Project Sycamore :: About the Project

When this [secularization] process had run its course among mainline Protestants, Catholics suddenly entered...and have been making their way much more swiftly through indifferentism into rationalism.

James T. Burtchaell, C.S.C.
The Dying of the Light"

The following letters are from leading members of the faculty: Dr. John Cavadini, Chair of the Theology Department; Rev. Wilson Miscamble, C.S.C., of the History Department and former Rector of Moreau Seminary; Dr. David Solomon, of the Philosophy Department and Director of the Center for Ethics and Culture; and Rev. John J. Coughin, O.F.M. and Charles Rice, both of the Law School.

The Observer (04.19.06)
Open letter to the University community
by John C. Cavadini
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The Observer (04.11.06)
An open letter to Father John Jenkins Letter to the Editor
by Bill Miscamble, C.S.C
<< read article >>

The Observer (04.20.06)
A response to Father Jenkins
by Rev. John J. Coughlin, O.F.M.
<< read article >>

The Wall Street Journal (04.14.06)
A President's Retreat: The Vagina Monologues continue at Notre Dame
by David Solomon
<< read article >>

The Observer (04.25.06)
Jenkins's closing statement a serious misstep
by Charles Rice, Emeritus Professor of Law
<< read article >>

The following are three especially noteworthy contributions by women alumni. Two are from organizers of Project Sycamore and members of the Alumni Weekend panel discussing these issues, Dr. Susan Shearer of the faculty of Valparaiso University and Ms. Amelia Marcum, a 2004 graduate. The third is by another experienced educator, Dr. Mary Beth Klee.

The Observer (04.26.06)
"Monologues" produce confusion, not good
by Amelia Marcum
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The Observer (04.24.06)
One loyal daughter's dissent
by Mary Beth Klee
<< read article >>

Unpublished (02.00.05)
Reflections of an Alumna Regarding Recent Events at the University of Notre Dame
by Susan Biddle Shearer Ph.D.
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The following are two campus publications’ accounts respecting Father Jenkins’s decision. The first relates how “faculty members from all corners of campus expressed virtually unanimous approval,” while the second discusses whether Father Jenkins “cave[d] in to faculty pressure.” This article examines reports of threats of resignations as well as the impact of faculty secularization. As one professor put it: “The real problem is that the hiring policies of the last thirty years have given us a faculty, especially in the humanities and sciences, that is more and more devoid of Catholic sensibilities....Fr. Jenkins sincerely wants to do something about it. The question is whether he will be able to. There is no group of people harder to deal with than entrenched university faculty.

The Observer (04.06.06)
Jenkins decision prompts campus approval
by Mary Kate Malone
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The Irish Rover (04.20.06)
Did Jenkins Cave in To Faculty Pressure?
by Tommy Forr
<< read article >>

Other viewpoints from the Notre Dame family expressed in the Observer.

The Observer (02.15.06)
An Ideal Worth Striving For
by Paulo Carroza
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The Observer (04.19.06)
'Monologues' not compatible with goals
by Brian MacMichael
<< read article >>

The Observer (03.21.06)
The real academic freedom debate
by James Rakowski
<< read article >>

The Observer (02.22.05)
Vagina Monologues do not focus on violence
by William Dempsey
<< read article >>

The Observer (02.07.05)
Controversy a blessing in disguise
by Meagham Garvey
<< read article >>