Every 10 years the University of Notre Dame reviews its Core Curriculum for undergraduate studies. Notre Dame's Core is currently comprised of 14 courses in nine separate disciplines or areas:
- Writing and Rhetoric (2)
- Mathematics (2)
- Science (2)
- History (1)
- Social Science (1)
- Theology (2)
- Philosophy (2)
- Fine Arts or Literature (1)
- Physical Education (2)
In the review that is currently underway, Notre Dame's administration has put "everything on the table," meaning all of the above requirements including Theology and Philosophy. The fact that these are "on the table" means that the University's administration has deemed even the Theology requirement as non-essential for the Catholic education that its mission and identity requires it to provide. You don't put something "on the table" if it is essential. This is a cause for alarm not only for all those who have a stake in the University of Notre Dame, but also for those who care about the Catholic Church and Catholic higher education in this country. Even now, Notre Dame requires fewer courses in Theology than most of its peers - e.g., Catholic University of America (4), Franciscan University of Steubenville (3), and its sister Holy Cross institution, the University of Portland (3). The potential reduction or elimination of the Theology requirement at what is arguable the most visible and influential Catholic university in the country is a significant issue.
While concerned members of various Core Curriculum Review committees and focus groups noted some time ago that there was an aggressive push for "radical change" coming from the very highest ranks of the University administration, there was no public evidence for this agenda for change until the beginning of February. At that time - in a public debate - the head of the Catholic Identity focus group of the Core Curriculum Review declared that he could see no reason why one Theology course requirement wouldn't suffice and even claimed that a preferred outcome would be to do away with the disciplinary requirements altogether, moving instead to a "learning goals" model where the requirements could be met by taking courses in any number of different areas. In the middle of this view, the foundational discipline of a Catholic University - i.e., Theology - is headed for either significant diminishment or removal for the required Core. We are all for the spread of Catholic identity throughout the disciplines at Notre Dame, but in collaboration with and not at the expense of the discipline of Theology, which is essential.
This purpose of this blog is not to address the entire issue, but rather to offer testimonies from former students and others about the importance of the Theology requirement at the University of Notre Dame. In the end, not only do we believe that the two course Theology requirement should remain in place, but we also advocate for the addition of at least one more and perhaps two more Theology courses to the Core, bringing Notre Dame at least up to the level of other Catholic institutions in the country. As for making the case for the rationale of such a proposal, we leave that to the giants who know a lot more than we do (some of whom have written or spoken on this matter publicly already - see our "Media re: Core Review" page for a list of selected articles).
Thank you for thinking about this with us.
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