![\"\"](\"https:\/\/alumniforacatholicusd.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/attorney-charles-limandri-1.jpg\")
source: https:\/\/cardinalnewmansociety.org\/why-one-alumnus-removed-his-son-from-the-university-of-san-diego\/<\/a><\/p>\nIt is no surprise that parents are increasingly worried about their children \u201closing the faith\u201d at many Catholic colleges in the midst of growing Catholic identity concerns and scandals on campus. Even alumni of Catholic colleges, such as Charles LiMandri, a University of San Diego (USD) alumnus and father of five, feel their alma maters are no longer true to their Catholic mission.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have had too many parents tell me that their kids went to USD and lost their faith,\u201d LiMandri told The Cardinal Newman Society. A graduate of the class of 1977, LiMandri removed his son from USD out of concern for the University\u2019s dwindling Catholic identity. He now heads Alumni for a Catholic USD, a group dedicated to restoring the University\u2019s Catholic identity and mission. \u201cPeople need to know what has happened at USD in the hope of eventually changing it, and in the meantime avoiding its potential destructive impact on the spiritual lives of their sons and daughters.\u201d<\/p>\n
LiMandri\u2019s eldest son, Joey, was a freshman at USD in 2012 when it was announced that the University would host its first \u201cdrag queen show.\u201d The event, featuring students dressed as the opposite sex, was billed as a \u201ccelebration of gender expression.\u201d Many parents and critics were concerned over the blatant disregard for the Church\u2019s teaching on human sexuality, and wondered what it might signal for the future of the University.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt that the Drag Queen contest was an egregious betrayal of [Catholic] identity,\u201d said LiMandri. Not only was the University contradicting Church teaching without a second though, but LiMandri knew that the drag shows were just the tip of the iceberg, and that he needed to do something.<\/p>\n
LiMandri wrote to the University chaplain. He wrote to the administration. He stated his concerns as a worried parent. He explained why embracing gender ideology could be harmful for students. But he received no response.<\/p>\n
Drag shows were not the only issue either. LiMandri said the lack of concern for a strong Catholic identity was noticeable all over campus. Some examples he pointed to on his website included:\u00a0the administration\u2019s\u00a0defense<\/a>\u00a0of pro-abortion student groups;\u00a0offering<\/a>\u00a0LGBTQ courses; the University advertising<\/a>\u00a0for a Planned Parenthood job opening; officially recognizing<\/a>\u00a0numerous LGBTQ activist groups; and hosting<\/a> \u201cQueer Film Festivals\u201d and National Coming Out Day events.<\/p>\n While no one is forced to attend such events, it is a completely different matter when students are subjected to the same indoctrination in the classroom. Every parent and student who cares about these issues should know that the Religious Studies Department at USD has become a \u201ctheological train wreck,\u201d LiMandri continued.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is littered with tenured faculty whose professed beliefs stand in direct opposition to the teachings of the Magisterium of the Catholic Church,\u201d he said. \u201cFor too many tenured USD faculty, their god is not our God of the Bible, but a secular liberalism. They are enthusiastically pro-abortion and push a radical homosexual agenda instead of Catholic values concerning human sexuality and marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n At the prompting of other faithful USD alumni, LiMandri formed Alumni for a Catholic USD and protested the drag show on the group\u2019s website<\/a>, which keeps other alumni aware of the many growing Catholic identity concerns<\/a> at their alma mater. \u201cIf I did not have the serious concerns for my son\u2019s spiritual formation, as a dutiful parent, I would not have been so strongly motivated to launch the campaign against the USD Drag Queen contest in April 2012,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n However, LiMandri also felt an obligation to get involved due to his more than ten years of service to the University. He served on the USD Board of Trustees\u2019 Catholic Awareness Committee, then as president of USD\u2019s Alumni Association and finally served as chairman of the USD Alumni Annual Fund, a position he eventually left to spend more time with his growing family. But his concern for the students, for alumni and for the University\u2019s Catholic identity never wavered.<\/p>\n \u201cI had encouraged potential donors to support the University because it was fulfilling the important role of instilling authentic Catholic values in its students \u2014 the future leaders of our community and nation,\u201d he said, lamenting the University\u2019s loss of Catholic identity. Even the life-sized bronze bust of Saint Thomas More that he donated to the USD Law School now seemed out of place.<\/p>\n In 2012, then-USD President Mary Lyons stated that the drag events were \u201cintended to foster students\u2019 understanding of, and empathy for, the complexities of gender non-conformity.\u201d The administration again\u00a0defended the drag show performance<\/a>\u00a0in 2013, stating, \u201cThe show as scheduled violates neither the university\u2019s mission nor any university policies. The Celebration of Gender Expression supports the Church\u2019s teaching on the dignity of the human person and does not promote either behavior or lifestyle that is contrary to the teachings of the Church.\u201d<\/p>\n Then in 2014, the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education responded to a petition<\/a> LiMandri organized, contradicting the University\u2019s position and stating that the drag show constituted a harmful \u201cscandal\u201d for both students and the University. Despite alumni efforts and Vatican disapproval, the University took no significant action. USD recently celebrated its fifth annual drag show<\/a> on April 14.<\/p>\n If USD was not going to offer the kind of Catholic education his children deserved from a Catholic university, what could LiMandri do next?<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the drag show went forward, despite our protest, I removed my son from USD and sent him to the University of Dallas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n A Parent in Search of a Faithful Catholic College<\/strong><\/p>\n Finding a faithful Catholic college that focuses on the formation of the entire person \u2014 morally, spiritually and intellectually \u2014 can be difficult for families. And it was no different for the LiMandris, who were eventually able to find one in the University of Dallas, recommended in The Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n His oldest, Joey, graduated from Dallas last year, where he also met his fiancee. The two plan to marry on July 2. Limandri\u2019s second oldest, Marie, will graduate from the University of Dallas on Sunday, while his second son, Charles, just finished his freshman year. And not too far down the road, LiMandri\u2019s two teenagers, Maddie and Sammy, will also be attending the University of Dallas instead of USD, \u201csince Dallas still had the right to call itself an authentic Catholic university,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Parents should not be \u201cdeluded into thinking that their children can get a good Catholic education at USD\u201d or just any college that calls itself Catholic, said LiMandri. Often times this means making that extra sacrifice to seek out the college that genuinely cares for the well-being of the students and is not ashamed of defending Catholic teaching and identity.<\/p>\n![\"dallas\"](\"http:\/\/www.cardinalnewmansociety.org\/Portals\/0\/University%20of%20Dallas\/UD%201.jpg\")
The decision was a real sacrifice for the family, both financially and emotionally, as no parent wants to send their kids so far away for college. But the move has paid off, LiMandri shared.<\/p>\n