News from the Program of Liberal Studies

Solving a Fascinating Puzzle

May 14, 2012 • Joanna Basile
Robert Goulding, an associate professor in the University of Notre Dame’s Program of Liberal Studies, was recently awarded a grant from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) to support a research project that combines mathematics, philosophy, and Renaissance science.
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F. Clark Power Advocates Team Culture Approach to Bullying

March 30, 2012 • Jane Ralser
The film Bully, opening in some theaters today, addresses an issue that is verging on an epidemic with more than 18 million young people reportedly being bullied in the United States this year alone. All too often, the suggested solution to bullying will be a “one and done" event—an ineffective approach, according to a University of Notre Dame psychologist F. Clark Power.
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Interdisciplinary Course Focuses on Human Dignity

February 28, 2012 • Michael O. Garvey
Phillip Sloan, professor emeritus in Notre Dame’s Program of Liberal Studies, is one of a series of philosophers, political scientists, and theologians invited to speak to the undergraduate students enrolled in a new course called On Human Dignity. A philosopher and historian of science, Sloan emphasizes that the concept of human dignity, the insistence that a human being is literally invaluable, is not only central to the social teaching of Roman Catholicism, but emerges from a philosophical tradition with ancient and pre-Christian Greek and Roman roots.
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Short Film by Arts and Letters Alumnus Wins Sundance Prize

February 01, 2012 • Mike Danahey
A movie produced and co-written by University of Notre Dame alumnus John Hibey ’05 was awarded the jury prize for short filmmaking at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The winning film, Fishing Without Nets, tells a tale of a poor, young Somali fisherman who ends up joining a group of pirates.
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Erik Goldschmidt has been named director of the Church in the 21st Century Center

January 25, 2012 • The Boston College Chronicle
Erik Goldschmidt, a Boston College alumnus and executive vice president of FADICA (Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities) in Washington, DC, has been named director of the Church in the 21st Century Center.
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PLS Alumnus Acting His Own Part

January 13, 2012 • Rachel Hamilton
Dan O’Brien ’99 has always considered himself an actor and now he is a successful professional. As a lead on the NBC sitcom Whitney, he can share his passion for performance with all of America. O’Brien says he did not major in theater at Notre Dame because he knew already that his passion was for acting and he was not particularly interested in the technical and behind-the-scenes work which the major entailed. Instead, he participated in the College of Arts and Letters’ Program of Liberal Studies and took as many acting classes as he could.
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Notre Dame Medievalist Kent Emery, Jr., Receives Major NEH Grant

November 11, 2011 • Kate Cohorst
University of Notre Dame Professor Kent Emery, Jr., and his team have been awarded a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grant to produce the first critical edition of a key work by medieval theologian and philosopher John Duns Scotus. The 3-year, $300,000 grant was one of the largest awarded by the NEH this year, according to Emery, a professor in the College of Arts and Letters’ Program of Liberal Studies (PLS) and the Medieval Institute.
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Notre Dame Ancient Philosophy Workshop Provides Interdisciplinary Forum

October 25, 2011 • Kevin Clarke
Ancient philosophers such as Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle can offer a surprisingly fresh perspective on our modern political and cultural challenges. And at the University of Notre Dame, the Workshop on Ancient Philosophy is the forum for graduate students and faculty to study and share these insights.
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Strong Bodies Fight Builds Winning Record at Film Festivals

September 29, 2011 • Chris Milazzo
Strong Bodies Fight, a film which chronicles the University of Notre Dame’s Bengal Bouts charity boxing tournament, was recently named Best Sports Documentary at the 2011 Action on Film International Film Festival in Pasadena, Calif., and won the Audience Choice Award from the Chicago United Film Festival. Produced by writer Mark Weber ’09 and director William Donaruma ’89, a professor in the Department of Film, Television, and Theatre, the film has been building a winning record at film festivals.
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“Great Books” Program Alumna Makes Underwater Literary Discovery

A graduate of Notre Dame’s Program of Liberal Studies, Kelly Gleason ’98 was leading a team of maritime archeologists on a research expedition some 600 miles northwest of Honolulu when they found two anchors, three trypots (used for boiling whale blubber down to oil) along with whaling implements and ship’s rigging all from the early 19th century. Read More >

Conference on Adult/Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Research Draws Leading Scholars

Some of the world’s leading scholars across a variety of relevant disciplines are visiting the University of Notre Dame for a week-long “Workshop on Adult and Non-embryonic Stem Cell Research,” being held on campus through July 2.
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Congratulations to PLS junior Elizabeth Davis!

A heartfelt congratulations to PLS junior Elizabeth Davis, who just won a Truman Scholarship as the representative for Montana. And warmest thanks to Professor Goehring, who mentored her and wrote a letter on behalf for the research component of the application. Read More >

Undergrad Brings Euripides Into Modern Era

March 23, 2011 • Joanna Basile
Notre Dame undergraduate Josef Kuhn has set out to show how the human struggles depicted in ancient Greek literature are just as pressing today as they were thousands of years ago. After studying Euripides’ well-known tragedy The Bacchae, the senior Program of Liberal Studies (PLS) major decided to write a novel based on the classic but set in modern times. Read More >

**Marathon Reading of Paradise Lost Highlights Milton's Masterpiece**

March 30, 2011 • Chris Milazzo
To experience the full power of the 17th-century English masterpiece Paradise Lost, Notre Dame students and faculty will read John Milton’s 10,000-line poem aloud in one sitting on Friday, April 1, from 8:30 a.m. to approximately 8 p.m.
in 221 O’Shaughnessy Hall (see video). Read More >

Notre Dame Professor Explores Historic St. Nicholas

December 03, 2010 • Susan Guibert

Though many know the Christmas lore surrounding jolly old St. Nicholas—the snowy-bearded saint whose legendary generosity morphed into America’s secular Santa Claus figure—few are familiar with the origins and details of his acts of kindness. Rev. Nicholas Ayo, C.S.C., professor emeritus in the Program of Liberal Studies at the University of Notre Dame, is author of Saint Nicholas in America: Christmas Holy Day and Holiday, in which he takes a closer look at the saint whose feast the Catholic Church celebrates on December 6. Read More >

Senior Henderson Wins Asian Studies Distinguished Achievement Award

May 06, 2010 • Lisa Walenceus

Courtney Henderson, a senior majoring in Chinese and the Program of Liberal Studies, has been named the winner of the 2010 Liu Family Distinguished Achievement Award in Asian Studies. The Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures bestows the award each year to the student whose character and undergraduate work best exemplifies the qualities of commitment, diligence, and imagination in the study of Asia. Read More >

Fr. Ted Hesburgh appears as special guest at the 2009 Opening Charge

On August 25, the first day of classes in the Program's 60th year, the assembled faculty and students welcomed Fr. Ted Hesburgh, who shared his thoughts about the Program and its history in brief remarks before Professor Phillip Sloan's Opening Charge.

Before an enthusiastic, standing room only crowd, Fr. Ted spoke warmly of the Program and its tradition of asking big questions and reading classic texts. He recalled telling his younger brother, who had asked him what to study after enrolling at Notre Dame, that the General Program was the only course to take. That same brother traced the beginning of his own subsequent naval career to making an impression on an admiral with his knowledge of naval tactics in the Pelopponesian War.

Fr. Ted's talk was a tough act to follow, but Phil Sloan proved equal to the challenge with a talk title "'On Being Upright': Reflections on the Darwin Year." Phil shared with us thoughts, gleaned from a long career of teaching and specialized research, on the compatibility of acceptance of evolution and religious faith. The talk will soon be available on our website.

Program of Liberal Studies