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About
Fidelity & ExcellenceThomas Aquinas College is unique among American colleges and universities, offering a faithfully Catholic education comprised entirely of the Great Books and classroom discussions.
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A Liberating Education
Truth MattersTruth, and nothing less, sets men free; and because truth is both natural and supernatural, the College’s curriculum aims at both natural and divine wisdom.
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A Catholic Life
Under the Light of FaithThe intellectual tradition and moral teachings of the Catholic Church infuse the whole life of Thomas Aquinas College, illuminating the curriculum and the community alike.
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Is TAC Right for You?Do you enjoy grappling with complex questions? Are you willing to engage in discussions about difficult concepts, with the truth as your ultimate goal?
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Mind, Body & SpiritThere is always something to do at TAC — something worthwhile, something fulfilling, and something geared toward ever-greater spiritual and intellectual growth.
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Alumni & Careers
What Can You Do with a Liberal Education?Nothing speaks more to the versatility of the College’s academic program than the good that our alumni are doing throughout the Church and the world.
College Celebrates 38 Graduates at New England Commencement
Members of the Class of 2026 at Thomas Aquinas College, New England, donned their caps and gowns and received their diplomas on Saturday — one week after their California counterparts — marking an end to four years of study, growth, and fellowship.
To begin Commencement Day, Rev. Andrew M. Beauregard, F.P.C., the vocations director for the Franciscans of the Poor Christ in Lawrence, Massachusetts, offered the Baccalaureate Mass of the Holy Spirit in Our Mother of Perpetual Help Chapel. In his homily, he reflected on the phrase, “The sky upholds the earth”: an image that invokes a world that, though it may believe it is lord of things higher than itself, is, in reality, sustained entirely by that which it attempts to reduce — and only those who see this truth can help flip the world’s perception aright.
“To restore the world, to slake its thirst, we need a restoration of metaphysics, of the permanent things, of the true way of looking at the world: upside down, with the sky upholding it,” he said. “You are being sent to preach the truth to a world at war with it. … But you go with the Holy Spirit. You must be like the Apostles, who turned the world upside down so that it could become right side up.”
Following a brief reception of coffee and doughnuts on the lawn outside St. Augustine Hall, the Commencement exercises began in Moody Auditorium. College President Paul O’Reilly opened the ceremony, welcoming all those in attendance. “I especially welcome you, parents and relatives of our graduates,” he stated, “for the trust you placed in us by sending these young people to Thomas Aquinas College.”
Next, Liam O’Brien (NE’26), the elected Class Speaker, addressed his classmates, entreating them to embrace the “madness” of the Faith and take it with them into their future homes, workplaces, and parishes. “This is my hope for us, my beloved classmates, that we proceed with a pure heart, a heart filled first and foremost with charity and humility, out of which comes this madness for seeking out communion with Christ,” he said. “If we can remember this, we won’t even be able to help ourselves in sharing that Wisdom we have been given a glimpse of over our four years here.”
The College then posthumously honored benefactor Eugene F. Horan, who used his estate to establish an endowment for student financial aid. Dr. O’Reilly presented members of Mr. Horan’s family with a bust of St. Albert the Great, inducting him into the Order of St. Albert, reserved for the College’s most generous friends. “We are honored to stand in his place here today,” said Alice Graebe, Mr. Horan’s goddaughter and niece. “I hope that, through his generosity, this school will continue to foster solid, faithful Catholic education. This is a testimony to his dedication and commitment to each of you.”
Commencement Speaker Dr. Gavin Ashenden, former chaplain to Queen Elizabeth II, took the podium next. He began with a personal anecdote about his early career, when he smuggled Bibles and theological texts into the Soviet Union. Then, building on the themes present in the prior addresses, charged members of the Class of 2026 to do the same with the education they had received: bring God’s goodness and truth to the wayward world they must now enter.
“You are going to have to smuggle Thomas Aquinas back into your own society; you have to become adept at smuggling a lot of things,” he said. “You carry the conviction that the human person is sacred, because God has made us in His likeness and image. You carry the knowledge that reason and faith are friends, not enemies. You carry the memory of the saints, the habit of prayer, and the discipline of the intellect. You carry Jesus.”
Just a few minutes later, 38 men and women each ascended the stage as seniors and descended as Thomas Aquinas College alumni, bearing academic hoods and diplomas. When the last of these new graduates returned to his seat, Dr. O’Reilly welcomed them all into “the community of those who know,” to which the Class of 2026 responded by singing, “Non nobis Domine: Not to us, O Lord, but to Your name, give glory.”
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