Boston College (United States)
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Boston College (BC) is a
private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is
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as an R1 research university, it still uses the word "college" in its name to reflect its historical position as a small liberal arts college. Its main campus is a historic district and features some of the earliest examples of
collegiate gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...
architecture in
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
. In accordance with its
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
heritage, the university offers a liberal arts curriculum with a distinct emphasis on formative education and service to others. Boston College is ranked among the top universities in the United States and undergraduate admission is highly selective. The university offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees through its eight colleges and schools:
Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences (MCAS) is the oldest and largest constituent college of Boston College, situated on the university's main campus in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, it offers undergraduate and graduate programs ...
,
Carroll School of Management The Wallace E. Carroll School of Management (CSOM) is the business school of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The school is regularly ranked among the best business schools in the United States, particularly its undergraduate progr ...
,
Lynch School of Education and Human Development The Lynch School of Education and Human Development (Lynch School) is the professional school of education at Boston College. Founded in 1952, the Lynch school offers graduate and undergraduate programs in education, psychology, and human develo ...
,
Connell School of Nursing The William F. Connell School of Nursing (CSON) is the professional nursing school at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The Connell School of Nursing awards undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees, while offering a continuing ...
, Graduate School of Social Work, Boston College Law School,
Boston College School of Theology and Ministry The Boston College School of Theology and Ministry (STM) is a Jesuit school of graduate theology at Boston College. It is an ecclesiastical faculty of theology that trains men and women, both lay and religious, for scholarship and service, especi ...
,
Woods College of Advancing Studies The Woods College of Advancing Studies is one of the eight constituent colleges and schools of Boston College. It offers flexible undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs, as well as non-degree coursework, for non-traditional students. W ...
. Boston College athletic teams are the
Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...
. Their colors are maroon and gold and their mascot is Baldwin the Eagle. The Eagles compete in NCAA Division I as members of the
Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...
in all sports offered by the ACC. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East. Boston College's men's ice hockey team has won five national championships. Alumni and affiliates of the university include governors, ambassadors, members of Congress, scholars, writers, medical researchers, Hollywood actors, and professional athletes. Boston College has graduated three Rhodes, 22 Truman, and more than 171
Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
scholars. Other notable alumni include a
U.S. Speaker of the House The speaker of the United States House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section 2 of the U. ...
, a U.S. Secretary of State, and chief executives of
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companies.


History


Early history

In 1825, Benedict Joseph Fenwick, S.J., a Jesuit from Maryland, became the second bishop of Boston. He was the first to articulate a vision for a "College in the City of Boston" that would raise a new generation of leaders to serve both the civic and spiritual needs of his fledgling diocese. In 1827, Bishop Fenwick opened a school in the basement of his cathedral and took to the personal instruction of the city's youth. His efforts to attract other Jesuits to the faculty were hampered both by Boston's distance from the center of Jesuit activity in Maryland and by suspicion on the part of the city's
Protestant elite In the United States, White Anglo-Saxon Protestants or WASPs are an ethnoreligious group who are the white, upper-class, American Protestant historical elite, typically of British descent. WASPs dominated American society, culture, and politics ...
. Relations with Boston's civic leaders worsened such that, when a Jesuit faculty was finally secured in 1843, Fenwick decided to leave the Boston school and instead opened the
College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...
west of the city in Worcester, Massachusetts where he felt the Jesuits could operate with greater autonomy. Meanwhile, the vision for a college in Boston was sustained by John McElroy, S.J., who saw an even greater need for such an institution in light of Boston's growing Irish Catholic immigrant population. With the approval of his Jesuit superiors, McElroy went about raising funds and in 1857 purchased land for "The Boston College" on Harrison Avenue in the Hudson neighborhood of South End, Boston, Massachusetts. With little fanfare, the college's two buildings—a schoolhouse and a church—welcomed their first class of scholastics in 1859. Two years later, with as little fanfare, BC closed again. Its short-lived second incarnation was plagued by the outbreak of Civil War and disagreement within the Society over the college's governance and finances. BC's inability to obtain a charter from the anti-Catholic Massachusetts legislature only compounded its troubles. On , more than three decades after its initial inception, Boston College's charter was formally approved by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. BC became the second
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
institution of higher learning in Massachusetts and the first located in the Boston area. Johannes Bapst, S.J., a Swiss Jesuit from French-speaking Fribourg, was selected as BC's first president and immediately reopened the original college buildings on Harrison Avenue. For most of the 19th century, BC offered a singular 7-year program corresponding to both high school and college. Its entering class in the fall of 1864 included 22 students, ranging in age from 11 to 16 years. The curriculum was based on the Jesuit ''
Ratio Studiorum The ''Ratio atque Institutio Studiorum Societatis Iesu'' (''Method and System of the Studies of the Society of Jesus''), often abbreviated as ''Ratio Studiorum'' (Latin: ''Plan of Studies''), was a document that standardized the globally influen ...
'', emphasizing Latin, Greek,
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
, and theology.


Move to Chestnut Hill

Boston College's enrollment reached nearly 500 by the turn of the 20th century. Expansion of the South End buildings onto James Street enabled increased separation between the high school and college divisions, though
Boston College High School , motto_translation = ''So they may know You.'' , address = 150 Morrissey Boulevard , city = Boston , state = Massachusetts , zipcode = 02125 , country ...
remained a constituent part of Boston College until 1927, when it was separately incorporated. In 1907, newly installed President Thomas I. Gasson, S.J., determined that BC's cramped, urban quarters in Boston's South End were inadequate and unsuited for significant expansion. Inspired by John Winthrop's early vision of Boston as a " city upon a hill", he re-imagined Boston College as world-renowned university and a beacon of
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
scholarship. Less than a year after taking office, he purchased Amos Adams Lawrence's farm on Chestnut Hill, six miles (10 km) west of downtown. He organized an international competition for the design of a
campus A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-like se ...
master plan and set about raising funds for the construction of the "new" university. Construction began in 1909. By 1913, construction costs had surpassed available funds, and as a result
Gasson Hall Gasson Hall is a building on the campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Designed by Charles Donagh Maginnis in 1908, the hall has influenced the development of Collegiate Gothic architecture in North America. Gasson Hall is ...
, "New BC's" main building, stood alone on Chestnut Hill for its first three years. Buildings of the former Lawrence farm, including a barn and gatehouse, were temporarily adapted for college use while a massive fundraising effort was underway. While Maginnis's ambitious plans were never fully realized, BC's first "capital campaign"—which included a large replica of Gasson Hall's clock tower set up on Boston Common to measure the fundraising progress—ensured that President Gasson's vision survived. By the 1920s BC began to fill out the dimensions of its university charter, establishing the Boston College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, the Boston College Law School, and the
Woods College of Advancing Studies The Woods College of Advancing Studies is one of the eight constituent colleges and schools of Boston College. It offers flexible undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs, as well as non-degree coursework, for non-traditional students. W ...
, followed successively by the
Boston College Graduate School of Social Work The Boston College School of Social Work (BCSSW) is the graduate school of social work at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1936, it is among the nation's oldest schools of social work and provides experience-based Master ...
, the
Carroll School of Management The Wallace E. Carroll School of Management (CSOM) is the business school of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The school is regularly ranked among the best business schools in the United States, particularly its undergraduate progr ...
, the
Connell School of Nursing The William F. Connell School of Nursing (CSON) is the professional nursing school at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The Connell School of Nursing awards undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees, while offering a continuing ...
, and the
Lynch School of Education and Human Development The Lynch School of Education and Human Development (Lynch School) is the professional school of education at Boston College. Founded in 1952, the Lynch school offers graduate and undergraduate programs in education, psychology, and human develo ...
. In 1926, Boston College conferred its first degrees on women (though it did not become fully coeducational until 1970). On April 20, 1963, an address by President John F. Kennedy, the nation's first Catholic president who had received an honorary degree in 1956, was the highlight of a week-long centennial celebration. With the rising prominence of its graduates, Boston College and its powerful Alumni Association had established themselves among the city's leading institutions. At the city, state and federal levels, BC graduates dominated Massachusetts politics for much of the 20th century. However, cultural changes in American society and in the church following the Second Vatican Council forced the university to question its purpose and mission. Meanwhile, poor financial management lead to deteriorating facilities and resources, and rising tuition costs. Student outrage, combined with growing protests over Vietnam and the bombings in Cambodia, culminated in student strikes, including demonstrations at
Gasson Hall Gasson Hall is a building on the campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Designed by Charles Donagh Maginnis in 1908, the hall has influenced the development of Collegiate Gothic architecture in North America. Gasson Hall is ...
in April 1970. File:Gasson Hall in Spring.jpg, Gasson Hall in spring File:Gasson Hall in Summer.jpg, Gasson Hall in summer File:Gasson Hall in Autumn.jpg, Gasson Hall in autumn File:Gasson in Winter.jpg, Gasson Hall in winter


