The Heights, March 25, 2024

March

The co-founder of AHANA and current students express their concerns with the University's approach to resource intergration.

In 1979, it became an official BC acronym with the renaming of the Office of Minority Student Programs to the Office of AHANA Student Programs—which eventually became

Thea

AHANA Intercultural Center (BAIC).

But today, Lewis-Mosley is disheartened and concerned by recent administrative decisions regarding the BAIC.

Though the BAIC has historically been a space and resource for students identifying within the AHANA acronym, BC officially integrated resources for LGBTQ+ students into the center at the beginning of the 2023-24 academic year.

“To me, it was a limitation of addressing [LGBTQ+] needs by tagging it on to the AHANA context,” Lewis-Mosley said. “They have a big enough

Mahogany Showcases Prowess at Pro Day

By Maria StefanoudakiS Asst. Sports Editor

Having over 20 NFL teams represented in one room might be daunting for some. But for Christian Mahogany, showcasing his skills at Boston College football’s 2024 Pro Day was “no pressure at all.”

“I was prepared for the moment,” said Mahogany, who received an invite to the 2024 NFL Combine last month. “Coaches, old former teammates got me prepared.”

The offensive lineman allowed no quarterback hits and or sacks during the 2023 season.

On Tuesday’s Pro Day, held in Fish Field House, Mahogany did not test his metrics, but took part in position drills with former BC teammate and fellow offensive lineman Kyle Hergel.

“I’m excited,” Mahogany said. “I’m excited not just for myself but for my teammates, former teammates that are here as well and I’m excited to hear all of us called.”

Mahogany and Hergel even held the pads for each other during hitting drills.

“It’s awesome,” Hergel said. “One last time in Fish Field House with Christian. Got to go out with all the guys around and, you know, Coach [Matt] Applebaum was there, so that was pretty special.”

According to Mahogany, he and Hergel have been training together in Miami in preparation for the draft.

“Having a familiar face, a teammate, a guy you trust with information,” Mahogany said. “He sees you every day, he knows you, your family. So it was great having that.”

endowment to where they could have broadened meeting the needs of both our AHANA legacy and established an even broader in development for the LGBTQI community.”

The History of AHANA and the BAIC

In 1968, former University President Rev. Michael P. Walsh, S.J., initiated the Negro Talent Search Program

to recruit prospective Black students to BC.

In an effort to become more inclusive of all students of color on campus, BC hired a full-time counselor dedicated to minority students and rebranded the program as the Office of Minority Student Programs in 1979.

See BAIC, A6

Men’s hockey defeated the Terriers on Saturday night, winning its first Hockey East Championship since 2012. Under the brightest of lights, one player stood above the rest: Will Smith, who scored four of BC's six goals.

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ALINA CHEN / HEIGHTS STAFF

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KELLEN DAVIS / HEIGHTS STAFF

KELLEN DAVIS / HEIGHTS STAFF

1 2 3 This Week’s Top 3 Events

Eagles Sustainability Competition Aims to Revamp Dining

By kATe cugno Heights Staff lucy FreemAn News Editor

Students gathered at 245 Beacon St. on Friday to participate in the second annual Eagles Sustainability Competition. This year, the competition focused on ways to make Boston College Dining more sustainable.

“Each year, we try to change the prompt to try to address a different kind of sustainability,” said Liz Healy, an organizer of the competition and MCAS ’25. “Last year, we wanted to focus on making athletics more sustainable, and this year, our main focus is dining.”

Students in the competition presented different sustainability initiatives to a judging panel of BC Dining representatives, faculty involved in sustainability work, and BC alumni.

The winning team, which earned a $3,000 cash prize for its idea, designed a mobile game incentivizing students to use more sustainable dining options.

“We basically just created all the features that we would want on the app,” said Isa Sylbert, a member of the winning team and MCAS ’26. “We just presented it really focused on student engagement, just getting more students involved in making sustainable choices.”

Sylbert said she and her fellow

team members were excited and surprised when they found out they won.

“It was definitely very nice to win,” Sylbert said. “I also enjoyed that there was a collaboration between a lot of different groups on campus.”

This year’s student presenters proposed several sustainability solutions for BC Dining to adopt, some of which built on current programs like BC FRESH, Green2Go, and the waste reduction initiative.

Maggie Furlong, a case competitor and MCAS ’24, said her background in marketing piqued her interest in sustainability.

“I’m always thinking about systems and processes and how everything comes together,” Furlong said. “I think sustainable marketing is definitely important, and my job that I’m heading into next year has to do with renewable energy.”

Ben Wakim, another competitor and CSOM ’24, said his lifelong interest in sustainability initiatives led him to entering the competition.

“I’m a minor in managing for social impact, so I’ve always had an interest in sustainability and ways that we can make Boston College more sustainable, and thought this was a great outlet to do so,” Wakim said.

Similarly to Furlong and Wakim, Declan Soane, MCAS ’24, joined the competition because of his interest

in reducing the carbon footprint.

“I’m also a political science major, so I’m really interested in energy policy and just kind of the different ways we can reduce carbon emissions,” Soane said.

In last year’s case competition, which focused on sustainability in athletics, the winning team presented a five-year sustainability plan that impressed the judges, Healy said.

“Last year, we had a variety of teams come up with different solutions, such as reusable cups on game days, different ways of recycling and composting,” Healy said.

“The team that ended up winning

was an interdisciplinary team of business and [political science], and they had a really great five-year plan on how to address the sustainability issues that athletics has.”

Soane said students should take advantage of the unique opportunity to participate in case competitions during college.

“We actually did a case competition last semester and learned so much about just sort of presentation skills and business skills,” Soane said. “I would say to just do as many of these case competitions as possible because they’re a really great experience.”

With the competition only be -

ing in its second year, Healy said there has not been much time to implement last year’s initiatives. Nevertheless, she remains optimistic that BC Dining will be able to implement the sustainability ideas shown at this year’s competition, she said.

“I think that’s a bit of a long process because you have to work with us and athletics, in the administration, and obviously secure funding for that,” Healy said. “But Dining has been such a great partner this year, and I’m hoping a lot of the solutions that students present today will be able to be implemented next year.” n

Late-Night Fire Alarms Displace Williams Residents

By lucy FreemAn News Editor AngelinA li Assoc. News Editor

Though Aria Nafziger lives in Williams Hall, she found herself sprawled out on a couch in the lounge of Roncalli Hall shortly after 1:00 a.m. on March 18. A series of late-night fire alarms in Williams had left her unable to sleep in her own bed.

“My roommate and I went to Roncalli and just found a few couches in the prayer and study room and slept

there,” Nafziger, MCAS ’27, said. “That was at like 1:15 [a.m.] or so. I think I heard today that shortly after that point, the alarms did stop. But we had no idea when they would be shut off.”

Fire alarms went off on three separate occasions in Williams Hall on March 17. The third occurred around 11:30 p.m., prohibiting some students from re-entering their rooms.

“We got woken up about 8:30 a.m. by a fire alarm,” Nader said. “It was pretty short. It wasn't anything that long. Then about 10:30 a.m., there was one again, which was kind of weird, but my roommate and I were leaving anyway.”

The third alarm sounded around 11:30 p.m. and could be heard through-

The incident was due to a faulty alarm, according to University Spokesman Jack Dunn. “Newton Fire responded and declared the alarm to be faulty,” Dunn wrote in a statement to The Heights Marco Nader, a Williams resident and CSOM ’27, said the first alarm went off around 8:30 a.m., followed by a second alarm around 10:30 a.m. Both of these alarms only sounded on the second and third floors of Williams, he said.

out all four floors of the building, according to Vivienne Woodard, a Williams resident and CSOM ’27. Woodard said police officers and firefighters responded quickly to the scene, searching the building and closing off upper floors. “The first time, we were told not to go to our room … then, maybe two minutes later, my friend and I went back up to try to see if we could get into our room, and a different policeman said that we were [able to],” Woodard said. “So I went to bed around 1:00 [a.m.] and I was never woken up by an alarm.”

Jack Burns, another Williams resident and MCAS ’27, said the fire alarms primarily affected students living on the second and third floors of the building.

“I think [the alarms] stopped and they said, ‘You guys are good to go back in,’ and then it started going off again, probably around like 12:45 [a.m.],” Burns said. “They were telling us that we were not allowed to go to our rooms if we lived on floors two and three.”

Burns said he and other students were later told by the RA that they could reenter the building, but the alarms would continue to sound.

“I received a text from my RA over GroupMe that we were good to go back inside,” Burns said. “That was information he had received from the police officers saying that we were good to go to our rooms, but that the alarm would just keep going off,” Burns said.

The RA sent another message to the GroupMe informing students that the Office of Residential Life (ResLife) could verify the occurrence of the alarms.

“If you feel like tonight’s alarm might have disrupted your academic abilities, I would encourage you to inform your professors and advocate for your needs,” the message reads. “ResLife can vouch that the alarm did go off if your professors ask for verification.”

Unsure of when the alarms would finally stop sounding, Burns said he spent the night at a friend’s room in Xavier Hall.

“I relocated,” Burns said. “Because at that point, when I went to bed, I wasn’t sure if the alarms would keep going off and on, because it was like an off and on thing for a long time. I got to his room around two in the morning.”

In an email sent to Williams residents at 1:26 p.m. on Monday, ResLife Facilities said the alarm system was being repaired.

“We are sending this email to inform you the fire alarm system in your building is being repaired this afternoon by our vendor Keyes North Atlantic, and they are scheduled to be completed over the next couple hours,” the email reads.

“Once the repairs are completed, they will sound the horns to ensure the repairs were successful.” n

BC To Offer New Psychological Humanities Minor

By AnnikA engelBrechT Asst. News Editor

Coming this fall, the Lynch School of Education and Human Development (LSEHD) will offer a new minor in psychological humanities, open to all students.

“I’m constantly surprised by just the brilliance of the students at BC and how they bring these disciplines together, the types of questions that emerge for them, and the types of new ideas that come into play,” said David Goodman, the director of the psychological humanities minor.

Matthew Clemente, an adjunct professor in the Woods College for Advancing Studies, said LSEHD created the minor to broaden traditional understandings of psychology and integrate

different disciplines into its study. “Part of the goal of the minor is to … broaden how we understand psychology, such that it’s able to converse with other disciplines, the kinds of disciplines with long rich histories and traditions that have to do with what it means to be a human being and how we understand human consciousness,” Clemente said.

Christopher Higgins, chair of the formative education department within LSEHD, said he wanted to be involved with the minor because it guides students to learn through multiple disciplines.

“There are ethical questions, for example, that you just really can’t get at with philosophy alone, or theology alone, or psychology alone,” Higgins said. “But once these disciplines are in

dialogue, you could have a much richer reflection on who we are as human beings, what we’re striving to become, and how we get there.”

Likewise, hopes of establishing interdisciplinary relationships between psychology and other fields led Goodman to establish the minor, he said.

“I often worry [psychology is] becoming increasingly sort of one dimensional,” Goodman said. “So I was excited to help build a minor that can help, I think, create some of those other dimensions and bring them into relationship with the discipline of psychology.”

The minor will have four components—one foundational course, three electives, one formative seminar, and one capstone course, totaling 18 credits. Electives are separated into categories

of the good, the beautiful, and the true, according to Clemente.

“These are the ancient philosophical categories for how we think about the kind of essential aspects of human life,” Clemente said. “So ethical questions, the good; aesthetic questions, questions of art, the beautiful; and then questions of reason, rationality, how the mind works and functions, epistemological questions, the truth.”

Some of these electives include psychology and politics, madness in literature, global mental health, and aesthetic awakenings.

The minor will require an application consisting of one short essay explaining the student’s interest and fit for the minor, Clemente said.

“It’s going to be the type of thing that we want to be expansive and open

to Boston College students,” Clemente said. “We’re hopeful that lots of people will be interested in it.”

Classes that will count towards the minor are still being developed, so students can request specific approval for courses or credit from a class they have already taken, Clemente said.

