Parents

For nearly 40 years, Thomas Aquinas College has operated on a 131-acre property in Santa Paula, California. By God’s grace, the size of that property has now expanded more than six-fold.

At the end of August, College officials acquired more than 700 acres of surrounding open space. The acquisition substantially re-assembles the historic Ferndale Ranch along Santa Paula Creek, 131 acres of which were first deeded to the College in 1975.

Thomas Aquinas College has climbed 15 spots in the annual U.S. News and World Report college rankings, from No. 58 to No. 43 among the country’s national liberal arts colleges. The College is one of only two Catholic institutions in the United States to make the top 50.

To help families better manage the cost of higher education, CNBC has named its Top 10 Colleges for Financial Aid and, for the second straight year, Thomas Aquinas College has made 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:

Then, that evening, the seniors held a welcome dance, complete with the limbo, on the campus basketball courts:

Complementing its high rankings in the latest editions of various college guides, Thomas Aquinas College has earned a spot among the nation’s top colleges and universities, according to Washington Monthly. The magazine, which rates schools “based on what they are doing for the country,” considered some 1,739 colleges and universities nationwide for its 2018 list.

Last Saturday members of the College community gathered for the annual All-College Picnic:

The afternoon began with an inter-class tug-of-war, which the freshmen won handily. Then came a refreshing dive on a make-shift slip-n-slide, followed by the picnic itself — a chance for upperclassmen to reconnect after the summer and to get to know members of the Freshman Class.

Audio

by the Most Rev. José H. Gomez
Archbishop of Los Angeles
Homily from Votive Mass of St. Cecilia (transcript)
Dedication of St. Cecilia Hall
August 27, 2018

“After much work and prayer by so many members of the College community, we gather now to bless and dedicate this new lecture and concert hall to St. Cecilia,” declared the Most Rev. José H. Gomez, Archbishop of Los Angeles, at Thomas Aquinas College on Monday. “It will be a center of the College’s lecture and concert series — and a place for its students’ performances and other wholesome entertainment.”

In response to the newest revelations of scandal in the Church, the Most Rev. Robert C. Morlino, Bishop of Madison, Wisconsin, has published a thoughtful Letter to the Faithful in his diocesan newspaper.

On the morning of August 20, Thomas Aquinas College held its annual convocation day, welcoming a new class of freshmen who hail from 5 countries and 31 states — the Class of 2022.

The morning began with a Mass of the Holy Spirit in Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Chapel, with the Most Rev. Thomas Daly, Bishop of Spokane, Washington, serving as the principal celebrant and homilist: