As a child, Dick Sheridan ’56 would thumb through the catalogs of the day — Sears and Montgomery Ward — idolizing pictures of guitars. He’d savor the sound of chords he’d hear that accompanied the folk songs he loved and convince himself (and his parents) that a guitar was exactly what he needed.
The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery at the College of the Holy Cross, will host Syrian-Armenian visual artist Kevork Mourad for an artist residency this February in collaboration with the College’s Arts Transcending Borders program. Using his signature style of spontaneous drawing and printmaking techniques, Mourad will create “Memory Gates,” an immersive installation. The work, imagined as a series of doors and passageways that visitors can pass through, will explore themes of cultural plurality and collective memory. “Memory Gates” will be on view from March 4 through April 11, 2021.
During Mourad’s residency, students will be invited to work alongside the artist, assisting in the execution and installation of the work as it unfolds. Meredith Fluke, director of the Cantor Art Gallery, says this is a key component of the project: “Our goal is for Holy Cross students to be involved directly in Kevork’s process, and to benefit from Kevork’s deeply collaborative and generative practice. In addition, students will gain intimate knowledge of the work it takes for an artist to conceive and execute a large-scale work of art in situ.”
“Kevork’s multi-faceted artistry and generosity of spirit have given us many opportunities to connect with public school students and immigrant communities in Worcester during previous campus residencies, and we’re very excited to build on this work together with our partners at the Cantor Art Gallery,” adds Yonca Karakilic, director of the Arts Transcending Borders program.
Arts Transcending Borders has previously presented Mourad’s onstage collaboration “Home Within” with clarinetist and composer Kinan Azmeh, and sponsored Mourad’s presence on campus as part of the Silkroad Ensemble’s multi-year residency at the College. As the sole visual artist member of the Ensemble, Mourad often performs alongside musicians; his drawings, which are created in response to the music, are projected onto a screen for the audience. He is inspired by the interplay of musical and visual languages, which he says, “Offers an intensified expression of the cultural legacies I am interested in exploring.”
Mourad has a strong history of collaborative work with musicians and other visual and performance artists, including recent projects with the OYO Dance Troupe in Namibia; a commission from the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the 2019 exhibition “Armenia!,” where composer Vache Sharafyan composed music based on visuals by Kevork Mourad; and an animated film, “Four Acts for Syria,” 2019, with filmmaker Waref Abu Quba, honoring the historical and cultural wealth of his homeland. He was recently invited by the Aga Khan Foundation to create a site-specific 20-foot drawing-sculpture called “Seeing Through Babel” at London’s Ismaili Center, addressing the importance of diversity in our contemporary times.
Kevork Mourad has lived and worked in Brooklyn, NY since 1998. He was born and grew up in Syria to a family of Armenian heritage, his ancestors having sought refuge there from the Armenian Genocide. He received his Master of Fine Arts from the Yerevan Institute of Fine Arts in Armenia, an institution which places an emphasis on cultural traditions in addition to its intensive studio curriculum.
All related programs will be available to the Holy Cross campus community, as well as the general public. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, in-gallery visits from off-campus visitors will take place by appointment only. Hours are Tuesday through Friday noon – 5 p.m., with limited Saturday availability. To book an entry time, email prosenbl@holycross.edu or call 508-793-3356. Masks and social distancing practices are required.
EVENTS:
Open Sessions with the Artist via Zoom
Thursday, February 25, noon – 12:45 p.m.
Friday, February 26, 4:30 pm – 5.15 p.m.
Tuesday, March 2, noon – 12:45 p.m.
Opening Artist’s Talk
Live on YouTube
Thursday, March 4, 4 – 5 p.m.
“The Destruction of Images (and Images of Their Destruction)”
A talk by Aaron Tugendhaft, Bard College, Berlin
Monday, March 8, 4 p.m.
Aaron Tugendhaft is a scholar of the ancient Middle East, teaching courses focusing on religion, political philosophy, and the arts at Bard College Berlin. He is the author of “The Idols of ISIS: From Assyria to the Internet” (University of Chicago Press, 2020) exploring the political power of images and the significance of their destruction.
