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A Eulogy for Fr. Joyce

2004-05-05T20:00:00-04:00

Notre Dame President Rev. Edward A. “Monk” Malloy, C.S.C. delivered the following eulogy Tuesday during wake services for Father Joyce.

The first time I met Father Ned Joyce, he would have had no recall, because I was a first-year student here, and he was entrusted with the responsibility of giving words of wisdom to the entering class. I do remember how strikingly handsome he was, and even eloquent as a speaker. And he said those lines that you never forget: Look to your left, look to your right. They probably won’t be there when you graduate. It grabbed our attention. We knew that Notre Dame would be a good but competitive place and that we had to work hard to succeed here.

From that time until quite recently on Sunday morning Ned was distinguished by his service as an administrator, as a priest, as a representative of the University of Notre Dame. He traveled the world. He interacted with the rich and the poor alike. And he was always someone characterized by classiness, and taste, and hard work habits, and a fear that the bank would be empty tomorrow. To say that he had conservative financial instincts would be true, because his longtime collaborator and visionary friend was inclined in the other direction. Somehow they usually met in the middle, and Notre Dame balanced its budget and was able to achieve great things, in the physical structures of the campus, in the beauty of the natural surroundings, in the growth in the size and the quality of the faculty and, of course, in a whole range of extracurricular pursuits. And, in Neds eyes, particularly athletics, for he oversaw that dimension of Notre Dame for his whole professional career.

I know that if you had asked Ned, when he decided to apply to Holy Cross, even though he had a degree in accountancy, with distinction, from Notre Dame, and even though he was thought to be a charming and athletically talented personhe would have said something like,I want to be a priest, and celebrate Mass, and preach, and counsel and engage in sacramental ministry.Because the vast majority of us, when we come to Holy Cross, have a certain image of what we want to do. It motivates us. It ties us to Gospel message. And it gives us a sense we will be, in this generation, Christs agent and emissary to the world. Little did Ned know that he would spend most of his priestly ministry looking over accounting books, and writing reports, and running meetings, and raising money, and giving talks, and doing what we would call administration. But the funny thing is, if you go back and read Pauls first letter to the Corinthians, it talks about the different gifts of the spirit, and how the church or the body of Christ will prosper only when each is willing to give from the storehouse of the gift of the spirit, over which we have little control. And if, in the eyes of those in the community under the vow of obedience, they ask us to have our life take a particular shape or form, then that is our call. Being an administrator is nothing like being a parish priest, worrying about the physical plant of the church or the school, or being concerned about boilers, and providing for the stuff that undergirds the power of the community gathering of faith to celebrate the presence of the risen Lord in their midst. Or like the retreat house director who also has to worry about the stuff and the things and the money that make it all go. Or the bishop, primarily entrusted with the responsibility to be a representative of the apostles, who also has to worry as part of that service about these same sorts of things.

And because Ned was good at it, and because he gathered to assist him so many bright and talented people, Notre Dame could flourish. We could enjoy a kind of expansiveness, a focus, a sense of perspective, through multiple fund-raising campaigns, multiple strategic plans, through all kinds of transformations in the institutional structure: coeducation, the development of a lay Board of Trustees, and all kinds of ways in which we were challenged in the course of the evolution of our history.

Ned was not simply important as a leader here at Notre Dame. But he also played a comparable role as a representative of Catholic higher education in the broader academy and as a leader in the evolution of various athletic organizations for all the sports, for Division I football, for an openness to the role of the media, particularly television, as the coverage of football became more intense. And he helped Notre Dame to negotiate independence yet to have affiliation, with long-term relationships and rivalries with some of the best institutions in the country and the world.

Ned, of course, never knew how long that service would last. How long hed be called to be an administrator on all of our behalf. He did it without complaint. He did it enthusiastically. He did it with great class and quality. And we are, those of us of the present and future generations, in his debt.

For he was also, when called upon, a very powerful preacher and an excellent public speaker. I know that he was a bit shy and private. And yet, he was able to find that fount of language and rhetoric that could move audiences and attract people to the cause. He could oversee complicated opportunities to explain the evolution, the Notre Dame sense of itself, and to win the support of people who were often suspicious about changing what they had inherited from the past.

