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ACE Ambassador & Internship Programs

The ACE Ambassador & Internship application are now open! If you are interested in learning more about our early commit programs, please contact Michael Comuniello (mcomunie@nd.edu; 574.631.6561) or Sean James (sjames4@nd.edu; 574.631.2549). We look forward to hearing from you! 

ACE Ambassador & Internship Application Instructions

Important Application Dates

  • February 1st: Application Opens
  • March 28th: Application Closes
  • April 27th: Application Decisions Released
  • May 2nd: Commitment Deadline
  • June 25th-28th: ACE 31 Early Commit Institute at ND

 

Contact Us

Contact Mike Comuniello (mcomunie@nd.edu; 574.631.6561) or Sean James (sjames4@nd.edu; 574.631.2549) if you have any questions.

We look forward to hearing from you and welcome you to call, e-mail, or visit us in Remick Family Hall on Notre Dame's campus!

Application Details

Part 1: Online Application

  • Biographical & Educational Information
  • Unofficial Transcript 
  • Program Upload
  • Resume or Curriculum Vitae (CV) 
  • Professional Headshot Photo

Part 2: Three Letters of Reference

You will need to obtain references from 2 professors and 1 individual who can attest to your success in living and working in a community atmosphere (e.g. Dorm Rector/Residence Director, Campus Minister, Service Project Leader, etc.). Reference letters, which are requested directly through the application, require the following:

  • A short evaluation of the five dispositions successful ACE Teachers possess (zeal, coachability, persistence, servant leadership, & hunger for spiritual growth)
  • A letter of reference

ACE Internship

In 2008, the Alliance for Catholic Education piloted an exciting initiative open to all Notre Dame juniors the ACE Internship. Our internship program, now in its 15th year, attracts students interested in becoming ACE teachers after graduation and eager to work for ACE during their senior years to advance its mission in service to under-resourced Catholic schools.

Drawing on the diverse gifts and experiences of selected participants, these paid internships (3-5 hours per week) will offer challenging work in close collaboration with the ACE team in a variety of areas:

  • Raise awareness of ACE’s mission at Notre Dame
  • Outreach efforts and service to local & national Catholic schools through TutorND
  • 1-cr. ESS course, Re-seeing & Reflecting on Teaching, during the spring semester
  • Opportunities for personal, professional, communal, and spiritual growth
  • Cost-free trip to ND's campus for ACE Early Commit Institute in late June

Therefore, we seek rising seniors who wish to serve as ACE teachers after graduation and commit to do so as the first step of their internships. Application for the internship will thus include conditional acceptance to ACE Teaching Fellows.

Meet the Interns

Anderson_Internship PhotoHometown              

Rye, NY

Dorm

Keough Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Science-Business

Extracurricular Commitments: Keough Hall Resident Assistant, Campus Tour Guide, Calculus Tutor, ISSLP Participant, Musician, and Gateway Club

What experiences at Notre Dame helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

ACE was originally not high on my list for gap year opportunities before medical school. However, as I started to look at my resume, I realized that most of my involvement related to education and I had a subconscious passion for educating. The more I talked to the ACE team, the more I realized ACE cultivates numerous qualities that I desire to develop for my future career.

Benas_Internship PhotoHometown              

Naperville, IL

Dorm

Welsh Family Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: Political Science and Education, Schooling, & Society

Extracurricular Commitments: Writing Center Tutor, Kellogg International Scholar, SSLP/CSC Involvement

How do you hope to grow in your experience as an ACE Intern? 

I hope to grow in my passion for and understanding of teaching, particularly how this vocation can help me to emulate God's love to students and the broader ACE community. I want to better know Jesus as Teacher. 

 

 

 

Catherine Bosch_InternshipPhotoHometown              

Western Springs, IL

Dorm

Walsh Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: History, Theology, and Italian Studies

Extracurricular Commitments: ND Right to Life, Catechist Academy, Senior Fellow within the Family Resource Center, CSC Involvement 

What experiences at Notre Dame helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

I have had a lot of great conversations with a lot of people who have been involved in ACE, both students and faculty, who have told me about how wonderful the ACE program is and what a wonderful formation experience it is.  My SSLP at De La Salle Blackfeet School and my time teaching with the Catechist Academy has also helped me confirm that I want to pursue teaching after graduation.

 

 

Sean Cleary

Hometown

Durham, NC

Dorm

Knott Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: Political Science, Theology, and Spanish

Extracurricular Commitments: Knott Hall Resident Assistant, Knott Hall Waffle Wednesdays, Fighting Irish Media, and PATH Tutor

What experiences at Notre Dame helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

My favorite part about Notre Dame has been my dorm, Knott Hall. Having the privilege of living with friends and being constantly emerged in such a fantastic community has been transformational for me. Because of this experience, the emphasis ACE puts on the importance of living in community drew me in. I encountered the ACE community in my sophomore year and experienced firsthand its emphasis on family. At that moment, I knew ACE was the next step for me. 

