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Volume 47, Issue 126 | wednesday, april 23, 2014 | ndsmcobserver.com
Fisher rector issues sudden resignation Fr. Brad Metz announced his departure in Thursday morning email to residents By LESLEY STEVENSON News Editor
Fr. Brad Metz, rector of Fisher Hall, sent an email to Fisher Hall residents early Thursday morning announcing his resignation from his position, effective immediately. “After discussion with administrators in Student Affairs, Human Resources and the Holy Cross community, I apologize for regrettable decisions that I made last weekend that failed to live up to the values of our community,” Metz said in
the email. “I will be departing from Fisher in the next couple of days to address these issues and thus resigning my position as Rector effective immediately, and I ask for your prayers. “David Halm, C.S.C. will be serving as interim rector for the remainder of the academic year, and I know that he will lead our community with integrity, compassion and good judgment.” Metz declined to comment beyond what he stated in the email. see RECTOR PAGE 6
WEI LIN | The Observer
Fisher Hall’s rector Fr. Brad Metz announced his resignation from his position Thursday morning. Former assistant rector David Halm will serve as interim rector for the rest of the year.
SMC seniors named Orr Fellows By RONI DARLING News Writer
Saint Mary’s seniors Annie Kennedy and Sara Napierkowski are the latest Belles to receive Orr Fellowships, offering them a two-year entrepreneurial opportunity to gain post-graduation experience in Indiana. Previous Orr Fellows from Saint Mary’s include 2013 graduate Nichole Clayton and 2012 graduates Amanda Lester and Melissa Jackson, director of media relations Gwen O’Brien said. This is the third consecutive year Saint Mary’s seniors have received this award.
“Commonly referred to as the Orr Fellowship, the Governor Bob Orr Indiana Entrepreneurial Fellowship was established in 2001 and provides a unique opportunity to soon-to-be college graduates,” O’Brien said. “Approximately 35 Orr Fellows are selected each year from hundreds of applicants to break into the professional world through paid positions with high-growth Indiana companies.” O’Brien said applicants are typically natives of Indiana or have attended a college or
Observer Staff Report
openly criticized the University’s response to the 2010 death of Elizabeth “Lizzy” Seeberg. Then a first-year student at Saint Mary’s, Seeberg committed suicide shortly after accusing a Notre Dame football player of sexually assaulting her. Former Irish linebacker Prince Shembo confirmed in February that he was the player involved in the subsequent investigation. “Notre Dame isn’t Michigan; Notre Dame isn’t Florida State, and we never wanted our motto
Olivia Remie Constable, director of the Medieval Institute at Notre Dame since 2009 and professor of history, died of cancer Wednesday in her home, according to a University press release. Constable joined the Notre Dame faculty in 1995 after teaching history at Columbia University for six years. She graduated from Yale University in 1983 and earned a doctoral degree in Near Eastern Studies from Princeton in 1989, the press release stated. “Remie Constable was a brilliant historian, a generous colleague and a very dear friend,” associate professor of history Margaret Meserve said in the press release. “Her contributions to medieval studies at Notre Dame were countless, but I will remember her best for her love of her students, her wonderful wit and her extraordinary hospitality. She will be
see PANEL PAGE 7
see CONSTABLE PAGE 6
Photo courtesy of Gwen O’Brien
Seniors Annie Kennedy, left, and Sara Napierkowski were named 2014 see FELLOWS PAGE 5 Orr Fellows and will engage in entreprenurial post-graduate work.
Dean’s Fellows host sports panel By LESLEY STEVENSON News Editor
The Dean’s Fellows of the College of Arts and Letters hosted four speakers in Leighton Concert Hall on April 16 to debate the most controversial aspects of athletics at the nation’s most prominent institutions. The panel discussion, titled “For the Love of the Game: Big Time Sports at Big Time Universities,” featured author Murray Sperber, journalist and alumna Melinda Henneberger, former Notre Dame football player Pat Eilers and
NEWS PAGE 3
alumnus and general counsel for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Scott Bearby. The Notre Dame Athletic Department declined to participate in the discussion, co-executive director of the panel and senior Nikita Taniparti said. Senior student body president emeritus and former varsity fencer Alex Coccia moderated the event by prompting discussion and posing audience-submitted questions. The panelists considered sexual assault and preferential treatment for student athletes during
viewpoint PAGE 8
Former faculty dies of cancer
a large part of the question-andanswer session. Other topics included the possible unionization of college athletes and Notre Dame’s Campus Crossroads Project. Henneberger, a writer for The National Catholic Reporter and The Washington Post, said Notre Dame fans and administrators must take a stronger stance against assault in order to promote the University’s traditional values, which she said might “have been subjugated to the glory of the football team.” Henneberger reported on and
Scene PAGE11
Men’s lacrosse PAGE 20
baseball PAGE 20