If you are interested in joining us for our next UR Walks, please fill out this form. We will meet at the first floor lobby of ESC on Tuesday, April 25 at 11:30AM. Sara Liebscher will be leading the walk. As there may be some non-pavement, trail walking, we advise that appropriate footwear be considered. Signing up also helps us to contact those who are interested just in case we need to cancel at the last minute due to inclement weather. Interested in learning more about the health benefits of walking? Check out this article.

On Thursday, June 1, 2023, the Badin Guild will host a cocktail reception from 2-4 p.m. in 215-216 McKenna Hall for Badin Guild members and their guests. Please see this list of registered attendees for details on benefactors who will be attending this event. If you have questions regarding this event, please contact Laura Walker.

The Office of Leadership Events is looking forward to working with you as we plan for the Class of 2023 Commencement Weekend (May 20 & 21, 2023). Outlined below is important information regarding requests for:

• Commencement Mass Preferred Seating – Saturday, May 20

• President’s Cocktail Reception invitation criteria and special requests – Saturday, May 20 immediately following Mass

• University Commencement Ceremony Preferred Seating – Sunday, May 21

To help you manage the important deadlines and instructions for each event, please refer to the 2023 Commencement Request Guide.

CRITERIA AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMMENCEMENT REQUESTS

All requests must be requested with the Google Form no later than Friday, April 28, 2023.

COMMENCEMENT MASS
Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center
Saturday, May 20, 2023 at 5:00  – 6:30 pm

• Mass Preferred Seats: 

  • We will coordinate a limited number of Mass reserved seats in Section 11 at Purcell Pavilion.

  • Google form requests may be entered for donors with $1M+ household extended giving.

  • Maximum number of seats per request is limited to four.

  • Note that Trustees and PLC/Deans will receive a registration form from the President’s Office to request reserved Mass seating; all other requests must be entered with the Google form.

  • Fundraisers should not request seating for themselves.

  • Doors open at 3:30 p.m. Please encourage early arrival for donors without preferred seats. If necessary, overflow seating will be provided in Heritage Hall and the Monogram Room.

PRESIDENT’S COCKTAIL RECEPTION
Club Naimoli at Purcell Pavilion 
Saturday, May 20, 2023 at 6:30 – 7:30 pm (immediately following Mass)

• President’s Cocktail Reception Invitations:

  • The following donor groups (with a 2023 undergraduate) will automatically be invited to the President’s Cocktail Reception:

    • Trustees (both parents and grandparents, if the Trustee is the grandparent)

    • For Good Cabinet (both parents and grandparents, if the Cabinet member is the grandparent)

    • Principal Donors (both parents and grandparents, if the Principal donor is the grandparent)

    • Advisory Council parents

    • President’s Circle & Cavanaugh Council parents

    • Jesse Harper Council parents

    • Cardinal O’Hara Dean’s Circle parents

    • St. Thomas More Leadership Circle parents

    • RHF – Athletics Director’s Circle parents

    • $250K+ parents, based on household extended giving

    • Faculty/Staff parents

  • Special requests may be made via the Google Form for donors outside the automatic invite criteria outlined above. Priority will be given to donors $100K+ household extended giving – limited to undergraduates and their parents.

  • Those who meet the automatic invitation criteria, plus any additional approved donors requested via the Google form, will be invited via a formal invitation from Fr. Jenkins. These invitations will be emailed by Friday, April 14, 2023.

  • Please note that this reception is intended for undergraduates and their parents; invitations will not be extended to graduate students/families.

  • Fundraisers should not request an invitation to the President’s Cocktail Reception for themselves; invitations are limited as indicated above.

COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY
Notre Dame Stadium (Severe Weather Location: Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center)
Sunday, May 21, 2023 at 9:30 am (doors open at 8:00 am; processional begins at 9:00 am)

• Commencement Ceremony Preferred Seats: 

  • We will coordinate seating for the Commencement Ceremony within the preferred (blue) seats on the east side of the stadium.

  • Google form requests may be entered for donors:

    • $350K+ household extended giving

    • Advisory Council parents

    • President’s Circle & Cavanaugh Council parents

    • Jesse Harper Council parents

    • Cardinal O’Hara Dean’s Circle parents

    • St. Thomas More Leadership Circle parents

    • RHF – Athletics Director’s Circle parents

  • Please note you must enter a request for tickets even if the donor meets the criteria.

