T he B oston C ollege
Chronicle may 26, 2016
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Gabelus Is 2016 Brown Award Winner er with Halftime, 48Hours and Kairos, and worked as a College Transition Program peer advisor. This year, Gabelus reactivated and led United Front, an organization dedicated to serving and promoting cultures birthed from the Af-
John Gabelus graduated on Monday after an impressive undergraduate career marked by engagement on all levels: academic achievement, exemplary service and campus leadership. In recognition, he was selected to receive the 2016 Dr. Donald Brown Award, which honors a senior who, during his or her time on campus, made extraordinary contributions to Boston College, and particularly to the AHANA community. “John embodies the Dr. Donald Brown Award in his commitment to the AHANA community and the many contributions he made to students and to Boston College during his undergraduate tenure,” said Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center (BAIC) Director Inés Maturana Sendoya. “BAIC is tremendously grateful for his leadership.” Gabelus, who majored in theology with minors in African and African Diaspora Studies and biology, hit the ground running as a freshman: He was involved with BAIC’s Sankofa Leadership Program, the McNair Scholars and Dedicated Intellectuals of the People organization. He went on to participate in and later lead the Jamaica Magis service immersion trip, had leadership roles in the Black Student Forum and L’Association Haitienne, and received an MLK Advanced Study Grant. He also served as a resident assistant, Mississippi Delta Service Corps volunteer, a program lead-
Lee Pellegrini
By Rosanne Pellegrini Staff Writer
John Gabelus
rican Diaspora. He also was an Information Technology Services student employee and Eagle Escort Supervisor and, off campus, volunteered at Caritas Christi Health Care. “Winning this award at the end of a year like this, filled with tremendous growth and community success, is a great feeling and only fuels my sense of motivation with regard to working toward improving issues faced by people from all backgrounds, either on or off campus,” Gabelus said. “I am honored to not only be named as this year’s recipient, but also to be included in the company of former student leaders who made sure that students of color were represented and included in the many programs that Boston
College has to offer. “While the award was welcome news, it is not what validates my efforts to improve the BC community,” he added. “Witnessing a positive improvement as a result of these efforts has been reward enough.” Gabelus will spend a month this summer studying abroad in Santiago, Chile, as a participant in “Through the Eyes of Service,” a program combining theology study with service led by Adjunct Associate Professor of Philosophy David McMenamin. Helping to fund his first international study opportunity is a BASAA Scholarship from the Fund for Education Abroad. “Studying abroad and serving a new community will expand my understanding of global citizenship and provide me the opportunity to experience life outside of the United States,” he said. This fall, Gabelus will be back on campus to pursue a master’s degree in the School of Theology and Ministry. Though he hasn’t decided the focus of his studies with regard to a career, “among the paths I am considering are hospital chaplaincy and campus ministry, but I may well find myself seeking more research opportunities.” The Dr. Donald Brown Award was established in honor of the former director of the Office of AHANA Student Programs, now the Thea Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center. Contact Rosanne Pellegrini at rosanne.pellegrini@bc.edu
Corcoran, Sherman Honored for Social Justice Efforts Photos by Lee Pellegrini
Two members of the Boston College community – BC Law Clinical Professor Francine Sherman and former University Trustee and longtime benefactor Joseph E. Corcoran ’59, Hon.’09 – were honored last week by the Robert F. Kennedy Children’s Action Corps as two of this year’s Embracing the Legacy award recipients. The awards recognize those persons who are “dedicated to making positive impacts on the lives of some of the most vulnerable members of the population by raising awareness, fighting against social injustices, and advocating for those who don’t have a voice,” according to the organization. Sherman, founder and director of the BC Law Juvenile Rights Advocacy Program, is a nationally recognized expert on juvenile justice,
particularly about girls in the justice system. She has spoken before Congress and at the White House, and served on the US Department of Justice National Advisory Committee. Her most recent report, “Gender Injustice: System-Level Juvenile Justice Reforms for Girls,” provides a “comprehensive overview of the needs and pathways of girls into and through the justice system and details a developmental approach to juvenile justice reforms.” Corcoran, founder and chairman of the Corcoran Jennison Companies, “has changed the lives of countless innercity youths by replacing failed public housing projects with mixed income developments that
offer unique community services to low-income residents.” Among his philanthropic endeavors, Corcoran – the chief benefactor and namesake of BC’s Joseph E. Corcoran Center for Real Estate and Urban Action – has directly funded educational opportunities for dozens of academically talented city youths through scholarships to Boston College High School as well as BC, Simmons College and Emmanuel College. The other two Embracing the Legacy winners honored at the event, held May 20 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, were MassHousing Community Services Director Thaddeus Miles and Celtic punk rock band The Dropkick Murphys. Read more at www.rfkchildren.org/ events/embracing-the-legacy. –Office of News & Public Affairs
The Rappaport Fellowship offers “opportunities to gain hands-on experience in government, benefit from mentors, and learn how law and public policy are used to effect change for the social good,” says Rappaport Center Executive Director Elisabeth J. Medvedow.
BC Law Students Among 12 to Receive Public Service Internships By Ed Hayward Staff Writer
Twelve Boston-area law school students have been awarded prestigious summer internships in public service by the Rappaport Center for Law and Public Policy at Boston College Law School. Now in its 16th year, the Rappaport Fellows Program provides opportunities for the students to work in public policy and public service at the highest levels of
mentors, and learn how law and public policy are used to effect change for the social good.” The competitive fellowship program’s summer internships place students in positions with leading policy makers and provides mentors from the center’s Advisory Board and staff, past fellows, civic leaders and respected attorneys in the field. This year’s class brings to 192 the number of Rappaport Fellows selected since the program’s in-
Boston College Law School students (clockwise from above) Stephanie Johnson, Rodline Louijeune and Amar Patel are among this year’s Rappaport Center Fellows.
state and local government in Massachusetts. Among this year’s group of fellows are three Boston College Law School students: Rodline Louijeune, who will intern with the Massachusetts State Treasurer’s Office; Stephanie Johnson, who will intern with the Boston Redevelopment Authority; and Amar Patel, who will intern at the City of Boston’s Office of Innovation and Technology. They are joined by students from Boston University School of Law, Harvard Law School, Northeastern University School of Law, Suffolk University Law School, New England School of Law and the University of Massachusetts School of Law. “This year’s 2016 Rappaport Fellows are an extraordinary group of law students who exude passion and commitment to bettering communities, the environment, education, access to justice, women’s rights, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and the world,” said Rappaport Center Executive Director Elisabeth J. Medvedow. “The Rappaport Fellowship affords them opportunities to gain hands-on experience in government, benefit from
ception. Alumni include Boston City Council President Michelle Wu, Massachusetts Assistant Attorney General Julie Kobick, US Department of Justice Attorney Alistair Reader, and Boston Public Health Commission Director of Intergovernmental Relations and Public Health Advocacy Lisa Conley. The acclaimed public policy law center, which began its work in 2000, provides educational programs, career mentoring and stipends to law students interested in government and public policy. The Rappaport Center was established at Boston College Law School in 2015 with a gift from the Phyllis & Jerome Lyle Rappaport Foundation. Read about the 2016 Rappaport Fellows at http://bit.ly/BCRsrch_ Fellows16. For more information about the center, see www.bc.edu/ rappaport.