A Tutor Talk by Dr. Joseph P. Hattrup

Note: Periodically members of the Thomas Aquinas College teaching faculty or chaplaincy present informal lectures, followed by question-and-answer sessions, on campus. These late-afternoon gatherings afford an opportunity for speakers to discuss topics of great interest to them and to share their thoughts with other members of the community. Dr. Joseph P. Hattrup delivered the following talk on October 9, 2014:

In an effort to better know the College’s students and to foster friendships among them, Resident Assistant Sarah Dufresne (’14) hosted a pancake breakfast this past Saturday morning:

One Friday evening each semester, groups of about 20 Thomas Aquinas College students from all classes — seniors and freshmen, sophomores and juniors — gather in classrooms across the campus for the semi-annual All-College Seminar. Although separate, these groups engage in a single, common activity, namely, reading, analyzing, and discussing the same text, one that is not part of the College’s ordinary curriculum. Two members of the teaching faculty lead each of the discussions.

On October 1, the Feast of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, the women of St. Thérèse Residence Hall raised their voices in honor of their patroness, singing the parts of the liturgy and several hymns at that night’s Mass in Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Chapel. “We pray to Thérèse in a special way tonight,” said Chaplain Rev. Cornelius M. Buckley, S.J., in his homily, “to show up the way, the little way to the Lord, to respond to Him, each of us individually, as He calls us in the Gospel.”

A “Tutor Talk” by Rev. Hildebrand Garceau, O.Praem.

“You have the gift of being able to look at the world a little bit differently,” said Tim Ristoff, founder and CEO of TriVista Business Group, to an audience of Thomas Aquinas College students at a Career Forum this past Sunday in St. Bernardine of Siena Library. “That’s going to make you unbelievably successful, should you elect to go into the business world.”
 

The American Council of College Trustees and Alumni has released its sixth annual report on the curricular strength of American colleges and universities and, once again, Thomas Aquinas College is at the very top of the list.

Each fall the sophomores, juniors, and seniors take turns hosting welcome events for the new freshman class. This past weekend, it was the seniors’ turn. The day began with a joint trip to the beach, including lunch at California’s iconic hamburger chain, In-N-Out Burger:

Then, that evening, the seniors held a welcome dance, complete with student-produced skits,in St. Joseph Commons:

On Friday night students gathered with guitars, banjos, and marshmallows around the new campus fire pit, a gift from the Class of 2013. Located by the Dillon Garden — a gift of the Class of 2009 in honor of late President Thomas E. Dillon — the fire pit promises to be a popular nighttime gathering spot for many years to come.

At the end of classes on Friday, students began the weekend with sand-volleyball matches on the campus court: