The Heights, March 18, 2024

Eagles Earn First NIT Bid in Six Years

By SouraBh Gokarn Deputy Managing Editor

After an ACC Tournament quarterfinals run, Boston College men’s basketball has earned a bid to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) for the first time since the 2017–18 season.

The Eagles are set to play Providence on March 19 at 7 p.m. in the tournament’s first round.

Throughout the season, BC head coach Earl Grant said he expected a breakthrough. While the 2023–24 season lacked the headline-making wins of the prior campaign, the Eagles’ 13th NIT berth shows progress. Taking on its former Big East rival Providence for the first time since 2018, BC’s firstround matchup will be the program’s first taste of postseason play in six years. The Eagles’ previous NIT

appearance resulted in a first-round exit via a 79–62 loss to Western Kentucky—ultimately the high-water mark of the Jim Christian era.

Following BC’s recent ACC Tournament loss to Virginia, Grant expressed hope that their story wasn’t over.

“I hope our season will continue in the postseason,” Grant said.

Leading scorer Quinten Post, whose collegiate career is in its final

DAVIS / HEIGHTS STAFF

“For My Celtic Blood”

On Friday, students crammed into the Mods to celebrate the second annual ginger run. The students who participated in the race did so to honor their Celtic heritage and ginger camaraderie, they said.

See A2

Students React to Hillside Cafe Kiosks

By anGelina li Assoc. News Editor

Chloe Chaple walked into Hillside Cafe on Monday morning to find the entrance to the service area replaced by self-ordering kiosks.

“I was so shocked,” Chaple, MCAS ’25, said. “It was so disturbing to see, because you can’t socialize in line, you can’t get your own coffee, you can’t choose your own fruit, your own croissant.”

According to Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services Patricia Bando, the kiosks were brought to Hillside on Monday to reduce foot traffic in the food service area.

“On Monday, March 11, BC Dining Services converted the Hillside Shop into a 100% kiosk ordering service with hopes of expediting services without the huge queue lines in the servery,” Bando said in a statement to The Heights Bando did not respond to the

question of whether or not BC Dining plans to implement kiosks at other dining halls on campus in the near future.

Kristina Li, MCAS ’25, said she waited almost 30 minutes for her drink order, which she later learned was sold out when she asked one of the baristas.

“[The drink] was sold out, but I already paid,” Li said. “They never called my order number, and I waited about half an hour. When I asked why they did not call my number, they said it was sold out, but nobody notified me … they told me I could just pick a different drink.”

Li also said the space inside the old ordering area is no longer being used, which creates a crowd around the kiosks and tables.

“I think that the machines are not efficient because it makes more people gather outside without utilizing the space inside,” Li said.

See Kiosks, A2

days, also echoed Grant’s hope of playing in the NIT.

“I feel like we deserve a shot to play in the NIT, and I feel like we did enough to put ourselves in that spot,” Post said. “There’s some unfinished business for us.”

With their upcoming matchup against the Friars, the Eagles will get their wish and fight for their first postseason win since 2011 to improve their 17–13 all-time NIT record. n

Jamsexual Releases Its Debut Album

and brought to life the concept of being in a student band.

Its first house show in February 2022 was organized after the band paid the house owners $100 to perform.

From Jamsexual’s humble beginnings to becoming the winners of the annual BC’s Best competition that led them to share a stage with Aminé for Modstock and release a professionally recorded album, its journey shines a light toward their sincere passion for music and having fun.

And if there is one important thing about Jamsexual, it’s that they take having fun seriously.

“We’re like a middle school boys’ basketball team,” Barcy said.

and decided to transform into a rehearsal room.

The rest of the band, Gabe Biagi, lead singer and MCAS ’25, Michael McKane, bassist and MCAS ’25, Patrick Kelly, guitarist and MCAS ’24, John Regis, guitarist and MCAS ’24, and Ryan Barcy, keyboard player and MCAS ’25, would sneak into the minimally spacious yet functional room where the six members connected

The 11 tracks making up its first album, JAMSEXUAL , reflect this playful spirit.

“We don’t worry about conforming to a formula to make a song,” Castellano said. “We do this for fun. We’re not trying to make a living out of it. We’re just trying to put our art out there and just make it unique to us.”

KELLEN

Students React to New Ordering Kiosks at Hillside Cafe

Bando said the new ordering system is

and BC Dining is open to customer feedback.

“BC Dining Services converted the Hillside Shop into a 100% kiosk ordering service with hopes of expediting services without the huge queue lines in the servery.”

“Given that it is only day three, we are still measuring the virtual order system,” Bando said in the statement. “We welcome customer feedback and will further assess how the Hillside operation progresses in the coming weeks.”

Bloch Wang, MCAS ’24, said the kiosks made it harder to indicate the specific customizations she wanted in her order.

“I don’t like it because I like to go there and talk to [the employees] and tell them what I want,” Wang said. “With this machine, we can’t do customizations. Also, I think it costs more time than if you just order it.”

“I just think it kind of ruins the whole atmosphere.”

Chaple also said she noticed a decline in the quality of the food at Hillside and was unhappy with what she received.

“At first I tried I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt and I got my bagel,” Chaple said. “And it was terrible. It was smaller. It was whole grain. No warning. And honestly, I just think it kind of ruins the whole atmosphere.”

Camila Cora, MCAS ’25, said an important aspect of the cafe experience, which Hillside now

lacks, is the ability to talk to others in line.

“I would emphasize the no socializing in line,” Cora said. “I feel like there’s a different vibe to Hillside and now everybody’s stressed because when is your food gonna be out?”

While it may take some time

for students to adjust to using the kiosks at Hillside, Alex Felitto, CSOM ’24, said the kiosks are overall more efficient.

“I think it's not as bad as people think it is,” Felitto said. “I think ordering-wise, it's more effective because there's three people getting checked out ver-

sus one. I think it is creating a little bit of a backup in the front over there where people are waiting—they probably could have pushed those in so people waited in that area. But overall, I actually think it's gonna be a little bit more effective, but we'll see.” n

Second Annual Ginger Run Draws Strong Turnout

By AnnikA engelBreChT Asst. News Editor JACk BeCkmAn Asst. News Editor

Clad in four-leaf clover headbands and green attire, a throng of students crammed in between the Mods on Friday to watch Boston College’s second annual ginger run—a new but already cherished tradition.

“I love the fellowship of gingers here at Boston College’s campus,” said Alex Weingart, MCAS ’25. “It’s so much fun to be around everyone today, and you can tell everyone really wanted to be here.”

The run, which began at 5:30

p.m., started at Mod 16 and took runners on a course around the Mods, finishing near 30A.

Julia Galanek, MCAS ’25, said she felt supported by her friends and the enthusiasm they brought to spectating the event.

“I love the fellowship of gingers here at Boston College’s campus.”

“All my friends were here— they were all so excited for the run,” Galanek said. “We had a great time.”

Weingart said she enjoyed being a part of the run—especially because it was filmed by many spectators and shared widely across social media.

“It was amazing,” Weingart said. “Everyone was filming, and we kind of had our 10 minutes of fame. It was awesome.”

Paul DeJacimo, CSOM ’24, said the event was remarkably crowded with fellow gingers, causing him to trip near the finish line.

“It was actually so packed you couldn’t even run down the path,” DeJacimo said. “So it got pretty cramped, and I actually got tripped up at the end. Otherwise, great run.”

It is BC students’ Irish heritage that draws them to rally behind their red-headed brethren, according to DeJacimo.

“Everyone comes out,” DeJacimo said. “I feel like 60 percent of the school has some Irish in them, so it’s definitely a good day to rally behind the Irish heritage.”

“It got pretty cramped, and I actually got tripped up at the end. Otherwise, great run.”

In a new twist to the event, the Irish Society of BC set up a table near the finish line to hand out Irish candy, snacks, tote bags, and—above all else— potatoes.

Reilly O’Shaughnessy, CSOM ’24 and co-president of the Irish Society of Boston College, said that she and fellow co-president Sophia Maher, CSON ’24, opened up the table to celebrate all of the gingers at BC.

“The BC gingers obviously do the whole run, but we kind of discovered that Sophia’s Mod is right by the finish line,” O’Shaughnessy said. “We kind of just wanted to celebrate the run, the winners, all of the gingers.”

O'Shaughnessy said she felt the “Irish energy” while watch -

ing the run, and that BC is where she most strongly feels the support of Irish people, especially around St. Patrick's Day.

“[There was] great Irish energy,” O’Shaughnessy said. “It happens once a year where you really feel it, especially in Boston, especially at BC.”

In total, the Irish Society gave away three 15-pound bags of potatoes, according to Maher.

“We had potatoes ready, so we figured it was great timing that we do this now,” Maher said.

Josie Beer, a junior and an exchange student from England, said the ginger run provided a strong display of the BC community’s unity and enthusiasm.

“This has been—coming from England—the most beautiful sight of American camaraderie that I’ve ever experienced,” Beer said.

Beer said that she ran the race to honor her Celtic heritage.

