speakers are portrayed by followers as oppressed champions of free speech enlightening audiences about the “real” history of America against the wishes of leftist professors. And they justify their events with complaints about cancel culture, telling opponents to debate their ideas instead of shutting them down. It is with this same logic that groypers show up to events, demanding that speakers debate, not dismiss, him. In the eyes of groypers, TPUSA and YAF are biased institutions that gatekeep truth and refuse to debate ideas that go against conventional narratives, no different than Klavan’s diagnosis of the academy. And Klavan admittedly doesn’t debate in hopes of arriving at an agreement with his opponents.

“I don’t understand at what point in this conversation we were bipartisan. […] I don’t want us all to sing Kumbaya and hug each other,” Klavan said in an interview with The Heights. “I simply want us to debate, like human beings and not like animals. I want us all to abide by the rules so we move the ball in our direction without destroying the system.”

In the past few years, the award-winning novelist has made a career for himself lecturing in podcasts and at universities about the importance of the Western Canon and Judeo-Christian values. But it remained unclear what Klavan was adding to the conversation by going on about the importance of reading Plato to a room full of students who will not be able to graduate from BC without reading a survey of Socratic, medieval, and modern philosophers.

Klaven, who stresses the importance of Judeo-Christian education and labels students of Jesuit education as indoctrinated to leftist causes, also thinks that thrice-divorced President Donald J. Trump—who committed adultery with a pornstar—is an instrument of God. “I think the evangelicals got Trump right.

They saw him as someone God could use. We remember that God runs history. We don’t run history,” Klavan said.

Much of Klavan’s speech that night dealt with reading the great works of the Western Canon to uncover the sacred, transcendental truths that have spanned civilizations across millennia. He emphasized the importance of reading the primary documents without commentary, not obfuscated by the lenses of professors. Both philosophy and history cores at BC insist on familiarizing students with original texts as well, but Klavan delivered his speech assuring students that their professors were trying to indoctrinate them without knowing or caring about this.

“A teacher’s job is to tell you what Plato was trying to say,” Klavan told The Heights. “Today, what you have is the teacher filters what Plato was trying to say through his own leftist viewpoint, and that’s a very different thing. That’s actually getting in the way of your education.

I’m not accusing Boston College of this, I have no idea what their curriculum is.”

Though unfamiliar with the curriculum, Klavan’s speech assumed BC was under control of a feminist, leftist guild of professors. From this position, Klavan was unable to engage in conversations with students in any substantive way. Protestors banged on the windows outside classrooms in hopes of silencing a rhetorical force that could be quelled by anyone who did the reading in Philosophy of the Person I. He was ushered out by the BC Police Department, saying in his podcast the next day that he, “felt like Reagan after he was shot,” and then repeated the joke to The Heights in a later interview.

The next day, without Klavan talking about the greats of Western Civilization, life resumed at BC. Students sat in Mac eating omelets before class while annotating copies of The Five Dialogues. Professors printed reading quizzes for their theology core classes. And the pews

were filled at the 10 a.m. mass at St. Ignatius that Sunday.

Without a fresh take on Plato, a microphone, a bigger venue, or the ability to invite off-campus attendees, Klavan left BC with little to remember him by. It was, by comparison to other YAF and TPUSA events, a quiet night.

Eight days later, another YAF speaker came to the city of more than 50 colleges to deliver a speech titled, “America Wasn’t Founded on Slavery, it Was Founded on Freedom.”

A few stops down the B-Line, Shapiro, Klavan’s boss and editor-in-chief of The Daily Wire, was speaking at an event at Boston University. Police closed streets surrounding the Track and Field House, and officers were posted at every corner. A helicopter hovered over the adjacent streets while protestors chanted at the entrance of the event, waving a hammer-and-sickle flag on one of the first frigid nights of November. At the doors, security guards told attendees to remove all metal from pockets and put it over their heads as they walked through the metal detectors. Audience members surrendered their coats to security guards who rifled through each one like it was a TSA checkpoint.

“Bro, they snagged my JUUL,” said one student in a Trump hat.

Inside, at the center of the track, rows of white folding chairs were lined up to hold the expected 1,500 attendees. Some students wore all black in solidarity with Black BU, the student organization that penned a petition claiming Shapiro’s visit made them feel “abandoned, triggered, frustrated, disheartened devalued, infuriated, overwhelmed, ignored, embarrassed of BU.” Shapiro began his speech with a dichotomy between America as the story of a nation conceived in liberty, or, as Shapiro described it as he attempted an impersonation of Beto O’Rourke: “Racism in America is endemic, bruh,” Shapiro said. “We can mark the creation of this country not on July 4, 1776 but August 20, 1619, when the first kidnapped American was brought to this country against his will in bondage as a slave and built the greatness and wealth that neither he nor his descendants would be able to participate in and enjoy.”

The quote was in reference to the 1619 project, a series of essays on America’s legacy of racism published in the New York Times Magazine at the commission of investigative journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones. The collection proposes a new understanding of America’s past, centering the inception of America with the origins of its enslavement of Africans.

The first essay, by Hannah-Jones, highlights the hypocrisy of the “All men are created equal” line from the Declaration of Independence.

In his speech, Shapiro brushes over this, first saying that when the United States became a nation, slavery had yet to be outlawed in other parts of the Western world like England. He then delivers a list of B-list founding fathers and their cherry-picked quotes in support of abolition, citing it as proof that despite 41 of the 56 Founding Fathers owning slaves, they weren’t really racist.

Thomas Jefferson, despite having as many as six illegitimate children with his slave Sally Hemings, was aware of his own hypocrisy, thus absolving him of his part in the legacy of racism in the nation’s founding, according to Shapiro.

Shapiro continues snarking at the project, saying the Northwest Ordinance of 1787—which George Washington signed to ban slavery in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota—was proof that the Founders didn’t envision slavery as part of the country as Americans expanded westward.

Shapiro is not wrong because of this interpretation—he’s wrong because he ignores what was happening in other parts of the country in its early days as slave populations rose and the influence slave owners had over Southern politics grew. He progressed through history, stating that slavery and Jim Crow cannot be said to have made the economy richer because the flow of people and spending power that fled the South during the Jim Crow era fueled the Northern economy until the Civil Rights movement eliminated legalized discrimination. After that, the same concentration of black Americans and their spending power returned to the South, rejuvenating the economy.

Again, Shapiro isolates historical analysis and extrapolates from it a larger trend that goes against what he says “leftists” claim about history. And again, this averts his attention, and his audience’s, from the palpable, traceable roots of racism in American history.

Shapiro succeeds by distracting listeners from

his opponents’ talking points and replacing them with strawman arguments that he rebuts with anomalies. But he comes short of refuting the actual claims.

“If slavery had been an economic winner, the South wouldn’t have been roundly defeated by the industrialized North,” Shapiro said.

When Shapiro finished his speech, there was a rush to line up for the Q&A. “In 2016, you tweeted out a list of 20 people that you called alt-right friendly. It included Ron Paul, Pat Buchannan, and Ann Coulter, and even Donald Trump,” said the first questioner in a red hat. “Recently you gave a speech at Stanford about Nick Fuentes who you called an alt-right influencer. My question is that it seems like conservatives like you, like [TPUSA founder and president] Charlie Kirk, like Dan Crenshaw, feel threatened by America-first and America-first ideas. Is this why you’re smearing them as alt-right, racist, homophobic and all these other things instead of addressing their ideas and debating them?”

There was some applause, though it’s not clear if it was from people who understood what drew the questioner to the event in the first place. About 30 or 40 people clapped, but there were only five people who appeared to be chanting and heckling Shapiro in favor of Fuentes, demonstrating the normalizing nature of Fuentes’ strategy that frames white nationalist conversations in terms of free speech.

“I’m happy to address ideas, I’m not happy to debate somebody who has joked about murdering me,” said Shapiro.

“Liar!” shouted one man with a shaved head.

Shapiro explained that Fuentes streamed himself online playing Grand Theft Auto and killed an orthodox Jew that he claimed to be Shapiro.

“Get over it. It’s a joke Ben,” shouted another man in the back with a similar haircut.

Shapiro moved on to the next questioner, who wore a yarmulke and informed the audience before asking his question that Fuentes was at the Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville.

After a few more questions, ranging from vegetarianism to Brett Kavanaugh’s genitals, one of the hecklers, in a black t-shirt that said “Socialist,” with skull tattoos peeking out from his sleeves, told the YAF person holding the microphone that he disagreed with Shapiro. It’s an institutionalized rule at talks that attendees who disagree with Shapiro get to cut the line.

“Oh, let me guess your political affiliation,” Shapiro said as the man approached the microphone.

“It might surprise you,” said the man. “First I’d like to thank you for coming here and having an open dialogue with everybody tonight.

It’s greatly appreciated. Free speech is under attack in this country.”

The audience applauded in unison.

“So recently when you spoke at Stanford, you smeared America-first patriots like myself with all the same leftist insults Antifa uses. The same ones they’re using outside to smear us today,” he said. “So my question for you Ben is will you debate a real conservative like Nicholas J. Fuentes or are you too scared to debate your anti-America-first positions?”

The audience laughed at the question because of Shapiro’s answer to the previous Fuentes supporter.

As Shapiro said that he’s open to debate proponents of limited legal immigration, but not people who espouse white nationalism, Fuentes’ supporters yelled at Shapiro from the back.

“What I’m not going to do is debate someone who joked about my death, who called someone who worked for me ‘Shabbos Goy race traitor,’ praised the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville—no that I am not going to do,” Shapiro said.

After the man stepped away from the microphone, a YAF representative announced they only had time for one more question.

The event ended and the hecklers, one wearing an America-first shirt and another holding some sort of red flag, shook hands and walked out among the larger crowd, down the street, past the police, and into the night. Shapiro had been given a large venue, a microphone, and the opportunity to invite attendees from off campus—all conditions Klavan wished he had—giving just a hint of what could have been at BC.

Timmy Facciola is the assoc. magazine editor for The Heights. He can be reached at magazine@bcheights.com.

The Heights

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

A3

Suspension Suit Could Go to Jury Trial CJBC Demonstration Jury Trial, from A1

but there is no formal process to present lines of questioning, according to court documents submitted by the University as part of the previous lawsuit.

Doe’s successful call for a preliminary injunction also claimed that the University erred when it denied his appeal on July 24 because Doe had learned of new evidence that could have affected the finding. One of Doe’s roommates—a witness in the investigation—had overheard “unambiguous signs of consensual sex from both parties,” including verbal instructions, but did not tell investigators, according to the complaint.

Doe’s demand for a jury trial lists five causes of action. Three of them—erroneous outcome in violation of Title IX, breach of contract, and violation of fundamental fairness—mirror the arguments Doe has previously made in support of blocking his suspension by addressing the investigatory model, the denied appeal, and the non-consensual finding.

The fourth cause of action is for “estoppel,” a legal defense often used when a party asserts facts contrary to a previous claim or agreement. Doe’s lawyers wrote that BC “should have expected [Doe] to accept its offer of admission and offer to join its [redacted] program, incur tuition fees and expenses, and choose not to attend other colleges” in part on the assumption that Doe would not suffer discrimination or be denied procedural rights. Doe weighed these explicit and implicit promises in his decision to attend BC, according to the complaint.

In describing the final cause of action, negligence, Doe’s lawyers wrote that the University failed to properly train and supervise Assistant Dean of Students Kristen O’Driscoll and external investigator Jennifer Davis. The complaint pointed to the nature of the finding—that Roe did not consent to sex, rather than was unable to consent—as evidence that the investigators did not properly fufill their responsibilities.

Doe’s lawyers also said that the University was negligent in permitting Doe’s privacy to be violated, again noting that Roe reported her sexual assault to a BC employee with a relationship to Doe. The demand for a jury trial expands on claims against the University beyond the

process issues that previous complaints detailed—among them that the investigation resulted in an erroneous outcome, was biased against Doe for his gender, and violated his right to privacy. The complaint also includes new information about specific questions of credibility that the investigator did not thoroughly address, according to the complaint.

The complaint says that the investigators overlooked “unambiguous” evidence that Roe consented to sexual intercourse by giving verbal instructions during the encounter, assisting in the removal of her clothes, and instructing Doe to get a condom, all of which Doe testified to.

Doe’s lawyers pointed to “inconsistencies” in Roe’s testimony in each of her interviews with the investigators. These inconsistencies included Roe’s initial statement that she did not consent to any part of her encounter with Doe, which conflicted with her later testimony that she agreed to make out with Doe and helped him remove her clothes, according to the complaint.

More significantly, it criticizes the investigators for concluding that Roe was highly intoxicated to the point of being unable to make informed, rational decisions while also crediting her recollection when it diverged from Doe’s.

The final portion of the erroneous outcome claim alleges that Doe was not afforded a presumption of innocence due to gender bias, which the complaint says “was a motivating factor behind the erroneous findings and the decision to impose an unjustly severe penalty.” Doe’s lawyers cited the U.S. First Circuit ruling in Doe v.

Brandeis (2016), which said that the Obama administration’s Dear Colleague Letter led universties to adopt “procedural and substantive policies intended to make it easier for victims of sexual assault to make and prove their claims and for the schools to adopt punitive measures in response.”

The Dear Colleague Letter is a 2011 Department of Education memo that reinterpreted Title IX, the federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs receiving federal funds. The letter told these institutions that sexual violence was a form of discrimination and instructed universities to afford a “prompt and equitable resolution” to sexual violence complaints as well as to utilize the

“preponerance of evidence” standard in determing responsibility.

The preponderance of evidence standard is based on whether evidence points to at least a 51 percent chance the alleged assault occurred.

The complaint suggests that BC’s 2014 move to a single investigator model removed procedural safeguards and led to more findings of responsibility against men. Doe’s lawyers noted that all students suspended and expelled from BC for sexual assault have been male, although that pattern existed before the adoption of the single investigator model.

In addition to mentioning the effects of the Dear Colleague Letter, the complaint specifically cites the use of the word “victim” in BC’s Student Sexual Misconduct Policy.

It also pointed to the final report’s inclusion of Roe’s behavior when informing her roommates of the alleged assault but not Doe’s reaction upon learning of the charges, which the complaint describes as “shocked, scared, upset and appearing as though he was going to vomit.”

Doe’s lawyers charged the investigators with misapplying the preponderance of evidence standard in deeming Roe’s version of events more reliable, despite a lack of cross-examination from Doe, either directly or through third party.

In addition to the breach of contract charge in the preliminary injunction filing, Doe also accused the University of a violation of confidentiality. The demand for a jury trial alleges that Roe, accompanied by a University employee, reported to another employee that someone had sexually assaulted her. That employee, who had an existing relationship with Doe, then determined Doe’s identity and called him into his office.

The employee then spoke to a larger group about the meaning of consent, which Doe’s lawyers claimed allowed others to piece together the accusations against Doe. Doe is suing BC for damages related to physical, emotional, and psychological damages; damages to his reputation; past and future economic losses; loss of educational opportunities; and the loss of future career prospects. The complaint cited Doe’s permanent disciplinary record, a delay in his anticipated graduation date, and the disclosure to potential graduate schools and employers as damaging. n

Professors Consider Oversight Board Board, from A1 should try to renew [the agreement],” Easter said.

Currently, the University has yet to submit a funding proposal to the Koch Foundation, according to Dean of the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Rev. Gregory Kalscheur, S.J. The decision about whether to implement an advisory board will lie with Kalscheur, as well as the political science faculty, who will vote on the proposal after it has been finalized.

