Media love for the upcoming 乐播传媒 Dance Festival from The Boston Globe, Portland Press Herald, and WBUR 

From July 10 through 31, campus will be buzzing with activity from the 乐播传媒 Dance Festival 鈥� a yearly dance experience that offers dance training and performances from renowned artists and draws audiences from Maine and beyond. 

In May, as a 鈥渘ot-to-miss鈥� cultural event happening in Maine this summer. Also that month, The Boston Globe featured BDF on their list of

Then in June, WBUR sang BDF鈥檚 praises 鈥� 鈥渂racing for a bold program鈥� 鈥� in a piece headlined . They highlighted 鈥淭he Marthaodyssey,鈥� which former Martha Graham Dance Company member Jesse Factor will present on the Schaeffer Theatre stage. The mishmash of drag performance and Graham technique imagines what might have happened if Graham had choreographed Madonna鈥檚 1990 Blond Ambition tour. 鈥淎 trip to Maine may be in order for those who enjoy contemporary dance,鈥� writes WBUR鈥檚 Shira Laucharoen.

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Members of the 乐播传媒 College Youth Community Action and Transformation Lab urge adults to talk politics with young people in the Portland Press Herald

Nathaniel Zuckerberg 鈥�26 and Linnaea Herring, a senior at Yarmouth High School, authored a piece for the Portland Press Herald Both Herring and Zuckerberg are members of the Youth Community Action and Transformation Lab led by 乐播传媒 Assistant Professor of Psychology Elena Maker Castro. This lab conducts research for the Can We? Project 鈥� an initiative that provides Maine high schoolers with the communication tools needed to participate as engaged citizens in a democracy. Zuckerberg and Herring 鈥渁sk every adult with a young person in their life to start that political conversation you may have avoided鈥� because they have found that teenagers are 鈥渞eady and eager to practice dialogue.鈥�

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乐播传媒 Film Festival covered by News Center Maine, WGME

News Center Maine and students Shelter Gimbel-Sherr 鈥�27 of Seattle and Nate Shore 鈥�27 of Kennebunkport, Maine, about the 2026 乐播传媒 Film Festival. The festival, which ran from May 12 to 17 and was entirely organized by 乐播传媒 students, featured over 45 films as well as panels of filmmakers, professors, and students.

Gimbel-Sherr and Shore highlighted how the festival has a special interest in promoting work from filmmakers and actors from Maine, including a Maine filmmakers panel that featured distinguished guests such as screenwriter Desi Van Til, and actors Dustin Tucker, Matthew Delamater, and Xander Berkeley. Shore talked about focusing on bringing together student filmmakers from Maine schools such as Southern Maine Community College, Colby College, and 乐播传媒 College. He said, 鈥渋t should make a really great collaboration between the colleges.鈥�

On WGME, students how the festival hopes to bring film to the larger Maine community. One way they do this is by making the festival completely free and open to the public. Manogue said that the festival board wants to 鈥渕ake film more accessible to all of our community members,鈥� and Benningfield added that accessibility is 鈥渙ne of the driving factors in our mission.鈥�  

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The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education covers appointment of Victoria Neason Wallace 

In a story headlined , The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education features Victoria Neason Wallace, who was just named vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid.

鈥淪he comes to her new role from Colby College in Waterville, Maine, where she has been serving as executive director of strategic initiatives within the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid,鈥� the paper writes. 鈥淏efore Colby, Neason Wallace was senior assistant director for student volunteers in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.鈥�

Neason Wallace will join 乐播传媒 on July 1.

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Portland Press Herald and Maine Public highlight Phyllis Graber Jensen鈥檚 career retrospective at the 乐播传媒 College Museum of Art

Phyllis Graber Jensen 鈥� director of photography and video for the college 鈥� is the subject of a career retrospective on display at the 乐播传媒 College Museum of Art from June 12 to Sept. 19 called Phyllis Graber Jensen: Picture Stories.

The Portland Press Herald on display at Maine art museums this summer. This retrospective features photos from throughout Jensen鈥檚 career, and the Herald notes that 鈥渢hroughout, what emerges is her commitment to the medium as a critical mode of communication and historical preservation.鈥�

Maine Public鈥檚 State of the Art featured Graber Jensen in a . Titled 鈥淧icture Stories,鈥� host Heather McDougall leads Graber Jensen through a 28-minute interview about her life (including her groundbreaking advocacy for women in sport as a teenager) and her career. McDougall asked about Graber Jensen鈥檚 transition in 1995 from a hard news environment in Boston, working for the Boston Herald and shooting breaking news and icons such as Leonard Bernstein, to communications and marketing work at 乐播传媒 in 1995: 鈥淲as it something you were seeking out or did it just sort of happen and then you just leaned into it?鈥� 

鈥淚 was skeptical that I could make the transition from being a journalist to being a marketing photographer,鈥� Graber Jensen said. 鈥淏ut in the end I think the people that I work with, some of whom had journalism backgrounds, and the place that 乐播传媒 is, allowed us to realize that we’re not journalists, but we use the tools of journalism in terms of storytelling. And I think that’s where the exhibition title came from in terms of 鈥楶icture Stories.鈥�

“I also believe that 乐播传媒 understood the value of using images to tell the story of 乐播传媒. And at one point I worked with a colleague who was also a talented photographer, Mark Glass. And so we were producing a lot of photography and that became part of the storytelling tradition and we had an editorial director who was very supportive 鈥� Jay Burns 鈥� of visual storytelling. It became easier and easier for me to be who I was and pursue my interests and way of telling the story.鈥�

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Commencement in the Sun Journal: Regalia and reveling

In a , photographer Russ Dillingham captured moments of joy, hilarity, bystanders playing hacky sack, and the classic moment of 鈥渃heck the mirror鈥� before walking across the stage at Coram to receive a diploma. Not to mention speakers Sebenele G. Lukhele 鈥�26 and bestselling author and honorand Deborah E. Harkness. 

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Mara Tieken talks about the challenges faced by rural students once they land at elite colleges, to Inside Higher Education and Education Week.

In an article, headlined “,” Inside Higher Education Editor-in-Chief Sara Custer draws on Professor of Education Mara Tieken鈥檚 work as inspiration for an opinion piece.听

Custer references a conversation Tieken had on IHE鈥檚 podcast The Key throughout her piece, including the way Tieken advocates for colleges to rethink how they support rural students once they arrive on campuses far from their homes, not just in terms of miles, but in cultural markers. 

Tieken argues that colleges need a vocabulary around the rural experience, not unlike the way they approach the influence of race and class on students鈥� access and experience of higher ed. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have that vocabulary for how geography matters,鈥� Tieken told The Key on 

Through her research, Tieken also found that identifying as rural can help students see the benefits of their background that may be hidden by negative stereotypes about rural communities in pop culture and the media. 鈥淲hether or not it鈥檚 a part of your identity, you鈥檙e still facing the same barriers that are tied to those identity markers. And so, if you don鈥檛 see it as such you internalize it [and think], 鈥業t鈥檚 about me. It鈥檚 my fault. I鈥檓 not right. I鈥檓 just not good enough,鈥欌�� she said. 鈥淭hey need to hear these messages where their rurality is actually celebrated and they can see how it is an asset in their life.鈥�

Tieken was also quoted in a June 11 story in Education Week headlined Tieken is an expert on the pitfalls of school closures, which are often perceived as a way to save money.

鈥淭he assumption is just so baked into the logic of closure decisions that it鈥檚 assumed closures will save money, so it can be really hard for leaders to combat that thinking,鈥� Tieken told Education Week. 鈥淭his is a really important piece of evidence as districts navigate these conversations and decisions.鈥�

President Garry W. Jenkins has received the 2025 Maine Black Excellence Compass Career Award from , a network that connects 惭补颈苍别鈥檚 Black professionals, students, and entrepreneurs to opportunities across multiple areas, from social to professional. 

The Third Place gives its Compass Career Award in recognition of 鈥渙utstanding professional achievement, principled leadership, and a commitment to equity and excellence in one鈥檚 field.鈥� The nonprofit, which was founded in 2017 by Executive Director Adilah Muhammad, noted that Jenkins, the ninth president of 乐播传媒, is also its first Black president.

鈥淔rom the courtroom to the boardroom to the college green, Garry Jenkins has led with integrity, brilliance, and heart,鈥� the group said, citing his record spanning higher education, law, philanthropy, and public service. 鈥淗is career is a compass for those navigating the intersections of leadership and justice.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檓 deeply touched by this honor, and for this award to be tied to my new home state of Maine,鈥� Jenkins said as he accepted the award at a dinner celebration on a beautiful August evening outdoors at the Caswell Farm and Wedding Barn in Gray. 鈥淚t carries special significance because it comes from a community that understands both the challenges we face and the excellence we represent.鈥�

鈥淥ur democracy and our institutions succeed and flourish when everyone has a seat at the table and has the support and encouragement to shine brightly,鈥� he added.