James David “Dave” Power III died Sunday, January 23, 2021, at the age of 89. He was a great champion and benefactor of Holy Cross, and his generosity enabled the creation of the College’s J.D. Power Center for Liberal Arts in the World. Click here to read the 2018 story from Holy Cross Magazine on his life and legacy.
Ja-Naé Duane works with students in Stein Hall in 2018.
When Ja-Naé Duane introduces entrepreneurship to students at the College of the Holy Cross, she doesn’t start by talking about business ideas, product development or marketing strategy. Rather, she tells students: “Pick a problem.”
1958. A chemistry lab at Holy Cross. Freshman Anthony Fauci is conducting an experiment that requires what feels like hours of measuring, weighing and heating a solution over a Bunsen burner. The final step: Clamp the test tube and deliver the solution to the instructor.
In a recent Fortune commentary, Donald Brand, professor of political science at Holy Cross, argues that rushing President Donald Trump’s ongoing Senate impeachment trial will only worsen America’s wounds. Instead we should let bipartisanship be the guiding star.
According to Brand, Trump should be held accountable for his offenses, but we must “proceed with caution lest we transform him into a martyr for the 74 million people who voted for him.”
“This is a time for magnanimity, not vindictiveness,” says Brand. “The tone of the Biden presidency will be irrevocably determined by his response in the days to come.”
To read the full article, go to Fortune.com.
Laurie Ann Britt-Smith, director of the Center for Writing at the College of the Holy Cross, penned an article for The Conversation’s “Curious Kids” series recently, answering the question, “Why does grammar matter?” from Maci, 13, in Indianapolis, Ind.
“Studying grammar helps make communication between people clearer,” says Britt-Smith. “Once you understand your own language and appreciate its patterns and varieties, you can more easily understand how other languages are constructed, making them easier to learn. Being able to understand across languages allows you to share your ideas and the ideas of others more broadly.”
Britt-Smith, who has been teaching academic writing to both native speakers of English and English language learners for over 20 years, warns against using grammar as a tool for criticism.
“Though some people use it to bully people for making mistakes, grammar is not a way to decide if language is right or wrong. Everyone makes mistakes, and the English language is amazingly flexible in how its pieces can be put together.”
To read the full article, go to TheConversation.com.
Vice President Mike Pence and Republicans in Congress have been under pressure to reject or delay the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory over President Donald Trump, set to take place during a formal joint session of Congress on January 6. But can they really undo the Electoral College voting results?
In a recent piece for The Conversation, Donald Brand, professor of political science at Holy Cross, analyzes the history behind this formal certification process, concluding that the answer, both legally and politically, is no.
According to Brand, even if Pence recuses himself, as Hubert Humphrey did in January 1969, certification of Biden’s win would go forward with the Senate president pro tempore in charge, who in this case is Senator Chuck Grassley.
“An American president orchestrating an attempt to reverse an election […] does profound harm to democracy, which hinges on the peaceful transfer of power,” warns Brand. “Republicans, and most visibly Mike Pence, face a choice between fidelity to the Constitution and fidelity to Trump.”
To read the full article, go to TheConversation.com.
Valentin De Jesus ’21
The 42nd Annual Festival of Lessons and Carols at College of the Holy Cross was held on December 18, 2020, via a YouTube premiere available to members of the Holy Cross community and their friends and family around the world.
Sponsored by the Office of the College Chaplains and the Department of Music, the event featured carols and hymns by the Holy Cross College Choir and Chamber Singers and the Holy Cross Orchestra under the direction of Dr. Allegra Martin, director of College Choirs and interim director of College Orchestra. The production was coordinated by Laurence Rosania, director of Music and Liturgy. As it traditionally has, the evening offered scripture and song, this year through virtual performances due to the ongoing international pandemic. Over 2,600 alumni, faculty, staff, students, and parents watched the premiere online the first week it aired.