“Given where we are in the semester, I do not expect a proposal to be finalized and submitted until the latter part of December or some time in January,” Kalscheur said in an email to The Heights. “An advisory board for the program is an idea that has been suggested, and it is a possible program feature that I am open to considering and implementing.”

The political science faculty has not yet met to discuss the prospect of an independent advisory board, according to Robert Ross—one of the political science professors spearheading the proposal.

“I think an advisory board, whether it’s warranted, necessary, or advisable, is something that needs to be discussed with the dean and the faculty,” Ross said.

Schlozman said that she suggested the idea after hearing about a similar body that Wellesley College introduced to oversee its Freedom Project, a Koch-funded speaking

series and research program. Last year, The Boston Globe reported that Koch, along with his late brother David, had been encouraging ideologically like-minded donors to donate to specific programs to promote conservative ideas on campuses.

Following alumni and student pushback, Wellesley replaced the initiative’s director, overhauled the program, and created a “speech and inclusion” task force, according to The Boston Globe.

News of the department’s vote to approve has sparked a backlash on BC’s campus as well: Faculty for Justice, a faculty group, has been working to combat the proposal by circulating a fact sheet and petition, and over 100 people attended an anti-Koch protest on Thursday night. Senators in the Undergraduate Government of BC debated a resolution condemning the proposal, although they ultimately voted tabled it for future discussion.

“The Koch Foundation has a bad reputation, that frankly it has earned, with past experiences at other universities,” Easter said. “The one that everyone always makes note of is George Mason, so there were issues of academic integrity.”

At George Mason University, Charles and David had influence over committees charged with staffing the professorships that they funded. Similar situations have unfolded at Florida State University and Arizona State University following major donations from the Charles Koch Foundation.

At the October political science faculty meeting, one professor suggested listing climate change as an example national security threat in the vision statement as a way of testing how hands-off the Koch Foundation would be in regard to the curriculum, according to Easter.

“The faculty prefered instead to be general about what the program will accommodate,” Easter said. “They don’t want to explicitly write in what are the issues that will be addressed as a list, including climate change, which has direct security implications.”

Most of the faculty voted not to include the climate change language, according to several professors. Ross said that adding the climate change language didn’t make sense if the vision statement didn’t provide other examples of national security threats.

“In that context, it would be inappropriate to add specifically detailed issues,” Ross said. “[Not including the climate change language] is less of an issue of ‘we won’t do this.’ Those topics could certainly be raised in the speaker series, say.”

Easter clarified that that educational programs funded through the Koch Foundation would be allowed to address climate change.

“Climate change, as it relates to security studies, is on the table, just not in the vision statement, as an issue that can be addressed through the various manifestations of the program,” Easter said. n

Criticizes Charles Koch Protest, from A1 science department, chose not to list climate change as a national security threat example in the vision statement because he believed it to be a “poison pill,” which Parthasarathi called a form of “self-censorship.” “[The climate change language] was suggested in a department meeting to test if the Koch Foundation was really going to be hands-off,” Easter said in a prior interview with The Heights. “And the faculty preferred instead at this point to just be general about what the program will accommodate and [the faculty] don’t want to explicitly write in what are the issues that will be addressed, including climate change, which of course has direct security implications.”

Easter said in the interview that climate change, as it relates to national security, can be part of the program’s potential manifestations, such as a speaker series or a conference.

Carli Brenner, MCAS ’21, spoke about her opposition to the funding. Brenner is the political activism chair for EcoPledge, a student organization concerned with sustainability on campus.

Brenner mentioned Koch’s influence at George Mason University, which allowed the foundation to have a role in its curricular and hiring process. At George Mason, the Kochs were able to influence the committee that hired professors into a professorship they had funded.

“We cannot help achieve environmental justice with a stifled education,” she said. “The money is not worth the risk. BC is founded on Jesuit values, like a holistic education, scientific inquiry, deep reflection, and service to others. The Koch Foundation’s values are in complete opposition to our own. They are donating to support themselves.”

In the audience, Bjorn Carlson, a fellow member of EcoPledge and MCAS ’20, agreed with Lawlor that the Koch Foundation’s gift could undermine academic integrity indirectly.

“So my concern as a student is that our academic academic integrity of our professors is is at risk, given that this is a five-year donation cycle,” Carlson said in an interview with The Heights. “So what happens is, as these professors get the money, they’re going to have to continue reapplying to get the money.

If the professors in the political science department become reliant on the donations, we’re afraid that they may self censor in their own research.”

Carmen Chu, another member of EcoPledge and MCAS ’22, called for BC to divest from the fossil fuel industry. She cited a statement from Associate Vice President for University Communications Jack Dunn after students voted to support divestment in a non-binding Undergraduate Government of BC referendum last February.

“Boston College remains opposed to divestment from fossil fuel companies on the grounds that it is not a viable solution to the important issue of climate change,” Dunn said in an emailed statement to The Heights in February. “The University’s position is that the most effective way to limit climate change is for Boston College, along with corporations, organizations, and individuals, to take active steps to reduce energy consumption and enhance sustainability measures.”

Dunn had also said in his February statement that the University had implemented energy conservation campaigns and worked to secure Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certifications for new buildings on campus.

In response to the Thursday protest, Dunn said in an email to The Heights that the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education awarded BC a silver rating in its Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System last May. He noted that Northwestern University and Yale University are fellow recipients of the silver ranking.

“Boston College is taking specific steps to reduce energy consumption and enhance sustainability,” Dunn said in his email. “We encourage all members of the BC community to do the same.”

Chu’s recitation of the statement on divestment was met with booing. She continued, citing Koch’s financial support for environmental deregulation and climate change denial. “[Koch’s] actions are self-interested as they promote the deregulation of industries that they have investments in, disregarding how oppressive and ignorant their practices may be,” she said.

Chu went on to reference ongoing consequences of climate change—such as heatwaves, wildfires, or severe droughts—and called inaction an “abdication of responsibility.” She referenced other colleges and universities that have recently refused or returned donations from controversial figures. An example given was Brown University, which redirected money from the Sackler family after reports that their company, Purdue Pharma, underreported the addictiveness of its painkiller OxyContin.

“Institutes of higher education should refuse to support the interests of the wealthiest people in the world,” Chu said. “If our own schools won’t stand up for our interests, who will?”

Rachel Schlueter, a campus organizer for the divestment activist group Divest Ed, described how Fossil Free MIT, a student organization at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is working toward eliminating the Koch Foundation’s influence from their school. The Charles Koch Foundation recently donated $3.7 million to MIT’s security studies program. Schlueter called gifts to institutions of higher education one of the “pillars” of Koch’s influence, along with campaign contributions and think tank funding.

Kayla Lawlor, MCAS ’20, explained that several of her professors in the political science department have defended the vision statement by saying that political science faculty will resist encroachment on their academic freedom.

“I say to my professors, ‘This isn’t a matter of having confidence in your colleagues’ academic integrity,’” Lawlor said. “That the money was actually sought out is what is truly at issue.”

Kate Meyers, a student who attended the protest and MCAS ’20, said that accepting the funding would affect academic freedom.

“The fact that as an institution, I can’t have a free … learning environment, especially as an environmental studies major, that’s just so against everything that I believe in,” Meyers said.

Other students showed more concern with the principle behind accepting the funding, rather than the potential effects.

“It’s definitely a bad moral principle for BC to be accepting money from people who have funded so much climate denial and other anti-environmental causes,” Asa Ackerly, a student who attended the protest and MCAS ’22, said. “I’m confident enough in BC’s academic standards [versus] what happened at other colleges.”

Lawlor also condemned the University for opposing divestment,.

“The pursuit of knowledge only means something if it’s directed towards the common good—and not just the common good for BC, but the common good,” she said.

Audrey Kang, a member of CJBC who organized the protest and MCAS ’22, compared the University’s approach to climate justice to procrastination, but she said that it seems BC has even gone beyond inaction.

“BC’s action in taking the Koch Foundation money goes beyond just playing into the inactivity surrounded by climate change issues,” she said. “It actively works against it to silence the truth and misinform the public.” n

The Heights

A4

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Teaching Moments in Tanzania

By Anna Lonnquist For The Heights

F

or a college student, the phrase “leadership experience” might stir up visuals of sitting in a conference center, listening to lectures, and doing group breakouts.

Whatever one envisions, it’s likely far from traveling 7,274 miles to climb a mountain at the peak of the country’s rainy season alongside nine equally inexperienced peers. But for students in Boston College’s Leadership in Action: Lessons From Exploration course, this is exactly what their experience entails.

The three-credit class was offered for the first time last year, and is co-taught by Carroll School of Management (CSOM) professors Lyndon Garrett and Juan Montes.

The program’s inaugural trip brought a team of 10 students along with the two faculty to Tanzania for 15 days, aiming to authentically teach leadership to students by having them undergo mentally and physically challenging experiences as a team.

Despite having two CSOM faculty members at the helm, the course uses a multi-faceted, liberal arts-based approach to prepare students to soak in the diverse and unfamiliar learnings they’d experience.

After meeting every other Wednesday night over the spring semester, the group departed on June 14, just weeks after the conclusion of the academic year.

Their trip began with the ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain, before traveling west to the Serengeti National Park and then visiting three different indigenous tribes.

The course’s unconventional approach to teaching leadership was shaped by each professor’s belief in the power of unfamiliar experiences.

Modeled after leadership-in-action trips led by University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, the Tanzania trip sought to make students better leaders through authentic experiences rather than classroom teaching.

“We said, in this department, we teach leadership, we teach OB [organizational behavior], we teach strategy; but the most deep experience when you are in college is when you do a journey, a trip, to a place you don’t know anything about,” Montes said.

Montes came up with the idea for the course upon noticing the lack of leadership trips offered by CSOM faculty.

Though abroad opportunities are commonplace at BC, he also recognized an absence of experiences centered around physical challenge.

Growing up in Chile, Montes developed a fascination with mountains, leading him to become a professional mountain climber. He was part of the first Chilean team to summit Mount Everest and returned in 1992 to do a second ascent of Mount Everest’s remote Kangshung Face, which hasn’t been repeated in 26 years. Since, he has guided over 30 expeditions to the Himalayas, Andes, Patagonia, Yosemite, and the Alps.

Combining his background in mountaineering with his years teaching operational behavior and strategy implementation, Montes wanted to create a trip pushing students both physically and intellectually through

foreign experience. Tanzania’s physical terrain and cultural diversity provided an ideal location for this intense experience. Though places like the Alps have plenty of challenging and beautiful climbs that he considered, they lacked the unfamiliarity that cultivates intellectual growth, Montes said.

He then proposed his idea for the Tanzania trip to Dean of CSOM Andrew Boynton.

“The first time I went to talk to Andy Boynton, he said, ‘Oh, that’s totally crazy. Are you sure you want to do that? It’s difficult and kind of risky,’” Montes said. “I said no, it’s not risky, but yes, it is difficult—you have to arrange the resources.”

Even after Boynton’s initial hesitation, Montes believed the course could be approved if he continued to plan it. In 2018, he traveled alone to Tanzania to explore if each pillar of the course—climbing the mountain, doing the safari, and visiting the tribes—would be possible.

Establishing communication with local tribes took up the majority of his trip, Montes said, as they were difficult to reach.

With the outline of the course and trip more solidified, Montes then presented the idea to Garrett to see if he’d be interested.

“I got excited because I’ve also done a certain amount of mountaineering—though not nearly as much as Juan—so I kind of just jumped on board,” Garrett, who is from Utah, said. “I grew up climbing mountains, but not really tall ones like Juan.”

The duo’s interests in the outdoors aligned, but they wanted the trip to be accessible to any student who was excited about the opportunity, regardless of if they considered themselves to be adept in the wilderness.

“We don’t ask for any previous mountaineering experience, just a love for the outdoors and a willingness to accept some kind of physical punishment in climbing the mountain, but not a lot,” Montes said.

While the group ranged in familiarity with the wilderness, most members had very limited previous experience, which was integral to cultivate a supportive group atmosphere, said trip member Amy Donahue, Lynch ’20.

The students did limited physical training prior to the trip, going to a spin class and doing a challenging hour-long hill run, but Montes and Garrett were more focused on establishing an intellectual base for the experience.

Though advertised to those in CSOM or students from other schools minoring in Management and Leadership, the course was fundamentally liberal arts, Montes said, with readings covering topics ranging from science to philosophy to evolutionary theory.

The course material is diverse and aims to prepare students for the unfamiliarity they would experience on the trip. Isak Dineson’s Out of Africa offered insight into cultural experiences in Africa, while Robert McFarlane’s Mountains of the Mind explored why people climb mountains.

Montes, who as a teenager experienced pushback from family members about his love for mountain climbing emphasizes the importance of understanding all the aspects of the sport.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JUAN MONTES

The group held important meetings during mealtimes, and also used them for reflection.

When he began his mountain-climbing hobby at age 15, his own parents were skeptical.

“People say, ‘Why? It’s dumb, it’s totally stupid, it’s a cold place that requires a lot of effort,’” he said. “I remember my mother asking this, but it’s an objective that was initially dumb and separated, but then you begin to fall in love with the objective, and … also the elements of mystery and uncertainty and risk.”

Exploring the power of storytelling was also a key component of the trip, which the course’s discussion-based setup aimed to strengthen. The small size fostered more authentic conversations than possible in a larger lecture-style course, for example.

“Our class definitely got pretty p ersonal,” said William Kastrol, MCAS ’21. “It was definitely my first class at BC where I knew everybody by name and could tell you something meaningful about them.”

The unique environment also allowed students to build deeper relationships with the two professors than would be possible in a typical classroom setting.

For Donahue, this meant discovering that her interests aligned with Garrett’s research on team dynamics, which she is now helping him conduct.

After finalizing their plane tickets just 10 days earlier, the group set off to Arusha, Tanzania via New York City just days after the conclusion of the spring semester. The second day, they embarked on the first leg of their trip—climbing Kilimanjaro.

Over the first five days, the group experienced four of Kilimanjaro’s five terrains as they climbed toward the base camp. The time spent hiking each day averaged from six to eight hours, which group members usually passed through storytelling to occupy their minds.

“I started asking people a question of the day as we hiked. Some were about what people were afraid of or believed in,” Donahue said. solation from the out side world was necessary to cultivate the unconventional experience the trip was designated to provide, Montes said. However, reflection and discussion about this unfamiliarity wasn’t planned during the trip. Instead, it arose naturally.

“The context, the environment you are in creates that reflection,” Montes said. “You need to create that when you’re in a hotel type of retreat. When you are in the mountains, meetings occur around the table. I have been in many, many expeditions, and that’s the same. All the important meetings are when you are having lunch, or dinner, or breakfast.”

Because the trip took place in early June, the members found themselves caught in the tailend of Tanzania’s rainy season, which typically lasts from April to May. This created an unusually remote feeling. The group only encountered three or four other people during their week-long climb, Donahue said.

Hiking in constant rain also posed cognitive obstacles. Though some preferred the distraction from the physical monotony of the climb that it created, the non-stop downpour added to the mental challenge.

“We were looking around at each other while we were climbing this mountain and just getting dumped on, thinking ‘What are we doing?

This is crazy,’” Garrett said. “People have done physically hard things before, but trudging through pouring rain with a team and no cell phone was so out of our comfort zones in so many ways that was a big part of what made the experience so foreign and unusual.”

The climb culminated on the sixth day, when the group set out at 11 p.m. to begin their climb to the summit.

“It’s just not thinking about anything besides ‘breathe, step, breathe, step,’ so it was very quiet,” Garrett said. “There was no more joking around or telling stories, you just breathe and walk very slowly.”