“[I ran] for the gingers—for my Celtic blood,” Beer said.

After the race, Galanek expressed how much she enjoys being a part of the ginger community at BC.

“Honestly, I love being ginger at BC,” Galanick said. “There’s so many gingers here— it’s great.”

Weingart concurred.

“I feel so welcomed and accepted,” she said. n

Kim Stresses Importance of Relationship Building

of their “Lunch with a Leader” event series. Kim shared stories from college to his current position managing apps such as Tinder, Hinge, Match, Meetic, Hyperconnect, and more. During his time at BC, Kim said he built a strong community by bringing students together and organizing gaming tournaments between dorms.

“The reason that I loved video games so much growing up was the human connection that I [could] create with my older sister,” Kim said. “I always looked up to [her], and video games really brought that feeling of connection and that shared interest.”

The Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics hosted Kim in the Fulton Honors Library on Friday as part

“We’ve played FIFA or Madden or NHL hockey … and that’s when I felt like so alive in this great community of competitive and well rounded people,” said Kim. Kim also recounted a class presentation he and his former classmate delivered in which they invited their friend, a “[video gaming] wizard,” to play games live alongside their talk in the class lecture hall.

“In the finale, when I was like,

‘Multi-billion dollar revenue business,’ he had this Mario move that was insane, and the whole place just went nuts,” Kim said. “I got a standing ovation.”

After BC, Kim moved to California to join a San Diego-based tech company, Qualcomm, where he said he entered a dark period of his life, navigating a new city without friends or family.

“The one thing that you can take away from this talk is that life is a roller coaster, and you have to endure the tough times to make it through,” Kim said.

Kim went on to join the Walt Disney Company for a few years, before developing a billion dollar business at Electronic Arts (EA), after which he said he felt ready to retire.

“My plan was like, I’m not going to work anymore,” said Kim. “I’m just going to buy a house on the beach, chill out with my family, focus on fatherhood, and all that stuff. I learned within three weeks that was not the lifestyle. I failed utterly at retirement.”

Now, Kim said his position at Match Group allows him to continue building purposeful relationships that create positive experiences for people around the world.

“This quest of wellness, happiness—it really comes down to those moments,” said Kim. “Walking on campus feeling that vibe of a community. That moment, like I saw my wife across the room. That’s a human connection that has led to unimaginable amounts of happiness and content, stability … so that started my journey of like

becoming CEO of the company.”

Kim also said networking is not just within reach for extroverts, but also quieter individuals, adding that public speaking is not an inherent skill to him.

It’s like a video game,” Kim said. “You only have a certain amount of extroverted energy … it’s hard to do, but it’s worth it … building it over time, practicing like how you do any sport.”

Concluding his talk, Kim emphasized the importance of relationships in both business and personal life.

“What I love to do is collect experiences and connections,” Kim said.

“I have [an] epic or legendary squad of mentors, incredible people that I could call on at any moment or text in any moment, and they’ll be there for me.” n

Junior

KELLEN DAVIS / HEIGHTS STAFF

BC community members gathered at the Mods to watch the second annual ginger run on Friday

BC Dining implemented the new self-ordering kiosks at Hillside Cafe on Monday morning.

Kiosks, from A1

Senate Talks Planned Construction Projects

By Jack Beckman Asst. News Editor

Boston College is planning to tear down the Quonset Hut on Newton Campus to pave way for a new athletic support building with fitness facilities, Ryan Milligan, MCAS ’26, shared at the UGBC Senate meeting on Tuesday night.

“They’re knocking down the Hut and they’re replacing it with a new athletic support building, so that’s going to be a major update on the Newton campus,” Milligan said.

Milligan, academic affairs committee chair, shared updates from a recent Provost Advisory Committee meeting in which Michael Lochhead, executive vice president, and John Burke, financial vice president and treasurer, shared developments on campus construction and renovation projects that the University hopes to complete within the next four to six years.

Plans are in place to renovate the facades of McElroy Commons and Carney Hall to better match the outward appearance of other buildings on the Main Quad like

Altindis

By annika engelBrechT Asst. News Editor

Stokes Hall, Milligan said.

“They’re planning on renovating both to fit more of the aesthetic that the academic quad has, so it’ll be the cobblestone with the green roof,” Milligan said.

In the more immediate future, a new building on the Brighton Campus will be constructed to house Catholic documents and archival materials from around the country, Milligan said.

“It’s going to be a place where BC hosts a lot of the national Catholic documents that exist throughout the country,” Milligan said.

The building—officially named the Catholic Religious Archives— will tentatively be situated on a plot of land north of the Theology and Ministry Library, according to a proposal submitted to the Boston Planning & Development Agency.

Milligan also provided an update on admission statistics for the class of 2028, which he said includes 112 QuestBridge scholars—up from 98 in the class of 2027.

“We’re number two in the partners for QuestBridge,” Milligan said. “In the first year, we matched 40 students but we’ve now matched

112 students in the class of 2028.”

Various student senators expressed concerns that the increase of QuestBridge scholars might strain existing resources, particularly in the Pine Manor Institute for Student Success (PMI).

“If we’re only equipped to handle 40 students per class—like it was the beginning of the program—and now we are almost triple that, we definitely need to

make up for that in the resources being provided by the school, and it wouldn’t be fair to just dump it on PMI and hope that they take care of it,” said Addie Weiss, student senator and MCAS ’27. Student senators also expressed interest in inviting representatives from the Office of Global Education to a future meeting to discuss BC’s study abroad tuition policy, which requires students to

pay full BC tuition while abroad, even if their host institution’s tuition is cheaper.

“I think that’s why they instituted the policy—to make it equitable and accessible for people who would not otherwise be able to afford studying abroad,” said Meghan Heckelman, UGBC vice president and LSEHD ’25. “But I think there’s still lingering questions about is this the best way.” n

Awarded $2.5 Million Grant for Insulin Study

Assistant Professor of Biology Emrah Altindis felt incredibly grateful for the members of his lab when he found out he had been awarded a $2.5 million grant from the National Institute of Health (NIH) to study viral insulins and their cancer implications.

“I was thrilled because it was also a relief,” Altindis said. “I’m also grateful to the people in my lab and all the collaborators because all these science projects are teamwork, and it couldn’t happen without our collaborators.”

In 2014, Altindis discovered viral insulins as a postdoctoral fellow at the Joslin Diabetes Center. There, he realized that viruses mimicked hormones, including insulin receptors and the IGF-1 receptor, both of which impact diseases like cancer, he said.

“I learned about the central role of insulin in type 1 diabetes, and I thought that there might be some microbes within insulin,” Altindis said.

“So based on this, I made some bioinformatics searches, and we were so surprised to discover three viruses that time—and six now—and viral insulins.”

Viral insulins bind to both of the receptors and stimulate signal pathways, which activate various responses in the body, Altindis said. His research, however, found two of the viruses can inhibit IGF1.

“We also realized that two of the six viral insulins, they bind to the IGF-1 receptor,” Altindis said.

“However, instead of activating it, they inhibit the IGF-1 receptor.

So researchers have been trying to find a specific inhibitor for this receptor for the last three or four decades, and whatever they identified as an inhibitor for IGF-1 receptor also inhibited insulin receptors. And because of this cross-reaction, hundreds of clinical trials failed.”

Welkin Johnson, chair of the Boston College biology department, said Altindis’s NIH grant reflects the quality of his research.

“If a grant is scored well

and gets awarded, it means that our colleagues and peers across the country have independently deemed the work that Dr. Altindis is doing as being in the top echelon,” Johnson said. “It’s an outside judgment that this work is really important and should be funded.”

Altindis said that he hopes to use the grant to research why inhibiting the hormone IGF-1 also causes insulin inhibition.

“With this grant, our goal is to understand the mechanism of this inhibition and to apply whatever we identify here to cancer research to determine if we can inhibit the IGF-1 receptor in breast cancer and stop this migration, invasion, and proliferation,” Altindis said.

The second part of Altindis’ research is applying the inhibition mechanism to human diseases and their treatments, he said.

“Goal two is to apply this [knowledge] to IGF-1 receptor-related human diseases, and the first one that comes to my mind is cancer,” Altindis said.

But the discovery of an inhib-

itor wouldn’t just have implications for the treatment of cancer— it could be game-changing for several different diseases as well, Altindis said. Graves’ disease, for example, currently only has one approved treatment, which costs around $400,000.

“The people with Graves’ disease have one FDA approved drug now,” Altindis said. “If we can develop a peptide-based inhibitor, it will be much more accessible.”

One challenge Altindis said he faces is resistance from the scientific community.

“When you come to a field with a new discovery, you see some resistance from the people understanding the new concept and accepting them,” Altindis said.

According to Altindis, as drugs become more exclusive and expensive, the scientific community should also be having more conversations about health equity.

“When we talk about new discoveries or potential implications in science, we always need to think about health equity,” Altindis said.

Altindis also stressed the growing need for medical aid and insulin for patients with type-1 and type-2 diabetes currently in Gaza.

