Every time a Notre Dame student leaves their dorm room, they’re surrounded by beautiful, well-maintained buildings, clean community spaces, amazing landscapes and architecture, efficient dining areas, kind administration, top teaching and more. While we may not see everything behind the curtain, it takes a community to run a university as great as this one and sometimes university employees go unnoticed.

In February of 2025, Forbes, a well-known American business magazine, released the long-awaited list: “2025 America’s Best Large Employers”. Where was Notre Dame ranked, you may ask? Number one. How did Forbes even decide to name the University of Notre Dame the best employer in the United States? Well, Forbes partnered with Statistica to gather information and survey answers from over 217,000 employees from a large array of companies with over 1,000 employees. The University of Notre Dame garnered positive responses from employees, placing first for large employers. Notre Dame was the only employer in the education industry that placed in the top 10, and placed higher than Trader Joe’s, Houston Methodist and NVIDIA.

Notre Dame does its best to ensure the happiness of its employees. According to a press release from the university, “over the past three years, Notre Dame has expanded its employee wellness center; enriched its emotional well-being, caregiving and education benefits for employees; and announced the addition of a new on-campus child care facility.” In an article published by the university, Vice President of Human Resources Heather Christophersen said, “Being recognized as a Forbes top employer is a testament to the culture of care, belonging and excellence that defines our Notre Dame community. We strive to create a workplace where every person feels valued, supported and empowered to make a difference both in their own life and in the world.”

Many people contribute to making this possible, from the campus dining workers to the staff members in the main offices to facilities workers and even student workers.

Campus dining workers play an essential role on campus, providing food for not only almost 13,000 students, but also some faculty,staff and visitors. Decio Cafe is one of the many restaurants on campus, located in Decio Faculty Hall. Elizalyne Watkins, an employee there, has had experience working in different roles around the campus, getting to know students throughout the university.

“I’ve been here for two, almost three years. I started to work at Hagerty Cafe as a barista, then I moved to Gilded Bean and Decio Cafe,” Watkins said. “Working different jobs expands your experience and it’s enjoyable to make different things, and I love giving food to the kids.”

Campus dining employees sometimes have the opportunity to take on many roles around campus, like Watkins has had. Some enjoy the change, but Watkins mentioned having a favorite role out of all of them.

“My favorite role has been being a barista because I love coffee, and I like to know what is good coffee and the behind-the-scenes,” Watkins said.

One of the most important aspects of working on campus is the relationships and communities that form as a result of daily interactions. Watkins finds community with the students, whether that is making them drinks or working with them, to be the most fulfilling part of her job.

“[The thing that I enjoy most about working at Notre Dame] is the people,” Watkins said. “My passion is to make the kids smile, that’s why I’m still here.”

Another aspect of working at Notre Dame is the Notre Dame student worker experience. From students working one four-hour shift a week to students working almost 20 hours a week, student workers help to ensure the smooth running of the university. To gain some insight into what it is like to be a student worker, I spoke to Jenna Gamons, a freshman at Notre Dame, who has been working since the moment she set foot on campus.

“Last summer, I knew I wanted to work when I got onto campus. So, I was looking at the Student Job Board and saw the lifeguard position come up. I emailed the lady who was in charge to express my interest in the position, so we set up a time to meet within the first week of school, and I started the next week,” Gamons said. “I’ve been lifeguarding at Rolfs Aquatic Center, and I really enjoy working there because they’re so flexible, and I’ve had the opportunity to try out different roles such as water testing.”

Gamons has found that the work-life balance at Notre Dame can be difficult, but her job as a lifeguard allows her to gain experience and affords her the flexibility to focus on academics and become involved in many extracurricular activities. She enjoyed working at Notre Dame so much that she is also becoming a Resident Counselor this summer for the Summer Scholars Pre-College Program.

“I really do enjoy the opportunity to be a representative of my school even if it is behind the scenes. I get to contribute and do things that are what make the school so special that maybe people may never know. I know that I’m doing something to benefit the school and the place that people love so much.”

Each and every employee contributes to the culture that Notre Dame brings, whether they are a student or not. This can be seen in the communities built within the workplaces. Gamons talked about her love for her job, which is in part due to the people that she works with.

“I love my boss, Izzy Leard; she’s really funny,” Gamons commented. “During in-services, she always finds a way to let us have a good time whether it’s including Q&As to try to get to know each other better or playing games and relays at the end. Because of that, I think most of the staff are friends or at least we get along when we work together and it makes it a better place to work.”

“We are deeply grateful to everyone who works at Notre Dame for their invaluable contributions to our mission,” said University President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C. in an article published by the university following the Forbes announcement. “Our accomplished and dedicated employees are our most valuable asset, and it is because of their efforts that the University is receiving this wonderful recognition.”

So next time you go pick up your food from an on-campus restaurant, go to Human Resources for help filling out forms or walk past someone cleaning your dorm, stop and say “thank you.”