The Impact of Giving

Claire Naus is getting her Notre Dame education in Boston. And London. And Lesotho.

An anthropology and biology double major in the Glynn Family Honors Program, Naus has had her share of extraordinary professors and classes right here on the Notre Dame campus. But she has also been deeply influenced by the range of experiences that Notre Dame makes available to her beyond the four walls of the classroom.

Naus remembers talking football with a homeless man in Boston, where she participated in a 48-hour “Urban Plunge”
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When it comes to learning, classrooms shouldn’t get to have all the fun.

And they didn’t, not for Patrick Brown, an honors student with a double major in chemistry and physics who attributes his passion for energy and the environment to a host of experiences: interesting courses and compelling professors, yes, but also the abundance of learning opportunities that Notre Dame makes available beyond the classroom.

“Honestly, my academic interests didn’t originate in the classroom,” says Brown, who will be graduated from Notre Dame this month.>> more

“Notre Dame is the only place I’ve ever heard community service referred to as service opportunities,” says junior Vivian Healey.

The distinction is an important one, she says, one that helps to set Notre Dame students apart. “Service isn’t an obligation here. It’s something you enjoy doing, something you want to do.”

When an injury ended Healey’s run as a varsity swimmer, she took it as an opportunity—to put her passion and skill as a swimmer to use for the community.>> more