What colleges are in Boston?

Boston College offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees through its nine schools and colleges: Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences, Boston College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Carroll School of Management, Lynch School of Education, Connell School of Nursing, Boston College Graduate School of Social Work, Boston College Law School, Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, Woods College of Advancing Studies. In 2018, Boston College was ranked America's 50th top college by "Forbes". According to "U.S. News & World Report", the school tied as the 38th best national school.

Boston College

Boston College (also referred to as BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. The university's name reflects its early history as a liberal arts college and preparatory school (now Boston College High School) in Dorchester. It is a member of the 568 Group and the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. Its main campus is a historic district and features some of the earliest examples of collegiate gothic architecture in North America.

Boston College athletic teams are known as the Eagles, their colors are maroon and gold, and mascot is Baldwin the Eagle. The Eagles compete in NCAA Division I as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference in all sports offered by the ACC. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East. Boston College's men's ice hockey team has won five national championships.

In 1825, Benedict Joseph Fenwick, S.J., a Jesuit from Maryland, became the second Bishop of Boston. He was the first to articulate a vision for a "College in the City of Boston" that would raise a new generation of leaders to serve both the civic and spiritual needs of his fledgling diocese. In 1827, Bishop Fenwick opened a school in the basement of his cathedral and took to the personal instruction of the city's youth. His efforts to attract other Jesuits to the faculty were hampered both by Boston's distance from the center of Jesuit activity in Maryland and by suspicion on the part of the city's Protestant elite. Relations with Boston's civic leaders worsened such that, when a Jesuit faculty was finally secured in 1843, Fenwick decided to leave the Boston school and instead opened the College of the Holy Cross west of the city in Worcester, Massachusetts where he felt the Jesuits could operate with greater autonomy. Meanwhile, the vision for a college in Boston was sustained by John McElroy, S.J., who saw an even greater need for such an institution in light of Boston's growing Irish Catholic immigrant population. With the approval of his Jesuit superiors, McElroy went about raising funds and in 1857 purchased land for "The Boston College" on Harrison Avenue in the Hudson neighborhood of South End, Boston, Massachusetts. With little fanfare, the college's two buildings—a schoolhouse and a church—welcomed their first class of scholastics in 1859. Two years later, with as little fanfare, BC closed again. Its short-lived second incarnation was plagued by the outbreak of Civil War and disagreement within the Society over the college's governance and finances. BC's inability to obtain a charter from the anti-Catholic Massachusetts legislature only compounded its troubles.

On, more than three decades after its initial inception, Boston College's charter was formally approved by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. BC became the second Jesuit institution of higher learning in Massachusetts and the first located in the Boston area. Johannes Bapst, S.J., a Swiss Jesuit from French-speaking Fribourg, was selected as BC's first president and immediately reopened the original college buildings on Harrison Avenue. For most of the 19th century, BC offered a singular 7-year program corresponding to both high school and college. Its entering class in the fall of 1864 included 22 students, ranging in age from 11 to 16 years. The curriculum was based on the Jesuit "Ratio Studiorum", emphasizing Latin, Greek, philosophy, and theology.

Boston College's enrollment reached nearly 500 by the turn of the 20th century. Expansion of the South End buildings onto James Street enabled increased separation between the high school and college divisions, though Boston College High School remained a constituent part of Boston College until 1927 when it was separately incorporated. In 1907, newly installed President Thomas I. Gasson, S.J., determined that BC's cramped, urban quarters in Boston's South End were inadequate and unsuited for significant expansion. Inspired by John Winthrop's early vision of Boston as a "city upon a hill", he re-imagined Boston College as world-renowned university and a beacon of Jesuit scholarship. Less than a year after taking office, he purchased Amos Adams Lawrence's farm on Chestnut Hill, six miles (10 km) west of the city. He organized an international competition for the design of a campus master plan and set about raising funds for the construction of the "new" university. Construction began in 1909.

By 1913, construction costs had surpassed available funds, and as a result Gasson Hall, "New BC's" main building, stood alone on Chestnut Hill for its first three years. Buildings of the former Lawrence farm, including a barn and gatehouse, were temporarily adapted for college use while a massive fundraising effort was underway. While Maginnis's ambitious plans were never fully realized, BC's first "capital campaign"—which included a large replica of Gasson Hall's clock tower set up on Boston Common to measure the fundraising progress—ensured that President Gasson's vision survived. By the 1920s BC began to fill out the dimensions of its university charter, establishing the Boston College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, the Boston College Law School, and the Woods College of Advancing Studies, followed successively by the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work, the Carroll School of Management, the Connell School of Nursing, and the Lynch School of Education. In 1926, Boston College conferred its first degrees on women (though it did not become fully coeducational until 1970). On April 20, 1963, an address by President John F. Kennedy, the nation's first Catholic president who had received an honorary degree in 1956, was the highlight of a week-long centennial celebration. With the rising prominence of its graduates, Boston College and its powerful Alumni Association had established themselves among the city's leading institutions. At the city, state and federal levels, BC graduates dominated Massachusetts politics for much of the 20th century. However, cultural changes in American society and in the church following the Second Vatican Council forced the university to question its purpose and mission. Meanwhile, poor financial management lead to deteriorating facilities and resources, and rising tuition costs. Student outrage, combined with growing protests over Vietnam and the bombings in Cambodia, culminated in student strikes, including demonstrations at Gasson Hall in April 1970.
By the time J. Donald Monan, S.J. began his presidency on September 5, 1972, BC was approximately $30 million in debt, its endowment totaled just under $6 million, and faculty and staff salaries had been frozen during the previous year. Rumors about the university's future were rampant, including speculation that BC would be acquired by Harvard University. After Monan's appointment, the Boston College Board of Trustees was reconfigured. The board was broadened beyond its historic membership of members of the Society of Jesus, as lay alumni and business leaders were brought in, bringing new business models and an ability to raise funds. A similar restructuring had been accomplished first at the University of Notre Dame in 1967 by Fr. Theodore Hesburgh, CSC, and Edmund Stephan, with many other Catholic colleges following suit in the ensuing years. In 1974, Newton College of the Sacred Heart was merged into BC, allowing expansion of Boston College to the Newton College campus. Boston College Law School moved to the campus, and its dormitories provided needed housing for a student population that was increasingly residential, for which the school had to lease off-campus apartments and even motel rooms. Monan was credited with turning around the school's financial position, leading to an improved reputation and increasing attention from around the world. In 1996, Monan's 24-year presidency, the longest in the university's history, came to an end when he was named University Chancellor and succeeded by President William P. Leahy, S.J.

Since assuming the Boston College presidency, Leahy's tenure has been marked with an acceleration of the growth and development initiated by his predecessor, as well as by what some critics see as abandonment of the college's initial mission to provide a college education for residents of Boston. It has expanded by almost, while dramatically reducing the greenery of its middle campus, although portions of the college's legendary "Dustbowl" were removed to accommodate additional expansion of its buildings. During this period, undergraduate applications have surpassed 31,000. At the same time, BC students, faculty and athletic teams have seen indicators of success—winning record numbers of Fulbrights, Rhodes, and other academic awards; setting new marks for research grants; and winning conference and national titles. In 2002, Leahy initiated the Church in the 21st Century program to examine issues facing the Catholic Church in light of the clergy sexual abuse scandal. His effort brought BC worldwide praise and recognition for "leading the way on Church reform." Recent plans to merge with the Weston Jesuit School of Theology were followed by an article in "The New York Times" claiming "such a merger would further Boston College's quest to become the nation's Catholic intellectual powerhouse" and that, once approved by the Vatican and Jesuit authorities in Rome, BC "would become "the" center for the study of Roman Catholic theology in the United States." On February 16, 2006, the merger was authorized by the Jesuit Conference.

In 2003, after years of student-led discussions and efforts, and administrators' repeated rejection of pleas from students, the school approved a Gay-Straight Alliance, the first university-funded gay support group on campus. In 2004, between 1,000 and 1,200 students rallied behind a student-led campaign to expand the school's non-discrimination statement to include equal protection for gays and lesbians. Earlier that year 84% of the student body voted in favor of a student referendum calling for a change in policy. After several months of discussion the university changed its statement of nondiscrimination to make it more welcoming to gay students in May 2005, but stopped short of prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
On December 5, 2007, Boston College announced a master plan, a $1.6 billion, 10-year plan to revamp the campus and hire new faculty. The plan includes over $700 million for new buildings and renovations of the campus, including construction of four new academic buildings, a sharp reduction in the size of the legendary "dustbowl" campus green, a recreation center to replace the Flynn Recreation Complex, a university center to replace McElroy Commons (which is slated for destruction), and the creation of 610 beds for student housing, as well as many other constructions and renovations. The plan has been criticized by Boston city officials. On February 21, 2008, Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino warned the school to construct new dormitory building on its main campus, rather than on property acquired from the Archdiocese of Boston. The school was long an institution that targeted commuter students from the Boston area, however in the school's pursuit of a national legacy, that function has been forgotten as the number of commuter students enrolled dropped from well over 50% to a mere three students, according to statistics published by the alumni magazine.

On June 10, 2009, Mayor Menino and Boston's zoning commission approved the Boston College Master Plan, signaling an end to the long approval process, while allowing the school to enter design and planning phases.

On October 18, 2017, hundreds of students walked out of class in a protest against racism and to demand the college officials pay more attention to the school's racial climate. The walk out was sparked by the defacing of two Black Lives Matter posters and an offensive photo was circulated on social media sites. On December 8, 2018, walls, furniture, and a bathroom in the Welch Hall were vandalized with racist, anti-black graffiti. Also, over the previous months, pro-refugee and Black Lives Matter signs were repeatedly removed around campus.

Boston College's main campus in Chestnut Hill, west of downtown Boston, is and includes over 120 buildings set on a hilltop overlooking the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. A "Boston College" streetcar station on metro Boston's "T", or public transit system, is located at St. Ignatius Gate; it is the western terminus of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line's B-branch (also known as the "Boston College" line) and connects the school to Boston's city center and to destinations in the Boston metropolitan area. Due largely to its location and presence of buildings featuring gothic towers reaching into the sky, the Boston College campus is known generally as the "Heights" and to some as the "Crowned Hilltop". The main campus is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Designed by Charles Donagh Maginnis and his firm Maginnis & Walsh in 1908, the Boston College campus is a seminal example of Collegiate Gothic architecture. Combining Gothic Revival architecture with principles of Beaux-Arts planning, Maginnis proposed a vast complex of academic buildings set in a cruciform plan. Maginnis's design broke from the traditional Oxbridge models that had inspired it—and that had until then characterized Gothic architecture on American campuses. In its unprecedented scale, Gasson Tower was conceived not as the belfry of a singular building, but as the crowning campanile of Maginnis' new "city upon a hill". Although Maginnis' ambitious Gothic project never saw full completion, its central portion was built according to plan and forms the core of what is now BC's iconic middle campus. Among these, the Bapst Library has been called the "finest example of Collegiate Gothic architecture in America" and Devlin Hall won the Harleston Parker Medal for "most beautiful building in Boston". The 1895 Louis K. Liggett Estate was acquired in 1941 and developed into a Tudor-style upper campus, while an architecturally eclectic lower campus took shape on land acquired by filling in part of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. Modernism had an enormous impact on development after the 1940s, though some of the modernist buildings at BC maintained non-modern rough stone facades in keeping with Maginnis's original designs.

Boston College's eight research libraries contain over two million printed volumes. Including manuscripts, journals, government documents and microform items, ranging from ancient papyrus scrolls to digital databases, the collections have some twelve million items. Together with the university's museums, they include original manuscripts and prints by Galileo, Ignatius of Loyola, and Francis Xavier as well as world renowned collections in Jesuitana, Irish literature, sixteenth century Flemish tapestries, ancient Greek pottery, Caribbean folk art and literature, Japanese prints, U.S. government documents, Congressional Archives, and paintings that span the history of art from Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Opened in 1928, Bapst Library was named for the first president of Boston College (Johannes Bapst, S.J., 1815 to 1887) and it was one of the few structures built according to Charles Donagh Maginnis' original "Oxford in America" master plan. Bapst served as the university's main library until 1984. A guide to the building's stained glass windows is available online. The Burns Library of Rare Books and Special Collections is home to more than 150,000 volumes, some 15 million manuscripts and other important works, including a world-renowned collection of Irish literature. A rare facsimile of the Book of Kells is on public display in the library's Irish Room, and each day one page of the illuminated manuscript is turned. It also houses the papers of prominent Boston College alumni. The library is named after the Honorable John. J. Burns (1901 to 1957), Massachusetts Superior Court Justice and a member of the Boston College Class of 1921.

There are a variety of student housing options for students on campus. Those located on lower campus are Walsh, Rubenstein, Ignacio, 90 St. Thomas More Road, 66 Commonwealth Ave, Vanderslice, Gabelli, Voute, Stayer, and 'The Mods'. Roncalli, Welch, and Williams Halls are located on middle campus on College Road. Freshman housing on Upper Campus includes Kostka, Gonzaga, Fitzpatrick, Medeiros, Cheverus, Claver, Loyola, Xavier, Fenwick, and Shaw House. Additional freshman housing is on the Newton Campus and includes Cushing, Duchesne (East and West), Hardey, and Keyes (North and South).

In the fall of 2010, Boston College began construction of Stokes Hall, a academic building on what was formerly known as the Dustbowl. Stokes Hall is the first academic building to be constructed on the Middle Campus since 2001. It was completed in December 2012, and opened for use in January 2013. In 2014, the university reconstructed St. Mary's Hall and renovated indoor pieces of Carney Hall. More Hall had been demolished to make way for a new residence hall in July 2014, slated to open sometime in 2016.

