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The State of Catholic Higher Education

Patrick J. Reilly
Mr. Reilly is the founder and president of The Cardinal Newman Society. A frequent commentator on Catholic higher education issues,
he co-edited Newman’s Idea of a University: The American Response and served as an analyst for the U.S. Dept. of Education.

The Newman Guide gives The Cardinal New- and the Church’s pro-life efforts. President
man Society the opportunity to highlight Obama was freely given a Catholic university
Catholic colleges which embrace the mission platform to reiterate his support for abortion.
of Catholic higher education with enthusiasm Without serious consequence—at least by
and general consistency. secular standards—Notre Dame ignored the
But what about the Catholic colleges that forceful protests of 83 American bishops and
are not included? more than 367,000 signers to The Cardinal
The reasons why we have chosen not to Newman Society’s petition.
profile other Catholic colleges vary with each Most Catholic colleges have secularized
institution, often ranging from a lukewarm considerably over the past 40 years, such
Catholic identity to serious scandal. It is not that anyone who attended these colleges in
our intent to imply that any institution is not the 1960s or earlier would scarcely recognize
Catholic—only the bishops have the authority them today. It is no surprise that more than
to make that determination—and the contrast half the colleges in The Newman Guide were
between The Newman Guide colleges and at established after 1970, most in reaction to the
least a few other Catholic institutions is not rapid decline of faithful Catholic education in
strong. We are seeing improvements in Cath- this country.
olic higher education each year. The good news is that a nationwide re-
Nevertheless, the crisis in Catholic high- newal of Catholic higher education is under-
er education is far from over. Generally, but way, and scandals like the Notre Dame com-
certainly not always, families seeking a Cath- mencement honors have only helped mobilize
olic education outside the colleges identified support for significant reform. Not only are
here will discover a sad state of affairs. new, faithful Catholic colleges springing up—
This was starkly evident in May 2009, bishops, religious orders and lay leaders are
when the University of Notre Dame decided planning to establish several more in the next
to bestow an honorary degree on President decade—but nearly every Catholic college in
Barack Obama, further honoring him as the the United States has increased attention to
featured commencement speaker. Acknowl- its core mission. We hope to be able to recom-
edging that the President staunchly supports mend even more colleges in the near future.
abortion rights and had recently expanded Knowledge of these trends is important
embryonic stem cell research, the university to families who are seeking a Catholic college.
justified the honor as an “opportunity for A basic understanding of the state of Catholic
dialogue,” even though a commencement higher education today is valuable not only as
ceremony allows no opportunity for true dia- a precaution, but also as confirmation of the
logue. great treasures we have in the colleges pro-
The result was serious damage to Ameri- filed in this second edition of The Newman
cans’ understanding of “Catholic identity” Guide.