Jenkins was one of . He spoke of his pride at leading 乐播传媒, citing its rich and unique history of inclusion and legacy of producing remarkable Black leaders through the 20th century and into the 21st century. Specifically, he mentioned John P. Davis, a debater at 乐播传媒 who graduated in 1926 and would go on to be a lawyer and pivotal figure in the Harlem Renaissance, and civil rights icon Benjamin Mays, a member of the Class of 1920, as well as pioneering television journalist Bryant Gumbel 鈥�70 and Val Smith 鈥�75, the president of Swarthmore College. 

鈥淚 want to make sure that we continue to produce alumni, of all backgrounds, who go on to make a difference to their communities, fields, and institutions,鈥� Jenkins said.  

His remarks ended with an invitation to attendees to come to 乐播传媒, walk on the beautiful campus, visit the museum, and attend theatrical and musical performances as well as athletic competitions.

Among the 乐播传媒 community members who joined Jenkins at the event were recent graduate Davina Kabantu 鈥�24, who is a trainee in a bank management development program, Professor Emerita of Politics Leslie Hill, and Morgan Kinney and Mohamed Awil of the Harward Center for Community Partnerships. The Portland Press Herald .

Charles A. Dana Professor of English and Africana Ther铆 Pickens鈥� first volume of poetry, What Had Happened Was, published by Duke University Press in March, was the subject of a two-page spread in Down East magazine鈥檚 April issue. Headlined “Well Versed,” the article included an interview with Pickens and a reprint of one of the poems in the collection, 鈥淭he Amateur Gardener Considers a Time of Death.鈥� 

Pickens has had a busy spring. In conjunction with National Poetry Month, she appeared on Maine Public鈥檚 Maine Calling in April, as part of a panel of Maine poets and visited several universities to give talks and readings, including Rutgers (as the Clement A. Price humanities scholar in residence), the University of North Carolina Charlotte, and the University of Virginia. On April 3, she was celebrated by faculty, staff, and students at a book party in Commons. She also recently gave interviews to the online publication and .

In the Down East story, journalist Michaela Cavallaro reports that Pickens’ debut collection “showcases a distinctive knack for synthesizing diverse influences.”

She writes: 鈥淧ickens weaves together her academic training, her pop-culture interests, and her studies and experience of disability, among many other elements, in more than three dozen poems that are as readable as they are formally and linguistically inventive. Pickens traces her development as a poet all the way back to her New Jersey childhood (as a 5-year-old, she won a citywide writing contest for first to fourth graders on the subject of 鈥榃hy I鈥檓 Proud to Be an African American鈥�).鈥�

The Maine Calling panel included Maya Williams, poet laureate of Portland, 2021鈥�24, and Rose Lane, author of four poetry collections. 

Pickens told listeners what prompts her to start writing a poem: 

鈥淭here’s usually some sort of music, some sort of thought, some sort of observation that scratches my temple from the inside of my head, so to say, this urgent thing that’s begging to be let out on paper. I tend to think of myself a little bit in the vein of observational comedians. They see things and observe them and observe their absurdity and then tell you about it…. I’m always really gratified when I find an audience, in part because audiences can come from all over. Matthew Zapruder once said that he has to trust that, because he’s having a human experience, other people also having human experiences will find his work when they need it. And so I think I operate in that trust as well.鈥�

At the end of听the Maine Calling show, a caller asked if the panelists had any advice for aspiring poets looking to publish their work. Pickens weighed in with this advice, referencing one of her faculty colleagues, Jessica Anthony ’96, a senior lecturer in English and a National Book Award鈥搉ominated novelist:听

鈥淥ne of the other writers here at 乐播传媒, Jess Anthony, talked about poetry as a kind of punishing space because when you submit something, you don’t really get feedback,鈥� Pickens said. 鈥淵ou get, ‘Oh, it doesn’t work for us.’ And so you see enough of that, you wonder whether or not the poems work for anybody. So publishing poetry is quite difficult for that reason. But Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance gives us a sense of community in Maine and a space to think through things with each other.鈥澨�

At the campus gathering April 3, Pickens read a selection of poems from What Had Happened Was and was interviewed by moderator Samaa Abdurraqib, Ph.D., executive director of the Maine Humanities Council.

The book party also offered an opportunity to recognize Pickens鈥� recent appointment to an endowed professorship. In November 2024 the college announced she would serve as Charles A. Dana Professor of English and Africana from 2024 through 2034. 

Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, introduced Pickens at the packed gathering 鈥� which included an airing of pre-recorded messages of congratulations, accolades and gratitude from former colleagues across the country and many 乐播传媒 graduates. Hill reminded the audience that the Dana Professorship is the first endowed chair established at 乐播传媒 and recognizes professional excellence from professors working in any discipline.

鈥淒r. Pickens鈥� intersectional pathbreaking scholarship and pedagogy traverses the fields of race, identity and disability,鈥� Hill said, and went on to describe her writing across mediums as 鈥渋nventive, theoretically, and aesthetically attuned. She provides conceptual grammars and vocabularies that are of the present and for the future.鈥�

鈥淚 would love it if folks could find something in the collection that resonated” 鈥� Ther铆 Alyce Pickens

In March, Pickens described her hopes and aspirations for the collection in with poet Nefertiti Asanti in The Adroit Journal.

鈥淚 would love it if folks could find something in the collection that resonated and for folks looking to the collection, maybe for comfort?鈥� Pickens told Asanti. 鈥淔olks looking to be read, in that, 鈥楤lack, queer reading is fundamental鈥� kind of way, they could also find that. I don鈥檛 want the focus to be on how I, as a poet, put something or anything really autobiographical into the text. But rather that it鈥檚 a celebration of Black linguistic prowess and people can find something in it that speaks to them.鈥�

For The Cafe Review piece, Pickens was interviewed by a former 乐播传媒 colleague, Jefferson Navicky, who asked about her 鈥渨ide-ranging and masterful鈥� use of poetic forms, including the villanelle, the haibun, and the sonnet. Pickens offered the insight that she uses these forms almost as guideposts, because even though she has been writing poetry since the age of 8, she still feels “like a beginning poet.”

“So when I started practicing my craft in earnest in 2017, forms seemed like the best way to get into poetry…. They offer some degree of constraint, rules to follow, so that I don鈥檛 get too lost. What began as a way to practice 鈥� and shout out to Kiese Laymon, who said, ‘We鈥檙e not good enough to not practice’ 鈥� became more attractive once I saw other folks achieving loveliness with them.”

A selection of recent mentions of 乐播传媒 faculty in the news, including glowing coverage of an exhibition at the college’s Immersive Media Studio plus faculty commentaries on the importance of rural education, the expanding implications of AI in education, how homelessness impairs people’s sense of autonomy.

乐播传媒 IMStudio

鈥楥hronicle of a Fall鈥� showcases 乐播传媒 College鈥檚 Immersive Media Studio 鈥� Portland Press Herald

A recent , a flexible, high-tech space in Coram Library designed for multimedia installations that integrate video, sound, light, and interactive technology.

The story describes how the immersive video project Chronicle of a Fall, by artists Nadav Assor and Tirtza Even 鈥� on view at the IMStudio through May 2 鈥� helped to inspire the studio鈥檚 creation.

Reported by Megan Gray, the Press Herald story describes how Chronicle of a Fall successfully reflects the potential for magic and meaning making in the new IMStudio. The project depicts the layered sensory experiences of immigrant workers in the U.S. cultural sector using pointillized projections, bodycam footage, and surround sound.

View the installation trailer for Chronicle of a Fall:

Even emphasized the rarity of spaces equipped to properly present immersive video work to the Press Herald. 鈥淭his studio doesn鈥檛 exist, pretty much, in many places,鈥� Even said. Carolina Gonz谩lez Valencia, an associate professor of art and visual culture who is also a filmmaker, added that “it鈥檚 not just about having the technology, but why.鈥�

Coram Library and the IMStudio “sit at the very heart of the 乐播传媒 campus,” Gray noted in her story, adding that “the choice of location was deliberate.” The faculty-led 乐播传媒 Arts Collaborative, which helped design the studio, “wants this space to be used across disciplines.”

鈥淲e want it to feel like it could belong to anyone,鈥� said Assistant Professor of Music Asha Tamirisa, who along with Gonz谩lez Valencia is part of the arts collaborative. 鈥淎nyone could work there.鈥�

Mara Tieken

Commentary: Rural school closures 鈥� punishment for crimes never committed 鈥� The Daily Yonder

In addition to her recent op-ed in the Portland Press Herald offering a , Associate Professor of Education Mara Tieken recently published a in The Daily Yonder, a national news outlet dedicated to reporting on rural people and places.

Tieken, who studies rural education and previously worked as a third grade teacher in rural Tennessee, explains how school closures and consolidations harm students and their communities.

鈥淓very year, hundreds of thousands of children are displaced when their schools are permanently shuttered,鈥� Tieken writes.

School districts often anticipate that closing schools with low attendance rates or low grades will save money and improve educational opportunities, Tieken explains, and many states have laws requiring districts to shutter schools with consistently poor academic performances.

