Come join the UR (and friends) Softball team! If you would like to join “The Benchwarmers”, please email Maureen Daday. The Benchwarmers will play Tuesday June 13th at either 6:30, June 20th at 7:30, with playoffs to follow. We would love to add more players/substitutes to our roster. We are very inclusive, so please join us, even if just to watch! Questions, click to email Maureen Daday. Please spread the word!

If you are interested in joining us for our next UR Walks, please fill out this form. We will meet this Thursday, June 15th, at 11:45AM at Grace Hall by the 11th Floor Elevators. Brian Diss will be leading the walk. As there may be some non-pavement, trail walking, we advise that appropriate footwear be considered. Interested in learning more about the health benefits of walking? Check out this article.

Happy birthday to all our UR employees celebrating their special days in June! Time for some fun in the sun!

6/1—Rebecca Lane
6/2—Joe Sheehan
6/3—Cristi Ganyard
6/3—Pier White
6/4—Kelsey Forry
6/5—Courtney Quinlan
6/8—Megan Andedo
6/8—Maureen Daday
6/8—Sharon Keane
6/8—Matthew LaFlash
6/8—Dawn McGrath
6/10—Danielle Filgueira
6/11—Bill Ribera
6/12—Carolyn Lax
6/16—Lauren Imfeld
6/16—Rich Reynolds
6/18—Jason Stoller
6/19—William Mitchell
6/21—Brigette Kinney
6/22—Annie Envall-Latowski
6/28—Monica May
6/29—Mark Witucki
6/30—Sara Aycock
6/30—Tarrez Clark
6/30—Jessica Witous

All,

I would like to welcome our newest regional director, Brandon Williamson, to the SouthBest team. Brandon, a Bethel University grad (BS and MBA), joins us from Flagstar Bank, where he served as a senior mortgage loan officer.

He previously held other banking and insurance roles at First State Bank, Gibbson Insurance, and United Federal Credit Union. Brandon also serves on the boards at Friends of the St. Joseph County Parks, Junior Achievement, and South Bend Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Brandon lives locally with his wife, Stephanie, and his 1-year-old son, Huxley. Brandon’s first day will be Monday, June 5. He will be working with families in Arizona.

Please join me in welcoming Brandon to the Notre Dame family!

Best, Shelby

Colleagues,

I write to share bittersweet news that Kasey O’Connor ‘12 will leave Notre Dame on June 30 and return home to New York where she’ll be near her family and continue her career with the USTA Foundation.

Kasey is a 2012 graduate of Notre Dame and a four-year softball monogram winner who has served in roles in Athletics and Development, most recently as Director, Annual Giving.

Throughout her time with us, Kasey has consistently demonstrated qualities that have inspired us all: grit, optimism, and fearlessness in her commitment to serving Notre Dame’s mission. She has been a true warrior, tirelessly advocating for Notre Dame Athletics—especially female student-athletes—and putting our Leadership Annual Giving fundraisers in a position to win.

Kasey has made a lasting impact on our team, department, and Notre Dame. I speak on behalf of many who feel privileged to have been a small part of her incredible journey.

Please stop by Kasey’s office and wish her well as we close out the fiscal year!

-Brandon Tabor

All,

It is bittersweet to announce that Darius Walker will be leaving the University to take on other amazing opportunities in Los Angeles. His last day will be July 1. We are grateful for Darius’ many contributions to Our Lady’s University and her students.

During his five years as a regional director in the Los Angeles area, Darius raised $25M in production to areas including Mendoza, the Law School, Student Affairs, and DPAC, and over $3M in mission giving. These gifts have impacted hundreds of ND students and the ripple effects will be immeasurable.

Thank you, Darius, for being a great teammate, partner, and representative of Notre Dame.

Please join me in congratulating Darius on all he has accomplished and wishing him well during this next phase of his career!

Best, Shelby

Dear Colleagues,

Please join us in celebrating Stephanie Washington as she transitions to her new role of Associate Director, Learning and Organizational Development.

Stephanie’s contributions to Notre Dame began 5 years ago in her Alumni Association role of Marketing and Communications Coordinator. In 2021, Stephanie joined the fundraising arm of University Relations in the role of Development Coordinator. Since that time, she’s cultivated successful fundraising partnerships with Shaheen Goldrick, Tom Cummings, Ken Johnson, and Mitch Dansky. She has also spearheaded the DC Team’s unique DEIU efforts, serving as a hub for diversity resources, creating a book club, and infusing our interview process with targeted diversity questions. Stephanie concurrently served as a Diversity Catalyst for UR hiring. She will continue to be a leader For Good in our DEIU efforts within UR and across campus. We’re extremely grateful for her impact on our team, as well as on a personal level. Thank you, Stephanie! You will be missed!

