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The New Science Complex

SuzanneTimmons.BLOG2Every spring, I find myself at college fairs speaking with students about Holy Cross. During my conversations,  I can’t tell you the number of times students inquire about becoming involved in the sciences while on our campus.  A few weeks ago our staff took a personal tour of the new science complex on campus. Below are some photos from the experience:

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A side view of the Integrated Science Complex.

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Senior Owen Fenton works on chemistry as part of his Fenwick Scholar presentation entitled “Chemical Body Armor: A Study on Phosphorus.”

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The new labs are designed specifically to promote hands – on exploration.

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The Complex makes high-level science “visible” by utilizing an abundance of glass and natural light in interior and exterior construction.

Suzanne R. Timmons
Assistant Director of Admissions
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What is Montserrat?

LynnVerrecchia.BLOG2Holy Cross’ first year program, Montserrat, has been the subject of many questions from students and parents over the past few years. The conversation usually begins, “I read about that program, Mont….?” Though many struggle with the pronunciation (sound it out-it’s easier than it looks!), most are intrigued by its goals and excited to participate.

For those of you who have never heard of Montserrat, or those of you who are excited about it but still don’t completely understand what it is, this blog’s for you.

Learning: Your Montserrat seminar

-the Montserrat seminar is one of your four courses during your freshman year

-it’s a year-long course (other courses are semester-long)

-there will be only first-year students in the class (you may have upperclassmen in other courses)

-classes are small and discussion-based

-students select their top choices (from nearly fifty seminars) and are placed in one of those classes

-some seminars are team-taught by two or more professors

-sample seminars from 2009-2010: The Structure of the Mind, Violence & Non-Violence and Literature & Science

Living: Residence hall life

-first year students are housed in three residence halls

-students are grouped together by cluster (groups of seminars) ensuring that all students in your seminar will also live in your residence hall

-students participate in programming like banquet dinners, documentary screenings, and author talks

Doing: Getting involved in the campus community and beyond

Past students have:

-conducted a memoir-writing workshop to help local high school students find their voices

-organized a student panel discussion about racial and ethnic relations on college campuses

-interviewed Southeast Asian-Americans in Worcester about their life histories

-received special training from Worcester Art Museum curators to lead visitors through an Italian painting exhibition

To learn more, visit the Montserrat website.

Lynn Verrecchia
Sr. Assistant Director of Admissions
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Why Holy Cross? Community, Balance, Location

TranKim-Senior.BLOG2In case you are still debating whether or not Holy Cross is for you, I want to offer some of my personal and professional thoughts on why Holy Cross is so special and why you should apply. 

The community that exists at Holy Cross is incredibly supportive, nurturing and close-knit.  It is a place where students look out for each other, where faculty members take time to help each student succeed and where administrators take the time to get to know and care for each student.  You cannot get lost here as a student unless you are purposely trying to hide.  Struggle is inherent to the college experience, but regardless of the challenges they face during their time on the hill, students at Holy Cross have always been able to find the support they need to overcome any adversity and succeed.    

Second, you have the best of both worlds at Holy Cross, the excitement of a large school setting and the intimacy of a small school setting.  Because we offer a Division I athletic program, you will find incredible support for athletics and a strong network of fans for our various sports teams.  As I often say to students, you have the feel and energy of a bigger school at Holy Cross even though we are a community of less than 3,000.  It’s a place where you can count on students to proudly don their Holy Cross gear at football games or paint themselves purple to attend a basketball game.  At the same time, you can always count on receiving the best of what a small school can offer you:  one-on-one attention in the academic arena.  In the classroom, you are treated as an individual and as an intellectual.  Professors will not just talk at you but they will talk to you, and you can always expect to have a collaborative relationship with faculty members.

 A third reason is our location in Worcester.  Worcester is the second largest city in the New England region and is an incredible environment for higher learning.  It is rich in culture and industry with residents from all over the world and industries that range from medicine to education to business.  There is a little bit of something for everyone. Such an environment is uncommon for a small liberal arts school, most of which are located in more rural environments.  In Worcester, it is easy to find good food, good shopping and good entertainment among other things. 

I could give you a plethora of other reasons to attend Holy Cross but there’s not enough time.  I hope that these thoughts give you a few more things to consider as you make your enrollment decision.  And of course, I hope to see you on campus this coming fall!