However, Tieken says, research does not support notions that school closures mitigate financial hardships and improve grades. Conversely, closures often lead to academic and behavioral problems.

鈥淐losure is not an answer to budget shortfalls, academic underperformance, or educational inequality,鈥� Tieken writes. 鈥淭here is no cheaper alternative; we cannot punish our way to excellence.鈥�

As a rural education scholar, Tieken regularly fields requests for support from rural schools facing closure and maintains a website, Rural Schools Open, which offers resources for understanding and combating school closure. She also regularly writes about rural education; Tieken鈥檚 second book, Educated Out, is set to release in May and profiles nine first-generation, rural students attending an elite private college Tieken calls 鈥淗illtop.鈥�

In the book, Tieken examines how the students鈥� rural and often low-income backgrounds affect their experiences at the school. Some of these students, for example, reported being unable to access certain opportunities, such as unpaid internships and expensive extracurriculars, due to their financial situations. Students also mentioned feeling judged for their rural backgrounds at Hilltop, while simultaneously feeling like they no longer fit in with their home communities.

鈥淎 lot of them felt kind of stuck in between: they don’t fully belong at Hilltop, they don’t fully belong at home,鈥� Tieken says. 鈥淎nd for some of the students, it felt freeing. They got to make their own road, do their own thing. But I think it’s also really alienating and disorienting at times.鈥�

Earlier this month, Tieken also op-ed about the impact that dismantling the Department of Education could have on Maine schools.

About 10 percent of 惭补颈苍别鈥檚 education funds come from the federal government and support some of the most critical statewide programs. In 2024, Maine received $62 million in federal funding for Title I education supporting low-income students and $66 million for special education support. 

鈥淎nother important program is the department鈥檚 Rural Education Achievement Program,鈥� Tieken writes. 鈥淩EAP helps offset the unique budgetary challenges that come with providing education in sparsely populated, remote places, and it is critical in a state like Maine, where more than two-thirds of schools are rural.鈥�

Additional federal funding supports Pell Grants for undergraduate students, vital research about public education, and early learning and adult education programs.

鈥淎ll of this work is threatened right now. These programs and grants make for strong schools, useful research and prepared graduates,鈥� Tieken writes. 鈥淭hey help produce teachers, doctors and business leaders and keep Maine on the cutting edge of educational and technological practice.鈥�

Carrie Diaz Eaton 

AI: privacy and security 鈥� Maine Calling on Maine Public

Associate Professor of Digital and Computational Studies Carrie Diaz Eaton was part of a , earlier this month.

The other panelists were Michael Donihue, interim director at Colby鈥檚 Davis Institute for AI; Bowdoin鈥檚 Fernando Nascimento, assistant professor, digital and computational studies; and Berkeley Almand-Hunter, technical director of partner products at the Roux Institute.

Host Jennifer Rooks wanted to know how Diaz Eaton鈥檚 students at 乐播传媒 relate (or don鈥檛) to AI. 

鈥淲hat do 17-, 18-, 19-year-olds coming to 乐播传媒 understand about AI and where are there gaps in knowledge that you’re really working on helping them to understand?鈥� Rooks asked. 

Diaz Eaton described three students she鈥檚 got working for her now, helping her develop a new module for incoming students, a sort of AI literacy course.

鈥淎nd I have one that’s like, 鈥業’m so excited about this. We got to teach everybody how to do a prompt and get this information really well and how to use it and to be valuable in the workplace,鈥欌�� Diaz Eaton said.

鈥淚 have another student that’s like, 鈥業 really value my own thought process and what I bring to this as a human, and I just don’t feel comfortable using AI at all. I don’t trust it.鈥欌�� Then there鈥檚 the student who is focused on the ins and outs of the technological aspect of it all.

鈥淪o I feel like I’m always in this microcosm of really diverse opinions and preparedness from students,鈥� Diaz Eaton said. 

She also told listeners about her course, “Calling Bull: Data Literacy and Information Science,鈥� which she鈥檒l be teaching in the Fall. It鈥檚 a course she teaches regularly, but in recent years, discussion of AI has become a more substantive portion of that course. 鈥淏ecause you鈥檝e got misinformation being created at a scale, on purpose or not,鈥� Diaz Eaton told the audience.

Paul Schofield

An autonomy worth having 鈥� Jacobin

For Jacobin, Associate Professor of Philosophy Paul Schofield, whose research focuses on moral and political philosophy, wrote about the , which is once again being offered as a solution in some quarters after being roundly rejected by both the left and the right 40 years ago.

Schofield describes the political alignments for and against it and then advocates for what he calls a 鈥渄eeper autonomy, a kind of autonomy worth having,鈥� outlining a new middle ground.

He uses the case of a homeless woman named Joyce Brown who was forcibly hospitalized in 1987 by the city of New York and successfully challenged the city鈥檚 right to detain her with the help of the New York Civil Liberties Union to demonstrate how involuntary hospitalization is not a solution.

Schofield then also examines two cases of homeless women in the Northwest, one who froze to death and another who gave birth on the street to a baby who quickly died of hypothermia, to illustrate how autonomy is more complex than people on either end of the political spectrum might admit. 

鈥淭hese are cases in which people are straightforwardly prevented by their sickness and circumstances from being able to weigh values, to fully understand the implications of their actions, and to act in ways that accord with what they care about.

“In other words, they are cases in which their mental illness and material circumstances undermine their autonomy. Leaving them alone might be a way to respect bare-bones libertarian freedom. But if it鈥檚 meaningful autonomy we care about, it鈥檚 entirely insufficient.鈥�

This area of moral philosophy is one Schofield has been examining to great success. He was recently honored by the American Philosophical Association for an op-ed he published in The Conversation .鈥� He was one of five winners of the association鈥檚 Public Philosophy Op-Ed Contest, which recognizes standout pieces that 鈥渟uccessfully blend philosophical argumentation with an op-ed writing style.鈥�

This edition of recent 乐播传媒 alumni mentions in the news media includes revisiting the legacy of a rebellious Episcopalian, shortlist honors for Elizabeth Strout鈥檚 newest novel, and an alumnus who grew up in poverty and went on to build a multibillion-dollar financial firm.

Sarah Sherman-Stokes 鈥�05

Beacon Hill eying 2017 immigration-related court ruling. Here鈥檚 what the decision means 鈥� Boston Herald

Sarah Sherman-Stokes 鈥�05, a clinical associate professor of law at Boston University and associate director of the university鈥檚 Immigrants鈥� Rights and Human Trafficking Clinic, offered her expertise in a . 

While federal immigration authorities can issue detainers for people suspected of civil immigration violations, per a Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling, local law enforcement cannot arrest people based on these detainers, Sherman-Stokes explains.

鈥淚t鈥檚 like a letter to Santa 鈥� 鈥榳e wish you would hold this person for us,鈥欌�� Sherman-Stokes told the Boston Herald.

The new proposed legislation would, conversely, allow local law enforcement to detain people suspected of civil immigration violations, in conflict with the court ruling.

Elizabeth Strout 鈥�77

Miranda July and Elizabeth Strout shortlisted for the Women鈥檚 Prize for Fiction 鈥� The Guardian

Novelist Elizabeth Strout 鈥�77 was shortlisted for the 2025 Women鈥檚 Prize for Fiction for her most recent novel, Tell Me Everything, . Strout has previously been longlisted four times and shortlisted twice for the Women鈥檚 Prize, considered one of the U.K.鈥檚 most prestigious literary prizes.

In Tell Me Everything, Olive Kitteridge and Lucy Barton, beloved characters from Strout鈥檚 previous novels, meet and form a close friendship in the aftermath of a shocking small-town crime.

鈥淎s Lucy puts it, 鈥楶eople are mysteries. We all are such mysteries,鈥欌�� writes Alexis Schaitkin in . 鈥淪trout鈥檚 best work exhibits some of this same duality, her prose style at once familiar and beguilingly unpredictable.鈥�

William Stringfellow 鈥�49

William Stringfellow: The modern prophet who helped hide Daniel Berrigan from the FBI 鈥� America Magazine

William Stringfellow 鈥�49 is perhaps best remembered for hiding the priest and pacifist Daniel Joseph Berrigan in his home until the moment that the FBI succeeded in catching Berrigan, wanted for destroying draft records. This dramatic history, however, is but one small glimpse at Stringfellow鈥檚 storied, influential life, writes James T. Keane in a profile of Stringfellow in .

A devout Episcopalian, Stringfellow was also an activist, lawyer, and theologian, whose unconventional views on faith often put him at odds with fellow church members and the greater American public.

鈥淗e wasn鈥檛 exactly an evangelical, and despite his insistence on the primacy of the Bible, he was also no fundamentalist,鈥� Keane writes in America. 鈥淪ome of his ideals were simpatico with liberation theology, but he was no fan of any marriage of ideology and Scripture. He was certainly outspoken, and did not mince his words when critiquing fellow Christians.鈥�

At 乐播传媒, Stringfellow is remembered through the Multifaith Chaplaincy鈥檚 Stringfellow program, which supports students by nurturing their interest in social justice activism.

