Dr. Petillo's Blog

President Petillo's Blog - Friday, November 30th

Welcome back! I hope everyone had a fun and relaxing break and came back ready to buckle down and finish the semester – while also enjoying everything a Sacred Heart Christmas season has to offer! One critical piece of Christmas at Sacred Heart is reaching out to our neighbors in need. Whether you adopt a family as a department, team or club; donate socks to the drive for the homeless; write a letter to someone in the military; or stock a local food pantry, you will be providing Christmas blessings to those who really need it.

Kudos to our student-athletes on a successful food drive following the Thanksgiving holiday. The Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAC) asked all student-athletes to bring back a can of food or two from break. As a result, the men’s volleyball team delivered a carload of food to St. Charles in Bridgeport earlier today. Another SAC program led to the student-athletes raising $3,694 for breast cancer research as part of the Making Strides for Breast Cancer program. They made the gift in honor of coaches Bippy Luckie and Nicoleta Mantescu, who are survivors of the disease.



We learned this week that Executive Director of Athletics Don Cook will retire at the end of this academic year. Please take the time between now and then to congratulate him, wish him well and let him know how much he will be missed.

The (now) first- and second-grade students who are part of our Horizons program were back on campus for five Saturdays mornings this fall for some academics and play. The idea is to keep our connection with the kids going in between the summers they spend here. During their final visit, they attended a home football game and were thrilled when the marching band stopped and performed just for them on their way into the stands. They will be back for another five Saturdays during the spring semester.


We also had high school students onsite during the second open house of the semester on the Sunday before Thanksgiving. More than 2,500 students and parents turned out to hear about our academic programs, clubs and organizations, sports, career development programs and much more. Many of them seemed to be very interested in all that we have to offer. It was great meeting them, and I am hoping to welcome most of them to the Sacred Heart community during freshman orientation! My thanks to the admissions team and everyone who participated in making this a truly special day for our prospective students.


Ben Cohen was on campus Tuesday to talk about bullying. He spoke to a crowd of about 400 in the Edgerton Center and then answered questions. Prior to the event, he met with members of the men’s and women’s rugby teams, the Active Minds organization and students from Greek Life. Ben Cohen is a rugby world champion from England and founder of the Ben Cohen Standup Foundation. He is one of the first straight athletes to focus on bullying against the LGBT community. His message is extremely important as bullying is never tolerable at any age or in any forum.


Congratulations to Seamus Carey and Jerry Reid who have been awarded a Davis Educational Foundation grant in the amount of $109,588 over two years. The money will be used to create faculty development workshops geared to more effectively achieving the desired outcomes of the First-Year seminar.

Damon Maulucci and Justin Liberman, faculty from our new master’s in film and television program, will be on NPR’s “Where We Live” program on Monday. You might want to tune in to hear about this exciting new program that will have its inaugural class next fall.

Our Innovation Committee, led by Professor Stephen Brown, has been continuing its work by collecting data from campus leaders, including my direct reports, leaders of the undergraduate and graduate student bodies and the president of the UAA. They are now completing a survey that will be sent to the entire University community. You can expect to receive that survey in January, and I ask that all of you take time to fill it out. The committee also intends to hold public forums on campus next semester. Please participate – every voice is important.

Last night, Sacred Heart’s country music fans were thoroughly entertained in the Edgerton Center by the group Gloriana. This country trio has opened for Taylor Swift and received the Breakthrough Artist award at the 2009 American Music Awards and the Top New Vocal Group award at the 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards. By all accounts it was a lively performance that had fans tapping their feet and singing along.

Those who are on campus this weekend won’t be at a loss to find something to do. From the finale of the Movember campaign to raise awareness of men’s health issues to musical programs by our student choruses and chamber ensembles, there is something for everyone. I particularly want to call your attention to the New England and New York Region Ethics Bowl taking place on Saturday. Among the many teams we will be hosting are Dartmouth, West Point, Colgate, Marist, Manhattan, Stevens Institute of Technology and St. John’s University. And, of course, we will be fielding a team of our own! Come by and listen to the teams square off on ethical theory and moral reasoning.

