First Annual Presidential Address: A North Star Vision for the Future of Boston University
Photos by Janice Checchio and Jackie Ricciardi for Boston University Photography.
At Boston University, we say we are “Boston’s University,” because we are deeply committed to serving this city, and because the city is deeply committed to us.
This symbiotic relationship was initiated at our founding and is central to the common future we will discuss this evening.
Thank you for being here and braving the cold and snow. Welcome, it’s wonderful to be with all of you. Thank you to our students.
And a special welcome to our partners from Greater Boston and beyond.
Tonight, we will focus on our vision for Boston University’s incredibly bright future.
I hope everyone in this auditorium, and watching online, will play a key role in advancing this great institution, and that you will be as inspired as I am.
I do not have to tell you that we are living in complex times. Across the country and around the world, in the wake of a pandemic and on the precipice of significant technological change…
Scientific breakthroughs and artificial intelligence are reshaping industries, communities, and the way we learn, interact, and live.
Our social and civic structures are shifting. And we face fundamental questions about the nature and future of institutions, including higher education.
Yet, before us is a very real opportunity: To define what it means to be a global, urban, leading research and teaching institution prepared for a new era.
A North Star vision will guide our university to what we can become.
Through choppy waters and unfamiliar terrain…. this enduring point of light will keep us steady in our pursuit of our objectives.
Since arriving here, I have listened to members of our community, across our campuses and around the world…
I have met with students, parents, alumni, and our supporters…
I have spoken to my peers, elected officials, and industry leaders…
And I have read documents from our archives.
These learnings, and direct input from different vantage points throughout the university, have informed our North Star.
In the coming weeks, our campus community will join together to discuss our near-term strategic goals. But, this evening, we will focus on the long term:
A future university that will prosper for generations to come.
Today marks the beginning of the journey toward our North Star.
And I am proud to share it with you now.
Here it is:
Boston University will be THE global destination of discovery, education, and human connection —
An epicenter where disciplines, communities, and realities merge and visionary thinkers unite to create transformative experiences and solutions for the world’s greatest challenges.
That’s our North Star.
***
So how did we get here?
Indeed, in the way that stars represent the light of long-ago suns, our North Star vision is guided by our past.
Let me take you there.
The year was 1873…. Boston University’s first president, William Fairfield Warren, envisioned the university as a society—here is what he said “founded by lovers of wisdom and virtue…
And dedicated to “realizing the highest known ideals in individual and social character and life, and of propagating these ideals from one generation to another, and from one land to another, so long as the world shall stand.”
And in the 153 years since Warren penned these words, through generation after generation, we have held strong to these ideals:
We have welcomed those whom others turned away, we have been committed to community and to service, and we have been deeply collaborative and globally focused.
And we have been pioneers, leaders, and an incubator for ideas that have changed the world.
Martin Luther King Jr. came to Boston University to study Boston Personalism — an idea that human beings reflect divine qualities.
Once he got here, he met the Reverend Howard Thurman, Dean of Marsh Chapel, whose writings on non-violence and finding common ground would inspire King and inform the Civil Rights Movement.
We have also been ambitious and transformational in our research. One need only look to:
Our renowned Framingham Heart Study, which, over more than 75 years, has taught the world so much about the risk factors for heart disease, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Or our Black Women’s Health Study, launched in 1995, which researches the reasons behind racial disparities in many illnesses, such as hypertension, breast cancer, diabetes, stroke, and lupus.
Or the foundational role our Physics department has played building and conducting research at CERN, the largest particle physics laboratory in the world.
Yet, our North Star says that disciplines and communities will merge, and WOW, have we done that too.
In the 1980s, we began to cross disciplines combining the insights of biology with engineering principles to become leaders in synthetic biology.
In 1997, Boston University created the photonics center devoted to the interdisciplinary study of light, a center that has major implications for healthcare, telecommunications, electronics, defense and security, manufacturing and agriculture.
We even created the field of neurophotonics, using light to understand the nervous system.
Crossing disciplines to create new fields is called convergent research. In fact, in 2011, our neighbors at MIT declared convergent research “The Third Revolution” after researchers were finally able to sequence the human genome based on new convergent fields that had emerged.