Shirl Penney 鈥�99

Shirl Penney is building an empire in sunny St. Pete 鈥� Tampa Bay Business & Wealth

Shirl Penney 鈥�99 has had a transformational impact on the U.S. financial industry, reports , who shared his remarkable story of grit and resilience; he grew up extreme poverty in Eastport, Maine, born to a teenage mother who could not take care of him and raised by his loving step-grandfather. 

His grandfather told Penney, 鈥淚 need you to have a job where you work with your mind, not with your hands.鈥�

In 2008, Penney founded Dynasty Financial Partners, which is headquartered in St. Petersburg, to give financial advisors the freedom to operate independently from traditional firms.

He was in his late 20s and leading Citigroup鈥檚 private wealth management division. 鈥淚 saw too many advisors being forced to push products that weren鈥檛 always in the client鈥檚 best interest. That never sat right with me.鈥� 

Dynasty, with Penney as president and chief executive officer, is now a service provider to 57 partner firms representing over 500 advisors and over $110 billion in assets.

鈥淧enney isn鈥檛 just a business leader. He鈥檚 a visionary, reshaping the independent wealth management industry,鈥� said the magazine.

Rachel Ferrante 鈥�10

Lewiston鈥檚 MILL museum can be a cultural hub for the community, leader says 鈥� Sun Journal

The Lewiston Sun Journal profiled Rachel Ferrante 鈥�10, in of the Maine Museum of Innovation, Learning and Labor and discussing the museum鈥檚 upcoming changes.

Ferrante joined what was then known as Museum L-A in 2021 after working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City for a decade. Ferrante led L-A through its rebranding as the Maine MILL, which is dedicated to preserving the stories of the people and innovation that have defined the twin mill towns of Lewiston and Auburn. 

鈥淲hen we rebranded, we rewrote our mission and vision statement as part of that. And the vision was to be a cultural hub. It鈥檚 a bit of a big vision,鈥� Ferrante told the Sun Journal. 鈥淚t is one I think is actually attainable鈥� I think that this museum can be a cultural hub for this community.鈥�

In 2026, the museum expects to open its new space in the former Camden Yarns Mill in Lewiston.

Olivia Seline 鈥�24

This 乐播传媒 College alum is running Boston 鈥榯o stand against senseless violence鈥� 鈥� Boston.com

A student at 乐播传媒 during the October 2023 shootings in Lewiston, Olivia Seline 鈥�24 is keenly aware of the effect of violence on a community, as she writes in , which features first-person stories from runners in this year鈥檚 Boston Marathon.

For the former Bobcat rower, the marathon is her first-ever foot race. Seline is running for the Lingzi Foundation in honor of Lingzi Lu, a graduate student at Boston University who was killed in the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013.

Seline decided to run the race after relocating to Waltham, Mass., and learning about the impacts of the bombing on her new home. 鈥淎s a student and rower, 乐播传媒 showed me drive, acceptance, and the power of a good meal around the table with your community,鈥� Seline writes. 

鈥淣o matter where someone comes from or how well you know them, you always look out for one another. The loss of innocent lives reminds us of the need to stand against senseless violence, protect our communities, and remain united in uncertain times. 鈥�

Jenn Lemkin Bouchard 鈥�99

Considering Us by Jenn Bouchard: A soul-searching, second-chance romance for readers who love a strong female lead 鈥� Kirkus Reviews

, the second novel from Jenn Lemkin Bouchard 鈥�99. The romance tells the story of Devon Paige, a personal chef at a crossroads in her career as her work and personal lives collide in an unsavory fashion.

鈥淚n the course of the story, the author touches on questions of whether there is ever room for second chances in romance and what to do when life throws you a curveball,鈥� the review reads. 鈥淒evon is entirely relatable in the position in which she has found herself, if not necessarily for how she got there.鈥�

The review praised Bouchard鈥檚 ability to avoid tropes while also crafting a fun, introspective story.

鈥淏ouchard does not settle for a one-dimensional story, and the romance fares better because of it,鈥� the review reads.

A selection of recent mentions of 乐播传媒 faculty in the news, from a glowing review of a new poetry collection to economic analysis of a big move by Samsung and an exploration of what The New York Times describes as still “taboo” for many women.

Ther铆 Pickens

‘A powerful exploration of storytelling and Black experiences’ 鈥� Library Journal

What Had Happened Was, the debut poetry collection by Charles A. Dana Professor of English and Africana Ther铆 Alyce Pickens, in February, which described the book as a 鈥減owerful exploration of storytelling and Black experiences.鈥�

What Had Happened Was is due out March 25 , which also published Pickens鈥� 2019 book Black Madness :: Mad Blackness, an examination of Blackness and disability.

Her poetry collection addresses topics ranging from Black life, popular culture, and history to individual encounters with emotional, love, and chronic disability. Pickens weaves in mentions of Li鈥檒 Kim and memories of the ’90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, then turns to subjects such as Harriet Tubman and Breonna Taylor.

In her review for Library Journal, Jessica Calaway called the poem titled “On March 12, 2020, Breonna Taylor” 鈥渟triking鈥� and an invitation to readers to 鈥渞eflect on Taylor鈥檚 legacy and broader implications.鈥� The full review is available only to subscribers, but here are some excerpts:

“The collection鈥檚 strength lies in its content and form. Through intentional sentence structures 鈥攈yphens, periods, or strategic placement of text on the page 鈥� the collection encourages readers to pause and absorb the gravity of historical moments. Pickens employs a variety of styles, yet all her poems share a common thread: they create a space for reflection.鈥�

And Library Journal鈥檚 鈥渧erdict鈥�? Pickens鈥� poetry is essential:

“This collection demands attention and introspection by offering a raw yet eloquent portrayal of the intersections of history, identity, and systemic oppression. It鈥檚 an essential read for people seeking to honor the complexity of the experiences of Black Americans.鈥�

An on-campus reading, Q&A, and book signing for What Had Happened Was is planned for Thursday, April 3.

Rebecca Herzig

Is facial hair the last taboo in women鈥檚 beauty? 鈥� The New York Times

A story in The New York Times for insights into historical assumptions made about women of color with facial hair.

The Times had asked female readers to respond to a questionnaire about their relationship with their facial hair. Almost 900 people responded and while some described pacts they鈥檇 made with friends to pluck each other鈥檚 facial hair into their dotage, when they were no longer able to care for themselves, others spoke of embracing what occurs naturally.

Writer Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff described some cultural changes around this 鈥渓ast taboo鈥�:

鈥淭his century, a shift of sorts has emerged around the norms of women鈥檚 bodies. There have been multiple movements, such as ‘Januhairy,’ which encouraged women to grow their body hair, including facial hair, during the month of January (the community鈥檚 official Instagram account has 42,000 followers).”

Brinkhurst-Cuff references Rosalie, a 2023 French film that featured a bearded female protagonist, and quotes its director: 鈥淚 invented the story of a young woman who frees herself by embracing her beard,鈥� said the film鈥檚 director, St茅phanie di Gusto. 鈥淲ith Rosalie鈥檚 beard, I wanted to reinvent femininity.鈥�

Brinkhurst-Cuff also draws on Herzig鈥檚 research in Plucked: A History of Hair Removal to discuss how women’s facial hair has been associated with “madness, degeneracy, and 鈥榠nferior races.鈥欌��

It鈥檚 been 10 years since Plucked was published, but Herzig still fields regular inquiries from journalists and students working on related topics. “It’s sort of astonishing,” she says.

Paul Shea

Samsung bought back $2 billion of its own shares. Now it鈥檚 canceling them entirely 鈥� Marketplace

Why do companies sometimes cancel (and then buy back) their own stock? Dowling Family Professor of Economics Paul Shea was among prominent economists who explain to Marketplace , including being able to avoid higher taxes.

鈥淚nvestors have a reason to prefer share cancellations to, say, offering a dividend,” Shea said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 pay a dividend tax rate on it. You pay a capital gains tax rate, which is lower for most people.鈥�

But, Shea said, the billions of dollars that Samsung spent to buy the shares it鈥檚 canceling means it鈥檚 not spending money on growth, like building new plants or acquiring other companies. 鈥淪o that could be a negative signal, but it could also just be that this is not a time where there鈥檚 great opportunity for expansion,鈥� Shea told Marketplace:

鈥淪hea said the cancellations would make him more nervous for a younger company that鈥檚 never turned a profit. With an older, more stable company like Samsung, he said there鈥檚 nothing wrong with returning money to shareholders this way.鈥�

Paul Schofield

APA announces Fall 2024 prize winners 鈥� American Philosophical Association

Associate Professor of Philosophy Paul Schofield was recently honored by the American Philosophical Association for an op-ed he published in The Conversation, titled 鈥淏eing Homeless Means Not Being Free 鈥� As Americans Are Supposed to Be.鈥�

Schofield was one of of five philosophers honored by the association鈥檚 committee on public philosophy in the Public Philosophy Op-Ed Contest, which goes to up to five philosophers who write standout pieces that 鈥渟uccessfully blend philosophical argumentation with an op-ed writing style.鈥�

In his prize-winning essay, .”