The guides intentionally set an extremely slow pace for the last leg

I

PHOTO COURTESY OF JUAN MONTES

For the last portion of their trip, the members visited indigenous Tanzanian tribes. of the trek, which was necessary to ensure everyone made it to the top in the steep, oxygen-scarce conditions.

Some students had slept for a few hours prior to setting out, but others were running on no sleep for the 14hour day.

The combination of sleep deprivation and over 19,000 feet of elevation even led some to experience hallucinations during the night.

“My sister was talking to her food at one point. I just saw little animals go by, and I was like, ‘There’s definitely not an animal in front of me,’” Kastroll said of his sister, Abby, who was also on the trip.

Donning headlamps, the 10 students and two faculty inched forward, having to break into smaller groups as some lagged behind and others sped up.

The first group reached the top at 7 a.m., just as the sun broke through.

They tried waiting for everyone to arrive but began feeling the effects that come with a lack of oxygen. As a result, by the time the last group emerged, the first members had already begun the descent. Each trip member made it in the end, though, fulfilling the course’s goal.

“Ever ybody made it, and even the people at the fittest end of the continuum suffered, as well as those who barely touch the gym, so it’s quite democratic in suffering for everybody,” Montes said.

The physical and mental challenges created by Kilimanjaro were largely overcome through the team’s collaborative rather than competitive dynamic.

Since each member experienced hardships to some extent, everyone understood the power in group motivation. Kastroll recalled a day when Abby felt above average and spent nearly an hour running up and down a tough ascent to motivate those lagging behind.

“In a group, you push yourself because you see that other people are suffering, and if others can do it, you think you can do it too,” Garrett said.

“That’s what I like about the team not being a team of mountaineers or being a mountaineering expedition because when you assume that the other guy is an expert, the dynamic is totally different.”

For some, the climb fostere d growth in areas beyond leadership.

The disconnection from the outside world that began during the Kilimanjaro leg of the trip and continued throughout gave students time to reflect that they wouldn’t have during everyday life. Kastroll decided to dedicate his climb to something higher, which for him was faith.

“Whether people were religious or not, I felt like everyone developed a deeper understanding of what happened and a more profound understanding of nature,” Kastroll said.

Montes also emphasized the trip’s potential to help students see mindbody connection in a different light than the one cultivated by Western society.

Stripped of so much daily commotion and forced to focus on a monotonous task such as walking helped group members not only see the capacity of their physical bodies, but also increase awareness of one’s own body while on the mountain.

“Here, life is more simple, but it’s more cruel,” Montes said. “You need to

walk, you need to do one thing during the day, and that focus on things that are very simple creates a totally different mindset.”

The intense physical and mental challenge posed by Kilimanjaro was immediately followed by two days on a safari in Serengeti National Park.

Despite the relaxed atmosphere, intellectual growth was still fostered by the conversations students had with the safari drivers.

“You also talk about where your family lives, what tribe you’re from, what dialect you speak,” Montes said.

“Also, they would ask us a lot of things about what university is like, or what studying is because they’ve never experienced it beyond a little schooling.”

The last leg of the trip, visiting three indigenous tribes for a day each, brought a new type of unfamiliarity to light.

One morning was spent with the Hatsa, Africa’s last hunter-gatherer tribe. The group arrived to the tribe sharpening their arrows and joined them for their morning hunt, which included shooting birds and gathering honey.

“One of them climbed a tree where there was a beehive and was reaching in and scooping out honey while bees were flying everywhere,” Garrett said.

The opportunity to engage and share stories with individuals holding such different experiences couldn’t have been accomplished in many locations that they considered for their adventure, such as the Alps, Montes said.

“I remember a group of women we met on the last trip asked everybody in the group, ‘Okay, how many kids do you have?’ and were surprised when nobody was married, and the girl who was asking was probably 17 or 18,” Montes said. “The opportunity to establish and enrich that conversation shaped our discussions.”

Tanzania’s culmination of physical challenge and culturally diverse experiences supported the trip’s purpose and made Montes and Garrett eager to continue providing similar experiences.

This upcoming year, they have given applicants the option to choose their preference between returning to Tanzania and going to the Atacama Desert in Chile, where the 15 days will include climbing a volcano, meeting local tribes, and potentially rock climbing or mountain biking.

The personal growth and leadership development that students extracted through the spring semester course and 15-day trip showed the potential for unconventional trips to provide the most meaningful experiences.

“Students would talk about how they had learned all of these different things in all of their CSOM classes, but going on a trip like this really brought everything to life,” Garrett said. “Now they understand what it means to lead and be part of a team. It showed that we achieved the goals of the class—without ever really talking about leadership, we saw students becoming more leader-like.” n

NOTE: Although this course is being offered in the Summer 2020 session, the deadline to send in an application has already passed. If you are interested, however, you can still reach out to Juan Montes at montesjb@bc.edu to be placed on the waitlist.

The Heights

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

A5

Newton Teachers Intensify Efforts for Contract It’s Too Late,

Deval Patrick

By Rachel Phelan For The Heights

More than two months following the expiration of its contract, the Newton Teachers Association (NTA) is continuing to press the Newton School Committee to negotiate. Union members started to suspend voluntary work in committees throughout the entire Newton Public School System this month. The protest is not meant to affect students, but rather force the city to negotiate a new contract, according to Michael Zilles, president of the Newton Teachers Association (NTA).

The NTA represents five different units of Newton Public School (NPS) employees, including teachers, counselors, social workers, administrators, paraprofessionals, substitute teachers, and professional support staff who work in business and data offices.

The School Committee was unable to negotiate a new contract within the year allotted for renegotiations, Zilles said.

“We had been working on a oneyear bridge contract that we had agreed to with the school committee with the express purpose of buying a year, in order to negotiate a successor agreement for three years,” Zilles said in an interview with The Heights.

“We were unable to successfully negotiate a contract in that full-year negotiation, and we met multiple times but the negotiation went very slowly.”

During the months of September and October, N TA members re-

Lauren Burd

NEWTON TEACHERS ASSOCIATION

Teachers from Cabot Elementary School wear red t-shirts to school to lobby for new contract negotiations with the city. mained silent during full faculty meetings, which are run by NPS principals.

They now plan to remain silent during department meetings in December.

“The thing about voluntary committee meetings and department meetings, is that these are the places where most of the work of the district to push forward its initiatives happen,” Zilles said. “So our goal is to do work actions that inhibit the ability of the district to push forward initiatives.”

The NTA’s primary objective is to affect the initiatives that the school district wants to push advance.

“I mean, certainly, we show solidarity by wearing red t-shirts every Tuesday, so certainly students notice, and sometimes they see teachers standing out with our signs in the morning to get the attention of the community,” Simpson said.

NEWTON TEACHERS ASSOCIATION

A teacher holds up a sign with her reason for supporting a new contract.

“I think students have an awareness that teachers are without a contract right now, but I would not say there has been any impact on their day-to-day lives, and certainly not on how we treat our students or how much we care for our students.”

The NTA began taking action to secure a renegotiated contract during the 2018-19 school year, mostly in the form of community outreach—they went to farmers markets and fairs to raise awareness of their cause. Before school started this year, NTA members continued their efforts to bring awareness to their contract negotiations by holding a rally at City Hall, right before their extended contract officially expired.

“The superintendent canceled the opening day ceremony and left us that time for a union meeting, so we made the decision to have that union meeting at City Hall, and we rallied about 1,000 members,” Zilles said.

“Then, members went back to their buildings to open up their buildings to get their classrooms ready and in their first full faculty meetings they were silent.”

More than 700 “Support Newton educators” lawn signs have been distributed throughout the community, according to Liz Simpson, a teacher for NPS. Support for Newton teachers may also be a form of solidarity among Newton residents.

Simpson said there are currently 13 unions in Newton that are working without a contract.

In the views of the NTA, the slow pace of the contract negotiations is owed to the lack of money allocated to the schools by Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller. Historically, the amount of money allocated to the schools increases each year, but the mayor is not following this precedent, Zilles said.

The NTA does not fault the school committee for the slow negotiations, as they don’t have enough money to work with, Zilles said.

“Let me give you the short answer: The mayor isn’t willing to spend the money on the schools to make it possible for us to get contracts,” Zilles said.

“The mayor is withholding, she’s just not putting out enough money.”

“I am dedicated to settling a fair contract with them with all deliberate speed,” Fuller said in a statement to The Heights.

“We are working hard with the Newton Teachers Association on a contract that works for our educators, for our students, and for our community.”

Simpson said the city says it values educators but won’t put its money where its mouth is. Irene Margolin-Katz, who has three children attending Newton Public Schools, described the situation as “demoralizing.”

“And you know, honestly, Newton is not exactly a poor city, we should be able to afford to pay them the market rate,” she said. “So that’s where I feel like there is an injustice, that’s happening.”

Margolin-Katz has a son with special needs who receives assistance from aides while in school.

She said she holds great respect for the teachers and aides who work with her children, and was shocked to find out how low their salaries are and that they are not compensated for critical work, such as communicating with parents via email. Margolin-Katz expressed disappointment with the fact that she feels the schools are being overlooked.

“You know, it’s not okay that their salaries dropped so much because, like I said, if I were in that position I would go to the neighboring town,” Margolin-Katz said.

“And I feel like there’s community support. But, most importantly, I mean for me, I mostly moved here for the schools. That’s the most important priority for me so I want to make sure that the schools are properly funded.”

Five negotiation sessions are scheduled to take place over the next four weeks, Zilles said.

“We believe that our message has gotten to them loud and clear and that they know, continuing on without signing a contract will be harmful to the Newton Public Schools, harmful to the morale of people that work in it, harmful to the culture in the long run, and they know that they need to bring it to an end,” Zilles said. n

Woods Acquisition Goes to City Council for Vote Webster Woods, from A1 “Seizing by eminent domain 17 acres of Boston College’s property at 300 Hammond Pond Parkway is an extreme and ill-advised measure that will burden Newton taxpayers and come at the expense of 28 community projects vying for CPC funding,” Associate Vice President for University Communications Jack Dunn said in an email to The Heights.

The suit argues that only Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and the City Council have the authority to consider the purchase, lease, or exchange of Webster Woods. The CPC, in comparison, is only being asked to approve certain funding for the proposed acquisition. Therefore, according to the complaint, it is not allowed to hold any private sessions under the openlaw meeting exemption in Section 21 a(3) and (6). The judge ruled that the CPC was entitled to it, since the CPC argued that it was considering the “collateral costs” of providing the funds and what costs might increase with litigation.

BC cited an Oct. 10 CPC meeting a s b eing in violation of the open-meeting law in the suit—it said

that the meeting was held to discuss Fuller’s request for Webster Woods over other potential projects the CPC could fund. The motion asked that the CPC be barred from meeting in an executive session to discuss funding the acquisition of BC’s property or holding any public meetings regarding it until the minutes and materials of the executive session on Oct. 10 are made public.

Barry-Smith wrote in his decision that a main point of BC’s argument was the lack of public discussion at the CPC regarding the policy decision about the funding request. Public discussion was held at the Oct. 10 and Nov. 6 meetings, Barry-Smith wrote, and reserving some topics for executive sessions does not negate the public discussion of policy issues.

Mayor Ruthanne Fuller requested the money for taking Webster Woods in September. BC bought the land at 300 Hammond Pond Parkway in 2016, drawing concern from residents who said they were worried that the land would be developed.

Robert Maloney, the only committee member who opposed the vote, said he was worried about “public access,” specifically how Newton will

make the land accessible to residents.

The City of Newton is looking for solutions to his concerns, according to chief operating officer Jonathan Yeo. Fifteen million dollars are allocated for the acquisition of the woods, $15,000 are allocated to the Planning and Development Department from the CPC’s 2020 open space preserve, and $725,000 are to be set aside for litigation bills associated with taking the woods. The $15.2 million would be issued in the form of a bond over the course of a 30-year time period, Yeo said in an interview with The Heights.

BC would receive a check, and the CPC would pay it as one would pay a mortgage, Yeo said.

Yeo said that the bond is common practice, and that the CPC would have money to fund other projects during that time period—especially since the CPC receives $4 million from the city and the state each year.

Two-thirds of the City Council is required to vote yes on the proposal in order for the project to be passed— they must approve both the funding and the acquisition of the land. If the City Council approves it, the city’s attorney will gather the funds and documents necessary to take the land

via eminent domain.

“We’re hopeful to have this done during the calendar year,” Yeo said.

If the City Council votes no, Yeo said they would consider the objections to it and potentially rework the proposal.

A public hearing was held on Nov. 6 for residents and BC representatives to voice their opinions on the acquisition. Thomas Keady Jr., vice president of the Office of Governmental & Community Affairs at BC, represented BC. He said the University has already invested money into the land and it contributes to Newton’s economy, in addition to volunteer hours put in by students.

“Mayor Fuller has announced an appraised value of the 17-acre parcel at $15.2 million, but the current value is likely far in excess of the amount budgeted by the City,” Dunn said in the email. “The difference between the appraisal and the award determined by the courts will be absorbed

by Newton taxpayers, at the expense of other priorities, including school repairs, fire station upgrades, the teachers’ contract, and unfunded pension liabilities for municipal workers.” n

On Thursday, former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick announced his late bid in the 2020 presidential campaign, coming only three months before the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. And while Patrick does have some political characteristics that could make his campaign successful, his entry to this race is too late and too disorganized.

In his announcement video, Patrick noted that his campaign would focus on delivering on his promises, rather than just defeating the incumbent, in addition to rebuilding the same “American dream” that he was able to experience throughout his life.

It makes sense that Patrick would campaign on these ideas. Growing up poor in the South Side of Chicago, he was able to defy the odds, eventually making his way to Harvard University and Harvard Law School, ultimately graduating cum laude from both. This very same inspirational story, paired with a strong campaign plan, is what helped him win the gubernatorial election in 2007.

Also, seeing as there is no Democratic candidate so far that has reached a solid majority of public interest, there is some opportunity for Patrick to make an impact, even with his short time. He even stated to the Boston Globe on Nov. 14 that, “if [he] felt like voters had made up their minds … [he] wouldn’t do it.”

So, on the one hand, it’s easy to see how Patrick would have good reason to jump into the race. After all, the 2016 election seems to have widened the realm of possibility in these presidential campaigns and modern politics as a whole. If a candidate like President Donald J. Trump can win the presidency who’s to say that Patrick can’t?

Despite being well-known in the Massachusetts area, Patrick is practically a nobody to the rest of the country. Without much familiarity it will be a challenge for him and his campaign team to make a name for himself in the three months that he left. And his campaign team is a problem in itself.

By the time Patrick announced his bid, he still had practically no campaign staff or ground operation. He’s also still so unfamiliar with his campaign manager, Abe Rakov, that in phone calls with donors he mistakenly referred to him as “Gabe,” according to The New York Times.

Patrick still seems optimistic about his developing campaign and budding support, which either suggests that he is confident in his abilities as a politician or that he has no idea how far behind he truly is. Another obstacle in Patrick’s way is his involvement in big companies like Coca-Cola and Texaco that the progressive Democratic candidates like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have been criticizing. As climate change and environmental justice have become hot political topics in the past year, his experience as an ex-oil executive will most likely hurt his chances as well.

Patrick isn’t the only late newcomer to the election, though.

This past week, former Mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg also announced that he is considering running for president in 2020, with an adviser stating that he is afraid that no Democratic nominee right now has the potential to beat Trump.

Bloomberg does have an advantage in having more name recognition across the country than Patrick and his personal wealth ensures that he can get his name out with ease. In fact, he is already planning to spend $100 million on anti-Trump ads in the key swing states.

If Bloomberg’s main goal is to guarantee that Trump doesn’t win the election for a second time, they are going about it the wrong way. Launching a campaign inspired by fear of Trump’s reelection doesn’t bode well and just works against the candidates who are attempting to gain steady public support.

