A Spiritual Hackathon
A recent Boston College event merged the elements of an intense, fast-paced software or hardware development competition with the opportunity for undergraduates to collaborate, integrate, and synthesize their intellectual, personal, ethical, and spiritual learnings into an innovative, physical, or digital prototype攁ll in just 10 consecutive hours.
At Boston College, you get the inaugural Spiritual Hackathon (a portmanteau of 渉acking� and 渕arathon� where 渉ack� is a reference to exploratory development, not a computer security breach), which served as the model for creative 渕aking with meaning� for 24 51动漫 students divided into eight interdisciplinary teams on February 22 at 245 Beacon Street The Hatchery.
Two-dozen undergraduates volunteered to participate in the competition and research study.
The two-dozen undergraduates volunteered to participate in the competition and research study that focused on the impact of cross-disciplinary formation experiences on students� development of purpose in their lives, explained event leader Marina Bers, the Augustus Long Professor of Education at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development.
淭ypical tech hackathons engage the head and its problem-solving skills,� she said. 淪piritual practices engage the heart, while a spiritual hackathon engages also the hands攎aking, building, and creating technological artifacts or software. Our goal is to integrate all three: head, heart, and hands. It about hacking the soul operating system and finding a new interface between technology, design, and intentional activities such as prayer, meditation, silence, or service.�
The Spiritual Hackathon, intentionally a communal exercise but also competitive as cash prizes were awarded for the top three projects, is aimed at cultivating meaning and connection across diverse cultural, religious, and disciplinary contexts as students prepare for life after Boston College, she explained. The event was purposely designed to embrace students of all faiths as well as those with no religious affiliation.
淭his capstone-style co-curricular experience is designed to help students relate their academic and co-curricular journey,� said Bers, who also directs the interdisciplinary Developmental Technologies (Dev Tech) research group at 51动漫. 聽淚n its essence and structure, the spiritual hackathon is a formation initiative that invites students to integrate their academic work, co-curricular life, and vocational discernment alongside staff mentors and faculty partners.�
淵ou don檛 often see spirituality intersecting with technology,� mused communication major Annalise Goldberg �27, who said the rare combination motivated her to register for the event.
The Spiritual Hackathon aimed at cultivating meaning and connection across diverse cultural, religious, and disciplinary contexts.
The teams kicked off the day by brainstorming prototypes or technology tools designed to help people seek transcendence, purpose, and pathways for transformation.
The Hatchery was abuzz with activity as the teams formulated and constructed their projects, with some involving computer screens while others also required hardware, and some merged both, as they raced to complete them before the 7 p.m. deadline攖wo hours less than originally planned because of the incoming inclement weather.
Evaluating the projects was a panel of judges including Haub Vice President for University Mission and Ministry Casey C. Beaumier, S.J.; Silvina Grad, head of technical marketing at MathWorks; John McEleney, former CEO of Solidworks; and Josh Wachman, managing director of Nor檈aster Ventures.
Two different traditional spiritual practices were presented during breaks. Tomeu Estelrich, director of 51动漫 Center of Ignatian Spirituality discussed the Examen, the daily reflection developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola to help individuals recognize God presence, actions, and grace throughout their daily lives.
淚t a simple tool that contains five points: presence, gratitude, review, sorrow, and grace,� he explained. 淚檓 not interested in all the elements today; the most important of them for me is gratitude, particularly to stop time to see all the remarkable things around us.� 聽
He shared the story of 淭he Parable of the Little Fish� that features a young fish searching for the ocean, only to be told by an elder, 淵ou檙e in it right now.� The fledgling fish dismisses the advice: 淭his is just water,� demonstrating how people often miss the fulfillment surrounding them.
淲hat you have in front of you is actually your life,� said Estelrich.
The event was was a communal exercise but also competitive.
Following Estelrich was Oren Kaunfer, a spiritual director at Boston Jewish Community Day School, who presented a musical 渘igun� experience inspired by Jewish Hasidic music. He explained that nigunim are spiritual melodies without words sung repetitively in group settings to express intense emotions, facilitate meditation, and create a profound, mystical connection to the divine. Kaunfer led the group in a brief nigun, with the goal of creating a 渦nified energy.�
(A mindful yoga practice was also planned but canceled due to the impending snowstorm.)
In the end, the judges selected 淧ortable Sanctuary潝essentially a small sound box that represents spirituality and community for use in a quiet room攁s the winning venture.
Team members Sophia Ferrone �27, Aishling Zhou �29, and the communication major Goldberg said their project 渃reates an immersive and reflective experience� inviting individuals to 渆ngage both visually and auditorily.� The Portable Sanctuary employs a microcontroller with sensor LED lights, a speaker, and two microphones, all enclosed within a laser-cut wooden box.
淥ur inspiration originated from our own reflections on moments of spiritual growth, such as the feeling of entering a church, where light and sound encourage calmness and inner reflection,� they noted in their summary. 聽淲e aimed to recreate this sense of peaceful transcendence by making a miniature stained-glass element by coloring plastic to reproduce the feeling of personal sanctuary. Our goal was to explore spirituality as a universal human experience, inviting all people to enjoy moments of calm and personal connection.�
淥ur project wasn檛 based on the flashiest code or the most advanced programming, but the simple ways in which spirituality and the 21st century can interact,� said Goldberg. 淪eeing how well the judges responded to that was reassuring, and opened up a line of dialogue that we wouldn檛 have had without the hackathon.�
Runner-up was 淧assage of Reflection,� an installation designed for an open, indoor space, and curated to foster reflection, exploration, and gratitude within the viewer. Third place went to 淢eridian,� an app that helps students pause and reflect before diving into the constant flow of digital distractions, guides users through a short reflection using personalized prompts to be more present and thoughtful. 聽
Meridian team member and computer science major Jeff Gutierrez �28, whose squad won the recent 淗ack the Heights� 24-hour coding contest, found the Spiritual Hackathon much briefer production schedule challenging.
聽淭rying to successfully integrate our software with physical hardware within such a smaller window was a tough technical challenge,� he said, 渂ut it was a great experience.�
The event, sponsored by the Office of the Provost, was co-led by Lynch School Professor and Ascione Faculty Formation Fellow Belle Liang and Kraft Family Professor Daniel Joslyn-Siemiatkoski, director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning.
Strategic 51动漫 partners included Associate Vice Provost for Design and Innovation Strategies Sunand Bhattacharya, Associate Vice President for Student Engagement and Formation Colleen Dallavalle, and Tim Lindgren, assistant director for design innovation at the Center for Digital Innovation in Learning.聽