“I believe that, as a scientist working on diabetes and insulin, it is my responsibility to talk about this and to emphasize that we need a ceasefire,” Altindis said.

By using viruses and viral insulins as guides, Altindis said he believes his research could help change the lives of patients and the basic understanding of hormone receptor signaling.

“I believe this might have an impact in the lives of the patients, but also in our very basic understanding of IGF-1 receptor and insulin receptor signaling,” Altindis said.

Johnson said Altindis’ work reflects the standard of scientific research at BC.

“I think what it’s doing is saying that here at Boston College, we are doing science at that level, that people from other institutions recognize what’s being done here is important,” Johnson said. n

BC Delegates Share Takeaways From COP28

happen,” Ward said. “Every year, we have to push countries a little bit, because that’s the best we can do.”

to solve climate change with some agreement, it’s not going to

On Friday, the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society hosted a COP28 symposium, featuring panels of BC students and faculty who attended the COP28 conference in 2023. The conference lasted two weeks, spanning from the end of November to mid-December, with

each day focused on a different piece of the climate crisis.

Jonathon Strang, MCAS ’25, said he chose which meetings to attend each day based on his personal interests.

“You wake up pretty early, usually around 7:00 a.m., and then you have breakfast as a delegation and try to plan out your day, figure out what events are you going to try to attend, what exhibits and facili -

ties you want to go to, and then you get on the bus,” Strang said. “You spend the majority of the day going from meeting to meeting.”

Strang said he attended various talks throughout the conference to broaden his understanding of climate change issues.

“I really just tried to get an overall sense of all the different things going on,” Strang said. “So I would go to the pavilion, then I would go to a meeting with NASA, and then I would go to a high-level meeting with the president of Botswana, and then go to a negotiation.”

Gabriela Levitt, another delegate and MCAS ’24, said gender plays a significant role in the scientific world and that her favorite talk was about “delivering a gender-responsive, just transition for all.”

Levitt said the setup for the meeting was based on policy solution workshops, while remaining true to the overall topic chosen for the day.

Strang and the other delegates said there were also many policymaking meetings at the conference

that the general public could not attend.

“One of the things that we didn’t realize at first, but then quickly realized, was that at COP, a lot of meetings that you want to go to are closed door,” Strang said.

One policy to combat the climate crisis is the Paris Agreement, an international treaty working to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions that began at the COP21 conference in 2015.

Ward noted that the Paris Agreement is not binding, which he said he continues to question.

“It’s not a binding international treaty,” Ward said. “For me, coming into law school, my question was always, ‘Why? Why can’t we make it binding and countries must reduce their emissions, or else they will get penalized?’”

But while the Paris Agreement is voluntary, it has still proven effective, Ward said.

“There would be no buy-in for that, unfortunately,” Ward said. “It is very much a voluntary agreement, but it’s also effective as you get great buy-in that you wouldn’t get a lot in other situations.” n

ALINA CHEN / HEIGHTS STAFF

The UGBC Senate discussed renovation projects on campus and BC’s study abroad tuition policy.

TRISHNA CONDOOR / FOR THE HEIGHTS

The Schiller Institute hosted a symposium for COP28 delegates to share their experiences from the conference.

City Councilor Bill Humphrey Focuses on Community in State Representative Campaign

By Ella Song Newton Editor

Ward 5 Newton City Councilor

Bill Humphrey, who announced his candidacy for the 12th Middlesex House seat last month, can trace his interest in politics back to his time as a Newton high school student.

“In my family, it was instilled in us that service to the public and the community was a very important calling,” Humphrey said. “And when I was in high school, I was involved in Democratic Party politics a little bit and I found that I enjoyed the role of being involved in politics and serving others.”

Humphrey was first elected to Newton City Council in 2019 when he was just 28 years old and is currently serving his third consecutive term. He describes himself as a progressive Democrat and emphasizes his commitment to his constituents as a core part of his job.

“The best part of being a city councilor is working on constituent services requests,” Humphrey said.

“No matter what else is happening in the rest of the world, if you can help someone get a pothole fixed, or a broken sidewalk repaired, or something like that, you can make a difference in somebody’s life and make their life better in a small way.

A fifth-generation Newton resident, Humphrey said despite going to college out of state, he knew he wanted to pursue a political career

in Newton.

“I went to college in Delaware and was very involved for a while in Delaware politics, but it became apparent through that process that the place that I felt most comfortable, and knew the most people, and felt like I understood the community and its needs the best was right here in Newton, where I grew up,” Humphrey said.

This connection to his hometown extends to his Newton Public Schools experience. One of his constituents, Newton resident Jo-Louise Allen, recalled that Humphrey sometimes coached the speech and debate team at Newton South High School (NSHS), where Allen’s sons all attended.

“Bill is such a good alum of Newton South that he would come back and coach the students in speech and debate,” Allen said. “And I respect him for that, you know? Very few, like three alums maybe, would come back and help mentor the young high school students that were in the speech and debate team.”

Allen has known Humphrey since he was a junior in high school through his friendship with her eldest son, and said Humphrey had always had an affinity for local politics.

She believes his strength as a politician lies in his active efforts to connect with his constituents.

“He also comes to local area council meetings, he comes to, like,

we just had hot chocolate and carol singing at the Luke’s Little Cafe place around the corner, you know, he comes to things,” Allen said. “I could just emphasize that he’s very present.”

Another Newton resident, disability advocate Robert Solomon, also emphasized Humphrey’s connection and receptivity with his constituents, speaking about an initiative by his organization, Inclusive Design Newton, where Newton government officials took wheelchair tours to better understand accessibility issues in the city.

“Bill signed up to go on one of these wheelchair tours with us, and

his comments during it and after really showed us, my group, that we were making a dent in how people think about planning for the future, preventing obstacles to people with disabilities,” Solomon said. “So I was really impressed with comments he made … he could already recognize what we were pointing out and could really appreciate what we were trying to show the administration.”

This grassroots attitude also manifests in Humphrey’s commitment to door-knocking as a campaign strategy. He has already begun knocking on doors as a part of his bid for the 12th Middlesex House

seat.

“I intend to continue knocking doors all the way until the primary, which is how I got elected to the City Council originally,” Humphrey said.

Looking to the future, Humphrey emphasized his commitment to constituent services, as well as climate action and affordable housing—all of which he looks forward to pursuing in a more impactful political setting.

“I’m always going to be fighting for the people I represent, even if not everyone agrees on every single issue about what we should be doing,” Humphrey said. n

Zoning and Planning Committee Passes Electrification Ordinance

By BrEndan o’FriEl Heights Staff

Newton’s Zoning and Planning Committee passed a new measure Monday night that would require the complete electrification of newly constructed buildings and buildings undergoing extensive renovations.

“Our electrification code is just bringing us to the place where Newton can actually make a difference in climate change,” Ward 2 Councilor-at-Large Susan Albright said.

The ordinance is pursuant to Newton’s participation in the state’s Municipal Fossil Fuel Free Building Demonstration Program, which is referred to as the 10 communities program, and states private properties undergoing renovations to more than 50 percent of the building or adding more than 1,000 square feet must be completely electrified.

While it must first receive approval from the state, the measure would go into effect Jan. 1, 2025, which the committee decided on

intentionally to give developers enough time to transition to the ordinance.

“It is really imposing a new regime on the development community and builders, and we didn’t see a reason to put any more pressure on than necessary,” said Ann Berwick, co-director of climate and sustainability for Newton.

According to Albright, one concern community members have raised is what this ordinance means for the usage of gas stoves. Albright said if renovations to a home exceed 50 percent in areas excluding the kitchen, homeowners still must switch their stoves from gas to electric.

“One thing that I learned this weekend, which I had no knowledge of, is that the gas stove tops that we all love leak gas and are causing asthma in our children,” Albright said. “Not only is it a good thing to do it for the climate, but it’s a good thing to replace it for our health.”

Nevertheless, Ward 1 Councilor-at-Large Alison Leary expressed that people who wish to

keep their gas stoves may do so by reducing the extent of their home renovations.

“It only impacts people if they go do the full renovation,” Leary said. “They could do something a little differently if they really wanted to keep their gas stove—there’s a way around it by simply not going to the point of 1,000 square feet or the 50 percent.”

One exemption to the ordinance discussed by the committee was historic properties, whose owners can seek approval from the Newton Historical Commission.

“[Requests to the commission] would have to state the reason why it is exempt from the energy code, so if it was going to demolish or ruin this building’s quality and historic nature,” Deputy Commissioner Anthony Ciccariello said.

Albright said she feels optimistic about the measure’s effectiveness in mitigating the city’s impact on climate change.

“I’m proud that we’re coming to the place where Newton can make this difference,” Albright said. n

DRC Passes Plan for Horace Mann School

By gEnEviEvE MorriSon Assoc. Newton Editor

Newton’s Design Review Committee (DRC) voted unanimously to approve a site plan for the remodel of Horace Mann Elementary School on Wednesday.

“We have a perfect track record of unanimous votes—we must be doing it right,” Public Buildings Deputy Commissioner Alex Valcarce said.

