Boston College Chronicle

Q&A: Heather Cox Richardson

Where We Are, and How We Got There

Professor of History Heather Cox Richardson recently published her seventh book, Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America, which examines the long, intricate path to today’s fraught, dysfunctional American political state of affairs. Richardson zeroes in on the role of a small group of wealthy people that, down through the years, has weaponized language and promoted false history to create a disaffected population all too willing to embrace authoritarianism at the expense of democratic ideals. She shows how the United States has long struggled to live up to and maintain the principles on which it was founded—and how, time and again, marginalized Americans have played a key role in helping the U.S. renew, and expand, its commitment to democracy.

Richardson discussed the story behind Democracy Awakening—and the question of whether America can recover its true ideals— with Chronicle Editor Sean Smith. How did Democracy Awakening come together?

Richardson: The evolution of the book

‘Soaring Higher’

University Announces $3 Billion Campaign

Campaign prioritizes academics, financial aid, and student life

BY JACK DUNN ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Boston College has announced the largest capital campaign in its history, a $3 billion initiative to raise money for key priorities in academics, financial aid, and student life.

“Soaring Higher: The Campaign for Boston College” doubles the goal of the University’s 2008 “Light the World” campaign, which ultimately raised $1.6 billion upon its completion in 2016.

Funds raised through “Soaring Higher”

will enhance teaching and scholarship across all of BC’s schools and colleges, and enable the University to double the number of endowed faculty chairs and fellowships, strengthen faculty research, and support curricular innovation.

Central to the campaign is an initiative to raise $1 billion to boost financial aid for low- and middle-income families, helping BC to maintain its commitment to need blind admissions and meeting the full demonstrated need of undergraduate students. It will also increase student internships, graduate fellowships, and sup-

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MCAS Announces New Associate Deans

BY KATHLEEN SULLIVAN STAFF WRITER

Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences

Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J., has announced leadership changes in the college, including the appointments of faculty members Brian Gareau and Ethan Baxter to newly created administrative positions, and the naming of Elizabeth Shlala as associate dean for the University Core Curriculum.

Gareau, an associate professor of Sociology who also holds an appointment in the International Studies Program, has been named senior associate dean for faculty affairs and academic planning. Baxter, a professor in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, has been appointed associate dean for the STEM Disciplines.

Shlala, an associate professor of the practice in the Core, succeeds Gareau as associate dean for the Core, a position he held from 2018 until the end of the 20222023 academic year; she served as assistant dean for the Core [see separate story on p. 6].

“As the pace of our faculty hiring, the scale of our research efforts, and the complexity of our academic programs all continue to grow, it became clear to me that the administrative bandwidth in the Dean’s Office needed to grow as well,” said Fr. Kalscheur. “Brian and Ethan have

demonstrated great leadership abilities and I am grateful for their willingness to take on these new positions. I look forward to working closely with them in our shared efforts to continue building academic strength and scholarly excellence in the distinctive mission of the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences.”

In his new role, Gareau will assist Fr. Kalscheur with all areas of the faculty lifecycle in the humanities and social science departments of the Morrissey College. He will serve as a point of contact for department chairs and other department leaders on personnel issues, and assist in reviewing faculty search requests, faculty hiring, faculty evaluation and merit review, developing faculty programming, working with de-

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2 Around Campus Digital Wellness Challenge; DeVoy Lecture Series

3 Ascione Family Formation Fellow Belle Liang named to new position.

4 Forum on Racial Justice “Who We Are” screening.

Brian Gareau, above, and Ethan Baxter photos by lee pellegrini

University President William P. Leahy, S.J., with co-chairs of the “Soaring Higher” campaign leadership at last night’s official launch, which included a gala on Middle Campus.

photo by lee pellegrini

Around Campus

DeVoy Lecture Series Presents Rowe

A conversation with groundbreaking performer, artistic director, author, and speaker Mickey Rowe will be presented by Boston College’s DeVoy Perspectives on Theatre Lecture Series on October 4 from 7-8:30 p.m. His appearance on the Robsham Theater Arts Center main stage is free and open to the public.

Autistic and legally blind, Rowe overcame the perception that there were things he was incapable of doing and succeeded because of—not despite—his autism, according to event organizers. He has had a prolific and varied career as an actor, director, consultant, and public speaker sought both nationally and internationally. [More at mickeyrowe.com]

Hang Up, Power Down, Be Well

Seems like a tall order, convincing college students to put down their phones and get up from their computers. But that’s not the only objective of next month’s Boston College Digital Wellness Challenge, according to organizers: It’s to get students to pause and think about how much time and attention they spend on digital technology, and consider the quality of their interaction with it.

Sponsored by BC’s Center for Student Wellness, the 30-day challenge—which begins on Sunday—encourages students to pursue three major objectives: limit screen time, be intentional with technology, and set boundaries with social media.

A downloadable flyer at the center website [bc.edu/student-wellness] offers strategies for each day of the challenge, such as spending at least an hour in a technologyfree activity; communicating more with phone calls or video chats than through text or social media; following profiles that encourage or inspire, rather than cause angst; deleting the least favorite app from your phone; writing down intentions for why and how you want to be online, and keeping these at your desk.

There’s also the “20-20-20” rule—for every 20 minutes you look at a screen, look at something 20 feet away for a full 20 sec-

onds—and a social media “stopping cue,” such as looking only at the first 10 stories or posts at any one time.

The center also will make available digital wellness boxes, where students can temporarily store their phones while they are studying or enjoying a meal or other activities with friends.

“The idea behind all of this challenge is to raise awareness and reset our relationship with social media and our devices,” said center director Jeannine Kremer, who cites research showing that individuals who spend less time on social media report having higher levels of satisfaction with their lives and a greater connectedness to others.

“We do see students looking to take breaks from social media, devices, and so on, and we thought this would be a great chance to help them create better habits that will increase focus and concentration, decrease stress, and improve mental wellness,” said Kremer, adding that BC administrators, faculty, and staff also are invited to participate in the challenge.

For more information about the Digital Wellness Challenge, contact the center at bwell@bc.edu or 617-552-9900, or go to bc.edu/student-wellness.

—University Communications

Author of the award-winning book Fearlessly Different: An Autistic Actor’s Journey to Broadway’s Biggest Stage, Rowe was the first autistic actor to play the lead role in the Tony Award-winning play “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” which will be staged next month at Robsham Theater. He also performed the title role in the Tony Award-winning play “Amadeus,” and founded the National Disability Theatre.

“In conjunction with ‘Curious Incident’ being performed October 19-22, we are happy to have Mr. Rowe speak in Robsham through the generous support of the DeVoy lecture series,” said Theatre Department Chair and Professor of the Practice Luke Jorgensen, noting that the play’s protagonist is a neurodivergent thinker who confronts— and eventually overcomes—various struggles and obstacles.

“Mr. Rowe knows these struggles well, both as a person who has played the role and as an autistic and blind author and per-

former,” said Jorgensen.

“Curious Incident” focuses on 15-yearold Chris, who is exceptionally intelligent but ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. Chris falls under suspicion for killing a neighbor’s dog and sets out to identify the true culprit, which leads to an earth-shattering discovery and a life-changing journey.

“This play uses fully immersive storytelling, new music, projections, and a level of the performers’ physicality that will lift your spirits, as well as the actors,” said Jorgensen.

The Matthew R. DeVoy and John H. DeVoy IV Perspectives on Theatre Series is a program made possible by a generous gift from the DeVoy family. The series brings leading professionals and creative forces in theater and the performing arts to campus to share their experience and vision with the Boston College community, and with interested alumni and members of the greater Boston arts community.

—University Communications

COVID-19, Flu Shot Clinics Available

Boston College will offer seasonal flu shot clinics this fall, as well as updated Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 boosters and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) vaccinations, announced Dr. Douglas Comeau, director of University Health Services and Primary Sports Care Medicine last week.

Those wishing to obtain both their flu vaccination and the booster at the same time may do so, said Comeau in an email to the University community, and RSV vaccination will also be offered for those faculty and staff members eligible (60 years or older). The clinics take place in the Connell Recreation Center every Tuesday from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. through the end of the fall semester; there

will be additional clinics on October 16 and 18 from 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

Members of the University community wishing to receive flu vaccinations or COVID-19 boosters must bring their medical and prescription insurance cards, as well as COVID-19 vaccination record cards. Flu shots and/or COVID-19 vaccinations may be scheduled through this link: www. starmarket.com/vaccinations/group-clinic/ BostonCollege.

To obtain more information on vaccination clinics and other health-related matters, see the University Health Services website at bc.edu/uhs.

—University

Communications

ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Jack Dunn

SENIOR DIRECTOR FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Patricia Delaney

EDITOR

Sean Smith

CONTRIBUTING STAFF

Phil Gloudemans

Ed

Hayward

Rosanne

Kathleen

Pellegrini

Sullivan

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Caitlin

Cunningham

Lee Pellegrini

www.bc.edu/bcnews

Fearlessly Different author Mickey Rowe

photo by zack snyder

Participants in the Digital Wellness Challenge can temporarily store their phones in a digital wellness box to take a break and socialize with friends.

Liang Is First Ascione Family Formation Fellow

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

Belle Liang, a professor in the Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology department at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development, has been named the inaugural Ascione Family Formation Fellow for outstanding teaching and scholarship to support the University’s commitment to formative education.

The Ascione Family Formation Fellowship is made possible by the generosity of Katheryn H. and Michael C. Ascione, both 1993 Boston College alumni, and the parents of two current BC undergraduates. Michael Ascione has been a member of the BC Board of Trustees since 2021. The Asciones also serve as co-chairs of the BC Board of Regents.

“This honor is awarded to a faculty member who excels in research, teaching, and service across the University, with a particular focus on formative education,” said Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, who noted that the fellowship’s donors strongly believe in the pursuit of distinctive faculty excellence at Boston College. “BC’s fellowships are important tributes that celebrate faculty members such as Belle Liang, whose work advances our mission in distinctive and powerful ways, and recognizes her record of achievement, along with the promise of future, significant impact.”

Liang’s recognition as the Ascione Family Formation Fellow coincides with her appointment as the University’s Mission

and Ministry Faculty Fellow. In these dual roles, she will partner with colleagues in Mission and Ministry and Student Affairs to facilitate a deeper understanding of formative education, both on and off campus. Her work will help support existing initiatives, and lead to the development of new programs and opportunities for students,

faculty, and staff.

Liang, who joined the BC faculty in 2001, is a licensed clinical psychologist, and an expert in mentoring and youth purpose. She is an American Psychological Association (APA) Division 17 Fellow; a recipient of a Distinguished Alumni Award from Indiana University-Bloomington;

Lynch School of Education and Human Development Professor Belle Liang’s research includes topics such as mentorship, vocational design, and whole person education across race, gender, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

The Many Faces of Counseling Psychology

Award from the APA’s Society of Counseling Psychology; and numerous honors for teaching and mentoring.

She founded The Purpose Lab at BC, which specializes in youth purpose intervention and research, and explores topics such as mentorship, vocational design, and whole person education across race, gender and socioeconomic backgrounds. Liang has published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and chapters to advance the science and practice of mentoring, and cultivating purpose in schools and workplaces. In 2022, she co-authored How to Navigate Life: The New Science of Finding Your Way in School, Career & Beyond.

“Belle Liang is the perfect inaugural recipient of this fellowship generously provided by the Asciones,” said Stanton E.F. Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Lynch School. “Across her career, she has worked on formative education, and how to foster holistic human development and a sense of purpose in young people. It’s wonderful that she is able to share this scholarly expertise with colleagues through her upcoming work with University Mission and Ministry and with others across the University.”

BC Ranked 39th Among Best National Universities

BY JACK DUNN ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Boston College placed 39th in the 2024 survey of national universities released recently by US News & World Report.

In a year marked by high volatility and significant shifts among the 435 ranked schools, BC fell three places in the rankings, despite its overall qualitative score improving by four points. Boston College and other private universities continued to be negatively affected by the 2019 change in US News’ methodology that rewards state universities with a high volume of Pell Grant-eligible students. That change, which received an increased weight as part of this year’s methodology, resulted in 37 of the top 100-ranked private universities falling in the 2024 rankings, while 43 public universities improved.