For example, he writes, “a person who is homeless and sleeps on a public bench will often be told by the police to move. Someone who sets up a tent on a sidewalk will usually have it confiscated. Someone who urinates or defecates in a park can be arrested.

“Now you can see why some think that homelessness compromises a person鈥檚 freedom. Sleeping and relieving oneself are necessary, life-sustaining tasks…. Given the way society protects private property and regulates public spaces, it seems that people who are homeless are left with no space at all in which they are free to do the things they need to do in order to live.”

This edition of recent 乐播传媒 mentions in the news media includes an alumnus whose high-tech investigative talents help to uncover humanitarian crises, the hopeful legacy of a 1951 乐播传媒 tragedy, and a new novel by bestselling author Lisa Genova ’92 exploring bipolar disorder.

Jack Sapoch ’18

Border drownings rose as migrants rushed to cross and Texas clamped down 鈥� The Washington Post

Jack Sapoch ’18 contributed his distinct area of investigative expertise to a Washington Post exclusive on , where far more people have died while attempting the treacherous crossing than has been reported by U.S. and Mexican authorities.

Sapoch played a key role in uncovering data discrepancies and mapping migrant deaths along the Rio Grande, revealing that at least 1,107 people drowned between 2017 and 2023 鈥攈undreds more than reported by U.S. and Mexican authorities.

The investigation also sheds light on how intensified border security measures, like Texas Gov. Greg Abbott鈥檚 Operation Lone Star, have pushed migrants into more dangerous crossing areas, leading to a spike in fatalities.

Sapoch is an open-source intelligence investigator with Lighthouse Reports, specializing in visual and 3D reconstruction techniques. Employing advanced visual forensics and open-source methodologies, he and his team analyze and reconstruct events related to humanitarian crises, particularly those involving border violence and migrant tragedies.

Alexandria Onuoha 鈥�20

Harnessing Black girl joy as a force for change 鈥� TEDx

In her recent TEDx talk, Alexandria Onuoha 鈥�20 spoke about the importance of Black girl joy as a transformative force for civil discourse and social change.

In her talk, 鈥淲e Just Do: The Transformative Power of Black Girl Joy,鈥� Onuoha shared personal stories and research about how Black girls cultivate joy amid systemic oppression. 鈥淛oy is not necessarily about happiness. It鈥檚 a choice to withstand difficulty and a tool for collective healing,鈥� she said.

Drawing from her academic work on misogynoir and developmental strategies for Black girls, Onuoha highlighted how joy acts as a radical form of resistance and a catalyst for community building.

Onuoha, who is a doctoral candidate in applied developmental psychology at Suffolk University, is conducting research examining how psychosocial well-being is impacted by a person鈥檚 environment. Joy can help: 鈥淲hen we reclaim joy as a transformative power, our worlds become different.”

Tom Whalen ’86

Sports and politics collide in BU prof鈥檚 new book about 1984 Boston Celtics 鈥� BU Today

BU Today interviewed Tom Whalen 鈥�86, a Boston University associate professor of social sciences, about his newest book, .

鈥淭his is autobiographical in many ways,” said Whalen, who grew up in Beverly, Mass. “The Celtics were a really important part of my life growing up. 鈥淚 talk about scoring a press pass covering a Celtics game for my high school newspaper. I got to interview Larry Bird as a rookie.鈥�

Sports and politics intersect in Dynasty Restored, as Whalen talks about emergence of Reagan-era politics and the rise of Donald Trump in the 1980s.

In some ways, Whalen says, “the political world of the 1980s never ended. Even Bill Clinton was more Reagan than Reagan. We haven鈥檛 abandoned that era of certain policies… giving businesses freedom and downplaying regulation. Government鈥檚 role has shrunk. Clinton said big government鈥檚 days are over. He was right.”

Scott Allen 鈥�84

The Book Awards at IPNE announces 2024 Award Winners 鈥� Independent Publishers of New England

Dr. Scott Allen 鈥�84 received a bronze award in narrative nonfiction at the 2024 Independent Publishers of New England (IPNE) Book Awards .

The memoir recounts Allen’s journey as a teenager as he navigated his recovery from a life-altering burn injury and decision to run away from home, to Cambodia in 1980, during the aftermath of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime.

In 2006, Allen’s first-person essay in 乐播传媒 Magazine was his initial effort to narrate the profound experiences that eventually became the foundation of his memoir.

In his memoir, Allen delves deeper into the emotional and physical recovery from his own trauma, his coming-of-age journey to Cambodia to support refugees, and the difficult aftermath of that formative experience.

A physician, Allen’s career has focused on the intersection of medicine and human rights. In 2019 he and a recognizing his and others’ efforts on behalf of families in U.S. immigration detention.

William Searls ’52

New Year’s Eve gala honors legacy of William Searls and raises funds for local student scholarships 鈥� Bar Harbor Story

An article in the describes the legacy of William Searls ’52, who died in a car accident in 1951.

On Dec. 23, 1951, Searls was hitchhiking to his home in Southwest Harbor, Maine, for the holidays when the car that picked him up rolled over near Ellsworth. A chemistry major, Searls had been in Boston earlier in the day setting up a post-graduate fellowship at MIT.

“Searls was a brilliant student, a kind person who went out of his way to help others,” writes Jones.

More than 70 years later, a permanent college scholarship created in Searls’ memory continues to help “local students become smarter, more educated, and given them the chance to pursue their own dreams,” writes Jones.

In spring 1952, 乐播传媒 granted Searls a posthumous bachelor’s degree. The 1952 Mirror yearbook was dedicated to his memory. “He lived as full a life in a short span as many people do in a much longer time,” wrote classmate Ruth Russell in a 乐播传媒 Student editorial.

Jason Hall ’97

Columbus Partnership finds its new CEO in St. Louis 鈥� The Columbus Dispatch

Jason Hall 鈥�97 is the reports The Columbus Dispatch. Described as “the region’s premier business organization,” the non-profit Partnership is a member-based coalition composed of more than 82 leaders from the Columbus area.

Hall, an entrepreneur with extensive experience in both law and business, is focused on leveraging the Partnership’s resources to make Columbus’ economic benefits more inclusive.

“How do we ensure that the prosperity we create is truly accessible to all?” asks Hall in the story.

Previously, Hall was CEO of Greater St. Louis Inc., an economic development agency composed of five business organizations, including Arch to Park, which he founded. The Dispatch noted that Hall was the first openly LGBT person to hold a cabinet-level position in Missouri when he served as director of the Missouri Department of Economic Development.

Rachel Ferrante ’10

History and culture museum begins work on a new home in Lewiston 鈥� Lewiston Sun Journal

The Lewiston Sun Journal interviewed Rachel Ferrante 鈥�10, the executive director of the Maine Museum of Innovation, Learning and Labor (Maine MILL) .

Under Ferrante鈥檚 leadership, Maine MILL, long housed in the 乐播传媒 Mill Complex, is nearing its goal of securing a new home in the historic but long-unused Camden Yarns Mill. The redesigned 22,000-square-foot facility will house classrooms, a children鈥檚 area, a design lab, offices, and expanded galleries for both permanent and temporary exhibits.

鈥淚t puts everything we need in one space,鈥� Ferrante told the Sun Journal, emphasizing the project鈥檚 goal to create an accessible and engaging environment for visitors of all ages.

The museum will host a groundbreaking ceremony in the spring, with plans to open the new building in summer 2026.

Lisa Genova ’92

She wrote a modern classic about Alzheimer鈥檚. Now Lisa Genova tackles bipolar disorder in 鈥楳ore or Less Maddy鈥� 鈥� Toronto Star

Bestselling author Lisa Genova ’92 spoke to about her sixth novel, More or Less Maddy, which tells the story of Maddy, a college student diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

As told by Genova, the student’s life “becomes a crisis of identity,鈥� referring to Maddy’s battle to reconcile her sense of self with her diagnosis.

Genova, who received an honorary degree from 乐播传媒 in 2016, is known for novels, like her breakout debut, Still Alive, that explore mysteries of the human brain, or as she says, “everything from the neck up.”

But this is Genova’s first to focus what’s typically framed as a mental illness, as opposed to a physical disorder, such as ASL or Alzheimer’s.

鈥淚 had the sense that a lot has been written about depression and more people are comfortable talking about depression in 2025,” she told Govani. “But bipolar hadn鈥檛 been tackled as much.鈥�

John Miley ’08

How AI will impact our lives in 2025 and beyond 鈥� Kiplinger

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly present in daily life, John Miley 鈥�08, a senior associate editor at The Kiplinger Letter, weighed in on on our world.

There’s explosive growth in AI spending, with tech giants like Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft expected to invest over $300 billion by 2025.

