Hello UR Team! If you are interested in joining us for our next UR Walks, please fill out this form. Brian Diss will be leading the walk from Grace Hall. 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. We look forward to catching up with you while getting in our steps. Happy trails!

Colleagues,

It is with excitement for our longstanding colleague Cheryl Schlimpert that we share news about her new endeavor. Beginning June 1st, Cheryl will join the Accounting and Financial Services team in the Controller’s Office, assuming the new role of Endowed Programs Manager. In this role, Cheryl will be developing processes to increase the utilization of endowed resources, enhance communication among constituent departments, and improve the monitoring of unique gift arrangements and related donor restrictions.

Cheryl is a proven solutions leader and has worked extensively with our annual endowment reporting process for the past several years, providing project and data management to the University Stewardship Initiatives team. In addition, Cheryl is the technical force behind the Student Thank You Note project which produces more than 8,000 student letters annually. Cheryl has also automated a significant number of processes for the broader Stewardship team, including the annual Stewardship & Dedications budget.

Cheryl’s mindset toward continuous process improvement and automation has helped the Stewardship & Donor Relations team immensely in recent years. She will be missed for both her technical expertise and her stewardship heart. Gratefully, Cheryl isn’t going far, and supporting the University’s efforts toward more consistent spending of endowed funds will serve our generous benefactors well. We look forward to working closely with Cheryl in this new capacity. Please join us in offering all good wishes to Cheryl as she embarks on this new and exciting opportunity!

We will be posting for Cheryl’s replacement as Project and Data Assistant Manager in the coming days. Please contact Cristi Ganyard if you have questions or would like to discuss this role.

Katherine Lane and Cristi Ganyard

UR Friends and Colleagues,

I write to share the news that Amy Walter will be leaving her role as Development Coordinator to pursue an opportunity in ND Athletics as the Building Services Coordinator. Her last day will be Friday, May 5th. We are grateful for her many contributions to our DC team and wish her much success as she embarks on this new role.

Please join me in extending best wishes to Amy as she transitions to her new campus position.

All the best,

Angie Dennig and the DC team

Happy birthday to all our UR employees celebrating their special days in May! We hope your year is filled with sunshine and fun!

5/1 – Meredith Sharwarko
5/4 –  Tashana Kenny
5/5 – Emily Naff
5/7 – Courtney Mattison
5/7 – Grace Prosniewski
5/9 – Eleanor Hanson
5/9 – Barbara Josenhans
5/9 – Gavin McGuire
5/10 – Michele Wolff
5/12 – Mary Prebys
5/13 – Thomas Speranza
5/14 – Josh Flynt
5/14 – Beth Dietz
5/15 – Mary Flynt
5/15 – Laura Marks
5/17 – Jacqueline Clinton
5/17 – Krista Ybarra
5/18 – Ron Linczer
5/18 – Maya Sison
5/19 – Lori Rush
5/20 – Sarah Kriegshauser
5/21 – Isabel Dance
5/21 – Kiran Mistry
5/21 – Ben Nowalk
5/21 – Terrell Robinson
5/22 – Andy Mason
5/22 – Stephanie Washington
5/24 – Beth Graybill
5/26 – Kate Mueller
5/26 – Bailey Smith
5/28 – Steven Horstmann
5/29 – Amelia Ruggaber
5/31 – Patrick Charles
5/31 – Jennifer Powell

It is my pleasure to welcome Claire Brown to the Stewardship & Donor Relations team, reporting directly to me in her role as Program Director, University Stewardship Initiatives. Claire’s first day will be Wednesday, April 26th, and she will serve as the stewardship partner to the College of Arts & Letters, Notre Dame International, as well as leading the Endowed Professorships and Directorships program on behalf of the Stewardship & Donor Relations team.

Already a proud member of the Notre Dame family, Claire received her Notre Dame B.A. in Anthropology, with honors, in 2011. She went on to complete her M.A. and Ph.D. studies in Anthropology at Binghamton University, State University of New York.

As an undergrad, Nanovic Institute study grants instilled in Claire a love for the people, culture, and landscape of Ireland, leading Claire to spend a number of years there following her undergraduate experience. Claire worked from 2020 to 2022 as a postdoctoral research fellow at Teagasc – Ireland’s Agriculture & Food Development Authority, Galway, Ireland. Prior to that, from 2015 to 2018 Claire served as a Program Manager and Affiliated Scholar at Notre Dame’s Kylemore Abbey Global Center. In this role she was responsible for organizing and managing all visiting international academic programs for undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty. Claire also designed and led communications campaigns to recruit students and faculty to Center programs. Further, Claire has served as a research assistant at Notre Dame and a graduate student teaching assistant at Binghamton University, and has authored a number of publications and papers as part of her academic research.