What a wonderful sense of teamwork and friendliness and solidarity he displayed in his long-term relationships with our leader, Father Ted Hesburgh. Ted was there for him in a time of declining health. Who traveled the world with him in the time of their retirements. Who shared their concerns about how things were going and what kind of continued role they could play in the life of this institution and in the life of our community.

I always wondered, when they traveled and Ted wrote a book, “Travels with Ted and Ned,” what it would have looked like if it had been “Travels with Ned and Ted,” the other side of the story. Good friends are like that. They can fill in the blanks. They can bring out the best in each other. And so we, looking on this wonderful friendship and relationship, can do nothing but admire it. They were there for each other until the very end.

We try to remember who the great people have been, in the history of this community and the history of this University. One of the ways of celebrating it is on the basement floor of the Main Building, what we call the Wall of Honor. Almost everyone honored there is now deceased. One of few who were still living, honored during his lifetime, was Father Ned Joyce. I think we know from our experience it was well deserved. He has provided a wonderful model and example for us of administrative service, as a priest of Holy Cross. He was faithful to the end. He was committed with all his energy and strength. And he was confident, as his health declined, that he would be welcomed into the arms of his Lord and Savior. We are consoled by the power of that message. We are in awe of the example he provided.

May we share his depth of faith and conviction as we look forward to the day we can join him again around the eternal banquet that Christ promises to those who have loved Him.

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(Opinion): Academics and Football: Notre Dame Traditions

2004-04-03T19:00:00-05:00

In November 2002, the Oakland Raiders receiver Tim Brown, a 1987 Heisman Trophy winner at Notre Dame, told a Denver Post interviewer about racial tensions he had encountered as an African-American in Texas and California.p. “When we were in L.A. it was pretty bad,” he said. “I had people who lived next to me who never spoke to me, who if I came outside would run in their house, like I was the bogeyman.”

Tim then talked about his college life. “When I went to Notre Dame, most of my friends were white and Chinese, all different kinds of nationalities. I left Notre Dame saying, `Wow, the world is really a great place.’ But being in L.A. and even back home in Dallas can be very eye-opening.”

Race remains an issue that is rarely far from the surface of American life. This was proved again last week when another Irish Heisman winner, Paul Hornung, said Notre Dame should lower its academic standards “because we must get the black athlete if we’re going to compete.”

Fortunately, Paul has since apologized for the insensitivity of those remarks, but the furor on ESPN and the sports pages has unleashed a torrent of theories and occasional misinformation about Notre Dame and its football program.

A few facts follow:

A majority of our current team and our incoming class of freshman players is African-American. The current scholarship roster includes 34 African-Americans and 33 white players. In the class arriving late this summer, 12 of the 17 are African-American.

Though there is a perception that our academic standards make it difficult for athletes to succeed, the graduation rate for Notre Dame student athletes was recognized last fall by USA Today as the best in the nation at 92 percent. In standings announced by the N.C.A.A. last December, we ranked sixth in graduating African-American athletes (78 percent).

Also, no university had more former players— 40— in the National Football League last season than Notre Dame.

Yes, our football team had a 5-7 record last season, after going 10-3 the season before. Over the years we have had many great seasons and a few dismal ones.

It is true that we admit some promising athletes who would not gain admission on their academic credentials alone. But we will not admit any student who does not have the capacity to attain a legitimate degree with his or her class. In the past 30 years, our standards for “special interests” have remained constant while the academic profile of the student body as a whole has grown even stronger.

In the face of stiffer competition academically, we feel a moral obligation to see that our athletes get a quality education and a meaningful degree. To achieve this, we surround our student athletes with a support system for academics and life skills.

As a Catholic university in Indiana, we may not seem like a natural choice for many African-American students, but we have made progress toward greater diversity. Our overall minority population has grown to 17 percent from 12 percent in 1984. Last year’s incoming freshman class hit 20 percent, and this year’s will as well.

