After weekly matches that lasted throughout the first half of the semester, the intramural volleyball season came to an end on both campuses last Friday. In New England, the faculty team continued its season-long dominance, defeating the student squad of sophomore Jean Guerreiro:

And in California, junior Joe Colarelli’s team bested that of senior Clare Tuttle to claim the 2019 crown:

Congratulations to the champions!

On Friday evening, groups of about 20 Thomas Aquinas College students from all classes — seniors and freshmen, sophomores and juniors — gathered in classrooms on both coasts for the All-College Seminar.

On Saturday, the kitchen staff at Thomas Aquinas College, New England, had to attend some mandatory training. So the College ordered in pizza, and students enjoyed a game night in Gould Hall.

Games included Scrabble, Bananagrams, Monopoly, and more. As they played, students enjoyed Shirley Temples, courtesy of Simone Kelly (’22), who runs the campus coffee shop and who was, back in her home county in California, once named “Barista of the Year.”

It was a “baptism by immersion” on Monday evening as the students of Thomas Aquinas College, New England, celebrated the opening of the aquatics center in Meany Gymnasium — and just in time, now that the autumn weather has arrived.

Each fall the sophomores, juniors, and seniors take turns staging welcome events for the new Freshman Class. This past weekend, the California sophomores did their part, hosting an informal dance with a country theme in St. Joseph Commons. The dance included skits, refreshments, and plenty of swing-dancing:

One week after their California counterparts, the College’s New England students gathered last Thursday for an “On Tap” forum with their campus’ assistant dean for student affairs. Over the course of a two-hour conversation accompanied by root-beer floats in the Gould Hall lounge, Dr. Patrick Gardner answered questions on a wide range of topics, including future plans for campus buildings, the nature of the College’s classical curriculum — and his children’s names.

The American Council of College Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) has released its annual report (PDF) on the curricular strength of American institutions of higher learning and, once again, Thomas Aquinas College is at the very top of the list.

“Students, faculty, governors, administration, alumni, and family members gathered to witness history,” reports Steve Kiltonic in the above video, “as Thomas Aquinas College, New England, became only the second Catholic institution of higher education to open in the Diocese — and the first in nearly a century.”

Audio

“Sing in Me, Muse”:
Homer, Poetry, and the Founding of the West

By Dr. David M. Whalen
Provost and Professor of English, Hillsdale College
St. Vincent de Paul Lecture and Concert Series
Thomas Aquinas College, New England
September 20, 2019

Last week a sign appeared on the bulletin board in Gould Hall, the dining commons of Thomas Aquinas College, New England: “Everyone is invited to a Party — Hosted by the CC.”

The “CC,” a note at the bottom explained, “is a club full of tutor children.” The faculty kids were planning a party “to welcome all Freshmen and Sophomores,” which would  be held Saturday afternoon, just outside of Gould. “There will be a few speeches as well as refreshments.”