The Reverend John J. Cavanaugh, C.S.C., Discretionary Fund was established in 1999 by the late John F. “Jack” Nash in honor of his friend, Father John Cavanaugh, C.S.C. The story of Notre Dame’s modern academic ascendancy begins in the postwar administration of Father Cavanaugh, who served as the University’s president from 1946 to 1952. During this time, the Institute of Medieval Studies was organized, undergraduate enrollment increased by more than half, and graduate student enrollment grew five-fold. Father Cavanaugh also established the system of advisory councils, which continues today and is vital to the University’s development.

Jack Nash spent his career in banking, and at Notre Dame, served on the Hesburgh Libraries Advisory Council for thirty years. He also established the John F. Nash Family General Library Endowment.

The Hesburgh Libraries face a dynamic information environment in which cutting-edge scholarship and state-of-the-art technology are constantly redefined. The Cavanaugh Discretionary Fund was established to support the director of the Libraries, placing at his or her disposal funds that will allow efficient responses to opportunities that arise outside the normal budgeting process. Under this endowment, the Hesburgh Libraries have established new programs aimed at enhancing the ability of faculty and students to do their scholarly work more easily, such as the expansion of the Document Delivery service to graduate students and the addition of hundreds of thousands of e-books to the collection.