Meghan Figueras              

Hometown

Annapolis, MD

Dorm

Farley Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Biology

Minor: Theology

Extracurricular Commitments: Farley Hall Resident Assistant, CSC McNeill Fellowship, SAINTS Tutor at St. Adalbert's, and Uplift Biology Mentor

What do you hope to accomplish as an ACE teacher?

I hope to invite my students to consider the opportunity to study science, and to be able to walk with them in their college discernment process. Personally, I hope to grow in my faith and my ability to connect and communicate with others.  

Peyton Nielsen_InternshipPhotoHometown              

Oak Forest, IL

Dorm

Pasquerilla West Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: American Studies and Economics

Minor: Digital Marketing

Extracurricular Commitments: Gender Relations Center, JIFFI, Senior Class Council, greeNDot

What do you hope to accomplish as an ACE teacher?

As an ACE teacher, I hope to work with and within schools to continue to learn about the ways that education‚ especially when guided by the mission of the Catholic Church‚ can transform communities.

 

 

 

Mary Rice_Internship PhotoHometown              

South Bend, IN

Dorm

Badin Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: PLS and Theology

Extracurricular Commitments: Badin Hall Resident Assistant, ND Right to Life, Sorin Fellow, SSLP Participant, IrishRover

What experience at Notre Dame helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

My decision to pursue ACE was the culmination of two years of discernment that were marked with formative conversations with ACE teachers, leaders, and staff members. My service in the Notre Dame Right to Life club deepened my passion for service and pastoral ministry, and ACE prioritizes the formation of its teachers throughout the program. In addition, I worked with the Pre College programs this past summer and it reaffirmed my love of teaching.

Caroline Zitnik_InternshipPhotoHometown              

Robertsdale, AL

Dorm

Welsh Family Hall

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: History and Spanish

Minor: Education, Schooling, & Society

Extracurricular Commitments: Band of the Fighting Irish, TutorND

What do you hope to accomplish as an ACE teacher?

I hope to make a positive impact in my classroom, school, and the broader ACE community. I am also excited to learn from the example of school leaders, ACE professors, and my fellow ACE teachers. 

 

 

 

ACE Ambassadors

In 2017, the Alliance for Catholic Education piloted an exciting opportunity open to all college juniors, not currently enrolled at Notre Dame: the ACE Ambassadors Program. Our ambassadors program empowers selected students to sustain and transform Catholic schools, while also offering conditional acceptance into ACE Teaching Fellows following graduation.

During their senior years, ambassadors work together, alongside the broader ACE community, to share ACE’s mission with fellow undergraduates on their respective campuses. To carry out these paid outreach efforts, our ambassadors receive support from the ACE team in a variety of ways:

  • Outreach efforts and service to local & national Catholic schools through TutorND
  • Monthly ACE Ambassador Team conversations via Zoom
  • Campus visits by ACE Pastoral Team members throughout the academic year 
  • Opportunities for personal, professional, and spiritual growth
  • Cost-free trip to ND’s campus for ACE Early Commit Institute in late June

ACE Ambassadors are offered a unique and formative additional year in the ACE Teaching Fellows experience. Therefore, we seek rising college seniors who wish to serve as ACE teachers after graduation and commit to do so as the first step of their ambassadorships.

Meet the Ambassadors

Buller_Ambassador PhotoHometown              

Arvada, CO

Undergraduate Institution

Gonzaga University

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Community, Culture, & Language and Secondary Teacher Education

Minor: Comprehensive Leadership Studies and English

Extracurricular Commitments: Christian Life Community, Rotaract Club, English Plus Mentoring, and Youth Mentoring

What experiences at Notre Dame helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

My experience at Gonzaga University deeply impacted my decision to pursue ACE. Before attending GU, I had never had an educational experience that was intertwined with my faith; by bringing God into my learning, I feel that I have not only grown deeper in my academic studies, but my personal ones as well. I am greatly looking forward to connecting with future students in this way, and continuing a passion for learning alongside of others.  

Hometown              

Buffalo, NY

Undergraduate Institution

John Carroll University

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Political Science, Theology & Religious Studies, and Peace, Justice, & Human Rights

Extracurricular Commitments: Center for Service & Social Action, Admissions Tour Guide, LABRE Project Core Team, and JCU Immersion Program

How do you hope to grow in your experience as an ACE Ambassador? 

