State of the Hill 2026
By Aurora Ferreira
SGA’s State of the Hill began with a positive start when a routine icebreaker encouraged those present to share their favorite past Halloween costume. After pleasantries and introductions, the State of the Hill then began.
The first speaker, no other than Stonehill College’s President, Father John Denning, began the State of the Hill discussions.
Starting with the Nursing Program, it was explained that Stonehill is working to arrange internship partnerships with neighboring practices and hospitals.
Stonehill’s Golf Club was also mentioned, since the men’s team is to start this upcoming academic year.
Progress on the Bogen Arena Project is that they are currently in the process of meeting with architects and contractors. Funding efforts are being held to raise the needed 27 million to construct the new Arena.
Stonehill’s Experiential Educational Guarente (EEG) was discussed, and an intention to expand the program was expressed.
A common question on many student’s minds is whether the school intends to add new parking. Father John Denning addressed this concern, sharing that there are currently no plans to expand parking or housing on campus.
Jeanne Finlayson, our Vice President of Finance, spoke of some of the school’s finances.
The college’s endowment Growth from 295 million dollars to 376 million dollars.
A 18.5% return was reported.
Stonehill’s Financial resources are reportedly strong, with a net worth of 501 million dollars.
It was also explained by Father John Denning that Easton Country club exists as a separate entity from the school. It creates surplus revenue, which the school can utalize.
The college plans to renovate the club, then eventually use its activity spaces to host out to events, as it has in the past.
The upcoming renovations to Duffy Hall in what are to become the Nursing wing was shared to be the equivalent of about 1.5 million dollars.
Meanwhile, plans to renovate Moreau Hall, a recently required closed elementary school in Easton, Massachusetts, closely to campus, surfaced. Renovations are estimated to be about 10 million dollars.
Demolitions are to begin in the more immediate future, and the renovations themselves later.
Next, Dean O’Keefe, the Director of Athletics came to address student questions.
It was shared that Easton’s Country Club would give Stonehill students a discount, allowing anyone interested to play on the green for half the normal price.
In addition to hosting events for outside parties, the Country Club will also host D1 events.
Progress on the D1 Swin teams’ development was shared as well. There are currently 24 women and1 man gathered for the women’s and men’s teams respectively.
On the men’s golf team, which is also currently developing, there are 15 members so far. There will likely be more growth due to a large amount of interest from prospective students.
With the addition of Bogan Arena, there has been some questions about how Merkert gymnasium will continue to be used in the future.
The gymnasium will continue to be of use on campus and will most likely be more open to future use due to the relocation of other sports to the arena.
The next speaker, Sue Taylor, the Dean of Nursing, detailed the nursing department’s activities.
Clinicals will be starting this upcoming August, so Scrubs are in the process of being ordered.
The contractors for the previously mentioned renovations in Duffy have already been hired. The renovations have already led to the relocation of offices, and other rooms will also be temporarily closed during construction.
Currently, there are 57 students in Stonehill’s Nursing Cohort, and of them, 11 are D1 athletes.
The department is currently looking to hire three fulltime professors, along with many more adjunct professors. For every six clinical students, there must be one faculty member.
The locations and details for off campus clinical experiences have yet to be decided. Contracts will be signed in the Spring, since it is typical for such decisions to be made official closer to the start date.
The department’s admission numbers are also reported to be healthy.
Christina Burney, the Executive Director of Experiential Education, came to share more details on Stonehill’s Experiential Education Guarente. The EEG is a newer graduation requirement, which ensures that all undergraduate students from the class of 2029 and all the classes following it complete at least one high impact learning experience before they graduate.
Students who are interested in learning more about EEGs can schedule one on one meetings with the Navigation Center.
Speakers Kristin Burkeholder, the Associate Dean of the May School of Arts and Sciences, and Micheal Sale, the Associate Dean of the Leo J. Meehan School of Business, were next to share college news.
There are plans to establish an Exam Make up center, where students can take or retake exams. Professors would have to request a period for students to test, then the students would be free to do so during that time.
The topic of micro badges and credentials was also brought to light.
This is a system that allows students to gain recognition for skills gained through involvements outside the classroom.
Feedback from students on what skills and accomplishments they would like included would be greatly appreciated.
Starting off with just a few piloted in the Spring, the college hopes to integrate this system into each department and student opportunities so they may gain recognition for their efforts.
The office of Residential Life’s Representatives, Arianna Gulbis and Christian Hughes, the Director and Assistant Director of residential life, took to the stand next, addressing student concerns about troubling behavior in Boland Hall throughout the semester.
They were joined by Teddi Nguyen, the Director of the Office of Intercultural Affairs to address bias incidents on campus and in-residence halls.
Students in Boland had to take down their whiteboards due to hurtful and ignorant messages being left on them.
After all the guest speakers shared their piece, General Assembly continued until 12:45 pm. SGA members were asked to stay behind so that they may take a group photo.
Comments