Martin Soros of Bethesda, Maryland, has been selected as valedictorian, and Allison Elshoff of Valencia, California, has been named salutatorian of the 2026 University of Notre Dame graduating class.

The 181st University Commencement Ceremony will be held May 17 (Sunday) in Notre Dame Stadium for graduates and guests. During the ceremony, Soros will deliver the valedictory address and Elshoff will offer the invocation.

Soros, a student in the College of Engineering, has a major in civil engineering and minors in theology and education, schooling, and society. He holds a 3.966 grade point average.

He is a member of Notre Dame Students Empowering through Engineering Development, known as NDSEED, a program that fights poverty in rural communities by expanding access to healthcare and education through the design and construction of footbridges. He served as an assistant bridge designer during his sophomore year and as design manager his junior year. During summer 2025, he worked for two months in Papachacra, Bolivia, constructing the pedestrian bridge for which he had led the design.

Soros has also worked as a mechanical design intern at Notre Dame’s Innovation Lab and spent the summer after sophomore year as a construction intern on a project to build U.S. Army barracks in Fort Meade, Maryland.

Soros serves as a resident assistant for Coyle Hall and was the co-creator of the St. Olaf’s Ice Chapel on North Quad. The ice chapel, which made national headlines in February 2026, took Soros and co-creator Wesley Buonerba more than 70 hours to build — often in subzero temperatures — and drew more than 2,000 students for a special Mass on Candlemas.

The experience that has impacted him most, he said, has been the time he has spent at La Nazarena, a community center in Florencio Varela, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, where his family is originally from. Run by the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary, the center works with adults, families and children to break the cycle of poverty through programs in education, personal formation, workforce development and healthcare.

He first visited the center during the summer before his first year at Notre Dame — an experience that inspired him to change his major from aerospace engineering to civil engineering.

“Building planes is amazing, but it didn’t feel right for me after that summer,” he said. “I had found a home in that context, in that world, and I wanted something that was applicable to that. So, I looked around and realized some of the important things that are missing from that environment are infrastructure: roads, sewer systems, housing. I decided to study civil engineering so that I could contribute to solving those issues.”

Soros has returned to La Nazarena each summer and also teaches online English classes to adults at the center. Drawing on his civil engineering major, NDSEED experiences and interest in education and theology, he plans to continue to work as a manager at La Nazarena for at least two years after graduation.

“It’s funny because some people have said to me that I should think bigger,” Soros said. “But this doesn’t feel small to me. I feel called to be there, interacting with the people I’m helping. Whatever happens or wherever I am, I want to be in the grass roots as much as possible. For me, that means everything.”

Elshoff is a student in the Mendoza College of Business, with a major in business analytics and minors in the Hesburgh Program in Public Service, the Business Honors Program and impact consulting. She holds a 3.950 grade point average.

As co-president of the Innovation for Impact Club, Elshoff leads initiatives to support women’s education at Saint Bakhita’s Vocational Training Center in Kalongo, Uganda. Part of the Powerful Means Initiative, the club allows students to lead hands-on projects, organize fundraising campaigns and engage directly with global partners like Saint Bakhita’s.

Through her impact consulting minor, Elshoff also traveled to the training center in Uganda to connect with students during winter break of her junior year. The experience was pivotal, she said.

“It was one of those moments when I thought, ‘This is why I’m here at Notre Dame, to do this kind of work,’” she said. “And I took away as much from that experience as I offered. Getting to know the women of Saint Bakhita’s, first over Zoom and then in person, was transformative in ways that classroom instruction alone couldn’t have been.”

From her first year at Notre Dame, Elshoff has written for the student newspaper, the Observer, as a viewpoint columnist. This year, she launched a new series of faculty and staff profiles, titled “Off the Dome,” to showcase the people who help shape Notre Dame.

As a sophomore, Elshoff was selected as a member of the Cabinet of University Policy in Notre Dame Student Government. She has also served as a team lead for the Student International Business Council and for the Notre Dame Student Policy Network.

