By Very Rev. David M. O’Connell, C.M., J.C.D. 1990, President
No one needs to be reminded that we are living in difficult economic times, perhaps the most difficult since the Great Depression. The news is all around us all day, every day, and we cannot escape it. Not only has the current financial crisis affected individuals and families, it has also had a profound impact upon organizations, agencies and institutions. Institutions like colleges and universities. Institutions like The Catholic University of America.
As president of CUA, I would be less than honest if I did not say that these difficult economic times worry me. I am deeply concerned about our students and their families and their ability to finance their education here. While sacrifice has always been part of the picture, it is even more so now.
At the same time, I look at plans and decisions we have made to renovate campus buildings and to introduce innovations in our academic and research programs, and I find myself putting a hold on these plans and altering these decisions, hopefully for the time being only. Although not much of a consolation, the fact is, no one has been spared these worries. We all find ourselves in the same boat and in the same difficult-to-negotiate waters.
In the past year, CUA has lost $70 million in its portfolio — nearly a third of its value and almost twice the total of the endowment that I found upon my arrival here 11 years ago. The loss impacts the operations that depend upon endowment income and, even more, it has slowed down the great momentum CUA has witnessed over the past decade.
By nature, I am a realist. But my realism has never tarnished or deterred my optimism as I look to the future. We will recover, albeit slowly. Students and their parents will continue to seek the excellent education and commitment to faith that CUA provides as they make even harder sacrifices. And generous people, believing in our unique mission of “service to Church and nation,” will continue to invest in the university and its future. Why? Because hope springs eternal and CUA offers hope in all that it stands for and does and creates. “Reason. Faith. Service.” — these three living realities that define CUA have always transformed lives, turning what is possible and “hoped for” into a determination and conviction that the stars are not beyond our reach.
If there is any silver lining to what presently appears to be a very dark cloud, it is this: We have the opportunity now to re-define our priorities, to change what we must, to concentrate on what is truly essential, to re-think our purpose and to re-commit ourselves to a timeless mission that, by necessity, must do more with less. Sacrifice is not, by its very nature, a negative. It can — no, it must — mold and shape character and give witness to courage, integrity and hope. For in the end, The Catholic University of America and all who believe in it must hearken to the words of the Lord Jesus who is the reason this university exists: “In the world you will have troubles, but take courage: I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). That — He — is the reason for the hope.
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