Remembering our Colleagues
This section of the website is dedicated to those of our colleagues who have paved the way for all that Boston College has become. ĚýConsider it to be something of a Faculty Hall of Fame.
Occasionally, we will include members of the Ď㽜Đă staff who have had a particularly strong impact on our faculty.
While sometimes the profiles here are in the form of an obituary, the intent is to celebrate and give recognition to those who made so many contributions to Ď㽜Đă.
This list is certainly incomplete .Ěý If you know of any additions that should be made, please send them to us us.Ěý Of course, anyone should feel free to contribute testimonials about a colleague.
In some small way, perhaps this will expand and grow to become a "web immortal" archive of all that is great about Boston College.
Critical thinking, ethical reasoning, intellectual dexterity, creative imagination, cultural competency, direct and effective communicationâthese are the skills employers value most. Theyâre what students learn through Boston College's approach to a liberal arts education of the whole person.
A Boston College liberal arts education compels students to think and learn across disciplines, prepares graduates for a range of rewarding careers, and helps them discern who they want to beâand why. By exploring enduring questions and complex problems, like human nature and climate change, liberal arts students acquire the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind and heart they will need to thrive as well-rounded, reflective people in a diverse, global society.
The Liberal Arts at Boston College
The liberal arts have always been at the center of the Jesuit, Catholic intellectual tradition: They promote integration of students' intellectual, spiritual, social, and affective lives, inspiring them to reflect on who they are and how they want to engage the world.
The Boston College Core Curriculum is rooted in this liberal arts tradition. The University's Institute for the Liberal Arts is dedicated to fostering innovative interdisciplinary programs that enhance the intellectual life of the community and encourage new ways of experiencing the world.
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Aragon, GeorgeĚý(d. 2009)
Airasian, PeterĚý(d. 2014)
Araujo, NormanĚý(d. 2021)
Beaton, AlĚý(d. 2022)
Berney, ArthurĚý(d. 2020)
Biggar, RayĚý(d. 2015)
Blackwell, HenryĚý(d. 2012)
Bronstein, EugeneĚý(d. 2017)
Brazier, GaryĚý(d. 2005)
Bruyn, SeverynĚý(d. 2019)
Buni, AndrewĚý(d. 2012)
Byers, Jeffery (d. 2023)
Carovillano, RobertĚý(d. 2015)
Casey SJ, JoeĚý (d. 2015)
Cawthorne, JohnĚý(d. 2012)
Craig, KenĚý(d. 2022)
Criscenti, JacquelineĚý(d. 2015)
Criscenti, JosephĚý(d. 2013)
Casper, LeonardĚý(d. 2018)
Cimino, SarahĚý(d. 2017)
Cobb-Stevens, RichardĚý(d. 2018)
Dietrich, DonaldĚý(d. 2013)
Dineen, MaryĚý(d. 2017)
Donovan, JohnĚý(d. 2020)
Donovan, PeterĚý(d. 2017)
Duffy, KevinĚý(d. 2012)
Duffy, MaryĚý(d. 2022)
Faulkner, Robert (d. 2023)
Fitzgerald, JohnĚý(d. 2016)
Florescu, RaduĚý(d. 2014)
Gaillardetz, Richard (d. 2023)
Gamson, Bill (d. 2021)
Gips, JamesĚý(d. 2018)
Gordon, MarjorieĚý(d. 2015)
Gottschalk, PeterĚý(d. 2022)
Griffin,MaryĚý(d. 2019)
Guillemin, JeanneĚý(d. 2019)
Hanwell, AlbertĚý(d. 2016)
Halpin, JamesĚý(d. 2021)
Haney, WaltĚý(d. 2022)
Harris, Ruth AnnĚý(d. 2012)
Heineman, JohnĚý(d. 2017)
Helmick SJ, RaymondĚý(d. 2016)
Herbeck, Dale (d. 2023)
Himes, Fr. MichaelĚý(d. 2022)
Holmstrom, Lynda (d. 2021)
Huber, RichardĚý(d. 2011)
Iatridis, DemetriusĚý (d. (2018)
Kugel, PeterĚý(d. 2021)
Lowenthal, DavidĚý(d. 2022)
Ěý
Araujo, Norman
Dr. Norman Araujo, age 87, of Walpole, Massachusetts, and retired Associate Professor of forty-nine years at Boston College, passed away on Monday, February 8, 2021 at Care One in Randolph, Massachusetts. Born in New Bedford, Massachusetts on March 22, 1933, he was the son of the late Jose and Julia Marie (Coracao) Araujo.
Norman married his beloved Barbara on March 4, 2000 at the Chapel of the Sacred Heart, Newton, Massachusetts and is survived by his spouse, Barbara Cartmill Araujo, a stepson, Kevin J. Cartmill and a stepdaughter, Tracey Cartmill Zacharias.
Ěý
Gamson, Bill (d. 2021)
He created a game of simulated baseball that was a precursor to todayâs fantasy sports. As a professor, he devised a role-playing game to help students address societal problems.
Bill Gamson, an eminent sociologist who explored the structure of social movements and whose childhood love of games led him to create one that became an inspiration for the fantasy sports industry, died on March 23 at his home in Brookline, Mass. He was 87.
The cause was sarcoma, a type of cancer, his son, Joshua, said.
While a young research associate at Harvard, Professor Gamson indulged his enthusiasm for baseball and his attachment to games by creating what he called the National Baseball Seminar, a simulated game in which each person in his group (originally three) had a budget to draft major leaguers for a team. The players were measured throughout the season based on batting average, runs batted in, earned run average and wins.
âWe felt these statistics reflected productivity, but in truth there wasnât a tremendous availability of statistics back then,â Professor Gamson told ESPN the Magazine in 2010. âWe knew these four would be published in all the papers.â
When he moved to the University of Michigan in 1962, he recruited about 25 people to his game, including Robert Sklar, a history professor. In 1968, Professor Sklar mentioned it to Daniel Okrent, a student he was advising. A decade later, Mr. Okrent invented the more complex Rotisserie League Baseball, which lets its âownersâ make in-season trades; itâs considered the closest ancestor to todayâs billion-dollar fantasy sports industry.
âThereâs no question that the flowering of Rotisserie baseball arose from very rough seeds scattered a dozen years earlier by Bill Gamson and Bob Sklar,â Mr. Okrent, a writer and editor who was the first public editor of The New York Times, wrote in an email. âWould something like Rotisserie have happened otherwise? Probably â but it wouldnât have been started by me.â
Professor Gamson thought of his game as a minor part of a career that included authorship of âThe Strategy of Social Protestâ (1975), a data-driven examination of the success, failures and leadership of 53 social movement organizations from 1800 to 1945.
âWhat preceded him were studies that saw movements as irrational reactions to stress in society, and his innovation was to flip that and treat the behavior of movements as rational and subject to scientific analysis,â Joshua Gamson, a sociology professor at the University of San Francisco, said in an interview.
The elder Professor Gamson participated in a protest himself in 1965, when he helped lead a teach-in against the Vietnam War at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
The teach-in is believed to be the first against the war, staged as American military involvement in Vietnam was accelerating. It began at 8 p.m. on March 24 and lasted for 12 hours as professors and activists gave speeches and seminars to upward of 3,000 students. Bomb threats, reportedly by a pro-war group, twice interrupted it.
âThere was a sense of a general mass movement,â Professor Gamson said in an oral history interview in 2015 by the University of Michigan, adding that President Lyndon B. Johnsonâs âbetrayalâ of his promises during the 1964 presidential campaign not to escalate the war âfueled a kind of anger and righteous indignation.â
The Michigan teach-in inspired others at campuses around the country.
Professor Gamson was one of a group of professors who provided a supportive atmosphere for Students for a Democratic Society, the antiwar activist group that was formed on the Michigan campus, said Todd Gitlin, a former president of the S.D.S. who has written extensively about the 1960s.
âThey had a kind of intellectual heft the undergraduates and graduates didnât have,â said Professor Gitlin, who teaches at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and who took Professor Gamsonâs political sociology class. âAnd they were on the left but were not associated with left-wing groups, so they had a refreshing independence.â
Professor Gamson said his activism, including participating in a hunger strike against military research on the Michigan campus, was inspired in part by Horace Mannâs exhortation âBe ashamed to die until youâve won some victory for humanity.â
William Anthony Gamson was born on Jan. 27, 1934, in Philadelphia to Edward and Blanche (Weintraub) Gamson. His mother was an actress before becoming a homemaker; his father owned a company that manufactured womenâs coats and suits.
Bill was influenced early on by his fatherâs interest in progressive causes like utopian communities. He also developed an early passion for games, making one up when he contracted scarlet fever at age 6 or 7 and was homebound for six months, and organizing a baseball team with his stuffed animals. âHe had them swing at marbles with a pencil bat and he kept their statistics,â his wife, Zelda Gamson, told ESPN the Magazine. âMaybe he found that games will save you.â
After graduating from Antioch College in Ohio in 1955 with a bachelorâs degree in political science and government, he earned a masterâs and Ph.D in sociology at the University of Michigan. His thesis was about coalition formation.
Soon after arriving at Michigan, he began creating immersive classroom simulation games, like Simulated Society, in which students dealt with real-world issues of conflict, inequality, injustice and social order and sought solutions as a group.
âIf the society is to be a valuable learning experience, we will need your cooperation,â Professor Gamson wrote in his book, âSIMSOC: Simulated Society, Participantâs Manualâ (2000, with Larry Peppers). âCooperation in this context means taking your objectives in the society seriously. We have tried to create a situation in which each of you has goals that depend on other people in the society for their achievement.â
He left Michigan in 1982 for Boston College, where he and Charlotte Ryan co-founded the Media Research and Action Project. The project helped unions, movements and grass-roots community groups better craft their message to the news media.
Professor Gamson was a past president of the American Sociological Association and a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1978. He retired from teaching in 2000 but remained with the media project until 2017.
In addition to his son and wife, who taught sociology at the University of Michigan and the University of Massachusetts, Boston, he is survived by his daughter, Jenny Gamson; five grandchildren; and his sister, Mary Edda Gamson.
Professor Gamsonâs interest in social movements never waned. In 2013, he and Micah Sifry, a writer and family friend, edited an issue of The Sociological Quarterly about the Occupy movement.
âHe connected it to a movement that had blown up in Israel around the same time, a youth rebellion against economic frustrations with encampments in major cities,â Mr. Sifry said.
âHis work was about how people organized themselves,â he continued, âbut what he added to the mix was an awareness of the problems that come when movements donât have leaders, like Occupy, or a formal structure for making decisions.â
Richard Sandomir is an obituaries writer. He previously wrote about sports media and sports business. He is also the author of several books, including âThe Pride of the Yankees: Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper and the Making of a Classic.â @RichSandomir
Ěý
Leonard Casper
Leonard Ralph Casper passed away in his sleep on his 95th birthday, July 6. He was born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin to Louis Casper and Caroline Eder. He had three brothers and four sisters. Louis; Rose; Ruth; Leo; Larry; Rita; and Roma.
He married Linda Ty-Casper at San Juan Rizal, Philippines on July 14, 1956. They have two daughters, Gretchen G. Casper, professor of Political Science at Pennsylvania State University; and Kristina Elise Casper-Denman,Ěý Professor of Anthropology at American River College, Sacramento.Ěý
Len was inducted into the US Military during World War II; and saw active service starting May 26, 1943; serving in foreign service 4 months, 6 days; in Continental Service, 2 years, 4 months, 11 days. His specialty was Cannoneer, # 864. He was qualified as a Marksman Carbine June 13, 1944; was Grade Pfc. Army serial # 36 821 365.Organization: Battery A 389 the FA Battalion; 99th Infantry Division, 38th Field Artillery Regiment as Marksman, Cannoneer 864.
His battle campaigns included the Rhineland, Central Europe; Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Ruhr Valley. His decorations and citations were the World War II Victory Ribbon, American Theater Ribbon, EAME Theater Ribbon, Good Conduct Ribbon, 2 Bronze Stars. He was received his Honorable Discharge, 2/12/46 at Camp Chafee, Arkansas.Ěý
Leonard with three brothersâLouis, Leo and Larryâand a sister, Rita, served in the US Army during World War II. Larry received the Purple Heart.
Len attended grade school at the St, Joseph Church, Fond du Lac High School; and received his BA, MA and PhD from the University of Wisconsin where he was a graduate assistant.
He taught at Cornell University, University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippine Normal College, was lecturer at several colleges in the Philippines, in Taiwan and in Thailand on grants from the American Philosophical Society, the Ford Foundation, ACLS-SSRC, Asia Society.Ěý
He was a Creative writing Fellow at Stanford, 1951; directed the Creative Writing Program at the University of Rhode Island, summer of 1958; Writing Fellow at Bread Loaf, 1961; a Fellow of the Rockefeller Foundation at Bellagio, 1994. He served on the editorial board of several literary magazines such as Literature East and West.
In 1956 he began teaching Contemporary American Literature and Creative Writing at Boston College; and in 1962 received the âHeightsâ Man of the Year Award in ârecognition of his loyalty and service to the University and to its Young men.â After retirement in 1999, Len continued teaching at Boston College as Emeritus Professor; later teaching at the SOAR Federal ProgramâSeniors teaching Seniorsâin Wellesley, MA.
Several of Lens creative writing students became published writers, poets, and editors, including George Higgins, whose first novel was The Friends of Eddie Coyle; Gemino Abad who dedicated his latest anthology, Philippine short Fiction in English from 1990-2008, to Leonard and three other of his professors; Michael J. Brien, editor, Amoskeag.
He wrote critical essays in his field which included American and Philippine literature. In 1966, his book on Robert Penn Warren, The Dark and Bloody Ground, the first on the author, was published by the University of Washington Press; his last book on Robert Penn Warren, The Blood Marriage of Earth and Sky, was published in 1997 by Louisiana State University Press.
Among his books are: Six Filipino Poets (1955), Wayward Horizon (1961) The Wounded Diamond (1964), New Writing from the Philippines (1966)Firewalker (1987), In Burning Bush (1991), The Opposing Thumb (1995) Sunsurfers Seen from Afar(1996) The Circular Firing Squad (1999) Green Circuits of the Sun (2002). With Thomas A. Gullason, he co-authored a textbook The World of Short Fiction: International Collection, Harper and Row, (1952).
While training for service and during active service in the US Army, his short stories were published in SouthWest Review of the Southern Methodist University, Texas; whose editors encouraged him to continue submitting his stories. In 1971 the Southern Methodist University Press published these short stories in a book, A Lion Unannounced, a National Council of the Arts Selection.
Len was a daily communicant at St. Jeremiah, Framingham until the church closed after 48 years. He was a communicant at St. George in Saxonville; and at the Sons of Mary Health of the Sick Missionaries, Framingham.Ěý
Ěý
Severyn Bruyn
Severyn T. Bruyn, a longtime member of the Sociology Department, died on May 26 at the age of 91. Credited with founding the participatory observation approach to sociological research, Dr. Bruyn authored 10 books and inspired the innovative Leadership for Change program at Boston College. A researcher and teacher in the fields of social economy and cultural studies, Dr. Bruyn began teaching at Ď㽜Đă in 1966 and retired in 2001. His book A Future for the American Economy won a top prize in the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities 1991 Alpha Sigma Nu Book Award Competition.
Mary Griffin
Mary D. Griffin, 95, daughter of the late George J. Griffin and Agnes (Daugherty), sister of the late William, and widow of the late John A. Schmitt, died on May 23, 2019.
Born and raised in Chicago, she earned a bachelorâs degree from Mundelein College and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.Ěý
For 25 years she was a Sister of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and later served for many years as Associate Professor and, ultimately, Dean of that universityâs Lynch School of Education at Boston College.
Ěý
Demetrius Iatridis
Retired Boston College School of Social Work faculty member Demetrius Iatridis, who survived a war-scarred youth and became an advocate for cooperation and compassion to aid those in need, died on June 25. He was 93.
Dr. Iatridis was widely acknowledged as an esteemed researcher and teacher in social policy and social welfare, and hailed as a pioneer in bringing an international context to social workâparticularly for his study of former communist nationsâ efforts to build social services systems in a market economy.
As chair of the Community Organization, Planning and Policy Administration concentration, he founded Ď㽜Đă School of Social Workâs âBoston Dayâ event at the Boston Redevelopment Authority, which gave students the opportunity to form ties with city authorities and neighborhood leadersâan important resource for prospective social workers, he believed.
âHeâs always been concerned with those people who are disadvantaged, who have fallen behind,â said Barry Bluestone, a former Ď㽜Đă faculty member, when Dr. Iatridis retired in the fall of 2012.Ěý âIn the best Jesuit tradition, Demetrius has kept his focus on helping those whom society tends to neglect, and heâs always reminded his students of the importance of doing that. Thatâs why so many of us respect him so much.â
Dr. Iatridisâ life path, and his personal and professional ideals, were formed in the crucible of World War II. He was only 16 when the Nazis invaded and occupied his native Greece. On his own, he escaped to the island of Crete, but found it no safer there, and was forced to hide in the mountains until he was able to flee by boat to Egypt. Lying about his age, he joined the Greek air force and served as a tail-gunner. During the war, he lost his mother and grandmother.
For Dr. Iatridis, the war changed everything. Where once he had aspired to go into aeronautical engineeringâhe had earned a scholarship to Stanford Universityânow he sought something else.
âI decided that the world would not be built by aircraft engineers but by mutual aid, collaborative programs to prevent other wars,â he explained in an interview with the Boston College Chronicle upon his retirement. âInstead of seeing the powerful always defeating and dominating the powerless, I wanted to help the powerless become powerful. This became my goal.â
After the war, Dr. Iatridis aided United Nationsâ efforts to help children in his country affected by the conflict, and the U.N. sent him to the U.S. to observe its social welfare system. He went on to earn degrees from Washington and Jefferson College, the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work and the Bryn Mawr School of Social Work, then returned to Greece for a while to help assist in establishing a graduate school of planning.
He arrived at Ď㽜Đă in 1966 as director of its new Institute of Human Sciences, founded by then-University President Michael Walsh, S.J., who envisioned a hub of teaching and research dedicated to social sciences as a potential strength for Ď㽜Đă, much like engineering or architectural studies was for MIT. Dr. Iatridis was given a joint appointment in the School of Social Work. After six years, the institute was viewed as having achieved its goals and was disbanded, said Dr. Iatridis, and he became a full-time faculty member in the school.
While he acknowledged being âskepticalâ about Ď㽜Đă at first, and uncertain whether his beliefs aligned with those of Jesuits, Dr. Iatridis told the Chronicle he had found Ď㽜Đă a âvery good fit. I was able do things I might not have had an opportunity to do otherwise.â
He taught classes comparing social policy in capitalist and communist societies, led students on visits to Cuba so they could draw their own conclusions, and invited Cuban social services experts to speak at Ď㽜Đă. Some critics thought these practices amounted to an endorsement of communism, but Dr. Iatridis insisted otherwise.
âMy point was, âWhat can we learn from the way these countries practice social policy? Nobody, as far as we knew, was looking into this. The students would decide for themselves what was effective and what wasnât, and they would have to account for and justify their positions. There was nothing ideological about it.â
During one visit to Cuba, Dr. Iatridis met with Fidel Castro, who asked if social work was an appropriate profession for the country.Ěý âI said, âIt depends. If you want to increase participation of people in decision-making, itâs your best model. It does not work well in dictatorships,ââ recounted Dr. Iatridis. âA few years later, he established social work as a profession in Cuba.â
The dramatic end of communist rule in Europe and Russia at the end of the 20th century created a new area of exploration for Dr. Iatridis. He organized several major conferences to examine the challenges faced by former Soviet Bloc nations in building social service systems in a market economy, and co-published an accompanying series of books.
âThis was a tremendous opportunity to put social work in the forefront of a major world development,â he said. âThe conferences and the books were very well-received. It was very good exposure for the School of Social Work and Ď㽜Đă.â
Dr. Iatridis served on several University committees, and chaired the Faculty Compensation Committee for 15 of the 27 years he was a member. In 2000, he was presented with a Distinguished Service Award from the University.
Fittingly, Dr. Iatridisâ career was celebrated in November of 2012 with a panel discussionâin which he was a participantâon the issues of policy, planning, and poverty that had informed his teaching and research. Former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis presented a keynote address at the event.
As he contemplated retirement, Dr. Iatridis vowed to remain active by volunteering for programs and projects combatting povertyâa subject virtually absent from the 2012 election campaign, he said.
âThe poverty and inequality I saw after World War II was the reason I went into social work,â he said, âand I am going to continue to help the powerless.â
ĚýDr. Iatridis and his wife Mary, who died in 2015, are survived by their children Anna, Tanya, Stavros, and Maki, and 13 grandchildren.Ěý
âUniversity Communications
Jim Gips
James Gips, an award-winning Boston College computer scientist whose work in assistive technology has helped people with disabilities live fuller lives, died on June 10. He was 72.
Dr. Gips, the John R. and Pamela Egan Professor of Computer Science in the Carroll School of Management, was the co-inventor and co-developer of two groundbreaking assistive technologies, EagleEyes and Camera Mouse, which enable users to operate computers through eye or head movements. The systems have been used by people with cerebral palsy, spinal muscular atrophy, traumatic brain injury and other disorders.
âBefore EagleEyes, these children were totally trapped inside their bodies,â Dr. Gips told the Boston College Chronicle in 1996, two years after formally unveiling EagleEyes. âWhile they may be bright and eager to communicate, they had no way to express themselves. Once EagleEyes is in their homes, thereâs no telling where it will lead them.â
In creating EagleEyes and Camera Mouse, Dr. Gips â along with his collaborators, Peter Olivieri and Joseph Tecce â set the stage for a multitude of inspiring stories of families with children suffering from severe disabilities whose lives were changed by the technology. Testimonials were often delivered through print, broadcast and other media, but many came directly to Dr. Gips and his colleagues.
One correspondent wrote about EagleEyesâ impact on his five-year-old grandson Adam: âYesterday I watched him play a computer game that made the monkeys jump on the bed while whimsical music played. Adam giggled then, miracle of miracles, Adam made it play again and then again! What kind of miracle is that you might ask. Itâs the most remarkable kind if your grandson has quadriplegic cerebral palsy. Adam cannot speak, sit up, crawl, walk or roll over and is fed with a tube in his tummy.
âBut when Adam started using EagleEyes the world changed for him and those who love him. When Adamâs eyes dwell on a graphic icon it âclicksâ like a mouse. I call it the click heard around the world.â
Olivieri, a Carroll School associate professor for information systems who retired in 2011, mourned the passing of his longtime friend and colleague. âJim was a wonderful person, kind and compassionate, bright and articulate, who loved his family, his students and his friends.Ěý He always asked his students to think about how they could make a difference, and how their knowledge could make the world a better place.
âHe himself practiced what he asked his students to do as evidenced by his development of award-winning technology to help people with profound disabilities show their humanity and become fully recognized as fellow human beings.Ěý His research changed the lives of hundreds and hundreds of boys and girls, men and women, and his teaching impacted thousands of Boston College students. I will miss him more than words can say.â
Added Tecce, an associate professor of psychology, âJim was a friend and special colleague. He did an outstanding job of putting into the public domain our discovery of a method to help special needs individuals. It was a privilege and an honor to have him as a co-author on my professional presentations. I will always be grateful for his professionalism.â
Dr. Gips had already made an impact in the computer science field before joining the Ď㽜Đă faculty in 1976, through his foundational work with George Stiny on shape grammars, a specific class of production systems that generate geometric shapes as a means to study two and three-dimensional languages. In 1980, Dr. Gips â who in addition to the Carroll SchoolĚý Information Systems Department held a joint appointment with the Computer Science Department in the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences â was one of two Ď㽜Đă faculty members (along with historian Samuel Miller) to win the inaugural Alpha Sigma Nu National Book Awards for Algorithmic Aesthetics, which he authored with Stiny.
The inspiration for EagleEyes came from a casual discussion in 1992 between Dr. Gips and Olivieri, in which they talked about the possibility of controlling computers through the mind. Exploring the idea further, the two reached out to Tecce, who suggested EOG, or electrooculography, which can track eye movements by detecting electrical signals in the eye; electrodes placed around the eyes detect those signals. The three figured out a way of amplifying the signals and converting them to corresponding movements of a cursor.
Working on that basis, the trio created a prototype that enabled the user to play video games on the computer through eye movement. After Dr. Gips presented their device at a scientific conference, he was asked about its potential uses. He mused that it might help children with disabilities, although he and his collaborators hadnât yet investigated such a possibility.
Dr. Gips, Olivieri and Tecce tested the device, dubbed âEagleEyes,â by using it with students at the Ď㽜Đă Campus School, which serves children with multiple disabilities. Over time, they added refinements that enabled users to spell out words, create music and âeye-paintâ â make colors appear on the computer screen â among other functions.
In 1994, EagleEyes was chosen as one of five finalists for a prestigious Discover Award for Technological Innovation, sponsored by Discover magazine.
The trio sought to duplicate the EagleEyes system to make it available outside of Ď㽜Đă, such as for collaborative schools and families. It was increasingly difficult to keep up with the demand, but Dr. Gips couldnât find investors willing to back the project until the nonprofit Opportunity Foundation of America (OFOA) expressed interest.
In 2004, OFOA signed a licensing agreement with Ď㽜Đă to provide manufacturing, distribution and training for EagleEyes. During the first decade of the license, OFOA placed more than 280 EagleEyes systems in the US, Canada and Ireland.
Three years later, Dr. Gips won a da Vinci Award "honoring exceptional design and engineering achievements in accessibility and universal design, that empowers people of all abilities."
By then, Dr. Gips and his team had begun producing Camera Mouse, which they made available for download in June of 2007. Some 3.3 million downloads were recorded in its first decade.
âBless you all for this precious gift to so many who lost their voice,â wrote the father of an ALS patient who used Camera Mouse. âI love you all!!!!"
On his personal website, Dr. Gips noted that Ď㽜Đă undergraduates were involved in all phases of the work on EagleEyes and Camera Mouse, and had co-authored and presented papers. Many students âbegin not by developing technologies but rather by working directly with the children who will use the technologies.â
Dr. Gipsâ more recent research activity was to examine aspects of the effects of technology and new media on consumer behavior and psychology, in collaboration with Carroll School Associate Professor of Marketing S. Adam Brasel. The two formed the Marketing Interfaces Lab at Ď㽜Đă.ĚýĚý
In 2015, Dr. Gips received teaching honors from both the Carroll School Honors Program and the Ď㽜Đă chapter of Alpha Sigma Nu, the national Jesuit honor society.
Prior to joining Boston College, Dr. Gips worked at the Department of Biomathematics at the University of California-Los Angeles and at the Psychophysiology Laboratory at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda.
Dr. Gips earned a bachelorâs degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his masterâs and doctoral degrees from Stanford University.
He is survived by his wife Barbara; children Amy and Jonathan; his sister Kathy; and a grandson.
Sean Smith | University Communications | June 2018
Richard Cobb-Stevens
ProfessorĚýEmeritusĚýRichard Cobb-Stevens, a widely praised phenomenology scholar who chaired the Philosophy Department for nine years and played a leadership role in the revision of Boston Collegeâs core curriculum during the early 1990s, died on July 6. He was 83.
Dr. Cobb-Stevens spent nearly four decades on the faculty, but his ties to the University pre-dated his 1971 appointment as an assistant professor of philosophy: He earned his bachelorâs degree in 1958 and his masterâs degree a year later from Ď㽜Đă as part of his training for the Society of Jesus. Although he would later leave the order, Dr. Cobb-Stevens acquired a solid academic and formational background well-suited to teach philosophy at a university steeped in the Jesuit, Catholic tradition.
Also foundational were his studies at the College St. Albert du Louvain in Belgium, where he received his licentiate in theology in 1966, and as a doctoral student at the University of Paris, where he earned his Ph.D. in 1971. During his years in Paris, he was witness to the historic 1968 student unrest, met Jean-Paul Sartre, and spent summers as a relief chaplain at a parish drop-in center and a U.S. Air Force base in Germany.
His work in phenomenological philosophy, analytic philosophy, and the history of philosophy helped inspire generations of philosophers involved in those fields of research. Foremost among his writings were his booksĚýJames and Husserl: The Foundations of Meaningâa study in contrasts of phenomenology founder Edmund Husserl and pragmatist/functionalist William JamesâandĚýHusserl and Analytic Philosophy, which traced the break between phenomenology and analytic philosophy, two key philosophic movements of the 20th century.
In a 1990 interview with theĚýBoston College Biweekly, Dr. Cobb-Stevens said that, while he believed Husserlâs phenomenology method was more successful than the analytic method of Gottlob Fregeâwho founded the analytic movementâhe had publishedĚýHusserl and Analytic PhilosophyĚýwith the hope of contributing to ârenewed dialogueâ between the two schools of thought: â[Husserl and Frege] both shared the conviction that we can achieve some degree of objective truth, even though our access to truth is always perspectival and historically conditioned.â
In 2015, a volume of essays in honor of Dr. Cobb-Stevens,ĚýPhenomenology in a New Key,Ěýwas published, featuring contributions from several leading experts in phenomenological philosophy from North America and Europe. Ěý
âDick will be most remembered for his essential humanness,â said Professor of Philosophy Patrick Byrne. âHe was warm and welcoming to everyone he met, and let you know that he cared about you as an individual. He had a special gift for calming tensions in meetings, which is no small accomplishment in a university setting. Dick had a great sense of humor and was a storyteller of a special kind: He could let himself disappear as he drew people together by drawing them into the story.â
Dr. Cobb-Stevensâ colleague Professor Eileen Sweeney, speaking at his retirement lecture in 2009, praisedĚýHusserl and Analytic PhilosophyĚýas an example of his ability to engage with and transcend such divisions.Ěý âIt is on that cusp that Richardâs philosophical work has dwelt, eschewing both the reductionism and scientism, on the one hand, as well as any premature retreat into mysticism or poetry, on the other.Ěý I wouldnât say that Richardâs thought has come to rest in some easy synthesis or middle ground but is rather engaged in an ongoing dynamic dialectic.â
His achievements as a researcher and writer did not overshadow his abilities as a teacher and mentor, added Sweeney, noting that for more than 30 years Dr. Cobb-Stevens ran the Philosophy Departmentâs teaching seminar for doctoral students, and had directed 27 doctoral dissertations. Students, she said, valued his ability to allow them to develop their own thought but to subject it to rigorous testing and critique.
His lectures had âthe same combination of style and clarity as does his writing,â said Sweeney at the 2009 event. âHe can always be counted on for the anecdote students will remember for years to come that epitomizes a problem or issue in the material he is teaching.Ěý He is always willing to share a story that shows his own difficulties and puzzlement in dealing with a problem or dilemma, one which exposes his own humanity with a humility which students find it possible to emulate.Ěý He is willing to work through an issue with students in genuine collaboration, knowing and enacting the role of philosopher as lover rather than possessor of wisdom.â
Dr. Cobb-Stevensâ colleagues also recalled him as âa citizen of the Universityâ who took on tasks and assignments that contributed to the greater good of his departmentâas chairman from 1993-2002, he helped bring international recognition to Ď㽜Đăâs graduate programs in philosophy while increasing the number of philosophy undergraduate majors to among the largest in the U.S.âand Boston College as a whole: He was a member of the University Policy Committee and the University Academic Planning Council, among other bodies.
âEven though he was an internationally renowned scholar in philosophy,â said Byrne, âDick devoted most of his time to making Boston College an ever-better place for undergraduate and graduate students to spend their formative years.â
In 1991, Dr. Cobb-Stevens was appointed as the inaugural director of the University Core Development Committee (UCDC), created to oversee and manage the undergraduate core curriculum, which had recently undergone its most extensive revision since its introduction in 1971. Among the changes were a requirement for students to take at least one course in fine arts, literature, mathematics, and cultural diversity, and that core courses share a set of common characteristics including discussion of perennial questions; history and methodology of the discipline; culturally diverse perspectives, and a concern for the moral significance and practical direction of studentsâ lives.
Dr. Cobb-Stevens went on to serve for 18 years as director of the UCDC as it performed the critical minutiaeâassessment, evaluation, refinement, and advisingâassociated with administering the Universityâs signature undergraduate course sequences. Dr. Cobb-Stevens also was instrumental in helping the UCDC secure major grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and National Science Foundation to develop new core courses designed to integrate themes from the humanities and sciences.
A milestone came in 1997, when the first Boston College class to study under the revised core graduated. Interviewed by theĚýBoston College Chronicle, Dr. Cobb-Stevens reflected on the success of the initiative: âStudents weâve talked to say that without the core, they would have followed a narrow path of study without encountering new disciplines and outlooks. Their reaction to, and experience with, the core has been quite positive.â He added that faculty members across disciplines also had been inspired to work on core-related initiatives. Ěý
âThere is still much that can be done,â he said. âBut looking at the particular structure we have here, and the degree of cooperation experienced between the UCDC and departments, I canât think of anything quite like it at any comparable institution. We have made a very good beginning.â
âMy memory of Richard Cobb-Stevens is that he was unfailingly kind and concerned for the welfare of everyone he met, and deeply committed to humanistic education in the Catholic and Jesuit traditions,â said Fitzgibbon Professor of Philosophy Arthur Madigan, S.J., who succeeded Dr. Cobb-Stevens as UCDC director in 2009. âSomeone once told me that receiving the answer âNoâ from Richard Cobb-Stevens was more satisfying than receiving the answer âYesâ from any number of other people.â
Dr. Cobb-Stevens taught such courses as Machiavelli and Hobbes, Frege and Wittgenstein, American Pragmatism, and 19th- and 20th-Century Philosophy, as well as Modernism and the Arts and New Scientific Visions through the Perspectives Program.
He served on the editorial boards ofĚýPhenomenological InquiryĚýand the Center for Advanced Research in Phenomenology, among other publications, and was a member of such organizations as the American Philosophical Association, Metaphysical Society of America, Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy, and American Catholic Philosophical Association.
Dr. Cobb-Stevensâ wife, Veda Cobb, whom he married in 1979 (both took Cobb-Stevens as their last names), died in 1989. He is survived by his sister Helen Ahearn and brothers Robert, Thomas, and John Stevens; he was predeceased by his sisters Mary A. Cullinane, Grace A. Vinciguerra, and Judith E. Erler and brother Francis Stevens.Ěý
âSean Smith |University CommunicationâSean Smith |University Communication
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Holmstrom, Lynda (d. 2021)
Lynda Lytle Holmstrom, Professor Emerita of Sociology at Boston College, died suddenly on February 6, 2021 at age 81. She was born in Seattle and graduated as Valedictorian from Garfield High School in 1957. She attended Stanford University and earned her BA in Anthropology in 1961. She married her husband Ross, a Doctoral student in Electrical Engineering at Stanford, and then took her first academic job, as an editorial assistant to two Stanford Sociology professors who were writing a book. Her experience working for them piqued her interest in Sociology.
Ross, having finished his Doctoral work at Stanford, obtained a position with NASA in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and they moved to Boston in September 1964. Lynda, on the strength of her record at Stanford, including election to Phi Beta Kappa, immediately received admission to Boston University's Master's Degree program in Sociology. She earned her MA in one year and in 1965 entered Brandeis University's Doctoral program in Sociology.
By 1969 her Doctoral thesis was largely complete and she accepted a position as Instructor in the Boston College (not Boston University) Sociology Department. She became an Assistant Professor when her Ph.D. was granted. Lynda's thesis became the book, The Two Career Family. This book, based on in-depth interviews of couples in two-career marriages, might be looked upon as a how-to-do-it guide.
Lynda went up through the ranks at Ď㽜Đă including a stretch as Sociology Department chairperson. Her two favorite courses to teach were Marriage & Family, from her liberated perspective, and Legal and Illegal Violence Against Women. She chose research topics according to what interested her, studies that resulted in The Victim of Rape: Institutional Reactions, written with Ann Wolbert Burgess; and Mixed Blessings: Intensive Care for Newborns, written with Jeanne Harley Guillemin.
Lynda was a skier, hiker and traveler. She climbed Mount St. Helens with the Mountaineers, before it blew up. Winters often included a week's ski trip to the Rockies. She toured Europe with her family from the North Cape to the Peloponnese, the British Isles, Morocco and Latin America.
Lynda is survived by her husband Ross, also from Seattle, sons Bret and Cary, grandchildren Cheyenne, Jayden, Imogen and Machaias and Washington State cousins Lois Stanford, John Marckworth, and Peg Marckworth. Cause of death was a cerebral hemorrhage.
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Sarah Cimino
Age 84, of Carnegie, passed away Sunday, December 24, 2017, after a brief battle with cancer.
Daughter of the late Enrico "Henry" and Leona (Cardamone) Cimino. She was always generous and kind, always willing to help anyone. She was always recognized for her caring and her leadership qualities.
Sarah was a Registered Nurse, dedicated to her profession 100 percent and always looking to improve the system to achieve better patient care. It was natural for her that after graduating Schenley High School she continued her education in the caring services, graduating from Saint Francis Hospital School of Nursing, then UCLA for a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, then on to Boston College School of Nursing for 30 years where she also chaired Committees that contributed to nursing progress.
She will also be remembered as a Peace Corps participant in Malaysia where she taught and implemented new, safer procedures in patient care in a different culture. Sarah considered that experience personally and professionally enriching.
After 30 years, she retired from Boston College and spent three years taking care of retired priests of the Boston Diocese in a local nursing home. After that time, Sarah returned home to Pittsburgh, residing close to her family and looked after her mother who lived for 103 years. She was preceded in death by her parents, Leona Cardamone Cimino and Henry Cimino, and her brother, Thomas Cimino. She will be missed by her sister Mary Theresa (Whitey) Burkart, and many nieces, nephews, friends and colleagues.Ěý
Published in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette from Dec. 27 to Dec. 28, 2017
John Heineman
Dr. Heineman, who taught at Boston College for 40 years, chaired the History Department from 1970-76 and pursued research in modern Germany (1803-present) and the Third Reich, as well as the history of warfare, the intellectual history of western Europe and religious and Church history.Ěý
But he was particularly interested in the Nazi era: He taught a course, Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich, using a large collection of mostly unpublished primary source documents he had translated. These documents, which he later put online, included material on the Nazi seizure of power and the treatment of Jews during the Third Reich.
Interviewed by The Heights shortly before he retired in 2003, Dr. Heineman said he became fascinated with German history somewhat unexpectedly while an undergraduate at the University of Notre Dame when he took a trip to Europe â a journey made possible by a $500 bequest from his great aunt, who stipulated he use it for travel.
Signing up for a Catholic student tour, Dr. Heineman visited Ireland and England with great anticipation, but came away âfaintly disappointed.â Arriving in Germany, however, was âan almost mystical experienceâ that deepened in the days he spent there.Ěý
âI came back absolutely convinced I wanted to be a German historian,â he recalled.
After earning his degree from Notre Dame, Dr. Heineman went to Germany on a Fulbright grant and later received a full scholarship to study German history at Cornell University. Searching for a dissertation topic, Dr. Heineman was drawn to the story of Constantin Von Neurath, who had served as foreign secretary during the last years of the Weimar Republic and stayed on after Adolf Hitler came to power. He did extensive research on Neurath and later published a comprehensive biography, Hitler's First Foreign Minister: Constantin Freiherr von Neurath.
To Dr. Heineman, Neurath was an all-too-common example of âdecent and honorable menâ who served âthe evil that was National Socialism.â The fact that Germanyâs pre-World War II foreign policy did not change following the ascension of the Nazis was because Neurath and other professional diplomats who, although not party members, continued to run the Foreign Office, he said.Ěý
âBorn for another century, relying with too much trust upon an outmoded code of doing oneâs duty,â wrote Dr. Heineman, âNeurath never successfully defined the nature of the challenge that faced him.â
Dr. Heineman was wary of drawing historical comparisons with current events. Asked by The Heights in 2003 about the parallels between Saddam Hussein and Adolf Hitler, he replied that using âhistorical analogies and similes for similar situations while you are teaching history is to create a distortion of the past.â
âThe circumstances that brought Hitler to power in the 1920s and â30s are not the same ones that brought to power Saddam Hussein,â he added. âThe chief function of a historian is to recreate history the way it actually was, and that is without the hindsight of the future.â
In 1997, Dr. Heineman was selected for a teaching award from the Boston College Phi Beta Kappa chapter. In an interview with Boston College Chronicle, he said he relished the honor because it had been given by students in recognition of his teaching â his âgreatest love,â he called it.
"I'm very much aware that my function up there is to inform, partially to entertain, partially to inspire," he said, "but also to give them a model of analysis of how a reasonably intelligent person can look at data and make sense of it."Ěý
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Mary Dineen
Mary A. Dineen, who served as dean of the Boston College School of Nursing from 1972 until her retirement in 1986, died March 4, 2017 at age 94.
