Written by Dr. Lynne A. O'Connell
This May, in honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the BC Diversity and Inclusion Committee wanted to highlight one of the long time staff members at Boston College, Harcharan Rai.
Harcharan Rai has worked in the Chemistry Department at Boston College since 1989 as the Senior Laboratory Technician for the General Chemistry and Honors Modern Chemistry Laboratory courses. His work preparing solutions and reagents is meticulous, and he manages an orderly stockroom of varied scientific equipment. Rai is set to retire in August of this year, earning a well-deserved break from the demands of the introductory chemistry lab courses.
Rai was born in a small village in India called Majri. He received two Bachelor’s degrees from Panjab University in Chandigarh, one in Science and one in Education. He went on to receive a Masters in Education at Himachal Pradesh University, Summer Hill, Shimla and then taught high school chemistry in Punjab, India, for thirteen years.
Rai came to the U.S. in 1989 without his family and began working at Boston College shortly after his arrival. After four years of progressing through the required immigration processes, Rai’s wife and three children finally joined him in Newton. His oldest daughter, Kulvir, is a nurse. His son, Sukhjeet (Sonny), is a BC alum and works in software development. His middle child is Amarjit Nijjar, who is also a BC alum and works as the Sr. Lab Technician for the Organic and Life Science Laboratory courses in our department. Rai has seven grandchildren. He became a citizen of the United States in 1994 and currently resides in Natick.
Rai speaks English, Hindi and Punjabi languages and is an active member of the Sikh Temple in Westborough, MA where he tends the gardens. He enjoys talking about a wide variety of topics, and many of us have learned a great deal about the culture and politics of India from him. We will all miss seeing Rai on the first floor of Merkert but wish him every happiness as he starts this new chapter in his life.
Rai’s comments about working at Boston College:
“This job in Boston College was a divine blessing to me. A man with a heavy accent, of different color, different religion, I was embraced by the Boston College community with open arms. I am especially indebted to Dr. Lynne O'Connell and other serving and retired friends on the staff who carry the real values of life with them on campus and off campus.”
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