Boston College will introduce a cost-free summer enrichment program for students in grades 8-12 in June 2022, and an associate’s degree-granting two-year residential college in 2024, as part of the University’s $100 million Pine Manor Institute for Student Success initiative to enhance educational opportunity for underrepresented, first-generation students.
The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success was established in 2020 when Boston College and Pine Manor College signed an integration agreement that included a $50 million commitment from Boston College, which has grown to $100 million through investment returns and an anonymous pledge of $25 million.
The residential summer enrichment program for middle and high school students, called the Academy, will be hosted on the BC campus. Beginning with an inaugural cohort of 40 middle school students, the Academy will offer summer courses in English, mathematics, and science for students nominated by principals, teachers, counselors, or religious and community leaders. During the school year, it will offer academic support from trained BC success coaches and provide mentoring from BC undergraduate and graduate students to help the Academy students navigate the journey from middle school to college. In addition, during their summer experience at BC, Academy students will receive training in public speaking, time management, SAT/ACT prep, and the college application process. In the summer before their senior year, they will take a college-credit course to help enhance their college readiness.
The two-year college division of Boston College will be called Messina College, named after the first Jesuit school founded in Sicily in 1548. It will offer an associate’s degree program for 100 students annually beginning in the 2024-2025 academic year, with the goal of preparing students for continued studies in a bachelor’s degree program or for professional careers. Messina College will be located on the former Pine Manor College campus in Brookline, and its students will have full access to Boston College’s campus programs and facilities. Successful students will be eligible to apply to transfer to Boston College to complete a bachelor’s degree.
““The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success will help increase access to high quality education for underrepresented students. Boston College was founded in 1863 to help educate Boston’s immigrant community. The Pine Manor Institute reflects our heritage, and represents an extension of our mission and a response to societal needs.”
The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success will also serve as an umbrella organization for Boston College’s existing academic support initiatives, including Options Through Education, Learning to Learn, and the Montserrat Coalition, as well as BC’s extensive student volunteer efforts.
The final component of the Pine Manor Institute will be an ongoing outreach initiative that will provide support for graduates of the Academy and Messina College throughout the completion of their academic studies and into their professional careers.
Together, these offerings aim to expand upon Boston College’s success in educating under-resourced, first-generation students, while continuing Pine Manor College’s legacy of outreach to underserved communities.
“The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success will help increase access to high quality education for underrepresented students,” said University President William P. Leahy, S.J. “Boston College was founded in 1863 to help educate Boston’s immigrant community. The Pine Manor Institute represents an extension of our mission in response to societal needs.”
“The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success will help to raise the sightlines for young students by providing access and the academic support that has enabled generations of underserved BC students to succeed.”
Joy Moore (Lee Pellegrini)
Pine Manor Institute Executive Director Joy Moore said the Institute will help meet the needs of students from throughout the Commonwealth who too often do not have a clear pathway to college.
“The Pine Manor Institute for Student Success will help to raise the sightlines for young students by providing access and the academic support that has enabled generations of underserved BC students to succeed,” said Moore. “The Academy will be the first step in helping students to achieve success by gaining the confidence that comes from good academic preparation during the middle school and high school years.”
Moore said that a distinctive element of the Pine Manor Institute will be long-term academic support and mentoring, which will provide assistance for students from the Academy and Messina College through their first two years in the work force.
“Students benefit tremendously from ongoing academic support, success coaching, and mentorship,” said Moore. “The Institute will provide assistance for students at every stage of their academic careers and for up to two years into their careers.”
The decision to create the Pine Manor Institute for Student Success was based in part on BC’s proven track record of educating underrepresented students through its academic support programs and financial aid commitments.
Specifically, Boston College is one of only 20 private universities in the United States that is need blind in admissions and meets the full demonstrated need of all accepted students. In 2020, BC had the third highest graduation rate (96%) of Pell-eligible students in the United States according to U.S. News & World Report. In addition, the University is one of 42 colleges and universities in QuestBridge—a non-profit program that helps high-achieving, low-income students gain admission and scholarships to the nation’s top-ranked colleges and universities—and one of 77 institutions of higher education to be named a First-Gen Forward Institution, a distinction given to schools with a demonstrated commitment to first-generation student success.
Pine Manor College President Thomas O’Reilly said he was pleased that the school’s legacy will live on through the Pine Manor Institute for Student Success and Messina College.
“Boston College and Pine Manor College agreed to integrate to advance the crucial mission of expanding educational opportunities for traditionally underserved and underrepresented students,” said O’Reilly. “With the creation of the Pine Manor Institute for Student Success and Messina College, that mission has been fully launched. Boston College has exceeded all expectations. They are to be applauded. The social justice imperative of Pine Manor College has found a home. I am proud to be a part of this endeavor.”
Jack Dunn | University Communications | January 2022