"I remember Dean Dineen as someone who loved Boston College and who was a formidable leader," said Connell School of Nursing Associate Professor Jane Ashley, who was hired by Dr. Dineen. "I'll always remember that she said to me, "At Ď㽜Đă, we only hire the best and the brightest"...her comment always stayed with me and in many ways it set the bar for what was expected of nursing faculty."
During her tenure, the Boston College School of Nursing became recognized nationally for its excellence in preparing students for the nursing profession. Then-University President J. Donald Monan, S.J., praised Dr. Dineen for her "valuable and necessary leadership" during this period of time.
She had the vision to see that nurses were taking on more responsibility in the areas of health promotion and illness prevention, and that the advent of nurse practitioners would forever change the practice and education of nurses.
"Dean Dineen was one of the early leaders in nursing," said Ashley. "She got her Ph.D. at at time when very few nurses had advanced degrees and she set the stage for the development of the Ph.D. program in nursing at Boston College.Ěý Under her guidance, CSON strengthened the master's programs and began work on the PhD program. This happened at a time when very few universities offered a PhD in nursing. In many ways, Dean Dineen was ahead of her time."
On the cusp of her retirement, Dr. Dineen told the Boston College Biweekly (precursor to the Boston College Chronicle): "I see nursing as a wonderful field for those who want to be in a helping field. I can't imagine anyone not liking it."
She added: "It has been a satisfying career, and I think I made the right choices. It has been a continual challenge. And I like challenges."
Dr. Dineen was born in Niagara Falls, NY. She completed her basic nursing education at Mt. St. Mary's Hospital School of Nursing. Following receipt of her RN License, she worked as a staff nurse at St. Mary's Hospital and in St. Louis, Missouri.
She graduated from St. Louis University with a bachelor's degree in nursing and later earned a master's degree from Niagara University and a doctoral degree from Columbia University.
She was one of the first faculty members appointed to Niagara University when the College of Nursing was founded in 1946. In 1963, Dr. Dineen joined the staff of the National League for Nursing in New York City, working as a consultant and department director with university-based nursing education programs throughout the country.
Dr. Dineen was active in many professional organizations, including the American Nurses Association, the National League for Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau and Alpha Sigma Nu. She was honored with the Nursing Education Alumni Award from Teachers College, Columbia and the Mary Adelaide Nutting Award from the National League for Nursing.
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Peter Donovan
rofessor Emeritus Peter Donovan â60, a brilliant, tough-minded teddy bear of a guy whom students affectionately called âThe Big Man,â passed away February 25. A Double Eagle, he taught at Ď㽜Đă Law for thirty-six years until his retirement in 2002, winning the hearts and shaping the minds of hundreds of still-devoted students.
âPeter was an authentic. Not a phony facet to him,â said one of those students, Peter del Vecchio â81, who helped organize a tribute to Donovan at the 2016 Reunion. âHe presented a gruff exterior, but had nothing but pure love and respect for his students. He was also a lot of fun.â
Indeed, Donovan got a huge kick out of the roasting he received at the event from members of the Class of 1981. After the singing and storytelling, his admirers presented to him and his wife Eleanor a glass portrait of Donovan and a pair of signed bowling pins. âI want to thank his lovely wife Eleanor for sharing Peter with us,â del Vecchio said upon learning of his passing.
A specialist in products liability and antitrust law, Donovan was also a central figure in building Ď㽜Đă Lawâs oral advocacy programs, serving as faculty advisor for the two-time national champion moot court team and mentoring generations of students in competitions. He was coauthor of Massachusetts Corporation Law.
Ď㽜Đă Law Professor Robert Bloom â71, who was both a student and colleague of Donovan, remembered him as not only a great teacher but also as a lawyerâs lawyer. âHis lawyering was absolutely the best; attorneys from all over would come to him for his lawyering,â Bloom said.
In 1989, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court took up the case of Harlow v. Massachusetts General Hospital, an appeal from what at the time was the largest medical malpractice verdict in the Commonwealth. Trial lawyer Fred Halstrom â70, one of Ď㽜Đă Lawâs most distinguished graduates, reached out to his former professor Peter Donovan to handle the very challenging appeal brought by the hospital, focusing in large part on plaintiffâs closing argument, which invoked analogies to professional athlete salaries as a guide to the juryâs assessment of damages. Donovan asked faculty colleague Mark Brodin to assist him, who was flattered and honored by the request. Throughout the long strategy sessions on the appellate brief and argument, Brodin became more and more aware that he was in the presence of one of the great legal minds he had ever encountered.
The proof of this came when the SJC ruled that, while the argument by plaintiffâs counsel was âegregious and improper under long established, and well understood, principles,â reversal was not called for. Donovan had pulled the proverbial rabbit out of the hat, yet again. Brodin has remained in awe of Donovanâs legal process ever since.
Donovanâs classrooms could be scary places. In his early years on the faculty, he was the only one teaching corporations. The class was so big that students had to sit on the windowsills because there werenât enough seats.
Bloom remembers his corporations class, which he took in the second semester of his third year. âProfessor Donovan would call on me every day (youâre not supposed to do that to a third year student,â Bloom said bemusedly). He called me âRadical.â âRadical,â heâd bellow, âwhat does your sense of justice and fair play dictate on this issue?â and Iâd have to answer and have to be prepared. I hated him. And then at my graduation, he told my mom what a wonderful guy I was, and she loved him and if my mom loved him, then, naturally, I had to too.â
Donovan, of course, knew exactly what he was doing. He had this to say about his torts class during an interview with Ď㽜Đă Law Magazine in 2001: âI consider myself a teddy bear that people like to hug. Iâd obviously hide that part of my personality because in their first year, I want students to work harder than theyâve ever worked before, and if theyâre afraid of you, they tend to work harder. So, maybe I do intimidate them, but we also have a lot of humor in class.â
He cared greatly for his students and was fond of saying that there were only three reasons to teach: âstudents, students, students.â
Ann Palmieri â81 said Donovan had a remarkable way of connecting with everyone. âHe really did all he could for those that he knew needed his guidance and love and faith,â she noted. âI think of him as a giant Irishman with a giant brain and heart to match.â
Donovanâs contribution to Ď㽜Đă Law that was closest to his heart was coaching moot court teams. âWorking in the advocacy programs has been my most satisfying work at the Law School,â he said in 2001. âYou work with the students one on one, you get to know them as individuals. Itâs just a big, huge ego trip to see how hard they work and how well they perform from it.â His teams twice won national championships, were finalists twice, and chalked up an impressive list of regional championships and citations.
His love of oral advocacy was also personal. It was one of the things that turned around the young Donovanâs otherwise lackluster academic performance. A âCâ student throughout high school and half of college, he got an inkling of his verbal powers of persuasion during his comprehensive oral exam in philosophy in which he turned the tables on his inquisitors by questioning the ambiguity of their questions, which earned him their respect.
In law school he sparred vigorously with Professor Richard S. Sullivan, which provided Donovan with another important insight. âI love to argue,â he realized. Thus challenged, he rose to third in his class his first year. The next two, he was first.
After graduating from Ď㽜Đă Law, Donovan worked in the antitrust division of the US Department of Justice, and earned an LLM from Georgetown Law Center and another from Harvard Law School, where heâd been a Ford Foundation Fellow in Law Teaching. He began teaching at the Law School in 1966.
Eugene Bronstein
Eugene Bronstein, who followed an accomplished career in retail with a successful 22-year tenure at the Carroll School of Management, died earlier in the spring semester at the age of 92. Prof. Bronstein had spent 20 years at Fileneâs department store in Boston â starting as a research assistant and finishing as a merchandising vice president â when he joined the Carroll School faculty in 1975 as a lecturer. He taught retailing, marketing, merchandising and management courses to undergraduate and MBA students.
In 1983, he became director of the schoolâs honors program, where he taught and mentored leading Carroll School students. During his 10 years at the helm, the program introduced a senior thesis, strengthened relationships with the College of Arts and Sciences, created a mentoring program with honors alumni and encouraged greater student management of the program.
Interviewed by the Heights near the end of his term as director, Prof. Bronstein said running the honors program had been a chance for him to âshape a small business,â and had enjoyed the increased contact with students.Ěý
Prof. Bronstein said the advent of the senior thesis had reflected a desire to give Carroll School students a chance to âspread outâ â to broaden their interests and use their creativity. Where in the past CSOM theses had been largely confined to business and management topics, he said that 75 percent now delved into other areas; one student, he noted, had put together an instructional video on golf.
âYou have influenced my life and career more than you will ever know,â one student wrote to Prof. Bronstein.
While pleased with the programâs growth, Prof. Bronstein told the Heights that he had didnât expect status quo under new leadership. âI would throw it on the wall and start brainstorming. that is the advantage of a new set of eyes. Take a fresh look.â
After retiring in 1997, Prof. Bronstein was a member of the Boston College Association of Retired Faculty. A native of Cambridge, Prof. Bronstein enlisted in the Navy in World War II and served in the South Paci!c, taking part in crucial battles such as Okinawa and Iwo Jima.
He earned a bachelorâs degree from Dartmouth College and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
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Albert F. Hanwell
Albert F. Hanwell, an alumnus and retired longtime faculty member and associate dean at the Boston College School of Social Work, died on Oct. 3.
Dean Hanwellâs association with the Graduate School of Social Work â as it was then known â went back to its pre-Chestnut Hill days, when the school was housed at 126 Newbury Street in Boston. A 1949 Ď㽜Đă graduate, he earned his masterâs degree in social work at GSSW in 1952, then returned as a faculty member 10 years later, six years before the school moved to its present campus location.
After the appointment of June Gary Hopps as GSSW dean in 1976, Dean Hanwell took on more administrative responsibilities until he was appointed assistant dean in 1985, then associate dean in 1992. He, along with Hopps, retired in 2000.
Dean Hanwell was credited for working with Hopps to help GSSW become a modern, nationally recognized presence in the social work field. During the Hopps era, the school established a doctoral program â still a rarity at the time among social work schools â and innovative joint degree programs with the Carroll School of Management, Law School and Institute for Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry that promoted the interdisciplinary character of social work. GSSW joined U.S. News & World Reportâs top 20 rankings of graduate social work programs, and its faculty ranked 10th in a national study on publication productivity.
In the spring of 2000, then-Academic Vice President and Dean of Faculties John J. Neuhauser praised the leadership of Hopps and Dean Hanwell: âWhat they have achieved is remarkable."
A World War II veteran who served in the Navy, Dean Hanwell was pre-deceased by his wife Ann. He is survived by his sons Neil â an accounting assistant for the Universityâs Auxiliary Services division â Kevin and John J. Hanwell, S.J., and his daughter Theresa.
Joseph Criscenti
A funeral Mass was celebrated in St. Bartholomew Church in Needham on Jan. 7, 2013 for Joseph T. Criscenti, a professor of Latin American history for 33 years who died on Jan. 3. He was 92.
A specialist in Argentine history, especially the formation of the Argentine Republic, Dr. Criscenti â who began teaching at Ď㽜Đă in 1955, after receiving his doctorate in history from Harvard University âĚýwon the 1961 James Alexander Robertson Prize of the Conference on Latin American History for his article âArgentine Constitutional History, 1810-1852: A Re-examination,â published in the Hispanic American Historical Review. During his research trips to Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay, he acquired books that became part of the Boston College Librariesâ collection of Latin American materials.
Dr. Criscenti was a founder of the New England Council of Latin American Studies (NECLAS), and the secretary-treasurer for nearly 20 years. In honor of his efforts, NECLAS established the annual Joseph T. Criscenti Best Article Prize.Ěý
Dr. Criscenti remained active in his field following his retirement in 1988, editing the 1993 book Sarmiento and His Argentina and serving as a contributing editor of the Handbook of Latin American Studies published by the Library of Congress. He also authored articles for the Encyclopedia of Latin America, among other publications, and wrote numerous book reviews.
Born in Detroit, Dr. Criscenti graduated from the University of Detroit in 1942. Inducted into the Army, he was assigned to the Adjutant Generalâs Section in General Douglas MacArthurâs headquarters in Manila. He was awarded the Bronze Star for reconstructing the historical record of changes in the armyâs organization in the Philippines. As an Army reservist, Dr. Criscenti became the commander of a military history detachment assigned to the Office of Military History. He retired from the army in 1980 as a lieutenant colonel.
Kevin Duffy
A funeral Mass was held Dec. 8, 2012 in St. Ignatius Church, Chestnut Hill, for Kevin P. Duffy, who served for 24 years as Boston Collegeâs vice president of student affairs during one of the Universityâs most transformative eras.â¨âśÄ¨Dr. Duffy died on Dec. 4 of complications resulting from a fall. He was 70.â¨âśÄ¨Dr. DuffyâsĚýtenure as student affairs vice president from 1976-2000 coincided withĚýsignificant changes to Boston College, from its physical plant to the make-upĚýofĚýits student body, as it became more of a national â and international âĚýCatholic university.
This period also saw an increasing demand throughout higherĚýeducation forĚýgreater attention to college studentsâ non-academic needs.â¨âśÄ¨As vice president, Dr. Duffy helped develop many key services to meet such needs, among them the offices of University Housing, Dean for Student Development and AHANA Student Programs, as well as University Health and Medical Services, the Career Center, Counseling Services, First Year Experience, Learning Resources for Student Athletics, and Learning to Learn.
â¨â¨Interviewed by Boston College Chronicle shortly before stepping down from his vice presidency â he went on to serve as an assistant professor and director of internships in the Lynch School of Education Higher Education Graduate Program until his retirement in 2007 â Dr. Duffy reflected on how the changes at Ď㽜Đă had affected his own role: Where his position had once been âmore of a âdean of men,ââ it had evolved âto a far more comprehensive administrative role."â¨â¨He added, "Through it all, though, I think my chief role has stayed constant: to constantly remind people that students are our priority, and to help those students have the best experience possible here."
â¨â¨Dr. Duffy also was lauded for reviving one of Boston Collegeâs most storied student organizations, the Fulton Debate Society, and upon his departure from Student Affairs the society chose him as the namesake for an award in debate excellence.â¨âśÄ¨âKevin always had a great understanding of, and an enthusiasm for, the role of Student Affairs in the lives of the students and in the University,â said Margaret Dwyer, former University vice president. âHe was devoted to the Jesuit ideal of the education of the whole student. In that connection he was very active in the Conference of Jesuit Student Personnel Administrators, where he joined with colleagues across the country in identifying best practices and in seeking to meet new and changing needs of students.ââ¨â¨âKevin lived the Ignatian mission,â said Director of Employee Development Bernard OâKane â70, who served under Dr. Duffy as administrative officer in the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs. âHe believed deeply in student formation. His advocacy for students, especially those marginalized, was unwavering. At times, his positions placed him squarely in between the University administration and the students, but he always saw the issue through. He had unbridled generosity, with his time, resources and spirit. He was a mentor to me and to many younger administrators. Ěýâ¨â¨âOne of his favorite phrases was âUniversity citizen,â which referred to someone he admired at Ď㽜Đă who took responsibility for things far beyond his or her role. Kevin was truly a University citizen.ââ¨â¨
A New York City native and a graduate of Cathedral College with a bachelorâs degree in philosophy, Dr. Duffy came to Ď㽜Đă in 1968 as director of student services, and was housing director from 1970-76. He also held a masterâs degree in counseling from Fordham University and a doctorate in higher education administration from Ď㽜Đă.â¨âśÄ¨Dr. Duffy also was a prominent national figure in the field of student affairs. He held such leadership positions as president of the Jesuit Association of Student Personnel Administrators (JASPA) and the Boston Association of College Housing Administrators, Region 1 vice president of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), and co-director of six NASPA Region 1 senior student affairs officersâ retreats. He served on eight college accreditation teams or visitation committees, and made more than 60 presentations at regional and national conferences of NASPA, JASPA, the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) and various other professional associations.
â¨â¨His professional honors included awards from NASPA as a âPillar of the Professionâ as well as for Outstanding Service and for Support for Graduate Students and New Professionals, the Yanitelli Award from JASPA, the St. Ignatius of Loyola Award for a Career of Service to Jesuit Higher Education, and Martin Luther King Award for Advocacy on Behalf of Students of Color from Boston College.
Henry Blackwell
Henry Blackwell, who taught English at Boston College for 32 years, died after a lengthy illness on Sept. 28, 2012.
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The first African-American faculty member in Ď㽜Đăâs English Department, Professor Blackwell specialized in African-American literature, American literature, and cultural studies. His scholarly interests included narrative theory, theoretical aspects of religion and literature, conflicts between culture and aesthetics, and blurred genres.
Colleagues recalled Professor Blackwell, a specialist in Flannery OâConnor, as a teacher devoted to his students and whose scholarly papers, delivered at academic conferences around the world, revealed a breadth of intellect and a passion for the subtleties of literature as well as the rigors of ethical debate. Even his introductions for visiting speakers were the brilliantly concise fruits of endless labor, colleagues said, and his letters of recommendations were also perfect little essays of clarity and sense.
Professor Blackwell's colleagues also praised his outreach to AHANA students, and for encouraging them to attend graduate school and pursue teaching careers. Many did, and kept in touch with Professor Blackwell about their career paths and achievements.
Professor Blackwell described teaching as a "constant challenge" that he addressed with a combination of engagement, care and discipline, setting the highest standards for his students. "I bully and cajole them into attempting quality work, most of them come around,â he wrote. âI'd like to be remembered for the time and attention I give to them."
One student wrote to him: "I was always amazed at your courage and integrity in facilitating the process of consciousness-raising while teaching the best and most challenging course I have taken at Boston College.Ěý You deserve an award."
During his recent illness, a student brought him a paper she had written and asked him to correct it. He returned it to her with many minuscule corrections, advising her to "tighten-up if you want to pass this course." She received an âAâ on the paper.
Born in 1936 in Baltimore, Professor Blackwell entered college at age 15 â having skipped several grades â but dropped out after two years. He entered the working world, started a family, and then finished his undergraduate degree by attending night school at Morgan State University.Ěý He earned a Woodrow Wilson Scholarship to the University of Chicago, where he received his doctoral degree in 1976. Ěý
Professor Blackwell taught English at the University of Connecticut before joining the faculty at Ď㽜Đă. He retired from the University in 2010.
Ruth Ann Harris
Ruth-Ann Harris, a faculty member in the Irish Studies Program for nearly two decades whose research was the basis for the nationâs first online database for tracking âlostâ Irish immigrants, died on Sept. 5. at age 76.
A resident of Jamaica Plain, Mass., Dr. Harris served as researcher and editor for an eight-volume set of books, The Search for Missing Friends: Irish Immigrant Advertisements Placed in The Boston Pilot, a compilation of advertisements from 1831-1921 in The Boston Pilot âMissing Friendsâ column placed by Irish seeking others who were âlostâ following emigration.
In 2005, Boston College launched âInformation Wanted: A Database of Advertisements for Irish Immigrants Published in The Boston Pilot,â a website that drew on Dr. Harrisâ work. More than 41,000 records are now available as a searchable on-line database via the site.
âThe advertisements contain the ordinary but revealing details about the missing personâs life: the county and parish of their birth, when they left Ireland, the believed port of arrival in North America, their occupation, and a range of other personal information,â according to the introduction on the âInformation Wantedâ site. âThe people who placed ads were often anxious family members in Ireland, or the wives, siblings, or parents of men who followed construction jobs on railroads or canals.â
"These 'Missing Friends' advertisements provide a window on Irish immigration and the difficulties that surrounded it," said Dr. Harris in an interview at the time of the websiteâs launch. "Ties of community and family could be broken, but the searches represent the tremendous effort that family and friends made to reconstitute in America what they had lost in leaving Ireland. The column was critically important in this process of rebuilding lost ties."
Since immigration records from that era were not precise, she explained, data from âMissing Friendsâ supplied names, birthplaces, destinations and other details that help form a more complete picture of Irish immigration patterns.
"The information in the ads is still important in today's world; valuable for scholars as well as family historians who wish to learn more about the nineteenth century world of their ancestors,â she said.
Dr. Harris had a personal, as well as an academic, interest when it came to the subject of leaving family and home. Born in Liberia of English parents, she was sent to London as a small child at the outbreak of World War II, only to be caught up in the Nazis' bombing campaign of Great Britain. Barely school-aged, she was then relocated to Canada, where she stayed for five years until she was reunited with her parents.
"I suppose that's a major reason why I've always been interested in people and why they move," Dr. Harris said in the interview. "When you collect immigration stories, having one of your own gives you a certain insight."
A researcher in Irish social and economic history as well as immigration, Dr. Harris, who earned her doctorate from Tufts University, was founder and facilitator of the Boston Irish Colloquium, which began in 1993. In 1994-95 she was the senior research scholar at the Institute of Irish Studies at Queenâs University, Belfast.
Among her academic and professional affiliations, she worked with the Fulbright program as a regular liaison between the Council for International Exchange of Scholars, for the US Information Agency, Irish Scholarship Board, Cultural Affairs Committee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ireland, and as a cultural affairs officer on Fulbright Exchange Programs for the U.S. Embassy.
Dr. Harris is survived by her husband, John, her children, Catherine, Dorothy and Rees, and eight grandchildren.
John Cawthorne
In August of 2012, John Cawthorne, an urban education expert whose care and regard for students made him one of the Lynch School of Educationâs most popular administrators,Ěý died of cancer at the age of 70.
Dean Cawthorne officially retired this past spring from Boston College after having served for 13 years as associate dean for students and outreach at the Lynch School. In addition to coordinating the Office of Professional Practicum Experiences, he provided advising services to undergraduate and masterâs degree students.
âJohn Cawthorne was a tremendous advocate for our students both inside and outside of the classroom,â said Lynch School Interim Dean Maureen Kenny. âHis passing is a tremendous loss to our community, but the impact of his work and his dedication to the Lynch School will live on through the accomplishments of the many persons whose lives were transformed by his heart and his spirit."
Read tributes to Dean Cawthorne from a Spring 2011 Ď㽜Đă reception: 'Remembering John Cawthorne'
As a faculty member and then as associate dean, he earned the love, admiration and respect from numerous students, who valued his level of commitment and willingness to help them find their professional and personal callings.
âHe has instilled in us a sense of confidence that we do deserve to be successful and that we do deserve to have such a wonderful person in our lives,â said Robyn Antonucci â11, at a gathering held for Dean Cawthorne in April 2011 after he had announced his forthcoming retirement.
At the event, Bryan Ramos â10, M.Ed.â11 recalled how he had once asked Dean Cawthorne the easiest way to transfer out of the Lynch School. âHe simply looked at me with a blank stare, like he normally does, and goes, âYou wonât want to.â And five years later, John is my mentor. Heâs definitely influenced my passion to want to go into a higher education institution, and be the dean that he is and was for me.â
Matthew McCluskey â11, M.Ed.â12 noted that Dean Cawthorne not only convinced him to study education instead of law, but had helped him land a one-month teaching placement at a South African high school. âI still go to him with questions, and he doesnât give me answers. He gives me questions back. And thatâs what I try to do with my students. And itâs brilliant. And itâs empowering. It teaches students self-efficacy and allows them to realize they have the answers themselves.â
In 2002, Dean Cawthorne received the Mary Kaye Waldron Award presented annually to the Boston College administrator or faculty member who has done the most to enhance student life at the University.
Among his other achievements and activities, Dean Cawthorne helped organize a drive to help the financially troubled Holy Family School of Natchez, Miss., one of the oldest African-American Catholic schools in the country.Ěý He and Lynch School students made the 4,000-mile trip to bring supplies and support to the school, and stayed to help do clean-up and construction projects and play with the schoolchildren. The Natchez Immersion Trip has become an annual service opportunity for the Lynch School.
Dean Cawthorne, who began his association with the Lynch School in 1989 when he joined the school's Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation and Educational Policy as a research associate, was a widely acknowledged advocate for urban education. He served as a consultant to school systems in Boston, Cambridge and several other Massachusetts communities, as well as in Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Ore., and Atlanta.
An active member of the National Urban League, he became NUL vice president for education in 1995, and in concert with his one-year appointment the organizationâs educational office was relocated to the Lynch Schoolâs home in Campion Hall.
"By taking advantage of the natural alliances between parents and teachers, we will help bridge the gap between communities and schools," he said in an interview after his appointment, "and that gap is wide in urban communities. The issue is how do we work with schools and families to create new structures â structures that incorporate and reflect home, community and school experiences and priorities."
In 2003, the Lynch School established the John E. Cawthorne Chair in Teacher Education for Urban Schools, awarded to a senior Lynch School faculty member who, through his or her scholarship and research, works to enhance the education of teachers for urban schools. The chair was endowed by a pledge from the Mahoney family, whose members include Jay Mahoney '69 and his daughter, Erin '02. The professorship is currently held by Marilyn Cochran-Smith.
Dean Cawthorne earned his bachelor's degree from Harvard University in 1964 and a master's degree in teaching from Antioch-Putney Graduate School of Education in 1969.Ěý
Andrew Buni
Professor Emeritus Andrew Buni, who taught courses in American history at Boston College for 38 years until his retirement in 2006, died on Feb. 12, 2012 at age 80.
Dr. Buniâs courses covered a wide range of the American experience and reflected his own life interests and concerns: immigration, African-Americans, sports, and the city of Boston. His class on Bostonâs neighborhoods was one of the Universityâs most popular courses.â¨ĚýĚýâ¨College of Arts and Sciences Dean David Quigley, who once occupied a neighboring office to Dr. Buni when the history faculty was housed in Hovey House, recalled frequent conversations with his neighbor about basketball, jazz, politics and history.â¨âśÄ¨âMy favorite memory, though, was sitting with him at a back table for the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Dinner,â said Quigley. âAt the end of the evening, the speaker announced that Andy was being honored for his decades of commitment to AHANA students at Boston College. He was stunned by the news and couldnât fight back the tears. We had to push him forward to receive the award while the rest of the crowd stood applauding.ââ¨ĚýĚýâ¨Dr. Buni earned a bachelorâs degree in history at the University of New Hampshire in 1958 after serving in the US Army, a masterâs from UNH the following year and a doctorate from the University of Virginia in 1965. He joined the Ď㽜Đă faculty as an assistant professor in 1968 and was promoted to full professor in 1975.â¨ĚýĚýâ¨âHe was on the forefront of all progressive causes at Ď㽜Đă,â recalled Associate Professor Cynthia Lyerly, another of Dr. Buniâs History Department colleagues. âAndy fought to bring Black Studies and black faculty to Ď㽜Đă. He fought for hiring and tenuring more women. He fought for gay and lesbian faculty and he was probably one of the first faculty members to assign a book about lesbians in a class. He was honorable, quick to anger â but quick to get over it â and tenderhearted. Injustice and bigotry were the things he hated most.ââ¨ĚýĚýâ¨Former History chairman Professor Peter Weiler said Dr. Buniâs interest and concern extended to his colleagues in addition to his many students. âWhen I was chair, Andy would tell me every year that I should not increment his salary, but that I should give the money to the âkids,â as he called the junior faculty. It was a remarkably generous action.ââ¨ĚýĚýâ¨Dr. Buni is survived by his wife, Joyce Buni of Needham
Jacqueline Criscenti
Dr. Jacqueline P. (Penez) Criscenti of Needham, May 24, 2015. Beloved wife of the late Dr. Joseph T. Criscenti. Devoted mother of Louise J. Criscenti of Albuquerque, NM. Also survived by her sister, Lily Ethier of Newton, brother-in-law Sam Criscenti of Michigan, and several nieces and nephews. Jacqueline was born in Woonsocket, RI and graduated suma com laude from Regis College in 1945. She received a Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Minnesota in 1954. While a faculty member at Boston College, she married Joseph T. Criscenti, who passed away in 2013. They were married for 56 years. Jacqueline retired from academia as a professor at Regis College. In retirement, Jacqueline continued to enjoy learning mathematics and computer science, combining tours of the country with visits to her daughter, and living among friendly neighbors in Needham. Funeral from the George F. Doherty & Sons Funeral Home, 1305 Highland Ave. NEEDHAM, Friday at 9 am followed by a Funeral Mass in St. Bartholomew Church, Needham at 10 am. Relatives and friends kindly invited. Visiting hours Thursday from 4-8 pm. Interment in Holyhood Cemetery, Brookline. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made in Jackie's memory to Regis College, Office of Institutional Advancement & Alumni Relations, 235 Wellesley St., Weston, MA 02493Ěý
Ěý
Donald J. Dietrich
Theology ProfessorĚýEmeritusĚýDonald Dietrich, chairman of the Theology Department from 1991 to 2000, died Nov. 16, 2013. He was 72.
Dr. Dietrich was an internationally recognized scholar of the German Catholic experience, Christian-Jewish relations and the Holocaust. He was the author ofĚýHuman Rights and the Catholic Tradition; God and Humanity in Auschwitz: Jewish-Christian Relations and Sanctioned Murder, andĚýCatholic Citizens in the Third Reich: Psycho-Social Principles and Moral Reasoning. He also was the editor of, or contributor to, numerous publications, includingĚýChristian Responses to the Holocaust: Moral and Ethical Issues,ĚýPriests for the 21stĚýCentury,ĚýThe Legacy of the Tubingen School: The Relevance of Nineteenth Century Theology for the Twenty-First Century, andĚýAnti-Semitism, Christian Ambivalence and the Holocaust. In addition, he wrote well over 100 book reviews.
He served on the Committee on Church Relations and the Holocaust at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. His professional affiliations included membership in the Church History Society, Catholic Historical Association, and Catholic Theological Society of America.
Dr. Dietrich joined the Boston College faculty in 1989, after 20 years on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Originally from Buffalo, Dr. Dietrich earned a bachelorâs degree from Canisius College. He received a masterâs degree and doctorate in modern German history from the University of Minnesota.
âDon was a warm person with a great deal of wisdom,â recalled Theology Professor of Jewish Studies Rabbi Ruth Langer, associate director of the Universityâs Center for Christian-Jewish Learning. âHe hired me and mentored me in my early career. He was an extraordinarily effective chairperson who knew how to get things done.
âHe was very much involved in the founding of the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning and very encouraging as the center developed. Even after he was no longer chair, he was very supportive of our work.â
At Dr. Dietrichâs retirement reception in May, Walsh Professor of Bioethics Rev. John Paris, SJ, reflected on Dr. Dietrichâs tenure as chair noting that he held that role with âpoise, equanimity and a seemingly unflappable demeanorâ and that he was âdevoted to making Boston College an outstanding center for theological scholarship and teaching.â
In addition to his teaching and mentoring, Dr. Dietrich was a âfirst rate scholar,â according to Fr. Paris, delivering lectures at Oxford and in London, Madrid, Leuven, Aalborg, Berlin, Graz, Utrecht, Haifa, and Vancouver.
Fr. Paris and Dr. Dietrich were friends for more than 20 years, having lunch together every day and sharing summer vacations in Wellfleet. He called Dr. Dietrich a âgracious companionâ and their decades as friends and colleagues a âmarvelous, memory-filled experience.
âOf all my memories of Don Dietrich at Boston College the most vividâand most memorableâwas presiding over his wedding to Linda. At Boston College, Don found not only scholarly achievement and administrative success, he also found and wed the love of his life,â said Fr. Paris.
Ěý
Robert Carovillano
Robert Carovillano, an internationally recognized professor of physics who chaired the department for 13 years during his distinguished 44-year career at Boston College, died on Oct. 15. He was 83.
After earning masterâs and doctoral degrees in theoretical physics from Indiana University, Dr. Carovillano â the son of Italian immigrants and first in his family to attend college â joined the Physics Department in 1959 as an assistant professor, and was promoted to professor in 1966; he served as department chair from 1969-82, and retired from Ď㽜Đă in 2003. A prodigious scholar, he published numerous articles and books on the magnetosphere, ionosphere, solar wind, and related topics.
Dr. Carovillano pursued numerous professional activities and service in the field beyond Ď㽜Đă.Ěý He was a member or chair of numerous advisory committees for the National Academy of Sciences, National Center for Atmospheric Research, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF); he also was an officer and trustee of the Universities Space Research Association, where he twice served as chairman of the Council of Institutions, and an officer of the American Geophysical Union.
Dr. Carovillano was principal investigator on many research grants and contracts funded by the NSF, NASA, the Office of Naval Research, and the Air Force, and was a visiting senior scientist at NASA Headquarters in the Office of Space Science, where he was responsible for the supervision of several programs and research initiatives in space physics. He served on NASAâs Space Science Advisory Committee and reviewed numerous space shuttle and satellite projects.
A native of Newark, NJ, Dr. Carovillano overcame infantile paralysis from polio and was able to enjoy games of stickball in the streets of Newark, and later became an avid squash and tennis player. He was a resident of Needham while at Ď㽜Đă, and later moved to Delray Beach, Fla.
He was pre-deceased by his wife, Mary Ann, to whom he was married for more than 30 years. His is survived by his daughters Deborah and Rebecca; his son David; sisters Rae and Geraldine; and eight grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Ěý
Raymond G. Helmick, S.J.
Raymond G. Helmick, S.J.Ěý Raymond Helmick was born on September 7 th , 1931, in Arlington,Ěý Massachusetts, a western suburb of Boston, and grew up there. HisĚý father had come from Midwestern German Lutheran stock; his motherĚý had been born in Boston, the daughter of Irish immigrants. Ray was theĚý second of three children. His sister Marie was the oldest; his brotherĚý Bill, six years younger, became a diocesan priest. Ray attended St. AgnesĚý Parish schools through the ninth grade and then transferred to BostonĚý College High School. He graduated in 1949 and entered theĚý Shadowbrook novitiate on his 18 th birthday.Ěý It turned out he would enter the Society twice. The first time heĚý developed a stomach ulcer during his primi year and, because there hadĚý been a spate of ulcer diagnoses in the novitiate, superiors decided thatĚý first-year novices so afflicted would be sent home. Ray was determinedĚý to re-apply, however, and he entered Shadowbrook again in February,Ěý 1951. This time proved more auspicious and his novitiate and juniorateĚý years passed uneventfully. After philosophy studies at Weston (1954-Ěý 1957), he spent regency teaching history and religion at St. GeorgeâsĚý College in Kingston, Jamaica (1957-1960).Ěý He did theology studies at Sankt Georgen, in Frankfurt, Germany,Ěý and was ordained a priest in the Frankfurt cathedral in August 1963. HeĚý returned to the U.S. the following year for tertianship at Pomfret,Ěý Connecticut. As was the custom with men assigned to the missions, heĚý returned to Jamaica and St. Georgeâs.Ěý Here, Rayâs future work with social and political structures andĚý conflict-resolution initiatives began to take shape. In walks throughĚý Kingston this blond, precisely spoken, reserved, very white man got toĚý know a number of Rastafarians, a bible-oriented group of urban andĚý rural poor often demonized in Jamaican society. He became somethingĚý of a sympathetic friend, representing them to government agencies andĚý writing in positive terms about them in the Jamaican press.Ěý Expecting to teach at the Kingston seminary, Ray left Jamaica inĚý 1967 to pursue graduate studies in ecumenical theology at UnionĚý Theological Seminary and Columbia University. In the summer of 1972Ěý he led a group of theology students to Belfast, a city notable then for itsĚý sectarian conflicts. The visit proved life-changing, he said. Driving aĚý rental car around the groupâs work sites and talking to everybody as heĚý went, he established friendships with people on all sides of the religiousĚý and political troubles. Perceiving that the problems were less religiousĚý than economic, Ray set about bringing groups together to address oneĚý key issue, job development. He agreed to lead an effort to persuadeĚý American and British companies to establish manufacturing facilities inĚý neighborhoods accessible to both Protestant and Catholic populations,Ěý whose safety would be guaranteed by both government and IRAĚý factions. This occupied much of his time during his last year at Union.Ěý When he left Union in 1973 he moved to London, where he set upĚý an ecumenical center focused on conflict resolution (he preferred theĚý Mennonite term âconflict transformationâ), a joint ministry of the IrishĚý and British Jesuit provinces. Dialogue and correspondence with keyĚý political and religious leaders in the patient search for solutions toĚý apparently intractable problems became the center of his work over theĚý next four decadesâin Ireland, Lebanon, Kurdish Iraq, Israel, Palestine,Ěý and the Balkans. It was necessarily a hidden apostolate, as it oftenĚý involved figures whose names would otherwise grab headlines, in manyĚý of the worldâs hot spotsâsimply applying the principles of IgnatianĚý discernment, he described it.Ěý From 1982 to 1985 he was based at NGOs in Washington. ThenĚý he moved to Boston College, where for the next seventeen years heĚý continued his conflict-resolution work while teaching related courses inĚý the theology department and at St. Johnâs Seminary. He made firmĚý friendships in ecumenical circles in Bostonâs theological schools. InĚý 2002-2004 he served as senior associate at the Center for Strategic & amp;Ěý International Studies, in Washington.Ěý Ray had a lifelong interest in music, architecture, and other artĚý forms. When he graduated from B.C. High he had been offered a pianoĚý scholarship at the New England Conservatory but chose the JesuitĚý novitiate instead. In his years of graduate study at Union he relaxed byĚý building a harpsichord. When he returned to Boston, his artisticĚý interests blossomed again. Some time before, his brother Bill hadĚý become pastor of St. Theresaâs, a large parish in the heavily CatholicĚý West Roxbury section of Boston, and was now renovating the church.Ěý Ray built a magnificent free-standing tabernacle of gilded andĚý polychromed wood, modeled on 15 th -century examples at Louvain.Ěý Then he began work on a mosaic of Christ healing, for a wall next to aĚý handicapped ramp at the church. A large mosaic of St. Theresa wasĚý unfinished when he died.Ěý Illness brought him to Campion Center in 2012. He continued asĚý many of his activities as health allowed (even teaching on a part-timeĚý basis at B.C. until 2015), but the last years of his life were marked by aĚý series of complications and hospitalizations. He seemed to rally fromĚý each with his characteristic cheerfulness, patience, and wit intact, butĚý his body was slowly giving out.Ěý Just after Easter, his brother Bill had major surgery and theĚý superior at Campion invited him to recuperate there. Meanwhile RayĚý had been hospitalized again. The two brothers arrived at CampionĚý within a day of each other and occupied nearby rooms. FamilyĚý members gathered for a lunch celebrating Rayâs upcoming 85 th birthday.Ěý Three days later, his conditioned worsened and Ray was anointed.Ěý Cardinal Sean OâMalley came to pray at his bedside. He died peacefullyĚý in the early morning of April 21 st , 2016.
John Fitzgerald
FITZGERALD, Professor John J, age 96, of Millis, Sat March 26, 2016. He was Beloved husband of Margaret (Zack) Fitzgerald, loving father of Christopher Fitzgerald of Millis, Terence Fitzgerald and his wife Jacquelyn of Milton, Paul Fitzgerald and his wife Diane of Groton, and John âJackâ Fitzgerald and his wife Loretta of Millis. Also survived by 5 Grandchildren.Ěý
John was the son of the late Richard and Catherine (Sheehan) Fitzgerald. He had two sisters; Mary and Margaret, and two brothers; Richard and William. He attended and graduated from Malden Catholic High School and received his Ph.D. from Fordham University.
A Millis resident from 1959, he was an active communicant of St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Millis where he was a lay minister of the Eucharist and a lector for many years.
He retired after over 50 years of employment as an Associate Professor of English Literature at Boston College. He was a popular Professor and would weave family stories into his lectures over which he labored to keep fresh and interesting. He corrected studentsâ double-spaced papers armed with a red pen and would re-write their poorly written sentences and correct their grammatical errors so they could improve their writing skills on their next papers. Depending on the student, there could be as much red ink as the original. He corrected the worst papers first, and stayed up late to correct all of them so they could be returned in time to benefit the studentsâ next assignments. He loved his best writers, delighted in recognizing studentsâ improvements, and savored the best original metaphors students at any writing skill level might form. Thousands of Ď㽜Đă students learned to write properly under his dedicated tutelage.
He was a scholar. Words were earnestly traced back to their roots in Middle English, Old English, the Romance languages, Latin and Greek. He translated ancient Greek and Latin to English but not just into direct and literal translations but into beautiful English sentences reminiscent of the writings of the founding Fathers. He spent months studying Spanish in Mexico and for a time was the English Departmentâs official liaison to Spanish-speaking students. He had many friends at Boston College and reveled in contributing to the intellectual banter among the professors.
He was a traveler. In 1967 for sabbatical he took his family of six to Europe. The trip started aboard the original ocean liner, The Queen Elizabeth. Upon landing in Cork, he had an unexpectedly week-long stop at an Irish Bed & Breakfast while son Terryâs appendix was removed. He was skilled with words, but was not mechanically or athletically gifted and was exasperated driving his big American car on the wrong side of the road in the busy city of London. In fact, driving in any major city was like being in the crater of Mt. Vesuvius âhot magma on the inside with vents of steam issuing forth, which delighted the four boys and that only served to raise the emotional temperature in the car even higher. Nevertheless, he persevered and brought the family to other cities including Paris, Munich, Stuttgart, Vienna, Venice, Florence, Rome and finally to Naples where the ocean liner The SS Rotterdam was waiting. In 1969, he took just his wife for a trip to Spain and Portugal. In 1973 he took his wife and son Paul for a five week trip behind the Iron Curtain.ĚýĚýHe became an avid camper, towing a pop-up trailer for lengthy family vacations to Florida, cross-country to the West Coast, and trips to Canada. Stays at the National Parks were his favorites, with regular camping trips to the Shakespeare Festival with just his wife a close second. After his official retirement, he and his wife took trips to Greece, Russia, India, and China. And after each day of traveling, no matter how weary he was, he would write in his hardcover journal the events of the day. He recently read his old journals.