The Monan era

By the time J. Donald Monan, S.J. began his presidency on September 5, 1972, BC was approximately $30 million in debt, its endowment totaled just under $6 million, and faculty and staff salaries had been frozen during the previous year. Rumors about the university's future were rampant, including speculation that BC would be acquired by Harvard University. After Monan's appointment, the Boston College Board of Trustees was reconfigured. The board was broadened beyond its historic membership of members of the Society of Jesus, as lay alumni and business leaders were brought in, bringing new business models and an ability to raise funds. A similar restructuring had been accomplished first at the University of Notre Dame in 1967 by Fr.
Theodore Hesburgh Theodore Martin Hesburgh, CSC (May 25, 1917 – February 26, 2015) was a native of Syracuse, New York, who became an ordained priest of the Congregation of Holy Cross and is best known for his service as the president of the University of Not ...
,
CSC CSC, Csc or CSc may refer to: Awards * Conspicuous Service Cross (disambiguation) ** Conspicuous Service Cross (Australia) ** Conspicuous Service Cross (New York) ** Conspicuous Service Cross (United Kingdom) Science and industry * Cancer ...
, and Edmund Stephan, with many other Catholic colleges following suit in the ensuing years. In 1974,
Newton College of the Sacred Heart Newton College of the Sacred Heart was a small women's liberal arts college in Newton Centre, Massachusetts. It opened in 1946 and merged with Boston College in June 1974. The college was highly regarded during its time, and in 1971 founded the ...
was merged into BC, allowing expansion of Boston College to the Newton College campus. Boston College Law School moved to the campus, and its dormitories provided needed housing for a student population that was increasingly residential, for which the school had to lease off-campus apartments and even motel rooms. Monan was credited with turning around the school's financial position, leading to an improved reputation and increasing attention from around the world. In 1996, Monan's 24-year presidency came to an end when he was named University Chancellor and succeeded by President
William P. Leahy William P. Leahy (born 1948) is the 25th President of Boston College, a post he has held since 1996, making him the longest serving president in the school's history as of July 31, 2020. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska and raised in Imogene, Io ...
, S.J.


Recent history

Since assuming the Boston College presidency, Leahy's tenure has been marked with an acceleration of the growth and development initiated by his predecessor, as well as by what some critics see as abandonment of the college's initial mission to provide a college education for residents of Boston. It has expanded by almost , while dramatically reducing the greenery of its middle campus, although portions of the college's legendary "Dustbowl" were removed to accommodate additional expansion of its buildings. During this period, undergraduate applications have surpassed 31,000. At the same time, BC students, faculty and athletic teams have seen indicators of success—winning record numbers of Fulbrights, Rhodes, and other academic awards; setting new marks for research grants; and winning conference and national titles. In 2002, Leahy initiated the Church in the 21st Century program to examine issues facing the Catholic Church in light of the clergy sexual abuse scandal. His effort brought BC worldwide praise and recognition for "leading the way on Church reform." Recent plans to merge with the
Weston Jesuit School of Theology The Boston College School of Theology and Ministry (STM) is a Jesuit school of graduate theology at Boston College. It is an ecclesiastical faculty of theology that trains men and women, both lay and religious, for scholarship and service, espe ...
were followed by an article in '' The New York Times'' claiming "such a merger would further Boston College's quest to become the nation's Catholic intellectual powerhouse" and that, once approved by the Vatican and Jesuit authorities in Rome, BC "would become ''the'' center for the study of Roman Catholic theology in the United States." On February 16, 2006, the merger was authorized by the
Jesuit Conference Jesuit Conferences are groupings of administrative divisions (Provinces and Regions) of the Society of Jesus. These Provinces and Regions are organized into a conference to promote common goals and oversee international projects. A Conference connec ...
. In 2003, after years of student-led discussions and efforts, and administrators' repeated rejection of pleas from students, the school approved a Gay-Straight Alliance, the first university-funded gay support group on campus. In 2004, between 1,000 and 1,200 students rallied behind a student-led campaign to expand the school's non-discrimination statement to include equal protection for gays and lesbians. Earlier that year 84% of the student body voted in favor of a student referendum calling for a change in policy. After several months of discussion the university changed its statement of nondiscrimination to make it more welcoming to gay students in May 2005, but stopped short of prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. On December 5, 2007, Boston College announced a master plan, a $1.6 billion, 10-year plan to revamp the campus and hire new faculty. The plan includes over $700 million for new buildings and renovations of the campus, including construction of four new academic buildings, a sharp reduction in the size of the legendary "dustbowl" campus green, a recreation center to replace the Flynn Recreation Complex, a university center to replace McElroy Commons (which is slated for destruction), and the creation of 610 beds for student housing, as well as many other constructions and renovations. The plan has been criticized by Boston city officials. On February 21, 2008,
Boston Mayor The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan (as are all municipal elections in Boston), and elect a mayor to a four-y ...
Thomas M. Menino Thomas Michael Menino (December 27, 1942 – October 30, 2014) was an American politician who served as the 53rd mayor of Boston, from 1993 to 2014. He was the city's longest-serving mayor. He was elected mayor in 1993 after first serving three ...
warned the school to construct new dormitory building on its main campus, rather than on property acquired from the
Archdiocese of Boston The Archdiocese of Boston ( la, Archidiœcesis Bostoniensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the New England region of the United States. Its territorial remit encompasses the whole of ...
. The school was long an institution that targeted commuter students from the Boston area, however in the school's pursuit of a national legacy, that function has been forgotten as the number of commuter students enrolled dropped from well over 50% to a mere three students, according to statistics published by the alumni magazine. On June 10, 2009, Mayor Menino and Boston's zoning commission approved the Boston College Master Plan, signaling an end to the long approval process, while allowing the school to enter design and planning phases. On October 18, 2017, hundreds of students walked out of class in a protest against racism and to demand the college officials pay more attention to the school's racial climate. The walk out was sparked by the defacing of two Black Lives Matter posters and an offensive photo was circulated on social media sites. On December 8, 2018, walls, furniture, and a bathroom in the Welch Hall were vandalized with racist, anti-black graffiti. Also, over the previous months, pro-refugee and Black Lives Matter signs were repeatedly removed around campus.