Boston College placed highly in several specialty rankings among national universities this year, including “Service Learning” (fifth); “Commitment to Undergraduate Teaching” (eighth); “First Year Experience” (eighth); “Best Learning Communities” (17th); “Undergraduate Research” (41st); and “Most Innovative Schools” (46th). The University also placed 51st in the “Best Val-

ue Colleges” listing, reflecting its commitment to need-blind admission and meeting the full demonstrated need of all accepted students.

In addition, the Connell School of Nursing placed 10th out of 654 schools in the “Best Undergraduate Nursing Programs” survey—its highest placement to date— based on a strong peer assessment score.

The Carroll School of Management ranked 29th out of 552 schools in the “Best

Undergraduate Business Programs,” and placed seventh overall in Finance; 10th in Accounting, Analytics, and Entrepreneurship; 11th in Marketing; and 12th in Management.

The University also placed 37th in new rankings for the “Best Undergraduate Economics” programs, and 51st in “Best Undergraduate Psychology.”

Overall, Princeton University ranked first among national universities, followed

by Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with Harvard and Stanford tied for third. Yale closed out the top five, placing fifth. Among Massachusetts universities, BC placed third behind MIT and Harvard, and ahead of Tufts (40th), Boston University (43rd), Northeastern (53rd) and Brandeis (60th).

The US News rankings of all colleges and universities can be accessed at www.usnews. com.

45th in Wall St. Journal Survey

Boston College placed 45th among all colleges and universities nationwide in a new Wall Street Journal survey of America’s best colleges, released earlier this month.

Officially titled Wall Street Journal/College Pulse 2024 Best Colleges in the U.S., the survey focuses on outcome measurements and student input, in contrast to US News & World Report, which has traditionally relied on peer assessments and federal and school-supplied data in their ranking formula [see related story on this page].

According to the release issued by The Wall Street Journal, the WSJ/College Pulse ranking puts an emphasis on “two practi-

cal and measurable questions about each school: How much will the college improve the students’ chances of graduating on time, and how much will it improve the salaries they earn after receiving their diplomas?”

The ranking also surveyed more than 60,000 students and recent graduates earlier this year, capturing “a range of perspectives on student life, including perception of learning opportunities, career preparation…and students’ thoughts on diversity.”

Overall, Princeton University placed first in the 2024 survey, followed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and

Yale, Stanford, Columbia, and Harvard universities.

Within Massachusetts, Boston College placed sixth overall behind MIT, Harvard, Amherst College (eighth nationally), Babson College (10th), and Williams College (31st), and ahead of the College of the Holy Cross (60th), Northeastern University (136th), Boston University (200th), Brandeis University (223rd), and Tufts University (287th).

Additional information on the rankings is available at wsj.com/collegerankings.

—Jack Dunn

Forum on Racial Justice Features Rappaport Prof.

BY SEAN SMITH CHRONICLE EDITOR

Civil rights lawyer and activist Jeffery Robinson, the Rappaport Distinguished Visiting Professor at Boston College Law School, will be the featured speaker at the October 3 Boston College Forum on Racial Justice in America.

At the event, which will take place at 4:30 p.m. in the Heights Room of Corcoran Commons, Robinson will screen “Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America,” a documentary based on a presentation he has been giving over the past decade about the history of anti-Black racism in the United States, from 1619— the year enslaved Africans were first brought to the colony, and future state, of Virginia—to the present. After the film, Robinson will talk about the issues raised in the film, discuss his work, and engage in a Q&A with the audience.

A University-wide initiative launched in 2020, the Forum is designed to provide a meeting place for listening, dialogue, and greater understanding about race and racism in America, while serving as a catalyst for bridging differences, promoting reconciliation, and encouraging new perspectives.

The process of making the film inspired Robinson to form and launch The Who We Are Project, a nonprofit organization striving to educate people about the history of anti-Black racism and white supremacy in the U.S. All of Robinson’s work aims to counter a narrative of U.S. history that is “incomplete, inaccurate, and misleading,” according to Robinson, by providing “compelling, meticulously researched, factually accurate descrip-

tions.”

“Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America” cuts back and forth between his 2018 stage performance in New York City, historical and present-day archival footage, Robinson’s own story, and verité and interview clips of Robinson’s meetings with various people—from Black changemakers and eyewitnesses to history to latter-day defenders of the Confederacy. Through the film and discussion, Robinson covers subjects such as slavery, Reconstruction, lynchings, Jim Crow laws, police brutality, the Civil Rights Movement, and the impact of racial discrimination in housing, employment, education, and health care.

At the core of Who We Are, according to Robinson, is a scrutiny of a fundamen-

tal contradiction in the national character: Americans have long expressed and fought for—at home and abroad—transcendent ideals of freedom and equality, yet many have tolerated, encouraged, or espoused racist actions and attitudes that work against those same ideals.

“America has demonstrated its greatness time and time again, and America is one of the most racist countries on the face of the Earth,” he says during the film. “Those two things are not mutually exclusive.”

Acknowledging this incongruity is vital to having a meaningful conversation about race and racism in the U.S., said Robinson. The purpose of the Who We Are film and discussion is not to denigrate the U.S., nor to foment guilt or self-loathing, he explained, but to point out the extent to which racism has been embedded in so many aspects of American life, inhibiting social and economic growth among populations that have endured discrimination—and thus keeping America from realizing its full potential.

“I love America enough to criticize it when it’s wrong. I’m not preaching revolution,” he said in an interview with Chronicle, pointing out that The Who We Are Project website [thewhoweareproject. org] includes a bibliography of sources used in the film and his presentation.

“The white supremacy that was part of what caused the Civil War didn’t simply go away,” he said. “It was still there, and it’s stayed with us since then.”

Robinson said the need for dialogue on race and racism in the U.S. has only intensified since the film’s release in 2022. The increased public and online presence of groups and individuals promot-

ing white supremacist ideology is cause for concern, he said, but so is the effort to downplay or minimize racism in U.S. history—evidenced by Florida officials’ approval of a curriculum claiming that Blacks benefited from being slaves, or a film for schoolchildren produced by nonprofit PragerU that depicts Frederick Douglass describing slavery as “a compromise” between the Founding Fathers and Southern colonies.