“Right now we’re in the process of both compiling a list of courses which we would accept and approve,” Clemente said. “But students who want to be in the minor, we’re open to kind of on a case-by-case basis, having them write us and getting approval for classes that they’ve already taken.”

Read the rest of this story at www.bcheights.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF ISA SYLBERT

PHOTO

Students presented ways to make BC Dining more sustainable, competing for a $3,000 grand prize.

Paredes Receives Saint Oscar A. Romero Scholarship

B y J ack B eckman

Asst. News Editor

a nnika e ngel Brecht

Asst. News Editor

Melanie Paredes’ mother embraced her as she stood to accept the 2024 Saint Oscar A. Romero Scholarship. Joyous cheers echoed throughout the room.

“I am deeply, deeply indebted to my mother and her dedication and sacrifices and paving the way for me to access education,” said Paredes, MCAS ’25. “Her resilience, perseverance, and selflessness have been the cornerstone in my college journey.”

Named after former Salvadoran archbishop Saint Oscar A. Romero, the scholarship honors a Boston College junior who has showcased an outstanding commitment to service and involvement in the Hispanic and Latino communities.

The 32nd annual Saint Oscar A. Romero Scholarship award ceremony took place on Saturday night—one day before the anniversary of Romero’s assassination and feast day—in Yawkey Athletics Center.

In her acceptance speech, Paredes encouraged audience members to continue fighting for marginalized people, as well as equal education and housing opportunities for all.

“We must stand in solidarity

and continue to fight for the rights of the marginalized and voiceless among us,” Paredes said. “Our commitment to justice, equity, and inclusion demands that we persist and advocate for our community.”

“The job is not finished, and let’s continue to work hard towards making changes and creating a better community for all, little by little.”

Paredes founded College Ambassadors, an organization seeking to help low-income and first-generation students navigate the college application process. She also conducted award-winning research on the impact of homelessness and education on families raised by single mothers, according to Rebecca Mitchell, associate director for curriculum and assessment at the Pine Minor Institute.

“Demonstrating her commitment to social justice, Melanie was the StartEmpowerment researcher recipient, leading groundbreaking research on the impact of home-

lessness on the educational attainment of children raised by single mothers,” Mitchell said.

Paredes was one of three finalists alongside Karol Bedoya, CSON ’25, and Jacob Bojito, MCAS ’25, who were selected from a pool of 23 initial applicants—the largest in the scholarship’s history, according to Milvia Sanchez, co-chair of the Romero Scholarship Committee.

As the winner, Paredes will receive up to $25,000 toward her tuition, while the other two finalists will each receive awards of up to $3,000. All three finalists also received a $1,000 credit toward the BC Bookstore.

Paredes was presented with the scholarship by University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J., who commended the finalists for their commitment to service.

“Those individuals that are the finalists here tonight offer us an example—they challenge us to live lives of service, lives of integrity, lives of fidelity,” Leahy said. “That’s not easy today.”

Kevin Lopez, MCAS ’24 and co-recipient of the 2023 Oscar A. Romero Scholarship Award, applauded the finalists for their accomplishments and encouraged them to continue advocating for change.

“The job is not finished, and let’s continue to work hard towards making changes and creating a better community for all, little by

Senate Discusses Pine Manor Updates, Outdoor Study Spaces

B y J ack B eckman

Asst. News Editor

The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success (PMI) is primed to serve students next year, despite the increased responsibilities it has taken on, student senators shared at the UGBC Senate meeting on Tuesday night.

The Senate intersectionality committee sat down for a meeting with Karl Bell, director of mentoring and academic achievement at PMI, last week.

“He was basically saying that we do feel equipped to handle what we’ve taken on, which is honestly really good to hear,” said Colleen Blascik, first-generation student representative and MCAS ’27.

Blascik said she expressed concerns during the meeting that the number of incoming QuestBridge scholars—nearly triple the inaugural class of scholars in 2021—would render it difficult to adequately support each student within PMI.

“I was asking Karl how [PMI] feels about the resources that they have—[does he] feel equipped to handle the new incoming QuestBridge class and just a lot of the things that are now under the umbrella of PMI,” Blascik said.

Bell said the primary problem that PMI faces is not a lack of resources, but rather connecting those resources with students who

need them, added Katie Garrigan, Senate intersectionality committee chair and MCAS ’25. “The resources are there and people are willing to help,” Garrigan said. “It’s just a matter of getting students in the door and making sure they feel comfortable in those spaces.”

Garrigan said the Senate intersectionality committee is planning an open house event later this semester to showcase PMI’s offerings to students who might otherwise feel uncomfortable reaching out for help and resources.

“The resources are there and people are willing to help. It’s just a matter of getting students in the door and making sure they feel comfortable in those spaces.”

“We’re hoping that something like the open house can emulate some of those vibes, where it’s a little more comfortable to walk in

little,” Lopez said.

Jonathan Mora, LSEHD ’24 and co-recipient of the 2023 Oscar A. Romero Scholarship Award, praised all 23 applicants for their achievements and said the scholarship is a testament to the sacrifices the finalists made throughout their college experiences.

“To me, this scholarship is not only an honor, it is a testament to every sleepless night, to every time you thought, ‘Is this really going to be worth it?’” Mora said. “It is a testament to your sacrifices and to your parents’ sacrifices.”

Rev. Alejandro Olayo-Méndez, S.J., an assistant professor in the School of Social Work, delivered the keynote address, challenging the audience to advocate for marginalized populations even

when it is unpopular, as Romero did.

“One thing that we could do as we invest and commit ourselves in those things that we believe is never forget those who are voiceless,” Olayo-Méndez said.

Migdalia Nalls, BC ’01 and BC Law ’04, also received the Rev. John A. Dinneen, S.J., Hispanic Alumni Community Service Award, which honors an alumnus who embodies the spirit of Saint Romero’s ideals and has a record of service to the Latino community.

Paredes said she intends to continue advocating for inclusion of and fairness toward all people.

“The journey towards true equality may be long, but it is a journey that is worth undertaking,” Paredes said. n

Finance Remains as Most Popular Major

By angelina li Assoc. News Editor

For the second consecutive academic year, finance is the most popular major at Boston College, according to the BC Fact Book—an annual release of University facts and figures compiled by the Office of Institutional Research & Planning. In last year’s rankings, finance surpassed economics and topped the list for the first time in 15 years.

The order of the top 10 majors for this year is identical to last year’s.

1. Finance (1,461)

2. Economics (1,278)

3. Biology (816)

4. Political science (691)

5. Psychology (615)

the first time, and then you meet your first-gen advisor, you have more relationships with them—it’s just kind of getting those first touch points,” Garrigan said.

The Senate also discussed ways to provide students greater access to outdoor spaces around campus for studying and leisure.

“As we saw this past week on the one day where it was above 50 degrees, everyone was out on the Quad all day, so just providing spaces where [students] can work as well as relax in those environments,” said Addie Weiss, student senator and MCAS ’27.

Senators suggested adding outlets and umbrellas to existing outdoor spaces such as Stokes Amphitheater and the terrace outside Devlin Hall to make them conducive to studying during warmer months.

Blascik said she hopes to provide more spaces for students to casually socialize with friends outside of their residence halls, noting that unlike various other universities, BC lacks a student union.

“I was wondering if the partnership could also be made to expand space on campus for students to sort of just collaborate and have fun,” Blascik said. “We really only have the lounges or the dining halls to be with our friends and just enjoy the company of other people.” n

6. Communication (567)

7. Computer science (556)

8. Nursing (429)

9. Neuroscience (417)

10. Applied psychology and human development (380)

Although there are only 105 students majoring in environmental studies, the program experienced a 600 percent jump in enrollments since it first became a major in 2014, according to the Fact Book. In a BC News release, Program Director for the Environmental Studies Major Tara Pisani Gareau attributed the growing popularity of the major to students’ increased awareness of global environmental challenges.

“When we ask graduating seniors their primary reason for choosing Environmental Studies, the most common answer is that they are passionate about solving these complex and existential environmental problems,” Gareau said in the release.

“This is a watershed moment in human history and the Environmental Studies program prepares students with the knowledge and skills to envision and enact positive and lasting solutions that sustain people and the planet.”

Finance also continues to be the most popular undergraduate minor at BC, the Fact Book reveals.

1. Finance (606)

2. Marketing (298)

3. Management and leadership (285)

4. Managing for social impact and the common good (204)

5. Philosophy (157)

6. History (131)

7. Computer science (117)

8. Global public health (106)

9. English (105)

10. Accounting for finance and consulting (104)

Though finance has been the most popular minor since its introduction in 2018, the program has also experienced a 129 percent increase since garnering 265 enrollees during its founding year.

The number of students minoring in managing for social impact and the public good (MSI) has more than doubled from the program’s 97 enrollees in the 2020–2021 school year, according to the release.

“It offers students a chance to blend elective courses—more than 200 of them—from throughout the University in really interesting combinations,” Senior Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs Ethan Sullivan said in the release.

Students minoring in MSI often seek opportunities in nonprofits and jobs connected to social impact initiatives, while others will utilize their knowledge in their personal lives through acts like volunteering, Sullivan said in the release.

“Whether or not that always happens, we are helping to form great citizens with a mindset to solve problems,” Sullivan said in the release.

Though the data allows for comparison of BC students’ career interests on a broader level, administrators and faculty suggest the school’s faith identity be considered while interpreting the metrics, according to the release.

“Studies in or related to business, nursing, psychology, biology, economics, computer science, communication, and political science tend to be highly enrolled throughout American higher education,” the release reads. “However, say administrators and faculty, it’s instructive to view BC’s numbers in the context of a major national Jesuit, Catholic university and the students it attracts.” n

SARAH FLEMING / HEIGHTS EDITOR

ANNIKA

Newton’s Reported Hate Crime Data Breakdown

This past month, Newton has seen an uptick in vandalism targeting demonstrations of support for Israel and the hostages taken by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attacks. These incidents, which are being investigated as antisemitic hate crimes, include the ripping up of hostage posters and the throwing of rocks through windows displaying “Boston Strong. Israel Strong” signs. In a message to the Newton community, Mayor Ruthanne Fuller shared some of the city’s hate crime data, noting that Newton has seen 12 reported hate crimes in 2024 thus far, compared to the seven from this same period last year. The number of reported antisemitic hate crimes has seen a significant jump.

Programs and Services Talks Moving Municipal Elections

By Brendan O’Friel Heights Staff

Newton’s Programs and Services Committee met Wednesday to discuss moving Newton’s municipal elections to even years due to significantly lower turnouts during other years.

“The research is pretty clear that the turnout is very low, and the turnout is not representative of the community at large,” said Ward 2 Councilor-at-Large Susan Albright.

According to Newton City Clerk Carol Moore, the state and presidential primary typically see at least a 50 percent turnout, which is much higher than the percentages for Newton municipal elections.

“They are typically under 30 percent, sometimes as low as 17 percent,” Moore said. “I think the highest was 33 percent in a special election.”

In addition to potentially promoting higher voter turnout for municipal elections, the city could also save money by moving local elections to even years. According to Moore, Newton could save more than $200,000 if it consolidated elections.

“If we piggybacked on a state election, we are already staffing an election, we’re already paying for the police officers, the election workers, the mailings, the postage,” Moore said.

Some members of the committee, however, expressed a desire to keep local elections separate from state and federal ones.

Newton Investigates Poster Vandalism as a Hate Incident

B y G enevieve M Orris On Assoc. Newton Editor

looking to make a difference and when they have enough information inside,” Malakie said.

Baker expressed how he would prefer to keep municipal elections away from the partisan nature of state and federal elections.

“I think one of the great strengths of Massachusetts is the fact that all of our local elections are indeed nonpartisan,” Baker said. “I’m not eager to trade into the state election system for an economy of even these significant numbers.”

Ward 5 Councilor Bill Humphrey suggested taking a look at other cities that have merged municipal elections with state and federal ones to gauge whether or not voters engage with municipal races at a higher rate.