Located on middle campus, Carney Faculty Center no longer hosts classes and is largely vacant. Rather, the building houses the offices of the Army ROTC program as well as the Student Program Offices. Often known as 'dark and dank', the building is distinct from the quadrangle area located across the campus green, known as the Dustbowl. Built in 1963, Carney has an unusual structure seeming to face away from the rest of campus. Contrary to popular belief, the building was not built backwards but rather styled to allow more offices to have windows, according to BC Historian, Professor Thomas O'Connor. The Beacon Street side of the building contains a fountain in the middle of the courtyard; the fountain has been dry for decades as the result of the frequent use of powdered soap pranks by undergraduate students. The building additionally contains sets of unused lockers throughout the floors, which added to the fictitious speculation of the building being a former high school although they had been used by the commuter students who formed the vast majority of enrollment for many years. The existing 10 year university plan slates Carney Hall for reconstruction. Sections of the first floor have received new carpets, fresh coats of paint, and new ceiling tiles. The existing university 30–50 year plan schedules the reconstructed building to remain part of the quadrangle.

Located on the Southwest Corner of middle campus, McElroy is referred to by students as 'Mac,' reflecting the common, but incorrect, pronunciation of the building's name. McElroy Commons holds a variety of offices and contains Carney's Dining Hall which serves the majority of students living on College Road and Upper Campus. Eagle's Nest, a lunch spot is located on the second floor of the building. The first floor of the building was updated in the summer of 2013.

One of the most iconic images of Boston College lies within Gargan Hall of Bapst Library. Gargan Hall is a widely popular study location for students, open 24 hours on most days and known as the quietest place on campus. Gargan Hall regularly finds itself in the top 10 of the world's most beautiful libraries. While for years the hall contained a red rug, the hall now is carpeted in emerald green. This art library contains over 51,000 volumes, 150 serial titles, and access to hundreds of journal databases and electronic journals in Art, Architecture, Museum Studies and Photography. The library maintains print and electronic reserves for courses in the Fine Arts.

In addition to the main campus at Chestnut Hill, BC's Newton Campus, formerly Newton College of the Sacred Heart, is located to the west. The campus is home to the law school, Stuart Dining Hall, Trinity Chapel, and residential housing for roughly 40% of the freshman class. Two athletic fields and a recreation center are also located on the campus. A new building opened in 1996 housing the Law Library for the Boston College Law School in Newton.

Between 2004 and 2007, Boston College acquired of land from the Archdiocese of Boston. The grounds are named after Brighton, the Boston neighborhood in which it is located, as the municipal border sits on the street intersection where the two properties meet. It is adjacent to the main campus (on the opposite side of Commonwealth Avenue), and includes the Italian Renaissance-style historic mansion of the Cardinal's residence. The mansion now houses the McMullen Museum of Art, which has a prominent permanent collection and organizes exhibits from all periods and cultures of art history. Recent exhibits and acquisitions include works by Edvard Munch, Amedeo Modigliani, Frank Stella, Françoise Gilot, John LaFarge, and Jackson Pollock. Admission to the museum is free and open to the general public. In 2008, the Weston Jesuit School of Theology merged with Boston College, and the new School of Theology and Ministry moved to Brighton. In addition to other offices and facilities, the Brighton campus is home to baseball, softball and recreational fields.
In 2017, the university purchased the 24-acre Mishkan Tefila Synagogue property in Chestnut Hill. When purchased, the property was only used for administrative services and event parking. The former synagogue's 806-seat auditorium has since been opened as a new rehearsal and event venue for Boston College's Robsham Theater Arts Center. It is currently the largest venue for theater at the university. Additionally, the building houses a large, ballroom-style, multi-purpose room and a hexagon-shaped meeting room for performances, events, and conferences. An outdoor quad is also available to be used for events and the performing arts.

The University owns and maintains a number of other properties around Massachusetts and the Republic of Ireland.In marketing materials, Boston College claimed to utilize sustainable energy, water efficiency, local food, recycling, and green computing. Since February 2007, Boston College has submetered electricity in 24 of its residence halls and since 2008 the college holds an annual energy competition between residential halls. During that time and throughout the year, students can track their energy consumption in real time on their computers using an Energy Dashboard application built by Lucid Design Group Inc. It is not known how many students participate in this program. Boston College is considering the potential of geothermal power, solar panels, and combined heat and power plants. A student-run organic garden was started in spring 2008. The college says it is looking into implementing the practices and ideology of xeriscaping and sustainable landscape architecture to minimize water use on campus grounds.

Its annual operating budget is approximately $667 million. The most recent and ongoing fundraising campaign, dubbed "Light the World", was announced on October 11, 2008. The seven-year campaign aims to raise $1.5 billion in honor of the 150th anniversary of the college. Funds raised will be used to support the strategic priorities of the university, including academic programs, financial aid, Jesuit Catholic identity, athletics, student programming, and capital construction projects.

The 112 Jesuits living on the Boston College campus make up one of the largest Jesuit communities in the world and include members of the faculty and administration, graduate students, and visiting international scholars.

The chapel for the university is located in St. Mary's Hall, the Jesuit residential facility. Additional BC chapels are Trinity Chapel on the Newton Campus, St. Joseph's Chapel in the Basement of Gonzaga Hall on Upper Campus, Simboli Hall Chapel on the Brighton Campus, and St. Catherine of Sienna Chapel in Cushing Hall. Over 70 Catholic Masses are celebrated on Campus each week during the Academic Year. The college also maintains close relations with the nearby Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. The church is named after the founder of the Jesuit order, Saint Ignatius of Loyola. It is run independently of the Archdiocese and is staffed by the Jesuits. Although not technically the university's church, Boston College provides the parish with Internet access, e-mail service, telephone and voice mail service, parking, and dormitory space for the religious education program. Each year, several Boston College students teach in the religious education program. Jesuits priests from Boston College occasionally preside at the church's liturgies. St. Ignatius provides a spiritual home for many students during their time at Boston College and has also hosted alumni weddings. The church building is also used by the college for some of their larger religious events.

St. Columbkille Parish is a Catholic Church and elementary school in Brighton, Massachusetts that has an alliance with BC. Under the agreement, the parish school is to be governed by a board of members and a board of trustees comprising representatives from the Archdiocese of Boston, Boston College, St. Columbkille Parish and the greater Boston community. The board of trustees will authorize an audit of the school's curriculum, faculty, finances, and facilities before creating a strategic plan to guide the school in the future. Lynch School of Education faculty will work directly with the school's teachers on faculty and curriculum development, presenting new approaches to education and working to establish best practices in the classroom. The agreement, announced in March 2006 by University President William P. Leahy, S.J., and Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley, OFM Cap., is believed to represent the first such collaboration between a Catholic university and a parochial school in the United States.

For the Class of 2022, Boston College received 31,098 applications, of which it admitted 8,400 (27%). The Class of 2021 includes students from 45 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and 39 foreign countries; likewise, the Class of 2022 currently includes students from 46 states and 40 foreign countries.
Boston College is a research university and comprises nine schools and colleges:

Boston College tied in 38th among national universities and 421st among global universities in "U.S. News & World Report" "America's Best Colleges 2018" rankings and 50th in the "Forbes" 2018 edition of "America's Top Colleges", In 2014, the undergraduate school of business, the Carroll School of Management, placed 4th in an annual ranking of US undergraduate business schools by "Bloomberg Businessweek", climbing two spots from 2013 in which it placed 6th. A 2007 Princeton Review survey of parents that asked "What 'dream college' would you most like to see your child attend were prospects of acceptance or cost not issues?" placed BC 6th.

BC is also home to highly ranked and competitive graduate programs. In its 2015 report, "U.S. News & World Report" ranked the social work program 10th in the nation, its education school 24th, its school of nursing 21st, its law school 26th and its full-time MBA program 45th. In 2010 "Financial Times" ranked the full-time BC MBA Program #23 in the US and #47 in the world.

The Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program is a competitive undergraduate program offered to a subset of early action applicants of Boston College. Students who accept an invitation to apply for the program are asked to spend a weekend at Boston College, where they complete several interviews and participate in a mock honors program seminar. The Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program is very competitive; out of the Boston College applicants invited to apply to the GPSP program, 15 are awarded the scholarship. Since the entire early application pool is evaluated in determining who to grant application invitations to, the overall admissions rate of the program is less than 1%. The scholarship includes a number of enrichment opportunities such as several summer programs, among them a summer-long international study program for language proficiency and academic or professional advancement and "high-level" internships. This program offers a full-tuition scholarship to Boston College.

The Order of the Cross and Crown, founded in 1939, is the College of Arts and Sciences honor society for seniors who have achieved an average of at least A−, as well as established records of unusual service and leadership on the campus. The selections committee, composed of the deans, faculty members, and administration, appoints specially distinguished members of the Order to be its officers as Chief Marshal and Marshals. Induction into the Cross and Crown Honor Society is one of the highest and most prestigious honors that BC students can receive. Campbell Soup Company CEO, Denise Morrison is an example of one prominent member.Philosophy has long been an important part of the university's curriculum. In the seventies, Boston College's Philosophy Department distinguished itself from the majority of American Departments by promoting the study of Continental European philosophy over and above analytic philosophy. Under the direction of Department Chair Joseph Flanagan, SJ and following the example of Fordham University, the department branched out from its traditional strengths in philosophy of religion, ancient/medieval philosophy, and Thomism. It has since become a leading university in the United States for the study of continental philosophy.

The Department has featured as permanent faculty a number of noted continental philosophers including Heidegger scholar William J. Richardson, SJ as well as experts in phenomenology Richard Cobb-Stevens and Jacques Taminiaux. The Department today still has a large proportion of experts in continental philosophy including European philosophy and literature expert Richard Kearney, expert in phenomenology John Sallis, expert in Christian philosophy and apologetics Peter Kreeft, and experts in social and political philosophy David M. Rasmussen and James Bernauer, SJ. Since the seventies, the Department has also had a number of notable visiting professors including Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jean-Luc Marion, and Bernard Lonergan, SJ.

AHANA is the term Boston College uses to refer to persons of African-American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American descent. The term was coined at Boston College in 1979 by two students, Alfred Feliciano and Valerie Lewis, who objected to the name "Office of Minority Programs" used by Boston College at the time. They cited the definition of the word minority as "less than" and proposed, instead, to use the term AHANA which they felt celebrated social cultural differences. After receiving overwhelming approval from the university's board of trustees, and UGBC president Dan Cotter, the Office of Minority Student Programs became the Office of AHANA Student Programs. The term, or one or its derivative forms, such as ALANA (where "Latino" is substituted for "Hispanic"), has become common on a number of other American university campuses. Boston College, which has registered the term AHANA as a trademark, has granted official permission for its use to over 50 institutions and organizations in the United States. Many more use the term unofficially. Other institutions that use the AHANA acronym include Suffolk University, Cleveland State University, Eastern Mennonite University, Saint Martin's University, Le Moyne College, and Salem State University. With some support on campus, there are still racist incidents on campus, such as Black Lives Matter posters being torn down and anti-black vandalism on dorm walls.
"Alma Mater" was written by T.J. Hurley, who also wrote "For Boston" (the Boston College Fight Song) and was a member of the Class of 1885.

Boston College teams are known as the Eagles. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sub-level for football), primarily competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) for all sports (except men's lacrosse) since the 2005-06 season. The Eagles formerly competed as a charter member of the Big East Conference from 1979-80 to 2004-05. Up to that point, Boston College was the only Big East member affiliated with the Catholic Church that played football in the conference. All the football-playing members of the Big East are now secular (usually public) institutions. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, fencing (non-ACC), football, golf, ice hockey (non-ACC), lacrosse (non-ACC), sailing (non-ACC), skiing (non-ACC), soccer, swimming, tennis, and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, fencing (non-ACC), field hockey, golf, ice hockey (non-ACC), lacrosse, rowing, sailing, skiing, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field and volleyball. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East; while the women's rowing team competes in the Eastern Association of Women's Rowing Colleges (EAWRC) as well as the ACC; and the co-ed skiing, fencing and sailing teams are non-ACC/NCAA. Boston College is one of only thirteen universities in the country offering NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly, I-A) football, Division I men's and women's basketball, and Division I hockey.
The mascot for all Boston College athletic teams is the Eagle, generally referred to in the plural, i.e., "The Eagles". The character representing the mascot at football, hockey, and basketball games is an American bald eagle named Baldwin, derived from the "bald" head of the American bald eagle and the word "win". The school colors are maroon and gold. The fight song, "For Boston", was composed by T.J. Hurley, class of 1885.

In hockey and (less famously) baseball, Boston College participates in the annual Beanpot tournaments held at TD Banknorth Garden and Fenway Park, respectively. Boston College competes in the Beanpot against the three other major sports colleges in Boston: the Northeastern University Huskies, Harvard University Crimson, and Boston University Terriers. BC has reached the championship game 31 times and has won the Beanpot 16 times, including the 2010, 2011 and 2012 championships. The less renowned baseball tournament, was first played in 1990 and out of seventeen baseball Beanpots, Boston College has won nine, last winning in 2008. The baseball team also plays an exhibition game against the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park after several years at City Of Palms Park both in Ft. Myers, Florida during Major League Baseball's spring training. The men's hockey team won the 2008 NCAA Championship on April 12, 2008 with a 4–1 victory over the University of Notre Dame in Denver, Colorado, the 2010 NCAA Championship with a 5–0 victory over Wisconsin on April 10, 2010, and in 2012 in the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament with a 4-1 victory over Ferris State University in Tampa.

Principal athletic facilities include Alumni Stadium (capacity: 44,500), Conte Forum (8,606), Kelley Rink (7,884), Eddie Pellagrini Diamond at John Shea Field (1,000), the Newton Soccer Complex (1,000), and the Flynn Recreation Complex. The Yawkey Athletics Center opened in the spring of 2005. BC students compete in 31 varsity sports as well as a number of club and intramural teams. On March 18, 2002, Boston College's Athletics program was named to the College Sports Honor Roll as one of the nation's top 20 programs by "U.S. News & World Report".

