AUGUST 2026

NEWS FROM THE SCHILLER INSTITUTE FOR INTEGRATED SCIENCE AND SOCIETY

WELCOME FROM DUNWEI WANG

Dear colleagues and friends,

Greetings from Hayden Hall. I hope you are enjoying a restorative summer. Although the building has been quieter these past two months, the Schiller Institute has been actively advancing several important efforts.

Following the mid-June submission deadline, the INSPIRE proposals have moved into external review. We received 16 applications requesting a total of $1.7 million in funding and spanning a wide range of topics, including notable attention to AI. Given the short notice of the call, this level of engagement is especially encouraging.

At the start of the summer, we established both an external and an internal faculty advisory board. Together, these groups will provide strategic guidance and help identify opportunities for growth in research and faculty engagement. We are also working to energize the Student Board to bring a fresh perspective to Schiller’s student-facing initiatives.

Informed by feedback from our listening tour, we piloted our first faculty retreat to promote collaboration. The two-half-day program generated a rich set of ideas. We are grateful to the Connors Center in Dover for hosting us and to our Human Resources colleagues, Stéfane Cahill Farella and Caitlin Aubuchon, for their generous support.

Finally, please mark your calendars for Research Day on October 13, 2026. As part of the lead-up to the celebration of Fr. Jack Butler’s presidential inauguration, we will gather to highlight research excellence across campus. The program will feature keynote talks by Holden Thorp, editor-in-chief of Science, and Moungi Bawendi, the 2023 Nobel laureate in chemistry, along with presentations and a panel discussion featuring students and faculty. We encourage you to visit the event website to learn more and to register.

As you prepare for another busy academic year, we reaffirm our commitment to supporting faculty collaboration. We welcome your ideas on how we can best advance this mission and hope to hear from you.

Dunwei Wang

Interim Seidner Family Executive Director, Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society

Vanderslice Professor of Chemistry

Hanqin Tian Receives Humboldt Award for Lifetime Achievement »

Schiller Core Faculty member Hanqin Tian received Germany’s prestigious Humboldt Research Award for lifetime scholarly achievement. The honor coincides with his new Nature Food study detailing yield-preserving solutions to cut climate emissions from rice cultivation. Read more about his award and the study.

Institute Establishes Two Faculty Advisory Boards »

The external advisory board comprises three distinguished leaders from peer institutions: Arun Agrawal (University of Notre Dame), David Awschalom (University of Chicago), and Angela Koehler (MIT). This board will provide independent, high-level assessment of Schiller’s strengths and emerging opportunities, offer strategic guidance, and help identify areas for growth in research and faculty engagement. 

The internal advisory board includes Ken Burch (MCAS Physics), Kate Gregory (CSON), Phil Landrigan (MCAS Biology), Brian Smith (LSEHD), Eranthie Weerapana (MCAS Chemistry), and Gautam Yadama (BCSSW). This group will advise on strategic priorities, review proposals submitted to the Institute, and help shape programmatic initiatives that advance Schiller’s mission.

Schiller Hosts First Faculty Retreat »

One of our newest initiatives, the Schiller faculty retreat, emerged directly from conversations during the listening tour. Many colleagues emphasized that while collaborations often begin with a simple conversation, extended time in a relaxed setting can be especially generative.

With that in mind, we piloted our first retreat in the area of health. The two-half-day program included five-minute “elevator pitches,” a speed-networking session, and time for collaborating around themes that emerged. Eleven faculty members from Biology, the School of Social Work, and the Connell School of Nursing participated in this pilot. We are now collecting feedback to help plan future retreats in areas of interest to our faculty.

Yi Ming Awarded Grant to Model Northeastern Flood Risks

Schiller Core Faculty member Yi Ming was awarded funding by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) to model compound flood risks. Focusing on low-lying areas near Boston Harbor and Greater NYC, his work leverages cutting-edge weather data to better predict extratropical storm impacts.

Summer Hawkins Named Director of Global Public Health and the Common Good

BC Social Work Professor and social epidemiologist Summer Hawkins is the new director of Global Public Health and the Common Good. A co-founder of the interdisciplinary program, Hawkins looks forward to expanding opportunities for students to address pressing health challenges locally and globally. Read more.

Spotlight on Interim Executive Director Dunwei Wang

From artificial photosynthesis to recyclable plastics, a new Boston College magazine feature highlights the wide-ranging research of Interim Executive Director Dunwei Wang. Learn more about how his lab harnesses chemistry for societal impact and how he is guiding the future of the Schiller Institute.

Invest in the Schiller Institute today.

Subscribe to SchillerNow.

Connect with us