"Besides Notre Dame, where else are you looking to go to college?"
"The University of Michigan."
               "Does anyone give you a hard time about your school choices?"
"Not at all, actually."
               I mentioned Ivy League decision letters, which some of both her and my friends had eagerly awaited.
               "At some point, it almost seems like luck when it comes down to Ivy League decisions. But when you get in, from what I've heard, it's much more competitive. Not like here--it seems so collaborative here. I really appreciate the concentration on service and spirituality. You can't find that everywhere."
               "What's a non-academic passion of yours?"
"Speaking of which! I'm very passionate about service. I especially love working with kids. At my church at home, I volunteer for the day care during mass. The kids there are so cute. They're old enough to talk, but not old enough to sit down in Sunday school. They can be hilarious on occasion."

"My mission is to spread knowledge of Notre Dame's library system as a resource. So many undergraduates, most especially those who placed out of Writing and Rhetoric, don't know where to start when using the library or online resources. It's not all undergraduates; graduate students who went to undergrad somewhere else can be unfamiliar with the library as a resource. Some of what I do involves finding the best methods to make this happen: will freshmen read an explanatory email? Will they read a poster? I found a large population of seniors writing senior theses were interested in learning about research and the library, so we hold a one-week camp for them. Graduate students were interested in a camp for them as well, to write dissertations, so we also hold a camp for them."
                "Why should Notre Dame students care about using the library?"
"Well, do you care about your degree?" (laughs) "In all honesty, going to college is mostly about specializing in a field, cultivating your talents, and then going out into the world to use them for a bigger purpose. You want to be as well-equipped as you can for all steps along the way. I'm passionate about guiding students to cultivate knowledge and progress in their intellectual endeavors."

"I came to Notre Dame with the intention of being an economics major. By the end of my freshman year, I came to realize that music was my true passion. Sophomore year, I auditioned for the Glee Club. Three different faculty members had said to me, 'You should audition for the Glee Club!' I just kind of blew them off. I mean, I knew how to sing, but I didn't think I was a singer. By the third suggestion, I took a look at the website and heard the arrangement of 'Winter Wonderland.' And I said, 'Yeah! I want to be a part of that!' I've arranged quite a few songs for the Glee Club since then."
                "Where do you start when you want to arrange a piece?"
"When I first started arranging, I just picked all the songs I loved. My logic was that I loved the song, so everyone else should, too! But when it came down to it, some of them just didn't work in an a capella format. Some performers had difficulty reading the music. Since then, I've definitely taken more care to consider my audience and performers."
                As for class advice for music majors...
"If you're not a fan of music theory, don't take Schenkerian Analysis. But do take Baroque Counterpoint. Really."

Seen around campus: spring in the air!

"Notre Dame has given me, interestingly enough, opportunities to be a founding member of clubs. The closest to my heart is TransPose [dance collective]. Two aspects that set it apart: one is that anyone can join. We don't hold auditions; we hold casting, in order to separate groups of dancers into skill levels. Regardless of your skill, though, we will push you to be the best you can be. And two, you won't see us on a stage. That means no DPAC, no Washington Hall. We've instead performed in the LaFun ballroom, Jordan Hall, Riley, the Snite. And now we're holding our third show in Stinson-Remick. We've gone from barely finding 50 audience members to now moving audience members around to make room to dance. We have very different goals than you might expect: we hope to bring science and the arts together through our performances. And besides that, TransPose often blurs the border between dancer and audience. Yes, at times, we will have a dance party and get you to dance. Ultimately, I love working creatively with my friends. We're called a collective, but we're a family. The TransPose family."
            "What have you learned during your time with TransPose?"
"It's actually funny--I just wrote about TransPose on an application. We're fun, but we don't settle. There are times when instructors will look at someone who is between beginner and intermediate, and they will say, 'We can push her. She's got talent.' Regardless, walking into rehearsal, stress just melts off you. It's a challenge, and there are bruises are involved, but it's something both calming and fulfilling for me. Something you truly love should challenge you every day. That's what I believe."

“I grew up in the Chicago area, so I inevitably went to Notre Dame games. I’ve been to a lot of spring games—and a few regular-season games. I was probably the biggest fan of the family.”

               “Do you have a favorite Notre Dame tradition?”

