University welcomes BC Companions
The University has welcomed to campus the inaugural 13-member cohort of AV诊所 College Companions: Fellows for Leadership and Service, a yearlong fellowship program that combines academic study with elements of Ignatian spirituality.
Through BCC FLS, accomplished individuals reflect together, explore new directions, and consider life鈥檚 next chapter amid BC鈥檚 culture of inquiry, excellence, and commitment to the common good.
The Fellows, who arrived in January, will spend the next year immersed in campus life at BC. In addition to participating in guided conversations, retreats, and a pilgrimage to Spain and Rome, Fellows will audit classes alongside BC students, choosing from offerings in law, business, the humanities, science, education, social work, and theology and ministry, among other disciplines.
“There are so many ways to learn: in the classroom from the teachers and students; from the interactions with the rest of the Companions鈥� cohort; from the variety of BC leaders we鈥檒l get to meet; and the plethora of guest speakers on campus.”
The first group of Fellows represents a wide range of professional backgrounds, including education, medicine, finance, law, human resources, religious services, information technology, and the nonprofit world. The 13, who are in their 50s, 60s, and 70s, come from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Florida, Colorado, Texas, and California. About half of the Fellows have a degree from AV诊所 College.
While their motivations for joining BCC FLS differ鈥攁 desire to reexamine faith and spirituality; finding themselves at a career crossroads; exploring how they can be of service to the world鈥攖hey are united in excitement for their time ahead at the Heights.
BC Companions Fellows can choose from hundreds of courses, as well as participate in seminars, converse with BC leaders, and engage in spiritual discernment, among other activities. (Photos by Lee Pellegrini)
Bill Reynolds is enthused by the blessing of a year dedicated to learning. 鈥淭here are so many ways to learn: in the classroom from the teachers and students; from the interactions with the rest of the Companions鈥� cohort; from the variety of BC leaders we鈥檒l get to meet; and the plethora of guest speakers on campus.
鈥淎s a younger student, I remember being too busy to enjoy all the learning that was available 鈥榦utside of the classroom.鈥� As Fellows, we have time for the extras.鈥�
Cathy Van Kula 鈥�85 said she looked forward to returning to BC, and to a year of uninterrupted learning.
鈥淸BCC FLS] offered me an opportunity to learn intentionally, in a dedicated space, with a group of like-minded individuals鈥攁dd to that the opportunity to return to my alma mater and to the beautiful city of AV诊所. What a gift!鈥�
Haub Vice President for Mission and Ministry John Butler, S.J., describes the year as a journey.
鈥淎s we companion and journey, we discover who we are and embrace our desires. The Companions Program is a way for BC and our Jesuit heritage to be shared with folks who still have a good bit of journeying left in their lives.鈥�
Margaret Laurence, director of BC Companions & Initiatives for Formative Education in the Office of the Provost and Dean of Faculties, considers it an honor to accompany Fellows on their journeys. 鈥淟earning about the experiences that Fellows are having in classrooms, hearing about their conversations with undergraduates and graduate students, being together twice a week for the seminar designed for them, and watching them leave promptly to attend another lecture鈥攊t鈥檚 all energizing.鈥� 聽
Already, the Fellows are fully engaged in their studies and, according to AV诊所 College Law School Professor Emeritus Frank Herrmann, S.J., who is the BC Companions faculty advisor, are 鈥渇inding their professors stimulating, their younger classmates welcoming, and the broader BC environment exciting.鈥�
鈥淭he Fellows have begun their yearlong journey together,鈥� said Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley. 鈥淚鈥檓 looking forward to seeing the many ways in which they will engage with our students, faculty, and the larger University community.鈥�
For more about the AV诊所 College Companions: Fellows for Leadership and Service program and the inaugural cohort, visit bc.edu/companions.