Five Holy Cross Faculty Members Promoted to Rank of Professor

Posted on October 10, 2018 by Holy Cross Magazine

From left: Joshua Farrell, Maria Guadalupe M. Rodrigues and Leon Claessens.After years of dedicated teaching and research in their respective fields, five Holy Cross faculty members have been promoted to the rank of full professor. We asked them a few questions about their scholarship — and more:

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Chaplains’ Office Welcomes New Staff

Posted on October 10, 2018 by Holy Cross Magazine

Rev. Keith Maczkiewicz, S.J. and Andrew Omondi This academic year, the Office of the College Chaplains welcomes two new staff members: Rev. Keith Maczkiewicz, S.J. and Andrew Omondi. Both offering rich education and faith experience, they are excited to join the Holy Cross community.

To many, Maczkiewicz is a familiar face; he worked on campus from 2013-2015 as a regent during his Jesuit formation. Some may remember him as the “Holla @ the Collar” Jesuit who, wearing his clerics, sat in Cool Beans once a week to talk with students.

Originally from Long Island, New York, Maczkiewicz returns to Holy Cross this year as assistant chaplain after being ordained in June. He looks forward to returning to campus with the gift of the priesthood, hoping to continue to form relationships through what he deems “casual ministry.”

His primary responsibility will be recruiting and training liturgical ministers — those who greet, lector and serve the Eucharist at Mass. One of the guiding questions Maczkiewicz will keep in mind for students as he begins this ministry: “How can we continue to form you in your role of service to this community?”

In addition to his liturgy work, Maczkiewicz says part of his role as chaplain will involve stopping whatever he is doing to listen to the experiences of students of all faith backgrounds. “Tangible results are less important to me than a student’s heart being broken open and having had an experience that changes their life,” he says.

Also joining the campus ministry staff is Andrew Omondi, a former Jesuit-in-training from Kenya. Omondi, who holds degrees in educational psychology and theology, arrives at Mount St. James with a wealth of experience, having lived in Nairobi, South Sudan, London and Indianapolis. Joining the Holy Cross community is one of the best ways to give back what he has learned through his time in education and his experiences traveling and encountering different cultures, he says.

As assistant chaplain, Omondi will work primarily with student-athletes, holding Bible studies, providing pastoral care and participating in immersion trips and retreats. As a former athlete himself, he is excited to help Holy Cross athletes use sports to examine their own spirituality. He views sports as another way to experience full community with God. “Having a gift is God’s way of speaking to us and trying to reveal himself in us,” he says.

In this new role, Omondi pictures himself as a walking stick for students, accompanying them in their struggles and joys. “If one wants to go far, he has to do it with others,” he explains.

Formed in Jesuit and Ignatian spirituality, Omondi holds these beliefs dear and hopes to integrate them into his new role. He believes that sharing Ignatian spirituality will help create a community rooted in God, not only at Holy Cross, but in the world.


Written by Mary Cunningham ’17 for the Fall 2018 issue of Holy Cross Magazine.

About Holy Cross Magazine

Holy Cross Magazine (HCM) is the quarterly alumni publication of the College of the Holy Cross. The award-winning publication is mailed to alumni and friends of the College and includes intriguing profiles, make-you-think features, alumni news, exclusive photos and more. Visit magazine.holycross.edu/about to contact HCM, submit alumni class notes, milestones, or letters to the editor.

Posted in Fall 2018, Holy Cross Magazine, News | Comments Off on Chaplains’ Office Welcomes New Staff

Holy Cross Maymester Program Leaves Mark on Faculty, Too

Posted on October 9, 2018 by Holy Cross Magazine

On a special tour of the Domus Aurea students in hard hats imagine the incredible luxuries and imperial attitudes linked with the Roman mega-complex. At the end of a long, hot day last May, Aaron Seider, associate professor of classics, was leading a group of students on a tour of the Capitoline Museum in Rome. He was ready to throw in the towel and head back to the hotel, but his students were enthusiastic about continuing. “They were fired up to see this temporary exhibition,” he remembers. As they entered the room, he was stunned to see a quote from Virgil on the wall; Seider had been working on a paper examining how that exact quote was used in the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York, and instantly made a connection between the two institutions.

