US orders verification of student visas for newly arriving students
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Homeland Security Department ordered border agents ‘‘effective immediately’’ to verify that every international student who arrives in the U.S. has a valid student visa, according to an internal memorandum obtained Friday by The Associated Press. The new procedure is the government’s first security change directly related to the Boston bombings.
The order from a senior official at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, David J. Murphy, was circulated Thursday and came one day after the Obama administration acknowledged that a student from Kazakhstan accused of hiding evidence for one of the Boston bombing suspects was allowed to return to the U.S. in January without a valid student visa.
The student visa for Azamat Tazhayakov had been terminated when he arrived in New York on Jan. 20. But the border agent in the airport did not have access to the information in the Homeland Security Department’s Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, called SEVIS.
Tazhayakov was a friend and classmate of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Tazhayakov left the U.S. in December and returned Jan. 20. But in early January, his student-visa status was terminated because he was academically dismissed from the university.
Tazhayakov and a second Kazakh student were arrested this week on federal charges of obstruction of justice. They were accused of helping to get rid of a backpack containing fireworks linked to Tsarnaev. A third student was also arrested and accused of lying to authorities.
A spokesman for the department, Peter Boogaard, said earlier this week that the government was working to fix the problem, which allowed Tazhayakov to be admitted into the country when he returned to the U.S.
Under existing procedures, border agents could verify a student’s status in SEVIS only when the person was referred to a second officer for additional inspection or questioning. Tazhayakov was not sent to a second officer when he arrived, because, Boogaard said, there was no information to indicate Tazhayakov was a national security threat. Under the new procedures, all border agents were expected to be able to access SEVIS by next week.
The government for years has recognized as a problem the inability of border agents at primary inspection stations to directly review student-visa information. The Homeland Security Department was working before the bombings to resolve the problem, but the new memo outlined interim procedures until the situation was corrected.
Under the new procedures, border agents will verify a student’s visa status before the person arrives in the U.S. using information provided in flight manifests. If that information is unavailable, border agents will check the visa status manually with the agency’s national targeting data center.
It is unclear what impact the new procedure will have on wait times at airports and borders. Customs officials will be required to report any effect, including increased wait times, on a daily basis.
The Obama administration announced an internal review earlier this week of how U.S. intelligence agencies shared sensitive information before the bombings and whether the government could have prevented the attack. Republicans in Congress have promised oversight hearings, which begin Thursday.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, asked Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on Thursday for details from the student-visa applications of Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev, the Kazakhstan students implicated in helping Tsarnaev after the bombings, including information about how Tazhayakov re-entered the United States.
Lawmakers and others have long been concerned about terrorists exploiting the student visa system to travel to the United States. A 20-year-old college student from Saudi Arabia was arrested in Texas in 2011 on federal charges of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction. Authorities accused him of plotting to blow up dams, nuclear plants or the Dallas home of former President George W. Bush. He was later convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
UMass Boston student government votes for gender-neutral bathrooms
The UMass Boston student government unanimously voted for the inclusion of gender-neutral bathrooms in new campus buildings, calling the decision an affirmation of the school’s “commitment to creating a supportive and inclusive campus environment.”
In a statement issued last week, the student government said it is imperative for university officials to implement “a gender-neutral restroom in as many of its buildings as reasonably feasible.” The statement calls for the University of Massachusetts Boston to include at least one gender-neutral restroom per new building on campus.
Student government officials also asked the university to allow students to use whichever bathroom they feel most comfortable in.
“Furthermore, in accordance with the City of Boston’s ordinance, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity and expression, and the Massachusetts Department of Education’s and the University’s policies of nondiscrimination on the basis of gender identity, the University permits individuals to use the restroom that is consistent with their gender identity,” the statement said.
Joey Nguyen, speaker for the UMass Boston student government, who was in strongly in favor of the initiative, said transgender students at the university have experienced harassment while using the school bathrooms.
“The whole goal is to create a community or environment where we strive for progress, we strive for equality,” he said.
Nguyen, a senior, said he understands that building gender-neutral bathrooms in all campus buildings may not be economically feasible, but he thinks asking the university to install these restrooms in the new buildings is a reasonable compromise.
“We can’t just overhaul our old bathrooms, that’s understandable,” Nguyen said.
He said it is crucial for the university to also allow students to use whichever restroom that is in line with their gender identity, and not force them to use a separate room.
“This would be one more step towards progress,” Nguyen said, adding, “because separate isn’t equal.”
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Teach for America founder to deliver BU commencement, Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman will receive honorary degree
Wendy Kopp, the founder and board chair of Teach for America, will deliver Boston University’s commencement address on May 19, BU officials announced today.
University President Robert A. Brown made the announcement during the annual Senior Breakfast at the George Sherman Union’s Metcalf Ballroom, according to BU Today.
Teach for America employs recent college graduates as teachers in "some of the neediest schools across America," according to BU Today.
"Kopp, a Texas native, founded Teach for America in 1990, just one year after developing a proposal for the organization as her undergraduate senior thesis at Princeton University," BU Today said. "The idea for the program grew out of her desire to address educational inequality in America."
Kopp will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree, BU Today said. The other honorary degree recipients include Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman, chemical engineer Robert S. Langer, and United Methodist Church Bishop Peter D. Weaver.
According to BU Today, Mayor Thomas M. Menino will be honored at commencement with a Boston University Medallion.
