UMass Boston to Inaugurate ‘Education in Service Awards’ to Honor Boston State Alumni
The University of Massachusetts Boston will inaugurate its “Education for Service” awards at the second annual Boston State College Celebration on December 4. The awards will be presented to Boston State alumni Dr. Richard Newman, ’36; Melvin H. King, ’52; and Dr. Mary Grassa O’Neill, ’68. This annual award was created by Boston State College Steering Committee established to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the merger between Boston State College and the University of Massachusetts Boston in 1982.
At age 94, Dr. Newman is the elder statesmen of the Boston State College family. His academic and professional career spans three strands of UMass Boston’s collective institutional history. Newman is a former member of the faculty at Boston State College and a retired UMass Boston professor of world languages.
Mel King has been an inspirational presence in the neighborhoods and politics of Boston for more than 55 years. An educator, youth worker, activist, community organizer, elected politician and author, Mr. King is a retired M.I.T. professor. He is the founder and current director of the South End Technology Center, which supports people to both create and share knowledge through free or low-cost access and training computer-related technology.
Dr. Mary Grassa O’Neill is the new superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Archdiocese of Boston. Dr. Grassa O’Neill is the former superintendent of the Milton Public Schools and was a long-time senior administrator in the Boston Public Schools. A national leader in the area of school leadership, she also directed the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Principals’ Center and programs in professional education. Dr. Grassa O’Neil, the second eldest child in her family of eight and the first to attend college, paid her own way to Boston State. Her focus in Catholic education is to ensure that “poor children get the same educations as rich children get.”
One year ago the Boston State College Steering Committee honored Boston State’s legacy of education, learning, and achievement with the opening of a new Boston State College room in UMass Boston’s Campus Center. Now in addition to this permanent home for memorabilia related to Boston State College and its predecessor institutions, Teachers College of the City of Boston and State Teachers College of Boston, the “Education for Service” award will keep the values of the college a prominent part of UMass Boston’s identity. “Education for Service” was the college motto of Boston State.
“We are so pleased that Boston State College alumni have chosen this venue to connect UMass Boston to the rich traditions from which our university has evolved. This year’s recipients illustrate the key role Boston State has played in Boston’s educational arena and beyond. Their commitment to service and their devotion and creativity as leaders are emblematic of the ideals shared by Boston State College in the past and by UMass Boston today,” said Chancellor J. Keith Motley.
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About the University of Massachusetts Boston
Established in 1964, UMass Boston prides itself on providing challenging teaching, distinguished research, and extensive public service to Boston and the Commonwealth. Through its six colleges and two graduate schools, the university offers undergraduate and graduate study to over 14,000 students in more than 150 fields. For more information, please see www.umb.edu.