Bulletin: May 2017
The Bulletin is published every month for faculty, staff, and students.
May 2017 Contents
NDMU News
Commencement Speaker Announced
Nancy Birdsall
2017 NDMU Commencement Speaker
Nancy Birdsall, a senior fellow and president emeritus of the Center for Global Development will serve as this year’s commencement speaker.
“Nancy Birdsall’s global work in economics, inequality, education and peace efforts make her a perfect candidate to address our graduating students at Notre Dame and we are thrilled,” says President Marylou Yam.
Birdsall is the author, co-author, or editor of more than a dozen books and many scholarly papers. She received her Ph.D. in economics from Yale University and an M.A. from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
In addition to Birdsall, Naomi Cross BSN ’15, MSN ’17 will serve as the Commencement Student Speaker.
Projects for Peace Awarded to NDMU Students
Two Notre Dame of Maryland University students are among those that have been chosen to design and undertake Projects for Peace. Micah Castelo and Lorelie Elaine Soriano submitted one of the 120 winning projects that are being awarded $10,000 each for implementation this summer.
Castelo and Soriano’s project centered around the construction of the first official library of the Caibiran Central School in the city of Caibiran located in the eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. The area was nearly destroyed during Typhoon Haiyan in 2013 and continues to recover from the effects of the storm.
NDMU is one of seven women’s colleges to make the list. Since its inception in 2007, 25 NDMU students have had their proposals selected and this is the ninth straight year that NDMU students have received awards. Previous projects have taken place in Peru, Bolivia, Kenya, and Tanzania.
Peace Video
The recent uncertainty surrounding travel and refugee bans led some faculty, staff, and students to put together a video to show their support for our students.
The video was filmed by Catherine Subrizi and edited by Dr. Joseph Schaub.
Research Day
Showcasing the best and the brightest at Notre Dame, students displayed works of art, poetry, song, scientific discovery, and literary analysis at the 2017 Nancy Kreiter Student Research Day. With more than 70 submissions, a record number for NDMU, students spent the entire afternoon in Fourier Hall, showing off their hard work. Twenty-three students were recognized for their research in the arts and sciences.
Posters
Biology: Emmanuella Oyogoa- Education: Samantha Mielke
- Natural Science: Autumn Bows
- Nursing: Christa Riffle
- Pharmacy D: Nahed Elias
- Social Science: Chinwendu Nwokeabia, Jennifer Erisman, Esme Halsey-Collins, Sarah Hawkins, and Nia Willis
Sessions
- Gender Perspectives: Madeline Mask
- Women as Monsters I: Alexandra Filsinger
- Women as Monsters II: Katherine Martinez
- Special Topics: Katie Ketter; Siobhan Cooney, Angela Pabich, and Jaclyn Cobosco
- Collateral Consequences of War: Catherine Znamirowski
- Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing: Taylor Ferguson
Grand Prizes
- Poster: Sarah Arafat; Sarah Connolly
- Presentation: Ray Alsalka
- Art Exhibit & Performance: Marion Smedberg
Named after the late Dr. Nancy Kreiter, Research Day occurs in remembrance of her hard work with Notre Dame’s Biology department and her strong advocacy for undergraduate research.
Pictures from the event can be viewed on the University’s Flickr page.
Research Day Professor Presentations
Along with many student researchers, a number of Notre Dame’s own faculty presented their scientific findings at Nancy Kreiter Student Research Day. Assistant Biology Professor, Dr. Jennifer Kerr explained how astronauts clean their teeth in space. Chair of the Modern Foreign Languages Department, Dr. Rachel Burk showed how the moriscos saw their hybridized culture and how their rights diminished over the course of the sixteenth century. Finally, Dr. Christa de Kleine and Dr. Mark Fenster, professors for the Education Department, presented their work on “Generation 1.5 students,” or students raised in non-English speaking homes.
Pollinator Garden
The Tribeta Biological Honor Society recently completed work on a pollinator garden. Located near the entrance of Noyes House, the garden took two days to complete. The first day was all about removing current vegetation and preparing the soil for new native flowers. Students plan on maintaining the small garden, and they hope it will soon attract some friendly spring-time visitors, namely bees and butterflies.
