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Volume 49, Issue 1 | Friday, August 21, 2015 | ndsmcobserver.com
ND, SMC classes of 2019 arrive on campus Notre Dame chooses from largest ever applicant pool
Saint Mary’s introduces diverse first-year class
By RACHEL O’GRADY
By NICOLE CARATAS
News Writer
News Writer
Representing 112 countries and 6,340 different high schools, the Notre Dame class of 2019 applicant pool set the record for most applications ever received for one class. “This incoming class continues the trend of being more global and diverse than any previous year,” Don Bishop, associate vice president of undergraduate enrollment, aid. “Thirty-two percent of the new class will be U.S. students of color or international citizens and over eight percent will be the first in their family to attend college. Notre Dame is arguably the most nationally representative university in the United States.” Bishop said the approximately 2,015 freshmen arriving on campus are some of the most accomplished to ever come to Notre Dame. During their time in high school, 35 percent of the incoming class were heads of a student organization, while 45 percent were captains of a varsity sport and 50 percent were involved in fine arts, drama, music or dance. “The admitted students surpassed the previous exceptional academic records with even higher levels of achievement in leadership and service. We are inspired and impressed with
Thursday, about 420 new Belles strolled down the Avenue as the class of 2019 moved in. According to the Admissions Office, the number of women in the first-year class has 40 more students than last year’s incoming class, and the number of transfer students has doubled. This year more students than ever applied to the College, director of admissions Sarah Dvorak said. More than 1,700 applications went through the office, of which 1,382 were accepted. Sixty of those students applied early decision, and about 55 of them were accepted, Dvorak said. Nearly 13 percent of the women in the class are legacies, with either a mother or sister alumna connection. “As an all-women's, Catholic, liberal arts college, we have a reputation as an academically challenging institution, and we work hard to set the expectation for what we expect our of our applicants," Dvorak said. "We find that our students self-select at the point of application and therefore, we don't receive too many applications from unqualified students.” Diversity has increased in the College as well. Incoming students come from five different countries, meaning Saint Mary’s students now come from
see ND 2019 PAGE 9
SUSAN ZHU | The Observer
see SMC 2019 PAGE 9
Irish freshmen remember University welcomes incoming classmate transfer students By J.P. GSCHWIND News Writer
The Notre Dame class of 2019 had not officially set foot on campus or even received their dorm assignments when one of their own, Rebecca Draper Townsend, died in a car accident July 2 in
News PAGE 6
Danbury, Connecticut. A resident of Brookfield, Connecticut, Townsend was a graduate of Immaculate High School and was going to start her freshman year this fall. In response to her death, the class of 2019 began an ongoing commitment to honor her memory.
Viewpoint PAGE 12
Incoming freshman Taja Reynolds said she and many of her classmates had gotten to know Townsend and were talking to her online. “We got pretty close to her so when we heard that she passed, we all immediately see CLASSMATE PAGE 9
Scene PAGE 14
By ANDREA VALE News Writer
Transferring to Notre Dame was something of a no-brainer for incoming sophomore Marissa Koscielski, who had grown up Granger, Indiana, only 20 minutes away from campus. “For as long as I can remember,
Football PAGE 28
I have gotten butterflies in my stomach when I stepped onto campus,” Koscielski said. When Koscielski wasn’t offered admission to Notre Dame her senior year of high school, she knew her attempts to become part of the University family were far see TRANSFER PAGE 9
Track & Field PAGE 28