“I remember very distinctly: regardless of whether the football team won or lost, the student section would always leave the game chanting, ‘We are ND.’ That’s a memory that never goes away.”

"We're on a field trip for Classics Club."

                 "What's up with the dancing?"
"We're Project Fresh. We're out here dancing just because the weather's so nice!"

“Earlier this year, the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation—a national organization—contacted Notre Dame in order to establish their first-ever college club. As of right now, we identify as a kindness movement. We hope to someday become the kiND Club, but we first need approval from the SAO.”

               “Has the movement completed any random acts of kindness yet?”

“One so far! We wrote kind words on 4,000 sticky notes, and the Wednesday before spring break, we stuck them onto the dinner trays at South. It was really interesting to see how each person interpreted the term ‘kind words’. Some wrote Mean Girls quotes; some wrote positive affirmations; there was even someone writing clever science jokes. It got everyone thinking—because kindness is neither limited nor strictly defined. It can be a smile, it can be remembering to laugh, it can be a compliment. So at dinner that night, it was really beautiful: 4,000 people were thinking about kindness around the same time. Some of them even attached them to their binders or carried them to stick onto mirrors afterwards. It started a conversation, and that’s what a movement does. It starts small, gets people thinking. Because, honestly, kindness is a lifestyle. Your life is not isolated from randomness. Things are going to happen. It’s all about how you look at them, how you work through them, and how you help others with their struggles.”

Neil has lost his speaking and hearing abilities with age. We communicated briefly with a pen and a notebook.

"I'm happy to meet you! I will have my retirement party on January 31, 2015. My wife, son, daughter, and I live in Granger, Indiana. I taught my children sign language a few years ago."
           "What do you do here?"
"I work in the dish room from 1:30 pm until 10:00 pm."
           "That's long! Have you met many friends in your time here?"
"Yes, I remember few friends."
           "May I ask what you'll miss most about Notre Dame?"
"Our house."

"God is head-over-heels in love with us...but when we're ready, he challenges us. Like a doctor or surgeon, he cuts us open to help us heal and grow. I teach sixth grade, and every year I make the kids watch a video of a priest who had a boil on his arm. Disgusting, right? The priest was ashamed of it. And it hurt him. He videotaped the doctor cutting the boil open. Full of pus. You have to remember, I hang around with 12-year-old boys. This is the kind of stuff that gets their attention. But the priest then meditated beautifully on the relation of the removal process to our prayer lives. We are ashamed. We have pus in us too--they're called vices. There's one doctor who can cut us open and help us heal. Being cut open can be painful, but ultimately, it helps us fully participate in our lives, the way in which we were meant.
"Prayer, like being a Notre Dame football fan, is not for the faint of heart. We must fully enter into God's mystery. In society, mystery has a stigma. We want to know everything, have everything. But as Catholics, we must accept that there are things we cannot understand, things that transcend us because they are of God. Until you enter into the mystery, you cannot fall in love with God."

            "May I ask about the patches on your backpack?"
"Perfect timing! I got three new ones over spring break. I love to travel and visit new countries; when I do, I get a patch for my backpack. I started with a few patches of countries I'd been to, given to me from friends and family. Now I collect them wherever I am. My sister did the same thing in college. She inspired me to do the same.
            "So you've been to all these countries?"
"All of them. Some more than once."
            "Do you have an America one?"
"Yeah, right here. It's smaller than the Canada one, though...!"

"In a society, when someone does something wrong, there are two questions the society can ask. One is, 'What should be done when someone commits a harmful act?', which is what our criminal justice system focuses on time after time. Another is, 'When someone commits a harmful act, who has been hurt and how should this be addressed?' And that is at the core of restorative justice. Think of a parent who hears a loud noise from a room where two children are playing. When they rush in, their first reaction is to understand who has been hurt; the second is to figure out how to make things right."
               "Are victims and offenders interested in restorative justice?"
"A stereotype exists that no, neither is interested, that the offender is a 'different breed', and that the victim is vindictive. But you would be surprised at how many offenders and victims are interested in restorative justice, in having dialogue with those hurt by the crime, in regaining dignity and safety. Research and studies have consistently shown that offenders who undergo routes of restorative justice in wake of their crime will not commit that same crime again--and that is contrary to another commonly-held stereotype."
               "Does Notre Dame employ restorative justice?"
"No. But I think--I hope--that is going to change in the near future. When I arrived here three and a half years ago, there were talks to introducing restorative justice when dealing with university offenses. But you would be surprised at how limited universities are by federal regulations. Even culturally, standards are in place."