“I would be curious to see some examples of places elsewhere in the country that have done this … to know what the level of blank voting is on the lower offices,” Humphrey said. “If the argument is that we want to have more people participate and more turnout … I would also want to make sure that there is a compelling argument there that the turnout is significantly higher.”

Ward 3 Councilor Julia Malakie argued that voters likely turn out based on candidates who are passionate about local issues, rather than elections’ timing.

“Turnout is certainly something to aspire to, but, to me, I think people will turn out when they feel like they have a choice of candidates who are

“The cost savings are definitely there, so I don’t discount those at all,” Ward 7 Councilor R. Lisle Baker said. “But I think the value of having a locally focused election cycle is really an important part of our municipal commission.”

Ward 8 Councilor Stephen Farrell discussed how the committee should address ways to encourage voting in local elections without switching the election years.

“I think it’s really important for us to understand that the municipal issues are very serious, and they really do focus on our needs and interests and concerns,” Farrell said. “I think it is up to us to generate more enthusiasm among the city voters.”

Albright maintained that switching municipal elections to even years would enhance voter turnout and be more representative of the community.

“From everything that I’ve read and all the research that’s been done about it is that it really does foster democracy,” Albright said. “The turnout represents more of the community, which I think we should all be happy to have that happen.”

According to Albright, the Massachusetts Secretary of State is not in favor of cities and towns combining local elections with state and federal ones, which would make implementing this change in Newton difficult.

Despite the secretary of state’s disapproval and his own reservations, Baker feels the issue warrants further discussion.

“Certainly, I think it’s worth investigating,” Baker said. “My views I don’t think are likely to change, even with persuasive data. I think the point is that it’s worth investigating this.” n

A set of posters displaying Israeli hostages at a Newton home on Homer Street was vandalized on Sunday. Newton police are investigating the event as a hate crime.

“What we’re afraid of is that the destruction of property is the first step, and that what later on will happen is physical violence,” said Miriam Kosowsky, the homeowner.

Vandals ripped and spray-painted over the posters displaying hostages taken by Hamas, painting “Free Gaza” over part of the display.

“We denounce such behavior, and our community has no tolerance for such bias and hateful acts,” Newton Police Chief John Carmichael said. “We will investigate the matter fully and seek to prosecute anyone involved.”

The police department has since announced it is investigating six similar cases of vandalism that have occurred since Feb. 22, in addition to the instance on Homer Street.

“We will be adding extra patrols and are asking our community to remain vigilant,” the police department wrote in a Facebook post.

Three of these cases were signs reading “We Stand with Israel” defaced with the slogan, “Bombing Kids is Not Self Defense.”

Police have narrowed down the time frame of the Homer Street case, but have no suspects yet, according to Kosowsky.

“They know what happened in the morning and they know it happened in a 45-minute block of time,” Kosowsky said. “They also have some video footage, so that is also helpful.”

Kosowsky plans to host an event to put up a new display of posters on April 7, which will mark six months since the Hamas’ Oct. 7 kidnapping of Israeli hostages on the Israel-Gaza border.

“Our thoughts are to have maybe a child each put up one of the hostage signs and just to give out other posters to people and other things, and just have it as just a community-wide showing that hate cannot prevail,” Kosowsky said. The attention given to the vandalism at her home has brought attention back to the hostages, according to Kosowsky.

“Instead of sort of dehumanizing the hostages and erasing them, it’s brought their plight again to the fore,” Kosowsky said. n

Farmstead Table Brings Local Flavors to Newton

By Laney Mcaden Asst. Newton Editor Brooke GhaLy Assoc. Graphics Editor

Located at 71 Union St. in the heart of Newton Centre, Farmstead Table offers a homey environment accompanied by high-quality meals.

While the restaurant’s atmosphere is small and cozy, the dishes pack a punch. Some are traditional American comfort meals, with dishes like buttermilk pancakes and fruit, a crispy chicken sandwich with hand-cut fries, or a char-grilled burger.

Server John Baptiste noted that in the mornings his favorite dish is the Farmer’s Plate, a traditional, hearty meal of soft eggs, bacon, and fried potatoes.

“Later, around 12 o’clock, I’ll go for the duck hash all the way,” Baptiste said.

Other dishes highlight the creativity and cooking techniques that set Farmstead Table apart from other establishments. The restaurant offers homemade spelt bread, roasted sugar pumpkin hummus, and crispy brussels sprouts tacos customers

cannot find anywhere else.

“My favorite thing to make is probably the sweet potato duck hash,” line cook Tonio Zacco said. “It has a duck leg that we sear, and it comes with our crispy breakfast sweet potatoes.” Although menu items vary in style, the quality of the ingredients and cooking remains consistent. Farmstead Table uses fresh food from local farms to create dishes that taste delicious and support the community.

“The food we serve here is the best,” Baptiste said. “Farm to table, you can’t get any better than that.”

Farmstead Table is inspired by local farmers, and aims to create and serve dishes with high-quality ingredients and flavors. Its menu shifts seasonally to accommodate for changes in fresh produce, but the meals are consistently flavorful and filling year-round.

Baptiste said he has been working for Farmstead Table for 11 of the 12 years the restaurant has been open.

“I wouldn’t do anything else,” Baptiste said. “I love it here.”

As a small local business, Farmstead Table had to earn its place in

the Newton community, according to Baptiste.

“When we first started, it was fairly slow,” Baptiste said. “After that, business began booming.”

Like other restaurants in the area, Farmstead Table struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially given its need for fresh ingredients.

“The pandemic, of course,

closed us down,” Baptiste said. “But now, we are happy to be back to normal.”

Farmstead Table features a mix of tables and booths tucked into its small, charming dining area. The walls display a variety of decorations, such as embroidery hoops with intricate fabrics, that make any customer feel at home.

Home is a key tenet of Farm-

stead Table’s mission—its website emphasizes community involvement and sustainable ingredients.

From the staff to the customers, everyone involved with Farmstead Table is investing in good food and even better ingredients.

“My favorite part about working here is definitely the team,” says Zacco. “It’s fun having a common goal and getting it done every day.” n

Newton-Wellesley Hospital Awarded for Patient Safety

Newton-Wellesley Hospital (NWH) received an award for excel-

lence in patient safety last Tuesday from Healthgrades, a healthcare research and review company.

“We are immensely proud of this recognition, which underscore

our unwavering commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of every patient entrusted to our care,”

President and CEO of NWH Ellen Moloney said in a press release.

The

According to Healthgrades, the award is distributed to hospitals exhibiting excellence in patient safety by protecting against “infections, medical errors, and other preventable complications.”

The distinction is awarded to just 10 percent of the hospitals evaluated.

“This achievement reflects the dedication and tireless efforts of every member of our exceptional team here at Newton-Wellesley Hospital,” Moloney said in the release.

The safety rating is based on 14 safety metrics—including death rate in low-mortality diagnoses, surgical devices left in patients, and in-hospital fall-associated fractures—that show how often serious and potentially preventable complications occur at a hospital.

Healthgrades also named NWH among America’s 250 best hospitals in January, putting it in the top 5 percent in the nation. It also granted the hospital awards in critical care, orthopedic surgery, and pulmonary care.

According to Brad Bowman, chief medical officer and head of data science at Healthgrades, prospective hospital patients should pay attention to this rating.

“As consumers take a more hands-on approach to their healthcare journeys, hospital quality should be a top consideration when choosing where to receive care,” Bowman said in the release. “With this information, consumers can feel confident they’re making the most informed decisions about their healthcare.” n

Superintendent Presents Proposed NPS Budget

By Ella Song Newton

in funds from last year.

“It

According to Nolin, the budget uses creative adjustments to accom-

“This

that we have to make adjustments in other places in the budget to address those most acute needs,” Nolin said.

The proposed budget invests in additional social workers in elementary schools, smaller STEM high school

classes, more IT services, facility and curriculum maintenance and improvements, the restoration of professional development, and more.

Nolin said while the budget is balanced, it does rely on $3.7 million in one-time funds, which is unsustainable.

To address this, Mayor Ruthanne Fuller created an Educational Stabilization Fund of $22 million to be used by NPS over the next five years. Fuller allocated $4.1 million of the fund to next year’s budget.

“We are deeply grateful for that shot in the arm, if you will, for the health of our budget,” Nolin said. Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education Ayesha Farag, who presented on the NPS elementary schools budget, emphasized the addition of seven full-time equivalent roles (FTE) to the elementary schools.

“The kinds of steps that we’re seeking to take next year, with the addition of the seven FTEs, are designed to help us strengthen the overall ecosystem of how our systems and structures are working at the elementary system,” Farag said.

The additional FTEs will support scheduling adjustments at elementary schools, which will block time for student intervention and enrichment, stagger schedules to improve one-onone student access to specialists, and include common planning time for educators.

“[The schedule changes] will provide dedicated time in every one of our schools for intervention and enrichment at every grade level, and a

cascading schedule that ensures that staff are available to help support those blocks as best as possible,” Farag said.

Despite a projected decline in elementary school enrollment this coming year, the budget includes 245 classrooms with two in reserve—the same as the previous year.

Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education Toby Romer, who presented on the NPS middle and high schools budget, said the projected enrollment changes at those levels are “negligible,” but that enrollment shifts between schools are resulting in staffing shifts. At the middle school level, only Bigelow Middle School is experiencing a staffing change.

“Bigelow, based on the redistricting that we were able to do to bring Bigelow up to its targeted size in the

500 student range, is headed nicely in that direction, allowing us to add back two team teachers and an additional half FTE for the multi-team in phys ed and art,” Romer said.

At the high school level, the increase in enrollment at Newton South High School (NSHS) and the decrease in enrollment at Newton North High School (NNHS) has resulted in an enrollment adjustment of 2 2/5 FTEs, leaving NNHS with a total staffing change of six additional FTEs and NSHS with 8 1/4 FTEs, for a total 14 1/4 FTE increase at the high school level.

“The focus [with the additional FTEs] is on creating better class sizes and more access to math, science and engineering courses, but across the board, there’s going to be a trickle down effect, or domino effect if you will, cre-

ating more first choice class options for students in all of their departments and selections,” Romer said.

According to Romer, the specific allocation of the FTEs will be decided in May based on course selection and student enrollment.

The budget review process will continue on Monday, March 25, and will address student services and teaching and learning.

The final budget presentation to Newton City Council will occur on April 24.

“We welcome the public to join us,” Nolin said. “But our movement here and our budget is based on the value for a thriving school system, and that we hope that we are growing minds, hearts, and bonds for a bright future.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF NEWTON-WELLESLEY HOSPITAL

award from Healthgrades recognizes hospitals with low rates of preventable complications in care.

BROOKE

The

M AGAZINE

Co-Founder of AHANA and Current Students Express Concern Over BAIC’s LGBTQ+ Resources

BAIC, from A1

At the time, Lewis-Mosley was troubled by the use of the word “minority,” she said.

“The issue was the language,” Lewis-Mosley said. “To minimize the language of ‘minority’ over a group of students of color was thought to be pejorative, from my personal perspective.”

In response, Lewis-Mosley and her peer Alfred Feliciano, BC ’81, popularized the term AHANA among fellow students.

In 1979, the fall after Lewis-Mosley graduated, Feliciano aided in renaming the Office of Minority Student Programs as the Office of AHANA Student Program, a space and resource for students of color on campus, Lewis-Mosley said.

A decade later, BC rededicated the office to Thea Bowman, a nun who spent her life teaching children to embrace their identities and appreciate cross-cultural learning.

In April 2022, Vice President for Student Affairs Shawna Cooper Whitehead announced plans to restructure the BAIC to include resources for LGBTQ+ students—a plan that included dropping the AHANA acronym from the office’s name.

While the plan was initially paused after feedback from students and alumni, it resumed in April 2023, retaining the AHANA acronym. During the summer of 2023, BC formally integrated LGBTQ+ programming into the center and hired Ira Kirschner as an assistant director of the BAIC to spearhead LGBTQ+ initiatives.

