Development

Development Dispatch

By Andy Stith
June 2005

Strategic Planning Process Underway

Backed by the approval of Notre Dame's Board of Governance, Fr. Michael DeLaney, CSC, President of Notre Dame, announced in May that Notre Dame High School would undergo a comprehensive strategic planning process. The Development Office, with the assistance of LatzBruni Partners, LLC, will conduct visioning and planning sessions with various groups within the Notre Dame and Niles communities.

"Through these visioning sessions, a representative strategic plan will be formed which will provide us with concrete, research-based priorities and direction for the future," Fr. Mike said. Feedback will be solicited from Governance Board members, alumni, current parents, alumni parents, faculty and staff and current and incoming students. "During this 50th Anniversary, we honor the past and celebrate the present. Now there is also an opportunity for the Notre Dame community to look to the future. A broad perspective will be critical to ensuring the success of this process," said Fr. Mike. "We will need the help and participation of many people to advance Notre Dame through the next 50 years and beyond."

This strategic planning process will extend through October. At that time, a formal strategic plan will then be presented to Notre Dame's Board of Governance for approval.

100% Participation: An A+ for Faculty & Staff

This past February, faculty and staff at Notre Dame were presented with a challenge. It wasn't a math problem or a topic to be researched. Instead, it was the challenge to reach 100% faculty and staff philanthropic participation at the high school. Though the thought of every full-time employee giving back to Notre Dame was daunting, faculty and staff responded enthusiastically to the challenge.

In just three months, the faculty and staff accomplished something never achieved in the history of Notre Dame: they reached 100% PARTICIPATION.

"It (100% faculty/staff participation) really speaks volumes about how much everyone who works here appreciates and believes in the education we deliver to young men. You would be hard-pressed to find any school that has achieved 100% faculty and staff philanthropic participation. It's just another indication of what a special place Notre Dame is for so many," said Andy Stith, Director of Development.

Calling All Dons

Thank you to all for your generosity to Notre Dame Phonathon 2005. The student callers had a wonderful time talking with many alumni about Notre Dame's storied past. We were proud of them, as they were great representatives for the school. In two weeks of calling, phonathon callers secured commitments that totaled close to $11,000. More importantly, our student callers had a chance to share their Notre Dame experience with the people they contacted. Thank you for helping to make this experience a successful one for Notre Dame and its students!

New Annual Scholarships

Notre Dame would like to especially thank the following for their new generous scholarship gifts to the young men of NDHS:

The Nashan Family (The Nashan Family Scholarship)
Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Weldon (The Larry Weldon Golf Scholarship)
Juggler Alumni of Notre Dame (The Juggler Scholarship)
Family and Friends of Jack Burke (The Jack Burke Scholarship)
Mr. and Mrs. Gary Brown (The Brown Family Scholarship)

50th Sponsorships Showcase Spirit of Notre Dame

Alumni, parents and friends have continued to show their Notre Dame spirit by making a sponsorship commitment to support the students, faculty and staff of Notre Dame during the school's 50th Anniversary. "There is a wave of momentum building among all who are part of the Notre Dame community," Development Director Andy Stith said. "With over $228,000 raised the past few months in sponsorship commitments, we are experiencing another sign of this building momentum."

Sponsorship commitments start at $1,000 and will be offered throughout the year to anyone who is interested in honoring Notre Dame during its 50th Anniversary Celebration.

For details on making a sponsorship gift or the benefits that apply to a donor at a particular level of sponsorship, please contact Andy Stith at 847.779.8614.

Cross Program Shines at Auction

The Cross Program, which is designed to assist a young man's family in times of great need and ensure a Don will be able to continue his education at Notre Dame despite any life-altering circumstances, received a record-breaking amount of support from many attendees at the Spirit of Notre Dame Dinner Auction in April. This special part of the live auction was conducted by Fr. Pat Hannon, CSC.

With the 50th Anniversary of Notre Dame and a sparkling new auction venue as the backdrop for the evening, approximately $50,000 was raised for this program. The generosity and commitment to the Holy Cross education Notre Dame delivers was clear as all who raised their paddles in support of this program helped surpass last year's total by $30,000! A great thanks, on behalf of all the students, faculty and staff, to all who supported this effort.

Annual Fund Continues to Grow

Considering the success of last year's Annual Fund which broke $200,000, a lofty bar was set for the Notre Dame community this year. As is typical, alumni, parents, faculty, staff and religious responded to the challenge and made this year's Annual Fund even more successful. With more than two weeks remaining in our fiscal year, which ended June 30, we had surpassed last year's banner year with a current Annual Fund total of over $215,000.

With this annual support, that included $34,000 from the inaugural year of the Parent Fund program, Notre Dame will continue to upgrade classroom technology, make capital improvements such as the Little Theatre renovation, offer financial assistance to students in need and provide continuing education for our faculty and staff.

Thank you for helping us to set another Annual Fund record and for your support of the young men at Notre Dame.