University Highlights
Installation of new accelerator underway
Notre Dame began installation of a new nuclear accelerator in the Nieuwland Hall of Science’s Nuclear Science Laboratory. It is the first accelerator the National Science Foundation has funded in nuclear physics in nearly a quarter century.
Notre Dame and St. Patrick’s County Park team up on new cutting-edge environmental facility
Notre Dame and South Bend’s St. Joseph County Parks launched a new partnership to build the Notre Dame Linked Experimental Ecosystem Facility (ND LEEF), a cutting-edge environmental research and education facility at St. Patrick’s County Park.
Notre Dame Forum events to explore “reimagining” K-12 education
The 2011–12 Notre Dame Forum, “Reimagining School: To Nurture the Soul of a Nation,” presented a number of events featuring leading figures in American education, including former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and professors from Notre Dame, Cornell, William & Mary, St. John’s, Yale, and New York University.
Congregation of Holy Cross celebrates its 175th birthday
The Congregation of Holy Cross, the international Catholic religious order whose members founded the University of Notre Dame, celebrated its 175th birthday.
Music historian and liturgical scholar wins international book prize
Margot Fassler, Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Music History and Liturgy and co-director of the Master of Sacred Music program, won the Art and Christianity Enquire (ACE)/Mercers’ International Book Award for The Virgin of Chartes: Making History Through Liturgy and the Arts.
I2D2 event to be held Sept. 9
College of Engineering undergraduates worked with 340 fifth-grade students from the South Bend Community School Corporation as part of a technological discovery day, “I2D2— Imagination, Innovation, Discovery and Design at Notre Dame.”
Notre Dame to build new employee wellness center
Notre Dame broke ground on a new wellness center that offers employees convenient, quality health care through an on-site medical clinic and pharmacy.
Notre Dame receives STARS Silver Rating for sustainability achievements
Notre Dame received a STARS Silver Rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System, is a new program that measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education.
Notre Dame to host Forum on Global Development in Washington
USAID Deputy Administrator Donald Steinberg and Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, along with international experts and Notre Dame faculty, gathered in the nation’s capital for Notre Dame’s Forum on Global Development. They discussed investing in development, building infrastructure, and enhancing human dignity in fragile communities worldwide.
Notre Dame reaches No. 10 on Peace Corps’ college rankings
For the twelfth year in a row, Notre Dame placed on the Peace Corps’ list of top universities nationwide producing Peace Corps volunteers, moving to the No. 10 spot among medium-sized universities.
Solar rooftop array installed on Fitzpatrick Hall
A solar rooftop array—the third “rooftop renewable” on campus—was installed on Fitzpatrick Hall, helping to meet the hall’s electricity demand by supplying an estimated 12,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually.
Father Jenkins elected to commission on presidential debates
Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., President of the University of Notre Dame, was elected to the board of directors of the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), the non-partisan, nonprofit organization that has sponsored and produced all U.S. presidential and vice presidential debates since 1988.
Painting an evangelical icon
John C. Cavadini, McGrath-Cavadini Director of Notre Dame’s Institute for Church Life (ICL) spoke in Washington at a symposium of young Catholic theologians about teaching the faith. Sponsored by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), “Intellectual Tasks of the New Evangelization” was intended to deepen and strengthen the organizational relationship with a new generation of America’s Catholic teachers.
Notre Dame Band wins Sudler Trophy
At halftime of the Notre Dame vs. Air Force game, the Notre Dame Band was presented with the Sudler Trophy. Considered the Heisman trophy of college bands, the John Philip Sousa Foundation presents the award to “collegiate marching bands of particular excellence that have made outstanding contributions to the American way of life.”
Notre Dame researchers make neurological disease breakthrough
Results of a study by Notre Dame researchers from the Freimann Life Sciences Center and the Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Biological Sciences represent a promising step on the road to developing new drugs for a variety of cancers and neurological diseases.