Boston College athletes are among the most academically successful in the nation, according to the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate (APR). In 2006 Boston College received Public Recognition Awards with fourteen of its sports in the top 10% of the nation academically. The Eagles tied Notre Dame for the highest total of any Division I-A university. Other schools having ten or more sports honored included Navy (12), Stanford (11), and Duke (11). Teams honored were football, men's fencing, men's outdoor track, men's skiing, women's rowing, women's cross country, women's fencing, women's field hockey, women's indoor track, women's outdoor track, women's skiing, women's swimming, women's soccer, women's tennis, and women's volleyball. Boston College's football program was one of only five Division I-A teams that were so honored. The other four were Auburn, Navy, Stanford, and Duke.

The Boston College Eagles have achieved occasional success in college football. On November 16, 1940, BC's Frank Leahy-coached championship team took a win from two-season undefeated Georgetown University in the final seconds, in a game that renowned sportswriter Grantland Rice called the greatest ever played.

Two of Boston College's most famous football victories came in dramatic fashion, on the final play of the game. On November 23, 1984, before a national audience on CBS, Doug Flutie threw a Hail Mary to Gerard Phelan for a 47–45 victory over the University of Miami at the Orange Bowl. The Eagles finished the 1984 season with a 10-2 record, defeating the University of Houston in the Cotton Bowl. The team completed the season with a #5 rank in the AP poll. Flutie was awarded the Heisman Trophy; the only Eagle to date so honored. ("See also: Flutie effect") On November 20, 1993, the Eagles beat undefeated archrival Notre Dame 41–39 on a 41-yard field goal by David Gordon as time expired, preventing the Fighting Irish a berth in the national championship game.("See also: Holy War (Boston College vs. Notre Dame)")

In 2007, the Eagles reached the #2 rank in both the AP and Coaches' Poll as well as the BCS rankings, led by Matt Ryan. Ryan was awarded the 2007 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented annually to the nation's most outstanding college senior quarterback. He was selected third in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, making him the highest-chosen BC player in NFL Draft history.

The Eagles occasionally wear red bandanna-themed uniforms in honor of fallen September 11, 2001 hero Welles Crowther, class of 1999. Crowther, who played on BC's lacrosse team, was an equity trader who died saving the lives of at least 10 people during the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. He used a red bandanna that he often carried to keep from breathing in smoke and debris.

"For Boston" is claimed to be America's oldest college fight song, composed by T. J. Hurley in 1885. It has two verses but the most commonly sung one is the first verse. Boston-based band Dropkick Murphys covered this song on their album "Sing Loud, Sing Proud!". Changes have been made to the song, including reworking the phrase "for here men are men" into "for here all are one" in the first verse.

"The Heights" is a nickname given to Boston College. It recalls both BC's lofty aspirations—the college motto is "Ever to Excel"—and its hilltop location, an area initially designated as "University Heights". The name has lent itself to a number of campus organizations, most notably the principal student newspaper, "The Heights". BC students were universally called "Heightsmen" until 1925 when Caitlin Beckman became the first "Heightswoman" to receive a BC degree. "Heightsonian" was originally conceived as a way to gender neutralize the original term "Heightsmen", though "Eagles", once exclusively used for members of the university's athletics teams, is more commonly used. The term "Golden Eagles" refers strictly to BC graduates who have celebrated their 50th anniversary reunion. "Double Eagles" refer to alumni who attended Boston College High School and graduated from the college and "Triple Eagles" are those alumni who are also graduates of the law school.

There are over 179,000 alumni in over 120 countries around the world. Boston College students have enjoyed success in winning prestigious post-graduate fellowships and awards, including recent Rhodes, Marshall, Mellon, Fulbright, Truman, Churchill, and Goldwater scholarships, among others. BC's yield rate for Fulbright awards is the highest in the country. In 2007, students in the German department were awarded 13 Fulbright scholarships, five more than the previous highest number from a single department. Although formal numbers are not kept, and the claim cannot be confirmed, the number of award winners from one department to study in a specific country is considered by some scholars to be the highest in the 60-year history of the Fulbright program.

Boston College's main campus in Chestnut Hill, west of downtown Boston, is and includes over 120 buildings set on a hilltop overlooking the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. A "Boston College" streetcar station on metro Boston's "T", or public transit system, is located at St. Ignatius Gate; it is the western terminus of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line's B-branch (also known as the "Boston College" line) and connects the school to Boston's city center and to destinations in the Boston metropolitan area. Due largely to its location and presence of buildings featuring gothic towers reaching into the sky, the Boston College campus is known generally as the "Heights" and to some as the "Crowned Hilltop". The main campus is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Boston College

Boston College (also referred to as BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. The university's name reflects its early history as a liberal arts college and preparatory school (now Boston College High School) in Dorchester. It is a member of the 568 Group and the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. Its main campus is a historic district and features some of the earliest examples of collegiate gothic architecture in North America.

Boston College offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees through its nine schools and colleges: Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences, Boston College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Carroll School of Management, Lynch School of Education, Connell School of Nursing, Boston College Graduate School of Social Work, Boston College Law School, Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, Woods College of Advancing Studies. In 2018, Boston College was ranked America's 50th top college by "Forbes". According to "U.S. News & World Report", the school tied as the 38th best national school.

Boston College athletic teams are known as the Eagles, their colors are maroon and gold, and mascot is Baldwin the Eagle. The Eagles compete in NCAA Division I as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference in all sports offered by the ACC. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East. Boston College's men's ice hockey team has won five national championships.

On, more than three decades after its initial inception, Boston College's charter was formally approved by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. BC became the second Jesuit institution of higher learning in Massachusetts and the first located in the Boston area. Johannes Bapst, S.J., a Swiss Jesuit from French-speaking Fribourg, was selected as BC's first president and immediately reopened the original college buildings on Harrison Avenue. For most of the 19th century, BC offered a singular 7-year program corresponding to both high school and college. Its entering class in the fall of 1864 included 22 students, ranging in age from 11 to 16 years. The curriculum was based on the Jesuit "Ratio Studiorum", emphasizing Latin, Greek, philosophy, and theology.

On June 10, 2009, Mayor Menino and Boston's zoning commission approved the Boston College Master Plan, signaling an end to the long approval process, while allowing the school to enter design and planning phases.

On October 18, 2017, hundreds of students walked out of class in a protest against racism and to demand the college officials pay more attention to the school's racial climate. The walk out was sparked by the defacing of two Black Lives Matter posters and an offensive photo was circulated on social media sites. On December 8, 2018, walls, furniture, and a bathroom in the Welch Hall were vandalized with racist, anti-black graffiti. Also, over the previous months, pro-refugee and Black Lives Matter signs were repeatedly removed around campus.

There are a variety of student housing options for students on campus. Those located on lower campus are Walsh, Rubenstein, Ignacio, 90 St. Thomas More Road, 66 Commonwealth Ave, Vanderslice, Gabelli, Voute, Stayer, and 'The Mods'. Roncalli, Welch, and Williams Halls are located on middle campus on College Road. Freshman housing on Upper Campus includes Kostka, Gonzaga, Fitzpatrick, Medeiros, Cheverus, Claver, Loyola, Xavier, Fenwick, and Shaw House. Additional freshman housing is on the Newton Campus and includes Cushing, Duchesne (East and West), Hardey, and Keyes (North and South).

In the fall of 2010, Boston College began construction of Stokes Hall, a academic building on what was formerly known as the Dustbowl. Stokes Hall is the first academic building to be constructed on the Middle Campus since 2001. It was completed in December 2012, and opened for use in January 2013. In 2014, the university reconstructed St. Mary's Hall and renovated indoor pieces of Carney Hall. More Hall had been demolished to make way for a new residence hall in July 2014, slated to open sometime in 2016.

Located on the Southwest Corner of middle campus, McElroy is referred to by students as 'Mac,' reflecting the common, but incorrect, pronunciation of the building's name. McElroy Commons holds a variety of offices and contains Carney's Dining Hall which serves the majority of students living on College Road and Upper Campus. Eagle's Nest, a lunch spot is located on the second floor of the building. The first floor of the building was updated in the summer of 2013.

One of the most iconic images of Boston College lies within Gargan Hall of Bapst Library. Gargan Hall is a widely popular study location for students, open 24 hours on most days and known as the quietest place on campus. Gargan Hall regularly finds itself in the top 10 of the world's most beautiful libraries. While for years the hall contained a red rug, the hall now is carpeted in emerald green. This art library contains over 51,000 volumes, 150 serial titles, and access to hundreds of journal databases and electronic journals in Art, Architecture, Museum Studies and Photography. The library maintains print and electronic reserves for courses in the Fine Arts.

In addition to the main campus at Chestnut Hill, BC's Newton Campus, formerly Newton College of the Sacred Heart, is located to the west. The campus is home to the law school, Stuart Dining Hall, Trinity Chapel, and residential housing for roughly 40% of the freshman class. Two athletic fields and a recreation center are also located on the campus. A new building opened in 1996 housing the Law Library for the Boston College Law School in Newton.

Its annual operating budget is approximately $667 million. The most recent and ongoing fundraising campaign, dubbed "Light the World", was announced on October 11, 2008. The seven-year campaign aims to raise $1.5 billion in honor of the 150th anniversary of the college. Funds raised will be used to support the strategic priorities of the university, including academic programs, financial aid, Jesuit Catholic identity, athletics, student programming, and capital construction projects.

The 112 Jesuits living on the Boston College campus make up one of the largest Jesuit communities in the world and include members of the faculty and administration, graduate students, and visiting international scholars.

For the Class of 2022, Boston College received 31,098 applications, of which it admitted 8,400 (27%). The Class of 2021 includes students from 45 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and 39 foreign countries; likewise, the Class of 2022 currently includes students from 46 states and 40 foreign countries.
Boston College is a research university and comprises nine schools and colleges:

Boston College tied in 38th among national universities and 421st among global universities in "U.S. News & World Report" "America's Best Colleges 2018" rankings and 50th in the "Forbes" 2018 edition of "America's Top Colleges", In 2014, the undergraduate school of business, the Carroll School of Management, placed 4th in an annual ranking of US undergraduate business schools by "Bloomberg Businessweek", climbing two spots from 2013 in which it placed 6th. A 2007 Princeton Review survey of parents that asked "What 'dream college' would you most like to see your child attend were prospects of acceptance or cost not issues?" placed BC 6th.

BC is also home to highly ranked and competitive graduate programs. In its 2015 report, "U.S. News & World Report" ranked the social work program 10th in the nation, its education school 24th, its school of nursing 21st, its law school 26th and its full-time MBA program 45th. In 2010 "Financial Times" ranked the full-time BC MBA Program #23 in the US and #47 in the world.

The Department has featured as permanent faculty a number of noted continental philosophers including Heidegger scholar William J. Richardson, SJ as well as experts in phenomenology Richard Cobb-Stevens and Jacques Taminiaux. The Department today still has a large proportion of experts in continental philosophy including European philosophy and literature expert Richard Kearney, expert in phenomenology John Sallis, expert in Christian philosophy and apologetics Peter Kreeft, and experts in social and political philosophy David M. Rasmussen and James Bernauer, SJ. Since the seventies, the Department has also had a number of notable visiting professors including Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jean-Luc Marion, and Bernard Lonergan, SJ.

Principal athletic facilities include Alumni Stadium (capacity: 44,500), Conte Forum (8,606), Kelley Rink (7,884), Eddie Pellagrini Diamond at John Shea Field (1,000), the Newton Soccer Complex (1,000), and the Flynn Recreation Complex. The Yawkey Athletics Center opened in the spring of 2005. BC students compete in 31 varsity sports as well as a number of club and intramural teams. On March 18, 2002, Boston College's Athletics program was named to the College Sports Honor Roll as one of the nation's top 20 programs by "U.S. News & World Report".

Boston College athletes are among the most academically successful in the nation, according to the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate (APR). In 2006 Boston College received Public Recognition Awards with fourteen of its sports in the top 10% of the nation academically. The Eagles tied Notre Dame for the highest total of any Division I-A university. Other schools having ten or more sports honored included Navy (12), Stanford (11), and Duke (11). Teams honored were football, men's fencing, men's outdoor track, men's skiing, women's rowing, women's cross country, women's fencing, women's field hockey, women's indoor track, women's outdoor track, women's skiing, women's swimming, women's soccer, women's tennis, and women's volleyball. Boston College's football program was one of only five Division I-A teams that were so honored. The other four were Auburn, Navy, Stanford, and Duke.

The Boston College Eagles have achieved occasional success in college football. On November 16, 1940, BC's Frank Leahy-coached championship team took a win from two-season undefeated Georgetown University in the final seconds, in a game that renowned sportswriter Grantland Rice called the greatest ever played.

Two of Boston College's most famous football victories came in dramatic fashion, on the final play of the game. On November 23, 1984, before a national audience on CBS, Doug Flutie threw a Hail Mary to Gerard Phelan for a 47–45 victory over the University of Miami at the Orange Bowl. The Eagles finished the 1984 season with a 10-2 record, defeating the University of Houston in the Cotton Bowl. The team completed the season with a #5 rank in the AP poll. Flutie was awarded the Heisman Trophy; the only Eagle to date so honored. ("See also: Flutie effect") On November 20, 1993, the Eagles beat undefeated archrival Notre Dame 41–39 on a 41-yard field goal by David Gordon as time expired, preventing the Fighting Irish a berth in the national championship game.("See also: Holy War (Boston College vs. Notre Dame)")

In 2007, the Eagles reached the #2 rank in both the AP and Coaches' Poll as well as the BCS rankings, led by Matt Ryan. Ryan was awarded the 2007 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented annually to the nation's most outstanding college senior quarterback. He was selected third in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, making him the highest-chosen BC player in NFL Draft history.

The Eagles occasionally wear red bandanna-themed uniforms in honor of fallen September 11, 2001 hero Welles Crowther, class of 1999. Crowther, who played on BC's lacrosse team, was an equity trader who died saving the lives of at least 10 people during the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. He used a red bandanna that he often carried to keep from breathing in smoke and debris.

"For Boston" is claimed to be America's oldest college fight song, composed by T. J. Hurley in 1885. It has two verses but the most commonly sung one is the first verse. Boston-based band Dropkick Murphys covered this song on their album "Sing Loud, Sing Proud!". Changes have been made to the song, including reworking the phrase "for here men are men" into "for here all are one" in the first verse.

