Senate and Student Organizations

Grad Student Association
1. Senate and Student Organizations

Graduate Student Senate and Student Organizations

The chief political organ for graduate students at Boston College is the Graduate Student Senate (GSS). Our Senate comprises representatives from (a) the Carroll Graduate School of Management, the Connell Graduate School of Nursing, the Lynch Graduate School of Education, the Graduate School of the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Social Work, and the School of Theology & Ministry, and from (b) the GSA’s three affinity groups: the Graduate Students of Color Association; the Graduate Pride Alliance; and the Graduate International Students Association. Together, the Senate cooperates on projects relevant to broad sections of the Graduate Student community, in addition to advocating for initiatives put forward by, or on behalf of, the Graduate Student body.

Any graduate student enrolled at BC is able to attend a senate meeting. Moreover, if any graduate student has a statement to make the Senate, that individual is entitled to a hearing by the Senate to be followed by a written response by the Executive Director of the Senate within two weeks.

Alec Hartman, Executive Director

Alec is a 3rd year Master of Divinity student at the School of Theology and Ministry. He did his undergraduate studies at University of San Diego where he double majored in Political Science and Theology. He then did a year of service with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps in Nashville where he served those experiencing homelessness with an organization called Room In The Inn. In his 1st and 2nd year at BC, Alec served as a Graduate Minister working primarily with the undergraduate population at BC. He is now excited to apply all of the skills that he has learned from his past experiences as well as knowledge of BC’s campus to the graduate student body in his role as Executive Director of the GSA. Alec is originally from sunny San Diego where he enjoys spending time outdoors or eating mexican food. In his free time, he enjoys exercising, watching Netflix/ Hulu, and supporting San Diego (or formerly San Diego) sports teams.

Marquise Griffin, Director of Programming

Marquise is a 1st year masters student in the Graduate School of the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences, working towards a M.A. in English. He earned a BA in English Literary and Cultural Studies in 2015 from Kalamazoo College in Michigan. Then he attended the University of Missouri where he earned a M.Ed in Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis. After he graduated in 2017 he spent a year in Chicago mentoring elementary and middle school students in leadership development. Marquise returned to his hometown of St. Louis to serve a year in AmeriCorps where he taught and mentored high school students in college access. He is enthusiastic about creating community and empowering spaces of belonging and is thrilled to use his position as the Director of Programming to do this for graduate students. Marquise enjoys reading comics, watching superhero shows and movies, and parkour. He is a loyal St. Louis Cardinals fan but will clap politely for the Red Sox.

Tyler Johnson, Director of Finance

Tyler is a 2^nd year masters student in the Boston College Lynch School of Education, working towards an M.S. in Applied Statistics and Psychometrics. Tyler graduate from Wake Forest University in North Carolina in the spring of 2018 with a degree in Mathematical Statistics. Originally from the Chicagoland area, Tyler is looking forward to another year of miserable winters as he settles down in Boston. He has spent the past few years working on applied data science projects for various financial companies in Chicago, as well as in his graduate coursework at BC. He is very excited to continue applying some of these skills to his second year in the role of Director of Finance for the GSA. In his free time Tyler loves watching sports, going to concerts, and eating large quantities of food.

Graduate Arts and Sciences Association (GASA)

Vicente Muñoz-Reja

Vicente Muñoz-Reja is the President of the Graduate Arts and Sciences Association. Vicente is a 5th year PhD student in the philosophy department, and currently teaches Philosophy of the Person and Spanish American Philosophy. He obtained his MA in Madrid and has researched in France, Germany, and England. His work focuses on metaphysics and the history of philosophy, particularly modern and contemporary, and he is also interested in Spanish philosophy and aesthetics.

Graduate Education Association (GEA)

James Hadaway

James is a second year master's student in the Lynch School of Education, pursuing a degree in Mental Health Counseling. He is a Florida native, just having moved to Boston in the Fall of 2017 after graduating with a B.S. in Psychology from Florida State University. As well as being a student, James currently works with kids on the autism spectrum, providing mental health services in the home to both the children and their families. James' interest include music (both writing and playing!), tennis, and reading a good book when he's not reading everything else under the sun for classes. He hopes to complete his master's program by the Spring of 2020 and is hopeful for what the future will bring!

Graduate Management Association (GMA)

Steven Highland

The Student Collective (SSW)

Takia Myers

Takia Myers is a second year MSW student with a concentration of Mental Health at the Boston College School of Social Work and the Executive Coordinator of the SSW Student Collective Leadership Council. Born and raised in the Roxbury and Dorchester areas of Boston, MA, Takia is passionate about overall well-being, particularly within urban communities, and specifically through serving Black girls and Black Womxn. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts Boston with a Bachelor of Science as a double major in Business Management and Womxn’s & Gender Studies. In her role as the Executive Coordinator, Takia is prepared to ensure a more equitable campus community is achieved through social justice efforts, collaborative advocacy for marginalized identities, and through creating spaces that truly welcomes and nurtures all those who face daily oppression. At the end of the day, when Takia removes her phenomenal femme outerwear, she enjoys turning up with her family and friends, shopping in local small businesses and boutiques, smelling scented candles, and engaging in several other activities of self-care routinely!

