WORCESTER, Mass. – From Newsweek and The New York Times to The History Channel to the front page of the Telegram and Gazette, the College of the Holy Cross has been making headlines both locally and nationally.
Here is a glimpse of the past year:
- With a year full of speeches, debates, and elections, Jon Favreau ’03, was much sought after to talk about his role as President-elect Barack Obama’s speechwriter during the presidential campaign. Newsweek, The New York Times, WBZ-TV, the Telegram and Gazette, and The Boston Globe are among the outlets that followed this alum’s move from the election race to a White House appointment.
- While preparing for a revival production of Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s South Pacific at the Lincoln Center Theater, Tony Award-winning nominated director Bart Sher ’81, shared details of his life and work as a prominent director in American theater and international opera with the New York Times Magazine.
- Holy Cross became even more accessible to Worcester residents by offering free tuition to Worcester students whose household income is less than $50,000. The article was picked up by the Associated Press and ran in numerous outlets including The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, Fox 25, WBZ-TV, and the Telegram & Gazette.
- In a feature story, USA Today talked with Meg Grogan ’08 about her experiences as a participant in one of the College’s Arrupe Immersion Program trips to Kenya.
- Holy Cross’ decision to drop the SAT and concerns for the stumbling economy kept director of admissions Ann McDermott in the spotlight. In the Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed, she discussed the benefits of eliminating the standardized testing requirement. She also discussed the importance of alumni in the recruitment process with The Chronicle of Higher Education. She was featured in USA Today for a story on how the tough economy was affecting Holy Cross’ application numbers.
- Former Holy Cross and Celtic basketball great Bob Cousy ’50 was honored with a statue outside of the Hart Center. The statue dedication was widely covered by outlets including NECN/Channel 3, WBZ-TV, the Telegram & Gazette, NCAA.com and USA Today.
- Cousy and three other basketball greats—George Kaftan ’49, Togo Palazzi ’54, and Tom Heinsohn ’56—were honored in November at a jersey-raising ceremony during the Crusader’s home opening weekend. The Boston Globe and the Telegram & Gazette were on hand for the event.
- Elizabeth Morse ’09 received the 2008 American Cancer Society Alvan T. and Viola Fuller Fellowship. She was one of eight undergraduates selected to study under Nobel Prize-winning scientist Craig Mello. Shelton Weekly, The Connecticut Post, and Pulse Magazine are among the several outlets that reported her accomplishments.
- Worcester Living photographed the Black Student Union’s (BSU) 40th anniversary at the College. Among those in attendance of the weekend-long celebration was U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas ’71.
- In August, The History Channel aired an hour-long episode of Modern Marvels: Iron, thanks to a couple of creative minds at the College. Rick Herrick, professor of chemistry, was on board as a special consultant, providing his expertise and experience, and Jude Kelley, assistant professor of chemistry at the College, was also a consultant, performed experiments and is interviewed throughout the show.
- In September, The History Channel aired an hour-long documentary on flight, featuring interviews and demonstrations with Leon Claessens, assistant professor of biology at Holy Cross. The program is part of a new History Channel series titled Evolve.
- Thomas Martin, professor and chair of the classics department, appeared in History International's new 13-part series Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire. The first two episodes were broadcast on History International (part of A&E Television Networks, which also includes The History Channel, and A&E). Martin also served as a historical consultant for the series.
- Seniors Alicia Cianciola and Jenny Ugolino spent six weeks living in the woods to complete a study of plants and wildlife in Cascades West, a section of Worcester owned by the Greater Worcester Land Trust. Worcester Magazine featured their work in a cover story.
- Holy Cross seniors Benjamin Zilnicki and Kateleigh Hewins were interviewed for an Associated Press story about their experiences studying abroad in China. The article ran in dozens of outlets including the Boston Globe, The San Francisco Chronicle, and Forbes online.
- Victor Matheson, associate professor of economics and widely sought after expert in sports economics, was quoted in numerous media outlets including the Denver Post, Growing Wealth Magazine, FOX Business, The Seattle Times, and Bloomberg News. He has performed numerous on-camera interviews for NECN/Channel 3 about the suffering economy and wrote an op-ed for The Boston Globe where he discussed the long-term economic impact that the 2008 Beijing Olympics will have on China.
- Holy Cross hosted the first major exhibition of contemporary Vietnamese women artists in the U.S. Reviews of the exhibit, Changing Identity: Recent Works by Women Artists from Vietnam appeared in Worcester Magazine, The Boston Globe, and the Telegram and Gazette.
- During the Pope’s visit to the U.S. in April, Mathew N. Schmalz, associate professor of religious studies and director of the College Honors Program, was quoted three times in The Boston Globe (including a front page article); twice in the New York Daily News, in the Baltimore Sun, the Washington Post, in a Reuters article and on the front page of The New York Times. He also appeared on WCVB’s Chronicle and WGBH’s “Greater Boston.”
- College affordability has been a hot topic: WBZ-TV, ABC News, NECN/Channel 3 and the Telegram and Gazette talked to Lynne Myers, director of financial aid, about how the faltering economy is affecting financial aid.
- Holy Cross faculty and students had a lot to say during the election rush of fall semester. Features and spotlights included Pulse Magazine, the Telegram and Gazette, and NECN/Channel 3.
- Holy Cross’ new ‘living-learning-doing’ program for first-year students, was featured in The Boston Globe, WBUR (Boston’s NPR affiliate) and was mentioned in Time Magazine.
- Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J., president of the College, wrote an op-ed for The Boston Globe about the impact standardized testing has on the college admissions process and Holy Cross' decision to eliminate SAT/ACT requirements.