In my years as president of Notre Dame, we have emphasized the importance of greater racial and ethnic diversity. As someone who teaches an English seminar each semester, I can assert from my firsthand experience that the African-American students are not only well qualified, but they also enhance considerably the overall learning environment here.

The university is committed to excellence and success in all that we do. We dearly want to win consistently in football. It is a major part of our heritage and our tradition. During my four undergraduate years (1959-63), Notre Dame had the worst record in football in the team’s modern history. Critics were decrying our ability to succeed. Yet, we rebounded to win several national championships.

In Tyrone Willingham, we have a head football coach who represents the best of what intercollegiate sports is all about. He will continue to recruit outstanding athletes who fit Notre Dame.

It is noteworthy that our commencement speaker this spring will be Alan Page, an African-American from Notre Dame who is a member of the collegiate and professional football Halls of Fame. He will speak to our graduates as a member of the Supreme Court of Minnesota and as the founder in 1988 of the Page Education Foundation, which has provided educational opportunities for 1,885 young people from deprived backgrounds.

After a disappointing season in football, we are not far from success. We expect to win, and to send into the world more men and women who succeed like Alan Page and represent all Notre Dame stands for.

Rev. Edward A. Malloy has been president of the University of Notre Dame since 1987.

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The Value of Variety in American Higher Education

2003-08-04T20:00:00-04:00

Last year, I received the sad news that a small Catholic college in New England with which I had personal and congregational connections had decided to close.p. Its faculty, staff, students, and alumni expressed great consternation. Unlike some other colleges in similar desperate condition, this institution did not attempt emergency measures or last-gasp appeals. The decision of the governing board was irreversible, and by the end of the school year, the college joined other underfunded institutions that recently have closed their doors.p. Meanwhile, in other parts of the country, new private institutions and new branches of state higher education systems have been taking shape on drawing boards or building sites. Within the Catholic network alone, new colleges have been planned in Georgia and Florida.p. From the vantage point of history, it may be inevitable that the cycle of life and death applies to higher education entities just as it does to living creatures and organizations. The reality, looking at the negative side, is that some colleges eventually are shown to have chosen the wrong location, or they lose their sense of mission, battle with chronic underfunding, or suffer from a string of incompetent administrators. A closing also may be caused by regional economic decline, or increased local competition for students, or even natural disaster.p. On the positive side, the opening of a new institution may spring from favorable demographic changes or a benefactor with a vision or improved economic conditions. In state-supported higher education, expansion seems to go along with periods of budget surpluses as well as heightened demand.p. The point is, in the midst of what may seem like natural forces of contraction and enlargement, we all have an interest in sustaining the hallmark variety in the types and sizes of colleges and universities that constitute our countryis loosely organized system of higher education.p. Such heterogeneity simply doesnit exist in many other parts of the world. The characteristic pattern elsewhere is a strong ministry of education at the federal level and a resulting monolithic form of state-supported higher education. This tendency is even more pronounced in countries that have autocratic or totalitarian forms of government. Even in democratic countries, either the number of private institutions is marginal or their capacity to gain academic respect is limited by the absence of a tradition of philanthropy directed to higher education.p. By contrast, we in the United States have benefited enormously from the rich array of institutions, each with its distinctive sense of purpose, tradition, and constituencies deliberately served. Nowhere else can one find institutions specifically created to serve underrepresented minorities or Native Americans, for example. In no other country is there such an impressive range of religious-affiliated institutions (such as the 130 or so currently under Roman Catholic auspices) reflecting the multiple religious traditions present here.p. We have single-sex colleges and military academies and small liberal arts colleges. Community colleges provide opportunities for adult learners, recent immigrants, and those holding full-time jobs. Land-grant universities, local and regional campuses, and world-class flagship institutions serve millions of students. The Ivies and other top research institutions are among the best in the world. Even the newest entrepreneurial for-profit education and e-learning providers contribute to the diversity of opportunity and access that characterizes American higher education.p. In the face of todayis challenging economic climate and intense pressures from our multiple constituencies, I urge boards to lend encouragement and support to one another across the spectrum of institutional diversity. Our differentiation of identity, mission, and sense of purpose is our greatest national resource.p. I recommended three concrete steps: (1) Get to know board members from other higher education institutions; (2) read widely in the literature on higher education; and (3) be a public advocate for all of American higher education, especially in the face of budgetary pressures and sometimes-hostile critiques.p. We share more in common than we sometimes realize. We should all shed a tear when one of our peer institutions succumbs to harsh circumstances beyond its control. But we also should take heart from the persistence and strength of the vast majority of colleges and universities in this country. We have inherited what arguably is the worldis best and most diverse system of higher education. May we do everything we can to enhance it.p. p. Edward A. Malloy, C.S.C., is president of the University of Notre Dame.

