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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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Admission & Aid
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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Students & Parents
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.
New Tutor Profile: David M. Grothoff (’07)
When he was in high school, David Grothoff had a good friend who decided to attend Thomas Aquinas College. It was an intriguing choice, David thought, but not for him.
Instead, David opted to study mechanical engineering at the University of Missouri. “Engineers were the ones who figured out how the world works,” he reflects. “I was interested in knowing how natural things operate.” To his surprise, engineering school could not sate his curiosity. “No one was interested in answering my questions,” he recalls. “For example, we used equations involving force all the time, but if you asked someone, ‘What is a force?’ that wasn’t seen as a reasonable question. The underlying assumptions didn’t matter.”
When his friend invited him to visit the College during his Junior Year, David accepted. Attracted by the faithful community, and surprised to learn that philosophy could answer the sort of questions that fascinated him, he decided to enroll after completing his engineering degree. “Some people worried that I would find the mathematics here to be repetitive or boring because of what I had already done, but that wasn’t the case,” he says. “Yes, I was already proficient in the mechanics of calculus, but this was a very different outlook, and very different questions were being asked, better questions.”
Upon graduating from the College in 2007, Mr. Grothoff elected to combine his background in engineering with his studies in philosophy and pursue advanced degrees in the philosophy of science. After a one-year break from schooling, during which he worked for a home-development corporation, he enrolled at The Catholic University of America. There he earned a licentiate in philosophy and completed the coursework for his doctorate. He also met his wife, Crystal, who was enrolled at the nearby Dominican House of Studies. The Grothoffs married in May 2014 and are now expecting their firstborn son.
In his first year at the College, Mr. Grothoff is teaching three sophomore classes: math, natural science, and seminar. Although he taught undergraduates at CUA, he finds leading classroom discussions at the College to be far more demanding. “It’s fairly easy to fill an hour with a lecture,” he says. “It takes much more preparation, energy, and attention to lead a good discussion for an hour — but it’s also much more rewarding.”