Even if Patrick hasn’t said that he is running solely to beat Trump, his goals appear clouded. If Patrick really wanted to become president for the sake of bettering America, he would have ran from the start.

Lauren Burd is a metro columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at metro@bcheights.com.

The Heights

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Tuesday, November 19, 2019

The Heights Is Thankful For...

Steven Everett: "I’m thankful for the 98 editors I’ve had the privilege of working with who have put countless hours into what has become my defining experience at Boston College."

Andy Backstrom: “Above all else, I'm thankful for my family and friends, as well as all of the memories I share with them. I'm also thankful for the academic and extracurricular opportunities that I've been presented with, particularly The Heights. I'm thankful for the mentors that have given me guidance throughout my life and my college experience—they've always reminded me how important it is to appreciate the small things, like the Interstellar soundtrack, Pixar, Nintendo, Settlers of Catan, and the everlasting hope that comes with being an Arizona Cardinals fan.”

Jacob Schick: "I am thankful for the people I love, and for those who love me. I am thankful for the amazing opportunities I have been given, like going to this school, being a part of this organization, and for all of the things to come. I am thankful for these big things, and also for the little: movies, books, bagels, and the feeling of nostalgia for the present moment with the hope of more to come."

Emerson DeBasio: "I’m thankful for sunbutter because I am allergic to peanut butter (even though my mom still forgets about it, it still exists). I’m thankful for odd numbers, blue and red (but the French way) and broken checkered shoes. I’m thankful for Sundays. I’ll miss spending them with the rats and the people who inspire me most with their passion and love for the work they do and the people they care about. I’m thankful for my family and all the love they give, my friends from home who make time feel fast, my friends here who make time feel slow, and trips to Baskin Robbins with Cinnamon, Roxanne, and Macarena <3."

Jack Miller: “I’m thankful for far too many things. I’m thankful for my non-Heights friends who don’t care when I disappear for days on end to do ‘Big-J Journalism.’ I’m thankful for my Heights family for putting people in my life who are both friends and role models. I’m thankful for hearing ‘Sweet Disposition’ at 2 a.m. after every production. I’m thankful for the future Heights TV show that will bring us back together in 20 years. Roll credits.”

Bradley Smart: “I'm grateful for quite a few things, but first my family, as even through tough times we've only grown closer and the love I have for them isn't quantifiable. I'm also thankful for my friends, the last two years in this office, the Interstellar soundtrack, continental breakfasts, and all the other random things that keep me going in this weird thing called life.”

Kaylie Ramirez: “I'm thankful for the crunch of a Rosenfeld's bagel, the false sense of soundproofing in The Heights office, and the real satisfaction that came from doing this every Sunday for the past two years. For the people who have done this with me, I am most thankful of all.”

Brooke Kaiserman: “I’m thankful for my best friends and family, my roommates, Manhattan Beach, my dog Bolt, old movies, the Steelers, and milk chocolate. I’m thankful for BC and The Heights, which has been an integral part of my college experience. Specifically, I’m thankful for the members that comprise it (especially my Mag editors), who make spending 12 hours in Mac 113 every Sunday something to look forward to.”

Colleen Martin: “I’m thankful for people who always know what to say, people who pick me up at the airport, and people who get coffee for everyone. I’m thankful for campfires and early morning drives, my family, and my friends. And for the times I go to the office late at night and Abby is there, sitting at her desk. I’m thankful for the last two years and for one more.”

Maddie Haddix: "I'm thankful for CoRo being conveniently located upstairs from the Heights office. I'm thankful for loving friends, family, and a wonderful boyfriend who at least attempts to understand why I'm never around on Sundays. I'm thankful for happiness and joy and for growth. And I'm so very very thankful for Bianca, Michaela, Hannah, Daniela, and bubble tea."

Danny Flynn: “I am thankful for my friends, whether I have met them in Cushing, in class, or in this newsroom. I am thankful for New England weather and indoor intramurals with my pals, watching soccer and watching my roommates play FIFA, nights on CoRo and nights in Boston or Providence, the oxford comma, and Zachariah. I’m most thankful for my family, whom I miss dearly, and those who love me.”

Celine Lim: “I am thankful for my loving family, my stunning friends, and the passionate people who create this newspaper. Also, I am thankful for photography, country and big band jazz music, light worthy of chasing, coffee, sushi, burgers, American highways and commercials, and tequila. Finally, I do a thank for pupper doggo memes.”

Letter to the Editor

In Response to: “BC Republicans’ Choice to Invite Klavan Unproductive, Needlessly Divisive” Throughout my four years at Boston College, The Heights alternated from being vaguely, if superciliously, tolerant of those critical of its left-wing editorial stance—to being unduly belligerent of anyone anywhere to the right of Alexandria OcasioCortez—to (at least once, to me) being kindly apologetic for having droned out centrist and center-right voices during its belligerent stage. I am disappointed that the editorial board has seemingly re-embraced its anti-moderate and anti-conservative belligerency.

The BC Republicans, of which I’m a proud alum and former vice president, invited Andrew Klavan to campus. Klavan’s politics aren’t radical in the least, but he’s conservative and works for Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire, so those on the campus left feel he’s simply evil—or, to put it another

way, a “provocateur by trade” with a “history of Islamophobic, sexist, and racist comments” who seems to “actively pride himself on worsening the divide between viewpoints.”

At least, that’s what The Heights’ editorial board wrote Wednesday, in an attempt at character-assassinating (and, apparently, mind-reading?) Klavan and, by extension, the BC Republicans. The Heights’ standard is not only odd but also, I think, untenable: According to the board, groups should only invite speakers who are not provocateurs (who defines “provocateur”? The Heights’ editorial board?) and who “contribute meaningfully to academic debate on campus” (what does “meaningfully” mean? It’s a filler word).

To that, “Pfui.” By that standard, BC (and/or The Heights, acting as censorship

arm) would have to ban, say, just every comedian or musician who comes to campus.

Many of them are provocateurs, at least by some vague standard, and comedy and music probably aren’t going to “contribute meaningfully to academic debate.” How dull Stokes Lawn would be.

What all this really gets back to is that The Heights doesn’t like Klavan or the BC Republicans because The Heights has once again decided it doesn’t like conservatives in general. Maybe, if the editors were to listen to Klavan, or Shapiro, or Jordan Peterson, or (God forbid) attend a BC Republicans meeting. Maybe, then, The Heights would actually understand those whom it decides to vituperate.

Signed, Karl J. Salzmann, MCAS ’19

QUOTE OF THE week “I can’t cook a Thanksgiving dinner. All I can make is cold cereal and maybe toast.”

-A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, 1973

Letter to the Editor In Response to: “Koch Foundation Offers Funding for Political Science” When The Heights reported news of the Boston College political science department receiving funding from the Koch Foundation, the reaction was unsurprising. Yet, I question those who express concern that this proposal will compromise BC’s Jesuit mission and values, and academic freedom.

Those in the opposition have pointed to George Mason University as a bad omen for what is to come at BC. At George Mason, it was alleged that the Koch Foundation violated academic freedom by having a direct hand in faculty hires in the economics department between 2006 and 2009. Contrary to that narrative, however, Angel Cabrera, George Mason’s president at the time, wrote in a 2018 email, “The gifts were in support of faculty positions in economics and granted donors some participation in faculty selection and evaluation. … The agreements did not give donors control over academic decisions, and all but the earliest of these agreements explicitly stated that the final say in all faculty appointments lies in university procedures.”

According to a statement by the Koch Foundation, the alleged “direct hand” in faculty hires consisted of merely recommending candidates. George Mason handled the rest of the hiring process, including vetting candidates and independently making the hiring decision. A recommendation is “some participation,” but is also nonbinding, and certainly not an instance of “direct influence over faculty hiring,” as has been frequently claimed. The Koch Foundation, neither at George Mason nor at any other university, has never infringed upon the academic independence or integrity of the institutions it supports. BC’s academic independence and integrity will not be corrupted by the Koch Foundation.

Funding plays a very important role in furthering BCs academic mission. It has become more important than ever to reconsider ways in which the United States will maintain national security in today’s deeply integrated world. As The Heights editorial board rightly noted, the Koch Foundation’s support enables the University to become a leader in an increasingly important field of research.

In my work with the Office of Student Involvement, I have learned the diligence with which the University works to ensure its independence and uphold our Jesuit values. The University has sufficiently scrutinized the fine print, and upon examining the George Mason case more closely, today’s proposal and the Koch Foundation’s support pose no threat to the academic freedom and integrity of the University.

To the political science department, Office of University Advancement, and all other involved parties, I hope you continue with this grant proposal. Do not allow yourselves to be bullied by the vocal masses. To my fellow students, let us all be freedom fighters. If we want to protect the academic freedom of professors at BC and other universities and colleges in the United States so as to freely pursue the truth, then efforts such as these must stop.

Signed, Jaehun Lee, MCAS ’21

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The Heights

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Why Boston Roads (and Drivers) Are so Bad Take Classes Defining Boston would’ve made it easier to overall flow of traffic or the dynamic of the commucoordinate road construction in a way that made nity. Quite frankly, using the word “plan” to describe it easier to drive in the general Boston area. Yet, the thought process that went into manufacturing this due to the decision to not incorporate surroundmonstrosity is an insult to the haphazard disinterest ing towns into Boston, each town operated mostly most of these architects possessed. independently (which they continue to do today), Now, you may wonder why other old cities don’t and there was no cohesive effort to have the roads have similarly terrible roads. Well, during the Civil become part of a larger, Boston-area-wide pattern War, the Confederacy was never able to weasel its way to ease transportation. into Boston. Now, because of this, Boston’s roads were What it all boils down to is a lack of discussion never destroyed like the ones in older, Southern cities, surrounding what the most important means of which means there was no reason to improve them. transportation is. This poor infrastructure is more And, given that Boston is regularly ranked as a city with than enough to set the stage for some questionable some of the worst traffic in the country, there is really driving etiquette, but factor in the notably faster no good time to renovate the roads. In fact, construcpace of life of the northeast, and the product is a tion workers are probably more loathed than Yankees “let me merge into this lane or so help me God I fans here. will end us both” attitude and a general disinterest Oh, and worry not, it all gets worse: Boston wasn’t in yield signs. built to be Boston, and Boston never means Boston.

Now consider the rate at which these roads are Confusing? Let me explain. The founders of Bosused. Boston is currently experiencing substantial ton never carved out a piece of Massachusetts and population growth, and given the cost of living, designated it the City of Boston. Rather, a number of more people are moving to suburbs that are still different neighborhoods were independently created technically in the Boston area’ so they can comand then sewn together. mute into the city. This matters because if you’re Currently, 23 different neighborhoods comprise living in the city, you probably won’t need a car. If of the City of Boston. However, beyond that are you’re in Medford, however, you probably don’t Somerville, Medford, Cambridge, Milton, and many intend to trek into work on foot. Driving in Boston more towns that make up what most consider to be in incentivized by two things—A lackluster public Boston—that is, the entity of Boston, not necessarily transportation system and the low cost of driving. an urban area. As a result, towns developed their own Boston has neglected to implement congestion roads. Some opted for sensical, logical grids (shoutout pricing, which charges more money at tolls for Dorchester Heights), while most chose a more common greater traffic. architectural nihilism. So, Boston was not designed All of these contribute to the Masshole effect: to be Boston. To make Boston, these towns, all with poor driving etiquette, malignant impatience, and contrasting roads, were all sewn together. lack of regard for public safety, least of all their This could have been mended a little over a hundred own. So, while their driving may be awful, it’s not years ago. In 1912, a legislator from Brookline proposed their fault. Next time you’re nearly mowed down that every city within a 10 mile radius be incorporated in the street for daring to cross at the appropriate into Boston. Doing this would grow not only the area of time, think about the history that went into your Boston, but also the number of Irish immigrants living “near-death collision.” within it. The mostly Anglo-Saxon residents living in the suburbs turned away from the idea of being incorLouis Gleason is an op-ed columnist for The porated into Boston. At least part of this reason was Heights. He can be reached at opinions@ due to Boston’s large population of Irish immigrants. bcheights.com.

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Louis Gleason It’s a regional (and perhaps national) axiom that Boston drivers (known endearingly as “Massholes”), are among the worst types of people you will encounter. AllState even agrees. It’s quite discouraging when you find that AllState—a vehicle insurance company—ranks Boston as the thirdworst driving city in the United States, behind only Washington D.C. and Baltimore.

It’s common for those who spend time in and around Boston to lambaste drivers for their lackluster abilities. But hear me out here—it’s not our fault. Rather, it’s actually a result of a number of cultural factors combined with regional history.

Boston is old. In fact, it’s practically ancient in the American sense of the word, and so are our roads. In fact, a common myth in Boston is that the roads were produced by paving over old, meandering cow paths. Now, this isn’t true, but it highlights that our roads are heirlooms of a time before the widespread access to automobiles that have managed to find their way into the modern era (which, let me be clear, none of us really asked for).

Most other major cities orient their roads along cardinal directions. That means most other cities’ roads typically run north-south or east-west with very little deviation, giving many urban areas a grid-like pattern for their roads. Boston’s patchwork transportation system, however, was created before much attention was paid to orienting streets along such a pattern. When these roads were being constructed, nobody considered that cars would one day become popular—nevermind reach the status of ubiquity they currently possess.

The roads were designed to get you from point A to point B. If they did that, then congratulations,

Alicia Kang With the start of November comes more midterm stress, a second wave of fall, and the dreaded week of class registration. For me, this little time of year has always brought about frantic planning and research. Of course, when I first came to Boston College, I registered for classes with vigor, drawing up a long list of all the courses that appealed to me.

But even then, reconciling class times and reviews from Rate My Professors has always been a chore and a half. Though we have some leeway with the add/drop period, I’m always worried that if I don’t get things right in the allotted 15 minutes that my entire semester will be either unfulfilling or crushingly stressful. This year has brought about an added pressure in that I’m closing in on the culminating courses for my major. When I realized I only had a handful of courses to complete before I had completed my major in English, my immediate thought was, “Now what?”

After an insightful adviser meeting, a dinner full of rants to a friend, and plenty of searches on Agora, I’ve decided, for a lack of better wording, to screw the plan. I know it seems trite for me to tell students at a Jesuit university to take the classes you genuinely want to take, but folks, that’s what I’m here to do.

Initially, in my endeavors to pick classes, I had wanted to take courses that would eventually lead to another major or minor besides English. I also had the goal of law school in mind and tried to engineer my course load through the perspective of what would look good after I graduated. But no matter what course catalogs I studied or what majors I looked into, there was always some aspect that simply didn’t appeal to me the way my English major had.

Thanksgiving!

Throughout my catalog searches, though, I found quite a selection of individual classes that interested me. I wanted to learn more about Korean history under Japanese colonization. I wanted to go back to calculus and regain the math skills I had long since forgotten. And I wanted to take a course analyzing children’s literature—a course I had heard about during orientation, before I had even come to BC. I remember the class had overwhelmed me with

Turkey Wine Name a drier bird. I’ll Your great uncle has wait. Any attempts to started a sentence with make this poultry less “On Fox News.” Your terrible are laborous—let’s aunt asks where you’ll be pick a main course that working after graduation. we don’t have to dunk in The solution to both of salt water for days. these? More wine.

Pumpkin Pie Oddly brown. Weird texture, like a mixture of Jell-O and pudding. Superior pies, such as pecan and apple, should stage a coup to be the premier Thanksgiving pie.

Day-After Sandwiches Buttery biscuits smothered in gravy, cranberry sauce, turkey, and collard greens. This is the only thing you’ll be eating for at least a week post-feast.

excitement about my English major. I remembered how unconcerned I had been about courses fitting into a certain field of study, and how open I had been to any class that pricked my ears.

For this registration cycle, I think we all need to recapture some of that magic. This semester has been a rough one for a lot of us, and in the immortal words of Tom Haverford and Donna Meagle, it’s time to “treat yo’ self.” Let’s make next semester one where we’re excited for the courses we’re taking, one where at least one class is a class we’ve always wanted to take.

Be Thankful the Other 364 Days of the Year

I know there are so many students at BC who are majoring in something they’re good at but have other interests they want to pursue. Now is the time for them to go for those random subjects they’ve always wanted to learn more about. BC offers so many intriguing courses, on anything from climate

Ellie Grondin Thanksgiving is a joyous time centered around family, food, and of course, giving thanks. With life seemingly becoming faster paced by the day—whether that be due to technological advances or simply getting older—I find the celebration of Thanksgiving increasingly more essential in reminding us all to appreciate what we have.

The other 364 days of the year can seem to go by in a blur of constant forward motion— everyone always striving toward the next goal.

Instead of channeling all of our appreciation into one day, however, we could all benefit from putting a little more effort into giving thanks during the rest of the year. Being thankful doesn’t stop with Thanksgiving.

Recognizing what you’re thankful for in daily life requires a certain level of present mindfulness that takes effort to obtain. As cliché as it may sound, I really advocate for having a present-focused outlook on life. Yes, people should also be conscious of future aspirations and possibilities, but so often those thoughts lead to a devaluing of present life. In a society that is so preoccupied with end results such as buying a house or getting a certain job position, it is easy to lose sight of the process, much less enjoy it.

As college students, that future-oriented focus is even more acute. We are constantly focused on our “careers,” which for the most

part do not exist yet. Although it is undeniably important to think about careers, the extent to which this thinking detracts from our present lives can be concerning. Even more pressingly, with more access to others’ lives through social media and an increasingly material culture in general, we compare ourselves to one another more and more, to the point where we unproductively long for what we currently have.

What does it say about our society that Black Friday is the literal day after Thanksgiving? The whole country gathers for a day to appreciate what we already have in our lives, only to turn around and fight each other over cheap deals in the height of materialism. People take their lives into their hands when entering a mall on Black Friday. Maybe “the biggest shopping day of the year” could wait a least a few days? Some stores are even worse and start sales on Thanksgiving.

Before you know it, Black Friday will be a weeklong event that goes right through Thanksgiving day.

I too get excited for Christmas after Thanksgiving, which includes buying gifts, but I refuse to go Black Friday shopping. Now, gift giving is great. Thoughtful gifts are a way for people to show their appreciation for others. But it’s the mindless frenzy of Black Friday that seems so sacrilegious to me—the gluttonous attitude toward things. Having Black Friday the day after Thanksgiving dilutes the very meaning of the holiday.

I have personally worked to be more mindful of the present over the past few years or so and have felt a significant difference in my approach to daily life. Instead of constantly looking to the weekend or an idea of what the future may be like—really anything that is different from the present—I more consciously integrate remind-

ers of what I am thankful for in my everyday routine. I find that taking moments throughout the day to acknowledge blessings encourages a more positive and constructive mindset, which subsequently makes life more enjoyable in the daily “grind.”

A study at Johns Hopkins Medicine found people with more positive outlooks were onethird less likely to have cardiovascular issues.

In the study, Lisa Yankek, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins, suggests “practicing reframing” as a way to become more positive.

Measures of positivity include cheerfulness, energy, anxiety levels, and satisfaction with life overall.

Yankek offers an example of commuter anxiety and anger as a prime instance for reframing.

“Instead of stressing about a traffic jam, for instance, appreciate the fact that you can afford a car and get to spend a few extra minutes listening to music or the news, accepting that there is absolutely nothing you can do about the traffic.,” she said. While this example may seem unrealistic to some, the times when I have tried to reframe situations like this always end up improving my mood.

With Thanksgiving coming up, make sure to really think about what you are grateful for, but also try to carry those thoughts over into the everyday. Getting into a habit of giving thanks is less laborious and more rewarding than it may seem. I truly think people feel more content when they shift toward a more present outlook of gratitude.

Ellie Grondin is an op-ed columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at opinions@ bcheights.com.

The opinions and commentaries of the op-ed columnists appearing on this page represent the views of the author of that particular piece, and not necessarily the views of The Heights. Any of the columnists for the Opinions section of The Heights can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

change to sexuality. As a well-rounded, Jesuit person for others, you must have interests outside of your major—why not take classes on those interests, especially if they’re the subjects you’re actually passionate about?

BC’s far too expensive of a school to spend four years taking classes you’re only mildly interested in.

Of course, I applaud those pursuing practical majors, and I know these choices will pay off in the future—quite literally. Often, a certain major or minor is simply a good financial decision, a way to ensure return on investment. But I think there’s also something to be said for the loss of value in taking courses you dislike. It’s not a good financial decision to spend four years studying something that makes you want to tear your hair out.

I’m not going to try to convince you that you should be an English major (although you should— English majors rock). What I am going to encourage, however, is a look into department catalogs unrelated to your major. Challenge yourself to study something you love, or something you’ve always been interested in. Put yourself in a creative sphere again—maybe a field you haven’t given much thought to since you were a kid, trying out any subject or idea offered in school. And don’t just do it for your transcript. Don’t consider how a course is going to look to admissions panels or on applications. Consider yourself and what you want to study before all else.

As cliché as it may sound, you’re never going to get these four years back. In other words, you’ll never learn and take classes in this type of environment again. Even graduate schools and online classes will be different settings altogether. So, if you’re going to do something new next year (for the new you that’ll roll around by January), I would suggest having fun with your schedule come registration. At the end of the day, all majors and tracks aside, you’ll remember the classes you enjoyed most, and you’ll be glad you took the risk to sign up for them.

Alicia Kang is an op-ed columnist for The Heights.

She can be reached at opinions@bcheights.com.

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Tuesday, November 19, 2019

LaBeouf Confronts Tough Childhood in ‘Honey Boy’

By Donagh Broderick For The Heights The volatile enigma that is the actor Shia LaBeouf might become a little more sympathetic to audiences of Honey Boy, an autobiographical film directed by Alma Har’el.

The movie, written by LaBeouf during a stint in rehab, is an account of LaBeouf ’s stormy childhood while he was starring in Even Stevens, a Disney Channel TV show that aired from 2000 to 2003.

While the film is based on LaBeouf ’s own life, the narrative follows a young actor named Otis Lort (Noah Jupe as a young Otis and

Lucas Hedges as an adult) who acts as a stand-in for LaBeouf. The film cuts back and forth between the present day, when Otis is in a court mandated rehab center, and his past living with his abusive father.

The movie offers a behind-thescenes look into the broken home the actor comes from.

Honey Boy’s biggest strength is its acting. Hedges manages to capture both the mannerisms and persona of the LaBeouf that the world is familiar with, while Jupe plays a young Otis, giving a powerful performance that captures Otis’ pain and frustration.

Along w ith w r iting the f ilm, L aB eouf also stars in it , playing

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HONEY BOY ALMA HAR’EL DISTRIBUTED BY AMAZON STUDIOS RELEASE NOVEMBER 8, 2019 OUR RATING

AMAZON STUDIOS

James Lort, a character modeled after LaBeouf ’s own narcissistic and bitter father. LaBeouf spills his guts into the script, showing the audience some of the most traumatic incidences of his childhood.

His phenomenal performance is clearly part of the healing process for the actor to work through his past trauma.

The dynamic between James and Otis is a unique one—while the relationship is clearly abusive, the two still care for one another, and Otis relates to his father in more complex ways than simply fearing him.

Unlike the abuse that Hollywood typically portrays, Otis doesn’t cower at his father’s every move. This nuance makes the movie all the more engaging and heartbreaking to watch.

LaBeouf is frank in his handling of the subject matter.

He goes to great lengths to demonstrate that his father had underlying issues and a troubling childhood of his own.

This backstor y doesn’t justif y his abuse, but it helps the audience understand the dysfunctional fatherand-son relationship. After all, abusers are known to often have past histories of abuse or trauma themselves.

The score, composed by Alex

Somers, was incredibly well done and lent itself to the emotional moments of the movie.

Cinematographer Natasha Braier also helps capture the dynamics of the relationship and the themes of the movie.

Honey Boy is a short film, clocking in at only 93 minutes of runtime.

LaBeouf is entirely focused on telling the story of how his childhood abuse affected him.

But, apart from a few shots at the beginning, the film never really touches on how he behaved off-set during his adult career or the well-documented abuse he has exhibited in his own relationships.

U l t i m a t e l y, H o n e y B o y w a s LaBeouf ’s story to tell, and while the narrow focus of the film creates a cohesive narrative, he missed opportunities to address other aspects of his life.

Honey Boy is strikingly raw, but given the subject matter and the context of how and why the movie was written, the film’s strong emotional impact is a given.

The tear-inducing film is well-acted and well-written, as it provides audiences with a never-before seen glimpse into the psyche of one of Hollywood’s most controversial actors. n

Lil Peep Struggles With Fame on Posthumous Album

By Gio Lavoile Heights Staff There’s inherent nostalgia in posthumous albums. Fans often get glimpses of unfinished work from beloved artists, final studio version of songs heard on tours or social media that were never officially released, or works finished by the artist’s collaborators. But, regardless, they’re often left feeling empty, bemoaning the loss of a fallen artist. In the case of Gustav Elijah Åhr, known professionally as Lil Peep, there’s another level of melancholy stemming from the fact that he died so young.

Most would applaud what he did in his relatively short life span: Initially rapping to fend off his anxiety, he became the proud flag bearer of an emo-trap movement that’s been creeping more and more into the mainstream, with the likes of Lil Uzi Vert, XXXTentacion, and more. He released mixtape after mixtape, cultivating a genuine relationship with his fans in a way that would only be possible in the 21st century. He was beloved by those who knew him and developed a cult following, using his history with addiction and mental health to create music that resonated with his fans. And then suddenly in 2017, he was gone, the victim of an accidental overdose at the age of 21.

On Everybody’s Everything, the accompanying album to a documentary of

the same name about Lil Peep’s life and struggles with fame, the tragedy of his death pervades the record, which is a genuinely heartfelt ode to the late rapper.

While other posthumous albums tend to play out as cash grabs—efforts by the artist’s label or estate to reap the benefits of the fallen artist—Everybody’s Everything is a genuinely moving project focused on delivering fans the classic Soundcloud songs that they’ve heard time after time, as well as newer tracks that illustrate the late rapper’s evolving artistic direction before his passing.

The poignancy of Lil Peep’s music never came from lyrical dexterity or an angelic voice—it came from his ability to convey a mood in ways that other artists struggle to.

Lil Peep could deliver the exact intended emotion in perfectly apt ways, whether it be the excitement, ambition, and youthfulness that drove him, or the melancholy and debauchery of his lifestyle which haunted him. His voice, often coarse, comes off as a sort of nonchalant flow, and there’s a certain intimacy that comes with this style. He tackles issues ranging from failing relationships to addiction, and, sadly, the pitfalls of fame. One prime example of this comes from “ghost boy,” a standout from his debut mixtape, Lil Peep; Part One from 2015. Over the course of the track, he never raises his voice, barely talking over a whisper as he bemoans the struggle of his relationship.

The same melodies and tones play out on fellow album track “Text Me,” in which Lil Peep wonders why the subject of his song seems to be pushing him away.

Lil Peep raps over guitar strings and a building beat as his anxieties over the lack of communication bubble over. Lil Peep was never one to blow listeners away with wordplay or lyrical tenacity, but he delivers each line with emotion, perfectly capturing the track’s intended mood.

This album is both a study and celebration of Lil Peep’s songs, and, as such, wouldn’t be complete if it didn’t feature the friends Lil Peep made along the way. One notable example is Lil Tracy, a close friend of the late rapper, who appears on five of

the album’s tracks. The duo’s songs range from party tracks to more melancholic and contemplative tunes. Regardless of theme, though, their chemistry shines through, especially on “white tee,” a re-release from Lil Peep’s mixtape, Crybaby.

At the end of the day, Everybody’s Everything provides an insight into the life of a beloved young rapper who, like many before him, found himself stymied by the harsh realities of fame and the pressure that comes with it. The life of Lil Peep is a cautionary and truly sorrowful one, but his fans can take solace in the fact that he left a lasting impact on the world through his work. At the end of the day, that’s all an artist can really do. n

MUSIC

EVERYBODY’S EVERYTHING LIL PEEP DISTRIBUTED BY COLUMBIA RECORDS RELEASE NOVEMBER 15, 2019 OUR RATING

COLUMBIA RECORDS

Lively Improvisation Sets Jeff Garlin’s Special Apart

By Emily Kaderabek Heights Staff Jeff Garlin’s newest standup comedy special, Our Man in Chicago, is truly one of a kind—because most of it was improvised. His first-ever recorded special became available on Netflix on Nov. 12. The show, which marked the 37th anniversary of Garlin’s comedy debut, proves that not much has changed over his long career. Maintaining his usual sporadic style, he seamlessly blends improv with storytelling to construct an authentic performance that kept audience members and viewers alike on their toes for the entirety of the onehour special.

Training in his hometown of Chicago, Garlin honed his skills at the famed Second City improv troupe before graduating to prominent roles in both

television and cinema. He has been a well-respected comedian in the industry for some time, with notable characters including Jeff Greene on the heavily improvised Curb Your Enthusiasm and Murray Goldberg on The Goldbergs.

Garlin has even showcased his more family-friendly side playing characters in both Toy Story 4 and Wall-E. The special began with a cold open centering on a quick anecdote about Curb Your Enthusiasm co-star Larry David, followed by a simple blackand-white title screen introducing the special. The simple graphics made it clear that the focus was on the comedy, not the theatrics, and the show kept on moving with Garlin quickly transitioning into a dialogue about awkward encounters at the gym.

Pacing the stage, Garlin dove into his eventful past performances, marking a

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JEFF GARLIN: OUR MAN IN CHICAGO DISTRIBUTED BY NETFLIX RELEASE NOVEMBER 12, 2019 OUR RATING

NETFLIX

strong distinction between his Saturday 3 a.m. shows versus his Sunday 3 a.m. shows. With the past behind him, he turned his focus toward the present, fearlessly berating one audience member for his peculiar fashion sense—boat shoes on dry land.

Audience participation was a common theme throughout the special, as his rampant digressions would often lead to dramatic fantasies about members of the crowd. At one point he skillfully crafted an extensive narrative detailing the unrequited love and eventual affair between two unsuspecting showgoers who defined their current status as nothing more than “friends from college.”

On a somewhat more serious note, Garlin later dove into a segment discussing the differences between confidence and ego and how he came to the realization that he needed to begin taking better care of himself. He cites his children as his strongest motivation to make the change, stating that he wants to live each day for them as they are the only things he loves more than comedy.

Quickly shedding the serious attitude, he took the audience on his journey of sobriety while also discussing proper donut-eating etiquette and his love-hate relationship with Krispy Kreme.

He connected with his audience one last time, addressing his Netflix audience directly and humbly thanking them for sticking around when they “could’ve been watching Stranger

Things.”

Wrapping up the show, he advised his audience to “Take what you do seriously, but don’t take yourself seriously,” a mantra that perfectly encapsulates the theme of the night’s performance. Unafraid of making mistakes and even less worried about constantly crowd-pleasing, it was evident that Garlin’s performance was just as much for him as it was for his viewers. There was a level of honesty present that is simply missing from many of today’s modern comics, an honesty that made comedians like George Carlin so unforgettable.

