Lubens Benjamin (Caitlin Cunningham)
Hometown: Cambridge, Mass.
Major: Management, with a marketing concentration, and philosophy
Notable Activities/Achievements: Undergraduate Government of BC president (2022-2023); chair, AHANA+ Leadership Council; Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship finalist (2022); Ever to Excel/Wells Remy Crowther Award for service; mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts; Office of First Year Experience orientation leader; Student Admission Program student ambassador; Kairos Retreat leader; Appalachian Volunteers student leader; Courage to Know teaching assistant; Arrupe Immersion Program in El Salvador.
Mentors: Matt Razek (Student Affairs); Marissa Papula (Campus Ministry); Chris Darcy (First Year Experience); Steven Koo (Undergraduate Admission); Amy LaCombe (Carroll School); Emily Egan (Campus Ministry); Fr. Anthony Pena (Campus Ministry); Stephen Pope (Theology), Mary Troxel (Philosophy); Doc Miller (Arrupe Immersion Program); Drew Barksdale (CSOM Career Advisor); Michael Davidson, S.J. (Thea Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center; Montserrat Coalition).
Post-Graduation Plans: Marketing or consulting work; considering M.B.A. study in the future.
As the type of person who thrives with a full schedule, Benjamin has filled his days at BC with a broad array of leadership, service, and academic roles, from UGBC president to mentoring with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts to welcoming visitors and new students as a Student Admission Program guide and a First Year Experience orientation leader. He also co-organized the ALC Showdown dance competition and the ALC Ball. He’s even been invited to deliver this year’s commencement address at his high school alma mater, St. Joseph’s Preparatory High School in Brighton.
What experiences at BC have had the most significant impact on you?
Being a Kairos leader is a great way to learn what servant leadership is all about. It’s about putting the needs of participants and the team before your own. It had an impact on me as chair of AHANA+ Leadership Council and the following year as UGBC president. As president of UGBC, I could put that servant leader approach into action: to have the interests of the student body before my own personal ambitions; to do my best to better the student experience. It took a lot of hard work, determination, and long hours. But I didn’t want to short-change the students who elected me, or any student at BC. I knew that I had the talents and the gifts to do the job and that if I applied myself to the fullest extent, I could put UGBC in a new, stronger position to fiercely advocate.
You also took part in the Arrupe Immersion Program. What was that like?
Stephen Pope, Mary Troxel, and Doc Miller were leaders of our Arrupe trip to El Salvador. Each day in El Salvador was such a full day. Some days, you had your heart broken. But there was also so much love and that put it all back together. We were on our way to the airport to fly home and we stopped at the site where four churchwomen were murdered in 1980. Mary Troxel read aloud a letter Sister Ita Ford wrote to her niece just a few days before she was killed, in which she said “I hope you come to find that which gives life a deep meaning for you... something worth living for, maybe even worth dying for...something that energizes you, enthuses you, enables you to keep moving ahead. I can’t tell you what it might be that’s for you to find, to choose, to love.” Hearing that shifted my mind set. It made me more aware and asked me to be more intentional about how I spend my days, how I spend my moments, who I spend my time with, and to do everything to the fullest of my abilities.
How has your perspective on leadership changed since you arrived for freshman year?
When I first arrived at BC, I thought of leadership as someone in charge and bossing others around. Now, I know that such a big part of leadership is being able to listen and to have some poise in situations. Poise is a skill I have tried to cultivate while at BC—think a little bit longer before you make a decision. It can make a difference in your life and the lives of those impacted by those decisions. I’m much more comfortable in those seconds of silence before answering a question, or giving my opinion. BC has been a big part of learning that skill. There is an emphasis here on slowing down and reflecting. I realized that if can do that—and have poise—in those little moments, it can make all the difference.
What was your most impactful academic experience?
So much of my philosophy study has taken root in ethics. That led me to Professor Pope and I was lucky to have almost a full year learning from him. I took his The Challenge of Justice class in the fall, traveled to El Salvador with him during winter break, and took his Theology, Service, and Solidarity class this semester. They all helped me to find my faith and connect that faith to service. He teaches us that if we are made in the image and likeness of God and believe God is a God of justice, then we are made to carry out God’s will. Once he broke that down for me, I had an epiphany: This is what I’ve been trying to get at for so long.
What will you miss most about BC?
I will miss my friends and roommates and having a group of people who understand me so well. I will miss having so many conversation partners here. Whether they are mentors who have shaped me, pushed me, asked me the hard questions—they make BC so special. We can talk about our faith or the NBA playoffs; you can cover that whole range. I will miss being in such a rich academic environment with so many people. You can really feed off that. You talk to people and you’re amazed by what they have done even before they got to BC. It is inspiring to me. To talk to so many people who are so rich in depth is something I am definitely going to miss at BC.
What advice would you give to a new student?
Take the time to figure out who you are and to know yourself. At the end of the day, the person you spend the most time with is yourself, so you ought to like that person. If you can wake up every day and be proud of who you are or the person who you are becoming, that in itself is an achievement and the makings of a good day. Put yourself in a position to do that. There are so many opportunities here, so many doors waiting for you to reach out and open. Say “yes.” Take risks. Now is the time to make your mistakes. Even if you make them, there is such a strong support system here to pick you up and open more doors.
Ed Hayward | University Communications | May 2023