Miley notes that AI is already reshaping sectors 鈥� enabling applications from autonomous virtual assistants to AI-driven healthcare tools 鈥� and warns of potential pitfalls such as data privacy risks, misinformation, and the massive energy consumption of data centers.

鈥淭he pressing risk for society is how humans decide to use powerful AI,鈥� Miley notes.

A selection of recent mentions in the news media of 乐播传媒 alumni and future alumni, our students.

Benjamin E. Mays, Class of 1920

New documentary explores legacy of education, civil rights advocate Benjamin E. Mays 鈥� The Index-Journal

The Index-Journal of Greenwood, S.C., , Class of 1920. Narrated by the late Louis Gossett Jr., the film uses artificial intelligence to reproduce Mays鈥� voice, allowing viewers to hear Mays delivering his most memorable quotes. 

The Legacy of Dr. Benjamin E. Mays, which premiered at Lander University in Greenwood on Oct. 25, chronicles the life and legacy of Mays, the youngest of eight children born to formerly enslaved parents in Greenwood County, S.C., who became known as the 鈥淪choolmaster of the Movement鈥� as president of Morehouse College and mentor to Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders.

The 60-minute film includes interviews with Mays鈥� former students and includes footage from his speech to the World Council of Churches in 1954, where he championed civil rights through scripture.

Takako Yamaguchi 鈥�75

Who is Takako Yamaguchi, the under-sung painter causing a frenzy at auction? 鈥� Artnet News

Art media outlets have been abuzz about painter after decades of quiet work in Los Angeles.

Her paintings, which once sold for a few thousand dollars, are now breaking records at major auctions. For example, her 1994 painting Catherine and Midnight sold for $1.1 million, breaking a record at Sotheby鈥檚 London, and several other works have consistently outperformed auction estimates.

Artnet News noted that 鈥淵amaguchi鈥檚 seascape paintings in the Whitney Biennial have touched a nerve with their surreal synthesis of abstraction, pattern, and d茅cor from East and West.鈥�

The news outlet notes that 鈥渁rt-market machinations can be ruthless, taking creators on notoriously damaging rollercoasters of speculation,鈥� yet Yamaguchi鈥檚 long experience of 鈥渄eep-searching and solid practice鈥� makes her 鈥渂etter placed than most to ride 鈥� and hold 鈥� this swell of commercial interest into well-deserved, broader recognition for her rich oeuvre.鈥�

Christine Quinn Antal 鈥�98

Veteran couple dedicates their life to help Ukraine, Afghanistan 鈥� NBC Today

The international media have covered the work by Christine Quinn Antal 鈥�98 and her husband, Mark Antal, to deliver humanitarian aid to Ukraine and other war-torn nations through their nonprofit, Task Force Antal, which partners with U.S. military veterans, front-line communities, and governments. 

Media coverage has included stories in the Budapest Business Journal and an in-depth segment by Cynthia McFadden for . 

The U.S. Army veterans 鈥� Mark as a former Green Beret and Delta Force member, and Christine as a Judge Advocate and then a national security legal adviser for U.S. Army Europe 鈥� emphasized their commitment to activism during the Veterans Day segment.

鈥淲e are not going to stand back and let this happen,鈥� said Mark. 鈥淲e are not going to be complacent,鈥� Christine said. The segment featured a live presentation of a Still Serving Award to the couple at Rockefeller Plaza from the United War Veterans Council.

The during the chaotic NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan:

鈥淭he Antals received a call from a friend stationed in Afghanistan who was desperate to help his interpreter, a man who had saved his life on multiple occasions and was now in imminent danger of Taliban reprisals. With roads to the Kabul airport blocked by the Taliban, Mark and Christine utilized their network to ensure the interpreter reached an evacuation flight within an hour.鈥�

Christine told 乐播传媒 News that 鈥溊植ゴ� nurtured and supported my 鈥榗alling鈥� to roll my sleeves up and learn from within 鈥� to get on the ground or work solutions from within.鈥�

Sam Golden 鈥�06 

How UW scientists are using AI to fight the opioid epidemic 鈥� KING 5 News

A story on KING 5 News in Seattle describes work by neuroscientist Sam Golden 鈥�06 and his team at the University of Washington, who are , specifically to understand how fentanyl impacts brain function. 

Golden, a Ronald S. Howell Distinguished Faculty Fellow and assistant professor of neuroscience in UW鈥檚 Department of Biological Structure, leads an innovative study that leverages machine learning to analyze video footage, frame by frame, of mice experiencing fentanyl addiction and withdrawal. Such analysis has been incredibly time-intensive 鈥� until now.

鈥淢achine learning has allowed us to analyze every frame of video footage, capturing the different strategies that [mice] use to seek out the drug and that they use during relapse,鈥� said Golden.

Machine learning tools remove a hurdle to understanding individual differences in addiction behaviors. 鈥淭he hope is that all this preclinical work will lead to therapies that are less addictive and more personalized,鈥� said reporter Jessica Janner Castro.

recently secured a $3.8 million NIH research grant to support the research. 鈥淭his isn鈥檛 a 鈥榳hat if鈥� grant,鈥� Golden said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a 鈥榬ight now there is a problem鈥� grant: What can we do to help end, or at least offset, this opioid epidemic?鈥�

Jessica Cooper 鈥�13

Luz & Leyendas bring the Andes to Boston 鈥� Boston Music Intelligencer

Violist Jessica Cooper 鈥�13 (鈥�Lights and Legends鈥�), a multimedia performance at the Boston Center for the Arts. The production, blending live orchestration with shadow puppetry, drew inspiration from Cooper鈥檚 years in Chile, where she developed a deep connection to Andean landscapes and cultural symbolism.

Cooper has a master of music degree and performance diploma in viola from Boston University.

As lead producer of the show, Cooper said that she was inspired by her experience living for several years in Chile, where she came to love Chilean landscape, culture, zest for life, and traditional Andean music. Reviewer John Tamilio III noted that 鈥渢he entirety of Luz & Leyendas is so enchanting that you will forget that it is a production. It is a delectable feast for world music aficionados.鈥�

Fatima Saidi 鈥�18

Three years after the fall of Kabul, Afghan refugees in Vermont are still in limbo 鈥� VTDigger

A story in VTDigger, an investigative online news outlet, about Afghanistan refugees in Vermont quoted Fatima Saidi 鈥�18, campaign director for the advocacy nonprofit We Are All America. 

Many refugees await family reunification and permanent status in the U.S. after Kabul鈥檚 fall in August 2021. Saidi described the journey toward reunification and stability as filled with 鈥渨all after wall鈥� in the legal and immigration system.

Saidi, who herself has navigated these legal barriers to reunite her five siblings in the U.S., explained that despite extensive advocacy efforts, her mother remains in Pakistan due to bureaucratic obstacles. 鈥淓very time you climb a wall, there鈥檚 a bigger wall,鈥� she said, emphasizing the exhausting nature of immigration advocacy for families in limbo.

Having lived in Maine since she began her studies at 乐播传媒, Saidi credits local connections and support from 惭补颈苍别鈥檚 elected leaders in bringing her siblings to safety.

Emily Scarrow 鈥�25

This 乐播传媒 student is giving back after surviving cancer 鈥� News Center Maine

As part of extensive local media coverage of the annual Dempsey Challenge, a fundraiser for the Dempsey Center hosted by actor Patrick Dempsey, of Washington, D.C.

Scarrow was diagnosed with Hodgkin鈥檚 lymphoma just six weeks into her first year. Now a senior and cancer-free, Scarrow volunteers at the Dempsey Center, which offers personalized and comprehensive cancer care at no cost, as a wig and headwear consultant, helping cancer patients rediscover their sense of self.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 really important for someone who understands the gravity of those situations to be there,鈥� Scarrow said. 鈥淲hen someone finds a wig that reminds them of who they feel they are on the inside, it鈥檚 very special.鈥�

In 2024, Scarrow won a prestigious Barry Goldwater Scholarship, which provides funding to college students who intend to pursue research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering.

Adelle Welch 鈥�25

A day in the life of four college dance majors 鈥� Dance Magazine

Dance Magazine profiled Adelle Welch 鈥�25 in an article exploring the daily lives of four college dance majors. As a double major in dance and earth and climate sciences, Welch balances her academic and artistic passions, filling her days with science and dance classes, rehearsals, and faculty office hours.

Welch鈥檚 schedule includes technique classes and four to 12 hours of rehearsals weekly. Although she hadn鈥檛 planned to major in dance, a repertory course she took during her first semester sparked her interest, leading her to explore dance as a medium for expressive, thought-provoking themes. 

For her senior thesis, she plans to create a 鈥済host-like鈥� dance piece, incorporating set and costume elements that draw on her experience working in the 乐播传媒 theater and dance costume shop.

This summer, Welch attended the 乐播传媒 Dance Festival and conducted research for her climate science thesis, highlighting 乐播传媒鈥� support for student research. 鈥淭here are tons of student grants available for research around the world. There is almost nothing you can鈥檛 do if you try,鈥� she says.