Recently, Bo Burnham addressed the same issue of comedic hypocrisy in his comedy specials as well, and while his format was a stark contrast to Garlin’s, with meticulous planning and time sensitive cues, he was able to present the same pressing message of nonconformity and authenticity that Garlin embodies.

An arguably less common but by no means less entertaining format, Garlin’s special ultimately testifies to the versatility of comedy. As he so honestly noted during the opening minutes of the special, “I’ve spent the majority of my career not having an act, and tonight I have a beginning, a middle, and an end, so it’s weird to me.” While Garlin appears to be in every way a stranger to structure, his effortless transitions and playful charisma made for an overall genuine show that piqued the audience’s interest. n

SINGLE REVIEW SHANNON CARMICHAEL

‘EVERYTHING I WANTED’ BILLIE EILISH

Billie Eilish reentered the charts on Wednesday with her new single, “Everything I Wanted.” Following the release of her debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? in March, her new song tackles the question of what the world would be like if she were gone. The track is classic Eilish, with the main focus on her small, soft voice that builds with the chorus.

Her lyrics are soaked in meaning, and it’s clear that the song is a reflection of her deepest thoughts. The song is genuine and has the ability to connect deeply with listeners, both through its message and infectious melody. Eilish’s layered vocals have an echoing effect, creating a transcendent sound that almost feels like she’s in the listener’s head. The song’s multidimensionality has proven successful—”Everything I Wanted” rose to No. 1 on Spotify’s U.S. Top Charts Playlist hours after its release. n

MUSIC VIDEO NATHAN RHIND

‘LIVE BEFORE I DIE’ MIKE POSNER

The start of Mike Posner’s music video for his new single “Live Before I Die” doesn’t feature flashy sports cars, wild parties, or bottles of expensive champagne. The video begins with a simple message from the artist.

White typeface illuminates the black screen, interspersed with short cuts of Posner and his enormous beard, smiling playfully at the camera. The text reads, “My name is Mike Posner. In 2019, I set out to walk across America. I started in the Atlantic Ocean. Why? I walked to become someone I’m actually proud of. LIFE IS NOW.” Singer, songwriter, and poet Mike Posner chronicles his journey of self-discovery in his video, beginning in Asbury Park, N.J., and ending six months and over two thousand miles later in Venice Beach, Calif. Early in Posner’s career, following the success of his single “Cooler Than Me,” he struggled to find his identity amid his newfound fame. His battles with drug abuse and living the high life are detailed in his acoustic, confessional ballad “I Took a Pill in Ibiza” made an international hit by a remix by production duo Seeb. Fortunately, with his newest video, Posner seems to have gotten a renewed lease on life and a true purpose for living it.

The video itself features footage of Posner walking alone through the many landscapes of America, from farmland to desert, the changes illustrating his personal growth. But, halfway through the video, Posner is shown being hospitalized for a rattlesnake bite, unsure if he’ll be able to finish the journey. Nevertheless, he perseveres and overcomes the challenge. He keeps going.

The song itself complements the wholesome tone of the video, with an uplifting, melodic house beat supplied by English producer Naughty Boy. Posner spills confessional lyrics over the beat, singing, “I stopped smoking weed a year ago / Maybe I’m less cool now I don’t know / But I talk to pretty girls now instead of sitting there all stoned / I stopped smoking weed a year ago.” While some may feel Posner’s lyrics are cliché and lack depth, the earnestness behind them is tangible, and the simplicity works to strengthen the fundamental messages of perseverance and self-discovery found in the video. Fittingly, Posner ends the video with two powerful words: KEEP GOING.” n

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

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The Heights

Hozier Brings Bluesy Brand of Activism to Boston The Proof Is

By Jillian Ran

Asst. Arts Editor

Like devout worshippers, fans of Hozier who hadn’t had their fill of him the night before dutifully filed into the ornate Wang Theatre for a second time Wednesday evening. The Irish singer-songwriter stopped in Boston for two nights as part of his Wasteland! Baby tour to promote his 2019 album of the same name.

Australian singer-songwriter Angie McMahon opened the show. McMahon

took a moment to acknowledge the indigenous land on which she and the rest of the audience was on as a respectful hush spread through the theater. She had a mellow stage presence, shooting off deadpan quips about the frigid weather.

Yet, despite her self-deprecating attitude, when she opened her mouth for her first song, “If You Call,” a self-assured, raspy voice echoed through the room. With only her voice and an electric guitar, McMahon kept the audience remarkably rapt.

IKRAM ALI / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Hozier, backed by an enthusiastic band, performed his hit song "Nina Cried Power."

Smoke filled the stage as anticipation for Hozier grew. Suddenly, the stage was bathed in red light. A familiar long-haired silhouette casually strolled on and a ripple of excitement rushed through the crowd.

Even though there were plushy seats in the theatre, most opted to stand for the entirety of Hozier’s set.

Hozier launched directly into “As It Was.” Heavy bass rumbled through the theater’s massive speakers, adding depth compared to the spare acoustic production of the original recording.

The enigmatic singer, perhaps hoping to preserve his sense of mystery, hardly uttered more than a few phrases between songs. When he did, though, he was almost drowned by the rapturous cheers of the crowd.

Halfway through his set, Hozier debuted a song that he plans to release in the coming months entitled “Jack Boot Jump.” He described the work as a protest song and explained that the inspiration behind the track came from the pro-democracy protests in Moscow and Hong Kong. “The hell with subtlety!” he declared before jumping into a bluesy riff. The twangy feel was emphasized by a brash, stomping drum beat.

The singer was backed by an enthusiastic seven-piece band that included a diverse menagerie of instruments, including violin and synths. The accompanying musicians added a new dimension to the songs and livened up the crowd with passionate solos.

The high point of the show came at its finale, during a performance of Hozier’s viral hit that initially launched him into stardom, “Take Me to Church.” An audience member threw a bisexual pride flag onto the stage. Hozier picked up the flag and gently draped it over his shoulder as he continued to sing. During heartfelt lyrics, he beat his chest with his hand, the flag fluttering behind him like a cape.

Suddenly, another flag appeared, this time a lesbian pride flag. Hozier picked it up too and hung both flags carefully over his microphone stand to wild cheers from the audience.

It was an apt encapsulation of Hozier’s new ethos: fiery activism tempered by a calm, almost monk-like stage presence.

Despite the gloom of the freezing November night, fans were bolstered by the singer’s quiet spirit of resistance and no doubt left the theater inspired to speak truth to power in their own way. n

Campus Dance Groups Unite at AXIS Showcase

By Grace Mayer Heights Staff

The AXIS Dance Showcase delivered high-energy performances from the Boston College dance community Friday evening, featuring hip-hop influenced routines and modern renditions of traditional dances.

The showcase included performances from eight dance groups, including Fuego Del Corazón, Boston College Irish Step Dance (BCID), Boston College Dance Ensemble (BCDE), Full Swing, Phaymus, AEROdynamiK (AeroK), Masti, On Tap, Vida de Intensa Pasión (VIP), and Sexual Chocolate (Sexual Chocolate).

Fuego, the 2019 Showdown Competition Category winner, started the night hot with a sensual salsa routine. The dancers were dressed in their standard sparkling red dresses, which were accentuated against the backdrop of their partners’ black button downs and matching pants. The Latin dance team shimmied and performed stunts, blending elements of hip-hop into their choreography, a juxtaposition which complemented their mashup of Spanish and electronic music.

BCID followed Fuego, performing a clean routine to “Fool’s Gold” by Dagny featuring BØRNS. Dressed in simple navy blue dresses, all the attention was on their precise footwork as they stepped in and out of formations. They finished their routine joining hands in a circle, their feet never missing a beat, before filing off the stage.

The seven dancers in BCDE excelled at executing graceful, fluid movements, performing a contemporary dance with an uplifting message of girls supporting girls.

Full Swing picked up the pace with a rock ‘n’ roll themed performance, lending a tougher edge to swing. The male members swung and flipped their partners to King of Leon’s “Sex on Fire" before transitioning into Fallout Boy’s “My Song Knows What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up),” during which dancers mounted their partners onto their shoulders.

Phaymus started off their routine with a back-track of “Are you ready to rumble!” shaking up the stage. The all-female dance team exuded confidence during their hiphop performance, dancing to a mashup of Beyonce’s “APESHIT” and Cardi B’s “Bodak Yellow.”

The dancing didn’t stop at intermission, though. Three volunteers from the audience were asked to join the stage for a dance battle to Jason Derulo’s “Swalla.” Afterward, three more members, this time members from VIP, AeroK, and BCDE, were called to compete.

Once intermission came to a close, AeroK took to the stage with the largest group performance of the night. The group danced to “Be Like Me” by Lil Pump before switching to seductive partner dancing to Rihanna’s “Skin.”

Masti was up next, with a traditional Indian dance performance that incorporated wooden instruments that the group played in time with the music. Pulling from hiphop, they also danced to a snippet of Kanye West’s “Famous.”

Following this fun performance, On Tap’s six-member routine tapped to the beat of Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk.” The song’s infectious beat paired perfectly with their steps.

VIP brought stamina to their steamy Latin routine. Halfway through their routine, they switched to traditional partner dances, demonstrating skill and speed in their performance.

Sexual Chocolate wrapped up the show, stomping, jumping, and clapping as they used their bodies to create sounds. They danced to “Fine China” by Chris Brown before the music faded out, ending their performance on a powerful note.

The Southeast Asian Student Association hosted the event in collaboration with AeroK. With the audience packed into chairs and lined up along the walls, the sold-out show raised enough money to sponsor 10 elephants for the Save Elephant Foundation. n

KAIT DEVIR / HEIGHTS STAFF

BC’ s ‘Pippin’ Emphasizes Audience Engagement

By Kaylie Ramirez Arts Editor

Music, magic, and amusement filled the Bonn Studio in Robsham Theater this weekend when the student-directed and produced musical Pippin took the stage.

The Dramatics Society and Contemporary Theatre’s production was colorful, humorous, and heartwarming.

Directed by Meg Ellis, MCAS ’20, Pippin officially premiered on Thursday, but tickets sold so quickly that many students were permitted to watch the final dress rehearsal on Wednesday.

Pippin tells the story of a young boy named Pippin (Tiffany Brooks, MCAS ’21) and his journey to find meaning in his life.

Pippin, the son of Charlemange (Garrett Gagnon, MCAS ’20), tries war, art, religion, and even treason, but none seem to satisfy him. All of this action occurs while a mysterious figure, the Leading Player (Caitlin Mahon, MCAS ’21), seems to orchestrate Pippin’s fate while addressing the audience directly.

It is not until Pippin’s despair brings him to the estate of a young widow named Catherine (Katie Hughes, MCAS ’23) that his purpose begins to take shape. At first, Pippin is apathetic toward Catherine, but time and effort bring them together. It is through this relationship that Pippin begins to feel fulfilled.

The set of the show was minimalistic, with only a few props and color-changing lights for the actors to rely on.

The vocals throughout the musical were truly impressive. In particular, the voice of Mahon was breathtaking. The vocal talent of the cast combined with the lively score aided in creating the mystical atmosphere of Pippin.

The play was able to balance a discussion of the heavy topics of fate and fulfillment with not-so-child-friendly humor. The script is filled with playful innuendos and hilarious outbursts of emotion, to which the audience responded enthusiastically with laughter and cheers.

The true magic of Pippin lay in its ability to engage the audience members from the moment they entered the theater to the moment they left. Before the show, each audience member was handed a flyer that contained the lyrics to one of the songs from the musical. The cast was friendly and assured the audience that it was in for a treat. When the time came for the audience to sing, many of the cast members entered the audience to lead a cheerful sing-along.

The cast and crew of Pippin did a wonderful job of creating a unique experience for the audience. Although there were a few minor technical difficulties, the cast maintained its poise and spread the jubilant mood of the musical to the audience with joyful humor and music for all. n

iEdit The Heights

The Playlist “Intro” alt-J

Steven Everett, Editor-in-Chief

“Oxford Comma” Vampire Weekend

By Kaylie Ramirez

“New Slang” The Shins

Arts Editor

“I Will Follow You Into The Dark” Death Cab for Cutie “Do It Again” Steely Dan “Time Of The Season” The Zombies “Rockaria!”

Electric Light Orchestra “Cute Without The 'E' (Cut From The Team)” Taking Back Sunday “Inside Your Mind” The 1975 “Sweet Disposition”

The Temper Trap

ALLYSON MOZELIAK, IKRAM ALI / HEIGHTS EDITORS

“Please, no Steely Dan,” I said to Steven Everett, president and editor-in-chief of The Heights and MCAS ’20, in line at the Newton Centre Starbucks on the morning of our unofficial last production on The Heights board. So naturally, Steely Dan’s “Do It Again” is the fifth song on Steven’s playlist. Thus is the relationship between me and Steven—I tell him not to do something, he does it, and I put up with it because he’s the only person who doesn’t complain when I blast Taking Back Sunday (see song eight, “Cute Without the ‘E’”) in the office.

Bespectacled and fervently devoted to his massive Bose headphones, Steven is exactly the type of person you would expect to listen to any alt-J

song other than “Breezeblocks” and “Left Hand Free” in 2019. Steven has had his Spotify account since 2011 (“I had to get on a list for that,” he yells from his office.), and it shows. Eight of the 10 songs he selected for this playlist were released before 2010, and much of it is your standard middle school iPod fare. What’s up, “New Slang” and “I Will Follow You Into the Dark?” The playlist is uniquely Steven—few people would choose to follow an Electric Light Orchestra deep cut with an emo anthem while dead sober. But then there’s “Inside Your Mind” and “Sweet Disposition” scrawling nostalgia across the final lines of the playlist, both songs relics of our time in Mac 113. Steven may not readily admit it, but this playlist is just as much about The Heights as it is about him.

in the Print

Kaylie Ramirez Hunched over my laptop and a pile of cherry cough drop wrappers, I was somewhere between 1976 and 2005. You look in her eyes; the music begins to play, Glenn Frey crooned about the girl who was swept up by “Johnny Come Lately.”

But I was looking into my sister’s eyes and the music that was playing was “New Kid In Town,” an Eagles song she and I used to call “Johnny Come Lately” because it was the only lyric we knew for certain.

I wrote my Boston College personal statement about that Eagles song and the gap-toothed little girl who grew up to be a gigantic pain in the ass—my “Aly Come Lately.” That night, I thought the story was of primordial importance—if I retold our sibling rivalry just right, the acceptance letter would be signed, sealed, delivered; mine. And eventually, it was, making “New Kid In Town” the first song in the Spotify scrapbook of my four years at BC. That night, I followed up Hotel California with The 1975, Disc 1, Side B, Track 1: “Sex.” And this is how it starts—my first attempt at storying my life by co-opting the lyrics and instrumentals of others. The essay was a fraught attempt. I stumbled over clunky metaphors about “taking the midnight train going anywhere with Steve Perry." I’ve since replaced Journey’s unrelenting reassurance with the jaded optimism of “Float On,” a song I’ve hummed on the walk to every single midterm and final in the past three-and-a-half years.

Cleopatra’s monologue over Antony’s lifeless, loveless body? Too heavy, we’ll all float on—alright. Although I passed Shakespeare’s Politics, I failed the poet’s eloquent musings endlessly.

