T he B oston C ollege
Chronicle march 15, 2012
3
By Sean Smith Chronicle Editor
The first thing you should know about the new Undergraduate Government of Boston College leadership team, says UGBC Presidentelect Christopher Osnato, is that they’re passionate about Boston College. “We really care a lot about BC, and the people in it,” said Osnato, who along with his vice-president, fellow junior Kudzai Taziva, narrowly won the UGBC election last month over the tandem of juniors Vanessa Gomez and Jennifer Wanandi. “Going here has been a tremendously rewarding experience for us, and we’ve wanted to give something back to the University community. We’re excited to have that opportunity.” Osnato and Taziva will now seek to realize their vision for a Boston College where undergraduates feel more of a connection to one another, as well as to their student government. They also hope to foster improvements in services and resources for academic advising and off-campus life, among other areas. “Our overall desire is to create a more powerful sense of community,” says Osnato. “BC is a strong academic place, and students are focused on their involvement in academics as well as sports, or music, or other extracurricular activities. That’s a great thing, but our feeling is, let’s not get too immersed in our own worlds — let’s broaden our horizons and make connections with one another.” The time to start developing
Lee Pellegrini
Osnato, Taziva Take UGBC Election GSSW Moves Up to 10th
The next UGBC president, Christopher Osnato (left), and vice-president, Kudzai Taziva.
these bonds is the beginning of freshman year, says Osnato, who recalls cookouts and other social activities held during orientation as models for friendship building. “You have your roommate, of course, but why not get to know your residence hall floor, your dorm, and the part of campus where your dorm is? It makes the University feel a little smaller, more familiar.” Osnato, in addition to UGBC, has served on the Quality of Student Life Committee and the Emerging Leaders Program, and volunteered off-campus at the Boston Food Bank and as an elementary school tutor. Taziva, who joined the UGBC Senate as a freshman, has been involved with the AHANA Leadership Council and Relay for Life. The new UGBC leaders’ relationship dates practically from their arrival at BC: They were in the same freshmen orientation session, and both lived on Newton Campus their first years. As they became active in UGBC, the two found themselves
working together on many initiatives and tasks. So, late last semester, as the 2012 UGBC elections loomed, Osnato and Taziva began thinking, then talking, about running together. “About a week after New Year’s, we just said, ‘Let’s go for it,’” recalls Osnato, a political science and communication major from Clark, NJ, who also was president of his high school student government. Osnato believes he and Taziva, a philosophy and marketing major from Kingston, NY, represent an ideal combination of characteristics and traits. “I think we’re both charismatic and communicate very well with others. Kudzai is a fantastic organizer, and he works about a mile ahead of me. He brings his ideas, I bring my passion, and this blend is something, I feel, that will carry well for us next year.” Osnato acknowledges that, at a time when many Americans voice pessimism and disillusionment over the country’s politics, public service at most any level might seem a dubious undertaking. But that doesn’t make it any less critical, he says. “I talk to people, I hear the issues that concern them, and I just feel someone should represent their interests,” says Osnato, who plans to go to law school and foresees, eventually, involvement in politics. “When it comes to inspiration, my parents are right at the top of the list. My mother is a teacher, my father is a plumber, and they’ve worked so hard to make college possible for me. They’ve invested in me, just as BC has invested in me, and I want to do something to pay it back.”