An AHANA Founder’s Cause for Concern

Lewis-Mosley said she is concerned that the integration of LGBTQ+ resources into the BAIC will result in decreased resources for both groups.

“If you have a pie that can only be divided in eight parts, and you’ve already divided it, and you keep including more into that one limited pie, you’re not serving the needs of either community,” Lewis-Mosley said.

According to Cooper Whitehead, the recent integration has not decreased existing support for students of color.

“Since this transition, we have

NOT reduced support or resources for our students of color and have remained cognizant of providing a sense of belonging for students from historically marginalized communities,” Cooper Whitehead wrote in a statement to The Heights

Lewis-Mosley also said LGBTQ+ students deserve specially tailored solutions to their needs.

“I think it was a disservice to our LGBTQI community in a way because it took the onus of really expanding and broadening the conversation,” she said.

BC has consistently rejected proposals for an LGBTQ+ resource center for nearly two decades preceding the transition of LGBTQ+ support into the BAIC.

Students React to the Integration

Some current BC students have concerns regarding the housing of LGBTQ+ and AHANA resources under the same roof.

Isabella Sampaio, MCAS ’25, said she was frustrated by BC’s decision to combine the support for two minority groups on campus.

“I feel like it’s easy for BC to be like, ‘Let me just group two minority groups,’ but I feel like it takes away from the AHANA aspect of it,” Sampaio said. “I feel like when you’re putting another resource center in a resource center that’s already being used for something else, I feel like it beats the purpose of both of them.”

Habibatou Sarr, MCAS ’26, said she thinks the integration was an insufficient solution to the need for identity-based support on campus.

“I feel that BC’s decision to combine LGBTQ+ and AHANA resources was a surface-level attempt to address complaints,” Sarr said. “Combining two minority groups into an existing space has its limitations and doesn’t fully serve the needs of either group.”

Sarr also said she doesn’t know of many LGBTQ+ peers who have visited the BAIC since the integration.

“While some students have accepted the integration, many still feel it was the wrong move,” Sarr said. “In my experience, few LGBTQ+ students visit the BAIC, highlighting a need for separate spaces as they may feel that they’re ‘intruding.’”

Layla Saenz, MCAS ’25, also said the combination of resources poses a potential challenge for

non-AHANA students who identify as LGBTQ+.

“I can’t speak on it personally, but I imagine it’d be difficult … for some queer students who aren’t people of color, entering that space. They might feel like they’re overstepping in a way,” Saenz said.

Serving An Intersectional Boston College

Nonetheless, Cooper Whitehead said the mixed model of support is important for students with intersectional identities and was designed with student input in mind.

“Throughout my time at BC, I have been constantly engaging with our students, many of whom have emphasized their intersectional identities,” Cooper Whitehead wrote in her statement. “They have shared their desire to have a welcoming place where they can meet with fellow students from all backgrounds and orientations. Their input was part of our decision to expand the BAIC’s outreach.”

Kirschner said he had an especially positive experience since beginning his role organizing LGBTQ+ programming on campus.

“I’m learning a lot from the students I have been working with, and I’m looking forward to the continuing partnership and collaboration between the BAIC and the LGBTQ+ students we are supporting,” Kirschner wrote in a statement to The Heights.

Yvonne McBarnett, director of the BAIC, did not respond to The Heights’ request for a statement at the time of publication.

Aidan Seguin, MCAS ’25 and chair of the Queer Leadership Council (QLC), said a significant amount of pressure is placed on

the QLC’s student leaders to foster LGBTQ+ community on campus.

“There’s a lot of pressure on [QLC],” Seguin said. “If our group disappeared, the majority of queer things happening on campus would disappear alongside it.”

Seguin also said the integration process has not been seamless.

“I think from what I’ve been hearing, it doesn’t seem like the integration has gone as smoothly as desired,” Seguin said. “I work closely with Ira … and I definitely can see the effort from his side, but I just don’t know how effective that effort has been.”

Nevertheless, Seguin said he supports the integration of LGBTQ+ resources.

“It’s not necessarily like there’s a part of the BAIC—in my mind— that’s being taken away from this, or like anything is being removed,” Seguin said. “I think that having these two things in this space just increases the chances that more intersectional events will happen.”

Kirschner said the integration of LGBTQ+ resources into the BAIC is productive for students who identify with both the AHANA acronym and as a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

He described the integration as both a combination and an addition.

“It is a combination, because for some students who hold an identity that includes LGBTQ+ and AHANA - those cannot be separated, and they benefit from receiving all of their identity related resources in a holistic, complete way,” Kirschner wrote in his statement. “It is an addition because all LGBTQ+ students can now receive identity-related resources at the BAIC, without taking away from AHANA students who

have been receiving identity related resources from the BAIC for many years.”

Kirschner said he has only received positive feedback in response to the integration.

“Everyone I have spoken to and interacted with has expressed excitement about the BAIC now supporting LGBTQ+ students and other marginalized students, in addition to AHANA students,” Kirschner wrote in his statement.

Kirschner also said the BAIC plans to expand its LGBTQ+ resource offerings going forward.

“Next year we plan to do even more - like an LGBTQ+ student summit in the fall semester, LGBTQ+ wellness programs, tabling across campus to raise awareness about LGBTQ+ resources and programming at BC, programs about LGBTQ+ and religious identity,” Kirschner said.

By expanding the resources offered through the BAIC, Seguin said he hopes administrators can lighten the pressure that QLC student leaders feel to curate queer spaces on campus.

“I hope that, as the next years come, maybe they can get more grad assistants or more student workers to actually help them build up programming,” Seguin said. “Right now the programmatic load is much greater on students, which is not the place where you want to be when students are already struggling.”

Sampaio said the present conflict surrounding identity-based resources on campus reflects BC’s reluctance to evolve its resources.

“I just feel like BC needs to change with the times,” she said. “I feel like other Catholic schools around are moving with the times.” n

What Your Off-Campus Street Says About You

B y MC C laverie Heights Senior Staff

August has come and gone.

Every year, many Boston College juniors leave their twin XLs and university-issued desks be hind for something big ger and better—an off-campus house or apartment.

While there are several streets near BC that stu dents tend to live on, some streets are more popular than others.

Whether your home is a peaceful getaway or a host ing hub, the street you live on likely says more about who you are than you think.

The Big Three: Foster Street, Gerald Road, Kirkwood Road

If you live on one of the big three BC off-campus housing streets, you are a

party animal. You carry around a pepper spray keychain and probably wish you were sponsored by Ring: Home Security Systems (stay vigilant y’all).

When you aren’t worrying about off-campus break-ins and the security of your belongings, you are a social butterfly. Sure, you likely live in fear of Steve Montgomery, BC’s student community liaison, but that doesn’t stop you from hosting any and all parties. You’re no stranger to a good time and I just know you are eagerly counting down the days until your Marathon

Classic Choices: South Street, Chestnut Hill Avenue, Commonwealth Avenue

If you live on South Street, Chestnut Hill Avenue, or Commonwealth Avenue, you are

someone who appreciates the classics. You probably have a bit of a superiority complex, but riding a packed shuttle bus to Main Campus every day keeps you humble.

You likely romanticized living in a brownstone-esque apartment but cursed your landlord when you discovered the true struggle of moving into a building without an elevator.

Underrated Gems: Lake Street and Undine Road

If you live on Lake Street or Undine Road, you are nothing if not consistent. You are someone who likes to follow a schedule, meal plans, and probably gets more sleep than I ever will. Part of you wishes you lived on Foster, Gerald, or Kirkwood, but at the end of the day, you are happy to retreat to your cleaner and quieter house after parties. You secretly fear your “real neighbors,” but like to say you don’t care if they threaten to call

Elite

If you live on Algonquin Road—or, as I affectionately call it, “Gonk”—congratulations, you are the coolest person at BC. I lived there my junior year, so I may be a bit biased, but even now, I can’t imagine anywhere else I would rather have lived. Though “Gonk” lacks the massive basements, rowdy parties, and social clout associated with other popular off-campus streets, its serene vibe and close proximity to campus make it the perfect place to spend junior year. Sure, your “real neighbors” may be mean, and you can sometimes hear the shriek of the green line, but the tree-lined sidewalks, easy access to BC staples like Richdale Food Shops, Crazy Dough’s Pizza, and White Mountain Creamery, and a sub-10-minute walk to Main Campus make “Gonk” the elite off-campus street. n

Since July 2023, the BAIC has gradually integrated LGBTQ+ resources and programming into its office.

by StePhen bradley Heights Senior Staff

I recently returned from a trip to Lisbon, Portugal, and if there’s one thing I learned while there, it’s that the Portuguese love sardines.

I can’t blame them. Sardines, or sardinhas, are a small yet versatile fish. You can have them deep-fried, canned, grilled—or pan-fried atop a mixture of rice, olives, nuts, and mustard.

This dish, the pan-fried pantry

sardine bowl, takes inspiration from the Lisboeta food scene and adapts it to common pantry ingredients. It features seared sardines and a sunny-side up egg over an ensemble of easy-to-grab ingredients.

You can alter this dish to any kind of canned fish, as the accompanying ingredients match perfectly with most types of seafood. The bright, tangy flavors of dijon and olives balance the fattiness of the fish, nuts, and egg. To lift the heavy ingredients, the lemon juice and dill brighten the dish up.

This dish pairs well with a cold white wine or a light-bodied red—perhaps even a Portuguese wine. Saúde!

DISH: Pan-Fried Pantry Sardine Bowl

INGREDIENTS:

2 canned sardines

1 egg

1 cup of cooked brown rice 6-8 kalamata olives

¼ cup walnuts

1 tablespoon of dijon mustard

A few sprigs of dill Herbes de Provence Extra virgin olive oil Lemon juice

RECIPE : Set a pan over medium-high heat, and roughly chop the walnuts. Put the walnuts into the pan and lightly toast them, intermittently shaking the pan to ensure they are evenly browned. Once aromatic, take them off of the heat and set aside.

Pat the sardines with a paper towel to remove the excess oil. Drizzle a thin layer of oil into the pan, and gently lay down the sardines. Flip them over once lightly seared.

While the sardines cook, slice the olives into halves. Then, roughly remove the dill leaves

from the stems and lightly chop. Add the walnuts, olives, dill, rice, and dijon to a bowl. Stir and add extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper to taste. Feel free to add more dijon to your liking (I almost always end up adding more than 1 tbsp, but I recommend starting there because of dijon’s strong, sharp flavor).

After both sides of the sardines are cooked, take them off of the heat and place them on top of the rice mixture. Crack an egg into the pan and cook it sunny-side up.

Once the egg is cooked, place it beside the sardines.

Crack some fresh black pepper over the egg and sprinkle a few flakes of salt. Serve, and enjoy! n

Smallwood’s Journey With Kitchens for Change

By

Phoebe Mabuchi Heights Staff

Audrey Smallwood was wearing an apron at her family’s restaurant as soon as she could walk.

But as she grew up, Audrey, LSEHD ’27, noticed the restaurant was more than just a place to eat— it served her community as well.

“Growing up and witnessing the way [my mother] made people feel with food was something I always looked up to, and it was something that I realized I wanted to emulate in my own way,” she said.

Audrey is co-founder of Kitchens For Change, a nonprofit bringing high school students together to tackle food insecurity in her hometown of Turlock, California. Utilizing the kitchens of local restaurants after hours, the organization cooks homemade meals to distribute around the community.

Elias Rabine, Audrey’s high school peer, also has a family in the restaurant business. Noticing how the pandemic impacted the issue of food insecurity in town, Rabine said he proposed the idea of Kitchens For Change to Audrey in the summer of 2021.

“I was like, she obviously has a restaurant at her disposal, but she seems like someone who would be really interested in this,” Rabine said. “I think she would be a great person to work with on this and we’ll be able to bounce ideas off each other and come up with something really great.”

