Cellini

When Georgetown President John DeGioia invited alumni to weigh in, Cellini wrote an email asking one simple question that had nothing to do with the university.

Dr. Rothman had learned about the Taylor ads from Richard J. Cellini, the founder of the Georgetown Memory Project, an independent nonprofit dedicated to tracing the descendants of the people enslaved by the Jesuits.

“Students still do spend time and money,” said Stephanie Cellini, professor of public policy and economics at George Washington University and co-author of the research analysis that found most undergraduate certificate programs don’t pay off.

Ariana Cellini, a nurse who works 12-hour shifts at the Tufts intensive medical unit, shares the sentiment.

“We need to be looking at balance sheets, current and historical,” Mr. Cellini said.