Campus


Chestnut Hill main campus

Boston College's main campus in Chestnut Hill, west of downtown Boston, is and includes over 120 buildings set on a hilltop overlooking the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. A "
Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...
" streetcar station on Boston's
MBTA The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...
public transit system, is located at St. Ignatius Gate; it is the western terminus of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)
Green Line Green Line may refer to: Places Military and political * Green Line (France), the German occupation line in France during World War II * Green Line (Israel), the 1949 armistice line established between Israel and its neighbours ** City Line ( ...
's B branch (also known as the "Boston College" line) and connects the school to Boston's city center and to other destinations in the city. Due largely to its location and presence of buildings featuring gothic towers reaching into the sky, the Boston College campus is known generally as the "Heights" and to some as the "Crowned Hilltop". The main campus is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Reference#: 90000109 Designed by Charles Donagh Maginnis and his firm Maginnis & Walsh in 1908, the Boston College campus is a seminal example of
Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...
architecture. Combining
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
architecture with principles of Beaux-Arts planning, Maginnis proposed a vast complex of academic buildings set in a cruciform plan. Maginnis's design broke from the traditional
Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collectively, in contrast to other British universities, and more broadly to de ...
models that had inspired it—and that had until then characterized Gothic architecture on American campuses. In its unprecedented scale,
Gasson Tower Gasson Hall is a building on the campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Designed by Charles Donagh Maginnis in 1908, the hall has influenced the development of Collegiate Gothic architecture in North America. Gasson Hall is nam ...
was conceived not as the belfry of a singular building, but as the crowning
campanile A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...
of Maginnis' new " city upon a hill". Although Maginnis' ambitious Gothic project never saw full completion, its central portion was built according to plan and forms the core of what is now BC's iconic middle campus. Among these, the Bapst Library has been called the "finest example of Collegiate Gothic architecture in America" and
Devlin Hall Devlin may refer to: * Devlin (surname) * Devlin (given name) * Devlin (rapper), a British rapper * ''Devlin'' (TV series), a 1974 animated TV series by Hanna-Barbera * ''Devlin'', a 1988 novel by Roderick Thorp * ''The Devil and Max Devlin ''T ...
won the
Harleston Parker Medal The Harleston Parker Medal was established in 1921 by J. Harleston Parker to recognize “such architects as shall have, in the opinion of the Boston Society of Architects One of the oldest and largest chapters of the AIA, the Boston Society of ...
for "most beautiful building in Boston". The 1895 Louis K. Liggett Estate was acquired in 1941 and developed into a
Tudor-style Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...
upper campus, while an architecturally eclectic lower campus took shape on land acquired by filling in part of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. Modernism had an enormous impact on development after the 1940s, though some of the modernist buildings at BC maintained non-modern rough stone facades in keeping with Maginnis's original designs. Boston College's eight research libraries contain over two million printed volumes. Including manuscripts, journals, government documents and microform items, ranging from ancient papyrus scrolls to digital databases, the collections have some twelve million items. Together with the university's museums, they include original manuscripts and prints by
Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...
, Ignatius of Loyola, and Francis Xavier as well as world-renowned collections in
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
ana, Irish literature, sixteenth-century Flemish tapestries, ancient Greek pottery,
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folk art and literature, Japanese prints,
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documents,
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Archives, and paintings that span the history of art from Europe, Asia, and the
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...
. Opened in 1928, Bapst Library was named for the first president of Boston College ( Johannes Bapst, S.J., 1815 to 1887) and it was one of the few structures built according to Charles Donagh Maginnis' original "Oxford in America" master plan. Bapst served as the university's main library until 1984. A guide to the building's stained glass windows is available online. The Burns Library of Rare Books and Special Collections is home to more than 150,000 volumes, some 15 million manuscripts and other important works, including a world-renowned collection of Irish literature. A rare facsimile of the
Book of Kells The Book of Kells ( la, Codex Cenannensis; ga, Leabhar Cheanannais; Dublin, Trinity College Library, MS A. I. 8 sometimes known as the Book of Columba) is an illuminated manuscript Gospel book in Latin, containing the four Gospels of the New ...
is on public display in the library's Irish Room, and each day one page of the
illuminated manuscript An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, the ...
is turned. It also houses the papers of prominent Boston College alumni. The library is named after the Honorable John. J. Burns (1901 to 1957), Massachusetts Superior Court Justice and a member of the Boston College Class of 1921. There are a variety of student housing options for students on campus. Those located on lower campus are Walsh, Rubenstein, Ignacio, 90 St. Thomas More Road, 66 Commonwealth Ave, Vanderslice, Gabelli, Voute, Stayer, and 'The Mods'. Roncalli, Welch, and Williams Halls are located on the middle campus on College Road. Freshman housing on Upper Campus includes Kostka, Gonzaga, Fitzpatrick, Medeiros, Cheverus, Claver, Loyola, Xavier, Fenwick, and Shaw House. Additional freshman housing is on the Newton Campus and includes Cushing, Duchesne (East and West), Hardey, and Keyes (North and South). In the fall of 2010, Boston College began construction of Stokes Hall, a academic building on what was formerly known as the Dustbowl. Stokes Hall is the first academic building to be constructed on the Middle Campus since 2001. It was completed in December 2012, and opened for use in January 2013. In 2014, the university reconstructed St. Mary's Hall and renovated indoor pieces of Carney Hall. More Hall had been demolished to make way for a new residence hall in July 2014, slated to open sometime in 2016.


Middle Campus

* Carney Faculty Center Located on middle campus, Carney Faculty Center no longer hosts classes and is largely office space. Rather, the building houses the offices of the Army ROTC program as well as the Student Program Offices. Often known as 'dark and dank', the building is distinct from the quadrangle area located across the campus green, known as the Dustbowl. Built in 1963, Carney has an unusual structure seeming to face away from the rest of the campus. Contrary to popular belief, the building was not built backwards but rather styled to allow more offices to have windows, according to BC Historian, Professor Thomas O'Connor. The Beacon Street side of the building contains a fountain in the middle of the courtyard; the fountain has been dry for decades as the result of the frequent use of powdered soap pranks by undergraduate students. The building additionally contains sets of unused lockers throughout the floors, which added to the fictitious speculation of the building being a former high school although they had been used by the commuter students who formed the vast majority of enrollment for many years. The existing 10-year university plan slates Carney Hall for reconstruction. Sections of the first floor have received new carpets, fresh coats of paint, and new ceiling tiles. The existing university 30–50-year plan schedules the reconstructed building to remain part of the quadrangle. * McElroy Commons Located on the Southwest Corner of middle campus, McElroy is referred to by students as 'Mac', reflecting the common, but incorrect, pronunciation of the building's name. McElroy Commons holds a variety of offices and contains Carney's Dining Hall which serves the majority of students living on College Road and Upper Campus. Eagle's Nest, a lunch spot is located on the second floor of the building. The first floor of the building was updated in the summer of 2013. * Stokes Hall *
Fulton Hall Fulton Hall is a building on the campus of Boston College that houses the Carroll School of Management. It is named for university president Robert J. Fulton. History When World War II ended in 1945 there was a dramatic increase in enrollment ...
* McGuinn Hall *
Devlin Hall Devlin may refer to: * Devlin (surname) * Devlin (given name) * Devlin (rapper), a British rapper * ''Devlin'' (TV series), a 1974 animated TV series by Hanna-Barbera * ''Devlin'', a 1988 novel by Roderick Thorp * ''The Devil and Max Devlin ''T ...
* Lyons Hall *
Gasson Hall Gasson Hall is a building on the campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Designed by Charles Donagh Maginnis in 1908, the hall has influenced the development of Collegiate Gothic architecture in North America. Gasson Hall is ...
* St. Mary's Hall * Bapst Library One of the most iconic images of Boston College lies within Gargan Hall of Bapst Library. Gargan Hall is a widely popular study location for students, open 24 hours on most days and known as the quietest place on campus. Gargan Hall regularly finds itself in the top 10 of the world's most beautiful libraries. While for years the hall contained a red rug, the hall now is carpeted in emerald green. This art library contains over 51,000 volumes, 150 serial titles, and access to hundreds of journal databases and electronic journals in Art, Architecture, Museum Studies and Photography. The library maintains print and electronic reserves for courses in the Fine Arts. * O'Neill Library * Cushing Hall * Campion Hall * Merkert Hall * Higgins Hall * Maloney Hall