He refuted the idea that those who see the film or attend his talks are simply seeking confirmation of their beliefs about racism in the U.S. “I don’t go where I’m not wanted, but I’ve had audiences of police officers, prosecutors, and people from the South. It’s one thing to say you’re ‘against racism,’ but my point is, liberal or conservative, you have to educate yourself about the truth. Ignorance of our history is dangerous, especially at this time.”

”I am glad the BC Forum on Racial Justice in America is able to bring Professor Robinson and his powerful documentary into conversation with the Boston College community,” said Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J., who co-directs the Forum with Vice President Joy Moore, executive director of the Pine Manor Institute for Student Success. “If we are to work effectively for racial justice today, we must have a clear understanding of the history of racism in our nation. This event provides us all with the opportunity to deepen our knowledge and to be inspired to persevere in our shared efforts to build a just society.”

For more on the Boston College Forum for Racial Justice in America, see bc.edu/ forum

BC Announces $3 Billion ‘Soaring Higher’ Campaign

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port for international study. This academic year, Boston College will award $166 million in undergraduate need-based financial aid, an allocation that will be significantly increased through the campaign.

“Soaring Higher” will also generate additional funding for the University’s student life priorities in formative education, campus ministry, service immersion, and intercollegiate and intramural sports, while providing resources for the construction and renovation of campus facilities, including residence halls and space for student activities and wellness programs.

In addition, the campaign will provide support for Messina College, a residential, two-year program for underserved students that will open at Boston College in 2024.

Money raised through “Soaring Higher” will be allocated for the following strategic priorities:

•Academic Programs $1.15 billion

•Financial Aid $1.1 billion

•Student Life Initiatives $750 million

To date, a total of $1.13 billion has

been raised towards the $3 billion campaign goal.

“‘Soaring Higher’ represents the largest fundraising effort in the history of Boston College and invites consideration not only of BC’s heritage and mission, but also its

life will help the University to maintain its upward trajectory.”

“Boston College’s rise during the past 40 years to its place among the nation’s best universities is one of the greatest success stories in American higher educa-

College to achieve its goal of being the world’s preeminent Catholic university.”

The “Soaring Higher” campaign will be co-chaired by Fish and his wife, Cyndy; Trustee Phil Schiller ’82 and his wife, Kim Gassett-Schiller; Trustee Marianne D. Short, NC ’73, JD ’76 and her husband, Raymond Skowyra; Trustee René Jones ’86 and his wife, BC Regent Brigid Doherty ’96; and Trustee Patti Kraft and her husband, Jonathan.

The campaign, said University President William P. Leahy, S.J., “invites consideration not only of BC’s heritage and mission, but also its future, which is full of such promise.”

future, which is full of such promise,” said University President, William P. Leahy, S.J. “I am confident that the campaign’s focus on obtaining additional resources for academics, financial aid, and student

tion,” said BC Board of Trustees Chair John Fish, chair and CEO of Suffolk Construction. “I take pride in BC’s consistent momentum and am honored to be a part of a campaign that will help Boston

“Soaring Higher” was launched at a September 28 kickoff gala on the Middle Campus for 300 University trustees and benefactors. In addition to Fr. Leahy, John Fish, and Phil Schiller, the event featured remarks by Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, Haub Vice President for University Mission and Ministry John Butler, S.J., Vice President for Student Affairs Shawna Cooper Whitehead, and BC student Rowah Ibnaouf ’25, a Goldman Sachs Alumni Scholar and informations systems major in the Carroll School of Management. The evening also included a violin performance by Nova Wang ’21 and a moving rendition of “For Boston” by the Screaming Eagles Marching Band.

Jeffery Robinson

photo by reba saldanha

AI Forum Marks New Data Science Program

BY PHIL GLOUDEMANS STAFF WRITER

The Lynch School of Education and Human Development will offer a new online master’s degree in the burgeoning field of data science beginning in the fall of 2024, announced Stanton E.F. Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Lynch School.

An interdisciplinary academic field that employs statistics, scientific computing, methods, processes, algorithms, and systems to extract or extrapolate knowledge and insights from information, data science is a flourishing specialty that has generated vigorous demand among students eager to break into the profession. According to Fortune, colleges with top rankings for online data science master’s degree programs saw a 20 percent enrollment growth between the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 academic years.

“In an era when data-driven decisions and systems influence every sector of business and society, individuals who bring an ethical framework to data science are critical,” said Wortham. “Our M.S. in Data Science program will empower students to apply technical methods and consulting skills with an eye toward ethics and the common good, as they address the increasingly complex technological needs of organizations and communities.”

Featuring a principled, human-centered approach by emphasizing ethics and a keen understanding of bias, with security and privacy issues at the forefront, the parttime program within the Lynch School’s Measurement, Evaluation, Statistics, and Assessment department is designed for both experienced professionals and recent college graduates, said Wortham.

The employment rate for data scientists—whose work is categorically divided into business and market analysts, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning technology, and infrastructure and data cleansing—will increase by 36 percent from 2021 to 2031, also according to Fortune. Currently, the average United States data scientist’s annual salary is more than $125,000.

To highlight the significance and upward trajectory of data science, the Lynch School hosted a Boston College faculty panel on September 18 focused on ChatGPT, a large language model-based chatbot, and Generative AI, a type of artificial intelligence technology that can produce various types of content, including text, imagery, and audio. Honorable David S. Nelson Chair Brian K. Smith, associate dean for research at the Lynch School, served as the keynote speaker.

Panelists, who discussed questions on how to utilize ChatGPT and Generative AI and prepare students for the workplace in light of such technology, included Monan Professor in Education Matthias von Davier, executive director of the TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center at BC; John FitzGibbon, associate director of the Center for Digital Innovation in Learning; Information Technology Services Chief Technologist Peter Salvitti; and Center for Teaching Excellence Assistant Director of Teaching, Learning, and Technology Nirmal Trivedi.

Smith said concerns about students’ use of AI to produce term papers, essays, and other work should fall to the bottom of the priorities among all of the challenges facing education in the U.S. “There are far bigger, more important problems than a talking robot. However, these tools are powerful, and deserve our attention because their impact will be wide ranging and long term. The primary objective for this not-so-new but currently controversial and very productive technology is finding ways to work with it.”