The cross-pollination of life sciences, physical sciences, and engineering would lead to transformative advancements.
And at Boston University we would lead. In 2017, President Robert Brown furthered convergent research…
Creating The Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering, a state-of-the art facility enabling scientists from multiple fields to collaborate seamlessly.
Today, convergent research flourishes on our campuses and offers great promise for the future.
Take for instance the work of Boston University professor Dr. Yakeel Quiroz, who is identifying early cognitive and biological markers of Alzheimer’s disease…
She aims to uncover mechanisms of cognitive resilience that can delay the onset of dementia.
Dr. Quiroz studies a patient cohort based in Colombia where she grew up. These families have a rare, inheritable form called autosomal dominant Alzheimer’s and she studies them alongside communities in Boston.
Her work defies a single discipline, instead it requires converging expertise from basic scientists, clinicians, clinical investigators, and clinical trialists alike.
And let us look also to the next generation of convergent researchers.
Researchers such as fourth-year bioinformatics PhD student Justin Moy…
Whose goal is to crack the genetic code of muscular dystrophy by analyzing existing cellular data in hopes of advancing better treatments and, potentially, a cure.
To do it, Moy is working with BU computer and data scientists and medical researchers, blending elements of biology, chemistry, physics, computer science and programming, data science, information engineering, mathematics, and statistics.
Justin’s work is deeply personal: He was born with muscular dystrophy.
As you can see, convergent research has been a major focus at Boston University for a long time.
***
I began in this role 18 months ago.
Since then, I have been struck by our comprehensive university, our scope and global scale, the warmth of our people, and the rigor of our research.
I could not help but be enthralled by our commitment to convergent research to address societal challenges.
And then, the more I got to know this incredible place, I realized something surprising.
At BU convergence is everywhere.
Everyone is collaborating with everyone.
Yes, in the sciences, but also, in the arts, in the humanities …
At BU, we have completely blown up the concept of convergence.
We are home to:
URBAN, a graduate program in Urban Biogeoscience and Environmental health, training graduate students to find solutions to urban problems using data science, policy, biology, environmental health, interning in agencies, NGOS, and the private sector.
In our Department of African & Black Diaspora Studies, we combine the arts, humanities, and social sciences by spanning multiple departments and affiliations.
And… our students also cross disciplines through our undergraduate hub and then translate their skills through internships and service from Boston, to Geneva, to Sydney and beyond.
We are fully committed to strong disciplines and departments, but convergence is in our past, our present, and our future.
Convergence is the key to who we are, and who we can be — it is our North Star.
***
Over the past year, a group of faculty have led a task force to identify critical areas where we can excel at convergent research. They met with stakeholders across the campus and surveyed all of our research faculty.
Today I am excited to announce eight priority areas of convergent research that emerged from the task force’s work.
These areas offer great hope and relevance to people’s lives, and they reflect our strengths, our commitment to service, and our mission to help build a better world.
These priorities, determined by faculty members across the University, are:
First, Health Across the Lifespan;
Second, Global Sustainability;
Third, Urban Development & Resilience;
Fourth, Arts, Humanities, and the Human Condition;
Fifth, Infection, Inflammatory, and Immune Disorders;
Sixth, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, & Computing;
Seventh, Childhood and Adolescent Wellbeing and K-12 Education;
And Eighth, Social and Economic Opportunity.
I am grateful to Vice President of Research Ken Lutchen and Professor Darrell Kotton, for their tireless efforts leading this initiative.
This is just the start; the possibilities are as endless as the stars.
You see in these themes that convergence includes the sciences, health, the arts, and humanities. But it has to go even further…
Because there is so much more possibility if we apply convergence to all that we do.
We can:
Propel science forward;
Enhance experiences and career opportunities for students;
Provide greater fluidity for how people live, work, and learn over a lifetime;
Blur the boundaries between our campuses and local and global communities;
And fundamentally transform how we operate, collaborate, and innovate together.
Convergence must guide our decisions in how we build a campus environment, that seamlessly bridges Boston University with our communities around the world, creating spaces for people to engage, learn, experience and connect physically and virtually.