Weaver will deliver the Baccalaureate speech the morning of commencement in the Marsh Chapel, according to BU Today.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Northeastern University honors first responders to Marathon bombings
With the aftermath of marathon bombings still hanging over Boston, Northeastern University began the city’s commencement season Friday to recognize its students’ achievements and the work of region’s first responders.
More than 20,000 students, family members, friends, faculty, and staff gathered in TD Garden Friday morning to cheer and celebrate the graduating class, but the joyous day was not without solemn reflection on recent events.
“While we have much to celebrate we are joined in the shadow of tragedy. Northeastern President Joseph E. Aoun said in his opening remarks. “We are feeling a conflicting mix of emotions: joy and pain, triumph and loss. Fortunately we also draw strength from one another.”
(Check out our live blog here.)
Aoun recognized the first responders, law enforcement officials, and ordinary citizens who helped at the finish line after the bombings, including Northeastern students in the Bouve College of Health Sciences originally there to offer first aid and routine assistance to marathon runners.
"But when disaster struck there was nothing routine about their response. They immediately put their education to use and when confronted with the worst they brought out their best," he said, asking the students and advisors to stand for a round of applause.
Northeastern also gave every person in attendance a blue and yellow bracelet with ‘Boston Strong’ and ‘#NU2013’ written on it.
To a long, roaring applause and standing ovation, first responders went onto the stage Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis accepted an honorary doctorate in public service on behalf of the first responders and law enforcement officials who sprung into action to help others in the wake of the bombings.
Governor Deval Patrick, presenting the honorary degree, said “During the traumatic attack on our city and in the hours and days that followed, you ran toward danger to care for the injured, comfort the bereaved, and keep our citizens safe from further harm."
Nikesh Arora, senior vice president and chief business officer at Google; Jack D. Bryant, president of engineering firm Bryant Associates and a member of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II; and Barbara Lynch, CEO of Barbara Lynch Gruppo were also awarded honorary degrees.
In his commencement address World Bank president Jim Yong Kim, encouraged students to use the tools and skills they have developed to successfully face a future that was uncertain, but full of possibilities.
"My challenge to you is this: set bold goals, deliberately and consciously build your willpower, and use your time well,” he said
E-mail Kaiser at Johanna.yourtown@gmail.com. For more news about your city, town, neighborhood, or campus, visit boston.com’s Your Town homepage.
Emerson College launches a minor in radio at School of Communication
Emerson College’s award-winning radio station, WERS-FM (88.9), brands itself as a place to discover new music, but students interested in radio news and music discovered two years ago that the college’s Visual and Media Arts Department had discontinued radio as a major track. But now Emerson has created a minor in radio in its School of Communication.
“Emerson is tuition driven, so programs are very responsive to student demand,” said Phillip Glenn, Professor and Interim Dean of the School of Communication. “Yet we have WERS, and we have a lot of students who are excited about not only radio but audio content. That was the genesis then of the idea to start this radio minor.”
About two years ago, the college decided to ditch radio as a major track in the Visual, Media Arts department due to a lack of student interest. Since then, with the help of the WERS General Manager Jack Casey and the support of faculty members in the Journalism and Communications Studies departments, the radio program has been brought back as a minor in the School of Communication.
“It makes sense professionally because radio as an industry is in such economic transformation,” said Glenn. “The forecasts are there aren’t that many careers or jobs, but it could be a piece of a lot of people’s media profiles and a lot of people just have a passion for it.”
Casey said, “I think there was a question in the minds of some people at the college about the future viability of radio as a career path. That’s understandable given the huge amount of cut-backs that have ensued in the business, but I think we all agreed that there are lots of opportunities to produce audio content not just through traditional terrestrial radio but satellite radio, podcasting, HD and eventually internet radio where we all feel its going to go.”
WERS-FM, a student-run and professionally managed station, remains successful in the Boston area, and its its news department won ten Associated Press awards in 2013.
The radio program’s move from the Visual, Media Arts department to the School of Communications means there will be some changes in the structure and focus of the radio program.
“VMA of course is heavily involved in production, and that’s part of this new minor, but it’s a sampling of all aspects of the radio business” said Glenn.
Courses for the minor will span various aspects of radio. The college plans to offer classes in audio programming content, marketing, promotions and sales, writing and producing for radio, business and finance for media and a performance course that will give students experience behind a microphone.
“That draws on different departments in the School of Communications so that’s one difference,” said Glenn of the change. “It’s explicitly an interdisciplinary approach to radio.”
The program will be primarily led by Casey, whose current classes in radio programming and radio marketing and promotions are the only remaining courses from the pre-existing major. These two courses will be transitioned over to the new minor with a few updates to the curriculum.
“Our goal is to give people the requisite skills to get hired in that all important first job,” said Casey. “So they can present themselves as being well rounded and so that they can feel secure about the skillsets that they have and that those are appropriate to the industry.”
The college plans to roll out five courses for the twenty credit minor, starting one in the Fall of 2013 and another in the Spring of 2014. The goal is for students to be able to complete the entire program over two years.
“There are still plenty of stations that are hiring people and I don’t think that’s going to go away, it’s just not as easy as it was twenty years ago,” said Casey. “We feel that the college is very much behind this and we’re looking forward to launching it.”
This article is being published under an arrangement between the Boston Globe and Emerson College.
Suffolk University tuition increase lowest in over 35 years
Suffolk University has announced it will raise undergraduate tuition fees by 3 percent for next year, making it the smallest increase in 36 years.
The president of Suffolk University, James McCarthy, said in a statement that full-time undergraduate tuition for the 2013 to 2014 academic year will be $31,592, up $920 from this year.