Plagiarism detectors are unreliable and it’s impossible to enforce bans on AI use by students, Trivedi said, but the tool can readily and effectively serve as a tutor, editor, and idea generator—although it has limitations. “AI doesn’t ‘reason,’ and typically generates what would be characterized as C-level work, but with effective prompting, it can produce better and better results that are more nuanced and accurate. That being said, the more specific you get, the more information it generally gets wrong or invents.”

The introduction of the calculator for classroom use was supposed to signal “the end of math,” Trivedi said, but the solu-

tion “was to require students to show the work, which can also be done with AI. Instructors can and probably should focus more on grading the thinking process than the final result.”

An expert on developing psychometric models and integrating diagnostic procedures into these methods, von Davier highlighted automated scoring of written and graphical responses and automated item generation as two key areas for researchers to capitalize on the capabilities of AI.

FitzGibbon advocated a strategic approach to artificial intelligence in the classroom. “You need to engage with AI, and create a communication and assessment strategy: Take a formative approach to exploring AI by identifying what humans can do well and what AI can do well.”

In closing, he quoted Jaron Lanier, a Silicon Valley visionary who later wrote about the cultural dangers of technology and social media: “If I am unhappy with the way digital technology is influencing the world, I think the solution is to double down on being human.”

Lynch Collection of Acclaimed Artwork Goes On Display This Fall

Works by Albert Bierstadt, Mary Cassatt, Frederic Edwin Church, Childe Hassam, Martin Johnson Heade, Winslow Homer, Fitz Henry Lane, Pablo Picasso, Jack Butler Yeats, and many more of the world’s most acclaimed artists will be on display at Boston College beginning this fall, thanks to a donation from the private collection of famed investor and University alumnus Peter Lynch and his late wife, Carolyn. The paintings are now part of the permanent collection of the McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College.

The Carolyn A. and Peter S. Lynch Collection comprises 27 paintings and three drawings from 20 renowned artists. The Lynch Collection will be on public display beginning on October 2 in the University Conference Center, located on the first floor of 2101 Commonwealth Avenue on the Brighton Campus.

Among the notable pieces in the collection are Martin Johnson Heade’s “Orchid and Hummingbirds near a Mountain Lake”; Pablo Picasso’s drawing “L’homme barbu (Bearded Man)”; Winslow Homer’s painting “Grace Hoops”; Mary Cassatt’s watercolor “Mother and Child”; John Singer Sargent’s painting “Olive Trees, Corfu”; and Jack Butler Yeats’s 1929 paint-

ing “Farewell to Mayo,” which British actor Sir Laurence Olivier gifted as a wedding present to actress Vivien Leigh.

“My family and I could not be more excited about the opening of this permanent exhibit at Boston College,” said Peter Lynch, vice chairman of Fidelity Management and Research Company, and a 1965 BC graduate and current trustee associate at Boston College. “Every item in this collection was selected in a joint manner by my late wife Carolyn and me, and in

most cases, Carolyn was the lead advocate. It brings great joy to my family knowing that the collection will be enjoyed by BC students and the wider community for generations to come.”

Nancy Netzer, Inaugural Robert L. and Judith T. Winston Director of the McMullen Museum and Professor of Art History, praised Lynch and his family “for this transformational gift of 19th- and early 20th-century paintings and drawings.

“By positioning their thoughtfully

crafted collection in an academic setting, a university founded in the mid-19th century with a deep commitment to the study of the liberal arts and the education of the whole person, the Lynches inspire our faculty, staff, and students to pursue further investigation of the works in an expansive historical context,” said Netzer.

“We look forward to sharing—with the public and for generations to come—these outstanding artistic examples of their kind and the knowledge about them as that knowledge develops. These cultural artifacts present our audiences tangible links to the past, thereby creating new empirical research, teaching, and learning opportunities, even for drawing connections to the fabric of our present society.”

The Lynch Collection will be displayed along with paintings from the McMullen Museum’s permanent collection. A mobile guide with contributions on each work written by Boston College faculty in a wide range of disciplines will accompany the installation, which will be open to the public free of charge during museum hours, with exceptions for special events.

For more information, go to bc.edu/ mcmullen.

—University Communications

Nelson Professor Brian Smith speaking at the September 18 discussion on ChatGPT and Generative AI, which also included a faculty panel.

photo by lee pellegrini

“Olive Trees, Corfu,” by John Singer Sargent, part of the Carolyn A. and Peter S. Lynch Collection that will be exhibited in the University Conference Center beginning this Sunday.

Shlala Is New Assoc. Dean for BC Core Curriculum

BY KATHLEEN SULLIVAN STAFF WRITER

The 2023-2024 academic year has seen a transition in the University Core Curriculum leadership, as Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J., announced the appointment of Elizabeth H. Shlala, an associate professor of the practice in the Core, as associate dean for the Core.

Shlala succeeds Brian Gareau, who was named as senior associate dean for faculty affairs and academic planning [see separate story on p. 1]. She joined Boston College in 2018 as assistant director of the Core and a year later became assistant dean of the Core.

The Core Curriculum provides Boston College undergraduates with a common intellectual foundation in the defining works of the humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences. Its array of courses introduces students to the forces that have shaped world history and culture, broadening their intellectual horizons while shaping their characters and helping them learn how to discern well, thus preparing them for meaningful lives and rewarding careers. [For more on the Core Curriculum, see bc.edu/ core]

In five years as associate dean for the Core, Gareau oversaw the expansion of the Enduring Question (EQ) and Complex Problem (CP) Core courses in terms of both faculty involvement and student enrollment. Some 40 courses were added, engaging about 1,000 first-year students annually.

Gareau chaired the University Core Renewal Committee (UCRC), a group of 16 faculty and administrators that coordinates and manages the Core Curriculum and promotes interdepartmental and faculty/ staff collaboration and innovation. He also collaborated with the director of the Perspectives Program to create a new set of Core courses called Perspectives on Art that combine philosophy, art, and literary Core requirements in a course sequence taught by three faculty members. He developed the POD (“Purposeful Ongoing Discus-

BC Scenes

sion”) Leadership Program, a near-peer mentorship initiative designed to enhance the reflection component that is rooted in the University’s Jesuit, Catholic mission and is part of each Core course. POD program faculty provide leadership training to juniors and seniors, who, in turn, serve as academic and social mentors to the first-year students enrolled in the course.

