Student Stories
Notre Dame endeavors to be a place where each student can grow individually in both mind and heart, and become a part of something larger than themselves. By celebrating the unique gifts each student brings to our shared community, student life is enriched immeasurably.
The stories below share just some of the ways Notre Dame students are celebrating and taking advantage of the wonderful diversity on our campus – through both scholarship and development and formation outside the classroom.
“Let us recommit ourselves as the Notre Dame community to treating every person with dignity and as a beloved child of God,” Jenkins said.
June is Pride Month
Find out more about the history of the observance as well as resources to support LGBTQ+ community on Notre Dame’s campus and beyond.
‘Off the Court’: ND Law hosts event in New York City with Muffet McGraw and Coquese Washington ’97 J.D.
Notre Dame Law School hosted a special alumni event on June 6 in New York City with two legends from the Fighting Irish women’s basketball program. Muffet McGraw, who served as head women’s basketball coach at Notre Dame from 1987 to 2020, and Coquese Washington ’92, ’97 J.D., the head women’s basketball coach at Rutgers, sat down for a fireside chat with G....
Fulfilling her purpose with hands, heart and mind
In her dissertation research, Abigail Jorgensen found that many women associate motherhood with struggle. It’s something she can relate to. While pursuing her doctoral degree in Notre Dame’s Department of Sociology, she brought home her newborn in the midst of the pandemic. Then, five months later, she contracted COVID-19 in November 2020
Blazing a family trail: First-generation student Karen Angeles earns doctoral degree in engineering
Not a single member of Karen Angeles’ extended family in southern California had ever attended college. It just didn’t seem like a realistic possibility because it had never been done before. But Angeles didn’t stop at college—she continued onward to Notre Dame to get a doctoral degree in structural engineering.
AANHPI Heritage Month student spotlights
Multicultural Student Programs and Services asked five students to share what makes their family and culture special, how they celebrate their heritage on campus, and what they wish other people knew about their culture.
Monica C. Regalbuto honored with 2023 Notre Dame Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award
Monica C. Regalbuto, ND Ph.D. ’89 (chemical engineering) will receive the 2023 Notre Dame Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award, an award given annually to a graduate alumnus or alumna who has contributed significantly to scholarship, research or society.
Ground broken, mural taking shape at Foundry Field, a true community project
The proposed public-access baseball field is designed to celebrate the Foundry Giants and other underrepresented baseball teams from South Bend’s past. Active during the 1920s, the Giants were a predominantly Black baseball team whose players typically worked in the Studebaker Foundry. The team included several players who went on to play in the Negro Leagues.
Notre Dame Law School Religious Liberty Clinic represents Sikh, Jewish, and Muslim groups defending a Muslim inmate’s religious rights
A Muslim man’s right to practice his religion was suppressed by state officials while being held in a New York correctional facility. His case highlights the importance of interpreting religious…
3L Erica Patterson named ABA Law Student Representative of the Year
Erica Patterson, a third-year student at Notre Dame Law School, was named Law Student Representative of the Year by the American Bar Association. Patterson finished with the most student representative member points for the academic year. “Winning ABA Law Student Representative of the Year…
Initiative on Race and Resilience director highlights importance, history of Juneteenth
Dear Friends, May we celebrate the freedom and self-determination for African Americans that Juneteenth represents. And as we do so, here are a few links to the history of this holiday.…
ND Law graduate Lenora Popken joins Exoneration Justice Clinic as legal fellow
Notre Dame Law School’s Exoneration Justice Clinic has hired Notre Dame Law School alumna Lenora Popken ’20 J.D. as a legal fellow.
Meet the Class of 2027
The Class of 2027 includes a record 20.5 percent of first generation and Pell recipients, including 96 students admitted through the QuestBridge National College Match program. The class also represents a historic multicultural composition, with 42 percent identifying as U.S. students of color or international. Students currently reside in all 50 states and 48 nations.
Toward a more sustainable future
Growing up in a suburb of Cleveland, Audrey Miles dreamed of being a writer. Then a high school teacher introduced her to the so-called central science. “I had a really excellent chemistry teacher who made a huge difference,” she said. It may have helped that, like writing, chemistry seeks truth and understanding from within.
First-year or freshman? Internal Communications offers guidance on gender-neutral language
The Office of Internal Communications recently updated the …
ESTEEM alumnus James Lutaaya named a recipient of the 2023 Michiana Forty Under 40 class
James Lutaaya, a 2022 alumnus of the University of Notre Dame’s ESTEEM Graduate Program, has been named a recipient of the …
Keough School announces two graduate students as recipients of the annual Hesburgh Global Fellowship
For the first time ever, two graduate students have been tapped by the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre
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Biology graduate student and postdoc earn prestigious fellowships to study glial cells
A graduate student and a postdoctoral researcher each received prestigious fellowships from the National Institutes of Health for work they are doing to investigate the roles of glial cells during the development of the nervous system.
Emmanuel Cannady (PhD 2022) wins 'Best Dissertation' award
Former Notre Dame Sociology graduate student Emmanuel Cannady has received the “Best Dissertation Award” from the American Sociological Association’s (ASA) section devoted to study of Collective Behavior and Social Movements. All dissertations defended in 2022 were eligible…
Terra Foundation for American Art awards grant to Raclin Murphy Museum of Art in support of Indigenous works
The new museum will include a suite of galleries dedicated to Indigenous Art of the Americas. The galleries open with the North American Art gallery and transition into Mesoamerican Art, followed by the Central and South American Art galleries.
A Perilous Journey: Economics students witness the challenges of migration in Mexico
A group of migrants at a shelter near Puebla, Mexico, sat in a circle of chairs and stared nervously across at five students from Eva…
Increasing representation on the screen
Sophia Costanzo ’19 grew up in a Cuban American family that passed down their culture and tradition through oral storytelling. Now, as a filmmaker, Costanzo hopes to bring more Latina representation to the screen.
One whistle changes everything
If you follow Notre Dame football, you’ve seen John Sexton on the field for every home game for the past four years. You may not have noticed him much for his first few seasons. He was usually one of the last guys to take the field. As a senior, though, John got his turn at the front of the rotation....
Class of 2023: Meet six ND Law graduates who have become a ‘different kind of lawyer’
Notre Dame Law School’s mission is to educate a “different kind of lawyer.” Our graduates learn to view the practice of law not only as a profession but also as a service to others and the common good. This weekend, we celebrate commencement for our Class of 2023. Each student in the…
Jewish American Heritage Month celebrated on campus and across the nation
DeBartolo Performing Arts Center film festival and Hesburgh Library exhibit are among several ways to learn more about the Jewish experience.
May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Get resources to learn more about the month, the cultures being celebrated and how you can help combat anti-Asian racism.
Graduating seniors present research theses in Latino Studies
Nathalie Garcia '23 was one of two seniors to do a Latino Studies research thesis this year (Credit: Maribel…
The Creator's Game: Lacrosse
Tara Kenjockety, undergraduate community engagement librarian, Hesburgh Libraries and member of the Indigenous Faculty and Staff Group and Tiffany Gillaspy, music librarian for Hesburgh Libraries hold the flag of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi. Notre…
NDLA Board honors Vietnam veteran John Lancaster ’67, ’74 J.D. for contributions to disability rights
John Lancaster ’67, ’74 J.D., a Vietnam War veteran and pioneering advocate for disability rights, was honored this spring with the Notre Dame Law Association’s Father William Lewers Award.