Housing costs will remain the same for the fourth year in a row, he wrote. Meal plan costs will increase between $88 and $110.
"The undergraduate increase is built upon a base Suffolk University tuition that remains among the lowest of comparable New England institutions," McCarthy said in the statement.
The Suffolk Law School costs will rise by 2.25 percent to $33,700, the lowest hike in 39 years, McCarthy wrote.
"Suffolk has a strong focus on making sure that we remain affordable, our tuition is among the lowest for colleges and universities in the area, but we understand that is still a significant amount of money," Greg Gatlin, a Suffolk spokesman, said today in a phone interview. "We are definitely aware of the financial burden that the cost of an education places on students and their families so we do everything we can to keep costs under control while at the same time providing the best possible education for our students."
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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BC partners with six other schools, including Brandeis, to offer for-credit online classes
Boston College will partner with six other universities this fall to offer for-credit classes as part of an on-line initiative, BC officials announced today.
In addition to BC, “Semester Online” will feature courses from Brandeis University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Northwestern University, the University of Notre Dame, Washington University in St. Louis, and Emory University.
These courses, in conjunction with the on-line educator provider 2U, will cover a range of topics from accounting to film, BC said in a statement.
“It is an exciting opportunity to explore this consortial approach to online undergraduate education and share our teaching excellence with a wider audience in partnership with peer schools and the nation’s leader in online education,” said BC Provost and Dean of Faculties Cutberto Garza.
The statement said the courses will be available to “academically qualified students” who are attending the universities in the consortium and other schools in the United States. To apply for a class, students must be in good academic standing and enrolled in a four-year, regionally accredited school.
Students attending universities in the consortium will pay standard tuition rates, and students from outside colleges will pay per class, the statement said. According to Jack Dunn, a spokesman for BC, the cost will be $4,200 for one course.
Unlike Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, these classes will be capped at approximately 20 students.
Brandeis announced its involvement with the initiative in November.
“This consortium will expand opportunities for students everywhere and will help us all gain experience and understanding of the broad potential of distance learning," Brandeis Provost Steve A.N. Goldstein said in a statement. "We're looking forward to this exploration of the on-line world."
BC will offer two courses this fall: “How to Rule the World,” taught by political science professor Robert Bartlett, and “Vietnam: America’s War at Home and Abroad” instructed by associate professor of history Seth Jacobs.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Local colleges step up commencement security following marathon bombings
Following the April 15 attacks on the Boston marathon, local colleges and universities have decided to step up security at commencement ceremonies in the upcoming weeks.
Northeastern University spokesman Michael Armini said there will be increased police presence at the morning exercises at the TD Garden and the afternoon exercises at the school’s Matthews Arena, both scheduled for Friday.
“The stepped up presence will include both Northeastern and Boston police working in coordination,” he said in an e-mailed statement. “We cannot provide details for obvious reasons.”
Simmons College issued a statement saying that Simmons personnel, state and local police and other security staff will be at the Bank of America Pavilion commencement on May 10, inspecting bags and packages at every entrance. In the statement, the college asked attendees to refrain from bringing large bags and not to leave any belongings unattended during the ceremony.
“As a result of the tragic events at the Boston Marathon we have increased security personnel for this year’s Commencement ceremony,” the college said in the statement. “Public venues throughout the country are increasing security in light of these events; this should not be viewed as an indication of any increased threat to the Boston area.”
Berklee College of Music spokesman Allen Bush also said that the school plans to add security personnel at its commencement May 11 at the Agganis Arena. He did not have any further details.
School officials at Boston University and Harvard University said they could not disclose particulars about security, but that there would be “appropriate” measures taken for commencement ceremonies.
Ellen de Graffenreid, senior vice president for communications at Brandeis University, said in a phone interview that the university plans to be vigilant and increase police presence at its May 19, ceremony at the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center on the Brandeis campus.
“I think in the current environment it’s in everyone’s best interest to be careful,” she said.
Tufts University spokeswoman Kim Thurler said in an e-mailed statement that the school is still in the planning process for its commencement on May 19, but Tufts officials are giving extra attention to emergency preparedness.
"We are considering an increased uniformed police presence and additional steps to ensure security," she said in the statement. "Our incident command center will include public safety representatives from our host cities as well as Tufts personnel."
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Death of BU student in fire is latest in string of fatal tragedies
The BU student killed in Sunday’s early morning fire is the latest in a string of fatal tragedies to hit the campus in recent months.
The Globe reported Sunday that a BU student died and 15 people were injured, including two other BU students, in an Allston fire earlier that morning.
University officials have identified the student as Binland Lee, a senior who was studying marine biology.
Lee was set to graduate in September from the school's marine program, BU officials said. She had served as the vice president of the BU Marine Science Association.
According to the university, Lee graduated in 2009 from Brooklyn Technical High School, a high school that accepts students who pass a rigorous exam.
John Finnerty, associate professor of biology, told BU Today that Lee was "a source of optimism for the future."
“I was struck by her intelligence, her determination, her vitality, and her infectious smile,” he said.
In a letter to the BU community, President Robert A. Brown wrote that “this tragedy comes close on the heels of the Boston Marathon losses, which have so affected our community. We are working to marshal counseling and support resources for all those touched by the fire while continuing to meet the needs of others who have been affected by the Marathon bombings.”
The university is holding a community gathering tonight at 7 p.m. in the George Sherman Union, according to BU Today.
