Vol.164No. 8
At about 9:15 a.m. on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, Rachel Palermo...
While the pandemic has required us to be increasingly attuned to the negative, let’s also remember to step back and appreciate some of the goodness that exists here in our own backyard.
Amidst all the turbulence and all the disappointments of the pandemic, it would be easy to overlook the good.
After talking with David Krashna, the student body president from 2016 to 2017 and editor of “Black Domers” — a book of essays about the African American experience at Notre Dame — freshman Dane Sherman recognized that the LGBTQ+ community needed to be represented in the same way.
For many, Notre Dame traditions are ingrained in their childhood as much as their own family traditions.
A particularly recognizable figurehead throughout the Notre Dame community, Rev. Edward “Monk” Malloy has many distinguishing titles.
Since 2013, the men of St. Edward’s Hall have partnered with the Nothing But Nets charity to create the fundraiser “Mullets Against Malaria,” raising thousands of dollars to purchase mosquito netting to prevent malaria in global communities affected by the disease.
For most, the past year has consisted of masks, hand sanitizer, six feet of separation and endless references to these “unprecedented times.” But many health officials seem to think that the end may be in sight.
As the admissions process seems to grow more selective, it has evoked a national dialogue about the utility of evaluating candidates based on a singular day’s performance, especially when it might be impacted by factors that not all students have equitable access to, such as test prep courses or specialized tutors.
As a senior, I have many regrets. One of the biggest ones is not having explored more of South Bend when I had the chance. Now that I’m about to graduate, there’s nothing I love more than getting out of the classroom, off of Zoom and away from campus with my friends. I’ve compiled a list of all things worth doing and checking out around town that comply with CDC and school standards. So take a beat from burying your nose in the books and peel your eyeballs away from that screen for an afternoon or night on the town.
Dreams for a bigger kitchen and redecorated interior dining space still exist but have been put on the back burner. People comment on the work the restaurant needs, and Dont’e Shaw simply takes it in stride. He’s aware of the necessary renovations, he even had them planned out, but when you open your restaurant in the middle of a global pandemic, most plans have to be changed. Pandemic living has made so many things impossible and other things so anxiety-ridden that other alternatives have to be sought out instead.
The Notre Dame experience is all anyone hears or talks about during their time here. But just like tuition, participating in those experiences isn’t always the cheapest. The office of student enrichment enables students to maximize their Notre Dame experience to ensure no one is excluded for personal or financial limitations.
My freshman year experience looked a lot different than what freshmen are experiencing today. Everyone in the Class of 2021 arrived to campus the same weekend. We were always allowed in each other’s rooms and in other dorms. Classes were held in person. The dining halls were a place for friends to sit, dine and catch up for hours on end. Brother and sister dorms often commingled. And we weren’t trying to navigate our first year at Notre Dame in the midst of a pandemic.
It’s no secret that one year ago campus looked a lot different. You could recognize your friends and passers-by since no one was wearing masks. There weren’t as many hand sanitizer stations let alone any “HERE” signs or posters indicating the full force of the pandemic we now find ourselves in. The only texts you’d get from Notre Dame were Weather and Emergency Alerts.
When campus isn’t filled with students over winter and summer break sessions, the library echoes with a unique quiet and has an eerily empty feel, like an airport at 2:00 a.m. or the grocery store late at night. Chairs sit uninhabited and a sense of restfulness hums in the air. It’s no surprise Hesburgh Library didn’t look or feel quite that empty Tuesday, March 2. Amidst the advice to slow down and take a moment for yourself, Notre Dame students still populated this well-loved study spot. At 8:50 p.m. in the evening, the library seemed just as full as it always is on the university’s scheduled “mini-break” day.
You grab your boxed dinner from North Dining Hall and tote it back to the dorm. You forgot to bring a bag again so your bare fingers are stiff and numb around the container by the time you enter your room. You shut the door behind you and go to your desk where you’ll sit facing a wall, eating another meal alone. But it doesn’t have to be that way. You could jump onto a Zoom call instead to share stimulating conversation and make new friends — all from the comfort of your own room.
Although the COVID-19 pandemic has brought about many changes, including giving Notre Dame students what felt like our longest semester ever followed by our longest winter break in recent history, we have, for the most part, been able to get back to business as usual this semester.
Although efforts to roll out COVID-19 vaccines provide some hope for the future, Notre Dame still has to contend with a messy web of safety complications if it hopes to hold commencement celebrations for the classes of 2020 and 2021.
Starting her Notre Dame journey as a visiting fellow for the Kellogg Institute, Abby Córdova officially joined the Notre Dame faculty in 2019 as an assistant professor for the Keough School of Global Affairs.
2020 taught us lessons that we can continue to carry with us, but the opportunity to start a new chapter gives us a chance to reflect, reinvent and rise to the occasion.
McWell has found that managing stress and mood, staying socially connected and meeting academic demands are the biggest concerns for undergraduate and graduate students.
It’s officially that time of the semester when students typically begin counting down the days until spring break. In past years, spring break would consist of a one-week interlude in our busy spring schedules to ignore homework, catch up on sleep and escape the snow-covered campus for a restful trip back home or an exciting vacation.
“Please help us reduce case rates,” Erin Hoffmann Harding and Mike Seamon asked near the conclusion of their Feb. 17 announcement on heightened COVID-19 regulations on campus. The new restrictions were the result of a spike in cases in the days prior, which saw case numbers jump from 17 to 48, a 182% increase, within the 24-hour period of Sunday, Feb. 14.
Professor Sophie White’s book, “Voices of the Enslaved: Love, Labor and Longing in French Louisiana” gives voice to individuals in colonial Louisiana, who otherwise had no outlet or representation during their lives. Most recently, White’s book won the Frederick Douglass Book Prize for the year’s best non-fiction book about slavery or abolition, which includes an award of $25,000.
Allan Njomo and Matthew Bisner stood out to the Scholastic staff as the best choice to serve the student body for their comprehensive platform, demonstrated understanding of student needs and background in student government.
“Be bold,” declares Allan Njomo and Matthew Bisner’s campaign slogan. And the ticket’s accompanying platform — filled with detailed plans for equity, accessibility and student well-being — certainly promises a bold agenda.
Juniors Max Siegel and Zach Holland aren’t your typical Zahm ticket: They’re juniors — not freshmen — and they’re serious about this campaign. And although they met each other in the infamous house, Siegel and Holland say they are opposites.
Juniors Mabry Webb and Jacob Calpey felt a duty to run for student government president and vice president this year because of a shared love for the Notre Dame community.
Our hearts ache with the news of the passing of first year students Valeria Espinel and Olivia Laura Rojas.
In May of 2020 the Department of Education (DOE) announced the new Title IX Rule, which introduced and amended many Title IX regulations. It would go into full effect Aug. 14, giving the University of Notre Dame, and all other schools, less than four months to discuss and implement measures compliant with the Rule.