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Can a Sports Stadium Ruin a Neighborhood? Holy Cross Economics Professor Opines for The Guardian

Posted on October 9, 2018 by Holy Cross in the News
Victor Matheson, professor of economics. Photo by Tom Rettig

Victor Matheson, professor of economics. Photo by Tom Rettig

Detroit’s billionaire Ilitch family has come under fire as their ambitious plans to create an expansive entertainment district in downtown Detroit are not coming to fruition, despite the newly opened Little Caesars Arena.

The Guardian recently examined the issue, and called upon College of the Holy Cross economics professor Victor Matheson for expertise. Matheson says the deal was bad for Detroit from the outset.

Matheson also refers to the situation in Detroit as unique. “It’s not rare at all that new development does not materialize or takes very long to materialize – that’s very common,” Matheson says. “It is extremely rare to see a stadium cause a neighborhood to go backwards – that is very rare.”

To read the full article, go to TheGuardian.com.

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Flipping the Script: A Candid Conversation with Prized Psychology Professor

Posted on October 3, 2018 by Jane Carlton

Binah Saint-Loth '19 interviews Danuta "Diane" BukatkoHow do babies’ minds develop? How can female leaders thrive? How can Holy Cross students learn to speak up and out? These are all questions that Danuta “Diane” Bukatko, professor of psychology, explores in her popular and well-regarded courses.

As a teacher and mentor at the College, Bukatko has played a significant role in the lives of hundreds of students over the course of her 42-year tenure. It was only fitting then that the College awarded her the 2018 Donal J. Burns ’49 Career Teaching Medal, given annually to one outstanding faculty member who has devoted their life to teaching at the College.

While Bukatko has been lecturing for decades, her approach and accessibility to students is entirely timeless. Bukatko’s students describe her as a professor who “ensures that all students are equipped with the necessary resources to achieve success.” One student noted, “She was sure to deeply connect with her students, but it was her ability to push them outside of their academic comfort zones and foster open and dynamic communication that set her classes apart from others.”

Binah Saint-Loth ’19 — a psychology major with a concentration in Africana studies and one of Bukatko’s former students who is currently doing research with the professor about women in leadership — sat down with Bukatko to talk about teaching, making an impact on students and how she still gets jazzed about psychology.

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Holy Cross Professor Offers Inside Look Into Complex Jehovah’s Witnesses Organization for NBC News

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Holy Cross in the News
Mathew Schmalz, associate professor of religious studies. Photo by John Buckingham

Mathew Schmalz, associate professor of religious studies. Photo by John Buckingham

A recent Montana jury ruling that Jehovah’s Witnesses leadership is to pay $35 million to a 21-year-old woman alleging the church covered up her childhood sexual abuse shook this tight-knit community to the core.

Mathew Schmalz, associate professor of religious studies at Holy Cross and a Jehovah’s Witnesses expert, was called upon by NBC News to shed some light on the religion’s internal process of handling these types of complaints. According to Schmalz, the organization utilizes “what they call the ‘two-witness rule,’ which means that, for example, if I were abused, I would need another witness to come forward to corroborate that. Because of this, it’s very difficult to get corroborating evidence of any kind of abuse complaint.”

But Schmalz also pointed out that Jehovah’s Witnesses are known for their very strict congregational discipline, which can go as far as shunning or ostracizing members of their community. “I know Jehovah’s Witnesses who have been shunned or what they call disfellowshipped, and that’s an incredibly painful experience,” said Schmalz.

You can read the full article at NBCNews.com.

Related Coverage:

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‘Holy Cross Financial Aid & Scholarships: Real Parent Experiences’

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Holy Cross in the News

As the price tag of higher education continues to rise, affordability has become a focal point for high schoolers and parents navigating the college search process. Prospective students and their parents are likely wondering: How does Holy Cross stack up?