In her new role, Stephanie will lead the evergreen and ever-evolving UR onboarding program, co-produce venues of ongoing professional development for all of our colleagues, and contribute towards division-wide strategic projects like the UR Internship Program. She will continue to serve as a key stakeholder in DEIU initiatives. A graduate of Purdue University, Stephanie will bring her wealth of knowledge, relationships, and experience from Regional Development Administration to immediately benefit the expanding team in Learning and Organizational Development. She will transition to her new role on Monday, June 12.

Congratulations, Stephanie!

Deena Chamberlain, Lori Tinkey and Bryan Reaume

It is my pleasure to welcome Caitlin Hutchison to the Stewardship & Donor Relations team, reporting to me in her role as Assistant Director, University Stewardship Initiatives. Caitlin’s first day will be Monday, June 5th, and she will serve as the stewardship partner to the Keough School of Global Affairs, DeBartolo Performing Arts Center, Raclin Murphy Museum of Art, School of Architecture, University Enterprises and Events, and will manage Suspense Fund reporting for the Stewardship & Donor Relations team.

After completing her B.A. in History at Ferris State University, Caitlin earned an M.A. in Art History from Notre Dame in 2012, becoming a proud member of the Notre Dame family. She went on to complete her Ph.D. studies in Art History at University of Delaware, researching high crosses in early medieval Ireland especially as they relate to secular and sacred landscapes.

Caitlin was awarded the prestigious US-UK Fulbright Scholar Award for 2020-2021, through which she taught as a Visiting Lecturer at the University of York in the United Kingdom. Caitlin also taught as an Instructor of Record at the University of Delaware from 2014-2020, and most recently served as an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Art History at Ball State University for the 2022-2023 Academic Year. While in these positions Caitlin was a lecturer of undergraduate and graduate courses in art history and the humanities, in which she taught about art, architecture, and society from a broad range of historical and contemporary cultures. Caitlin is also an accomplished athlete, and was a member of the Women’s Basketball Team at Ferris State University while completing her undergraduate degree. She brought this passion for athletics to her time at Notre Dame as a Master’s student, where she won co-ed championships in basketball, flag football, and volleyball, and proudly claimed the women’s Bookstore Basketball Championship in 2011.

Caitlin’s past Notre Dame experience, successful academic background, and professional development within various higher education settings 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 Caitlin Hutchison as she joins the University Relations family.

Claire Brown

I am excited to announce that Betsy Quinn has accepted the position of Senior Director of Advisory Councils and Volunteer Engagement and will begin on June 12, 2023.

Betsy earned her engineering degree from Notre Dame in 1995, and for the past 17 years she has served as the Director of Stewardship and Engagement at St. Piux X Catholic Church in Granger. In this leadership role, she was responsible for organizing and coordinating the $21.7M capital campaign for a new church and expansion of parish facilities.

Betsy has four children including twin girls who graduated from Notre Dame in 2022, and her husband James works in the Investment Office. She is an avid Notre Dame and Chicago Cubs fan. Please join me in extending a warm welcome to Betsy at betsyquinn97@gmail.com.

– Drew Buscareno

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

It is with bittersweet emotion that I share with you the news that Jim Small is retiring from Notre Dame, effective June 30, 2023.

Jim has served as a senior leader of our team for over eleven years, transforming development communications into inspiring stories for Notre Dame alumni, parents and friends. We will miss Jim’s passion, innovation, commitment to excellence and devotion to Notre Dame and our mission.

Jim is leaving Notre Dame and our University Relations team in a much better and stronger place. Jim pioneered and executed many of our biggest and most creative endeavors over the past decade, including Notre Dame Day, the Notre Dame Trail, and Sorin: A Notre Dame Story. Under Jim’s leadership, Storytelling developed custom donor proposals to convey our priorities, translating into billions donated to the University. He built videography, design and social media experiences previously unconceived; enhanced brand messaging; and taught us the importance of “Think, Feel, Do” through storytelling. While the Annual Giving team continues to break records in unrestricted and giving society gifts and donor counts year after year, Jim pushed colleagues to think differently, not to look back, but rather, to always look ahead with excitement. Similarly, Jim and Susan are now doing just that with retirement on the horizon, and Jim asked me to share the attached message with you.

Later this week, the position of Associate Vice President for Development will be posted. In the meantime, please take a moment to read Jim’s heartfelt message and join me in wishing Jim, Susan, and the entire Small family every happiness on their next adventure.

Best, Lou