Last fall, the University of Notre Dame announced a partnership with the Military Spouse Advocacy Network (MSAN)—a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission to create stronger military families through education, empowerment, and support—to offer two online courses for military spouses.
The first, launched in July, focuses on mental wellness and is in line with the University’s broader commitment to fighting the nation’s mental health crisis. The course was developed and is presented by faculty from Notre Dame’s William J. Shaw Center for Children and Families and Veldman Family Psychology Clinic, who worked with Notre Dame Learning’s Office of Digital Learning (ODL) on the design of effective online content.
September marks the launch of the second course in the Notre Dame-MSAN partnership, and like the first, it represents a collaboration between the ODL and Notre Dame faculty, this time from the Notre Dame Deloitte Center for Ethical Leadership (NDDCEL) at the Mendoza College of Business.
Titled Ethical Leadership with Notre Dame, the new offering reflects NDDCEL’s mission to inform, equip, and inspire values-based leadership and covers topics such as conflict management, voicing values at work, and honesty and empathy in decision-making. The aim is to support military spouses in becoming leaders who foster resilient and flourishing communities.
Both of these non-credit courses are delivered as a mix of asynchronous (i.e., on-demand) content and live sessions, and the impact of the mental wellness course is already evident.
“The course material has been incredibly well-received,” said the Veldman Family Psychology Clinic’s Donna Armentrout, the course’s instructor. “The military spouse learners have had the opportunity to practice having mental health conversations and receive in-the-moment feedback from clinical psychology doctoral students under the supervision of Notre Dame faculty and staff. Overall, it has been an enriching, meaningful experience for both the learners and facilitators.”
Jessica McManus Warnell, Rex and Alice A. Martin Faculty Director of the Notre Dame Deloitte Center for Ethical Leadership, and Kristen Collett-Schmitt, associate dean for undergraduate and specialized master’s programs in the Mendoza College of Business, expect to see similar results with the ethical leadership course.
“NDDCEL is proud to partner with MSAN on this important opportunity to support military families,” McManus Warnell said. “We developed a custom curriculum for military spouses to enhance career readiness and leadership in their organizations and communities. Featuring insights from a dynamic group of faculty experts, including several who are veterans and spouses, our course provides strategies for participants to be powerful agents for positive change.”
McManus Warnell and Collett-Schmitt serve as the instructors of the ethical leadership course, which also includes contributions from Notre Dame faculty members Paul Blaschko, Jim Leady, Drew Marcantonio, and Jim O’Rourke as well as military community members Rose Boyle, Pat Gibbons, Jen Heckel, Amy Spangler, and Erin Stevens.
Admiral Christopher W. Grady, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shared a testimonial for the course, and his wife, Christine, is featured in the introductory videos for both it and the mental wellness course.
The Notre Dame-MSAN partnership is a multidisciplinary campus project involving faculty and staff from 10 organizations. The project is spearheaded and resourced by Notre Dame Research with the support of the Office of Military and Veterans Affairs, the College of Arts and Letters, the Mendoza College of Business, Notre Dame Learning’s Office of Digital Learning, the Office of Public Affairs and Communications, the William J. Shaw Center for Children and Families, the Notre Dame Deloitte Center for Ethical Leadership, the Veldman Family Psychology Clinic, and the Mental Health Initiative.
“I have been incredibly proud to welcome Notre Dame to the MSAN family,” said Verenice Castillo, founder, CEO, and president of MSAN. “Their commitment to our military community will empower these dedicated individuals to continue making a profound difference in their lives and communities. Together, we are building an army of strong community leaders, mentors, and advocates.”