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By Mark J. Cadigan
 Holy Cross has the parents and grandparents
of Jim Barrett '46 to thank for some of the College's
notable recent advancements, even though the financing came
from Barrett and his wife, Eva (Slavicek). And the Houston,
Texas, resident doesn't waste a second in giving credit
to his family.
"I'm sort of an ordinary guy who had
extraordinary parents and maternal grandparents and a great
wife and a little luck," says Barrett. "My parents' goal
was to raise their kids with the love of God and to enable
them to get a college education. Dad was the son of Irish
immigrants, and he admired the work ethic and frugality of
the old Boston Yankees. He instilled this in us, and this
is what enabled me to accumulate the money that I've
given to Holy Cross, two other universities and a number of
charities."
At Holy Cross, the Barretts have given the Patrick
J. and Louise Whealen O'Reilly Merit Scholarships, in
honor of his maternal grandparents, for deserving students
from Newfoundland, his ancestors' birthplace; and the
James N. and Sarah L. O'Reilly Barrett Endowed Chair
in Creative Writing, in honor of his father and mother. His
mother was the author of several novels for teenagers, including Silver
Blades and A Leaf of Gold. In September, the Barretts
agreed to fund the James N. and Eva Barrett Endowment for
Ethics Programming and the James N. and Eva Barrett Fellow
in Ethics and the Liberal Arts. "In today's world,
there's certainly a need for ethics," Barrett explains.
The self-employed investor points to his mother
and grandmother as sterling examples of charity in action. "My
mother never saw a needy person for whom she couldn't
find a little something," he says. "During our formative
years, she constantly preached, ‘From those to whom much
is given, much is expected,' and that most Americans
are fortunate in comparison with the rest of the world. Grandma
O'Reilly taught my mother the typical Newfoundlander's
concern for neighbor and even strangers in need."
Of the numerous institutions and causes to which
Barrett and his wife contribute, Holy Cross is "our biggest
single recipient to date," he says, stressing that the
College's pursuits mirror his family's core values. "We
believe that Holy Cross strives to teach its students a concern
for others, and we're happy to help with that mission.
At the same time, donating to Holy Cross gave us a chance
to honor those responsible for what we have and what we are
today."
"Jim Barrett has long believed that the
proper education of our youth is the highest priority. He
deeply believes in Holy Cross' educational philosophy," says
Rev. Francis X. Miller, S.J., '46, vice-president emeritus
and a classmate of Barrett's at Holy Cross. "Jim
and Eva are gifted individuals, and Holy Cross treasures them
and their goodness."
Barrett notes that his wife, who volunteers
at a medical clinic where her multilingual abilities are a
boon to both patients and staff, learned some valuable lessons
about gratitude and helping others when she and her family
had to escape from Europe twice. "The first time was
during World War II. They fled Paris, where her dad was Czech
consul, as the bombs were falling. And years later, they again
had to flee Czechoslovakia when the Communists took over.
And she can never forget the strangers who reached out to
her family in times of dire need."
While his future wife was fleeing for her life,
Barrett was serving with the U.S. Navy Supply Corps during
the war. In 1946, Barrett received his bachelor of science
degree from Holy Cross and went on to many more accomplishments.
He earned a juris doctor (then called L.L.B.) from Boston
University in 1950, and his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School
in 1952. It was after graduate school that Barrett left the
Boston area, where he had been born and raised, to travel
the world. He has worked for Ford Motor Company, Standard
Brands International, Hooker Chemical & Plastics, and
Union Texas Petroleum, usually in an international financial
position. He has demonstrated savvy skills as an investor.
But he seems just as proud that his sons, James N. Barrett
III '90 and David J. Barrett '95 (who is married
to Amy E. Barrett '94), support their parents' charitable
inclinations and comprehend their significance.
"Some years back," Barrett says, "when
it became clear that our family was going to have quite a
bit more than we needed, we sat down with our two sons and
explained they would be left with enough to ensure a comfortable
old age but not enough to maintain a lavish lifestyle. They're
good kids, and they understood and have never questioned the
fairness of our decision."
That decision has allowed the Barretts to donate
stock to a fund they established at Holy Cross. Over time
this fund became worth more than $4 million and funded the
aforementioned scholarships, chair, fellow and endowment.
Professor Robert K. Cording, an award-winning poet and respected
teacher who is the recipient of the James N. and Sarah L.
O'Reilly Barrett Endowed Chair in Creative Writing, recalls
being stunned by the College's announcement of the new
chair.
"It came out of nowhere," says Cording,
who has taught at Holy Cross for 25 years and whose specialties
include poetry from the 17th, 19th and 20th centuries.
"Jim Barrett has long believed that the
proper education of our youth is the highest priority. He
deeply believes in Holy Cross' educational philosophy," says
Rev. Francis X. Miller, S.J., '46, vice-president emeritus
and a classmate of Barrett's at Holy Cross. "Jim
and Eva are gifted individuals, and Holy Cross treasures them
and their goodness."