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Trusteeship Magazine: Five Precepts For Showing Leadership In a Time of Crisis

2003-05-27T20:00:00-04:00

No blueprint or set of procedures can substitute for good judgment and lessons learned from concrete experience. p. The terrorist attacks of September 11 are unsurpassed for the horror they inflicted on Americans of all walks. Many college and university presidents have movingly described what subsequently took place on their campuses. Seemingly, each institution operated out of its own sense of tradition and responsibility for the common good. As a religiously affiliated institution, we at Notre Dame instinctively turned to rituals of prayer and symbolization.

Years ago, I had a conversation with John Lombardi, then president of the University of Florida, about how he and his team handled the aftermath of multiple murders of young women in neighborhoods surrounding the university. Unsubstantiated rumors and a sense that things were out of control worked against effective management of a difficult situation. He insisted on the need for a unified voice and effective communication with numerous constituencies. So when we at Notre Dame went through the trauma of a bus accident that killed two and injured 18 members of our women’s swim team, I drew upon the conversation with Lombardi in mulling how I would respond.

Recently, I was part of a panel discussion during which the presidents of Texas A&M, Seton Hall, and Indiana University described how their institutions dealt with the three crises, all of which made national headlinesthe collapse of a log pile teeming with students preparing a bonfire, a fire in a student dormitory, and the dismissal of a popular but controversial basketball coach. As part of the discussion, we analyzed the president’s responsibilities in overseeing the decision making and in coordinating the efforts of many different institutional components.

The range of things that can go wrong in our institutions is as extensive as the human condition and nature’s vagaries. Some schools have had to recover from tornados, floods, hurricanes, and other “acts of God.” Then there are always demonstrations for one cause or another, instances of misappropriation of funds, scandals involving sex or personal peccadilloes, and bad blood and acrimony across major academic units. In all such cases, presidential leadership is necessary, but no blueprint or set of procedures can substitute for good judgment and lessons learned from concrete experience.

One of the participants on the panel asked whether every institution represented had a prepared disaster plan. Some of the presidents replied that they did; others werent sure; and still others were not yet convinced of the importance of a formal plan.

For myself, I have had greater confidence in straightforward conversations with peers who have exercised a responsibility similar to my own as well as in reading case studies of related historical events. Heres what I have learned about dealing with crises:

1. Accurate information is essential to making informed and proper decisions. It is better to postpone action until a clear picture emerges than to set processes in motion that will later force backtracking. This is especially true in cases of human misbehavior.

2. Presidential leadership is crucial in calling the right combination of actors together to mobilize a collective effort. But it does not necessarily follow that the president must be the institution’s spokesperson. This often is best left to the director of public information.

3. Communication with all appropriate constituencies is vital to engage support for the institutions actions and to allay fears based on misinformation. It is often parents of students on residential campuses who worry most for the well-being of their daughters or sons.

4. Those with special levels of responsibility, such as the board chair, other officers, and individuals who have direct responsibility for those who might be affected, should be kept fully informed as early and reliably as possible.

5. When everything seems to be most chaotic, try to maintain a sense of humor. One thing an adult life teaches is that individuals can recover from even the worst kinds of calamities. Our campus communities are far more resilient than we sometimes give them credit for. Read about the history of your institution, and you may be reminded that things appeared to be just as bleak a decade or a century ago. If we as presidents maintain our sense of poise and perspective, we can provide a good model for the campus community.