Elshoff has mentored middle school students in data science through the Early Bridges to Data Science program. And last fall, she became a peer leader in the Notre Dame Moreau First-Year Seminar program, where she served as a mentor to first-year undergraduates and led community-building initiatives.

Elshoff, who worked as a teaching assistant for several courses in Mendoza over the last two years, said that her hands-on experiences in education and mentorship have defined her Notre Dame experience.

“I think what sets Notre Dame apart from other schools is its focus on cultivating people’s character and their moral compass,” she said. “There has always been an emphasis not just on what we learn, but what the purpose of it is — how it will help us find fulfillment and help us improve the lives of other people. For me, that has been developing a passion for storytelling — especially for those whose stories are often overlooked. I don’t think I would have been able to find that perspective at a different school.”

Elshoff also served as a communications intern with the U.S. House of Representatives after her sophomore year. After studying abroad at University College Dublin during the spring of her junior year, Elshoff worked as a Government and Public Services intern at Deloitte in Washington, D.C., last summer. She will return to Deloitte to begin her career in government consulting after graduation.

As salutatorian, Elshoff will be prepared to deliver the valedictory address should Soros be unable to do so.

The Notre Dame valedictorian and salutatorian selection process, coordinated by the Office of Undergraduate Education in the Office of the Provost, begins by asking each college to nominate four students among those with the highest grade point averages and asking each school to nominate two students among those with the highest grade point averages. The colleges and schools submit to the Office of Undergraduate Education the names of these students and brief statements justifying the nominations. Those students are then invited to submit a resume and a draft of their valedictory address. A selection committee, consisting of representatives from each college and school, the Office of Undergraduate Education, the Division of Student Affairs, and Student Government, selects finalists. Finalists are asked to submit a draft of their invocation. The selection committee then interviews the finalists and chooses a valedictorian and salutatorian from among them, who are approved by University President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C.

Contact: Carrie Gates, associate director of media relations, c.gates@nd.edu, 574-993-9220

Originally published by Carrie Gates at news.nd.edu on May 07, 2026.

The ceremony will take place at 9 a.m. inside Notre Dame Stadium. University President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., will confer the master’s and doctoral degrees and deliver the charge to the graduates, in addition to the benediction.

“We are honored to have such an outstanding scholar and academic leader to help us send our graduates out into the world to do good,” said Michael Hildreth, dean of the Graduate School and vice president and associate provost of graduate studies. “Her rich and diverse experience will provide a distinct source of advice for them as they seek to flourish in their future careers.”

A champion of interdisciplinary scholarship to confront global challenges through basic research and real-world implementation, Boyce is provost emerita and professor of mechanical engineering at Columbia University. She joined the faculty at Columbia in 2013, serving as dean of the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. She was appointed provost in 2021 and oversaw the return to campus following the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to her tenure at Columbia, Boyce was a faculty member at MIT for 25 years.

A leading researcher of polymeric materials and soft composites, her groundbreaking contributions include creating new modeling methods for use in commercial products, transportation vehicles and biomedical devices, among others. Boyce’s contributions to the field led to her election as a fellow of the American Academy of Mechanics, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and her election to the National Academy of Engineering. She is the recipient of numerous honors, including the 2024 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Mechanical Engineering, the 2020 Timoshenko Medal and the 2015 Engineering Science Medal.

“These students have elected to deepen and broaden their knowledge during a time of rapid advancement and change. I hope that sharing some of my own journey will help students embrace opportunities along their own paths to bring their talents to benefit society.”

In addition to delivering the Graduate School commencement address, Boyce will receive an honorary doctor of engineering degree during the 181st University Commencement Ceremony on May 17.

“I am honored to receive this recognition from Notre Dame and for the opportunity to address the graduates at the Graduate School Commencement Ceremony as they cross this important milestone,” Boyce said. “These students have elected to deepen and broaden their knowledge during a time of rapid advancement and change. I hope that sharing some of my own journey will help students embrace opportunities along their own paths to bring their talents to benefit society.”

