Anything you want to be
I was taught to pursue my dreams, but I wasn’t told that every woman must weather something like gravitational resistance if she is to make what she wishes out of her one life.
Student/Alumni Stories
Washington Supreme Court Justice Mary Yu, ’93 J.D., shares key insights with students
Growing up in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood, an area historically inhabited by working class Irish immigrants, Mary Yu, ’93 J.D., wasn’t afforded the opportunity of seeing many people who looked like her in positions of power or significant influence, she told Notre Dame Law students this week. The daughter of a Mexican farm worker and Chinese factory employee, Yu was...
Fighting for unaccompanied immigrant children, one client at a time
In early June, Michael Hagerty, ‘13 J.D., a staff attorney with Public Counsel, a non-profit legal aid firm in Los Angeles, was in Visalia for the first time to represent a client in the Tulare County Probate Court. On that day a crucial guardianship hearing was set to take place—one that Hagerty knew was likely to determine the ultimate fate...
First person: Danielle Green's ESPY moment
When I found out several weeks ago that I was being honored at the ESPY Awards with the 2015 Pat Tillman Award for Service, I was overwhelmed with both excitement and anxiety. I was excited about being the second recipient ever to receive the award and being recognized for my continued service to my fellow veterans.
The little things that make the world go 'round
A friendship opens a Notre Dame passage to India.
Tomorrow's generation
Some of Africa’s most gifted young people have come to the University from an academy that educates the continent’s most promising students — bringing hope to the future and their talents to Notre Dame.
Notre Dame graduate wins prestigious Native American internship in Washington, D.C.
Before he heads to law school, Notre Dame graduate Tyler Barron ’15 will have a front-row seat for the lawmaking process. Barron, a sociology and American studies major, has been selected for the Udall Foundation’s Native American Congressional Internship Program in Washington, D.C. He will work for 10 weeks this summer with U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona.
Come, Holy Spirit
I met Father Ted on my first night on campus as a Notre Dame freshman. I snuck away from the orientation T-shirt/marker mixer outside LaFortune and went up to the 13th floor of the library to check out the philosophy collection. Whether it was my first act of collegiate rebellion or a nod to the reality that I wasn’t having...
STEM day camp for elementary school girls
For the inaugural GE Girls @ Notre Dame summer camp, local fifth- through ninth-graders spent a week on campus launching rockets, building hovercraft and making robots dance. The day camp, which takes place on college campuses around the country, is designed to introduce middle school girls to STEM activities, with the goal of encouraging them to pursue careers in science...
History alumnus Patrick Burke advocates for safety and inclusion in sports
Soon after graduating from Notre Dame, Patrick Burke ’06 found himself juggling three roles—scout for the Philadelphia Flyers, law student, and co-founder of a nonprofit organization. If ever there was a time when he needed to communicate well and quickly, this was it. Whether the topic was hockey or law or diversity, Burke has found himself calling upon skills...
A conversation with Justice Sonia Sotomayor
A two-hour public conversation Wednesday night (Sept. 2) with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor drew a crowd that filled the 840-seat Leighton Concert Hall and overflowed the adjacent Decio Theatre of the University of Notre Dame’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. With Notre Dame alumnae and trustees Anne Thompson, chief environmental affairs correspondent for NBC News, and U.S. Court...
Kellogg PhD funding bears fruit in new book on Haiti
A decade ago, Notre Dame graduate student Marlene Daut received a Kellogg Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowship to continue her study of Haitian Creole.
A Notre Dame man for others
From his heroism during World War II to his support for the elderly and homeless veterans, Judge Robert L. Miller Sr. '42, '47 J.D. continues to lead an inspiring life of service.
A head-turning, attention-grabbing, transferable skill
On the first day of class, a professor often will ask pupils to share their names along with accompanying “fun facts.” Nervous fidgeting and sweaty palms often follow, but Mark O’Dea ’15 never had any trouble.
Being a special needs dad
Over the past decade, Digger O’Brien, an Emmy award-winning producer for NFL Films, has learned to cope with the fact that his autistic son will never love the game the way he does. But in life—just like in football—gameplans often change.
The Minority Engineering Program
Memphis native Leo McWilliams came to Notre Dame as an undergraduate in the late 1970s, earning a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1981, a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1982, and a master’s degree in electrical engineering in 1985. That was before the Minority Engineering Program (MEP) started on campus in 1987, although he participated in the National Society...
A bridge between God and humankind
It was October of 1965. My friend David White, an Irish Catholic kid from Boston, and I, a black Catholic kid from many places, were having one of those earnest, post-midnight conversations that college kids have — I hope they still do — about the state of the world. In this case, the conversation was about civil rights and why...
Video: Meet gender studies major Natalie Perez
“Being in gender studies helps you really understand how to be an advocate for yourself and an advocate for other people as well,” said Natalie Perez ’14, a gender studies major in the College of Arts and Letters. Gender studies at Notre Dame is an interdisciplinary academic program which analyzes the significance of gender in all aspects of human life,...
A brother with autism led to this software startup
Crain's Chicago Business profiles Katie Hench MNA '11 about her company, Infiniteach.
Exploring new horizons as an intern in Puerto Rico
Like many of her fellow students, Caitlyn O’Malley ‘16 spent her summer as an Architectural Intern. Unlike the others, she was also experiencing a new culture as she worked in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Video: Meet Latino Studies major Juan Rangel
Latino studies is an interdisciplinary field engaged in understanding the fastest-growing population in the United States. Students explore the latest Latino-focused research in fields such as anthropology, history, literature, and theology. “Latino studies is for anyone and for everything,” said Juan Rangel ’15.
The priest who earned an MBA
Poets & Quants profiles Father Pete McCormick EMBA '15.
Building blocks for the unemployed
Jennifer Shouse slides a disc sander over a wooden slab, rubbing the surface smooth and flawless. Later, using variant grades of sandpaper, she’ll work out the board’s rough edges by hand. These are new skills for the employee who took a job at South Bend Woodworks late last year.
Alumna translates liberal arts degree into international business career
When Wendy Wang ’06 came to Notre Dame, she was focused on pursuing a career in academia. But when her plans changed, her liberal arts training moved with her. The skills she developed in the College of Arts and Letters have served her well in the business world, including in her current role as vice president at BlackRock, the world’s...
The points still count the same way
One from the line, two in the lane and three from the arc. It’s basketball, only from a very different point of view.
Alumna Annette Ruth wins USAID fellowship
Notre Dame alumna Annette Ruth is one of twelve Notre Dame researchers recently selected by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to receive a brand new Research and Innovation Fellowship Program grant. Ruth will travel to Bogota, Colombia in May to work on a project entitled, “Zebrafish as an animal model to study Trypanosome cruzi motility” at La Universidad de los...