Professor Makes Complex Mathematics Accessible to Undergraduate Students

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Evangelia Stefanakos

JohnLittleAlgebraic geometry may seem daunting to students, but thanks to John Little, professor of mathematics, the topic has become more accessible than ever. Little’s textbook, “Ideals, Varieties, and Algorithms: An Introduction to Computational Algebraic Geometry and Commutative Algebra” coauthored by David Cox (Amherst College) and Donal O’Shea (New College of Florida), has brought algebraic geometry and commutative algebra into the mathematical mainstream and to a broader audience, particularly undergraduate students.

The book, which was originally published in 1992, was honored by the American Mathematical Society (AMS), a society involved in the highest level of mathematics research. Little, Cox, and O’Shea were awarded the 2016 AMS Leroy P. Steele Prize for Exposition, one of the highest distinctions in mathematics.

According to the AMS, this book shows that mathematicians at small colleges, including the three authors, make significant contributions to the advancement of mathematics, the training of future mathematicians, and the application of mathematics to other disciplines.

“Even more impressive than the book’s clarity of exposition is the impact it has had on mathematics,” the prize citation stated. “Cox, Little, and O’Shea have not only introduced many to algebraic geometry, they have actually broadened how the subject could be taught and who could use it.”

By using clear exposition, and only relying upon an understanding of linear algebra as a prerequisite, the book has become widely known outside the world of pure mathematics and mathematical teaching, serving those in fields including electrical and mechanical engineering and computer science.

Algebraic geometry and commutative algebra were once exclusively taught to graduate students and involved abstract mathematics. With the development of new algorithms and computers fast enough to run them, mathematicians were able to investigate more complex examples that simply could not be done by hand, dramatically changing the practice and significance of these topics.

Seeing this shift, Little and his coauthors recognized the value in introducing algebraic geometry and commutative algebra to students earlier by integrating the topics into the undergraduate student curriculum.

“The book was specifically written to be understandable for undergraduates,” says Little. “It is a subject that is typically seen as abstract and has the reputation of being difficult. Accessibility was the guiding principle in how we wrote it.”

The AMS seldom offers such high recognition to primarily undergraduate textbooks—a testament to the book’s value and impact.

“This book really grew out of being an educator at a place that values teaching to the extent that Holy Cross does,” shares Little, who says he wrote the book with the hopes of teaching it in courses on campus.

“Because of the combination of clear exposition, examples that students can work through, and useful computer programs, the book is a very user-friendly text,” explains Steven Levandosky, associate professor and chair of the mathematics and computer science department. “These qualities are a reflection of similar traits present in John’s courses.”

Little, who was the recipient of the Holy Cross Distinguished Teaching Award in 2003, has taught over 30 different courses in the department, including seminars in the Montserrat program, since joining the faculty in 1980. He has supervised a Fenwick Scholar, several mathematics honors theses, as well as summer research projects at Holy Cross and elsewhere, often utilizing mathematics introduced in “Ideals, Varieties, and Algorithms.”

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‘Music Review: Worcester Symphonic Project puts young musicians in spotlight’

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

Holy Cross Chamber Orchestra
In a glowing review of the Worcester Symphonic Project’s (WSP) annual concert, the Telegram & Gazette highlighted the diversity of musicians, “a mix of local players—some professional, some amateur, some collect students, and some younger.”  The WSP was founded by Peter Sulski, lecturer of music at the College of the Holy Cross, and is now in its fourth season.  The project was “designed to provide local instrumentalists the opportunity to get together and present large-scale concerts in a world class hall,” Telegram reviewer Johnathan Blumhofer said.

The program included the Schubert Mass, “in which instrumentalist from the WSP were joined by the Holy Cross College Choir and members of the Worcester Chorus,” the Telegram reported.

Eric Culver, lecturer of music and director of the Holy Cross Chamber Orchestra, led a performance the Telegram called “touching.”  The review said Adam Ouellet ’16, one of the three soloists in the piece, was a standout, “quality tenors, young and old, are a rare commodity, and his strong singing in the Mass marked him as one.”

This “Holy Cross in the News” item is by Emma Collins ’16.

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Lacrosse Player Raises Awareness of Coats Disease

Posted on February 23, 2016 by College of the Holy Cross

Jack McGovern '17Jack McGovern ’17, a College of the Holy Cross lacrosse player from San Francisco Calif., was diagnosed with a rare eye disease at 11 years old. However, that did not stop the political science major from starting in 30 lacrosse games and raising awareness about Coats disease, a rare eye disease that can cause blindness. McGovern also helped found the Jack McGovern Coats Disease Foundation, an organization dedicated to finding more information on Coats Disease, and supporting families with members coping with the disease. McGovern also worked with Sen. Jerry Hill of California to establish August 17 as Coats Disease Awareness Day.

To read the entire story, go to GoHolyCross.com

 

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‘Holy Cross professor challenges traditional perceptions’

Posted on February 18, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

Gamber_Grammar-news-item

In a front page living section story, the Telegram & Gazette featured Matthew Gamber, assistant professor of visual arts at the College of the Holy Cross, and his exhibit “Grammar” which is on display in the Cantor Art Gallery through Feb. 27. “Grammar” is a survey of Gamber’s recent works as he considers the complexity of photography as a language, using a variety of photographic processes to explore the meaning constructed around the medium and the rules that govern its use. “These are photographs, but not photographs in the traditional sense,” Gamber told the Telegram. “I’m thinking about the entire thought process that’s going on, whether it’s dealing with aspects of perception, aspects of technology and industry and things like that.” The exhibition includes non-traditional explorations of photography such as high-resolution photographs of blank, aged chalkboards, digital representations of broken glass, experiments with light-emitting objects, and a handful of parsley.

