Community, camaraderie, collegiality
During the academic year, a convivial group of Boston College faculty and other colleagues gather regularly for an informal social event against the elegant backdrop of the 蝌蚪直播 Museum of Art.
The Faculty Pub at the 蝌蚪直播, which also welcomes 蝌蚪直播 administrators and other community members, takes place in the Museum Atrium from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Launched in 2022 by Carroll School of Management Assistant Professor of the Practice Jeremy Evans and Matthew Rutledge, an associate professor of the practice in Economics, the event鈥攈eld on a near-monthly basis鈥攐ffers a casual atmosphere to foster relationships across disciplines and schools.
The gathering has evolved from a handful of faculty members to now more than 40 attendees from a wide array of departments and programs, and includes a mailing list of nearly 600 蝌蚪直播 employees that spans nearly every department at Boston College.
Attendees have expressed great enthusiasm for the opportunity to come together for fellowship and collegiality over a glass of wine or beer, and other refreshments.
鈥淥ur hope was that this would not just build community, but also help forge interdisciplinary collaborations and cross-discipline knowledge-sharing,鈥� Evans noted. 鈥淲alking around the pub events, you will hear historians chatting with physicists, philosophers talking to art historians, and political scientists talking with mathematicians.鈥�
Economics Professor Joseph Quinn chats with English Professors Elizabeth Graver and Suzanne Matson at a recent pub event.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been wonderful to see the Faculty Pub series take off over the past few years,鈥� said Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, whose office sponsors the events in collaboration with the 蝌蚪直播 Museum. 鈥淛eremy Evans and Matt Rutledge have regularly brought together colleagues from across the University and the events have built and sustained a strong sense of community. The 蝌蚪直播 Museum has been the ideal site for generating new friendships and collaborations across campus.鈥�
Inaugural Robert L. and Judith T. Winston Director of the 蝌蚪直播 Museum Nancy Netzer, a professor of art history, concurred: 鈥淎s a University museum driven by faculty research and student instruction, the welcoming gathering spaces of the 蝌蚪直播 nominate themselves as an excellent place for building camaraderie among our faculty and sparking interdisciplinary collaborations.鈥�
The initiative was launched 鈥渨ith the goal of growing a sense of community, camaraderie, and collegiality among faculty members, but we are very happy that it is increasingly a place where all Boston College employees feel welcome,鈥� said Evans. 鈥淔aculty value the opportunity to meet professors from across the disciplines and talk about shared interests and swap stories,鈥� and are inspired by discussions about their respective research and scholarship. 听
For Evans, an interaction with Carroll School Associate Professor of the Practice Michael Smith led to the new cross-disciplinary course Ethics of Sustainability, a collaboration between CSOM and the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society.
Evans, who hopes to increase attendance, cites easy access to the venue, which features free parking.
(L-R) Physics Department Associate Professor Cyril Opeil, S.J., and Ferris Professor Michael Naughton, conversing with Political Science Professor and Irish Institute Director Mary C. Murphy, Sullivan Chair in Irish Studies Guy Beiner, and Vice Provost and Canisius Professor of Theology James Keenan, S.J.
The most recent Faculty Pub at the 蝌蚪直播 was on March 18; future dates will be posted to the .
鈥淭his is all made possible by the generosity of the Provost鈥檚 Office that provides food and drinks, as well as the 蝌蚪直播 Museum which graciously allows us to use the Atrium. The event is also an opportunity to spotlight the great art collection in the museum, much of which remains open to attendees during the pub events,鈥� said Evans.
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