"Monday's community gathering is a chance for the University community to get together regarding Sunday's tragic death of a student in an off-campus fire," BU Today reported. "Counseling resources and other information will be available."
Nearly two weeks ago, Boston University graduate student Lingzi Lu died in the marathon bombings. She was 23.
In early March, the Globe reported that a BU freshman died after he was found unconscious in an Allston apartment. The university identified him as Anthony Barksdale II, 19, an engineering student.
BU graduate student Christopher Weigl was killed in December while riding his bicycle in Allston. The 23-year-old collided with a tractor-trailer on Commonwealth Avenue.
In November, 21-year-old BU student Chung-Wei “Victor” Yang died after he hit a MBTA bus while on his bicycle in Brighton.
A third-year doctoral student at BU died in July after an apparent fall. The Globe reported that he was working on an archeological survey project.
The victim was identified as 26-year-old Chad DiGregorio of Upton.
And nearly a year ago, three undergraduate BU students died in a car crash while studying abroad in New Zealand. Several other students were injured.
The university identified the deceased students as junior Daniela Lekhno; Roch Jauberty, a 21-year-old sophomore from California; and Austin Brashears, a 21-year-old junior, also from California.
Dexter McCoy, the student body president of BU, said today in a phone interview that the students who have died over the last year are not just classmates, but "the people we call friends and family."
"The past year has been very hard," said McCoy, 21, from Houston, Texas. "Being a part of this community, you feel it every time."
McCoy said the BU community has proven it will stand strong and support each other through times of tragedy. But it never gets any easier.
"We start to appreciate life a lot more," he said. "For us as a community it hurts more and more but we do learn how to deal with it."
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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BU student-athletes host 'Olympic Day' for special needs children
(BU Athletic Department)
BU student-athlete Sam Kurker poses with a participant at BU’s Special Needs Olympic Day on Sunday, April 21.
The following is a press release from the Boston University Athletic Department:
The Boston University Athletic Department hosted its annual “Olympic Day” for special needs children on Sunday, April 21st at the Case Gym as part of the university’s Global Day of Service initiative.
Staffed by more than 50 BU student-athlete volunteers, the day featured games, races, obstacle courses, tattoos, face painting, dance performances and a pizza party for children of all abilities.
The event was hosted by BU student-athletes alongside Autism Speaks volunteers and other special needs professionals.
The day was part of BU’s Global Day of Service and was also held in recognition of April being Autism Awareness Month.
“After the tragedy that Boston experienced, the Sports Clinic was the perfect way to end the week,” said Kelley Borer-Miller, Autism Speaks’ senior director of field development. “It was a wonderful celebration of compassion, generosity, and perseverance. We are so grateful that these athletes dedicated their Sunday to promoting inclusion of people with all abilities.”
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Boston police commissioner to accept honorary degree from Northeastern University on behalf of responders to marathon bombings
Northeastern University will present Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis with a honorary degree at the school's commencement ceremony, on behalf of the first responders and law enforcement who served in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings.
Governor Deval Patrick will help present the degree, a doctorate in public service, and police bagpipers will play during the ceremony on Friday, school officials said in a statement.
Approximately 22,000 people are expected to attend Northeastern's 111th commencement, which will be held at the TD Garden, the statement said.
In addition to Davis, the following people will receive honorary degrees: Nikesh Arora, senior vice president and chief business officer at Google; Jack D. Bryant, president of Bryant Associates; and Barbara Lynch, CEO of Barbara Lynch Gruppo.
Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank, will deliver the commencement address, the statement said.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Christiane Amanpour shares journalism insights at Tufts' Edward R. Murrow Forum
Christina Jedra for The Boston Globe
Amanpour answered audience questions and met with student press after her one-on-one with Tisch.
International news correspondent and anchor Christiane Amanpour spoke to a packed room at Tufts University on Friday on a variety of journalism-related topics, including her career in global reporting and the challenges today’s journalists face.The forum, which has featured Katie Couric and Brian Williams in the past, is dedicated to highlighting Murrow’s contributions to journalism as well as addressing topics in the field today.
Tufts University expands student healthcare plan to include gender reassignment surgery
Tufts University has adopted a new healthcare plan that includes benefits for transgender students, making Tufts the 37th university or college in the country to offer health insurance of this kind, according to university officials.
Michelle Bowdler, the senior director of health and wellness services at Tufts, said that these benefits will include coverage of hormone treatment and gender reassignment surgeries.
“These are needs that are absolutely a medical necessity,” she said Friday in a phone interview.
Bowdler said that although only a small number of students will use these benefits, Tufts is an inclusive school and wants all its students to have access to a non-discriminatory health plan.
Emerson College and Harvard University have similar health plans, according to the Human Rights Campaign website.
At Tufts, the cost of adding the benefits was minimal, Bowdler said, but Tufts had to negotiate with the insurance companies. Many healthcare plans do not cover treatments and surgeries for transgender patients.
Bowdler said she hopes that other universities will follow suit, or at least consider adding counseling and hormone treatment for transgender people into health coverage plans, because the extra cost is extremely minimal.
“It’s just about taking care of the health needs of all of our students,” she said.
Tom Bourdon, the director of the Tufts University LGBT Center, said that since the university announced its new health plan, more students who are questioning their gender identity have approached him for advice.
He said that students are saying that “I feel a little more safe about talking about this.”
Bourdon also said that he has been contacted by two schools that are interested in adopting similar plans.
