The Heights, January 21, 2020

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THE

HEIGHTS For a Greater Boston College- est.1919

THE HEIGHTS

www.bcheights.com

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

General Chemistry Professor Neil M. Wolfman Dies at Age 66 By Scott Baker News Editor

Neil Wolfman, a chemistry professor at Boston College, died on Wednesday, according to a family-run blog that provided updates on Wolfman’s health to family, friends, and former students. He was 66. Wolfman went on medical leave from BC at the beginning of the 2019 spring semester after being diagnosed with cancer, returning briefly in the beginning of the fall. “Professor Wolfman was an incredible man,” said Tiffany Brooks, MCAS ’21, in a written tribute to Wolfman. “He always made sure to check in with me and meet with me, even after my time in his class was over. I will forever be grateful for his advice.” Wolfman, who taught general chemistry, instructed many students throughout his years at BC, particularly those in the chemistry department or on the pre-med track. “When I was applying to medical schools, Professor Wolfman gave me his home and cell number saying that he had to be the third phone call when I got accepted after calling my mom and dad,” said Kanwal Ojha, BC ’19, in a written tribute. “The minute I gave him that phone call, he dropped what he was doing in his busy schedule to find me on campus. After he found me and

gave me a big hug, I looked up at him and realized that he had tears in his eyes. “To think that I am just one out of the hundreds of students who Professor Wolfman was so invested in speaks volumes of the lives that he touched and the immense legacy that he has left.” The son of Holocaust survivors, Wolfman was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. and grew up in the Bronx. After graduating from the Bronx High School of Science in New York City, he attended New York University as an undergraduate before moving on to Cornell University for his master’s degree and a doctorate in biophysical chemistry. After graduating, Wolfman began his career in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry. He worked at Pfizer Inc. for 29 years. Wolfman began to feel unsatisfied with his job, he said in a 2014 interview with The Heights. He decided then to return to academia, applying for a part-time position at every university in the Boston area. Wolfman worked as a parttime professor until he became full time in 2013 after retiring from Pfizer. In the 2014 interview, Wolfman said that he fell in love with chemistry at 7 years old after watching an M&M’s dye dissolve in club soda. “I thought, ‘That’s it,’” he said. “I want to dissolve M&M’s in club soda for the rest

of my life.” Just as the M&M’s experiment helped Wolfman along his career path, Wolfman helped students find their own path. “As a very lost senior, Professor Wolfman helped me find my way and my future career as a pediatric nurse practitioner,” said Courtney Gleason, CSON ’20, in a written tribute. “I sat in his office countless times asking for advice and trying to figure out what was important to me in my future and career. I graduate this May in honor of him, because I truly would not be where I am today without his support and guidance. Rest easy NW.” Sara Posada, BC ’18, wrote that Wolfman served as her mentor at BC and was the reason she is studying dentistry at Columbia University. Her first year at BC, she said, hit her hard, as she was living across the country from her family in California and needed to study harder than she ever had. “Spring semester of freshman year, I showed up at Professor Wolfman’s office to ask him for a letter of recommendation so that I could transfer schools,” Posada said. “I was terrified because I didn’t know him that well, and I was scraping by with average grades in his class. He welcomed me in, and despite not knowing me, took the time to ask me about myself and make me feel

EMILY SADEGHIAN / HEIGHTS ARCHIVES

comfortable. Spoiler: I ended up staying at BC, and Professor Wolfman became the person I would go to whenever I wanted any advice or guidance. “He was always honest but caring. He had the best stories to tell and helped me achieve my goals whenever he could, whether it was by giving me someone’s email, writing me a letter of recommendation, putting in a good word for me, or just boosting my confidence. Signing up for Professor Wolfman’s class was the best decision I made at BC, and I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to spend some time

with this amazing, caring, generous man.” In his interview with The Heights, Wolfman described his motto: “Try to do the right thing.” “I can’t say that I’m successful in every single circumstance,” Wolfman said in the interview. “I want to try to do the right thing. I feel that my job here goes beyond teaching the class. I feel like my job here is to enable the success of as many kids as possible, however they define success. I can get no greater satisfaction than that.”

See Wolfman, A3

BC, QuestBridge to Begin Partnership CAB Introduces Boston The organization City Limits Concert matches prospective

low-income students.

By Jack Miller

Heights Senior Staff

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions announced on Thursday that Boston College will partner with QuestBridge, a nonprofit organization that helps low-income students apply to colleges and universities, beginning with the class of 2025. Director of Undergraduate Admissions Grant Gosselin said in an interview with The Heights that the QuestBridge partnership will help an underserved population find their way to BC. “We are looking to always continue to diversify our student body to work toward our efforts around social mobility and helping students continue to find great matches in the college process,” Gosselin said.

