Location
2851 Overland Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90064
United States
Date & Time
5:30pm PDT - 9:30pm PDT
Price
About This Event
The Making a Difference Gala is officially SOLD OUT!
We are incredibly humbled and grateful by the overwhelming demand to attend this year's gala.
If you were unable to secure a ticket, we encourage you to please sign up for the waitlist. As sponsors and guests schedules change, tickets may become avaliable.
Notre Dame Academy invites you to celebrate its 75th anniversary at the Making a Difference Gala on Saturday, April 12, 2025.
Notre Dame Academy's iconic campus will be the backdrop for an unforgettable night celebrating the legacy and bright future of Notre Dame Academy.
In honor of 75 extraordinary years, we will honor the enduring spirit of the Sisters of Notre Dame with a special tribute and recognition of their remarkable impact.
This year, we are thrilled to honor Chris Cervenak '78 with the St. Julie Billiart Making a Difference Award in recognition of her exceptional commitment to making a difference.
The Making a Difference Gala is NDA's largest yearly event to support the tuition assistance program, with more than one million dollars raised since its inception in 2020.
Your support makes a difference in the lives of NDA students. 100% of the proceeds from tickets, sponsorships and donations provide direct and immediate tuition assistance to the nearly 45% of students receiving aid.
About This Event
The Making a Difference Gala is officially SOLD OUT!
We are incredibly humbled and grateful by the overwhelming demand to attend this year's gala.
If you were unable to secure a ticket, we encourage you to please sign up for the waitlist. As sponsors and guests schedules change, tickets may become avaliable.
Notre Dame Academy invites you to celebrate its 75th anniversary at the Making a Difference Gala on Saturday, April 12, 2025.
Notre Dame Academy's iconic campus will be the backdrop for an unforgettable night celebrating the legacy and bright future of Notre Dame Academy.
In honor of 75 extraordinary years, we will honor the enduring spirit of the Sisters of Notre Dame with a special tribute and recognition of their remarkable impact.
This year, we are thrilled to honor Chris Cervenak '78 with the St. Julie Billiart Making a Difference Award in recognition of her exceptional commitment to making a difference.
The Making a Difference Gala is NDA's largest yearly event to support the tuition assistance program, with more than one million dollars raised since its inception in 2020.
Your support makes a difference in the lives of NDA students. 100% of the proceeds from tickets, sponsorships and donations provide direct and immediate tuition assistance to the nearly 45% of students receiving aid.
Thank You to the Making a Difference Gala Sponsors
St. Julie Billiart Sponsors
Del Rey Party Rentals
Platinum Sponsors
Cecelia Kennedy Assaf ‘78 and Jeff Assaf
Alex and Nora Chaves
Christine Cervenak ‘78 and Steve Reifenberg
Gold Sponsors
Brian and Teresa Carlson
Pat and Kate Barrera
Nancy Coonis
Henry and Susie Jordan
Dwight and Christine Landis ‘65
Silver Sponsors
Concezio and Roseanne Di Gregorio ‘64
Erin Sullivan-Ward ‘82
Romeo Santos and Mary Blomer-Santos ‘82
Bruno and Ellen Tonin
Crown Sponsors
Robert and Janice Arsenault
Chris and Aarti McDonald
Michael and Michelle Berlin
Mark and Lucyna Nixon
Liz Roland and Robert Scott
Barbara Roth
Mauricio and Myriam Silva
Anthony and Takako Taketa
Daniel T. Alvy Foundation
Valet Sponsor
Auction Sponsors
Los Angeles Rams
Amalfi Jets -Global Private Jet Charter
Matthew and Dina Wiggins
Fairmont Century Plaza
Lexus
Angel City FC
Pendry Newport Beach
John O’Groats
2025 St. Julie Billiart Making a Difference Honoree: Chris Cervenak '78
Notre Dame Academy is thrilled to honor Chris Cervenak, alumna of the Class of 1978, with the 2025 St. Julie Billiart Making a Difference Award. This award acknowledges an alumna who exempifies the school's mission of making a difference.
With over 30 years of experience in human rights and international law, Christine Cervenak has focused her efforts on advocacy, strategic consulting, teaching and research.
Chris served in the Office of the Legal Advisor of the U.S. Department of State, as Legal Officer for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency’s West Bank Operations, and with the UN’s peace operation in El Salvador. She worked extensively in strategic planning and conflict resolution, consulting to such clients as The Asia Foundation, Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation, USAID and Mercy International Association. While living in Santiago, Chile, she was a director at the University of Chile Law School’s Human Rights Center. For six years, she was the Associate Director at the University of Notre Dame’s Center for Civil and Human Rights, where her teaching and research focused on issues of human rights and human trafficking. She also taught on these topics on the inside, with the Moreau College Initiative at Westville Correctional Facility.
A University of Notre Dame graduate, she studied at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, earned a J.D. from UCLA, clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and was a Visiting Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Human Rights Program. In 2001, she was honored by Notre Dame with the Rev. John J. Cavanaugh, CSC, Award for public service. From 2021-23, she successfully completed the C.G. Jung Institute of Chicago’s Jungian Studies Program.
Chris currently leans into non-profit board service, now on the Board of Directors of Geneva-based International Bridges to Justice and the U.S.-based Alliance to End Human Trafficking. She is married to Steve Reifenberg, with three children: Natasha, Alexandra and Luke.
Congratulations to Chris!
Event Details
The Making a Difference Gala promises to be a vibrant celebration of the spirit, legacy and bright future of Notre Dame Academy.
The evening begins at 5:30 p.m. with a lively cocktail party in front of Rosa Mystica Hall (formerly the convent). Guests are invited to wear black-tie optional attire and indulge in passed hors d'oeuvres and an open bar while mingling with friends, alumnae and NDA faculty and staff. Enjoy upbeat live music, strike a pose at photo-worthy installations and immerse yourself in the energy of a community united to honor 75 years of excellence.
At 7:00 p.m., the celebration continues as guests step into the transformed gymnasium, reimagined into an elegant gala setting. The space will come alive with dynamic decor, creating the perfect backdrop for a program filled with inspiration, entertainment and the joy of celebrating Notre Dame Academy’s incredible legacy and vision for the future. Guests will savor a thoughtfully curated dinner served during the program.
As the program concludes, the celebration carries on under the stars with lively dancing on the school’s front lawn. Together, we’ll close the night on a high note, toasting to 75 remarkable years and the bright horizon ahead!
Getting There
Notre Dame Academy High School
2851 Overland Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90064
United States
Contact
If you have any questions regarding the Making a Difference Gala, please do not hesitate to contact Liz Roland, director of advancement, at advancement@ndala.com or by phone at (310) 839-5289 x212.
Go Regals!
Location
2851 Overland Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90064
United States
Date & Time
5:30pm PDT - 9:30pm PDT
Price
Dress Code
Black-Tie Optional