The Newman Guide 21


The State of Catholic Higher Education

Identity Crisis Catholic teaching and offering courses with


no clear indication of whether they are genu-
Notwithstanding the great strides the Church ine Catholic theology courses;
is making with regard to Catholic higher edu- • a faculty with a significant portion
cation, currently most U.S. Catholic colleges (sometimes a large majority) of non-Catholics
that are not in this Guide fall into two catego- and non-practicing Catholics, often including
ries: openly homosexual and dissenting profes-
First, most of them have retained some sors;
degree of Catholic identity, but their leaders • guest lecturers, often with a decid-
seem preoccupied with other concerns—such edly liberal-progressive point of view, includ-
as conforming to a “feel good” sort of spiritu- ing pro-abortion politicians and others whose
ality, ensuring diversity in the student body public actions and statements oppose Catho-
and faculty, providing career training or sim- lic moral teaching;
ply keeping the doors open. • a campus ministry that is generally
Second, there are many other historical- weak and understaffed, minimizes cateche-
ly Catholic colleges that have been seriously sis and spiritual formation, and often plays
compromised by disdain for the Church and loosely with Catholic teaching and the liturgy
active dissent from Catholic teaching. This of the Mass—which is attended by a minority
latter group is smaller but includes most of of Catholic students;
the large Catholic universities. • student clubs which often include
Within either category of institutions, some that oppose Catholic teaching, usually
the curriculum and official policies of each on abortion or homosexuality, and few (if
college are not well-designed to effectively any) that provide opportunities for spiritual
uphold Catholic identity. Even a small num- growth;
ber of problematic faculty, staff or students • coed residence halls with some re-
have significant opportunities to push the en- strictions that are generally ineffective in
velope and loosen a college’s historical ties to discouraging premarital sexual activity and
the Church. We see this time and time again, alcohol abuse; and
with college leaders scratching their heads • campus health and counseling ser-
about what went wrong. vices that are under no obligation to support
A student at the typical Catholic college Catholic moral teaching.
will find: Some of this may astonish you. It is, in
• a significant number of faculty who fact, a list of the more common concerns.
may appreciate theology, philosophy and the We have identified more unusual and
arts as useful for presenting ideas and critiqu- appalling problems, both at large universities
ing others’ ideas, but who reject any claim to and at small, seemingly traditional Catholic
truth outside the natural sciences; colleges. These include approved intern-
• a curriculum featuring a broad ships with abortion advocacy groups, homo-
course selection with some required courses sexual film festivals, awards to gay marriage
but no integrated core and little exposure to advocates, lectures by embryonic stem cell
the Catholic intellectual tradition, unless the researchers and pro-abortion activists, pro-
student majors in philosophy or theology and fessors who publicly attack the Vatican and
actively seeks appropriate courses; Catholic moral teachings, etc. Once the door
• a religious studies or theology de- is opened, there is no telling what might come
partment including faculty who dissent from in—or out.

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Patrick J. Reilly

How Did It Happen? To their credit, most of the American


Catholic colleges held on to their Catholic
For several centuries, fidelity to the Church identity even as leading Protestant universi-
was largely taken for granted at Catholic col- ties including Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Dart-
leges and universities. But the secularization mouth and others abandoned their initial
of Catholic colleges in the U.S. transpired Christian foundations. The Catholic colleges
quickly in the span of a few decades. stayed Catholic primarily because the college
It is no exaggeration that higher educa- sponsors, officials, faculty and students were
tion grew out of the Catholic Church. The almost entirely Catholic and shared a com-
great medieval universities in Europe were mon commitment to fidelity and Catholic tra-
established, funded and staffed by Catholics. dition. The curriculum and campus culture
For centuries, Catholic colleges around the largely reflected the interests and culture of
world have been among the most highly re- the Catholic Church.
spected. It was the turmoil of the 1960s and the
The Church’s involvement in higher ed- aftermath of Vatican II that threw into disar-
ucation has also had its critics. In 1852 this ray the Catholic culture in the U.S., of which
led John Henry Cardinal Newman, the cel- college campuses were a microcosm. The G.I.
ebrated convert from Anglicanism, to publish Bill, other financial aid programs and new
perhaps the best-known defense of Catholic taxpayer funding for public universities en-
higher education. ticed growing numbers of Catholic students
In Idea of a University, Cardinal Newman to forego Catholic education. Meanwhile, the
argued that a college should have education aid programs brought increasing numbers of
for its own sake as its only objective, thereby non-Catholic students to Catholic colleges,
fostering “growth in certain habits, moral or which also began to hire increasing numbers
intellectual.” With its promise of “teaching of non-Catholic faculty.
universal knowledge,” a college cannot right- Soon Catholic colleges were faced with
ly exclude any branch of knowledge—most an identity crisis. Competition for students
importantly theology, which teaches truths and a desire for greater acceptance by secu-
that make sense of all other truths. The Cath- lar colleges led 26 American college officials,
olic Church cannot rightly be excluded from scholars and bishops in 1967 to produce the
an active role in higher education, because the “Land O’Lakes Statement.” It publicly de-
bishops have the authority and responsibility clared Catholic colleges’ independence from
to ensure the integrity of theological teaching “authority of whatever kind, lay or clerical,
and the dialogue of faith and reason. external to the academic community itself.”
Contrary to Newman’s vision, Ameri- The aftermath was shameful. Bowing
can higher education has largely followed to the anti-authoritarian movement of the
the model of the German research university. 1960s and the interests of increasing numbers
This means that even many small colleges are of non-Catholic students and faculty, most
concerned with faculty research and publica- Catholic colleges watered down their empha-
tion as well as teaching; emphasize faculty sis on Catholic identity and their expectations
freedom and departmental independence for moral behavior. Fearful that courts would
over interdisciplinary studies and an inte- restrict government funding to faith-based
grated core curriculum; and underemphasize colleges—a fear that never materialized on
theology, philosophy and the arts. the federal level—college officials removed
crucifixes from the classroom walls and re-