 

Tran Kim-Senior
Assistant Director of Admissions
Coordinator of Multicultural Recruitment
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From Beginning to End

LynnVerrecchia.BLOG2Spring marks an interesting time in the life of an admissions officer. Letters are in the mail, and we will work over the next month to convince our amazing body of admitted students that Holy Cross is where they should spend the next four years. At the same time, we will begin to work with high school juniors as they begin their college search. We are simultaneously working with students who are at the beginning of this process, and with students who have lived to tell about it.

Today I attended my first spring college fair event, where I met with a wonderful group of juniors and their parents. This I expected. What I didn’t expect was the conversation I had with an administrator at the high school. He approached me, business card in hand, and asked that I pass his name along to any graduating Holy Cross students who might be looking for a teaching job.  He simply said that he’d had a “great experience” with our students. I have no doubt that there are companies across the country who hire Holy Cross students for exactly that same reason. And come to think of it, I shouldn’t have been surprised by our conversation at all.

 Though many of you are ending your college search, you are just beginning a wonderful new chapter in your lives. And as our new students make their admission deposits and look forward to orientation and class registration, our seniors will be packing up their rooms and making plans for their next beginning.

 Holy Cross is here to support you with this new beginning, and with your next one too.

 

Lynn Verrecchia
Sr. Assistant Director of Admissions
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Civility: The Etiquette of Holy Cross

alyssa-t[1] brightenedThe summer before I entered Holy Cross, my Class Dean suggested all future Crusaders read Civility by Stephen Carter.  My parents bought it for me at the bookstore during Gateways and it sat on my shelf all summer.  Two days before I moved into Mulledy Hall I reluctantly read it and, (to my surprise) loved it.  During my four years on “the hill,” I was pleased to find that random acts of kindness existed and the Jesuit ideal of “men and women for others” lived strong…..and it still does.

Yesterday, I contemplated what my most distinct memory of the 2009 travel season was and as a result I reflected on several months on the road.  One might think it was interviewing bright minds or meeting fabulous students, counselors, secretaries and teachers who all brightened my days on the road.  Undoubtedly, my interactions with those people were some of my favorite memories but definitely not the most distinct.  The day that truly sets itself apart was a lunch that managed to make me feel completely alone.

I had an hour break between high school visits so I decided to get some soup at Panera.  As I placed the bowl down on the table the massive platter went flying and landed all over me. From my hair down to my shoes, I was covered.  It was there, in a crowded restaurant, I became truly amazed with the lack of civility in today’s society.  To my amazement not one person came over and offered a helping hand.  Sadly, that day served as a tragic realization that civility sometimes fails to exist in our society.

Standing there embarrassed and smelling of vegetable broth I had a flashback to my first year at the Cross.  I was in Kimball, enjoying a meal with my friends, when a girl slipped on a wet tile and went flying.  The throngs of students that rushed to her side would have made Stephen Carter proud.  I truly believe civility is commonplace at Holy Cross and I find myself constantly amazed by positive student actions.  Sadly enough in the “real world” it is increasingly more difficult to find.

After all, my clumsy arm did ruin my cream pants but it was the pure example of fading civility which managed to destroy my entire day.

Alyssa Trometter

Admissions Counselor
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Newest Admissions Counselor Nicole Zervos Introduces Herself

NicoleZervosHi! My name is Nicole Zervos and I am the newest Admissions Counselor at Holy Cross! I graduated from Holy Cross this past May where I majored in Sociology. I’m from Narragansett, Rhode Island and love the New England area. On a nice summer day, you can probably find me on the beach reading a good book, but I also enjoy heading up to the mountains in the winter to ski and snowboard. I’m a huge Red Sox fan, love to watch the medical mysteries unfold on the TV show House and enjoy spending time with my family, friends and chocolate lab.  At Holy Cross, I was involved in the SPUD community service program and the Appalachia service trips, peer-education, the Sociology department Student Advisory Committee, and working in the Office of Orientation, Transition and Leadership.

