Any Saint Mary’s student or alumna can tell you about the immeasurable benefits of receiving a degree from Saint Mary’s College. But it’s you, the parent, who sees the difference in your daughter, from the first walk down the Avenue, to the time when she’ll walk up and receive her diploma. We've asked parents to share their insights into their daughter’s Saint Mary’s experience. This is what they had to say:
Diane DeMasi Meagher '82, Gabriella Meagher '15, Dennis Meagher,
Alison Meagher '13Dennis and Diane DeMasi Meagher '82
Dennis and Diane DeMasi Meagher '82 answer a few questions about their experience as Saint Mary’s parents, and about their daughter, Alison Meagher ’13, a business administration major with concentrations in management and finance.
How would you describe your daughter's overall experience at Saint Mary's?
We believe our daughter has received a high-quality education. We believe her experiences at Saint Mary’s have made her a more self-assured and confident person. We also believe Saint Mary’s has positively expanded her view of her future.
How have you seen your daughter grow from her first year to her senior year?
Our daughter is more self-assured, more confident, and more optimistic about her future. For example, when Alison came to Saint Mary's she was an intended communication studies major. Saint Mary's liberal arts education allowed her to explore several different fields. After taking some business classes, she discovered her passion for that field.
How would you describe your daughter's overall experience at Saint Mary's?
We believe our daughter would tell you that her expectations entering Saint Mary’s as a freshman have been far exceeded academically, spiritually, and socially. Alison enjoys the classroom environment at Saint Mary's because the women and professors there encourage students to express opinions and challenge one another's thoughts. It lends to a creative and stimulating atmosphere for learning.
What in your opinion makes a Saint Mary's education unique—something your daughter may not have been able to get anywhere else?
Attending college in an all-female environment was a big positive for our daughter and allowed her to more freely express herself.
How do you view the return on your investment in your daughter’s Saint Mary’s education?
We believe the investment in our daughter’s education at Saint Mary’s was money very well spent, and our daughter believes so, too. I do not believe that Alison would have received the same education had she attended college somewhere else. The uniqueness of the Saint Mary's community not only allowed Alison to grow academically as a student, but also spiritually and socially as a person. Saint Mary's is also a national liberal arts college, which has allowed Alison to meet people from various areas of the country and the world. We are not sure that she would have been able to meet such diverse women at another college.
Is there anything you wished someone had told you when your daughter was beginning her college career?
Enjoy your daughter’s college experience; four years goes by exceedingly fast. Sit back, relax, and enjoy watching your teenage daughter become a woman.
Dr. Peter Daly, Father of Tricia Daly ’10
How have you seen your daughter grow from her first year to her senior year?
Tricia transferred from the University of Notre Dame to Saint Mary's for two reasons. One was to attend the nursing program, and the second was to enjoy the collegial, supportive, more personal culture that Saint Mary's offers. Once at Saint Mary's College, her energy, joy, and sense of purpose has blossomed from her first year to her senior year.
How would you describe your daughter's overall experience at Saint Mary's?
Tricia's experience has been very positive. I think she has enjoyed the way women lift each other's spirits in a "team-like" way that you could only get at an all-women's college.
How do you feel Saint Mary's is preparing her for the future?
Saint Mary's strong Nursing program has given her excellent career opportunities. She has also received encouragement from the Saint Mary's faculty to continue her professional leadership skills with potential further academics. Tricia is an energetic, go-getter and Saint Mary's has given her the challenges she needs and the avenues through which she can excel to any lofty goal she could consider. I see Saint Mary's as a potent launching pad that has given Tricia all the fuel she needs for her future.
What in your opinion makes a Saint Mary's education unique—something your daughter may not have been able to get anywhere else?
The all women environment enables a secure environment for learning and builds confidence and fosters leadership that I don't think women can easily access at a coed school. Since Saint Mary's is a part of the Notre Dame- Saint Mary's college social milieu, the Saint Mary's women may still enjoy the social benefits of that coed scene with its sports, tailgating, dances, etc., but have their own space at the same time. I also find the Catholic foundation of the school very important, and I see that those values have fostered her spiritual development. The access to Mass and prayer to mark the major times in her life, both the ups and downs, has been key to her development as a confident, caring person.
How do you view the return on your investment in your daughter’s Saint Mary’s education?
I consider it money well-spent. I cannot think of a better way to invest in my daughter and her development as whole person, than at an all-women's, Catholic, liberal arts college. Saint Mary's has it all, and I feel blessed to have Tricia receive a Saint Mary's education.
Mark Ulliman, Father of Mary Elizabeth Ulliman ’10
How have you seen your daughter grow from her first year to her senior year?
I have seen Mary Elizabeth grow tremendously. I have seen her develop a great sense of quiet confidence, and a deeper sense of who she is and how she relates to those around her.
How would you describe your daughter's overall experience at Saint Mary's?
I would describe it as a solid investment of four years that is an excellent stepping stone towards the continuing journey that is the rest of her life.
How do you feel Saint Mary's is preparing her for the future?
Saint Mary's is preparing her clearly from an academic standpoint, but even more so from a personal standpoint. The beliefs and moral values upheld by Saint Mary's seem to flow through all aspects of life there, and the added bonus of drawing students of similar nature to Mary Elizabeth surrounds her with constant preparation for good future life choices.
What in your opinion makes a Saint Mary's education unique—something your daughter may not have been able to get anywhere else?
I think Mary Elizabeth describes it best when she says that it is the best of all worlds. She has avenues to all of her favorite extracurricular activities - music, (Bellaccapella), sports, (Notre Dame club field hockey), following division I sports, foreign/cultural study and travel (Seville, Spain), with a solid base of academics (even enhanced by the opportunity for extra courses on the Notre Dame campus), and the joy of good friends. Through all of this is the thread of continuing her Christian upbringing - the best of all worlds.
How do you view the return on you investment in your daughter’s Saint Mary’s education?
A perfect return on my investment would be that Saint Mary's has prepared Mary Elizabeth to go into the world with confidence, able to spend her valuable time on something that is her passion, making decisions with a solid moral Christian base, and be able to make a difference/leave her mark on the world.... oh, and be happy. (Quite a big return indeed!). The jury is out on this, but I feel good about the possibilities so far.