“If you photograph something with film there is the impression that it is nostalgic or romantic,” Gamber told the Telegram, “but it also somehow has this element of serving as evidence, that it’s less able to be tampered with, but in fact you can alter that very easily in ways that are invisible to the end product.” Gamber’s abstract experimentation with photo-sensitive paper pushed up against a television screen is an example of how his work extends the supposed “reality” of a photograph to what he calls “far subtler realms.”

“I really liked the idea of getting to know Matthew through his work,” Cantor Gallery director Roger Hankins told the Telegram, “and if I’m thinking that would be a really cool think then I’m also thinking that’s a really cool thing for our audience—our students, our faculty and our community members.”

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This “Holy Cross in the News” item is by Emma Collins ’16.

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‘Simulation’ Gives Holy Cross Community a New Perspective on Poverty

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Evangelia Stefanakos

Poverty simulation This article ran in the February issue of Connections, an online publication of the Associations of Jesuit Colleges and Universities.   

The holiday season provides an opportunity for colleges and universities to raise awareness of hunger and homelessness across the country through campus food drives and donations. Last fall, the College of the Holy Cross went a step further by offering a unique alternative program to address awareness of poverty.

During the fall semester, the College’s Office of Multicultural Education gave Holy Cross students, faculty and staff the opportunity to learn about poverty through the first-person experience of a poverty simulation. The program, developed by the Missouri Association for Community Action, is the only one of its kind being used by a college in Central Massachusetts.

“The simulation is a wonderful way to move our community toward thinking about ways we can begin to address some of the root causes of poverty, hunger, and homelessness in our society,” says Robert Jones, associate director of multicultural education, who is spearheading this initiative at Holy Cross.

Thus far, two separate simulations (in October and November) have been conducted on campus, with a total of 66 student, faculty and staff participants role-playing the lives of individuals living near or below the poverty line. The simulations were open to the entire College community and all were encouraged to participate.

In each simulation, participants were divided into ten different family units, ranging from individual elderly caring for themselves to families of as many as five or six, with each member facing unique challenges. After participants received their roles with a specific scenario, they role-played through four 20-minute “weeks” facilitated by student and faculty volunteers, where they were faced with real-world problems (money, transportation, child care, etc.) that they had to resolve with the resources allotted to them. They were also given “luck of the draw” scenarios that introduced either a new problem or a possible solution into their lives, such as “found $20,” “your car broke down,” or “your child is sick.” Faculty and staff volunteers were part of the community by playing such roles as law enforcement officials, grocery store clerks, job placement agency staff, bankers and child care providers.

“In 90 minutes, the participants went through the stress and turmoil that people in those conditions experience on a day-to-day basis,” says Jones.

Participant Mia Yee ’19 says that while the simulation began with a sense of optimism, with the idea that the solution was as easy as budgeting, the mood in the room quickly shifted as the expected—and unexpected—trials of each week began to build on one another. “The tensions in the simulation room were palpable,” explains Yee.

“I came into the simulation thinking that I probably would have a better chance getting through it than others,” Yee continues. “My family has known economic hardship, and I have known many other families who had even more economic stress on them, and have seen how they managed. But I was an 85 year old woman in the simulation, widowed, with only social security as my income. By the end of the simulation, I had pawned off all of my possessions in order to get through the expenses of a single month.”

Gregory Chin ’18, who was assigned the role of a delinquent arrested during the simulation, had a similarly potent experience. “I got to see firsthand what it feels like to be helpless, to understand that there were many things I could not control, and watched as my loved ones suffered because of my mistake.”

Chin also credits the simulation with expanding his understanding of poverty beyond simply studying the statistics of those who are marginalized. “A lot of times here at Holy Cross, we hear the phrase ‘men and women for and with others,’ but what does it mean to be an ‘other’?” he says. “True learning means putting yourself in another’s shoes and discovering that the life of another is just as important as your own.”

For Jones, this is exactly the kind of influence he hoped the simulation would have. “The simulation is not the be-all and end-all, but it can be transformational,” he says, explaining that the experience not only builds empathy, but can also inspire participants to move beyond volunteering and direct service toward influencing change on a larger scale through, for example, legislation, policies and procedures. Jones explains that the simulation can act as a catalyst for moving in this direction, in tandem with existing efforts on campus, such as the work of the Donelan Office for Community-Based Learning through which students have the opportunity to connect academic learning with civic engagement.

Jones hopes to institutionalize the simulation, integrating it into different parts of campus life, including the College’s first-year Montserrat seminar program, student leadership training, and professional development for faculty and staff. He also plans to bring the simulation to other local area colleges, furthering its use in the region.

“I hope participants gain a better understanding of the poverty and challenges we face in our country through this simulation,” says Jones. “I hope they begin to question how and why we are in the state we are in, and are propelled to ask more and do more to eliminate the root causes of the challenges faced daily by those living in poverty.”

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Photo Gallery: Academic Journal Films On-Campus Research of Biology Professor and Students in Lab

Posted on February 15, 2016 by Evangelia Stefanakos

Many students at Holy Cross have the opportunity to conduct research during their undergraduate careers, but this fall, a group of students who worked under Sarah Webster, assistant professor of biology, were given the chance to share their research with a wider academic audience. The “Journal of Visualized Experiments” (JOVE) was on campus to film Dan Luu ’15 and Jessica DeSimone ’13 to accompany the publication of their peer-reviewed research article, co-authored by Webster, Luu, DeSimone, Timothy Murphy ’14, Thomas O’Brien ’12, Christopher Lally ’12, and Jillian Lindblad ’11. The video allowed Luu and DeSimone to demonstrate the technique used in Webster’s lab to investigate the underlying basis of touch and hearing.

“My students have developed this technique,” says Webster, “that combines a complicated genetic paradigm with a simple behavioral reflex to try to help us understand the proteins involved in the nervous system’s response to touch. The students were involved in every aspect of the project, from breeding flies to generate complex genetic backgrounds, to determining the best ways to stimulate the flies to get a reliable set of responses.”

