Introducing the Bridge Program
The groundbreaking initiative connects students with new opportunities to study across BC’s different schools and to benefit from the University’s strengths in the humanities, business, and science.
New Names for Two Campus Buildings
A pair of major gifts leave a lasting mark on campus.
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John T. Hayden Hall
When John T. Hayden ’70 transferred to Boston College as a sophomore, he found a home. Even as Hayden went on to become a successful attorney and real estate investor in the San Francisco Bay Area, his family and many friends recalled, he never forgot that it was at BC that he came into his own as both a student and a passionate performer in University theatrical productions.
So when Hayden’s estate—he died of leukemia in 2024—recently made a donation of more than $55 million to Boston College, the University recognized the generous gift by naming 245 Beacon Street, BC’s gleaming 150,000-square-foot integrated sciences building, John T. Hayden Hall. The gift also established the John T. Hayden Theatre Department Fund to provide continued support for the Theatre Department and the Robsham Theater Arts Center.
After leaving BC, Hayden graduated from UCLA Law and then practiced labor and employment law. He later became a full-time real estate investor. Through it all, he never lost his love for the stage as he continued to perform in local musical productions.“
John didn’t spend money on himself,” Joseph Gillach, Hayden’s friend and the trustee of his estate, told BC’s Beacon magazine. “He spent it on the people and places that mattered to him. This gift is a reflection of what BC gave him.
Martignetti Hall
In recognition of a substantial unrestricted gift from longtime BC benefactors Beth and Carmine Martignetti, 90 Saint Thomas More Road, the residence hall next to Corcoran Commons that houses 380 students, will be named Martignetti Hall. The Martignettis, who both graduated in the Class of 1976, have been giving to BC for nearly half a century, with prior gifts supporting everything from financial aid and the Connell School of Nursing to athletics and Pops on the Heights. After graduating from the School of Nursing, Beth Martignetti worked as a surgical nurse. Carmine Martignetti, who joined the University’s Board of Trustees in 2015, is president and co-owner of Martignetti Companies, a leading distributor of wine, spirits, and malt beverages.
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