A selection of recent mentions of 乐播传媒 alumni and future alumni 鈥� 乐播传媒 students 鈥� in the news media.

Edmund Muskie 鈥�36

The lost history of what Americans knew about climate change in the 1960s 鈥� The Grist

Awareness of our warming planet began way earlier than most people think, . 鈥淧lenty of…people were concerned about a warming planet, not just scientists, in the years before 1970,鈥� says reporter Kate Yoder. That includes U.S. Sen. Edmund Muskie 鈥�36 of Maine, a hero of the anti-pollution movement in the 1960s and 1970s.

Reporting on a soon-to-be-published paper in the journal Ecology Law Quarterly, Yoder describes how Muskie鈥檚 papers at 乐播传媒 provided the researchers with insights into the surprisingly widespread understanding of the perils of climate change. 

鈥淢uskie was deeply involved in conversations about climate change with scientists, and his staff tracked coverage of the topic closely in the press. In 1970, Muskie warned his fellow senators that if air pollution went unchecked, it would 鈥榯hreaten irreversible atmospheric and climatic changes.鈥欌��

Jean Johnson Bird 鈥�51

A 94-year-old Waterville woman is a world traveler who has seen it all 鈥� Morning Sentinel

惭补颈苍别鈥檚 after she received a Silver Status award from The Travelers鈥� Century Club for having visited 150 countries and territories.

Her first few countries on the road to 150 came shortly after graduating from 乐播传媒, when she and fellow students from 乐播传媒, Wellesley, Wesleyan, Dartmouth, and Yale traveled to Europe with the legendary 乐播传媒 professor Rayborn Zerby.

鈥淲e went by ship, you know. People didn鈥檛 travel by airplane then,鈥� said Bird. 鈥淐ologne was devastated by World War II. We went to Switzerland and Capri, off Italy. I swam in the Blue Grotto. I jumped out of the boat and went swimming there.鈥�

David L贸pez-Carr 鈥�93

A planetary health innovation for disease, food, and water challenges in Africa 鈥� Nature

David L贸pez-Carr 鈥�93, a professor of geography at the University of California, Santa Barbara, has been in the news for an award-winner paper in Nature that to address disease, food, and water challenges in Africa.

L贸pez-Carr was part of an international team of biologists, social scientists, and medical researchers from the U.S. and Senegal that found a way to lower infection rates of the parasitic disease schistosomiasis by removing vegetation associated with a snail that plays host to the blood fluke. The removed plant material can be repurposed as cheap livestock feed and compost.

The team won a from the Ecological Society of America, amog other honors. Individually, L贸pez-Carr received a 2024 Research Excellence Award from the Human Dimensions of Global Change and the for two decades of teaching, research, and mentorship.

K-Fai Steele 鈥�04

K-Fai Steele auctions rights to middle-grade graphic novel鈥� Bleeding Cool

Best Buds, , will be published by Kokila, an imprint of Penguin Random House, in spring 2026, according to Bleeding Cool.

The site describes Best Buds as 鈥渇riendship that blooms between two girls over their love of gardening, library books, and crows, while exploring the roles they play in community care.鈥�

It is Steele鈥檚 first graphic novel : She鈥檚 the illustrator of seven prior children鈥檚 books and the author鈥搃llustrator of two. She lives in Stockholm, Sweden, with her family.

Nathan Diplock 鈥�17

Plant Physiology spotlights First Authors 鈥� Plant Physiology

Emerging researcher Nathan Diplock 鈥�17, who recently earned his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, was .

Working with researchers at Berkeley and the University of Melbourne, Diplock served as first author of a paper that explores a plant protein called ZAR1, which helps to detect harmful bacteria. ZAR1 works by monitoring how another plant protein, ZED1, interacts with a bacterial protein from a common plant pathogen.

The research team identified an important mutation in ZED1 that allowed a tomato plant to use its version of ZAR1 to recognize the bacterial invader, a discovery that could lead to new ways to enhance plant immunity against bacterial infections.

Already the author of several papers, he told the Plant Physiology that 鈥減lants are capable of extraordinary physiology that can feel both familiar and foreign to the human experience. Plant science is our best tool to unravel these fascinating complexities.鈥�

A 乐播传媒 biology major who at Berkeley, Diplock is now a research scientist at BluumBio, developing new technologies for phytoremediation and bioremediation of environmental contaminants. 

Maple Buescher 鈥�25

Kid reporters, now first-time presidential voters, on the coverage of Election 2024 鈥� Columbia Journalism Review

Eight years ago, Maple Buescher 鈥�25 of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was a middle-school student reporting from the 2016 Republican National Conventions for Time for Kids.

and another former Time for Kids reporter about their take on this year鈥檚 election.

Now a senior politics major, Buescher served as 乐播传媒 Student editor-in-chief in 2023鈥�24 and writes a regular column for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. 鈥淚鈥檝e been fairly impressed by the amount of news and news analysis that has been produced in such an incredibly fast and challenging environment,鈥� Buescher told reporter Jaime Joyce. 鈥淎nd I鈥檝e been impressed by the amount of just simple fact-checking that鈥檚 going on.鈥�

On the other hand, Buescher could do without the mainstream media’s awkward attempts to report on the intersection of pop culture and politics, like covering the whole 鈥溾�� meme. 鈥淧art of what makes the memes popular is the absurdity,” she says, “so trying to square the circle of the absurdity with the more serious political conversation is strange.鈥� 

Joyce writes that what young, engaged voters want 鈥渋s serious political conversation: sit-downs with the presidential candidates, questions about their records and what they plan to do, if elected.鈥�

Lena LaPierre 鈥�26

A Mississippian鈥檚 journey from picking gentian plants in the Balkan mountains to drinking Moxie in Lisbon 鈥� Lewiston Sun Journal

In, Lena LaPierre 鈥�26 of Hattiesburg, Miss., wrote about the annual summer festival in nearby Lisbon Falls that has an unlikely focal point: the quirky New England soda Moxie.

Warned by a classmate that the soda 鈥渢astes like the world’s worst cough syrup,鈥� LaPierre instead took a liking to the drink. Perhaps her Bulgarian heritage was the reason, she wrote, recalling family visits see her grandmother in the village of Lyutibrod, Bulgaria, where 鈥渢housands of gentian plants鈥� 鈥� which give Moxie its distinctive taste 鈥� grow in mountain woodlands.

She recalled creating bouquets for her grandmother from the plant鈥檚 yellow flowers. And now, at a festival in Lisbon Falls, a drink made from gentian was helping locals 鈥渇orge cherished, lifelong memories with the ones they love.鈥�

Anders Landgren 鈥�25 

The very best college backpacks, according to college students 鈥� New York

New York magazine’s Strategist column turns to 乐播传媒 for its . Reporter Bella Druckman writes that 鈥渨hile North Face backpacks run the show at many colleges from coast to coast, at 乐播传媒 College, students love Patagonia backpacks.鈥�

Druckman reports that Anders Landgren 鈥�25 of Boxford, Mass., chose a Black Hole style backpack his first year 鈥渁fter seeing that all his peers had one,鈥� Druckman writes. 鈥淭hree years later, the backpack is still going strong….Despite bearing the weight of his school supplies or things for weekend trips, the backpack鈥檚 straps don鈥檛 budge.鈥�

 鈥淚 got them to a pretty comfortable spot and haven鈥檛 had to adjust them since,鈥� Landgren says. 

A selection of recent mentions of 乐播传媒 and 乐播传媒 people in the news.

The 乐播传媒 Campus:

President Garry W. Jenkins

What鈥檚 the role of college presidents in fostering civic engagement for democracy? 鈥� Forbes

Forbes quoted 乐播传媒 President Garry W. Jenkins in a who 鈥渁re uniting to foster democracy and civic engagement鈥� by joining College Presidents for Civic Preparedness.

鈥淭he ability to manage disagreement while seeking common ground and pursuing productive solutions is critically important in a democracy. Today, unfortunately, our society is in urgent need of developing such essential skills,鈥� Jenkins told Forbes. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 clear to me that both our nation鈥檚 K鈥�12 schools and higher education must develop, promote, and nurture the democratic skills and values of tolerance, pluralism, negotiation, and respect for different views.鈥�

乐播传媒 Commencement 

乐播传媒 College鈥檚 newest graduates recall struggles, triumphs 鈥� Sun Journal

The Sun Journal鈥檚 coverage of Commencement , including Mfon Diduff, a biological chemistry major from Brooklyn, N.Y., who said she feels privileged to have been able to do groundbreaking research during her four years. 

Reporter Kendra Caruso noted that Diduff offered advice to incoming first-year 乐播传媒 students. 鈥淓veryone is unique,鈥� the graduate said. 鈥淓veryone鈥檚 definition of success is not linear. I most strongly believe that whatever you find successful is a success. Do not measure your success to anyone else or to any other standard of society.鈥�

乐播传媒Con

Photos: 乐播传媒Con offers competition and comradery on campus 鈥� Sun Journal

Sun Journal photographer , held May 18 and sponsored by the 乐播传媒 Discordians club. The event was a free-to-enter convention celebrating everything related to board and video games, art, food trucks, and more.