Graduate Student of Color Association (GSCA)

Graduate Pride Alliance (GPA)

Margaret Summerfield

Margaret is the president of the Graduate Pride Alliance. She is a fourth-year English PhD who studies early modern literature and currently teaches undergrads. She likes beekeeping, beading, and coming up with a third alliterative activity for her list of interests. She doesn't always manage it.

Graduate International Student Association (GISA)

Octavio Seijas

Octavio is a second-year master’s student in the Lynch School’s International Higher Education program. Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, he grew up in the suburbs of Boston eventually attaining his Bachelor of Science in International Business from Northeastern University. Developing a passion for travel from an early age, he has completed three study abroad programs, worked in four different continents, and has been to nearly 30 countries and territories. He hopes to use this experience to work in international programs upon graduation. Other than travelling, his passions include baseball, football, table tennis, martial arts, snowboarding, motorcycles, action and sci-fi film, anime, fantasy novels, rock and edm music, and visiting breweries.

The Student Forum (STM)

Alex Gruber

Alex Gruber is the moderator of the Student Forum of the School of Theology and Ministry. A second-year student in the Masters of Theological Studies program, he completed his undergraduate studies in Theology/Religious Studies and History at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin (and yes, he does love cheese). When not running between various meetings, Alex enjoys running for fun, reading, photography, and finding or revisiting great spots for ice cream (send suggestions his way!). Alex is grateful to serve the Student Forum and the GSA this year.

Graduate Nurses Association

Lindsey Landwherle

Lindsey Landwehrle is a second year masters student in the Connell School of nursing in the adult gerontology nurse practitioner program. She is originally from Vermont but got her bachelors degree in Maine at Bates College, where she played soccer and was an English major. Besides attending graduate school, Lindsey is a registered nurse and works at a private home care company in Boston. Lindsey enjoys skiing, reading, and playing recreational soccer on the weekends.

The Graduate Pride Alliance (GPA)

The Graduate Pride Alliance

The Graduate Pride Alliance (GPA) provides community, support, and fellowship for LGBTQ students and their allies. The Graduate Pride Alliance organizes social, educational, and advocacy events for the Boston College students. GPA sponsored Boston College’s inaugural Lavender Graduation in 2013 and the University’s first march Boston Pride Parade in partnership with the Rainbow Alliance. The GPA launched Boston College’s Safe Zone Program in 2014.

You can learn more about the GPA through our Constitution.

Connect with Us

Like us on Facebook and sign up for our listserv.

President: Margaret Summerfield
Treasurer: Divya Bhagia, MCAS

Resources for LGBTQ Students at BC

The Office of the Dean of Students offers a website listing resources for students who identify as LGBTQ or who have questions arising from their sexual or gender identity. These resources are available in a printable format here. You can also obtain a printed copy of this resource brochure at the Murray Graduate Student Center.

Graduate Students of Color Association (GSCA)

Graduate Students of Color Association

Leadership Team

Chair: Rita Ortiz
Treasurer: Alexis Briggs

Mission Statement

The framework for Graduate Students of Color Association celebrates, supports, and engages the students at Boston College who come from various racial and ethnic minority backgrounds.

We’ve summarized what we’re about in these three pillars: Identity, Advocacy, and Community. But, remember, this is just a framework. In order to fill it out and to be the best organization we can be, we need you! Get involved!

Identity

At BC, it’s not just our minds that are admitted here—no matter how brilliant ours might be. Our bodies are admitted here as well, bodies that have histories and identities, stories and treasures—embodied legacies of pain and triumph. Here at GSCA, we are convinced that a truly educational experience cannot be exclusive of or diminutive of our racial and ethnic self-understandings. That’s why we hope this group is a must-join for individuals who come to BC from backgrounds representing racial and ethnic identities that have been the occasions of societal short-sightedness, misunderstanding, and even hatred: African-Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Hispanic Americans. Moreover, enlivened by this core identity, GSCA hopes that all BC graduate students will join. After all, we are—all of us, really—persons of color. Bring yours.

Advocacy

Our campus—like our world—is imperfect, and both continue to pose challenges based in race and ethnicity (to say nothing about the challenges based in gender, sexual orientation, ability, body type, and others that GSCA members confront as well). At GSCA, we contemplate justice; we advocate for policies and programs that bring awareness to issues that are happening in our communities of accountability; and we ask questions of as well as partner with campus organizations in order to make our world better. That is, after all, why we came to grad school. Be about it.

Community

We celebrate color! It means that we celebrate the traditions, insights, and—of course—recipes and art forms that have come to us as grateful descendants. It means that we celebrate each other; encourage each other; and try our best to help make the campus experience one that is as diverse and as inclusive as our Jesuit mission inspires us to be. So let’s eat together; let’s share open-mic nights together; let’s go to sporting events together; and let’s network together. Come around!

Membership

Membership is open to ALL graduates students at Boston College. Students of color and those from underrepresented backgrounds are especially encouraged to join. All members must abide by the constitution.

To learn more visit our Facebook page!