Personalized Approach

“With grants, scholarships, and tuition discounts, Holy Cross financial aid counselors work closely with students and families to make a Holy Cross degree accessible,” writes Edmit, an online platform dedicated to helping high school seniors make financially savvier decisions about where to go to college.

In an article written by Sarah Pascarella, Edmit takes a closer look at how one parent, Kim Grimes of Arizona, navigates the tuition and financial aid process at Holy Cross, with the hope of demystifying the daunting task for other students and parents.

The Q&A kicked off with Grimes, a parent of a member of the class of 2021, explaining how much the cost of Holy Cross factored into her child’s decision of where to go to college.

‘Best Value’ College

“My child decided only to apply to schools that would meet his full financial need,” she shares with Edmit. “Although private schools are expensive compared to state schools, the former provide more money percentage-wise — and for Holy Cross, a better education — than state schools. My child also selected Holy Cross over other elite liberal arts schools because it is a Best Value College — we knew that his degree from Holy Cross was worth the investment because alumni have amazing career earnings.”

In the early stages of the college search, Grimes shares that she did months of research to understand how need-based aid and merit-based aid were given, a system that had seen many changes since she was in college herself.

User Friendly Process

Holy Cross, she explains, made it simple with a user-friendly website and straightforward financial aid letter, and by making it easy for parents to gauge how much financial aid or scholarships they would receive. In the end, her expectation aligned with what was actually offered.

“Once I knew my [Expected Family Contribution], I could make a pretty accurate guesstimate of what Holy Cross would offer. Having the FAFSA due October 1 instead of January 1 is the best decision that was made because students get their EFC much faster and using the previous year’s tax returns helps us parents prepare sooner for costs.”

‘Insider’ Tips

“What advice or insider tips do you have for other parents whose children want to go to College of the Holy Cross?” Edmit asked.

“Ask questions! The Holy Cross financial aid office is prompt and accurate in its responses,” says Grimes, who also suggested filing FAFSA and CSS as soon as possible.

“Take advantage of the work opportunities that Holy Cross provides,” she adds. “While most colleges require students to apply and interview for their own work-study jobs, Holy Cross takes this worry away by placing all freshmen workers in the cafeteria. This is brilliant because students can start right away earning money and focusing on their adjustment to college rather than seeking work-study employment.”

To read the full article, go to Edmit.me.

Beyond highlighting Holy Cross financial aid processes, Edmit also named Holy Cross a Hidden Gem School last spring, pointing to the College’s holistic and career-centric curriculum, its affordability and stellar career prep.

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Eight New Tenure-Track Faculty Members Welcomed in 2018-19 Academic Year

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Jane Carlton

The new tenure-track faculty members stand in front of O'Kane. From left to right: Ke Ren, Dominic Machado, Mahri Leonard-Fleckman, Christine Hagan, Reginald McGee, Alexis Hill and Ryan Mruczek. Not pictured: Alex Hindman

The College of the Holy Cross has welcomed eight new faculty members to tenure-track positions for the 2018-19 academic year. They will each join a different department: biology, chemistry, political science, religious studies, classics, mathematics, psychology and history. The new faculty members bring with them a breadth of expertise on a variety of topics, from studying fruit flies for brain function to looking at how the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution influence the practice of modern politics.

Learn a bit more about the new faculty below.

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Hundreds of High Schoolers, Resettled Peoples Find Connection Through Art

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Evangelia Stefanakos

Over the course of a week-long residency at the College of the Holy Cross, wherever the Silkroad Ensemble went — whether on campus or throughout Worcester — connection followed. The Grammy Award-winning musical collective, made up of musicians representing dozens of nationalities and artistic traditions, spent five days collaborating in classrooms, hosting workshops, leading jam sessions and performing.

Kicking off year two of a three-year residency with Holy Cross sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders (ATB), Silkroad creates music that engages difference and sparks radical cultural collaboration, finding ways to teach and learn along the way. And this is exactly what they brought to Holy Cross.

Silkroad visited classrooms to work with students across the board — from first-year Montserrat students to upperclassmen in the Honors Program — infusing music into their seemingly unrelated courses and drawing unexpected connections.