This research and the resulting JOVE article exemplify what Webster identifies as “the productive research students are able to engage with on campus, where they are able to work one-on-one alongside their professors.” She explains that in addition to providing a fresh perspective for her own work each year, her work with students is beneficial to them as well. Working in a laboratory at Holy Cross opens doors for students pursuing further education as medical and graduate students, or starting careers in the biomedical field; this includes the article’s co-authors, who have continued to conduct research after graduation and/or pursue advanced degrees.

“Working with Professor Webster, I was given a lot of independence. I got to train new students and really test my knowledge of the research going on,” says Luu, who conducted research in Webster’s lab from the summer after his first year until graduation, not knowing the project would lead to publication. “As the project progressed through my sophomore, junior, and senior years, I could really see it taking shape and form. Performing research as an undergrad under Professor Webster allowed me to grow as both a scientist and student.”

Students continue conducting research across campus each semester.

See the recently published academic article and accompanying video on the JOVE website.

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Students Explore What It Means to Be a Leader at Annual Aptissimi Leadership Conference

Posted on February 15, 2016 by Evangelia Stefanakos

AptissimiThis year, 195 students participated in the annual Aptissimi Leadership Conference, a full-day conference open to all students where they are invited to explore, develop and articulate their personal leadership styles. The conference, sponsored by the Office of Student Involvement, provides a forum for thoughtful consideration of leadership traits, beliefs, and ideals.

“The Aptissimi Leadership Conference offered me an opportunity to contemplate my current leadership style and how to tailor it to the multitude of situations that arise throughout my daily interactions with my peers,” says Edward DeLuca ’17. The conference is important for students in any class year, adds underclassman Nicholas LaMothe ’18, who saw just how high current Holy Cross leaders have set the bar for new leaders like him to follow.

The conference featured sessions with administrators, faculty, and staff from departments across campus, ranging from Academic Services and Learning Resources to American Sign Language and Deaf Studies. The conference also included the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Luncheon, co-sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Education.

Read personal reflections from three students who had the opportunity to explore the definition of leadership and how it relates to them at this year’s conference.

Learning About Leadership

Emily Breakell ’17: “Aptissimi is a great way to start the semester because it invites Holy Cross students to think carefully about what we spend our time doing. The conference doesn’t by any means set up some formula for good leadership, rather it creates space for students to think about how they might play a role in work that matters most deeply to them. Aptissimi reminded me that good leaders do not arise primarily from the desire to be a leader, but instead from the desire to reach some goal that they authentically believe in.

As a resident assistant, a former orientation leader, and a member of Student Government Association, I am privileged to have leadership roles on campus and  Aptissimi reminded me not to take those titles for granted. I am lucky to have such great opportunities to enhance the lives of others as I grow personally. Of course, this extends beyond my student career, where meaningful leadership also only stems from genuine passion for a cause or project and gratitude for the opportunity to address it.”

Impactful Sessions

Meaghan Body ’17: “Currently, I am the program coordinator for Summer Gateways Orientation, where I will help plan, organize, and implement all logistical aspects of the program. I was intrigued by the opportunity to attend Aptissimi in order to continue my growth and personal development, and to learn more about how I can be instrumental in the leadership development of the orientation leaders I will supervise. During the conference, I had the opportunity to attend a session conducted by Jerry Maday, transportation manager at Holy Cross, titled “Fostering Collaboration Among Divergent Agendas.” After just completing a semester in Washington, D.C., where I interned for Senator Elizabeth Warren, this session initially piqued by interest out of a passion for bridging a gap in an increasingly partisan political system for the sake of creating collaborative solutions that genuinely make peoples’ lives better.

During the session, Jerry discussed a common humanity that all people have, regardless of what they believe or what their agenda is, and how in order to foster collaboration, we must identify the often hidden similarities that everyone at the table has, and work to create solutions from there. This concept of common humanity, while certainly applicable to partisanship in the U.S. Legislature, is crucial to my ability to work with others and unite groups of people that are comprised of opposing or differing agendas, as a student leader at Holy Cross and beyond.”

Translating Skills

Olufunmilola Anifowoshe ’17: “During the conference, I attended a session geared specifically towards upperclassmen called “Take Holy Cross Leadership Beyond the Hill.” The session was led by the Center for Career Development, and I learned how the skills I have acquired from my various leadership roles on campus can be highlighted not only on my resume and cover letter, but during interviews as well. For example, I am a resident assistant for first year students, and being able to describe to an employer that I can mediate and resolve conflicts (roommate agreement issues), or that I can effectively communicate with large and diverse groups of individuals (holding hall meetings and dispersing information to my hall community and my residents), are just some examples of how I learned to market my skills.

This is my second year attending the conference, and going forward, I think the most valuable lesson I have learned is that there is no stereotypical or “cookie cutter” leader; every opportunity and leadership role I have held on and off campus continues to shape me into the person that I am.”

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Anthony Fauci ’62 Provides Expert Knowledge to Media on the Zika Virus

Posted on February 12, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

facui_3“The World Health Organization rang a global alarm over the Zika virus,” the New York Times reported on Jan. 28, saying that the disease was “spreading explosively in the Americas.” Anthony Fauci, M.D. ’62, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, discussed with the New York Times how scientists are working to combat the virus. “We are already on our way on the first steps to developing a vaccine,” he told the Times. “And we have just started to work on a diagnostic to tell if someone’s been infected.”

Fauci has been the go-to expert for several national news outlets covering the virus. ABC news reported on a recent news conference in which Fauci discussed how the U.S. Food and Drug Administration “is looking into changing its policy, which would affect all blood donations in the U.S.” Fauci said, “The FDA is looking at the issue of blood supply, blood donors and travelers. We know it’s in the blood stream very briefly, most people have cleared the bloodstream of the virus after about a week.”  Fauci also spoke with CNN on how great a risk the Zika virus poses to the U.S.