Radu Florescu
Boston College History ProfessorĚýEmeritusĚýRadu Florescu, co-author of the bestsellerĚýIn Search of Dracula, which revealed the historical identity of the legendary Dracula for the first time, died in France on May 18 at age 88. He had taught at Boston College for 45 years.
Dr. Florescu and the late Raymond T. McNally, also a professor in the Boston College History Department, publishedĚýIn Search of DraculaĚýin 1972. Their book, which was researched in Romania under a Fulbright grant, was the first to identify Vlad Tepes, a 15thĚýcentury prince, as the Dracula of literature. Vlad Tepes was known as Vlad the Impaler for impaling his enemies on stakes. Dr. Florescu also located Vlad Tepesâ castle in the Transylvanian Alps.ĚýThe book garnered the writing duo international fame, landing Dr. Florescu on âThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.â
Dr. Florescu and the late Raymond T. McNally, also a professor in the Boston College History Department, publishedĚýIn Search of DraculaĚýin 1972. Their book, which was researched in Romania under a Fulbright grant, was the first to identify Vlad Tepes, a 15thĚýcentury prince, as the Dracula of literature. Vlad Tepes was known as Vlad the Impaler for impaling his enemies on stakes. Dr. Florescu also located Vlad Tepesâ castle in the Transylvanian Alps.Ěý
The book garnered the writing duo international fame, landing Dr. Florescu on âThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.â
Originally banned in Romania,ĚýIn Search of DraculaĚýwas only made available in that country after the fall of Communism. The book has since been translated into more than a dozen languages.
Dr. Florescu and Dr. McNally authored several other books:ĚýDracula Prince of Many Faces;ĚýThe Complete Dracula;ĚýThe Essential Dracula;ĚýDracula: A Biography of Vlad the Impaler, andĚýInĚýSearch of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Dr. Florescu also wroteĚýIn Search of FrankensteinĚýandĚýIn Search of the Pied Piper, among other books and scholarly articles.
Born in Bucharest, Dr. Florescu was the son of a Romanian diplomat. He left Romania at age 13 at the outbreak of World War II. At the heart of Dr. Florescuâs academic study of Dracula was a desire to shine a light on Romania and Eastern Europe. For many years, he directed the East European Research Center at Boston College. He organized symposia and cultural events celebrating Romanian heritage. He also donated hundreds of books on Romanian history to Boston College. He advised the late US Senator Edward Kennedy on Romanian affairs and the US State Department during the reign of communist leader NicolaeĚýCeausescu. In 1996, Dr. Florescu was appointed Honorary Consul of Romania for New England. In this capacity, he oversaw the presidential and parliamentary voting by Romanians living in the Greater Boston area.Ěý In 2004, he was invited by President Bill Clinton to attend the White House ceremony when Romania was granted membership to NATO.
Tributes to Dr. Florescu have come from throughout the international community. On behalf of King Michael of Romania, the palace issued the following statement, âThrough his work, Professor Florescu built a bridge between Romania and the United States, giving Romanian history a drop of universality.â
"In the past century, no American has educated more Americans about Romania -- and Dracula -- than Professor Florescu. I was lucky to be one of his grateful students," said former US Ambassador to Romania Jim Rosapepe.
Dr. Florescu graduated with bachelorâs and masterâs degrees from Oxford. He earned a doctorate from Indiana University. He joined the Boston College faculty in 1953 and taught in the History Department until his retirement in 1998.
Dr. Florescuâs last public appearance at Boston College was in the fall of 2013 for a book signing for his newest publication, co-authored with Matei Cazacu,ĚýDraculaâs Bloodline: A Florescu Family Saga, which tells the story of the links between the Florescus of Romania and Vlad the Impaler.
Dr. Florescu is survived by his wife, Nicole, his children Nicholas â74, John â76, Radu â83 and Alexandra Lobkowicz â85, and 13 grandchildren.
Marjory Gordon
A funeral Mass was celebrated Monday in St. Ignatius Church for Professor Emerita Marjory Gordon, a Connell School of Nursing faculty member for 23 years and an internationally recognized expert on the development of standardized nursing language, who died on April 29.
Dr. Gordon was the creator of the Eleven Functional Health Patterns (FHP), which has provided generations of nurses with a format for patient diagnosis. Her groundbreaking work in clinical reasoning and nursing language development was credited with giving nurses a voice in patient care outcomes and leading to the adoption of nursing language in the emerging area of electronic medical recordkeeping.
She published four books, including the Manual of Nursing Diagnosis, which is in its 12th edition and has been translated into almost a dozen languages, and lectured to nurses and educators on nursing diagnosis and FHP in Japan, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Denmark, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Singapore, Australia, Brazil, and throughout Central America.
In 1982, Dr. Gordon became the first president of NANDA, the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association. She was principal investigator on research projects involving nursing processes and nursing diagnoses, and co-director of a US Public Health Service Grant to improve nursesâ diagnostic and ethical reasoning.
Dr. Gordon, who retired from the Connell School in 1996, was a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, which in 2009 honored her as a Living Legend of the Academy. Speaking at the award ceremony, her Connell School colleague Professor Sister Callista Roy said, âShe began this work [of creating a common nursing language] when computers were just starting. And, now this is the basis for the nursing component of the electronic medical record. I think sheâs a role model for all us. She is constantly raising the standards and the clarity of nursing diagnosis so as to give nursing a voice and visibility in health care.â
Sister Roy said that because of Dr. Gordonâs work, ânursing as a discipline is stronger in the US and around the world.â
Among many other honors, Dr. Gordon was presented with the Mentorâs Award from NANDA-International, and was among the members of the inaugural class of NANDA International Fellows inducted in 2012. In a tribute to Dr. Gordon on its website last week, NANDA-International called her âan ever-present voice for standardized nursing diagnoses that would support clinical decision making.
âThe fact that she insisted on diagnostic criteria to support that critical thinking â before the introduction of technology or electronic health records â is a testament to her vision as well as her awareness of the need for accuracy in diagnosis to drive quality, safe patient care.â
She also received the Massachusetts Nurses Association Education Award; Japanese Society for Nursing Diagnosisâ Distinguished Service Award, and the Massachusetts Association of Registered Nurses Living Legend Award.
Dr. Gordon earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees from Hunter College, City University of New York and a doctoral degree from Boston College.
Ray Biggar
Raymond Biggar Died peacefully and with dignity at home in Saco on Wednesday, September 30, after a long illness. Ray grew up in Saco. A member of the Class of 1948 at Thornton Academy, he was class president his senior year. He graduated in 1952 from Bowdoin College with an A.B. in English, and in 1953 fromĚýĚýwith a Master of Arts in Teaching. He taught at Scituate High School, Scituate, MA and Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, MA, before entering the doctoral program in English at theĚý, Madison, where he earned his Ph.D. in 1961. He taught Medieval English literature, the History of the English Language, and English as a Second Language for Foreign Students in the English Department at Boston College for over 40 years, retiring in 2000. In 2011, he moved to Saco to an independent living cottage at Atlantic Heights. He enjoyed the Atlantic Heights Cottage Residents Community, especially Monday morning Men's Discussion Group. Raymond is survived by his wife of fifteen years, Cynthia Bland-Biggar, who currently serves as Pastor of the Standish Congregational Church, UCC in Standish; by sons Robert Biggar (Angela) of Setauket, NY and James Biggar (Stephanie Boutin) of Arlington, MA and by his grandchildren Andrew, Jeremy, Talia and Emily Biggar; by three stepchildren from his first marriage, Michael Herz (Jean Roiphe), Jonathan Herz (Carolyn) and Margaret Albright (John) and their families. He is also survived by his sister Ruth B. Claypool of Acton, MA; by several nieces, a nephew and 8 step grandchildren Daniel, Zachary and Rachel Herz-Roiphe; Ethan and Seth Herz; and Kate "Sam", Emma and Jake Albright. He was predeceased by his brother Robert Watson Biggar, Jr. (Bob). Ray will be sadly missed by his beloved Border Collie dog, Sophie (whom he walked daily until Friday, September 25) and by his cat companion, Lily.
The Biggar family wishes to acknowledge with gratitude the excellent care provided by Dr. Kurt Ebrahim and Danielle Bowen NPC and the staff at New England Center for Cancer Medicine; by Cecile Roy R.N., and other staff members at the Ambulatory Care Unit of Southern Maine Health Care Center; and by Hospice of Southern Maine. A memorial service will be held at 11a.m. on Saturday, October 3, 2015 at Standish Congregational Church, UCC 25 Oak Hill Road, Standish. A graveside service will be held at the Biggar family plot in Laurel Hill Cemetery at 2 p.m. the same day. Dennett, Craig and Pate Funeral Home, 365 Main Street, SACO is in charge of the arrangements. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Ray's memory to Thornton Academy, 438 Main Street, Saco, ME 04072; Bowdoin College Scholarship, 4500 College Station, Brunswick, ME 04011;or to Standish Congregational Church, UCC, 25 Oak Hill Road, Standish, ME 04084.
Peter Airasian
Dr. Peter W. Airasian, of Lexington, SC, formerly of Watertown, Natick and Harwich. Beloved husband of the late Gwendolyn K. (Foley). Loving father of Lynn A. and her husband David P. FitzGerald of NC and Gregory P. and his wife Karen F. of SC. Also survived by three grandchildren and three step-grandchildren. Dear brother of John S. of Watertown and Paul M. of Belmont. Funeral from the MacDonald, Rockwell & MacDonald Funeral Home at 270 Main St., on Rt. 20, Watertown, on Tuesday, April 15th at 8:00 A.M., followed by a Funeral Mass at 9:00 A.M. in St. Luke's Parish, 132 Lexington St., Belmont. Relatives and friends kindly invited. Interment Mt. Auburn Cemetery. Visiting hours Monday, April 14th from 4:00-8:00 P.M. Contributions may be made in Peter's memory to the Campus School at Boston College by visitingĚýĚýor by mailing donations to Boston College Campus School, In Honor of Peter Airasian, 140 Commonwealth Ave., Chestnut Hill, MA 02467.Ěý
Published in The Boston Globe on Apr.Ěý13,Ěý2014
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Joe Casey, S.J.
Jesuit Father Joseph H. Casey was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, on Oct. 13, 1917. His father was a laborer and the family, which included an older brother and a younger sister, lived in very modest circumstances. When Fr. Casey was five, the family moved to Flint, Michigan, for two years, but essentially Fr. Casey grew up in St. Patrickâs Parish in Lynn. Fr. Casey contributed to the family income, delivering newspapers and selling eggs and candy door-to-door. When he was 11 he learned caddying at a North Shore golf course and continued doing this through high school, becoming an adept golfer in the process and acquiring what he called âstreet smartsâ about getting along with people and earning money. He went to St. Maryâs Boys High in Lynn and then to Boston College for a year.
In August 1936, he entered the novitiate at Shadowbrook. He said later that at that point he was much more interested in being a priest than a Jesuit and indeed thought that the Jesuit novitiate might eventually lead him to St. Johnâs Seminary in Boston. But his mother died while he was a second-year novice and the kindness of the Jesuits at St. Maryâs Parish in the North End of Boston, where he stayed for her funeral, led him to âfall in love with the Society.â
His course of studies was typical of the period. After novitiate and juniorate at Shadowbrook, he did philosophy studies at Weston from 1940 to 1943. Regency was at the recently opened Fairfield Prep, from 1943 to 1945. His interest and talent in philosophy was already evident, and he was then sent to Fordham to do a one-year masterâs program from 1945 to 1946. He returned to Weston for theology studies and was ordained to the priesthood in June 1949. A year later, he went to WĂŠpion, Belgium, for tertianship. In 1951-53, he was sent to the Gregorian University in Rome, where he earned a doctorate in the customary biennium of studies for men assigned to teach in formation programs.
In 1953, he joined the philosophy faculty of Weston College, teaching natural theology, linguistic analysis and logic. During his Weston teaching years, he audited courses in analytic philosophy at Harvard and at NYU. His Weston teaching ended in the late sixties when the faculty and student body moved to Boston College. Fr. Casey chose to continue living at Weston, in part because he regularly did parish ministry at the local parish, St. Juliaâs. He also gave retreats and was sought after as a confessor and spiritual director by religious and diocesan clergy.
In 2005, when he was 87, he was asked to retire from his position at Boston College, and he found an alternative when Blessed John XXIII seminary invited him to teach a course on the thought of Germain Grisez. In the years that followed, he continued to write on Grisez, the philosophical arguments for the existence of God, the natural law and moral theology. He also continued serving at St. Juliaâs and other neighboring parishes.
Though in no apparent ill health beforehand, in early February of 2015 he grew noticeably weaker and died peacefully on Feb. 27, eight months short of his 98th birthday.Ěý
Dean Richard Huber
Former Boston College Law Dean and longtime faculty member Richard Huber, died on Saturday, December 15, 2011. A member of the Law School faculty from 1957 until his retirement in 2005, Professor Huber was 92.
âDick Huber was well-known for his warm, generous nature, his intellect and compassion, and his ability to bring out the best in everyone he touched,â said Ď㽜Đă Law Dean Vincent Rougeau. âHe will be missed.â
Huber began teaching at Ď㽜Đă Law in 1957, served as dean from 1970-1985, and continued teaching for the school until retiring in 2005. He had a tremendous influence on Ď㽜Đă Law as dean, overseeing the move from More Hall on the Ď㽜Đă Chestnut Hill campus to the schoolâs current Newton campus in 1975,Ěýhelping introduce the first joint degree program in collaboration with the business school, and increasing resources for clinical programs and courses, among many other efforts.
He was also very active in AHANA recruitment and hiring. In 1977, Huber hired the Law Schoolâs first full-time black professor, 1974 graduate Ruth-Arlene Howe. Former Dean Daniel Coquillette, who succeeded Huber in 1985, said he built on Dean Robert Drinan, S.J.âs legacy, and called Huber âone of the great, monumental figures of our time,â not just at Boston College, but in all of legal education. Huberâs work as president of both the Association of American Law Schools and the Council on Legal Education Opportunity changed the course of legal education and the profession. âHe played a vital role in minority enrollment, not just at Ď㽜Đă but nationally,â Coquillette said. âBesides promotion of minorities, Dick was a tremendous advocate for women in law schoolâŚby the time he was done, female enrollment here went from essentially nothing to about 40%.â
The Environmental Affairs Law Review, International and Comparative Law Review, and Third World Law Journal at Ď㽜Đă Law all began under Huberâs leadership. The Black American, Asian American, and Latin American law students associations formed. Faculty size grew by eight between 1970 and 1979 alone, and slots were created for a director of alumni relations and a director of admissions and financial aid. He also helped build the law library from a one-room operation to a first-class, national powerhouse with over 150,000 volumes.
But Huber may be best remembered and loved for his people skills. âDickâs unique contribution was internal,â says Sharon Hamby OâConnor, Ď㽜Đă Law librarian from 1979 to 2002. âHe had a remarkable ability to find the best in people without being unaware of their foibles, to bring out the best in a person without being paternalistic.â
Huber fostered a culture of collegiality among faculty and between faculty and students that became ingrained and remains one of the Law Schoolâs hallmarks. âThe school really thrived under Dick,â said Charles âBuzzyâ Baron, who served as an assistant dean under Huber. âWhen people came to him with ideas, his attitude was, letâs see if we can make that work. Nobody could have been more nurturing than Dick. There was no sense of playing favorites; he was supportive of everyone. He cared about everybody honestly.â
When Coquillette was hired as dean, he inherited a Law School that was as promising outwardly as it was inwardly, thanks to Huberâs generous nature. He remains forever grateful.
âDick was an enormous help to me when I took over,â Coquillette said. âHe was always available, someone I could turn to at any time, a best friend. The school was in excellent shape. He had this naval background, a way of leading that was probably developed at the academy, and I always thought of him as captain of the ship. Everyone looked up to himâŚYou have to remember that Dick came in during a time of campus unrest, not just at Ď㽜Đă but across the country, and he followed a tremendously popular dean in Bob Drinan. Those were critical years for Ď㽜Đă. But when I came in, it was the happiest law school Iâd ever seen.â
Huber received his B.S. degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1941, his J.D. degree from theĚýĚýin 1950 and his Masters in Law degree fromĚýĚýin 1951. He served his country with distinction in World War II and the Korean War. Huber authored numerous articles in his fields of expertise: Land Use and Property Law, Professional Responsibility, Constitutional Law, Environmental Law and Legal Education. He was the recipient of Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws from Northeastern University, New England School of Law and Roger Williams University.
Huber served for many years as Trustee of Beaver Country Day School, Chairman of the Executive Board of the Social Welfare Research Institute and Trustee and Committee Chairman of the New England Chapter of Multiple Sclerosis Society. He was one of the first recipients of the National MS Society's Hope award.Ěý
Ěý
George Aragon
ARAGON, George Age 65, of Waltham and formerly of Newton, died suddenly after a long illness May 3, 2009. He was born August 9, 1943, to Manuel and Raquel Aragon in Douglas, Arizona. Dr. Aragon graduated with the degree of Doctor of Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 1975 and was Associate Professor and member of the Finance faculty in the Carroll School of Management at Boston College for the last 34 years. He also served as chairperson of the department from 1999-2002. Aragon influenced financial policy through his published works and service to the profession, and through the efforts of his many students, he will be sorely missed.Ěý
Arthur Berney
The anti-semitic prejudice Arthur Berney experienced as a boy growing up in a multi-ethnic New Jersey neighborhood fueled a long career dedicated to righting injustice and championing the underdog. âHis time here made us a better place,â wrote Dean Vincent Rougeau in a message informing the Boston College Law School community of Berneyâs passing on April 1, just four months shy of his ninetieth birthday.
Berney âalways spoke truth to power,â says friend and Ď㽜Đă Law Professor Kent Greenfield. In the summer of 1953, this trait drew the notice of twenty-four-year-old Alice Menkes, when Berney was the only employee with the courage to challenge dangerous management practices at the Adirondacks resort where they both worked as seasonal waitstaff. Berney married Alice, a Viennese-born survivor of the Holocaust, in New York City in January 1954, and the couple had two sons, Lawrence and Ronald. Their sixty-one year marriage ended with Aliceâs death in 2015. Ď㽜Đă Law Professor Francine Sherman â80 remembers Berneyâs âtremendous love and devotion to his family.â
During his tenure at the Law School, 1964 to 2001, as a teacher of constitutional, communications, and national security law, âArthur was a beacon of justice and social responsibilityâ who became âthe conscience of the school,â says Ď㽜Đă Law Professor Robert M. Bloom â71. Berneyâs first book, Legal Problems of the Poor, 1976, was a âtrailblazing effortâ that helped establish the field of poverty law, recalls Ď㽜Đă Law Professor George Brown. Brown also views Berney as a pioneer in national security law, in which he co-authored one of the first casebooks.
As a civil rights litigator, Berney made his mark as a junior but influential member of the team representing the Loving family in the landmark 1967 case Loving v Virginia that resulted in the striking down of laws banning interracial marriage. Greenfield notes that decades later the due process rationale championed by Berney in Loving provided the basis for the recognition of marriage equality for same-sex couples. When Massachusetts became the first state in the union to recognize same sex marriage following the 2003 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court decision in Goodridge v Department of Public Health, Greenfield recalls, Berney was among the leading civil rights activists invited to speak before a celebrating crowd at Faneuil Hall. âArthurâs brilliance, intellectual innovation, and dedication to justice ended up benefitting literally millions of Americans,â says Greenfield.
When E.L. Doctorowâs 1971 novel, The Book of Daniel, featured as a major character a âBoston College law professorâ modeled closely on Arthur Berney, fact and fiction quickly blurred in Law School folklore. The novel is loosely based on the story of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, convicted and executed for espionage in 1953, and rumors circulated that Berney had acted as an attorney for the Rosenbergs, or a foster-parent for their orphaned sons. Either would have been absolutely in character, but neither was true.
Berneyâs son Ronald puts the record straight. His father and Doctorow formed a lifelong friendship during army basic training in 1953, and their families stayed close for over sixty years. The characters of Robert and Lise Lewin, the foster parents of the fictional counterparts of the Rosenberg children, are indeed based on Arthur and Alice Berney, but as far as Ronald Berney knows, his parents never met the Rosenbergs.
What is certainly true is that Doctorowâs portrait of the hardworking, upright lawyer with a kind smile and a gentle sense of humor is an enduring tribute to his old friend, and a lasting memorial to the man who in the words of Dean Rougeau, will be âfondly remembered for his dedication, brilliance, courage, and honesty.â
BY JANE WHITEHEAD
Ěý
Gary Brazier
Assoc. Prof. Emeritus Gary P. Brazier (Political Science) was a faculty member for 32 years who died on March 10 at age 83. A native of Minnesota, Prof Brazier attended Mankato State Teachers College and graduated from Southern Illinois University in 1946. He added a masterâs degree from the University ofWashington in 1948 and a doctorate in political science from the University of Minnesota in 1959. Prof. Brazier joined the Boston College faculty in 1959 and retired from the University in 1991. In 1969, Prof. Brazier served as the Universityâs Director of Residential Life in addition to his teaching duties. He also worked for many years as a spotter for the public address announcer at Boston College home football games. A long-time resident of Newton, Prof. Brazier was married to the late Elizabeth Ann Brazier. He is survived by seven children and 11 grandchildren
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John Donovan
DONOVAN, John D. Of Walpole, MA (formerly of Needham and Westborough) died on August 14, 2020 at the age of 102. Born in Peabody, MA on February 15, 1918 he was the son of Ellen and John A. Donovan from Mayo and Cork, Ireland, respectively. He was the brother of the late Helen O'Keefe and was married to his beloved wife, Mary Phipps of Waltham, MA for 63 years until her death in 2013. His blue eyes, wit and wisdom will be missed by his devoted daughter, Christine Moynihan and her husband, Frank as well as his cherished grandsons Michael, Brian and Adam Graber and their wives, Virginia Garcia, Stephanie Graber, and Nicole Graber. His great-grandchildren Eleanor, Harlan, Nicolas, Madeleine, Owen, and Colin Graber adored their great-grandfather, Boppa and he adored each one of them in turn. He also leaves his son, John D. Donovan, Jr. of Wayland, John's wife Donna Hale and their daughters Caitlin and Molly Donovan. John graduated from St. John's Prep in Danvers in 1935 and earned his BA at Boston College in 1939. He then completed his master's degree at Ď㽜Đă before continuing towards his doctorate at Harvard. His PhD studies were interrupted when he joined the army to serve in WWll. He landed on Omaha Beach shortly after D-Day as a medical officer in the 83rd, "Thunderbolt Division". He was awarded the Bronze Star for heroism when, upon learning of casualties in Gey, Germany, he went alone to care for some wounded troops and affect their successful evacuation. He was promoted to Captain and honorably discharged in 1946. In June of this year, he was recognized by the French government for his wartime service as a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor. After the war, he completed work on his doctorate and began teaching at Fordham University. He returned to Boston College in 1952 becoming the first Chairman of the Sociology Department. He taught there until 1988 and then continued teaching part-time as Professor Emeritus until 2002, a total of 50 years. He wrote many scholarly papers on the Catholic Church and the dilemma of priestly celibacy and authored "The Academic Man in the Catholic College". He was a visiting professor at the University of Leuven, Belgium and at Dublin University in Ireland. Over the years at Ď㽜Đă, he helped create the Student Athlete Assistance Program and Boston College's Retired Faculty Association.Ěý
Ěý
Jeanne Guillemin
GUILLEMIN-MESELSON--Jeanne, medical anthropologist and author, died of cancer, aged 76, on November 15 at her home in Cambridge, MA, surrounded by her immediate family. She was a graduate of Harvard College, class of 1968, Professor of International Relations and Anthropology at Boston College, where she taught for 33 years, and Senior Fellow in the Security Studies Program at MIT from 1999 until her death. She was loved by generations of undergraduates at Ď㽜Đă and by the doctoral candidates she mentored at MIT. Her doctoral dissertation at Brandeis University, "Urban Renegades: The Cultural Strategy of American Indians" (Columbia 1973) documented how a community of Native Americans adjusts to life in an urban environment while retaining much of its traditional culture. In "Mixed Blessings: Intensive care for newborns" (Oxford 1986) she and her co-author Lynda Holmstrom explored the interactions and ethical dilemmas of parents, nurses and physicians in the care of 103 critically premature infants from admission to discharge. In the 1980s Guillemin joined her husband, Harvard biologist Matthew Meselson, in a series of investigations related to allegations of biological warfare and the misuse of biomedical science by government biological weapons programs. Analyzing a large set of interviews with refugees fleeing Laos into Thailand who claimed they had been attacked with "poison from the sky", the so-called yellow rain", she found no evidence for the constellation of symptoms cited by the US State Department as evidence for such attacks. This, together with an array of other evidence, made it clear that the yellow material falling from the sky was not a poison, but rather harmless feces from swarms of giant Asian honeybees (Scientific American, September 1985). In 1992, Guillemin, Meselson and a small team of Americans and Russians undertook an independent investigation of an April 1979 outbreak of anthrax in the Soviet city of Sverdlovsk, now Ekaterinburg. The Soviet government claimed the cause was consumption of infected meat. But interviews organized and in most cases conducted by Guillemin with the families and friends of 66 of those who died or fell ill allowed the construction of an epidemiological map showing that nearly all the victims worked or lived in a narrow zone exactly parallel to the wind direction on Monday April 2, 1979, decisively showing that the outbreak was caused by the release of an aerosol of anthrax spores emanating from a military facility in the city, as reported in Science 18 Nov 1984 and described in her book Anthrax: The Investigation of a Deadly Outbreak (California 1999). With a MacArthur Foundation writing award, she next wrote Biological Weapons: From State-sponsored Programs to Contemporary Bioterrorism (Columbia 2005), which provided a concise history of how the US, the Soviet Union and other nations developed anthrax and other microbes as strategic weapons. Renounced by President Richard Nixon in 1969, such weapons are now prohibited by the Biological Weapons Convention of 1972. After the 2001 anthrax letter attacks in the US, Guillemin wrote American Anthrax: Fear, Crime, and the Investigation of the Nation's Deadliest Bioterror Attack (Macmillan/Holt/ Times 2011), a detailed account of the attacks and the subsequent FBI investigation. Her most recent book, Hidden Atrocities: Japanese Germ Warfare and American Obstruction of Justice at the Tokyo Trial, (Columbia 2019), nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, describes Imperial Japan's use of biological weapons against China in the 1940s and its horrific experimentation on humans. Based on her extensive archival research, Guillemin found that Washington had ordered the evidence to be concealed from the Tokyo war crimes tribunal to protect the Emperor from defamation and to obtain information from those responsible, none of whom was ever brought to justice, that might be of use in the US biological weapons program. Born in Brooklyn, NY to James Philip and Mary Eileen (Harley) Garrigan, Jeanne moved with her family to Rutherford, New Jersey. Her 1963 marriage to American painter Robert Guillemin ended in divorce. She married Matthew in 1986. As a woman in what was largely a man's field and for many years a single mother of two sons, she nevertheless rose to distinction in her field. She and Matthew lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts and spent summers at Woods Hole, on Cape Cod where Jeanne maintained a lively salon of humanists and scientists. In Cambridge she took great pleasure in meetings with her writing group, a dedicated circle of five talented women writers who met monthly for 30 years. Jeanne and Matthew often visited Paris, where they had many good friends. Her gracious manner and dedication to the life of the mind caused those who knew her to be more humane, more civil, more thoughtful. Mind, heart, and beauty beyond compare. Jeanne is survived by her husband Matthew, her sons Robert (Jeannette) and John Guillemin and stepdaughter Zoe Meselson Forbes (Brian), her grandchildren Claire and Julia Guillemin, and Jake, Sam, and Jesse Forbes and her sisters and brother Patricia, Eileen and Russell Garrigan. This year, Guillemin established an endowment at the MIT Center for International Studies to provide financial support for women pursuing a PhD in international affairs intended to "help women graduate students find new options for special projects that will energize their sense of inquiry and search for knowledge."Ěý
James F. Halpin (d. 2021)
The former associate dean and professor in the Carroll School of Management also served as rector of the Boston College Jesuit community
A funeral service was held on October 31 in St. Ignatius Church for James F. Halpin, a former associate dean and professor in the Carroll School of Management who also served as rector of the Boston College Jesuit community. Dr. Halpin died on August 18 at the age of 89.Jim HalpinJim Halpin (Harvey Egan, S.J.)
A Pennsylvania native who grew up in Waterbury, Ct., Dr. Halpin was interested in moral philosophy and ethics, and their relevance in many contexts. He entered the Jesuit order in 1949, and studied in Belgium, Spain, and Italy before being ordained. (He left the order in 1993.) He began a life of service in higher education in 1968 as a faculty member at the Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, where he taught Christian ethics.
In his homily for Dr. Halpin, former University Secretary Joseph Duffy, S.J., said Dr. Halpinâs qualities were readily apparent during his training as a Jesuit: âEarly on, Jim developed a reputation as one whose views were respected, whose company was valued, whose leadership potential was recognized and nurtured.â
Dr. Halpin came to Ď㽜Đă in 1971 as director of the Universityâs Program for the Study of Peace and War, which was created by students as a response to issues arising out of the Vietnam War. The program offered interdisciplinary courses through the Physics, Sociology, Political Science, History, Anthropology, Theology, and Philosophy departments, delving into wars across the centuriesâfrom the Peloponnesian War to the American Civil War and World War Iâand the nature of conflict itself, as well as studying concepts around defense and negotiation, and Christian thought on war.
In 1974, the program sponsored a conference for Boston parents and others affected by the crisis over court-ordered desegregation in the Boston Public Schools. Explaining the programâs interest in holding such an event, Dr. Halpin told Ď㽜Đă's undergraduate newspaper The Heights "[it] has to do with peace and violence in the City of Boston: How do we overcome this problem?"
Well after his tenure with the Program for the Study of Peace and War, Dr. Halpin remained thoughtful about issues of conflict. In 1991, as the first Persian Gulf War flared, he spoke with the Boston College Biweekly about whether it met the standards of the Christian tradition of justifiable conflict, known as the Just War Theory.
âThis is a theory, donât forget, that was initiated in the fifth century and grew to maturity in the 16th or so,â he said. âIt was much easier in Aquinasâ day to make distinctions and establish parameters of morality in war. It was easier to distinguish between combatants and non-combatants. War was a hand-to-hand enterprise, in which bows and arrows were aimed at particular individuals. With the sophisticated weapons we have today, itâs harder to measure proportionality, itâs harder to make those distinctions.â
Dr. Halpin also served as a chaplain at the University, and in this role he vigorously promoted Ď㽜Đăâs formational mission. In a 1971 interview with The Heightsâwhich depicted him as a busy man âalways at a typewriter and answering endless telephone callsââDr. Halpin expressed concern about undergraduates who only focused on academics and extracurricular activities: "Let's face it, the University must be more than this; it must serve as a value center for those there, where students can look into themselves, figure out just who they are, and what they want to do with their lives."
He was a driving force behind the opening of a center for commuting students in Murray House on Hammond Street, which offered lectures, plays, a film series, receptions for speakers, parties, and socials, and provided rooms for studying or leisure. In the 1970s, he co-founded a campus alliance to foster greater awareness of the causes of and solutions to hunger, co-chaired a committee to establish a veteransâ affairs office at Ď㽜Đă, and was part of a four-person team that taught a non-credit course intended to help students in being sexually responsible adults.
ĚýA member of the Theology Department at first, Dr. Halpin later transferred to the Carroll Schoolâs Operations and Strategic Management Department. Among other ethics-related courses, he taught Introduction to Ethics to first-year studentsâcovering topics like moral development, cultural relativism and Kantâs Categorical Imperativeâand a course in social responsibility to M.B.A. students. All the while, he provided counseling and assistance, showing a propensity to relate to studentsâ interests and well-being, for which he was affectionately called âHalps,â recalled Fr. Duffy: âCould they have been thinking itâs âHalps who helpsâ?âââ
In 2004, Dr. Halpin led a team of Carroll School undergrads to take part in the Dalhousie University Business Ethics Case Competition to be held in Halifax, Nova Scotiaâthe first American school that had been invited to participate in the event. The Ď㽜Đă entry won.
"As a Ď㽜Đă parent and as a friend, I witnessed first-hand Jim Halpin in his role as an advising dean in the Carroll School,â said Robert Frye, a former staff member in the Ď㽜Đă Development Office whose son was an advisee of Dr. Halpin. âHis commitment and concern for the whole person, the Jesuit concept of cura personalis, was evident to all who saw his interactions with Ď㽜Đă students."
In 2007, Dr. Halpin and his Carroll School colleagues were elated at the schoolâs rise from 23rd to 14th in the Business Week rankings of undergraduate business school programs. A key factor cited in the improvement, according to administrators, was student satisfaction.
Interviewed by The Heights, Dr. Halpin said, "Our networking is outstanding. Faculty members and alumni themselves prepare jobs for students. We are very strong in Wall Street in terms of alumni. We have good rapport."
Ever mindful of his own formational experiences, Dr. Halpin believed business and management education benefits from exposure to the liberal arts tradition, as he told The Heights in 2010, two years before he retired.
âLiberal arts develops critical thinking abilities in a way business education does not. Whereas majors in business provide for career preparation, courses in the arts and sciences aid in personal development and thinking. If space in a schedule allows, I always encourage CSOM students to consider a second major or minor in a liberal arts field. There are just a multitude of benefits with the study of liberal arts that can assist one not only in their career, but in life.â
Peter Kugel (d. 2021)
Retired Professor Peter Kugel, a long-time member and former chair of the Computer Science Department who devoted much thought to the human dimension of computer technology, died on October 11. He was 91.
Befitting a scholar with a doctorate in philosophy from Harvard University who had worked in the software industry and at MIT before coming to Boston College in 1974, Dr. Kugel focused his research on the connections between human intelligence, logic, and computability. He summed up these interests in an abstract for a 2009 article: âI believe the human mind can evaluate functions so uncomputable that no machine, not even a hypercomputer, can compute them. But I believe that computers can evaluate such functions, too, because computers, like minds, have other ways to evaluate functions that go beyond computing. If we allow them to use these waysâor, as I shall put it, to uncomputeâthey may be able to do things that only minds can do well today.â
Earlier in his career, Dr. Kugel published an influential article on studying the process of inductionââby which we reason from the particular to the generalââusing ideas from the theory of abstract machines and recursion theory. Another article offered suggestions on developing precise accounts of cognitive processes that could be modelled on computers.
He also was interested in how college teachers develop as teachers, and in 1989 published an op-ed piece in The New York Times that explained how bringing a cup of coffee to class helped him create a better rapport with his students.
âMy pauses, as I sipped, not only gave my students time to think about what I had said, but gave me time to think about what I was going to say next,â he wrote. âI began to use my pauses to look around the room to see how my students were reacting to what I had just said. When I saw their attention wander, I tried to bring them back. When I saw them puzzled over some concept that I thought I had explained, I gave another example. My lectures became less organized and less brilliant, but my students seemed to understand me better. And my courses became more popular.â
Interviewed in 1989 by the Boston College Biweekly, Dr. Kugelâthen the Computer Science chairâdiscussed how he and his colleagues made sure that the knowledge they passed along to their students was put to use.
âIn computer science, you learn to do something by doing. We donât simply lecture. We give students at least one assignment a week they must complete. And itâs not like doing an essay; a program has to work before your job is done.â
Dr. Kugel retired in 2005, but continued to write, teach, and learn. Among other activities, he took courses at the Harvard Institute for Learning in Retirement, where he taught a class titled âVision and Art.â
A tribute posted on the Computer Science website recalled Dr. Kugel for âhis wide-ranging interests and for his humor. He was an exceptional colleague and an especially generous mentor to both students and junior faculty colleagues.â
Dr. Kugel is survived by his wife, Judy, and sons Jeremy and Seth, who were all at his bedside when he died.
Mary E. Duffy (d. 2022)
This obituary from the Providence Journal was shared by Dottie Jones
Mary E. Duffy, 79, of Narragansett, RI, entered into eternal rest on Wednesday, March 30, 2022. Mary was born in Providence, she was the cherished daughter of Austin J. and Elizabeth J. (Neary) Duffy. She was the sister of the late Austin J. Duffy, Jr. and Joseph T. Duffy. She is also survived by her dear cousins Elizabeth A. Manning, Patricia A. Viera and Michaelyn A. Profio and several cousins and friends.Mary was a graduate of Blessed Sacrament School, St. Patrick's High School and Roger Williams Hospital School of Nursing she also graduated from Villanova University where she received her BSRN. She also graduated from Rutgers University with a Master's Degree in Psychiatric Counseling. She received her PhD from NYU's School of Graduate Nursing and her degree was in Nursing Research.She began her teaching career at the University of Texas â Austin and the University of Texas-Houston as an assistant professor. She later joined Boston College Graduate School as a professor in the doctoral program and Director of Nursing Research in the Connell School of Nursing. After retirement Mary also joined Mass. General as a senior nurse scientist in the Yvonne Munn Center of Nursing Research where she worked research studies and wrote many published books and articles. Research was her passion, and she wrote and published many articles and books in statistical measures in research.Mary leaves a legacy of knowledge, compassion and love for nursing to all who encountered her quality work in academia. Her life was full of travels to speak at various conferences and programs where she was often the keynote speaker.She had an affinity poor and underprivileged. She took care of many people anonymously.Her burial and funeral will be private. Her life will be celebrated at a memorial mass at a later date.
David Lowenthal (d. 2022)
Dearly beloved husband, father, friend, colleague, and teacher David Lowenthal, 99, passed away peacefully at his home in Princeton last Thursday, April 28, 2022. All those who knew David were deeply touched by his personal warmth, generous spirit, and mighty intellect.Ěý
Born in Brooklyn to Rose and Jules Lowenthal, David is survived by his wife Sandra; children Laura, Harry, David, Richard and Mark Lowenthal; in-laws Ted and Janice Steeves; as well as several nieces and nephews. His sister, Ruth, predeceased him in 2015. David attended Brooklyn College and went on to graduate school at the New School for Social Research, garnering a Ph.D. there in 1953.Ěý
A prominent scholar of Shakespeare, Lincoln, both ancient and modern philosophers, the First Amendment, the Constitution, and more, David was the author of several books including two books on Shakespeare (Shakespeareâs Thought and Shakespeare and the Good Life); one on Lincoln (The Mind and Art of Abraham Lincoln); as well as numerous articles and publications. His latest book, Slave State: Rereading Orwellâs 1984, came out only last October. He also published two small poetry books in recent years, an accomplishment that was particularly rewarding for David. He taught at several colleges, most notably Boston College from 1966-2000. He continued teaching from 2000- 2002 at Assumption College and then from 2003 â 2006 as adjunct Professor at College of the Holy Cross. His many honors included: President, New England Political Science Association; member of National Endowment for the Humanities; Halle Graduate Fellowship New School; dâAlzon Chair at Assumption; Grants from Ford and Earhart Foundations; Consulting Editor of journal Interpretation. David served in the U.S. Army Air Corps as a radar technician, flying 13 weather missions over Japan from Tinian with the 313th Bomb Group, 1944-45.Ěý
An avid reader of philosophy and literature, he enjoyed Jane Austen and P.G. Wodehouse on the lighter side. His many and varied interests also included a love and appreciation of art, raising roses and gardening generally, and tennis (first playing, more recently watching). His family is convinced that the key to his longevity was a salutary diet of sauerkraut, pickled herring, and delicatessen (a hotdog with sauerkraut and mustard was a particular favorite).Ěý
Peter Gottschalk (d. 2022)
Peter Gottschalk of Portland Oregon, age 78, died on March 25. He was Professor of Economics at Boston College from 1987 until his retirement from teaching, but not from research, in 2010. He also taught at Williams College, University of California, Santa Cruz, Mount Holyoke College and Bowdoin College. He was a Research Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn, Germany, a Research Associate at the Center for Retirement Research Boston College, and a Research Affiliate at both the Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP), at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the National Poverty Center (NPC), at the University of Michigan. For many years, he was a coorganizer or participant in the IRP Summer Research Workshop on low-income populations. Gottschalk was also a Visiting Scholar at the Russell Sage Foundation and a Visiting Fellow atthe Brookings Institution. He received his B.A. and M.A. from George Washington University and his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania.An eminent labor economist, Peter was among the first scholars to study the increasing inequality in wages and incomes in the U.S. He also focused on welfare dependency, earnings instability, job mobility and policies to increase employment and earnings of the disadvantaged. He was the co-author of America Unequal and co-editor of Uneven Tides: Rising Inequality in America and Generating Jobs and published articles in many leading journalsincluding the American Economic Review, the Journal of Political Economy, the Journal of Economic Literature, the Review of Economic Statistics, and the Journal of Human Resources. In addition to his extensive research and his collaborations with many economists, Peter found his greatest pleasure teaching and mentoring and publishing with his graduate students. Beyond his love of economics, Gottschalk was at various times inhis life a sailor and lover of wooden boats, a skier, a focused competitive veteran rower (single light weight scull), and until veryĚý recently an enthusiastic rock climber despite his advancing Parkinsonâs disease. His love of skiing and climbing were deeply connected to his time spent in and affection for the Chamonixregion of France. He is survived by Barbara, his wife of nearly 56 years, who was his partner in their sailing, skiing and climbing adventures and in travels across the globe and who shared his love of opera and dance. He is also survived by his loving daughter and son-in-law Julie and David Murphy and their children Lauren and Ryan.