Newton Campus

In addition to the main campus at Chestnut Hill, BC's Newton Campus, formerly Newton College of the Sacred Heart, is located to the west in the inner suburb of Newton, Massachusetts. The campus is home to the law school, Stuart Dining Hall, Trinity Chapel, and residential housing for roughly 40% of the freshman class. Freshman dormitories on Newton Campus include Hardey, Cushing, Duchesne, and Keyes. Two athletic fields and a recreation center are also located on the campus. A new building opened in 1996 housing the Law Library for the Boston College Law School in Newton.


Brighton Campus

Between 2004 and 2007, Boston College acquired of land from the
Archdiocese of Boston The Archdiocese of Boston ( la, Archidiœcesis Bostoniensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the New England region of the United States. Its territorial remit encompasses the whole of ...
. This included the archdiocese's former headquarters, sold to the university in 2004 for $107,400,000. The grounds are named after
Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
, the Boston neighborhood in which it is located, as the municipal border sits on the street intersection where the two properties meet. It is adjacent to the main campus (on the opposite side of Commonwealth Avenue), and includes the Italian Renaissance-style historic mansion of the
Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...
's residence. The mansion now houses the McMullen Museum of Art, which has a prominent permanent collection and organizes exhibits from all periods and cultures of art history. Recent exhibits and acquisitions include works by
Edvard Munch Edvard Munch ( , ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His best known work, ''The Scream'' (1893), has become one of Western art's most iconic images. His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dr ...
,
Amedeo Modigliani Amedeo Clemente Modigliani (, ; 12 July 1884 – 24 January 1920) was an Italian painter and sculptor who worked mainly in France. He is known for portraits and nudes in a modern style characterized by a surreal elongation of faces, necks, and ...
, Frank Stella,
Françoise Gilot Marie Françoise Gilot (born 26 November 1921) is a French painter, best known for her relationship with Pablo Picasso, with whom she had two children. Gilot was already launched as an accomplished artist, notably in watercolours and ceramics, b ...
, John LaFarge, and Jackson Pollock. However, outshining by far all McMullen exhibitions, previous and subsequent, in terms of international media attention and attendance numbers was the 1999 exhibition, "Saints and Sinners: Caravaggio and the Baroque Image," featuring as its centerpiece the first North American appearance of the then-recently rediscovered masterpiece by Italian Baroque artist
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...
, '' The Taking of Christ''. Admission to the museum is free and open to the general public. In 2008, the Weston Jesuit School of Theology merged with Boston College, and the new School of Theology and Ministry moved to Brighton. In addition to other offices and facilities, the Brighton campus is home to the
Harrington Athletics Village The Harrington Athletics Village is a sports complex located on the Brighton Campus at Boston College in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The complex currently consists of the Eddie Pellagrini Diamond, which is home to the Boston College ...
. File:Simboli Hall.jpg, Simboli Hall, School of Theology and Ministry File:McMullen Museum of Art.jpg, McMullen Museum of Art


Other properties in Chestnut Hill

In 2017, the university purchased the 24-acre Mishkan Tefila Synagogue property in Chestnut Hill. When purchased, the property was only used for administrative services and event parking. The former synagogue's 806-seat auditorium has since been opened as a new rehearsal and event venue for Boston College's Robsham Theater Arts Center. It is currently the largest venue for theater at the university. Additionally, the building houses a large, ballroom-style, multi-purpose room and a hexagon-shaped meeting room for performances, events, and conferences. An outdoor quad is also available to be used for events and the performing arts. Approximately 17 wooded acres of the property, however, have been taken by the City of
Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film * Newton ( ...
under the power of eminent domain in December 2019. In 2020, Boston College bought
Pine Manor College Pine Manor College (PMC) was a private college in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1911 and was historically a women's college until 2014. It currently serves fewer than 400 students, many of whom live on the 40-acre campus. Origin ...
, a small liberal arts college in Chestnut Hill with a high amount of first generation college students and inner city students that was undergoing financial struggles.


Other properties

The university owns and maintains a number of other properties around Massachusetts and the Republic of Ireland. *
Connors Center The Connors Center is an event space and former estate located in Dover, Massachusetts. It is owned and operated by Boston College. The mansion was built in 1902 as a private home for Arthur and Mary Davis. The garden and stone landscapes were ...
: an retreat center in Dover, Massachusetts. * Weston Observatory: a seismology research observatory and field station in Weston, Massachusetts. * Boston College Ireland: home to the Centre for Irish Programmes: Dublin on
St. Stephen's Green St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by Lo ...
in Dublin, Ireland. * Bellarmine House: an Jesuit Villa House in Cohasset, Massachusetts, maintained by the Jesuits Community at BC and used for religious retreats.


Organization and administration

Its annual operating budget is approximately $667 million. The most recent and ongoing fundraising campaign, dubbed "Light the World", was announced on October 11, 2008. The seven-year campaign aims to raise $1.5 billion in honor of the 150th anniversary of the college. Funds raised will be used to support the strategic priorities of the university, including academic programs, financial aid, Jesuit Catholic identity, athletics, student programming, and capital construction projects.


Catholic and Jesuit

The 112 Jesuits living on the Boston College campus make up one of the largest Jesuit communities in the world and include members of the faculty and administration, graduate students, and visiting international scholars.Voosen, Paul.
Disambiguation
." December 7, 2005, ''Boston College Magazine''. Retrieved December 26, 2006.
The chapel for the university is located in St. Mary's Hall, the Jesuit residential facility. Additional BC chapels are Trinity Chapel on the Newton Campus, St. Joseph's Chapel in the Basement of Gonzaga Hall on Upper Campus, Simboli Hall Chapel on the Brighton Campus, and St. Catherine of Sienna Chapel in Cushing Hall. Over 70 Catholic Masses are celebrated on Campus each week during the Academic Year. The college also maintains close relations with the nearby Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. The church is named after the founder of the Jesuit
order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...
, Ignatius of Loyola. It is run independently of the
Archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
and is staffed by the Jesuits. Although not technically the university's church, Boston College provides the parish with Internet access, e-mail service, telephone and voice mail service, parking, and dormitory space for the
religious education In secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion (although in the United Kingdom the term ''religious instruction'' would refer to the teaching of a particular religion, with ''religious education'' referring to te ...
program. Each year, several Boston College students teach in the religious education program. Jesuit priests from Boston College occasionally preside at the church's liturgies. St. Ignatius provides a spiritual home for many students during their time at Boston College and has also hosted alumni weddings. The church building is also used by the college for some of their larger religious events.


