The Heights 9/26/13

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FORMIDABLE FSU

END OF AN ERA

WHITE OUT

SPORTS

METRO

SCENE

BC faces its biggest challenge yet versus No. 8 Florida State, A10

Longtime police chief Ed Davis resigns and the candidates are set in the race to replace Mayor Menino, B10

The Scene charts the transformation of Breaking Bad’s ’s main character, B1

www.bcheights.com

The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College

HEIGHTS

THE

established

1919

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Vol. XCIV, No. 31

Fleming receives MacArthur Grant BY MARY ROSE FISSINGER Heights Editor In the middle of the day on Sept. 5, professor and chair of the history department Robin Fleming received a phone call. The voice on the other line began by asking, “Can you speak confidentially?” The speaker went on to inform Fleming that she had been selected as one of the 24 MacArthur Fellows for 2013 and would receive $625,000 over the next five years. “I spent the rest of the day worried that I had made it up,” Fleming said. An express letter she received the next day confirmed the phone call, however—she was the first Boston College professor ever to receive a MacArthur

“Genius” Grant. These grants are given each year to anywhere from 20 to 40 U.S. citizens or residents who demonstrate remarkable innovation, dedication, and creativity, whatever their field. Each recipient is nominated anonymously by a peer in his or her field. “It’s every academic’s dream, but nobody actually thinks they’re going to get it,” Fleming said. Fleming stressed that the credit was not all hers, and that it would have been impossible to do the work deserving of such a grant without the strong support of an incredible department behind her, or without the constant stimulation that comes with being in a vibrant intellectual atmosphere like the one at BC. She credited her colleagues, graduate stu-

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dents, and undergraduates with making it easy for her to wake up every day excited about her work and the research she was doing. Although she herself has known for almost a month now that she was named as a Fellow, she was instructed not to tell anybody until yesterday. A few days after the phone call, the MacArthur Foundation sent a TV crew to BC to do an interview with Fleming and film her as she taught a graduate class. “I told all my graduate students it was for the History Channel,” she said. “But it was a big lie.” She was finally allowed to tell people at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 25. “I told ALEX GAYNOR / HEIGHTS EDITOR

See Fleming, A3

HOME BENCH

MEDIA

Robin Fleming is the first faculty member in BC’s history to receive a MacArthur Grant.

PETA objects to BC’s use of live bald eagle at games BY ELEANOR HILDEBRANDT News Editor

BAND

BC has added 166 new student seats for men’s basketball games across the sideline opposite the team benches, while also pushing the baseline seats up to the edge of the court. Shaded areas indicate general admission seating for BC students. LINDSAY GROSSMAN / HEIGHTS EDITOR

NEW STUDENT SEATING UNVEILED Revised plan for men’s hoops announced, winter sports Gold Pass system finalized BY AUSTIN TEDESCO Heights Editor While the Boston College men’s basketball team begins work on closing a competition gap with the top ACC teams in the hopes of an NCAA Tournament bid this season, the BC athletic department has helped close another gap. The new seating plan in Conte Forum for men’s basketball games was approved by the conference yesterday afternoon, and will go into effect for the home opener against Toledo on Nov. 14. Director of Athletics Brad Bates told students last February that they would be put right on top of the court, and the plan delivers on that statement. There are 166 new seats, exclusively for students, spanning the sideline opposite the team benches, according to documents provided by the athletic department. The first 166 students in Conte for a game will receive wristbands

granting access to the six sidelines sections, which each have two rows, as well as the away hockey bench area. The seats will be directly behind one row of courtside seats available to the general public. Moving the media behind one of the baselines created space for these seats. Students who don’t arrive early enough to grab a sideline wristband are still getting a seat upgrade. The baseline seats behind the baskets remain general admission for students and have been pushed up, eliminating the wide gap between the court and the seats from previous seasons. There will be one row of courtside seats available to the general public behind the baseline as well, with students standing directly behind those seats. “Coach Donahue was a big proponent of this move and I think it will make a huge impact on our game atmosphere,” Bates said in a statement. The upcoming basketball and hockey

seasons also means that the full implications of the Gold Pass, a new student season-ticketing system which grants access to all BC sports on ID cards for $175, will go into effect. So far, 5,531 Gold Passes have been sold, and Conte Forum will hold 2,200 student seats for both major winter sports, meaning there is space for roughly 40 percent of Gold Pass holders. The 2,200 student seats make up 26 percent of the 8,606-person capacity for men’s basketball games and 28 percent of the 7,884-person capacity for men’s hockey games. This does not mean, though, that only 2,200 students will get into each game. The athletic department plans to monitor ticket sales and review data from previous years to approximate how many unsold tickets there will be from the pool for the general public. The first 2,200 students to arrive at a game will have their hands stamped, granting general admission access to the student sections, but any students who arrive after that 2,200 number reaches capacity will be handed paper tickets to specific seats unclaimed by the general public until those