This semester’s visit also gave particular focus to community engagement, an interest shared by both Silkroad and ATB, by bringing the work of Silkroad to recently resettled peoples and local high school students.

Mid-week, a jam session was held in downtown Worcester, where amateur and professional musicians from Worcester’s immigrants populations and recently resettled refugees were welcome to join Silkroad for an evening of music. More than 35 musicians from a range of cultural and musical backgrounds arrived.

“‘What happens when strangers meet’ was one of the topics that emerged in the sessions that happened throughout the week,” says Yonca Karakilic, associate director of ATB.”This particular event was kind of the epitome of that idea, of something really special and maybe even unrepeatable happening when differences meet.”

The event, which featured much spontaneity, also faced a unique problem: how to find cohesion among dozens of strangers, playing very different instruments, and who did not speak a common language. Shane Shanahan, Silkroad’s co-artistic director and a percussionist, guided the musicians as they negotiated their differences to find communication — and commonality — through music.

“Engaging in the arts creates magic because it transcends all borders: language, race, politics, economics,” says Shanahan. “Arts related activities allow everyone to connect in a joyful experience of self-express and listening. Every voice is accepted and every voice matters. The jam session at Worcester PopUp was a great example of this.”

This type of community-wide collaboration was also hosted on campus — albeit scaled up — with more than 200 local high school students arriving on campus on Friday morning to participate in the College’s second annual Festival of the Arts.

With 14 workshops being offered, each group of high school students participated in three workshops led by Holy Cross faculty and students. The workshops, ranging from Improv 101 to Hands on Sculpture, brought the arts together at Holy Cross and introduced young students to the possibilities of creativity and what it could be like to study the arts in college.

The day culminated on the Hogan Oval with a performance by Silkroad and an interactive musical piece that welcomed the high school students — and the Holy Cross community that had gathered — to participate in singing, percussions and the visual arts alongside the Silkroad artists.

“In Silkroad, we talk a lot about three concepts central to our mission: curiosity, deep listening and empathy,” shares Danny Mekonnen, saxophonist in the Silkroad Ensemble. “I believe that when we engage communities through the arts we build the capacity for understanding which leads valuable connection.”

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Holy Cross Lauded by The Chronicle of Higher Education for Championing Its Visiting Assistant Professors

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Holy Cross in the News
Eric Fleury, visiting assistant professor in the political science department, is seen here during a class.

Eric Fleury, visiting assistant professor in the political science department, is seen here during a class.

Visiting assistant professor positions have gotten a bad rap in academia, known as being exploitative and not offering much-needed job security, leading many scholars to avoid them altogether. But if a college’s visitors’ program is structured well, it can lead to great successes that benefit both the institution and the academics.

“Visiting faculty, generally, are extraordinarily talented individuals,” Margaret Freije, provost and dean of Holy Cross told The Chronicle of Higher Education in a recent article. “And in another world and another time, they would probably be in tenure-line positions. So what we want to do is treat them as the professionals that they are.”

Whether it’s through faculty-development workshops and mentoring, or same new-faculty orientation and financial support for scholarly studies as tenure-track faculty, Holy Cross is leading the way in making visiting assistant professors more competitive on the tenure-track market, according to The Chronicle.

From her own experience as a visiting professor at Holy Cross, Tamar Carroll agrees, “Holy Cross has a great reputation for teaching, so I think that enhanced my CV and the way people received me while I was on the job market.”

“Faculty members there were willing to mentor me, to take time out of their busy schedules to offer advice on the job-interview process, as well as teaching advice,” shares Carroll, now associate professor and acting history department chair at Rochester Institute of Technology. “And so I think that probably helped me be more successful.”

To read the full article, go to Chronicle.com.

