Jump Start Making an Impact

RISE offers incoming students the chance to get proximate to issues of justice in South Bend or their hometowns and to consider possible responses on an individual and societal level. Participants are part of a cohort of pre-matriculating students who are guided by Notre Dame faculty and Institute for Social Concerns staff to better understand the demands of justice rooted in a sense of place. 

2025 Applications Have Closed. 2026 Applications will open on May 1st, 2026.

Complete this interest form to be notified when 2026 applications open.

RISE is grounded in the pedagogy of the Institute for Social Concerns, an interdisciplinary unit that considers the demands of justice through research, courses, and curricular and co-curricular programs.

Explore Justice in South Bend or Your Hometown!

Whether at home or in South Bend, RISE will help you find a community and cultivate friendships around justice-oriented commitments. In either location, you’ll discover a logic of community engagement via the ethics of encounter and the principles of human dignity in the Catholic social tradition. Additionally, you’ll gain a basic framework for the theory and praxis of justice.

RISE South Bend

The RISE South Bend pre-orientation program allows a small cohort of students to come to Notre Dame and South Bend before welcome weekend to build community and explore the structures of justice and injustice in their new home for the next four years.

Participants in this select group will arrive on campus on Friday, August 14th, and begin a one-week immersive experience.

• Experience some of the culture, history, food, and arts that make South Bend such a wonderful place to live
• Work with community organizations and local leaders devoted to justice and the flourishing of all people
• Meet with Notre Dame faculty, staff, and alumni
• Present on their experience at the end of the program

The program will wrap up on Thursday, August 20th, so that students can then move into their halls along with other first-year students. All on-site expenses, including food, housing, transportation, are covered. Students are responsible for travel to Notre Dame. 

2026 Dates: Friday, August 14–Thursday, August 20, 2026 (7 days)

Application: Applications will open on Friday, May 1st, 2026. Until then, please complete the interest form below to receive program info and to be notified when applications open.

RISE Hometown

The RISE Hometown pre-orientation program allows a small cohort of students to work in their hometowns while in (virtual) community with Notre Dame faculty and staff.

Participants in this select group will work in their own community with a non-profit organization that addresses the needs of marginalized populations (100 hours of in-person service between June 29th and July 31st).

• Participate in a virtual orientation and training session on the principles and ethics of community engagement
• Participate in weekly virtual programming sessions with Notre Dame faculty
• Share summer work in September at a post program event for fellow participants
• Receive $1,500 in funding for participating (funding will be dispersed to participants in August).

Additional RISE Hometown Resources

RISE Hometown Overview

Tips for Creating a RISE Hometown Partnership

RISE Hometown Site Partner Rubric

RISE Hometown 2026 Dates: Monday, June 29th – Friday, July 31st, 2026 (5 weeks)

Application: The RISE Hometown application will open on Friday, May 1st, 2026 and close on Monday, June 15th, 2026. Until then, please complete the interest form below to receive program info and to be notified when applications open.