The following alumni, faculty and student award winners will also be recognized during the Graduate School ceremony:

Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award: Marlene L. Daut (’09 Ph.D.), professor of French and Black studies at Yale University.

Rev. James A. Burns, C.S.C., Award: Xiaobo Sharon Hu, the Leo E. and Patti Ruth Linbeck Professor of Engineering in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Notre Dame.

Rev. James A. Burns, C.S.C., Award: Patrick Wensing, the Wanzek Family Foundation Collegiate Professor of Engineering in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at Notre Dame.

Dick and Peggy Notebaert Award: Jason C. Hicks, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and associate dean for graduate and postdoctoral affairs in the College of Engineering at Notre Dame.

Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Engineering: Hannah Rose Spero, doctoral candidate in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences.

Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Humanities: Benjamin J. Young, doctoral candidate in the Department of History.

Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Science: Dailin Gan, doctoral candidate in the Department of Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics.

Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Social Sciences: Hannah Early Bagdanov, doctoral candidate in the Department of Political Science.

Social Justice Award: Emma M. Thrift-Cahall, doctoral candidate in the Department of Biological Sciences.

Contact: Erin Blasko, associate director of media relations, 574-631-4127, eblasko@nd.edu

Originally published by Erin Blasko at news.nd.edu on April 24, 2026.

Sister Raffaella Petrini, F.S.E., president of the Pontifical Commission and Governorate of Vatican City State, will be the principal speaker and receive an honorary degree at the University of Notre Dame’s 181st University Commencement Ceremony on May 17, Notre Dame President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., announced today.

In February 2025, the late Pope Francis appointed Sister Petrini, a member of the religious congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist, to the dual roles of president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and president of the Governorate of Vatican City State. She is the first woman to hold these top leadership positions in the Vatican. Prior to these appointments, Sister Petrini served as secretary general of the Governorate of Vatican City State.

“Sister Raffaella is an extraordinary leader who works tirelessly for the common good and radiates the peace, love and hope of Christ. As the highest-ranking woman in the Vatican, she embodies the future of women’s leadership in the Church, having served Pope Francis and now Pope Leo with deep wisdom, unfailing dedication and true humility,” Father Dowd said. “It is a privilege to have her address the members of the Class of 2026 and their loved ones who are sure to be inspired by her words and prophetic witness.”

As president of the governorate, Sister Petrini is responsible for the administrative operations of Vatican City State, which has approximately 600 inhabitants and nearly 2,000 employees. Her responsibilities include managing public services; overseeing security, health care and the Vatican Museums; chairing the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State; and ensuring that all operations align with the pope’s mission.

Sister Petrini is also a member of the Dicastery for Bishops, which assists the pope in the selection and appointment of bishops, and the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, the body responsible for managing Vatican finances.

On Feb. 3, Pope Leo XIV appointed Sister Petrini to the Commission for Reserved Matters, the entity responsible for awarding financial contracts in confidential areas of the Vatican.

Born in Rome, Sister Petrini is a distinguished scholar and economist. She holds a degree in political science from Libera Università Internazionale degli Studi Sociali (LUISS) in Rome, a master’s degree in organizational behavior from the University of Hartford and a doctorate in social sciences from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) in Rome. In addition to her responsibilities in the Vatican City State, Sister Petrini is a professor of welfare economics and sociology of economic processes in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Angelicum.

Sister Petrini visited the Notre Dame campus in November 2023 to present the Keeley Vatican Lecture at the Nanovic Institute for European Studies, focusing on integral human development and organizational management rooted in a “leadership of care.”

The 2026 University Commencement Ceremony will be held in Notre Dame Stadium on May 17 beginning at 9 a.m. with the academic procession.

Contact: Carrie Gates, associate director of media relations, c.gates@nd.edu, 574-993-9220

Originally published by Notre Dame News at news.nd.edu on March 19, 2026.

