GOOD FELLOW
Senior economics major Brett Huneycutt has been named a Junior Fellow by the American Academy of Political and Social Science. He received the academy's Undergraduate Research Award for his essay on expatriate support for small businesses in El Salvador, the result of research done for his senior honors thesis.

Photo: Brett Huneycutt '03. By Lee Pellegrini

• Read an abstract of Huneycutt's essay



NEW  ROLE
Helen Frame Peters will step down as dean of the Carroll School of Management this spring, after a three-year stint that saw a rise in the graduate program's rankings. She will remain as a professor of finance, and continue her work with BC's Center for Investment Research and Management.



OVATION
Playwright Emily Dendinger '05, costume designer Mark Pearson '03, and set designer Adam Umhoefer '03 competed in the regional Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, January 29-February 2, at Keene State College in New Hampshire. All three theater majors received top honors. The festival drew graduate and undergraduate students from across New England.

• The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival



BUDGET 2004
The Board of Trustees has set a budget for the 2004 fiscal year of $536 million. Tuition has increased by 6.5 percent, to $27,080; total costs rose 5.7 percent. Financial aid was increased 5.8 percent.

• More from the BC Chronicle



RESEARCH REPORT
Biology Professor Thomas Seyfried and his research group are working to develop a drug to combat Tay-Sachs disease. There is no known cure for the genetic disorder, but tests on mice indicate that a drug which blocks the accumulation of lipids in the brain may lead to a therapy for managing the disease's effects. Seyfried's research is funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Tay-Sachs and Allied Diseases Association.

• Professor Thomas Seyfried

• More from the BC Chronicle



PROMOTED
The following faculty have been promoted to full professor: Lisa Feldman Barrett (psychology), Thomas Chiles (biology), Frank Garcia (law), H. Kent Greenfield (law), Jeffery Howe (fine arts), Kevin Kenny (history), Larry Ludlow (LSOE), Ray Madoff (law), James O'Toole (history), Maxim Shrayer (Slavic and Eastern languages). Promoted to associate professor with tenure: Laura Hake (biology); Robert Fichman, Joy Field, John Gallaugher, and Katherine Lemon (CSOM); James Najarian and Carlo Rotella (English); Ana Martinez and David Scanlon (LSOE); Hong Ding (physics); Nasser Behnegar and Gerald Easter (political science). Also granted tenure: Sheila Blair and Jonathan Bloom (fine arts), Patrick McQuillan (LSOE), Joyce Pulcini (CSON), Philip Strahan (CSOM).



OSCAR WINNER
Stephanie Valencia '04 was this year's recipient of the Oscar A. Romero Scholarship, awarded annually to a BC junior who exemplifies the values of the assassinated Salvadoran archbishop known for his dedication to the poor. In March 2002 Valencia went on a Campus Ministry trip to El Salvador, then returned there last fall semester to work in a community cooperative. She has spent the spring semester studying in Mexico City.

Photo: Stephanie Valencia '04. By Remy Morrison, courtesy of the Heights

• More from the BC Chronicle

• More about the scholarship and Archbishop Romero



AMICUS CURAE
Boston College was one of 26 colleges and universities to file a "friend of the court" brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, prepared by Carnegie Mellon University in support of the University of Michigan's contested affirmative action admission policy. Citing its own immigrant roots and founding mission to "serve as an engine of opportunity," BC joined in urging the court to support the constitutionality of "some consideration of race" in university admissions. The Court heard arguments on April 1, and is expected to issue a decision before July 1, the end of its current term. Other schools participating included Holy Cross and Johns Hopkins.

• More from the University of Michigan

• More from NPR

• Read the "friend of the court" brief, and hear the April 1 arguments



TRUMANESQUE
Jonathan Evans LSOE '04 has been awarded a Truman Scholarship, which will provide $3,000 for his senior year and $27,000 for graduate study. BC has had a Truman Scholar in four of the past six years. The federal award is based on leadership and public service. Evans co-coordinated the campus lobby that last fall resulted in having all coffee served in BC's dining halls switched to Fair Trade-certified brands.

• The Truman Scholarship Foundation



DESKTOP 2003
Between November 2002 and March 2003, the Office of Information Technology installed over 3,000 new computers in University offices, replacing older machines whose leases were soon to expire.



BEANPOT NOTES
On February 16, BC's concert band joined its counterparts from Boston University, Northeastern University, and Harvard University for the first-ever "Bands of the Beanpot" event. A new setting for the prayer "Ave Maria," written, arranged, and conducted by Paul Schutz '04, was debuted at the concert, held at Northeastern

• More from the BC Chronicle



SMOKE FREE
Smoking, banned in academic and administrative buildings since 1995, will now be prohibited in residence halls beginning this fall. The new policy, approved by the University after requests from students and administrators, has met a largely positive response. Smoking areas with benches and receptacles will be created near residence halls.



FINE ON NINE
BC Athletic Director Gene DeFilippo served on the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Education to assess the effects of Title IX. DeFilippo noted that BC is in full compliance—with approximately the same number of male and female athletes, and scholarships equally distributed.

Photo: Gene DeFilippo

• More from the BC Chronicle



FOR THE RECORD
The pool of applicants for the class of 2007 was the largest ever: 22,500, a 6 percent increase over last year. The mean SAT score rose 17 points—to 1362. AHANA applications were up by 15 percent, and there were significant increases (15-20 percent) in applications from Florida, Texas, California, and Illinois. The Connell School of Nursing saw a 52 percent increase in applicants.


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