Ken Craig (d. 2022)
Craig, Kenneth M. Professor, Boston College Of Ashland, died suddenly on August 1, 2022. He was a professor of the History of Art at Boston College for forty five years (1977-2022). Kenneth M. Craig inspired innumerable students to love the History of Art as much as he did. His love and enthusiasm for teaching Art History attracted many students to become Art History majors over the years. Not only was he a cornerstone of The Art, Art History, and Film Department, Professor Craig was a gifted, dedicated teacher, a "rock star" to his students as well as a generous, kind, principled, and wise colleague. Professor Craig liked to tell students that as an undergraduate at The Ohio State University, he was an English Literature major in the Pre-Medical Program (B.A. Cum Laude 1968). He was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa in 1968. Dr. Craig then attended The College of Medicine at The Ohio State University (1968-1969). However, his love of the History of Art which he had discovered in an undergraduate class caused him to change his plans. He left medical school and pursued an MA in The History of Art with a minor in Anthropology at The Ohio State University (1970). Next, Professor Craig went to Bryn Mawr College where he earned his PH.D in both The History of Art and Archaeology in 1979. Administrative appointments at Boston College included Director of Undergraduate Studies, Chairman of the Fine Arts Department and the Acting Director of the Boston College Gallery. Dr. Craig was President of the Boston College chapter of Phi Beta Kappa (2014-Present). His devotion to excellence was reflected in the attention and detail he brought to each induction ceremony which he hosted every year. Kenneth Mark Craig was born in Columbus, Ohio, May 18, 1946. He met his beloved wife Lida Scurlock Craig at The Ohio State University where they were both History of Art graduate students (he, Northern Renaissance and Baroque ââŹ" she, Italian Renaissance and Baroque). He proposed to her within a month of meeting her and they were married 6 months later leading to 50 years and 11 months of marriage. Having received their graduate degrees from The Ohio State University, they moved to the Philadelphia area to pursue their next degrees. Dr. Craig PhD Bryn Mawr College and Mrs. Craig MLS Drexel University (Special Libraries-Art, Museum, Rare Books). Their next move would be Boston for Professor Craig's faculty position at Boston College. Both Art Historians loved their trips to expand their knowledge in art, history, and cultures. Dr. Craig took her to Belgium and Holland. She took him to Greece and England. Mrs. Craig began her study of the History of Art when she was a student at the University of Rome, Italy. In addition to his academics, Dr. Craig loved to garden and could always be found outside during the summer months taking photos of his prized flowers. Perhaps Dutch and Still-life flower paintings followed him outside to the garden. Professor Craig is survived by his loving wife, Lida Scurlock Craig, their beloved son, Dr. Winfield Scott Craig, a Professor of History in Texas and his wife Megan and his two grandsons, Easton and August. He is also survived by his brother Gary Craig. Professor Craig, a person of many talents and passions, will be forever missed by his beloved family Lida and Scott and by his second beloved family of Boston College students, colleagues, and community.Ěý
Walt Haney (d. 2022)
Walter M.Haney Of Orleans, MA, formerly of Jamaica Plain and Westminster, MA, died August 31, 2022. He was predeceased by his beloved wife, Kristine (Votta) Haney; sister, Deborah (Haney) Batten; parents, Walter Judson Haney and Grace (Kelly) Haney Hill; as well as many very dear friends and colleagues. He is survived by his daughter, Elizabeth Haney and her husband, Michael Mirochnick; as well as his sister, Sarah Puterbaugh; and brother-in-law, David Batten.
Walter was effervescent, generous, kind, and a true character. He was accident prone and adventurous. Walter was born in Texas and raised in Michigan but lived most of his adult life in Massachusetts, getting degrees at Michigan State and Harvard along the way. He lived many lives, as a 13-year-old on-call bee swarm specialist for the East Lansing police, first mate on the sailing ship Brigantine Romance and International Voluntary Service volunteer.
When he was kicked out of IVS, Walt found work as a civil servant for the Royal Lao government. During this time off he photographed and interviewed many Laotian civilians who had survived the secret U.S. bombing of their fields and homes. Walt wrote about these bombings upon his return to the U.S., including in the Pentagon Papers. Walter happened to return to Laos in April 1975, and ended up helping friends and colleagues escape prior to the communist takeover.
Walter was also a school board member and long serving library trustee for the Town of Westminster. He served as a professor in the Boston College Lynch School of Education for over 30 years. He was an avid gardener and home horticulturist, reviving many friends' orchids over the years. He supplied many friends with Haney Honey from hives he tended, but also loved summers on the Cape, clamming, fishing, and making friends with neighbors. Walt was overjoyed that his work documenting bombing in Laos contributed both to congressional investigations and to the work of the nonprofit Legacies of War in bringing justice for those atrocities. He worked tirelessly on his teaching and research on testing and evaluation and was especially proud of his work to dismantle the myth of the Texas miracle in education, documenting systemic suppression of students of color in order to increase test scores. He was also proud of his work using drawings in educational evaluation, inspired by the drawings that refugees had done of the U.S. bombings in Laos. He was a loving father, husband, brother, son, uncle, teacher, and friend and will be sorely missed.
In lieu of flowers, please do any or all of the following: donate to and learn more about Legacies of War (legaciesofwar.org), contact your MA legislators to fully fund and implement the Student Opportunity Act to fund education equitably in MA or plant flowers anywhere you can, especially in places where the rules don't allow it. For more details on Walter's life and services, please visit tinyurl.com/whaney.
Fr. Michael Himes (d. 2022)
Widely respected Catholic theologian Rev. Michael J. Himes, a beloved faculty member at Boston College for almost three decades, died on June 10 at the age of 75.
From 1993 to 2021, Fr. Himes was a professor of theology at Ď㽜Đă, where his teaching, preaching, and ministry became integral to many aspects of the Boston College experience. For more than a decade, he was one of the first members of the University community to greet incoming freshmen and parents as keynote speaker at summer orientation sessions. His hour-length talk, âWhat Makes a Great University?â, was often met with a standing ovation by both students and parents.Ěý
Fr. Himes developed a vocational discernment framework called the âKey Three Questionsâ which has become woven into the fabric of reflection at Boston College.Ěý The three questions: âWhat brings you joy? What are you good at? And who does the world need you to be?â also served as the foundation of many Boston College retreat programs, in particular, the Center for Student Formationâs âHalftimeâ retreat.
For many years, he preached at the weekly noon Mass on Wednesdays, filling St. Maryâs Chapel with students, faculty, and staff who sought his gifts as a homilist and remarkable ability to make the Gospel accessible from the pulpit.Ěý In recognition of these gifts, he was invited to be the homilist at Boston Collegeâs Sesquicentennial Anniversary Mass, celebrated at Fenway Park in front of a crowd of approximately 20,000.Ěý His homily exhorted all Boston College educated students to âgive awayâ the gift of receiving a Ď㽜Đă education:
âThe measure of the success of your education at Boston College is the measure to which peopleâs lives are richer, fuller, and more genuinely human because you did go to Boston College.â
Fr. Himes also delivered many well-attended public addresses during his time at Boston College, perhaps most notably as the inaugural speaker for the âLast Lecture Seriesâ (2008) and as featured speaker at the Church in the 21st Century Centerâs Agape Latte program, where he discussed family (2014) and hope (2016).
Fr. Michael Himes at the podiumAs a lecturer and professor of theology, Fr. Himes was known for his dynamic, animated lectures, quick wit, charitable sense of humor, and astounding ability to quote and synthesize great works of scholarship, all without notes.Ěý He often said the key to being a great teacher is to âLove what you teach and to love who you teach,â and the immense popularity of his classes appeared to confirm the success of his approach, particularly his course, âThe Problem of Belief in Modernity,â which scrutinized the most notable proponents and critics of faith to ultimately shape a foundation for responsible belief in Catholicism.
"Michael Himes was the model of a priest-professor who saw his teaching as central to his vocation," said Professor of Theology Stephen Pope. "Students were spellbound by his lectures and found in him someone who helped them come to see their own religious yearnings and spiritual aspirations in new and powerful ways."
In 2002, the Ď㽜Đă chapter of Phi Beta Kappa selected him as Teacher of the Year.
In addition to courses co-taught with his dear friend and colleague, Michael J. Buckley, S.J. (the former faculty member and director of Ď㽜Đă's Jesuit Institute who died in 2019), Fr. Himes regarded teaching alongside his beloved younger brother and fellow priest, Ď㽜Đă Professor of Theology Kenneth Himes, O.F.M., as one of his lifeâs greatest blessings. Their offices were adjacent to one another in Stokes Hall, and they co-authored the book Fullness of Faith (1993), which explores the âpublic significance of theologyâ and was awarded the Catholic Press Association Book Award in 1994.Ěý
Fr. Himes' other notable publications include Doing the Truth in Love: Conversations about God, Relatieonships, and Service (1995), Ongoing Incarnation: Johann Adam MĂśhler and the Beginnings of Modern Ecclesiology (1997), and the book and video series The Mystery of Faith: An Introduction to Catholicism (2004). He received honorary degrees from St. Josephâs College, Molloy College, Sacred Heart University, Felician College, and Holy Cross College of Notre Dame.An avid reader and a scholar with many interests, Fr. Himesâ home was filled with an impressive collection of books and notable works across many disciplines.Ěý According to his brother, Fr. Kenneth Himes, âMichael was a natural storyteller and public speaker. When we were growing up in Brooklyn, if it was a rainy day and we could not go outside to play, Michael would gather a bunch of us kids on the stairwell in our apartment building and amuse us with stories from Aesop, the Brothers Grimm, Walt Disney, or Arthurian legends. All his life he used that talent to entertain, to teach, to inspire others.â
Fr. Himesâ love for Boston College was well noted among members of the Ď㽜Đă community.Ěý When interviewed in 2021, shortly before his retirement, he shared this parting thought with the Boston College Chronicle in gratitude for his career on the Heights:
âBeing a part of Boston College is not only a job or profession; it is a vocation.Ěý Itâs a lifelong project which one undertakes, not only for oneâs self, but for all who will enter this ongoing conversation. At Ď㽜Đă, weâre engaged in an ongoing conversation which enables us to come together as a community.Ěý Central to Boston College is that itâs a place where people are giving themselves away to others, and in doing so, we become what is most valuable to say about being human.Ěý We become the people who celebrate the reality of Godâthat God is pure and perfect self-gift. Boston College has given me rich frameworks and many opportunities to participate in conversation and for which I am profoundly grateful.âPrior to his time at Boston College, Fr. Himes taught at the University of Notre Dame from 1987 to 1993 and served as Dean of the Seminary of Immaculate Conception in Huntington, New York from 1977 until 1987.Ěý He held a Ph.D. in the history of Christianity from the University of Chicago, and was ordained a priest in the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York in May of 1972. A native of Brooklyn, he is survived by his brother, Kenneth, and sister,Ěý Eileen, as well as his nephew, Andrew E. Moschner, and his wife, Lauren M. Moschner. He is predeceased by his parents, Robert M. Himes and Mary V. Himes, nĂŠe Gill.
John Walsh | University Communications | June 2022
Al Beaton (d. 2022)
Albert E. Beaton Jr., the inaugural Augustus C. Long Professor of Education at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development, and a former director of the Lynch Schoolâs Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy, or CSTEEP, died on March 8 at age 90.
A visitation service will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday at the James H. Delaney & Son Funeral Home in Walpole, Mass.Ěý A Mass of Christian Burial will follow at 11:30 a.m. at St. Jude Church in Norfolk, and interment will be at Mount Benedict Cemetery in West Roxbury.
Dr. Beaton began his illustrious five-decade educational testing and teaching career as the managing director at Harvard Universityâs Littauer Statistical Laboratory in 1959 and an IBM Research Fellow after earning a bachelor of science degree in education from the State Teachers College at Boston and a master of education degree from Harvard University (he later received an Ed.D. from Harvard). While at the Educational Testing Service for 27 years, he held several senior research and data analytics positions at the world's largest private nonprofit educational testing and assessment organization.
After having taught at Boston College during 1960-1961, Dr. Beaton rejoined the faculty in 1990, and served as the director of CSTEEP for five years.Ěý While Beaton headed CSTEEP, he directed a groundbreaking, six-year international research assessment of math and science curricula that evaluated student proficiency at three age levels. The project, known as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), examined more than one million students from nearly 60 countries, including the United States, Russia, Japan, Hungary, Peru, Zimbabwe, and Korea, drawing considerable global interest from policy makers since the measurement of a countryâs student achievement in mathematics and science is often considered a barometer for its potential economic status.
TIMSS was the largest global testing study ever undertaken, the most well-funded inquiry of its type, and served as a basis for reshaping math and science education worldwide.
Dr. Beaton was appointed the Augustus C. Long Professor in 2002, two years before he ended his Ď㽜Đă teaching career. He was named the Augustus C. Long Professor Emeritus in 2005.
In October of 2006, Henry Braun, then the newly-named Boisi Professor of Education and Public Policy and Education Research, presented the 13th annual Boisi Lecture on Testing and Educational Policy in honor of Dr. Beaton, an unprecedented individual tribute in the history of the series. Braun said he was honored to have the opportunity to celebrate the life and work of Dr. Beaton, who had first recruited Braun for the ETSâthe start of Braunâs 27-year career in research administration.
âI say this not only because of my respect and affection for Al, but also because there is no one else who has had such an impact on my professional life than Al Beaton.â
At the same event, Joseph M. OâKeefe S.J., then the Lynch School dean, said the lecture offered a venue not only to hear praise from Dr. Beatonâs colleagues, but to consider the issues that he cared so much about: top-rate scholarship and the issues of meaning and purpose.
âAl, certainly in his published works and projects, is without parallel,â said Fr. OâKeefe, now the first provincial of the USA East Province of the Society of Jesus.
Braun, hearing of Dr. Beatonâs death, remarked that his influence was both typical and atypical.
"Al Beaton was a pioneering computer scientist, a respected applied statistician, and a successful administrative director. Equally important, he was a fine and generous human being who, over a nearly 50-year career, had a substantial impact on scores of individuals, including me. It was typical in that Al took an interest in my career, and perhaps also atypical, since he had a profound influence on the next 42 years of my life.
âIt is with a profound sense of gratitude that I remember Al as a mentor, colleague and friend. He certainly has left the world a better place than he found it. God rest his soul.â
Dr. Beaton contributed numerous articles to a variety of professional journals, and co-authored several publications pertaining to psychology and human assessment, and the National Assessment of Education Progress.Ěý He served as the director of data analysis for the Educational Opportunity Survey Study, the National Longitudinal Study, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, and the International Mathematics and Science Study.
He was presented with the 1974 Wilcoxon Award from Technometrics, the 1987 Senior Scientist Award by the Educational Testing Service, the 1988 Triennial Award for Technical Contribution to Educational Measurement by the National Council on Measurement in Education, and the Senior Scientist Award from ETS.
Dr. Beaton is survived by Joan, his wife of 63 years, and his son, Douglas.Ěý He was predeceased by his son, Albert Beaton III.
Robert Faulkner (d. 2023)
A passionate professor of political philosophy at Boston College Known as "Bob", passed away, on August 3, 2023, at 88, with his children at his side. A passionate professor of political philosophy at Boston College and a devoted husband, father and grandfather, Bob was predeceased by his beloved wife of 56 years, Margy. He is survived by his two grateful children and their spouses, Robert C. (Donald MacDonald) and Elizabeth (Kevin O'Halloran); and three adoring grandchildren, Chase, William and Margaret O'Halloran. Bob graduated near the top of his class from Dartmouth College, an experience he enjoyed immensely and where a spark ignited his deep interest in political philosophy. Subsequently, he won a Marshall Scholarship to Oxford and earned a PhD. at the University of Chicago under the teacher who would become his lifelong intellectual inspiration, Leo Strauss. He also met his lifelong partner, Margy, a fellow graduate student at Chicago. Professor Faulkner published multiple scholarly books, among them, "The Jurisprudence of John Marshall", "Richard Hooker and the Politics of a Christian England", "Francis Bacon and the Project of Progress" and "The Case for Greatness: Honorable Ambition and Its Critics". After a less-than satisfying stint as a professor at Princeton, he joined the faculty at Boston College in 1968, where he found and helped develop a community of colleagues who would bring him over 50 years of professional and personal fulfillment. He retired at age 81 as a Research Professor Emeritus, retaining his office and his engagement with students and colleagues. His intellectual curiosity and writings aside, he will be remembered for his character and his many contributions to individuals and communities. Nothing satisfied him more than attracting talent to his field and encouraging the curiosity of his students, so many of whom stayed in contact. Bob had a practice of writing to the parents of exceptional students, highlighting their talent and inspiring the student to pursue the field. By his colleagues, he was described as "full of good humor and grace, a steady hand through turmoil." He served as Department Chair and was actively engaged in nurturing the department and its members, many of whom were cherished friends until his death. As a measure of the community's respect for him, former Ď㽜Đă President, Father J. Donald Monan, asked Bob to speak on behalf of the faculty at Fr. Monan's retirement ceremony. Ultimately, Bob loved people, and wanted the best for individuals of any stripe who were good souls. He attracted devotion from his gardener, contractor and neighbors as much as he did from students and colleagues. He would shock neighbors discussing politics by listening deeply and engaging in lengthy conversation. He conducted Shakespeare reading groups with interested neighbors, to their and his delight. The young children of the neighborhood would shriek with laughter and glee as he would practically roll around on the grass playing with them before sending them, all riled up with grass stains on their clothes, back to their parents. For his children, he nurtured their individual interests with commitments of time, and their education with sacrifices to send them to excellent schools and most of all, unwavering commitment and love. He was both forgiving and able to ask forgiveness of his children. Most of all, Bob set an example for integrity, pursuit of deep personal fulfillment in life and the ability to navigate difficult times with optimism, candor and fearlessness. Born in Western New York, he lost his mother when he was 12 and his father when 22, and had no self-pity for the fact. He finished life with complete lucidity about his impending death and showed only grace and eagerness to connect with loved ones while he could, engaging in candid final conversations with dozens of people in his final days, including each of his grandchildren. Less than 24 hours before his death, able to speak but a word, he requested champagne, making the most of the moment with loved ones. He died as he lived. He will be missed by many.Ěý
Jeffery Byers (d. 2023)
Professor of Chemistry Jeffery A. Byers, an award-winning researcher in sustainable chemistry who strived to inspire both budding college- and high school-age scientists, died on August 18. He was 45.
Dr. Byers, who joined the Boston College Chemistry Department in 2011, focused his research on novel or underdeveloped organotransition metal chemistry and its catalytic application to useful processes in the fields of organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and materials science. A major area of interest in his laboratory was the development of new synthetic techniques for the production of novel copolymers useful as traditional engineering polymers, biodegradable polymers, or polymers useful for biomedical applications.
As he explained in a 2015 interview with the Boston College Chronicle, such polymers could be strong enough to be used in everyday products such as plastic bottles. The process could ultimately help reduce the paper products waste stream and reduce the harmful environmental impacts of less degradable plastic products, he said.
Another area of interest for Dr. Byers and his team was the development of cross coupling reactions involving earth-abundant transition metal catalysts that are less expensive and toxic than state-of-the-art catalysts, and the use of transition metal catalysts to formic acid and/ or methanolâa process that would provide a means to store and transport hydrogen, a leading candidate to replace fossil fuels as a sustainable and renewable energy source.
Dr. Byersâ work earned him coveted honors: In 2015, he received a National Science Foundation CAREER Awardâthe agencyâs most prestigious grant for junior facultyâand Cottrell Scholar Award from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement, Americaâs second-oldest foundation and the first devoted wholly to science. In 2017, the American Chemical Society selected Dr. Byers for its PMSE Young Investigator Award.
âThe research is a little bit off the beaten path,â he told Chronicle upon announcement of the CAREER award. âSo itâs been challenging to convince people we can do what we do, but people see what weâve accomplished so far and this grant provides some validation for our approach. Iâm excited to see where this takes us.â
Through a $1.8 million award from the NSF Center for Chemical Innovation, Dr. Byers and fellow Chemistry Professor Dunwei Wang joined a team of scientists to form the NSF Center for Integrated Catalysis. Its goal is to develop the fundamental chemistry to achieve the synthesis of sequence-defined polymeric materials from pools of abundant feedstocks in a single reactor using spatially separated and switchable catalysts. The expected scientific impact of this project will reach the catalysis community and chemical industry with applications based on a new paradigm in chemical catalysis.
Along with his accomplishments as a researcher, Dr. Byers was equally respected as a teacher and mentor who sought to encourage young people to study the sciences. Among the courses he taught were Honors Modern Chemistry and Honors Organic Chemistry, both part of a program to introduce talented STEM students to concepts in general, organic, and biochemistry. He also was on the faculty committee for Ď㽜Đăâs Beckman Scholars fellowship program, which supports outstanding undergraduate students in the sciences.
Reflecting on his undergraduate years shortly before his 2014 graduation, David Cote cited Dr. Byers as one of the faculty members who had an impact on his Ď㽜Đă education: âI learned so much in his lab and gained invaluable experience that will help me in my future endeavors. His was one of my favorite and most intellectually challenging classes, and he kindly wrote my recommendation for my medical school application. He was really invested in my success and I appreciate all that he has done for me.âĚý ĚýĚý
When graduate student Ashley Biernesser was selected for an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship in 2013, she noted in a Chronicle interview that Dr. Byers had encouraged her to revise and resubmit her application after NSF reviewers gave her positive comments last year. Another NSF fellowship winner, Julia Curley â16, said that working in Dr. Byersâ lab, âI learned how to be a scientist and thatâs where I learned I wanted to pursue graduate studies in chemistry.â
Dr. Byers and departmental colleague Professor Eranthie Weerapana also established a pre-collegiate summer institute for high school students, known as âP2P: Paper to Plastics.â The eight-week program brings high school students, predominately those underrepresented in the sciences, to campus for a program that combines mentoring, research, career exploration, and college preparation. P2P offers participants an opportunity to work closely with undergraduates, who guide them through the technical aspects of the research and serve as role models to encourage considering careers in science and technology.
âEveryone in the department will miss Jeffâs affectionate passion for chemistry,â said Wang, the department chair. âAs a knowledgeable chemist whose expertise extends across the subfields of inorganic, organic, and polymer chemistry, Jeff always had great answers to all questions. In classrooms and beyond, his dedication to his students was a palpable force. In addition to working tirelessly to modernize our curricula at all levels, he was a devoted advocate for underrepresented students. As a collaborator, he was the best colleague you can ask for: Keen, passionate, hardworking, and masterful in communicating his science. It was him who led me to the wonderful concept of sustainable plastics.
âTo us all, his passing was just too soon; there is so much we would like to accomplish together with him.â
Associate Professor of Chemistry Jia Niu, who collaborated with Dr. Byers, said, âAs an extremely talented scientist, Jeff's fundamental contributions span a diverse array of research domains within chemistry. His impact extends to areas such as organometallic chemistry employing earth-abundant metals, the advancement of biodegradable and sustainable plastics, and the innovation of highly efficient transition-metal catalysts achieved through molecular encapsulation. These remarkable achievements have not only reshaped the landscape of chemical science but have also served as inspirations among fellow researchers and engineers, motivating them to tackle these crucial challenges in science and for our society.
âOn the personal level, you cannot ask for a better colleague and friend than Jeff. He consistently radiated support and encouragement to those around him. Jeff's passing is devastating: The world lost an unparalleled chemist, and we have lost a great friend and colleague.â
A native of Las Cruces, NM, Dr. Byers received a bachelor of arts degree in chemistry Washington University in St. Louis and a doctorate in inorganic chemistry from the California Institute of Technology. He completed his training with a postdoctoral position in organic chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Dr. Byersâ professional honors, appointments, and memberships included the Sigma Xi Scientific Research Honor Society and American Chemical Society.
Dr. Byers is survived by his wife, Crystal Shih Byers; his mother, Eleanor; sisters, Vickie Byers and Jennifer Masters; and nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his father, John Byers.
Dale Herbeck (Died 2023)
HERBECK, Dale Alan On October 26, 2023, Dale Herbeck, 65, of Medfield, MA, died unexpectedly while out enjoying a walk.Dale was a kind and thoughtful husband, stepfather, son, brother, uncle, cousin and so much more. He was an exceptional scholar, teacher and leader in the field of communication studies. He was a beloved friend, family member and award-winning educator who will be dearly missed by many.Born in Chicago, IL, on June 14, 1958, to Delbert and Virginia Herbeck (Gerke), Dale grew up outside of Dayton, OH. In 1976, he graduated from Fairmont West High School, where he began his lifelong interest in speech and debate. In 1980, he graduated from Augustana College in Rock Island, IL with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and Political Science. In 1988, Dale graduated from the University of Iowa in Iowa City, IA, with a Ph.D. in Communication Studies.In 1985, Dale started his academic career on the faculty of the Communication department at Boston College, where he was a professor and debate coach before becoming department chair. In 2012, Dale joined the faculty of Northeastern University as chair of the Communication Studies department. He was well-regarded by colleagues, and especially students, many of whom have kept in touch with him over the years as they progressed in their studies and careers. In 2022, after 10 years as department chair, Dale returned to the faculty to focus on his teaching and writing.In August of 1997, he married Edie (Haffenreffer) Simmers and they moved to Medfield, MA with her son Brett. He lived in Medfield for over 25 years, spending his free time cooking, writing and playing golf with friends. He was an avid supporter of the Green Bay Packers, often watching their games while wearing his custom "Herbeck" jersey. He enjoyed many Red Sox games at Fenway Park with his longtime friend and colleague John Katsulas, occasionally bringing Brett along and teaching him the intricacies of baseball scorekeeping. He loved being a doting uncle to Sofie through many shared adventures.Over his 38 years as an academic, Dale won many honors and awards for his teaching and scholarship, including recognition by the National Communication Association, the American Forensic Association and the Commission on Freedom of Expression. He published many editions of a popular textbook, Freedom of Speech in the United States, was the author of dozens of book chapters and peer-reviewed articles and edited numerous professional journals. Dale is survived by his wife, Edie; his stepson, Brett; his parents, Delbert and Virginia; and his brother, James and his wife, Susan; and their child, Sofie. He is also survived by many loving cousins, aunts, uncles, friends, colleagues, students and mentees.Following a private Burial, all are welcome to pay their respects and Celebrate Dale's Life at a Memorial Service on Saturday, November 4, at 10 AM, at the George F. Doherty & Sons Funeral Home, 1305 Highland Ave. NEEDHAM, MA. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations in Dale's name to Heifer International or the National Prison Debate League, organizations that he supported for many years.
Richard Gaillardetz (Died 2023)
Renowned ecclesiologist Richard R. Gaillardetz, the Joseph Professor of Catholic Systematic Theology at Boston College and an award-winning theologian and author, died on November 7, 2023. His death comes 20 months after being diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He was 65.
Dr. Gaillardetz was a respected and preeminent voice in the interpretation and reception of Vatican II and questions of authority in the Catholic Church. He was the author/co-author of nine books, editor of six others, and author of more than a 100 articles and book reviews. He was also a popular public speaker, addressing theological and pastoral conferences throughout the world.
His book Teaching with Authority: A Theology of the Magisterium of the Church, is a standard text in its field and has remained in print for a quarter century. An expert on ecumenical councils, Gaillardetzâs Keys to the Council: Unlocking the Teaching of Vatican II (co-authored with Catherine Clifford) presents a less intimidating and more accessible introduction to the vision of the Vatican II. His other notable works include By What Authority? Foundations for Understanding Authority in the Church and An Unfinished Council: Vatican II, Pope Francis, and the Renewal of Catholics. His publications have received numerous awards from both the Catholic Press Association and the Association of Catholic Publishers.
âWithin the department, with our colleagues, staff, undergraduate, and graduate students, as well as within our University, the academy, and the Church, Professor Richard Gaillardetz shared his great love and passion for the present and the future of the Church, and for the not-yet fully realized contributions of the Second Vatican Council,â said Theology Department Chair Andrea Vicini, S.J., the Walsh Professor of Bioethics. âWith heartfelt gratitude, we will greatly miss him and strive to continue his theological work.â
âI donât think anyone would deny that Rick was the most accomplished ecclesiologist in the English-speaking world,â said Professor of Theology Stephen Pope. âHe was immensely respected for his work ethic and intelligence."
"Rick was brilliant and prolific," said Professor of Theology Boyd Taylor Coolman. "He wrote about and for the Church, which he loved deeply and served faithfully. His great scholarly gift was to be an effective, compelling communicator of sophisticated theological ideas to a wide audience, that both satisfied specialists and stimulated non-specialists."
âRick was a spectacularly good teacher," Pope added. "His high standards could intimidate students, but he would go out of his way to help students meet those standards, whether they were struggling to understand the material better or to write better. He could teach anyoneâfrom a first-year undergraduate to a Ph.D. student.â
Dr. Gaillardetz was remembered for his impactful leadership as Theology Department Chair from 2016 to 2022.
"As Chair, Rick was a model of dedication, strength, and humility," said Professor of Theology Catherine Cornille, who holds the Newton College Alumnae Chair. "Though a larger-than-life personality, he was also extremely sensitive and caring about the well-being and flourishing of every member of the department."
"Rick had a vision for the mission of the department, as well as a concern for the well-being of all the individual faculty members, especially those who felt marginalized, or underappreciated, or burnt out," said Coolman. "He took the initiative on both fronts, not through imposition or coercion, but by invitation and persuasion."
"As department chair he worked tirelessly for the common good of the department and, as much as he could, for the good of everyone in it," added Associate Professor of Theology Jeremy Wilkins, director of the Lonergan Center.Ěý
Dr. Gaillardetz was also known for his fondness for cooking, golfing, and playing racquetballâeach approached with his characteristic intensity. He was a passionate fan of the University of Texas Longhorns and the Texas Rangers, who won their first World Series days before his passing.
âWhatever Rick did, he put his heart and soul into it. Rick could be very formidable and intensely focused,â Pope noted, âbut he had the ability to laugh at himself. There was a real humility in him.â
Pope noted Dr. Gaillardetz's competitiveness was matched in equal parts with his compassion and intentionality in cultivating deep friendships.Ěý
"Rick's chief virtue was friendship," said Wilkins, who credited Dr. Gaillardetz with initiating a friend group with others on campus. "Rick was a true friend. He wanted to do right by everyone."
"Rick showed his friends what friendship can really be, and why the art of friendship is in fact a spiritual art. Ever eager for joyous companionship, he also knew how to depend upon his friends in times of need," said Associate Professor of Theology Brian Robinette.
Coolman called him a "helluva friend" who is "already achingly missed."
In their remembrances, many friends noted his singular devotion to his wife, Diana, and their four sons. "Rick was one of the best family men Iâve ever known," said Pope, adding that he and Diana would would open their home to graduate students and colleagues who needed a place to go at the holidays.
âRick was a person of deep Christian and Catholic faith," Pope added. "That's what drove everything he did professionally and personally. His faith made him hopeful.â
Dr. Gaillardetz and colleagues Thomas Groome and Richard Lennan from the Ď㽜Đă School of Theology and Ministry co-chaired a faculty seminar on âPriesthood and Ministry for the Contemporary Church,â which undertook a scholarly, practical, and ecclesiastical examination of the priesthood and ministry. After two years of meetings, the group issued a document, âTo Serve the People of God,â that outlined the essence of the priestly ministry. The document was the basis of a 2020 conference held at Boston College that involved cardinals, bishops, seminary rectors, ordained and lay ministers, and scholars. At the conclusion, a formal communique was issued that outlined 10 pastoral recommendations to expand existing ecclesial ministries and explore new models for ordained ministry. The seminarâs project culminated in the publication of Priestly Ministry and the People of God, a book of essays from a variety of voices who put forth their best hopes for the future of the priesthood. Dr. Gaillardetz served as a co-editor and contributor, along with Groome and Fr. Lennan.
In the book, Dr. Gaillardetz highlighted the flaws in the existing system for forming priests. âOur current vocational system is constructed more to discern impediments to ordination than the existence of a charism or aptitude for the exercise of genuine pastoral leadership or pastoral ministry of any kind.â
âRick was a person of enormous energy and wonderful creativity as a theologian,â said Fr. Lennan. âRick's work on the theology of church and ministry has enriched significantly the life of the ecclesial community in the United States and beyond. As a teacher, Rick was a skilled communicator, able to express complex ideas in a clear and compelling way that invited his hearers into conversation. Rick exemplified, in many ways, the attributes proper to âlove for the Churchâ: he was neither romantic nor apologetic but always deeply committed to the realization of a Church characterized by faith, openness to conversion, and ways of living that embody all that it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.â
In September 2022, the University hosted a conference to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Gaillardetz as a scholar, teacher, and mentor. Hundreds of theologians and former students gathered on campus for the event, titled âNew Directions in Ecclesiology: The Contributions of Richard Gaillardetz.â The conference included an address by Dr. Gaillardetz, one he dubbed his last lecture, on âLoving and Reforming a Holy yet Broken Church.â
In his talk, Dr. Gaillardetz encouraged his colleagues to continue the work of âmeaningful and lasting ecclesial reformâ and to seek out a middle path between over-critiquing the Catholic Church as an institution and being over-trustful of its leaders, especially after the clergy sexual abuse scandals, according to coverage of the conference in National Catholic Reporter.
âOur church today is paying the price for our failure to maintain a reflective equilibrium. We are becoming divided into two camps, those who embrace the tradition, whole cloth, as a reality that stands beyond critique, and those whose sweeping denunciations leave us only a few salvageable fragments of a largely failed tradition,â he said.
In perhaps his most profound and final act as teacher and friend, he invited others to follow his illness journey via a blog he kept. His posts touched upon both the personal and the medical, all shared through a decidedly Catholic, Christian, and faith-filled lens.Ěý
"In addition to his important work in the area of ecclesiology, he will also be remembered for the spiritual wisdom he imparted in sharing the experience of his final journey," said Cornille.
"A teacher to the end, his best lesson for all of us was the way he practiced the art of dying well," added Wilkins.
Dr. Gaillardetz was born and raised in a military family and spent much of his youth traveling, an experience he credited with the development of a lifelong appreciation for the diversity of people.
He received a B.A. in humanities from the University of Texas-Austin, an M.A. in biblical theology from St. Maryâs University in San Antonio, and both an M.A. and Ph.D. in systematic theology from the University of Notre Dame.
He joined the Boston College Theology Department in 2011. Immediately prior to joining Ď㽜Đă, Dr. Gaillardetz was the Margaret and Thomas Murray and James J. Bacik Professor of Catholic Studies at the University of Toledo. He also taught at the University of St. Thomas Graduate School of Theology at St. Maryâs Seminary in Houston.
Dr. Gaillardetz was a member and past president of the Catholic Theological Society of America, the largest professional association of Catholic theologians in the world. He was also a member of the American Academy of Religion and the College Theology Society. He was the recipient of the Yves Congar Award for Theological Excellence from Barry University and the Sophia Award from the Washington Theological Union for theological excellence in service of ministry.
Earlier this year, he received an honorary doctorate from Oblate School of Theology, a Catholic graduate school for theological studies in San Antonio, Texas.
He is survived by his wife, Diana, who graduated from the Ď㽜Đă School of Social Work in 2022, their sons David, M.S.W. â16, M.A. â19; Andrew; Brian â17; and Gregory â19, and grandson, Elliot.
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Jensen, JohnĚý(d. 2016)
Kenney, MargaretĚý(d. 2016)
King, Rev. PhilipĚý(d. 2019)
Kissane, JudyĚý(d. 2012)
Lamparska, RenaĚý(d. 2018)
Lee, Vera (d. 2023)
Lowry, RitchieĚý(d. 2016)
Madaus, GeorgeĚý(d. 2016)
Maffei, RichardĚý(d. 2011)
Mahoney, JohnĚý(d. 2015)
Manning, RobertaĚý(d. 2018)
Manwaring, DavidĚý(d. 2017)
Martin, Michael (d. 2022)
McCarthy, NancyĚý(d. 2020)
McCue, DanĚý(d. (2012)
McHugh, Marie (d. 2020)
McKenna, DavidĚý(d. 2020)
McLucas, Anne DhuĚý(d. 2012)
Messer SJ, PaulĚý(d. 2016)
Monan SJ, J. DonaldĚý(d. 2017)
Mooney, JeanĚý(d. 2021)
Mott, SandraĚý(d. 2022)
Nicholson SJ, FrancisĚý(d. 2011)
Nuttall, RonĚý(d. 2002)
O'Brien SJ, GerardĚý(d. 2015)
O'Connor, ThomasĚý(d. 2012)
O'Malley, Rev. BobĚý(d. 2005)
O'Neil, JeanĚý(d. 2022)
O'Reilly, VincentĚý(d. 2019)
Perry, ThomasĚý(d. 2013)
Petillo, CarolĚý(d. 2015)
Plocke SJ, DonaldĚý(d. 2016)
Powell, TheresaĚý(d. 2013)
Power, LeoĚý(d. 2019)
Rahv, BettyĚý(d. 2017)
Richardson SJ, BillĚý (d. 2016)
Rintala, Marvin (d. 2022)
Romeo, JohnĚý(d. 2012)
Ěý
Rena Lamparska
Born in Czersk, Poland. Daughter of the late Zygmunt Syski and Halina Syska (Wisniewska). Mother of John O. Lamparski. Rena received her Master of Laws (LL.M.), University of Wroclaw (Poland); Master of Arts (M.A.), Catholic University of America, Washington (DC); and her Ph.D., Harvard University, Cambridge (MA). She was an Assistant Professor, 1983-87, Associate Professor, 1987-2009, and Full Professor 2009 to retirement in 2012, at Boston College, Chestnut Hill (MA). Rena was the author of several books, as well as numerous articles in a number of literary journals. She was a member of the American Association for Italian Studies; Midwestern American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies; Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America (PIASA).Ěý
Published in The Boston Globe on Oct. 21, 2018
Leo Power
Article about Leo, by Jim Greenidge that appeared in The Boston Globe Aug 1995
He didnât like the way some things were done, so Leo Power asked questions â about why junior tournaments were run the way they were, why seedings were as they were.
âThere was one thing that particularly bugged me,â Power said. âThere was a newspaper (published by the New England Lawn Tennis Association) that kept increasing its number of pages while not getting any new ads and it kept taking money from the junior program and I kept on some people about it.
âBack then, tennis wasnât as organized as well as it is now.â
So the people at the USTA-New England (then known as NELTA) pointed out to Power that it was a volunteer organization, and he should roll up his sleeves and go to work.
That was in the mid-1970s.Ěý By 1977, Power had become chairman of NELTAâs junior competition committee, and he proceeded to move up the ranks â from third vice president to second vice president to first vice president, and beginning in 1987, he served four years as NELTAâs president.
Power, 60, a former Boston College basketball player and the 20-year director of the schoolâs Institute of Scientific Research, is on the USTA-Nationalâs 14-person board of directors as one of eight directors at large.Ěý The board gets together once a month, sometimes by teleconference, to set policy for the USTA-National, which has a $92 million budget.
Power, who first picked up a tennis racket 40 years ago when he saw Ď㽜Đă pals Jim Norton and Jack Cox from his Mission Hill neighborhood playing at the courts at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, is part of a new generation of USTA board members seeking change.Ěý The new emphasis is on grass-roots tennis.Ěý Weâve put up $5 million over the next four years, at $1.25 million per year, in working with the tennis industry to stress âPlay Tennis America,â Power said.Ěý âThe grass-roots game is something Iâve been talking about for the past five years, and after making a lot of noise about it, it seems people have been listening to me the last two years.â
It was because of his four children that Power followed tennis in earnest.Ěý His son, Leo 3d, now 31, was ranked No. 1 in New England at ages 12, 14 and 16 and went on to play at Northwestern; daughters Elaine, 30 and Karen, 29 played Nos. 4 through 6 at Ď㽜Đă; and Bill, 24, was the Eaglesâ No. 1 player his last three seasons.Ěý All have been nationally ranked.
