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Dance Club and musician reveal alternate Irish celebrations, B8
The Boston College Dance Ensemble presented its spring showcase this weekend, A8
Men’s hockey was knocked out of the Hockey East Tournament by Notre Dame, B1
www.bcheights.com
HEIGHTS
THE
The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College
established
1919
Monday, March 17, 2014
Vol. XCV, No. 14
David Miele named to Sesquicentennial chair BY JULIE ORENSTEIN Assoc. News Editor David Miele, an assistant professor in the Lynch School of Education (LSOE), was not aware that the Sesquicentennial Challenge chair existed until January, when he was told that he was named to the endowed professorship. The first of up to 10 Boston College assistant professors to receive an endowed chair, Miele said the acknowledgment was a rare one for professors at an early stage in their careers. With the initiative, the University hopes to attract, retain, and support young faculty with their research and career development.
University to offer degree in envi. studies
“[It is] a support mechanism for promising faculty, to make sure they’re on the right trajectory,” Miele said. Each chair is funded with $1.5 million from University donors, including an anonymous donor who pledged to match $500,000 for every $1 million contributed by other benefactors. Miele’s chair was made possible by a donation from University Trustee John E. Buehler, BC ’69, and his family. Miele, who came to BC last fall, said that young professors stand to benefit from the endowed chairs especially due to recent cutbacks on federal grants for scientific research.
BY CONNOR FARLEY News Editor
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF NEWS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS
See Miele, A3
Miele was named the first assistant professor at BC to be awarded the endowed chair.
UGBC begins voting on disability bill SA puts forth task force bill to pursue disabilities advocacy
At the beginning of the 2014 academic year, the Boston College Environmental Studies Program (ESP) will offer a new major in environmental studies (ES)—a major that consists of an interdisciplinary curriculum focused on environmental sustainability. Although the program has previously only offered a minor, the newly created bachelor of arts degree aims to provide students with a more thorough understanding of environmental challenges from scientific, political, and cultural points of view through courses taught by a wide range faculty throughout the University. The major was approved upon academic review by the Office of the Provost and both the College and Graduate Schools of Arts and Sciences in January, and is now one of five interdisciplinary degrees offered at BC. “Our undergraduates have benefited from interdisciplinary majors like International Studies and Islamic Civilization and Societies over the last decade, and these programs have helped develop faculty collaborations in important areas,” said Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences David Quigley in statement to the Office of News and Public Affairs. “I’m
See ESP Major, A3
BY NATHAN MCGUIRE Asst. News Editor The Student Assembly (SA) decided in a preliminary vote last Tuesday to support legislation that will develop a disability awareness and advocacy task force, one month after Phoebe Fico, A&S ’16, wrote in a Letter to the editor to The Heights about the lack of handicap accessibility on campus. The resolution—sponsored by Dan Ibarrola, a senator representing the University’s seven political organizations and A&S ’15— will create an ad hoc committee to study BC’s policies regarding students with disabilities, with the hopes of creating a permanent disability advocacy board within UGBC’s division of diversity and inclusion. The legislation, slated for a final vote tomorrow night, is cosponsored by vice president-elect Chris Marchese, A&S ’15, and senators Bryan White, A&S ’15, and Olivia Hussey, A&S ’17. Fico—who has cerebral palsy and must navigate campus with crutches—applied earlier this semester to create a new student organization, the Disability Awareness Committee, but was deferred by UGBC’s Board of Student Organizations because the proposal was not complete. Ibarrola, who sits on the board, said Fico’s application needed more information about specific logistics before it could be officially recognized by UGBC. “I actually floated the idea when we were considering her application of making it part of the Division of Diversity and Inclusion, which is what [the] task force is trying to do now,” Ibarrola said of Fico’s proposed organization. “Basically, it would be somewhat of a leadership council like ALC or GLC.” In Fico’s Feb. 13 Letter to the Editor, she addressed the lack of disability advocacy on campus. When compared to other minority groups on campus, students with disabilities have little formalized advocacy, something she said leads the campus community to overlook disability issues. “Their problems are most of the time forgotten or even worse, pushed under the rug,” wrote Fico. At Boston College, there are two primary offices that serve the needs of students with disabilities—the Connors Family Learning Center, which supports students with learning disabilities, and the Disability Services Office, an office within the Dean of Students Office. The Disability Services Office is charged
See Disabilities Bill, A3
BC stays quiet on Donahue EMILY FAHEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR
At the first Women’s Summit last Saturday in Lyons Dining Hall, BC alumnae spoke to undergraduates on leadership roles and potential careers.