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This “Holy Cross in the News” item is by Emma Collins ’16.

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Holy Cross Breaks Participation Records with ‘Give Purple’ Challenge

Posted on February 11, 2016 by College of the Holy Cross

GivePurpleIn the days and hours leading up to the College’s first-ever weekend fundraising challenge, one question was on everyone’s mind: Could the Holy Cross Community do it?

The answer — arriving only 12 hours into the 43-hour Give Purple challenge — was a resounding yes!

Alumni and parents, faculty, staff, and students came together in record numbers on Feb. 5-6 to meet the challenge issued by a group of alumni from the Class of 1982, who pledged to give $500,000 if the College received gifts from 2,500 supporters in one weekend. Not only was the challenge met, but it was exceeded by almost 250 percent, resulting in gifts from more than 6,200 donors and $1.94 million raised to be used for all aspects of life on campus, from financial aid and academic programs to faculty resources and athletics.

“This was a new platform and approach for Holy Cross, but we are building on a long and proud tradition of alumni participation in giving to the College,” said Tracy Barlok, vice president for Advancement at Holy Cross. “Holy Cross regularly sees a participation rate above 50 percent annually, which puts us in the top 10 colleges and universities in the country. This event was particularly exciting as we saw alumni, students, faculty, staff, parents, coaches and friends all unite to push us beyond our wildest hopes. We are very grateful and very proud of the heart of this community.”

Give Purple, which appealed to the Holy Cross Community to show their pride through a gift, took place during Winter Homecoming weekend, fueling enthusiasm both on campus and through social media. Holy Cross partnered with Embryo Creative, a Boston-based firm started by Stephanie Jeskey ’01, for video and creative concepts. Alumni, faculty, staff and students shared their passion for Holy Cross and challenged each other to participate in the Challenge at athletic events, regional alumni club gatherings, and on social media using #GivePurpleHC. The hub of online activity was GiveCampus, a social fundraising platform used by more than 50 colleges and universities across the United States.

Give Purple was the most successful campaign ever hosted by GiveCampus, breaking records for most donors to a campaign, greatest participation from alumni who graduated in the past 15 years and becoming the first campaign to receive donations from all 50 states.

“Holy Cross’ Give Purple challenge was one of the most spectacular philanthropic events we have ever seen,” said Kestrel Linder, co-founder and CEO at GiveCampus. “Holy Cross broke every record imaginable and set a new standard for short-term challenges in higher education. We’re not aware of another challenge that has had greater participation from an institution’s alumni, students, parents, faculty, staff and friends.”

Social media played a large role in keeping the momentum rolling, as alumni and students shared their reasons for giving via tweets, Facebook posts and short video clips, and challenged classmates and teammates to make a gift. More than one-third of all traffic to the challenge was generated by individuals sharing with one another on social media or through email. Check out some of the social media activity below. Continue reading →

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Scholarship Related to Transgender Issues to Benefit from First Digital Archive

Posted on February 11, 2016 by Cristal Steuer
STA

Rawson works with student researchers in the DTA lab.

K.J. Rawson, assistant professor of English at the College of the Holy Cross, recently launched the world’s first Digital Transgender Archive (DTA), a collection of transgender-related historical materials. Rawson’s project was recognized in 2013-14 with funding from the American Council of Learned Societies Digital Innovation Fellowship, awarded each year to a handful of academics to advance digital humanistic scholarship.

The DTA is designed to increase the accessibility of transgender history by providing an online hub for digitized historical materials, born-digital materials, and information on archival holdings throughout the world.

Today, with both new scholarship emerging in the academy and more focused attention on current topics related to transgender people, the launch of the DTA is timely. Rawson says the DTA provides dramatically improved access to transgender history. “We collect materials from all over the world that were created prior to the year 2000,” explains Rawson. He says the collection includes books, oral histories, personal papers, organizational records, serials, photography, ephemera, and more. The website is freely available for students, academic researchers, and the general public.

By documenting primary source facts and experiences of individuals, the launch of the collection also supports efforts for social justice for transgender people and communities. “As our mission statement successfully captures,” Rawson says, “Holy Cross encourages every member of our community to be passionate about truth, promote social justice and foster dialog in order to more deeply understand and respect diverse experiences. The DTA will further these qualities by counteracting negative and hurtful stereotypes of transgender people with more truthful and historically informed representations.”

In the past two years, 15 Holy Cross students have worked as research assistants with the DTA, collaborating on the process of digitizing, recording, and entering historical materials into the database. Processing materials requires students to read and analyze individual artifacts to develop subject terms, compose abstracts, and provide any additional relevant information.

In addition to gaining critical experience in the hands-on work of building an archive, Rawson says it has been a transformative experience for many students. One recent graduate is considering a career in library science; another is pursuing transgender-related social justice work.

“I decided to get involved in the DTA initially because I was interested in the content,” says Victoria Mousley ’17, a psychology major, and the DTA’s lab supervisor last fall. “I wanted to help bring trans-history into the Holy Cross community, and I respected Professor Rawson’s research efforts. As I became more involved, I realized just how important the project is to the preservation of the community’s history.”

The lab where the students work collaboratively on teams has become not only a site of energetic intellectual learning, but also a social space and source of community support. Catarina-Oliva Beal ’18, an English and sociology major with a concentration in creative writing, worked on a team with three other research assistants, and says the DTA lab is a welcoming and fun place to be. “The teams bonded quickly and developed their own personalities,” says Beal. “My team started the project with no context for the files; all we had was this manila envelope with ‘Merissa’s Documents’ written on the front. We spent a lot of time trying to piece together how all the documents fit together and told a story. It felt like detective work.”

