The Laura Shannon Endowed Medieval Collection was established in 1999 by Michael (’58) and Laura Shannon, to benefit Notre Dame’s Medieval Institute and to recognize its international reputation and Laura’s interest in French culture.

Michael is president of Meshannon & Associates, Inc., a Houston-based financial consulting firm. At Notre Dame, he is on the Advisory Council for Graduate Studies and Research. Laura is on the Advisory Board of the Nanovic Institute for European Studies. They have two daughters, Claire and Kathryn.

The Medieval Institute Library is internationally prominent and unparalleled in North America. The collection’s quality, accessibility, and breadth draw scholars from around the world. The Shannon Endowment has propelled this distinction. The fund has made it possible to acquire books related to Old and Middle English and Old Norse; rare materials, such as an early printing of the New Testament in the Gothic language; and the Privy Council Proceedings, early records of British monarchs. Recent purchases funded in part by the endowment include two French manuscripts and a mid-19th- century account of restoration work done on St. Louis’ Sainte-Chapelle in Paris.

The Shannons, members of the Sorin Society and the Badin Guild, have also established the Laura Shannon Book Prize in Contemporary European Studies Endowment for Excellence for the Nanovic Institute, the Shannon Family Graduate Fellowships, the Michael and Laura Shannon Scholarship, and the Laura Shannon Fellowships in Medieval Studies.