  • Google form requests may be entered for donors who do not meet the criteria. These requests will be reviewed and approved if seating is available.

  • Maximum number of seats per request is limited to six.

  • Note that Trustees and PLC/Deans will receive a registration form from the President’s Office to request preferred Commencement seating; all other requests must be requested on the Google form.

  • Fundraisers may request preferred seats for themselves on the Google form, to sit with key benefactors. Please note as #sitwith in comments section. Preferred seating requests for fundraisers will not be honored if the Commencement Ceremony moves indoors to Purcell Pavilion.

  • All other Commencement Ceremony seating will be open seating and tickets are required (please read below for detailed information on general admission and severe weather tickets).

IMPORTANT NOTE

• In all cases, please do not communicate a possible invitation or preferred seating until you are notified via a confirmation email. Until all requests are received, it is unknown exactly how the invitations and tickets will be apportioned.

• You will find the report of donors with a prospective 2023 graduate in the HERE. Please note, this is an extensive workbook containing four tabs, including both parents and grandparents of 2023 graduates. Please carefully review the list to determine donor eligibility for consideration and if any of your donors are not reflected on the reports.

APPROVALS

• All requests will be updated in the Development Resources Google Drive once approved.

GENERAL ADMISSION AND SEVERE WEATHER TICKET INFORMATION  

General Admission Tickets
If the Commencement Ceremony is in the stadium, tickets for general admission (GA) are required. The number of GA tickets per graduate is not limited but graduates must request GA tickets as instructed by the Registrar’s Office. Please reference the Registrar’s guidance on the Commencement website. Please note GA tickets are all mobile this year and will be sent to all graduates the week of May 15, 2023.

Severe Weather Tickets
The Office of Leadership Events does not handle severe weather tickets.

• All students, regardless of whether they have GA tickets or preferred seats from Development, will receive severe weather guest tickets as instructed by the Registrar’s Office.

  • Undergraduates are allotted up to three (3) severe weather guest tickets from the Registrar; graduate students are allotted up to two (2) severe weather guest tickets. These tickets will be emailed a few days before Commencement if there is a chance we move to the Joyce.

• If the Severe Weather Plan is activated:

  • The Commencement Ceremony will move from Notre Dame Stadium to the Purcell Pavilion; graduates will be notified via the ND Emergency Alert system.

  • Graduates and faculty in academic attire will be admitted to the Purcell Pavilion without a ticket. However, only guests with a severe weather ticket will be seated in Purcell Pavilion.

  • The Commencement Ceremony will be broadcast live in the Joyce Center North Dome, auditoriums in the DeBartolo Hall classroom building, and other large auditoriums in nearby buildings as announced. This will allow guests without a severe weather guest ticket to view the event live.

  • It is very important to note that donors in the preferred seats will not have preferred seats should the Commencement Ceremony move to Purcell Pavilion. Please communicate to your donors that should the Severe Weather Plan be implemented, they will need to find general seating in Purcell Pavilion utilizing their graduates three allotted severe weather tickets.

TICKET DISTRIBUTION
Commencement tickets are scheduled to be distributed as follows. All tickets will be sent via email (general admission and preferred seating)

• Monday, May 15: Every student will receive an email with their general admission ticket. This ticket can be shared via email with all of their guests.

• Tuesday, May 16: Development Preferred seating will be sent via email to all approved benefactors.

ACCOMMODATIONS
A limited inventory of rooms at the Morris Inn is managed by the Office of Leadership Events, and is available for the honorary degree recipients and Trustees. All donor requests have been approved HERE. Please review and email Stephanie Mead if you have questions or additional requests by Friday, April 17. Guest confirmations have been sent, please communicate with your benefactors if they have been approved.

QUESTIONS/ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Please contact the Office of Leadership Events with questions at sep@nd.edu

Congratulations Michael Infantine, our new colleague on the Stewardship & Donor Relations team. He and his wife Madeline welcomed their first baby, Franklin Joseph on March 31st. Michael reports all are well and healthy. Blessings to the Infantine family.

It is with deepest gratitude and appreciation that I would like to announce that after almost 30 years of service, George Duke will be retiring on April 21.

