2014: Year in Review

New arts initiative launches, nine awarded Fulbright grants, Neil deGrasse Tyson visits campus, Dean of the College named and more

At Holy Cross, each year is marked by new achievements and accomplishments. Here are some of the most notable from 2014.

January

On Jan. 31, students met Warren Buffett in Omaha as part of a trip hosted by the student-led Finance Club. Holy Cross was the only liberal arts college invited. more »

February

Bang Luu '14, a visual arts studio major with a visual art history minor, earned first place in the 10th annual College Art Show, a juried exhibit of the best art coming out of Worcester-area colleges and universities. Later in the year, her art would be selected to be displayed outside of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. more »
Bryan Engelhardt, professor of economics at Holy Cross, challenged his students in his Principles of Microeconomics class to take their learnings outside the walls of his classroom and submit op-eds to various newspapers across the country. The result? Nineteen students becoming published authors prior to graduation. more »
Holy Cross marked the year with a series of events to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the restoration of the Jesuits. more »
Hundreds of Holy Cross students skipped the beach and opted for an "alternative" spring break by spending their vacation doing service work, learning how to start a business, and gaining a better understanding of themselves and others. more »

March

Following an extensive national search, Margaret N. Freije, Ph.D., was named vice president for academic affairs and dean of the College. more »
Leah Hager Cohen, critically acclaimed nonfiction writer and novelist, was appointed Distinguished Writer in Residence at Holy Cross. more »

April

Galician bagpiper, pianist, and composer Cristina Pato was named visiting artist-in-residence at the Holy Cross. more »

May

Holy Cross and the Working for Worcester project, helmed by Jeffrey Reppucci ’14, a Russian major and a member of the men’s varsity hockey team, took a place in the national spotlight as “NBC Nightly News With Brian Williams” showcased the city-wide project, which raised more than $100,000 and renovated 20 community recreation sites in the city. more »
Galician bagpiper Cristina Pato kicked off the "Arts Transcending Borders" (ATB) initiative with a rousing performance in the Hogan Ballroom. The initiative is designed to infuse the fine and performing arts in students' academic lives and create new opportunities throughout the curriculum and the community by transcending cultural, geographic and disciplinary boundaries. more »
Eight members of the class of 2014 and one member of the class of 2012 were awarded Fulbright grants to work and teach abroad during the 2014-15 academic year. Since 2005, Holy Cross has received a total of 70 Fulbrights, and has consistently been among the nation’s top producers of Fulbright students at the undergraduate level. more »
A total of 675 men and women were awarded Bachelor of Arts degrees before family and friends of the graduates, Holy Cross faculty, administrators, staff and honored guests. Jon Favreau ’03, former director of speechwriting for President Barack Obama, addressed the graduates. more »

June

Critically acclaimed, national bestselling author Julianna Baggott was named the new William H.P. Jenks Chair in Contemporary American Letters at Holy Cross. more »

July

With average starting salaries for graduates higher than the national average, members of the Class of 2013 fared well in their post-graduate endeavors, according to research conducted by the Career Planning Center of Holy Cross.more »
Despite national trends indicating a decline in alumni participation rates at many institutions, Holy Cross once again surpassed 50 percent donor participation in alumni giving. more »
June 23-27 saw the air above Mount St. James filled with the ornate sounds of Schubert, Schumann and Brahms as a select group of 16 aspiring musicians from across the country aged between 16 and 28 participated in the College’s inaugural Chamber Music Institute program. more »

August

When students returned in the fall, they noticed a dramatically altered servery in Kimball Main Dining Hall. New additions to the facility — the first renovation to the servery in more than 20 years — included brick oven pizza, a "performance foods" station, and handcrafted deli sandwiches. more »
As the 2014-2015 academic year began, Margaret Freije, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the College, announced the hiring of six new faculty members in tenure-track positions. more »
Eight faculty members from various disciplines — economics, sociology, psychology, music and theatre — team-taught 70 students from more than a dozen different majors in “CreateLab,” an innovative pedagogical experiment, at Holy Cross during the fall semester. The class stemmed from “Arts Transcending Borders” initiative designed to infuse the fine and performing arts in students’ academic lives. more »
Sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-70s made for perfect weather as the 778 members of the class of 2018 arrived on Mount St. James for move-in day. more »

September

As the viral campaign to raise awareness and funds to “strike out” ALS swept the Internet, the Jesuit community at Holy Cross took part in the "ice bucket challenge" after being challenged by the Admissions Office. more »

October

Holy Cross marked the 25th anniversary of the murder of six Jesuits and their companions in El Salvador with a series of events. In addition, Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J., president of Holy Cross, attended the commemorations and ceremonies in El Salvador in mid-November. more »

November

More than 30 events celebrating diverse interests, talents and views of students, faculty and staff took place on campus during Unity Week, which ran from Nov. 9 to 16. The events included a talk by actor and best-selling author Hill Harper. more »
Research by Leon Claessens, associate professor of biology, which revealed how the extinct dodo bird looked, moved and behaved, drew international media attention. more »
Neil deGrasse Tyson, American astrophysicist and director of the Hayden Planetarium, gave a talk before thousands in the Hart Recreation Center and met separately with students in a small seminar. A video of his talk, in which he gives a 6-year-old life advice, has been viewed more than half a million times on YouTube. more »
Rev. William R. Campbell, S.J. ’87 was named vice president for mission at Holy Cross. more »

December

During the week of Dec. 8, following the lack of indictments in the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, the Holy Cross campus took on conversations about issues like police brutality, racial injustice, unconscious bias, and social movements. more »
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