The Newton City Council’s Public Facilities Committee will hear and review the plan next.

According to the site plan, the renovation will add natural light to the building using glass walls in the gymnasium.

“It’s like realizing you’re not stuck in the middle of the school, but you have a connection with the outdoors, so I would love to see something there, and I would vote to spend money there,” said Ellen Light, architect and DRC member.

Landscape architects placed the basketball court close to the playground to make it easier for teachers to monitor their students.

“It’s all right next to each other so you can keep an eye on all the kids at once,” landscape architect Dustin Powell said.

Architects also varied the types of trees on the property to offer both shade and visibility for students and teachers.

“A maple or oak for shading

along the playgrounds, so that the kids can have some relief from the hot afternoon sun,” Powell said. “The little ones are ornamental trees, so in those areas you can provide a little bit more of an open field for the teachers to keep an eye on the kids.”

The plan includes a conference room that both teachers and students would be able to use for meetings.

Horace Mann Principal Mark Nardelli said this addition will make it easier for him to meet with his staff, since he doesn’t currently have a common meeting space.

“Right now, anytime I want to call a meeting with teachers, I have to go to a classroom, right, so that would be a great space for me,” Nardelli said.

The size of the classrooms in the building vary, which is due to the Horace Mann project being a renovation and not new construction, according to Public Buildings Commissioner Josh Morse.

“There’s a couple that are just a little under but by inches, it’s very, very, very tiny, and many of our spaces are larger than they need to be, which is understandable when you’re dealing with an existing building,” Morse said.

The committee can continue to tweak design preferences during the design process, Morse said.

“If there’s something that you wake up tomorrow and wish we had put on the list, don’t sweat it,” Morse said. “We’ve got a lot of work left to do.” n

PHOTO COURTESY OF MIKE SILVIA Humphrey hopes to replace State Rep. Ruth Balser, who is not running for reelection.

M AGAZINE

Cota Explores Food Inequality Through Research

By Natalie WesterMaNN Heights Staff

For many people, a trip to the local supermarket often lends itself to overstimulation. Grand pyramids of fresh fruit and endless options of milk make every choice a challenge.

But beyond the overwhelming selection, this shopping experience of sheer abundance represents a human right—access to affordable and nutritious food.

After growing up in Los Angeles and witnessing immense inequalities of food accessibility, Sebastian Cota, MCAS ’24, set out on a mission to make this right a reality for all Americans.

“Growing up in LA and seeing the way we experienced food, I said, ‘I’m coming out of my city to learn how to address that,’” Cota said.

In high school, Cota volunteered at a safety net hospital—which accepts all patients, regardless of their insurance status—in Los Angeles. The hospital took in some of the city’s most vulnerable patients, making volunteering an eye-opening experience, Cota said.

“Recognizing where I live in my neighborhood and how our health is being influenced by years of injustice and racism frustrated me because, on top of that, we have less access to fresh food, high prevalence of fast food and processed food, but also the highest burden of chronic disease,” Cota said. “And I'm like, why is this happening in our city?”

Though Cota entered Boston College as a psychology major on the premedical track, the subject of public health sparked his interest during the classes he took freshman year, he said.

Tracy Regan, professor of economics and one of Cota’s fresh -

man-year teachers, said she was immediately impressed by his commitment to improving the conditions of his home community.

“Sebastian was incredibly passionate about food insecurity and access to healthy food,” Regan said. “He did this really cool project where he was looking at food deserts, and he looked at the part of LA that he was from, and he put together this Google map to show the lack of healthy options that exist.”

Regan also noted Cota’s unique determination to take advantage of all opportunities presented to him—a trait she noticed when Cota was a student on her summer study abroad trip studying health and healthcare in England and France.

“He would take photographs of the farmer’s markets that were outside of the tube stations and talk about their affordability of food compared to what we eat in the United States,” Regan said. “He just soaked up every imaginable experience, and he was so disciplined. He would even go to the classroom before class and read books.”

During his sophomore year, before public health became an official major at BC, Cota applied to do an independent major in public health.

Philip Landrigan, director of the Program for Global Public Health and the Common Good, worked closely with Cota to build this independent major.

“I actually met him the summer before he came to Boston on a Zoom,” Landrigan said. “He was already asking incredibly deep questions and it was clear that he had already thought a lot about public health before even coming to BC.”

In the summer of 2023, Cota was accepted to study with the Lewis Scholars Program, the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention’s internship for undergraduate students interested in health equity. The program consisted of rigorous public health–related courses and hands-on experiences in disadvantaged urban environments, Cota said.

“We had two weeks of intensive classes in health inequalities, epidemiology, into public health, and biostatistics,” Cota said. “Then we applied it to our practicum location.”

Toward the end of the program, interns were required to research a topic related to public health in an assigned area and present their findings at the CDC’s annual Summer Showcase. Cota said he was excited to use this opportunity to explore food inequality throughout New York, specifically in the neighborhood of Washington Heights, his field placement.

“I started going out and comparing bodegas and supermarkets,

because in New York City, bodegas are the most common establishment for getting food,” Cota said.

In his project, he compared the prices of several bodega food items in Washington Heights with items in uptown supermarkets and found that, on average, food sold in bodegas was more expensive. For his project, Cota won the CDC’s Williams-Hutchins Health Equity Award, an honor given to one Lewis Scholar per location each summer.

While his work with the Lewis Scholars Program is over, Cota said his journey to make a meaningful impact on health inequality is just beginning. As a research assistant at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Cota is currently working on researching language barriers in healthcare.

“We’re investigating the experience of patients who speak Spanish, who had a provider who didn’t speak Spanish during the pandemic, trying to understand barriers and how to improve their care in the future,” Cota said.

Cota was also recently accepted to Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health to earn his masters degree, where he hopes to continue exploring and learning to address food inequality.

“My plan as a master’s student is to start interviewing the bodega owners and the community members to see what is some of the support [they] need,” Cota said. “How can we—as public health students, as future medical students—use our voice in advocacy to improve your health?”

As president of the STEM and Health Organization for AHANA, Cota’s advocacy also addresses

the BC community. He said he is currently working to send 70 of the group’s students to the Latino Medical Student Association’s Policy Summit in Washington D.C. to learn more about healthcare advocacy.

“We're committed to supporting students who are underrepresented in STEM and premed fields,” Cota said. “I'm trying to make sure we have a sustainable program so that students can have tutoring, they can have mentorship, they can have access to the information that will benefit them for their careers.”

Cota was also selected by Landrigan to be an ambassador for BC’s Department of Public Health, through which he can mentor and inspire younger students interested in the field, Landrigan said.

“I’ve seen him spend hours with students who are interested in public health, talking to them about what classes to take, and [he] has just educated scores of students about what public health is,” said Landrigan.

Throughout his journey at BC and in his future endeavors at Columbia University and beyond, Sebastian said his Los Angeles community is always on the back of his mind. After earning his master’s, Cota said he plans to use everything he observes and learns to maximize his impact back home.

“I want to be immersed in an experience that gives me the skills to address the injustices I see at home,” Cota said. “How can I implement that when I go back home to LA in twenty years at my clinic? How can I include a food pantry in my clinic? How do I translate this disparity into action?” n

Campus Cocktails: The Boozy Birthday Shot

B y MC C laverie Heights Senior Staff

At my 21st birthday party, I stood on top of a bar and consumed the infamous University College Utrecht (UCU) “birthday shot.”

Watching several of my friends turn 21 during the fall semester of my junior year, I couldn’t wait for it to be my turn. As each birthday party passed and IDs flipped from vertical to

horizontal, I dreamed about my 21st birthday celebration.

Because I studied abroad during the spring semester, I turned 21 in the Netherlands. Though there was less excitement about the ability to drink legally—the drinking age in the Netherlands is 18 years old—I was still pumped to celebrate my birthday with all of my abroad friends.

At UCU, my abroad host university, there was a birthday tradition called

the “birthday shot.” Whenever it was someone’s birthday, all of their friends would show up at the on-campus bar and purchase them a “birthday shot.”

To the unassuming person, a “birthday shot” sounds like a fun birthday tradition, especially for someone turning 21. I quickly discovered that a “birthday shot” was actually a gnarly mixture of various liquors that I’d have to consume while standing on top of the bar as my friends cheered me on.

I do not recommend that anyone ever try to recreate the UCU version of the “birthday shot.” But in honor of my 22nd birthday on Friday, I wanted to create a personal twist on the “birthday shot” that might better suit Boston College birthday celebrations.

My version only has three types of liquor—rum, vodka, and Passoã passion fruit liqueur. Rather than serving the cocktail in a plastic cup, my “birthday shot” is served over ice to pleasantly sip on rather than anxiously chug.

Whether your special day is coming up (happy Pisces season) or you

are celebrating alongside your friends, this drink guarantees the happiest of birthdays.

DRINK: The Birthday Shot

INGREDIENTS:

For one serving 1.5 oz vodka (I used Tito’s) 1.5 oz rum (I used Trader Joe’s brand) 2 oz Passoã passion fruit liqueur

8 oz orange juice

INSTRUCTIONS:

Add vodka, rum, and Passoã to a shaker with ice.