Have a great weekend!

President Petillo's Blog - Tuesday, November 20th

There is a season and time for everything. We have experienced that together this semester as these few months have brought us extreme highs and devastating lows. Now is a time for giving thanks and remembrance. I am thankful today for each of you – for the community we form together and for the way we care for one another and those around us. There will be many others in the surrounding neighborhoods and states who will also be expressing thanks for you and all you have done these past few weeks to help them recover from the storm, to make sure they have warm clothes, to provide a Thanksgiving meal for their table. 

This year’s Thanksgiving turkey drive exceeded its original goal by more than 100 and the post-hurricane goal by more than 200 turkeys. Congratulations and thanks to Alexa Wrinn, Mia James and the entire Student Government team for their hard work in collecting enough money for 900 turkeys. In addition, the folks at Volunteer Programs have collected boxes and boxes of side dishes and turkey trimmings from departments and organizations throughout the University to complete the Thanksgiving feast. Their hard work is also appreciated. Of course, none of this would be possible without the generosity of all of you. Time after time, you open your hearts – and your wallets – and show the world how special the Sacred Heart community truly is.

Students and members of the Offices of Student Life, Volunteer Programs and Service Learning
distribute Thanksgiving turkeys and all the trimmings at St. Charles Food Pantry in Bridgeport.

Now we are ready for a much-needed respite with our friends and families. It is a time to set aside the books and studies, the work and worries. As each of us prepares to depart for or make ready for visiting family and friends, I would like to offer my best wishes for a grateful and blessed Thanksgiving. And as you always do, I ask that you think of those who are alone, who lost someone or who are suffering. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers, and reach out to them if you can.

To all of you who are traveling, do so carefully and peacefully. Let’s all return next week rested and prepared to successfully finish this semester and ready to celebrate the joy of the Christmas season.

Happy Thanksgiving.

President Petillo's Blog - Friday, November 16th

It’s been a beautiful week on campus with crisp, fall New England days as we approach an early Thanksgiving. This week was International Education Week, and we celebrated with a number of educational and fun events that ranged from discussions on Japan and “What a Wonderful World” to an international trivia contest, a belly dancing demonstration, Irish music, a Saudi wedding and much more. Congratulations to University College’s English Language Institute and the Study Abroad program for an outstanding job on providing an exciting variety of activities. There was truly something for everyone.

International Education Week

We had a chance to meet with our state representative, Tony Hwang (R-134) this week. We took the opportunity to share with him our concerns about the proposed cuts to the Connecticut Independent College Student Grant (CICS) program. I came away feeling that he understood our message and that he couldn’t be more supportive of this University and the work we are doing. We are grateful to Tony for taking time out of his busy schedule to visit campus and meet with us.

Those of you who had a chance to attend our Interfaith Prayer Service yesterday afternoon experienced a true celebration of faith on this campus and around the world. In addition to a celebration of our own Christian faith, we experienced a Native American meditation, an Arabic prayer, a Buddhist chant, and we all learned to sing in Hebrew. In addition the altar was piled high with our community’s contributions to those who are in need of a Thanksgiving meal. It was a reminder that even though we have been through difficult times this semester, we have much to be thankful for. Thank you to Campus Ministry and Volunteer Programs for providing a great program to kick off the holiday season.

Annual Thanksgiving Interfaith Prayer Service

We welcomed approximately 100 professionals from the New England Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals (NEGAP) to campus today for their second annual conference. Congratulations to our own Kathy Dilks, director of Graduate Admissions.  She is also vice president of NEGAP and was instrumental in bringing this conference to our campus. Among the topics they discussed was the future of graduate education. We look forward to hearing their conclusions.

