This week in Christian history: Scottish Archbishop murdered, Donatists given toleration

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, April 30, 2023

University of Notre Dame changes leadership to include laity – May 6, 1967

The University of Notre Dame, a Catholic university located in Notre Dame, Indiana. | YouTube/NDadmissions

This week marks the anniversary of when the University of Notre Dame’s Board of Trustees announced that laity would be part of the leadership for the first time in the Catholic academic institution’s history.

Since Notre Dame’s founding in 1842, the university had been under the control of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Catholic holy order known for its educational endeavors.

In 1967, Notre Dame transitioned to a leadership system that included a 12-member Fellows of the University comprising six Holy Cross priests and six laymen, with a new Board of Trustees including 30 laymen and seven priests.

Notre Dame President, the Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, said in a statement at the time that the Fellows would maintain "the essential character of the University as a Catholic institution of higher learning” and that "the University shall retain in perpetuity its identity as such an institution."