Shake until the outside of the shaker is cold to the touch—about 5 to 10 seconds.

Strain over ice into a highball glass.

Top with orange juice, stir, and enjoy. n

Cota's award-winning research compared the price of groceries in NYC bodegas and supermarkets.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SEBASTIAN COTA

Cota participated in the CDC's Lewis Scholars Program and won their Williams-Hutchins Health Equity Award.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SEBASTIAN COTA

The opinions and commentaries of the op-ed columnists appearing on this page represent the views of the authors of those particular pieces and not necessarily the views of The Heights

The Simplicity of Spirituality

I must admit that the arsenal of homilies I remember from my many years of mass is low, but I can recall this particular one clearly.

Father Penna began by discussing his halfIrish and half-Italian heritage. Frustrated by his dominant Italian physical features, his Irish mother gifted him a traditional Claddagh ring as a reminder of his strong Irish roots. Claddagh rings symbolize friendship, loyalty, and love. The ring depicts two small hands holding onto a heart with a crown on top.

Penna wore his beloved ring every day until it broke from his finger. Instead of swiftly fixing it, he asked his jeweler to melt the ring and make it into three new miniature crosses, gifting two to dear friends and wearing the third around his own neck.

When Penna goes to bed each night, the cross necklace starts on his chest, but when he wakes up, the weight of the necklace causes it to fall to his back. When he looks in the mirror each morning, he has to retrieve the necklace and place it back at the center of his body.

Over time, this has quietly become an unexpected spiritual ritual for Penna.

Resetting the cross at the center of his chest forces Penna to place Christ at the center of his actions. He starts his mornings with internal conversation and deliberation. For Penna, moving the necklace empowers him to abandon his trivial ways and act humbly. He yearns to be of service to others—to be a giver, rather than a taker—and to make enough space for the other person in the room. His message has clung to me for four years now.

At BC, I have noticed a remarkable number of students who make a Lenten promise even though they don’t hold substantial religious beliefs. Many embark on the 40-day journey of self-discipline and sacrifice by restraining from everyday vices—social media, cookies, Diet Coke, and elevators are all common examples of Lenten fasts I have heard this year.

These mindful actions help center us. Similar to Penna’s daily practice of moving his cross necklace, Lenten promises are far more meaningful than the simple action of giving something up. As Penna relayed, Lent pushes us to stop when we feel ourselves leaning into things we shouldn’t be leaning into.

We often find ourselves knowing the right action but rationalizing an easier or more comfortable alternative. These small actions help us realize what our true needs are and focus our energy and effort on potentially more fruitful experiences. If nothing else, these slight adjustments to our daily lives can give us unexpected guidance and inspiration while heightening our overall discipline.

I attend mass each week during the Lenten season and gain small insights. However, Penna’s words and their profound impact will continue to resonate with me during this season of reflection.

Practicing faith can often feel bland or routine, and I constantly struggle to stay spiritually rooted and mindful even though I attend church every week. However, spiritual rituals like Lenten fasts often deter and intimidate those who are faithful but not routine mass go-ers.

St. Patrick’s Day Weekend

Jam-packed with green-themed parties and city-wide parades, this time of year is any ginger’s dream. From the second annual ginger run to the classic Boston parade, the luck of the Irish has certainly been present this past week. Whether Irish by blood or in spirit, embrace the holiday by donning your best green attire or taking a trip to the bar with friends— Boston has no shortage of options. Just make sure to know your Guinness chugging limits or your St. Paddy’s Day will surely end in disaster.

was Father Tony Penna’s virtual Palm Sunday mass.

During Lent, most Catholics participate in prayer, almsgiving, and fasting. Parishes hold frequent adoration, stations of the cross, and reconciliation as a way to bolster prayer life. Similarly, Catholic communities around the world run 40-day fundraisers to give alms to those in need. Arguably the most widespread Lenten practice is fasting.

The season of Lent and Penna’s homily are reminders that meaningful acts of personal faith can be as simple as ditching diet coke or moving your necklace each morning. Let your Lenten fast ground you in a simple and quiet manner.

Scanlon Mellowes is a columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at scanlon.mellowes@bc.edu.

The Fear of AI in Essays

Artificial intelligence (AI) seems to have become every teacher’s greatest fear. It haunts the plagiarism section of every syllabus I received this semester. The fear of AI within academia has been well documented with the rise of ChatGPT, but the real question is whether or not those fears are justified.

Teachers are clearly torn over the use of AI in the classroom, but it seems like most have accepted that it is here to stay. Some teachers have focused on making essay questions AI-proof, while others have moved to entirely in-person testing.

It is impossible to deny the risks of AI. Cheating and plagiarism are always going to be a problem for teachers, but AI presents new challenges—anyone with an internet connection can access these technologies.

It is also nearly impossible to actually prove whether or not AI has been used. OpenAI unveiled a tool about a year ago to detect ChatGPT in portions of text, but unfortunately for teachers everywhere, the tool was only correct 26 percent of the time.

The technology to accurately determine whether AI has been used simply doesn’t exist yet, but is it even necessary in most cases? More often than not, students aren’t using this technology in the

way teachers fear.

A study sponsored by Turnitin showed that while AI usage among students this fall jumped to 49 percent, those numbers don’t reveal the whole picture. Students who reported using AI daily were not typically using it to write essays—their top use was to summarize texts.

The other top reported uses were to help understand difficult concepts, organize schedules, solve homework problems, and then assist with writing assignments.

Obviously, from a teacher’s perspective, using AI to get out of homework assignments and reading is not ideal, but AI isn’t the first technology to help with these tasks. It’s clear that concerns about AI are particular to writing assignments, through which students are supposed to showcase their critical thinking abilities.

The benefits of AI to help understand concepts and create outlines have been encouraged in my classroom experience. I have also encountered a lot of preventative AI measures in the very same classes. As a political science major who often takes classes where a handful of essays determine my entire grade, it makes sense that my teachers are apprehensive about the integration of AI.

Still, I cannot help but wonder why I rarely see my peers use AI to fully write essays. I know many students who use it to help brainstorm ideas, but most don’t want to risk using AI in higher-level classes.

I believe this trend goes beyond the fear of repercussions. Students simply don’t trust AI-written essays. Most students I know think they could write a better essay than AI, especially for a class within their major.

Perhaps a business major trying to

finish their English core would be more inclined to dabble in AI, but a student taking an advanced class for the degree that they chose to pursue is less likely to risk it.

It does not seem like this fear is unfounded either. Professor S. Scott Graham at the University of Texas at Austin wrote an op-ed for Inside Higher Ed to explain just that.

He said he and his students tested various forms of AI to write the same essay. They concluded that the technology to create a good, consistent essay simply didn’t exist.

This is not to say that AI is not capable of good writing, but a key factor in the quality of an essay is what you are asking the AI. AI infamously “hallucinates” or makes up facts and research.

Additionally, good answers require specific and well-thought-out prompts on part of the student. And even then, AI has a spotty track record with issues like ethics, critical thinking, and morality.

Even those who are most hopeful about AI advancements would not say it is at the processing level of a human brain.

There are regular advancements to the technology, but to me, it’s no wonder why students may choose to steer clear of the allure of AI essays. It simply hasn’t reached a level of functionality that students are ready to trust for their written assignments and the disciplines they have chosen to pursue.

This leaves one question: Is the fear of and willingness to mangle our curriculums around AI worth it for a threat that may be, at best, misunderstood?

Back on the Quad

After braving the January snow flurries and February downpours, it’s safe to say that this past week’s sunshine was welldeserved. Lunches on the Quad, Spikeball games on Maloney Lawn, and strolls across campus without a puffer coat are just some of the many perks that spring here at BC brings. With temperatures slowly on the climb and tulips soon to blossom, now is the perfect time to switch out your favorite cozy booth in O’Neill for a shady patch of grass out on the Quad.

Post-Break Slump

Though spring break offered a momentary pause from a seemingly endless stream of midterm exams and group projects, the return to campus has proven anything but relaxing. We might be stuck in spring-break mode, but the assignments are piling up faster than ever. Some of us even had exams in our first few days back on campus— how cruel! The temptation to slack off and embrace the warmer days may be compelling, but make sure to stay focused for these next few weeks, and Easter Break will be here before we know it!

Coffee Crisis

Gone are the days of over-the-register small talk now that BC has installed touch screen ordering in Hillside. Just like the Chocolate Bar, this new ordering method might seem more efficient at first glance, but some BC students were displeased to see their favorite cafe overtaken by long lines and computer screens. Why does it feel as though every part of our society is moving as far away from human interaction as possible? All we can do now is hope that CoRo Cafe won’t be the next victim.

Scanlon MelloweS

GRAPHICS BY PARKER LEAF / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Katie Spillane

Katie Spillane is a columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at kathleen.spillane@bc.edu.

Op-Ed: White Supremacy, Speech,

During my six years at Boston College, a lot has changed.