Marybeth Kearns-Barrett ’84, director of the Office of the College Chaplains, welcomed viewers to this year’s Lessons and Carols, saying, “As we live with the suffering and loss of this pandemic, this advent season, we dare to proclaim: Emmanuel! Our liturgy tonight reminds us that God is indeed with us, offering us light and hope for our path.”
Highlights of the festival included the world premiere of “O quam mirabilis est/O How Wonderful,” by Kyle Irvine ’21, which was commissioned especially for this year’s Lessons & Carols. Performances by organists Matt Luca ’22 and Michelle Sacco ’21 bookended the festival, which also included music from cellist Joseph Cracolici ’23 and soloists Siobhan Kiernan ’21, Emma Manzi ’24, Hannah Baker ’21, Sadie O’Conor ’22, Kyle Irvine ’21, Allison Leahy ’24, Isabelle Lindhurst ’24, and Carina Gregori-Asadourian ’23.
Readings from scripture were given by Marie Robert ’21, Valentin De Jesus ’21, Dorean Asuako ’21, Omar Villalpando ’21, Beth Griffin ’21,and Joseph Ertle ’21, and the Holy Cross College Choir, College Orchestra, and Chamber Singers gave moving performances. Omondi Andrew, Assistant Chaplain, offered a prayer.
The 42nd Annual Festival of Lessons and Carols also included some previous years’ footage, featuring the 2018 College Choir and College Orchestra’s rendition of “It Came Upon the Midnight Clear” and the 2019 College Choir and College Orchestra’s performances of “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and “Adeste Fideles.”
Lessons & Carols was just one of the holiday traditions that Holy Cross observed this year despite the pandemic. The College also released its annual Christmas video message, and earlier in the month held the annual tree lighting on campus, which was also broadcast virtually. Watch the full recorded premiere of the 42nd Annual Lessons & Carols here.
Over the past six months, Bulgaria has been shaken by a wave of anti-government protests, with thousands of demonstrators demanding the resignation of its prime minister, but so far the unpopular regime has survived. Can these mass protests lead to actual change?
Nina Barzachka, assistant professor of political science at the College of the Holy Cross, examined the current political crisis in Bulgaria in a co-authored article for The Washington Post.
According to Barzachka, whose most recent research focuses on why incumbents facing non-violent demonstrations resign or remain in office, “the strategy of ignoring peaceful demonstrations tends to be adopted by stable political regimes when protesters and opposition parties are not electoral threats and cannot offer clear political alternatives to the incumbents.”
“That’s the situation in Bulgaria today. Voters disapprove of Borisov’s cabinet but it’s unclear who would govern after snap elections,” says Barzachka.
To read the entire article, go to WashingtonPost.com.
(Left to right) Caroline Fredericks ’21, Bridget Whelpley ’21, Jake Mozeleski ’22, Alison Emery ’23, Caitlin Marple ’21, Ed McDermott ’79 P10 P13, and Angelo Carbone ’22.
The Holy Cross mediation team took first prize at the major collegiate tournament of the fall 2020 semester, the Brenau Invitational Mediation Tournament—the latest in a years-long string of successful showings on the national and international mediation competition circuit.
At mediation tournaments, students from undergraduate institutions face off in simulated mediation situations, where competitors must reach a mutually satisfying deal in response to a hypothetical legal problem. The tournaments are run by the International Academy of Dispute Resolution (INADR), and the Holy Cross team has competed across the United States and internationally.
In 2020, they competed virtually during the Covid-19 pandemic, and that international health crisis was also front and center in one of the cases the students were tasked with negotiating. The tournaments take place in multiple rounds, where students rotate in assuming the role of mediators, advocates, and clients, and they can earn points for their team with their performance. In the pandemic example, tenants were facing eviction for not paying their rent, after losing their jobs as a direct result of the pandemic.
The Holy Cross team, advocating on the side of the landlord, came up with a two-part solution that benefitted both parties, according to mediation team member Bridget Whelpley ’21, a biology major and rhetoric and composition minor.
“One aspect was establishing a rent payment formula based on how much government assistance a tenant was receiving. And the second half of our solution established periodic landlord-tenant roundtables, so that there could be an open line of communication between the parties—and future misunderstandings could be avoided,” said Whelpley, who also won first place in the individual mediator category and earned the Elizabeth Baumgardner Award, given to the student with the highest combined score in the mediator and advocate roles at this tournament.