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Service, Faith and Justice: Five Alumni Honored for Wide-Ranging, Significant Achievements

Posted on September 25, 2018 by Jane Carlton

From left, Hon. Richard J. Leon, J.D. '71; Mary Beth Sheridan '83; Augustine "Gus" J. Caffrey, Ph. D. '73; Arthur "Ned" E. Weyman, M.D. '62; and Barbara Tylenda, Ph.D., ABPP '79 sit on a panel led by Denise Schaeffer

In a packed room, College of the Holy Cross students, staff and faculty had a chance to meet and hear from this year’s distinguished recipients of the Sanctae Crucis Award, the highest non-degree accolade the College bestows upon alumni. Given to alumni who fully embody the Holy Cross mission statement, the recipients for 2018 were: Augustine “Gus” J. Caffrey, Ph. D. ’73; Hon. Richard J. Leon, J.D. ’71; Mary Beth Sheridan ’83; Barbara Tylenda, Ph.D., ABPP ’79; and Arthur “Ned” E. Weyman, M.D. ’62.

The five award winners shared their wisdom and advice in a panel discussion led by Denise Schaeffer, professor of political science and the director of strategic initiatives for the Provost’s office. Following the panel, the recipients broke off into individual groups to interact more directly with students and share career and school advice, along with memories from their time at Holy Cross.

Here, the highlights — relevant and resonant to current students and the Holy Cross community beyond.

Augustine J. Caffrey, Ph.D. ’73

Caffrey is a physicist at the Idaho National Laboratory who developed the Portable Isotopic Neutron Spectroscopy system, a device used worldwide to determine the contents of artillery shells without risking exposure of humans to potentially dangerous chemical warfare agents.

“When I was a student at Holy Cross, I joined the staff of the radio station. It was great — I got to hear the new release of The Doors first. The guy who was in charge, Dan Kennedy, is my model for running a business. At a student radio station, it’s a bunch of volunteers. They weren’t getting paid anything. But we had a meeting every week and Dan Kennedy allowed every person to have his or her say. Physics is a team sport. The Einstein paradigm is out the window. You have to get along with other people. You need to make everyone on the team feel valuable. And that’s what Dan Kennedy taught me how to do at Holy Cross.”

Hon. Richard J. Leon, J.D. ’71

Leon is a Senior United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, who has presided over cases including ruling on the constitutional rights of Guantanamo detainees and the recent AT&T/Time Warner merger.

“One thing that has remained the same throughout the 50-plus years since I was a student, is that Holy Cross fosters an esprit de corps between and among the students — an environment in which friendships that are formed will stay friendships for the rest of one’s life. I certainly have had the benefit throughout my career of having Holy Cross people come into my life — not people I went to Holy Cross with, but people older and younger. That esprit de corps forms a fast bond with Crusaders you didn’t even go to school with.”

Mary Beth Sheridan ’83

Sheridan is the deputy foreign editor of The Washington Post covering such issues as Ebola, the Islamic State, migration, and homeland security and reporting from countries including Venezuela, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Egypt.

“I think that the value of a liberal arts education is as strong as ever. I was very drawn to that. I think you learn how to learn. The ways I learned to think critically, to write, to debate, to get to the core of the issue — these are fundamental things I took away from Holy Cross. You come away from a Holy Cross education with a sense of mission, of wanting to do your part to make the world a little bit better. That was true of really everyone in my class.”

Barbara Tylenda, Ph.D., ABPP ’79

Tylenda is the chief psychologist and associate unit chief for the Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities at the Emma Pendleton Bradley Hospital and clinical professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University in Providence, R.I. Her focus is on the diagnosis, assessment, and treatment of children and adolescents who present with developmental disabilities and co-existing psychiatric disorders.

“When I had finished up my Ph.D. at Southern Illinois University, I was going to do my internship, which we now call a residency, in clinical psychology. I was going specifically to be a neuropsychologist. Apparently, for whatever reason, that option was not open. I was told I was going to the developmental disabilities unit. I was terrified. If I had maintained that vantage point, I would have never been open to the possibilities of what I beheld. I found these beautiful children who most people do not want to work with, that are just wonderful. If I had not been forced into a situation and reframed my acceptance of that, my career wouldn’t be the same.”

Arthur E. Weyman, M.D. ’62

Weyman is a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is a pioneering researcher and educator in echocardiography whose findings have resulted in the use of echocardiography in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac patients worldwide.