Sunday is our fall open house, which we rescheduled after the hurricane forced many SAT testing centers to change their test date to our original date of Saturday. We did not want to create a conflict for the large number of students who have indicated that they will visit SHU this weekend. Our open house will be focused on SHU academic programs, while also offering prospective students the opportunity to learn more about options for involvement on campus and in the community. Faculty and staff from the four academic colleges will be available to discuss the Freshman Academic Experience, the value of a liberal arts education, the importance of and focus on active and engaged learning, as well as individual majors and programs. Representatives from the performing arts, Division I and club sports, community service, Greek life, student government and various other student activities will also be on hand. The Career Development and Placement Center will educate families on the achievements of SHU graduates and the career development resources and support students receive in internship and full-time job searches. I am looking forward to meeting members of the Class of 2017 and their parents.

If you have some free time this weekend, I recommend that you consider attending the The Awesome '80s Prom, either Friday or Saturday evening or Sunday afternoon. It is a party in the style of Tony 'n Tina’s Wedding and The Donkey Show that is set at Wanaget High’s Senior Prom in 1989. It’s an interactive performance that is sure to be a lot of fun.

Congratulations to Dave Bike, head coach of the men’s basketball team on coaching his 1000th career game. The game, played against Yale, turned out to be the biggest comeback in SHU’s Division I history, as the Pioneers erased a 24-point deficit to force overtime. SHU’s Shane Gibson, who was instrumental in the comeback and win, was named the Northeast Conference Player of the Week this week. He shares the season’s first weekly award with Monmouth’s Andrew Nichols.

For those of you who are getting a head start on the holiday by heading home this weekend, I wish you safe travels and a happy, healthy and blessed time with your family and friends.

President Petillo's Blog - Friday, November 9th

It is great to have everyone back on campus after the hurricane. I want to say thank you one more time to the employees who were on hand last week to care for our students and guests from the University of Bridgeport. And, as I predicted, our students and staff are already organizing fundraisers and special events in support of those who were hardest hit by the storm. Some of those events include:

• A vigil on Election Night organized by Student Government where the University community donated personal hygiene items, items for infants,  cleaning supplies, water, batteries and cash
• This year’s drive for Thanksgiving food items, which will focus on donations to those areas most impacted by the storm
• The collection of sweaters, sweats, scarves, coats, gloves, hats, boots, blankets and other cold-weather items at upcoming football and volleyball games
• Participation in clean-up at Jennings Beach in Fairfield on Sunday
• A day trip to Staten Island on November 18, organized  by the United Campus Alliance and UMOJA,  to provide assistance to a community that was destroyed by the hurricane

I know we will hear of more creative and generous programs in support of our impacted neighbors in the coming weeks and months.

Hurricane Sandy Vigil - photo by Liz Mastrocola

We had barely drawn a breath after the departure of Sandy when we were hit with Wednesday’s nor’easter that packed a much bigger wallop than most forecasters predicted. As much as I enjoy the Northeast’s four seasons, I think this is a little early for winter. Here’s hoping an early storm is once again followed by a mild winter.

First snow

Father Tony Ciorra recently took a group of faculty and staff from Sacred Heart on a retreat to the Weston Priory in Weston, Vermont. It was a great time of introspection and prayer as well as a chance to draw closer to fellow members of the Sacred Heart community. Father Tony will be planning more retreats in the future. If you have suggestions, please contact him.

Tony Lucca, runner-up in last year’s season of NBC’s The Voice, was on campus Monday to thank students who supported him during the competition. He was particularly excited to meet the students from Professor Sam Goldstein’s marketing class who executed a marketing campaign last spring to get SHU students to vote for him. Over a pizza lunch, Tony chatted with students and staff, shared the changes in his life since appearing on The Voice and posed for pictures. Hopefully we can get him back here to perform sometime in the future.

Singer Tony Lucca, left, talks with students during his visit to campus.

With the election behind us, I want to congratulate all of the newly and re-elected public servants who will surely work hard on behalf of all of their constituents. In particular, I want to congratulate SHU alumnus Andres Ayala who became the first Hispanic to be elected to the Connecticut State Senate. We appreciate his service and wish him great success in his new role. I hope all of you got out there and exercised your right to vote.