Claire’s Notre Dame roots, successful academic background, and experience in higher ed administration will serve both her and the University very well as a stewardship partner to our academic units. Please join me in offering a warm welcome to Claire Brown as she joins the University Relations family.

Cristi Ganyard

Knowing that you love the earth changes you, activates you to defend and protect and celebrate. ~Robin Wall Kimmerer

Happy Earth Day! 

Celebrated for the first time on April 20, 1970, Earth Day brought together millions of Americans wanting government regulations in place that would end pollution, mostly by large corporations.  Since then, Earth Day has become a call for individuals and communities to learn about and live more sustainably, push for policy change, and to recognize that sustainability is crucial to ensure the equity and equality of all living beings. 

Throughout most of history, a reciprocal relationship has existed between people and nature. At times it may seem that we have lost that relationship with nature and the earth. Nearly every religion, culture and tradition offer a connection to the earth: Creation stories. Creation stories often keep humans rooted to nature, reminding us that the earth naturally creates and sustains life. While Creation stories vary widely, from God’s spoken words breathing life into existence to a pregnant woman falling from the sky who was saved and cared for by animals, they remind us that humans belong within the complex nature system.   

Below are four short clips of creation stories from various traditions: 

Genesis Creation Story (Judeo-Christian faith tradition)

Sky Woman Falling (Haudenosaunee tradition)

Hindu Creation Story (Hindu faith tradition)

The Earth with Kaang (African San Bushmen Creation story)

Earth Day does not have to be (and should not be) the only time we focus on living more sustainably. Some suggestions for incorporating more sustainable practices in our everyday lives are included below. And please keep in mind – progress over perfection! Not everyone can practice all of these suggestions, but choosing one or two things from the list that feel feasible for your life at this time will make an impact! 

1. At work:
   1. Keep reusable lunch items at work such as silverware and a cloth napkin.
   2. Use a mug or water bottle for drinks.
   3. Invest in reusable sandwich and snack bags.
   4. Limit your paper towel use to one each time you dry your hands. Enjoy this Ted Talk on the topic.
2. While grocery shopping:
   1. Use reusable produce bags instead of the thin plastic bags in the produce section and reusable bags for packing your groceries.
   2. If possible, buy from the bulk area of the grocery store using jars from home or investing in jars for bulk food. Local grocery store, Purple Porch, carries spices, grains, coffee and many other bulk options.
3. Outdoor spaces:
   1. Visit one of the many beautiful county and state parks near us. The more time we spend in nature the deeper connection we feel to nature (not to mention so many other health benefits!). 
   2. Suggested read: Florence Williams’ The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative. 
   3. Plant native plants in your yard. They attract pollinators – and the more plants taking up yard space means less mowing!
4. Clothing
   1. Buy thrifted clothes at places like Clothes Mentor, Once Upon a Child, and ThredUp (online). 
   2. Buy fewer clothes. Value what you buy and invest only in clothes you really like and need. 
   3. Buy clothing made with natural fabric fibers instead of synthetic fabrics. You’ll reduce the amount of microplastics in rivers and oceans that shed during washing. 
   4. Upcycle your clothes using companies like For Days where you can send textiles to be recycled. You pay $20 up front for a bag, but then you receive $20 to spend in their store!

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.

Colleagues-

As our collective team and goals grow, so does our commitment to providing ongoing education, training, and professional development. Accordingly, Sara Liebscher, Brian Diss, and I have been collaborating to expand the capacity and influence of the Learning and Organizational Development (LOD) team.

I am pleased to announce two job postings:

Fundraiser Training Specialist (new role)

Associate Director, LOD
(role currently held by Mary Flynt) See previous announcement about transition.

I gladly welcome all applications, interest, referrals, and questions.

For Notre Dame,

Bryan Reaume

It is my pleasure to welcome Nicole Konieczny (pronounced Kah-nez-nee) to the Prospect & Research Strategy team as Research Analyst, effective April 12. In her new role, Nicole will be working with the Research team to provide quality research to fundraisers and help identify process improvement opportunities in our recurring project-based work.

Nicole was a Division I Women’s Basketball player at Valparaiso University where she received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She then went on to Stephen F. Austin State University, where she continued to play while earning her Master of Business Administration.

We are excited to see the impact Nicole’s skills and energy will have on our team. Please consider reaching out to Nicole at nkoniecz@nd.edu to introduce yourself.

Welcome Nicole!
Christina Ryan
Director, Prospect Research