The student body has continuously grown in diversity, BC began participating in Questbridge, and LGBTQ+ students now have their own dedicated staff member integrated into the Bowman AHANA Intercultural Center (BAIC).

During my six years at BC, a lot has stayed the same.

Racially biased incidents have remained a consistent occurrence on campus. Queer and trans students still feel unsafe and undersupported on campus. Safe sex supplies are not allowed to be distributed on campus, and sex is still prohibited on campus. Protests are few and far between, and speech is often stifled.

I have seen tireless advocacy from students—especially students of color and queer students—for representation, care, and meaningful support. Most of this advocacy comes from marginalized students themselves, through working in UGBC, writing articles for The Heights, or starting important conversations on social media.

However, the less common an identity is on our campus, the less likely students are to advocate—disabled students, Palestinian students, and Jewish students, to name a few, are often left out of the fight for social justice at BC. The University has had the privilege of keeping mostly quiet during a time of broad unrest on campuses across the country because of the minimal number of Jewish or Israeli students and Muslim or Palestinian students.

While some students care about issues that don’t affect them personally, BC’s restrictions on organizing, demonstrating, and speech dissuade students from participating in louder activism or community organizing. These restrictions demonstrate the overarching issue of white supremacy culture, individualism, and their manifestation in the student body.

Most recently, a protest against the United States’ continued support for genocide in Palestine and urging BC to

divest from companies that support Israel occurred on Feb. 15. Though the protest was publicized by the Muslim Student Association on their Instagram page, only around 25 students walked from Carney to the grass on Lower Campus outside of St. Ignatius Church. Dozens walked by and stared as they sipped their Starbucks beverages (a common boycott target).

Calling for divestment from those who monetarily support Israel is a common campaign across campuses today, and has proven successful at some institutions, such as UC Davis. Yet, outside of the vigils held on campus in October, this February demonstration was the sole public opposition to the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Primarily students of color and queer students participated in the event.

It is no shock to anyone that BC is entrenched in and born from whiteness. In Tema Okun’s enduring work White Supremacy Culture, she outlines characteristics of white supremacy culture that “describe the norms of white middle-class and owning class culture, a culture we are all required to navigate regardless of our multiple identities.” Paramount to this culture is the characteristic of individualism. Further reflecting on individualism at BC can help guide an understanding of our institution’s attitudes toward student engagement with identities, political events, and global issues.

These individualist ideas come from a culture of white supremacy, in which individuals are deemed bad actors, and cultural or institutional racism is often ignored. Competition is valued, and there are clear hierarchies related to programs of study, living conditions, and student-organization affiliations. Students are not encouraged to organize or be in collectives, despite a constant emphasis on Jesuit teachings that call for community.

Certain types of communities are valued over others. Communities expressing peace of prayer are given favor over communities expressing anger or frustration. Protest rules make student organizers, spe-

cifically students of color, sources of blame and shame when they act to solve problems or raise their voices without support from administrators.

Conflict is feared on campus. Politeness is insisted upon, and protests must not disrupt the campus. Social justice work and activism do not happen without consent from the administration. Even the location of the BAIC itself—steps away from the Office of the VP of Student Affairs—reflects this. There are hardly any places on campus where students can express their ideas, identities, and emotions, good or bad. The only designated collective space where students can organize is the BAIC, where the needs of all marginalized students are concentrated in a space smaller than many classrooms on campus.

Our spaces aren’t designed to be radical. Big ideas are tampered down until they become fiscally and socially acceptable for BC to include and consider the needs of marginalized individuals. Our diversified staff and increased resources for marginalized students came after years of protest, years of “no,” until, societally, a point was reached where there was enough mounting pressure to act.

Ways Forward

While BC may not be newsworthy amid current national campus tensions,

the administration should ask themselves, “Why?” Why are students not organizing? How are we engaging in this conversation?

How are our processes built to dissuade student leadership in the form of organizing?

Further, how do we self-reflect? How are our biases reflected in our policies on student behavior and student support? How do we confront the characteristics of white supremacy that permeate our processes?

How can we create collective accountability rather than individual accountability? How can we work toward collective thinking and action outside of issues directly affecting us?

I urge BC administrators, student affairs workers, and students to talk with advocates and students with differing experiences, create new spaces for discussion and community, and disturb the status quo.

During my six years at BC, a lot has stayed the same. All too frequently, individuals are met with resistance to change because things are “just the way they’ve always been.” Together, we can disturb the individualist culture at BC. Everyone in the community must get uncomfortable, start learning from each other, question systems we have assimilated to, and become accustomed to moving forward.

emma

Student Band Jamsexual Releases Its First Album

Jamsexual, from A1

On Dec. 2, 2023, the members spent a frantic yet rewarding 24 hours at Wellspring Sound Studio recording the entire album. Despite having been musicians for most of their lives, Barcy, Castellano, McKane, and Regis described it as an incredible experience they didn’t think they’d have coming into college.

“It was just like, one heck of an experience you know, being able to do it with these guys and have a chance to show the world what we’ve been working on the last couple of years,” McKane said.

The band’s mental and physical transformation is a narrative that anchors the album.

According to Castellano, Barcy, and Regis, JAMSEXUAL depicts themes of change and growth. Starting off with the concept of exploration, the first track, “RALEIGH TO BALI,” sets the overall upbeat tone of the album.

“RALEIGH TO BALI” is an escape from the mundanity of life and work. The feel was created with

a diversity of rhythms, percussions, and keys, that accompany the lyrics about the adventurous places and situations the band would rather be having.

After this explorative state, Castellano found that the next tracks, including “PHEAR THE PHISHMAN,” “NOWHERE TO GO,” and “ROCKSTAR SONG” represent the state of losing your-

self, followed by a stage of resurfacing and finding the answers within yourself that the second to last track, “LEARNING TO LIVE,” points toward.

“ROCKSTAR SONG,” written in 2022, showcases the band’s desire to achieve its artistic dreams.

“‘ROCKSTAR SONG’ is about, ‘I’m trying to be an artist, I’m trying to find my way through this world,

but I don’t know how to do it, and I don’t know how to do it, right,’” Castellano said. “But then it turns out we were doing it right the whole time. We’re just being ourselves. That’s kind of what the album is about.”

According to Castellano, improv is a core part of Jamsexual, which is why the album’s interludes are snippets from the band’s

40-minute instrumental jam session at 4 a.m. Ironically, the three interludes throughout the album are titled after classical music sonata form: exposition, development, and recapitulation.

“We are no Mozart,” Regis said.

The great detail put into the grand finale—for which Barcy taught himself how to play the accordion in under five minutes, and members hit two shoes against each other to add a range of auditory layers—might suggest otherwise.

All in all, the recording and production of JAMSEXUAL was an intensive challenge and dream come true for all members. The band’s hard work in and out of the studio and its focus on authenticity is evident throughout the tracks.

“It would be impossible, without the help of student involvement and the Music Guild,” said Castellano. “We gave them a hard time. They believed in us, they let us practice, and put all of this together and hopefully they’ll enjoy the product.” n

BCDE Heats Up the Stage with ‘Fever’

B y M ary k ozeny Heights Staff

On March 14, Boston College Dance Ensemble (BCDE) presented the opening night of its annual spring show. This year’s performance, titled “Fever,” was a celebration of the teams’ infectious passion and commitment.

Bold silhouettes and bright colors painted the stage as the dancers performed a variety of songs and mashups. The opening act to “Fever” by Peggy Lee featured sinuous movements and charisma, opening the show with a bang.

The crowd fed off the dancers’ energy as they cheered on their friends and family throughout the show. The joyous name calling

and celebration during the show expressed appreciation for the great amount of work the team put into creating an engaging and special program.

BCDE is one of many student-run dance organizations on campus. The group of dancers share their passion for movement across all styles of dance, but also benefit the wider community. All ticket proceeds from its events are donated to the Campus School at BC, a special education program.

The first act closed with a dynamic routine choreographed by Shelby Colvin, MCAS ’25, Emme DeVito, MCAS ’24, Maddy Jones, MCAS ’24, and Kristi Liivak, MCAS ’24. The group blended pop hits with black sparkly cos -

tumes, as members made complex formations on stage and drew in the crowd.

The show featured two guest performances by fellow campus dance groups Phaymus and Synergy. Phaymus performed a lively hip-hop routine with glittering costumes before Synergy took the stage in matching sweatshirts.

They performed a routine to “Kill the Lights” by Alex Newell, Jess Glynne, and DJ Cassidy and “Monster” by Kanye West. The love for BC’s dance community was evident throughout this joint performance.

The three different groups showcasing their unique movement styles brought diversity and different interpretations to the art,

a reflection of the varying talent on campus. The diverse dance backgrounds of the BCDE dancers themselves in ballet, hip-hop, lyrical, tap, and jazz created a beautiful combination for the group’s dynamic. The use of spotlights and pirouettes in delicate drapey costumes created interesting visual effects, further highlighted by the group’s catchy music choices.