By participating in these tournaments, Whelpley and her teammates learn to listen critically, consider all sides of an argument, and then clearly articulate creative, fair solutions to problems. It’s an ideal activity for students considering law school, but equips students with collaboration and communication skills for any field.
“Participation in the team is strong because students prize the skills that they develop for their futures in law school and as attorneys. They learn how to research legal cases and ideas, and learn how to argue their points,” said Anthony Cashman, the director of the Office of Distinguished Fellowships and Graduate Studies. “In fact, even for team members who do not wish to become lawyers, the students learn public speaking and self-presentation. These elements fit perfectly with the critical-thinking skills that are the target of Holy Cross’ liberal arts curriculum.”
Ed McDermott ’79 P10 P13, who has coached Holy Cross mock trial since the late 1990s and formed the mediation team in 2015, says students enjoy how mediation “lets them work towards a mutual resolution of a problem, as opposed to going to combat and vanquishing your opponent.” And, he says, Holy Cross students bring a common strength into the tournaments.
“They are able to pivot extremely well, and what I mean by pivot is, they can think on their feet quickly and creatively. Nothing phases them, based on my years of coaching,” McDermott said. “When the other team comes up with something that’s a little novel or creative, our students just have that innate ability to adjust on their feet, and that’s going to serve them well in whatever profession they go into.”
Brian Senier ’19 went the law school route, and says his mediation experience is an asset during exams.
“Mediation broadened my legal vocabulary and activated my creativity. Success in law school requires at once understanding the black-letter law and theory, and an ability to apply the law to the facts, clearly and persuasively,” said Senier, a second-year student at Suffolk Law School in Boston.
His teammate Jessica Russo ’19 is also in law school, at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, but says the team is for “anyone who wants to sharpen their communication and problem-solving skills, regardless of whether or not you are planning to go to law school.”
For Coach McDermott, it’s about both preparing students for the next phase of their life—and having a little fun along the way.
“You have to have fun during these endeavors. As much as augmenting their skill set is good for the students, they aren’t going to do it unless they enjoy it,” McDermott says. “And they really do enjoy mediation.”
Yada Intarapanich ’24
Name: Yada Intarapanich ’24
Hometown: Falls Church, Virginia.
Studies She’s Considering: Political science, health professions advising, and Middle Eastern studies.
Why She Chose Holy Cross: Beautiful campus, faculty’s dedication to student well-being, and the fact that Holy Cross has an abundance of programs and co-curricular activities that pertain to my many interests.
Activities: College Democrats, “KXPLOSION” K-pop dance club, SPUD Mentoring Program.
What She’s Most Looking Forward To: Exploring the Worcester area, having opportunities to meet my classmates, internship and research opportunities, and listening to guest speakers hosted by different department heads!
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Grace Dolan ’24
Name: Grace Dolan ’24
Hometown: Stowe, Vermont
Studies She’s Considering: Psychology major and education minor, Teacher Education Program
Why She Chose Holy Cross: I chose Holy Cross because its academics supported my interests and the spirit of and people from the school were really welcoming.
Activities: SPUD, Purple Key Society.
What She’s Most Looking Forward To: I am looking forward to joining the Ski Club and being on campus!
Why She’s Blogging: I am blogging because I want to share my unique experience of being a first-year student off-campus during my first semester of college due to the pandemic.
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Grace Driscoll ’24
Name: Grace Driscoll ’24
Hometown: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Studies She’s Considering: International studies, business, ethics, and society
Why She Chose Holy Cross: I wanted to go back to the New England area for college because this is where the rest of my family is. I had heard about Holy Cross through a close family friend and added it to my list of colleges to tour. I ended up falling in love with everything about it: the academics, community, and all other extracurricular activities.
Activities: Purple Key Society; currently in the process of transferring to Army ROTC from Navy ROTC.
