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Faculty Stories

Faculty at Notre Dame come from communities and cultures all over the world. They conduct research and scholarship on topics and issues that span numerous academic disciplines. They share with students not just their areas of expertise but also their questions and concerns about the enduring issues and latest developments that shape our times.

But their role in broadening and sharpening the lenses through which we understand ourselves and the world around us extend well beyond individual research projects, classroom lectures, course syllabi, or a list of academic programs.

The selection of stories below helps illustrate the many other ways Notre Dame faculty foster diversity, support inclusion, and enliven the entire Notre Dame community.

Law School launches experiential learning program to serve parents of children with disabilities

Law School launches experiential learning program to serve parents of children with disabilities

Denise Wager

Notre Dame Law School is launching a new experiential learning program aimed at supporting parents in the wider South Bend, Indiana area as they advocate for services, accessibility, and accommodations required for their children diagnosed with physical and mental disabilities The program will also provide ND Law students the opportunity to work with families to ensure their child’s access to...

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Notre Dame computer scientists receive NSF award to reduce opioid misuse through improved nutrition

Notre Dame computer scientists receive NSF award to reduce opioid misuse through improved nutrition

Grashorn, Christine

University of Notre Dame computer scientists within the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society and the College of Engineering have received an award of $300,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support the development of a new machine learning framework used to offer personalized dietary recommendations to address the national opioid epidemic.…

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Notre Dame International leads efforts to strengthen partnerships between higher education institutions in the United States and India

Notre Dame International leads efforts to strengthen partnerships between higher education institutions in the United States and India

Mary Hendriksen

Fulbright Nehru International Education Administrators pictured with Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. Home to over 1.4 billion people, India is now the world’s most populous nation.  This is just one of the many reasons the time is right for a fresh look at partnerships between institutions of higher education in India and the United States—particularly collaborations that address pressing global...

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Rare Books and Special Collections exhibit explores emancipation during the 19th century

Rare Books and Special Collections exhibit explores emancipation during the 19th century

Becky Malewitz

Making and Unmaking Emancipation in Cuba and the United States explores the fraught, circuitous and unfinished course of emancipation over the 19th century in Cuba and the United States. It will remain on display in 102 Hesburgh Library, Rare Books and Special Collections through December 15.

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Celebrating Native American Heritage Month

Celebrating Native American Heritage Month

NDWorks

In honor and celebration of Native American Heritage Month, the Notre Dame Initiative on Race and Resilience, in collaboration with its artist-in-residence, David Martin, hosted a Native American dance and drum performance in DeBartolo Hall on Wednesday, Nov. 8. The program featured songs and dance styles of Potawatomi and other Great Lakes region tribes to share culture, celebrate heritage and...

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ND professor organizes conference on early American disability history

ND professor organizes conference on early American disability history

Suzanne Spear

Professor Laurel Daen is shown above speaking at the Disability in the Vast Early Americas conference. Just this last month, Professor Laurel Daen organized the Disability in the Vast Early Americas conference alongside co-organizer Stefanie Hunt-Kennedy from the University of Brunswick. The conference took place on campus from October 21-22 and was sponsored by the Institute for Scholarship in the...

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Notre Dame workshop explores the connection between names and identity

Notre Dame workshop explores the connection between names and identity

Mary Hendriksen

FLTA Stuti Benal “Names are a very good beginning in efforts for inclusivity.” When Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Stuti Benal taught and took classes on Notre Dame’s campus last year, she found that administrators and her fellow FLTAs at the Center for Languages and Cultures, her academic home and a frequent collaborator with Notre Dame International, took time...

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Law School veterans reflect on God, Country, Notre Dame

Law School veterans reflect on God, Country, Notre Dame

Libbey Detcher

Notre Dame Law School extends heartfelt gratitude to our faculty, staff, and students who have dedicated themselves in service to our country. In honor of Veterans Day, we are honored to showcase profiles of a few of these remarkable individuals. Each was invited to share their reflections on what "God, Country, Notre Dame" means to them.…

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FirstGen@ND: Department of American Studies Professor Jennifer Huynh was the first in her family to attend college

FirstGen@ND: Department of American Studies Professor Jennifer Huynh was the first in her family to attend college

Shannon Rooney

Department of American Studies Professor Jennifer Huynh was the first person in her family to go to college. “Attending university wasn’t only for myself; it was for my family and for a better future,” says Huynh. Her father was a refugee from Vietnam and her mother was a hairdresser. They were proud of Huynh’s admission to the universities she applied...

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For Ashlee Bird, digital culture scholar and Native American video game designer, better representation on screen fosters brighter future

For Ashlee Bird, digital culture scholar and Native American video game designer, better representation on screen fosters brighter future

Beth Staples

For decades, video game players have sat in front of TV and computer screens and used controllers and keyboards to kill Indigenous characters, regardless of their objective or importance to the story. While horrifying, it’s not surprising to Ashlee Bird, an assistant professor of American studies at Notre Dame. Indigenous characters have historically been represented throughout popular culture as a bloodthirsty...

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Foreign Language Teaching Assistant spotlight: Dayana Velasquez

Foreign Language Teaching Assistant spotlight: Dayana Velasquez

Luke Van de Walle

Located north of Ecuador’s capital Quito, the region of Otavalo is home to rich indigenous cultures that are recognized globally for their iconic clothing, textiles, and handcrafts. Dayana Velasquez, 2023–2024 Quechua FLTA, is proud to represent her home and Otavaleña culture in South Bend, as it has held a deep significance throughout her life.

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New Middle Eastern and North African studies minor explores vital region through interdisciplinary study

New Middle Eastern and North African studies minor explores vital region through interdisciplinary study

Mary Kinney

Because the region is constantly a part of public discourse, the goal of the MENA minor is to acquaint students with the region and learn about its history, cultures, and politics. This will make it possible for them to pursue advanced study at a later stage and utilize constructive skills to navigate future topics concerning the area.

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Fall 2023 update from the Office of Institutional Transformation

Fall 2023 update from the Office of Institutional Transformation

diversity.nd.edu

The 2023-2024 academic year has gotten off to a fantastic start. As we enter our second full academic year of operations, the Office of Institutional Transformation is firmly positioned to lead and catalyze Notre Dame’s efforts to enhance inclusive excellence as a premier global Catholic research University, fostering a culture of belonging where all can thrive.

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Notre Dame’s Eck Institute and Institute for Latino Studies professors partner to help students explore Hispanic/Latino health

Notre Dame’s Eck Institute and Institute for Latino Studies professors partner to help students explore Hispanic/Latino health

Christine Grashorn

For the 2.2 million U.S. farm workers who identify as Hispanic, long working hours and rapidly changing climates are leading to serious health challenges. Efforts to address these health concerns often face additional obstacles such as limited options for care, language barriers, and financial instability.…

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Having coffee with . . . Anna Haskins

Having coffee with . . . Anna Haskins

Notre Dame Magazine

Anna Haskins recalls the precise moment in June when she heard about the Supreme Court ruling that effectively ended affirmative action for college admissions. “Did I expect it? Yes. But I was still surprised and crestfallen,” says Haskins, the Andrew V. Tackes Associate Professor of Sociology and associate director of Notre Dame’s Initiative on Race and Resilience. The decision means...

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