Graduates Help Catholic Educators “Answer the Call”

Dr. Andrew Seeley (’87)In response to a rising demand for classical liberal education in Catholic schools, some Thomas Aquinas College graduates are working to prepare the next generation of Catholic school administrators. Under the auspices of their Institute for Catholic Education (ICLE),  Dr. Andrew Seeley (’87) and  Michael Van Hecke (’86) are hosting a webinar for Catholic teachers who are interested in becoming headmasters and headmistresses.

“The word is getting out that a rising number of Catholic schools are flourishing!” declares an ad for the webinar. “Their secret? A renewed commitment to the traditions of Catholic education — serious grounding in the classical liberal arts, immersion in Catholic history and culture, attention to developing virtue — resulting in communities that rejoice in the truth. Catholic schools are in growing need of leaders who can turn these ideals into living realities. Appeals for qualified and committed educators are constant. Searches are no longer merely regional, but national in scope.”

Dr. Seeley is a tutor at the College and ICLE’s executive director. Mr. Van Hecke, the Institute’s president and founder, is the headmaster of St. Augustine Academy in Ventura, California. Among the educators who will be leading the seminar is another graduate of the College, Luke Macik (’87), headmaster of the Lyceum, a classical liberal-arts high school in Cleveland, Ohio.

The three-hour online discussion, Answering the Call — An Introduction to Catholic School Leadership, will include Catholic educators from around the country. The webinar will take place on Saturday, February 21, at 10 a.m. Registration is $25.