Notre Dame School of Architecture to establish preservation center
SOUTH BEND – The University of Notre Dame will establish a new Historic Preservation Center and Graduate School with a $ 30 million donation to the university’s School of Architecture.
The multi-million dollar donation from Notre Dame trustee Fritz Duda, his wife Mary Lee Duda and the Family Foundation will support the new conservation center as well as the curriculum, student financial support and conference facilities within the architecture school.
The new center will be called the Michael Christopher Duda Center for Preservation, Resilience and Sustainability for the couple’s son, who worked in architecture and real estate development in California and Texas before his death in 2019.
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Michael Duda, a 2005 graduate of Notre Dame School of Architecture, was appointed to the board of directors of the Texas Historical Foundation in 2011 and started his own real estate company, Briar Cove Development, in 2018. He was 38 years old when he died.
Michael Duda helped create a charter of incorporation for the Texas Historical Foundation’s Architectural Endowment Fund, which now bears Michael’s name, his father said in a press release.
“Michael Duda was very proud of his Texan heritage,” said Fritz Duda. “Inspired by his passion for historical learning and reading, he developed a keen interest in conservation and respect for the elements that make this country so great.”
His son’s passion for conservation continues through Notre Dame’s new center, Duda said.
“The generosity of the Duda family will enable the School of Architecture not only to build a first class degree in monument conservation, but also to provide resources to further equip the entire architecture program with the most important principles of sustainability and resilience to the mission of Notre Dame, to be a force for the good in the world, “said Stefanos Polyzoides, Dean of Architecture for Francis and Kathleen Rooney.
The family’s donation will support conservation goals and curricula in urbanism and traditional architecture, new faculty lines, financial assistance for students, and conference opportunities on campus, in Texas and Chicago, and through Notre Dame Global Gateways.
Fritz Duda, a university trustee, is the founder and president of the Dallas-based construction and development company Fritz Duda Co. and has played an active role in university planning over the years.
The Trustee has chaired the Facility and Campus Planning Committee and the International Facilities Committee of the Notre Dame Board of Directors, participated in the redevelopment of the Eddy Street Corridor south of campus, and acquired the facility for the university’s Rome Global Getaway.
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He served on the Advisory Board of the School of Architecture for seven years before being elected trustee in 1997 and an honorary doctorate in law in 2009.
The Duda family have also donated gifts to support student scholarships, endowed professorships, the university’s 16-acre Irish Green, and the Alliance for Catholic Education.
“Fritz and Mary Lee have been wonderful supporters of Notre Dame for decades,” said Notre Dame President Rev. John Jenkins. “We mourn Michael with you and celebrate his life with this extraordinary gift.”
Email South Bend Tribune Education Reporter Carley Lanich at clanich@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @carleylanich.
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