At BC, I spent more time with other poets. Jacob’s sprawling 675-song “Hi High Heights” playlist became the soundtrack to my sophomore year by force, “Time in a Bottle” spilling out of Mac 113 every Sunday. During junior year, Morrissey indulged my aching heart in seven-minute 36-second increments—“I Know It’s Over - Live in Boston." Learning all of the words of the select 14 songs on “getting shitty in New York City!” made a summer home out of the concrete island of Manhattan, where St. Vincent’s ethereal piano ballad was the only motherf—ker in the city who could forgive me for pausing on Madison Avenue to check Google Maps.

Playlists eventually became the currency of friendship. Steven and I became best friends when we sat at the arts desk and slogged over the 73-track “make the heights DEPRESSED again,” fearing the “kids” weren’t experiencing enough existential dread to become good writers.

Or at least that’s the excuse we used to exchange the makings of our iPod Nanos.

And then there were the party playlists. The taste of lemonade and raspberry Rubi lingers when I shuffle “the last mod pregame,” a relic of Connor’s 28B residency. “Christmas in July” decked the halls of a Greycliff basement, where “God’s Plan” for the night didn’t include gold-plated BC Admissions name tags.

Tonight, I sit hunched over my laptop as a small puddle of tears accumulates between my dogeared copy of Rob Sheffield’s Love Is a Mix Tape and my off-brand AirPods case. “Hannah Hunt” plays, her ambling melancholy acting as exposition to her unconventional wisdom: Though we live on the U.S. dollar, you and me, we got our own sense of time. For two years, I’ve defied the indifferent gestures of clock hands by writing the soundtrack to my life between the Oxford lines of The Heights.

Words on paper became tangible in a way the memories couldn’t.

Part of me wishes love still was a mixtape. That, like Sheffield, after the music stopped I would be able to hold up the cassette tape and say, “This is The Killers song that made my college roommate and I dance—and cry—when we posed as journalists at Boston Calling. Here are the mangled Snail Mail guitar chords that I confided in when words sent me to voicemail.” For two years, the proof was in the print. To steal a line from Sheffield, “It was a smashing time, and then it ended, because that’s what times do.” Tonight, I write. Once I leave The Heights, I press shuffle and hope to God I figure out how to defy time again.

Kaylie Ramirez is the arts editor for The Heights. She can be reached at arts@ bcheights.com.

The Heights

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Tuesday, November 19, 2019

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Belmont Reaches Century Mark in Gotham Classic Matchup MBB vs. Belmont, from A12 finished with 15 points and a teamhigh seven assists—forced a turnover and fed Popovic for an easy two points down low to put the Eagles up, 22-17.

In a sequence that was the story of the first half though, Belmont’s Adam Kunkel, who entered the game averaging a team-high 20.5 points per game, answered the very next possession with a 3-pointer, Grayson Murphy hit a layup and a free throw, and the Bruins reclaimed the lead. The teams would trade runs from there, before another 3-pointer from Hopkins— who ended 4-of-5 from deep—and a layup at the buzzer from Kunkel put the Bruins up four at the break.

To start the second half, however, Belmont made the run that defined

the game. On the first possession of the period, the Bruins switched to a 2-3 zone and Jay Heath knocked down a jumper from the elbow. It appeared that BC was going to be able to continue to score at ease.

Yet, over the course of the next four minutes, the Eagles mustered just four points—an and-one layup from Steffon Mitchell and a free throw from Thornton—while Belmont continued its scorching pace from the first half.

Nick Muszynski—the reigning Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year—hit a hook shot from the left side, Murphy and Kunkel scored six consecutive free throws, and Michael Benkert sunk a pull-up 3-pointer above the break in transition to give the Bruins a 62-51 cushion.

Belmont didn’t stop there. Instead, it kept lighting it up from deep. Kunkel hit

a shot from behind the arc, before Ben Sheppard and Hopkins added triples of their own. To cap the onslaught, Kunkel added a 3-pointer, before Hopkins tacked on one last exclamation point, sinking the Bruins’ 14th trey of the contest and putting Belmont up, 79-54 with just eight minutes gone by in the second half.

That deficit was simply too much for the Eagles to overcome. Mitchell banked home a layup to cap a 7-0 run that narrowed the Bruins’ advantage to just 18 points, and Thornton went coast-to-coast for an acrobatic and-one that brought BC a little closer. Nevertheless, the Eagles—who were perhaps shaken by the offensive clinic that the Bruins were putting on—couldn’t piece together any form of coherent comeback.

Just after Thornton’s old-fashioned

3-point play, the graduate transfer lost his cool and picked up a technical foul after slapping the ball out of Kunkel’s hands near half court. Kunkel—who finished with a game-high 35 points and was a perfect 10-of-10 at the line—knocked down all four shots from the charity stripe that followed, ending any hope BC had of a late rally.

“I don’t think we stayed composed at all,” Christian said. “I think that starts with our older guys, that’s their job. I thought they were the ones that were not composed.”

Fittingly, Belmont hit the century mark in the waning moments of the contest, an emphatic ending to a brilliant Bruins display.

The way Belmont carved up the Eagles’ defense, which came into the game ranked 56th-best in the country per KenPom, raises questions about

how good BC’s defense really is despite a solid start. All game long, the Bruins had the Eagles chasing shadows on the defensive end, getting into the paint at will and often swinging the ball around the perimeter for easy looks from behind the arc. The reality is that BC’s offense—which shot 55.9 percent—played well enough to win the game. The Eagles just couldn’t get a stop to save their lives. “[Today was a] learning lesson for a lot of guys,” Christian said. “I’m disappointed in myself, and I’m disappointed in the way we played today.

We’re a better basketball team than that, but we’ve got to get better.”

“Nobody on our team, nobody, played well,” he added. “Nobody.

There was not one person on our team that did what we needed to do on defense to win this game.” n

CELINE LIM / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Jared Hamilton (left) and Derryck Thornton (right) helped BC manage 1.15 points per posession on offense, but the Eagles were overwhelmed by a trigger-happy Belmont side on Saturday afternoon.

Eagles’ Defense Nonexistent in Blowout Home Loss to Bruins

By Andy Backstrom Managing Editor With about six and a half minutes remaining in Boston College men’s basketball’s Saturday afternoon game against Belmont, Derryck Thornton was called for a reach-in foul near halfcourt. Out of frustration, the graduate transfer guard slapped the ball out of Adam Kunkel’s hands, drawing a technical in the process.

After polishing an old-fashioned 3point play moments earlier—one that capped a 12-3 Eagles run—Thornton gifted Kunkel, Belmont’s leading scorer, with what turned out to be four free throws. The sophomore, who finished with a careerhigh 35 points, sunk each one of them, and the Bruins reclaimed their 20-point lead.

Three days removed from holding High Point to just 33 points, the fewest any BC opponent has scored during head coach Jim Christian’s six-year tenure, the Eagles found themselves down, 88-68, to a Belmont team that couldn’t seem to miss from downtown. The Bruins finished 15-of-26 from 3-point land and cruised to a 100-85 victory, marking the first time since 2011 that BC (3-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) has conceded 100 or more points in regulation.

Here are a few observations from the Eagles’ first loss of the 2019-20 campaign: BC couldn’t string together stops or defend the perimeter

Coming into the weekend, BC ranked 56th nationally in defensive efficiency, according to KenPom, and its opponents were shooting a measly 35.1 percent from the floor, all while the Eagles forced an average of 22 turnovers per game. On Saturday, though, BC looked lost on the defensive end of the court.

“Nobody on our team, nobody played well,” Christian said after the game.

“Nobody. Because not one person on our team did what we needed to do on defense to win this game. Not one person on our team did what we needed to do to rebound the ball. … If anybody thinks they played well on our roster, then we’ve got a bigger problem than that.”

The Eagles entered tied for 36th in the country in 3-point field goal defense, having limited their first three opponents to 25 percent from long range. But against Belmont (2-1), they were slow on their rotations and, because the Bruins also had their share of success in the paint, BC often sagged inside in anticipation of penetration. As a result, Belmont had space and time to launch an air raid in Conte Forum, one that consisted of 26 attempts from beyond the arc.

Six different Bruins made a 3-pointer in the first half alone, and Belmont started the second period 6-of-7 from deep.

The game got away from BC in the latter portion of play, when the Bruins drilled six 3-pointers amid a 22-3 run. Quite simply, the Eagles couldn’t keep pace or

disrupt Belmont’s offensive rhythm.

At first, it was an all-out track meet No team led by more than five points in the first half. Both traded blows over the course of the opening 20 minutes, perhaps no better exemplified than by the big men on the court. Midway through the first half, Julian Rishwain dialed up a beautiful pass to Nik Popovic off the pick-and-roll. Popovic, who racked up a season-high 23 points in the loss, went up for a two-handed flush, and emphatically swung around the rim after the jam. Seconds later, however, Belmont pushed the ball in transition to create a highlight-reel opportunity for its own center. And just like that, all 6-foot-11 of Nick Muszynski was throwing down a dunk.

Swapping punch after punch, the teams continued to counter each other’s scoring plays. Belmont ended the half on a 10-4 run, but the Eagles were only down four at the break and were going toe-to-toe with their opponent on the stat sheet—they were even ahead of the Bruins in the shooting department.

BC converted on 61 percent of its firsthalf shots, compared to Belmont’s 55 percent clip.

When Belmont caught fire from deep, the Eagles got desperate During the Bruins’ game-defining 22-3 run, BC shot 1-of-5 from behind the 3-point line. As Belmont rained treys, the Eagles tried to match pace

but fell flat on their face. Rather than chipping away at the deficit one possession at a time, BC started jacking up 3-pointers, a handful of which were ill-advised.

“I don’t think we stayed composed at all, and I think that starts with our older guys—that’s their job,” Christian said. “And I thought they were the ones that were not composed.”

With a starting rotation as experienced as the Eagles’, such a response is all the more disappointing for Christian and Co. By the time BC reestablished its shot, the game was out of reach, and there was no stopping the Bruins.

Thornton had an up-and-down game, between scoring, injury, and a tech After shooting just 2-of-9 from the floor against High Point, Thornton looked to redeem himself against much stiffer competition. Initially, it appeared as if the Los Angeles native might be primed for his third 20-point game of the season. Thornton logged 11 points and five assists on 5-of-9 shooting in the first half, in large part because of a six-point surge in the early going.

The graduate transfer ignited a 122 Eagles run with a trio of layups, two of which came on the break following Bruin turnovers. Yet, with around nine minutes to go in the period, Thornton went down with what appeared to be an ankle injury of sorts. It was a scary moment for BC fans, but the guard

skipped off the court, went to the locker room, and returned to the hardwood in a matter of minutes.

Right before intermission, though, Kunkel picked Thornton’s pocket, setting the stage for the final Belmont possession and scoring play of the half, perhaps foreshadowing what was to come. Thornton had a slow start to the second period, and hit just one of his five shots in the frame. Meanwhile, Kunkel, Belmont’s point guard, was stealing the spotlight. Thornton grew disgruntled, as evidenced by his technical.

BC looked inferior on the glass, especially in the second half The Eagles lost the rebound battle, 36-22, on Saturday. A third of Belmont’s boards came on the offensive end of the court. The Bruins didn’t miss many shots, but when they did, they were looking to get the ball back then and there. Belmont’s guards accounted for a good bit of the team’s work on the offensive glass, which Christian said was in part because the Eagles lacked effort in the rebounding department.

When all was said and done, sophomore Grayson Murphy—who’s listed at just 6-foot-2—pulled in three offensive boards, just as many as the entire BC team. Although the Bruins only scored seven second-chance points, their 12 offensive rebounds led to more shot attempts and, in turn, wore down BC’s defense. n

MEN’S HOCKEY

Spencer Knight Posts 34-Save Shutout, Eagles Down Catamounts

By Marc Occhipinti Heights Senior Staff

Boston College men’s hockey is hitting its stride. Following a fourgame losing streak, the Eagles have rebounded with Boston College 3 f i v e s t r a i g ht Vermont 0 wins in which they’ve outscored their opponents, 22-4. The latest decisive victory took place on Saturday night, with No. 16 BC taking on Vermont in the back half of a weekend series in Burlington.

The Eagles had thoroughly dispatched the Catamounts the night prior, 5-1. Saturday night was a more even contest, but BC was still able to pull away late in a 3-0 decision. Spencer Knight recorded his third shutout of the season, notching 34 saves—his second highest output of the season.

On Saturday night, BC (7-4, 5-2 Hockey East) was outshot by UVM (1-7, 0-5), but head coach Jerry York’s team

was the one that was able to convert on its chances. BC won the special teams battle in convincing fashion on Saturday night, going 1-of-3 on the power play, while the penalty kill unit not only thwarted all three man-up opportunities for the Catamounts, but created a short-handed goal of its own.

Despite the crooked scoreline at the end, UVM came out shooting in the first period. The Catamounts outshot the Eagles, 17-7, in the first frame—Alex Esposito alone recorded four shots.

Knight was up to the task, though, stopping everything that came his way. The freshman netminder has now allowed one goal or fewer in each of his past four starts.

BC had its first power-play opportunity just 14 seconds into the game when Christian Evers was whistled for elbowing. But the Eagles couldn’t convert and got just one shot off on the man advantage. UVM had one power play in the period as well, but the BC penalty

kill held the Catamounts shotless.

The script began to flip in the second period. BC was peppering shots at UVM goaltender Stefanos Lekkas, getting off 13 shots in the frame. The game was still scoreless until there was less than five minutes left in the period.

Then, on BC’s third power play of the game, the puck finally found the back of the net. Controlling possession in UVM’s zone, Julius Mattila laid off the puck for Ben Finklestein. The senior defenseman fired off a one-timer from the point, and Lekkas made the save, but allowed the rebound to fall right onto the waiting sticks of David Cotton and Aapeli Räsänen. Cotton got the first piece of it before Räsänen tapped it home to earn a share of the team scoring lead with five goals, and more importantly, stake the Eagles to a lead.

Less than two minutes later, on UVM’s power play, Patrick Giles was able to squeeze past the last Catamount defenseman on the blue line, and he had

Marc McLaughlin running by his side with just Lekkas to beat. Giles dumped the puck off to his fellow sophomore, who immediately sent it back over to the streaking forward down the right side.

Giles finished on a one-time wrister, extending BC’s lead to two. Giles was skating in just his second contest of the season on Saturday, and he was able to convert for his first tally of the year.

After the second intermission, the Eagles came out in the third period with the same intensity with which they finished the second. In the fourth minute of play, Cotton delivered a pass to Logan Hutsko, who was cutting down the middle of the lane. The junior forward finished by beating Lekkas under his left pad, joining Räsänen in the five-goal club, after scoring against the Catamounts on Friday night as well.

BC’s defense stepped up in the third period as well. After allowing double digit shots and relying upon the stellar play of Knight in the first two periods,

the Catamounts were only able to muster five shots in the final 20 minutes. Mixed into that defensive run was an impressive five-minute penalty kill after Jack McBain was sent to the penalty box for 15 minutes for contact-to-the-head roughing and a game misconduct. BC, however, held UVM to just one shot over the course of the five-minute major, cruising to the 3-0 victory.

While many Eagles fans began to worry after the four-game losing streak, three of those setbacks came to top-10 opponents. BC has seamlessly turned it around after that, and appears to be playing its best hockey right now.

The road ahead for the Eagles entails a four-game hiatus from Hockey East play, with matchups against Yale, No. 13 Harvard, and a home-and-home against No. 4 Notre Dame. It will be a tough test for York’s crew, but a string of wins against these quality opponents would certainly boost BC in the NCAA rankings. n

The Heights

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

A11 FIELD HOCKEY

BC Advances to First-Ever Final Four FH vs. Louisville, from A12 early penalty corners. The Eagles’ defense held strong in the early going, though, and Dwyer made an important save on a shot from Bethany Russ.

