Notre Dame College, which sponsors Division II men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs in South Euclid, Ohio, is shutting down entirely at the end of the spring semester in May.
Notre Dame College was founded way back in 1922 as a private Roman Catholic college for women, but the institution has been coeducational since 2001. The reasons for the closure are reportedly due to declining enrollment, rising costs, and significant debt.
The Falcons have competed for the past decade in the Mountain East Conference (MEC). Last month, the Notre Dame College men placed 4th out of six teams at the 2024 MEC Championships while the women finished 5th out of six teams.
Falcons freshman Juan Nunez, a Dominican Republic native, became the first swimmer in school history to earn the men’s Freshman of the Meet honor. Nunez placed 2nd in 400 IM (4:02.79), 5th in 500 free (4:42.80), 6th in 1000 free (9:52.78) and 6th in 1650 free (16:39.81).
“On behalf of the Mountain East Conference, we are deeply saddened by today’s announcement that Notre Dame College will conclude in-person instruction at the end of the 2024 spring semester, bringing a more than century-old tradition of higher education to a close,” MEC commissioner Reid Amos said. “As a charter member of the league, we thank Notre Dame College for its steadfast membership and its numerous contributions that have enhanced the MEC over our first 11 years.
Notre Dame College’s student-athletes, coaches, and administrators have enjoyed significant success within the conference, region, and nationally, including numerous NCAA postseason appearances.
We thank NDC’s student-athletes for their commitment to their respective sport in our league. We also express our gratitude for the dedication and support of the coaches, institutional administrators, and staff in the athletic department. While we acknowledge the effects of membership change, our focus will be on extending both our support and sympathy to those who will face a loss of employment and students who will need to transition to a different academic opportunity.”
Head coach Milan Medo just wrapped up his first season at the helm of Notre Dame College’s combined program. The Slovakian native last coached at Division III Penn State Behrend and previously swam at Division II Grand Valley State. The Falcons’ roster featured nine women’s swimmers and seven men’s swimmers this past season.
I was a swimmer here for 4 years, and just finished my 3rd season of being a college assistant coach. NDC gave me the chance to make dreams become reality. It opened doors for me that I never thought of. Collegiate sports has given people not only life long friends, but careers as well. Sad to see.
“Pay to play” colleges are much less common in swimming than other sports, but this school was already known in the area as a “pay to play” destination. As schools get closer and closer to insolvency, they add more and more sports. Their entire athletic department was there to grow enrollment and find paying students that would not otherwise consider their school… It’s mind-blowing to see the number of soccer players that pay big money to a small, unknown, random college so the kids and their parents can brag that they are a college athlete.
I almost confused this college with the University of Notre Dame. Weird coincidence.
Well, that escalated quickly