Three Notre Dame residence hall rectors, Fr. Eric Schimmel of Dunne Hall, Cory Hodson of Keenan Hall and Ally Liedtke of Ryan Hall, are set to leave their roles at the end of the academic year.
Eric Schimmel
Schimmel has served as rector of Dunne Hall for six academic years. Before taking on the role, he spent much of his time in parish ministry. When Holy Cross asked him to consider becoming a rector, he said “my initial response was that was not on my radar.”
In conversations with the Holy Cross community, Schimmel said he was reminded that he had consistently mentored young adults throughout his career. That realization, he said, helped him embrace the role and see “the beauty in the vow of obedience.”
Schimmel explained that the Congregation of Holy Cross in the United States practices the vow of obedience through annual discernment about roles and assignments for their members.
Reflecting on his time in Dunne, Schimmel described the experience as “a tremendous blessing.”
“The men of Dunne have brought a lot of joy into my life even when they are doing things, which they think might not be as fun for a rector to have to deal with,” Schimmel said. He emphasized the joy of living alongside students and watching them grow over time as a benefit of the role.
Among his favorite traditions, Schimmel highlighted “the feast,” a dinner held near the feast day of Blessed Basil Moreau, the patron of the Dunne chapel, which brings together current residents and alumni.
“It has been fun doing more strange things,” Schimmel said, noting he has been taped to a wall in North Dining Hall several times to raise awareness for Andre House of Arizona, a Holy Cross ministry in Phoenix where he worked for six years.
Schimmel acknowledged the challenges of the role, particularly moments of accountability and navigating university bureaucracy.
“Sometimes you can feel like you are banging your head against a wall,” he said.
After leaving campus, Schimmel will serve at the Holy Cross Novitiate as assistant director of novices and is expected to transition to director of novices after approximately one year. He has also worked with Moreau Seminary and received formal training in spiritual direction.
As he prepares to leave, Schimmel said he feels both excitement and sadness.
“I am leaving behind a lot of great men who have no idea how much of the culture they have been directly responsible for,” he said.
Cory Hodson
Hodson has served as rector of Keenan Hall for three academic years. Before coming to Notre Dame, he worked at his high school, where he said he felt he had reached “the ceiling” of his role.
Seeking a mission-driven environment, Hodson said he was drawn to Notre Dame’s residential life system. He described the rector role as encompassing four areas: “the administrator, the pastoral leader, the university connector and the community cheerleader.”
Reflecting on his time in Keenan, Hodson described the experience as “full.”
“I think it is a place animated by a sense of authenticity and enduring humor,” he said.
When discussing his favorite Keenan traditions, Hodson explained that since Keenan does not have any type of common room on its residential floors, the students who opt to live in quads or “six man” rooms tend to become centers for the community.
He also highlighted formal traditions such as the Keenan Revue, which he described as a “gobsmacking spectacle in all the best ways.”
Hodson started a hall program called “monthly monday meals,” in which a group of eight to 12 residents visit Ciao’s Italian Restaurant for family-style food.
“I take a cross-section of guys. It is an event where you cannot sign up with friends. You sign up generally, and then I pick the group and make sure intentionally people are coming from different age groups, majors, sections in the building.”
During these dinners, Hodson explained that they share “some authentic conversation about where we are at as a community and where we hope to go.”
Hodson will return to Massachusetts this summer, where he will work in golf operations and retail at a country club. He previously worked in retail at Brooks Brothers from 2009 to 2020. He said it’s likely he will eventually return to secondary school leadership. Hodson formerly served as a campus minister at the Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood, Massachusetts.
Hodson described his time at Notre Dame as helping to “clarify priorities” and celebrate himself.
While noting that he found the community in good shape, Hodson hopes that he is leaving behind a community with “a little bit more in the sense of responsibility.”
He explained that he believes empowering residents to take ownership of the community culture, from the start of their time on campus prompts people to avoid “problematic behaviors.”
Ally Liedtke
Liedtke has served as rector of Ryan Hall for five academic years. She did not respond to a request for comment.
A University spokesperson confirmed Liedtke has informed her hall community of her departure at the end of the 2025–2026 academic year. She is engaged, with a wedding scheduled for July.