With wife Kathi very much included, the Power family received the 1981 USTA-New England and the 1980 USTA-National Tennis Family of the Year awards.Ěý In 1984, Power won the Gardiner Chase award as the USTA New England man of the year.
Power started hitting on a regular basis just over 30 years ago, when he moved from Watertown to Framingham and joined the Sudbury River Tennis Club.
During his time as president of the local chapter of the USTA, Power was proudest of two accomplishments â he changed the name of NELTA to USTA-New England and he put together advisory committees for each state.
âThe name change made sense from the identity standpoint,â he said.Ěý âIt showed a spirit of cooperation and that we werenât isolated from the USTA.Ěý Everyone knew NELTA, everyone knew the USTA and everyone knew the US Open, but not everyone knew they were together.
âAfter we made the name change, eight other sections did much the same.Ěý As for the state advisory committee, each state has different degrees of accomplishments and different degrees of involvement and we fund each advisory committee based on the number of members.â
Ěý
Vincent O'Reilly
O'REILLY, Vincent M. Age 81, a longtime resident of Winchester, passed away after a long illness at the Newbridge on the Charles Health Care Facility on February 27, 2019. He was the beloved husband for 56 years of Annette M. O'Reilly. Born in Boston, he was the son of the late Vincent and Margaret O'Reilly. Vincent was a graduate of Boston College and received and a MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. O'Reilly was the Distinguished Senior Lecturer at the Carroll Graduate School of Management of Boston College, and taught several courses covering accounting, finance, leadership and business ethics topics. He also founded the school's consulting course and the Diane Weiss Consulting Competition, which has become a distinctive and unique feature of the Boston College MBA program. He was Chairman of the Board of ISO New England, which is responsible for coordinating the New England electric power grid and administrating the N.E. region's wholesale electric markets. He chaired the Audit Committee and was a member of the Executive Committee of Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company, and was previously a Director of Connell Limited Partnership, Eaton Vance Corp., Teradyne, Inc. and Neiman Marcus Group. Mr. O'Reilly was also active in numerous community and not-for-profit organizations. He served as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and was a founding Trustee of Dana Farber/Partners Cancer Care, which is a joint venture between Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham & Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. He was a Trustee and Treasurer of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and was awarded the Trustee Leadership Award by New England Health Care Assembly in 2004. A Partner at Coopers & Lybrand LLP from 1969 until his retirement in 1997, Mr. O'Reilly held a number of management positions there including Deputy Chairman, Chief Operating Officer and Chairman of its International Accounting and Auditing Policy and Strategy Committee. He also chaired its Ethical Practices Committee and served on the firm's Executive Committee from 1985 to 1997. Mr. O'Reilly was a member of the SEC Practice Section Executive Committee of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, a member of the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council of the Financial Accounting Standards Board and a founding member of the Accounting Educational Change Commission. He was the editor of Montgomery's Auditing and the author of Internal Control-Integrated Framework. He was a recipient of the McCloy award from the Public Oversight Board of the AICPA for contributions to the auditing profession.
Ěý
Roberta T. Manning
Russian History Professor Roberta T. Manning, age 77, of Newton, MA, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Wednesday, January 3, 2018.
She was born in Austin, TX to Robert B. "Rab" Thompson and Lucille "Boogie" Luby Thompson. She is survived by her daughters, Innessa Anne Manning, of Lexington, MA and Rebecca Emily Manning (a.k.a Rebecca Emily Darling), of Los Angeles, CA; three grandsons, Maxwell, Henry, and Jack Ramanathan; and her brothers, Robert and Charles Thompson, of Texas, and their families.
Roberta was a noted academic who was a Professor of History at Boston College for over 30 years. She was awarded the American Historical Association's prestigious Herbert Baxter Adams Prize in 1983 and was granted a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1989 for her research into the former USSR during the Stalin era. She appeared on several T.V. news programs in the 1980's and 1990's where she provided a historical perspective on the ending of the cold war era and Boris Yeltsin's presidency. During the 1990's, Roberta led a staff of 40 scholars from six nations â Russia, the US, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and South Korea â in collecting, arranging, translating, and publishing a 5-volume set of books, The Tragedy of the Soviet Village: Documents and Materials Vol. 1-5, drawn from five major Moscow archives, including the KGB archives. Her efforts allowed these materials to be accessed and used by academics around the world.
Additionally, she wrote and published The Crisis of the Old Order in Russia: Gentry and Government, and, with J. Arch Getty, Stalinist Terror: New Perspectives. Roberta's work challenged the notion that the Stalinist Terror was solely the work of one man, but rather that the pattern of persecution was much more widespread.
Her research has been catalogued and archived at Boston College and is available as a base for further study; her family hopes that future historians will take advantage of her remaining scholarship and that through their work, hers will live on.
Roberta studied at Rice University in Texas and earned her PhD at Columbia University in 1975, during which time she worked closely with her esteemed advisor, Professor Leopold Haimson. Throughout her life she spent a significant amount of time in Russia as part of her studies, and was among the first outside historians to be granted access to previously sealed government archives.
Roberta grew up in Corpus Christi, TX as part of a large family with deep ties to south Texas. She eventually moved to Newton, MA where she raised her two daughters and several adventuresome cats. Once she moved to Massachusetts, Roberta built a large network of close friends and colleagues who she often entertained in her beautiful Victorian home and garden where she lived for close to 40 years.
She will be remembered for her keen intelligence and scholarship, her dedication to her students, her passionate spirit, and her boundless generosity to many. Roberta had an amazing mind and a huge heart; these things live on through her work, through the work of the many she mentored, and within the hearts of the many people all around the world who loved her.
Roberta suffered from Alzheimer's in her final years, but she remained gracious and smiling up until her final moments. Her daughters wish to extend a heartfelt thanks to all of those who cared for her during her last years at Sunrise Senior Living's memory care floor in Burlington, MA. Roberta will be honored in a memorial service to be scheduled in the Spring when the flowers she so loved are in full bloom. Additionally, her family is working on arranging a scholarship fund as a tribute to her academic accomplishments.Ěý
David Manwaring
David R., 84, of Brookline on Monday, July 24, 2017. Beloved husband of Jane (Makler) Manwaring. Devoted father of Roger Manwaring and his wife, Catherine, and Jeffrey Manwaring and his wife, Sarah. Adored grandfather of Steven, Laura, Colin and Zoe. For 39 years, a professor of Political Science at Boston College, specializing in American Government and Constitutional Law
A committed Democrat, avid chess player, talented cook, and above all, lover of all things family.Ěý
________________________________________
J. Donald Monan. S.J.
Reverend J. Donald Monan, S.J., the 24th president of Boston College, who was credited with saving the University from fiscal crisis and guiding it into a period of then unparalleled financial and academic success, died on March 18 at Campion Center in Weston, Mass. He was 92.
Fr. Monan served longer than any Boston College president, but his tenure will be remembered for far more than its longevity. Under his 24 years of leadership, Boston College successfully completed the transition from a financially strapped, predominantly male commuter college to a prosperous, coeducational and nationally renowned university. In July 1996, upon stepping down from the presidency, Fr. Monan became Boston College's first chancellor.
Fr. Monan's effectiveness as president touched numerous facets of Boston College â finances, academics, enrollment, student life, the campus physical plant and community involvement. He presided over two successful capital campaigns, including The Campaign for Boston College from 1987-91, which raised $136 million and helped to boost the University's endowment to among the 40 largest in the nation. In addition, applications for admission rose dramatically during Fr. Monan's years as president â from 7,000 in 1972 to more than 16,500 in 1996.
When Fr. Monan was presented with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree at Boston College's 1996 Commencement Exercises, the University announced the establishment of three professorships in his name.
At the time of his retirement as president in 1996, U.S. News & World Report ranked Boston College 40th among national universities in the U.S. and 16th in commitment to teaching; Ď㽜Đă also was included in Barron's Top 50: An Inside Look at America's Best Colleges.
Born in Blasdell, NY in 1924 to a family with roots in Northern Irelandâbirthplace of Boston College founder John McElroy, S.J.â Fr. Monan attended Canisius High School in Buffalo before entering the New York Province of the Society of Jesus at St. Andrew-on-Hudson. After concluding his philosophical studies, he taught at St. Peter's College in Jersey City, NJ, studied theology at Woodstock College and was ordained a Jesuit priest in 1955.
He earned his doctorate in philosophy at the University of Louvain, Belgium, and continued his postdoctoral research at the universities of Oxford, Paris and Munich.
In 1961, a year after joining the Le Moyne philosophy department, he became its chairman. Seven years later, he was appointed academic dean and vice president, serving as director of long-range academic and fiscal planning.
Fr. Monan's publications include Moral Knowledge and its Methodology in Aristotle and, as co-author, A Prelude to Metaphysics. He received more than a dozen honorary doctoral degrees from institutions ranging from Harvard and Boston College to the National University of Ireland. He was the former chairman of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities and of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts, served as a director of Bank of Boston (1976-96), as interim president of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (1996-97), board member of the Naval Academy Endowment Trust and the Yawkey Foundation.
He served on the board of directors of The National Mentoring Partnership, of the Massachusetts Mentoring Partnership, of which he served as co-chair from 1992-2001, and of the National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management. Fr. Monan was also a member of the Jesuit Philosophical Association, the Society of Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy, the Society of Ancient Greek Philosophy, and the Massachusetts Historical Society.
In February 2006, he was among recipients of the 2006 New England Higher Education Excellence Awards.
In May 2007, he was honored by Catholic Charities for his multiple contributions to civic life in the Boston community, and in November of that year, he was honored by The American Irish Historical Society for his contributions to American higher education as well as his ongoing support of Ireland and his leadership in the American Irish community.
In the spring of 2011, the New England Province of the Society of Jesus honored Fr. Monan with its Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam Award in recognition of his long and selfless service for the greater glory of God.
Fr. Monan, who had served on the committee convened by the National Endowment for the Humanities that led to the establishment of the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities and Public Policyâknown today as Mass Humanitiesâwas among recipients of the inaugural Governor Awards for the Humanities at the organizationâs 40th anniversary gala in 2014.
Most recently, he was honored by the Boston College community at a celebration of his 90th birthday at Cadigan Alumni Center on the Ď㽜Đă campus in January of 2015, and was recognized as one of the "Four Pillars of Mass Mentoring Partnership's First 25 Years" at the organization's anniversary celebration in February 2017.
Betty Rahv
Betty Thomas Rahv, (March 30, 1931-April 15, 2017) a native of Charleston, WV and eldest child of the late Marian Pope Thomas and Andrew Stephen Thomas, Jr. passed away in LaGrange, GA of natural causes. She is survived by her son, William L. McIlvain of Charleston and siblings, Emma Lewis Thomas of Livingston, MT, Marian Thomas Wood of Riverdale, NY, and Andrew Stephen Thomas III of Charleston, WV as well as 4 nieces, 3 nephews, 7 grand nieces and 5 grand nephews. Cared for by her nieceâs family, Erica Nashan and James K. Arnold of LaGrange, GA, and their children, Roselyn, Eolyne and Andrew Arnold. Devoted caretakers Wanda Feltman, Toni Anne Ball, and Roselyn Arnold were at her side. Accolades include a Bachelor of Arts from Sweet Briar College, a Master of Arts from Middlebury College, and PhD in French Literature from Indiana University. She also attended Ohio Wesleyan University, Yale University, and the University Paris-Sorbonne as a Fulbright Scholar. She served twice as
Chairman of the Romance Languages Department at Boston College and authored many articles on French Philosophy and Literature, as well as a book, âFrom Sartre to the New Novelâ. Her passions led her to travel the world to research history, culture and art. A devoted teacher, she nurtured the talents of her students and was revered by her colleagues. As a native West Virginian she was crowned Mountain State Forest Festival Queen Silvia XV in 1951. She loved the outdoors, summer visits with family, and took comfort in her many pets at home. She remained loyal to her family, sharing her love of the world as well as her deep ties to the place of her childhood in the Appalachian Mountains.
George Madaus
Boisi Professor of Education and Public Policy Emeritus George F. Madaus, an internationally renowned expert on â and frequent critic of â educational testing and measurement, who died on Dec. 18. He was 82.
âProfessor Madaus created a legacy in quantitative research that lives on through various projects at Ď㽜Đă, such as the Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy and the groundbreaking analytics of City Connects,â said Stanton Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Carolyn A. and Peter S. Lynch School of Education. âGeorge was a respected member of the Lynch School community who will be missed by his many former students and colleagues[IS1] .â
Dr. Madaus joined the School of Education faculty in 1966, after finishing postdoctoral work at the University of Chicago. In 1980, he co-founded Boston Collegeâs Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy (CSTEEP), a hub of scholarly activity for Dr. Madaus â who for a time served as the centerâs director â and colleagues to study, write about and speak on high-stakes testing and its impact on children, schools and society.
âThere is more oversight for pet food than there is for tests," said Dr. Madaus, interviewed by the Boston College Chronicle in 1998. While he and his colleagues believed that testing served âa very useful function,â Dr. Madaus said, they felt the American public and its leaders should know not only the strengths of testing, but the limitations as well.
In a 2001 interview for the PBS program âFrontline,â he said: âI always looked on testing as a technology. It fits any definition you want of a technology. It has underlying algorithms; it has paper and pencil answer sheets in scoring things. But it's a fallible technology, and like all technologies, there are places where it can break down.â
Dr. Madaus and co-author Kathleen Rhoades pointed out numerous such breakdowns in a 2003 study that counted 103 publicized errors on state and national standardized tests between 1976 and early 2003. Because of testing errors â ranging from inconsistent scoring to questions appearing more than once â the study found, thousands of New York City students were required to attend summer school unnecessarily; 50 high school seniors in Minnesota were denied diplomas; public schools in Florida had their funding cut; and teaching candidates were denied licenses.
CSTEEP became one of Ď㽜Đăâs leading recipients of external funding, and launched such successful initiatives as the National Board on Educational Testing and Public Policy, and the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), which eventually spun off to form the TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center and 20 years on remains the worldâs longest running, large-scale assessment of mathematics and science education.
Among other publications, Dr. Madaus wrote or co-authored The Fractured Marketplace for Standardized Testing, From Gate Keeper to Gateway: Transforming Testing in the United States, and Teach Them Well: An Introduction to Education. He also co-authored the Code of Fair Testing Practices in Education, which is widely used by educational practitioners and policymakers.
The center, and Dr. Madausâ work, drew its share of criticism. A conservative foundation once published a paper that accused CSTEEP of harboring anti-testing bias and politicizing the issue of high-stakes testing. In fact, Dr. Madaus served on the technical advisory committee for the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS), which he called âstate of the art.â
Yet at times, even the respected MCAS drew Dr. Madausâs reproach.
âHe was a critic of most standardized testing because he felt that the compromises made to conform to constraints of time and cost resulted in tests that did not deliver what was promised â to the detriment of children, especially those coming from disadvantaged backgrounds,â said Boisi Professor of Education and Public Policy Henry Braun, who also directs CSTEEP.
All too often, according to Dr. Madaus, high-stakes testing follows the âTradition of the Past Exam,â whereby teachers use old tests to prepare students for the next one.Ěý Dr. Madaus refuted the idea that teaching to the test didnât matter, as long as the test reflected high standards: âNo test is good enough to be a curriculum,â he told Boston College Magazine in 2001.
Kearns Professor of Urban Education Mary Walsh said Dr. Madaus established himself as an international authority on educational testing just as the US and other nations began to closely examine student achievement at state, national and global levels.
âHe absolutely advanced the whole field of testing in education,â said Walsh. âHe broke new ground on a regular basis on the impact of testing and how it should be done. His reasoning was always based on science and data. He always knew that the world was in the grain of sand â for all the thousands and thousands of kids who were tested, he always knew that it came down to the individual child.â
When Walsh launched the City Connects initiative to help struggling students, Dr. Madaus took on the data analysis component that has allowed City Connects to document how its programs raise student achievement and combat the effects of poverty for low-income students.
âHe designed the entire evaluation component for City Connects and then identified a lot of people to help us and he would convince them to come and work with us,â said Walsh. âHe was just terrific.â
Professor of Education Law and Public Policy Diana Pullin, who from 1987 until 1994 served as dean of the School of Education (the school was named for Peter and Carolyn Lynch in 2000), recalled meeting Dr. Madaus when she was a young lawyer working on civil rights litigation in the early 1980s, related to testing and the use of test scores as a graduation requirement.
âGeorge reached out to colleagues all over the world to help find expert witnesses in the court case,â said Pullin, who argued the Florida case on behalf of the Center for Law and Education. âPeople still talk about it, decades later.â
As dean, Pullin found Dr. Madausâ reputation as one of the worldâs foremost experts on educational testing was also recognized by organizations that funded his research.
âGeorge was the first member of the Lynch School faculty to earn an endowed chair [the Geoffrey T. Boisi Professorship in Education and Public Policy, established in 1990] and he played an essential role in moving our School of Education into the top tier in the US,â said Pullin. âHe was one of our early very active researchers and successful grant seekers.â
A native of Worcester, Mass., Dr. Madaus held an enduring appreciation for the work of classroom teachers, according to Walsh.
âHe had enormous respect for teachers,â said Walsh. âHe always said it was the hardest job, the most important job.â
Dr. Madaus earned a bachelorâs degree from the College of the Holy Cross, a masterâs degree from Worcester State College, and his doctorate in education from Boston College. His six children all went on to graduate from Ď㽜Đă.
â[He] had a deep and undying love for Boston College,â said Pullin.
Speaking with Chronicle upon his retirement as a full-time faculty member in 2004, Dr. Madaus described his decision to teach at Ď㽜Đă as âa no-brainer.â But he acknowledged that at one time heâd had misgivings about coming to Ď㽜Đă: Working in Ireland on a project in 1971, he was alarmed by reports of the Universityâs mounting financial difficulties.
âI didn't know if I was going to have a place to come back to,â he recalled. âI was thinking maybe I should have taken that job in Chicago [at University of Chicago, where heâd also been offered a position]."
He marveled at the extensive period of growth that took place at Ď㽜Đă during the 1970s, â80s and â90s, an era of excellence that seemed to extend to all aspects of Ď㽜Đă, from the quality of its students to the maintenance of the campus said Dr. Madaus.
âWe have truly become a national university,â he said. âThere's no question about that.â
Among his professional activities and honors, Dr. Madaus was vice president of the Measurement and Research Methodology Division of the American Educational Research Association; president of the National Council on Measurement in Education; a visiting professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and St. Patrickâs College in Dublin; a member of the National Academy of Education; and recipient of the E.F. Lindquist Award, in recognition of his body of research in the field of educational measurement.
Dr. Madaus is survived by his wife, Anne; sons George and Joseph and daughters Mary C. Corcoran, Sarah A. Tierney, Martha M. Gowetski and Eileen P. Keane; his brothers William and Edward; and 15 grandchildren.
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Marie McHugh
Dr. McHugh was a professor in, and chair of, the History Department at Newton College of the Sacred Heart in 1975 when the college was acquired by Boston College â an event that Dr. McHugh, in a 1984 interview, called âa shock.â But after moving to Ď㽜Đă as A&S assistant dean, she played a key leadership role in integrating Newton Collegeâs Catholic legacy into Ď㽜Đăâs Jesuit educational and formational mission, and during her tenure became a mentor to administrators, faculty and students alike.
Speaking at Dr. McHughâs funeral, former Vice Provost for Faculties Patricia DeLeeuw recalled her longtime colleague and friend as âa calm, reasonable presence, always the problem-solver, always optimistic, and always kind and generous with colleagues and with the thousands of students whose lives she touched.â
ĚýâMarie taught me to be, at once, academic and professional,â said former A&S Honors Program director Mark OâConnor, who was on the program faculty at the time of Dr. McHughâs appointment. âShe could immerse herself in departmental strategic planning but also give equal thought to concerns about studentsâ needs and interests. This was a person who got things done, no muss, no fuss, but she wasnât egotistical in any way and was always willing to give others credit.â
Clare Dunsford, who joined A&S as an associate dean in 1997, said, âMarie had everyday common sense, but also a deeper wisdom about life. She was somebody who handled all the responsibilities as dean in such a way that seemed effortless â and in a patient, gracious manner.â
In 1980, Dr. McHugh was appointed as associate dean, and when A&S Dean William B. Neenan, S.J. â who had originally appointed her as assistant dean and would become one of her closest friends at Ď㽜Đă, colleagues said â left the school in 1987 to become Ď㽜Đăâs academic vice president and dean of faculties, she served as interim dean for the academic year. She resumed her position as senior associate dean when J. Robert Barth, S.J., became A&S dean in 1989.
ĚýDr. McHugh took on an increasingly higher profile at the University, from working with the A&S Board of Chairs to taking part in the Administrative Officers Council, a forum created in 1997 to discuss institution-wide issues and improve communication regarding major initiatives. Outside of Ď㽜Đă, she chaired the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.
Yet even as she cultivated a reputation as an experienced, valued administrator, Dr. McHugh continued to teach as an adjunct professor of history and in the A&S Honors Program: âI knew when I was in school that all I wanted to do was teach history,â she told The Heights in 1987 when she was appointed A&S interim dean. âI loved it, and I wanted to teach it.â
OâConnor noted that Dr. McHughâs involvement in Newton Collegeâs Studies in Western Culture program prepared her well for teaching at Ď㽜Đă.
âSIWC was one of Newton Collegeâs crown jewels, an integrated program that combined history and literature in ways similar to what we were doing in the Honors Program, so she moved into the classroom here seamlessly. Marie was an historian at heart, and the History Department had a lot of respect for her.â
A native of Waltham and a graduate of Manhattanville College with a bachelor's degree in history and French literature, Dr. McHugh received her master's and doctoral degrees in European history from Harvard University. She was in the vanguard generation of women who sought to fashion careers in higher education while also cultivating lives as spouses and mothers, colleagues said. DeLeeuw related Dr. McHughâs reminiscence of working on her dissertation while her daughter Cathy was a toddler: âMarie described to me an afternoon at the Widener Library holding Cathy on top of the card catalog with one hand while flipping through cards looking for a reference with the other.â
Although she retired at the end of the 1998-99 academic year, Dr. McHugh regularly visited old friends and colleagues on campus. âMarie would hold a salon, asking about each of us, enjoying our stories of professional victories and challenges, and when prodded, describing for us her golf game, the courses she was teaching in a life-long-learning program at Duke â and with clearly the most pleasure, telling us about the achievements of her grandchildren,â DeLeeuw recalled.Ěý
âMarie was the most mentally healthy person we knew: genuinely happy to hear all the news about Ď㽜Đă, but with no regret that she had left it behind.â
Boston College also had a family dimension for Dr. McHugh, whose father, son and granddaughter all graduated from the University.
Dr. McHugh was the widow of Edward J. McHugh and is survived by her husband, Richard Kenney; her children, Cathy Engstrom, Janet Kelly, Edward McHugh and Ellen McHugh; step-children Catherine Kenney Morrison, Richard Kenney, Mary Beth Kenney Sweet, Terence Kenneth and Anne Kenney Utley; her sister Eileen Mullin, and her grandchildren and step-grandchildren.
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Fr. Bill Richardson, S.J.
Professor of Philosophy Emeritus William Richardson, S.J., author of a groundbreaking study on renowned philosopher Martin Heidegger and a faculty member at Boston College for more than a quarter-century, died on Dec. 10 at the age of 96.
Fr. Richardson joined Ď㽜Đă in 1981 as arguably the foremost American expert on Heidegger, a seminal thinker in the Continental tradition and philosophical hermeneutics whose Being and Time was regarded as a central philosophical work of the 20th century. In 1963, Fr. Richardson had published his nearly 800-page opus Heidegger: Through Phenomenology to Thought, which contradicted prevailing attitudes about Heidegger.
âLet it suffice to say that in disengaging the sense of foundational thought, we delineate Heideggerâs conception of philosophy as well,â wrote Fr. Richardson in the bookâs introduction. âFor there is only one philosophical question that interests him, the question about Being and its truth. This is the âone starâ â the only â that remains constant along the way. It is, one might think, the evening star that must have caught his eye when, in the gathering darkness of Reichenau, he watched the light go out of the west.â
In a 2010 Boston College Magazine profile on Fr. Richardson, writer William Bole explained that prior to Through Phenomenology to Thought, Heidegger was âtreated as an existentialist, someone concerned exclusively with matters of human existence such as anxiety and authenticity.â But Fr. Richardson, he wrote, ârevealed Heidegger as a philosopher of being as a whole, someone who probed the very ground or metaphysics of human existence and understanding.â
Fr. Richardson had not come to his assessment of Heidegger simply by reading the philosopherâs works or analyses by other scholars: He had once spoken with Heidegger for four hours at Heideggerâs home in Freiburg, Germany.
During a 2005 interview, Fr. Richardson recalled when he first approached Heidegger about his project. âI figured: âWell, what can I lose? He canât resent my naivetĂŠâ...So I screwed up my courage to go speak to him and decided to go in and see him with my broken German. And he was very gracious to me. He could have just dismissed me but didnât. He really treated me like a mensch, so to speak.â
In fact, Heidegger was quite impressed by his visitor, according to an intermediary, who told Fr. Richardson that after the interview Heidegger had remarked: âWho is this guy? Heâs an American, and a Jesuit, and he got me right. Most Europeans get me wrong. How is this possible?â Heidegger wound up contributing the preface to Phenomenology to Thought.
An urban legend later surfaced that the philosopher had actually attended Fr. Richardsonâs defense of his doctoral dissertation on Heidegger â and at one point stood up at the back of the lecture room and declared âI think heâs right.â
When asked about this during an interview for the Boston College Magazine story, Bole wrote that Fr. Richardson âchuckled and gave a knowing look. âYou hold on to that,â he suggested.â
ĚýAfter joining the Ď㽜Đă faculty in 1981 â he had taught at Fordham University since 1964 â Fr. Richardson continued to teach, write and speak about Heidegger, as well as pioneering psychoanalyst and psychiatrist Jacques Lacan, whom he met on a couple of occasions. In 1982, Fr. Richardson â who in the 1970s had become a certified psychoanalyst and served as director of research at the Austin Riggs Institute for Psychotherapy â co-authored Lacan and Language: A Reader's Guide to the Ecrits.
Colleagues and friends remembered Fr. Richardson as a deeply thoughtful scholar who, while ever engaged in intellectual pursuits, never neglected his role as teacher and mentor.
Professor of Philosophy Arthur Madigan, S.J., spoke of Fr. Richardsonâs âintellectual courageâ in studying Heidegger and Lacan, as well as his âdevotion to students â he would do anything in his power to help them, and they knew it.â Fr. Richardson, he added, also had a strong capacity âfor deep and lasting friendship.â
Associate Professor of Philosophy Jeffrey Bloechl said Fr. Richardsonâs scholarly work exemplified âwhat is best and most forceful in the Jesuit tradition, opening itself to even the most challenging intellectual and cultural developments, on the premise that there might well be something true and good in them, and if so, then they cannot be alien from the grace that defines Christian faith.Ěý So likewise his teaching, which has touched generations of students with a vivid commitment to what the cura personalis truly means.â
Kraft Family Professor of Philosophy James Bernauer, S.J., said that Fr. Richardson was âvery highly regarded by his graduate students, and many of them became his close friends.âĚý The two had met in Paris in 1980 when Fr. Bernauer was a graduate student and began spending time together, which afforded Fr. Bernauer an opportunity to see the informal, personal side of Fr. Richardson.
âWe were walking around one evening,â said Fr. Bernauer, âand he said something to me at the time that shocked me: âBrains, brains, they are a dime a dozen.Ěý But getting people to work together â that is a rare talent.â"
Given his brilliance, Fr. Richardson sometimes had a challenging time establishing a rapport with undergraduates, Fr. Bernauer said, âbut he did try to reach themâ by staying connected to popular culture: For example, he gave a lecture, "Towards an Ontology of Bob Dylan," later published in the Ď㽜Đă journal Philosophy & Social Criticism.
Fr. Richardson retired in 2007 but continued to work as an emeritus faculty member. He moved to the Campion Center in 2012.
A native of Brooklyn, Fr. Richardson was a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1941 at St. Andrew on Hudson in Poughkeepsie, NY, and went on to study at Woodstock College (Md.) and the University of Louvain in Louvain, Belgium. He was ordained in 1953 in Louvain.Ěý
Fr. Richardson also taught at St. Peterâs College in New Jersey and LeMoyne College.
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Fr. Paul A. Messer, S.J
Fr. Paul Messer, SJ, was born in Boston, on Jan. 16, 1936, and grew up in St. Markâs parish in the Dorchester section of the city. He was one of six sons and one daughter of his father, Edward, a family doctor, and his mother, Anne Murray Messer. He attended parish schools and, in 1949, entered Boston College High School, then in the South End of the inner city. The family spent summers in Scituate, on Bostonâs South Shore, an area that acquired the nickname of âthe Irish Riviera.â An aunt took him to performances of plays and musicals in Bostonâs rich theater scene of those years, which stimulated his life-long interest in music and drama.
When he graduated from Ď㽜Đă High, he enrolled at Boston College but, after his first year there, entered the novitiate of the New England Province at Shadowbrook, in West Stockbridge, Mass., on July 30, 1954. His novitiate was unexpectedly interrupted when the building burned to the ground on March 10, 1956, and Paul was one of the group of novices and juniors sent to Wernersville, Pa., the novitiate-juniorate of the Maryland Province. He took first vows and spent two years in juniorate studies there.
In 1958, he began philosophy studies at Weston College and then spent regency teaching at B. C. High (1961-1964). He returned to Weston for theological studies (1964-1968), during the course of which he also pursued graduate studies in English at Boston College, receiving a masterâs degree in 1966. He was ordained a priest in 1967. The following year he was assigned to Fairfield Prep to teach English but after a year was moved to the newly founded Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River, Mass. A year later, in 1970, he began doctoral studies in English at the University of Utah but interrupted his program there after only one year. He spent a year (1971-1972) as a campus minister at the University of California Berkeley, and then returned to Bishop Connolly High School for another year of teaching English.
In 1973, Paul went to St. Beunoâs in Wales for tertianship, a year he regarded as a decisive one in his Jesuit life. His instructor was the charismatic Fr. Paul Kennedy, SJ. The house and the Welsh countryside deepened Paulâs love of the poetry of Fr. Gerard Manley Hopkins, SJ. His prayer confirmed his desire to teach both theology and English literature. When he returned to the U.S., he responded to the need for a campus minister and a theology teacher at St. Francis College, in Biddeford, Maine. After a year there he was assigned to Boston College, where he was to spend most of the rest of his active life as a Jesuit. From 1975 to 1981, he taught theology and English, served for a time as assistant chair of the theology department, and then pursued graduate studies in English full-time for a year.
With the strong encouragement of colleagues in the B.C. English Department, he resumed doctoral studies at the University of Utah in 1981, receiving the doctorate in 1984 with a dissertation on the American novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder. In a tight job market, with no open slots at B.C., Paul was hired by Salve Regina College, in Newport, R.I., where he spent two happy years. But he didnât like living outside a Jesuit community and moved to B.C. in 1985. Over the next four years he taught in the theology and English departments and was twice drafted to fill vacant slots as associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences. From 1989 on, he taught full-time in the English Department and in the Evening College. He was a much appreciated, witty, and thoughtful member of the B.C. Jesuit community, going out of his way, for example, to welcome Jesuit graduate students from abroad. In 2009 a worsening neuro-muscular condition, eventually diagnosed as Parkinsonâs, required that he move to Campion Center.
Paul loved poetry, Boston Symphony concerts, RenĂŠe Flemingâs voice, andâwhenever he could manage itâexcursions with a Jesuit friend to New York City for opera and ballet. He had always received rave reviews for both his high-school and college teaching and one of the delights of his final years was keeping in touch with former students and having them visit. His medical condition gradually limited his mobility, weakened his voice, and dimmed his bright smile. He died peacefully during the morning of Oct. 18, 2016. He is survived by his brothers Edward, Richard, Robert, John, and Charles and his sister Barbara Hugo.
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Ritchie Lowry
Ritchie Lowry, a retired professor of sociology who taught at Boston College for 45 years, has died after a long illness. He was 90.
Dr. Lowry was a pioneering expert in the area of corporate social responsibility and socially and environmentally responsible investment, and was founder and president of Good Money Publications, which issued newsletters and handbooks for socially concerned investors.
His other research areas included the sociology of war and the military, social problems and public policy, and community power structures. One of his earlier published works was Whoâs Running This Town?, which examined myths and theories of grassroots politics through the lens of small-town society. He also authored or co-published such books as A Citizenâs Guide to Military Force; Social Problems: A Critical Analysis of Theory and Public Policy; Sociology: Social Science and Social Concern, and The Science Society.
Dr. Lowry came to Ď㽜Đă in 1966 after having served as a senior research scientist at the U.S.Army Special Operations Research Office and lecturer at American University. A year later, he became chairman of the Sociology Department, and along with other faculty members refocused its program on social and economic justice. He also established the departmentâs doctoral program.
Dr. Lowryâs concern about social issues extended to sometimes unlikely topics. In a 1971 interview with Heights columnist (and future sports journalist) Mike Lupica, Dr. Lowry â who had played football in college â decried what he saw as the professionalization of the college game, as well as a continual tendency by the media, and politicians, to conflate war with football.
âFootball is lousy preparation for life,â said Dr. Lowry, repudiating a saying by legendary football coach Vince Lombardi, âIn life, you are going to lose a lot more games than you are going to win. Sociologically, Cal Tech, which loses almost all the time, prepares you better for life. They learn to lose and lose gracefully."
Retiring in 2011, Dr. Lowry told the Chronicle that, while he would remain active in his research, he would miss âthe opportunity to experience the views and perspectives of different generations of young people. Teaching is also a matter of learning from your students.â Ď㽜Đă students, he said, âare generally among the most committed to social and economic justice issues, and they have responded very well to the ideas I have shared with them.â
A World War II veteran who enlisted in the Navy at age 17, Dr. Lowry went on to earn bachelorâs, masterâs and doctoral degrees from the University of California at Berkeley.
He is survived by his wife, Betty; their children, Peter and Robin; three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Margaret "Peg" Kenney
Dr. Kenneyâs arrival at Ď㽜Đă in the 1950s came during a watershed period for the University â she was among the first wave of female undergraduates to study at the Heights â and for the profession that she would enter. Concerns about the quality of American schoolchildrenâs mathematics and science education, prompted in part by the Soviet Unionâs launch of its Sputnik satellite in 1957, spurred national initiatives to strengthen math and science teaching.
Boston College would figure prominently in the efforts to reshape mathematics education, and Dr. Kenney â starting out at a time when women constituted only six percent of math Ph.D.s â would play an important role in preparing generations of future teachers at Ď㽜Đă and elsewhere.
A Boston native and daughter of a 1930 Ď㽜Đă alumnus, Dr. Kenney entered Ď㽜Đă in 1953 as a member of the School of Educationâs second class, but â heeding her teacherâs words of caution â initially decided on French as her major before âcoming to my sensesâ and switching to mathematics, she recalled years later. Needing to catch up on math requirements, she took a summer course taught by Stanley Bezuszka, S.J., a mathematics education pioneer and director of Ď㽜Đăâs Mathematics Institute â established to help improve content and instructional practice in mathematics at the pre-college level â who became Dr. Kenneyâs mentor.ĚýĚý
After earning a masterâs degree in 1959 to go along with her undergraduate degree, Dr. Kenney (who later earned a doctorate from Boston University) joined the School of Education faculty and the Mathematics Institute, as Fr. Bezuszkaâs assistant director. In addition to teaching undergraduates, Dr. Kenney was heavily involved in the instituteâs projects, providing assistance, instruction or coordination in 49 National Science Foundation-funded programs.
Dr. Kenney â who would later succeed Fr. Bezuszka as Mathematics Institute director â also became a major contributor to her field through her involvement in the Association of Teachers of Mathematics in Massachusetts â for which she served as president â and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, where she was on its board of directors. Dr. Kenney directed an NSF-funded NCTM project to train teachers in the instruction of discrete mathematics, which emphasizes data-gathering and problem-solving skills; the project reached thousands of grade 7-12 teachers and students.
Reflecting on her career in a 2013 Chronicle interview shortly before she retired, Dr. Kenney said, âIn effect, my world has been defined by Ď㽜Đă â personally and professionally. Many of the friends I have had from my undergraduate days remain close friends now. Spiritually, Boston College has been a trusted source for deepening my faith. Professionally, the Mathematics Institute pursuits afforded me the opportunity to work with teachers and students of all levels in this country and abroad for many years. A large number of these pre-service and veteran teachers became cherished lifelong friends.Ěý I am forever grateful to Ď㽜Đă for all this.â
In retirement, Dr. Kenney remained active professionally, working on a history of the Mathematics Institute for the University Archives and a new edition of a resource book for mathematics educators she had co-authored with Fr. Bezuszka.
Among many other honors Dr. Kenney received during her career, one was especially fitting: the inaugural Rev. Stanley J. Bezuszka, S.J., Achievement Award for Excellence in the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics from the ATMM.
âFor decades, Peg mentored, monitored and directed mathematics education locally, regionally and nationally,â said Joseph Caruso, an ATMM board member, on the news of Dr. Kenneyâs death. âCountless educators were nourished by her wisdom, understanding, expertise and leadership. How lucky we have been for well over five decades to have had Pegâs inspirational leadership, dedication and devotion to mathematics education.â
Even as Dr. Kenney tackled mathematics education issues on a national scale, her Ď㽜Đă colleagues said, she showed equal care and concern for the Ď㽜Đă community and her department in particular.
âI can remember Peg arguing, with quiet force, that we always needed to remember the students,â said Professor of Mathematics William Keane. âShe pushed for smaller class sizes, for more options in our electives, and for innovation in teaching methods. Even as the department grew from a small group with primarily a service mission to an internationally recognized research center, we have maintained our dedication to the undergraduate program, due in no small part to Pegâs efforts.
âShe was always willing to listen, and to offer concrete and unerringly helpful suggestions. There remains a tradition among math faculty of taking teaching seriously, of discussing ideas and techniques; itâs a spirit Peg helped instill.â
âShe touched me personally as she touched everyone concerned with the math education of young people,â said McIntyre Professor of Mathematics Solomon Friedberg, the department chair. âPeg had great wisdom, a tremendous appetite for working to improve math education, and a big heart.â
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Gerard C. O'Brien, S.J.
