Curriculum Vitae
B.A., Thomas Aquinas College, 1992; M.A., dogmatic theology, Holy Apostles College and Seminary, 1996; M.A., humanities, California State University, Dominguez Hills, 2001; Ed.D., educational leadership, Southern Connecticut State University, 2015; Instructor, Immaculate Conception High School, 1992-1997; Adjunct Professor of Philosophy and Theology, Holy Apostles College and Seminary, 2003-2005; Permanent Part-time Professor of Philosophy and Theology, Holy Apostles College and Seminary, 2005-2018; Professor of Humanities, Legionaries of Christ College of Humanities, 1997-2018; Tutor, Thomas Aquinas College, 2018-.
Profile
“As a student, the spiritual and intellectual richness of the College completely transformed my life,” reflects Josef Froula (’92). “I looked forward to attending every class, and I never had a single bad experience” — well, save for one: “I remember my graduation was a very sad day for me,” he continues. “I didn’t want to leave.”
Yet leave he did, making the most of the subsequent 26 years before returning to his alma mater in 2018. Dr. Froula married classmate Hélène (Augros ’92), and the couple has welcomed 10 children. He earned master’s degrees in dogmatic theology (Holy Apostles College and Seminary) and humanities (California State University, Dominguez Hills), as well as a doctorate in educational leadership (Southern Connecticut State University). He also spent 5 years teaching high school and 21 instructing seminarians at Holy Apostles and the Legion of Christ College of Humanities.
“Teaching in seminaries was a great preparation for coming here because the principle upon which Thomas Aquinas College is founded is that all the disciplines we study are ordered to, and ordered by, theology,” Dr. Froula says. “In teaching theology, I came to a greater appreciation for what the College’s curriculum is principally ordered to; and I also benefitted from teaching other disciplines, such as literature, Latin, mathematics, and philosophy.”
When he learned that the College was hiring new tutors, he was eager to apply. “Because my experience here as a student was so positive, I knew it would be a good fit for me,” he says. “It has been a sheer joy to teach these students,” he says. “There’s nothing more rewarding as a teacher than leading a discussion where the students come to see the truth for themselves.”
Conference Papers, Invited Lectures, and Publications
- “St. Thomas Aquinas’s Approach to the Existence of God,” invited lecture delivered at Southern Connecticut State University, March 10, 2016
- On the 50th Anniversary of Dei Verbum: The Absolute Inerrancy of the Word of God, The Wanderer, October 5, 2015 (on-line), October 6, 2015 (in print)
- “What is Catholic Liberal Education?,” invited lecture delivered as part of the Fides et Ratio series at Holy Apostles College and Seminary, November 13, 2014
- “The Purpose of Playng” (“The Purpose of Poetry according to Aristotle and St. Thomas”), paper delivered at the conference of the Society of Aristotelian-Thomistic Studies, June 13, 2013
- “Shakespeare and the Philosophia Perennis,” invited lecture delivered as part of the yearly lecture series at the Legionaries of Christ College of Humanities, April 13, 2013
- “The Purpose of Human Suffering,” invited lecture delivered as part of the lecture series at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, April 2008
- “The Twofold Order in Liberal Education,” invited lecture delivered at the Knights of Columbus National Museum, March 2006
- Book Review of My Cup of Tea by Danielle Bean, First Things, March 2005
- “Divine Providence and the Problem of Evil,” invited lecture delivered at the College of St. Justin, Martyr, November 2004