Why have I chosen to come back and work in Admissions at Holy Cross? First of all, I was curious to see how the admissions process worked from a different perspective. Because I was a transfer student to Holy Cross, I actually went through the process of applying to college three times! I spent so much time working on applications that I became interested to find out how the selection process operated from the other side. Secondly, and more importantly, it was my positive experience at Holy Cross that has made me want to spread the word to prospective students. Everyone here truly cares about each other and there is a wonderful sense of community on this campus. For example, when I first transferred in to Holy Cross, I thought it would be difficult to get to know people and become integrated into campus life. Within my first week on campus, my Resident Assistant, Community Development Coordinator, and several girls on my floor had all come by my room several times to see how I was doing. My class dean as well as my professors also contacted me to check in and make the adjustment to Holy Cross a smooth one. Now that I have transitioned to being a staff member, nothing has changed! Ever since I started working in the Admissions Office, every member of the Admissions team has been constantly stopping by my office and trying to help me out in any way possible. As you can see, this is a truly special place.

This fall, I’ll be traveling to Connecticut, Westchester County in New York, Western Massachusetts, and Florida. I’m looking forward to meeting students and sharing my experiences at Holy Cross. Best of luck with your senior year and the college application process!
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Top Five Reasons Why I Love Holy Cross

(This message is brought to you by “Picture Perfect”, the photo blog that illustrates day-to-day life at Holy Cross).

#5. Students from Texas are willing to try anything new, even ice skating inside the Hogan Campus Center.

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#4. Holy Cross students combine a love of the outdoors and a love of the Patriots by moving their couches and televisions outside on Sundays in the fall.

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#3.Skiing is as close as 15 minutes away.

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#2 Students from Maryland get creative with dining hall food and even win money for it.

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#1 Our President has a doctorate in computer engineering, is a Jesuit priest, jogs nearly every morning before most of us are awake, volunteers alongside our students AND he looks good in a baseball cap.

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Andrew N. Carter
Associate Director of Admissions
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“Why I love Holy Cross”

tranThere are so many wonderful qualities to Holy Cross that it’s hard to just focus on one…but that is my assignment for this entry.  Of all the characteristics that define Holy Cross, the one that impresses me the most is our active commitment  to social justice and service.  Having been at two other small liberal arts institutions prior to coming to Holy Cross, I have seen three different versions of the small, undergraduate liberal arts experience,  and the main differentiation for me is the call to service that stems from our Jesuit mission.  Helping those in need is something that is personally and professionally important to me and I always felt somewhat alone in my commitment to social issues but when I came here, I was pleasantly blown away by the strength of Holy Cross’s commitment to serving the greater community.  Students, faculty and staff truly believe in the Jesuit mission to serve others and because of our mission, there is a certain tone of caring and compassion on campus that I just haven’t seen anywhere else.  I find myself constantly inspired and challenged to find more meaningful ways to help and serve because of the environment here at Holy Cross.

Tran Kim-Senior
Assistant Director of Admissions
Coordinator of Multicultural Recruitment
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“Why I love Holy Cross”

lauren-tWe know you have a big decision to make.  Over the next few weeks, members of the Holy Cross community will share their thoughts on what makes Holy Cross so special.

As a newcomer to the Holy Cross community, I am often asked “Why Holy Cross?” The thing I love the most about Holy Cross is quite simple:  We have motivated, interesting students.

From my interactions with various students on campus, I have come to find that our students have an amazingly wide variety of interests.  Each individual pursues their passions fiercely, whatever they may be.  I have met the Music/Premed major who is also the president of the ballroom dance team and volunteers through SPUD (Student Programs for Urban Development). I have met the Studio Art major who hosts students through Admissions Office, but also participates in one of the most spirited organizations on campus, the Purple Key Society. I have met the undeclared first year student who is part of Oxfam America, Best Buddies, plays on the Women’s Rugby team, and is a Eucharistic minister.  No matter what a student’s interest might be, they are encouraged to pursue it during their four short years here.  And although I was not a student here during my undergraduate years, I have come to love this campus and its students as if it were my very own.

Lauren D. Thornton
Admissions Counselor
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“Why I love Holy Cross”

Ann McDermott

We know you have a big decision to make.  Over the next few weeks, members of the Holy Cross community will share their thoughts on what makes Holy Cross so special.

As I was walking through the Admissions Office waiting room, I overheard one of our students speaking with a group of visitors.  “I absolutely love it here!  I can’t imagine myself anywhere else,”

That is what I love about Holy Cross.  Our students are not only amazing, they are amazingly happy.

I encourage you to take some time to learn why.  On April 15th and 22nd,  log on to our on-line chats and “talk” to our students about their experiences here.  Come to the Open House on April 19th and see first hand what is unique and special about Holy Cross.

Ann McDermott
Director of Admissions