UGBC hosts first annual Women’s Summit Female undergraduates, alumnae gathered to talk leadership and career development BY JULIE ORENSTEIN Assoc. News Editor
More than 50 Boston College female undergraduates had the chance to network and gain insight on furthering their career interests on Saturday at the Boston College Women’s Summit, organized by UGBC’s Division of Student Initiatives. A leadership development seminar with expert Katie Kelley, BC ’97, opened the event, teaching participants about formulating a career vision and finding
fulfillment both professionally and personally. Roundtable discussions followed to consider Kelley’s key questions about career clarity, confidence, and entrepreneurial mindset, among other themes. Time for networking with fellow students and alumnae was spread throughout the day, which was centered on a panel with four female BC graduates who have thrived in varying facets of the business world. All based in New York City, the women shared experiences about transitioning out of BC into the work environment, learning to
find their own unique and influential voice, and designing meaningful lives outside of the office. Jessica Ann Morris, a strategic communications expert and BC ’97, emphasized the role networking played in establishing her career. “The biggest thing I could say in terms of how I got my first opportunity was networking, so if anyone is afraid of that word, get over it now,” Morris said. “Every opportunity that I had in my career came out of networking, not a job board, not a recruiter, but using the people that I knew.” The other panelists also pointed to find-
See Women’s Summit, A3
Griffin talks migration, African diaspora Columbia University’s Farah Griffin spoke at ‘New Directions’ series B Y C AROLYN F REEMAN Heights Staff
EMILY FAHEY / HEIGHTS EDITOR
Farah Griffin discussed the mobility of African American women last Thursday.
Mobility is a keyword in African American studies, and was expressed through various forms, like dance and writing, in the post-World War II era, said Farah Griffin, a professor of English and comparative literature and African American studies at Columbia University. Griffin spoke on the migration and mobility of African American women through movement during the World War II era in Devlin 101 last Thursday. Her talk was the final lecture in the New Directions in African Diaspora
Studies lecture series. Griffin’s work focuses on the African diaspora. She has edited several anthologies and written many books, including Who Set You Flowin’: The African American Migration Narrative and Harlem Nocturne: Women Artists and Progressive Politics During World War II, which are about the mobility of African Americans. Migration was often seen as an act of agency for those people who left an oppressive area for a presumably freer one, she said. “The African Diaspora is usually associated with moments of migration, moments of mobility,” she said. “In part, this was created by the Atlantic Slave Trade, which was a forced migration of peoples from one continent to
See Griffin, A3
BY AUSTIN TEDESCO Heights Editor With conflicting reports from media outlets and the athletic department, the status of the Boston College men’s basketball team head coach Steve Donahue is uncertain as of this publishing. Sports Illustrated reported last Thursday that Director of Athletics Brad Bates told Donahue that he would be returning to the team for the 2014-15 season. Donahue would thus be entering the fifth year of the sixyear contract he signed in April of 2010. Despite the initial report, there has been no official comment from BC on whether or not Donahue is returning. Contacted for comment on Friday afternoon, Associate Athletics Director Chris Cameron said that no official announcement had been made regarding Donahue’s future. Bates told the Boston Globe on Friday night that, “when we’re ready to make a public statement in the best interest of the program, we’ll do that.” Bates was also asked how he felt about the direction of the program. “The obvious answer is we’re not where we want to be,” he told the Globe. “Our University motto is ‘Ever to Excel’ and that’s where we want to be, whether it’s competitively or as scholars or as leaders and servers.’’ Donahue’s teams have posted a record of 54-76 during his four years in Chestnut Hill, including an NIT bid in his first season and no trips to the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles were projected to compete for a postseason bid this season, but those hopes vanished with their 8-24 record after going up against one of the country’s toughest schedules. Donahue made $1,001,551 during the 2011-12 season and $735,184 during the 2010-11 season, according to the University’s Fiscal Year IRS 990. Former head basketball coach Al Skinner, whose contract was terminated early when Donahue was hired, received $564,201 of “other reportable compensation” that year. Heights Editor Alex Fairchild contributed to this report.