In the end, composure and self-assurance in times of crisis are essential to good leadership. Our job is not to carry the burden in solitary splendor but to engage effectively the talent, goodwill, and energy of the institution as a whole. If we can come close to approaching this goal, we will experience anew the privilege of being called to serve the common good.

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"Taking the High Road on Alcohol Abuse"

1998-06-28T20:00:00-04:00

From our student constituency, we hear the perennial refrains: “There’s nothing to do on the weekends except drink,” “we need to have some way to release our academic stress, so we drink,” or “we’re old enough to make our own decisions about where alcohol fits in our lives and no one can stop us.” From our faculty, we sense an uneasiness about giving priority to alcohol policies- perhaps because they recall collegiate indiscretions of their own, because they are far removed from regular encounters with inebriated students, or even out of fear of encouraging further administrative inroads into campus life. From parents, the feedback we receive is mixed: “Make student life as safe and supportive of academic success as possible, but if my son or daughter gets into trouble, give him or her a second or even a third chance.”p. It really is only from the front lines of exposure or intervention that the call to act decisively on alcohol abuse is rendered consistently and with a sense of urgency- from dormitory rectors, from the campus security force, from the health center, and from residents in neighborhoods with heavy student concentrations.p. In the past academic year, we have witnessed a rash of large-scale campus disorders related to alcohol abuse, either in protest of specific campus policies or as an offshoot of springfests where heavy outdoor consumption of alcohol is tolerated or even fostered. When the local police have become involved, the results have been rock throwing, fires, overturned cars, tear gas, and injury to people, property, and the reputation of the institution.p. Even more distressing, because so poignant, has been a series of highly publicized student deaths directly connected to alcohol- the results of Greek initiation rites, athletic event parties, falls from high places, and random instances of overdrinking by the inexperienced or the chronically abusing.p. What is a president to do? Is not alcohol use and abuse on campus a no-win issue that is best left on the periphery of administrative preoccupations and addressed head-on only when pressure from the governing board, the state legislature, or the non-student part of the campus community becomes too intense?p. I would argue that it is incumbent upon us as college and university presidents to lead the way in fostering an improved campus climate with regard to alcohol use. Much good can be achieved by properly mobilizing our various communities, as long as we are realistic in our expectations for change. The first challenge is to have the courage to evaluate the situation on one’s own campus and, in the process, to make an assessment of the extent of the alcohol abuse problem and the forms and patterns that it assumes at one’s institution.p. We know much more about the extent of the problem across the extent of the problem across the country than we used to. In 1994, I chaired the Commission on Substance Abuse at Colleges and Universities, which issued the report “Rethinking Rites of Passage: Substance Abuse on America’s Campuses.” This report and a host of other studies by government and university researchers have laid out the contours of the problem:
-One in three college students reports drinking to get drunk on a regular basis.
-Women now drink to get drunk at rates equal to men.
-Nearly 40 percent of women and more than 50 percent of men engage in binge drinking (defined as downing more than five drinks in one sitting).
-Students living in fraternities and sororities report drinking rates that are three times those of other students
-White males consume more alcohol in a given week than any other student group.
-Excessive use of alcohol is implicated in most reported rapes, in the vast majority of other violent crimes on campus, and in the contraction of sexually transmitted diseases.
-The abuse of alcohol negatively affects academic performance.*