The collection is built by more than 20 different archives and organizations from around the world. Eight are universities including, Harvard University’s Schlesinger Library, Cornell University, Duke University, the University of Victoria, and the University of Michigan.

The global scope of the project has inspired Keith Plummer ’17, a double major in sociology and gender, sexuality, and women’s studies. Currently studying abroad at the University of Oxford, Plummer is working on developing a summer research proposal to support the DTA. “One of the goals of my project would be to diversify the holdings of the DTA by possibly forging partnerships with archives in London or digitizing materials on site at other locations.”

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Photo Gallery: Winter Homecoming 2016 One for the Record Books

Posted on February 11, 2016 by Suzanne Morrissey

Clear winter skies and bright sun set the tone for Winter Homecoming on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016, atop Mount St. James. Kicking off with family skate and swim at the Hart Center, the weekend gave alumni and their families ample opportunities for fun and reflection.

“I was able to catch up with several friends and we shared some humongous lies about how good we look,” says Bill Sinnott ’79, who adds that campus looked “fantastic, even covered in snow.”

Two networking events and panel discussions brought alumni in the education and legal professions together. Heather Johnson ’06, director of the teacher education program at Holy Cross, helped lead the Holy Cross Alumni Educators Reception in Hogan 320, where she says the “energy and passion in the room was outstanding.”

Long Island attorney James Carter ’59 attended the Holy Cross Lawyers Association (HCLA) lunch and presentation “What I Wish I Knew Before Becoming a Lawyer.”

“My wife Jackie and I try to attend every year,” he says. “The HCLA puts on a fine program, and it is always a pleasure to meet the College’s aspiring lawyers, and hear why they want to enter the profession.” Carter attended Georgetown University Law School during his 15 years as a Navy SEAL before entering practice, and says he often finds himself “acting as a recruiter for the military, as well as the law.”

At the men’s basketball matchup against Bucknell, fans enjoyed a halftime presentation honoring Holy Cross basketball alumni from the 1950s through the 2010s and music from the pep band — all of which kept the purple spirit high despite the Crusaders’ 77-52 loss.

Later in the afternoon, women’s ice hockey set a new Holy Cross record at its Pink the Rink game, shooting down the Franklin Pierce Ravens and logging in its 15th straight win.

Arts offerings included a showing of Disney’s “Aladdin” in Seelos Theatre, an a cappella showcase in Crossroads, and an exhibition of photographic artwork by assistant professor of photography and new media Matthew Gamber in the Cantor Art Gallery. Many alumni took in the Alternate College Theatre’s production of “Chicago” in Fenwick Theater, directed by Christine Freije ’13. All of the weekend’s performances were sold out.

Winter Homecoming festivities coincided with the College’s “Give Purple” fundraising challenge. The Class of 1982 set the initial goal: 2,500 donations in 43 hours to match its gift of $500,000. Anonymous donors stepped in a few hours into the challenge offering additional $500,000 and $200,000 gifts if the donor numbers exceeded 4,300 before the clock ran out. The final tally exceeded even those expectations, with  more than 6,200 donors and $1.94 million raised.

Caroline Cataldo ’12 says returning to campus is always special, but being on The Hill for Homecoming and the challenge brought an extra level of excitement.

“No matter the class year, each alum I spoke to was extremely aware of the campaign and just as excited as I was to watch our Crusader community shatter records left and right,” Cataldo says. “I felt so connected to alumni both on campus and social media who were donating to the challenge. I couldn’t help but remember something Fr. Boroughs told me a few years ago that has really stuck with me as the epitome of this College: ‘Holy Cross is your home no matter where you live — and you can always come home.’ ”

View the photo gallery » WinterHomecoming16

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Photo Gallery: Hart Center Expansion and Renovation Begins on the Top of Mount St. James

Posted on February 10, 2016 by Evangelia Stefanakos

HartConstruction_6With the Hart Center expansion and renovation well underway, the top of College Hill is taking on a new shape.

Construction began in mid-December with the installation of a silk fence around the perimeter of the Hart lawn where the construction will take place. In just two months, a new natural gas line has been installed that feeds into the Hart Center, erosion controls have been put in place, and the removal of earth has begun, according to John Lapomardo, director of engineering and utilities at Holy Cross.

The next phases of construction will include the demolition of the warehouse adjacent to the Hart Center and the blasting of the rock on the construction site.

The expanded and renovated Hart Center is central to the College’s ongoing commitment to provide an exceptional student-athlete experience and to compete at the highest levels of Division I athletics.

Learn more about the Hart Center renovation and expansion here.

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Opportunities to Reflect in the Season of Lent

Posted on February 9, 2016 by Bridget Campolettano

ReturnToMeThe Christian season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday, Feb. 10. In addition to services held on campus, there are a number of reflection opportunities available to members of the Holy Cross community throughout the Lenten Season. Each strives to provide a way to enter into the sacred season of Lent in the midst of everyday life.

For the second time, the Office of the Vice President for Mission will offer a daily Lenten reflection booklet, “Return to Me: Lenten Reflections from Holy Cross, 2016.” This annual resource contains reflections written by a wide variety of people with connections to the College — faculty, current students, chaplains, staff, and alumni of the College. Those who subscribe will be sent an email each morning containing a reflection, and the listing of sacred texts from Scripture for each day of Lent. The full reflection series is also available for download as a PDF. To sign up for the daily Lenten reflection email, or to download the PDF, please visit www.holycross.edu/returntome.