‘Green Week’ to Emphasize Campus Conservation Boston College will continue its on-going emphasis on energy conservation with a “Green Week” campaign on campus from March 19-23. “Green Week” is sponsored by the Undergraduate Government of Boston College and the Eco Pledge group along with the University’s Sustainability program office. In addition to a campus-wide information effort, “Green Week” will feature an Operations Sustainability Forum on March 20 at 4:30 p.m. at Fulton Hall. This event will include operations representatives from the Facilities Services, Dining Services, Information Technology, Procurement, Transportation and Parking, Residential Life and Athletics departments who will focus on each division’s current and future sustainability efforts and initiatives. The forum is open to all members of the University community. In a recent on-campus energy-
savings competition, residents of Edmonds Hall decreased electricity consumption in their building by 3.4 percent — the most of any dormitory building. Residents will be treated to a pizza party
and t-shirts from the Office of Sustainability for being the top energy savers on campus. See /www.bc.edu/sustainability for more informaton. —Reid Oslin
BC Leads US ‘RecycleMania’ Challenge Boston College often occupies a familiar perch at the top of many national athletic and academic ranking lists – but the University is also the nation’s collegiate leader in per capita recycling, according to recent statistics published by RecycleMania, an association of 605 American and Canadian colleges and universities committed to improving waste reduction activities on their campuses. RecycleMania is a friendly competition and benchmarking tool that measures each participating school’s recycling efforts over an eight-week period each spring. After three weeks of measurement, members of the BC community are credited for recycling 23.42 pounds of waste materials for each of the University’s combined student and employee population of nearly 16,000 people. Boston College is currently ranked third in RecycleMania’s “Gorilla Prize” division, which tracks each school’s gross tonnage of combined recycled paper, cardboard, bottles and cans, regardless of campus population size. —Reid Oslin
in US News Rankings By Ed Hayward Writer
Staff
The Graduate School of Social Work became Boston College’s first graduate school to earn a Top 10 ranking in the US News & World Report ratings of the nation’s best graduate schools. GSSW climbed to 10th on the most recent list of the country’s best graduate schools of social work, which was released this week by US News, fulfilling an objective of school leadership, faculty and staff, according to GSSW Dean Alberto Godenzi. “In 2004, GSSW faculty and staff set an ambitious goal: to become a top 10 social work program,” said Godenzi, who has served as dean since 2001. “Eight years later, colleagues from our sister schools have recognized GSSW’s remarkable trajectory and ranked us No. 10.” The Lynch School of Education retained its ranking among the top 20 schools of education, ranking 18 and maintaining its place as the toprated Catholic school of education. The Carroll School of Management graduate school ranked 37 overall. Among its programs, the part-time MBA program ranked 28 nationally. Boston College Law School maintained its place within the top 30 law schools, ranking 29 nation-
ally. Graduate schools of nursing were not reviewed this year; the Connell School graduate program retains last year’s placement at 21. GSSW’s best-ever ranking for a BC graduate school coincides with the academic year marking the school’s 75th anniversary. “This new milestone reflects the the amazing accomplishments of faculty, staff, students, and alumni, and our strong relationships with local and global partners,” said Godenzi. GSSW marked the start of its dodrancentennial anniversary last September with a keynote speech by Victoria Reggie Kennedy and has launched new initiatives designed to broaden the practice of social work, the skill sets of future graduates and respond to the need for new and innovative solutions to society’s most intractable problems. Godenzi said the US News ranking would bolster the school’s efforts to seek out solutions that improve the lives of people in Boston and in communities around the world. “We see this recognition as a call to deepen our understanding of social problems, to advance our imagination in pursuit of innovative solutions, and to increase our efforts to empower people and communities at the margins,” said Godenzi. “We thank Boston College for investing in social work education.”
No Answers in Garcia Search A massive search conducted by the Boston College Police Department and other local law enforcement agencies has failed to yield any additional answers on the whereabouts of Franco Garcia, a student in the College of Advancing Studies who disappeared on Feb. 22 after spending the evening with friends in a Cleveland Circle nightspot. “BCPD officers have conducted numerous searches throughout the campus and surrounding areas,” said John M. King, the University’s director of public safety and chief of police. “BCPD, local and state police agencies have continued to work collaboratively on this investigation and inter-agency cooperation has been exceptional.” In addition to the police efforts, which included an underwater search of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir by the State Police Dive Team, several campus departments – including the Student Affairs and Campus Ministry – have offered outreach programs to channel student support and concern for Garcia.
Franco Garcia
Last Sunday night, students returning from their spring vacation were asked to join Garcia’s family in a symbolic walk from the reservoir to Cleveland Circle and back. Masses said on campus in recent weeks have been offered for the safe return of the 21-yearold West Newton native. Anyone with information that may be helpful to the investigation is asked to contact the Newton Police at 617-796-2100. —Reid Oslin