Institute for Social Concerns sends forth graduates to be agents of hope

June 17, 2026

“We know that it’s impossible to cultivate hope if we don’t take seriously the challenges that people face in our world today,” said Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., president of the University of Notre Dame, speaking to the graduates at the Institute for Social Concerns’ Senior Send-off Ceremony during Commencement Weekend. “Cultivating hope can seem like an empty slogan—just a platitude—unless we take suffering, pain, and injustice seriously.”

At the ceremony, the institute celebrated nearly 90 graduates who minored in Catholic Social Tradition or Justice & Society or engaged with the institute’s signature undergraduate programs or immersive courses, while sending them forth to be agents of hope in the world. The atmosphere inside the Leighton Concert Hall was effervescent with a sense of collective accomplishment—a beautiful, vibrant send-off punctuated by song, laughter, and exuberant applause.

*Graduates wear cords representing institute minors*

The evening marked a significant milestone as the institute recognized the first graduating cohort of McNeill Common Good Fellows who spent three academic years exploring life’s biggest questions through shared coursework, community engagement, faculty-mentored research, and adventure. Receiving distinctive cords in the institute’s signature bright pink color, this self-styled “wolf pack” exuded joy as they shared how their experiences in the fellowship cultivated their character, honed their sense of moral purpose in the world, and equipped them with tools to pursue justice in whatever their careers.

“We know that it’s impossible to cultivate hope if we don’t take seriously the challenges that people face in our world today.”

– Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., president of the University of Notre Dame

The McNeill Fellows highlight the caliber and interdisciplinary range of graduates that the institute is sending into the world to spread hope in their own distinctive ways. PLS major Annie Brown ’26 shared that she will be completing a Fulbright Fellowship next year in Senegal to “ferociously fight for the common good,” while chemistry major Charlie Desnoyers ’26 will pursue a Ph.D. in physical chemistry at Northwestern University, and neuroscience and behavior major Kylan Hinegardner ’26 will complete a two-year clinical research fellowship at Cleveland Clinic’s Cole Eye Institute before matriculating into medical school.

*Bernice Antoine ’26 addresses graduates and guests*

McNeill Fellow Bernice Antoine ’26 received the Sister Thea Bowman Award, which honors an undergraduate who exemplifies a commitment to justice, dignity, and the common good through active engagement within and outside the campus community. Faculty praised Bernice, a business analytics major who minored in sustainability and social entrepreneurship, for her ability to fuse business analytics with global equity. Following graduation she will join Boston Consulting Group while launching her nonprofit, Caribbean Development Group, which aims to teach youth practical sustainability skills like composting and micro-gardening.

Josethy Perez ’26, a global affairs major with a minor in international development studies, received the Jay Brandenberger Research for the Common Good Award. The award recognizes a student for original, independent research that addresses a question of justice. After participating in institute programs in Chile and Puerto Rico, Josethy returned to Chile for nine weeks of embedded fieldwork, researching Haitian migration for her senior thesis. Faculty advisors commended Josethy for her methodological rigor and ethical seriousness. She will spend the next two years in Ireland working with L’Arche Cork before applying to graduate school to study international development.

In addition to remarks from Fr. Dowd and Rev. Hugh R. Page, Jr., vice president for belonging, engagement, and mission and advisor to the president, the evening featured two of the University’s 2026 honored guests, Laetare Medal recipient Dr. Timothy Shriver and Honorary Doctor of Laws recipient Marguerite Barankitse.

The chairman of the Special Olympics, Shriver lauded students for their achievements, thanking them “for being an example of what our country is at its best and what it will become with you as leaders.”

*Fr. Dowd congratulates Josethy Perez ’26* *as Dr. Timothy Shriver and Marguerite Barankitse look on*

Having saved more than 50,000 children affected by war in Burundi, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Barankitse challenged graduates to reject cynicism and the “silence of indifference,” reframing their education as a tool for the “healing of humanity.”

Following an annual tradition of gifting graduates with a significant book to inform their next stage of life, the institute provided each student a copy of a biography of Barankitse that will be featured in the next alumni book club meeting. In the foreword to the book, Emmanuel Katongole, professor of theology and peace studies and faculty fellow at the institute, wrote of Barankitse, “Without the story and life of someone like Maggy, we would not know what hope looks like.”

“We are built up of hope,” Barankitse told graduates at the ceremony. “And with love, you will transform the world.”

All photos by Peter Ringenberg for the University of Notre Dame; to view and download more photos of the event, see his Senior Send-Off gallery. For more on the ceremony, watch the video on the University’s Commencement page.