"The Heights" is a nickname given to Boston College. It recalls both BC's lofty aspirations—the college motto is "Ever to Excel"—and its hilltop location, an area initially designated as "University Heights". The name has lent itself to a number of campus organizations, most notably the principal student newspaper, "The Heights". BC students were universally called "Heightsmen" until 1925 when Caitlin Beckman became the first "Heightswoman" to receive a BC degree. "Heightsonian" was originally conceived as a way to gender neutralize the original term "Heightsmen", though "Eagles", once exclusively used for members of the university's athletics teams, is more commonly used. The term "Golden Eagles" refers strictly to BC graduates who have celebrated their 50th anniversary reunion. "Double Eagles" refer to alumni who attended Boston College High School and graduated from the college and "Triple Eagles" are those alumni who are also graduates of the law school.

There are over 179,000 alumni in over 120 countries around the world. Boston College students have enjoyed success in winning prestigious post-graduate fellowships and awards, including recent Rhodes, Marshall, Mellon, Fulbright, Truman, Churchill, and Goldwater scholarships, among others. BC's yield rate for Fulbright awards is the highest in the country. In 2007, students in the German department were awarded 13 Fulbright scholarships, five more than the previous highest number from a single department. Although formal numbers are not kept, and the claim cannot be confirmed, the number of award winners from one department to study in a specific country is considered by some scholars to be the highest in the 60-year history of the Fulbright program.

Boston College tied in 38th among national universities and 421st among global universities in "U.S. News & World Report" "America's Best Colleges 2018" rankings and 50th in the "Forbes" 2018 edition of "America's Top Colleges", In 2014, the undergraduate school of business, the Carroll School of Management, placed 4th in an annual ranking of US undergraduate business schools by "Bloomberg Businessweek", climbing two spots from 2013 in which it placed 6th. A 2007 Princeton Review survey of parents that asked "What 'dream college' would you most like to see your child attend were prospects of acceptance or cost not issues?" placed BC 6th.

Boston College

Boston College (also referred to as BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. The university's name reflects its early history as a liberal arts college and preparatory school (now Boston College High School) in Dorchester. It is a member of the 568 Group and the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. Its main campus is a historic district and features some of the earliest examples of collegiate gothic architecture in North America.

Boston College offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees through its nine schools and colleges: Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences, Boston College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Carroll School of Management, Lynch School of Education, Connell School of Nursing, Boston College Graduate School of Social Work, Boston College Law School, Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, Woods College of Advancing Studies. In 2018, Boston College was ranked America's 50th top college by "Forbes". According to "U.S. News & World Report", the school tied as the 38th best national school.

Boston College athletic teams are known as the Eagles, their colors are maroon and gold, and mascot is Baldwin the Eagle. The Eagles compete in NCAA Division I as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference in all sports offered by the ACC. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East. Boston College's men's ice hockey team has won five national championships.

On, more than three decades after its initial inception, Boston College's charter was formally approved by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. BC became the second Jesuit institution of higher learning in Massachusetts and the first located in the Boston area. Johannes Bapst, S.J., a Swiss Jesuit from French-speaking Fribourg, was selected as BC's first president and immediately reopened the original college buildings on Harrison Avenue. For most of the 19th century, BC offered a singular 7-year program corresponding to both high school and college. Its entering class in the fall of 1864 included 22 students, ranging in age from 11 to 16 years. The curriculum was based on the Jesuit "Ratio Studiorum", emphasizing Latin, Greek, philosophy, and theology.

On June 10, 2009, Mayor Menino and Boston's zoning commission approved the Boston College Master Plan, signaling an end to the long approval process, while allowing the school to enter design and planning phases.

On October 18, 2017, hundreds of students walked out of class in a protest against racism and to demand the college officials pay more attention to the school's racial climate. The walk out was sparked by the defacing of two Black Lives Matter posters and an offensive photo was circulated on social media sites. On December 8, 2018, walls, furniture, and a bathroom in the Welch Hall were vandalized with racist, anti-black graffiti. Also, over the previous months, pro-refugee and Black Lives Matter signs were repeatedly removed around campus.

Boston College's main campus in Chestnut Hill, west of downtown Boston, is and includes over 120 buildings set on a hilltop overlooking the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. A "Boston College" streetcar station on metro Boston's "T", or public transit system, is located at St. Ignatius Gate; it is the western terminus of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line's B-branch (also known as the "Boston College" line) and connects the school to Boston's city center and to destinations in the Boston metropolitan area. Due largely to its location and presence of buildings featuring gothic towers reaching into the sky, the Boston College campus is known generally as the "Heights" and to some as the "Crowned Hilltop". The main campus is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

There are a variety of student housing options for students on campus. Those located on lower campus are Walsh, Rubenstein, Ignacio, 90 St. Thomas More Road, 66 Commonwealth Ave, Vanderslice, Gabelli, Voute, Stayer, and 'The Mods'. Roncalli, Welch, and Williams Halls are located on middle campus on College Road. Freshman housing on Upper Campus includes Kostka, Gonzaga, Fitzpatrick, Medeiros, Cheverus, Claver, Loyola, Xavier, Fenwick, and Shaw House. Additional freshman housing is on the Newton Campus and includes Cushing, Duchesne (East and West), Hardey, and Keyes (North and South).

In the fall of 2010, Boston College began construction of Stokes Hall, a academic building on what was formerly known as the Dustbowl. Stokes Hall is the first academic building to be constructed on the Middle Campus since 2001. It was completed in December 2012, and opened for use in January 2013. In 2014, the university reconstructed St. Mary's Hall and renovated indoor pieces of Carney Hall. More Hall had been demolished to make way for a new residence hall in July 2014, slated to open sometime in 2016.

Located on the Southwest Corner of middle campus, McElroy is referred to by students as 'Mac,' reflecting the common, but incorrect, pronunciation of the building's name. McElroy Commons holds a variety of offices and contains Carney's Dining Hall which serves the majority of students living on College Road and Upper Campus. Eagle's Nest, a lunch spot is located on the second floor of the building. The first floor of the building was updated in the summer of 2013.

One of the most iconic images of Boston College lies within Gargan Hall of Bapst Library. Gargan Hall is a widely popular study location for students, open 24 hours on most days and known as the quietest place on campus. Gargan Hall regularly finds itself in the top 10 of the world's most beautiful libraries. While for years the hall contained a red rug, the hall now is carpeted in emerald green. This art library contains over 51,000 volumes, 150 serial titles, and access to hundreds of journal databases and electronic journals in Art, Architecture, Museum Studies and Photography. The library maintains print and electronic reserves for courses in the Fine Arts.

In addition to the main campus at Chestnut Hill, BC's Newton Campus, formerly Newton College of the Sacred Heart, is located to the west. The campus is home to the law school, Stuart Dining Hall, Trinity Chapel, and residential housing for roughly 40% of the freshman class. Two athletic fields and a recreation center are also located on the campus. A new building opened in 1996 housing the Law Library for the Boston College Law School in Newton.

Its annual operating budget is approximately $667 million. The most recent and ongoing fundraising campaign, dubbed "Light the World", was announced on October 11, 2008. The seven-year campaign aims to raise $1.5 billion in honor of the 150th anniversary of the college. Funds raised will be used to support the strategic priorities of the university, including academic programs, financial aid, Jesuit Catholic identity, athletics, student programming, and capital construction projects.

The 112 Jesuits living on the Boston College campus make up one of the largest Jesuit communities in the world and include members of the faculty and administration, graduate students, and visiting international scholars.

For the Class of 2022, Boston College received 31,098 applications, of which it admitted 8,400 (27%). The Class of 2021 includes students from 45 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and 39 foreign countries; likewise, the Class of 2022 currently includes students from 46 states and 40 foreign countries.
Boston College is a research university and comprises nine schools and colleges:

Boston College tied in 38th among national universities and 421st among global universities in "U.S. News & World Report" "America's Best Colleges 2018" rankings and 50th in the "Forbes" 2018 edition of "America's Top Colleges", In 2014, the undergraduate school of business, the Carroll School of Management, placed 4th in an annual ranking of US undergraduate business schools by "Bloomberg Businessweek", climbing two spots from 2013 in which it placed 6th. A 2007 Princeton Review survey of parents that asked "What 'dream college' would you most like to see your child attend were prospects of acceptance or cost not issues?" placed BC 6th.

BC is also home to highly ranked and competitive graduate programs. In its 2015 report, "U.S. News & World Report" ranked the social work program 10th in the nation, its education school 24th, its school of nursing 21st, its law school 26th and its full-time MBA program 45th. In 2010 "Financial Times" ranked the full-time BC MBA Program #23 in the US and #47 in the world.

The Department has featured as permanent faculty a number of noted continental philosophers including Heidegger scholar William J. Richardson, SJ as well as experts in phenomenology Richard Cobb-Stevens and Jacques Taminiaux. The Department today still has a large proportion of experts in continental philosophy including European philosophy and literature expert Richard Kearney, expert in phenomenology John Sallis, expert in Christian philosophy and apologetics Peter Kreeft, and experts in social and political philosophy David M. Rasmussen and James Bernauer, SJ. Since the seventies, the Department has also had a number of notable visiting professors including Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jean-Luc Marion, and Bernard Lonergan, SJ.

Principal athletic facilities include Alumni Stadium (capacity: 44,500), Conte Forum (8,606), Kelley Rink (7,884), Eddie Pellagrini Diamond at John Shea Field (1,000), the Newton Soccer Complex (1,000), and the Flynn Recreation Complex. The Yawkey Athletics Center opened in the spring of 2005. BC students compete in 31 varsity sports as well as a number of club and intramural teams. On March 18, 2002, Boston College's Athletics program was named to the College Sports Honor Roll as one of the nation's top 20 programs by "U.S. News & World Report".

Boston College athletes are among the most academically successful in the nation, according to the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate (APR). In 2006 Boston College received Public Recognition Awards with fourteen of its sports in the top 10% of the nation academically. The Eagles tied Notre Dame for the highest total of any Division I-A university. Other schools having ten or more sports honored included Navy (12), Stanford (11), and Duke (11). Teams honored were football, men's fencing, men's outdoor track, men's skiing, women's rowing, women's cross country, women's fencing, women's field hockey, women's indoor track, women's outdoor track, women's skiing, women's swimming, women's soccer, women's tennis, and women's volleyball. Boston College's football program was one of only five Division I-A teams that were so honored. The other four were Auburn, Navy, Stanford, and Duke.

The Boston College Eagles have achieved occasional success in college football. On November 16, 1940, BC's Frank Leahy-coached championship team took a win from two-season undefeated Georgetown University in the final seconds, in a game that renowned sportswriter Grantland Rice called the greatest ever played.

Two of Boston College's most famous football victories came in dramatic fashion, on the final play of the game. On November 23, 1984, before a national audience on CBS, Doug Flutie threw a Hail Mary to Gerard Phelan for a 47–45 victory over the University of Miami at the Orange Bowl. The Eagles finished the 1984 season with a 10-2 record, defeating the University of Houston in the Cotton Bowl. The team completed the season with a #5 rank in the AP poll. Flutie was awarded the Heisman Trophy; the only Eagle to date so honored. ("See also: Flutie effect") On November 20, 1993, the Eagles beat undefeated archrival Notre Dame 41–39 on a 41-yard field goal by David Gordon as time expired, preventing the Fighting Irish a berth in the national championship game.("See also: Holy War (Boston College vs. Notre Dame)")

In 2007, the Eagles reached the #2 rank in both the AP and Coaches' Poll as well as the BCS rankings, led by Matt Ryan. Ryan was awarded the 2007 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented annually to the nation's most outstanding college senior quarterback. He was selected third in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, making him the highest-chosen BC player in NFL Draft history.

The Eagles occasionally wear red bandanna-themed uniforms in honor of fallen September 11, 2001 hero Welles Crowther, class of 1999. Crowther, who played on BC's lacrosse team, was an equity trader who died saving the lives of at least 10 people during the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. He used a red bandanna that he often carried to keep from breathing in smoke and debris.

"For Boston" is claimed to be America's oldest college fight song, composed by T. J. Hurley in 1885. It has two verses but the most commonly sung one is the first verse. Boston-based band Dropkick Murphys covered this song on their album "Sing Loud, Sing Proud!". Changes have been made to the song, including reworking the phrase "for here men are men" into "for here all are one" in the first verse.

"The Heights" is a nickname given to Boston College. It recalls both BC's lofty aspirations—the college motto is "Ever to Excel"—and its hilltop location, an area initially designated as "University Heights". The name has lent itself to a number of campus organizations, most notably the principal student newspaper, "The Heights". BC students were universally called "Heightsmen" until 1925 when Caitlin Beckman became the first "Heightswoman" to receive a BC degree. "Heightsonian" was originally conceived as a way to gender neutralize the original term "Heightsmen", though "Eagles", once exclusively used for members of the university's athletics teams, is more commonly used. The term "Golden Eagles" refers strictly to BC graduates who have celebrated their 50th anniversary reunion. "Double Eagles" refer to alumni who attended Boston College High School and graduated from the college and "Triple Eagles" are those alumni who are also graduates of the law school.

There are over 179,000 alumni in over 120 countries around the world. Boston College students have enjoyed success in winning prestigious post-graduate fellowships and awards, including recent Rhodes, Marshall, Mellon, Fulbright, Truman, Churchill, and Goldwater scholarships, among others. BC's yield rate for Fulbright awards is the highest in the country. In 2007, students in the German department were awarded 13 Fulbright scholarships, five more than the previous highest number from a single department. Although formal numbers are not kept, and the claim cannot be confirmed, the number of award winners from one department to study in a specific country is considered by some scholars to be the highest in the 60-year history of the Fulbright program.

