Alliance for Catholic Education
A gift from philanthropists and long-time Catholic education supporters Gerald and Jennifer Beeson strengthens academic and spiritual formation for the ACE Teaching Fellows program at the University of Notre Dame, establishing endowed positions to lead work in the two core areas.
Both the ACE Senior Director of Catholic Teacher Formation and the ACE Director of Catholic Teacher Pastoral Formation will be named for the Beeson Family with the start of the 2026-27 academic year. The two roles are central to the two-year graduate teaching and fellowship experience that forms more than 90 new teachers to serve under-resourced Catholic schools while earning a tuition-free Master of Education degree from Notre Dame.
“Endowing these two leadership roles for ACE Teaching Fellows is one more outward sign of the Beeson family’s long-standing commitment to Catholic schools,” Matt Kloser, Hackett Family Director for the Institute for Educational Initiatives, home to ACE, said. “We’re deeply grateful to Gerald and Jen for their friendship and for the transformative impact that this gift will have on the communities Notre Dame serves.”
Over more than 30 years of service to Catholic schools, ACE has placed teachers in 450 schools across 50 (arch)dioceses through the program. Fellows have served more than 10,000 students in classrooms each year for the past decade, and the program has graduated 2,450 participants with an M.Ed. degree since its inception.
“Our ACE teachers are prepared for their service in classrooms through a combination of rigorous academic coursework, supportive communities, and spiritual formation designed specifically for Catholic school teachers,” ACE Executive Director John Staud said. “Through their generosity, the Beeson family has ensured that Catholic school students will continue to benefit from the excellent, holistic formation opportunity ACE provides its Teaching Fellows.”
Faculty member Kati Macaluso, Ph.D., serves as the inaugural Beeson Family ACE Senior Director of Catholic Teacher Formation. In her new role, Macaluso is responsible for shaping program mission and vision, leading professional integration for matriculating Teaching Fellows, collaborating across units within the program, and financial oversight. Macaluso most recently served as Director of ACE Advocates.
The role of Beeson Family ACE Director of Catholic Teacher Pastoral Formation is responsible for managing the pastoral care of ACE teachers and their communities, monitoring the progress and holistic well-being of cohorts throughout the program, and developing new partnerships for the program in dioceses and schools. Taylor Kelly, ’25 M.A., is the first person to fill the newly endowed role. A member of ACE 23, Kelly previously served the Institute as its Associate Director.