In 2022, Notre Dame celebrated the 50th anniversary of Father Ted Hesburgh’s historic decision to admit women as undergraduates to the formerly all-male university. In the fall of 1972, the University admitted the first women: 125 first-year and more than 200 transfer students. Today, women collectively comprise about 40% of the Mendoza undergraduate program and 35% of the graduate programs.
In honor of Women’s History Month, I’m pleased to highlight the leadership and contributions of several of our faculty and staff members:
Kristen Collett-Schmitt, associate dean for innovation and diversity, has been instrumental in advancing inclusivity across the College. Two recently launched notable programs include:
ND Elevate: Women in Leadership, a pilot program conducted in partnership with ND Learning and Beacon Health Systems aimed at empowering women to take the next step in their professional journey by developing knowledge and skills relating to resilience, negotiation, presence and authenticity. The program’s online learning modules and a full-day immersion featured some of the University’s foremost women leaders and scholars, including Muffet McGraw, Ruth Riley Hunter (EMBA ’16), Carolyn Woo, Cindy Muir (Zapata), Jessica McManus Warnell, Angela Logan and Amanda McKendree.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Grow the Good in Business Case Competition. Forty-five teams of Mendoza undergraduate and graduate students have registered for the second annual competition, which focuses on the problem of financial inclusion in underserved markets. The closing event, where winners will be announced, takes place at 10 a.m. on April 21 in the Stayer Center Commons A.
Kara Palmer, senior director of administration and program management, was chosen to represent Mendoza as part of the ND Women Lead feature in honor of International Women’s Day on March 8. Kara, who leads the Mendoza Staff DEI Council, has been a pioneer in gender equity in the College and across campus, serving as the leader of Thrive! Inspiring ND Women, the largest employee resource group that is focused on increasing opportunities for women to be recruited, retained and advanced as leaders at the University.
María Stutsman y Márquez, director of Graduate Recruiting & Admissions, has supported the Diversity in Leadership (DIL) initiative founded by Dr. Leon Jackson (EMBA '19). The six-month program is designed to help close gaps in educational attainment, wealth, skills and career opportunities for marginalized groups, and to provide a path to executive leadership and entrepreneurship. María also led the Solidarity Summit admissions recruitment events which provide coaching throughout the admissions process and a sponsored visit to campus to increase the interest and admission success of diverse groups. As a result of these initiatives and others, Insight into Diversity magazine presented the College with a 2023 Inspiring Programs in Business Award given as a tribute to the people and programs that encourage and inspire a new generation of people to consider careers in business. María also was recently named as the vice president of Adelante ND, an Employee Resource Group committed to diversity and inclusion and educating others about our Hispanic/Latinx heritage.
Wendy Angst, teaching professor of Management & Organization, has continued her important work facilitating experiential learning for undergraduate students to have a measurable impact on the world's most pressing problems. Providing opportunities for students to engage in projects over multiple semesters from idea, to immersion, to implementation, Wendy's first “proof of concept” is with St. Bakhita Vocational Training Center in Northern Uganda. Wendy and her students support 78 female "Innovation Scholars" to learn a vocation and receive training in computers and entrepreneurship. Through collaborative innovation, they aim to provide young women with access to education, enable sustainable operations for the school and improve the region’s economic prosperity.
Business on the Frontlines, founded by Viva Bartkus, has worked on many projects over the years related to the education and advancement of women as a way of addressing poverty and violence. An ongoing partnership with Child’s Cup Full, overseen by Kelly Rubey, focuses on creating lasting economic growth for Palestinian women by providing talented refugee and low-income artisans training and job opportunities.
Patty Brady, interim director for NDIGI, oversaw the Women’s Investing Summit ’23, a signature event for the College and the larger investment industry. As an attendee, I can tell you that the Downes Club was packed with students, faculty, staff, alumni and other guests. Now in its fifth year, WIS continues to shine a light into investment management career paths for our students and bring together some of the top experts in the field today. Tess Swain was also key in executing the event.
These are a few examples of the many women faculty and staff members across Mendoza who are significantly contributing to the success of our students, the College and the University through advancing the causes of diversity, equity and inclusion. I am deeply grateful to all.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn