Over the Thanksgiving holiday, my wife gave birth to a baby girl. Unfortunately, as a second year law student, my studies require me to spend most of my waking hours researching in the Law School. Why? I live in the University Village — one of Notre Dame's student family housing facilities. Without ResNet, I am forced to do all of my research at school. I call attention to this fact because I think something needs to be done.

Never mind the fact that the Village and Cripe are the only campus residences without a fire sprinkler system. Never mind that Notre Dame's own fire chief calls the Village a "death trap." Never mind the lack of space (500 square feet for families of five), the alarmingly high levels of copper and lead in the water, the uninhabitable and constantly flooded basement apartments and the dilapidated appliances. Never mind all of that. How can the richest Catholic school in the world, a school supposedly built upon the values of the Catholic faith, a school that talks about the "Notre Dame family," deny its student families the most basic necessity — time. A ResNet connection would remedy this. But the fact is that even the most fundamental needs of resident student families are ignored.

I think the neglect is indicative of the Administration's attitude towards student families in general. My suspicion is that the Administration believes student families are not a sound investment.

Indeed, most of the residents are not professional students but are graduate arts and sciences students. Many of them come from other countries and cannot afford any other housing. The prospect for later donations from these students to the University's enormous endowment is not as promising as, say, students who study in a new $55 million law school. All I know is that the conditions are abominable. The way the University neglects its student families is antithetical to its Catholic mission.

Perhaps, Father Malloy, you could come spend a week in the Village and see for yourself. Wednesday, my wife is cooking meatloaf — shall I save you a place at the table?

Kevin Rodriguez Gingras

graduate law student

University Village

Dec. 5, 2001

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