Affiliated institutions

St. Columbkille Parish is a Catholic Church and
elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
in
Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
, Massachusetts that has an alliance with BC. Under the agreement, the parish school is to be governed by a board of members and a
board of trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...
comprising representatives from the Archdiocese of Boston, Boston College, St. Columbkille Parish and the greater Boston community. The board of trustees will authorize an audit of the school's curriculum, faculty, finances, and facilities before creating a strategic plan to guide the school in the future.
Lynch School of Education and Human Development The Lynch School of Education and Human Development (Lynch School) is the professional school of education at Boston College. Founded in 1952, the Lynch school offers graduate and undergraduate programs in education, psychology, and human develo ...
faculty will work directly with the school's teachers on faculty and curriculum development, presenting new approaches to education and working to establish best practices in the classroom. The agreement, announced in March 2006 by University President
William P. Leahy William P. Leahy (born 1948) is the 25th President of Boston College, a post he has held since 1996, making him the longest serving president in the school's history as of July 31, 2020. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska and raised in Imogene, Io ...
, S.J., and Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley,
OFM Cap. The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM) ...
, is believed to represent the first such collaboration between a Catholic university and a
parochial school A parochial school is a private primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathematics and language arts. The ...
in the United States.


Admissions

For the Class of 2025, Boston College received 39,875 applications, of which it admitted 18.9%. The interquartile (middle 50%) of admitted students of the class of 2025 who submitted test scores under Boston College's test-optional policy possessed scores between 1460 and 1540 on the SAT and 33–35 on the ACT. The accepted class includes students from 50 states, 3 U.S. territories, and 75 foreign countries.


Academics


Schools and colleges

As a research university, Boston College is made up of a total of eight constituent colleges and schools: *
Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences (MCAS) is the oldest and largest constituent college of Boston College, situated on the university's main campus in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, it offers undergraduate and graduate programs ...
*
Carroll School of Management The Wallace E. Carroll School of Management (CSOM) is the business school of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The school is regularly ranked among the best business schools in the United States, particularly its undergraduate progr ...
*
Lynch School of Education and Human Development The Lynch School of Education and Human Development (Lynch School) is the professional school of education at Boston College. Founded in 1952, the Lynch school offers graduate and undergraduate programs in education, psychology, and human develo ...
*
Connell School of Nursing The William F. Connell School of Nursing (CSON) is the professional nursing school at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The Connell School of Nursing awards undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees, while offering a continuing ...
*
Boston College School of Social Work The Boston College School of Social Work (BCSSW) is the graduate school of social work at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1936, it is among the nation's oldest schools of social work and provides experience-based Mast ...
* Boston College Law School *
Boston College School of Theology and Ministry The Boston College School of Theology and Ministry (STM) is a Jesuit school of graduate theology at Boston College. It is an ecclesiastical faculty of theology that trains men and women, both lay and religious, for scholarship and service, especi ...
*
Woods College of Advancing Studies The Woods College of Advancing Studies is one of the eight constituent colleges and schools of Boston College. It offers flexible undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs, as well as non-degree coursework, for non-traditional students. W ...


Rankings

Boston College tied for 35th among national universities and tied for 468th among global universities in '' U.S. News & World Report'' "America's Best Colleges 2021" rankings and 41st in the '' Forbes'' 2019 edition of "America's Top Colleges", In 2016, the undergraduate school of business, the
Carroll School of Management The Wallace E. Carroll School of Management (CSOM) is the business school of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The school is regularly ranked among the best business schools in the United States, particularly its undergraduate progr ...
, placed 3rd in an annual ranking of U.S. undergraduate business schools by '' Bloomberg Businessweek''. A 2007 Princeton Review survey of parents that asked "What 'dream college' would you most like to see your child attend were prospects of acceptance or cost not issues?" placed BC 6th. Boston College is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.


Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program

The Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program is a competitive undergraduate program offered to a subset of applicants to Boston College. This program offers a four-year, full-tuition scholarship to Boston College. Students who accept an invitation to apply for the program are asked to spend a weekend at Boston College, where they complete several interviews and participate in a mock classroom seminar. The Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program is very competitive; out of the Boston College applicants invited to apply to the GPSP program, approximately 18 are awarded the scholarship. Since the entire early application pool is evaluated in determining whom to grant application invitations to, the overall admissions rate of the program is less than 1%. The scholarship includes a number of funded enrichment opportunities such as several summer programs, among them a summer-long international study program for language proficiency. Many Gabelli Presidential Scholars have been recognized for academic excellence through prestigious awards including Rhodes, Truman, and Churchill Scholarships along with numerous Fulbright grants.


Order of the Cross and Crown

The Order of the Cross and Crown, founded in 1939, is the College of Arts and Sciences honor society for seniors who have achieved an average of at least A−, as well as established records of unusual service and leadership on the campus. The selections committee, composed of the deans, faculty members, and administration, appoints specially distinguished members of the Order to be its officers as Chief Marshal and Marshals. Induction into the Cross and Crown Honor Society is one of the highest and most prestigious honors that BC students can receive.
Campbell Soup Company Campbell Soup Company, trade name, doing business as Campbell's, is an American processed food and snack company. The company is most closely associated with its flagship canned soup products; however, through mergers and acquisitions, it has gro ...
CEO,
Denise Morrison Denise M. Morrison (born January 13, 1954) is an American business executive who served as president and chief executive officer of Campbell Soup Company from 2011 through 2018. Named the "21st Most Powerful Woman in Business" by '' Fortune'' m ...
is an example of one prominent member.


Research


Scholarly publications

* ''Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review'' * '' Boston College Law Review'' * ''C21 Resources'', a progressive journal of contemporary Catholic issues, published by BC's Church in the 21st Century Center. * ''Dianoia: The Undergraduate Philosophy Journal of Boston College'', a journal featuring undergraduate work in philosophy from around the world. * ''The Eagletarian'', published by The BC Economics Association. * ''Guide to Jesuit Education'' * ''International & Comparative Law Review'' * ''Journal of Technology, Learning and Assessment'' * ''Lumen et Vita: The Graduate Academic Journal of the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry'', * ''New Arcadia Review'' * ''Religion and the Arts Journal'' * ''Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations'', the official journal of the Council of Centers of Jewish-Christian Relations (CCJR) and is published by the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College and the Boston College Libraries. * ''Teaching Exceptional Children / Teaching Exceptional Children Plus'' * ''Third World Law Journal'' * ''Uniform Commercial Code Reporter-Digest''


