‘Look Back, Act Forward’: Remembrance Scholars honor legacy, make impact with ongoing projects
Remembrance Scholars honor legacy, make impact with ongoing projects
At the annual Act Forward Symposium, 35 Remembrance Scholars highlighted community-focused projects they’re currently working on.
Act Forward Symposium
Thirty-five Syracuse University seniors stood in the lobby of Link Hall Thursday evening to showcase documentaries, panel discussions and podcasts they’re working on to honor the phrase “act forward” in remembering the victims of Pan Am Flight 103.
“I think fostering these conversations on campus is so important, especially ones that are more difficult to have,” Leah Farrell, a Remembrance Scholar, said.
At the annual Act Forward Symposium, the 35 Remembrance Scholars presented their projects related to Pan Am Flight 103 and Lockerbie, Scotland. The projects implement outreach, research, creativity and education to create a positive impact on the SU and Syracuse community.
Family, friends and classmates milled about the lobby to listen to the students share about the various projects they’re working on in groups. Farrell said groups were able to choose the type of project they would like to do from a list provided to them, and from there, they selected a topic related to Pan Am Flight 103 and Lockerbie.
Ellie Allen and her group will be connecting with those living in a senior living center in Syracuse to create art projects related to the topic of empathy.
Taylor Stubitsch is in Allen’s group, and said an important part of Remembrance Week is continuing people’s honor and their legacy, which is what they aim to do with their project.
“We’re going to be able to build those intergenerational connections with these seniors and have their stories live on through this art project and hopefully connect with the wider community,” Stubitsch said.
For Farrell’s group, they wanted to pick a more nuanced but still relevant topic. They decided to focus their panel discussion on political violence after multiple instances in the U.S. this year. Their group is embodying the “look back, act forward” theme of Remembrance Week by thinking about political violence from both a historical and futuristic lens, Farrell said.
Rohan Bangalore said he and his group wanted to represent more than the tragedy of Pan Am Flight 103 in their podcast project. They’re going to speak with different Lockerbie community members to highlight life in Lockerbie. While Bangalore hasn’t been himself, multiple of his fellow group members have visited Lockerbie.
“These are the people they’ve made personal connections with,” Bangalore said. “They come from different walks of life.”
Sitting in Solidarity
Wednesday marked Remembrance Week’s “Sitting in Solidarity” event. The 35 Remembrance Scholars sat in seats on the Quad, lined up to resemble the seats on Pan Am Flight 103.
Each seat and Scholar represented a Syracuse University student who was returning from a study abroad semester overseas when the flight was brought down over Lockerbie, Scotland.
The “Sitting in Solidarity” is an annual event, serving as a time for reflection on the lives lost. Many of the scholars have met with the families of the victims and learned more about who they were before the attack.
Candlelight Vigil
On a windy Sunday evening, a crowd of alumni, students and friends gathered on the steps of Hendricks Chapel for a candlelight vigil. The event honored the 270 victims of the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing on Dec. 21, 1988. Among those lost, were 35 Syracuse University students returning home from semesters abroad in London and Florence.
Corri Zoli, a guest speaker and friend of a victim, addressed the crowd during the vigil with a somber, reflective message.
“This vigil is not only about the past and memory — it’s about meaning,” Zoli said. “Harm and injustice can feel enormous, overpowering and shockingly close at hand, and still so many …choose to do good.”
Wearing gray polos, the 35 Remembrance Scholars for 2025-2026 led the ceremony. While representing a range of ethnicities and backgrounds, they share a guiding principle and motto: “Look Back, Act Forward.”
Remembrance Scholars Jacquelyn Trotman and Annaliese Pillitteri led the event. They shared the somber history of the tragedy, centering their message on “knowing that love is the antidote to loss.”
Following remarks from guest speakers, the scholars walked forward, and one by one, read the names of all 270 victims. As each scholar returned to the line and lit their candle, a long, glowing row of lights slowly formed across the steps. The Black Celestial Choral Ensemble performed a moving rendition of “All We Ask,” followed by a moment of silence and a closing prayer led by Dean Brian Konkol of the Hendricks Chapel.
One scholar said that representing the victims is an honor and a responsibility. The scholarship’s motto encourages them to create “Act Forward” projects that utilize lessons learned in the past to inform future generations.
“It’s about acknowledging the past but seeing what you can do to change the future,” electrical engineering senior Savion Pollard said.
Wafiq Khondkar, a biotechnology and philosophy senior, said the scholarship is a personal opportunity. As a member of the Muslim community, he wants to be proactive in “preventing media outlets from engaging in hateful messaging” against entire communities after terrible tragedies.
Nathan Torabi, a political science, citizenship and civic engagement senior, emphasized that the scholarship forces students to “focus on people other than themselves.” He views the scholarship’s motto as a guide against the “erasure of history.”
“They were students, friends, sons and daughters,” Khondkar said. “Live your life to the fullest, and do the best you can do.”
