The University of Notre Dame has dropped support for its Catholic mission from its list of values.
According to Catholic News Agency, its staff values were previously accountability, teamwork, integrity, leadership in excellence, and leadership in mission, which was described as understanding, accepting, and supporting the “Catholic mission of the university and fosters values consistent with that mission.” The university also previously held to a “high moral standard.”
The university’s updated values are now community, collaboration, excellence, and innovation.
A university press release described the new values as a “refresh of longtime organizational principles” and are an “expression of how we seek to advance Notre Dame’s mission as a global, Catholic research university.”
Vice president for human resources, Heather Christophersen, told The Observer, a student-run newspaper, that “values are more than words—they are the foundation of our community and the guiding principles that shape how we work, interact, and contribute to a purpose greater than ourselves. These values reflect who we are and who we aspire to be.”
“By embracing these values, we reaffirm our commitment to one another and to the University’s mission,” Christophersen wrote in an email to The Observer. “Thank you for the work you do every day to make Notre Dame a place of care, respect, and excellence.” She further explained that removing “Leadership in Mission” was an effort to make the Catholic mission a theme rather than a singular value.
Christophersen said of the shift: “It’s in everything we do. We strive to be the best global Catholic research institution, to be a force for good. So that kind of phrase frames these values.”
