BC honors benefactor Margot Connell and family
Boston College paid tribute to benefactor Margot Connell H’09 and the Connell family this month with a tour of the Margot Connell Recreation Center and the William F. Connell School of Nursing, in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the school’s dedication.
Margot and her late husband William (Bill) Connell ’59, who founded Connell Limited Partnership, are recognized as two of the University’s most generous supporters. They both served on the BC Board of Trustees and various capital campaign committees and enthusiastically attended BC Athletics events with their family for more than 40 years. All six of their children and six of their 18 grandchildren attended Boston College, and the couple’s vision and philanthropy enabled both the naming of the top-10 ranked school of nursing and the construction of the popular 244,000 square-foot recreation center that attracts more than 50,000 unique visitors each year.
Margot Connell (seated, far right) and members of the Connell family attended the event in their honor on April 11 (Photo by Michael Manning)
Margot Connell was joined at the April 11 anniversary celebration by her children Monica Cameron Healey ’88, Lisa C. McNamara ’89, Courtenay Connell ’91, BC Trustee William C. Connell ’94, and Terence A. Connell ’02, and six of her grandchildren, Sarah A. McNamara ’16, Ryan Connell, and Eamonn, Paris, and Declan Healey. Following the tours, they attended a dinner reception hosted by University President William P. Leahy, S.J.
CSON Dean Katherine Gregory, who joined Director of Clinical Learning and Simulation Centers Arlene McGuane and CSON students Caroline Daly ’24 and Johany Jeune ’25 for the simulation lab tour, praised the Connell family for their generosity and unwavering support of the Connell School.
Maloney Hall, home of the Connell School of Nursing
“We are so fortunate to be supported by longstanding relationships with families like the Connell family,” said Gregory. “Their assistance makes our work possible and animates it in ways that we could only have imagined 20 years ago when our school of nursing was named in honor of William F. Connell. Mr. Connell was not only a pillar of our Boston College community, but he was also a grateful patient of BC Nursing. His gratitude and the ongoing support of his family inspires us to live our mission of ‘Ever to Excel,’ seeking excellence in nursing education and research. BC Nursing—the Connell School of Nursing—is stronger than ever thanks to the Connell family.”
CSON, which earned its top-10 designation among undergraduate nursing programs from U.S. News this fall and saw its Doctor of Nursing Practice program debut at 26th nationwide in March, educates some 440 undergraduate and 340 graduate students annually.
Margot Connell Recreation Center
Associate Athletics Director Rebecca Cegledy, who led the tour of the Connell Recreation Center, thanked Margot Connell for her foresight in helping to envision a facility that fittingly serves a hardworking community of students, faculty, and staff.
“The Margot Connell Recreation Center has had a transformative effect on BC students and the entire campus community since it opened nearly five years ago,” said Cegledy. “At the dedication in 2019, Margot said she hoped the rec center would be a gathering place that offered something for everyone—a place where all students could come to work out, make friends, have fun, and relieve stress. Her gift to the BC community has exceeded all expectations.”
In addition to the benefits of a state-of-the-art facility with an aquatics center, gymnasium for basketball, volleyball, badminton, and fencing, indoor jogging track, tennis courts, spin studio, climbing wall, mind-body studio, and fitness neighborhoods where guests can pursue their own workout routines, the Connell Recreation Center allows Boston College to sponsor intramural sports that now serve more than 11,000 students annually, and club sports that engage 4,600 student participants.
Senior Vice President for University Advancement Andrew Davidson extolled the Connells for their dedication to Boston College and generosity in supporting two of the campus’s most important entities.
“There are few gifts that have had such an important impact on the BC student experience than the dedication of the William F. Connell School of Nursing in honor of Bill Connell and the creation of the Margot Connell Recreation Center in honor of Margot,” said Davidson.
“We are truly grateful to the Connell family for all they have done for Boston College.”