Georgetown Independent

Issue date: 9/30/08 Section: Commentary

As Wall Street began to crumble in mid-September, women cursed the ground their power heels walked on, men in suits cleared out their desks and Georgetown alumni in the greater New York area could have looked in their inboxes to find an email from the University's Office of Advancement. James M. Langley, VP of the Office of Advancement wrote:

"In light of the extraordinary events that have rocked global financial markets this week, I write to express my deepest sympathy and concern for all members of the Georgetown University community impacted by the upheaval.

Our thoughts and prayers are with you as the crisis continues and details of remedial efforts are announced. I intend to spend the coming months learning how our friends have been impacted and provide whatever support the University can.

On behalf of President DeGioia and our entire Georgetown community, I extend my hopes for a swift recovery and a brighter future."

To some, such a letter is a warm affirmation that the tight-knit community of their alma mater exists long after graduation. To others, such a letter is an appallingly distasteful ploy to reach deeper into the pockets of some of our wealthiest alumni. These naysayers might agree with NY Magazine Senior Editor Jessica Pressler who, in a September 22 posting on the magazine's website, responds, "Ew, dude. You're... pulling out your 'deepest sympathy' for this?" Continuing, she notes that no one died or lost their homes in this debacle, adding "Their second home, maybe."

Well, dude, perhaps you do not realize that Hoyas form a community, one that supports its members in all times of suffering. As students, we join together in grey and blue, proudly wearing our "We Are Georgetown" shirts. After graduation, Georgetown seeks to maintain this community through services like area alumni clubs and the Hoya Career Connection, which helps all Hoyas--current and former--find suitable jobs.

Many of our alumni work in the financial sector, creating deep ties between Georgetown and Wall Street. The Career Center, sometimes accused of being overly "banking-focused", clearly personifies these ties; it invites mainly financial firms to interview students on campus. In their 2007 Senior Survey, which details how recently graduated Hoyas are spending their time, investment banking was by far the most popular field, claiming 165 of the Class of '07 Hoyas who participated in the survey. Goldman Sachs and Lehman were, unsurprisingly, among the top employers.

The former Hoyas who go to work on Wall Street represent a large sector of the highest paid alumni. Naturally, Georgetown keeps these Hoyas in mind around annual gift time.

In 2007, Georgetown celebrated as its endowment broke the $1 billion mark. Meanwhile, Harvard was doling out free tuition to middle class students with a fraction of its $34.6 billion endowment. Notre Dame sat gleefully on $5.9 billion and UVA held a pretty $4.4 billion in its pockets.

Not only does Georgetown's small endowment contribute to its lower rankings, but it stops Georgetown from providing the best financial resources to students and hinders rich academic opportunities like speakers and special programs for students.

Although the Office of Advancement should have refrained from cutting and pasting from the post-Katrina letter and used diction more appropriate for a business setting, their "condolences" were not tactless. The letter was not meant to gain more donations, but rather to maintain the relationship with current alumni stewards.

Although it is easy to balk at the Office of Advancement's letter, one must remember that Georgetown is not free from the stresses of real life. If we want our rankings to match our actual caliber as one of America's top universities, we must acknowledge certain realities. Although the grave tone of the letter was less than appropriate, it nonetheless demonstrates two characteristics that set Georgetown apart from its peers: our tight-knit Hoya family and the unfortunate reality of our tiny endowment.

McCarthy is Associate Editor and a Theology junior.

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