Two members of the Boston College community—BC Law Clinical Associate Professor Francine Sherman and former University Trustee and longtime benefactor Joseph E. Corcoran ’59, Hon.’09—have been honored by the Robert F. Kennedy Children’s Action Corps with this year’s Embracing the Legacy awards.
The honorees—persons who are “dedicated to making positive impacts on the lives of some of the most vulnerable members of the population by raising awareness, fighting against social injustices, and advocating for those who don’t have a voice”—were highlighted by the Boston Globe.
Sherman, founder and director of the BC Law Juvenile Rights Advocacy Program, is a nationally recognized expert on juvenile justice, particularly about girls in the justice system. She has spoken before Congress and at the White House, and served on the U.S. Department of Justice National Advisory Committee. Her most recent report, “Gender Injustice: System-Level Juvenile Justice Reforms for Girls,” provides a “comprehensive overview of the needs and pathways of girls into and through the justice system and details a developmental approach to juvenile justice reforms.”
Corcoran, founder and chairman of the Corcoran Jennison Companies, “has changed the lives of countless inner-city youths by replacing failed public housing projects with mixed income developments that offer unique community services to low-income residents.” Among his philanthropic endeavors, Corcoran—the chief benefactor and namesake of BC’s Joseph E. Corcoran Center for Real Estate and Urban Action—has directly funded educational opportunities for dozens of academically talented city youths through scholarships to Boston College High School as well as BC, Simmons College and Emmanuel College.
The other two Embracing the Legacy winners honored at the event, held May 20 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, were MassHousing Community Services Director Thaddeus Miles and Celtic punk rock band The Dropkick Murphys.
Read more about Francine Sherman's award in Boston College Law School Magazine.
Read more about Joseph Corcoran's award in the Boston Globe.
—News & Public Affairs