Barrett notes that his wife, who volunteers
at a medical clinic where her multilingual abilities are a
boon to both patients and staff, learned some valuable lessons
about gratitude and helping others when she and her family
had to escape from Europe twice. "The first time was
during World War II. They fled Paris, where her dad was Czech
consul, as the bombs were falling. And years later, they again
had to flee Czechoslovakia when the Communists took over.
And she can never forget the strangers who reached out to
her family in times of dire need."
While his future wife was fleeing for her life,
Barrett was serving with the U.S. Navy Supply Corps during
the war. In 1946, Barrett received his bachelor of science
degree from Holy Cross and went on to many more accomplishments.
He earned a juris doctor (then called L.L.B.) from Boston
University in 1950, and his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School
in 1952. It was after graduate school that Barrett left the
Boston area, where he had been born and raised, to travel
the world. He has worked for Ford Motor Company, Standard
Brands International, Hooker Chemical & Plastics, and
Union Texas Petroleum, usually in an international financial
position. He has demonstrated savvy skills as an investor.
But he seems just as proud that his sons, James N. Barrett
III '90 and David J. Barrett '95 (who is married
to Amy E. Barrett '94), support their parents' charitable
inclinations and comprehend their significance.
"Some years back," Barrett says, "when
it became clear that our family was going to have quite a
bit more than we needed, we sat down with our two sons and
explained they would be left with enough to ensure a comfortable
old age but not enough to maintain a lavish lifestyle. They're
good kids, and they understood and have never questioned the
fairness of our decision."
That decision has allowed the Barretts to donate
stock to a fund they established at Holy Cross. Over time
this fund became worth more than $4 million and funded the
aforementioned scholarships, chair, fellow and endowment.
Professor Robert K. Cording, an award-winning poet and respected
teacher who is the recipient of the James N. and Sarah L.
O'Reilly Barrett Endowed Chair in Creative Writing, recalls
being stunned by the College's announcement of the new
chair.
"It came out of nowhere," says Cording,
who has taught at Holy Cross for 25 years and whose specialties
include poetry from the 17th, 19th and 20th centuries.
Getting to know several members of the Barrett
Family after the announcement proved to be an emotional event
for Cording. "For me,
one of the great joys in this was meeting their family," he
says. "I really liked them. And I feel honored. They
love their mother in a way that is very special. I'm
touched to play a part in honoring her, and I am very grateful."
The chair, which has had an immediate impact
on Cording, will have far-reaching effects on the creative
writing program, the English department and its students.
For his part, Cording can teach fewer courses and devote some
time to constructing the program and developing a series in
which well-known writers are brought in on a monthly basis
to do readings and/or conduct workshops. A byproduct of his
lighter teaching load is that he may find time to do some
writing in addition to teaching.
"I've never done any new writing during
the school year; I only do revising," Cording explains. "I
pretty much write every day during the summer for probably
at least five hours a day. And then I stockpile all that stuff
and work on it and basically do revisions through the school
year."
The Barrett Chair will
have a far more profound effect on the College itself, according
to Cording, who earned his Ph.D. from Boston College in 1976.
The English department will now be able to build a three-track
creative writing program consisting of poetry (Cording), fiction
(Professor Eve Shelnutt), and nonfiction (the department is
still searching for a suitable candidate, having begun the
quest during the 2001-2002 school year; Christopher Jane Corkery,
a visiting instructor whom Cording calls "terrific," currently
handles the nonfiction classes).
That translates to more creative writing courses
available to students, particularly English majors with a
creative writing emphasis. "Our goal with this creative
writing program," Cording asserts, "is, in the simplest
of terms, to put people back into the English department as
better readers—that the very activity of learning how
to write will make them better readers.
"It's been wonderful for the students," he
continues. "There's a lot of demand for these courses.
They fill up in a second, and I think it's because this
opportunity gives a nice balance between writing analytical
papers and doing their own thing. They're very invested
in their own poems, in their own fiction, their own nonfiction."
Though the contributions of Cording, Shelnutt
and the new nonfiction writer will be crucial to the success
of the creative writing program, others will also play important
roles. "It really is a department enterprise, in my mind," Cording
says. "We're trying to use the gifts of the people
in the English department who do some sort of part-time writing
on their own as well." He cites Associate Professor Sarah
Stanbury and Associate Professor Susan Elizabeth Sweeney as
examples.
Stephen C. Ainlay, vice-president for academic
affairs and dean of the College, says that donors to Holy
Cross have been "extraordinarily supportive" of
the opportunity to create 25 new faculty positions during
the Lift High the Cross campaign. "What I think
people like about gifts for new professorships is they know
it's going to last forever—it's going to be
there, it's going to affect students literally forever.