Ultimately, our North Star creates a destination of human connection where students come to belong and to join a lifelong global community in the heart of this historic city…
To engage in a convergent experience that integrates learning, living, research, art, relationships, career paths, grounded in values and service that will prepare them to lead in a very different world.
As I mentioned earlier, over the coming weeks and months, our university community will launch a strategic roadmap…
Which will define how we will collaboratively pursue goals that support this vision, for the Boston University that will serve generations to come.
And now, please turn your attention to a video showcasing some of our finest examples of convergent research… by some of our faculty who are pushing the boundaries of discovery.
I will rejoin you in a bit.
[Videos on convergent research and its impact were played.]
Please give a special thank you to our beloved alumna Joy Huber for eloquently sharing how science saved her life.
We are proud to have you with us today. Joy has become an advocate, author, and motivational speaker for those facing cancer and other challenges, and she is making her own, remarkable impact on the world.
Thank you very much for sharing your story with all of us.
Joy reminds us of the possibility of science…
Of the life-changing impact of research…
Of the real, tangible difference that universities have had on so many human beings across the world.
Which makes the realities of today all the more striking.
We find ourselves in a time in history:
When mistrust in science and research is reaching such a height that longstanding scientific knowledge is being questioned.
When public trust in higher education is not a given and our power to enhance the lives and careers of students is doubted.
And when the research enterprise that has propelled the competitiveness and progress of our country for decades might be at risk.
***
So, that is why we have invited you here today, friends from across fields – from industry, to government, social services, to higher education – because, we know that:
If we are to remain successful as an institution;
If we are to continue to serve our mission of teaching and learning, research, and service to the world;
If we are to remain relevant 25, 50, and 100 years from now;
If we are to have the impact we expect as members of the Boston University community;
If we are to achieve our North Star of Convergence in all that we do…
We must work together in mutually beneficial ways.
We want to understand your ideas, and how we can support your efforts to solve the problems of today and tomorrow.
The future of this country requires collaboration and mutual support.
Together we can pursue more research and positively impact more lives with partnerships that serve common purposes rather than travelling separate paths;
We can bring new experiences to the next generation to expand their worldviews and better prepare them for the fast pace of these changing times;
And foster relationships that offer new pathways to career success in whatever fields our students choose to pursue.
***
I’d like to take a moment now to point to one of our partners, Dr. Alastair Bell, CEO of Boston Medical Center. Alastair is here with us today.
Dr. Bell has been a tremendous partner in our ongoing work to reinvigorate the existing relationship between BU and BMC.
Together, we are sharing new ideas about our future, and he is enthusiastic about deepening our shared work and partnership, for the better of both institutions and the communities in which we sit and serve.
With Dr. Bell’s help, we have already begun the work to streamline educating our medical workforce, provide hands on and crucial, practical experience for our students, strengthen our ability to recruit physicians and faculty, and strengthen our research enterprise.
Together we can enhance our standard of care and invest in a role we both take seriously, to care for Boston’s underserved communities.
And this work we do in service of the health of our City, has implications for how our country cares for vulnerable populations, nationwide.
Speaking of the City… 4 Years ago, an iconic, visionary, remarkable building took over the Boston skyline.
Now known as the Duan Family Center for Computing & Data Sciences, this testament to convention-bending architecture was built specifically with partnership in mind.
Within its glass walls, faculty from across our 17 schools and colleges, who are all committed to computer and data science and exploring the potential of artificial intelligence, come together to solve complex problems.
But what makes the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences so remarkable, is what it can accomplish through partnership that extends well beyond the building itself.
One example I want to tell you about is BEACON, an initiative of the BU Center on Emerging Infectious Diseases that is operated in partnership with the BU Hariri Institute for Computing and Boston Children’s Hospital. BEACON stands for Biothreats Emergence, Analysis and Communications Network.
This one-a-kind resource uses AI and a global network of expert moderators to rapidly detect, verify, and report emerging biological threats to people, animals, plants, and the environment.
And some of the most interesting examples of partnership are with industry.
For example, the Center for Regenerative Medicine of Boston University and Boston Medical Center, led by Director Darrell Kotton, is partnering with the pharmaceutical giant Glaxo Smith Kline, with the hope of identifying new drug targets to halt or slow the progression of cystic fibrosis.