This is a sense of the national picture. After a campus evaluation is completed and the extent of the problem has been ascertained (in descriptive or comparative terms), the next challenge is what to do. Which programs, projects, or people can offer assistance?p. To help in our own evaluation, Notre Dame participated in the 1993 and 1997 Harvard 91��Ƶ of Public Health College Alcohol 91��Ƶ. We found the information very helpful in assessing patterns of alcohol use on our campus. In addition, the principal investigator in the study, Henry Wechsler, has served as a consultant to our Office of Student Affairs, reviewing our current policies and programs and recommending initiatives to address our specific challenges.p. The first instinct of many educators is to propose putting a course in the curriculum or making some program mandatory for the student body. This is a desirable step, but far from adequate. Research suggests that education in and of itself does not change behavior. Learning about the physiological and psychological effects of various quantities of alcohol consumption by body mass or the different metabolism rates of male and female drinkers is not sufficient to shake the individual’s craving or the influence of group drinking practices.p. While educational programs related to alcohol abuse are necessary first steps, they need to be integrated into a more comprehensive effort. As a second component of such a strategy, campus leaders should review the current disciplinary and intervention policies for alcohol-related misbehavior. And in fairness, we should all strive for consistency in substance abuse policies dealing with staff, faculty, administration, and student misconduct. For example, at Notre Dame, the Office of Human Resources reviewed our substance abuse policy for staff, and our faculty senate has done the same for the faculty policy.p. For about 10 percent of the general population, alcoholism will permanently affect their physical and emotional health and well-being. Interventions in these types of cases should help the individual find the resources (personal and social) for a lifetime of sobriety.p. A much larger part of the population will be problem drinkers in irregular patterns and at different times in their lives. While the vast majority of experts agree that alcoholism is a disease with both physiological and environmental causes, there is no comparable consensus about why drinking to get drunk is morally unacceptable- whether because it is prohibited by religious teaching, threatening to personal or group safety, demeaning to one’s rationality, or contradictory to the capacity for human relatedness. the fact is that the social context of the college years (especially for the traditional 18- to 22-year-old cohort) will tend to enable problem drinkers to act out with impunity, absorbed into the broader collectivity. Thus, for this group (and even for the occasional drinker who does something stupid), intervention should be directly related to the form and degree of unacceptable conduct.p. Like all university policies, those related to alcohol abuse need to be enforced fairly, consistently, and with a fitting sense of proportionality. But we surrender our proper moral responsibility if we choose not to invoke the sanctions available to us.p. A third component of an organized and all-embracing effort is to seek student involvement in changing the accepted practices and traditions of the campus. One group of students who often go unrecognized are those who choose not to drink at all. They may feel marginalized by campus party and dating patterns, especially if they are making the transition from high school to college, yet non-drinking students can be a valuable resource in promoting alcohol-free social alternatives. At Notre Dame, the Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs makes funds available to subsidize alcohol-free activities.p. For a larger percentage of the student body (many of whom come to college with established patterns of alcohol use), the ultimate appeal is for moderation. Many institutions try to engage the cooperation of this group by setting standards for how parties are to be given and how much alcohol can be served. this dovetails with additional steps such as requiring trained servers, instituting prior registration, and restricting advertising and sponsorship. One dilemma that inhibits all of these efforts is the national drinking age of 21. The more overtly that administrations get involved in promoting moderate drinking, the more susceptible they are to legal action. After weighing the available options, however, I favor taking the risk of advocating moderation. At Notre Dame (and, I suspect, elsewhere), there is not enough support from our constituencies to make a totally dry campus a feasible option. However, there is widespread support for strong action that encourages moderation.p. In addition to student cooperation, we need faculty participation. There is no compatibility between our aspiration to be centers of academic excellence and the reality that we too often are way stations for persistent drunkenness and riotous disturbance. We should all assist in developing a new student peer culture in which alcohol is not the center of campus social life and those of legal age who choose to imbibe can do so in a safe, responsible manner.p. There are indeed signs of progress on many of our campuses. Student organizations dedicated to reducing alcohol abuse are flourishing. Educational professionals with expertise in substance abuse are active in the student affairs and health services operations at many of our institutions. Faculty groups and governing boards are seeking to define a proper role for themselves in confronting this disturbing issue. Furthermore, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) at the National Institutes of Health has provided substantial funds for university-based research. NIAAA also has undertaken a major initiative (with governmental and presidential support) to seek out the best available research data on alcohol use and abuse at American colleges and universities, and to disseminate information about successful programs and strategies.p. The problems of binge drinking and widespread alcohol abuse will not soon disappear from our campuses. But with thoughtful presidential leadership, we can creatively engage our communities to prevent those forms of alcohol-induced conduct that violate our sense of peace and security and that make us passive contributors to the degradation of student lives.p. * Commission on Substance Abuse at Colleges and Universities, “Rethinking Rites of Passage: Substance Abuse on America’s Campuses” (New York: National Center on Addition and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. June 1994)

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