Lower dining hall to be renamed for alum

Lower Campus Dining Hall will soon undergo a fundamental change. It will not involve any kind of face-lift or construction work, but it will nonetheless have a major effect on day-to-day campus life. Lower Campus Dining Facility, a staple of student life at Boston College, will soon be renamed the John M. Corcoran Commons.

The Corcoran Commons memorial was established through a $5 million gift to BC from Corcoran's brother and business partner Leo Corcoran, Leo's wife Helen and their foundation as a way to honor John's commitment to philanthropy.

An established figure in the business world, John M. Corcoran, BC '48, overcame a humble background to head up one of Boston's largest real estate firms. A true philanthropist, he donated often to BC over the years, most notably $5 million in gifts to the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning.

"Given the role that the Lower Campus has played as a central meeting place for Boston College students, we felt strongly about dedicating the space to a worthy and deserving person," said University spokesperson Jack Dunn.

Corcoran grew up in Dorchester, Mass., a foot away from St. Margaret's Hospital, where he was born in 1923. He had a variety of interesting jobs which he took on to help his large eight-sibling family make ends meet, including shoveling coal for St. Margaret's and hawking newspapers on the street.

As most young men did at that time, Corcoran enlisted in the army, and became a paratrooper for the United States. Being one of the first to land at Normandy on D-Day, he came back injured from enemy gun fire, but also with a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart to commemorate his status as a celebrated war hero.

After his experience in the war, Corcoran decided to make something of himself starting with an undergraduate degree in mathematics from Boston College. He was able to complete his bachelor's degree in just three years, despite working 40 hours a week shoveling coal at St. Margaret's to pay for his tuition and to keep his family afloat.

After graduating he founded John M. Corcoran & Co., a New England real estate development company that created affordable housing projects.

Corcoran became one of the biggest supporters of St. Mary's Women and Infant Center in Dorchester, which replaced St. Margaret's Hospital, donating what amounted to more than $500,000, according to a 1995 Boston Globe article. With his help, the center was able to increase its resources and better serve the women and children in the Massachusetts area.

With this same charitable nature, he donated more than $5 million to his alma mater for the Center for Christian Jewish Learning. As a boy growing up and as a soldier in World War II, serving his country with Jewish-Americans, Corcoran saw the prejudice against the Jews and vowed to be the one who would change it. Corcoran said that the best place to initiate this action would be BC.

"[Its] Jesuit ideal of inclusion rather than exclusion means that the University accepts the challenge that the search for truth and understanding is not hindered, but rather, is enhanced by diverse perspectives, especially when based on a profound respect for the individual," he wrote in the 2003 BC annual report.

The Center for Christian-Jewish Learning has become one of BC's most visible projects in recent years. Several events are in the works for the academic year on religious tolaration.

Philip Cunningham, the center's executive director, rose to national prominence during the heated debate that came with the debate of Mel Gibson's controversial film The Passion of Christ last year.

"John Corcoran embodied so many of the qualities that we as a Jesuit Catholic University hold dear; qualities such as valor, generosity, a commitment to social justice, and to fulfilling Christ's example of helping the poor," said Dunn when asked why Corcoran should be the name encompassing "Lower" and all its history at BC.

Corcoran died last October at the age of 80. The dedication ceremony will be held on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. at the Lower Campus Plaza outside of the dining hall.