The honorees are:

Marguerite Barankitse (doctor of laws)

Marguerite Barankitse, a humanitarian leader and teacher, is credited with saving more than 50,000 children and providing them with access to health care, education and culture through her organization, Maison Shalom (House of Peace). In 1993, as civil war raged in Burundi, Barankitse, a Tutsi, tried to hide 72 of her closest Hutu neighbors to keep them safe from persecution. They were discovered and executed, while Barankitse was forced to watch. She was, however, able to shelter 25 children from the massacre. This experience set her on a path toward humanitarian work, which she continues to this day, providing refugees and children affected by war with access to education, health care, economic empowerment and psychosocial support. What began as a relief effort has evolved into a comprehensive development entity, offering job training, microfinance and medical care across Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2015, following her protests against government overreach in Burundi, Barankitse was forced to relocate to Rwanda, continuing her work in exile. Animated by her deep Catholic faith and belief in the inherent dignity of every human being, Barankitse has been a stalwart advocate for human rights, often at great cost to her own safety and livelihood.

Mary Cunningham Boyce (doctor of engineering)

A distinguished expert in mechanical engineering and champion of interdisciplinary scholarship to confront global challenges through basic research and real-world implementation, Mary Boyce is provost emerita and professor of mechanical engineering at Columbia University. She joined the faculty at Columbia in 2013, serving as dean of the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. She was appointed provost in 2021 and oversaw the return to campus following the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to her tenure at Columbia, Boyce was a faculty member at MIT for 25 years. A leading researcher of polymeric materials and soft composites, her groundbreaking contributions include creating new modeling methods for the use of engineers in commercial products, transportation vehicles, and biomedical devices, among others. Boyce’s contributions to the field led to her election as a fellow of the American Academy of Mechanics, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and her election to the National Academy of Engineering. She is the recipient of numerous honors, including the 2024 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Mechanical Engineering, the 2020 Timoshenko Medal and the 2015 Engineering Science Medal.

Eamon Duffy (doctor of laws)

Eamon Duffy is an emeritus professor of the history of Christianity at the University of Cambridge and a former president and fellow of Magdalene College at Cambridge. Originally from Dundalk, in County Louth, Ireland, Duffy is a renowned scholar of Christianity in the Middle Ages and the Reformation, the history of the papacy, and Christian material and visual culture. Duffy has written extensively for both scholarly and popular audiences, and two of his books, “The Stripping of the Altars: Traditional Religion in England, 1400-1580” and “The Voices of Morebath: Reformation and Rebellion in an English Village,” are widely credited with reshaping the modern understanding of Catholicism in late medieval England as a vibrant and popular faith rather than a dying institution. In addition to his academic achievements, he was a member of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences and chaired the editorial board for the Calendar of Papal Letters, tasked with publishing Vatican material concerning Britain and Ireland between the 14th and 16th centuries. For his outstanding scholarship, Duffy was elected a fellow of the British Academy in 2004. He is also a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London. In 2017, Duffy was one of two Cambridge professors honored with a Papal Knighthood by Pope Francis in honor of his outstanding work for the Church and the Holy See.

Christopher J. Murphy III (doctor of laws)

Having earned an undergraduate degree at Notre Dame, a J.D. from the University of Virginia and an MBA from Harvard University, Chris Murphy joined with his father-in-law and a group of investors in 1972 to purchase The First Bank and Trust Company of South Bend, now 1st Source Bank. He joined the bank as a director in 1972 and an employee at the end of 1976. He has served the organization as a board member, president, CEO and, most recently, executive chairman for more than 50 years, growing it to become the largest locally held financial institution in the region and consistently recognized among America’s best banks. Deeply committed to a life of generous service, Murphy has offered his considerable talents to numerous organizations seeking to address some of society’s most critical needs — including health care, economic development, education and support for the arts — at the regional, state and national levels. Among many other leadership positions, Murphy has served as chairman and CEO of the World Presidents’ Organization, on the international board of The Young Presidents’ Organization and on the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. In 2001 he was inducted into the Indiana Academy and served as chair of its board of regents. He was named Business Leader of the Year by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce in 2000, was inducted into the South Bend Community Hall of Fame in 2013, and has twice been named a Sagamore of the Wabash, Indiana’s highest honor. He and his wife, Carmen (Carmi), are parents to six children, including four Notre Dame graduates.

