To all Saint Mary's College and Notre Dame students and alumni, I just have to ask - what are you arguing about? I will say up front that I never attended school in Notre Dame, Ind. or South Bend, Ind. or anywhere remotely close. I did not even attend a private university (Gasp! I'll give you a moment to process and decide if you can continue reading...).
Joking aside, I am proud of my school and I am proud of the rich tradition of my Big Ten roots. I attended one of top high schools in the nation and started college with sophomore credit due to my high school AP credit. The thought of applying to Notre Dame crossed my mind, along with a number of other private schools. In the end, I only applied to Big Ten schools - like you, I had grown up in the legacy of competitive (and collaborative) college football, strong academics and honor. As many of you followed generations to Notre Dame and Saint Mary's, I followed to Big Ten.
From an outside perspective, I can say that Jonathan Klingler's column ("Saint Mary's - we need to talk," Feb. 13) rings true, but does not sound as malicious or condescending as many of the Viewpoint responses seem to imply. So often people's emotions get in the way of interpreting what they are actually reading. The article raised some valid (yet clearly sensitive) points. But think about it: Notre Dame, by rite of being a larger, more well-known school (arguably the best known school in the country) has more to offer to Saint Mary's students than Saint Mary's has to offer to Notre Dame students. Note: I refer to quantity of offerings, not quality. Saint Mary's is an excellent school with excellent offerings, but I doubt anyone would disagree that the Saint Mary's side of this relationship benefits more from being "the school across from Notre Dame" than Notre Dame benefits from being "the school across from Saint Mary's." Again - before the hair pulling starts, I am speaking in quantity of opportunities.
Lots of people take courses at schools other than their primary campus or engage themselves with other university communities. I technically attended three universities during my college career (although I remained a full-time University of Iowa student for all four). It is through experiencing other campuses and student lifestyles that we expand our overall education and learn to appreciate our own school even more. You are all fortunate that this collaborative learning environment is built-in, preconfigured to your educations. Saint Mary's women: you chose your school; you knew that you were not attending Notre Dame when you signed your acceptance letter. However, one draw of Saint Mary's was the proximity to Notre Dame and opportunity to take advantage of the powerhouse's offerings. That is an aspect of your school to be proud of - so why are you offended by mention of it? Notre Dame: you have every right to want to distinguish your identity from that of Saint Mary's - you are the true Notre Dame, your acceptance letters and diplomas say so.
Yes, Saint Mary's does get to benefit from your tradition and programs and it's only natural that those women should feel the pride of the association. Their pride takes nothing away from your honor and legacy. Notre Dame has the most bandwagon and non-affiliated fans of any school in the country … Saint Mary's women should be the least of your concerns. It can be annoying to hear someone who is not "technically" part of your organization touting the benefits of membership - but you should be flattered by Saint Mary's enthusiasm, not threatened by it. You are both great schools - rich in every sense - and exactly the schools which you want to be. Maybe you need more bars in South Bend, because one thing is clear from this debate: you all have too much time on your hands if you are spending yours on this debate!
Krissy Zotaley
Chicago, Ill.
Feb. 14
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