He and Shlala worked with faculty University-wide to develop and implement a new Cultural Diversity initiative in the Core, leading to more than 120 new courses.

“The Core Curriculum plays a central role in the University’s Catholic, Jesuit mission,” said Shlala, adding that “the Core has benefited from Brian’s leadership and dedication during his tenure as associate dean for the Core, especially given the challenges posed by COVID.”

Shlala managed the Core Fellows Program, which brings early career scholars from across the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences to the University as visiting assistant professors to contribute to the Core. Core Fellows teach lab sections for CP courses, an elective in his/her field as well as an EQ course.

A former Fulbright-Hays scholar with research experience in Egypt, Italy, the UK, Sri Lanka, and Turkey, Shlala works with the Office of Global Education to create study-abroad opportunities that fulfill Core requirements, and will continue to do as associate dean. Her other goals are to facilitate new EQ and CP courses across all schools, to continue to support the Core Fellows Program, and to expand the Core’s Living and Learning communities.

Shlala will continue work begun by Gareau to support Messina College, the two-year, associate degree-granting residential college division at BC that will begin in the 2024-2025 academic year, and to align Messina’s curriculum with the University Core.

“Elizabeth brings to her new role deep experience of Jesuit education and knowledge of Ignatian pedagogy,” said Fr. Kalscheur. “Her direction of the Core Fel-

lows Program and leadership in the EQ/ CP pedagogical workshops provide a great foundation for her service as associate dean for the Core. I look forward to working with Elizabeth in this new capacity as she continues to guide the important work of ensuring a transformative Core experience for our students.”

Shlala, who has a doctorate from Georgetown University, studies the history of the Middle East and North Africa and holds affiliate appointments in the History Department and the Islamic Civilization and Societies and the International Studies programs. She teaches on topics such as history, gender, and migration, including the EQ course Geographies of Imperialism: History of Colonization and the studyabroad course The Italian Mediterranean: Una Faccia, Una Razza, offered in Venice over the summer.

She is the founding faculty director of the Justice and the Common Good (JCG) Living and Learning Community, which she developed with support from a Formative Education Grant from the Provost’s Office. Now in its third year, the JCG community is aimed at first-year students inter-

ested in social justice and cultural diversity who are seeking to gain new tools for reflecting on, and leading, social transformation in pursuit of justice, equity, and universal flourishing. The community comprises up to 40 students per year, who take one of four specific EQ Core courses and a firstyear topic seminar, Conversations In/Justice.

Fr. Kalschsuer said he was “tremendously grateful” to Gareau for his leadership of the Core. “Brian has been an effective spokesman for the central role that the Core Curriculum plays in BC’s mission across campus and beyond. His energy and commitment have been instrumental in our efforts to build and sustain a Core that provides our students with distinctive, high-quality courses characterized by intellectual rigor, interdisciplinary perspectives, and opportunities for formative reflection.”

Reflecting on his tenure as associate dean of the Core, Gareau expressed gratitude for the support from Shlala, Fr. Kalscheur, the UCRC, and Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley. He said he was pleased that both faculty and students have found the Core’s CP and EQ courses rewarding.

“Most faculty repeat teaching their CP/ EQ course and students routinely rank their CP/EQ course very highly on evaluations compared to their other courses. Most students have routinely reported over the years that their CP or EQ Core course helped them make connections and integrate what they learned elsewhere, which is an important goal for these courses.”

Gareau’s own CP course, Global Implications of Climate Change—taught with Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor of the Practice Tara Pisani Gareau—was one of the first new Core courses developed and offered at BC. He and Pisani Gareau continuously update the curriculum with the latest information on climate change and global climate policymaking and have taught the course four times.

“This is simply the most demanding course I have ever taught, but it is also the most rewarding, the most stimulating, possibly the most impactful on my students,” said Gareau.

photos by lee pellegrini

Elizabeth Shlala

photo by lee pellegrini

Affinity Groups Luncheon

The Office of Institutional Diversity hosted the annual Affinity Groups Building Community Luncheon on September 13 in Gasson 100. The volunteer employeemanaged groups bring together individuals with common interests to advance and sustain a campus culture and climate that welcomes diversity and inclusiveness. Information on Affinity Groups is available via bc.edu/diversity.

Baxter, Gareau Named to New Assoc. Dean Positions

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partments on strategic planning, and helping supervise interdisciplinary programs, among other responsibilities. He will work with Fr. Kalscheur to develop mission formation programming and orientation as a way to connect faculty, particularly new Morrissey College faculty, with the University’s mission.

An environmental sociologist, Gareau studies global environmental governance, especially the governance of ozone layer depletion and global climate change, and publishes on theorizations of society/nature relations, alternative development, and agrifood systems. He leads a multi-disciplinary research lab investigating the social and ecological dynamics of cranberry production in New England and global climate change.

“I am eagerly anticipating the opportunity to help foster a culture of academic excellence and professional growth among our faculty,” said Gareau. “During this first year, my top priorities will be to become familiar with our faculty’s current needs and development opportunities. I am excited to help support and devise academic planning to connect departmental initiatives with the University’s strategic plan and distinctive mission, ensuring that we continue to deliver exceptional education and research outcomes while fostering an inclusive and supportive academic environment for all of our faculty colleagues.

“I look forward to meeting with all department leaders in MCAS as soon as possible to hear more about their concerns and aspirations for their faculty and departments as a whole, and I’m excited to help departments think strategically about how to help them achieve their goals and those of MCAS.”

Baxter will assist Fr. Kalscheur with all areas of the faculty lifecycle in the STEM departments of Morrissey College (Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, and Psychology/ Neuroscience). He will serve as a point of contact for department chairs and other

BC in the Media

department leaders on personnel issues, and help in reviewing faculty search requests, faculty hiring, faculty evaluation and merit review, new graduate programs, working with departments on strategic planning, and supporting research.