Boston State College's roots began with the Girls' High School, which was founded in 1852. In 1872, the Boston Normal School separated from Girls' High School and became an independent institution, although it still occupied the building alongside the high school and Girls' Latin School. The Normal School was renamed the Teachers College of the City of Boston in 1924. In 1952, it became a state college, the State Teachers College at Boston. The college was renamed the State College at Boston, also known as Boston State College, in 1960. Boston State College merged with University of Massachusetts Boston in 1982. After the merger, in the mid-1980s, its former main campus, located at 621 Huntington Avenue, was acquired by the Massachusetts College of Art, and serves as that institution's primary campus.

Boston State College

Boston State College was a public university located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States.

Greater Boston has more than 100 colleges and universities, with 250,000 students enrolled in Boston and Cambridge alone. The city's largest private universities include Boston University (also the city's fourth-largest employer), with its main campus along Commonwealth Avenue and a medical campus in the South End, Northeastern University in the Fenway area, Suffolk University near Beacon Hill, which includes law school and business school, and Boston College, which straddles the Boston (Brighton)–Newton border. Boston's only public university is the University of Massachusetts Boston on Columbia Point in Dorchester. Roxbury Community College and Bunker Hill Community College are the city's two public community colleges. Altogether, Boston's colleges and universities employ more than 42,600 people, accounting for nearly seven percent of the city's workforce.

Boston

Boston is the capital and most populous municipality of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city proper covers with an estimated population of 685,094 in 2017, making it also the most populous city in New England. Boston is the seat of Suffolk County as well, although the county government was disbanded on July 1, 1999. The city is the economic and cultural anchor of a substantially larger metropolitan area known as Greater Boston, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) home to a census-estimated 4.8 million people in 2016 and ranking as the tenth-largest such area in the country. As a combined statistical area (CSA), this wider commuting region is home to some 8.2 million people, making it the sixth-largest in the United States.

Boston is one of the oldest cities in the United States, founded on the Shawmut Peninsula in 1630 by Puritan settlers from England. It was the scene of several key events of the American Revolution, such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston. Upon gaining U.S. independence from Great Britain, it continued to be an important port and manufacturing hub as well as a center for education and culture. The city has expanded beyond the original peninsula through land reclamation and municipal annexation. Its rich history attracts many tourists, with Faneuil Hall alone drawing more than 20 million visitors per year. Boston's many firsts include the United States' first public park (Boston Common, 1634), first public or state school (Boston Latin School, 1635) and first subway system (Tremont Street Subway, 1897).

The Boston area's many colleges and universities make it an international center of higher education, including law, medicine, engineering, and business, and the city is considered to be a world leader in innovation and entrepreneurship, with nearly 2,000 startups. Boston's economic base also includes finance, professional and business services, biotechnology, information technology, and government activities. Households in the city claim the highest average rate of philanthropy in the United States; businesses and institutions rank among the top in the country for environmental sustainability and investment. The city has one of the highest costs of living in the United States as it has undergone gentrification, though it remains high on world livability rankings.

Boston's early European settlers had first called the area "Trimountaine" (after its "three mountains," only traces of which remain today) but later renamed it "Boston" after Boston, Lincolnshire, England, the origin of several prominent colonists. The renaming on September 7, 1630, (Old Style) was by Puritan colonists from England who had moved over from Charlestown earlier that year in quest for fresh water. Their settlement was initially limited to the Shawmut Peninsula, at that time surrounded by the Massachusetts Bay and Charles River and connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus. The peninsula is thought to have been inhabited as early as 5000 BC.

In 1629, the Massachusetts Bay Colony's first governor John Winthrop led the signing of the Cambridge Agreement, a key founding document of the city. Puritan ethics and their focus on education influenced its early history; America's first public school was founded in Boston in 1635. Over the next 130 years, the city participated in four French and Indian Wars, until the British defeated the French and their Indian allies in North America.

Boston was the largest town in British America until Philadelphia grew larger in the mid-18th century. Boston's oceanfront location made it a lively port, and the city primarily engaged in shipping and fishing during its colonial days. However, Boston stagnated in the decades prior to the Revolution. By the mid-18th century, New York City and Philadelphia surpassed Boston in wealth. Boston encountered financial difficulties even as other cities in New England grew rapidly.

Many of the crucial events of the American Revolution occurred in or near Boston. Boston's penchant for mob action along with the colonists' growing distrust in Britain fostered a revolutionary spirit in the city. When the British government passed the Stamp Act in 1765, a Boston mob ravaged the homes of Andrew Oliver, the official tasked with enforcing the Act, and Thomas Hutchinson, then the Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. The British sent two regiments to Boston in 1768 in an attempt to quell the angry colonists. This did not sit well with the colonists. In 1770, during the Boston Massacre, the army killed several people in response to a mob in Boston. The colonists compelled the British to withdraw their troops. The event was widely publicized and fueled a revolutionary movement in America.

In 1773, Britain passed the Tea Act. Many of the colonists saw the act as an attempt to force them to accept the taxes established by the Townshend Acts. The act prompted the Boston Tea Party, where a group of rebels threw an entire shipment of tea sent by the British East India Company into Boston Harbor. The Boston Tea Party was a key event leading up to the revolution, as the British government responded furiously with the Intolerable Acts, demanding compensation for the lost tea from the rebels. This angered the colonists further and led to the American Revolutionary War. The war began in the area surrounding Boston with the Battles of Lexington and Concord.

Boston itself was besieged for almost a year during the Siege of Boston, which began on April 19, 1775. The New England militia impeded the movement of the British Army. William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, then the commander-in-chief of the British forces in North America, led the British army in the siege. On June 17, the British captured the Charlestown peninsula in Boston, during the Battle of Bunker Hill. The British army outnumbered the militia stationed there, but it was a Pyrrhic victory for the British because their army suffered devastating casualties. It was also a testament to the power and courage of the militia, as their stubborn defending made it difficult for the British to capture Charlestown without losing many troops.

Several weeks later, George Washington took over the militia after the Continental Congress established the Continental Army to unify the revolutionary effort. Both sides faced difficulties and supply shortages in the siege, and the fighting was limited to small-scale raids and skirmishes. On March 4, 1776, Washington commanded his army to fortify Dorchester Heights, an area of Boston. The army placed cannons there to repel a British invasion against their stake in Boston. Washington was confident the army could resist a small-scale invasion with their fortifications. Howe planned an invasion into Boston, but bad weather delayed their advance. Howe decided to withdraw, because the storm gave Washington's army more time to improve their fortifications. British troops evacuated Boston on March 17, which solidified the revolutionaries' control of the city.

After the Revolution, Boston's long seafaring tradition helped make it one of the world's wealthiest international ports, with the slave trade, rum, fish, salt, and tobacco being particularly important. Boston's harbor activity was significantly curtailed by the Embargo Act of 1807 (adopted during the Napoleonic Wars) and the War of 1812. Foreign trade returned after these hostilities, but Boston's merchants had found alternatives for their capital investments in the interim. Manufacturing became an important component of the city's economy, and the city's industrial manufacturing overtook international trade in economic importance by the mid-19th century. Boston remained one of the nation's largest manufacturing centers until the early 20th century, and was known for its garment production and leather-goods industries. A network of small rivers bordering the city and connecting it to the surrounding region facilitated shipment of goods and led to a proliferation of mills and factories. Later, a dense network of railroads furthered the region's industry and commerce.

During this period, Boston flourished culturally, as well, admired for its rarefied literary life and generous artistic patronage, with members of old Boston families—eventually dubbed "Boston Brahmins"—coming to be regarded as the nation's social and cultural elites.

Boston was an early port of the Atlantic triangular slave trade in the New England colonies, but was soon overtaken by Salem, Massachusetts and Newport, Rhode Island. Boston eventually became a center of the abolitionist movement. The city reacted strongly to the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, contributing to President Franklin Pierce's attempt to make an example of Boston after the Anthony Burns Fugitive Slave Case.

In 1822, the citizens of Boston voted to change the official name from the "Town of Boston" to the "City of Boston", and on March 4, 1822, the people of Boston accepted the charter incorporating the City. At the time Boston was chartered as a city, the population was about 46,226, while the area of the city was only.

In the 1820s, Boston's population grew rapidly, and the city's ethnic composition changed dramatically with the first wave of European immigrants. Irish immigrants dominated the first wave of newcomers during this period, especially following the Irish Potato Famine; by 1850, about 35,000 Irish lived in Boston. In the latter half of the 19th century, the city saw increasing numbers of Irish, Germans, Lebanese, Syrians, French Canadians, and Russian and Polish Jews settling in the city. By the end of the 19th century, Boston's core neighborhoods had become enclaves of ethnically distinct immigrants. Italians inhabited the North End, Irish dominated South Boston and Charlestown, and Russian Jews lived in the West End. Irish and Italian immigrants brought with them Roman Catholicism. Currently, Catholics make up Boston's largest religious community, and the Irish have played a major role in Boston politics since the early 20th century; prominent figures include the Kennedys, Tip O'Neill, and John F. Fitzgerald.

Between 1631 and 1890, the city tripled its area through land reclamation by filling in marshes, mud flats, and gaps between wharves along the waterfront. The largest reclamation efforts took place during the 19th century; beginning in 1807, the crown of Beacon Hill was used to fill in a mill pond that later became the Haymarket Square area. The present-day State House sits atop this lowered Beacon Hill. Reclamation projects in the middle of the century created significant parts of the South End, the West End, the Financial District, and Chinatown.

After the Great Boston fire of 1872, workers used building rubble as landfill along the downtown waterfront. During the mid-to-late 19th century, workers filled almost of brackish Charles River marshlands west of Boston Common with gravel brought by rail from the hills of Needham Heights. The city annexed the adjacent towns of South Boston (1804), East Boston (1836), Roxbury (1868), Dorchester (including present-day Mattapan and a portion of South Boston) (1870), Brighton (including present-day Allston) (1874), West Roxbury (including present-day Jamaica Plain and Roslindale) (1874), Charlestown (1874), and Hyde Park (1912). Other proposals were unsuccessful for the annexation of Brookline, Cambridge, and Chelsea.

The city went into decline by the early to mid-20th century, as factories became old and obsolete and businesses moved out of the region for cheaper labor elsewhere. Boston responded by initiating various urban renewal projects, under the direction of the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) established in 1957. In 1958, BRA initiated a project to improve the historic West End neighborhood. Extensive demolition was met with strong public opposition.

The BRA subsequently re-evaluated its approach to urban renewal in its future projects, including the construction of the Government Center. In 1965, the Columbia Point Health Center opened in the Dorchester neighborhood, the first Community Health Center in the United States. It mostly served the massive Columbia Point public housing complex adjoining it, which was built in 1953. The health center is still in operation and was rededicated in 1990 as the Geiger-Gibson Community Health Center. The Columbia Point complex itself was redeveloped and revitalized from 1984 to 1990 into a mixed-income residential development called Harbor Point Apartments.

By the 1970s, the city's economy had recovered after 30 years of economic downturn. A large number of high-rises were constructed in the Financial District and in Boston's Back Bay during this period. This boom continued into the mid-1980s and resumed after a few pauses. Hospitals such as Massachusetts General Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Brigham and Women's Hospital lead the nation in medical innovation and patient care. Schools such as Boston College, Boston University, the Harvard Medical School, Tufts University School of Medicine, Northeastern University, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Berklee College of Music, and Boston Conservatory attract students to the area. Nevertheless, the city experienced conflict starting in 1974 over desegregation busing, which resulted in unrest and violence around public schools throughout the mid-1970s.

Boston is an intellectual, technological, and political center but has lost some important regional institutions, including the loss to mergers and acquisitions of local financial institutions such as FleetBoston Financial, which was acquired by Charlotte-based Bank of America in 2004. Boston-based department stores Jordan Marsh and Filene's have both merged into the Cincinnati–based Macy's.
The 1993 acquisition of "The Boston Globe" by "The New York Times" was reversed in 2013 when it was re-sold to Boston businessman John W. Henry. In 2016, it was announced General Electric would be moving its corporate headquarters from Connecticut to the Innovation District in South Boston, joining many other companies in this rapidly developing neighborhood.

Boston has experienced gentrification in the latter half of the 20th century, with housing prices increasing sharply since the 1990s. Living expenses have risen; Boston has one of the highest costs of living in the United States and was ranked the 129th-most expensive major city in the world in a 2011 survey of 214 cities. Despite cost-of-living issues, Boston ranks high on livability ratings, ranking 36th worldwide in quality of living in 2011 in a survey of 221 major cities.

On April 15, 2013, two Chechen Islamist brothers detonated a pair of bombs near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring roughly 264.

In 2016, Boston briefly shouldered a bid as the US applicant for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The bid was supported by the mayor and a coalition of business leaders and local philanthropists, but was eventually dropped due to public opposition. The USOC then selected Los Angeles to be the American candidate with Los Angeles ultimately securing the right to host the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Boston has an area of — (54%) of land and (46%) of water. The city's official elevation, as measured at Logan International Airport, is above sea level. The highest point in Boston is Bellevue Hill at above sea level, and the lowest point is at sea level. Situated onshore of the Atlantic Ocean, Boston is the only state capital in the contiguous United States with an oceanic shoreline.

Boston is surrounded by the "Greater Boston" region and is contiguously bordered by the cities and towns of Winthrop, Revere, Chelsea, Everett, Somerville, Cambridge, Watertown, Newton, Brookline, Needham, Dedham, Canton, Milton, and Quincy. The Charles River separates Boston from Watertown and the majority of Cambridge, and the mass of Boston from its own Charlestown neighborhood. To the east lie Boston Harbor and the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area (which includes part of the city's territory, specifically Calf Island, Gallops Island, Great Brewster Island, Green Island, Little Brewster Island, Little Calf Island, Long Island, Lovells Island, Middle Brewster Island, Nixes Mate, Outer Brewster Island, Rainsford Island, Shag Rocks, Spectacle Island, The Graves, and Thompson Island). The Neponset River forms the boundary between Boston's southern neighborhoods and the city of Quincy and the town of Milton. The Mystic River separates Charlestown from Chelsea and Everett, and Chelsea Creek and Boston Harbor separate East Boston from Boston proper.

