- Weir credits faith, curiosity for success at ND
By KATE NAGENGAST
Associate News Editor
Carolyn Weir said she doesn't pay much attention to grades — but her curiosity, faith and fascination with her majors helped her to achieve a 3.95 grade point average and the position as Notre Dame's 2001 valedictorian.
Gradua-ting with a double major in the Program of Liberal Studies (PLS) and theology, Weir will deliver the valedictory address on "faith, hope and love" at Commencement May 20, where she will also serve as a flag bearer.
"I would attribute a lot [of my success] to my faith. I don't think I could have done a lot of it without the grace and wisdom of God," said Weir. "[So the theme of my speech] is faith, hope and love and its coupling with the knowledge and skills that Notre Dame has given us to be actualized in leadership, and the responsibility we have to bring these gifts … into the world."
After graduation, Weir will work as an education research associate in the Department of Education in Washington, D.C. — a position she believes Notre Dame has prepared her for well.
"I thought [my academic experience] was very unique as a PLS and theology major [because of] the way I learned and the way it fostered an outlook on education that I felt was different than anywhere else, and really any other major," said Weir. "But the spirituality at Notre Dame has been such an influence on my life as well, in particular my participation in the Notre Dame Folk Choir."
She participated in the Notre Dame Folk Choir for three years and acted as co-president of the choir this year — an experience she called "life changing." She also served as a resident assistant in Breen-Phillips during her senior year and worked on community service initiatives at the Center for the Homeless, Logan Center, Martin Luther King Center and Little Flower Parish.
Notre Dame, however, was not Weir's first college choice. She had planned to study music at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pa., but changed her mind during April of her senior year in high school. Having missed the application deadline for most colleges and universities, Weir spent her freshman year studying theology at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pa. She transferred to Notre Dame during her sophomore year because she desired a larger school with a more reputable program. When she arrived at Notre Dame, however, Weir was attracted to PLS in addition to theology.
"I was intrigued by PLS for the broad range of readings … the way the classes were conducted in small setting where you really get to know your students and professors through discussion and you [as a student] have the education in your hands," said Weir. Weir grew up in Greensburg, Pa., a town she describes as similar to South Bend. The oldest of three children, her parents, John and Nancy Weir, own and operate Scholastica Travel, Inc., a company focused on educational tours for students.
She was also co-valedictorian at Greensburg Catholic High School — an honor she shared with Brian O'Donoghue, her classmate in a class of 130 students and this year's student body president of Notre Dame.
All News Stories for Friday, May 18, 2001