J. Christopher Reyes (doctor of laws)

J. Christopher Reyes is co-founder and chair of Reyes Holdings LLC, one of the largest global providers of food and beverage production and distribution services, with operations spanning North, Central and South America, as well as Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific. Reyes founded the company with his father and brother in 1976, beginning as a small beer distributor in South Carolina, and today delivering 1.3 billion cases of food and beverages globally each year. A widely respected philanthropist and member of many charitable boards, Reyes is a distinguished lifetime director of the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and a director of Northwestern Memorial Healthcare and the Ronald McDonald House Charities. He has served on Notre Dame’s Board of Trustees since 2003, providing invaluable leadership and wise counsel to three University presidents. Reyes and his wife, Anne, have four children, three of whom are graduates of the University.

Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R. (doctor of laws)

Named a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2016, Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., has served as the sixth archbishop of Newark since 2017. The son of Irish immigrants and the eldest of 13 children, he was ordained a priest for the Redemptorist Order in 1978 and ministered for 11 years in parishes in his native Detroit and Chicago. After serving as superior general of the Redemptorists, he was ordained archbishop in 2010 and appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to serve as the Secretary of the Congregation (now Dicastery) for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. From 2012 to 2017, he led the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. In addition to his responsibilities in the Archdiocese of Newark, he serves on the Vatican’s Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, the Synod of Bishops, the Dicastery for Culture and Education, the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, the Council for the Economy, the Dicastery for Bishops, and the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. Fluent in five languages, Cardinal Tobin is a graduate of Holy Redeemer College with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, and he earned a master’s in religious education and a Master of Divinity degree from Mount St. Alphonsus Seminary.

Contact: Carrie Gates, associate director of media relations, 574-993-9220, c.gates@nd.edu 

Originally published by Notre Dame News at news.nd.edu on March 26, 2026.

As chairman of the Special Olympics International board of directors, Shriver has played a leading role in driving the organization’s largest expansion in its history — growing the movement from 1 million athletes to over 4 million athletes in more than 200 countries and territories around the world.

Shriver is also the co-founder of UNITE, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people bridge political divides, and was instrumental in developing the Dignity Index — a new tool to help Americans disagree without demonizing each other.

“Drawing on his deep faith, Tim has devoted his life to being a force for good. Whether through his leadership of Special Olympics, his work in education or his commitment to fostering civil discourse, he is a tireless advocate for human dignity,” Notre Dame President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., said. “In awarding him the Laetare Medal, we honor his inspiring witness and his dedication to building bridges in service of a more just and compassionate world.”

Special Olympics — a global movement to end discrimination against people with intellectual disabilities through programming in sports, health, education and inclusive leadership — was founded in 1968 by Shriver’s mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. Shriver’s father, Robert Sargent Shriver, also served as president and board chair in the 1980s and 1990s.

“My parents never retired. They loved their work. They loved the Special Olympics movement. So my mom and dad were not looking to hand off the torch; they just wanted someone to help carry it,” Shriver said. “Most of all, I think they wanted confidence that whoever was going to lead the movement into the future understood it. And we have tried to maintain that same vision — to see the dignity of every human being and to stay focused on what matters most, which is that every child who comes into this movement deserves to be treated with dignity and hope and justice and joy. Give them a chance, every one, no exceptions.”

Shriver joined the Special Olympics movement in 1996 and currently serves as chairman. During his tenure, he has broadened Special Olympics’ global reach and sought to enhance the quality of life for millions of people with disabilities by creating new initiatives in athletic leadership, health services and education development.

To date, the Healthy Athletes initiative, launched in 1997, has provided free health care screenings to more than 2 million athletes in more than 135 countries. And the Special Olympics Unified Sports initiative, which began in the 1980s and was significantly expanded under his leadership, brings together athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on the same playing field to promote a culture of inclusion.