Boston is sometimes called a "city of neighborhoods" because of the profusion of diverse subsections; the city government's Office of Neighborhood Services has officially designated 23 neighborhoods. More than two-thirds of inner Boston's modern land area did not exist when the city was founded. Instead, it was created via the gradual filling in of the surrounding tidal areas over the centuries, with earth from leveling or lowering Boston's three original hills (the "Trimountain", after which Tremont Street is named) and with gravel brought by train from Needham to fill the Back Bay.

Downtown and its immediate surroundings consist largely of low-rise masonry buildings (often Federal style and Greek Revival) interspersed with modern highrises, in the Financial District, Government Center, and South Boston. Back Bay includes many prominent landmarks, such as the Boston Public Library, Christian Science Center, Copley Square, Newbury Street, and New England's two tallest buildings: the John Hancock Tower and the Prudential Center.
Near the John Hancock Tower is the old John Hancock Building with its prominent illuminated beacon, the color of which forecasts the weather. Smaller commercial areas are interspersed among areas of single-family homes and wooden/brick multi-family row houses. The South End Historic District is the largest surviving contiguous Victorian-era neighborhood in the US. The geography of downtown and South Boston was particularly affected by the Central Artery/Tunnel Project (known unofficially as the "Big Dig") which removed the unsightly elevated Central Artery and incorporated new green spaces and open areas.

Under the Köppen climate classification, Boston has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen "Cfa"). bordering a hot summer humid continental climate (Köppen "Dfa"). Summers are typically warm and humid, while winters are cold and stormy, with occasional periods of heavy snow. Spring and fall are usually cool to mild, with varying conditions dependent on wind direction and jet stream positioning. Prevailing wind patterns that blow offshore minimize the influence of the Atlantic Ocean. However, in winter areas near the immediate coast will often see more rain than snow as warm air is drawn off the Atlantic at times. The city lies at the transition between USDA plant hardiness zones 6b (most of the city) and 7a (Downtown, South Boston, and East Boston neighborhoods).

The hottest month is July, with a mean temperature of. The coldest month is January, with a mean of. Periods exceeding in summer and below freezing in winter are not uncommon but rarely extended, with about 13 and 25 days per year seeing each, respectively. The most recent sub- reading occurred on January 7, 2018, when the temperature dipped down to. In addition, several decades may pass between readings, with the most recent such occurrence on July 22, 2011, when the temperature reached. The city's average window for freezing temperatures is November 9 through April 5. Official temperature records have ranged from on February 9, 1934, up to on July 4, 1911. The record cold daily maximum is on December 30, 1917 while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is on August 2, 1975.

Boston's coastal location on the North Atlantic moderates its temperature but makes the city very prone to Nor'easter weather systems that can produce much snow and rain. The city averages of precipitation a year, with of snowfall per season. Snowfall increases dramatically as one goes inland away from the city (especially north and west of the city)—away from the moderating influence of the ocean. Most snowfall occurs from mid-November through early April, and snow is rare in May and October. There is also high year-to-year variability in snowfall; for instance, the winter of 2011–12 saw only of accumulating snow, but the previous winter, the corresponding figure was.

Fog is fairly common, particularly in spring and early summer. Due to its location along the North Atlantic, the city often receives sea breezes, especially in the late spring, when water temperatures are still quite cold and temperatures at the coast can be more than colder than a few miles inland, sometimes dropping by that amount near midday.
Thunderstorms occur from May to September, that are occasionally severe with large hail, damaging winds and heavy downpours. Although downtown Boston has never been struck by a violent tornado, the city itself has experienced many tornado warnings. Damaging storms are more common to areas north, west, and northwest of the city. Boston has a relatively sunny climate for a coastal city at its latitude, averaging over 2,600 hours of sunshine per annum.

In 2016, Boston was estimated to have 673,184 residents (a density of 13,841 persons/sq mi, or 5,344/km) living in 272,481 housing units—a 9% population increase over 2010. The city is the third-most densely populated large U.S. city of over half a million residents. Some 1.2 million persons may be within Boston's boundaries during work hours, and as many as 2 million during special events. This fluctuation of people is caused by hundreds of thousands of suburban residents who travel to the city for work, education, health care, and special events.

In the city, the population was spread out with 21.9% at age 19 and under, 14.3% from 20 to 24, 33.2% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males. There were 252,699 households, of which 20.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them, 25.5% were married couples living together, 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 54.0% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 3.08. Boston has one of the largest LGBT populations in the United States.

The median household income in Boston was $51,739, while the median income for a family was $61,035. Full-time year-round male workers had a median income of $52,544 versus $46,540 for full-time year-round female workers. The per capita income for the city was $33,158. 21.4% of the population and 16.0% of families are below the poverty line. Of the total population, 28.8% of those under the age of 18 and 20.4% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

In 1950, Whites represented 94.7% of Boston's population. From the 1950s to the end of the 20th century, the proportion of non-Hispanic whites in the city declined. In 2000, non-Hispanic whites made up 49.5% of the city's population, making the city majority minority for the first time. However, in the 21st century, the city has experienced significant gentrification, in which affluent whites have moved into formerly non-white areas. In 2006, the US Census Bureau estimated non-Hispanic whites again formed a slight majority but, in part due to the housing crash, as well as increased efforts to make more affordable housing more available, the non-white population has rebounded. This may also have to do with increased Latin American and Asian populations and more clarity surrounding US Census statistics, which indicate a non-Hispanic white population of 47 percent (some reports give slightly lower figures).

People of Irish descent form the largest single ethnic group in the city, making up 15.8% of the population, followed by Italians, accounting for 8.3% of the population. People of West Indian and Caribbean ancestry are another sizable group, at 6.0%, about half of whom are of Haitian ancestry. Over 27,000 Chinese Americans made their home in Boston city proper in 2013, and the city hosts a growing Chinatown accommodating heavily traveled Chinese-owned bus lines to and from Chinatown, Manhattan in New York City. Some neighborhoods, such as Dorchester, have received an influx of people of Vietnamese ancestry in recent decades. Neighborhoods such as Jamaica Plain and Roslindale have experienced a growing number of Dominican Americans. The city and greater area also has a growing immigrant population of South Asians, including the tenth-largest Indian population in the country.

The city, especially the East Boston neighborhood, has a significant Hispanic population. In 2010, Hispanics in Boston were mostly of Puerto Rican (30,506 or 4.9% of total city population), Dominican (25,648 or 4.2% of total city population), Salvadoran (10,850 or 1.8% of city population), Colombian (6,649 or 1.1% of total city population), Mexican (5,961 or 1.0% of total city population), and Guatemalan (4,451 or 0.7% of total city population) ethnic origin. Hispanics of all national origins totaled 107,917 in 2010. In Greater Boston, these numbers grew significantly, with Puerto Ricans numbering 175,000+, Dominicans 95,000+, Salvadorans 40,000+, Guatemalans 31,000+, Mexicans 25,000+, and Colombians numbering 22,000+.

According to the 2012–2016 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the largest ancestry groups in Boston, Massachusetts are:

Data is from the 2008–2012 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.

According to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center, 57% of the population of the city identified themselves as Christians, with 25% attending a variety Protestant churches and 29% professing Roman Catholic beliefs; 33% claim no religious affiliation, while the remaining 10% are made up of adherents of Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism and other faiths.

The city has a Jewish population with an estimated 248,000 Jews within the Boston metro area. More than half of Jewish households in the Greater Boston area reside in the city itself, Brookline, Newton, Cambridge, Somerville, or adjacent towns.

A global city, Boston is placed among the top 30 most economically powerful cities in the world. Encompassing $363 billion, the Greater Boston metropolitan area has the sixth-largest economy in the country and 12th-largest in the world.

Boston's colleges and universities exert a significant impact on the regional economy. Boston attracts more than 350,000 college students from around the world, who contribute more than US$4.8 billion annually to the city's economy. The area's schools are major employers and attract industries to the city and surrounding region. The city is home to a number of technology companies and is a hub for biotechnology, with the Milken Institute rating Boston as the top life sciences cluster in the country. Boston receives the highest absolute amount of annual funding from the National Institutes of Health of all cities in the United States.

The city is considered highly innovative for a variety of reasons, including the presence of academia, access to venture capital, and the presence of many high-tech companies. The Route 128 corridor and Greater Boston continue to be a major center for venture capital investment, and high technology remains an important sector.

Tourism also composes a large part of Boston's economy, with 21.2 million domestic and international visitors spending $8.3 billion in 2011. Excluding visitors from Canada and Mexico, over 1.4 million international tourists visited Boston in 2014, with those from China and the United Kingdom leading the list. Boston's status as a state capital as well as the regional home of federal agencies has rendered law and government to be another major component of the city's economy. The city is a major seaport along the East Coast of the United States and the oldest continuously operated industrial and fishing port in the Western Hemisphere.

The financial services industry is important to Boston, especially involving mutual funds and insurance. In the 2018 Global Financial Centres Index, Boston was ranked as having the thirteenth most competitive financial center in the world and the second most competitive in the United States. Boston-based Fidelity Investments helped popularize the mutual fund in the 1980s and has made Boston one of the top financial centers in the United States. The city is home to the headquarters of Santander Bank, and Boston is a center for venture capital firms. State Street Corporation, which specializes in asset management and custody services, is based in the city. Boston is a printing and publishing center—Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is headquartered within the city, along with Bedford-St. Martin's Press and Beacon Press. Pearson PLC publishing units also employ several hundred people in Boston. The city is home to three major convention centers—the Hynes Convention Center in the Back Bay, and the Seaport World Trade Center and Boston Convention and Exhibition Center on the South Boston waterfront. The General Electric Corporation announced in January 2016 its decision to move the company's global headquarters to the Seaport District in Boston, from Fairfield, Connecticut, citing factors including Boston's preeminence in the realm of higher education. Boston is home to the headquarters of several major athletic and footwear companies including Converse, New Balance, and Reebok. Rockport, Puma and Wolverine World Wide, Inc. headquarters or regional offices are just outside the city.

The Boston Public Schools enroll 57,000 students attending 145 schools, including the renowned Boston Latin Academy, John D. O'Bryant School of Math & Science, and Boston Latin School. The Boston Latin School was established in 1635 and is the oldest public high school in the US. Boston also operates the United States' second-oldest public high school and its oldest public elementary school. The system's students are 40% Hispanic or Latino, 35% Black or African American, 13% White, and 9% Asian. There are private, parochial, and charter schools as well, and approximately 3,300 minority students attend participating suburban schools through the Metropolitan Educational Opportunity Council.

Some of the most renowned and highly ranked universities in the world are near Boston. Three universities with a major presence in the city, Harvard, MIT, and Tufts, are just outside of Boston in the cities of Cambridge and Somerville, known as the "Brainpower Triangle". Harvard is the nation's oldest institute of higher education and is centered across the Charles River in Cambridge, though the majority of its land holdings and a substantial amount of its educational activities are in Boston. Its business, medical, dental, and public health schools are in Boston's Allston and Longwood neighborhoods, and Harvard plans to expand into Allston.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) originated in Boston and was long known as "Boston Tech"; it moved across the river to Cambridge in 1916. Tufts University's main campus is north of the city in Somerville and Medford, though it locates its medical and dental schools in Boston's Chinatown at Tufts Medical Center, a 451-bed academic medical institution that is home to a full-service hospital for adults and the Floating Hospital for Children.

Four members of the Association of American Universities are in Greater Boston (more than any other metropolitan area): Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, and Brandeis University. Furthermore, Greater Boston contains seven as per the Carnegie Classification. This includes, in addition to the aforementioned four, Boston College, Northeastern University, and Tufts University. This is, by a large margin, the highest concentration of such institutions in a single metropolitan area.
Hospitals, universities, and research institutions in Greater Boston received more than $1.77 billion in National Institutes of Health grants in 2013, more money than any other American metropolitan area.

Greater Boston has more than 100 colleges and universities, with 250,000 students enrolled in Boston and Cambridge alone. The city's largest private universities include Boston University (also the city's fourth-largest employer), with its main campus along Commonwealth Avenue and a medical campus in the South End, Northeastern University in the Fenway area, Suffolk University near Beacon Hill, which includes law school and business school, and Boston College, which straddles the Boston (Brighton)–Newton border. Boston's only public university is the University of Massachusetts Boston on Columbia Point in Dorchester. Roxbury Community College and Bunker Hill Community College are the city's two public community colleges. Altogether, Boston's colleges and universities employ more than 42,600 people, accounting for nearly seven percent of the city's workforce.

Smaller private colleges include Babson College, Bentley University, Boston Architectural College, Emmanuel College, Fisher College, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Simmons College, Wellesley College, Wheelock College, Wentworth Institute of Technology, New England School of Law (originally established as America's first all female law school), and Emerson College.

Metropolitan Boston is home to several conservatories and art schools, including Lesley University College of Art and Design, Massachusetts College of Art, the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, New England Institute of Art, New England School of Art and Design (Suffolk University), Longy School of Music of Bard College, and the New England Conservatory (the oldest independent conservatory in the United States). Other conservatories include the Boston Conservatory and Berklee College of Music, which has made Boston an important city for jazz music.

Like many major American cities, Boston has seen a great reduction in violent crime since the early 1990s. Boston's low crime rate since the 1990s has been credited to the Boston Police Department's collaboration with neighborhood groups and church parishes to prevent youths from joining gangs, as well as involvement from the United States Attorney and District Attorney's offices. This helped lead in part to what has been touted as the "Boston Miracle". Murders in the city dropped from 152 in 1990 (for a murder rate of 26.5 per 100,000 people) to just 31—not one of them a juvenile—in 1999 (for a murder rate of 5.26 per 100,000).

In 2008, there were 62 reported homicides. Through December 30, 2016, major crime was down seven percent and there were 46 homicides compared to 40 in 2015.

Boston shares many cultural roots with greater New England, including a dialect of the non-rhotic Eastern New England accent known as the Boston accent and a regional cuisine with a large emphasis on seafood, salt, and dairy products. Boston also has its own collection of neologisms known as "Boston slang" and sardonic humor.

