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 McMullen Museum of Art.
The Faculty Pub at the McMullen, which also welcomes BC 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—held on a near-monthly basis—offers 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 BC 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.
“Our hope was that this would not just build community, but also help forge interdisciplinary collaborations and cross-discipline knowledge-sharing,” Evans noted. “Walking around the pub events, you will hear historians chatting with physicists, philosophers talking to art historians, and political scientists talking with mathematicians.”
Economics Professor Joseph Quinn chats with English Professors Elizabeth Graver and Suzanne Matson at a recent pub event.
“It’s been wonderful to see the Faculty Pub series take off over the past few years,” said Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, whose office sponsors the events in collaboration with the McMullen Museum. “Jeremy 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 McMullen Museum has been the ideal site for generating new friendships and collaborations across campus.”
Inaugural Robert L. and Judith T. Winston Director of the McMullen Museum Nancy Netzer, a professor of art history, concurred: “As a University museum driven by faculty research and student instruction, the welcoming gathering spaces of the McMullen nominate themselves as an excellent place for building camaraderie among our faculty and sparking interdisciplinary collaborations.”
The initiative was launched “with 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,” said Evans. “Faculty value the opportunity to meet professors from across the disciplines and talk about shared interests and swap stories,” and are inspired by discussions about their respective research and scholarship.
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 McMullen was on March 18; future dates will be posted to the BC Events Calendar.
“This is all made possible by the generosity of the Provost’s Office that provides food and drinks, as well as the McMullen 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,” said Evans.