“My mentor has always said that throughout his life, as he gets older, the thing he’s proudest of are the accomplishments of the people he’s trained. And nothing can be more true. As a mentor, it’s more than that. I was chairing the American Society of Echocardiography’s Young Investigator’s Award, which they were nice enough to name after me, and I looked into the winner’s background, and I could see that he was one of my felllow’s fellow’s fellow’s fellow. So what you do as a mentor doesn’t just stop at the person you’re involved with; it goes on and on and on for generations.”

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Blog: O’Hara ’20 Looks Forward to Exploring Beijing and Shanghai, China During Year Abroad

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meghan Schatz

Bryn O'Hara '20

NAME Bryn O’Hara ’20

HOMETOWN Boston, Mass.

AREAS OF STUDY Chinese major

WHERE SHE’S STUDYING Capital Normal University in Beijing, China (fall) and Donghua University in Shanghai, China (spring)

DURATION Full academic year

WHY SHE CHOSE CHINA “I lived in Shanghai a couple summers ago and fell in love; it has been my goal to go back ever since.  Additionally, living in China will help me to improve my fluency in Chinese, which has been one of my main aspirations since high school.”

WHAT SHE’S MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO “I lived in Shanghai a couple summers ago and fell in love; it has been my goal to go back ever since.  Additionally, living in China will help me to improve my fluency in Chinese, which has been one of my main aspirations since high school.”

WHY SHE’S BLOGGING “I want to provide an accurate account of the study abroad experience for students who are considering studying abroad or attending Holy Cross.  I also hope to use this blog to reflect upon my own experiences and growth throughout my time in China.”

Read the blog »

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Blog: Farjo ’20 Excited to Explore African Culture and Wildlife During Semester in Tanzania

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meghan Schatz

Noor Farjo '20

NAME Noor Farjo ‘20

HOMETOWN West Springfield, Mass.

AREAS OF STUDY Biology major

WHERE SHE’S STUDYING The School of Field Studies in Rhotia, Tanzania

DURATION Fall 2018

WHY SHE CHOSE TANZANIA “Living in a different country and experiencing that community’s culture while conducting scientific research has been one of my biggest dreams. So, I am very excited that I will finally get to experience this dream in Tanzania, one of the most iconic locations for wildlife! I can’t wait to meet new people, immerse myself in the culture and experience the wildlife Tanzania has to offer.”

WHAT SHE’S MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO “I am very excited to go on multiple safaris and visit some of the world’s most famous national parks including Serengeti National Park. I am also looking forward to learning more about African culture, wildlife management and conservation as they relate to the human-wildlife conflict in Tanzania.”

WHY SHE’S BLOGGING “I am very excited to share and document all my amazing experiences and I want to take anyone interested, including current and prospective Holy Cross students and families along with me for the ride. I am motivated to reflect on my experiences, not take every day for granted and most importantly take lots of pictures of all the wildlife and adventures that I will be a part of.”

Read the blog »

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Blog: Goza ’20 Excited to Study Religion in the “Spiritual Heart of Catholicism” During Year Abroad

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meghan Schatz

Kate Goza '20

NAME Kate Goza ’20

HOMETOWN Mukilteo, Wash.

AREAS OF STUDY Religious Studies major, Italian minor

WHERE SHE’S STUDYING Università di Firenze in Florence, Italy

DURATION Full academic year

WHY SHE CHOSE ITALY “I’ve always felt an affinity for Italian culture, history, and art. After taking a week-long trip to the country last year, I didn’t want to leave and felt emboldened to spend more time there through study abroad.”

WHAT SHE’S MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO “I’m excited about becoming more fluent in Italian, studying religion in the spiritual heart of Catholicism, and experiencing Florentine life.”

WHY SHE’S BLOGGING “Some of my favorites books to read and television shows to watch are about traveling and what it’s like to be stranger in a strange land. So, I was inspired to document my own experiences and share them with family, friends, and students that might be considering studying abroad.”