 鈥淚t was the first year for the free, public event that featured interactive activities throughout the day, speakers, panels and advice from professionals in the gaming industry,鈥� wrote Dillingham.

Jessica Anthony 鈥�96

A novella packing all the imagery and storytelling power of a novel 鈥� Kirkus Reviews

Praise is pouring in for The Most, the new novel by Lecturer in English Jessica Anthony 鈥�96: 

• Kirkus: A for creating 鈥渁 sharply focused portrait of seemingly average lives in midcentury America [that] reveals the complexities of those lives in the course of one balmy day.鈥�

• Publishers Weekly: A , which called the book 鈥渟ensational.鈥� 

• The Boston Globe: Inclusion on its list of 鈥�,鈥� describing the novel as a 鈥減sychologically acute read…with a vivid sense of time and place.鈥� 

• Lit Hub: Inclusion on its . 鈥淭he whole thing has the extraordinarily pleasurable texture of gossip, wrapped up in the slightly eerie texture of a [John] Cheever story,鈥� said reviewer Emily Temple.

• Vogue: Placement of the novel鈥檚 cover in 鈥淭he Get,鈥� the magazine鈥檚 two-page feature, directing readers to enjoy summer weekends by 鈥渓oosening up, logging off, and diving in with breezy separates and accessories.鈥� The novel was in close proximity to a $328 summer frock and a pair of $1,750 shorts. 

Jeffrey Oishi

The Sun鈥檚 magnetic field might only be skin deep 鈥� Space Weekly

how solar physicists once thought the magnetic dynamo was deep inside the Sun. That view may change thanks to work by researchers including 乐播传媒 Associate Professor of Physics Jeffrey Oishi and colleagues at MIT, the University of Edinburgh, the University of Colorado, Northwestern University, and the University of California. 

Mara Tieken

70 years after Brown v. Board of Education, many schools remain segregated 鈥� ABC News

ABC News quoted Associate Professor of Education Mara Tieken in a seven decades after the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision.

Part of the reason is the rise of what were once called 鈥渟egregation academies鈥�: white-only private schools in the South. While federal court decisions over time now require such schools to be open to non-white students, they have remained overwhelmingly white.

The segregation academies 鈥渨ere basically a place to educate white children and keep the school system white, and so what they did over time was they ended up draining enrollment from the [public] schools,鈥� said Tieken.

Carrie Diaz Eaton

Can mathematicians help to solve social-justice problems? 鈥� Nature

An turns to Associate Professor of Digital and Computational Studies Carrie Diaz Eaton to help explain how scholars in mathematics and related disciplines are using their expertise to tackle major social issues, such as social inequality and the need for gender equity.

Diaz Eaton is executive director of the Institute for a Racially Just, Inclusive, and Open STEM Education (RIOS), based at 乐播传媒.

Tyler Austin Harper

The big AI risk not enough people are seeing 鈥� The Atlantic

In his , where he is a contributing writer, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Tyler Harper warns: Beware technology 鈥� in this case, artificial intelligence 鈥� that makes us less human. 

In his essay, Harper quotes the CEO of the dating app Bumble, who offered hopeful predictions of AI鈥檚 assistance to the dating scene in remarks at the Bloomberg Technology Summit in San Francisco last month. What鈥檚 troubling about such predictions, Harper writes, is 鈥渢he assumption that AI will soon understand proper human behavior in ways that human beings do not.鈥�

鈥淣ew [artificial intelligence] products coming to market are gate-crashing spheres of activity that were previously the sole province of human beings,鈥� he writes. 鈥淩esponding to these often disturbing developments requires a principled way of disentangling uses of AI that are legitimately beneficial and prosocial from those that threaten to atrophy our life skills and independence.鈥�

乐播传媒 Alumni:

Bernard Lown, L.H.D. 鈥�85

Dollar coin honoring Bernard Lown to be issued 鈥� Sun Journal

Multiple news outlets in Maine noted the , inventor of the direct-current defibrillator, a Nobel Peace Prize honoree, and the 1983 乐播传媒 Commencement speaker.

The family of Bernard Lown arrived in Lewiston around 1934, and he attended Lewiston High School and the University of Maine. 

鈥淭he coin, which bears Lown鈥檚 image along with a defibrillator, is part of the American Innovation series that began in 2019 with the intention of releasing four dollar coins annually until a design from every state is circulating,鈥� the Lewiston Sun Journal reported. 鈥淢aine chose Lown for its coin two years ago.鈥�

In 2008, the southern-most bridge across the Androscoggin was named the 鈥淏ernard Lown Peace Bridge.鈥� Besides being a cardiologist, Lown received the 1985 Nobel Prize as co-founder of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War.

Arthur Elmer Hatch, Class of 1889

A blind graduate at 乐播传媒 College in 1889 is a forgotten pioneer 鈥� Sun Journal 

Sleuthing by the Sun Journal鈥檚 Steve Collins yielded a story about Arthur Elmer Hatch, who graduated from 乐播传媒 in 1889 as . 

Collins noted that The Boston Globe profiled Hatch at the time of his graduation, describing Hatch鈥檚 鈥減lucky struggle for an education in the face of almost insurmountable obstacles.鈥� Hatch went on to become a preacher and professor interested in biblical prophecy, publishing A Handbook of Prophecy in 1913.

Sawin Millett 鈥�59

Some influential Maine lawmakers are about to give up their seats. What鈥檚 next for them? 鈥� Portland Press Herald

A Portland Press Herald included Sawin Millet of Waterford, who was first elected to the Legislature in 1968 and will be giving up his seat this year. 

Reporter Rachel Ohm noted that 鈥淩ep. Sawin Millett, R-Waterford, a State House institution who was first elected in 1968…got a standing ovation on his last day in the House chamber on Friday.鈥� 

Besides his service as a nine-term lawmaker, Millett has:

• Worked with eight governors as a lawmaker and in the executive branch
• Served as commissioner of education
• Served as legislative director and later commissioner of finance
• Worked on policy issues and served as associate commissioner for mental health
• Served as commissioner of the Department of Administration and Financial Affairs
• Served as a town manager of Paris
• Worked as a staff member for Senate Republicans
• Directed the state office for U.S. Sen. Susan Collins
• Moderated the annual town meeting in Waterford and served as selectman

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a treat to work with people with diverse backgrounds, work across the party lines to get things done and be accountable in all my appointed roles for major functions and programs,鈥� he told Ohm. 鈥淚 enjoyed being accountable.鈥�

Millet, who has run a family beef and dairy farm in Waterford for decades, said he鈥檚 not leaving state service: He鈥檚 running for election to the Oxford County board of commissioners.

Chuck Radis 鈥�75

Letter: Seeds of racial acceptance were planted in Lewiston long ago 鈥� Portland Press Herald

A adds to the recent history of immigration to Lewiston. He notes that 鈥淛ohn Jenkins [鈥�74], 惭补颈苍别鈥檚 first Black state senator and Lewiston mayor…played a significant role in fostering acceptance鈥� of immigrants from African nations that began in the early 2000s. 

Radis also points to the major Many and One rally at 乐播传媒 in 2003, 鈥渁ttended by over 4,000 people including U.S. senators and the governor…[that] further exemplified this commitment.鈥� Radis is the author of the .

Matt Bazirgan 鈥�00

Former 乐播传媒 player Matt Bazirgan promoted in Bills鈥� scouting department 鈥� The Associated Press

In a story about key personnel moves by the NFL鈥檚 Buffalo Bills, The Associated Press reported that . 鈥淏azirgan completed his second season with the team in which he previously held the title of senior personnel executive,鈥� the AP noted.

Bazirgan, who played quarterback for the Bobcats, is still prominent in the football record book, including the longest pass from scrimmage, 84 yards, to Jason Coulie ’00 vs. Hamilton in 1999.

Ben Ayers 鈥�99

鈥楾wo people were sliding to their deaths. And it was silent鈥� 鈥� Outside Magazine

Writing in Outside Magazine, Ben Ayers 鈥�99 of British climber Daniel Paul Paterson and his Nepali guide, Pastenji Sherpa. The pair plummeted to their deaths after the collapse of an ice cornice near the summit on May 21.

Typically, climbers are clipped into a fixed safety rope as they navigate difficult sections of the hike to the summit. 鈥淲e may never know what caused two climbers to tumble down the ledge without being clipped into the safety rope,鈥� wrote Ayers, who has been based in Nepal for more than 20 years and regularly contributes to Outside鈥檚 coverage of Everest and Himalayan mountaineering. 

Prior to the accident, the section of trail was crowded with hikers going in both directions: to the summit and from the summit. 鈥淪ources told Outside that it鈥檚 not uncommon for climbers to quickly unclip from the rope, navigate traffic, and then clip back in,” Ayers wrote.

In this case, the two hikers may have 鈥渉ave briefly unclipped from the fixed ropes to overtake slower climbers at the exact moment the cornice collapsed.鈥