On Catholic schools and Catholic colleges
Monday, January 31, 2011
*Msgr. Franklyn Casale
As Catholic parents, you hope that your children will choose a college that will prepare them for a life of professional and personal leadership, help them acquire global insight and experience an exciting campus life. Whether they graduate from a public or Catholic high school, students receive higher consideration by employers when their resumes show a degree from a Catholic university, due to the high ethical value sets and global perspectives.
Our children, especially graduates of Catholic high schools, should be considering a Catholic university. Religion and theology courses at our institution are intended to stimulate thought, creativity and profound intellectual development. We need to make students aware that challenging their minds with relevant and provocative questions about relationships to society and to God will contribute to their lifelong personal development. This happens best at a Catholic university.
The fundamental basis of the learning experience in college is acquired, integrated knowledge. It occurs cumulatively in college rather than sequentially as in high school. Our Catholic universities still have a core curriculum emphasizing the liberal arts, requiring courses in theology, philosophy, history, language, literature, science and math.
Pope John Paul II wrote, “While each discipline is taught systematically and according to its own methods, interdisciplinary studies, assisted by a careful and thorough study of philosophy and theology, enable students to acquire an organic vision of reality and to develop a continuing desire for intellectual progress.” (Ex Corde Ecclesiae, paragraph 20). This approach to education will prepare our students for several different changes of career during their working lifetime.
Your children may think they will be embarking on a more expensive journey. That’s why I am calling your attention to the affordability of private, Catholic higher education. At St. Thomas University, we offer students from Catholic high schools a special archdiocesan scholarship. General scholarships range from $6,000 to $15,500. Annual tuition and fees presently stand at $22,770 and with financial aid from the federal government - including state and federal grants - St. Thomas represents quite an affordable option to the graduates of Catholic schools. In some instances, financial aid may fully cover their annual tuition, as packages consist of a combination of scholarships, grants, loans, and employment opportunities - work-study students can work up to 20 hours per week if enrolled full-time.
To learn more about our academic programs, merit-based scholarships and financial aid, I encourage you to ask your youngsters to attend our next Undergraduate Open House, set for Feb. 19 at 9 a.m., and confirm their attendance by calling our Office of Admissions at 305-628-6546. Better still, encourage them to arrange for an individual campus tour to talk with Admissions and Financial Aid staff and other students; attend an athletic event; or chat with deans and faculty in their areas of interest. Your archdiocesan university is here to help them navigate the search as easily as possible.
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