The Nursing Department received preliminary word this week that the new Doctor of Nursing Program has fully met all four standards of the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education without any recommendations for changes. The report is the result of a 2 ½-day visit to campus by the Commission. The official accreditation notification will come in March, but the initial news is great. Congratulations to Ann Barker, Pat Walker, Sue DeNisco and the entire team on a job very well done!

Although I was unable to attend the Lachowicz lecture last night because of a faculty dinner, my wife was there and said it was an insightful and thought-provoking discussion. While the topic was sobering – Rethinking Polish and Jewish Relations During the Holocaust: Anatomy of a Complex Relationship – guest speaker Dr. Michael Dobkowski did an outstanding job laying out the two competing views of what happened in Poland during the Holocaust. His points were further emphasized during the Q&A session when audience members supported each of the narratives he had described.

Professor Michael Dobkowski was the keynote speaker at this year's Lachowicz Lecture.

We continued with our remembrance of this tragic time in history with our Kristallnacht commemoration this afternoon in University Commons. It was a moving service that gave us the opportunity to honor those who suffered and to support our Jewish colleagues. Holocaust survivor Anita Schorr’s haunting story of survival in the concentration camps moved the audience to tears.  We can only hope that through the retelling of these stories, these tragedies will never happen again.

From top left clockwise: The Kristallnacht commemoration; senior Trevor Kelly reads ‘Silence’ by Elie Wiesel; Holocaust survivor Anita Schorr tells her moving story of survival in the concentration camps.

After another successful faculty dinner last night that included lively conversation and great company, I am thinking of expanding the dinners to include staff. I think it will be a great way for more members of our special community to get to know each other in a relaxed setting.

It has come to my attention that certain members of the Welch College of Business have been spreading rumors about the Wednesday night trivia contest. While I don’t want to downplay the severity of Wednesday’s storm, my team was at an empty Red’s and ready to take on all comers. As for how many finance professors it takes to beat the President and his team of students, let’s just say that I’m not a fan of revisionist history!

Looks like a sunny and much warmer weekend ahead. Come out to cheer on the football team, and drop off a donation for the hurricane victims while you’re there.                      

President Petillo's Blog - Friday, November 2nd

Once again, the Sacred Heart community has come together with resilience and strength, and I couldn’t be more proud. I am especially proud of our students who have weathered the week without power with fortitude, cheerfulness, creativity and caring for one another. Without a doubt, we have the best students anywhere. I am convinced you can overcome any obstacle sent your way.

I want to thank all the “essential personnel” who have been on hand all week to care for our students and keep things humming along throughout the many challenges. Of course, all our personnel are essential, but I am indebted to the folks who have been on the ground all week doing whatever needed to be done to make the best of this tough situation – in some cases leaving their own storm-related issues behind at home. I want to say up front that I may forget someone, and if I do, please accept my apology.  A grateful thank you to:

• The Emergency Management Center/Public Safety team, in particular Paul Healy, Jeff Barrett and Jack Fernandez.
• The Campus Operations team
• Mark Tammone and the staff of Chartwells
• Dean Larry Wielk and the Student Life team
• Joel Quintong and the residential and RSA staff   
• The folks at Fairfield University who provided space for our basketball team to practice
• Members of the senior administrative team who were on site each day to formulate the University’s response to the challenges presented by the storm and its aftermath.

During the storm, Sacred Heart personnel also assisted with the evacuation, shelter and ensuring the safety of students from the University of Bridgeport. Most of those students have now been able to return to their campus and dorms.

I also greatly appreciate the words of encouragement and support we have received from parents, friends and members of the extended Sacred Heart family. It has helped to know that we were in your thoughts and prayers.

Those of us who have had access to television and the Internet know that people throughout the country have experienced much worse as a result of this storm than loss of power. As nearby as our own town of Fairfield, people have lost their homes and all their belongings. Our hearts go out to them, and our prayers are with them. I know that once we restore power and get back to normal next week, we will be looking for practical ways to reach out to our friends and neighbors to help them through this difficult time. It is who we are and what we do.

God bless you all.