Given that feeding others had been a value of her family for generations, Audrey was immediately on board with the idea, she said. Her family’s restaurant history traces back to 1972, when her grandmother and mother, Gloria Smallwood, immigrated to the

United States from Mexico and opened a Mexican restaurant named La Morenita, Audrey said.

One of Audrey’s favorite family stories is from La Morenita’s opening night—a customer left her grandmother a tip, and she chased after them, thinking they had forgotten their money.

“To her, working at the restaurant was a privilege,” Audrey said. “It was a privilege to serve the customers, to even have customers, and it was something that she enjoyed. She was sharing her love for food with other people.”

When Audrey was in the first grade, Gloria and two of Audrey’s sisters opened their own restaurant, La Mo. The eatery hosts several homeless guests who come in and out of the restaurant throughout the day and has become a safe space for people living on the streets of Turlock, Gloria said.

This facet of La Mo holds particular significance to the Smallwood family because Gloria experienced homelessness in her own childhood.

“Having had that experience in our own life and other people helping us out for that difficult time in our life—it created compassion and understanding for others,” Gloria said.

Growing up, Audrey remembers her family constantly helping others in need, she said. When she was younger, she created storytime at La Mo, setting up chairs in the restaurant’s courtyard and reading to the children who came in after half-days of school.

“She just had this confidence and this love of teaching and inspiring those children through reading,” Gloria said. “And so I saw her always being aware of the needs around her and developing ways to meet those needs.”

Kitchens For Change started as a club at Audrey and Rabine’s high school. As word about the club spread, support and donations from members of the Turlock community increased, Audrey said.

Audrey and Rabine planned the cooking events, and the club would go into restaurants during non-business hours to work with local chefs and mass-produce the meals.

“She was very, very organized … and had a really good sense of thinking out when we were planning an event,” Rabine said.

Even as a high schooler, Audrey distributed tasks among the volunteers and made certain everyone was provided a meal, Gloria said.

“She doesn’t do it in an offensive or an arrogant way, she does it out of a gentle strength,” Gloria said. “People just rally around her naturally.”

Following the success of the club at Turlock High School, Audrey and Rabine registered the

club as a nonprofit and created a second chapter of the organization at a neighboring high school. As the organization grew, news outlets began reaching out to Smallwood and Rabine. Most notably, in October 2023, The Kelly Clarkson Show invited the two founders to speak about Kitchens for Change. Though she was nervous, Audrey said she was incredibly grateful for the opportunity to share the project with a larger audience.

“It’s been an honor having opportunities like The Kelly Clarkson show, to have a platform to share what Kitchens for Change is, to share what we are about in our mission, and to hopefully catalyze other youth around the world to do things for the common good,” Audrey said.

As Audrey and Rabine transitioned to college, they decided to step back from their hands-on work with Kitchens for Change and join the organization’s board. They now oversee the operation’s

logistics and share advice with the high schoolers who currently lead it via Zoom meetings twice a month.

At Boston College, Audrey is majoring in applied psychology and human development in the Lynch School of Education and Human Development. She plans to pursue a career in child grief support, she said.

“Whether it’s child group support or Kitchens for Change, both really relate back to growing up at the restaurant and being raised by the wonderful woman my mom is and her just teaching me to be a woman for others,” Audrey said.

Growing up in a restaurant and being surrounded by passionate family members shaped Audrey’s values—values that Kitchens for Change was based on, she said.

“Founding Kitchens for Change alongside my peers was truly a way for me to embody La Mo in my own way,” Audrey said. “To connect and share memories and, best of all, share food.” n

Audrey Smallwood, LSEHD ‘27, is co-founder of Kitchen for Change, a nonprofit that tackles food insecurity. Working with local chefs, Audrey and Rabine planned cooking events.

GRAPHIC BY BROOKE GHALY / HEIGHTS EDITOR

PHOTO COURTESY OF STEPHEN BRADLEY Stephen recreated a Portuguese dish.

PHOTO COURTESY OF AUDREY SMALLWOOD

The Kelly Clarkson Show invited Audrey and her co-founder, Elias Rabine, to speak about Kitchens for Change.

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

Embracing “Positive Masculinity”

Discussing masculinity has become increasingly difficult. Terms such as “fragile” and “toxic” commonly precede masculinity. Criticisms of traditional masculinity have merit, but they often lack a proposed alternative. As a result, it is unclear to men what women, other men, and society expect of them.

The first question to ask is why masculinity is worth talking about in the first place. With our conceptions of gender constantly shifting, would we be better off scrapping the concept entirely and starting from square one?

I don’t think so.

While gender norms and our perception of masculinity have certainly evolved, the truth is that every human being is a composition of masculine and feminine traits. Men tend to skew toward masculine traits while women skew toward feminine traits due to both nature and nurture.

This is not binding—you can be a feminine guy or a masculine girl if that is what you want. Nothing is stopping you. But in our pursuit of gender equality, it would be naive and idealistic to ignore the social constructs that both men and women exist within.

I talked to a variety of Boston College students—both friends and strangers—to get their take on whether or not the concept of masculinity should continue to exist:

“I think it’s just inherent in how people are,” Lindsay Meier, MCAS ’26, said. “I think

[masculinity] can change how it surfaces in relationships … but I think that it’s always going to be there.”

“I think we should still use the language of masculinity and femininity because it’s the language that we have now,” Maureen Kelly, GMCAS ’24, said. “Maybe, at some point, those words and concepts will become obsolete. But it’s not something I think we can ignore.”

“I don’t think we should start from scratch,” Pepper Green, CSOM ’26, said. “But I think there needs to be a clear shift in how we view not just masculinity but femininity and how they intersect.”

These students all agree that voiding masculinity as a concept is not the solution. The issue is that the concept of masculinity means many different things to many different people.

Often, men find themselves walking a tightrope, attempting to balance the appropriate amount of masculinity. Men are encouraged to be vulnerable, but only in the proper context and in the right amounts.

Let’s give an example. A common saying now is that it is “okay for men to cry.” And I believe that it is. Nevertheless, there are much stricter societal bounds for when and how it is okay for a man to cry.

If a girl received a terrible grade on an exam and started crying, little challenge would be posed to her feminine merit—she might simply be seen as emotional or over-achieving. A guy, however, would immediately invalidate his masculinity in the eyes of both men and women by crying in this situation.

This perception is rooted in gender norms that equate masculinity with toughness and stoicism.

I am not telling men to start crying whenever they want. Instead, I am pointing out that society still has different expectations between male and female emotional expression.

There isn’t one group to blame for these

impossible paradoxes of masculinity. The issue is that the conversation is always so negative—avoid this, avoid that. Instead of solely critiquing failures of male behavior in the context of “toxic masculinity,” we need to demonstrate a positive example of masculinity for young men.

I was blessed enough to have this example growing up. When I think of positive masculinity, I think of my dad. My dad is by no means a macho guy. He is not a thrill seeker, is very risk-averse, and didn’t let me do some of the things the other “cool” dads let their kids do.

As I matured, I saw my father as an exemplary model of masculinity, demonstrating profound respect for women not just in words but in deeds. He doesn’t ingenuously post about women’s rights online—he actively respects my mom and sister, includes many women on his professional team, and has never made a sexist joke. This conduct, while it might seem basic, deeply shaped how I view masculinity.

When I was around ten, I made a disrespectful comment to my mom. My mom was successful in her career before retiring when I was around five years old to spend more time with our family. It was a difficult decision, but it made sense for them then. I remember I said something like, “Thank you, Dad, specifically, because you are the one working to pay for this.” He made me apologize immediately. I will never forget him saying, “If your mother continued her career, she would have been as successful, if not more successful than I am now.”

The Lifestyle of a Retired BC Athlete

After four years of competitive Division I athletics here at Boston College, I find myself standing disoriented in the plex, the faint sound of music buzzing through the speakers around me. I gaze around the fourth floor as the regular gym-goers run on the rows of treadmills and endlessly ascend the StairMaster steps. In this moment, I begin to realize how completely and utterly lost I am.

I’m currently a second-semester senior, and I just finished my last season as a BC field hockey player. I have found there to be a direct correlation between the end of my field hockey career and the fitness limbo I’ve since found myself in.

Sure, I have my old workout packets and regiments from when I was in season, but lots of the workouts my team did were sport-specific. I’m not training for high-level sports anymore, so I don’t want to do split squat jumps or other

crazy-looking exercises to make me more “explosive.” Yet as I acknowledge this, the question of what I am actually training for arises.

I used to have a dedicated block of time every day from 12 to 4 p.m. for working out and practicing. Now, I find myself squeezing short blocks of time in wherever I can. In my self-reflective quest, I learned that some retired athletes resort to marathons to quench their undying thirst for competition, but that just did not seem like it would be for me.

Recently, I have been swamped with a part-time job and midterms. This means I haven’t been able to make it to the gym as much, and I have never felt more stressed about it. I remember I used to pray for a day off from the organized torture of field hockey workouts and practice, but now I feel guilty about missing just a day at the gym.

Even when I can make the time, my routine at the plex—often consisting of a light treadmill jog or another modest cardio session—doesn’t even come close to the intensity of my Division I days. What happened?!

Athletics used to be my thing. I never really got stressed about school or other aspects of my life, but if I didn’t perform on the field, the panic would really start to set in. And with that panic came an overwhelming drive to take action and fix

my problems somehow.

Now, this feeling has manifested itself into my unorthodox gym routine.

There’s no longer a desired outcome or long-term goal for my fitness journey, I don’t know how to approach working out. Is it okay to work out just for fun and not kill my muscles every day? Is it okay to miss a day, or even a week every so often?

As I returned to the plex today for the first time in two weeks I felt … okay. This newfound mindset is allowing me to come to terms with my unorganized workout schedule. Whether it involves a brutal run, an intense weightlifting session, just going for a walk, or even taking a day off, your body and your mind matter.

Balancing mental and physical health is a growing conversation in the world today, but sadly, it is typically neglected during practice. Throughout my athletic career and its aftermath, understanding the significance of balance has proven to be one of the key aspects of my life. It’s a challenge that will undoubtedly continue to shape my actions in the future.

My advice to anybody who finds themselves at a similar crossroads? Never convince yourself that bettering your balance or taking the time to care for your whole self is unnecessary.

Hockey East Champions

TD Garden has never seen more maroon and gold than it did on Saturday night. Boston College students flooded the arena with deafening cheers as the Eagles sent shot after shot into Boston University’s net, securing the team’s first Hockey East championship title in 12 years. With four goals from Will Smith and dozens of saves by Jacob Fowler, it’s safe to say that this team’s talent will go down in BC history. As the team prepares for the NCAA tournament, there has never been a better time to be an Eagle!

Easter Weekend

Even though it feels like Spring Break just ended, students are getting ready to depart campus yet again. But instead of jetting off to the beaches of Punta Cana, you’ll find the majority of students heading home for Easter brunches and reunions with hometown friends. Make the most of your time away from campus—temporarily ditch the chicken and two sides, use a dryer that actually works, and enjoy some quality time with the people near to your heart.

Course Planning

Aside from the housing lottery, planning next year’s schedule is one of the most dreaded aspects of any BC student’s experience. Campus is buzzing with conversations about which professors are best and how to most easily fulfill the natural science core. We can certainly hope for early pick times, but making a backup schedule (or two) is highly advised. And, don’t forget add-drop can always clutch up for getting you out of that 9 a.m. lecture.

Coming to a Close

We’ve finally made it to spring, and another year on the Heights has come and (almost) gone. Even with excitement about upcoming summer plans spreading across campus, it’s hard not to wonder where all the time went. While we’re all ready to take a temporary pause from writing research papers and studying for exams, these final weeks of late-night gossip sessions with roommates and thoughtful sit-downs with favorite professors are certainly bittersweet. Take in every moment of these final weeks!

Peter Coquillette

GRAPHICS BY PARKER LEAF / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Peter Coquillette is a columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at peter.coquillette@bc.edu.

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ARTS

Shakira Reinvents Herself in New Album

By angeliKi Ktoridi For The Heights

Colombian pop star Shakira released her first album in seven years, marking both a comeback and re-direction in the Latin artist’s life. Released on Friday, March 22, the album Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran gives listeners an insight into Shakira’s new era of her life, both personally and professionally.

In Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran, a title borrowed from lyrics of the diss track she released in January 2023 in response to her highly publicized breakup from Gerard Piqué, Shakira has reinvented herself.

“While writing each song, I was rebuilding myself,” Shakira said in an interview with Billboard. “While singing them, my tears transformed into diamonds, and my vulnerability into strength.”

In Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran (Women Don’t Cry Anymore) Sha-

kira collaborated with different urban artists such as Cardi B, Rauw Alejandro, Grupo Frontera, and Bizarrap to establish a new pop style while maintaining a deeply personal voice in her songs. Shakira has been known worldwide since her first best-selling album Servicio de Lavandería (Laundry Service) in 2001. Over the years, with songs like “Loba” and “Hips Don’t Lie” on top of her groundbreaking dancing skills, Shakira gained publicity and has navigated a very successful, yet public life.

With her 2022 break up with Piqué, her husband of 11 years, and a Spanish tax fraud case in 2018, Shakira has had a tumultuous few years.

The album, composed of 17 tracks, includes “Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53,” the previously released track about her breakup that earned her the 2023 Latin GRAMMYs Song Of The Year award in addition to a new Tiësto remix of

the song.

“Yo solo hago música, perdón que te salpique,” she sings, translating to “I only make music, sorry if I splashed you,” mentioning her ex’s name.

Songs like “La Fuerte” and “Acróstico - Milan y Sasha” take a vulnerable turn in the album, showcasing Shakira’s new meaning of life and the realization that her two sons are the true loves of her life.

“Me enseñaste que el amor no es una estafa,” she sings in Acróstico, which translates to “You taught me that love is not a scam,” referring to her two sons, Milan and Sasha, whom she also included in the title.

On a more playful side, the album includes “Te Felicito,” featuring urban artist Rauw Alejandro, as well as the instant pop-hit, Puntería with Cardi B that adds a fun ambiance to the album along with her usual promiscuous lyrics.

Collaborating with Mexican band Fuerza Regida, Shakira even added a

new Mexican feel in “El Jefe,” a song dedicated to her children’s nanny, Lilly Melgar, as Shakira expresses her deep gratitude toward her.

All these songs give the listener a glimpse of Shakira’s personal life, away from the tabloids and paparazzi.

The album cover depicts a closeup portrait of Shakira shedding tears of glitter, which turn into diamonds, symbolizing her resilience and strength. This album cover reflects on her transformation in the past few years of her life, which

resulted in a creative process that has allowed her to rebuild her personal life while also returning to her passion for composing music.

Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran is Shakira’s way of entering a new realm of her music, detached from the strings of past relationships and life circumstances.

She shows her listeners that pain is inevitable and a natural part of life, and that this new chapter of her life has enabled her to realize what is truly important to her. n

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‘Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran’

GRAPHIC

‘Immaculate’ Stands Out in World of Church Horror

By alexander Burton For The Heights

Blasphemous, sacrilegious, and ethically disturbing are just a few of the adjectives that can describe Michael Mohan’s Immaculate

Taking place in a rural convent in the hills of Italy, American nun Sister Cecilia (Sydney Sweeney) embarks upon a religious quest for solitude after the closure of her local parish in the United States. Her jubilant acceptance

by the other sisters into the community portrays a pseudo-facade of holiness and devotion to their savior Jesus Christ.

The movie begins with Cecilia learning the ropes of the grueling work as a nun in the convent, but soon finding herself the mother of an immaculate conception. After a thorough investigation by the church proving her virginity, the conception is declared a miracle and she is celebrated within the convent as the mother of the second coming of

Released March 22 MOVIE

Released March 22

Jesus Christ. The discovery of her miraculous conception causes a rift between the members of the convent, and even leads to a sister throwing herself from the roof of the estate exclaiming, “It was supposed to be me.”

The oddities that arise from this conception clue the viewer into a more sinister motive of the leaders of the convent and make them question the true immaculate nature of the conception.

From acting, to set design, and cinematography, this movie flourishes in every department.

With beautiful costumes and gilded chapels, the viewer feels immersed in the initially romanticized convent in Italy.

With previous performances in other roles such as Euphoria and Anyone but You, it was questionable whether Sweeney would be able to take on such a daunting horror role, incongruent with her previous works.

But as soon as she waltzed on the screen donning her stunning nun habit, her acting as the role of the second virgin mother proved Sweeney’s undeniable talent.

Supporting performance by Spanish actor Álvaro Morte as a lessthan-holy priest left the entire audience breathless, as he perpetrated numerous acts of evil, juxtaposed with his duties as a servant of God.

Nearly every aspect of Immaculate checked the box for an amazing horror movie—from jaw-dropping moments breaking long periods of suspense to gruesome images showing the unimaginable in an almost too realistic fashion. In a peak-horror moment, Sweeney let out one of the best horror screams seen in the genre.

Yet, one aspect of its content may make viewers question the movie’s ethics. The sub-genre of church horror with movies like The Nun or The

Conjuring has used the church merely as the backdrop for horrific events unfolding in a tasteful manner, playing to a supernatural element so grandiose it seems unfathomable in the context of an actual church.

As the events of Immaculate unfold, however, its horror lies in the wickedness of mankind, and less so in the supernatural.

The closing scene of the film is upsetting to the core, and any Christian viewer should be wary as the last scene creates a poignant ethical and religious turmoil.

Immaculate achieves every facet of a beautifully constructed horror movie, aside from the ability to know what is and what is not “too far” in terms of religious matters.

The ending leaves the viewer pondering the societal and religious implications it entails, but perhaps that was what Mohan hoped to achieve with this hauntingly ambitious film. n

Hozier Surprises Fans With Four New Tracks

By Mary Kozeny Heights Staff

Containing four songs that didn’t make his 2023 album Unreal Unearth, Hozier’s latest EP Unheard tackles different subjects, but the Irish singer-songwriter’s lyrical skill and soulful expression tie them together.

“These are songs that might’ve made it to the circles of gluttony, limbo, violence, and the outward ‘ascent’ respectively but could not for different reasons,” Hozier shared in a statement. “I’m very glad I’ll get to share them with you.”

Released Friday, this EP was first teased online on TikTok with a video of a notebook and a clip from the first song “Too Sweet.” Fans and music enthusiasts eagerly awaited Hozier’s release. The sound bite has been used in more than 38,500 posts on TikTok this month.

On “Too Sweet,” Hozier creates a soulful and catchy song that makes for a wonderful introduction to the following tracks.

“I think I’ll take my whiskey neat / My coffee black and my bed at three,” he sings.

This song is a masterful blend of upbeat rhythmic sounds behind Hozier’s profound voice singing about his night-dwelling nature. He sings about a figure in his life that is too good and delightful in comparison to him: “You’re too sweet for me.”

“Wildflower and Barley” features Allison Russell, a Canadian singer-songwriter and GRAMMY-nominated and winning artist.

Hozier and Russell’s ethereal duet features notes of jazz and a hint of church hymnal sounds. The lyrics convey messages about the change of seasons and the human senses through which they are experienced.

“This year I swear it will be buried in words / Some close to the surface, some close to the casket / I feel as useful as dirt unreal unearth,” they sing in unison.

Russell and Hozier have a connection through their art evident from even just the first second of the track.

Russell shared, “It’s always a joy singing with Hozier—I’ve been fortunate to do so live on stage many times since we first met singing with Queen Mavis at Newport Folk Fest in 2019.”

The third track, “Empire Now,” is a powerful mashup of guitars, electronic beats, and Hozier’s typical yet amazing vocals. Listeners are sure to feel the might of his artistic expression in this EP.

“The martyrs of our revolution / Their spinnin’ caused the earth to shake / The problem brought its own solution / They power now the world we’ve made,” Hozier sings in “Empire Now.”

The EP finishes with a track called “Fare Well.” This softer song pulls on heartstrings as it discusses “faring well,” solitary moments, joy, and disaster. Hozier expresses the human experience in relatable explorations of emotions.

Hozier is an artist who explores themes of life, death, storytelling, religion, and all things related to the human experience. Hozier gifts his fans these four extra tracks from his

hit album Unreal Unearth—sure to brighten lives and serve as a gateway to the spring season.

“Springtime from my window / Another month has not much longer now / The sun hesitates more on each evening’s darkenin’ / Would all things God allows remain above ground / Like grief and sweet memory, wildflower and barley,” Hozier and Russell sing to conclude “Wildflower and Barley.” n

ALBUM

Released March 22

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Vathanakul: How Netflix Changed Documentaries A RTS

B

T hanaku L Heights Staff

What comes to mind when you think of a documentary?

I would assume a two-hourlong bore of footage filled with facts and interviews. Since streaming platforms have become popularized, though, Netflix has made documentaries its brand of film marketing.

When Netflix released House of Cards, its first original scripted series, in 2013, the idea of studio-produced documentaries and docu-series seemed like a great idea. The movement of streaming documentaries established a whole new standard for docu-made films.

True crime documentaries have been piquing the interest of the younger generations. The intricate storylines of crimes, the first-hand audio recordings of victims, and interviews with the investigators

are the core qualities that have captivated audiences.

I remember watching American Murder: The Family Next Door when it first released without knowing about the crime or investigation beforehand. I was engrossed watching the first-hand recordings and security camera footage of the husband denying his charges but—spoiler alert—he was the murderer.

Unsolved Mysteries , Netflix’s Crime Scene series, and the Conversations with a Killer series all cover well-known crimes and conspiracy theories that have captured Gen-Z’s attention. Social media platforms broadcast these investigations, planting this obsessive interest to crack the crime’s mysteries—even I am guilty of getting caught up in the documentaries.

Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal was a Netflix hit in 2021 that covered

the then-controversy of Rick Singer and his family’s attempt to cheat the college admission process.

Operation Varsity Blues is the epitome of an enticing and necessary documentary as it exposes the fraudulent minds of the rich while presenting the controversy in an entertaining light.

Netflix sports documentaries are booming, documenting prominent athletes, teams, and sports.

Formula 1: Drive to Survive creates an even bigger platform for motor racing. Break Point laments on the lows and the intensity of tennis tournaments. Quarterback delves into the glorified, yet strenuous lives of NFL’s current quarterbacks.

But Netflix does not stop there with the sport-oriented documentaries, as it drills down on specific athletes’ plays and private lives.

The Last Dance perfectly captures Michael Jordan’s acclaimed career, while Beckham further publicizes

the British footballer’s glamorous life with his “posh” wife and family.

Many documentaries have faced backlash due to their violation of privacy and trust. The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: Unheard Tapes is an exposé on Marilyn Monroe’s career and her untimely death. When watching the documentary, her raw voice and explicit images draw chills down my spine—the movie seems like another Hollywood strategy to profit off of its so-called American sweetheart.

Lines must be drawn when it comes to documentaries at the presentation of the subject. Is the topic a matter of artistic rights or a violation of one?

Biographical documentaries like Taylor Swift’s Miss Americana and Pamela Anderson’s Pamela, A Love Story show an authentic image of who they are. These types of documentaries feel more like a celebration of careers and identities rather than a marketing strategy.

I revel in Netflix’s pop culture filmography, especially the films about actors and musicians, which I think has geared my generation toward the world of documentaries.

Netflix documentaries target audiences with obsessive interest on current trends and pop culture, but this is where the idea of documentaries gets blurry.

What is the purpose of a documentary?

The intention and approach of documentaries are to inform on

and signify the topic of their subject. Tracing back to the mid-1900s before the existence of Netflix, documentary filmmakers gained popularity due to their fearless ability to broadcast controversies of historical reforms and current social issues.

Consider the infamous Academy Award winner, Michael Moore, who made Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11. He stylized documentaries as satirical commentary against political figures and leaders. Moore used this mode of filmmaking to voice his political stance and effect change in American politics.