Keeping Campus looking Great
Speaking of the Tribeta Biological Honor Society, the group recently held a Tree Fertilizing event to prepare young trees for the upcoming season.
Members and non-members tended to specific saplings in front of Gibbons, near the Grotto. While working in groups, each tree was able to receive some TLC, including: pulling out invasive species, cutting off dead branches, and re-sealing holes in fencing created by deer.
With the attention each tree has received, Tribeta is working to ensure the life of young trees for years to come. Go to the University's Flickr page to see more from the event.
Sports
Lacrosse Playoffs
Congratulations go out to Notre Dame’s lacrosse team. For the second time in three seasons, the Gators qualified for the Colonial States Athletic Conference playoffs. The Gators finished their regular season conference with a 5-4 record overall to clinch the fifth seed in the playoffs.
The Gators went goal-for-goal against Immaculata University’s Mighty Macs through the first 15 minutes of play, but Immaculata went on a 12-goal run that the team could not recover from as they fell, 17-5. This is the second year in a row the Gators have fallen to Immaculata in the first round of the playoffs.
Loyola Notre Dame Library News
New (Easier!) Library System Log-in Procedures
On May 25, the Library will begin to transition our log-in procedures for accessing library databases, items in the library catalog, and your library account. After this transition is complete, you will be able to log into library resources with your Notre Dame credentials rather than your library barcode number.
While the Library is in the process of updating, you may still encounter some databases that require a barcode log-in. We anticipate that all databases should be updated by the beginning of July, at which time you should be able to log into all databases and the catalog with your campus credentials.
The update is going to result in changes for most of the links for articles, e-books, and streaming media in our databases. If you are using links to any of this content in yourJoule or Moodle courses or syllabi, you will need to update these links after our transition is complete in July. Your current links will remain active through February 2018 when the license on our current server lapses, but will continue to require a barcode log-in.
The Library will be providing more information on how we can assist you in updating the links in your courses closer to July.
Please email Danielle Whren Johnson or call her, 410-617-6872 with any questions. You can also visit LNDL's web page, for more information.
News by School
Upcoming Events
Senior Thesis Exhibition
May 8-19, Gormley Gallery - Fourier Hall, 2nd floor
Don’t miss the opportunity to see one-of-a-kind art created by NDMU seniors Roselyn Jones, Annie Nehra, Jordan Soppa, and Cassidy Toulan. The work includes an Art History thesis poster, oil paintings, works on paper, ceramics, and photography.
Artist’s Reception:
Tuesday, May 9 from 4:30 to 6:30 pm
Come celebrate and meet the artists behind this year’s Senior Thesis Exhibition
Partners in Mission
May 11
Eucharistic Liturgy - 10:30 a.m., Marikle Chapel, Theresa Hall
Celebration & Dessert Reception - 1 p.m., Doyle Formal Lounge
Partners in Mission is an event that celebrates service anniversaries and connects us with the vision of our founders, the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the University’s mission, and the women and men who make our mission a reality – our faculty and staff.
Tower Climb
May 19, 1-3 p.m., Murphy Gathering Space (2nd floor of Gibbons)
Welcome, Class of 2017. Any graduating student who makes a gift of $20.17 to The Notre Dame Fund is invited to a private reception and champagne toast in gratitude of their first gift as an NDMU alum! In addition, students who donate will be able to climb to the top of the newly restored Gibbons Tower and receive a commemorative photo of the climb. You may make your gift online by visiting or you may also bring your gift to the event on May 19th.
Call or email Victoria Azera, Annual Giving Coordinator, 410-532-3197.
Commencement 2017
Commencement Liturgy
May 20, Marikle Chapel, Theresa Hall
Line-up begins at 10:30 a.m.
Procession to begin at 10:50 a.m.
Liturgy begins at 11 a.m.
All graduates and guests are welcome to attend the service. Cap and gown are required for graduating students. Guests are asked to arrive prior to the processional.
Commencement Ceremony
May 20, Royal Farms Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD 21201
Gather your friends and family as the Class of 2017 celebrates its Commencement Ceremony.
- Doors open at 6 p.m.
- Students Assemble at 6:30 p.m.
- Procession to begin at 7 p.m.
Go to the Commencement Events page to learn more or visit the Commencement page directly.