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Volume 55, Issue 41 | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2021 | ndsmcobserver.com
Senate confirms ND professor Keough School’s Denis McDonough to serve as Secretary of Veterans Affairs Observer Staff Report Editor’s Note: A version of this story was published online Feb. 9. The U.S. Senate confirmed Denis McDonough as President Joe Biden’s Secretar y of Veterans A ffairs. McDonough is a professor of the practice of public policy in the Keough School of Globa l A ffairs. McDonough ser ved the Obama administration as
the W hite House chief of staff from Februar y 2013 to Januar y 2017. He joined Notre Dame as a facult y member in 2017 and w ill remain on the facult y on academic leave. McDonough has taught courses in public policy ana lysis, formulating and w riting policy, government and nongovernmenta l organization management and leadership. He has a lso recently worked on the Keough School’s
Black@ND starts campaign By EMILY DEFAZIO News Writer
Wit h Februar y mark ing t he start of Black Histor y Mont h, Black@ND launched a new campaign ca lled #Black Facts to prov ide followers w it h information on a dif ferent f ig ure, event or concept relating to Black histor y each day of t he mont h. Black@ND is a ta lk show created by doctorate student Emorja Roberson and cohosted by senior Ly nnette Wuk ie t hat aims to amplif y
Black voices aff iliated w it h Notre Dame and discuss t he experiences of Black communit y members on and off campus. W hen discussing his inspiration for starting t he platform, which can be accessed from severa l socia l media out lets, Roberson said he wanted to explore t he experiences of students at Notre Dame. Eventua lly, he rea lized he wanted to expand t he show to reach a w ider audience, see #BLACKFACTS PAGE 3
Globa l Policy Initiative and the Presidentia l Transition index, which studies wea knesses in the current presidentia l transition process. President Biden nominated McDonough in December. Universit y President Fr. John Jenk ins congratulated McDonough in a press release. “A long w ith his fellow facult y members in the Keough School of Globa l A ffairs and many other friends
and colleagues on campus, I congratulate Denis McDonough on his confirmation this evening by the U.S. Senate as Veterans A ffairs secretar y,“ Jenk ins said in the release. “The militar y men and women who have ser ved our nation deser ve nothing but excellence in representation. Thanks to his vast experience in government and public affairs, Denis w ill prov ide just that.”
As RecSports has seen an increase in demand for gym reser vations, Hoffmann Harding said they w ill open up additiona l appointments for students, facult y and staff by Feb. 22. She urged communit y members to attend appointments they signed up for or notif y RecSports if they are unable to keep their reser vation. Once the weather gets warmer, she a lso said the Universit y w ill work toward
w ill begin at the end of the 2020-2021 men’s basketball season. Nolan said he always knew he wanted to be a play-by-play announcer. Grow ing up in Boston, he would purchase tickets to Fenway Park and Boston Garden and announce the games into a tape recorder. Combining his broadcasting passion w ith his admiration of Notre Dame sports, Nolan found himself in South Bend in 1982. see NOLAN PAGE 4
see ADMISSIONS PAGE 3
finding ways to create opportunities for students to enjoy the outdoors. W hen asked why students cannot inv ite friends from other dorms into their rooms when indoor dining and large lectures are still permissible, Hoffmann Harding cited state capacit y regulations. “We can have large classroom interactions because we have those larger spaces, and the residence ha ll rooms just don’t a llow for see VIRUS PAGE 3
Longtime ND announcer to retire By ALYSA GUFFEY Associate News Editor
Courtesy of Jack Nolan
Jack Nolan, left, with the late ND All-American Mirko Jurkovic before a Shamrock Series football game at Yankee Stadium in 2010.
NEWS PAGE 4
VIEWPOINT PAGE 7
“Don’t be so serious.” This is what Jack Nolan, longtime Notre Dame playby-play announcer, would have said to himself at the beginning of his career. “If I made a mistake or t wo, or misidentified somebody, I would lose faith and I’d remember it for weeks,” Nolan said. After 39 years of devoting most of his time to Notre Dame sports, Nolan announced his retirement
Scene PAGE 10
Observer Staff Report Notre Dame w ill continue its test-optiona l admissions policy for the 2022 and 2023 appl ic at ion yea r s. T he move i s a cont i nuat ion of t he pol ic y a n nou nc ed i n Ju ne, w h ich had been i n t he work s for yea r s, but w a s c at a ly z ed by conc er n s of t he COVID-19 pa ndem ic a nd t he ac c essibi l it y of st a nda rdi z e d te st i ng. T he c u r rent pol ic y a llow s appl ic a nt s to choose w het her or not to subm it a st a nda rd i z ed test score to be ev a luated w it h t hei r appl ic at ion, w it h t he goa l of let t i ng st udent s de c ide w hat t he y t h i n k i s t hei r st rongest appl ic at ion. T he pol ic y a l so ex tend s to t r a n sfer appl ic a nt s a nd a l l de c i sion pla n s, i ncludi ng rest r ic t ive ea rly act ion, reg u la r dec i sion a nd con sider at ion for a l l mer it schola r sh ips. “Not re Da me ha s a lw ay s been com m it ted to a hol i st ic ev a luat ion proc ess,” a ssoc iate v ic e president of u nder g r aduate en rol l ment Don Bi shop sa id. “O ver t he pa st 10 yea r s, we have been less rel ia nt on a st udent ’s test score i n ou r f i na l a ssessment . T h i s yea r, u nder t he leader sh ip of Di rec tor of Ad m i s sion s C hrist y Pratt, we feel confident that our eva luation process remains strong and we are selecting students who w ill find success at Notre Dame.” Bishop a lso said the most competitive applicants are people w ith multiple interests and passions, in addition to being involved in their schools and communities. “They have a driv ing ambition for and track record in using their energies to improve the world around them,” he said. A nnouncing the policy now a llows prospective students
Virus protocols to continue Observer Staff Report
Tests to remain optional
ND M BASKETBALL PAGE 16
ND M X-COUNTRY PAGE 16