Gerard C. OâBrien, S.J.Ěý Gerry was born in Stoneham, Massachusetts, on October 29 th , 1928, but hisĚý family lived on the west side of Malden and he was brought up there, in theĚý Immaculate Conception Parish, with a younger sister and brother, Virginia and Tom.Ěý His father was descended from 19 th -century Irish immigrants, his mother from aĚý French-Canadian/Irish family on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Like many localĚý families, his parents had a difficult time economically during the Depression andĚý prosperity only came with World War II, when his father worked in the Boston NavyĚý Yard.Ěý Gerry attended local parish grammar and high schools. Graduating in 1945,Ěý he just missed military service and entered the College of the Holy Cross inĚý September of that year. Studying the classics course and already thinking about theĚý priesthood, he talked regularly with a Jesuit, Fr. Larry Foran, who encouraged himĚý to try the novitiate. In 1946, the summer after his first year of college, he enteredĚý Shadowbrook.Ěý He did not find the novitiate easy. âI kept wondering when the magical dayĚý was going to come when I would start liking it,â he later said, with the honesty thatĚý was a lifelong characteristic. But he worked at it with determination and after aĚý while became quite happy. âI developed a real enthusiasm for following Christ in myĚý life in whatever he wanted me to do.â Juniorate studies were a delight and had aĚý permanent influence, he said, on his later homilies and retreats.Ěý He had the good fortune to arrive at Weston for philosophy studies in 1950,Ěý when younger faculty members like Reggie OâNeill were just beginning efforts toĚý break away from the manual approach of the veteran faculty, and he developed aĚý love for the subject. He spent three years of regency (1953-1956)) teaching Greek,Ěý Latin, and English at the old B.C. High in Boston, then was sent to Woodstock forĚý theology studies and was ordained a priest there, in 1959. Tertianship followed, aĚý year later, at Pomfret, in Connecticut.Ěý He was thirty years old, he said, and didnât really know what he wanted to do.Ěý His love for philosophy had been rekindled while reviewing for his ad grad exam atĚý the end of theology studies. Superiors, though, were reluctant to send him directlyĚý to doctoral studiesâperhaps, he thought, because of some signs of psychologicalĚý troubles that had emerged during his theology studiesâand assigned him instead toĚý Boston College, to teach philosophy. He loved the challenge of making abstruseĚý concepts intelligible to undergraduates and found himself rethinking many of theĚý things he had learned. After two years at B.C. he asked again to go to doctoralĚý studies, was approved, and began work at Fordham in 1963. He settled in and foundĚý his studies agreeable but ran into trouble focusing on a thesis topic, eventuallyĚý settling, with the help of Fr. Robert OâConnell, on the early works of Augustine andĚý producing a disorganized first draft.Ěý The real problem, he was reluctant to admit, was his own heavy drinking. HeĚý returned to B.C., thesis unfinished, and resumed teaching and prefecting in theĚý residence halls, until Jesuit friends challenged him about his drinking. In theĚý summer of 1969, he entered the treatment program at the newly opened secondĚý Guest House, in Rochester, Minnesota.Ěý And so began the ministry that most of Gerryâs contemporaries think of whenĚý they remember him. His time at Guest House was a turning point in his life. HeĚý eventually finished his Fordham dissertation, continued to teach philosophy at B. C.,Ěý and very successfully, until he retired from the classroom in 2012, but devoted aĚý major part of his time to alcoholism counseling, twelve-step programs, retreats, andĚý being a resource for innumerable Jesuits and lay colleagues who sought help inĚý dealing with their own problems and those of family and friends. He became aĚý trustee of Guest House, took on leadership roles in groups within the Society and theĚý Church that advocated for effective and compassionate treatment of thoseĚý struggling with alcoholism, helping to implement the New England Provinceâs 1970Ěý policy on alcoholism and educate superiors and communities about its value.Ěý In the oral history he dictated a few years before his death, he reflected onĚý some of the things he had learned from the struggles of his life. âWhen I wasĚý growing up, everybody thought you had to be Jack Armstrong, the All-American BoyĚý of the radio program. I knew that wasnât meâthat wasnât anybody, of course. If youĚý help people develop a belief in the grace of God operating in all the circumstances ofĚý their lives, even though the circumstances are both good and bad, that helps peopleĚý to accept Godâs love in their lives. I think I am more open to understanding otherĚý peopleâs difficulties and negativities, since I have seen my own up close.âĚý In 2012, Gerry moved to Campion Center. He continued his counseling workĚý and even shortly before his death traveled to give retreats. In the early morning ofĚý August 24 th , 2015, he died peacefully in his sleep.Ěý
________________________________________
John Jensen
A memorial service was held August 6 at Christ Episcopal Church in Needham, Mass. for John Jensen, a retired Lynch School of Education professor whose research and expertise in metrics extended beyond Boston College. Dr. Jensen died on July 7 at age 78.Ěý John Jensen Dr. John Jensen. Dr. Jensen joined the Lynch School faculty in 1965, and taught a variety of courses in research design, statistics, data analysis, computer programming, psychometrics and test construction. He also served as director of the University Computing Center, and on the Faculty Grievance Committee. He retired in 2002.Ěý In 1978, Dr. Jensen became president of Metrics Associates Inc., which provides data analysis, program evaluation, measuring instrument development and other related services to public and private education institutions and programs in greater Boston. That year, he began a long and rewarding collaboration with the Inter-Hospital Study Group for Anesthesia Education to produce, distribute, score and generate reports for Anesthesia Knowledge Test series. The AKT series is currently administered annually to more than 1,500 residents in anesthesia in 140 medical schools internationally.Ěý Lynch School Professor Larry Ludlow, chair of the Educational Research, Measurement and Evaluation Department in which Dr. Jensen worked, praised his colleague in an online tribute.Ěý âHe was one of the first faculty to warmly welcome and guide me when I started at Ď㽜Đă fresh out of grad school and totally unprepared for academic life.Ěý [John] was a great mentor in teaching (don't teach the book â anyone can do that â teach what you know); service (this is a great life we have, give back to the University and students); and research (be humble â how important is that paper to anyone other than yourself?).âĚý A native of Rochester, NY, Dr. Jensen graduated from Cornell University and earned his doctorate in education from the University of Rochester.Ěý
Donald J. Plocke, S.J.
Don Plocke was born on May 5 th , 1929 in Ansonia, a small town northwest ofĚý New Haven, Connecticut, where his grandfather had been one of the founders of theĚý Lithuanian parish. Don was the first child of Joseph and Stella (Loda) Plocke. AĚý sister, Joyce, was four years younger. His father worked as a machinist for aĚý manufacturer of heavy machinery. His mother was an accomplished amateurĚý photographer. Don grew up there, attended local Catholic schools through the 9 thĚý grade, and was a Mass server from early childhood. During his high-school years, atĚý Ansoniaâs public school, he developed a strong interest in physics and won a collegeĚý scholarship funded by an Ansonia industrialist for a local graduate. He entered YaleĚý in 1946.Ěý At Yale two experiences shaped his future. He got a work-study job in the labĚý of one of the pioneers in the field of biophysics. And one day, thinking aboutĚý whether he should go on to graduate school, he quite unexpectedly found himselfĚý asking, âWhat if you should become a priest?â Conversations with the only Jesuit heĚý knew, a graduate student in education from the Philippines, led him to apply to theĚý New England Province and he entered the Shadowbrook novitiate the year heĚý graduated from Yale, 1950.Ěý After first vows and a year of juniorate, he spent three years in philosophyĚý studies at Weston. Then the decision was made that he should pursue a doctoralĚý degree in biophysics. M.I.T. accepted him and once again he found an influentialĚý mentor, at one of the top Boston hospitals, to guide his studies. He spent the nextĚý five years (1956-1961) living in the largely graduate-student community onĚý Newbury St. in Bostonâs Back Bay and walking back and forth across the CharlesĚý River to his work at M.I.T. or across Kenmore Square to the Brigham. Degree inĚý hand, he returned to Weston for theology studies. He was ordained a priest atĚý Weston in 1964 and, a year later, requested to do tertianship at Muenster, Germany,Ěý which had the plus of enabling him to spend time at the end of that year in the lab ofĚý a Nobel Prize winner in biophysics.Ěý In 1966 he began his long association with Boston College as an assistantĚý professor in the Biology Department. He began teaching undergraduates andĚý supervising masterâs and doctoral students, established his lab, won grants for hisĚý research in molecular biology from the American Cancer Society, and produced aĚý string of publications. In the early seventies he served five years as chairman of theĚý department, which he found stressful, as the department was seriously divided as toĚý what its focus should be. His research suffered during his tenure as chair but aĚý summer at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and a sabbatical at a researchĚý center in Switzerland enabled him to re-focus his work and complete a project in anĚý unfamiliar area of molecular biology that had captured his interest. In his laterĚý years he acknowledged that he found his greatest joy in teaching and advising hisĚý students. For B.C.âs Capstone Program, an array of courses for seniors thatĚý encourage them to connect what they have learned in their undergraduate yearsĚý with their plans for the future, he developed a course about the relationshipĚý between religion and science, with the aid of a grant from the TempletonĚý Foundation. He spent a sabbatical at Oxford working on this topic and taught theĚý courses through the last years of his working life.Ěý In 2011, a diagnosis of cancer led to his being assigned to Campion Center.Ěý Increasingly limited physically and confined to a wheelchair, he was typically foundĚý at his laptop, praying or pursuing his interests in science and religion. In lateĚý February 2016 a series of hospitalizations led to his declining further treatment andĚý he died peacefully during the evening of March 5 th , 2016.Ěý
Carol Petillo
A memorial service was held on April 2 at Union Church in Vinalhaven, Me., for retired Professor of History Carol M. Petillo, who died on March 26. She was 74.
Dr. Petilloâs teaching and research interests focused on American foreign policy and military history. She taught a popular course on the Vietnam War that included classroom visits by veterans. Her publications includedĚýDouglas MacArthur: The Philippine Years, which examined the legendary generalâs experiences in the Philippines prior to the beginning of World War II; the book was among the sources used for the film âMacArthurâ shown on the PBS âAmerican Experienceâ series.
A native of Mannington, WV, Dr. Petillo earned her undergraduate degree at Montclair State College and her graduate degrees at Rutgers University. She joined the Ď㽜Đă faculty in 1979 and retired in 2002.
She is survived by her husband, Wayne Cooper; children John Joseph Petillo II, Christopher David Petillo, Anna Maria Petillo and Joseph Ralph Petillo; and six grandchildren.Ěý
John Romeo
Mr. Romeo, a University employee for more than 30 years, died on August 6, 2012 at a hospice in Danvers, MA after a long battle with cancer. He was 60. âJohn was fastidious in everything that he did,â said University Vice President for Facilities Management Daniel Bourque. âEverything he did was done with quality.â¨âśÄ¨âHe was very knowledgeable about all aspects of construction, but he was a gentle and caring person too,â Bourque said. âHe was a great friend.ââ¨â¨Bourque noted that Mr. Romeo took special pride in overseeing the nearly completed restoration of Gasson Hall, the Universityâs signature building, which has included a complete and complex refurbishment of the structure and towerâs exterior stone facing.â¨âśÄ¨âJohn took great pride in the Gasson Hall project,â Bourque said. âHe attended to every detail himself â and it showed in the quality of the final work.ââ¨â¨Mr. Romeo was instrumental in the establishment and supervision of Facilities Managementâs Special Projects Group â a team of skilled tradesmen who handle emergency and time-sensitive construction projects on campus. He also mentored numerous new employees in Facilities Management over the years, Bourque said.â¨âśÄ¨âJohn worked from early morning to late at night,â Bourque added. âBut, in everything he did, he was always most concerned with the quality of our University projects.ââ¨â¨Mr. Romeo was instrumental in the establishment and supervision of Facilities Managementâs Special Projects Group â a team of skilled tradesmen who handle emergency and time-sensitive construction projects on campus. He also advised numerous new employees in Facilities Management over the years.â¨âśÄ¨âIn more ways than people may realize, he was very much a mentor with Capital Projects,â said Associate Vice President for Capital Projects Mary Nardone. âHe did it through every stage of his career. â¨â¨âI know that I certainly miss him as a sounding board,â she said. âHe had the institutional experience that only comes with 30 years and he was willing â at any time â to share it. He was a huge coach and mentor in our department."â¨â¨Mr. Romeo grew up in Waltham, Mass. and worked as a carpenter to put himself through Northeastern University. After graduation, he joined the management staff of the Perini Corporation, a major construction firm in Framingham, Mass.â¨âśÄ¨In the late 1970s, he was working for Perini in a supervisory capacity at a dormitory construction project on Ď㽜Đăâs lower campus when Ď㽜Đăâs then-Director of Buildings and Grounds,Ěý Fred Pennino, took notice of Mr. Romeoâs knowledge of construction techniques and ability to manage projects effectively. Pennino hired Mr. Romeo to help oversee future University construction projects, and Mr. Romeo took charge of scores of new construction and major renovation works on campus over the next three decades. â¨â¨On May 17, University President William P. Leahy, S.J., was the principal celebrant of a Mass of Healing said in St. Maryâs Chapel for Mr. Romeo. The chapel was filled to capacity with colleagues and friends of Mr. Romeo and his family who attended the Mass in a demonstration of friendship and support.â¨âśÄ¨Mr. Romeo, an avid Boston College sports fan who also enjoyed boating and his vacation home on Cape Cod, is survived by his wife Jeannette (Richard) Romeo, director of Graduate Student Services in the Lynch School of Education; and his daughter, Jennifer S. Romeo
Theresa Powell
A funeral Mass was celebrated on Sept. 18 for Theresa A. Powell, a faculty member at the School of Education for more than 30 years and an advocate of health education for Boston College students. Ms. Powell, a Wollaston resident and South Boston native, died on Sept. 12.
Ms. Powell joined the School of Education in the 1960s as its director of physical education for women. A member of the South Boston Athletic Hall of Fame, a US Army corporal during the Korean War, and an avid fan of Ď㽜Đăâs athletic teams and the Boston Red Sox, Ms. Powell â who for a time served as faculty advisor to the Ď㽜Đă cheerleading squad âĚýbelieved all students, male and female, could benefit from a formal program of physical education.
But as she told the University subcommittee on Student Well-Being, âFacilities for such a program, at present, are inadequate,â The Heights reported in 1967. She was eventually appointed director of physical education for the University.
Her interest in health-related issues went beyond recreation and exercise. At SOE, she taught courses in health-related subjects such as Human Sexuality, The Responsible Use of Drugs and Alcohol, and Alcohol and Drug Awareness. She also sought to help students find assistance in dealing with alcohol-related issues, as a 1984 article in The Heights noted: ââIâm basically just an initiator,â stated Powell. âKids come to me about their own drinking problem or one within their family.ââ The article added that âPowell refers students with a problem of this nature to a counselor for further help.â
Ms. Powell, who retired as an assistant professor in 1998, was known for her love of animals, and her support of St. Judeâs Childrenâs Hospital and special education. She is survived by her sisters Rita Murray and Ann OâConnell; she was pre-deceased by her siblings Mary Sullivan, Josephine Connolly, Helen Kepple, Katherine, Michael and John.
Thomas Perry
Thomas Perry, whose team-taught core history course earned him a coveted award at Boston College, died on Feb. 8, 2013 at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He was 87.â¨âśÄ¨Dr. Perry joined the History Department faculty in 1964, and taught and researched in the areas of English history, early modern Europe, and the intellectual and cultural history of modern Europe. His publications included Public Opinion, Propaganda and Politics in Eighteenth-Century England: A Study of the Jew Bill of 1753, and numerous reviews in academic journals.â¨âśÄ¨He was best known in the University community for the popular core course in European history he taught with colleague John Heineman â which became popularly known as âthe Perry-Heineman course.â The two had been appointed to a committee charged with recommending core courses; at the time, the two-year sequence in European history had been reduced to one, and Perry and Heineman made a proposal for a course that covered Europe from 1500 to the present â as opposed to what Heineman called a âPlato to NATOâ timeline.â¨âśÄ¨âFrom the beginning, Tom and I just clicked,â said Heineman last week. âWe shared ideas and developed a wonderful working relationship. We felt it was very important for full-time faculty to teach in the core. Tom, in fact, said this was the single-most important core course, and we spent more time on it than anything else we taught.ââ¨â¨In 1997, Dr. Perry and Heineman were chosen for the Phi Beta Kappa Teaching Award, given by students in the Boston College chapter of the academic honor society to faculty members who have achieved distinction as teachers and advisors.â¨âśÄ¨Interviewed by the Chronicle on being selected for the honor, Dr. Perry said the award affirmed the central importance of teaching in the University: âFor many years, Ď㽜Đăâs sole academic mission was the teaching of undergraduates. Today, Ď㽜Đă has become a major university, with a number of missions and purposes. It is important to have reminders, such as this yearly award, that teaching the fine young men and women who make up our undergraduate body, though no longer our sole mission, must remain our central and primary one.ââ¨â¨A former student of Dr. Perry, Michael Duffy â96, said, âTom was a wonderful teacher, who prepared his lectures integrating music, poetry, and art, making history come alive. ĚýHis love of the subject matter was infectious, so much so that I left his class with a love of British history â no small feat for a first-generation Irish American!ââ¨â¨Dr. Perry was active in other aspects of the Universityâs academic life, serving on faculty panels that examined Ď㽜Đăâs core requirements and student issues. He formally retired in 1998 as an associate professor.â¨âśÄ¨A native of Elmira, NY, Dr. Perry graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1950 from Harvard University, where he obtained his doctorate in 1957.â¨âśÄ¨
John Mahoney
Rattigan Professor of EnglishĚýEmeritusĚýJohn L. Mahoney Sr. â50, MA'52, H'03, a beloved faculty member, renowned classroom teacher and literary giant at Boston College for more than half a century, died early today after a brief illness. He was 87. [See below for information regarding visiting hours and services.]
The son of Irish immigrants who was raised in a Somerville triple-decker, Dr. Mahoney was a nationally acclaimed Romantics scholar and authority on the works of poet William Wordsworth. He imparted his love and vast knowledge of poetry and literature to thousands of Boston College undergraduates during 47 years of full-time, uninterrupted teaching, earning Massachusetts Teacher of the Year honors in 1989 from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education.
John L. Mahoney Sr. (Gary Wayne Gilbert)
"Boston College has been a great part of my life," said Dr. Mahoney in a 2012 interview with theĚýBoston College Chronicle, reflecting on his experiences as a student. âI have always been in love with books and learning, but I wanted my learning to be free and open, capable of revision. I began to get that at Boston College, with teachers who werenât asking classes to memorize and be ready to repeat, but who would say, 'Whatâs your opinion of this?' â a real dialogue taking place.â
Dr. Mahoney used dialogue as a central component of his own teaching. âI always saw teaching as a matter of intuition plus preparation,â he told theĚýChronicleĚýin 2002. âI was a teacher who was always prepared but I was not a formal lecturer. I blended lecture with class discussion in search of an exhilarating presentation.âĚýĚý
Dr. Mahoney was also known as a prolific writer, editor and essayist, authoring six books and more than 100 published works. His books, includingĚýWordsworth and the Critics: The Development of a Critical Reputation;ĚýSeeing Into the Life of Things: Essays on Literature and Religion;ĚýWilliam Wordsworth: A Poetic Life;ĚýandĚýThe Whole Internal Universe: Imitation and the New Defense of Poetry in British Criticism and Aesthetics, 1660-1830,Ěýwere used in universities throughout the world.
Boston College Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley praised Dr. Mahoney for his teaching gifts and the unique contribution he made as one of the Universityâs most respected and admired professors. âJohn Mahoney came to Boston College as an undergraduate in the late 1940s and with the exception of a few years across the Charles River for doctoral work at Harvard in the early 1950s, he has been an essential and beloved member of our intellectual community for nearly three-quarters of a century. He has left his mark on generations of our students and faculty colleagues, elevating the University with his commitment to the transcendent power of literature and the imagination. As we mourn the passing of this remarkable teacher-scholar, we celebrate all that he has meant to so many at Boston College over so many years.â
Added longtime colleague Mary Crane, who succeeded Dr. Mahoney as Rattigan Professor of English, âJohn Mahoney was at the center of the English Department at Boston College for many years. He was equally devoted to scholarship and teaching; both were a labor of love for him. He was one of those teachers who transform studentsâ lives, and many students stayed in touch with him over the years. He cherished every note, phone call, and visit that he received from former students. As chair of the English Department at Boston College in the 1960s, he initiated a series of hires that brought promising scholars to Ď㽜Đă and moved the department to a new level of excellence.Ěý As a colleague, he set an important example of generous and unstinting service to the department and the University.Ěý John had a wide range of passionate interests, including not just poetry (his great love), but also theater, jazz, travel, and meteorology. He was always eager to discuss any of these topics and to share his enthusiasm for them with his colleagues and students.âĚýĚý
Joseph Appleyard, SJ, who taught English with Dr. Mahoney early in his career, offered similar praise. âJohn was a good friend and mentor, a well-respected scholar of Romantic poetry, and one of the architects of the modern English Department's rise to prominence in the field of literary studies. But I suspect the achievement he would be most proud of, other than his long and happy marriage and his accomplished family, would be the generations of students he taught to love poetry."
A fervent believer in the value of higher education, Dr. Mahoney felt strongly that academia should not be insular or aloof. âWe have to find ways of articulating what we do in the sciences, in literary criticism, in philosophy, in theology...in a language that is accessible to a society hungry for knowledge,â he toldĚýBoston College MagazineĚýin 1994.
In 2003, Dr. Mahoney was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Boston College, to go along with his undergraduate and masterâs degrees. He also held a doctorate from Harvard University.
The citation for his 2003 honorary degree read, in part: "Outstanding teacher, dedicated university citizen, and renowned Wordsworth authority, he has set a benchmark for faculty quality. His masterful teaching, prolific scholarship, fidelity to Catholic tradition, openness and warmth reflect the Jesuit heritage and unique institutional character he cherishes, breathing new life into classical notions of the humanities and liberal education."
Dr. Mahoney joined the English faculty at Boston College in 1955, serving as chairman from 1962-67 and again from 1969-70. In 1994 he was appointed as the inaugural Thomas F. Rattigan Professor of English. His last class as a full-time professor was chronicled by theBoston GlobeĚýin 2002, in an article that described him as âthe favorite professorĚýeveryoneremembers.â He continued to teach on a part-time basis following his retirement and remained active in the Ď㽜Đă community until this past year.
Dr. Mahoney was considered a mentor to dozens of present day academic luminaries who have made their mark at universities nationwide.
Former student Stephen Fix â74, an 18th-century literature scholar and the Robert G. Scott Professor of English at Williams College, cited Dr. Mahoney as the key influence in his intellectual formation and his decision to pursue a career in academe. âJohn changed my life,â said Fix. âHis example inspired me to want to become a scholar and, especially, a teacher. Iâve met other great teachers in my life, but none is Johnâs equal. He encouraged me and countless others to see that literature can help us discover our deepest human values and commitments.âĚýĚý
A gifted classicist and linguist who spoke Latin, Greek and French, Dr. Mahoney also held a deep passion for jazz as well as theater, and is said to have introduced many of his students over the years to the joys of music and theatrical performances.
His numerous honors included the University's Alumni Award for Excellence and the St. Ignatius Medal from Boston College High School, awarded to the schoolâs most distinguished alumni.
He leaves his beloved wife of 58 years, Ann, three children: John Jr., Patricia and William, all graduates of Boston College, and five granddaughters: Alison Mahoney, Emma Mahoney, Emily OâBrien, Erin OâBrien and Gillian Mahoney. He is also survived by his sisters Margaret P. Mahoney of Lexington, and Mary Louise Hegarty, and her husband, Cornelius, of Belmont.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Professor Mahoney's memory to theĚýBoston College Fund.
--Jack Dunn and Sean Smith, News & Public Affairs
Anne Dhu McLucas (formerly Shapiro)
Anne McLucas, the inaugural chairperson of Boston Collegeâs Music Department, was a victim in a double homicide that occurred Sept. 7 near Eugene, Ore., where she had been living for the past five years. She was 71.
Dr. McLucas, who had served as dean of the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance for 10 years and was to retire from teaching in December, was slain along with her domestic partner, 73-year-old James Gillette, according to police. A man identified as the son of Mr. Gillette was arrested and was arraigned Sept. 10 on two counts of aggravated murder.
An ethnomusicologist as well as a pianist and harpsichordist, Dr. McLucas joined the Boston College faculty in 1987 as an adjunct associate professor and acting director of the music program (she had taught as an instructor from 1969-72). She became associate professor and chair when the program was elevated to full departmental status prior to the 1988-89 academic year; music became a formal major in 1989.
During her tenure, the department built its curriculum, inaugurated its âMusic at Mid-dayâ concert series, and held a special week of concerts and lectures commemorating the birth of Mozart. Under Dr. McLucas, the department also sponsored with the Irish Studies Program an annual Irish music festival that was the precursor to the Universityâs popular Gaelic Roots Music, Song and Dance Summer School, now a concert, workshop and lecture series.
âIt has been quite a time,â said Dr. McLucas, in an interview with Boston College Biweekly at the end of her final semester at Ď㽜Đă, in 1992, before she left for the University of Oregon. âClearly, there were many people at Ď㽜Đă who were ready to experience music on a wide range. I think we have fashioned a unique department, one that respects all kinds of music and reaches out to all kinds of musicians.â
Following her 10-year stint as dean at the University of Oregon School of Music â one of her achievements, according to colleagues, was helping secure state funding for a $19.2 million building renovation â Dr. McLucas served as a professor of music and from 2004-08 as chair of the Musicology and Ethnomusicology Department. Her honors and fellowships included a term as a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar at the University of Edinburgh and the Oregon Music Educators Association âAdministrator of the Yearâ award for 2000.
Dr. McLucas held degrees from the University of Colorado and Harvard University. In addition to Ď㽜Đă and Oregon, she taught at Harvard, Wellesley College and Colorado College.
She is survived by her sister, Caye Dhu Geer, her son, Jacob Shapiro, and three grandchildren.
Dan McCue
Daniel L. McCue, Jr., 94, of Rochester, NY and formerly of Framingham died peacefully Friday August 31, 2012 at his home. He was the beloved husband of 46 years of the late Catharine W. (Weaver) McCue who died in 2000.
Born in Somerville on November 14, 1917 he was the son of the late Daniel L. and Mary (OâMalley) McCue. He attended and graduated from St. Clements High School in Somerville and received an A.B. degree in English from Boston College in 1940 and a Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1974.
A Framingham resident from 1954 until 2007, he was an active communicant of St. Georgeâs Parish in Saxonville, where he was a lay minister of the Eucharist. He moved to Rochester, NY in 2007 to be with his son Daniel L. McCue, III and family.
He retired in 1987 after over forty years of employment as a professor of English Literature at Boston College.
He was a veteran of World War II where he served in the Pacific Theater with the United States Army as an artillery officer. Mr. McCue was an avid and accomplished piano player who enjoyed performing popular music to entertain friends and guests.
He was the father of Caroline (McCue) Gordon and her husband Michael of Woodland Hills, CA; Daniel L. McCue, III and his wife Charlene McPherson of Rochester, NY and Elizabeth (McCue) Haines and her husband John of Bellingham. He was the grandfather of Aaron, Sean, Christopher, David, Patricia, Michael, Jeffrey, Steven and Thomas. Brother of Jeannette Puorro of Los Altos Hills, CA, Joseph McCue of Hampton, NH, Rev. Richard McCue of Exeter, NH, Eugene McCue of Chicopee and the late Mary McQuilkin and the late Arthur McCue.
Ěý(Courtesy of John C. Bryant Funeral Home)
Ron Nuttall
The Boston College community mourned the deaths this summer of Prof. Ronald Nuttall (LSOE) and Platon E. Coutsoukis, assistant director of research and policy development at the Ď㽜Đă Center for Corporate Citizenship.
Mr. Nuttall, a member of the Ď㽜Đă faculty since 1966, died on Aug. 3, 2012 in his Wellfleet home. He was 64.
In one of his most noted research projects, Mr. Nuttall and two colleagues found that Chinese-American pupils who studied Chinese did significantly better in the mathematics portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test. Mr. Nuttall and his fellow researchers theorized that the talents required to decipher the complex Chinese language, with its thousands of individual word-characters, might also be effective in solving math problems.
Mr. Nuttall joined the University as an associate professor of psychology and also worked as an associate in Ď㽜Đă's Institute of Human Sciences. In 1969, Mr. Nuttall became an associate professor of education and director of the Laboratory for Statistical and Policy Research.
He is survived by his wife, Ena Vazquez-Nuttall, of Newton; his children, Key L. Nuttall of Seattle and Kim H. Nuttall of Somerville; his mother, Carrie (Linford) Nuttall of Provo, Utah; and his sisters, Karen Rhodes of Provo, Utah, Cathy Howard of Oren, Utah and Wendy Phillips of Solon, Ohio.Ěý
Judy Kissane
A funeral Mass was celebrated Tuesday in St. Ignatius Church for Judy Kissane, a long-time, highly valued staff member in the Office of the Executive Vice President who died July 6, 2012. â¨â¨Ms. Kissane served 33 of her 36 years at Boston College in the EVPâs office, retiring in 2009. She drew praise for the able assistance she provided to the Ď㽜Đă executive team in a number of major University initiatives, especially in the construction of various new buildings and projects, that helped fuel Ď㽜Đăâs rise to national prominence.â¨âśÄ¨ But many colleagues and friends also looked to her as a mentor, as Kelli Armstrong explained to Boston College Chronicle on the occasion of Ms. Kissaneâs retirement. â¨â¨âBecause Judy has seen the âbig picture,â she would be the one to point out the connections between our efforts, and to foresee any potential conflicts that could produce roadblocks in the future,â said Armstrong, who was recently named University vice president for planning and assessment.â¨âśÄ¨ Ms. Kissane told the gathering at her retirement party that Boston College âhas been a fabulous place to work. Weâve done some great things and everybody here should understand that they do some very good work.â¨âEvery day was a lot of fun,â she said. âIt really was. ââ¨â¨Born in Brooklyn and raised on Long Island, Ms. Kissane began her working career as a claims supervisor for Equitable Life Insurance. In 1973, she took a secretarial position in the University Presidentâs Office at Boston College (her older brother James had been the Ď㽜Đă basketball team captain in 1967-68). Ms. Kissane worked for Vice President Margaret Dwyer for three years, then switched to the support staff of Executive Vice President Frank Campanella, who named her assistant to the EVP in 1980. â¨â¨âJudy was a team player,â Campanella â who died in 2011 â told Chronicle in 2009. âShe kept us focused, and particularly kept the small things from falling through the cracks. She always believed that we could do anything, and I would have to say that she was right. ââ¨â¨She is survived by her brothers James, Robert and Donald, her sister Elizabeth K. Costello, 10 nieces and nephews, and 12 great nieces and nephews.
Thomas H. O'Connor
May 24, 2012.Ěý Dr. O'Connorâs distinguished teaching and writing career spanned more than half a century. He joined the Boston College faculty in 1950, after earning a Ď㽜Đă undergraduate degree in 1949 and completing his master's degree in history the following year. From 1962 to 1970, he served as chairman of the History Department, where he attained the rank of full professor. His fields of interest included mid-19th-century American history, the era of Andrew Jackson, and the Civil War.â¨âśÄ¨"Tom O'Connor was a great scholar, a great teacher, and a great mentor, but he was most of all a great and good man," said Clough Professor of History James O'Toole, who knew Dr. O'Connor both as a student and history department colleague. "Students remember him as a lively lecturer, but he was always demanding.Ěý He would push a student who gave a quick, easy answer to a question with the persistent demand: 'But why?Ěý Why?'â¨â¨"He was generous with colleagues," OâToole added, "endlessly reading and commenting on drafts of new work in addition to his own scholarship.Ěý It will be difficult to think of Boston College without him."â¨â¨Dr. O'Connor, a South Boston native who took his high school diploma from Boston Latin School, served in the U.S. Army in India in World War II before returning to Boston to earn his bachelor and master's degrees at Ď㽜Đă, and a doctorate in 1957 from Boston University.â¨âśÄ¨Best known as a chronicler of his beloved home city, Dr. O'Connor explored in-depth the richly layered history of Boston, bringing its diverse and fascinating heritage to a wide audience.â¨âśÄ¨The prolific author's books includeĚýThe Athens of America: Boston, 1825-1845;ĚýEminent Bostonians;ĚýThe Hub: Boston Past and Present;ĚýBoston A to Z;ĚýBoston Catholics: A History of the Church and its People;ĚýCivil War Boston: Homefront and Battlefield;ĚýThe Boston Irish: A Political History;ĚýBuilding a New Boston: Politics and Urban Renewal 1950 to 1970, andĚýSouth Boston My Hometown: A History of an Ethnic Neighborhood.â¨âśÄ¨He also wrote about Ď㽜Đă, inĚýBoston College A to Z: The Spirit of the HeightsĚý(an e-book from the Universityâs Linden Lane Press);Ěýand Ascending the Heights: A Brief History of Boston College from its Founding to 2008.â¨âśÄ¨Among his dozens of volumes on his native city, Dr. O'Connor editedĚýTwo Centuries of Faith: The Influence of Catholicism on Boston,Ěý1808-2008Ěý(2009), commissioned by Boston College as a gift from the University to the Archdiocese of Boston in recognition of its 200th anniversary, and presented at a campus reception by University President William P. Leahy, S.J., to Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, O.F.M. Cap., archbishop of Boston. The volume of scholarly essays focuses on the various ways in which Catholicism has influenced life and society in the Greater Boston area.â¨âśÄ¨In addition to being a pre-eminent historian of Boston and a prolific publisher of books about the Hub, Dr. OâConnor was a significant educator of future historians. In 2004 at Ď㽜Đăâs Burns Library, these identities came together when professional colleagues, including many former students, gathered to celebrate the publication ofĚýBostonâs Histories: Essays in Honor of Thomas H. OâConnor.â¨âśÄ¨Frequently sought by media for commentary, and author of numerous op-ed pieces, OâConnor was the subject of a 1997 major feature article in the Boston Globe, which dubbed him âBostonâs past master.ââ¨â¨He won a local Emmy Award in 1996 for his role as historical consultant and narrator for the WGBH television documentary "Boston: The Way it Was."â¨â¨Dr. OâConnor was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Bostonian Society, a resident fellow at the Massachusetts Historical Society and a member of the Massachusetts Archives Commission. In 1988, he was named by President Reagan to serve on the Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution, and in 1999, he received the Gold Medal of the Eire Society of Boston.â¨âśÄ¨Boston College presented him with an honorary degree on his retirement from full-time teaching in 1993, during the Universityâs Commencement Exercises. The citation read in part:â¨â¨"[You] have earned renown among peers and a wide popular audience as writer, lecturer, and leading authority on the saga of the Bibles, Brahmins, and Bosses of John Winthropâs storied 'City upon a Hill.' Boston College...delights to honor a resplendent career of surpassing scholarship, loyalty, and service by declaring a truly beloved, twice-claimed son Doctor of Humane Letters."â¨â¨Dr. O'Connor was named the University's official historian in 1999. At the time, he said that chronicling of the past of a university that has played a vital role in the history of the city he loves would be particularly rewarding. "Boston College is the classic monument to the heights that immigrants have achieved in America. It is an institution that was literally built nickel by nickel, brick by brick, by penniless immigrants who wanted to make sure their children got an education. That story is really the story of the Irish in Boston," he told theĚýBoston College Chronicle.â¨âśÄ¨"You come upon Boston College now and itâs glorious, magnificent," he added. âBut the story takes on greater drama when you get behind the façade and look at the work it took to build it.ââ¨â¨The Office of the University Historian, he said, "serves as part of the collective memory of Boston College. It helps preserve the distinctive heritage of the institution for the knowledge and edification of future generations."â¨â¨Dr. O'Connor is survived by his wife of 63 years, Mary; children, Jeanne O'Connor-Green of Milton and Michael of Newburyport (his son Steven is deceased); and two grandsons.â¨âśÄ¨Donations in Dr. O'Connor's memory may be made to the James A. Woods, S.J., College of Advancing Studies at Boston College.
âRosanne Pellegrini and Reid Oslin; Office of News & Public Affairs
Richard Maffei
Former Carroll School of Management Associate Dean Richard B. Maffei, who co-founded the CSOM full-time MBA program,Ěý died on Nov. 7, 2011 at the age of 88.â¨âśÄ¨ Dr. Maffei joined the CSOM computer science faculty in 1967, during a period in which the school was broadening its graduate curriculum. The MBA program, which had begun on a part-time basis in 1957, consisted of 36 credit hours of courses and a thesis until 1965, when it expanded to a 54-60 credit curriculum.â¨âśÄ¨In 1969, Dr. Maffei was appointed associate dean and director of the MBA program, and along with Assistant Dean Raymond Keyes and other faculty members began a study of the schoolâs graduate curriculum. As a result of their work, the school inaugurated a full-time, 54-credit program with 18 required courses and seven electives for the fall 1969 semester.â¨âśÄ¨âThis was his greatest contribution,â said CSOM Associate Professor David Murphy, a longtime colleague who praised Dr. Maffei as a âmassively intellectual guy.â¨âśÄ¨âEstablishing a full-time MBA program was a very significant step for the Carroll School, and for Boston College,â said Murphy.â¨âśÄ¨An MIT graduate, Dr. Maffei served in the US Navy and earned a doctorate in economics from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School. In addition to Ď㽜Đă, he taught at MIT and Dartmouth College. Dr. Maffei retired from Ď㽜Đă in 1998.â¨âśÄ¨Dr. Maffei was pre-deceased by his wife Joyce. He is survived by his children Andy, Greg, Amanda, Eliza and Adam, brothers Gilbert and Arthur, as well as grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Rev. Francis J. Nicholson, SJ
Rev. Francis J. Nicholson, SJ, a retired professor at Boston College Law School, who also served as rector of the Boston College Jesuit Community and a member of the Universityâs Board of Trustees, died on Aug. 26, 2011 at the age of 90.
A native of Medford and a 1942 graduate of Boston College, Fr. Nicholson earned degrees from Georgetown and Harvard Law schools and was ordained a priest in 1953. As a member of the Ď㽜Đă Law faculty from 1958 through 1999, he taught courses in international law, conflicts of law and jurisprudence.
In addition to his service as rector of the Ď㽜Đă Jesuit Community from 1971 through 1978, and later as assistant rector, during the 1960s he was a dormitory prefect in Ď㽜Đă's Upper Campus residence halls.
While fulfilling his roles as teacher, administrator and mentor, Fr. Nicholson found time to say the daily 6 a.m. Mass at St. Mary's Chapel for 25 years â from 1958 through 1993.
In tribute to his service to the University, and Ď㽜Đă Law in particular, the Rev. Francis J. Nicholson, SJ, Award was established, honoring a volunteer whose dedication to the advancement of legal education at Ď㽜Đă Law âreflects the loyalty and constancy of Fr. Nicholson.â
He is survived by his sister Rosemary and brother John.
Jean Mooney
Passed away peacefully on January 8, 2021 from a stroke. Jean was a loving mother to Julie Gorman and John Mooney and a beloved "Grandma" to Kate and Abby Gorman and Tess Mooney. She was born to Anna (Nan) and John (Doc) Bradley of Peabody, MA along with her brothers, Warren and Bob, and sister Barbara. Jean was the last of her generation. She is survived by many nieces and nephews who brought her such joy. Jean was educated at the Newton Country Day School of the Sacred Heart in Newton, MA before matriculating to Smith College. Upon graduation, she journeyed across the country to Stanford University where she earned a Master's degree in education with a focus on early childhood development and speech therapy. She married and taught first grade for a year in southern California. Following seven years as a stay at home mum, she resumed her career back East as a speech therapist in Natick, MA. While loving her job, she knew she wanted to do more to help children with learning disabilities. With that goal in mind, she earned her PhD from Boston College where she began her lifelong career as a professor of special education in the Lynch School of Education. Jean began as a classroom professor and rose to the rank of department chair. She finished her career in her favorite role as teacher. During her tenure at Ď㽜Đă, she was the longtime director of the Campus School that provides students a hands-on practicum focused on children with physical and cognitive disabilities. In addition, she was instrumental in developing The Connors Family Learning Center whose mission is to enhance the quality of learning at Ď㽜Đă by offering services to students with learning disabilities and providing tutoring and skills workshops to all Ď㽜Đă students. Retirement did not slow Jean down. She volunteered at the Saint Columbkille Partnership School and the Gardner Pilot School where she provided a variety of services weekly. She was a leader of the Ď㽜Đă Association of Retired Faculty where she enjoyed making new friendships and nurturing existing ones. Jean also loved her book groups. It is impossible to estimate how many lives she has touched with her endless gifts of time, caring, empathy and love. Jean is missed by all.Ěý
Fr. Philip King
A world renowned scripture scholar, more specifically Old Testament scholar, and longtime professor at both Boston College and St. John Seminary, Father Philip J. King died at Regina Cleri Residence, Boston on Dec. 6, 2019.
A Newton native, he was son of the late Patrick and Alice (McCarthy) King. Born on March 26, 1925, he was raised in Our Lady Help of Christians Parish and attended both the parish elementary and high school prior to entering St. John Seminary. His father was a member of the police department in his hometown.
After college and theology studies in Brighton, he was ordained to the priesthood at Holy Cross Cathedral by Archbishop Richard J. Cushing on May 4, 1949. Of the class of 1949, only Msgr. Francis McGann survives and is living at Regina Cleri.
Following ordination, he served for two years at Immaculate Conception Parish in Revere, until he was appointed to the faculty of Cardinal O'Connell Seminary in Jamaica Plain in 1951. According to seminarians at the time, he was task master about Latin and French and especially about observing "The Rule."
In the fall of 1953, he was sent for initial graduate studies in biblical theology at The Catholic University of America in the nation's capital. Between 1953 and 1957 he was assigned to graduate studies both in Washington and later in Rome. In 1954 he received an STL at CUA; in 1957 he earned an SSL (licentiate in Sacred Scripture) at Rome's Pontifical Biblical Institute and the doctorate in theology at Rome's Lateran University in 1959.
In the summers of these years, he served in residence in several archdiocesan parishes: Mary Immaculate of Lourdes, Newton; and St. Augustine and St. Christopher, both in Boston.
In September 1958, he was appointed to the faculty of St. John Seminary, Brighton, with Old Testament as his field. He was the beneficiary, and so were his students, of the blossoming field of biblical studies encouraged by Pope Pius XII and then later by the Second Vatican Council.
His friend, the late Father James O'Donohoe, told more than a few stories about Phil, but an especially rich one was when both returned from respective studies: King from Old Testament and O'D from Canon Law, each went to meet with Archbishop Cushing to explain his studies, etc.
Phil went first and chatted away with the archbishop and dropped the gem that he had studied "Egyptology" among other things. The archbishop gave him his faculty appointment and in comes O'D. He tells the archbishop he had studied Canon Law; without missing a beat, according to O'D' at least, in his raspy, gravelly voice Cushing said "Thanks be to God you studied something we can use in the archdiocese. That fellow (King) who was just here studied Egyptology ... and we don't have a single Egyptian in the whole archdiocese."
During the next 16 years at St. John, he instilled a love of the Old Testaments in hundreds of seminarians. He was obviously in love with his subject and wanted his students to be as well. He was especially in love with the Psalms and anyone who had him teach Psalms came away from his course completely refocused on them on new ways.