Read the blog »

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Blog: Mackin ’20 Eager to Travel Around Latin America During Semester Abroad in Peru

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meghan Schatz

Johanna Mackin '20

NAME  Johanna Mackin ‘20

HOMETOWN  Houston, Texas

AREAS OF STUDY  Political Science major, Latin American, Latinx and Caribbean Studies concentration

WHERE SHE’S STUDYING  Pontificia Universidad Catòlica del Perú in Lima, Peru

DURATION Fall 2018

WHY SHE CHOSE PERU “I chose to study abroad in Peru because it allowed me to continue studying Spanish while also exploring a whole new part of the world that I’ve never been to.”

WHAT SHE’S MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO “I’m most looking forward to traveling around Peru and Latin America, seeing Machu Picchu, learning about a new culture, and trying all of the new culinary opportunities Peru has to offer (Lima is the culinary capital of South America!).”

WHY SHE’S BLOGGING “Reading the study abroad blogs has always been interesting to me. They’re part of what drew me to Holy Cross and to studying abroad while studying here. I’m really excited to take part in the blogs and hopefully offer that same inspiration to future Holy Cross students.”

Read the blog »

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Blog: Brown Baker ’20 Hopes to Become Fluent in Russian During Year Abroad

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meghan Schatz

Emily Brown Baker '20

NAME Emily Brown Baker ‘20

HOMETOWN Harper Woods, Mich. (near Detroit)

AREAS OF STUDY Sociology and Russian double major, Peace and Conflict Studies concentration

WHERE SHE’S STUDYING Russian State University for the Humanities (RSUH) in Moscow, Russia

DURATION Full academic year

WHY SHE CHOSE RUSSIA “I have always wanted to study abroad, and I knew studying in Moscow at RSUH would be the best way to develop another language. I started studying Russian my first year at Holy Cross with absolutely no prior exposure after taking Spanish all through middle and high school. I knew I wanted to learn a non-Romance language and couldn’t decide between Arabic and Russian. I attended information sessions for both during Prospective Students Day and like both equally… except the Russian information session had good sushki (a hard mini bagel eaten with tea), and the other didn’t have any. So I’m in Russia because of a cookie, and I couldn’t be happier!”

WHAT SHE’S MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO “I’m looking forward to so much, but especially getting to know Russian and other international students, and taking advantage of all the cultural opportunities in Moscow. I have no artistic talent, but I love art and theater, etc., which Moscow has plenty of!”

WHY SHE’S BLOGGING “I think Holy Cross has an excellent Russian program considering its size, so I hope the blog can shine a light a bit on the department. More personally, I hope after I come home, the blog can be a way for me to remember all my experiences. I also hope my friends, family, and prospective students enjoy learning about a country that remains pretty mysterious to most Americans!”

Read the blog »

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Blog: Carroll ’20 Eager to Immerse Himself in French Culture During Year Abroad

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meghan Schatz

Sean Carroll '20

NAME Sean Carroll ’20

HOMETOWN Floral Park, N.Y.

AREAS OF STUDY Economics and French double major

WHERE HE’S STUDYING Université de Bourgogne in Dijon, France

DURATION Full academic year

WHY HE CHOSE FRANCE “It has been a dream of mine to study in France ever since my first year of French class in high school, and now Holy Cross is letting me live my dream! I chose Dijon because I will be the only Holy Cross student in the city and I want to completely immerse myself in the French culture.”

WHAT HE’S MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO “I am looking forward to meeting new people, learning more about the French way of life, as well as travelling around Europe to visit my friends while they are also abroad.”

WHY HE’S BLOGGING “I am looking forward to meeting new people, learning more about the French way of life, as well as travelling around Europe to visit my friends while they are also abroad.”

Read the blog »

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What’s the Difference Between the Sports and Cardboard Box Industries? Holy Cross Professor Explains

Posted on September 20, 2018 by Holy Cross in the News
Victor Matheson, professor of economics. Photo by Tom Rettig

Victor Matheson, professor of economics. Photo by Tom Rettig

Victor Matheson, professor of economics at the College of the Holy Cross, was recently interviewed for the “Freakonomics Radio” podcast, as part of its new series dubbed “The Hidden Side of Sports.” The weekly podcast, a spin-off of the 2005 New York Times bestseller “Freakonomics,” airs on public-radio stations across the country, as well as SiriusXM, and is one of iTunes’ most popular podcasts.