It was Russ that came up with Louisville’s only score of the game. With five minutes played in the third quarter, the senior—who led the Cardinals with 10 goals in the regular season—cut to her left just inside the circle and unleashed a laser of a backhand shot that snuck by Dwyer at the near post to tie the game at 1-1.

That score offset BC’s only goal of the game, which came with just six seconds left in the first half. The Eagles won a penalty corner, and the insertion was played to Sky Caron. The sophomore defender hit a low shot that was blocked initially, but the rebound trickled to Elizabeth Warner, who was in perfect position at the right post. With Louisville goaltender Hollyn Barr taken out of position by the deflection, Warner—who also scored BC’s game-winner against Northwestern in the first round of the tournament Friday—was left with the simplest of tap-ins and converted to put the Eagles up, 1-0, at the break.

The rest of the way, though, it was Dwyer practically carrying BC on her back.

For much of the second half, the Cardinals’ energy and aggression left them camped in

Eagles territory. In fact, BC didn’t register a single shot in the third or fourth quarters.

But Dwyer stuffed an attempt off a penalty corner from Carter Ayars at pointblank range and used her left leg pad to block a shot from Mercedes Pastor with just four minutes to play in the fourth quarter. Somehow, despite being outshot, 7-0, in the second half and conceding four penalty corners, the Eagles had survived to force overtime.

The extra periods, which reduced the numbers to 7-on-7, didn’t give BC a moment of respite. Just 87 seconds into the first overtime, Russ nearly scored the game-winner but found herself stonewalled

by Dwyer, who incredibly stretched out her left foot to kick a low attempt just wide.

Pastor—who frustrated Eagles defenders with her quick stick skills all afternoon long—and Emilia Kaczmarczyk also couldn’t find the back of the cage. BC actually had a chance to win the game with just 10 seconds remaining in the final overtime period after good stick work from Margo Carlin, but Jaime Natale’s shot agonizingly bounced off the left post, sending the match to a dramatic penalty shootout.

In shootouts, teams each take five shots. Attackers start from the 23-meter line and have eight seconds to get a shot off, while goaltenders are allowed to move off their line whenever they wish. Louisville

kicked things off and scored on its first two shots, while Barr saved an effort from Natale before Carlin got the Eagles on the board. Dwyer stopped Russ not once, but twice after the first try was whistled for a re-do, and Caron slotted home to knot the shootout at two.

After Dwyer stuffed Pastor in the fifth round to move the shootout into sudden death, the teams traded a make each, before Carlin once again converted in round seven. Needing a save to advance to the Final Four, Dwyer came through one last time, deflecting a backhand effort over the bar before being swarmed by a crowd of BC players in celebration.

The dramatic game, one in which the Eagles were arguably outplayed, resulted in the biggest win in program history. For the first time, BC is headed to the Final Four, and that’s even more impressive considering the Eagles were just 4-5 just six weeks ago.

Since then, BC has improved dramatically on both ends, and has only lost twice.

Fittingly, the Eagles will get a crack at the team that handed them those two losses in the Final Four: undefeated and top-ranked UNC. BC will once again be the underdog, but the Eagles keep finding ways to win, and will undoubtedly relish the opportunity to exact revenge on the Tar Heels on the sport’s biggest stage. n

Eagles Slip Past No. 11 Wildcats FH vs. Northwestern, from A12 applying constant offensive pressure. In total, the Eagles had a 7-2 advantage in shots at the end of one period.

Nevertheless, at the end of the first quarter BC didn’t have the lead on the scoreboard to show for it. Nell Webber nearly deflected the ball into the net with her stick above her head on a centering pass but couldn’t quite direct her effort on target, while a pair of attempts from Fusine Govaert off penalty corners were deflected away by a determined Wildcats defense.

It took until the end of the second quarter for the Eagles to get their noses in front. Webber received a beautiful centering pass just across midfield before playing a pass upfield to a streaking Carlin. The freshman got the ball on the right side of the circle before turning and firing a bouncing shot toward the far post. The drive snuck

by Northwestern goaltender Florien

Marcussen and in off the left post, giving BC a 1-0 advantage with just 31 seconds remaining in the half.

The intermission seemed to reenergize the Wildcats , and the y nearly equalized on a break, but Saar De Breij dragged a shot wide of the right post after getting a 1-on-1 opportunity against Eagles goalie Sarah Dwyer. Northwestern survived BC’s third penalty corner of the night, with Carlin’s effort glancing off the post before being scrambled off the line. The Wildcats were ultimately rewarded for their defensive determination with a golden chance to equalize in the fourth quarter.

After dribbling into the box, Bente Baekers—who entered the NCAA Tournament with 27 goals on the year—was denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity and was gifted a penalty stroke for her efforts. BC subbed in Jonna Kennedy for Dwyer in an attempt to deny Baekers, but the redshirt freshman kept her cool and sent Ken-

nedy the wrong way to tie the score.

Now with momentum, the Wildcats missed two good chances to complete their comeback, as Baekers was rejected by Dwyer on a penalty corner, and a follow-up effort was sent wide. They were made to pay for their missed opportunities, as the Eagles converted on their fifth and final penalty corner of the afternoon before holding on for their biggest win of the season.

The win gives BC its first NCAA Tournament victory in four years and sets up an all-ACC quarterfinal against No. 4 Louisville, which beat the Eagles, 3-2, in September. Coincidentally, Northwestern also beat BC, 3-2, two months ago in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. BC has never won more than one game in the NCAA Tournament in the same season but will nonetheless feel confident about its chances to advance if it can replicate its performance from Friday, both offensively and defensively. n

WOMEN’S HOCKEY

With Late Rally, Eagles Beat Terriers in Battle of Comm. Ave

By Nicole Pla Heights Senior Staff

Comebacks Women’s hockey rallied from a 2-1 third-period deficit to beat rivals Boston University.

Defense Belmont racked up 100 points and handed men’s basketball its first loss of the season.

Win Streaks After two straight defeats of Vermont, men’s hockey has now rattled off five wins in a row.

Road Trips Women’s basketball lost to both Holy Cross and Providence in its first two road games.

Coming Up Clutch Volleyball twice came back from a set down to sweep the season series with Wake Forest.

3-Point Shooting Men’s and women’s basketball are shooting a combined 29.6 percent from deep this season.

Coming off its first loss of the season at the hands of Connecticut, Boston College women’s hockey traveled down Commonwealth Avenue Boston College 4 to rival Boston Boston University 2 University in its latest Hockey East matchup. Seven of the last 10 meetings between the Green Line rivals have been decided by one goal or less, and Friday’s game was just as closely contested.

Even though they entered the third period trailing, 2-1, the No. 6 Eagles displayed plenty of resilience, using goals from Alexie Guay and Delaney Belinskas, as well as an empty-netter, to claim a 4-2 win over their rivals.

BC (10-1-1, 9-1-1 Hockey East) may have the fifth-ranked offense in the country, but BU (7-4-1, 3-4-1) came into the weekend with the nation’s fourth-ranked defense, and it showed. The first five minutes resembled that of a back-and-forth affair, and neither team could pull ahead. Despite the early deadlock, the Terriers were the first to draw blood. Kristina Schuler put home a wrister from the right circle at the five-minute mark, leaving the Eagles to play catch-up.

While BU was able to get ahead of BC early in the frame, the Eagles were able to break through their defense and settle into their zone. BC was given an advantage after Jesse Compher was sent into the box at the 14-minute mark following a heavy hit into the boards. The two minutes were put on the clock, but the play was then reviewed by the referees.

After the review, the call was changed to a five-minute major penalty. The Eagles

are sixth in Hockey East on the power play, and the extended penalty proved to pay dividends. After three minutes, BC was able to connect and tie up the game. While BU’s Corinne Schroeder made the initial save, Hannah Bilka was able to poke the rebound in from the circle while the junior was down, putting the Eagles on the board.

Throughout the second period, BC dominated possession of the puck, but Schroeder was steadfast in the goal, not allowing the puck past her. The Eagles had a nice opportunity when Olivia Finocchiaro got an open look from the slot, but Schroeder swiped it away as the game headed into a media timeout.

An Eagles player was sent to the box for the first time all evening when Lindsay Agnew was called for holding, and it cost them. At 13:57 in the second period, Schuler was able to fight through heavy traffic in front of McArthur and sneak the puck by her for the apparent score. Yet, while the light went off, no goal was given to BU—but after further review, the call was reversed and the Eagles were back playing catch up.

Less than a minute after the game returned to full strength, BC was back in the dog house after Kelly Browne was called for interference. A minute later, Guay headed to the box for checking, and the game was suddenly down to 5-on-3 play. BC rose to the challenge, though. With McArthur ready to meet every opportunity, the Eagles killed off both penalties.

Early in the third period, BC was gifted a chance to equalize when Courtney Correia was called for tripping. It took the team less than a minute to capitalize on the special teams opportunity. Guay fired a rocket from the blue line that whipped past multiple defensemen. A delayed reaction from Schroeder showed that she couldn’t see the

puck, and it was to the Eagles’ favor.

Coming off its power play, BC went right back on the man advantage following an Alex Allan checking penalty. Despite spending the entire two minutes in BU’s zone, the Eagles couldn’t connect on their second consecutive power play.

It was soon clear that the Eagles didn’t need the advantage to get ahead. With 12 minutes left in the game, Belinskas picked up a pass from Maegan Beres and sent it past Schroeder to put the Eagles on top for the first time of the night. After a review by the referees, the goal stood, and BC led the Terriers going into the final 10 minutes of the game.

The back-to-back goals by the Eagles added a sense of urgency to the game, and BC was caught in the fire. Jillian Fey was called for checking, and the Eagles were back on the penalty kill. Although the Terriers launched multiple shots in the direction of McArthur, BC came out unscathed and kept its lead alive.

With just under three minutes left in the frame, Cayla Barnes was sent to the box for interference, BC’s fifth penalty of the evening. The Terriers pulled Schroeder for a two-player advantage with just over a minute to go in the penalty. Despite the added pressure, McArthur was ready. Then, as she came out of the box, Barnes picked up the puck and fired a one-timer into BU’s empty net, redeeming herself for her prior penalty.

The Terriers came in having won backto-back games—while BC was fresh off its shocking first loss of the year—and even led through 40 minutes, but that wasn’t enough against their visitors. The Eagles battled back, and behind three different goal scorers, took the first of four matchups with their crosstown rivals this season. n

SPORTS

A12 Tuesday, November 19, 2019

@HeightsSports

FINAL FOUR. FIELD HOCKEY

COURTESY OF BC ATHLETICS

Goaltender Sarah Dwyer had seven saves, Margo Carlin scored the decisive penalty shot, and BC moved on to its first Final Four in program history with a dramatic shootout win over Louisville.

By Peter Kim Assoc. Sports Editor

By Peter Kim Assoc. Sports Editor

With just over one minute to play in Boston College field hockey’s first round NCAA Tournament game against No. 11 Northwestern, it appeared as though the Eagles were headed for just their third overtime game of the season—and second in the last three games. The teams were knotted at one, with the Wildcats finding an equalizing goal on a penalty corner despite a mostly stout defensive effort from BC. Elizabeth Warner, however, had other ideas.

The Eagles won a penalty corner in the final minute, and Margo Carlin took the insertion. Off the stick stop, Sky Caron let loose a low shot from just outside the circle. The ball was drifting wide, but Warner—who was unmarked at the right post—dove and just got her stick on it, redirecting a shot into an open net and giving BC a dramatic late-game lead. The Eagles would hold on for the last 66 seconds, beating Northwestern, 2-1, for their first NCAA Tournament win since 2015.

The game marked BC’s (14-7, 4-2 Atlantic Coast) first postseason appearance since 2016, and it appeared the Eagles were ready to play from the opening whistle. Despite a high press from Northwestern (14-8, 5-3 Big Ten), BC was able to consistently string passes together from back to front, while crowding the Wildcats’ passing lanes and preventing Northwestern from

For much of the season, Sarah Dwyer has anchored a lockdown Boston College field hockey defense. Going into the Eagles’ NCAA Tournament quarterfinal against No. 4 Louisville, the senior had started 12 games in a row, and conceded just eight goals. BC won 10 of those games, with the only two losses coming against No. 1 North Carolina. And with the Eagles on the ropes against the Cardinals, who spent most of the day pouring the pressure on BC’s back line, it was fittingly Dwyer who delivered in the biggest way with the Eagles’ season on the line.

The Long Branch, N.J., native made seven saves in regulation before coming up with a game-winning stop in the seventh round of a penalty shootout, helping BC squeak by Louisville, 1-1 (5-4 penalties), and advance to its first-ever Final Four in program history.

Dwyer conceded a goal in the third quarter, but was otherwise unbeatable against a Cardinals attack that created chance after chance against the Eagles’ (15-7, 4-2 Atlantic Coast) back line.

Louisville (16-6, 3-3) enjoyed the edge from the get-go, utilizing a high press to break up BC’s passing and win three IIMAGES COURTESY OF BC ATHLETICS

See FH vs. Northwestern, A10

The Eagles avenged a pair of regular season losses to advance to the Final Four.

See FH vs. Louisville, A10

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Belmont Catches Fire From Deep, Hands BC First Loss of Year

By Peter Kim Assoc. Sports Editor

Coming out of halftime, it appeared that Boston College men’s basketball and Belmont were in for a good oldfashioned 100 Belmont shootout. The Boston College 85 teams had combined for a whopping 94 points in the first 20 minutes of Saturday’s Gotham Classic matchup, and were shooting a combined 58 percent from the floor. The Bruins certainly upheld their end of the bargain. The Eagles, on the other hand, did not.

In the first eight minutes of the second half, Belmont simply couldn’t miss, sinking 9-of-11 shots from the floor and nailing six 3-pointers.

BC, meanwhile, went cold, scoring just nine points and routinely falling

INSIDE SPORTS

asleep on defense. The 30-9 swing put the Eagles in a 25-point hole they couldn’t recover from, and when the final horn sounded, the Bruins had handed BC its first loss of the season, 100-85.

“I was disappointed with how we guarded the ball,” head coach Jim Christian said. “I was disappointed with how we rotated. All the stuff we had been doing really really well, we didn’t do today.”

On Wednesday, in the first game of the Gotham Classic, the Eagles (3-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) suffocated High Point, holding the Panthers scoreless for over 10 minutes at the start of the second half and limiting them to 33 total points.

Against Belmont (2-1), though, it seemed like defense was optional for both teams throughout most of the

first half. The Bruins hit the 33-point mark with eight minutes to play in the opening period. In fact, BC and the Bruins combined to begin the game 27-of-40 from the floor, and entered the locker room a combined 12-of-22 from beyond the arc.

It was a breathtaking display of offensive basketball, and it was made even more entertaining by the fact that neither team could manage to pull away in any significant fashion.

After Nick Hopkins buried a triple from the left corner to put Belmont up, 10-7, early, BC’s Nik Popovic immediately responded with the first of his three 3-pointers to tie the game.

The largest lead either team had in the first half was five points, and that came after Derryck Thornton—who

See MBB vs. Belmont, A10

IKRAM ALI / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Head coach Jim Christian was disappointed in his team’s performance against the Bruins.

MHOK: BC Sweeps Weekend With UVM WHOK: Third Period Rally Lifts Eagles

SCORES AND STANDINGS.................. ....

A11 The Eagles beat the Catamounts and won their fifth straight BC erased a 2-1 BU lead and scored three unanswered FIELD HOCKEY...........................................

A11 game after losing four in a row....................................... A10 goals to take the Battle of Comm. Ave......................... A11 MEN’S BASKETBALL...............................

A10