The Domer Dozen program is the signature initiative of , the Alumni Association’s young alumni affinity group. The 2021 honorees have displayed extraordinary dedication to the Alumni Association's mission and have excelled in education, health care, peace building, law, engineering, entrepreneurship��and journalism, among other areas. They were chosen by a selection committee consisting of the YoungND board, University officials and Alumni Association staff, who considered 88 nominees this summer and evaluated them based on a weighted ranking system and their contributions in their respective fields.

“Since our inaugural Domer Dozen cohort, I have been blown away by the incredible accomplishments of our young alumni, and this year is no different,” said Dolly Duffy, executive director of the Alumni Association and associate vice president for University Relations. “These outstanding graduates are agents of change and innovation, peace and justice, healing and education. Their positive influence in their communities and in the world in their short time beyond the Dome is a testament to the power of the Notre Dame ethos to nurture the mind, body and spirit.”

The 2021 Domer Dozen honorees are:

• Dr. Rene Bermea ’12 — Saving lives in the ICU and conducting groundbreaking biomedical research
• Matt Conaghan ’15 — Helping charities grow with the power of spare change
• Dr. Claire Conley ’12 — Improving the lives of cancer patients and reducing health disparities
• Kiersten DeHaven ’14 — Empowering female entrepreneurs in rural Ethiopia
• Dr. Austin Hickman ’16 — Engineering breakthroughs to improve defense and communication capabilities
• Michael Hillmer ’17 — Defending the nation in the cyber domain
• Marissa Koscielski ’17, ’18 M.S. — Challenging the status quo to improve mobility care
• Zoe (Rote) Kourajian ’16 — Innovating to give students of all backgrounds a place in the American story
• Sarah Mervosh ’12 — Delivering empathetic and informative journalism in service of the common good
• Tia B. Paulette ’18 J.D. — Pursuing justice for the wrongly convicted and underprivileged
• Jessica Pedroza ’17 — Advocating for educational equity
• Qing Zhu ’19 MGA — Promoting positive peace and sustainability in China

The honorees are invited back to campus Friday and Saturday, Sept. 10 and 11, for a special recognition weekend. The Domer Dozen will be celebrated during an awards dinner with the YoungND board and Alumni Association staff members and will also be recognized in Notre Dame Stadium during the football game against Toledo.

Domer Dozen honorees will share brief talks about their life and experiences since graduating from Notre Dame during “My Path: Stories of Inspiration from the 2021 Domer Dozen” at 2 p.m. Friday (Sept. 10) at the Andrews Auditorium in Geddes Hall. Students, faculty, staff and visitors are invited to attend the event, which is free and open to the public. Masks will be required. For more information, visit and .

The Domer Dozen program is the signature initiative of , the Alumni Association’s newest affinity group. The 2020 honorees include alumni who have excelled in health care, childhood education, international aid, faith, cultural advocacy, gender equity and space exploration, among other areas. They were chosen by a selection committee consisting of the YoungND board, University officials and Alumni Association staff, who reviewed more than 140 nominations this past fall and evaluated them based on a weighted ranking system and the nominee’s dedication to at least one of the four core pillars of the association’s mission — faith, service, learning and work.

“I never cease to be amazed by the extraordinary impact our young alumni have in their communities and respective industries,” said Dolly Duffy, executive director of the Alumni Association and associate vice president for University relations. “Our newest Domer Dozen honorees continue to prove this point. Their accomplishments as innovators, faith leaders, educators, advocates, engineers and diplomats are truly remarkable, and I know this is just the beginning of their positive influence on the world.”

The 2020 Domer Dozen honorees are:

• Sara Abdel-Rahim ’17: Breaking barriers for refugee and asylum-seeking chefs
• Nate Alexander ’17: Saving time and expanding the reach of life-saving organ transplants
• Jessica Binzoni ’15 J.D.: Empowering displaced people in the Middle East
• Glynnis Garry, M.D. ’11: Revolutionizing the treatment of heart disease
• Katarina Goitz ’16, ’18 M.A.: An inspiration to a deeper connection with faith
• Maria Hinson Tobin ’14 M.S.: Combating gender inequity in global agriculture
• Terrell Hunt ’19 MBA: Serving the country in pursuit of a better world
• Ashley Kalinauskas ’13 M.S.: Innovating to help pets with cancer
• Bill Kennedy ’17: Enabling humanity’s search for truth through space exploration
• Alexandria Kristensen-Cabrera ’16: Advocating for health care equity among underserved communities
• Kara Strass ’11: Revitalizing Myaamia language, culture and traditions
• Jasmin (Simmons) Tow ’11: Providing innovative educational solutions in low-income schools

The Domer Dozen honorees . For more information on this year’s honorees, visit and .

The William D. Reynolds Award

Patricia Jacques Emmanuel M.D.,��’82 (Photo by Barbara Johnston/University of Notre Dame)

Established in 1985, the William D. Reynolds Award is conferred on an alum, living or deceased, doing exceptional work with youth for the betterment of their quality of life.

In recognition of her lifelong commitment to medical care and fighting infectious diseases, especially on behalf of mothers, children��and youth,��Patricia Jacques Emmanuel M.D., ’82,��was presented with this award.

Dr. Emmanuel received her B.S. in biology from Notre Dame in 1982 and her M.D. from the University of Florida in 1986. After completing her residency and fellowship in infectious diseases at the University of South Florida, she joined the faculty, where she has served as the Lewis A. Barness Professor and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics since 2012. Previously she served as USF’s Associate Dean for Clinical Research��and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease.