During the interview, Matheson, a sports economist who specializes in “mega-sporting events,” told journalist Stephen Dubner, that although the sports industry is relatively small, it holds a lot of weight with enthusiasts.

The spectator sports in the United States are roughly the same size as the cardboard box industry according to Matheson, but the social impact of sports is “way, way bigger than the economic impact.” “Now obviously none of us gather around the water cooler on Monday morning saying, ‘Hey man, did you see that awesome cardboard box that American Paper just put out?’ Of course we don’t,” said Matheson.

To listen to the podcast episodes in their entirety, go to Freakonomics.com.

Matheson is a frequent source for national media on a wide range of economic topics, particularly the business side of sports. Read more coverage below.

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‘Catholics Need a March for Our Lives Moment,’ Says Holy Cross Professor

Posted on September 19, 2018 by Holy Cross in the News
As part of the Pope Francis Conference, Mary Roche, associate professor of religious studies, presents in the Rehm Library. Photo by Austin Bosworth

As part of the Pope Francis Conference, Mary Roche, associate professor of religious studies, presents in the Rehm Library. Photo by Austin Bosworth

Mary Roche, associate professor of religious studies at the College of the Holy Cross, was interviewed by the Telegram & Gazette recently on how Catholics are coping with the impact of the global sex-abuse crisis.

Talking about what Church leadership could do to find its way back from this crisis, Roche said that it would benefit from listening to the voices of people outside of the church, such as laypeople, women and experts on sexual abuse. She went on to say that “Catholics need a March for Our Lives moment,” referencing the movement of student protests after experiences of gun violence in schools.

“We need a space for children and young people to give voice to the experiences, to challenge and protest, and to make demands of people in power,” Roche said.

To read the full article, go to Telegram.com.

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College Marks 175th Anniversary with Community Celebration

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Jane Carlton

Student band SCONE performs on the Kimball quad.

The College of Holy Cross community kicked off a yearlong celebration of its 175th anniversary to honor the past and embrace the future on Sept. 14 with a campus-wide anniversary celebration and a Mass led by Archbishop of Boston Seán Cardinal O’Malley, O.F.M. Cap.

One hundred seventy-five years is reason to rejoice, says Frank Vellaccio, senior vice president emeritus and special advisor to the offices of the president and advancement at the College. “With all that is going on in today’s world, it’s good and right to take some time out together to be thankful and celebrate the birthday of an institution we all can be proud of — an institution that for 175 years has stayed true to a mission of providing a rigorous liberal arts education first to young men and now men and women that stressed Jesuit ideals and that has produced alumni intent on changing the world for the better.”

The celebratory spirit was evident on the Kimball quad where hundreds of Holy Cross students, faculty and staff gathered for a community-wide gathering. Large black and white images of the campus through the ages provided a backdrop for food stations, while performances from student band SCONE the Rhythm Nation Steppaz and the Crusader Pep Band kept the crowd entertained through the night.

For Ella Duwall ’22, the history of the campus feels very much alive. “One hundred seventy-five years is a long time, and it shows in the way the campus holds itself. It’s very up to date, of course, but you can feel the heritage in the cohesiveness and the architecture of the buildings. I keep finding historical surprises, like a statue here or a plaque there.”

The Mass, held on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, was concelebrated by President Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J. as well as other concelebrants from the Holy Cross Jesuit community and alumni priests of the diocese.

“This wonderful institution has prepared so many students to be men and women for others and work for the greater glory of God,” said Cardinal O’Malley, who traveled to Holy Cross to celebrate major milestone. “Catholic education is about teaching people to be human, fully human — answering the call of holiness, to lead life with love.”

For more photos, history and events celebrating Holy Cross’ 175th anniversary, visit the anniversary website.

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