Documentary is a form of cinema that conveys necessary videos, images, and stories to bring change in the realms of the arts, history, and politics. Looking back at the Academy Awards this year, a Ukrainian filmmaker took back the golden statue for his documentary, 20 Days in Mariupol

The documentary contains footage and images in Ukraine during Russia’s invasion and military attacks captured by the director, Mstyslav Chernov. The heavy-hearted narration and the raw handheld videos are what established 20 Days in Mariupol to be such an important form of cinema.

“Cinema forms memories, and memories form history,” Chernov summarizes in his Oscar acceptance speech. It’s a perfect summary of the power that documentaries can hold. n

‘Cleveland Circle’ Depicts Life After College

‘Cleveland Circle,’ from A1

Telegdy explained how the two graduates started working on the project around 15 months ago, during their senior year of college. It started out as a paired project assigned by Cummings, and was meant to be composed of two-person scenes.

She went on to state that multiple scenes in the original text did not make it to the final script, but were still essential in the process of

creating the final product that made it to the stage.

”We’ve written way more scenes than are actually in this play … Some characters don’t exist anymore, and that’s because the first couple of scenes we wrote aren’t even in the play,” Telegdy said. “They just stemmed the rest of the play, and sparked our creativity.”

The title Cleveland Circle refers to the location of the same name located near Lower Campus.

Surrounded by restaurants and off-campus apartments, the area is well-known by the BC students who frequent it. But the name also has a deeper meaning for the play’s writers.

”Cleveland Circle, as we fondly call it, is a place in Boston which we know really well, and what I think is an important part of the BC student experience,” Telegdy said. “But one of the reasons why it works so well for our purpose is the circle. In this play, we start with characters A and B, and end up coming back to character A in the last scene. It makes a full circle of characters.”

Despite being the ones working behind the scenes, O’Neill and Telegdy initially wrote the characters while envisioning themselves as the performers. But once they knew it was going to be a “more serious project,” as explained by O’Neill, they decided to focus their energy on writing.

Telegdy also disclosed she doesn’t think of herself as an actress and would rather write or work with directing, management, and design.

As for their experience coauthoring Cleveland Circle, as well as working with Cummings, both playwrights said their time has been nothing but amazing.

When asked about the main message of the play, O’Neill reflected on its overall purpose and the anticipated impact of the performance on

the audience.

“I would say that particularly for the Boston College audience, and students in college, it addresses some of those concerns about what life looks like right after college, and how scary that thought is … What happens when you leave college, and the education rhythm you know really well, and you go out into the real world?” O’Neill said. “That feels particularly relevant to the people here.” n

‘Ulysses’ Brings Students to 28-Hour Reading

B y Parker L eaf Graphics Editor

A chocolate cake with multicolored, abnormally tall candles sat in front of a surprised Joseph Nugent, a professor in Boston College’s English department, as the students and faculty participating in the 24-hour reading of Ulysses began to sing “Happy Birthday.”

Nugent blew out his candles

and abruptly jumped out of his chair, thanking his students for the birthday surprise and encouraging everyone to reconvene in the reading room.

Ulysses , written by James Joyce, follows an ordinary man called Leopold Bloom in a single day of his life in excruciating detail. The book documents each experience and his every thought. In Dublin, Ireland, on the anniversary of the June 16

day Bloom writes about, the city holds a Bloomsday festival with readings, re-enactments, walking tours, and more activities.

“Leopold Blooms spent his real Bloomsday desperately trying to deflect his attention, his anxieties onto other matters,” Nugent said. “So you get to a certain birthday when the best thing to do is to avoid any thoughts and one way of doing this was to have a 24-hour reading of Ulysses .”

Nugent teaches a course each year titled “Joyce’s Ulysses” where students take a semester to read Joyce’s 644-page book. On March 21 at 9 a.m., students and faculty gathered in Connolly House to begin reading the entirety of Ulysses , a reading that would span over 28-and-ahalf hours.

Nina Khaghany, MCAS ’24, writing her honors thesis with Nugent, was one of the few stu-

dents to stay through the entire reading. In the fall of her junior year, Khaghany enrolled in the course, and she organized BC’’s first Bloomsday for her final project.

“I think we’re really lucky because we have a lot of international students and faculty par-

ALINA CHEN / HEIGHTS STAF

ALINA CHEN / HEIGHTS STAFF

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

BC Takes Over TD Garden

No. 1-seed Boston College men’s hockey defeated No. 2-seed Boston University 6–2 in the Hockey East Tournament Championship to earn its first Hockey East Tournament Championship since 2012.

again. This time, a tripping penalty on Lane Hutson gave the Eagles another advantage. On the rush, Gabe Perreault sent a cross-ice pass to Smith, who un leashed a rocket into the top right of the net to double the Eagles’ lead with 11:23 remaining in the opening frame.

The Terriers, who rank second in the nation for pow er-play percentage, failed to capitalize on their two power play chances, and BC took its two-goal lead into the second period.

“It was a heck of a hockey game,” BC head coach Greg Brown said. “Special teams were obviously a big part of it. Both our power play and penalty kill had very good nights.”

to BC for my whole life,” Smith said. “Like I said, just being around school is just amazing.”

Behind Smith’s performance, the No. 1-seed Eagles (31–5–1, 20–3–1 Hockey East) handled No. 2-seed BU (27–9–2, 18–4–2) in a 6–2 win and earned their 12th Hockey East Tournament Championship, the most of any school in the conference. The win clinched the Eagles’ first Hockey East championship in 12 years.

“We know we had expectations coming into this year and, I mean, 12 years is a long time and like I said, we knew that coming into this game and it’s amazing that we finally got one back to Chestnut Hill,” Smith said.

Penalties proved to be detrimental to the Terriers in the opening frame, and throughout the entire game. BC scored four of its six goals on the power play.

“Clearly we didn’t get it done on the penalty kill,” BU head coach Jay Pandolfo said. “Didn’t have an answer for it, so that was really, I guess, the biggest difference in the game.”

At the 15:24 mark, referees called a slashing penalty on BU’s Shane Lachance, giving the Eagles, who rank fourth in the nation for power-play percentage, their first man-advantage of the night. BC did not let it go to waste. Just over a minute into the power play, the Eagles converted when Smith sent a wrister toward the net that ricocheted off Case McCarthy’s skate and past Mathieu Caron to make it 1–0 BC with 14:14 left in the first period. Less than three minutes later, Smith struck

Less than five minutes into the second frame, Gavin McCarthy chopped the Eagles lead in half, though, when he fired a shot past Jacob Fowler’s glove and found the back of the net for the first goal of McCarthy’s collegiate career. After an intense stretch of play resulting in no scoring, the Eagles were given their third power-play opportunity of the night with 2:09 remaining in the second. Perreault sent a pass from just in front of the crease that found the stick of Cutter Gauthier, who fired it past Caron to make it 3–1 BC. Gauthier picked up his 35th goal of the season with the score, the most in the NCAA since 2016.

By RoBeRt BRennan Heights Staff

With 13:14 remaining in the third period, Smith delivered another goal and completed his hat trick to give the Eagles a three-goal lead and send the upper-deck BC fans into an uproar.

Smith received the feed from Ryan Leonard and slammed it home, dropping to a knee in the process. Perreault added BC’s fourth power-play goal of the game with 8:28 left in regulation to make it 5–1. Jamie Armstrong picked up a five-minute major penalty with 7:33 left, but BU only picked up one goal on the advantage.

An empty-net goal for Smith with 1:56 left in the game capped off his five-point night and put the Terriers’ remaining hopes to sleep. Fowler anchored BC’s defense and finished the night with 34 saves.

“I think games don’t get much bigger than playing BC-BU at the Garden, so super fortunate to be in the opportunity to play tonight, and it feels really good to get that win and move on to next week,” Fowler said. n

The last time Boston College men’s hockey and Boston University met at TD Garden, it didn’t end well for BC fans. Since BC’s 4–3 loss to the Terriers in the first round of the Beanpot, the Eagles haven’t lost another game, and they continued that winning streak in their TD Garden rematch with BU. This time, it was all BC fans could have hoped for. No. 1-seed BC knocked off No. 2-seed BU by a score of 6–2 to win the Hockey East Tournament Championship for the first time since

The Eagles knocking off their archrivals gives them significant momentum going into the NCAA Tournament, as head coach Greg Brown said after the game. Not only does this win give them momentum and the Hockey East Tournament title, it also may make up for the Beanpot loss—one of the only true blemishes thus far on what has been a truly special season for BC.

Here are a few reasons why BC was able to pull off the victory.

Four for the No. 4 Pick

Will Smith is the highest-ranked draft pick to ever play for BC, and he has shown all season why he was worthy of that selection, leading the country with 66 points. In the championship game, things were no different. The freshman from Lexington, Mass., came through with four goals, the first time a rookie has ever scored a hat trick in the Hockey East Championship, throwing in an empty netter at the end to boot.

He picked up two in the

first period, both on power plays. One came off the skate of a BU defenseman, and one after he went top shelf on a cross-ice feed from Gabe Perreault. His third came in the final period off a pass from Ryan Leonard. Smith earned tournament MVP for his efforts as he continues to dominate every level of hockey he has played.

A Lethal Man Advantage BC’s power play, ranked fourth in the nation, has dominated all season, but the unit was on another level against BU. The Eagles converted on all four of their first four attempts, only missing out on a power play at the end of the game that didn’t expire even when the final buzzer sounded. Smith tallied his two in the first, but Perreault and Cutter Gauthier each chipped in with one apiece as they dismantled BU’s penalty kill every time they stepped on the ice. Perreault’s return in the semifinal definitely helped out BC’s power play, as he plays his netfront bumper role as good as just about anyone. When healthy, BC has the luxury of putting four first-round picks on its power play, and that seemed to be simply too much for BU to handle.

Iron Man in Net

into BC, having won the Clark Cup MVP last season for the Youngstown Phantoms of the USHL, and he showed that again in the Hockey East Tournament.

Putting the Terriers on a Leash

At the combine, Mahogany completed the 40-yard dash in 5.13 seconds and recorded a 32 ½-inch vertical jump.

“I think my draft stock probably improved after this,” Mahogany said. “I’m not really worried where I go, what team I go to, I just wanna play at the end of the day. Wherever drafts me—they know what they’re gonna get. I know what they’re gonna get, so just keep doing what I can and just following the protocol.”

Although Hergel did not make an appearance at the combine, he did not fail to impress on Pro Day.

Hergel bench pressed the 225lb standard weight 30 times. When asked if he expected to be able to hit such a high number of reps, he seemed nonchalant.

“Yeah, I expected it,” Hergel said.

Elijah Jones also appeared at BC’s Pro Day. He last played for the Eagles in the team’s November 4, 2023 game at Syracuse. The cornerback recorded 25 tackles during his limited time with the Eagles in the 2023 season before missing the remainder of the season for undisclosed reasons.

Jones, a senior last season, appeared in April’s NFL combine. His vertical jump measured at 42 ½ inch, the best of any cornerback. He ran a 40-yard dash in 4.44 seconds.

Defensive back John Pupel, who ranked second on the team with 81 tackles last season, also participated.

“BC did a great job preparing me,” Pupel said. “We actually did a mock Pro Day last spring, so I felt really prepared. It’s something I’ve done in this facility before, and it’s great to be back in Boston.”

Before transferring to BC before his senior year, Pupel played at Dartmouth.

“It was great being around Power Five-football and getting a chance to showcase my abilities on a little bit of a bigger stage,” Pupel said of the transfer.

Defensive lineman Khris Banks and tight end George Takacs, two players on BC’s 2023 roster, also took part in tests and drills.

Graduated BC defensive backs Jason Maitre and Jaiden Woodbey, as well as two players from Assumption and one from Bentley were also in attendance.

