From the Dean's Desk

Hometown Heroes

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 27 April 2020
Image
Even though we are not together on a daily basis, there is still a lot of activity going on at Mendoza. I’ve heard so many encouraging stories about our students, faculty, staff and alums stepping up to help others, I thought I’d share a few:
Jim Spencer is part of a University cross collaborative team using 3D printers to produce plastic face shields, which have been in critically short supply for medical personnel on the COVID-19 frontlines. Jim is working with the other members of the local makerspace to produce as many parts as they can. The Mendoza Ed Tech team is also running its 3D printer to produce face shield parts. Once we began working remotely, Jim added Mendoza's printer to the printer farm at his house and is now running three printers nearly 24 hours a day. In his spare time, he’s also building more printers out of parts he’s accumulated over the years.
The EMBA-Chicago Class of 2021 raised $5,545 to donate to the Greater Chicago Food Depository to support feeding kids who normally would get many of their meals from school. This translates into 16,650 meals The cohort was less than three months into the program when we transitioned to online teaching. But they wanted to find a way to stay connected and give back. “It’s a weird time in the world, but at the same time, we all feel immense gratitude to be part of a community that we weren’t part of just months before — the Notre Dame community,” said student Kendall Raymond.
Two companies led or founded by Mendoza alums have converted their operations to produce hand sanitizer. Kem Krest CEO Amish Shah (EMBA ‘05) is working to create the chemical packaging company’s own sanitizer for public use during the current shortage. South Bend-based Indiana Whiskey, led by Charles Florance (MBA ’13) and Matt Logston (MBA ’20), shifted from producing its award-winning small-batch whiskeys to bottling the all but impossible-to-find commodity.
Ugandan priest and MBA student Father Arthur Joseph Ssembajja (MBA ’21) celebrates daily Mass in the Mendoza chapel alone as his contribution to battling the coronavirus: “I pray for God’s intervention, mercy and healing. I pray for the Church to remain an icon of hope and presence of God in the world. I pray for civil leaders to make decisions that will benefit the whole of humanity. I pray for the University of Notre Dame – administrators, staff, faculty and students that the Lord keeps us and our families safe. That a day will dawn when we get to see each other face to face again. I pray for my family in Uganda. Lastly, I pray for those on the frontline and all those suffering with the coronavirus.”
At a time when we’ve seen so much heartache and struggle on a daily basis, these stories remind me of a quote from Pope Francis’ encyclical, "Laudato Si’”: "Yet all is not lost. Human beings, while capable of the worst, are also capable of rising above themselves, choosing again what is good, and making a new start."
I’m thankful for all of you who again and again have shown yourself capable of rising above and who are already making a new start in our changed world.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn

Administrative Professionals Day

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 20 April 2020
Image

Today’s message is one of deep appreciation to all of the Mendoza administrative assistants as we observe Administrative Professionals’ Day on Wednesday this week (April 22).

The College could not function without those who serve in this capacity. They often are the face of Mendoza, serving as the first point of contact for students and guests. They keep us organized and on track, scheduling meetings (a herculean job in itself!), coordinating events of all sizes, administering our budgets, and drafting our presentations and correspondence. They help prepare our materials for teaching and research submissions.

Collectively, they represent a skill set that spans finance, digital media, project management, office software, information design, audio/visual technology, vendor relations and many, many additional areas. They contribute heavily to the initiatives and events that make our workplace rewarding and enjoyable.

Normally, we would organize a special lunch to recognize their contributions. As that is not possible this year, regrettably, I encourage you to reach out individually to acknowledge their important contributions. We are blessed to have the support and assistance of this phenomenal team at Mendoza.

My sincere thanks to each and every one of them.

In Notre Dame,

Martijn

Kimberly Bakle, GBP 
Candice Cleveland, Dean’s Office
Deborah Coch, Administrative Support
Heather Denton, Dean's Office
Elizabeth Ganger, GBP Career Services
Laura Glassford, Undergraduate Studies
Karma Grundy, Dean’s Office
Rachel Karnafel, Faculty Support
Dana Marsh, Exec Ed 
Judy Miller, Management
Maggie Neenan-Michel, Faculty Support
Jessica Noffsinger, Undergraduate Studies
Denayia Phillips, Faculty Support
Jenna Rangel, Administrative Support 
Jennifer Ransbottom, GBP
Amanda Rink, Administrative Support
Bailey Smith, Administrative Support
Beth Smith, Dean’s Office
Amy Spangler, Faculty Support
Tamara Springer, Faculty Support
Shelly Sterling, Marketing and Graduate Enrollment
Kayla Taylor, Administrative Support
Kathleen Webb, Administrative Support
Angela Wesley, Marketing and Graduate Enrollment

FAQ Updates

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 13 April 2020

Happy Easter; the Lord is risen, alleluia!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend; I was glad we were able to enjoy a brief glimpse of spring.

The University has provided several updates recently about campus operations. You can find more information on the Notre Dame Covid-19 site, but here are a few highlights to answer questions I’ve received:

Returning to campus: At this time, the University plans to offer additional guidance about when the campus will resume normal operations by May 15. Note that this does not mean we will necessarily return to working on campus on that date; it means that the University will provide more information by then, as the state and federal safety and health guidelines related to Covid-19 develop.

Commencement: As was previously announced, the commencement celebration for the Class of 2020 is planned for Memorial Day weekend 2021. The University will host a virtual conferral of degrees in May 2020 for our graduates. The Provost’s Office has asked that the colleges hold off from making any individual plans to honor graduates until the full details of the University plan are announced later this month.