A BC faculty member since 2015, Baxter is an award-winning geochemist interested in the broad processes occurring within and between the Earth’s crust, mantle, and surface, and who seeks to unravel the history of the planet, as well as predict certain aspects of its future. Baxter and his students have done field research throughout New England as well as in California, Ontario, Austria, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Scotland, the Greek Isles, and China. He also is the creator and host of the YouTube series “Every Rock Has a Story” aimed at inspiring curiosity about, and responsibility for, the Earth among schoolchildren and helping them see themselves as scientists.

From 2016-2022, he served as chair of the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department where he oversaw the launch of the department’s doctoral program.

“I’m honored and excited to take on this new role and to help support the sciences at BC,” said Baxter, who participated in BC’s Ignatian Leadership Development Program. “We want to think strategically about where we want to be five, 10 years down the road in terms of STEM. There is great interest in working together, being more collaborative, more efficient, more interdisciplinary. That takes consistent attention and creative thought.”

Baxter says the creation of this role speaks to the University’s commitment to the sciences. “Our designation as a R1 university means we engage in high-quality research and scientific inquiry, but doing science at BC is more distinctive.

“My job is to creatively explore ways in which our research, teaching, and service can be integrated with student formation and serve the common good beyond the STEM disciplines and beyond the walls of campus.”

The rise of artificial intelligence in employment decisions is prompting some American lawmakers to act to curb its power in the workplace.

Prof.  Sam Ransbotham  (CSOM) offered comments on the topic to Bloomberg Law.

Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences

alumna  Christine Lenahan ’23, one of two recent grads serving as O’Hare Postgraduate Fellows at America Media, published a piece in America Magazine on her experience with Boston College’s Kairos retreat, and how it made her rethink her own vision of God.

Prof. Kent Greenfield (Law) spoke with Newsweek on the Supreme Court and a case challenging Donald Trump’s candidacy under the 14th Amendment’s disqualification clause.

A Suffolk Superior Court vacated the murder conviction of Thomas Rosa, a client of the Boston College Innocence Program and New England Innocence Project who spent 34 years in prison. The story was covered by The Boston Globe, CBS News, WCVB-TV Boston, GBH News, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, and the Associated Press.

Sightings of aerial luminous phenomena above Morocco, often observed during earthquakes, are being shared on-

Jobs

The following are among the recent positions posted by the Department of Human Resources. For more information on employment opportunities at Boston College, see www.bc.edu/jobs or scan the QR code at right.

Assistant Director, Corporate Sponsorships

Assistant/Associate Director, Parent Leadership Giving

Software Release Analyst

Conservation & Preservation Manager

Dining Services Assistant Manager

Evening Access Services Assistant

Facilities Assistant

Research Assistant

Associate Director, Communications and Marketing

Life Skills Coordinator

Public Safety Dispatcher

Staff Psychologist or Staff Social Worker/Clinician

Design & Prototyping Manager

Procurement and Vendor Specialist

line. Earthquake researcher Prof. John Ebel  (Earth and Environmental Sciences) provided them to The New York Times.

China, which now has one of the world’s largest, most important, and increasingly productive academic systems, must be integrated into world science, according to Professors Emeritus and Distinguished Fellows  Philip G. Altbach and  Hans de Wit  of the Boston College Center for International Higher Education, who published a piece in University World News.

A late-summer surge in COVID-19 cases has spurred the return of debate about a possible national mask mandate. Global Public Health Program Director  Philip Landrigan, M.D., weighed in for  USA Today.

The United Auto Workers’ strategy is designed to keep companies guessing, but also carries some risks, according to Concurrent Professor of Law and Philosophy Thomas Kohler, who spoke with The Wall Street Journal.

Research by Asst. Prof. Vicki Losick (Biology) on polyploid cells, which have extra copies of their genomes and may help tissues respond to injuries—and species survive cataclysmic events—was featured in Science magazine

The McMullen Museum of Art “Gateway to Himalayan Art” exhibition was featured by Art Daily.

Senior Assistant Director, Financial Aid

Special Education Teacher

Speech & Language Pathology Assistant

Assistant or Associate Director, Organizational Effectiveness

Service Center Representative, School of Theology & Ministry

Fiscal & Events Specialist, Center for Centers

Assistant Director, Admissions

Research Technician

Assistant Director, Counseling Practicum Experience

Staff Nurse

Post-doctoral Research Fellow (multiple positions)

The Career Center sponsored the Finance, Consulting, Marketing, and Business Career Fair on September 15 in the Connell Recreation Center. The event was open to undergraduates of all class years and majors.

photo by lee pellegrini

Richardson

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has been a little odd. It began as an attempt to write a number of short essays to explain the questions everyone asks me on what is pretty much a daily basis: When did the parties switch sides, how does the Electoral College work, what was the Southern Strategy, how did we get here, are we really in danger of losing our democracy, how do we save it? But as I wrote those essays, it became clear I was making a larger argument about how we got here, where “here” is, and how we get out of this moment.

After finishing a draft, I put it away for a few months, and when I came back to it, I found a very different argument in it than I had set out to write. What had emerged was a story about the use of language and a false history to undermine democracy and how marginalized people have expanded our democracy by insisting on the principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence: the right to be treated equally before the law and the right to have a say in our government.

So I threw out the first draft and rewrote about 80 percent of it, telling the story of how a small group of people used rhetoric and false history to undermine our democracy; how former President Trump and his supporters used an authoritarian history to claim there was a perfect past to get back to, and the only way to do that was to follow timeless laws Trump’s opponents refused to honor; and how we can reclaim and expand our democracy by recognizing true history—democratic history— acknowledging that democracy is always under construction and that we have been able to preserve and expand it in the U.S. because marginalized Americans have always kept the Declaration of Independence front and center.

The timeline for Democracy Awakening goes about to the end of 2022. It must’ve been tempting to wait a little longer to see what would happen next. If you could’ve added an “epilogue,” what developments would you’ve touched on?

Richardson: Almost all of what we are seeing around us is foreshadowed in the book because it is just a continuation of stories that have been going on for a very long time. What I wish I could have written about—and absolutely would in an epilogue—is the importance of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s statement “I don’t need a ride; I need more ammunition,” and the significance of Ukrainian resistance to Russia’s invasion. In conjunction with that, I would write about what seems to me to be an emergence of a movement here in the U.S. of workers, young Americans, suburban women, and so on, pushing back against the conditions under which those populations have fallen behind over the past 40 years.