I hope to grow in three main areas personally, spiritually, and professionally. I hope to grow personally, opening my eyes to what I was blind to before alongside our Ambassador team. I hope to grow spiritually, helping me find a more solid footing in my faith with the support of the ACE Pastoral Team. I hope to grow professionally, spreading the message of ACE to the JCU community. 

Denzel_PhotoHometown              

Mountain View, CA

Undergraduate Institution

Boston College

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Computer Science

Minor: Foundations in Education and Theology

Extracurricular Commitments: May River Scholars Project, Hoops 4 Hope, and Intramural Sports

What do you hope to do/accomplish as an ACE teacher?

I believe that every student has limitless potential. As an ACE teacher, I want to give my students the platform to reach for that potential. I hope that by connecting with each individual student and maintaining high expectations, I can be a positive influence in the students’ academic and personal lives.

Diggins_PhotoHometown              

Berlin, MA

Undergraduate Institution

Saint Anselm College

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: English

Minor: Philosophy and American Studies

Extracurricular Commitments: Resident Assistant, Hawks for Life, Peer Minister, Little Sisters of Saint Benedict, Peer Tutor, Anti-Ableism and Accessibility Advocate, Liturgy Engagement Committee

How do you hope to grow in your experience as an ACE Ambassador? 

I am so excited to take this year both to prayerfully prepare for my time as a teacher and community member, and to share my excitement about and commitment to ACE's mission with my undergraduate community.

Henry Glynn - ACE Ambassador

Hometown              

Sabetha, KS

Undergraduate Institution

Creighton University

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Political Science and Theology

Minor: Justice & Peace Studies

Extracurricular Commitments: Campus Ministry, Student Government, New Student Orientation, Center for Service & Justice, GreenJays, Phi Delta Theta Fraternity, and Alpha Sigma Nu

What experiences helped shape your decision to do ACE?

My teaching experiences in Omaha, Mississippi, and Tanzania helped focus my discernment toward serving others. My academic and professional development during college also helped reveal the desire to share my passions with students through this important vocation. Most importantly, authentic conversations with family and friends and continual prayer shaped my decision to pursue ACE.

Gottschalk_Ambassador Photo

Hometown              

Strongsville, OH

Undergraduate Institution

Saint Louis University

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Theology Studies, Philosophy, and Catholic Studies

Extracurricular Commitments: St. Edmund Campion Society, Catholic Studies Center, Campus Ministry, Upper Room, and Micah Program

How do you hope to grow in your experience as an ACE Ambassador? 

As an ACE Ambassador, I’m looking forward to opportunities to grow and be formed as a soon-to-be educator, particularly as my role pertains to openness and accompaniment. I’m also excited to learn from this particular group of Ambassadors and ACE Team, to be molded more fully into not only the teacher but also the man that Jesus, the Ultimate Teacher, desires me to be.

Hometown              

Syracuse, NY

Undergraduate Institution

Catholic University of America

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Majors: Theology and Media Studies

Minor: Certificate in Pastoral Ministry

Extracurricular Commitments: Cardinal Service Corps Leadership team, Campus Ministry, Theology of the Body Club, RENEW Bible Study, and Cardinals for Life

What experiences helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

One of the main experiences that influenced my decision to pursue ACE was the missionary work I did with Totus Tuus. This summer catechetical program was my first experience in a classroom setting. Not only did it confirm my passion for working with kids, but it also revealed my desire to enter into the realm of education. Then, my involvement in service programs at Catholic University led me to learn more about long-term service options like ACE, and ACE seemed to offer a clear path that combined all of my passions! 

Clara Pater - ACE AmbassadorHometown              

Harbor Springs, MI

Undergraduate Institution

Michigan State University

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Social Relations and Policy & Criminal Justice 

Extracurricular Commitments: Intramural Soccer, St. John’s Church & Student Center, and Days for Girls

What do you hope to do/accomplish as an ACE teacher?

As an ACE teacher, I hope to create an environment where my students feel welcome in the classroom. I hope to breed curiosity while supporting them through the required learning. No matter the subject, I want them to learn to know and love God through the material and our relationship. 

James Pham - ACE Ambassador

Hometown              

Ronkonkoma, NY

Undergraduate Institution

Catholic University of America

Undergraduate Studies & Experiences

Major: Psychology & Theology

Extracurricular Commitments: Knights of Columbus, Best Buddies, Club Rugby, and Habitat for Humanity 

What experiences helped shape your decision to pursue ACE?

 My Catholic education background, love for service, and experiences as a tutor helped shape my decision to pursue ACE. Throughout my middle and high school career, I loved pursuing volunteer service opportunities, like community clean-ups, 5K runs, and homeless food runs. I knew that I wanted to serve others in the future and ACE is a program that aligns with my love of God, service, and teaching! 

Contact Us