Saint Mary's News & Stories

Our Saint Mary's Equinox

In her March letter, President Conboy reflects on the the delicate balance of light and darkness that mirrors the lives of two groups of students: seniors, who stand on the threshold of departure, carrying hard-won confidence, deep friendships, and the ache of endings; and prospective students, who gaze toward possibility, wrestling with hope and uncertainty. Through the timeless symbol of The Avenue, she explores the art of welcome and release, echoing Sister Madeleva Wolff, CSC's, notion of a “relaxed grasp.” In the midst of Holy Week, President Conboy invites every member of the Saint Mary's community to relax their grasps, and trust in the unfolding journey that holds us with an open hand.

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Saint Mary’s College Earns 2026 NADOHE Institutional Excellence Award

Saint Mary’s College was awarded the Institutional Excellence Award by The National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE). The award recognizes qualities like institutional leadership, curricular reform, institutional transformation, professional development, assessment policies and practices, accountability measures and outreach efforts. Redgina Hill, Vice President for Belonging, accepted this award on behalf of the College.

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Saint Mary's Stories Archive

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Showing Up for the Next Generation: Why Giving to Saint Mary’s Matte... Kelly Cook Lewis' 97 is a regular visitor to the College, offering her time and talents to assorted committees and student initiatives. Lewis is also relishing in her time as a champion for Ring Out Ring True, the College’s fundraising campaign, which will publicly launch on June 6. Recently, Lewis sat with us to talk about the benefits of giving, and how Saint Mary’s continues to be part of her life.   Saint Mary’s Language and Literacy Lab Hosts Read-In with ECDC Stude... March is National Reading Month, and students from the Early Childhood Development Center along Saint Mary’s student volunteer readers, recently enjoyed a Read-In in the new Language and Literacy Lab, which opened in Havican Hall last September. The goal of the Read-In was to foster a love for reading and learning while simultaneously supporting the child’s cognitive, social-emotional, and language development, according to Susan Olney Latham ’91, professor of Speech-Language Pathology and director of the Language and Literacy Lab. Meet Me At Saint Mary's Over the weekend, 756 guests were on campus for Meet Me at The Avenue, an annual one-day event at Saint Mary's College designed for admitted students to experience life as a Saint Mary’s student.  A Celebration of Inspiring Women In 1986, the National Women’s History Project successfully petitioned Congress to expand Women’s History Week to encompass all of March, so we can celebrate the women whose contributions have changed the world. Every day at Saint Mary’s, students are taught about extraordinary women. We asked our faculty to share a few of the innovative women—past or present—who are shaping their curriculum. The Indelible Mark of Saint Mary’s Born in 1931 into a working-class Catholic family in Depression-era Ohio, Betty Ann Ames Dorsay ’55 worked tirelessly to afford college, first earning her nursing diploma, then arriving at Saint Mary’s on a working scholarship at age 22. By day she served as the campus nurse, followed by long night shifts at Memorial Hospital in downtown South Bend. She’d often return close to midnight, finding the Dean of Women, Sister M. Sophia (Winifred Morris ’30), CSC, waiting for Betty at the dormitory door as the taxi dropped her off. Saint Mary’s didn’t just educate Betty; it shaped a lifetime of resilience, faith, and service. She became a head nurse, raised six children, and today—at 95—still begins and ends each day in New Jersey talking with God while feeding the birds, ducks, squirrels, and even the gentle night creatures that wait patiently for her. Summer Camps and Programs Welcomes New Director, Andrew Pierce Saint Mary’s Summer Camps and Programs has announced that Andrew Pierce will lead the Dialogue and Democracy Institute, a pre-college program running July 12 – 17. The Transformative Power of Grace In her February letter, President Katie Conboy offers a poignant reflection on one of the most pressing questions of our time: what it truly means to "live well together in a fractured world." After a visit to Washington, DC, and attending a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Robert McElroy, her reflection on "Love" feels especially urgent. Echoing the cardinal's message, President Conboy challenges readers to reimagine February not merely as a celebration of individual affection, but as a call to radical, communal love—love which has the power to heal and illuminate paths forward in a divided world. Voice and Swallow Lab Added to Speech-Language Pathology Grad Studies A new Voice and Swallow Lab launched this month at Saint Mary’s. The Lab serves as both a treatment choice for patients in the Judd Leighton Speech and Language Clinic and a way to train SLP graduate students and medical professionals in the community. “We’re hopeful this lab will strengthen partnerships with ear, nose, and throat physicians in the region—particularly by creating a referral pathway for patients who can’t afford, or don’t have access to, high-quality voice and swallowing assessment and treatment. At the same time, it gives our graduate students meaningful, hands-on training with the same kind of equipment and processes they’ll encounter in clinical practice,” said Erin Connelly, director of the graduate SLP program. Two Departments Create a Culture of Giving for Saint Mary’s College Year after year, the 48 employees within the Campus Services departments demonstrate their belief in and commitment to Saint Mary’s during the College’s annual giving event, Donor Challenge. The 48 not only give, for the past eight years, they have been the first department to give at 100 percent. “We have a good team,” said Supervisor Ashley DeFault. “So, when it comes time, they just want to give back for what Saint Mary’s has done for them.”