Another corpus he loved was that of the prophets; peppered among his publications are commentaries and articles on Amos, Hosea and Micah. He told seminarians that the job of a prophet was "to comfort the afflicted, and to afflict the comfortable" -- and that would be an aspect of priestly ministry.
Already in these years he was expanding his biblical reach and interest and his membership and leadership in both Catholic and ecumenical biblical associations was impressive: he was a member or officer or both of Catholic Biblical Association; Society of Biblical Literature; W.F. Albright Institute of Archeological Research; American School of Oriental Research; among others.
His curriculum vitae in 1997 just prior to his retirement ran to seven pages of memberships and publications.
In 1974, he travelled across Commonwealth Avenue and for the next quarter century dazzled both graduate and undergraduate students in his various classes at Boston College -- all Old Testament. As much as a task master as he had been at Cardinal O'Connell, he was much more relaxed and personable with his Ď㽜Đă students.
Between 1974 and 1999, while on lend lease to Boston College he also served in three parishes: St. Timothy, Norwood (with his classmate friend the late Bishop Joseph Ruocco); St. Mary of the Annunciation, Cambridge (closer to Harvard where he had developed many relationships academic and personal) and St. Cecilia, Boston.
During his later seminary faculty years and Boston College years, he led many "digs" to archeological sites across the Middle East, Egypt, Israel and Jordan being regular destinations. Obviously, he could entertain for hours with tales from the "Digs" not just technically but also about the friends he had made among the local populations and the characters he encountered on the treks.
Following his retirement from academe in 1999, he lived in his own residence; then at Youville House, Cambridge and finally at Regina Cleri, Boston. He had a few health issues, but nothing that limited his activity and teaching, even in retirement. It was not until he moved his residence to Regina Cleri that he really slowed down.
His physical stamina continued to decline, but his mind was still alert and he much appreciated visits from his cadre of appreciative former students. Even until a few days before his death, visitors were coming and going to his room at Regina Cleri.
During 70 years of priestly ministry, Father Philip King inspired generations of students to love the scriptures. He advised to "read the Old Testament as the writers intended it to be read" ... or as he more succinctly put it ... "Read it as a good Jew would read it."
He urged his priest students to base their preaching on solid biblical study and constant updating of their own biblical knowledge.
As one of those students said "Now he can speak Hebrew with Jesus.
Ěý
Nancy McCarthy
McCARTHY, Nancy (Curro) Age 93, died peacefully on Tuesday, March 31, 2020 following a brief illness. She was born in Washington, D.C., the daughter of the late Luigi Curro and Antionette (Ruggieri) Curro. Nancy is survived by her son Robert John McCarthy, DVM and his wife Paula J. McCarthy of Grafton. Grandmother of Nick P. McCarthy and his wife Anna Babcock of Stow and Sara P. McCarthy and David Viola of Grafton. She is also survived by her siblings Thomas Curro and his wife Patricia Curro of Burtonsville, MD, Nina Fleri of Hyattsville, MD and Angelo Curro of Edgewater, MD. She is also survived by many nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Nancy spent her formative years in Washington, D.C. and attended the public schools. In 1948, she received her registered nursing degree from Washington, D.C. General Hospital. In 1968, she received her BS from Boston College Connell School of Nursing, her Master's Degree in Community Health Nursing in 1970 from Boston University and her PhD in Education from Boston University in 1979. She was a member of Alpha Chi Sigma and Alpha Sigma Nu. She had a long and distinguished professional career as a nurse in various hospital and community settings as well local doctor's offices in Washington, D.C. and Rhode Island before settling in Massachusetts. Nancy was a member of many nursing organizations, both on a local and national level. In 1980, she spent a year with Project Hope in Recife, Brazil at the Federal University of Pernambuco in the advanced rural community health nursing program curriculum for primary care nursing. For over 23 years, Nancy held the position of Associate Professor at the Boston College Connell School of Nursing. She held various positions, including Instructor, Assistant Professor and Associate Professor with tenure. Upon her retirement, she remained active as a volunteer in the Natick community, as well as a longtime volunteer and communicant of St. Zepherin Church in Cochituate Village, Wayland. She was devoted to her faith and always found the time to assist others in need. Nancy was a resident of Natick for over 56 years before moving to Carmel Terrace in Framingham for the past several years, and became involved in their activities. Private family Services and interment will be held at St. Zepherin Cemetery in Cochituate Village, Wayland. In light of the current health concerns, a Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at a date and time to be announced. In lieu of flowers, Nancy's wishes were for memorial gifts to be sent to Boston College Connell School of Nursing, Maloney Hall, 140 Commonwealth Ave., Chestnut Hill, MA 02467 or to Good Shepherd Parish, 99 Main St., Wayland, MA 01778 and would be greatly appreciated.
Ěý
David McKenna
David R. McKennaâa longtime management professor who is remembered for his âunparalleled commitmentâ to Boston College and the Carroll School of Managementâdied on May 24 at Lahey Clinic Hospital in Burlington, Mass. He was 73 and had retired from the Carroll School in 2014.
McKennaâs active participation in the Boston College community spanned 50 yearsâas an undergraduate management student, an MBA student, a part-time instructor, and finally, a full-time professor for 30 years. For 19 of those years, he directed the Carroll School Honors Program and took special pride in the First Serve Program, which sent Honors students into Boston communities for volunteer service.
âDave had an unparalleled commitment to the students as well as to Ď㽜Đă in general,â said John and Linda Powers Family Dean Andy Boynton. âHe had a great way of challenging students inside and outside the classroom, to further their formation and development as professionals and as human beings.â
Boynton and others also pointed out that McKenna was the first Carroll School professor to heavily emphasize the teaching of quantitative skills in management, a field now widely known as business analytics. âHe brought analytics to the Carroll School long before it became all the rage in schools of management and the business world,â the dean said. âHe paved the way for all that. And he was always a great colleague, great to be around.â
By all accounts, McKenna was no pushover in the classroom.
âHe was not an easy professor. He was demanding,â said Operations Management Professor and department chair Samuel Graves, who co-taught âMath for Management Scienceâ with McKenna for ten years. âEven the strongest students were challenged by his courses. And in fact, it was the best students who loved him the most. They were drawn to him. He was an exceptional mentor for those students and many others.â
Graves added that McKenna also had a âgreat rapport with student athletes.â As an undergraduate, he was a varsity Eagles baseball star who had also captained his high-school football team in Beverly, Mass. âAnd he was a wonderful colleague, always willing to help out.â
Indeed, the lessons he imparted often traveled well beyond the bounds of management studies, said Joe Raelin, a Carroll School professor for 26 years until 2002.
âHe taught them some of the fundamental principles of character in preparation for their graduation, such as: integrity, humility, and dignity,â Raelin said by email. âFor example, no request for special [extra] credit was offered; one earned what one earned and no one advanced other than through hard work. Most of Daveâs plaudits came well after graduation once students in the workforce realized that his lessons of character came to fruition helping them honorably make their way in both life and work.â
Students kept turning to him. As reported by the Boston Globe in a May 31 obituary, McKenna was âparticularly humbled and honored to be selected by students to appear in a Boston College national admissions video.â
McKenna the Double Eagle earned his undergraduate business degree in 1968, having focused on Operations Management. In 1970, with his newly minted MBA, he began teaching elective courses at the Carroll School while working at several companies, before coming aboard as a full-time (non-tenure-track) professor in 1984. He continued teaching in the Operations Management Department for the next three decades.
He and his wife of 52 years, Jean A. (Krupsky) McKenna, had been living in Peabody, Mass. In addition to Jean, McKennaâs survivors include a daughter, Michele Iannaco, and a son, Alex McKenna â94 (another Boston College and Carroll School Double Eagle who earned his B.S. in management with a concentration in finance and economics, followed by an M.S. in Finance in 2001).
Ěý
Bob OâMalley
Prof. Emeritus Robert F. OâMalley (Chemistry) taught chemistry at Boston College from 1947 until his retirement in 1988. Prof. OâMalley died on Feb. 16 at the age of 86. Born in Framingham, Prof. OâMalley graduated from Boston College in 1940. After serving in the US Army during World War 11, he joined the Chemistry faculty in 1947 while completing his masterâs degree. He added a doctorate in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute ofTechnology in 1961. Prof. OâMalley was a member of the American Chemical Society, Ashland Historical Society and was a trustee of the Ashland Public Library. He is survived by five children, nine grandchildren and four great grandchildren. Prof. OâMalley was married to the late Margaret (Bailey) OâMalley for 56 years before her death in 2000
Sandra Mott
Sandra R. Mott, WESTON, MA - Sandra Ruth Mott passed away after a long battle against pancreatic cancer. Sandy was a devoted nurse, teacher and mentor, and a loving wife, mother and grandmother. She leaves her husband, Stephen Charles Mott, with whom she shared 56 years of marriage; her children, Adam Mott and his wife, Lee Mott, Rachel Mott Keis and her husband, Matthew Keis and Sarah Lavelle and her husband, Scott Lavelle; one sister, Lois Hoisington; and her beloved seven grandchildren, Aidan Mott, Lauren Mott, Liam Keis, McKenzie Keis, Sienna Lavelle, Benjamin Lavelle, and Luke Lavelle. Sandy was an Associate Professor of Nursing at Boston College, where she taught from 1979-2011. Her achievements were recognized nationally and she served as president of the Society of Pediatric Nursing from 2006 to 2008. After her retirement from academia in 2011, Sandy continued her career as a nurse researcher and mentor to numerous nurses at Boston Children's Hospital until 2021.
Jean O'Neil
Jean A. OâNeil, age 88, of Bridgewater, formerly of Watertown, died Friday, September 2, 2022. Born on January 4, 1934 in Brockton, Massachusetts, Jean was the eldest child of Arthur M and Anna M (Spillane) OâNeil. Jean attended Brockton Public Schools graduating from Brockton High School class of 1951. She also graduated cum laude from Boston College School of Nursing in 1955 with a B.A. in Nursing, went on to complete her Masterâs Degree at Boston College in Nursing and Education in 1963 and earned her Ed.D Doctor of Education degree in 1985 from Boston University. Jean was a faculty fellow at Harvard Medical School Division of Aging and Geriatric Education Center 1992-Â-1993.
She was an active and long-Â-time member of American Nurses Association, Sigma Theta Tau International, Pi Lambda Theta, and NANDA International, as well as past President of the Boston College Alumni Association, the first woman to hold that position.
As a young nurse Jean worked as a Brockton Visiting Nurse walking the city with her black bag, as was the practice then. Upon the introduction of the Salk and Sabin polio vaccines, Jean helped to administer hundreds of vaccinations at City clinics. She also practiced nursing at various hospitals, particularly the Carney Hospital in Boston.
Jeanâs first love was teaching nursing, which she did for several years at the Catherine Laboure School of Nursing and then at Boston College beginning in 1969. During her tenure at Ď㽜Đă, she filled in as acting Dean of the School of Nursing. She got a big kick out of being âDean Jean.â Over the years she mentored and coached scores of students that were in danger of failing, as well as recent graduates who were having trouble passing their licensing board examinations.
Jean authored and co-Â-authored many chapters and articles in various professional publications and books. Upon her retirement in 2002 from Boston College, the nursing faculty established, in her honor, The Jean A OâNeil Achievement Award, which is presented to a graduate at each commencement convocation.
A devout practicing Catholic active in her churches, Jean worked in CCD during the time of radical change that came with Vatican II. For many years she was a Eucharistic Minister bringing the sacrament to the homebound, sick and elderly.
Her vast collection of photographs, slides and home movies that she took over the years, are a visual chronology of her family, friends and the world around her. She was an avid reader and lover of theater, music, history and art particularly the works of Claude Monet. For decades Jean was a member of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts often taking nephews and nieces to the museum and instilling a love for fine art in them. She thoroughly enjoyed travel both for business and pleasure, visiting Ireland and several other European countries, as well as Australia. She visited many states in the USA including Hawaii and Alaska where she flew in a seaplane and stepped out of a helicopter onto a glacier.
Jean loved watching old movies with her friends; she belonged to two book clubs and looked forward every spring to her gardens, a love that was passed down to her by her parents and grandmother. She also loved beaches, particularly Cape Cod where she regularly went to visit with friends right up to just before her passing.
Above all Jean treasured her family and friends. She leaves her brother Arthur of Mansfield, his wife Diane, their son Matthew, his wife Amira and their son George of London, England. She was the dear sister of the late Lois Loughlin and her late husband Bernard Loughlin. She will be missed by her nieces Sheila Prendeville of Pembroke, MA, her husband Kevin and their children Kevin, Anna and Bryan; Christine Loughlin of Brandon, FL; Marjorie Lowell of Amherst, NH, her husband Dennis and their children Samuel, Jack and Sadie; Paula Olsen of Wilbraham, MA her husband RobertJean O'Neiland their daughters Emily, Nora and Molly. She was the dear aunt of the late Joseph Loughlin. Jean is also survived by many friends and former students.
Michael Martin
Michael "Mike" Chauncey MartinJune 7, 1952 - July 2, 2022Boston, Massachusetts - Michael "Mike" Chauncey Martin passed away suddenly Saturday July 2nd, 2022 in Boston Massachusetts at the age of 70.Mike, born in Council Idaho, grew up in Boise during the 50's and 60's, the oldest child in a gregarious active family, in a neighborhood booming with kids and lots of things to do.Mike was smart and engaging, with a quick and very dry sense of humor. Mike, with his close group of friends at Borah High, was active in student government, "acted" in school assembly plays, participated in school sports, and was a skilled skier. Mike attended the first Humanities class at Borah, sparking his lifelong love of books.Mike spent many summers working alongside his grandfather, Loyal Campbell, on the Circle C Ranch in Meadows Idaho herding cattle on horseback, managing the valley irrigation water, bailing hay, driving an old International Harvester pickup truck, developing a deep affection for the area and the memories from that time. Founded in the late1870's in central Idaho, the Circle C was a large cattle ranch holding to the old west traditions.His life would forever change when in 1970, after graduating from Borah High School, Michael moved from Boise to Seattle launching his life of learning. First, graduating from the Honors Program at Seattle University in 1973, then earning his PhD from the University of Michigan. While at Michigan he began teaching and met Gail, also a PhD candidate and they were married in 1989.For over three decades, Michael, Gail and their boys enjoyed summers at the lake in upstate Wisconsin. Michael loved to fly fish from his kayak using flies he tied over the winter months.At the time of his death, he had been an active faculty member at Boston College for over 30 years including several years serving as Associate Dean, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences.He leaves behind his wife Gail Hoffman, and their sons Martin Hoffman and Arthur Hoffman. He also will be missed by his siblings Vanessa Lang (Craig), Virginia Pellegrini, Vivian Martin, and Rick Martin (Bea), Gail's siblings Ruth Major and Susan Francesconi, and several nieces and nephews.His parents, Chauncey "Mickey" and Berniece Campbell Martin, precede him in death.A family memorial will be held at the Meadows Valley Cemetery the summer of 2023.
Published by Idaho Statesman on Jul. 12, 2022.
Marvin Rintala
"Professor Marvin Rintala was a beloved political science professor at Boston College," said W. Paul White, a former student of Dr. Rintala and former director of government affairs at Ď㽜Đă. "Marvin was brilliant, witty, incisive, and passionate about the study of European political systems and the personalities of the leaders of these countries. He inspired generations of Boston College students to study, understand, and appreciate the systems of government 'across the pond.'
"I am forever grateful for the grace of having known him, been mentored by him, and for his friendship of over 55 years. I have appreciated our many lunches, calls, visits, and conversations these many years with our mutual dear friend Franklyn Salimbene," said White, who noted that he had a lengthy visit with Dr. Rintala in August.
A native of Cloquet, Minn., Dr. Rintala joined the University in 1963 after having been on the Brown University faculty. He specialized in the politics of Western Europe and social forces and published five books and numerous articles over the course of his career at Ď㽜Đă.
His notable publications include Lloyd George and Churchill: How Friendship Changed History, an in-depth study of the personal and political relationship of two of Great Britainâs most prominent prime ministers of the 20th century, David Lloyd George and Winston Churchillâoften referred to as âthe Heavenly Twinsâ by envious colleagues. Publishers Weekly praised Dr. Rintalaâs âmasterful expositionâ in comparing Lloyd George and Churchillâs formative years, the development of their oratorical and writing skills, the character of their mental depressions, and how they supported one another during times of stress.
Dr. Rintala, who was of Finnish descent, also authored Four Finns: Political Profiles, a portrait of Gustaf Mannerheim, Vaino Tanner, K.J. Stahlberg, and J.K. Paasiviki, who played foundational roles in shaping Finlandâs politics and government. In another book, he recounted the creation and development of Great Britainâs National Health Service.
Among his other activities at the University, Dr. Rintala was a presenter in a wide-ranging lecture series, âModern Man: The Cultural Tradition,â launched by the College of Arts and Sciences in 1965. He also was part of a group of faculty members in the 1960s that advocated for the establishment of an institute to study policies and practices in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.
Fittingly for a political scientist, Dr. Rintalaâknown for his dry wit and devotion to studentsâmustered some support in a 1966 mock election on campus in which undergraduates cast ballots for several major offices: He received two votes to represent Massachusetts in the United States Senate, and one for Massachusetts governor.
He retired from Ď㽜Đă in 2004.Dr. Rintala earned a bachelorâs degree from the University of Chicago, and attended Helsinki University as a Fulbright Scholar. He received masterâs and doctoral degrees from the Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He later created a scholarship fund for graduates of his alma mater, Cloquet High School.
Vera Lee
Born in New Haven, CT., Prof. Lee earned a B.A. from Rusell Sage College, a M.A. from Yale University and a Ph.D. from Boston University. She joined the French faculty in 1964, eventually gaining the rank of full professor. Remaining in full-time teaching until 1986, she also served as department chair for five years. In 1988, after two further years of part-time teaching, she was named Professor Emerita by the university. Among the honors received by her are the âPalmes AcadĂŠmiquesâ from the French Ministry of Education and a Carnegie Gilman Fellowship. Her published scholarly work include The Reign of Women in Eighteenth-Century France; A Key to Literary Criticism in French; and The Quest for a Public: French Popular Theater since 1945. She also edited the American edition of the stage play by Eugene Ionesco, Victimes du devoir, which included illustrations by Ionesco created upon request by Prof. Lee. She remained active in her scholarly work well into her retirement, producing, for example, in 2011, On the Trail of Harry Potter, the first book-length literary analysis of all the Harry Potter volumes published at that point.Ěý
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Schwartz, KennethĚý(d. 2015)
Scigliano, RobertĚý(d. 2019)
Seldon, HoraceĚý(d. 2018)
Shea, JackĚý(d. 2015)
Siciliano, ErnestĚý(d. 2019)
Skehan S.J., Jim (d. 2020)
Smith, Elliott (d. 2023)
Smith, EdwardĚý(d. 2016)
Smith, CharlesĚý(d. 2019)
Soo, FrancisĚý(d.2018)
Taminiaux Jaques (d. 2022)Ěý
Thie, PaulĚýĚýĚý(d. 2020)
Travers, JohnĚý(d. 2011)
Van Tassel, JohnĚý(d. 2011)
Veeder, NancyĚý(d. 2018)
Von Hendy, AndrewĚý(d. 2018)
Wardle, MiriamĚý(d. 2013)
Wells, NormanĚý(d. 2013)
White, ElizabethĚý(d. 2011)
Williams, LeonĚý(d. 2018)
Wilson, PeteĚý(d. 2020)
Wolfman, NeilĚý(d. 2020)
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Wilson, Pete (d. 2020)
Pete Wilson had a ready response whenever people asked him about his widely acclaimed success as a teacher. He would say that heâs a âvery goodâ teacher but that he has a âgreatâ class, just as heâs a âvery goodâ husband with a âgreatâ family. It was his way of making the point that nobody succeeds on their ownâand when you begin to realize this, youâre on what he called âthe journey from me to we.â
The accounting professor did not hide the fact that he sometimes struggled to live up to his own words. âYou have to say it for years before you believe it,â Wilson told a reporter in 2016. âAnd then you wake up one morning and say, âI canât do this without them.ââ
G. Peter Wilsonâone of the most beloved professors in the history of the Carroll School and Boston Collegeâdied on September 12 at his home in Tampa, Florida. He was 73; the cause of death was complications from Parkinsonâs disease, said Mary Ellen Carter, a Carroll School accounting professor and close friend of the Wilson family.
Wilson was the holder of the Joseph L. Sweeney Chair in Accounting at the Carroll School, before retiring in December 2018 and becoming an emeritus professor. He made his name as an academic researcher well before arriving at Boston College in 1997, having taught at Stanford, Harvard, and MIT At a certain point, though, Wilson decided that he had made his most noteworthy contributions to accounting scholarship. He turned his prodigious energy and passion to the art and craft of teaching.
âPete was the very definition of a master teacher,â said John and Linda Powers Family Dean Andy Boynton, pointing to the plethora of awards and honors that Wilson received for excellence in teaching from major organizations within and beyond the accounting world. âHe was also a great and generous mentor of teachers at our school and in the accounting discipline.â There was little to deliberate on, when it came time to formally name the Carroll Schoolâs flagship series of seminars on excellence in teaching: In 2014, it became the Wilson Faculty Teaching Seminar.
âTeaching was Peteâs signature craft,â Boynton added, âbut he also was a superb scholar. He exemplified careful thought and assessment of a wide variety of theoretical and empirical research.â
âThereâs a fine line between challenging them and killing them ... You have to know when youâre wrong. Thatâs part of the journey from me to we.â
He had a chirpy voice and a penchant for audacious neckties. (As to the ties, he would explain that he was âshort, bald, and skinny,â thus eager to focus attention elsewhere.) In the halls of Fulton, he was perhaps most legendary for the sheer amounts of work he piled on studentsâwho would give him rave reviews on teacher evaluations nonetheless (a familiar refrain being that they never thought accounting could be so interesting). At times, he would push too hard, and Wilson would do something unusual for a professor of his stature: He would apologize to the students.
âThereâs a fine line between challenging them and killing them,â he acknowledged a few years ago. âYou have to know when youâre wrong. Thatâs part of the journey from me to we.â
Among his peers in the accounting discipline, he was known for his many innovations in teaching, which is why he earned awards too numerous to list in full, among them the American Accounting Association Lifetime Service Award and the first Innovation in Financial Accounting Education Award (along with a raft of honors bestowed upon excellent teachers across all disciplines at institutions where he taught). Some of those new strategies were tech-oriented. He was an early adopter of interactive clickers in class, for example. On this and other teaching initiatives, his indispensable collaborator was his wife, Carolyn, a Carroll School lecturer who had served in senior positions at top accounting firms. Carolyn Wilsonâs role in his classes became even more pivotal some years ago as her husband began struggling with Parkinsonâs.
Wilson was an advocate as well as an innovator of the flipping-the-classroom model of teaching. âWith the flipped class, students learn lower-level thinking skills on their own prior to class, which frees up class time to cover higher-level critical thinking,â he explained in a March 2015 lecture on teaching to the full Carroll School faculty.
His class was no place for anyone lukewarm on teamwork and collaboration. He would assign students to teams at the start of the semester: âI want them to teach each other before they come back to class,â he said in a fall 2011 profile published in Boston College Magazine. Entering his classroom was like taking your mark for a road race. In rapid and repeated sequences, Wilson would often lecture for a few minutes, and then abruptly call the students into their groups for quick huddles to continue tackling the subject matter.
The magazine article quoted Michelle Mittelsteadt, M.B.A. â01, who began her studies at the Carroll School not expecting to actually like accounting. She was a Ph.D. chemist, intent on becoming a research-and-development manager. Then, in her first semester, in the fall of 1999, she enrolled in Wilsonâs required class. âHe made it exciting,â she recalled. âIt totally changed what I wanted to do.â She became a financial analyst at Ernst & Young in Boston.
âPete would have been a good Jesuit.âĚý (MARY ELLEN CARTER)
A popular tradition in Wilson courses was to devote the last class of the semester to reflections. Students would step up to reflect on their priorities in life, along with their experiences of personal, social, and intellectual growth in connection with his courses like Financial Accounting (taken mostly by freshmen and sophomores). Then, the professor would share advice such as âdonât judge yourself too quicklyâ and âdonât be afraid to fail.â
âPete would have been a good Jesuit. He figured out discernment,â said Carter, alluding to those reflections.
She had known the Wilsons since the mid-1990s when she was a Ph.D. student at MIT and he was still teaching there, just before coming to Boston College. âAs a friend, he would be the loudest reveler when good things happened to you and empathetic and consoling when bad things happened,â she said.
Carter relates that she last spoke with him on September 4, just about a week before he died. He and Carolyn had called her to get the scoop on the first week of hybrid teaching (lecturing simultaneously to students in class and online). On speakerphone, she shared with them some of the initial glitches and snafus with the technology and other aspects of hybrid teaching. âI could hear Pete laughing out loud,â she said. âMaybe he was finally happy he retired?â
When he died of pneumonia related to his Parkinsonâs, he was at home with Carolyn as well as with their two children, Jim and Jennifer, who have given the Wilsons seven grandchildren.
Delivering the sad news in an email, Boynton informed Carroll School faculty and staff that plans were underway for a virtual memorial service hosted by the American Accounting Association; and beyond that, a celebration of his life would take place at Boston College sometime next year. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting contributions to the Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases at Brigham and Womenâs Hospital, where Wilson was diagnosed with Parkinsonâs.
William Bole is director of content development at the Carroll School.
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Skehan S.J., Jim
director of the Universityâs Weston Observatory, and a dedicated researcher who was honored for his contributions to earth science by the naming a half-billion-year-old genus of trilobite after himâdied on November 1 at the age of 97.
Fr. Skehanâs scientific work focused on the geology of the Northeastern United States and the Avalon terrane, which extends from Belgium to the southern Appalachians. He wrote the Roadside Geology of Massachusetts, a 400-page illustrated guide to the geological history and makeup of the Commonwealth, and followed that with Roadside Geology of Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Fr. Skehan founded the Boston College Department of Geology (now Earth and Environmental Sciences) in 1958 and served as its first chairman. From 1973 to 1993, he directed Boston Collegeâs Weston Observatory, a geophysical research observatory that monitors seismic activity across the globe and a frequent resource for the media in their coverage of earthquakes. He was named 1976 Teacher of the Year by the National Association of Geology Teachers.
Among his other service to the University, Fr. Skehan was acting dean for the College of Arts and Sciences from 1972-1973, and for some years was the announcer at Boston Collegeâs Commencement Exercises, providing narration for the processional and other stages of the event.
A man of faith and science, his roles as priest and geologist were perhaps never more dramatically intertwined as when he co-organized a 1970 expedition to Surtsey, a new island that had formed off the coast of Iceland in the wake of a volcanic eruption. Funded by Boston College and NASA, the exploration provided dozens of scientists with a rich, living laboratory for observation. It also gave Fr. Skehan the opportunity to celebrate the first Mass ever on the island.
Fr. Skehan never saw conflict in his devotion to both science and faith, once telling the Boston College Chronicle: "If you look at a beautiful sunset, or how mountains are formed, or observe how continents move, you can view it either as science or as God speaking to you, or both. I do both. What I do as a scientist is no different from what I do listening to the cosmic word of God. It's nice to have both [science and faith]âin fact, it makes everything so exhilarating. What could be more marvelous?"
In 2002, Mount Holyoke College geologist/paleontologist Mark McMenamin named a new genus of trilobite, Skehanos, in Fr. Skehanâs honor. Skehanos is a marine invertebrate that lived more than 500 million years ago and whose fossil was discovered in Quincy, Mass.
The naming of Skehanos was only one of the special ways Fr. Skehan was honored during his storied career. Author Sarah Andrews created a fictional Fr. Jim Skehan character for In Cold Pursuit, her mystery novel set in Antarctica. In 2012, a bronze bust in Fr. Skehanâs likeness was unveiled at the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences on the occasion of his 89th birthday; the bustâs base, from the Le Masurier Family Quarry in North Chelmsford, Mass., is made from Chelmsford Granite, one of Fr. Skehanâs favorite rocks.
In 2013, his friends and colleagues established the James W. Skehan, S.J., Graduate Research Awards to offer financial support for graduate student research in Earth and Environmental Sciences and at Weston Observatory.
ĚýâFr. Skehan was the founder and beating heart of our department,â said Professor Ethan Baxter, chair of Earth and Environmental Sciences. âHe sparked joy and curiosity about the Earth and its deep history for thousands of students at Ď㽜Đă and for the general public through his popular books about local geology. He did fundamental research on supercontinents and tectonic evolution written in the rocks of New England. I still have a copy of one of his field books that I followed as a child growing up in the Boston area driving and walking with my own father to sites of geological interest. Fr. Skehan was an inspiration to so many and he will be missed.Ěý His legacy is strong in the department he founded decades ago.â
Long-time departmental colleagues echoed Baxterâs remarks.
âFr. Jim, as he was known to all, was a multifaceted scholar and a friend to everyone,â said Professor John Ebel, who succeeded Fr. Skehan as Weston Observatory director (he stepped down in 2013 and is now senior research scientist). âHe could expound for hours on the history of the rocks of New England, but he also could talk about the finer points of the theology of Teilhard de Chardin, S.J. He wrote several works on religion and the science of evolution, both of which he found perfectly compatible. He married many of his students, led Ignatian retreats for friends and strangers, and taught courses in geology in ways that always connected with his students. He fully supported the earthquake monitoring mission of Weston Observatory. It is seldom that I meet a geologist or an alum of Ď㽜Đă who did not interact in some happy way with Fr. Jim.â
Said Associate Professor and Weston Observatory Director Alan Kafka, âFr. Jim was not just a great scientist and educator, he was a mentor and friend to many people he encountered in the many dimensions of his long and very full life. He loved teaching people of all ages about the wonders of planet Earth, and also loved being engaged in all aspects of the fullness of life with so many he encountered.â
âHe had an outgoing personality and made a great many friends,â said Professor Emeritus J. Christopher Hepburn, Fr. Skehanâs successor as department chair. âHe always greeted his friends, colleagues, and former students he hadnât seen for a while with a simple âHiâ and a handshake, and always by nameâhe never forgot a name.â
Hepburn, who called Fr. Skehan âa distinguished and prolific researcher,â pointed out that he was among the first geologists to apply the concept of plate tectonics to the formation of the northeastern Appalachians. He also noted that Surtseyâstill smoldering when Fr. Skehan said Mass thereâwas later declared a UNESCO World Heritage site for the unique opportunity it provides to study the colonization of new land by plant and animal life.
âA fantastic colleague, leader, mentor, and friend,â said Hepburn. âHe will be missed.â
Fr. Skehan was the recipient of the American Institute of Professional Geologistsâ Ben H. Parker Memorial Medal, honoring individuals with long records of distinguished and outstanding service in the field of geology, among other honors.
Born in Houlton, Me., Fr. Skehan was the oldest of seven children. His father worked for Western Union and his mother was a seamstress. The practice of their Catholic faith was an important part of family life and the rosary was regularly recited after dinner. As a teenager, he enjoyed being outsideâcamping and hikingâor participating in track and field activities. He maintained his love of the outdoors throughout most of life. He was part of a crew that cleared trees to make way for the erection of the Weston Observatory and was often photographed with his trusty pickaxe in hand.
Fr. Skehan entered the Society of Jesus in 1940, was ordained in 1954, and made final vows in 1957. A noted spiritual leader, he authored Place Me With Your Son: Ignatian Spirituality in Everyday Life, which he used throughout the 1980s and â90s to lead 24-week group retreats based on St. Ignatiusâ Spiritual Exercises. He also wrote Praying with Teilhard de Chardin, on the life and thought of French Jesuit paleontologist and philosopher Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J., and contributed to the volume The Dialogue between Science and Religion: What we Have Learned From One Another.
He earned bachelor of science and master of arts degrees from Boston College in 1946 and 1947, respectively, and graduated with a doctorate in geology from Harvard University in 1953. He then attended Weston College where he earned a bachelor of sacred theology, master of theology and licentiate in sacred theology. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree by Boston College in 1998.
University Communications | November 2020
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Francis Soo
The retired professor of philosophy, who taught elements of Chinese and Eastern thought at Ď㽜Đă for more than 30 years, has died at age 80
Born in Xuzho, China, Dr. Soo was baptized a Catholic at an early age, and left his native country when he was 18. He joined the Jesuit order and was ordained in 1971, the year he came to Boston for graduate studies in classical Chinese history at Harvard University. But his plans to complete his Jesuit training took a different turn: He met a graduate student named Margaret Hackenberger, who would one day become his wife; and he entered the doctoral program in philosophy at Boston College, where he joined the faculty in 1978.
In addition to foundational courses such as Ethics, Contemporary Ethics, and Philosophy of Person, Dr. Soo taught classes that reflected his ties to both East and West including Classical Chinese Philosophy; Comparative Religion: East and West; Taoism, Psychology and Existentialism. Dr. Soo also was a faculty member in the Woods College of Advancing Studies, where he taught his popular class Marriage and the Family.
Dr. Sooâs dedication to teaching went above and beyond the typical: In one of his classes, he had his students practice Zen meditationâand handcrafted almost two-dozen stools so they could do it properly. He later served on a task force studying student formation as part of the University Academic Planning Council initiative in the mid-1990s.
In 1992, he was honored as Teacher of the Year by the Boston College chapter of the National Jesuit Honor Society, Alpha Sigma Nu. Interviewed by the Boston College BiWeekly, Dr. Soo explained his passion for his profession: âAn old Chinese proverb says, âTo teach is to learn; to learn is to live.â This ancient wisdom seems true in my teaching career. In teaching, I continue to learn; in learning, I continue to live, to grow and to mature. The more I teach students, the more I learn from them and hence love them.â
Dr. Soo, who retired from Ď㽜Đă in 2004, sought to maintain his connections to his Chinese roots, keeping in touch with and visiting relatives in his native country and establishing links to the countryâs academic communityâhe served as a visiting professor to the universities in Lanzhou, Nanjing, and Shandong and the Huazhong Institute of Technology, and helped several family members and Chinese scholars pursue study in the U.S.ĚýĚý
He is survived by his wife, Margaret; sons David and Jeffrey; and two grandchildren.
"My father loved teaching Ď㽜Đă students for more than 30 years, both new freshman and adults taking classes through the Woods College," said David Soo '03, MA '05. "He set an example for all of the Jesuit ideal of being a 'Man for Others.'"
The retired professor of philosophy, who taught elements of Chinese and Eastern thought at Ď㽜Đă for more than 30 years, has died at age 80
Born in Xuzho, China, Dr. Soo was baptized a Catholic at an early age, and left his native country when he was 18. He joined the Jesuit order and was ordained in 1971, the year he came to Boston for graduate studies in classical Chinese history at Harvard University. But his plans to complete his Jesuit training took a different turn: He met a graduate student named Margaret Hackenberger, who would one day become his wife; and he entered the doctoral program in philosophy at Boston College, where he joined the faculty in 1978.
In addition to foundational courses such as Ethics, Contemporary Ethics, and Philosophy of Person, Dr. Soo taught classes that reflected his ties to both East and West including Classical Chinese Philosophy; Comparative Religion: East and West; Taoism, Psychology and Existentialism. Dr. Soo also was a faculty member in the Woods College of Advancing Studies, where he taught his popular class Marriage and the Family.
Dr. Sooâs dedication to teaching went above and beyond the typical: In one of his classes, he had his students practice Zen meditationâand handcrafted almost two-dozen stools so they could do it properly. He later served on a task force studying student formation as part of the University Academic Planning Council initiative in the mid-1990s.
In 1992, he was honored as Teacher of the Year by the Boston College chapter of the National Jesuit Honor Society, Alpha Sigma Nu. Interviewed by the Boston College BiWeekly, Dr. Soo explained his passion for his profession: âAn old Chinese proverb says, âTo teach is to learn; to learn is to live.â This ancient wisdom seems true in my teaching career. In teaching, I continue to learn; in learning, I continue to live, to grow and to mature. The more I teach students, the more I learn from them and hence love them.â
Dr. Soo, who retired from Ď㽜Đă in 2004, sought to maintain his connections to his Chinese roots, keeping in touch with and visiting relatives in his native country and establishing links to the countryâs academic communityâhe served as a visiting professor to the universities in Lanzhou, Nanjing, and Shandong and the Huazhong Institute of Technology, and helped several family members and Chinese scholars pursue study in the U.S.ĚýĚý
He is survived by his wife, Margaret; sons David and Jeffrey; and two grandchildren.
"My father loved teaching Ď㽜Đă students for more than 30 years, both new freshman and adults taking classes through the Woods College," said David Soo '03, MA '05. "He set an example for all of the Jesuit ideal of being a 'Man for Others.'"ĚýĚý
Robert Scigliano
Robert Scigliano, distinguished teacher and scholar, died peacefully with his family by his side, on October 14, 2019, in Concord, New Hampshire, after 94 very full years of life.
Robert was born in Boston's North End to Edward and Alma (Mazzei) Scigliano. After his father's untimely death, he was raised with 10 siblings and stepsisters by Alma and his stepfather P.F. Russo in Hyde Park, Mass. He joined the Navy at age 17 and served from 1942-46 on minesweepers in the Atlantic and destroyers in the Pacific. After the war, he enrolled at Compton Junior College under the GI Bill and revealed a thirst for knowledge that would carry him to bachelor's and master's degrees in political science at UCLA, where he met his future wife, and a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago, where he studied under the constitutional scholar Herman Pritchett and the political philosopher Leo Strauss.
Professor Scigliano taught for two decades at Michigan State University and SUNY Buffalo, then returned to his beloved hometown for a 31-year career at Boston College, where he helped build a respected political science program. "He became a remarkable and devoted teacher of undergraduate and graduate students alike," said his longtime Ď㽜Đă colleague and friend, Robert Faulkner. When Brian Lamb of C-Span's Book Notes asked why he taught, Scigliano replied, "To touch souls, the closest thing to being in a priesthood."
He wrote respected books on the judicial process, the Supreme Court and the presidency, illuminating the promise and complexity of the plans of the country's founding fathers and framers. Having served from 1957 to 1959 with the Michigan State University Group in Vietnam, he wrote judicious yet penetrating critiques of the Saigon regime and the MSU project, and was with a co-author the first to disclose its infiltration by the CIA.
In 2001 Scigliano capped his career by editing a new edition of The Federalist, foundational documents that he had passionately studied for decades. But his interests also ranged widely. He was an avid student of French language and literature and once taught a university class, in French, in Paris. He was a fiercely competitive hearts and handball player. He loved poetry, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, and Mozart, as well as travel, sailing, kayaking, hiking, and sharing these pleasures with family and friends.
Charles Smith
Charles F. Smith Jr., Boston Collegeâs first tenured African-American faculty member, died on Aug. 1 at the age of 86.
A native of Cleveland, Dr. Smith joined Boston Collegeâs School of Education in 1968 as an instructor of social studies methods and director of the Teacher Corps Program, which was part of a national effort to train graduate students to teach in urban areas. He developed and directed the Urban Education Program, Boston Collegeâs initiative to prepare student-teachers for inner-city work. He also organized and chaired the Association of Black Faculty, Staff, and Administrators, as well as the Council of Black Faculty. An associate professor, Dr. Smith frequently spoke and wrote about issues of social justice and racial inequality.
Dr. Smith was active in national professional organizations and was elected to the board of directors of the National Council for the Social Studiesâ Fund for the Advancement of Social Studies Education. In 1995, the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities created a lecture series in his name. Dr. Smith also took a leadership role in the Newton, Mass., community, serving as vice chairman of the Black Citizens of Newton and contributing to the development of the Black Teachers Association of the Newton Public Schools.
Upon his retirement from full-time teaching in 1996, Newton held a âCharles Smith Dayâ with a ceremony honoring Dr. Smith held in the Shea Room of Conte Forum. In addition to the congratulations of his colleagues, Dr. Smith received letters from numerous public officials, including President Bill Clinton, Senator Edward Kennedy and Gov. William Weld.
Among those to speak at the ceremony was the Universityâs Affirmative Action director, Barbara Marshall, who called Dr. Smith âa mainstay for the African-American community on campus for a long time.â
At the event, Dr. Smith said he had chosen to work at Ď㽜Đă âbecause I thought if anyone was going to make an impact in the Boston Public Schools, it was going to be someone from Boston College, because more leaders in those schools had degrees from Boston College than any other institution.â He described Ď㽜Đă as âcommitted to social justice and the Jesuit and Ignatian mission of helping future generations. That is what I feel this institution is designed to do and should do.â
He earned his bachelorâs degree from Bowling Green State University; a masterâs degree from Kent State University; a certificated of advanced study in curriculum and administration from attended the Harvard Graduate School of Education; and a doctorate in education from Michigan State University.
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Leon Williams
Leon F. Williams of Brookline passed away on Saturday, July 28 at the age of 84. He is survived by his devoted wife Ingeborg, his daughters Tami and Anita, his son Aleksander, his grandsons Ellis and Hendrix, his great-granddaughter Alise, and his loving extended family and friends.