Members of the Holy Cross community are also invited to participate in “A Book for Lent.” The tradition began with Saint Benedict in the 5th century, who, in Chapter 48 of his Holy Rule, writes: “During this time of Lent each [monk or nun] is to receive a book from the library and is to read the whole of it straight through. These books are to be distributed at the beginning of Lent.” For the monks and nuns participating, the books were not always religious in nature; sometimes, they were works of fiction or poetry. Thus began a long and continuing tradition of spiritual reading during the six weeks of Lent. For a modern application of this practice, the Office of the Vice President for Mission offers ten short and accessible suggestions:

  • “Mercy in the City: How to Feed the Hungry, Give Drink to the Thirsty, Visit the Imprisoned, and Keep Your Day Job” by Kerry Weber (2014)*
  • “Simplifying the Soul: Lenten Practices to Renew Your Spirit” by Paula Huston (2011)
  • “God for Us: Rediscovering the Meaning of Lent and Easter” edited by Greg Pennoyer and Gregory Wolfe (2013)
  • “Tattoos on the Heart” by Gregory Boyle, S.J. (2010)
  • “The Lord and His Prayer” by N.T. Wright (1996)
  • “The Abbey” by James Martin, S.J. (2015)*
  • “Gilead” by Marilynne Robinson (2004)
  • “What Happened to Sophie Wilder?” by Christopher R. Beha (2012)
  • “Thirst” by Mary Oliver (2006)
  • “Felicity” by Mary Oliver (2015)*

The books marked with an asterisk (*) have also been selected for a Lenten book discussion group, which will meet on campus three times during Lent. For more information on the discussion group or to register, please email Rev. Paul Harman, S.J. at pharman@holycross.edu.

Schedule of Services – Ash Wednesday, Feb. 10
Ashes will be distributed at all services.

  • 8:15 a.m. Ecumenical Morning Prayer, Mary Chapel
  • 12:05 p.m. Catholic Mass, Mary Chapel
  • 5 p.m. Ecumenical Evening Prayer, Mary Chapel
  • 9 p.m. Catholic Mass, St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
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Alumnus and Wife Named to 50 Most-Generous Philanthropist List for Record-Setting Gift to College

Posted on February 9, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

Luths When you read the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s “Philanthropy 50,” a special issue, which ranks the country’s 50 most-generous philanthropists of the year, you will find Bill and Melinda Gates, Michael Bloomberg, New York financier John Paulson and his wife, Jenny, and eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife, Pam. You will also see at No. 49 John Luth ’74 and his wife Joanne Chouinard-Luth, D.M.D., for their record-setting gift of $32.5 million to the College of the Holy Cross in 2015.

According to the profile, Luth believed the College’s athletics center needed renovating and after an anonymous donor committed $10 million to the center, he and his wife pledged $25 million. (The couple also donated $7.5 million to turn the Fieldhouse into a recreation center.)

In the article, Luth said they made the decision in about 30 minutes: “Jo and I thought, If not us, who? If not now, when?”

Luth founded the Seabury Group, an aviation-industry consulting firm. Dr. Chouinard-Luth retired as a dentist in 2010 to pursue a master’s degree in nutrition and started a foundation that promotes healthy living practices.

Last June, the Luths made the largest gift in College history to enhance College’s indoor athletics and recreational facilities.

Related Information

This “Holy Cross in the News” item by Cristal Steuer.

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Two Members of the Holy Cross Baseball Team to Play for Worcester Bravehearts

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

Bravehearts_Opening_15-crop

The Worcester Bravehearts have signed College of the Holy Cross first-year students Daniel Barlok and Patrick McGowan for the 2016 baseball season.  The Bravehearts, dedicated to supporting the Worcester community from concessions to players, signed the Holy Cross students as two of seven new local players.

In September 2013,  Holy Cross joined in partnership with the City, Bravehearts owner John W.S. Creedon Jr., and the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL) to bring summer baseball back to Fitton Field. The partnership is now in its third year.

Barlok, a right-handed pitcher for the Holy Cross Crusaders, hails from Shrewsbury, Mass. and attended St. John’s High School in Worcester. While attending St. John’s, Barlok played two season of varsity baseball under head coach Charlie Eppinger and was team captain his senior year. He played in the MBCA Junior Select All-Star game and won the Most Valuable Pitcher award. In addition to baseball, Barlok played three seasons of varsity hockey at St. John’s and was named captain of the hockey team his senior year as well. A prolific athlete, he is also a member of the National Honor Society for academics.

“To me, being signed by the Bravehearts is a great honor,” Barlok, who hopes to pursue a degree in economics, says. “I’m excited to play close to home in our college stadium. Playing for the Bravehearts is a great way to form friendships with other collegiate baseball players who play across the country. ”

McGowan, also a right-handed pitcher for the Crusaders, is from Wellesley, Mass., and attended St. Sebastian’s High School in Needham. During high school, he played three seasons of varsity baseball under head coach Michael Schell and served as team captain his senior year. McGowan was named All-League in 2014 and again in 2015 and received the Paul Lepley Award for Team Commitment as a senior. As a junior he had a career-high 75 strikeouts and went 4-2 with a 2.81 earned run average as a senior. Playing for the North East Baseball club team, which won the 2014 Northeast Baseball Tournament and Diamond Nation Championship, McGowan was named to the 2014 WWBA 17U All-Tournament team. In addition to his impressive athletics record, he was named to St. Sebastian’s honor roll all four years of his attendance.

“I am looking forward to playing with some of the best college baseball players in the area,” McGowan says, “and improving my own abilities through good competition and expanding my knowledge of baseball.” He hopes to pursue a career in sports management, perhaps someday becoming a general manager of a sports team or a sports agent. “It’s a lot of work to manage a heavy course-load and play Division 1 baseball,” McGowan says about his time at the College, “but I have enjoyed every moment being a part of the Holy Cross Baseball team.”