“When one school does it, it makes it easier for other schools,” he said of instituting these benefits.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Undocumented immigrant students at Harvard to speak on campus Saturday
Undocumented immigrants who attend Harvard College will publicly share their stories Saturday, in an effort to collect signatures in support of what they describe as "a fair and humane" immigration reform bill.
The student group Act on a DREAM at Harvard College is sponsoring the talk, "Out of the Shadows." According to a statement issued by the group, the event will be held on Saturday at 5:30 p.m., on the steps of The Memorial Church at Harvard.
Harvard Law School professor Deborah Anker will speak about immigration reform along with other speakers from Harvard and Boston.
"This event will mark an important moment for the undocumented Harvard community and will hopefully bring attention to aspects of Comprehensive Immigration Reform that has not been given enough attention by politicians or the media," the statement says. "Act on a Dream hopes to collect signatures from students and spectators to advocate for the passage of a fair and humane Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill, which will then be sent to legislators in Washington, D.C."
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Emerson athletes excited to join NEWMAC conference this fall
It will be the end of an era for many Emerson College sports teams this spring.
Emerson College is preparing to move after 18 years from the Great Northeast Athletic Conference to the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference this fall, where they will face a higher level of competition that includes MIT, Babson College, Wheaton College, and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. The only teams not making the move to the NEWMAC is the men’s volleyball team because the NEWMAC does not compete at the varsity level in that sport.
Though Emerson College Interim Athletic Director Stanford Nance expressed appreciation for the GNAC, he acknowledged Emerson had wanted to make the jump to the NEWMAC since around 2005, citing tougher competition and an academic standard in line with Emerson College.
“Obviously it’s an upgraded league,” Nance said. “There will be some trying times for us in some sports, but I think in the big picture we line up with the schools [that are] in the conference academically, and at some point in time athletically as well.”
Nance said academics are first and foremost in Division III sports and that Emerson recruits good students, not just good athletes. Emerson’s softball team had the highest average GPA of any Division III softball team in the country in 2012 at 3.59.
“One thing about being a part of this community is you attract a very high-caliber student athlete,” Nance said. “So they can express themselves in a way that’s first class. It comes with the territory of Emerson being a niche school.”
Nance said added that while Emerson’s shares the same high academic standards as other schools in the NEWMAC, he doesn’t expect much competition between the schools in terms of recruiting.
“We’re not recruiting against the teams that [are] in the league because we attract a different type of student in terms of our major,” Nance said.
Nance also made clear that while academics are first and foremost, the Lions want to win championships.
“We do want to compete for championships,” Nance said. “Don’t ever underestimate that.”
Although he acknowledged the Lions will need time to get used to playing in a new league, Nance said he expects teams with full-time coaches — such as the basketball, softball, and women’s volleyball teams — to be competitive.
“I think you’ve got to look to the full-time coaches first,” Nance said, “and then the part-time coaches. It’s a trial and error period, meaning as we hire the new full-time coaches, elevate those part-time coaches to full-time, they will have an opportunity to recruit full-time.”
Men’s basketball coach Jim O’Brien said that while the NEWMAC is a good fit for his Lions, they have a lot of work to do. The men’s basketball team featured nine freshmen this past season and finished 15-12.
“We have our work cut out for us,” O’Brien said. “We have just about our whole team returning next year, but we’re going into a league that is clearly a notch above the league that we played in this year.”
“We need to shoot the ball better,” O’Brien said. “And our guard play needs to improve. We need to rebound the ball better, we need to get stronger. I think that’s going to be a key component. Our guys are going to have to make a huge commitment to the weight room, so that we’re going to be able to physically compete against the teams we’re going to be playing against.”
Despite the improvements the needs to makes, O’Brien said he’s still looking forward to competing in the NEWMAC.
“I think that in a lot of ways it’s a good move for us. I think from an academic standpoint and from a perception standpoint, I think that it’s a great league for Emerson College,” O’Brien said. “To be rubbing elbows with academic schools like MIT and Babson and some of the other schools that we’re going in with. I think that’s a good thing.”
Lions Men’s Basketball Forward Patrick Lowndes, who also plays on the soccer team, acknowledged the work he and his fellow teammates are going to have to put in to be competitive, but that he’s unfazed by the tougher competition the team will face in the NEWMAC.
“We’re very excited,” Lowndes said. “Personally, I like playing against the best, so I’m looking forward to that.”
Bianca Buono, who plays outfield and third base for the Lions softball team, said she was looking forward to facing new challenges in the NEWMAC. The softball team finished 11-1 in conference play last season and 14-10 overall.
“Not only is the NEWMAC so much better academically, but the competition is going to be so much better, especially for the softball team,” Buono said. “We’ve had a lot of success in the regular season in [the] GNAC. The past two seasons we’ve gone 22-2 in conference play.
“It’s awesome dominating, but at the same time we’re really excited for more challenging games,” she said.
This article is being published under an arrangement between the Boston Globe and Emerson College.
'Moving meditation': a look at the Northeastern University slacklining club
Meg Heckman, a journalism graduate student at Northeastern University, created a short video on the school's slacklining club. Slacklining is similar to tightrope walking, with participants trying to walk across a stretchy rope.
MIT asks potential witnesses to aid in the investigation into Sean Collier's death
MIT officials have asked students, faculty and other members of the university community for help with the investigation into the killing of MIT police officer Sean Collier.
