Carolyn Perez (American Studies, Letter to Provost)

Dear Dr. Burish [University Provost]:

I am currently a senior American Studies major at Notre Dame. I was recently nominated by the Director of Undergraduate Studies in my major to take part in a discussion about possible changes to the core curriculum with Dean Greg Crawford and Dean John McGreevy. I am writing to you because I am concerned about the University’s core curriculum review. It has come to my attention that there is a strong push to significantly reduce or even eliminate the requirement of two Theology courses for Notre Dame students.

Throughout my four years, I have been continually amazed by and grateful for Notre Dame’s distinctive Catholic community. I chose Notre Dame because it is the world’s premier Catholic University and I need not further explain the uniqueness and worldwide fame of Notre Dame. Removing, or even diminishing, the theology requirement for undergraduate students would severely undermine the University’s mission and would rob students—especially those who wouldn’t normally seek out theology classes—from an introduction to theology, Scripture, and the Catholic tradition on which Notre Dame prides itself.

The theology classes I took here at Notre Dame are incredibly valuable to me. Not only did they challenge me to think critically in a way that I was not used to, but they also instilled in me a genuine love for my Catholic faith, and a desire to continue to seek it out in other ways. As a result of these classes, I have engaged in conversations and participated in service projects and activities with my peers that have shaped me into the person I am today.

I strongly believe that if Notre Dame wants to have a core curriculum and simultaneously pride itself in being a Catholic University, theology classes must be part of its core curriculum for the very reasons the University articulated 10 years ago. If you do feel strongly that the theology requirement needs to be revised, I would encourage you to look at ways of modifying the current structure without taking away the number of mandatory classes. Professor John Cavadini’s “The Catholic Faith” could be a good course to look at and could even be considered as an alternative for the current foundational theology course.

I am confident that if you are really committed to maintaining the University’s Catholic mission, you will fight to keep the theology requirement as part of the core curriculum. Thank you for all of the work you do at Notre Dame, and for taking the time to read my letter. Please continue to listen to the voices of students like me who are proud of Notre Dame’s Catholic identity and who want to keep it alive in all aspects of student life.