Six Events to Check Out at Alumni Weekend 2022
Keshawn Young (COM’23) (from left), Allison Davis (CGS’73, COM’75), Faith Rynda (CAS’22), and Joel Christian Gill (CFA’04) at the 2021 BU Alumni Weekend wine and cheese event hosted by the Black Alumni Council.
Six Events to Check Out at Alumni Weekend 2022
From lectures to lunches to Terrier hockey, here are your weekend options
Fall in Boston means brilliant foliage, playoff baseball, and BU’s Alumni Weekend. (OK, two out of three ain’t bad.) This weekend, the University will be buzzing as more than 2,000 alums and their guests return to campus for a packed schedule of reunions, talks, tours, and of course, Terrier hockey. Mainstays like Trivia Night at Fuller’s BU Pub (Friday, September 30, 7 to 9 pm) are back, and new events like Re-U-Knighted on the BU Beach (Saturday, October 1, noon to 2 pm) are debuting. Below are six other gatherings—each of them open to all members of the BU community—not to be missed this weekend.
1. Meet Inspiring Alums
The Boston University Alumni Association will celebrate the achievements of seven alums at the 74th Best of BU Alumni Awards. Six honorees will receive 2022 Distinguished Alumni Awards: Malcolm Coles (CAS’66), former acting CEO at Americorps; Cherae M. Farmer-Dixon (SDM’14), dean of the Meharry Medical College School of Dentistry; Gina Ortiz Jones (GRS’03, Pardee’03), under secretary of the US Air Force; Howard Moore, Jr. (LAW’60), a civil rights attorney; Drew Weissman (GRS’87, MED’87), Roberts Family Professor in Vaccine Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine; and Enoch O’D. Woodhouse II (LAW’55), an original Tuskegee Airman. Lina González-Granados (CFA’20), conductor of symphonic and operatic repertoire and artistic director at the Unitas Ensemble in Los Angeles, will receive the 2022 Young Alumni Award.
Saturday, October 1, 2 to 3:30 pm
Location: Trustee Ballroom, One Silber Way, ninth floor
2. Take in the Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture
The annual Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture will be presented by Mae Ngai, a Columbia University professor of history and Lung Family Professor of Asian American Studies. Ngai will speak about the origins of anti-Chinese racism in the United States, from the gold rushes of the mid-19th century to the COVID-19 pandemic today. The lecture was endowed through the generosity of Alex H. MacDonald (CAS’72) and his late wife, Maureen A. Strafford (MED’76).
Thursday, September 29, 7 pm
Location: Tsai Performance Center, 685 Comm Ave
3. Pregame with the Terriers
Join fellow Terrier hockey fans for a buffet dinner, featuring a cash bar and complimentary soft drinks, before watching BU take on Bentley College at Agganis Arena.
Saturday, October 1, 5:30 to 7 pm (dinner), followed by the game at 7 pm
Location: Fitness & Recreation Center, 915 Comm Ave; game: Agganis Arena
Dinner cost: Adults, $20; Children, 5 to 12, $10; Children under 5, free
4. Learn from a Global Communications Expert
What have we learned about COVID-19 misinformation and disinformation, and how can we instill trust in public health information should we face another global health crisis? To address these and other questions, BU’s Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases Policy & Research will host Melissa Fleming (COM’89), United Nations Under Secretary General for global communications, for a keynote conversation focused on the ways in which misinformation and disinformation affected pandemic preparedness and response and the need for evidence-based public health information and communication. This event is free.
Friday, September 30, 2 to 3 pm
Location: Photonics Center, Room 211, 8 St. Mary’s St.
5. Explore the Connection Between Climate Change, Racism, and Health
This year’s BU Center for Antiracist Research Symposium explores how climate change, racism, and health are inextricably linked. Interactive keynotes and panels will feature national and local leaders in environmental justice, representing the sciences, policy, health care, community, and industry. The symposium will unpack the role of racism on environmental health inequities and engage the audience in thought-provoking conversation on innovative, collaborative solutions to promote sustainability and health equity through an antiracist lens. This event is sponsored by the Vertex Foundation.
Friday, September 30, 2 to 5 pm
Location: George Sherman Union
6. Grab Lunch (and a free drink!) at Fuller’s Pub
Join alumni, students, faculty, and staff for a luncheon at Fuller’s BU Pub, in the Dahod Family Alumni Center. Attendees will receive a complimentary drink ticket. The luncheon will have a limited menu that includes one burger option, three sandwich options, two salad options, and the fish and chips. Attendees are responsible for their own lunch orders.
Saturday, October 1, 11:30 to 1:30 pm
Location: Fuller’s BU Pub, 225 Bay State Rd.
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