“It’s just surreal to say, yeah, I’m gonna get drafted, and I’m gonna do things that I said I was gonna do when I was 14 years old,” Mahogany said. “’Cause you can say it all you want, it’s just you have to go out and really do it.” n

Playing goaltender is tough. Playing goaltender against your school’s archrival in front of nearly 18,000 fans in an NHL arena as a 19-year-old freshman is really, really tough. Nothing seemed to faze Jacob Fowler on Saturday, though. The freshman netminder was a brick wall in net, making 34 saves and only allowing two goals in a game in which BU had plenty of opportunities to score more than that. He was tasked with stopping many shots from in close, as well as many otherworldly wristers from Macklin Celebrini and Lane Hutson, but he stood tall. The nation’s winningest 2024 goaltender added another win to his resume, but this one counts for a lot more than any of the other ones he has notched thus far. Fowler was clutch, allowing only three goals across the semifinal and final games at TD Garden, racking up a save percentage of .955 across those two games. His clutch gene was highly touted coming

BU came into the game with America’s second most effective goals. The Terriers received five power plays, the same number as BC, but they were only able to score once, coming on a five-minute power play after a mental lapse by BC forward and former Terrier Jamie Armstrong, who was called for checking to the head on star Terrier freshman Celebrini. Although Armstrong’s penalty with 7:33 left could have been an opportunity for the Terriers to claw their way back into the game, BC was able to hold the Terriers to just one goal, hardly coming close to BC’s four-goal lead.

It’s often said that your goaltender needs to be your best penalty killer, and that was certainly true of Fowler. He made five saves on the Armstrong penalty alone, and he was locked in during BU’s four other power plays. The Eagles have had the best penalty kill in the nation for most of the season, running over 90 percent at some points, and they showed their dominance again in their biggest game of the season up to this point. n

Pro Day, from A1

No. 4 Eagles Crush Blue Devils 18–3 in Durham

By emiLy RoBeRge Assoc. Sports Editor

Less than four minutes into No. 4 Boston College lacrosse’s matchup against Duke, the Eagles were already up 5–0 to the Blue Devils. Then, Mckenna Davis scored yet another early BC goal.

Sprinting down the field, Davis faked her defender before firing the ball past Duke’s Kennedy Everson, marking Davis’ 10th goal of the season.

“I think we were trying to set the tone early,” BC head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein said. “When you are playing a team as good as Duke, it is important to come out fast and strong, and I think our girls just took care of all the little things in the beginning and in the first quarter, and it translated on the scoreboard.”

The Eagles (9–2, 4–1 Atlantic Coast) continued their offensive dominance over Duke (6–5, 2–3) and trampled the Blue Devils 18–3 on

Saturday afternoon in Durham, N.C.

Less than five minutes into the game, Rachel Clark had already posted two goals on the afternoon, marking her 41st and 42nd goals of the season.

The Eagles concluded the first quarter with a dominant 8–1 lead.

Thirteen seconds into the second quarter, Belle Smith delivered her 18th goal of the season for BC.

After receiving a pass from Kayla Martello, Belle Smith launched the ball into the upper corner of the cage.

The shot swished through Duke’s net and the whistle blared to signal a goal.

“I was really proud of how our midfielders played from top to bottom,” Walker-Weinstein said. “I think our midfielders had such a complete day, and I am really proud of them.”

Going into the half, BC maintained a 10-goal lead as the scoreboard at Koskinen Stadium read 12–2.

BC’s offensive success persisted as the Blue Devils scavenged to prevent the Eagles from converting off the draw control, thanks to Ryan Smith.

BC secured 14 draw controls, compared to Duke’s nine.

“I think Ryan Smith has probably been the steadiest player on the team the whole year,” Walker-Weinstein said. “I think today she was a gritty midfielder that just did her job and every single draw she brought so much focus and control, and I thought she had one of her best games ever.”

When asked about BC’s ability to convert on the draw control, Ryan Smith discussed what this matchup meant for BC’s draw control team.

“I think we needed this breakout game for our draws,” Ryan Smith said. “I think that we were waiting for this game, and we have a draw control team of about 12 people, and it takes every single person on the field to the girls on the sideline too. We are a really connected unit.”

In the third frame, Martello scored two goals for BC that came within two minutes of each other.

After receiving a pass off the draw control, Martello sprinted toward the net and shot the ball unassisted.

BC continued to maintain control

of the game. “I think they broke out beyond the ride very well,” Walker-Weinstein said. “We had excellent spacing and good stickwork. I think that’s only happening because there are good defensive stops that are giving us those opportunities for transition. I think this was a complete effort top to bottom.”

Ending the third quarter, Belle Smith, Shea Baker, and Emma LoPinto scored three more goals, bringing the score to 17–3. While the fourth frame was rather

quiet for both teams, BC’s defense shut down any chance of a Duke comeback, as the Blue Devils did not score in the final 15 minutes of play. With 4:33 left to play in the game, BC’s only goal of the fourth quarter came from Clark.

The win marked the Eagles’ third consecutive win over the Blue Devils.

“We only had 11 turnovers, which is awesome,” Walker-Weinstein said. “We won in ground balls, we won in draw controls, we limited their top players in scoring, which has been a huge focus.” n

BC Stumbles to Fourth Straight Loss

By Luke BeLLaud Heights Staff

Missed opportunities seem to be a common theme for Boston College baseball this season. In the Eagles’ Sunday afternoon matchup against No. 19 Virginia Tech, it was no different.

In the middle of the sixth inning, after battling for limited scoring opportunities up until then, the Eagles had finally loaded the bases loaded and Nick Wang stepping up to the plate.

A strikeout and line out later, the Eagles had gained only one run and stranded two runners. In the next inning, the Eagles gave up seven runs.

The Eagles (11–11, 2–7 Atlantic Coast) suffered a disastrous seventh inning where they used four different pitchers en route to a 12–6 loss to the Hokies (18–4, 8–1) in Brighton.

The Hokies got after Michael Farinelli early in the first inning. Chris Cannizzaro drove Christian Martin home on an outfield single before Eddie Micheletti Jr. hit a sacrifice fly into deep center field, sending Carson DeMartini home and giving the Hokies an early 2–0 lead.

Farinelli bounced back in the second inning, registering a strikeout and no runners on base, while Cameron Leary had a pair of catches deep in center field.

The Eagles were unable to get anything done offensively in the first

two innings. Griffin Stieg struck out four and the Eagles stranded two.

DeMartini extended the Hokies’ lead in the third inning, bombing a homer over the scoreboard in right field to make it 3–0.

The Eagles found their bats in the third inning, with Sam McNulty and Leary both singling into the outfield before Vince Cimini drove McNulty home on a groundout to shortstop.

Patrick Roche then popped a ball into short right field, driving Leary home and cutting the score to 3–2.

Evan Moore relieved Farinelli in the middle of the fourth inning with two Hokies on base, and pitched out of the jam, striking out DeMartini to keep the Hokies lead at one.

Despite putting runners on second and third base in the fourth inning, the Eagles couldn’t convert and stranded two as Wang struck out swinging to end the inning.

After hitting Kyle Wolff with a pitch in the fifth, Matthew Siverling replaced Stieg on the mound.

Stieg posted six strikeouts and gave up four hits and two runs in 4.1 innings.

Charlie Coon relieved Moore in the middle of the sixth inning and forced Martin into a groundout to second to close the inning.

John Collins came in to pinch hit after Cam Caraher reached base, and launched a beam down the third-base foul line for a standup double.

With runners on second and

third, McNulty bunted, but it traveled straight to Hokies’ pitcher Brady Kirtner, who threw Caraher out at home.

A few batters later, with the bases loaded, a wild pitch from Kirtner allowed pinch-runner Chris Markovich to score and tie the game 3–3.

Eric Schroeder replaced Coon on the mound for the Eagles in the middle of the seventh inning.

Cannizzaro immediately returned Schroeder’s pitch with a two-run homer over the fence in right field.

After walking two more batters, Coon was pulled and Gavin Hasche became the Eagles’ fifth pitcher in less than seven innings.

Henry Cooke continued the Hokies’ dominant seventh inning, launching a ball to the warning track in deep center field, driving in two more runs and jogging into third base to bring Virginia Tech’s lead to 7–3.

Jordan Fisse took over on the mound for the Eagles and allowed three more runs off walks or wild pitches in the seventh inning alone.

The Hokies grabbed two more runs in the eighth before the Eagles took a run back to cut the Hokies’ lead to eight.

In the bottom of the ninth, Beck Milner and Austin Hartsell hit back-to-back solo home runs to end the game with a 12–6 loss for the Eagles—the team’s fourth straight defeat. n

Eagles Take Series Against Syracuse for 20th Win

By Jonas Weinmann Heights Staff

After two and a half innings of scoreless play, a deafening crack of Hannah Slike’s bat broke the scoring drought. Slike smashed the second pitch of her at-bat past the leftfield wall and watched it crash into the scoreboard as she ran around the bases.

Her teammates jumped out of the dugout and swarmed the plate, waiting for Slike’s return to home. Slike’s triumphant stomping of home plate put the Eagles up 1–0 and seemed to be a sign that the Eagles would defeat Syracuse, who they had beaten in their first two games of the series and the past five times they had met.

Taylor Posner’s seventh inning

home run confirmed the opposite. Posner’s run to home plate surrounded by her teammates mimicked Slikes, but in this case it put Syracuse (14–13, 2–7 Atlantic Coast) up nine runs over Boston College (20–9, 3–3) and all but clinched a 10–1 victory for the Orange.

“We had a bad day, but a day that also kind of put us in check and teaches us how to hold ourselves to better standards both defensively, in the circle, offensively” BC head coach Amy Kvilhaug said.

A series of BC fielding errors and hits from Syracuse allowed the Orange to take control of the game and put the Eagles in a hole they would not recover from. The Eagles recorded a season-high five errors, up three from their previous high of two errors.

One of the five errors came at a crucial time for the Eagles, as a misplaced glove throw by shortstop

Gator Robinson to second baseman Emma Jackson allowed Syracuse’s Angie Ramos to score in the fourth inning. This sequence put the Orange up 2–1 and put the Eagles in a deficit from which they never recovered.

“We need to continue to hold ourselves to the standards in practice,” Kvilhaug said.

In spite of the lopsided score, the Eagles only recorded three less hits than the Orange. The Eagles twice left the bases loaded in different innings and finished those innings scoreless.

“We had bases loaded in the first inning with one out and we did nothing,” Kvilhaug said. “We have got to have players come up and be productive in situations where runners are in scoring positions and that has kind of been our achilles heel this year.”

Kvilhaug also emphasized the importance of such losses for her

team’s long-term development.

“We can fix some of this stuff in practice by just changing our mentality and the way we approach it,” Kvilhaug said. “We also talked about needing kids to step up as leaders when you know things are going to hell in a handbasket.”

Makenna Segal led the Eagles with three hits, and both Robinson and Slike contributed two of their own. Abby Dunning recorded seven strikeouts, while Halie Pappion recorded three strikeouts of her own.

Despite the outcome of its final game of the weekend, BC won the series with two wins on Friday afternoon against Syracuse. Both were low-scoring games, with neither game exceeding five total runs.

Dunning pitched all of the first game, recording 11 strikeouts while only allowing three hits.

In the Eagles’ second game, they pulled out another one-run victory, this time beating the Orange 3–2.

An RBI from Nicole Giery put BC up by one run in the first and McDonough’s sacrifice RBI added another run to BC’s total in the fourth inning.

A two-run home run from Posner in the sixth inning tied the game, but Slike delivered the game-winning RBI in the last inning to give the Eagles the victory.

Slike led the team with three hits while Robinson added two of her own. Jackson and Giery also added a hit.

Pappion recorded five strikeouts in 26 batters faced and pitched the entire game. n

In the Eagles first game on Friday, they edged out a 2–1 victory over the Orange. Robinson’s second-inning home run put the Eagles up 2–0 and sent both her and Darien McDonough home. Despite an RBI from Syracuse’s Vanessa Flores in the seventh inning, the Eagles managed to hold on and close the game out.

MATTHEW MAO /

CHRIS TICAS / HEIGHTS EDITOR Rachel Clark tallied four goals and one assist in the Eagles’ win.