Leon had a long history of public service, first in the United States Air Force, and subsequently as a social worker and educator. A former Director at Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America, he received a Ph.D. from Brandeis University before moving to Brookline to teach at the Boston College School of Social Work. Leon liked to travel, tinker with computers, and read science fiction. In his later years he was an avid golfer.
Horace Seldon
Mr. Seldon died at his home in Wakefield, Mass., on Aug. 17. He was 93.
A native of Haverhill, Mr. Seldon was the founder and longtime executive director of Community Change Inc., a non-profit group that seeks to address racial issues through a variety of community activities, and which became one of the community service field placements for Ď㽜Đăâs PULSE Program.Ěý
In 1980, Mr. Seldon expanded his Ď㽜Đă association when he began teaching History and Development of Racism in the USA through the Philosophy Department, through which he helped undergraduates explore the formation of American racial attitudes, as well as methods used to combat racism throughout U.S. history.
âAs a society, we need to try and understand this complexity,â he said in a 2003 interview with Chronicle. âAnd that is even more important for young people who have never witnessed or experienced racism, or who doubt its very existence.âĚý
Carroll School of Management Associate Dean Richard Keeley â who as director of PULSE at the time invited Mr. Seldon to teach at Ď㽜Đă â remarked to Chronicle on the courseâs popularity: âStudents constantly talk about how valuable the course has been as a forum for discussing race in America. Horace lays out the background and invites people into the discussion without making them feel as if theyâve been put on the spot.â
Mr. Seldon said the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. had spurred him to fight racism, and led him to form CCI. Under his direction, the organization provided civil rights leadership development and internship programs, sponsored forums, conferences and other events â including performances of âThe Man Nobody Saw,â a play about institutionalized racism â and honored Greater Boston residentsâ anti-racism efforts with a series of award ceremonies. In 1998, President Clinton recognized CCI as among 300 âpromising practicesâ for improving race relations in the US.Ěý
Speaking with Chronicle, Mr. Seldon said that despite the gains heâd witnessed, total victory against racism was unlikely â which for him made the struggle all the more important.
âThe permanence of racism doesnât mean you give up, any more than you give up if youâre an alcoholic trying to quit drinking. To simply despair is no longer possible, so even as you live with racism, you shake your fist at it and fight it.â
Mr. Seldon added that talking with his students was therapeutic. âThe quality of students in my class has, over the years, gotten better and better. I find myself stimulated and energized by their questions and comments, their struggles with the issues and their willingness to be open.â
The University chose Mr. Seldon as the namesake for one of its Advanced Study Grants, which support research and other projects by undergraduates who display scholarly initiative and imagination. Among the projects funded by the Horace Seldon grant have been research on anti-Semitism on college campuses, a study on criminal defense investigation for indigent clients, and development of a self-sustaining educational program for at-risk young mothers.
Mr. Seldon, a graduate of Amherst College and the Andover Newton Theological School, was an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ.
He is survived by his sons, David and Gary, four grandchildren and two great grandchildren.Ěý
Andrew Von Hendy
Boston College English Professor Andrew J. Von Hendy died peacefully on June 6 after suffering from Parkinson's disease for several years. He was 86. From 1963 until his retirement in 2005, Andy was a much-beloved teacher of undergraduate and graduate students in the English Department at Boston College. His wide range of reading and erudition astonished everyone who knew him. But those who admired his intellectual gifts and passions were quick to recall his quiet kindness, his singular ability to listen, and his whimsical humor.
As one colleague put it, Andy's presence made people feel safer in the world. While most professors settle in to become expert in a particular area, Andy never stopped learning new fields and inventing ambitious new courses. When asked, he would say that his primary field was English and Continental fiction of the 19th and 20th centuries. He also taught courses in long poetic narratives, literary theory, autobiography, poetry writing, myth in modern literature, and the conquest of the Americas. He initiated or participated in a number of experimental and team-taught courses, directed countless theses and dissertations, and read his colleagues' manuscripts with a shrewd and generous eye. His scrupulous attention to each of these commitments was legendary.
In 2002, Andy published his major work, The Modern Construction of Myth, a sweeping and readable history of theories of myth from the 18th to the 20th centuries. His intellectual curiosity, his love of beauty in the arts and the natural world, and his verbal wit were dear to his family. . Andrew John Von Hendy was born to Andrew and Helen (Kinsley) Von Hendy on April 13, 1932, in Elmira, New York. He attended Catholic schools and received his B.A. from Niagara University in 1954. After serving in the army, he went to Cornell University on the G.I. Bill, where he earned his doctorate in English. He taught as an instructor at Bowdoin College before coming to Boston College as an assistant professor in 1963. He served as department chair, as director of the Ph.D. program, and on several major university committees.
In 1956 he married Janet Goodrich, with whom he had three sons; the marriage later ended in divorce. In 1986 he married his colleague Rosemarie (Ti) Bodenheimer, with whom he shared a life of teaching and writing. He leaves his wife Rosemarie, his sons James and wife Kelly Tyler (Ben Lomond, CA), Andrew (Brighton, MA), Matthew and wife Ann Ferrero (Rockville, MD), his brother Frank (Blossburg, PA), his sister Sally Douglas (Elmira, NY), and several nieces and nephews. His family loves him, admires him, and misses him. Memorial gatherings will be private. Donations in his memory may be made to Amnesty International or Doctors Without Borders.
Published in The Boston Globe on June 12, 2018
Nancy Veeder
Nancy Veeder died on June 1st after a long illness. Born in Albany, NY, she was admitted to the Emma Willard School in Troy, NY after she made an impromptu visit to the Principal's office announcing, "I just have to come here and I'm very smart." She was admitted and flourished. She graduated from Smith College (BA), Simmons College (MSW), Boston College (MBA), and Brandeis University 's Heller School (PhD). An Associate Professor in the Boston College School of Social Work for 40 years, her teaching was Inspired by her hero, Jane Adams, the legendary social worker serving immigrants in Chicago's Hull House Settlements. Professor Veeder was deeply committed to the cause of social justice but believed social work interventions should always be evaluated by rational review of the results. She published many articles and several books, her favorite being Women's Decision-Making (1992), an in-depth study of Northern Irish women during 'The Troubles'. She was respected and admired by her many students for her high standards, integrity and concern for clients' practical needs. Although never shy about making her opinions known, Professor Veeder had a wonderful sense of fun and an infectious laugh. She resided for many years in Needham and Newton before retiring to North Hill where she continued to make many new and wonderful friends. She is predeceased by her father, Harold Gerrit Veeder of Lake George, NY, her mother, Alice Jackson Walker Veeder Gibson of Siesta Key, FL, her sister Katrina Schemerhorn Veeder Schulhof of Charleston SC, her stepmother Nancy Briwa Veeder of Albany NY. Professor Veeder is survived by her partner of twenty years, Doctor Mary Costanza of Needham, MA, her adoptive family Susan English, Francis Martinez, their daughter Katherine of Wellesley, MA, Fred Costanza of Natick, MA, her brother-in-law, Samuel Schulhof of Seminole, FL and many dear friends.Ěý
Edward B. Smith
SMITH, Edward B., PhD. Of Lexington, formerly of Needham, April 10, 2016, age 87, popular Teacher and Dean of Undergraduate Students at Boston College for many years. Known also for his complete devotion to his wife, Ursula. They met on her birthday in 1988 at a support group for men and women who had lost a spouse. Two years later, they were married at St. Catherine's Church in Westford. It was a fairy tale marriage: happy, funny, and a life-time of joyous memories. Prof. Smith earned PhD. from the University of Chicago in 1962, then taught in Jesuit high schools and colleges for many years. Prof. Smith's first wife, Sharon Clare, died in 1987, after six months of sickness.Ěý
Kenneth Schwartz
Funeral services were held on Sept. 6 at Stanetsky Memorial Chapel in Brookline for retired Carroll School of Management Associate Professor of Accounting Kenneth Schwartz, who died Sept. 3. He was 65.
Dr. Schwartz taught at the Carroll School from 1986 until his retirement at the end of last academic year, and served as chairman of the Accounting Department from 1990-94. He also taught at Boston University.
Widely praised for his teaching, Dr. Schwartz also was well regarded for his research on the regulation of public companies and enforcement actions relating to financial statement manipulation and audit failure. He served as an accounting expert in litigation cases involving complex transactions and structured business arrangements and their compliance with generally accepted accounting principles.
Dr. Schwartz wrote on the analysis of financially distressed firms, business restructuring and sell-off activities, and the resolution of accounting disputes with auditors, and published articles in prestigious management journals such asĚýThe Accounting Review, Auditing: A Journal of Practice & Theory, Journal of Financial Economics,ĚýandĚýAcademy of Management Journal. Ěý
He is survived by his wife, Julia Heskel; his daughters, Alyson Strianese and Karly Servais; his sister Judith Rosenthal, and his grandson Matthew Servais.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Schwartz Strianese Fund for Esophageal Cancer Research at Dana Farber Cancer Institute atĚý.
Jack Shea
A funeral Mass was held March 18 at St. Bartholomew Church in Needham for John R. âJackâ Shea â58, a former Boston College faculty member who was the recipient of the famous âLetter to Jackieâ â a wartime message from his father considered by many as a touchstone of classic American values.
Dr. Shea, who taught part-time in the Classical Studies Department for many years, died on March 14. He was 78.
A native of Arlington who graduated from Boston College High School, Dr. Shea was awarded a Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship â which encouraged college students to consider teaching careers at the university level â during his senior year at Ď㽜Đă. He later earned his doctorate in classical philology at Harvard University.
But early in his life, Dr. Sheaâs education had a uniquely personal, and tragic, dimension. In 1942, with the US at war, his father, Lt. Commander John J. Shea â a former Ď㽜Đă football star â prepared to ship out for duty in the Pacific. In June, Commander Shea spoke by phone one last time with his wife and then his five-year-old son. âDaddy,â young Jackie told his father, âyouâll be home in two weeks.â
Sometime after that conversation, John Shea composed a letter to his boy explaining, as best he could, why his absence would extend far longer than two weeks: âBecause there are people and countries who want to change our nation, its ideals, form of government and way of life,â he wrote, âwe must leave our homes and families to fight.â Protecting America, he told Jackie, âis an honor and a duty which your daddy has to do before he can come home to settle down with you and mother.â
Commander Shea also sought to inculcate in Jackie the virtues of honor and duty to uphold at home, and to offer guidance he believed would benefit Jackie. âStudy hard when you go to school. Be a leader in everything good in life. Be a good Catholic and you canât help being a good American. Play fair always. Strive to win, but if you must lose, lose like a gentleman and a good sportsman. Donât ever be a quitter either in sports or in your business or profession when you grow up.â
After passing along more such advice, Commander Shea concluded by asking Jackie to pray for his return. âAnd if it is Godâs will that he does not, be the kind of boy and man your daddy wants you to be.â
[The full version can be read atĚý.]
On Sept. 15, 1942, Commander Shea was killed in action near Guadalcanal.
But the âLetter to Jackieâ ensured that Commander Sheaâs memory, like his tribute to American values and beliefs, lived on. The Boston Globe, New York Times and other publications picked up the story and the letter was widely reprinted. After Dr. Sheaâs three sisters â all teachers in Boston and Cambridge â shared the letter in their classrooms, copies were distributed for classroom use in Boston schools. Major figures of the day, including Boston Archbishop Richard Cushing, extolled its tone and contents.
A super-destroyer was christened the USS Shea â Dr. Shea and his mother attended the launch â and in 1963 Boston College named its baseball field after Commander Shea. The Burns Library included a copy of the letter in its archives, and over the years became one of its most requested items.
Dr. Shea began teaching ancient Greek and Latin language classes at Ď㽜Đă in 1975, and occasionally taught courses on literature and etymology. In 2001, Dr. Shea donated the original Letter to Jackie to Ď㽜Đă.
Interviewed by Boston College Magazine in 1991, Dr. Shea, by then himself a father of three, reflected on the letter and its impact. âIn the space of several handwritten pages, he put down things that I hope I have communicated to my kids. I think what made the letter so appealing [to the public] is that he took some thoughts which were probably shared by many, and expressed them very directly.â
The fact that these feelings of patriotism and civic values were voiced by a Catholic, he added, was significant at the time, since Catholics were not yet viewed as part of the American mainstream.
In a 2001 Boston Globe story reporting on Dr. Sheaâs donation of the letter, University Historian Thomas OâConnor explained the impact it had on wartime America.
âThe Allied forces were losing everywhere. Hitler had invaded Russia. The Japanese were taking over the Pacific. People were asking, âWhere did we go wrong?â Then this letter came out and reaffirmed all the best values people thought we had lost.â
He added, âNot only is it a historical treasure, it speaks to the values of the college itself in ways we have trouble articulating today. Future generations will profit immeasurably from this.â
Ď㽜Đă colleagues said that Dr. Shea enjoyed a successful and productive career as a teacher, researcher and translator. One of his major achievements was his extensive translation, from Renaissance Latin into English, of 16th-century physician Johann Weyer's treatiseĚýDe praestigiis daemonum, regarded by many scholars â âone of the 10 most significant books of all time,â according to Sigmund Freud â as an important work for Weyerâs encyclopedic grasp of biblical, classic and patristic literature. In addition to translating the book, his colleagues noted, Dr. Shea provided most of the biblical and classical citations for the book's notes.
âJack was respected and loved because of who he was and how he treated students, colleagues and other people,â said Classical Studies Research Professor Dia Philippides.
John Travers
June 01, 2011|By Bryan Marquard, Globe Staff
Generations of students at Boston College filled the classes John Travers taught in child and developmental psychology. He wrote textbooks and kept up with cutting-edge research long after most professors set aside careers, and his renown as a teacher ensured that the children and grandchildren of early students sought out his classroom.
âI think the thing he most wanted to be known for was teaching,ââ said John Dacey, professor emeritus of developmental psychology at Boston College. âIâm a little jealous of his reputation. I wanted to be a good teacher, but students were always talking about him. He had many, many children of former students in his classes, and he had them because their families said, âIf you can possibly get Travers, thatâs what youâve got to do.â ââ
Dr. Travers, who had been honored as teacher of the year in Boston Collegeâs Lynch School of Education, died Friday in Sawtelle Family Hospice House in Reading of melanoma that had metastasized. He was 83 and had moved to Winchester in the late 1990s after spending most of his life in Arlington.
âHe was an inspirational person, a great scholar, and a great writer,ââ said J. Kevin Nugent, director of the Brazelton Institute at Childrenâs Hospital Boston and a professor of child and family studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. âBut it was his virtues as a person I will never forget. He was spectacularly decent.ââ
Colleagues and relatives say Dr. Travers never had an unkind word for anyone, including the driver of a car that struck him when he was 31, leaving him with compound fractures in both legs, a broken arm, and a lifetime of hospital visits and surgeries.
âThat pain plagued him for the rest of his life,ââ said his son, John III of Lynn. âHe struggled with the pain, but it was inspirational the way he handled it. He never complained. He was of that World War II generation, but he went beyond that in his sense of compassion and decency.ââ
At Boston College, Dr. Travers taught for about 50 years, well past retirement as professor emeritus.
âHe was about a lot more than human development or child psychology; he was about values,ââ said Dacey, who coauthored with Dr. Travers the textbook âHuman Development Across the Lifespan,ââ which remained in print through eight editions. âI think he inspired his students more with what he told them about what the world was about. When he was teaching them about child psychology, he was also teaching them about life.ââ
Nugent, who was collaborating with Dr. Travers and two others on a new textbook, said his mentor also âhad that terrific ability to make research come alive to people and make it relevant to their work with children.ââ
ĚýDr. Travers did so while making sure students understood they need not always have a perfect answer ready.
âJohn found a way to be supportive,ââ Dacey said. âMany times students say something that is wrong. He found a way to turn it around to make it into an interesting comment. He would call on you, and you knew you were relatively safe, because even if you said, âI donât know,â he wouldnât put you down.ââ
The same was true with everyone Dr. Travers encountered.
âEven though he was so well educated, he had no airs about him and was so down-to-earth and talked to everybody on the same level, no matter who he met and what they were doing with their lives,ââ said his daughter Jane of Charlestown.
Born in Medford, Dr. Travers grew up in Medford and Arlington, an only child in a family whose shoe business collapsed during the Great Depression. Despite hard times, his parents instilled in Dr. Travers a sense of optimism that served him the rest of his life.
âI think my father had a tremendous upbringing,ââ his son said, âbecause my grandparents were the same kind of people as my father.ââ
After graduating from Boston College High School in 1945, Dr. Travers enlisted in the US Navy at the end of World War II and then went to Boston College, where he became a rare quadruple Eagle by receiving a bachelorâs as a premed student and a masterâs and doctorate in education.
During his graduate studies, he taught in elementary and middle schools and was teaching in Jamaica Plain when he met Barbara Cotter, who was working at a nearby library.
âThe librarian came in and said, âBarbie, youâve got to see this handsome guy,â ââ she recalled.
Soon, the two found a unique way to communicate during work hours.
âMy father would send a kid over to the library with a book, and there would be a note inside for my mother,ââ their son said.
They married in 1956. Two years later, after he had started as an instructor at Boston College, Dr. Travers was paying a noontime visit to St. Agnes Church in Arlington when a car swerved onto the sidewalk and pinned him against the stairs.
âHe was just visiting the church,ââ his wife said. âHe always had a very deep faith, and thatâs whatâs carried him through.ââ
The accident âreally was a defining moment, but on the other hand, it wasnât defining in a bad way,ââ said his daughter Elizabeth Eagan of Arlington. âIt was awful, but he just said, âI love to play golf, but I wonât be able to play golf any more, so letâs figure out something else.â It didnât prevent him from finishing his PhD or teaching his classes or living upstairs in a two-family house.ââ
It also inspired Dr. Travers to spend the rest of his life inspiring others to follow their passions.
âHe had this way of instilling confidence in people,ââ said his granddaughter Jackie Eagan of Arlington, who added that at the encouragement of Dr. Travers, she will attend medical school. âMy grandfather was the person who set me on my life path. He was this huge support system in our family. Iâll try to take his personality and try to be like him.ââ
In addition to his wife, two daughters, son, and granddaughter, Dr. Travers leaves another daughter, Ellen Roche of Arlington, and six other grandchildren.
âHe really lived the life he wanted to live,ââ his son said. âHe immersed himself in teaching and researching and writing, but he also was the greatest parent and husband you could ever be.ââ
Reprinted with permission from the Boston Globe. ĚýBryan Marquard can be reached at bmarquard@globe.com
Sister WhiteĚý Ěý
June 24, 2011|By Talia Whyte, Globe Correspondent
Elizabeth Stuyvesant White, a longtime Boston College humanities professor, died after a brief illness on June 15 at Teresian House in Albany, N.Y. She was 90.
Sister White left a high standard for moral character and her love of the classics with her many students, said those who knew her.
âShe moved like a ballerina in the classroom,ââ said her sister Ann Buttrick of New York City. âShe lived in the books she read and made the characters in them come to life for her students.ââ
Buttrick said Sister White, of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, was committed to becoming a nun and an educator. And she felt the two callings were completely compatible.
Born in New York City, Sister White graduated from the Noroton Convent of the Sacred Heart in Darien, Conn., in 1937. She earned a bachelorâs degree in the classics from Manhattanville College in Purchase, N.Y., in 1941 and then entered the Society of the Sacred Heart at Kenwood in Albany in 1942. She made her final vows in 1950 at Via Nomentana in Rome. She later earned a masterâs degree in English at Radcliffe College in 1942 and a doctorate in English at Catholic University of America in Washington in 1962.
Following graduation, Sister White taught at many Sacred Heart schools across the Northeast before arriving at Newton College of the Sacred Heart in 1953 as the dean of students and English lecturer.
Newton College, a small womenâs liberal arts college in Newton Centre, merged with Boston College in 1974. Over the 60 years Sister White taught medieval and Renaissance English at both Newton and Boston colleges, and her former students say she left a lasting impression.
Sister Hilda Carey, RSCJ, said she took a Dante class with Sister White.
âI was so impressed by her that I would stay up all night after her class, translating old English into modern English,ââ said Sister Carey. âIn those days, lights went out in the dorms at 10 p.m., but I used my flashlight for my studying throughout the night, reading Paradiso.ââ
Sister White was also an accomplished choral musician who shared her enthusiasm for music with her students. During the evenings at Newton College, Sister White ran the schoolâs switchboard. She found a way to integrate answering the phones with her musical interests.
âShe would have a gathering of girls at the switchboard to teach and sing choral music and answer the phones at the same time,ââ continued Sister Carey. âShe mastered multitasking.ââ
Dr. Mary Jane Ferrier of Portland, Maine, met Sister White while she was a graduate student at Boston College more than 30 years ago.
âShe was a creative teacher who knew how to meet her students at their level,ââ said Ferrier. âShe invited former female students who left school to get married to come back and partake in her English and composition classes.ââ
Sister White was fluent in French and German and was active in many academic associations. She spent the summers of 1977 and 1979 in the Society of the Sacred Heart Archives in Rome, and she taught at a Sacred Heart School in Tokyo.
âBut she was also an avid gardener,ââ continued Ferrier. âShe grew all kinds of flowers in her yard.ââ
Sister White served as a writing coach for students in the honors program at Boston College and as a group leader at the Institute for Learning in Retirement in her later years.
She was awarded an honorary degree in 2006 from Boston College, where she continued to teach until 2007 when she retired.
Talia Whyte can be reached at talia@taliawhyte.com.
Miriam Gayle Wardle
Dr. Wardle, who taught at Boston College for 30 years, died Nov. 29, 2013. She was 76.
An expert in psychiatric mental health nursing, Dr. Wardle was known for her teaching of undergraduates and her longitudinal study of decision-making by professional women. She often could be found in her colorfully decorated office offering academic guidance to students. One of her most popular courses was on death and dying.
âShe used this expertise to prepare her family, friends and herself for her death,â said Connell School of Nursing ProfessorĚýEmeritaLaurel Eisenhauer, who visited with Dr. Wardle shortly before her death.
Dr. Wardle joined the Boston College faculty in 1975. She was named a full professor in 1983 and retired in 2004. She earned a bachelorâs degree from the University of Pittsburgh, a masterâs degree from Boston University and a doctorate from North Carolina State University.
Her husband, David Gloss, died many years ago, leaving Dr. Wardle to raise the coupleâs four children on her own. âShe was rightly proud of the accomplishments of her children, two of whom are physicians and the other two are teachers,â said Connell School of Nursing ProfessorĚýEmeritaĚýJean OâNeil.
Colleagues recalled Dr. Wardle as a bit of a ârebel.â She could be counted on, they said, to help to focus discussion or present an opposing point during faculty meetings. Eisenhauer added, âShe tended to have strong --and often-- correct opinions about issues, but had a kind and gentle heart.â
A voracious reader, Dr. Wardle was a supporter of the arts, including the ballet, museums, and symphony concerts.
âShe regarded the arts as a necessary balance in her busy life,â said OâNeil. In their final conversation, according to OâNeill, Dr. Wardle spoke of the joy she experienced in supporting and participating in so many cultural aspects of the Boston area.
Prior to Ď㽜Đă, she taught at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Oregon Medical School. She also worked as a staff nurse at C. Howard Marcy State Hospital in Pittsburgh.
Dr. Wardle is survived by her children: Mark, David, Harry and Rachael Karen Elizabeth Gloss, all Boston College graduates, as well as three grandchildren and three siblings.
Services have been held. Donations may be made in her memory to Wide Horizons for Children, 38 Edge Hill Road, Waltham MA 02451.
John Van Tassel
John Edward Van Tassel, a member of the Boston College faculty from 1956 until 2004 died on May 8, 2011 at the age of 85. His wife Joan survives him. ĚýA Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated in Saint Elizabeth Church in Milton on May 13. ĚýJohn's body was interred in the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne on May 18.
John entered the U.S. Army Specialist Training Program (ASTP) after graduation from Boston College High School in 1943. The Army established the ASTP to ensure an adequate supply of high-grade technicians for the war effort, and John spent the 1943-44 year in the ASTP at Harvard before being assigned to Radio and Communications work. Upon his discharge from military service in 1946 John enrolled in the College of Business Administration (CBA) at Ď㽜Đă. ĚýHe graduated in 1950 and was called back to active military duty in 1950-51 to work on data management problems. Ěý
He returned to Ď㽜Đă in 1951 and received an A.M. degree in Economics in 1953. He taught at Providence College in 1952-53, and then entered Harvard for graduate study in economics. ĚýBecause of his extensive Army experience in data management he was awarded a Harvard fellowship as managing director of the Littauer Statistical Laboratory. ĚýHe completed his Ph.D in 1957 with a thesis on the banking industry. Ěý
He joined the Ď㽜Đă faculty in 1956 and taught monetary theory in the Economics graduate program before becoming exclusively a professor of management in the CBA - now the Carroll School of Management (CSOM).ĚýJohn was an Associate Dean in the CBA from 1960 to 1969. ĚýHe also provided Ď㽜Đă an important service in overseeing the installation of its first computing facilities, and he then provided this same service for several other educational institutions. In the 1960s he developed a Management Decision Exercise simulation for management training. This exercise was still in use at the time of his retirement from CSOM in 1995.
Norman J. Wells
Norman J. Wells, who taught medieval philosophy at Boston College for 42 years, died on Feb. 26, 2013 at the age of 86. An expert on the work of Descartes, Dr. Wells authored or co-authored numerous articles in such publications asĚýThe Review of Metaphysics, American Catholic Philosophical QuarterlyĚýandĚýJournal of the History of Philosophy. In addition to teaching philosophy classes, Dr. Wells also was involved in the Universityâs Medieval Studies program.Ěý A native of Boston, Dr. Wells served in the US Navy during World War II and graduated from Boston College in 1950, later earning his doctorate from the University of Toronto. Dr. Wells taught at Fordham University and St. Johnâs Seminary as well as Ď㽜Đă.Ěý Dr. Wells retired in 1999, but remained active in academics and writing â in 2010, he published âDescartes and the Coimbrans on material falsityâ inĚýThe Modern Schoolman.â¨âśÄ¨
Ernest Siciliano
SICILIANO, Ernest A. Of Newton Centre at the age of 103, Jan. 24,2019. Faithful husband to the late Gilda (Giudice) Siciliano for sixty-nine years. Velvet- gloved father of Francis X., Michael A., Joseph E., Nicholas J., Ernest G. and Angela M. Imaginative Papa to twelve grandchildren and thirteen great-grandchildren. Survived by his dear sister Rose Giampaolo; blessed with wonderful in-laws, Louis O. Giudice and his wife Ann, Genetta Giudice, the late Igino Giudice, and the late Linda and Edmund Capodilupo. He will be missed by dear and loving daughters-in-law, nephews and nieces, as well as his generous, kind helper Claudette Doyle.
Ěý
Paul Thie
THIE, Paul Robert Of Westwood, age 81, died February 5th, 2020 due to complications from Alzheimer's. Survived by his cherished wife of 58 years, Mary Louise, and children Anne of Millis, Bernadette (Ian Roke) of Foxboro, Francis (Jennifer) of CA, and Joseph (Jane) of Natick. Also survived by grandchildren Anna, Paul, Jared, and Kyle, dear cousin Reenie Pasquali, and a large extended family. Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, Boston College. Paul taught at Ď㽜Đă for 42 years, and wrote several books, including one on linear programming and game theory.
Paul was a modern-day Renaissance man. He could fix almost anything, design and build furniture, and create a game with complex rules for his children using only wire, a paper clip, and an old baseball. Paul loved maps and trains, drinking quality beer, exploring undiscovered locations, hiking, mountain climbing, and camping. He enjoyed playing softball and squash, being outside, classical and folk music, and Native American history. Paul had a fabulous sense of humor, loved Monty Python, and was always making puns and jokes.
Paul loved life and would want all who knew him to continue living every day to its fullest.
Ěý
Neil Wolfman
Neil Wolfman, a professor of the practice in the Chemistry Department who earned teaching awards from two Boston College honor societies, died January 15. Dr. Wolfman had been on medical leave for most of the past year after being diagnosed with cancer.
Dr. Wolfman joined the University as a part-time faculty member in 2000, after having worked in the pharmaceutical industry for nearly 30 years, primarily researching autoimmune diseases and muscle regeneration. He taught General Chemistry to classes comprised predominantly of freshmen, most of them science majors or on the pre-med track.
He also taught in the Gateway Scholars Program, which supports first-generation college students interested in majoring in science. Every year, Dr. Wolfman and his wife Deborah invited students in the program to their house for a homemade dinner.
In 2015, the Boston College chapter of Phi Beta Kappa selected Dr. Wolfman for its annual Teaching Award. Three years later, he was chosen as Teacher of the Year by the Boston College chapter of Alpha Sigma Nu, the honor society of Jesuit colleges and universities.
Those who nominated him for the teaching awards consistently emphasized his care for students, with many calling him a mentor and expressing gratitude for his guidance on course selections, job interviews, and graduate school applications. One student praised Dr. Wolfman for devoting so much attention to âthe growth and development of his students.â Another said Dr. Wolfman âpushed his students to thinkânot just to memorizeâchemistry and helped us learn how to love learning. He has helped me every step of the way during my journey to becoming a scientist.â
âNeil Wolfman exemplifies what a good science professor is,â said Pilar Landon â09, reflecting on faculty who had shaped her Ď㽜Đă years in an interview with the Boston College Chronicle shortly before her graduation. âHe makes sure not only that you understand the concepts, but that you feel connected to the material and to him as an instructor. He also mixes clarity with humor and has great patience for his students.â
Dr. Wolfmanâs page on the Chemistry Department website summed up his teaching philosophy: â[He] believes that strong problem-solving skills will serve his students well throughout life, regardless of what career path they chooseâŚMany students are âfence sittersâ when they first approach their college science courses. Although they enjoyed biology and chemistry classes in high school, they are not sure whether they are sufficiently passionate about these areas to pursue careers in science.â
Speaking with the Ď㽜Đă College Chronicle after winning the PBK award, Dr. Wolfman described teaching at Ď㽜Đă as âa fantastic experience.â
âMy students know I care about them. They know I will do whatever I can to help them. If I can contribute to their success even in a small way, thatâs so gratifying.â
Undergraduate Chemistry Labs Director Lynne OâConnell recalled Dr. Wolfmanâs commitment to, and âdeep appreciationâ for, the Gateway program. âHe strove to understand the unique challenges that the Gateway students face in college by getting to know each one on a personal level.Ěý When the coordinators and instructors of the program met, he often asked the difficult and sometimes uncomfortable questions that were necessary for the group to wrestle with.ĚýĚý
âLike his students, I often found myself seeking Neilâs advice from time to time,â OâConnell added. âHe grappled with many student issues, from having to walk a student to University Counseling Services to questions of academic integrity.Ěý His experience in these matters made him an excellent source of guidance, and I know many of my colleagues sought him out for similar reasons.â
Dr. Wolfman was born in Brooklyn, NY, and raised in the Bronx by immigrant parents, both Holocaust survivors. Speaking with The Heights in 2014, he recounted how, as a seven-year-old, he discovered his love of chemistry by pouring a packet of M&Ms into a bottle of club soda and watching the liquid change color: âI thought, âThatâs it. I want to dissolve M&Ms in club soda for the rest of my life.â
After graduating from the Bronx High School of Science, he earned a bachelorâs degree at New New York University and masterâs and doctoral degrees from Cornell University; he met Deborah at Cornell several weeks before completing his doctorate.
In 2016, Dr. Wolfman was formally appointed as a full-time visiting assistant professor in the Chemistry Department and subsequently named a professor of the practice.
Jaques Taminiaux
A Eulogy for Jacques TaminiauxBy Kazue Koishikawa
Jacques Taminiaux, professor emeritus in philosophy at the University of Louvain and Boston College, passed away on May 7th, 2019 at the age of 90 years. As those familiar with continental philosophy know, he left a tremendous legacy in the field of phenomenology from Husserl and Heidegger to Merleau-Ponty, Levinas, Arendt, and more.
In honor of his life and the works he left behind, I would like to trace some memorable personal exchanges with him in the hope it sheds light upon his contribution to Arendt studies.
One afternoon in the fall of 1997, I was standing inside of Professor Taminiauxâs office. (I donât know why we werenât seated but somehow we were both standing.) Gentle fall afternoon light filled in the room. It was a beautiful day, yet standing there, I was extremely nervous and uncomfortable. After I introduced myself and answered a few questions, there was silence. An awkward few seconds felt like forever to me. I had recently arrived from Japan and just started my masterâs program in philosophy at Boston College.
Before I came to the States, I was a doctoral student in politics in Tokyo and planning to write my dissertation on Hannah Arendt. The more I read of Arendt, the more I became convinced that there were deeper philosophical discussions in her texts. I had to admit, unwillingly, that I needed systematic philosophical training if I really wanted to understand Arendt. That was the sole reason why I came to the States. To every single person I met in our department, I repeated the same story over and over again. Eventually those graduate students around me said, âIf that is so, you should go and see Professor Taminiaux. He is very famous and Arendt is one of his specializations.â To be honest with you, Iâd never heard of Jacques Taminiaux. After all, I wasnât a philosophy student back home. In any case, I followed their advice and visited him to his office in one afternoon.
That is how I found myself standing stupidly in his office amidst the awkward silence. He learned that I was a new masterâs student from Japan who had never studied philosophy before and did not speak fluent English. âYet,â he said, âyou want to study Hannah Arendt in philosophyâŚâ In those ellipses, a dreadful silence resided. Finally, he said, âWe will see.â It didnât sound promising but at least he didnât refuse me. I was just happy that I could excuse myself to leave his office.
Professor Taminiauxâs contribution to Arendt studies is condensed into his book, The Thracian Maid and the Professional Thinker: Arendt and Heidegger (1997). His analyses and discussions in that book are dense and grounded on his solid understanding of Husserl and Heidegger. We need to recall that Arendt herself is neither explicit about her method nor transparent about the theoretical framework of her own thought. It was Professor Taminiaux who made those unsaid theoretical frameworks and thematic developments of Arendtâs thought visible for the first time. through a keen and insightful gaze, he showed that Arendtâs thought had been shaped through her critical dialogue with Heidegger and pointed out the many parallels between the two. By doing so, however, Professor Taminiaux didnât aim to suggest that Arendt is merely one of Heideggerâs disciples. Quite the contrary, his whole point was to show that while Arendt owed her method to Heidegger, she challenged Heideggerâs account of human existence (Dasein), its meaning of life, and the question of Being. Taminiaux showed that Arendt offered completely different ways of understanding an individual human life, one that is enmeshed in human plurality. Human life is not just Being in the world but of the world.[i]
I recall Professor Taminiaux brushing off rather angrily a mention by someone of Arendtâs relationship with Heidegger as his former mistress. He held the same tone in the preface of his book I mention above, in which he didnât hide his disapproval and objection toward Elzbieta Ettinger, who published Hannah Arendt/ Martin Heidegger (1995).[ii] He couldnât tolerate the reduction of Arendtâs earnest philosophical endeavor, her critical dialogue with Heidegger on an ardent intellectual level, to a cheap romance novel.
Heideggerâs teaching was the necessary condition for her investigations. But in no way was it the sufficient condition, as Ms. Ettinger suggests, because as soon as one confronts what Arendt says on âworld,â âwork,â âspeech,â the âpolitical,â with what Heidegger says, one cannot fail to note that Arendt, far from being an intellectual epigone of Heidegger, at every point delivers a retort.[iii]
I have to confess that it took me many years to actually be able to recognize those parallels which Professor Taminiaux mentions in his book. Of course, after our initial meeting in his office, I ran to the bookstore to obtain a copy. Before I completed my M.A program, I read it through at least five times, but had no clue where his analyses came from or if what he wrote was a âcorrectâ exposition of Arendt. I was such a beginner as a philosophy student. I just kept attending every course he offered, regardless of the topic. Every week during office hours, I would knock on his office door with questions about the course materials and Arendt.
I asked him three questions that I vividly remember because his answers have led me to ponder Arendtâs thought over the course of years: 1) âHow does âlaborâ originally belong to the private realm?â 2) âWhy does Arendt claim that the actor always sees partially while the spectator sees the whole?â 3 ) âWhat is important for me to understand Arendtâs notion of âactionâ?â
In response to the first one, Professor Taminiaux said, âArendtâs distinction among âlabor,â âwork,â and âactionâ is based on her phenomenological description.â For the second, he answered, âThere is no one who is only the actor, or the spectator. They are different sides of the same coin.â And lastly, âAristotleâs Nicomachean Ethics Book VI is crucial.â Those were all of what he said to me.
I asked him my first question, for it seemed to me that according to Arendtâs description of âlabor,â there was no room for addressing social inequality particularly on the issues related to economy as the political ones in Arendt. What I didnât understand then and eventually could see in Professor Taminiauxâs response is that Arendtâs descriptions of three human activities (âlabor,â âwork,â and âactionâ) are derived from the temporal characteristics entailed in each activity. âLaborâ shares its temporal character with the eternal recurrence of the biological life cycle as a species or as life that is as such shared with everything that exists in nature. Whereas âworkâ has a definite beginning and end as human-made and surpasses the life-span of a human being; work thus gives durability to the human world. Furthermore, âactionâ represents a human being as a unique individual whose life starts in the web of human plurality. Action manifests who s/he is through interactions with others, and has no predetermined end, which is why the actor is a free agent. Yet, strictly speaking, it is only through âactionâ that a life can be understood as the story of a unique person. Those are phenomenological descriptions. They are valid insofar as they focus on the peculiar temporal dimension of each activity, or, a mode of Being of us. In other words, the distinctions Arendt points out in these three activities should be understood in terms of their ruling temporal characteristics and not on the basis of the activity per se as a category. Thus, when Arendt makes the clear demarcation between the public and private realms, by no means does she insist that labor, what seems to belong to the private realm, cannot be taken up as a political issue.
Similar points can be made about the distinction between the actor and the spectator in the Lectures of Kant Political Philosophy. By saying that the actor and spectator were different sides of the same coin, what Professor Taminiaux hinted at was that perception, or, more specifically the perception of appearances is fundamentally intersubjective due to the account of human plurality in Arendt. One appears as an actor only when there are others who see and hear what one does and says. The same can be said about the spectators.
How about Professor Taminiauxâs answer to my third question? Arendtâs account of human existence was shaped as her counterargument toward Heideggerâs ontological interpretation of phronĂŞsis (practical wisdom), taken from the Nicomachean Ethics, Book VI of Aristotle. To put it another way, there is a significant difference between Arendt and Heidegger when it comes to their understandings of what marks human life most properly. Heidegger argues that human life is fundamentally marked by the activity of thinking based on oneâs finitude and thus her/his death. Arendt, on the other hand, sees human life as founded upon action based again on oneâs finitude but focusing on oneâs birth, bringing something new in the world of appearances where âplurality is the law on earth.â[iv]
The brevity of Professor Taminiauxâs answers may give you the impression that he was rather unkind. It was quite the opposite. Certainly I was puzzled by his answers and have remained so. But they have pushed me to refine my questions anew as my understanding of Arendt has grown deeper. They have helped me to grasp her thought more comprehensively over many years they continue to do so to this day.
Professor Taminiauxâs lectures were always very concise. He would read passages from the text we were reading and tell us their meanings. Certainly those passages must have been important in order for us to grasp their significance. Yet, he never told us on what account they were crucial and how they were related. In my copies of those texts, I can still see âTâ marks in the margins of the pages he read out in the class.
As I started to teach, I gradually came to realize his intention, and have been following in his footsteps as a professor. His point was to let his students think! It is always much easier to explain what is really going on behind the printed pages of a text than to push students to navigate their own course, to let them ask questions, to allow them to think by themselves. But if you do what is easy, your students never learn how to read a text, grasp the structure of arguments, comprehend, and think by themselves. I wrote this realization in a letter, which I sent to him last December. (We had a tradition in which I sent him a report of the year, around Christmas, and he sent his response). In his reply, which turned out to be his last letter to me, he wrote, âI enjoyed reading in your letter that my teaching is still with you now, when in a Japanese classroom you give courses on Arendt.â I could almost see the twinkle in his eyes.
When Professor Taminiaux said, âWe will seeâ more than 20 years ago, neither of us expected that he would oversee my (very) slow academic progress for such a long time. He co-directed my dissertation even after his official retirement. There are no proper words for expressing my deep gratitude to him for his guidance and care. Though he was 90 years old, I wasnât ready to say good-bye to him. I probably never will be. My dialogue with him will continue through his works.
Elliott Smith (d. 2023)
SMITH, Elliott P. of Chestnut Hill and Boynton Beach, FL, entered into rest on July 12, 2023, at the age of 88. Cherished husband of Marlene (Caldron) Smith. Dear son of the late Saul and May (Levine) Smith. Devoted father of Terri Smith and her husband Bradley Roback and Gary Smith and his wife Rhonda Kantor. Loving brother of the late Robert Smith. Beloved âDaduâ of Sachi Roback.Ěý