In a letter to the MIT community, MIT's executive vice president and treasurer Israel Ruiz said that the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office wants to talk to anyone who was near the corner of Main and Vassar Streets or on Ames Street near Main Street on Thursday between about 10 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
“The search for potential witnesses is a routine part of any criminal investigation,” Ruiz wrote in the message.
The letter, which is reposted on MIT’s website, includes a map of the area and the phone numbers potential witnesses are asked to call.
Collier, 27, was attacked Thursday night near Kendall Square in Cambridge in what Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis has called a “vicious assassination’’ by the Boston Marathon bombers.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Babson dean Dennis Hanno named vice president and provost
A popular dean at Babson who initially announced he would leave the college after it named former Lt. Governor Kerry Healey as its next president will instead be staying on as vice president and provost.
Dennis Hanno’s appointment comes as Healey answers criticism from some members of the Babson community who have questioned her qualifications and the process that led to her selection to lead the business-oriented school in Wellesley..
Healey told the Globeearlier this month that she had met with hundreds of Babson students, faculty, staff, and trustees to answer questions and gain their trust.
“I haven’t been able to touch everyone yet,” she said this month. “There are still outstanding questions I need to answer. I plan to answer every question and sit down with every constituency.”
According to the Babson Free Press, Hanno announced on March 27th that he would leave his position at the end of the Fall 2013 semester.
At the time, the Free Press wrote that “Dean Hanno’s decision to step away from the college comes at an odd time, as it happens to coincide with the recent announcement of Dr. Kerry Healey as the college’s President-elect. The nearly simultaneous announcements have left students, staff, and faculty curious as to whether Dean Hanno was considered for the president’s role. Many students had expressed their desire for Hanno to become the new leader of the college.”
But on Wednesday, Healey issued a statement saying that Hanno will assume the role as vice president and provost on July 1.
“Dennis undoubtedly is one of Babson’s most exceptional and talented leaders. I am very confident his demonstrated leadership as Dean of our Undergraduate School, as Murata Dean of the Graduate School, and as Vice Provost will allow him to hit the ground running as Provost,” she wrote in the statement.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Panel at Northeastern explores media's role in juvenile sentencing reform
(Rahul Desai)
On April 17, 2013, Michael Dukakis took part in a panel discussion titled “Journalism & Juvenile Justice: How Your Sentences Affect Theirs” at Northeastern University. Participants included, from left to right, moderator Dan Kennedy, panelists Joshua Dohan, James Alan Fox, Leslie E. Harris, and Sarah J. Jackson.
Should a 14-year-old convicted of murder automatically be put behind bars for the rest of his or her life, without any chance of parole….ever?The Supreme Court doesn’t think so. Last June, in a 5-4 decision, the highest court in the land ruled that mandatory life-without-parole sentences are unconstitutional for juvenile offenders.
Although nearly a year has passed since the court issued that opinion, Massachusetts law hasn't changed. Under current state law, teens as young as 14 who are charged with murder in the Bay State bypass juvenile court so they can be tried as adults; if they are convicted of first-degree murder, they face a mandatory term of life imprisonment without any chance of parole. Advocacy groups like the Massachusetts Coalition for the Fair Sentencing of Youth point to the Supreme Court decision and say that state law is now illegal and needs to change.
In an effort to raise awareness of this issue, a group of Northeastern University students held an event on April 17 titled “Journalism & Juvenile Justice: How Your Sentences Affect Theirs,” a panel discussion that explored the role the media plays in juvenile sentencing reform. It featured several prominent speakers, including former governor Michael Dukakis; crime professor James Alan Fox; communications professor Sarah J. Jackson; Gail Garinger, the child advocate for the state of Massachusetts; juvenile court judge Leslie E. Harris; and Joshua Dohan, director of the youth advocacy division of the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services.
The students responsible for organizing the event were Nicholas Fei, Kaitlyn Rhodes, Paula Christovich, Chris Corey, Hilary Gabso, and Kristin Minish. Northeastern journalism professor Dan Kennedy moderated the discussion.
(Disclosure: The event was co-sponsored by the New England chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, and I am currently president of the chapter).
A number of high-profile criminal cases were referenced during the wide-ranging discussion, from the 1997 murder trial of Eddie O’Brien to the more recent conviction of Nathaniel Fujita.
Dohan said there are 63 people in Massachusetts prisons serving life-without-parole sentences for crimes they committed before they were 18.
Fox, a noted crime expert who writes for the “Crime & Punishment” blog on Boston.com, told the panel that Massachusetts ranks third in the country for its percentage of prisoners who are serving life without parole sentences, which is four times the national average. “We have an incredibly rigid system,” said Fox.
Fox spoke about the furor that sparked when he wrote this blog post about Fujita, in which he questioned whether mandatory life-without-parole sentences are appropriate for all murder cases. It generated quite a debate online, and received over 300 comments.
Harris brought his perspective from his experience in Suffolk County Juvenile Court, where he’s been an associate justice since 1994. He said he doesn’t believe children should be tried and sentenced as adults.
“These are not short adults, these are children,” said Harris. “Juvenile cases should be in juvenile court, regardless of the charge.”
Many of the panelists’ concerns about media coverage were echoed by Cara Lisa Berg Powers, co-director at Press Pass TV, a nonprofit media organization based in Boston. She appeared before the panel and spoke about her organization’s “Respect in Reporting” campaign, which promotes “reporting that is compassionate, ethical and solution-oriented.” The initiative provides a set of guidelines that were adapted from the Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics and recommendations by families who have lost children to murder. The guidelines can be viewed at http://respectinreporting.presspasstv.org.