The more one reads about the Civil War’s aftermath, the more it seems that the U.S. missed a golden opportunity to set a course for enduring racial/social equality. Was this inevitable? Could the U.S. have achieved both accountability and reconciliation with the former Con-

federacy?

Richardson: Absolutely. The problem in the aftermath of the Civil War was that the government never held anyone accountable for their attempt to destroy the United States. When President Andrew Johnson, who took over after John Wilkes Booth murdered Abraham Lincoln, pardoned all but about 1,500 of the leaders who launched an insurrection and tried to create their own nation, and then welcomed them back into Congress to make laws for the people whom they had been shooting at just months before, he made their ideology acceptable. That ideology has been behind anti-American sentiment ever since. Virtually any other president would have prosecuted the ringleaders and, as they say, made treason odious. That would have changed the Reconstruction dynamic— and, for that matter, the dynamic of the rest of American history—dramatically.

lution, and its significance?

Richardson: I actually think the important transformation between the parties comes in response to the 1965 Voting Rights Act. When the Democrats under FDR and then especially under Harry S. Truman begin to move toward civil rights, racist southern Democrats become homeless. Led By South Carolina’s Strom Thurmond, they swing behind the Republicans when Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater runs for president in 1964, but it is not clear they’ll stay there. In 1968, Republican candidate Richard Nixon courts Thurmond, promising he’ll back off on federal protection of desegregation. That’s the Southern Strategy, and it injects old southern racism into the Republican Party, a poison from which it has never recovered.

After 1965, the Democrats, in contrast, move to embrace democracy, including Black voting. That process is messy and op-

“I often encounter people who are very angry about what I say, but my answer is always, ‘OK, great! This is how factbased argument is supposed to work! Show me your sources—and they must be reputable—and we’ll talk about them.’ They virtually never respond, or else they become obsessed with sending me right-wing screeds, unfortunately. I usually get along fine with actual scholars, even those from the far political poles, because we are all working in fact-based history.”

I am not always convinced by their arguments any more than they are by mine. Those scholars from both sides have definitely led me into scholarship I would not have otherwise discovered.

What does happen, though, is that people—usually not pundits, but ordinary people who follow the news—point to things I do not discuss, and suggest those things complicate what I write. The funny thing is that I usually agree with their identification of things I don’t talk about very often, and more often than not I agree with them that it’s an important point. But I focus on people in power or who are changing society, so I often leave those complications unexplored.

For me, that’s the more interesting issue. What we cannot see is what each generation later discovers and uses to build on our work. There are at least two younger scholars out there right now who are implicitly criticizing some of my early work because they have found entirely new ways to look at the world. Honestly, I think they’re right, and I find that very exciting. That’s the way it’s supposed to work.

It seems that this criticism goes to the whole question of what exactly an historian is, and does.

The latter half of the 19th century sometimes seems a missing piece in the collective American memory, except perhaps for the settlement of the Old West and the general industrialization of the U.S. Might that account for confusion about how “we won the Civil War” yet civil rights continued to be an issue a century later?

Richardson: That’s a little hard for me to answer just because my work centers on the late 19th century, so it certainly seems everywhere to me. I will note that at least until recently, that period tended to be written in textbooks by theme—industrialization, the West, reform movements—rather than chronologically, as the other periods are. That, I think, made it hard for people to have a clear story in their heads of what was actually going on. I mean, it is crucially important that the Supreme Court decides the Minor v. Happersett case saying that citizenship does not necessarily give people the right to vote in 1875, opening the way for white Southerners to keep Black Americans from voting in 1876. But since Minor was about women’s suffrage and “redemption” was about Black rights, they often weren’t included in the same narrative, so it was hard to understand the period as a national story, rather than as a bunch of different stories.

One of the many threads running through Democracy Awakening is the gradual change and recasting of the Democratic and Republican parties. Do contemporary Americans grasp this evo-

erates by fits and starts, but it never stops, with the 1993 so-called Motor-Voter Act making it easier to register to vote a sign of that continuing process. The Biden administration seems to me the one that has finally begun to grapple with the reality of what multiracial democracy means, yielding an administration with more women than men in it, and with more Black Americans and people of color in administration positions than in any administration in history. It’s a fascinating moment.

You’ve encountered your share of criticism, and accusations of biased analysis and selective use of source material. How do respond to such views?

Richardson: One of the things about my work that I think is hard to argue with is that it is deeply researched and I provide links to sources. Indeed, this book was my first work ever that was intended not to have any notes—and if you look you can see what my version of “not any notes” looks like.

I often encounter people who are very angry about what I say, but my answer is always, “OK, great! This is how factbased argument is supposed to work! Show me your sources—and they must be reputable—and we’ll talk about them.” They virtually never respond, or else they become obsessed with sending me rightwing screeds, unfortunately. I usually get along fine with actual scholars, even those from the far political poles, because we are all working in fact-based history. I have learned a lot from those people, although

Richardson: History is the study of how and why societies change, and historians examine societies closely to explain that change. But I think what you’re asking is for me to explain the link between what I do and history. There are two ways to think about how historians should inform the public about modern politics. One, embraced by people like Arthur Schlesinger Jr., says that historians should use the past to advocate for the policies of an administration. The other, articulated by the great historian John Hope Franklin, says that historians should use the past to illuminate the present, without regard to a specific political stance. I try to do the latter, with the obvious position that I am a fervent defender of democracy. Right now, the leadership of the Republican Party has abandoned democracy, which means I am often standing against that party.

I do think it’s interesting that many people read into my work political positions that are not actually the ones I hold. Acknowledging that something has happened and explaining how it works does not mean you are in favor of it or against it. You are just saying it happened.

One point you make in Democracy Awakening is that American history is full of landmark events precipitated by those who were disenfranchised or disadvantaged because of their ethnicity, gender, national origin, poverty, or other factors: Wong Kim Ark, Mary Church Terrell, Ida B. Wells, Quanah Parker. Does this give you confidence for the future of America?

Richardson: I will say that I have huge faith in our young people, whose experience of the world is entirely different than someone of my generation: hiding during active shooter drills; fearing climate change; using the Internet instinctively; and understanding race and gender entirely differently than older Americans. I have every expectation they are going to do great things.

photo by kelly davidson