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The State of Catholic Higher Education

organized under boards of trustees outside that require the mandatum or which at least
Church control. Conforming to secular aca- strive to hire theology professors who are ob-
demia, they whittled away at their core cur- vious candidates for the mandatum; these are
ricula and focused on preparing students for primarily the colleges that are profiled in The
successful careers. Newman Guide.
The resulting problems at Catholic col- In 1990, Pope John Paul II issued Ex corde
leges can largely be summed up into two cat- Ecclesiae, the apostolic constitution on Catholic
egories: higher education, by which he defined what
First, Catholic colleges embraced a dis- constitutes Catholic identity at Catholic col-
torted definition of “academic freedom” such leges. More than a statement of principle, the
that it is difficult to imagine what offensive constitution’s General Norms are binding on
speech or perverse activity might not be pro- Catholic colleges as an application of Canon
tected by it, so long as the ever-changing Law. Ex corde Ecclesiae gives each local bishop
priorities of political correctness are not vio- the legal authority and responsibility to de-
lated. clare a college “Catholic”—or in the case of a
Second, most Catholic colleges have persistently wayward college, to remove the
abandoned responsibility for students’ moral, Catholic label. It requires that every “official
social and spiritual development. The oper- action or commitment of the [college] is to be
ating principle for most American colleges in accord with its Catholic identity.” Catholic
was once in loco parentis; today colleges pro- professors are “to be faithful to, and all other
vide campus facilities, support services and teachers are to respect, Catholic doctrine and
some programming for students, but most morals in their research and teaching.”
without clear objectives for personal growth The results have been encouraging.
or moral standards to define a Catholic cam- Even though compliance with Ex corde Eccle-
pus culture. siae varies widely, most Catholic colleges are
taking steps in a positive direction. The As-
sociation of Catholic Colleges and Universi-
Reform and Renewal ties, which once argued that Ex corde Eccle-
siae is unworkable in the U.S., now pledges to
It seems this very damaging period may have
implement it. Many U.S. bishops are pushing
reached a turning point. Pope John Paul II
quietly for reform, and in more than a few
brought clarity to the situation and helped
instances have publicly decried scandal on
slow the momentum of secularization—per-
Catholic campuses. Lay Catholics have also
haps even reversed the trend. Pope Benedict
urged reform—more than 20,000 of them as
XVI has contributed a vision for Catholic
members of The Cardinal Newman Society,
higher education that reminds college leaders
and others through local efforts and alumni
of the great task to which they are called.
organizations.
The 1983 revision of the Code of Canon
The unity of faith and reason contin-
Law created a new section for Catholic colleg-
ues to be a key theme for Pope Benedict XVI,
es, including the requirement that any Catho-
who—like his predecessor—is a scholar with
lic theology professor must have a mandatum
great appreciation for Catholic higher edu-
(or “mandate”) from the local bishop, affirm-
cation. As philosopher Ralph McInerny has
ing that the professor will teach within the
said, “It sometimes seems that the only voice
full communion of the Catholic Church. Stu-
insisting on the power of human reason is
dents now have reasonable assurance of the
that of the Holy Father.” His great intellect
orthodoxy of theology professors at colleges