Graduate International Student Association (GISA)

Graduate International Student Association

GISA is a student organization run by graduate international students at Boston College. Our mission is to provide educational, social and cultural opportunities to the graduate international student community at Boston College. In addition, we seek to promote and enhance positive interactions among American and International graduate students. We therefore organize and sponsor events that are open to and encourage all graduate students to take a break from their busy academic lives and have some fun while learning about each other's cultural heritages and our diverse world community.

Stay up-to-date with GISA

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Join our listserv:

Send an email to sympa@listserv.bc.edu from the address you want to subscribe to the list. Sympa is not a person but a mailing list management robot.
In the subject line of your message, type in: subscribe gisa-bc FirstName LastName (replacing FirstName LastName with your information).

Past Event Highlights

GISA Afternoon Tea
Group Dinner and a Movie
Blue Man Group Outing
GISA Spring Party
Wine Tasting Outing
Opera Evening
Resume & Cover Letter Writing Workshop
Diwali Celebration
GISA Mini-Cultural Nights (Featuring Boliva, Bulgaria, China, India, Pakistan, Rwanda, Turkey, etc.)
"A Quick Look at Ramadan & Eid around the Muslim World" Mini-Cultural Night
Graduate Student Group Tickets to the BC Football Game (co-sponsored with the GSA)
GISA/GSA Holiday Party

Shuttle Bus Initiative

The GSA in concert with the GEA (Graduate Education Association) and the GPA (Graduate Pride Alliance) is currently working with The Office of Transportation and Parking to create more convenient transportation options for Boston College graduate and undergraduate students. In particular, the GSA and BC administrators are looking to potentially implement new alternative shuttle routes. These shuttle routes would provide graduate students flexibility in terms of getting to and from school. Additionally, the new shuttle routes would connect undergraduate students to the neighborhoods surrounding Boston College and will also connect them to destinations downtown. Just as significant, students--both graduate and undergraduate--would save hundreds of dollars by using these new shuttles instead of purchasing a parking spot from Boston College. Finally, by implementing new shuttle routes, the University would address the shortage of parking on campus.

Our work with the Office of Transportation and Parking began when graduate students began to complain about increased parking rates as well as about a lack of available parking. In response, the GSA drafted a proposal that would address the needs of these students. This proposal eventually received the attention of the Heights, Boston College’s student-run newspaper.

In its plan of action, the GSA requested that the Office of Transportation and Parking either significantly reduce the annual increase in parking rates, create a parking plan proportionally priced for certain days on which pass holders are on campus, or create new and more accessible ways for students to get to campus. The BC administration was open to the third option, and discussions on potential alternative shuttle routes began in March of 2016.

In May 2016 the GSA, in collaboration with the GEA and GPA, created a survey to which approximately 600 graduate students and 350 undergraduate students responded. The data collected provided salient information that Boston College administrators plan to use in order to create the most convenient shuttle routes possible.This survey is still open for your participation through October, so participate in order to have your voice heard before decisions about expanded shuttle routes are finalized!

Constitution Reform

Recently (February 2016) the GSA completed a revision of its constitution .

Committee Members:

Craig A. Ford, Jr., Senator and Chair, Graduate Students of Color Association (Committee Chair)

Kiara Manosalvas, GSA Director of Programming

Anatoly Arlashin, Senator, Graduate Association of Arts and Sciences

Three developments summarize our work. The first development was our discovery of the scope of our project. Initially, we interpreted our charge to be the reform of the portion of the Constitution directly pertaining to the Senate (Art. IV of the current constitution). It became clear to the committee during its deliberations, however, that a responsible reform of article IV depends on a reform of nearly every part of the Constitution. Accordingly, our efforts enlarged themselves beyond Art. IV into every part of the Constitution, up to and including a re-ordering and re-articulation of the Constitution’s articles.

The second development crucially addressed our philosophy as a reforming body. Our committee’s deliberation prioritized the existence of the Senate in view of its existence as the most democratic body currently constituted within graduate student life in Boston College. In view of this, we articulated roles for the Executive Board and the Office of Graduate Student Life, respectively, that formalized processes of decision-making that privilege consensus among the Executive Board, the Office of Graduate Student Life, and the Senate, as appropriate. As a secondary priority, our committee espoused strongly the ideal of modeling the circulation of power in ways that support social justice. One way we have done this is to require gender diversity within Senate appointees from all of the student groups. Finally, we espoused democratic process in our understanding of the Senate itself, and have thus proposed the existence of standing Finance, Disciplinary, and (Executive Board) Election Committees to aid in the annual functioning of the Senate.

A third and final noteworthy development within the committee has been a more definitive conception of the responsibility that the Senate has to the student body as a whole — an item that, in the past, has been delegated to the Executive Board within the GSA. In this Constitution, it is now clear that the Senate serves at the pleasure of the students whom the Senators represent, and, to this end, we have put into place processes allowing for the immediate hearing of any graduate student appearing before the Senate for any reason, along with a process for speedy written follow-up. In doing this, the Senate claims a space of institutional power that it has not in the past--a space of truly campus-wide, institutional advocacy based in each graduate school and recognized affinity organization on campus.