Notre Dame’s faculty senate voted to endorse two resolutions, one to include sexual orientation in the university’s non-discrimination clause, and one seeking university approval of a gay-straight alliance student organization, at their March 6 meeting. They also voted down an amendment proposing that those resolutions be interpreted and considered in light of Church teaching on human sexuality.

Professor Morten Eskildsen, chair of the senate, suggested that the faculty debate each resolution independently and at-length. The deliberations are summarized in the meeting minutes. The senate first turned to the resolution advocating the inclusion of sexual orientation in the university’s official nondiscrimination clause.

According to the official minutes of the faculty senate meeting from March 6, the student senate stated that recognizing this resolution would be a key step in the movement to make all students feel comfortable and welcome within the university community. The student senate also voiced its concern that Notre Dame’s Spirit of Inclusion statement, which expressly forbids and condemns harassment of any kind based on sexual orientation and promotes “an environment of mutual respect, hospitality and warmth in which none are strangers and all may flourish,” is not effectively achieving its stated goals.

Judy Fox, chair of Academic Affairs Standing Committee, who voted to endorse the resolution, agreed that Notre Dame’s current efforts in this field fall short.

“Although we have had the Spirit of Inclusion for many years, it has clearly not been strong enough to send the message that all persons are valued by God and this university,” Fox wrote in an email to the Rover. “It was important to me that the university make a clear statement that all students, regardless of their sexual orientation, are welcome at this university.”

After discussing the legal ramifications that would result from the university’s adaptation of this policy, the senate turned to the issue of the resolution’s compatibility with the Catholic character and mission of the university. The implications of the senate’s support were also discussed.

The faculty senate voted overwhelmingly to endorse the resolution. Their collective rationale is reflected in the meeting minutes: “the senate’s support would be a symbol to the students. Voting no would mean, ‘You are not welcome.’”

Professor Phillip Bess, of the School of Architecture, was one of the few faculty members who voted against endorsing the resolution. Bess and Philosophy Professor Tom Flint asked that their dissenting votes be recorded in the minutes, albeit for different reasons. Flint wrote in an email that he “simply didn’t think the Senate could responsibly take any action until we studied the matter further” and that he voted against the resolutions because they were passed much quicker than is usual for proposals of such an important nature.

Bess explained his own reasons for voting against the resolution in an email to the Rover.

“[The student senate resolutions]…were quite crafty, appealing to all Notre Dame’s historic insecurities about our status, pointing out that Notre Dame is the only university among the top-20 universities that doesn’t include sexual orientation in its nondiscrimination clause,” Bess explained. But “[a] thorough set of secularist assumptions about human nature and human sexuality were embedded in the student senate resolutions, and it was both disconcerting and disappointing that a room full of professors would just rubber stamp them.”

Professor of History Alex Martin, who voted in support continued from front page of the resolution, wrote to the Rover that in his view, “all members of the ND community should be treated with fairness and that these resolutions serve that goal.” Furthermore, Martin pointed out that “St. Mary’s College has…a college policy stating that ‘based on Catholic values, the college commits to avoiding discrimination based on sexual or political orientation.’” Fox added that “many other Catholic institutions have adopted policies with no loss to their Catholic identity.”

Bess said that the Spirit of Inclusion statement satisfactorily conveys Catholicism’s perspective on human dignity and sexuality, without falling short in condemning harassment and discrimination.

“I think [the Spirit of Inclusion] is exactly the kind of statement that Notre Dame should be making, given what we believe about the dignity of all human beings,” he wrote. “However, the Church makes a distinction between sexual orientation and sexual conduct; and the Spirit of Inclusion goes on to articulate clearly this distinction.”

The faculty senate then turned to the resolution seeking university approval of a student gay-straight alliance. According to meeting minutes, the student senate felt that “there is a strong sentiment on campus that there is no peer group that works on these issues.”

An amendment proposing that the faculty senate’s responses to both resolutions conform to the character of Roman Catholic teaching on human sexuality and conduct was not passed by the senate.

“Few if any of the members of the faculty senate seemed to want to talk about that,” Bess said. “They either weren’t interested or they didn’t understand it. And so the discussion didn’t really get very far.”

Despite the suggestion, recorded in the minutes, that the faculty senate first ask the Student Activities Office “to argue their case for keeping the same [language turning down formal resolutions in support of a gay-straight student alliance] for 15 years,” the faculty senate voted to endorse the resolution.

Most of the faculty senators contacted for this story declined to comment on their voting choices. While most of them supported the resolution, the dissenting voices remain wary.

Bess expressed doubt about faculty commitment to the university’s Catholic character. He also proposed a resolution in March 2011 that, if passed, would have formally endorsed the pro-life goals of Father Jenkins’ Task Force on Supporting the Choice for Life. The resolution was voted down, 22-8.

“Over the years the faculty senate has adopted a number of resolutions (or failed to adopt resolutions) that suggest it is lukewarm at best about the Catholic character of the university,” Bess said. “Catholics and non-Catholics alike benefit…from Notre Dame’s Catholic character,” Bess concluded, “and it’s not clear to me that those benefits would continue to exist if Notre Dame ceased to be a Catholic university.”

Claire Gillen contributed reporting to this article.

Michael Bradley is a sophomore philosophy & theology major who is ready for summer. Contact him at mbradle6@nd.edu.