What She’s Most Looking Forward To: I am looking forward to all of the opportunities that Holy Cross has to offer; to make new friends, gain college experience, and try new things.
Why She’s Blogging: I am blogging to help prospective students and families to gain a greater insight into what Holy Cross is really about; to give an inside look into the life of a first-year student!
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Owen Whaley ’24
Name: Owen Whaley ’24
Hometown: Cary, North Carolina
Studies he’s considering: Political science, history, pre-law program
Activities: Alexander Hamilton Society
What he’s most looking forward to: Holy Cross is an incredible community, and I am grateful to be part of it. I am excited to meet new people and try new things over the next four years. At Holy Cross, I plan to participate in community service across Worcester. I am also interested in participating in the study abroad program and exploring different cultures and communities in the world.
Why he’s blogging: I hope that my blogs can excite prospective students about the opportunities that await them at Holy Cross.
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Elsi Ojanen ’24
Name: Elsi Ojanen ’24
Hometown: Rindge, NH
Studies She’s Considering: English and religious studies
Why She Chose Holy Cross: I chose Holy Cross because of the rich sense of community and the Christian values evident in every aspect of the school.
Activities: College Choir, St. Peter and St. Paul Society, Holy Cross Blogging, The Spire
What are you most looking forward to?: I am most looking forward to meeting new people, getting involved in ministry on campus, and becoming a part of the community on a larger scale.
Why are you blogging?: I am blogging in hopes that people will see the joys and beautiful aspects of Holy Cross that led me to the school. Holy Cross has so much to offer, whether it is in person or virtual, and in documenting just what this school does for people, I hope that my blogging can lead to a greater understanding of love present at Holy Cross today.
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The College of the Holy Cross has once again been recognized as one of the top 10 colleges in the nation for its alumni participation in giving during the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years, according to a recent ranking from U.S. News & World Report.
The College’s 44% alumni giving rate is more than five times greater than the national average of 8%, per data from a survey of 1,451 colleges and universities across the country.
According to the report, Holy Cross is among schools like Princeton University, Williams College, Bowdoin College and Amherst College, with seven of the top 10 institutions being liberal arts colleges.
Read more about the ranking at U.S. News & World Report.
The Spire staff
Over the summer, Matthew Anderson ’21 was at work in his hometown of Moultonborough, New Hampshire, when his phone started buzzing nonstop. Anderson, co-editor-in-chief of Holy Cross’ student newspaper, The Spire, saw numerous messages from Spire staff members who had just learned the fall semester would be remote. “Those first moments were: What do we do now?” Anderson recalls.
Anderson and fellow Editor-in-Chief Kelly Gallagher ’22 quickly gathered their editorial team and tapped the paper’s faculty advisors for input. “We had a strong sense that we wanted to depict how the community is staying a community, even while dispersed,” says Gallagher, an English and Russian Studies double major. “Even though [being remote] posed a lot of difficulties, it gave us a lot of direction going forward, maybe more so than we have most years.”
One of their first hurdles was figuring out how to take a primarily print-focused publication fully digital — and engage readers used to simply grabbing the paper while on the go around campus.
“We created a newsletter so we can have all the articles for one week in one place,” explains Gallagher, who compiles the stories every Thursday evening from her home in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The next morning, the issue gets posted to the paper’s website and emailed to subscribers around the world.
“One of the strengths we maybe always had but really realized this semester is that online presence,” says Anderson, a history major with a concentration in peace and conflict studies. He shares that going totally digital has actually given student journalists more flexibility to respond to breaking news, like Father Boroughs announcing plans to step aside as president of Holy Cross in 2021. “Within hours or early the next day we can have an article out on the site and share it on our social media.”
Weekly virtual staff meetings give the team time to connect, debrief — and figure out how to adapt to reporting during a remote semester.
Sports editors have shifted to focus more on creating spotlights of individual student-athletes. And the paper’s photographers have pivoted to become graphic designers. “They had to change everything about how they operated,” Gallagher says of the visuals team. Anderson underscores their impact: “[Graphics] make our e-paper look way more professional than it otherwise would.”