In the early 1800s, William Tudor wrote that Boston was "'perhaps the most perfect and certainly the best-regulated democracy that ever existed. There is something so impossible in the immortal fame of Athens, that the very name makes everything modern shrink from comparison; but since the days of that glorious city I know of none that has approached so near in some points, distant as it may still be from that illustrious model.' From this, Boston has been called the "Athens of America" (also a nickname of Philadelphia) for its literary culture, earning a reputation as "the intellectual capital of the United States."

In the nineteenth century, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Margaret Fuller, James Russell Lowell, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote in Boston. Some consider the Old Corner Bookstore to be the "cradle of American literature," the place where these writers met and where "The Atlantic Monthly" was first published. In 1852, the Boston Public Library was founded as the first free library in the United States. Boston's literary culture continues today thanks to the city's many universities and the Boston Book Festival.

Music is afforded a high degree of civic support in Boston. The Boston Symphony Orchestra is one of the "Big Five," a group of the greatest American orchestras, and the classical music magazine "Gramophone" called it one of the "world's best" orchestras. Symphony Hall (west of Back Bay) is home to the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the related Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, which is the largest youth orchestra in the nation, and to the Boston Pops Orchestra. The British newspaper "The Guardian" called Boston Symphony Hall "one of the top venues for classical music in the world," adding "Symphony Hall in Boston was where science became an essential part of concert hall design." Other concerts are held at the New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall. The Boston Ballet performs at the Boston Opera House. Other performing-arts organizations in the city include the Boston Lyric Opera Company, Opera Boston, Boston Baroque (the first permanent Baroque orchestra in the US), and the Handel and Haydn Society (one of the oldest choral companies in the United States). The city is a center for contemporary classical music with a number of performing groups, several of which are associated with the city's conservatories and universities. These include the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and Boston Musica Viva. Several theaters are in or near the Theater District south of Boston Common, including the Cutler Majestic Theatre, Citi Performing Arts Center, the Colonial Theater, and the Orpheum Theatre.

There are several major annual events, such as First Night which occurs on New Year's Eve, the Boston Early Music Festival, the annual Boston Arts Festival at Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park, the annual Boston gay pride parade and festival held in June, and Italian summer feasts in the North End honoring Catholic saints. The city is the site of several events during the Fourth of July period. They include the week-long Harborfest festivities and a Boston Pops concert accompanied by fireworks on the banks of the Charles River.

Several historic sites relating to the American Revolution period are preserved as part of the Boston National Historical Park because of the city's prominent role. Many are found along the Freedom Trail, which is marked by a red line of bricks embedded in the ground.

The city is also home to several art museums and galleries, including the Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. The Institute of Contemporary Art is housed in a contemporary building designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in the Seaport District. Boston's South End Art and Design District (SoWa) and Newbury St. are both art gallery destinations. Columbia Point is the location of the University of Massachusetts Boston, the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, and the Massachusetts Archives and Commonwealth Museum. The Boston Athenæum (one of the oldest independent libraries in the United States), Boston Children's Museum, Bull & Finch Pub (whose building is known from the television show "Cheers"), Museum of Science, and the New England Aquarium are within the city.

Boston has been a noted religious center from its earliest days. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston serves nearly 300 parishes and is based in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross (1875) in the South End, while the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts serves just under 200 congregations, with the Cathedral Church of St. Paul (1819) as its episcopal seat. Unitarian Universalism has its headquarters on Beacon Hill. The Christian Scientists are headquartered in Back Bay at the Mother Church (1894). The oldest church in Boston is First Church in Boston, founded in 1630. King's Chapel was the city's first Anglican church, founded in 1686 and converted to Unitarianism in 1785. Other churches include Christ Church (better known as Old North Church, 1723), the oldest church building in the city, Trinity Church (1733), Park Street Church (1809), Old South Church (1874), Jubilee Christian Church, and Basilica and Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help on Mission Hill (1878).

Air quality in Boston is generally very good. Between 2004–2013, there were only four days in which the air was unhealthy for the general public, according to the EPA.

Some of the cleaner energy facilities in Boston include the Allston green district, with three ecologically compatible housing facilities. Boston is also breaking ground on multiple green affordable housing facilities to help reduce the carbon impact of the city while simultaneously making these initiatives financially available to a greater population. Boston's climate plan is updated every three years and was most recently modified in 2013. This legislature includes the Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance, which requires the city's larger buildings to disclose their yearly energy and water use statistics and to partake in an energy assessment every five years. These statistics are made public by the city, thereby increasing incentives for buildings to be more environmentally conscious.

Mayor Thomas Menino introduced the Renew Boston Whole Building Incentive which reduces the cost of living in buildings that are deemed energy efficient. This gives people an opportunity to find housing in neighborhoods that support the environment. The ultimate goal of this initiative is to enlist 500 Bostonians to participate in a free, in-home energy assessment.

Many older buildings in certain areas of Boston are supported by wooden piles driven into the area's fill; these piles remain sound if submerged in water, but are subject to dry rot if exposed to air for long periods.
Ground water levels have been dropping in many areas of the city, due in part to an increase in the amount of rainwater discharged directly into sewers rather than absorbed by the ground. The Boston Groundwater Trust coordinates monitoring ground water levels throughout the city via a network of public and private monitoring wells. However, Boston's drinking water supply from the Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs is one of the very few in the country so pure as to satisfy the Federal Clean Water Act without filtration.

Boston has teams in the four major North American professional sports leagues plus Major League Soccer, and has won 38 championships in these leagues,. It is one of five cities (along with Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Philadelphia) to have won championships in all four major sports. It has been suggested that Boston is the new "TitleTown, USA", as the city's professional sports teams have won eleven championships since 2001: Patriots (2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, and 2016), Red Sox (2004, 2007, 2013, and 2018), Celtics (2008), and Bruins (2011). This love of sports made Boston the United States Olympic Committee's choice to bid to hold the 2024 Summer Olympic Games, but the city cited financial concerns when it withdrew its bid on July 27, 2015.

The Boston Red Sox, a founding member of the American League of Major League Baseball in 1901, play their home games at Fenway Park, near Kenmore Square in the city's Fenway section. Built in 1912, it is the oldest sports arena or stadium in active use in the United States among the four major professional American sports leagues, Major League Baseball, the National Football League, National Basketball Association, and the National Hockey League. Boston was the site of the first game of the first modern World Series, in 1903. The series was played between the AL Champion Boston Americans and the NL champion Pittsburgh Pirates. Persistent reports the team was known in 1903 as the "Boston Pilgrims" appear to be unfounded. Boston's first professional baseball team was the Red Stockings, one of the charter members of the National Association in 1871, and of the National League in 1876. The team played under that name until 1883, under the name Beaneaters until 1911, and under the name Braves from 1912 until they moved to Milwaukee after the 1952 season. Since 1966 they have played in Atlanta as the Atlanta Braves.
The TD Garden, formerly called the FleetCenter and built to replace the old, since-demolished Boston Garden, is adjoined to North Station and is the home of two major league teams: the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League and the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association. The arena seats 18,624 for basketball games and 17,565 for ice hockey games. The Bruins were the first American member of the National Hockey League and an Original Six franchise. The Boston Celtics were founding members of the Basketball Association of America, one of the two leagues that merged to form the NBA. The Celtics have the distinction of having won more championships than any other NBA team, with seventeen.

While they have played in suburban Foxborough since 1971, the New England Patriots of the National Football League were founded in 1960 as the Boston Patriots, changing their name after relocating. The team won the Super Bowl after the 2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, and 2016 seasons. They share Gillette Stadium with the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer. The Boston Breakers of Women's Professional Soccer, which formed in 2009, play their home games at Dilboy Stadium in Somerville. The Boston Storm of the United Women's Lacrosse League was formed in 2015.
The area's many colleges and universities are active in college athletics. Four NCAA Division I members play in the area—Boston College, Boston University, Harvard University, and Northeastern University. Of the four, only Boston College participates in college football at the highest level, the Football Bowl Subdivision. Harvard participates in the second-highest level, the Football Championship Subdivision. The Boston Cannons of the MLL play at Harvard Stadium.

One of the best known sporting events in the city is the Boston Marathon, the race which is the world's oldest annual marathon, run on Patriots' Day in April. On April 15, 2013, two explosions killed three people and injured hundreds at the marathon.
Another major annual event is the Head of the Charles Regatta, held in October.

Boston Common, near the Financial District and Beacon Hill, is the oldest public park in the United States. Along with the adjacent Boston Public Garden, it is part of the Emerald Necklace, a string of parks designed by Frederick Law Olmsted to encircle the city. The Emerald Necklace includes Jamaica Pond, Boston's largest body of freshwater, and Franklin Park, the city's largest park and home of the Franklin Park Zoo. Another major park is the Esplanade, along the banks of the Charles River. The Hatch Shell, an outdoor concert venue, is adjacent to the Charles River Esplanade. Other parks are scattered throughout the city, with major parks and beaches near Castle Island, in Charlestown and along the Dorchester, South Boston, and East Boston shorelines.

Boston's park system is well-reputed nationally. In its 2013 ParkScore ranking, The Trust for Public Land reported Boston was tied with Sacramento and San Francisco for having the third-best park system among the 50 most populous US cities. ParkScore ranks city park systems by a formula that analyzes the city's median park size, park acres as percent of city area, the percent of residents within a half-mile of a park, spending of park services per resident, and the number of playgrounds per 10,000 residents.

Boston has a strong mayor – council government system in which the mayor (elected every fourth year) has extensive executive power. Marty Walsh became Mayor in January 2014, his predecessor Thomas Menino's twenty-year tenure having been the longest in the city's history.
The Boston City Council is elected every two years; there are nine district seats, and four citywide "at-large" seats. The School Committee, which oversees the Boston Public Schools, is appointed by the mayor.

In addition to city government, numerous commissions and state authorities—including the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Boston Public Health Commission, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), and the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport)—play a role in the life of Bostonians. As the capital of Massachusetts, Boston plays a major role in state politics.

The city has several federal facilities, including the John F. Kennedy Federal Office Building, the Thomas P. O'Neill Jr. Federal Building, the John W. McCormack Post Office and Courthouse, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Both courts are housed in the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse.

Federally, Boston is split between two congressional districts. The northern three-fourths of the city is in the 7th district, represented by Ayanna Pressley. The southern fourth is in the 8th district, represented by Stephen Lynch. Both are Democrats; a Republican has not represented a significant portion of Boston in over a century. The state's senior member of the United States Senate is Democrat Elizabeth Warren, first elected in 2012. The state's junior member of the United States Senate is Democrat Ed Markey, who was elected in 2013 to succeed John Kerry after Kerry's appointment and confirmation as the United States Secretary of State.

The city uses an algorithm created by the Walsh administration, called CityScore, to measure the effectiveness of various city services. This score is available on a public online dashboard and allows city managers in police, fire, schools, emergency management services, and 3-1-1 to take action and make adjustments in areas of concern.

"The Boston Globe" and the "Boston Herald" are two of the city's major daily newspapers. The city is also served by other publications such as "Boston magazine", "The Improper Bostonian", "DigBoston", and the Boston edition of "Metro". "The Christian Science Monitor", headquartered in Boston, was formerly a worldwide daily newspaper but ended publication of daily print editions in 2009, switching to continuous online and weekly magazine format publications. "The Boston Globe" also releases a teen publication to the city's public high schools, called "Teens in Print" or "T.i.P.", which is written by the city's teens and delivered quarterly within the school year.

The city's growing Latino population has given rise to a number of local and regional Spanish-language newspapers. These include "El Planeta" (owned by the former publisher of "The Boston Phoenix"), "El Mundo", and "La Semana". "Siglo21", with its main offices in nearby Lawrence, is also widely distributed.

There are a number of weekly newspapers dedicated to Boston neighborhoods. Among them is South Boston Online, (founded in 1999) which appears in print and online, and covers events in South Boston and the Seaport District.

Various LGBT publications serve the city's large LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) population such as "The Rainbow Times", the only minority and lesbian-owned LGBT news magazine. Founded in 2006, "The Rainbow Times" is now based out of Boston, but serves all of New England.

Boston is the largest broadcasting market in New England, with the radio market being the 9th largest in the United States. Several major AM stations include talk radio WRKO, sports/talk station WEEI, and CBS Radio WBZ. WBZ (AM) broadcasts a news radio format and is a 50,000 watt "clear channel" station, whose nighttime broadcasts are heard hundreds of miles from Boston. A variety of commercial FM radio formats serve the area, as do NPR stations WBUR and WGBH. College and university radio stations include WERS (Emerson), WHRB (Harvard), WUMB (UMass Boston), WMBR (MIT), WZBC (Boston College), WMFO (Tufts University), WBRS (Brandeis University), WTBU (Boston University, campus and web only), WRBB (Northeastern University) and WMLN-FM (Curry College).

The Boston television DMA, which also includes Manchester, New Hampshire, is the 8th largest in the United States. The city is served by stations representing every major American network, including WBZ-TV 4 and its sister station WSBK-TV 38 (the former a CBS O&O, the latter a MyNetwork TV affiliate), WCVB-TV 5 and its sister station WMUR-TV 9 (both ABC), WHDH 7 and its sister station WLVI 56 (the former an independent station, the latter a CW affiliate), WBTS-LD 8 (a NBC O&O), and WFXT 25 (Fox). The city is also home to PBS member station WGBH-TV 2, a major producer of PBS programs, which also operates WGBX 44. Spanish-language television networks, including Azteca (WFXZ-CD 24), Univisión (WUNI 27), Telemundo (WNEU 60, a sister station to WBTS-LD), and UniMás (WUTF-DT 66), have a presence in the region, with WNEU and WUTF serving as network owned-and-operated stations. Most of the area's television stations have their transmitters in nearby Needham and Newton along the Route 128 corridor. Six Boston television stations are carried by Canadian satellite television provider Bell TV and by cable television providers in Canada.

