Other recent professor-of-the-practice appointments include those for former U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly and former White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough. Like Ryan, they bring experience at the senior-most levels of government, providing Notre Dame students with firsthand knowledge and insights that are difficult to find elsewhere.
Campbell said Ryan will be guest-lecturing on the fundamentals of American government, the current state of political polarization, and Catholicism and economics, among other topics. Ryan also will be delivering an address at a conference hosted by Notre Dame's Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities and the Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy.
Donnelly began guest-lecturing this semester, speaking in courses on American politics, public policy and leadership. He has also met regularly with a group of undergraduate students to discuss his experience running for and serving in office.
Donnelly earned his bachelor's and law degrees at Notre Dame before entering politics. He was elected to the U.S House of Representatives in 2006, representing Indiana's 2nd Congressional District, and served three terms before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2012.
Ryan — who represented Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District for 20 years, serving for the last four as the 54th Speaker of the House — has his own connection to Notre Dame, where his brothers Stan and Tobin earned their bachelor's degrees in economics. Ryan has visited Notre Dame many times over the years and now looks forward to getting directly involved with its students and faculty.
McDonough served as White House chief of staff for President Barack Obama from February 2013 until January 2017. He is an executive fellow in Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs, where he is an instructor for the Global Policy Seminar, a course that engages students with policymakers and leaders on topics and geographies essential to the world of global policy.