With hundreds of parents arriving to campus on Friday for Junior Parents Weekend at the University of Notre Dame, the Class of 2027 was able to participate in Mass and the president’s dinner afterwards, with other events and workshops that ran all weekend long.
Class of 2027 Mass
Mass, held in the Purcell Pavilion of the Joyce Center, featured many priests from across campus, with University President Fr. Robert Dowd presiding and Fr. Ed Dolphin, rector of Dillion Hall, giving the homily. Other rectors, the Magnificat Choir, folk choir and a string quartet were also present for the event.
Fr. Robert Dowd proceeds through the Class of 2027 Mass at Purcell Pavilion for Junior Parents Weekend.
Dolphin’s homily, which used an allusion of the Bible’s bookends on God’s salvation, centered on love. He connected this to the ways in which families build the foundation and how Notre Dame adds onto that framework.
“Juniors, you have accumulated two and a half years of wisdom, knowledge and life experience here on campus … You did not come to campus empty-handed,” Dolphin said. “You brought the lessons from your parents, grandparents, the sacrifice of your family members, the guidance of your teachers and mentors, because long before Notre Dame ever had the chance to for you, they did. Their love example has laid the foundation on which everything else here has been built.”
President’s Dinner
Following Mass, families ventured to the North Dome for the president’s dinner, which featured speeches from junior class president Aleah Applin, JPW co-chairs Ethan Chiang and Passion Hood and Dowd. Junior Joshua Johnson, the president’s dinner chair, introduced each of the speakers.
He opened by reminding parents of the Welcome Mass two years ago, when Fr. Pete McCormick told parents to “Go home and entrust your children to the care of Our Lady’s University.” But now, Johnson reflected, they invite them back two and a half years later to witness the home they have built.
Applin acknowledged the difficulty of speaking to such a diverse range of families before sharing her “Why Notre Dame” story, emphasizing the role her parents played in getting her to apply to Notre Dame.
“While God led me to Notre Dame, I would not have made this decision, let alone apply, if it were not for my parents’ belief, encouragement and support,” Applin said.
In his speech, Chiang noted the opportune timing of JPW, allowing students to recognize how far they’ve come and how much they have to look forward to.
“By now, the frantic energy of freshman year has long faded, but the looming finality of senior year has not quite taken hold. We are no longer using Google maps to find our classes, but we have not yet gotten to our lasts like our last home game or our last visit to the Grotto,” Chiang said.
Ethan Chiang, at the podium, and Passion Hood, on the right, shared reflective speeches during the Junior Parents Weekend president’s dinner Friday evening.
Dowd then spoke on the ways he learns new things about this University every day, despite being a part of the community for a long time.
Making a joke about loving all the residence halls equally, the video cut to a photo of him in a Cavanaugh Hall sweatshirt. He went on to say that there is a place in his heart for all of the residence halls he has been a part of: Grace Hall as a student, Flanner Hall as an Assistant Rector and a priest-in-residence at Dillon Hall, St. Edward’s Hall, and now Cavanaugh Hall.
Using baseball rivalry as a bridge to Pope Leo XIV, he thanked the Holy Father “for all that he does to lead the church and inspire all of us.”
After a nod to the ice chapel, Dowd went on to share a video of him trying to find the comfort K9s on campus, Órla and Finn. From asking a squirrel to trekking around campus from Main Building to North Dining Hall and Hammes Mowbray Hall, he eventually found them in his office.
He connected this experience to the lesson of making life bigger than just oneself, which he said he learned throughout this time as a part of the Notre Dame community and hopes Notre Dame is inspiring juniors to realize as well.
“Take it from someone whose college graduation was many years ago. As you age, you come to realize how blessed you are by the people in your lives who have taught you by their example, the value of moving beyond your comfort zone in service of others,” Dowd said. “In one way or another, we are all called to move beyond our comfort zones. Doing so is the only way we grow intellectually, socially and spiritually.”
He closed by reflecting that the students have already grown a lot since their time arriving at Notre Dame, and that this weekend offers a chance for expressions of gratitude and love for the ways families have supported them throughout this journey.
Institute for Social Concerns Lecture
The Institute for Social Concerns hosted New York Times bestselling author Ayana Mathis for a lecture on her book, “The Twelve Tribes of Hattie” on Friday evening.
Mathis provided reflections on hope, where she explored the concept to be deeper than what it is normally portrayed as.
“The version of hope that we most frequently encounter, which is something like upbeat optimism, does not quite seem to cut it. This version of hope is a little bit hollow, a little bit facile, not merely capacious or robust enough to meet the moment’s trials and demands,” Mathis explained.
In reconsidering the meaning of hope, she turned to her own books. The specific problems she raises with hope show it is synonymous with optimism and focused on the future, rather than based on present action.
“Hope then needs to do something, it needs to address not just anticipation of the future, but the moment in which we live now. Hope needs to separate itself from the relentless positive that belies the crises of the moment,” she claimed. “Hope needs to uncouple from certainty that the things hoped for will actually happen … Hope needs to embrace uncertainty, which is also where imagination lives. Hope without imagination is just a platitude.”
Grappling with this notion and pulling from the work of civil rights activist James Baldwin and other theologians, she reached the conclusion that hope is necessary towards being alive. From this understanding, she offered that relationships are seen as precious “because they are fleeting.” Connecting it back to JPW, Mathis closed by explaining that families cannot know where their student will end up, but can hope for their future to persist.
New York Time’s bestselling author Ayana Mathis lectures over hope and her new book during this year’s Junior Parents Weekend.
College Information Sessions
Across the campus, Colleges hosted various events highlighting their work on Saturday morning.
The Mendoza College of Business hosted the Meruelo Family Center for Career Development to reassure students and families that opportunities after graduation are available, but attending career fairs and hoping it works is not enough. The resources exist, but work best when they are utilized.
The College of Engineering held a panel in the Leighton Concert Hall of the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center, featuring a panel discussion with the college’s dean Patricia Culligan, associate teaching professor Todd Taylor and a panel of engineering majors.
Keough School of Global Affairs arranged a students versus parents Jeopardy-style trivia game. According to the website, the College of Arts and Letters hosted an event in DeBartolo Hall exploring their motto, “Study everything. Do anything.” with a reception in the Jenkins Nanovic Forum. Additionally, the College of Science hosted a variety of workshops in Jordan Hall of Science offering opportunities for parents to learn about various programs and visit the Museum of Biodiversity.
In the early afternoon, Notre Dame trivia happened in the Midfield Commons of Duncan Student Center, alongside JPW merch sales. Residence halls then hosted open houses for families to tour through.
Sunday morning saw parents off campus with continental breakfast served in Dahnke Ballroom.