“I look at the work of the last half century of the Special Olympics movement as largely shifting the lens from, ‘What’s wrong with them?’ to ‘How much can we accomplish if it’s us, not us versus them? If we’re all seen as equally gifted, as opposed to some being better than others?’” he said. “These were all lessons that were taught to me very early in life, and I’m grateful for them.”

Shriver earned a bachelor’s degree from Yale University, a master’s degree from Catholic University and a doctoral degree in education from the University of Connecticut. He began his career in public education and helped launch the field of social and emotional learning (SEL) by leading the New Haven Social Development program, which pioneered SEL strategies across K-12 classrooms. Building on that program’s success, Shriver co-founded the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) at Yale in 1994 and chairs its board of directors.

Building on his experience with Special Olympics and convinced that treating others with dignity eases division, Shriver founded UNITE in 2018 to try to bridge the political divides in the United States. Launched in 2022, the Dignity Index is an eight-point scale to gauge whether the language people use reflects contempt or respect for those with other views. The UNITE team now works with politicians, educators, faith leaders and corporations across the country to advocate for dignity as a “winning strategy” in every field of endeavor.

Shriver, who has also served as executive producer of several award-winning films, is the author of the New York Times bestseller “Fully Alive: Discovering What Matters Most” and co-editor of “The Call to Unite: Voices of Hope and Awakening.”

In recognition of his visionary leadership, he has been honored with numerous awards, including the Medal of the City of Athens, Greece; 1995 Connecticut Citizen of the Year; the Order of Manuel Amador Guerrero of the Republic of Panama and the Presidential Medallion from the University of Illinois. He has also received honorary degrees from Georgetown University, Fordham University and Villanova University, among others.

The Laetare (pronounced lay-TAH-ray) Medal is so named because its recipient is announced each year in celebration of Laetare Sunday, the fourth Sunday in Lent on the Church calendar. “Laetare,” the Latin word for “rejoice,” is the first word in the entrance antiphon of the Mass that Sunday, which ritually anticipates the celebration of Easter. The medal bears the Latin inscription, “Magna est veritas et praevalebit” (“Truth is mighty, and it shall prevail”).

Established at Notre Dame in 1883, the Laetare Medal was conceived as an American counterpart of the Golden Rose, a papal honor that antedates the 11th century. The medal has been awarded annually at Notre Dame to a Catholic “whose genius has ennobled the arts and sciences, illustrated the ideals of the Church and enriched the heritage of humanity.”

Previous recipients of the Laetare Medal include Civil War Gen. William Rosecrans; Governor of New York Alfred Smith; actress Helen Hayes; Catholic Worker founder Dorothy Day; teacher, musician, liturgist and scholar Sister Thea Bowman; novelist Walker Percy; counselor and advocate for death row prisoners Sister Helen Prejean; Cardinal Joseph Bernardin; singer Aaron Neville; actor Martin Sheen; and CEO of Feeding America Claire Babineaux-Fontenot.

“I know I don’t belong in the company of many of the people who have received this medal,” Shriver said. “I think it’s being given to me as a placeholder for the people who are doing the work every day. It’s being given to me so that the athlete who’s in a refugee camp in Tanzania running 50 meters this afternoon will somehow know that the world is paying attention, and so that his mom at the finish line will know that her son matters. I’m a good channel for people who deserve it, and I’m grateful to be able to be that channel.”

Shriver is the only Laetare Medalist in Notre Dame history whose parents were both recipients as well. His mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, received the Laetare Medal in 1988 for her own work with Special Olympics, and his father, Robert Sargent Shriver, was the 1968 Laetare Medalist in recognition of his work in founding the Peace Corps. Timothy Shriver’s uncle, President John F. Kennedy, received the medal in 1961.

Read more about 2026 Laetare Medalist Timothy Shriver here

Contact: Carrie Gates, associate director of media relations, c.gates@nd.edu, 574-993-9220

Originally published by Carrie Gates at news.nd.edu on March 15, 2026.