Nearly every sports fan in America, and many worldwide know the story of “Rudy” about an undersized kid whose dream it is to play Notre Dame football. He endures just about every obstacle to make it onto the field for one dramatic moment at the end of a Fighting Irish game against Georgia Tech — to make a tackle, and be carried off the field.
Many cry with happiness at that wonderful conclusion, a testament to hard work, determination, a little luck, and yes, a lot of faith. It’s what I do every graduation at my small United Methodist liberal arts college, because every one of our graduates is a “Rudy” of sorts.
There’s a myth that private higher education is only for those born with a silver spoon. Perhaps that’s how it was decades ago. But with big budgets and amenities, public universities can afford amenities we can never compete with, subsidize tuition and pay their professors and staff a lot more.
My colleague, a former president at LaGrange College, debated a Lt. Governor who repeated that misleading claim.
“Walk through our parking lot, and compare our students’ cars to those at the big universities if you don’t believe me,” he pointed out.
I also know this because I’ve been touring lots of schools as my high school senior son spent the past year evaluating where to go to college. And my oldest did the same a few years ago.
Private nonprofit colleges like LaGrange College enroll about 21 percent of all students, yet confer about 30 percent of all degrees, according to data from the National Association of Independent Colleges (NAICU) and Education Data Initiative. When it comes to master’s and doctoral degrees, that number jumps to 45 percent. Because of our small enrollment and tight budgets, we not only have the ability to track our students pretty well… we and also have every incentive to do so. The only thing that gets weeded-out are those weed-out courses themselves.
I could write a column about each of our graduates. There’s a football player with a career-ending knee injury, who replaced the gridiron with leadership in student government and his national fraternity. He will be serving his country abroad. Another had to battle a crippling ailment, but she’ll have her pick of law schools to attend this Fall. Another had to play through sports injuries to help her team make it deep into conference play, who is already working at a shelter for battered women. And another who struggled to pick her major started teaching at a local elementary school the moment her final exams finished, even before Graduation. And a lacrosse player and business + political science major who graduated two years ago came to graduation to tell me about the great job he’ll start in banking, something our college connections helped. And my research assistant earned her Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health and Counseling, where she’ll work on helping natural disaster victims cope with the mental trauma.
Our political science graduates are happy to inspire the current generation of students and share their secrets of success. One joined us from Antarctica, where she’s helping install communication satellites. Another called in from China, where he works for the State Department. Another flew in to tell us his experiences at the FAA and helping land Air Force One. We’ve had lawyers, FBI Agents, professors, and coaches, speaking to our students in person or from far away, united by one thing: they’re our college graduates. In fact, the number one factor we use to evaluate our program is the success of our students after graduation. Through social media and other communications methods, we can reach every them to hear of promotions, new degrees, weddings (I’ve been to a number of them) and families started. And all let me know that their commitment to serving the community doesn’t end on Graduation Day.
I suppose that’s why I get a lump in my throat when I watch the film “Rudy,” or participate in another graduation. Both are true stories of commitment and overcoming the odds. If you have a son or daughter who would like to be part of something special, contact a small private college.