The focus of Dr. Emmanuel’s clinical and research activities has been HIV infection in infants, children��and pregnant women. She has implemented many treatment and prevention trials, directed an HIV education program in India��and spearheaded the establishment of a youth clinic that provides sex education and preventive services to underserved youth in Tampa. She directs USF’s Zika Referral Center and a clinical trials network that is using technology to help prevent HIV infection.

Dr. Emmanuel has been involved with training medical students and residents��and served as Councilor for the Alpha Omega Honor Society from 2007-14. She and her husband,��John ’82, have three adult children, including their oldest daughter Jacqueline, a 2012 Notre Dame graduate.

The Rev. Arthur S. Harvey, C.S.C., Award

Established in 2000, the Rev. Arthur S. Harvey, C.S.C., Award recognizes an alum, living or deceased, for their outstanding accomplishments or achievements as practicing performing artists.

This year’s recipient,��Don Criqui ’62, earned distinction for an outstanding career as one of the longest-tenured sports broadcasters in American history, including a half-century of announcing college and NFL games.

Criqui’s career in broadcasting began as a student at Notre Dame. As a Communication Arts major, Criqui learned under Professors Thomas Stritch and Edward Fisher. Tapes of his Notre Dame basketball broadcasts and an audition led Criqui to join WSBT in South Bend as Sports Director less than a year after graduating. Two years later, Frank Gifford brought Criqui to New York’s WCBS-TV, and a tape of a Notre Dame vs. Bradley basketball game landed him the job as the radio and TV voice of the New York Knicks.

In 1967, CBS Sports named Criqui an NFL play-by-play broadcaster, launching a streak of 47 consecutive seasons broadcasting the NFL for CBS and NBC. He is the longest-tenured NFL broadcaster on network television, and was selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2003 as the winner of the Pete Rozelle Award.

Criqui was the radio voice of Notre Dame football for 15 seasons. He also teamed with John Gambling on WOR radio in New York. For 20 straight years, “Rambling with Gambling” had the most listeners of any radio station in America.

Criqui and his wife, Molly, are the parents of four sons and one daughter, and have 15 grandchildren. Three are continuing the family tradition as students at Notre Dame, with hopefully more to follow.

The Rev. Robert F. Griffin, C.S.C., Award

This award was established by the Alumni Board in 2003 to recognize outstanding accomplishments or achievements in writing.��

Christina Gorman Telesca ’91, Don Criqui '62, and Patrick Vassel ’07 (Photo by Peter Ringenberg/University of Notre Dame)

In recognition of her distinguished career as a playwright, and for bringing the vision of Notre Dame’s founder to the stage in Sorin: A Notre Dame Story,��Christina Gorman Telesca ’91��was the 2020 Griffin Award honoree.

Telesca’s plays have been produced and/or developed at numerous acclaimed institutions such as The Public Theater, Luna Stage, American Blues Theater, Alley Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Geva Theatre Center, Summer Play Festival, Central Works Theater Company, Hangar Theatre, and Capital Repertory Theatre, among others.

Telesca is a recipient of TCG’s Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award, American Blues Theater’s Blue Ink Playwriting Award, Samuel French Short Play Festival Award��and New York International Fringe Festival Award for Overall Excellence in Playwriting. Her work has been published by both Samuel French and Smith & Krauss.

Telesca was an inaugural member of The Public Theater Emerging Writers Group, and is also recognized as a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow, Ensemble Studio Theatre New Voices Fellow, Stella Adler Studios Harold Clurman Playwright-in-Residence, Women’s Project Playwright Lab member��and Artistic Affiliate at American Blues Theater.

Telesca graduated from Notre Dame with a B.A. in American 91��Ƶ. Her son,��Jack, will graduate from Notre Dame in May 2020 with a B.S. in aerospace engineering.

The Rev. Anthony J. Lauck, C.S.C., Award

Established in 2000, the Rev. Anthony J. Lauck, C.S.C., Award for fine arts and visual arts, recognizes an alum, living or deceased, for their outstanding accomplishments or achievements as practicing artists. In recognition of his superior work as a Broadway director, writer��and teacher, and his leadership in crafting Sorin: A Notre Dame Story,��Patrick Vassel ’07��was presented with this award.��

Vassel is a director and playwright from Akron, Ohio. He is currently the Associate and Supervising Director of Hamilton.

Some of Vassel’s other credits include, Freestyle Love Supreme (associate director) and Magic/Bird (assistant director) on Broadway; In a Little Room (The Wild Project), Two Rooms (79 Clifton Place), Rum for Sale (Columbia University), The Gravediggers (Theatre East Reading), Connect (Workshop - Ten Bones), The Adventures of Boy and Girl (FringeNYC ’13), Font of Knowledge (Shelby Company) and The Little Dog Laughed (The Gallery Players, 1st NYC Revival) in New York.

Additionally, Vassel has directed The Cripple of Inishmaan, The Homecoming (Stella Adler), Lombardi (Palace Theatre, Wisconsin)��and Six Characters in Search of an Author (University of Notre Dame, Original Adaptation). His work as a co-writer/director includes Nothing Left to Burn (Ars Nova ANTFest, The Public Theater New Work Now!, O’Neill Semi-Finalist, The Lark Playwrights Week 2015).

Vassel is a member of the Notre Dame Performing Arts Advisory Council and the Notre Dame Media and Entertainment Leadership Committee. He is a former teaching artist and current member of the Artistic Advisory Board of Opening Act, a non-profit providing free, after-school theater programs in New York City high schools. He is also a 2019 honoree of the St. Vincent-St. Mary High 91��Ƶ Rev. Mahar Outstanding Alumni Award.