Category: Community
A New Venue in a New Hotbed for Culture
WBUR, Boston’s National Public Radio station, housed at Boston University, opens a new cultural events space. In an area that is fast becoming a hotbed for the arts, CitySpace—on Comm Ave near the College of Fine Arts and new Joan & Edgar Booth Theatre—will produce up to 200 programs a year, including debates, interviews, readings, theatrical performances, and family programming, with all events streamed live and archived for on-demand access.
BU Boosts Effort to Recruit Low-Income Students
BU joins American Talent Initiative (ATI), an alliance of colleges and universities with a shared commitment to improve opportunities for accomplished students from low- and moderate-income households. ATI hopes to expand its membership to all US colleges and universities with six-year graduation rates consistently above 70 percent.
BU Awards Merit Scholarships to BPS Grads
For Thomas M. Menino and Community Service Award Scholars, BU grants four-year support to Boston public high school graduates matriculating at the University, covering the full cost of tuition without loans. More than a third of incoming Menino and Community Service scholars are the first in their families to attend college, and almost half of those are first-generation Americans.
BU-Wheelock Merge to Create New College
BU and Wheelock College join to become the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. BU’s newest college combines the doctoral programs and research capabilities of BU’s School of Education with the early childhood expertise of Wheelock’s School of Education, Child Life and Family Studies.
MLK, 50 Years Later
The BU community reflects on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (GRS’55, Hon.’59) 50 years after his death. Through a series of videos and essays compiled by BU Today, BU faculty, students, staff, and alumni discuss what Dr. King means to them.
BU Trustees Approve Aggressive Climate Action Plan
The BU Board of Trustees approve a Climate Action Plan to dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions across Boston-area campuses and fund broad infrastructure improvements in preparation for flooding or heat surges in the coming decades. The plan recommends new building efficiencies, changes to renewable energy sources, and ways to make climate change a bigger part of the University’s curriculum and research.
BU Announces First Associate Provost for Diversity & Inclusion
BU names award-winning poet Crystal Ann Williams to the newly created position of associate provost for diversity & inclusion. Charged with promoting diversity among the University’s ranks, Williams’ goals include helping Provost Jean Morrison develop practices and programs to further diversify BU’s faculty.
BU and Red Hat Forge $5M Partnership
Red Hat, the world’s leading provider of open-source enterprise software, joins the University in a five-year partnership aimed at advancing research into emerging and translational technologies, such as cloud computing and big data platforms. The collaboration will involve researchers from both Red Hat and BU, and will provide opportunities for students, staff, and faculty to drive new ideas and new technologies. The plan includes support for two research labs, one at Red Hat’s new corporate space in Boston’s Seaport District and one on the Charles River Campus.
Thurman Center Turns Up Volume on Cultural, Racial Conversations
After meeting with numerous students, including leaders of groups representing communities of color and LGBTIQ students, President Brown establishes a task force to raise the profile of the Howard Thurman Center for Common Ground and make it even more impactful when it comes to cultural and racial discussions. To kick off the initiative, a series of community listening sessions is launched.
University Commits $50 Million for CFA Renovations
The University is bringing the theater arts program back to Comm Ave after a 33-year residence at the Boston University Theatre on Huntington Avenue. To that end, a new studio theater and a production facility will be built on the 808 block and a makeover of 855 will replace its forbidding street-level concrete façade with arched windows.