Grace Bromage ’23, chief features editor, says she’s conducting more interviews than ever in an effort to uplift student, faculty and staff voices: “It’s a way to show people that we’re still a community even though we’re apart — and even though it seems like you’re going through this alone, we’re all sharing this experience.”
Bromage, an English major with a creative writing concentration and education minor from Kingston, Massachusetts, says she plans to continue this approach, even when back on campus. “It’s another way of thinking that’s actually benefited The Spire and my own writing,” she says.
“It’s more important than ever for people to talk about Holy Cross, on their own terms,” Anderson emphasizes. And that’s something Spire readers are really responding to right now.
“The most popular stories are the student interviews,” shares Gallagher, noting they help give a sense of what’s driving the community “when you can’t just look around you and see that for yourself.”
“I think what a lot of other campus newspapers had to do was write more generic [articles],” Anderson says. “We’re keeping a lot of our articles Holy Cross-focused, which is sometimes, in certain weeks, more of a challenge. But I’m really glad that that’s been consistent. And I think people are proud of that.”
Gallagher says The Spire team has made a particular effort to welcome first-year students, especially given that they’ve never experienced life on campus. She’s thrilled the paper now has one first-year editor and a couple first-year regular contributors: “I’m really happy to have them on the team.”
And to cultivate broader connections, Gallagher recently arranged an online journalism workshop with an editor from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette — and invited students on the newspapers at Clark University and Assumption University to join. “It was great,” she shares. “There was also a lot of conversation between the students from the different newspapers, exchanging stories of what our semesters had been like.”
Both editors-in-chief say it’s been incredible to watch their staff persevere this semester to put out a robust newspaper, week after week.
“Holy Cross is more than a campus,” wrote Gallagher and Anderson in The Spire’s fall welcome letter to readers, “and though we are experiencing it differently, the spirit that we’ve always loved remains.”
Florencia Anggoro
Florencia Anggoro, associate professor of psychology at the College of the Holy Cross, was recently awarded two Templeton Foundation subgrants totaling nearly $650,000 for research that will explore the acquisition and transmission of religious and scientific concepts in Indonesia.
Through the University of California, Riverside, Anggoro was awarded a five-year subgrant of approximately $450,000 from a $10 million grant—the second-largest Templeton has awarded. The $10 million grant will fund 10 inaugural research teams representing countries around the globe. As part of this Developing Belief Network, Anggoro’s project, “Exploring Religious Cognition and Development in Indonesia,” will explore questions related to:
— How religious and traditional beliefs relate to Indonesians’ conceptualization and reasoning about the world;
— The sources, mechanisms of transmission, and developmental trajectory of these beliefs; and
— Individual differences that contribute to religious cognition and development in Indonesia.
Earlier this year, Anggoro was also awarded a three-year subgrant of approximately $200,000 through the University of Texas at Austin as part of a $2 million grant that will fund 14 research teams that make up the Culture of Schooling Network. The primary goal of Anggoro’s project, “The Development of Scientific and Religious Concepts in Indonesia,” is to explore the interaction between intuitive theories, religious beliefs and science learning among Indonesian children, adolescents and adults.
“Even though the vast majority of the world’s population is religious, little attention has been paid to how our thinking and learning are influenced by our religious beliefs,” Anggoro says. “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with scholars whose work is at the cutting edge of this emerging field. I also feel fortunate to be able to pursue questions that have been important to me since my childhood in Indonesia.”
Read more about the Templeton grant to fund the Developing Belief Network, including the research teams and sites.
As the COVID-19 pandemic surges, several high-profile local leaders around the country are facing criticism for attending dinners and taking vacations, acts that appear to defy their own public health orders.
In a recent interview with Bloomberg’s CityLab, Alex Hindman, assistant professor of political science at Holy Cross, warned that local leaders’ risk-taking is ill-advised right now and can be read by the public as condescension.
“We’re trying to get people to abide by these measures, for all of our benefits, in some sort of collective good,” says Hindman. “If it simply looks like it’s about power and privilege, people aren’t going to believe the truth of what they may be saying.”
To read the full article, go to Bloomberg.com.
