50th Anniversary
The Boston College PULSE Program is a pioneering service-learning program that has offered 3.2 million hours of service to the greater Boston community throughout its 53-year history.
PULSE 50 In the News
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Boston College Magazine
"You’ll meet alumni in the stories ahead, people for whom the PULSE experience continues to resonate many, many years past graduation. Some have children who’ve followed them through the program. Others continue to nurture relationships formed during their community service. Still others have seen their career plans changed by their time in PULSE."
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Boston College Chronicle
"Fifty years after it began as a student initiative, the Boston College PULSE Program has evolved into one of the University’s signature programs, part of a formative academic service-learning experience that helps undergraduates grow as human beings and learn how to work for a just society."
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Boston Globe: Fifty Years of Paying It Forward
“The students’ hearts are opened by meeting the people. And when hearts are converted, minds can be converted as well,” said Meghan Sweeney, a BC theology professor who has directed the program for six years. “I want them to see that their well-being is tied in with the well-being of others."
Written By Brian MacQuarrie | Photo by Pat Greenhouse
PULSE by the Numbers
3.2 Million
Service Hours
Since 1970
17,500
PULSE Students
Since 1970
57
Present Day
Community Partners
“PULSE connects the world in a way that other programs don't; people who normally would not talk to each other or know each other or develop a relationship are able to do that through PULSE. I think that, to me, is the most valuable thing about service learning opportunities—it's not abstract, it's real.”
Featured Interviews
Watch extended interviews with key members of the PULSE Community.
Patrick Byrne
Founder, PULSE Program
“It was a time of great social upheaval in the country. The civil rights movement had been developing for about five or six years and Martin Luther King Jr had been assassinated the previous spring..."
Meghan Sweeney
Cooney Family Director, PULSE Program
“As students get to know people, their hearts are broken open and they begin to care in a deeper way — they experience sadness, but they also experience joy."
Lyndia Downie
President & Executive Director, Pine Street Inn
“Ultimately I see the PULSE students as being ambassadors — they have a role to play in telling the stories of our guests..."
Jonathan Scott ’79
Founder & President Emeritus, Victory Programs
“I have been in my PULSE placement since the mid-70's — actually it's really the only job I've ever had. Slim resume me!"
M. Shawn Copeland
Professor Emerita, PULSE Program
“... they learn something about what it means to be in solidarity with other people — in an honest way..."
Anthony Smith ’19
Suffolk County House of Correction PULSE Alumnus
“... building compassion and building honest, vulnerable relationships... made me critically reflect on the criminal justice system..."
Tammy Lee ’19
Boston Living Center PULSE Alumna
“PULSE is probably the best opportunity to learn in class and apply those methods outside of class..."
Andrew Weisner ’21
Haley House PULSE Alumnus
“...it's a different type of soup kitchen because it's a much more personal one..."
Elizabeth Coscia ’20
The Work Force Youth Program PULSE Alumna
“It might not always mean helping a kid get an A on his test; it also just means listening to how their day was..."
Share Your PULSE Story
In celebration of 50 years of service learning, PULSE is collecting impact stories from alumni/ae to share with others. We invite you to contribute to any of the following questions:
What is a particular class memory you have and how did it shape you? This could be a reading, a topic, a professor, a classmate, a discussion, etc.
What is a particular service memory you have and how did it shape you? This could be a supervisor, a client, something that happened at your service site, etc.