Micki Kidder, currently vice president for University Enterprises and Events (UEE) at the University of Notre Dame, has been named vice president for undergraduate enrollment effective July 1, an appointment by Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., following a national search.
“Micki is a proven leader with extensive experience and is deeply committed to Notre Dame and its mission,” Father Jenkins said. “With the talented team in the Enrollment Division, she will help us admit academically talented students who reflect the values of Notre Dame, will enrich the campus by their diverse experiences and backgrounds and, because of financial aid, will be given access regardless of financial situation.”
Kidder said: “I am humbled to serve Our Lady’s University in this new capacity, and grateful for Don Bishop and earlier predecessors for their strategic and selfless leadership. Ensuring that a Notre Dame education is accessible to future cohorts of talented students, our leaders of tomorrow, and to do so at a university I love so deeply, is a privilege and honor.”
With this appointment, Father Jenkins has made the leadership of the Enrollment Division a vice presidential position that will report to the president, with a secondary reporting line to the provost.
Kidder will succeed Don Bishop, associate vice president for undergraduate enrollment, who will retire June 30.
“The University owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to Don, who has overseen dramatic progress in our admitted classes and in the financial aid we were able to offer,” Father Jenkins said. “Any success we have in the future will build on the historic achievements made under his leadership.”
In her current role, Kidder provides strategic executive leadership to the University’s hospitality, licensing and merchandising programs, leading 30 business units across campus including the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore, the Morris Inn, Experience Notre Dame and Campus Dining, as well as most major campus events, including commencement, football game day hospitality and concerts in Notre Dame Stadium.
As the inaugural leader of the division of University Events and Enterprises, Kidder developed a division-wide strategic plan to reimagine the University’s hospitality offerings and ensure that students, staff, faculty, alumni and campus visitors enjoy a distinctive and inclusive Notre Dame experience that reflects both the University’s rich traditions as well as the vibrancy and energy of today’s campus.
An innovative and strategic leader in building diverse and inclusive cultures, Kidder created the Embrace initiative within UEE and has been a featured speaker at national conferences, including for the Council for Advancement and Support of Education and the ASU+GSV Summit.
Kidder also serves as a term assistant teaching professor of management and organization in Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business.
Previously a member of Notre Dame’s University Relations senior management team as associate vice president and executive director of development, Kidder played a key role in the University’s fundraising efforts, including leadership of the individual giving, athletics advancement, annual giving and advancement services teams.
Kidder first joined the University in 2004, serving in roles in the Offices of the President and Executive Vice President, where she managed major campus-wide initiatives such as the University’s Strategic Emergency Preparedness and Response Protocol and Office of the Board Secretariat.
Kidder is a 2000 graduate of the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University and a certified public accountant. She holds a certificate of education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and earned her Master of Business Administration degree from Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business in 2019.
Kidder and her husband, Scott, are parents to three children. Kidder is vice president of the Stanley Clark School board of trustees and member of the St. Joseph County Hotel-Motel Tax Board of Managers. She has been actively involved in other South Bend organizations, including the Boys and Girls Clubs of St. Joseph County, Family and Children’s Center, St. Joseph Parish and the Junior League of South Bend.
Shannon Cullinan, executive vice president of Notre Dame, has initiated an immediate search for Kidder’s successor in UEE.