‘Not CNN's Day’

THE HEIGHTS, April 21 — In a reflection on Boston Cardinal Bernard Law's decision not to attend this spring's commencement exercises at Boston College, the editor in chief of the campus's student newspaper said the graduates “don't deserve [the media] turning the campus into a zoo. It should be the seniors' day, not CNN's day.” Lawrence Griffin, a Catholic, said that most students have not spoken out about the controversy involving sex abuse by priests but have dealt with it “individually, quietly reflecting.”

Wither Latin?

THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, April 23 — The beleaguered Philadelphia public-school system plans to eliminate one of its more successful and emulated programs — Latin instruction for elementary students, reports the Philadelphia daily. Copied by schools in the United States and abroad, the highly regarded Latin program teaches Latin vocabulary to help students learn the roots of many English words. “It has been proven through a lot of research that this helps students do much better on standardized verbal tests,” said J. Patricio Concha, the program's administrator.

Poetry in Motion

THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION, April 19 — David Ebenbach, an adjunct psychology professor at the Christian Brothers' La Salle University dubbed himself the “Philadelphia Poetry Provider” last year and since then has been tucking original, one-page poems into the odd nooks and crannies of the metropolis.

He sticks them on the wind-shields of cars, in newspapers at newsstands, in books at bookstores, and on cereal boxes in grocery stores. The former creative-writing instructor, 29, chiefly pens free verse on workaday themes without political or social agenda.

First Class

AVE MARIA COLLEGE, May 3 — The college in Ypsilanti, Mich., founded by philanthropist Tom Monaghan in 1998 will graduate its first class on May 3. According to a college announcement, the class of six includes three men, all of whom have announced that they will enter seminaries in the fall, and three women. Honorary degrees are scheduled to be conferred upon Father Michael Scanlon, chancellor of Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, and Mother Angelica, founder of EWTN, the Catholic cable TV network.

Hispanic Religion

NOTRE DAME UNIVERSITY, April 16 — The university announced a $1 million grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts for a two-year study of how religious institutions strengthen Hispanic communities. The Hispanic Church Research Initiative will be administered through Notre Dame's Institute for Latino Studies. It will include development of a Hispanic Church Community Impact Study, publication of research on Latino church ministry, and conferences of scholars and religious leaders.

New Programs

THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION — Benedictine University, in Lisle, Ill., will offer a certificate in administration of health care institutions beginning in the fall. The Sisters of St. Joseph's Nazareth College of Rochester, N.Y., will offer a master's degree in liberal studies beginning in the fall. Ursuline College, in Cleveland, administered by the sisters of the Order of St. Ursula, will offer a bachelor's degree in biotechnology beginning in the fall.