24 The Newman Guide


Patrick J. Reilly

and insight are having their impact especially tablishment of new, faithful Catholic colleges.
in theology courses, and college leaders are The 1970s gave rise to Christendom College,
intently watching the former Vatican prefect Thomas Aquinas College, and others that
who successfully defused the liberation the- have since built strong and well-deserved
ology movement and disciplined wayward reputations. We are now in the midst of a
theologians. new wave of colleges, with plans underway
In April 2009, Pope Benedict addressed for several more in the coming years.
Catholic educators at The Catholic University Each of the new colleges is unique and
of America in Washington, D.C. He called on offers something special to Catholic fami-
Catholic educators to address the contempo- lies: one concentrates on the increasingly im-
rary “crisis of truth” that is rooted in a “crisis portant New Media, three serve the rapidly
of faith.” growing Catholic population in the South,
“Are we ready to commit our entire one emphasizes the outdoors and stewardship
self—intellect and will, mind and heart—to of nature, etc. Finding one’s niche at a good
God?” the Holy Father asked. “Do we accept Catholic college is becoming much easier.
the truth Christ reveals? Is the faith tangible Also very exciting are the colleges that
in our universities and schools? Is it given have maintained or restored their Catholic
fervent expression liturgically, sacramentally, identity despite prevailing trends in the op-
through prayer, acts of charity, a concern for posite direction. More are joining this group,
justice and respect for God’s creation? Only but the ones profiled in this Guide deserve
in this way do we really bear witness to the praise for their heroism, often amid much
meaning of who we are and what we up- scorn from faculty and officials at other Cath-
hold.” olic colleges. Students at these colleges should
Pope Benedict also affirmed “the great be prepared to find occasional remnants of a
value of academic freedom. In virtue of this period when Catholic identity was not a top
freedom you are called to search for the truth priority, but students will also find genuine
wherever careful analysis of evidence leads role models who are successfully fighting the
you. Yet it is also the case that any appeal to tide of secularization.
the principle of academic freedom in order to Many of the colleges in The Newman
justify positions that contradict the faith and Guide provide an outstanding education in
the teaching of the Church would obstruct or the Catholic intellectual tradition by means
even betray the university’s identity and mis- of either studying the Great Books of West-
sion; a mission at the heart of the Church’s ern culture or a core curriculum that coher-
munus docendi and not somehow autonomous ently integrates the traditional liberal arts
or independent of it.” disciplines. These point to a renaissance of
Guided by the wisdom and faithful vi- traditional Catholic education, an encourag-
sion of the Vatican and America’s bishops, the ing development.
renewal of Catholic higher education is slowly What makes these colleges different from
becoming reality. But it will take many years, largely secularized Catholic colleges? A few
or even decades, to reach completion. examples:
• Instead of graduating students with
no substantial exposure to the Catholic intel-
Distinctively Catholic lectual tradition, the colleges in The Newman
Guide generally have a strong core curricu-
In the meantime, one of the most exciting
lum or several requirements to study faithful
developments in the Church today is the es-

The Newman Guide 25


Catholic theology and philosophy. cation—have a healthy variety of opportuni-
• Whereas most Catholic colleges gam- ties for a college education that is steeped in
ble on the maturity of students to refrain from the Catholic intellectual tradition while offer-
sexual activity, The Newman Guide colleges set ing a moral campus environment. The excel-
clear expectations for moral behavior with lent colleges profiled in The Newman Guide
same-sex residence halls or visitation poli- feature an assortment of charisms, academic
cies that are strictly enforced. For example, offerings, numbers of students, locations,
the Franciscan University of Steubenville pio- extracurricular programs and more. And
neered an innovative “household” program for future students, the numbers of faithful
that encourages students to support their Catholic colleges and undergraduate study
peers in healthy Christian lifestyles—and options are increasing.
which has been replicated at several of the The renewal of historically Catholic col-
other Newman Guide colleges. leges, which built their reputations upon the
• The University of Notre Dame and dedication of faithful Catholic leaders and
many other large Catholic universities fre- faculty, is essential. Whether or not you are
quently host lecturers who publicly oppose a student or graduate of one of these colleges,
Catholic teaching on key moral issues—and your prayers and support for renewal will
sometimes the universities bestow public have an important impact.
honors, a scandal that the U.S. bishops have But today, with this Newman Guide to
strongly opposed. The Newman Guide colleg- several model Catholic colleges, we can al-
es, however, recognize the message that this ready be thankful for the rising tide of Catho-
sends to students about the clarity and seri- lic higher education which Cardinal Newman
ousness of Catholic teaching. At these colleg- so fervently hoped for: “…[T]his is our hour,
es, students are mostly if not always exposed whatever be its duration, the hour for great
to the best minds of the Catholic Church and hopes, great schemes, great efforts, great be-
others who share our moral standards. ginnings… to recommence the age of Univer-
Catholic families, then—and others who sities.”
are attracted to the benefits of a Catholic edu-

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