And at BU’s Center for Neurorehabilitation, researchers are working with ReWalk Robotics, MedRhythms, and clinical partners to develop a soft robotic exosuit with the potential to eliminate the gait freezing that is a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease…
And I could go on.
These are the kinds of mutually beneficial partnerships we aspire to forge with you, as together, we imagine a better world.
***
This past fall, Boston University launched an initiative to show why science matters.
It matters because of YOU.
Meaning: Our students are why we do what we do. Our communities are why. Our City is why. Our world is why.
You are why…and so are those you love.
The You Are Why initiative is at work to:
Tell stories about lives touched by the work of our passionate researchers, scholars, and staff.
Encourage the kind of novel partnerships we’re talking about today…
And raise support for future scientists and scholars seeking PhDs, undergraduate research opportunities, and for faculty pursuing convergent research.
One of the most important things that we can do is support graduate students Our doctoral students will be our future scholars and scientists and they are key to ensuring this country has a vibrant pipeline of talent.
The Boston University Board of Trustees have championed this effort and are helping us spread the word.
Funding for the next generation of researchers is so important, and today, I am pleased to announce the generous support of our trustees who have so far contributed $6.5 million to a matching fund.
The Board will personally match contributions to the You Are Why effort to support endowed graduate fellowships.
To our Board Chair, Ahmass Fakahany, and the members of the Board of Trustees: I am grateful for your commitment to Boston University, and your leadership in this initiative in support of life-changing convergent research and our outstanding students.
This outreach effort has also led to new conversations with CEOs, presidents, and others about how we might work together.
As a university, we want to listen, learn and find ways to work with partners to find opportunities that reach common goals.
That may be research… or student internships… or joint service…
Or sharing ideas about how we serve the students of the future in new and different ways.
As we think about how to adapt Boston University and higher education in general, we choose not to simply turn inward for answers, but to reach outward in true partnership.
Please now hear the thoughts of a few of our partners.
[Video on partnership was played.]
And now, it’s time to hear from you.
And as I look around this room, I am proud to say that I see people representing institutions, industries, foundations, non-profits, public service, and other sectors…
I see influential and dedicated alumni, as well as our hardworking faculty, staff and students, who make our university, Boston, and the world, better, each and every day.
And so, here’s my call to action:
Let us know how we can work together.
Boston University is of course a place where ideas are born…
But we are also here to listen to your ideas and think creatively about how we bring our talents, expertise, and collaborative nature to the conversation.
I hope by now, I have set the stage well enough to show we are ready to reinvent the university of the future together with you.
Now let’s begin our convergent journey together.
Before we leave, I would like to acknowledge our current and future partners who have joined us this evening…
And without whom none of our aspirations would be possible.
For each group that I name, please stand, as you are able. And please remain standing as I call out the next.
Elected officials from around Greater Boston, including:
State Representative Aaron Michlewitz, Chair of House Ways and Means
Boston City Councilors Durkan and Fitzgerald
Council President Breadon
Members of the Massachusetts legislature
Representatives of the Healey Driscoll Administration
And Members of Mayor Wu’s Administration.
Reshma Kewalramani, CEO of Vertex Pharmaceuticals…
And our fellow leaders in industry and across fields who are dedicated the idea of partnership and all that we can accomplish together.
Board Chair Ahmass Fakahany and members of the Boards of Trustees, University Advisors, and Trustees Emeriti.
Business and non-profit leaders from around the region.
Students from our very special Visual Arts program who have shared their work with us today.
Our fabulous dance team and the executive board of student government.
Coaches and student athletes from our incredible Athletics program…
Including from the men’s and women’s hockey teams who have beautifully demonstrated the power of teamwork in some recent exciting performances…
All our students here today!
BU Staff dedicated to making moments like these possible.
Our alumni who are with us here and online, who represent the power of a 400,000-strong Terrier network, who are making a difference here in Boston and all around the world.
Administrative leaders.
Our faculty, researchers, and teachers alike.
Please give yourselves, and our many friends and alumni from all around the world who are watching with us now, a huge round of applause!
Together, we will follow our North Star and push Boston University towards a brilliant future.
Thank you.
*As delivered on January 28, 2026 in the Tsai Performance Center