Philosophy

Philosophy has long been an important part of the university's curriculum. In the seventies, Boston College's Philosophy Department distinguished itself from the majority of American Departments by promoting the study of Continental European philosophy over and above
analytic philosophy Analytic philosophy is a branch and tradition of philosophy using analysis, popular in the Western world and particularly the Anglosphere, which began around the turn of the 20th century in the contemporary era in the United Kingdom, United Sta ...
. Under the direction of Department Chair Joseph Flanagan, SJ and following the example of
Fordham University Fordham University () is a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City. Established in 1841 and named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the The Bronx, Bronx in which its origina ...
, the department branched out from its traditional strengths in philosophy of religion, ancient/medieval philosophy, and Thomism. It has since become a leading university in the United States for the study of
continental philosophy Continental philosophy is a term used to describe some philosophers and philosophical traditions that do not fall under the umbrella of analytic philosophy. However, there is no academic consensus on the definition of continental philosophy. Pri ...
. As of 2021, Boston College ranks 39th in the world, and 13th in the United States, for philosophy according to the QS World University Rankings. The department has featured as permanent faculty a number of noted continental philosophers including Heidegger scholar
William J. Richardson __NOTOC__ William John Richardson, S.J. (2 November 1920 – 10 December 2016) was an American philosopher, who was among the first to write a comprehensive study of the philosophy of Martin Heidegger, featuring an important preface by Heideg ...
, SJ as well as experts in phenomenology
Richard Cobb-Stevens Richard Cobb-Stevens (born 13 March 1935 in Cambridge, MA., USA; died on 6 July 2018, Carlisle, MA) was an American philosopher and Professor Emeritus at Boston College. An expert in American Pragmatism, Continental Philosophy, and Phenomenology ...
and
Jacques Taminiaux Jacques Taminiaux (; 29 May 1928 – 7 May 2019) was a Belgian philosopher and professor at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Biography Born in Seneffe, Taminiaux studied law and philosophy at the Catholic Universit ...
. The department today still has a large proportion of experts in continental philosophy including European philosophy and literature expert
Richard Kearney Richard Kearney (; born 1954) is an Irish philosopher and public intellectual specializing in contemporary continental philosophy. He is the Charles Seelig Professor in Philosophy at Boston College and has taught at University College Dublin ...
, expert in phenomenology
John Sallis John Sallis (born 1938) is an American philosopher well known for his work in the tradition of phenomenology. Since 2005, he has been the Frederick J. Adelmann Professor of Philosophy at Boston College. He has previously taught at Pennsylvania Sta ...
, expert in Christian philosophy and apologetics Peter Kreeft, and experts in social and political philosophy
David M. Rasmussen David M. Rasmussen is an American philosopher and professor at Boston College. He is the founder and editor in chief of ''Philosophy and Social Criticism'' and is a noted political and social philosopher. Rasmussen is the author of 21 books, wid ...
and James Bernauer, SJ. Since the seventies, the department has also had a number of notable visiting professors including
Hans-Georg Gadamer Hans-Georg Gadamer (; ; February 11, 1900 – March 13, 2002) was a German philosopher of the continental tradition, best known for his 1960 ''magnum opus'', '' Truth and Method'' (''Wahrheit und Methode''), on hermeneutics. Life Family an ...
,
Jean-Luc Marion Jean-Luc Marion (born 3 July 1946) is a French philosopher and Roman Catholic theologian. Marion is a former student of Jacques Derrida whose work is informed by patristic and mystical theology, phenomenology, and modern philosophy.Horner 2005. ...
, and Bernard Lonergan, SJ.


Student life


AHANA

AHANA is the term Boston College uses to refer to persons of African-American, Hispanic,
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, and Native American descent. The term was coined at Boston College in 1979 by two students, Alfred Feliciano and Valerie Lewis, who objected to the name "Office of Minority Programs" used by Boston College at the time. They cited the definition of the word
minority Minority may refer to: Politics * Minority government, formed when a political party does not have a majority of overall seats in parliament * Minority leader, in American politics, the floor leader of the second largest caucus in a legislative b ...
as "less than" and proposed, instead, to use the term AHANA which they felt celebrated social cultural differences. After receiving overwhelming approval from the university's board of trustees, and UGBC president Dan Cotter, the Office of Minority Student Programs became the Office of AHANA Student Programs. The term, or one or its derivative forms, such as ALANA (where "
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
" is substituted for "Hispanic"), has become common on a number of other American university campuses. Boston College, which has registered the term AHANA as a trademark, has granted official permission for its use to over 50 institutions and organizations in the United States. Many more use the term unofficially. Other institutions that use the AHANA acronym include
Suffolk University Suffolk University is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. With 7,560 students (includes all campuses, 7,379 at the Boston location alone), it is the eighth-largest university in metropolitan Boston. It was founded as a l ...
,
Cleveland State University Cleveland State University (CSU) is a public research university in Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1964 and opened for classes in 1965 after acquiring the entirety of Fenn College, a private school that had been in operation since 1923. ...
, Eastern Mennonite University, Saint Martin's University, Le Moyne College, and Salem State University. With some support on campus, there are still racist incidents on campus, such as Black Lives Matter posters being torn down and anti-black vandalism on dorm walls.


Student media

;Newspapers * '' The Heights'', the principal
student newspaper A student publication is a media outlet such as a newspaper, magazine, television show, or radio station produced by students at an educational institution. These publications typically cover local and school-related news, but they may also repor ...
, published weekly; established in 1919 * ''The Gavel'', an independent progressive student magazine; launched on October 27, 2009. ''The Gavel'' publishes most articles online, but brought back its print edition in the Spring of 2018. * ''The Torch'', an independent Catholic student newspaper that publishes stories covering Catholic news on campus and around the world as well as student faith reflections. It was established in 2013. * ''The Rock'', an independent student online publication recognized by the university. Launched on September 26, 2011 * ''The New England Classic'', a satirical newspaper unrecognized by the university but regularly published and distributed on campus; launched in Fall 2007 and is independently funded. * ''Colloquium Political Science Journal'', The political science journal of Boston College that is sponsored by the Institute for the Liberal Arts at Boston College. ;Broadcasting * ''The BC'', a widely acclaimed parody of '' The OC'' featuring students, Jesuits, and administrators * Boston College Television (BCTV), a student-run cable television station formerly featuring a show known as ''Now You Know'', but now reports on student life, sports, entertainment, and other subjects *
WZBC WZBC (90.3 FM) is a radio station broadcasting an Alternative format. Licensed to Newton, Massachusetts, United States, the station serves Boston and its western suburbs. The station is currently owned by Boston College. While the station is ru ...
, 90.3 FM, the student-run radio station which provides independent and experimental music ;Other notable publications * ''Sub Turri'', the Boston College yearbook, published since 1913 * ''
The Stylus of Boston College ''The Stylus'' is the literary magazine of Boston College. Founded in 1882, it is one of the oldest literary magazines in the United States, and it is the oldest literary organization on Boston College's campus. History At the time of its fo ...
'', the undergraduate literary magazine, founded in 1882 * ''Elements Undergraduate Research Journal'', the premier undergraduate research journal of Boston College, published biannually * ''Al-Noor: The Boston College Undergraduate Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Journal'', one of the only undergraduate Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Journals in the world. * ''Kaleidoscope International Journal'', the international relations and global studies journal of Boston College * ''Dianoia: The Undergraduate Philosophy Journal of Boston College'' ;Ensembles * BC bOp", the Boston College
jazz band A jazz band (jazz ensemble or jazz combo) is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. Jazz bands vary in the quantity of its members and the style of jazz that they play but it is common to find a jazz band made up of a rhythm section and a ...
* Boston College "Screaming Eagles" Marching Band * Boston College Symphony Orchestra, * Pep Band, the ensemble that performs at Boston College hockey and basketball games * University Wind Ensemble of Boston College * University Symphonic Band * University Chorale of Boston College * Madrigal Singers of Boston College


Theater Performance

* The Dramatics Society * Contemporary Theater


''Alma mater''

''Alma Mater'' was written by T.J. Hurley, who also wrote ''
For Boston "For Boston" is the traditional fight song of Boston College and Boston College High School. It was written and composed by T.J. Hurley, a member of the Boston College Class of 1885. Lyrics ''For Boston, for Boston,'' ''We sing our proud refrai ...
'' (the Boston College Fight Song) and was a member of the Class of 1885.