DeVito, Colvin, and Maria Wills, MCAS ’25, choreographed a lively tap routine to “Sir Duke” by Stevie Wonder. It was followed by an exciting rendition of “CIRCUS MAXIMUS” by Travis Scott, a hip-hop routine choreographed by Jones. These routines showcased the group’s complex and assorted

dance styles.

The show featured videos from each class of dancers in the ensemble in which they thanked their audience and supporters for coming to see their work. The senior class began its BC experience amid the pandemic, and formed tightknit bonds through dance and its shared passion for it.

The show ended with a heartfelt mashup of archive dances done by the senior class. The seniors performed bits from their favorite dances over their four years on the team, highlighting their experience as part of BCDE. The show made evident the “fever” this group has for expression, precision, rhythmic movements, and most of all, each other. n

mittee expressed excitement for T-Pain’s performance and other upcoming events that have yet to

be announced. “We will have events and experiences leading up to the date

of the Boston Marathon as well as throughout the entire day on Marathon Monday,” the email reads. n

form at BC on Marathon Monday. Flo Rida performed in the Mod Lot in 2023, and Jason Derulo headlined the concert in 2022.

In its email, the Mile 21 Com-

Hip-hop artist T-Pain performed at BC in 2016 for the annual Modstock concert.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JAMSEXUAL

Jamsexual opened the 2023 Modstock concert as winners of the annual BC’s Best competition.

TRISHNA CONDOOR/ HEIGHTS STAFF Boston College Dance Ensemble’s annual spring show, “Fever,” showcased the dance team’s unique talent and precise rhythm through complex choreographies.

SPORTS

“The Student Body Has Been Incredible”

On Saturday, No. 1-seed Boston College men’s hockey defeated No. 8-seed UConn in its last home game of the season. Greg Brown and Jack Malone acknowledged the support they received over the season after the win.

“They really had our back against the wall there,” Malone said. “But you know, I think that we responded, we did what we had to do to get the job done. But it was definitely a big relief to get that one and to kind of have that little bit of a cushion in those last seven, eight minutes.”

Despite establishing an early three-goal lead in the opening minutes of the tilt, the Eagles (29–5–1, 20–3–1 Hockey East) allowed UConn (15–19–2, 9–14–1) to make its way back into the game before Malone gave BC the edge in its 5–4 win.

At the 8:00 mark of the first period, Drew Fortescue corralled a puck trickling away from the net

and launched it right toward UConn’s Arsenii Sergeev, beating him to make it 3–0 BC and sending a packed student section sporting all black into its third frenzy of the night.

“The student body has been incredible,” Brown said. “They have their themes with outfits they’re wearing and everything, so it’s been a pleasure to play in front of them for our guys and you know we’ve done pretty well at home, a huge part is because of the fan support.”

The Eagles went 15–2 in home games this season, many of which featured sold-out crowds.

“They’ve been, you know, unbelievable,” Malone said. “I can’t say anything but great things about the type of support that we’ve had. And having that type of energy behind us is something

that gives us an extra boost for sure.”

Jacob Bengtsson and Malone also potted goals in the opening minutes of the game, and the Huskies found themselves in search of a response.

UConn finally stopped the bleeding with a much-needed goal with 11:19 left in the first period to cut the Eagles’ three-goal lead back to two.

John Spetz unleashed a wrist shot that got the better of Fowler to make it 3–1.

The intensity of the single-elimination tilt became clear when Ryan Leonard got into a shoving match after a breakaway opportunity.

Leonard was promptly sent to the penalty box for roughing with 6:15 left in the first period. But UConn failed to score and the of -

fensive display slowed down until the final moments of the second period.

Leonard reestablished BC’s three-goal lead with just 12.1 seconds left in the frame.

BC captain Eamon Powell sent the puck toward the net from deep where Leonard waited for the puck.

Leonard tipped the puck past Sergeev to give the Eagles a dominant 4–1 lead heading into the final 20 minutes of the night.

The Huskies quickly erased the Eagles’ three-goal lead, and flipped the script on BC in the first 1:05 of the third period.

Just 11 seconds into the frame, Jake Richard scored, and less than a minute later, UConn added another goal to its total.

Matthew Wood launched a one-timer from straight away

to beat Fowler and cut BC’s once-daunting lead to one goal.

“Only took them 11 seconds to get that first goal to swing that momentum and then it was hold on for dear life for a while,” Brown said.

Four and a half minutes later, Wood tied the game for the Huskies.

What was supposed to be a simple closeout period quickly became one focused on avoiding a choke at the hands of the Huskies.

Behind Malone’s presence on the bench and performance on the ice, though, the Eagles avoided disaster and advanced to the semifinals where they will take on UMass Amherst.

“I give Jack a ton of credit,” Brown said. “He was the vocal guy on the bench, and he was leading by example on the ice.” n

Eagles Fall to Notre Dame in Red Bandanna Game

B y R oBe Rt B R ennan Heights Staff

The story of Welles Crowther is ingrained in the Boston College community as a whole, but it especially hits home for BC lacrosse, as Crowther played lacrosse at BC.

Every year, the team wears its special red bandanna jerseys and plays a game “For Welles,” as is stated on the back of the uniforms in the annual Red Bandanna Game.

“It was one of the most special moments for me, today, but the last four years I’ve been here, it never gets old,” Ryan Smith, who was se lected to wear the honorary No. 19 jersey, said. “I really do think that it’s super special that it’s a lacrosse thing, right. Welles played Boston College lacrosse, and I think that speaks so much to what we build our culture around, so it’s really special for us.”

Despite putting forth a valiant effort against rival Notre Dame in the 2024 Red Bandanna Game, No tre Dame’s Mary Kelly Doherty scored with 15 seconds left in the game, spoiling BC’s celebration and handing the Eagles a heart breaking loss.

No. 8 Notre Dame (7–2, 2–2 Atlantic Coast) defeated No. 2 BC (8–2, 3–1) by a score of 15–14 thanks to four goals each from Abby Maichin and Doherty, as well as 10 saves from

goalie Lilly Callahan. “Oddly enough, I think we got better probably with our X’s and O’s and also experience-wise, like going in, you know, at the end of the game like that is a good experience,” BC head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein said. “Obviously you want to come out on top but I was proud of the team.”

BC’s Shea Dolce and Notre Dame’s Callahan standing on their heads to keep their teams in the game. Each goaltender made three saves, with Dolce allowing one goal and Callahan letting two in. The second quarter was a different story, however, as it saw 10 combined goals.

Rachel Clark completed a first-half hat trick with 8:14 left in

Dame. “[Clark] is just a piece of the offense, and today was her day, but you know, it can really be anybody’s day with this group, so I think the offense worked really hard,” Walker-Weinstein said. “Everybody did their job, and for Rachel, it was a shooting day for her. I mean, she was scoring everything she shot so

from Doherty and Jackie Wolak.

The flurry of goals started in Notre Dame’s own end, however, when Callahan made a big save with 4:33 left to shift the momentum toward the Irish.

The third quarter proved to continue the back-and-forth theme of the game, with the Eagles tying the game up twice.

BC found a way to respond to Notre Dame in the fourth quarter, too, and tied the game up three separate times.

Clark found the back of the net with 2:32 left in the game for her sixth goal on the day, tying things up at 14 and giving BC a chance to take a late lead.

But the Irish defense held strong, forcing Cassidy Weeks to take a tough shot as the shot clock was expiring, which Callahan

After taking a timeout, Notre Dame got the ball to Doherty, who beat Dolce low for her fourth goal of the game to deliver a road ACC win for the Irish. Turnovers were a thorn in the side of the Eagles all day.

They committed 14 as a team throughout the con-

“I just think we had some mental lapses that sort of crushed us in the beginning of the game,” Walker-Weinstein said. “I just think we sort of beat ourselves with some of those turnovers, and they continue to be the focus.” n

First Week of Practice Kicks Off Bill O’Brien Era

capped off by a Fenway Bowl win over No. 17 SMU.

Boston College football

A week into practice, O’Brien says he has nothing to complain about.

“I really like this team,” O’Brien said. “They come to work everyday, they pay attention in the meetings, they got energy at practice. You know, the key is to keep it going, we gotta keep it going next week. We gotta string some practices together, but, you know, I cant really complain about anything that’s gone on so far.”

The Eagles need to be prepared for a lofty set of changes in 2024 as they attempt to build on a 7–6 2023 season

“Offense, defense, totally new systems, so there’s things that they have to do to stay ahead of the information,” O’Brien said. “If they fall behind then it becomes an avalanche, so they need to do a good job of staying ahead.”

A New Offensive Approach

Given his extensive experience working with quarterbacks like Tom Brady and Bryce Young, O’Brien’s pairing with BC’s starting quarterback Thomas Castellanos holds significant potential.

One week in, the early foundations of this partnership are already beginning to show.

“With all the guys that I’ve worked with, the most successful guys are the ones that had anticipation, had the ability to get it out quick,” O’Brien said. “We need to make quick decisions. I think Tommy tried to do that today.”

