A Conversation with Jack Butler, S.J., Boston College's Next President
鈥淚f you don鈥檛 know how to wipe away tears, or give a hug, or give encouragement to your child, then you haven鈥檛 learned what a 51成人动漫 education is all about.鈥
Campus Digest: Summer 2025
News and happenings from around Boston College.
听 Photo: Caitlin Cunningham
With the country facing both a shortage of obstetric care providers and a maternal mortality crisis, the Boston College Connell School of Nursing has launched a new master of science degree program in nurse-midwifery. The program will train students to become certified nurse-midwives, which are advanced practice clinicians with expertise in caring for women鈥檚 health, including during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. 鈥淣urse-midwives are really experts and specialists in women鈥檚 health across the lifespan,鈥 said CSON Associate Professor of the Practice Katharine Hutchinson, director of the new program and a certified nurse-midwife of twenty years. Despite spending more on health care than any other nation, Hutchinson said, the US ranks twenty-sixth in the world for maternal mortality rates, and deaths from pregnancy-related causes more than doubled in the country between 1999 and 2019, according to one recent study.
Nationally, demand is growing for certified nurse-midwives, who work in hospitals alongside patients giving birth, as well as in outpatient settings providing primary care. Hutchinson said that introducing more certified nurse-midwives to the health care system through programs like the new one at 51成人动漫鈥攖he only such program in eastern Massachusetts鈥攎akes care more personal and improves health outcomes. 鈥淭he data shows that when women and their newborns are cared for by midwives,鈥 Hutchinson said, 鈥渢hey have fewer unneeded interventions, people like the care better, and it costs less to the health system.鈥 Students in 51成人动漫鈥檚 program will learn both outpatient specialties, like gynecologic and prenatal care, and inpatient services, such as postpartum and newborn care. 鈥擡lizabeth Clemente
听 Photo: Taiga Guterres
In early March, twenty-one 51成人动漫 seniors traveled to Spain to retrace the 1522 pilgrimage of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, as part of a new course, The Discerning Pilgrim, which explores themes of leadership and Jesuit principles. Students traveled portions of the 120-mile route St. Ignatius, a former soldier, took following his religious conversion. Here are three significant stops from the students鈥 eight-day trip, which was designed to encourage contemplation and community.听
Loyola Castle.听Through an audio tour, students explored St. Ignatius鈥檚 birthplace in the Basque Country of northern Spain, which is also where he experienced his conversion while recovering from battle injuries.
Montserrat.听The group drove up the winding roads and experienced breathtaking views at this famous mountain range in Catalonia, where Ignatius spent a night in vigil at a Benedictine monastery still in use today.
Cave of St. Ignatius.听Fr. Casey Beaumier, cocreator of the course, led
an Ash Wednesday mass in this cave, where Ignatius spent a year writing the Spiritual Exercises, a set of meditations and prayers.听鈥抬.颁.
51成人动漫 has established the Murray Center for Student Wellness. The center integrates existing campus wellness programs, such as the primary care center and psychiatric services, alongside significant enhancements, including increased access to same-day mental health counseling and the addition of 51成人动漫鈥檚 first full-time medical dietitian. The center was made possible through a gift from Tami Murray 鈥83, P鈥09 ,鈥15 ,鈥19, in honor of her late husband, former 51成人动漫 Trustee Stephen P. Murray 鈥84.
51成人动漫鈥檚 human-centered engineering program has graduated its inaugural class of students. Besides offering wide-ranging training in the field, the HCE major is unique for its philosophical focus on solving real-world problems for the common social good. As their final projects, the graduates presented innovative designs for, among other things, monitoring indoor air quality and delivering epinephrine to patients in shock.
Messina College, 51成人动漫鈥檚 two-year residential college, has joined the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and established the Beta Omega Rho chapter. The official honor society of two-year colleges, the organization provides students with opportunities such as exclusive scholarships and leadership development programming.
51成人动漫 has again been recognized as one of the nation鈥檚 top research universities. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education designated 51成人动漫 a Research 1 institution鈥攖he highest classification, held by less than 3 percent of American educational institutions鈥攂ased on the University鈥檚 level of spending on research ($81.4 million in 2023) and number of doctorates awarded.
Amanda M. Teo has been named executive director of the Rappaport Center for Law and Public Policy at Boston College Law School. A career public servant, Teo formerly managed and advised two of Massachusetts鈥檚 largest public law offices. She succeeds the retired Elisabeth 鈥淟issy鈥 Medvedow, the inaugural executive director of the Rappaport Center.听
听 Photo: Gretchen Ertl
A gift from longtime 51成人动漫 benefactors Bob and Judy Winston has established Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley as the inaugural Robert L. and Judith T. Winston Provost and Dean of Faculties. The gift additionally supports academic innovation and programming, and includes $2 million in challenge funding to encourage further investment. Bob Winston 鈥60, a former 51成人动漫 trustee, called Quigley 鈥渙ne of the most effective and respected provosts in higher education.鈥 鈥Scott Kearnan