And you can actually create great curricular opportunities
that the College wasn't able to pursue before."
The main reason for trying to create 25 new
faculty positions is to improve the student-faculty ratio,
says Ainlay. "The way in which people teach today is
very different from the way people used to teach; there are
all sorts of labor-intensive ways in which faculty now approach
the classroom. One of the most dramatic, of course, is the
introduction of various educational technologies. That doesn't
actually require less time; it requires more time to set up
a class that makes use of that kind of technology."
As an example, Ainlay mentions Blackboard, a
computer software package that allows teachers to set up a
Web site for each class—a feature that enables students
to access lecture outlines and supplemental material; chat
with other students and the teacher about issues that arise
from assignments; and submit material electronically, which
the teacher can comment on and return to the students prior
to their final papers. Blackboard also automatically maintains
the student list for each course—a task previously done
manually. Eventually, teachers will do their grading on Blackboard
and then submit it electronically through the same system,
according to Ainlay, who adds that about 150 faculty members
have already been trained in the use of the software.
Other factors also increase faculty workload. "More
and more faculty are starting to use community-based learning
techniques in their classes," continues Ainlay, "which
means that in addition to teaching students in a traditional
way, you actually get them out in the community and have them
do some applied work as part of your course. Again, it's
far more labor-intensive. And then, perhaps most dramatically,
there's been this real move to try to do directed research
and involve students in research with faculty.
"So it's a whole lot more directed
work that faculty are doing now than they probably did 20
years ago. And the result is that each takes a bigger chunk
of their time. So improving the student-faculty ratio allows
faculty to do more of what in the media would be called, ‘personalized
instruction,' than they can if they're having to
teach with a worse ratio. So that's one of the things
that really is driving this.
"Now there is, of course, an enormous payoff
in terms of reputational surveys, because when you look at
the so-called Top 40 national liberal arts colleges, Holy
Cross really had one of the highest student-faculty ratios
when we were 13-1, which we were for many years. And adding
those faculty should move us to 11-1, which will greatly enhance
our competitive profile. So that's not what's driving
it, but it's clearly a fringe benefit."
Charles S. "Chick" Weiss, director
of the Office of Grants and Corporate and Foundation Giving,
sees a connection between donors' responses to the opportunity
to create new faculty positions and their own educational
experiences. "Donors genuinely wish to foster even closer
relationships between students and faculty in the classroom,
laboratory, studio and office," he says. "Many donors
speak clearly of a turning point in their educational career
that involved a faculty member taking a special interest in
him or her; at this point, a transformation for life resulted
for the student, and this affected their life's commitments,
earnings and career choice. Simply put, many donors want to ‘give
back' to the school, particularly their professors."
Holy Cross is "a very unusual place in
terms of building a kind of alumni/ae loyalty," notes
Ainlay. "People emerge out of their four years feeling
like they were a part of a very special experience."
It’s safe to say that during the past 50
years, Jim Barrett ’46 has done quite well with his stock
investments, first as a single man and later with his wife,
Eva.
“We’ve been very, very fortunate,
very lucky, and had friends who gave us good advice,” he
says. A case in point is the stock that eventually started
the Barrett Fund at Holy Cross: Berkshire Hathaway Class A
stock. Barrett originally heard about it from a former classmate
from the Harvard Business School, where each received his
M.B.A. He bought some shares of the stock for about $110 per
share in 1974, he says.
Through the years, he bought more shares of
the stock, then priced from $380 to $3,900 per share. “And
the rest is history!” says Rev. Francis X. Miller, S.J. ’46,
vice-president emeritus and a Holy Cross classmate of Barrett’s.
Since 1986, Barrett has given Holy Cross 66
shares of that Class A stock, which have been placed in the
fund that bears his name. Largely because of the efforts of
Warren Buffett, whom Barrett calls, “a very astute investor,” and
who has diversified Berkshire Hathaway’s holdings via
involvement with companies such as American Express, General
Re, Wells Fargo, Coca-Cola, and Gillette, a share of Berkshire
Hathaway Class A stock was trading for $74,000 as of late
August. That equates to a market value of $4,884,000 for the
Barrett Fund.
One of the unusual aspects of the fund is that
it exists at all. Holy Cross currently has a policy of selling
stock on the same day that it is given to the school. But
in the mid-`80s, when the College’s development effort
was led by its then-president, Rev. John E. Brooks, S.J., ’49
(now emeritus), and then-vice-president, Fr. Miller, the school
agreed to hold onto shares of stock donated by Barrett. It
created the Barrett Fund, which grew with subsequent stock
deposits from Barrett over the years. The fund has supported
the philanthropic and educational improvements that the Barretts
have focused on at Holy Cross.
Cording Connects with his Classes
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Mark J. Cadigan is a free-lance writer from Stoneham,
Mass.
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