In his time here at Notre Dame, George has raised over $133 million in production including $20 million for financial aid. He has worked with 1,400 benefactor families across the US accumulating to 6,226 visits.

George has dedicated his career to advancing Notre Dame’s sacred mission. We will always be profoundly grateful for his work, but more importantly for who he is.

Thank you, George!

Sincerely, Shelby

On Tuesday, April 11 from 5:00-6:45PM, please join us as Thom Browne ‘88 discusses “By Design: Thom Browne on the Business of Fashion.” The Notre Dame Institute for Advanced Study is co-hosting the event with the Mendoza College of Business, which will take place in the Jordan Auditorium. Thom Browne is the 2022-23 NDIAS Artist in Residence and chairman of the Council of Fashion Designers of America. The conversation and Q&A will be moderated by Michael Hainey ‘86, a deputy editor of Air Mail and author of the New York Times best-seller, After Visiting Friends.

Happy birthday to all our UR employees celebrating their special days in April! We hope you “spring” into a year full of joy and fun!

4/1 – Katie O’Friel
4/1 – Tara Reilly
4/1 – Jess Rizzo
4/1 – Steve Sollmann
4/3 – Michael Connaughton
4/6 – Austin Gammage
4/6 – Ken Johnson
4/6 – Cindy Karpovs
4/8 – Amanda Mckee
4/12 – Joe Dietz
4/12 – Katy Orenchuk
4/15 – Terri Glenn
4/15 – Amy Mason
4/16 – Michelle Jones
4/16 – Steve Orsini
4/18 – Dean Ernzen
4/18 – Jeff Faust
4/19 – Kris Machalleck
4/19 – Rose Michalski
4/20 – Mark Helmke
4/22 – Rachel Parks
4/23 – Kat Gardner
4/23 – Matthew Greene
4/23 – Karen Sunshine
4/24 – Angie Dennig
4/25 – Josh Cunningham
4/25 – Sarah Wodrich
4/27 – Ryan Brennan
4/27 – Katie Kerby
4/27 – Marie Labosky
4/27 – Sheila McMahon
4/29 – Peter Hlabse
4/30 – Andrew Frye

With spring on the way back to campus, please note the following updates regarding the ESC Smart Cars:

• Parking for Smart Cars #12 & #14 has returned to their pre-winter locations (facing Harper Hall; adjacent to the drop-off circle at the 1st-floor lobby entrance). Signage for each spot has been updated.
  • Reminder: If you are using one of the cars, it should be returned to its original location (i.e. Car #12 to Spot 12, etc.)
• Smart Car #9 has been retired due to mechanical issues. At this time, we will not be replacing this vehicle and this parking spot has be reassigned for another purpose.
• If you need to pick up or drop off, use the circle drive adjacent to the lobby doors. The use of flashers in this loading/unloading zone is encouraged

If you have any questions, please contact Laura Waltz (lwaltz@nd.edu), Lana Taylor (ltaylor1@nd.edu), or Grace Prosniewski (gprosnie@nd.edu).

Our Giving Societies team is growing! I am happy to share that Tim Kenney will shift his responsibilities to focus on leading and growing Sorin 175 and Sorin Gold. His work will focus on three critical areas: developing a strategic growth plan for Sorin 175 and Sorin Gold through research and data analysis, generating content and experiences that will grow the overall attractiveness of Sorin 175 and Sorin Gold, and building relationships with internal and external partners to influence fundraising.

We are now hiring an Associate Director, Sorin Society Marketing.

Please reach out to me or Tim Kenney with questions about the transition.

Thank you,
Katie Kerby

Spring means spring cleaning!

As a reminder, if you utilize the shared fridges in any of our office spaces, it is your responsibility to clean and dispose of any food or condiments you bring in. Please put your name and date on anything you place in the refrigerator.

Samantha Checkley has graciously volunteered to lead a deep clean of some of our shared ESC office resources this coming Monday, April 3rd. Please note, if you have food/drinks/condiments in the fridge, they MUST be labeled with your name and the date. Any expired items/unmarked items will be thrown away.

Additionally, if you are interested in helping with the cleaning process, please meet up with Samantha in the ESC Cafe at 9AM on Monday, April 3rd.

Thank you again for respecting our shared spaces!