The Worcester Bravehearts baseball team, a franchise in the FCBL, is owned and operated by the Creedon family, who also own and operate Creedon and Co., Inc. The FCBL franchises feature high-caliber baseball with rosters comprised of both New England star players and top prospects from across the U.S. Major League Baseball scouts regularly attend league games. The Worcester Bravehearts won the FCBL championship in 2014 and 2015. They were also voted FCBL Organization of the Year and their General Manager Dave Peterson, was voted Executive of the Year.

The Braveheart 2016 season will open Thursday night, Jun. 2, in Seacoast, Mass. The home opener will be Friday, Jun. 3 against Wachusett.

Media Coverage

More Information

This “Holy Cross in the News” item by Emma Collins ’16.

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Holy Cross Seeks to Meet $500,000 Challenge with “Give Purple”

Posted on February 5, 2016 by

UPDATE – Feb. 7, 2016 – 12:01 a.m.

The Holy Cross community is remarkable. Across the country, your loyalty, spirit, and pride were on full display these last 43 hours. Thanks to the dedication of so many alumni, parents, students, friends, faculty and staff, this challenge exceeded our highest expectations.

More than 6,215 donors in 43 hours — a tremendous success!

You Gave Back. You Gave for Others. You Gave Purple!

 

UPDATE – Feb. 6, 2016 – 7 p.m.

The Holy Cross Community’s response to the GivePurple challenge has been amazing — and inspiring!

Thank you for your support.

With only a few hours left, we have passed the 5,500 mark in donor participation — and from what we can tell, we are on the verge of setting the record for total number of donors to a private liberal arts college during a challenge like this.

We think we can get there, but are asking for your help: would you please reach out to your classmates, friends and teammates and help us set a record — and help our students and future Crusaders?

Thank you again for your support!

www.holycross.edu/givepurple.

 

 

UPDATE – Feb. 6, 2016 – 12:25 p.m.

So far, Crusaders have surpassed all expectations! The question remains: How far can we go?

In a mere 12 hours, we blew by the first goal. And 18 hours later, the second goal was in the rear view mirror. Here on campus, where Winter Homecoming is in full swing, the enthusiasm is contagious!

Just now, two more grads have come forward with a final $200k challenge to see just how far we can go! Will we reach 4,800 donors? 5,000?

To our knowledge, the most donors to a giving challenge by a fellow liberal arts institution is 5,600. Can we beat that?

If you haven’t made a gift yet, please consider joining the Give Purple effort. If you already have, thank you! www.holycross.edu/givepurple.

 

UPDATE – Feb. 5, 2016 – 4:45 p.m.

An anonymous alum is so moved by the tremendous spirit of the Holy Cross community and the phenomenal early response to this participation challenge that he is offering an additional gift of $500,000 (that’s the Class of ’82’s $500,000 plus an additional $500,000, making this a $1 million challenge) if we reach 4,300 donors before 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 7.

Help us to continue the momentum and be a part of this unprecedented effort at Holy Cross. Give Purple. www.holycross.edu/givepurple.

 

 

This Winter Homecoming weekend the Holy Cross community will rise to a challenge issued by a group of friends from the Class of 1982. These alumni will contribute $500,000 if 2,500 alumni, parents, students and members of the campus community make a gift of any amount during the weekend. In answer to the challenge, the Office of Advancement at Holy Cross is hosting “Give Purple” a spirited 43-hour giving campaign.

Beginning at 5 a.m. on February 5, and lasting until midnight on February 6, the Holy Cross community will be called to participate in Give Purple, to give back to Holy Cross. Gifts will impact all aspects of life on campus, from supporting financial aid to enhancing academic and co-curricular programming. A gift of any size will make a tangible difference in the lives of students today — and will extend to those whose lives their dedication and compassion will touch tomorrow.

To participate in the Challenge and join the excitement, visit www.holycross.edu/givepurple.

Give back. Give for others. Give Purple.

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‘What I’m Reading: The Need and the Blessing of Prayer’

Posted on February 4, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

Frank Vellaccio is senior vice president of the College of the Holy Cross.In a piece for the Chronicle of Higher Education, Frank Vellaccio, senior vice president of the College of the Holy Cross, talks about his need for prayer as the College embarks on its major goals for the next five years. Vellaccio says “The Need and the Blessing of Prayer,” by the late Rev. Karl Rahner has been a revelation in ways he never expected.

“As I read, I began to reflect more deeply on the things that will truly add to our students’ educational experience and not only to their comfort or enjoyment,” he writes. “Facing my own doubts led me to consider what is at the heart of our institution.”

This “Holy Cross in the News” item by Cristal Steuer.

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Catholics & Cultures Fellow to Advance Scholarship, Teaching of Global Catholic Studies

Posted on February 4, 2016 by Danielle Kane

Loustau

The College of the Holy Cross welcomes its inaugural fellow on Catholics & Cultures, Marc Loustau, for the spring 2016 semester. Loustau will teach a course on contemporary global Catholicism, contribute scholarship to the Catholics & Cultures website, and serve as editor of a special issue of the electronic “Journal of Global Catholicism.”

Launched at Holy Cross in 2015, Catholics & Cultures is a web-based initiative that explores how faith is lived and practiced among ordinary lay Catholics in particular countries and cultural contexts around the globe. The initiative seeks to chronicle a diversity of Catholic practices — from the variety of local feasts and shrines, to the spread of Pentecostal-influenced Charismatic Catholicism, to the way faith informs family life, to the melding of Catholicism with indigenous and localized traditions. There is no other scholarly resource with this scope and scale broadly available to the public.

“One of the goals of the Catholics & Cultures initiative is to engage a network of scholars in the study of contemporary Catholic life around the globe,” says Thomas M. Landy, director of the Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture at Holy Cross, and founder of Catholics & Cultures. “Marc will help us to not only build upon our scholarship but also develop teaching strategies that draw upon this growing global resource, changing the way we teach Catholic studies to incorporate a contemporary, globally comparative perspective.”

