The University of Notre Dame is facing criticism from the campus pro-life student group Right to Life over its appointment of an associate professor to lead one of its key research institutes, highlighting ongoing tensions at the Catholic institution between academic hires and its stated commitment to Church teachings on life issues.
In a letter published Feb. 3 in The Observer, the campus student newspaper, the executive board of Notre Dame Right to Life called on university administrators to immediately rescind the appointment of Susan Ostermann as director of the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies.
Ostermann’s position, announced in early January and set to take effect July 1, places Ostermann — an associate professor of global affairs in the Keough School of Global Affairs — in charge of the institute focused on Asian studies and related programming.
“Ostermann publicly advocates for policies that are directly opposed to the magisterial teachings of the Catholic Church, which state that abortion is an intrinsic evil,” the board’s letter stated.
The group said her statement in The Observer in which she said, “I respect Notre Dame’s institutional position on the sanctity of life at every stage,” contrasts with her career.
"She has spent her career advocating for and supporting organizations that directly contradict this statement” they said. “She has done so, moreover, in an inflammatory way; within the context of 11 op-ed pieces, she has referred to laws respecting the sanctity of life as based in 'white supremacy' and 'racism.'"
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Referencing a 2022 Chicago Tribune op-ed co-authored by Ostermann, titled “Lies about abortion have dictated our health policy,” the students noted that then-President Fr. John Jenkins, C.S.C., had publicly distanced the university from it, stating, “I write to state unequivocally that their essay does not reflect the views and values of the University of Notre Dame in its tone, arguments or assertions.”
They wrote, "Prior to Ostermann’s appointment, Fr. Jenkins felt it necessary to clarify that her stance does not reflect that of Our Lady’s University; the situation is far graver now that it has appointed her to a leadership position. Notre Dame cannot claim to maintain its Catholic identity while simultaneously promoting someone whose public advocacy is in such direct contradiction to the faith."
The letter also criticized her work with the Population Council, “an organization that collaborated with the Chinese government to promote abortion, contraception and the enforcement of the one-child policy,” writing that this work also violated the dignity of human life.
The students’ letter included a personal testimony from Notre Dame Right to Life President Anna Kelley.
“As a Catholic adoptee from China, I take personal offense at this appointment” she wrote. “I am so blessed to have escaped the fate that Professor Ostermann’s work has inflicted on so many innocent Chinese lives. Because I have been given the gift of life, I am choosing to speak out with my own testimony to bring attention to the real-life consequences that her ideology promotes.”
The executive board — listing members Anna Kelley, Teresa Pingel, Alejandra Ricardo, Luke Woodyard, Faustina Barcena, Maria Madigan, Ava Hall, Noah Schoenfelder, and Jake Struby — concluded: "Therefore, the Executive Board of Notre Dame Right to Life urgently calls upon the University to rescind the appointment of professor Susan Ostermann, effective immediately."