Athletics

Boston College teams are known as the Eagles. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sub-level for football), primarily competing in the
Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...
(ACC) for all sports since the 2005–06 season. The Eagles formerly competed as a charter member of the Big East Conference from 1979–80 to 2004–05. Up to that point, Boston College was the only Big East member affiliated with the Catholic Church that played football in the conference. All the football-playing members of the Big East are now secular (usually public) institutions. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, fencing (non-ACC), football, golf, ice hockey (non-ACC), sailing (non-ACC), skiing (non-ACC), soccer, swimming, tennis, and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, fencing (non-ACC), field hockey, golf, ice hockey (non-ACC), lacrosse, rowing, sailing, skiing, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field and volleyball. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East; while the women's rowing team competes in the Eastern Association of Women's Rowing Colleges (EAWRC) as well as the ACC; and the co-ed skiing, fencing and sailing teams are non-ACC/NCAA. Boston College is one of only thirteen universities in the country offering NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly, I-A) football, Division I men's and women's basketball, and Division I hockey. The mascot for all Boston College athletic teams is the
Eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...
, generally referred to in the plural, i.e., "The Eagles". The character representing the mascot at football, hockey, and basketball games is an American bald eagle named
Baldwin Baldwin is a Germanic name, composed of the elements ''bald'' "bold" and ''win'' "friend". People * Baldwin (name) Places Canada * Baldwin, York Regional Municipality, Ontario * Baldwin, Ontario, in Sudbury District * Baldwin's Mills, Qu ...
, derived from the "bald" head of the American bald eagle and the word "win". The school colors are
maroon Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown". According to multiple dictionaries, there are var ...
and gold. The fight song, ''
For Boston "For Boston" is the traditional fight song of Boston College and Boston College High School. It was written and composed by T.J. Hurley, a member of the Boston College Class of 1885. Lyrics ''For Boston, for Boston,'' ''We sing our proud refrai ...
'', was composed by T.J. Hurley, class of 1885. In hockey and baseball, Boston College participates in the annual
Beanpot A beanpot is a deep, wide-bellied, short-necked vessel used to cook bean-based dishes. Beanpots are typically made of ceramic, though some are made of other materials, such as cast iron. The relatively narrow mouth of the beanpot minimizes evapo ...
tournaments held at TD Banknorth Garden and Fenway Park, respectively. Boston College competes in the Beanpot against the three other major sports colleges in Boston: the
Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...
Huskies, Harvard University Crimson, and Boston University Terriers. BC has reached the championship game 31 times and has won the Beanpot 16 times, including the 2010, 2011 and 2012 championships. The less renowned baseball tournament, was first played in 1990 and out of seventeen baseball Beanpots, Boston College has won nine, last winning in 2008. The baseball team also plays an exhibition game against the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park after several years at City Of Palms Park both in
Ft. Myers Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in southwestern Florida and the county seat and commercial center of Lee County, Florida, United States. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 92,245 in 20 ...
, Florida during Major League Baseball's
spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...
. The men's hockey team won the 2008 NCAA Championship on April 12, 2008, with a 4–1 victory over the University of Notre Dame in Denver, Colorado, the 2010 NCAA Championship with a 5–0 victory over Wisconsin on April 10, 2010, and in 2012 in the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament with a 4–1 victory over Ferris State University in Tampa. Principal athletic facilities include Alumni Stadium (capacity: 44,500), Conte Forum (8,606),
Kelley Rink The Silvio O. Conte Forum, commonly known as Conte Forum, Kelley Rink (for ice hockey games), or simply Conte, is an 8,606-seat multi-purpose arena which opened in 1988 on the campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, near Boston, Massachuset ...
(7,884), Eddie Pellagrini Diamond at John Shea Field (1,000), the Newton Soccer Complex (1,000), and the Flynn Recreation Complex. The
Yawkey Athletics Center Yawkey Athletics Center is a facility located on the north end of Alumni Stadium Alumni Stadium is a football stadium located on the lower campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, approximately west of downtown Boston. It is t ...
opened in the spring of 2005. BC students compete in 31 varsity sports as well as a number of club and intramural teams. On March 18, 2002, Boston College's Athletics program was named to the College Sports Honor Roll as one of the nation's top 20 programs by '' U.S. News & World Report''. Boston College athletes are among the most academically successful in the nation, according to the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate (APR). In 2006 Boston College received Public Recognition Awards with fourteen of its sports in the top 10% of the nation academically. The Eagles tied
Notre Dame Notre Dame, French for "Our Lady", a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, most commonly refers to: * Notre-Dame de Paris, a cathedral in Paris, France * University of Notre Dame, a university in Indiana, United States ** Notre Dame Fighting Irish, th ...
for the highest total of any Division I-A university. Other schools having ten or more sports honored included Navy (12),
Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...
(11), and Duke (11). Teams honored were football, men's fencing, men's outdoor track, men's skiing, women's rowing, women's cross country, women's fencing, women's field hockey, women's indoor track, women's outdoor track, women's skiing, women's swimming, women's soccer, women's tennis, and women's volleyball. Boston College's football program was one of only five Division I-A teams that were so honored. The other four were
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
, Navy, Stanford, and Duke.


Football

The Boston College Eagles have achieved repeated success in college football. On November 16, 1940, BC's Frank Leahy-coached championship team took a win from two-season undefeated Georgetown University in the final seconds, in a game that renowned sportswriter Grantland Rice called the greatest ever played. Two of Boston College's most famous football victories came in dramatic fashion, on the final play of the game. On November 23, 1984, before a national audience on CBS, Doug Flutie threw a
Hail Mary The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary's ...
to Gerard Phelan for a 47–45 victory over the University of Miami at the Orange Bowl. The Eagles finished the 1984 season with a 10–2 record, defeating the University of Houston in the Cotton Bowl. The team completed the season with a #5 rank in the AP poll. Flutie was awarded the
Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
, the only Eagle to date so honored. On November 20, 1993, the Eagles beat undefeated archrival Notre Dame 41–39 on a 41-yard field goal by David Gordon as time expired, preventing the Fighting Irish a berth in the national championship game. In 2007, the Eagles reached the #2 rank in both the AP and Coaches' Poll as well as the BCS rankings, led by Matt Ryan. Ryan was awarded the 2007 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented annually to the nation's most outstanding college senior quarterback. He was selected third in the
2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...
by the
Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
, making him the highest-chosen BC player in NFL Draft history. The Eagles annually wear red bandanna-themed uniforms in honor of fallen September 11, 2001 hero Welles Crowther, class of 1999. Crowther, who played on BC's lacrosse team, was an equity trader who died saving the lives of at least 10 people during the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. He used a red bandanna that he often carried to keep from breathing in smoke and debris.