Loustau, who holds a Th.D. from Harvard Divinity School, is a scholar of religious studies in the context of personal, social, and economic change. His research has focused on Catholicism in Eastern Europe where, after decades of official state atheism, there has been a prominent resurgence of religion in public life.

“To understand any aspect of life in Eastern Europe — the migration crisis, political change, economic change — you have to understand the religions and the role Catholicism plays in everyday lives,” says Loustau.

He completed three years of ethnographic fieldwork at the Csíksomlyó Roman Catholic pilgrimage site and shrine to the Virgin Mary in the Transylvania region of Romania. His dissertation based on this research examines pilgrimage and ritual, apparitions of the Virgin Mary, domestic material culture, and global Catholic new media networks to explore the various and complex relationships between subjective religious experience and global transformations.

At Holy Cross, Loustau is looking forward to teaching contemporary global Catholicism, in which he will highlight global themes in religious practice — such as religious freedom and liberation theology — that have distinct applications and real consequences for particular countries. In the process, he will be developing pedagogical resources that other faculty might use in teaching global Catholicism.

Catholics & Cultures is an initiative of the Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture at Holy Cross.

About the Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture:

Established in 2001 and housed in Smith Hall, the McFarland Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture provides resources for faculty and course development, sponsors conferences and college-wide teaching events, hosts visiting fellows, and coordinates a number of campus lecture series. Rooted in the College’s commitment to invite conversation about basic human questions, the Center welcomes persons of all faiths and seeks to foster dialogue that acknowledges and respects differences, providing a forum for intellectual exchange that is interreligious, interdisciplinary, intercultural, and international in scope.  The Center also brings members of the Holy Cross community into conversation with the Greater Worcester community, the academic community, and the wider world to examine the role of faith and inquiry in higher education and in the larger culture.

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Holy Cross Science Librarian Receives Innovation Award

Posted on February 4, 2016 by Emma Collins '16

drawing-on-wallsBarbara Merolli, science librarian at the College of the Holy Cross, has been named the 2016 recipient of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) College Libraries Section (CLS) Innovation in College Librarianship Award for her work on the “Drawing on Walls” program.

The innovative program “Drawing on Walls” was a collaboration of close interaction between Merolli and visual arts visiting lecturer Marguerite White, which took place during Holy Cross’ 2015 spring semester. Students in White’s “Drawing on Walls” class used the blank walls of the O’Callahan Science Library to create their final projects. It was the latest in a series of projects Merolli had pursued to create collaborative initiatives with the academic departments to showcase student work as well as demonstrate to students that the sciences and humanities are extremely interactive with one another. “The world isn’t contained in separate silos,” Merolli says, “life is much richer when we explore, mix together, and appreciate many aspects of life, not just those we are most familiar with.” The project’s impact has not only brought brilliant life and color to the library, but has also increased the interest of non-traditional library users to visit and engage with the library as more than just a physical space.

Of the program, award Chair Leah Dunn, university librarian at the University of North Carolina, Asheville, says: “The committee was impressed with Merolli’s project for crossing disciplines and drawing undergraduate users into the science library in a way that was replicable across a number of different types of libraries.”

“Receiving this award shows a smaller library staff at a  smaller college can be on a par with the larger universities and colleges,” Merolli explains. “Working at the O’Callahan Science Library has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. The students are amazing, and the faculty are tremendously supportive of the library and me trying to make the it the best place possible for our students.”

Merolli received her M.A. in library and information science from the University of Rhode Island in 2005. She joined the Holy Cross community in 2008. Merolli will receive $1,000 and a plaque donated by CLS, to be presented during the CLS program at the 2016 ALA Annual Conference in Orlando, Fla.

Representing more than 11,000 academic and research librarians and interested individuals, ACRL, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), develops programs, products and services to help academic and research librarians learn, innovate and lead within the academic community. Founded in 1940, ACRL is committed to advancing learning and transforming scholarship.

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‘Martin Luther King Jr. in dialogue with the ancient Greeks’

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Holy Cross in the News

MLK

In a piece for The Conversation, Timothy Joseph, associate professor and chair of the classics department at the College of the Holy Cross, writes about how civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. founded the Greek concept of agape and the use of Socrates as a civil disobedience model to be fundamental in his fight for social justice.  The classics continue to play a profound role in King’s message, and as Joseph states, placed King in close accordance with “the company of luminaries.”

Calling on King’s classical education from Crozer Theological Seminary and Boston University, Joseph outlines how agape lay at the core of King’s social teachings.  It is because of the term’s unique ability to convey a much more precise idea of love than the mere English “love” ever could.  “Building on the work of contemporary theologians…King underscored the distinctions between the Greek words eros (romantic love), philia (the love of personal friendship) and agape (pronounced “a-gáh-pay”).”  With further expansion of this idea through Christian teachings, Joseph discusses how King was able to bring out agape’s “creativity—its capacity to create togetherness and community.”

However, King’s message of love was not the only aspect of his leadership that was influenced by ancient teachings.  In fact, “Three times in his 1963 ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail,’ King evokes Socrates,” Joseph states.  It was Socrates’ method of bringing the classroom to the public streets, his claim that he was the “gadfly” that would reawaken the lazy Athenian state with his incessant buzzing, King drew support for his nonviolent civil disobedience despite resistance from his fellow clergymen.

Although King preferred to live in the “now” of 1968, as Joseph says, his inspired teachings continue to prove the influence of ancient times on modern era: “…his lived engagement with the Classics bridges these eras, showing his listeners and readers how classical ideas can speak to us today.”

Read the full article at The Conversation.

The piece also ran on ABC Religion and Ethics.

Related Information

The Conversation, Feb., 23, 2015: ‘Brian Williams, Herodotus, and eyewitness reporting’

This “Holy Cross in the News” item is by Emma Collins ’16.

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