The organization successfully placed over 2,000 students from families earning less than $65,000 in 2019—QuestBridge’s 15th year of operation—according to a QuestBridge release. Just over 15 percent of BC students come from such families—the bottom 60 percent of the national income scale, according to a 2017 study by the New York Times. The same study found that about 16 percent of BC students come from families in the top 1 percent, meaning an annual income of $650,000 or more. “We view our responsibility as trying to bring together a class every year that fully represents the world and the country,” Gosselin said. “[Low-income students] are a population that can be difficult to reach, and so QuestBridge seems like the perfect partner for us to try to identify these top students.” Participants must achieve a PSAT or SAT score above 1310 or an ACT score above 28—the 87th and 88th percentile of respective SAT and ACT test-takers,

according to 2019 CollegeBoard and ACT data. “As a proud alumna, I am thrilled that QuestBridge Scholars will have the opportunity to learn, grow, and develop into engaged world citizens within BC’s deep traditions of educating the whole person and living in service to others,” said Miriam Lee, QuestBridge’s Chief Operating Officer and BC ’01, in an email to The Heights. “We are grateful for BC’s commitment to access for outstanding students from low-income backgrounds, and look forward to partnering together to provide life-changing opportunities for our students on the Heights,” Lee added. QuestBridge primarily operates through its matching program, which asks participants to create a ranked list of partner schools, and the schools in turn rank QuestBridge applicants’ desirability. Gosselin said that the matching process can widen the

See QuestBridge, A2

This weekend’s winter concert will take the place of Plexapalooza. By Lauren Wittenmyer Copy Editor

The Campus Activities Board’s (CAB) Boston City Limits concert, which will take place on Saturday at 8 p.m., aims to bring more inclusivity to campus than concerts in the past with its “Electric Soul” theme, according to a statement posted on the CAB Facebook page. Featuring R&B artist DaniLeigh as this year’s headliner, CAB said it hopes to make more students on campus feel included as it branches out to music genres and artists different from those that have been featured in the past. “Boston City Limits hopes to embrace

genres that have not been represented in recent years,” reads the statement. “Boston City Limits: Electric Soul is not only a concert, but an event dedicated to reaching communities on campus who have been traditionally disregarded and silenced. Regardless of ethnicity, religion, ability, gender, sexuality, or race, we want every person at Boston College to feel respected, heard, and seen.” CAB’s winter concert was previously known as Plexapalooza before the Flynn Recreation Complex—known as the “Plex”— was torn down and replaced with the Margot Connell Recreation Center over the summer. It has often featured EDM artists in the past, including RL Grime and Cheat Codes. With the demolition of the Plex, CAB

See BCL, A2

BC Electrician Files Suit Against University, Union Ardeshir Ansari alleged religious discrimination in the suit filed in Nov. By Jack Miller Heights Senior Staff

And Megan Kelly Asst. News Editor

MAGGIE DIPATRI / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Molly Makes Her Mark on Campus

The Labrador retriever puppy frequents the Quad, giving students a much-needed study break during the winter weekdays, see A8.

Ardeshir Ansari, a Boston College electrician, filed a religious discrimination lawsuit against the University and his union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 32BJ District 615, in November. The suit involves a policy in the collective bargaining agreement between the union and BC that requires the University to automatically deduct union dues from employees’ paychecks, according to court documents. Ansari, who is Muslim, objects to fi-

METRO

SPORTS

The Seaport’s “Snowport” embraces winter in Boston with festive activities such as ice skating.

This year’s iteration of the Battle of Commonwealth Avenue culminated in a 4-3 win for the Eagles.

A4

A12

THIS ISSUE

ARTS: Big Screen Blues

Compared to nearby schools, BC’s film scene is smaller and less visible................A10

See Ansari, A2

LET IT SNOWPORT

CROSSTOWN CLASH

INSIDE

nancially supporting the union and asked the union to divert his union fees to charity in October 2018, according to court documents. Though union members are typically required to pay dues, Ansari said he believes his religious objection to the union’s activities entitles him to accommodation from the SEUI and BC. In the Supreme Court case Beck v. Communication Workers of America (1988), employers and unions in collective bargaining agreements can require non-union employees to pay fees and dues necessary to fund their representation. Bruce Cameron, a Regent University law professor representing Ansari pro bono on behalf of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, declined to comment on Ansari’s specific objection to paying

FEATURES: John DiBello DiBello spent the second half of his junior year in Ecuador working in public health................ A8

INDEX

NEWS......................A2 MAGAZINE............ A8 Vol. CI, No. 1 © 2020, The Heights, Inc. METRO..................A4 ARTS.................... A9 www.bchelghts.com OPINIONS................... A6 SPORTS................ A12 69


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