The student organizers of “Journalism & Juvenile Justice: How Your Sentences Affect Theirs” said they’ve received positive feedback from those who attended the April 17 panel discussion. They were even asked by the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, a program based at Kennesaw State University in Georgia, to take the panel “on the road” and hold a similar event in Atlanta.
“To me, personally, the panel was a success,” said Fei, a senior communication studies student who co-chaired the organizing committee. “We were able to get some key players on board and engaged. Great points were raised. I was very happy with how it turned out.”
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(Rahul Desai)
Michael Dukakis at the panel discussion.
Muslim college students find solace on campus
Shortly after the September 11th terrorist attacks, Wafae Belatreche, then a 5th grader, didn’t feel safe. Belatreche was clearly Muslim -- she wore a hijab, or headscarf. When she walked on the street, she says, drivers would slow down and yell out the window. “Go home!” “Towelhead!” “Terrorist!”
But in the days following the Boston Marathon bombings, which were allegedly set off by two young men motivated by extremist Islamist beliefs, Belatreche and other Muslim students in the Boston area say they have felt much more comfortable than the climate they faced after 9-11.
“Everyone at school has been supportive of us, chancellors, professors, chaplains, the entire community,” said Belatreche, now a junior at UMass Boston.
After the attacks last week, Muslim college students say they have found solace on their campuses. University administrators are making the students a priority -- holding forums, prayer services, dinners, and offering messages of support.
Victor Kazanjian, dean of intercultural education and religious and spiritual life at Wellesley College, said that following the marathon bombings, the school has held several gatherings specifically for Muslim students.
On Saturday, a day after reports surfaced that the suspects were motivated by extreme Islamic beliefs, the college organized a dinner for Muslim students as well as local members of the Islamic community. Approximately 150 students, or 7 percent of the Wellesley College student body, identify as Muslim.
“Over the past four days there really has been an outpouring of support [for Muslim students] from student groups as well as faculty and staff,” Kazanjian said.
He also said that Jewish, Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, African-American, Latina, LGBTQ, and other student groups have voiced their support for Muslim students, in person and by issuing formal statements.
Chowdhury Shamsh, a Muslim student at Tufts University, said the Muslim Student Association has held additional gatherings this past week to pray for the victims in the Marathon attacks.
“Tufts is a very welcome space and we haven’t been treated differently than any other group,” he said.
Melinda Holmes, 29, who is studying international affairs at the Fletcher School of Diplomacy, echoed a similar sentiment. Holmes recently converted to Islam, and said that when she heard the suspects were Muslim extremists, she became afraid for her safety.
“On almost all levels my expectations have been generally exceeded in terms of the positive, warm outpouring of support to make sure the Muslim community has been okay,” she said.
Kim Thurler, a spokeswoman for the university, said in a statement that in reaching out to all students, Tufts has also focused on its Muslim students.
“Our Muslim chaplain made herself available to Muslim students on the phone and in person following the Monday events and the university chaplain and her colleagues also expressed their support and availability for our Muslim students,” Thurler wrote in the statement.
Patrick Day, the vice chancellor for student affairs at UMass Boston, said that he has checked in with the school’s Muslim and Sikh students, with whom he already has a close relationship.
“Being such a diverse campus in the city of Boston, we feel confident that our students do feel supported, and we really spend a lot of time deliberately creating that community and culture of respect.”
Omar Ismail, a senior at UMass Boston, said after the news came out that the suspects allegedly bombed the marathon in the name of Islam. But he was confident that his classmates and other members of the Boston community would not discriminate against the religion as a whole.
“I think more people are aware that 99 percent of Muslims are like any other Americans, and the 0.1 percent are the extreme,” he said.
Belatreche said that during the 2:50 p.m. moment of silence on Monday, members of the UMass Boston community from all faiths and backgrounds held hands to show unity.
“No matter what religion we come from we are all Bostonians, we are all one,” she said.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Massive UMass Boston art installation set to leave campus
(Patrick D. Rosso/Boston.com/2013)
Crews dismantling the work of art.
Huru, the giant recycled steel sculpture that has greeted students and faculty for well over a decade as they entered the University of Massachusetts Boston, will soon be leaving its seaside perch.
The hulking, 55-foot tall work of art is being dismantled and prepared for shipment to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, as the university makes way for its new Integrated Sciences Complex.
Loaned to the school by its artist Mark di Suvero, the statue, which weighs well over 36,000 pounds, was the first piece of art loaned to the school as part of its Arts on the Point program.
“The statue has stood on that location with majesty and grace for more than a decade,” said Professor Paul Tucker, director and founder of Arts on the Point. “I hope it’s engrained itself on the students’ and faculty’s hearts.”
On Wednesday crews were busy dismantling the contraception that balances a six-ton piece of steel on ball bearings, allowing it to be gently sway in the winds that blow across Columbia Point.
“What Mark di Suvero has been able to do is take these remnants and reshape them,” said Tucker. “He’s been able to take discarded materials and turn them into fantastic art.”
It’s not certain if the sculpture, which came to the university from the Storm King Art Center in New York, will come back to the campus any time soon.
Tucker said he, however, will be lobbying for the eventual return of Huru, which means hello and goodbye in an aboriginal Australian language.
“The campus is in a fantastic moment of transition,” said Tucker. “When the piece comes back, which we hope it will, we’ll be able to celebrate this campus with the relocation of the work.”
The campus, since Huru was first brought to the site in 1997, currently has more than 10 works of art throughout it, but Tucker said the loss of the piece will leave a void.
