On Thursday, May 11, 2023, Notre Dame Seminary held its annual Baccalaureate Mass and Commencement Ceremony. Forty-six lay and seminarian graduates earned degrees and certificates of completion in philosophy, theology, and pastoral leadership. In the commencement exercises, Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre, Archbishop of Louisville, received the honorary Doctorate of Letters in acknowledgement and in gratitude for his ministry in the state of Louisiana as a priest of the Diocese of Baton Rouge (ordained in 1989), an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of New Orleans (2007-2013), and as bishop of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux (2013-2022). We congratulate our graduates, especially those who are preparing for ordination in the coming weeks!
2023 Degree Candidates
Honorary Degree
Archbishop Shelton J Fabre
Archbishop of Louisville
Master of Divinity Degree
Davis Ahimbisibwe – Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux
Carlisle Wesley Beggerly – Diocese of Jackson
Reed Michael Bellingham – Diocese of Lafayette
Albert Lee Blount – Diocese of Baton Rouge
Joseph Richard Bresowar – Diocese of Baton Rouge
Joshua Gavin Burch – Diocese of Alexandria
Steven Troy Chabarria – Diocese of Tyler
David Michael Doyle – Archdiocese of New Orleans
John Karol Dugas – Diocese of Lafayette
Cory Paul Ford – Archdiocese of New Orleans
Jude Tadeo Friday – Archdiocese of Tororo
Vu Mark Nguyen – Diocese of Dallas
Dennis Joseph O’Donnell – Diocese of Dallas
Stephen Joshua Page – Diocese of Lake Charles
Long Thanh Pham – Archdiocese of New Orleans
Kevin Alden Seay – Archdiocese of New Orleans
Steven Michael Shlapak – Archdiocese of Atlanta
Miguel Ángel Sotelo – Diocese of Dallas
Master of Philosophy (Philosophy for Theological Studies) Degree
Joel Benjamin McMichael – Diocese of Tyler
Aeli Conrad Poydras – Diocese of Baton Rouge
Pre-Theology Completion Certificate
Simon Peter Kagimu – Archdiocese of New Orleans
Bachelor of Philosophy (Philosophy for Theological Studies) Degree
Victor Luis Baez-Rodriguez – Diocese of Tyler
Jacob Thomas Cass – Diocese of Alexandria
Patrick Thomas Cook – Diocese of Tyler
Louis Joseph Jensen – Diocese of Austin
Benjamin Avila Martinez – Diocese of Austin
Jarrett Case McBride – Diocese of Memphis
Jean Carlo Mindiola Delgado – Diocese of Austin
Chinh Ngo – Diocese of Austin
Johnathan Huynh Nguyen – Archdiocese of Atlanta
Luiz Paulo Parolini Dutra – Diocese of Memphis
Hoang Ngoc Pham – Archdiocese of New Orleans
Seth Allen Smith – Archdiocese of New Orleans
Austin Joseph Thomas – Archdiocese of Atlanta
Master of Arts (Theological Studies) Degree
David James Furka – Diocese of Lafayette
Kevin Mark Kolker – Diocese of Dallas
Michael Coleman Vidrine – Diocese of Lafayette
Master of Arts in Pastoral Leadership Degree
Stephanie Blakemore Bollman
Virginia Figueredo Callaway
Gabriel Cisneros Campos – Diocese of Shreveport
Susan Hotard May
Rachel Catherine Moore
Edward Sebastian Rapier Jr.
Milhado “Lee” Shaffer III
Noella Therese Small
Laurie Lombard Smith