Seen in South: live Irish music.

              "Tell me something about yourself."
"I'm an aerospace engineer, but my passion is music. I'm in two a cappella groups on campus."
              "Any plans to celebrate St. Patrick's Day?"
"Well, my roommates are having a...'social gathering' in my room while I'm at work now."

Happy St. Patrick's Day from the Irish!

"Every year, there's what some folks like to call the Rules and Regulations Chat. The freshmen are seated in the chapel, and we go over some of the basics about being at Notre Dame. But while they're congregated, I tell them: be open to growth. You will grow here in ways you expected; you will grow in ways you never expected. Some of your greatest learning experiences will be outside the classroom.

"As a rector, I have learned volumes about myself. All my ministry has been with young adults, and how I feel in their presence is something I can't articulate. That probably isn't a good answer for your blog, though. Let's see. They're just so positive. And life-giving. It is a true blessing, a life-changing blessing, to be able to witness the growth of a class of women over four years. It is truly a holy moment...or a series of holy moments. 'Awesome' doesn't cover it.

"Now I get to be on a blog, hm? First I was in a movie, now this. I don't mean to put in a plug for it, but you should look up Parietals Playlist on YouTube. A group of Pangborn women recorded it for the Morrissey Film Festival. The girls came to me and said, 'Sister, will you say something for our video?' So I hesitantly said sure. I only had one line, and it was something like, 'Yo, boys, get out the Pang.' I said exactly that--I opened my door and said my line. And the girls said, 'No, no, sister, you have to say it to the beat of the music!' And I said, 'They're going to have to up my medication or yours, because I don't hear any music.' Then they gave me a beat to say my line to. It was really a hilarious video, put together by a group of extremely talented women. They're singing from the dryer in one of the scenes. I have no idea how they got in there."

            "What is something you care passionately about?"
"Entrepreneurship. Let me explain: a few years ago, I saw a movie called Pay It Forward, which I loved. I was inspired. So I decided to pay it forward in my own way: I founded Future Moroccan Entrepreneurs. We held a camp for students, and the first thing we did was show them the movie. Their objective, then, as alumni, was to 'pay it forward' in any way they want. They find a need and create a solution. One alumnus started an online magazine. Another is working with entrepreneurship in his home country. Now that I am away at Notre Dame, I've had to keep myself updated on the camp through pictures and emails. It's like a baby, how I've watched it grow over time. They were my family away from my blood family. And, of course, I have a new Notre Dame family as well."

                   "So what exactly is ND Safewalk?"

"I can't really give you a short answer, because 'nighttime escort service' could be interpreted the wrong way."

"There are a bunch of us in LaFun, the library, all over campus. If you feel uncomfortable walking anywhere on campus, we'll escort you. Say you don't quite feel comfortable going out to D2 to your car. We'll come with you."

"We get to take you in a golf cart. I know, kind of cool. We use the golf cart for people who are injured, too. Twisted ankles, broken bones."

"You can call a number for Safewalk, call NDSP, or just find one of us around."

                  "Any odd stories of safewalks?"

"I've escorted some pretty interesting characters in costumes who were coming from Legends."

Seen on Bond Quad.

Seen on the fourth floor of Hesburgh Library: wisdom, bluntness, spirituality, art, rebellion, and frustration with orgo.

                "What's your favorite Notre Dame tradition?"
"Football Saturdays. It's not exactly a Notre Dame tradition, but I love tailgating. My friend's family drives down from Michigan for every game and we all hang out."
                "Did you tailgate before you came to Notre Dame?"
"No. Actually, I'm from Massachusetts. So I hadn't been to a game before. My friend's family took me and a few other guys from all over the country under their wing."

"I've actually never been to a game. Or even on campus. I watch the games on TV sometimes, though. The company my mother works for has a contract with the field, so she got me this hat."

            "What's the best thing that's happened to you in the past month?"
"I got the job!"
            "Did you celebrate?"
"Well...sort of. Grad students first get the job, but then they have to prepare their defense, which I'll be doing in the next month. Once that's over, that's the time when I'll celebrate."

"We only dress up for the big games. We dressed up for Duke!"