”I think there will be a definite absence felt,” Tucker added.
Although the sculpture will be missed, its relocation will make way for the completion of the university’s Integrated Sciences Complex. Currently at the 50 percent completion mark, the new academic building is expected to be completed by fall 2014.
The college broke ground on the $185 million, 222,000-square-foot building in June 2011. The structure was topped off in February 2012.
The new building, near the entrance of the Columbia Point school, will be a six-story structure that will include dry and wet research laboratories along with support space, an infant-cognition lab, undergraduate biology teaching labs and two research centers.
(Image courtesy UMass Boston)
The statue before the construction of the ISC.
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Email Patrick D. Rosso, patrick.d.rosso@gmail.com. Follow him @PDRosso, or friend him on Facebook.
Old photo essay by a BU student offers a glimpse into the life of Tamerlan Tsarnaev
A photo essay featuring Tamerlan Tsarnaev that appeared in a BU graduate student magazine in 2010 offers a glimpse into the life of the Boston Marathon bombing suspect who died last week.
The essay, “Will Box for Passport: An Olympic Drive to Become a United States Citizen,” tells the story of Tsarnaev’s boxing career through a series of photos and captions.
To view the complete photo essay, click here. The photos and captions appear after page 16.
According to the essay in “The Comment,” BU’s graduate student magazine for the college of communications, Tsarnaev said that although he had lived in the US for five years he had not become friends with any Americans.
“I don’t have a single American friend,” he told The Comment. “I don’t understand them.”
The essay says that Tsarnaev, who was an aspiring engineer, took a semester off from college to train for a boxing competition.
“Tsarnaev’s family fled Chechnya in the early 1990s because of the conflict there. He lived in Kazakhstan before coming to the United States as a refugee,” the essay says. “In the absence of an independent Chechnya, Tsarnaev says he would rather compete for the U.S. than for Russia.”
He also told The Comment that as a practicing Muslim, he did not drink or smoke.
“God said no alcohol,” he said.
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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Emily Wick, first woman to earn tenure at MIT, dies at 91
Emily Wick, the first woman to earn a tenure position at MIT, has died, the university announced Tuesday in a statement.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s announcement came more than a month after her death. According to the statement, Wick, “a pioneer in women’s rights on campus,” died at her home in Rockport on March 21. She was 91.
The statement said that Wick studied at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, where she received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry and her master’s degree in organic chemistry. She earned her PhD from the MIT chemistry department in 1951.
In 1959, Wick was hired as an as assistant professor in the department of nutrition and food science at MIT. She was promoted to associate dean of students in 1965, and in 1968 she became the first female to earn tenure at the university.
She helped found the university’s Women’s Forum, which brought together staff, faculty, undergraduates and graduate students to discuss “issues from women’s health to career opportunities.”
An avid sailor, she helped start the women’s varsity sailing team at MIT in 1969. To honor her legacy, MIT alumnae organized the annual Emily Wick Regatta.
“She was an active advocate for female students and assisted them in navigating the predominantly male environment of the day,” the university wrote in the statement. “She was also instrumental in eliminating gender considerations from the Institute’s admissions criteria and ensuring that female students, faculty and staff had an equal voice and role on MIT’s campus.”
Katherine Landergan can be reached at klandergan@globe.com. For campus news updates, follow her on Twitter @klandergan.
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College Board announces first responders scholarship fund after Boston Marathon bombings, Texas fertilizer explosion
The College Board on Wednesday announced a new fund to provide scholarships for first responders and their children, prompted by events surrounding the Boston Marathon bombing and Texas fertilizer plant explosion.
The scholarship will be awarded each year to a student who performs well on the College Board’s PSAT/NMSQT and SAT assessments and who has demonstrated civic engagement and leadership in his or her community.
“We at MIT are moved that the College Board is honoring our own Sean Collier and other first responders in the Boston tragedy,” MIT Chancellor Eric Grimson said in a statement. “As a member of the College Board, we are so pleased this scholarship recognizes the courage of first responders.”
Collier was an MIT police officer who was allegedly killed by the Boston Marathon bombing suspects last week. First responders were praised in the aftermath of the bombings – which killed three people – for rushing into danger to aid the wounded.
Volunteer firefighters were among those killed last week in the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas.
“At colleges and universities around this country, campus security and other first responders work every day to keep students safe,” College Board President David Coleman said in a statement. “Many of them develop bonds of trust and friendship with students in their care. They become guardians away from home. This scholarship honors the distinctive role first responders play in the campus community and in educating and protecting young people.”
The College Board plans to work with its member institutions to raise money for the scholarship fund, and hopes to award the first scholarship by the end of this year. The amount of the award will depend on how much money is raised.
The College Board will administer the award and provide seed funding, although the organization didn’t say how much.
“We hope that a generation of first responders and their children can follow a path blazed by the heroes we honor today,” Coleman in the statement.
Those interested in donating to the fund can email firstrespondersfund@collegeboard.org.
Calvin Hennick can be reached at hennick.calvin@gmail.com.
BU students create a montage of the Marathon Bombing and its aftermath
One week ago Monday, everything changed. On a day that’s normally joyous as triumphant runners cross the finish line of the Boston Marathon, two blasts took lives, injured many others, and shook the city and the nation. Here’s a look back at the extraordinary events of the week through the lenses of Boston University Photojournalism program photographers.
This video is being published under an arrangement between the Boston Globe and the Boston University News Service.
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