Films have been made in Boston since as early as 1903, and it continues to be both a popular setting and a popular site for filming location.

The Longwood Medical and Academic Area, adjacent to the Fenway district, is home to a large number of medical and research facilities, including Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston Children's Hospital, Dana–Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Joslin Diabetes Center, and the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
Prominent medical facilities, including Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital are in the Beacon Hill area. St. Elizabeth's Medical Center is in Brighton Center of the city's Brighton neighborhood. New England Baptist Hospital is in Mission Hill. The city has Veterans Affairs medical centers in the Jamaica Plain and West Roxbury neighborhoods. The Boston Public Health Commission, an agency of the Massachusetts government, oversees health concerns for city residents. Boston EMS provides pre-hospital emergency medical services to residents and visitors.

Many of Boston's medical facilities are associated with universities. The facilities in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area and in Massachusetts General Hospital are affiliated with Harvard Medical School. Tufts Medical Center (formerly Tufts-New England Medical Center), in the southern portion of the Chinatown neighborhood, is affiliated with Tufts University School of Medicine. Boston Medical Center, in the South End neighborhood, is the primary teaching facility for the Boston University School of Medicine as well as the largest trauma center in the Boston area; it was formed by the merger of Boston University Hospital and Boston City Hospital, which was the first municipal hospital in the United States.

Logan Airport, in East Boston and operated by the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport), is Boston's principal airport. Nearby general aviation airports are Beverly Municipal Airport to the north, Hanscom Field to the west, and Norwood Memorial Airport to the south. Massport also operates several major facilities within the Port of Boston, including a cruise ship terminal and facilities to handle bulk and container cargo in South Boston, and other facilities in Charlestown and East Boston.

Downtown Boston's streets grew organically, so they do not form a planned grid, unlike those in later-developed Back Bay, East Boston, the South End, and South Boston. Boston is the eastern terminus of I-90, which in Massachusetts runs along the Massachusetts Turnpike. The elevated portion of the Central Artery, which carried most of the through traffic in downtown Boston, was replaced with the O'Neill Tunnel during the Big Dig, substantially completed in early 2006.

With nearly a third of Bostonians using public transit for their commute to work, Boston has the fifth-highest rate of public transit usage in the country. The city of Boston has a higher than average percentage of households without a car. In 2015, 35.4 percent of Boston households lacked a car, which decreased slightly to 33.8 percent in 2016. The national average was 8.7 percent in 2016. Boston averaged 0.94 cars per household in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8. Boston's public transportation agency, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) operates the oldest underground rapid transit system in the Americas, and is the fourth-busiest rapid transit system in the country, with of track on four lines. The MBTA also operates busy bus and commuter rail networks, and water shuttles.

Amtrak intercity rail to Boston is provided through four stations: South Station, North Station, Back Bay, and Route 128. South Station is a major intermodal transportation hub and is the terminus of Amtrak's "Northeast Regional", "Acela Express", and "Lake Shore Limited" routes, in addition to multiple MBTA services. Back Bay is also served by MBTA and those three Amtrak routes, while Route 128, in the southwestern suburbs of Boston, is only served by the "Acela Express" and "Northeast Regional". Meanwhile, Amtrak's "Downeaster" to Brunswick terminates in North Station, and is the only Amtrak route to do so.

Nicknamed "The Walking City", Boston hosts more pedestrian commuters than do other comparably populated cities. Owing to factors such as necessity, the compactness of the city and large student population, 13 percent of the population commutes by foot, making it the highest percentage of pedestrian commuters in the country out of the major American cities. In 2011, Walk Score ranked Boston the third most walkable city in the United States., Walk Score still ranks Boston as the third most walkable US city, with a Walk Score of 80, a Transit Score of 75, and a Bike Score of 70.

Between 1999 and 2006, "Bicycling" magazine named Boston three times as one of the worst cities in the US for cycling; regardless, it has one of the highest rates of bicycle commuting. In 2008, as a consequence of improvements made to bicycling conditions within the city, the same magazine put Boston on its "Five for the Future" list as a "Future Best City" for biking, and Boston's bicycle commuting percentage increased from 1% in 2000 to 2.1% in 2009. The bikeshare program called Hubway launched in late July 2011, logging more than 140,000 rides before the close of its first season. The neighboring municipalities of Cambridge, Somerville, and Brookline joined the Hubway program in the summer of 2012. In 2016, there are 1,461 bikes and 158 docking stations across the city. PBSC Urban Solutions provides bicycles and technology for this bike-sharing system.

In 2013, the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metropolitan statistical area (Boston MSA) had the seventh-lowest percentage of workers who commuted by private automobile (75.6 percent), with 6.2 percent of area workers traveling via rail transit. During the period starting in 2006 and ending in 2013, the Boston MSA had the greatest percentage decline of workers commuting by automobile (3.3 percent) among MSAs with more than a half-million residents.

The City of Boston has eleven official sister cities:The City of Boston has formal partnership relationships through a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) with four additional cities or regions:In 1900, Americans from Boston bought a piece of land in Bellville, Western Cape, South Africa and developed it for residential purposes. In memory of their hometown, they called it Boston.

The Boston College Eagles college football team competes as part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, representing Boston College in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Boston College has played their home games at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts since 1957. Boston College claims one national championship in 1940, though the NCAA doesn't recognize it, and have played in 22 Bowl Games, winning 13. With 626 wins over 120 seasons of football, Boston College ranks 51st all-time in win-loss records in the NCAA. Boston College played as an Independent until joining the Big East Conference in 1991. Boston College later joined the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2005.

List of Boston College Eagles football seasons

The Boston College Rugby Football Club, or BCRFC, is a collegiate rugby union team that represents Boston College. It competes in the East Coast Rugby Conference (ECRC). Like other Boston College athletic teams, BC ruggers are called the Boston College Eagles. With over 90 members, BC Rugby is one of the largest athletic teams at Boston College.
The Boston College Rugby Football Club (BCRFC) founded in 1968, has an impressive 48-year history on the pitch, in the classroom, and after graduation. With league play every fall and tournaments during the spring, BCRFC fields three sides – A, B, and Developmental – with over 80 players participating each year. BCRFC nears its 50th Anniversary and has produced All Americans as well as players for the USA Eagles national team. The Eagles compete in the East Coach Rugby Conference each fall, against rivals AIC, Northeastern, Dartmouth, Fairfield, and UMass. Since 2013, Robert Conway has been the head coach of the Eagles.

Boston College Rugby Football Club

The Boston College Rugby Football Club celebrated its Centennial Season in 2005, making it one of the oldest rugby teams in the United States. The Club was founded in 1968 by Brian King,'71. BCRFC's stated mission is to commit to the highest level of achievement on the pitch, in the classroom, and after graduation. In recent years, an additional emphasis on community service has reinforced the Club's commitment to the University's Jesuit ideals. Many BCRFC alumni go on to participate in BC's Old Gold Rugby Football Club.

Initially making their debut in 2011, the Eagles have been invited to the Collegiate Rugby Championship for the past three years.

The Eagles became the inaugural Jesuit Cup 7s Champions in 2016, beating fellow Collegiate Rugby Championship team Notre Dame in the Championship Game. In 2017, the Eagles lost in the Cup final to Santa Clara University.

BC Rugby has consistently performed well, most recently going undefeated for an unprecedented three seasons in 2004, 2005, and 2006. Highlights of 2006 included capturing a Jesuit Invitational crown in Fairfield, Connecticut, going 2-1 at the 40th annual Cherry Blossom Tournament in Washington, D.C., and advancing to the NRU semifinals in Batavia, New York where they were defeated by Harvard. BCRFC finished 8-2 on the 2006 season, placing 3rd in the New England Rugby Football Union. The Eagles' undefeated play in the NERFU's White League gave them 1st place in the league.

Also in 2006, Joe Hughes, BC ’03, was selected for the United States National Rugby Team, to compete in the Rugby World Cup in 2007.

Although it competes at the highest intercollegiate level, Boston College Rugby is officially a club sport as determined by the Boston College Athletics Association. Membership is open to any Boston College undergraduate. As such, BCRFC membership reflects the diversity of Boston College and embodies the University's motto, "Ever to Excel". The Club's emphasis on academic achievement is evident in an average GPA of 3.4. Members of the Club partake in the University's Honors Program, and many have been inducted into honor societies including Phi Beta Kappa and Alpha Sigma Nu. Several have won Fulbright scholarships and other prestigious post-graduate fellowships and awards. In addition to their many academic accomplishments, the BC ruggers fulfill regular service commitments to the Special Olympics, The American Red Cross and Nativity Prep, a tuition-free Jesuit middle school for inner-city students in Boston.

BCRFC's historic home pitch is St. John's Field on Boston College's Brighton campus. In the fall of 1994, owing to misunderstanding with the University administration, use of St. John's Field was suspended. During the subsequent 11 years, BC Rugby made use of other facilities including BC's Newton Soccer Complex, Eddie Pellagrini Diamond at John Shea Field, and Alumni Stadium, as well as several off-campus locations. These arrangements proved unsatisfactory, and in the fall of 2005, use of St. John's Field was restored.

In addition to St. John's Field, BCRFC makes occasional use of Alumni Stadium, Boston College's football complex, as well as Boston College's Newton Field Hockey and Soccer fields.

The Boston College School of Social Work (BCSSW) is the school of Boston College that awards degrees in social work, providing experience-based MSW and PhD degree programs. The campus is located in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, near the city of Boston. Currently ranked #11 by U.S. News and World Reports, it is the highest ranked academic program at Boston College and the highest ranked Catholic school of social work in the United States. Over 8,000 alumni serve as practitioners in social service agencies, policymakers, academics, and researchers throughout the United States and across the globe.

Boston College School of Social Work

Boston College School of Social Work was founded in 1936 by Father Walter McGuinn, S.J. In 1979 the school began offering a Doctor of Social Work degree, which later was changed to a Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work. Originally located at 126 Newbury Street in Boston, the school moved to McGuinn Hall on Boston College's Chestnut Hill campus in 1968.

Boston College School of Social Work offers two professional degrees: Masters of Social Work and Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work, as well as several dual degrees.

Boston College School of Social Work offers a two-year program and a three- or four-year program.

The Clinical Program intervention method prepares students for a broad range of careers and focuses on direct service to those in need. The Macro: Social Innovation + Leadership Program focuses on training future leaders of the public and social service sectors in the development of new ideas and directions for solving social problems, both creatively and effectively.

The choice of concentration and intervention method combined with a five-elective curriculum plan allows students to customize their education to their professional and educational goals.

Boston College School of Social Work offers a Certificates Program within the MSW Program that gives students the opportunity to engage in concentrated study in subject-specific areas of social work practice and expertise, allowing for enhanced skill sets and practice options. Eight certificate options are offered on a space available basis for incoming students starting in Fall 2014 in the areas of Child Welfare; Latino Leadership; Neuroscience & Social Work; Policy & Community Organizing; Refugees & Immigrants; School Social Work; Trauma; and Veterans & Military Families. Certificate course offerings are subject to change each semester.

The PhD program prepares rigorous researchers, scholars, and educators to advance the field of social welfare and social work practice.

Boston College School of Social Work's research centers, labs, and institutes are renowned for conducting groundbreaking work and providing critical services.

The Center for Social Innovation promotes "innovation from within." The mission is to foster effective, sustainable social innovations that enhance social justice.

The Immigrant Integration Lab is an applied research lab exploring the intersection of social work, social policy, and immigrant inclusion.

The Center on Aging & Work focuses its research on helping the business community promote workplace flexibility and prepare for the opportunities and challenges associated with an aging workforce.

The Cell to Society Lab merges neuroscience and social work, examining neuroimaging studies of at-risk children and teenagers to understand the impact of social context on brain development.

Research in Social, Economic, and Environmental Equity (RISE3) is an interdisciplinary initiative that convenes researchers from Boston College and practitioners and policymakers from around the world to address social, economic, and environmental inequality and confront issues of race, place, and poverty.

The Research Program on Children and Adversity (RPCA) investigates risk and resilience in children facing multiple forms of adversity using qualitative and quantitative research methods. RPCA works to develop feasible interventions that support positive life outcomes.

To facilitate learning and research, Boston College School of Social Work is one of only a dozen schools of social work in the U.S. and the only one in New England to maintain its own Social Work Library.

The Social Work Library contains over 41,000 volumes, 400 serial titles, and many audiovisual titles. The library also has access to hundreds of journal databases and over 23,000 electronic journals.

Boston College School of Social Work is one of only a few graduate social work programs to have its own Career Services office. In recent years, 95% of graduates have succeeded in finding jobs within the social work field within three months of the start of their job search.

BCSSW's network of over 8,000 alumni worldwide provides an invaluable resource for seeking career advice and making professional connections.

There are a total of 52 institutions of higher education in the defined region, including 4 junior colleges, 15 colleges that primarily grant baccalaureate and master's degrees, 8 research universities, and 22 special-focus institutions. Of these, 49 are non-profit organizations while 3 are for-profit businesses, and 47 are private ventures while 5 are public institutions (4 are run by the state of Massachusetts and 1 is operated by the city of Quincy).

List of colleges and universities in metropolitan Boston

This is a list of colleges and universities in metropolitan Boston. Some are located within Boston proper while some are located in neighboring cities and towns, but all are within the 128/95/1 loop. This is closer to the "inner core" definition of Metropolitan Boston, which excludes more suburban North Shore, South Shore and MetroWest regions. Although larger institutions may have several schools, some of which are located in cities other than that of the main campus (such as Harvard Medical School and Tufts University School of Medicine), each institution is listed only once and location is determined by the site of each institution's main campus.

In 2007, enrollment at these colleges and universities ranged from 108 students at the Episcopal Divinity School to 32,053 students at Boston University. The first to be founded was Harvard University, also the oldest institution of higher education in the United States, while the most recently established institution is the Urban College of Boston. All but five of these schools are accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), the oldest regional accrediting body in the United States, and all but one are recognized by the United States Department of Education.