See Basketball Seating, A3

This season, the Boston College football team has brought back a live bald eagle mascot for the first time since 1965, drawing ire from some animal rights groups. The athletic department is working in concert with Zoo New England and the World Bird Sanctuary to bring the eagle to home games. The new eagle, a nine-year-old male, has been present at the games against Villanova and Wake Forest. BC’s current contract with Zoo New England and the World Bird Sanctuary is for the duration of the 2013 football season, and will last through the remaining four home games. “Professional handlers from Zoo New England and the World Bird Sanctuary come to FanFest and do an educational presentation

on the eagle and the importance of protecting wildlife and endangered species,” said University Spokesman Jack Dunn. “It has proved popular with fans young and old, particularly young children, who have an opportunity to learn from the experts about the importance of wildlife conservation.” The eagle’s presence is not universally popular, however. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) denounced the use of a live mascot at the beginning of September. Lindsay Rajt, PETA’s associate director of campaigns, was quoted in a Sept. 4 Boston Magazine article expressing concern about the effect that the environment of a football game might have on the eagle. “No animal should be subjected to the strange environment, and birds can become

See PETA, A3

SA launches investigation of concert ‘disappointments’ BY ANDREW SKARAS Asst. News Editor Four days after the 2013 Fall Concert, Isaac Akers, senator, rules committee chairman, and A&S ’16, and Thomas Napoli, senator, institutional policy review vice-chairman, and A&S ’16, sponsored a resolution in the Student Assembly (SA) to establish a “2013 Fall Concert Fact-Finding Committee” (FCFFC) to investigate the Fall Concert. After being debated by the SA, the bill passed with 23 out of the 32 senators in attendance voting in favor. The resolution cites the low attendance at the concert as one of the ways that the concert “fell short of expectations.” Since the concert is not funded entirely out of the UGBC budget, but is also funded partially by ticket sales, the resolution also noted, “the low revenue for the

UGBC Fall Concert translates directly into a budget predicament for UGBC.” Due to these concerns, the committee has stated that it will “investigate the disappointments of the 2013 Fall Concert.” According to the resolution, the final goal of the hearings conducted by the FCFFC is to submit a report to the SA and the public containing a summary of what happened regarding the Fall Concert this year and recommendations to the Executive Council for planning concerts in the future. To this end, the resolution called for the subpoenaing of Matt Nacier, UGBC president and A&S ’14; Matt Alonsozana, UGBC executive vice president and A&S ’14; Braeden Lord, Executive Council aide-de-camp and A&S ’15; Denise Pyfrom, vice president of program-

See Fact-Finding Committee, A3

Healthapalooza features University’s health and safety offices BY KATHERINE MCCLURG Heights Senior Staff

DIANA ANSBACHER / FOR THE HEIGHTS

Yesterday’s Healthapalooza was put on by the Office of Health Promotion outside of O’Neill.

Fo o d ta stings , chair ma ssages , meditation, and an obstacle course were just some of the activities available to the Boston College community on Wednesday, Sept. 25. The third annual “Healthapalooza” transformed O’Neill Plaza into a center for student health and safety. Sponsored by the Office of Health Promotion (OHP) in collaboration with over a dozen campus health partners, Healthapalooza serves to promote student wellness while raising awareness of the valuable health resources that exist across campus. “We want the community to know that BC values health and safety and hope this event is an opportunity to gather and connect with campus resources that will be helpful in day-

to-day life,” said Elise Tofias Phillips, director of OHP, in a statement. Organiz ations from all across campus, including Campus Recreation, BCPD, Dining Services, Campus Ministr y, Information Technology Services, The Women’s Resource Center, and many more, had booths and information at the event. The variety of participating departments exemplifies BC’s recognition of the many factors that contribute to good health and safety. Campus Ministry’s “What’s on Your Plate?” activity encouraged students to examine their metaphorical plate of physical, social, spiritual, and intellectual obligations. “Visually mapping out your life makes it easier to recognize if it’s balanced or if there are areas you need to work on,” said Campus Minister Ellen Modica. “The conversation that follows

is the most important aspect. When student s re cog ni ze imbalance we want to make sure they are aware of all the resources, in Campus Ministry and across campus, that are available to help them create a balanced life,” Modica said. He a l th ap a l o oz a a l s o l au n ch e d OHP’s new health campaign, “Nourish.” “Nourish is a healthy eating campaign intended to broaden students’ knowledge of nutrition while decreasing barriers to eating well and healthy lifestyles,” said Sarah Bender, student health coach and CSON ’14. In partnership with Dining Services, Nourish will encourage students to choose foods that will provide energy and boost productivity, in addition to fostering life-long healthy eat-

See Healthapalooza, A3


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