Fight Song: "For Boston"

"For Boston" is claimed to be America's oldest college fight song, composed by T. J. Hurley in 1885. It has two verses but the most commonly sung one is the first verse. Boston-based band
Dropkick Murphys Dropkick Murphys are an American Celtic punk band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1996. Singer and bassist Ken Casey has been the band's only constant member. Other current members include drummer Matt Kelly (1997– ), singer Al Barr (199 ...
covered this song on their album ''
Sing Loud, Sing Proud! ''Sing Loud, Sing Proud!'' is the third studio album from Boston punk rock band the Dropkick Murphys. Before the album's release in 2001, guitarist Rick Barton left the band. He announced James Lynch of Boston punk band The Ducky Boys as his s ...
''. Changes have been made to the song, including reworking the phrase "for here men are men" into "for here all are one" in the first verse.


Notable persons

BC students were universally called "Heightsmen" until 1925 when Caitlin Beckman became the first "Heightswoman" to receive a BC degree. "Heightsonian" was originally conceived as a way to gender neutralize the original term "Heightsmen", though "Eagles", once exclusively used for members of the university's athletics teams, is more commonly used. The term "Golden Eagles" refers strictly to BC graduates who have celebrated their 50th anniversary reunion. "Double Eagles" refer to alumni who attended
Boston College High School , motto_translation = ''So they may know You.'' , address = 150 Morrissey Boulevard , city = Boston , state = Massachusetts , zipcode = 02125 , country ...
and graduated from the college and "Triple Eagles" are those alumni who are also graduates of a graduate program. There are over 179,000 alumni in over 120 countries around the world. Boston College students have enjoyed success in winning prestigious post-graduate fellowships and awards, including recent Rhodes, Marshall, Mellon,
Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
, Truman,
Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...
, and Goldwater scholarships, among others. BC's yield rate for Fulbright awards is the highest in the country. In 2007, students in the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
department were awarded 13 Fulbright scholarships, five more than the previous highest number from a single department. Although formal numbers are not kept, and the claim cannot be confirmed, the number of award winners from one department to study in a specific country is considered by some scholars to be the highest in the 60-year history of the Fulbright program. File:SpeakerO'Neill.jpg,
Tip O'Neill Thomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill Jr. (December 9, 1912 – January 5, 1994) was an American politician who served as the 47th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1977 to 1987, representing northern Boston, Massachusetts, as ...

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
1936 File:John Kerry official Secretary of State portrait.jpg,
John F. Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party (Unite ...

U.S. Secretary of State
U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

2004
Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
Presidential nominee
J.D. 1976 File:Nicholas Burns, U.S. Ambassador.jpg,
R. Nicholas Burns Robert Nicholas Burns (born January 28, 1956) is an American diplomat and academic who serves as the United States ambassador to China since 2022. Burns has had a 25 year career in the State Department, and served as United States Under Secre ...

United States Ambassador to China The United States Ambassador to China is the chief United States, American United States Ambassador, diplomat to China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The United States has sent diplomatic representatives to China since 1844, when Caleb Cush ...

Former United States Permanent Representative to NATO
1978 File:Moniz official portrait standing.jpg, Ernest Moniz
U.S. Secretary of Energy The United States secretary of energy is the head of the United States Department of Energy, a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and fifteenth in the presidential line of succession. The position was created on October 1, 1977, when Pr ...

1966 File:Cellucci paul.jpg, Paul Cellucci
Governor of Massachusetts
U.S. Ambassador to Canada This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Canada.U.S. ...

1970, J.D. 1973 File:Dannel Malloy 2016.jpg,
Dannel P. Malloy Dannel Patrick Malloy (; born July 21, 1955) is an American politician, who served as the 88th governor of Connecticut from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he chaired the Democratic Governors Association from 2016 to 2017. On July ...

Governor of Connecticut
1977, J.D. 1980 File:Mmheckler.JPG, Margaret Heckler
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

U.S. Ambassador to Ireland
LL.B 1956 File:Marty Walsh.jpg, Marty Walsh
U.S. Secretary of Labor The United States Secretary of Labor is a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and as the head of the United States Department of Labor, controls the department, and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all ot ...

Mayor of Boston
2009 File:J. F. Fitzgerald.jpg,
John F. Fitzgerald John Francis "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald (February 11, 1863 – October 2, 1950) was an American Democratic politician from Boston, Massachusetts. He served as a U.S. Representative and Mayor of Boston. He also made unsuccessful runs for the United ...

First Irish-Catholic Mayor of Boston
Grandfather of John F. Kennedy
1885 File:Joeseph E. Brennan.jpg,
Joseph E. Brennan Joseph Edward Brennan (born November 2, 1934) is an American Democratic Party lawyer and politician from Maine. He served as the 70th Governor of Maine from 1979 to 1987. He is a former commissioner on the Federal Maritime Commission. Early lif ...

70th Governor of Maine
1958 File:Ambassador Scott Brown.jpg,
Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to: Sportsmen *Scott Brown (American football), American college football coach of Kentucky State * Scott Brown (baseball) (born 1956), former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds *Scott Brown (footballer, bor ...

Former United States Senator for Massachusetts
J.D. 1985 File:Edward Markey, official portrait, 114th Congress.jpg, Ed Markey
United States Senator from Massachusetts
1968, J.D. 1972 File:Stephen Lynch 2019.jpg,
Stephen F. Lynch Stephen Francis Lynch (born March 31, 1955) is an American businessman, attorney and politician who has served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts since 2001. He is a Democrat representing Massachusetts's 8th co ...

Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
from Massachusetts
J.D. 1991 File:Mike Capuano.jpg, Mike Capuano
Former member of the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
from Massachusetts
J.D. 1977 File:Archbishop of the Military Services visits ROK 150826-F-BX159-001 (cropped).jpg, The Most Reverend Timothy Broglio Archbishop of the Archdiocese for Military Services 1973 File:Leonard Nimoy by Gage Skidmore.jpg, Leonard Nimoy
Actor
1952 File:EdMcMahon05.jpg, Ed McMahon
Comedian and television presenter
''(Did not graduate)'' File:Amy Poehler (8894155873) (cropped).jpg, Amy Poehler
Actress and comedian
1993 File:Chris ODonnell Max Payne 2008.jpg, Chris O'Donnell
Actor
1992 File:Elisabeth Hasselbeck in Donna Karan, 2010.jpg,
Elisabeth Hasselbeck Elisabeth DelPadre Hasselbeck (; born May 28, 1977) is an American retired television personality and talk show host. Hasselbeck rose to prominence in 2001 as a contestant on the second season of the American version of '' Survivor'', where sh ...

Television personality and talk show host
1999 File:Phil Schiller at AWDC 2012.jpg, Phil Schiller
Vice president of Apple Inc.
B.S. 1982 File:Nikesh Arora(cropped).jpg,
Nikesh Arora Nikesh Arora (born February 9, 1968) is an Indian-American business executive. Arora was formerly a senior executive at Google. He served as the president of SoftBank Group from October 2014 to June 2016. On June 1, 2018, Arora took on the role ...

CEO of Palo Alto Networks
Former senior executive at Google
1995


See also

*
Hopkins House (Boston College) Hopkins House (Boston College) is home to the Office of Governmental & Community Affairs at Boston College. Its mission is to foster communication and positive relationships with the university's host communities of Boston and Newton, as well as all ...
* List of Jesuit sites *
List of presidents of Boston College Boston College is a Private university, private Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1863. The president of Boston College is the head of the university. Presidents See also * List of ...


Notes


References


External links

*
Boston College Athletics website
{{Authority control Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities Catholic universities and colleges in Massachusetts 1863 establishments in Massachusetts Educational institutions established in 1863 Gothic Revival architecture in Massachusetts Jesuit universities and colleges in the United States