Being from Indiana, I know Notre Dame University is exceptional. With a rich history of excellence and a beautiful campus, it’s certainly one of the most coveted places to go to college in the country.
Unfortunately, the golden dome is about to turn patina if plans move forward for the university to not only accept illegal aliens but to defray a huge portion of their $57,000 per year room and board cost with private funds. Until now, illegal aliens could only be admitted as foreign exchange students which meant that they had to procure an F-1 student visa to attend.
I know countless friends and acquaintances who desperately wanted to get into Notre Dame but who couldn’t be admitted because it’s so competitive. These were no slouches either. Some had 4.0 grade point averages, amazing athletic ability, or tremendous musical talent. The high standards of Notre Dame and the deep desire of many students to attend the university were best captured in the film, Rudy. Although that movie dealt with the rarified air of college football, it did illustrate an allegiance to Notre Dame which drives many kids to risk a lot to get there.
While the campus is beautiful, the university is located in the most depressing city in the state (other than Gary–sorry Ron Howard and Michael Jackson). Besides the general dreary atmosphere of the city itself, the populous deals with lake effect temperatures and snow. Think Chicago only without the cool buildings, nightlife, or really anything terribly exciting. Clearly, Notre Dame must be a stellar school for so many people to endure such a dour place just to go there.
Notre Dame is highly ranked when it comes to securing a degree and it ranks right up there with Yale and Princeton in finding desirable employment post-graduation. Almost any employer is happy to hire a Notre Dame grad.
Now it looks like the competition just got much harder. That might not be hard to take if it was based on talent or grades. No, instead of some criteria most people can understand, the new policy is based on status as an illegal alien.
So let’s get this straight. Notre Dame has always rewarded hard work, dedication, and character. At least, that’s what they’ve said. That’s kind of hard to really believe when they announce plans to reward people who’ve come to this country the wrong way. At the same time, they’re taking coveted spots from American citizens and foreign students who are in the country legally.
To top it all off, the school is willing to pretty much pay these kids’ tuition, room, and board. What a deal! Talk about sending the wrong message and lowering the standards of a great institution. I assume they think this is somehow the compassionate thing to do. I disagree. I see nothing Christian about taking away opportunities from good kids by rewarding bad behavior. Granted, most of these illegal aliens were children brought here by their parents. Still, when they take spots from people who are here legally, that’s wrong and that’s what is being proposed.
So many kids have to take out loans and work their butts off to get a good education. Wouldn’t it be nice to have it all paid for because of no other reason than you’re here illegally? Does that really make sense?
Hopefully, alumni or donors will put pressure on the university to end this travesty before it begins. Maybe the Fighting Irish who’ve graduated will seek to uphold the great Notre Dame tradition instead of turning the school into an illegal alien squatter’s school.