While Castellanos’ ground game helped him earn the starting job, O’Brien is seeking to further utilize his arm in the upcoming season. The

Eagles Go 3–0

By Luke BeLLaud Heights Staff

The story of Boston College softball’s season remains the same. Dominant pitching is how the Eagles win games. Locked in a scoreless battle in the second inning, BC pitcher Abby Dunning was on pitch nine of an at-bat against Hannah Davis with two outs and a runner in scoring position.

great pitching and I think our pitchers just continue to rise to the level.”

Central Florida transfer recorded 2,248 yards in the air during the 2023 campaign.

“A lot of passing the ball,” Castellanos said of his first spring practice. “Lot of trying to get explosive plays, throwing the ball downfield.”

After praising Castellanos’ adjustment to his offensive vision, O’Brien expressed hope for the signal-caller’s fit in their new system.

“It’s a quarterback-centered system around who the quarterback is and what that guy can do,” O’Brien said. “And he can do a lot, so it’s good.”

Fresh Faces

From the team’s first practice session, secondary coach Ray Brown made it clear his energetic presence isn’t reserved only for social media.

The former Washington State cornerbacks coach provided BC’s practices with an infectious jolt of energy, often bursting off the sidelines to offer both encouragement and constructive criticism.

Brown is one of many new additions to BC’s coaching staff—a unit

O’Brien praised effusively.

“I think that’s got to help us in recruiting,” O’Brien said. “People talk about developing players, and I would put our staff up against any staff in the country as far as developing players.”

Defensive coordinator Tim Lewis, the former Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants defensive coordinator, spoke highly of the existing talent the Eagles are bringing to the table.

“I’m really encouraged by what I’ve seen,” said Lewis, who last coached at the collegiate level in 1992 with SMU.

“The cupboard is not bare. It’s really exciting to be around the guys.”

While offensive coordinator Will Lawing lacks Lewis’ decades of experience, he brings years of firsthand experience working with O’Brien for Alabama, the Houston Texans, and the New England Patriots.

“Coach O’Brien has been extremely important in my growth as a coach and a person, not just as a coach,” Lawing said. “He’s helped me a ton along the way. [I] learned so much from him and the other coaches that he’s put around myself on staffs that we’ve worked on.”

Weekend

sending the ball down the third base line, allowing Stephens to score BC’s fifth run of the inning.

in the seventh inning, cementing a strong day on the mound for the Eagles.

Citing last season’s successes, Lawing said he is excited to begin his new role in Chestnut Hill.

“You look at BC, and we can build off what they did last year,” Lawing said. “That excites me and, you know, this is a great city..”

Castellanos’ New Targets

Castellanos’ options for the 2024 season have already grown, thanks to a slew of transfers that have made their way to Chestnut Hill.

Tight end Kamari Morales, a North Carolina transfer, and wide receiver Jayden McGowan, a Vanderbilt transfer, are two of Castellanos’ newest options.

“I think we got some guys with different capabilities that do different things, and I think it’ll be really special,” Castellanos said.

One transfer literally stands taller than the rest, though.

The Eagles (17–8, 1–2 Atlantic Coast) rode pitching and a third-inning offensive explosion to cruise past Quinnipiac (9–6) at home on Sunday afternoon.

The first runs of the game came in the third inning when Hannah Slike hit a double deep into center field followed by Addison Jackson launching a home run over the centerfield wall, giving the Eagles the 3–0 lead.

Dunning stepped forward and fired a pitch low and away, getting Davis to bite and strike out, averting the danger and putting momentum back in the Eagles’ favor.

“Pitching has been strong all season long,” BC head coach Amy Kvilhaug said. “The great news is that we’ve been consistent with

“I’m psyched for everyone who hit the ball hard today,” Kvilhaug said. “Hannah, Nicole, Jordan. Jules has some RBIs, like everyone contributed.”

The Eagles added to their lead when Jordan Stephens hit a double over Ally Hochstadter’s head, driving in another run from Elisabeth Laviolette.

Gator Robinson closed out a big third inning for the Eagles,

AHERN / HEIGHTS EDITOR

five

BC Beats Panthers, Wins First ACC Series of Season the

By Maria stefanoudakis Asst. Sports Editor

Friday did not go as planned for Boston College baseball, as the Eagles lost 12–5 to Pittsburgh.

Quinnipiac Boston College 0 5 Boston College Pittsburgh 7 3

Saturday’s and Sunday’s games of BC’s road ACC series, however, told a much different story.

BC (11–7, 2–4 Atlantic Coast) picked up an early 2–0 lead in Sunday’s game following a run from Patrick Roche, followed by a score from Nick Wang after Vince Cimini singled through the right side. Pittsburgh (10–7, 1–5), meanwhile, took until the bottom of the fifth inning to pick up a run and ultimately fell 7–3—giving the Eagles their first conference win of the season.

In the third inning, Cimini hit a home run to right center to earn

both him and Kyle Wolff home runs, putting BC up 4–0. Pittsburgh responded in the bottom of the bottom of the sixth, when Luke Cantwell hit a single to center field to score Dom Popa and make the score 5–1. The Panthers held BC scoreless in the top of the sixth, then Ryan Zuckerman hit a single to center field in the bottom of the inning that picked up two runs. The Eagles headed into the seventh with a 5–3 lead.

Cameron Leary’s seventh inning homer revived the Eagles, giving them a 6–3 lead they would not relinquish. Eric Schroeder’s pitching in the bottom of the seventh held the Panthers scoreless.

In the top of the eighth, Adam Magpoc replaced Owen DeShazo at center field. Magpoc doubled down the right field line, scoring Cimini to put the Eagles up 7–3. The Eagles did not allow the

“We have been toward the bottom with our hitting and I know that once we start hitting and putting all the pieces together we can be a dangerous team,” Kvilhaug said.

The Bobcats tried to respond quickly in the top of the fourth when Kennedy Demott hit the ball up the middle for a single.

But pinch runner Gianna Palmisano was thrown out by Slike trying to steal second.

Jaclyn Gonzalez replaced Sydney Horan on the mound for Quinnipiac in the fourth and kept BC scoreless in the inning after Nicole Giery was called out stealing second following an unsuccessful challenge.

Stephens fired a double into right-center field, putting two runners on base for the Eagles in the bottom of the fifth, but Gonzalez was able to escape the jam and BC stranded two runners to keep Quinnipiac scoreless.

Jackson replaced Dunning on the mound at the top of the sixth and made quick work of the Bobcats, keeping the score at 5–0 and continuing BC’s dominant performance on the mound.

“No walks today,” Kvilhaug said. “That is like my favorite thing. We had the seven innings, no walks—it’s fantastic.”

Jackson closed out the game

Panthers to score for the remainder of the game, and ultimately walked away with their second conference win of the season. Their first conference win came on Saturday, in BC’s second game of its series with Pittsburgh.

In the top of the first inning of Saturday’s game, Cimini’s single advanced Wolff to third and allowed Roche to score, giving the Eagles their first lead of the game—a lead they would not give up in BC’s 16–10 win.

Magpoc then doubled down the right field line, advancing Cimini to third and scoring Wolff to put the Eagles up 2–0. Pittsburgh’s Jayden Melendez stopped the Eagles from running away with the lead with a homer to left field in the bottom of the first, scoring himself and Cantwell to tie things up headed into the second.

Dunning and Jackson combined for six strikeouts, three hits, and no walks, leading to a 5–0 win for the Eagles in their final game of the home round robin.

“I’m really happy about the weekend,” Kvilhaug said. “One of the things we discussed was that this is our home, and we wanted to set the standard for what we wanted to do when we’re at home.”

The Eagles beat Iona 9–1 earlier on Sunday in commanding fashion in five innings. Halie Pappion completed the entire game on the mound for BC, allowing one earned run and three hits while recording four strikeouts.

Giery led the way offensively for the Eagles, going 3-for-3 with a home run, double, and three RBIs off Iona’s Alyssa DeJianne.

The Gaels’ sole run came in the fourth inning when Kaylin Flukey drove home Kayla Haywood.

BC beat Iona 3–0 on Saturday afternoon, with Dunning picking up her seventh win of the season. The Eagles’ runs came in the first and second inning, but BC was held scoreless the rest of the game.

“I’m just happy,” Kvilhaug said. “You know maybe this was just the gasoline that we needed to light the match to get the whole thing going.” n

that scored Roche and put the Eagles up 3–2. Then, Cimini’s home run in the third gave BC a two-run lead. The Eagles appeared to run away with the game after that point, scoring eight runs in the top of scored three in the bottom of the inning, however, behind a home run from Tyler Bischke that got Fogel and Cantwell through home base to cut BC’s lead to seven. Pittsburgh managed to keep the Eagles scoreless through the top of the eighth, and C.J. Funk slammed a homer in the bottom of the inning that scored Popa and himself to cut BC’s lead to 15–10. But that would be the last of the Panthers’ scoring. In the ninth inning, the Eagles’ Chris Markovich scored on a balk to cap off the day’s scoring. n

17–8 on the season.

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