Summer sessions: The University will not hold in-person courses or programs through July 6. For Mendoza, we have decided that we will not be doing any in-person teaching in our main campus until the fall semester starts. This means that three of our graduate programs — MBA One-Year, MSM and Executive MNA (both new and returning students) are going to be fully online this summer, with the intention of resuming normal operations in the fall.

Annual budget planning: Last week, I emailed College budget managers reiterating EVP Shannon Cullinan’s statement about the need to curb expenses for the remainder of this fiscal year and to make provisional plans to reduce spending of unrestricted funds for fiscal year 2020-21. Doug Franson and I are working with the Provost’s Office to understand the specific directives involved. We will be providing more information to budget managers in the next week. In the meantime, I encourage everyone to think of innovative and effective ways to do your jobs that will help us trim costs. Any operational savings helps support the University’s commitment to serving students, caring for its employees and supporting our core functions of teaching and research.

Endeavor: I want to reiterate Kara Palmer’s email sent April 8 to staff asking everyone to complete their performance reviews in Endeavor. We are committed to prioritizing increases in salaries related to promotions for faculty and staff as soon as the budgetary situation has changed, and want to ensure that your hard work is recognized. At this time, all staff members should have finished their year-end comments and ratings and submitted them to their supervisors (Step 3). From now until early May, supervisors will meet with direct reports to discuss performance evaluations and final ratings. Endeavor closes on May 15 for fiscal year 2019-20.

As you start your week, I encourage you to watch the video of the Notre Dame Glee Club’s performance of Franz Biebl's “Ave Maria.” (Thanks, Chris Stevens, for sending it!) It’s a powerful and moving reminder that we can cooperate well together even during this difficult time of working remotely, and that we are still very much a strong community even while physically distant.

In Notre Dame,

Martijn

Holy Week Wish

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 6 April 2020
Image

As we begin Holy Week, I want to send you a simple message of peace and hope.

One of my favorite authors, G.K. Chesterton, wrote a famous poem for Easter called “The Donkey,” see below. It’s a simple poem told from the viewpoint of the donkey that carried Jesus as he made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The poem is a reminder that there are glimpses of the divine in the common and lowly — or even the ugly — aspects of life.

The Donkey
BY G. K. CHESTERTON

When fishes flew and forests walked
And figs grew upon thorn,
Some moment when the moon was blood
Then surely I was born.

With monstrous head and sickening cry
And ears like errant wings,
The devil’s walking parody
On all four-footed things.

The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient crooked will;
Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.

Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hour and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.

Source: The Collected Poems of G. K. Chesterton (Dodd Mead & Company, 1927)

In the midst of turmoil, there is perhaps no better occasion than Holy Week to remember the constancy of God, His steadfast love for each one of us, and His victory of sin and death. I hope you are able to find comfort and peace in your faith, your family, your friends and your community.

I wish all of you a blessed Holy Week and a joyful Easter.

In Notre Dame,

Martijn

COVID-19 Updates

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 30 March 2020

Earlier today, Father John sent an announcement to 2020 graduates, faculty and staff that the University will host a virtual commencement on May 17 in lieu of in-person celebrations, and will host the in-person ceremony for 2020 grads on Memorial Day weekend 2021. I echo his sentiments that this is sad news, but regrettably it is necessary to safeguard everyone’s health and wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This news follows the announcement on Friday (March 27) by Provost Tom Burish about several important changes to the University’s academic policies. In addition, Mendoza’s College Council adopted similar policies for our graduate programs. Our objective is two-fold: 1) to best accommodate students who face particular difficulties in the new online teaching environment and 2) to provide equitable treatment to all students across our programs.

Briefly, here are highlights of the new grading policies for the 2020 spring semester:

UNDERGRADUATE: The University is adopting a temporary pass/no credit grading. Faculty submit letter grades as usual at the end of the semester. Students view their final grades and then choose whether to accept their letter grades or elect a pass/no credit option, with A through D warranting a pass (P) while an F translates to no credit (NC). Pass and no-credit grades will have no effect on a student’s grade point average and the students can make this choice for any or all of their courses.

MENDOZA’S GRADUATE PROGRAMS: Mendoza also is adopting a pass/no credit option for any graduate student enrolled in the Notre Dame MBA, MSM, MSBA (South Bend and Chicago), MSA, MNA, Executive MNA, and Executive MBA (South Bend and Chicago) programs. (MSF is not currently in session.) The protocol is the same as for the undergraduate students; however, the grade ranges for a passing grade are A through C-. Likewise, Pass and no-credit grades will have no effect on a graduate student’s grade point average and the graduate students can make this choice for any or all of their courses.

Dr. Burish’s message included additional information about changes to student leave of absence policies and extending the faculty tenure and promotion clock by one full year. I encourage you to check the coronavirus.nd.edu website frequently for updates.

As we start another week of online classes, I again want to thank our faculty and staff members who have made the transition go so well. I’ve had a number of student messages passed along to me about the great efforts that faculty members have put into their teaching. Here’s just one example from business analytics major Keagan McLaughlin who wrote a note of thanks to Chad Harms about his “Tiki Time” approach:

“I just wanted to say that was the best thing I have ever seen. You have outdone yourself, and the episode definitely brightened my day during this troubling quarantine.”

Thanks to all of you for your very hard work, creativity and grace.


In Notre Dame,

Martijn

Latest from the Dean