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April 21, 2017
10,000 Ojai Road
Santa Paula CA 93060
Contact: Anne Forsyth, Director of College Relations
(805) 525-4417
Hi-Res photos

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Thomas Aquinas College to Take Ownership 
of Property for Branch Campus in New England

May 2nd – 11:15 a.m. EST
Northfield, MA

 

WHAT:

Thomas Aquinas College, along with the newly established The Moody Center, will officially receive ownership from the National Christian Foundation of the historic Northfield Campus in Northfield, Massachusetts, on Tuesday, May 2, 2017.

A signing ceremony and press conference will be held at 11:15 a.m. EST during which representatives from each entity will participate, including Emmitt Mitchell of the National Christian Foundation and Dr. Michael F. McLean, President of Thomas Aquinas College.

The local community is invited to a public celebration service at 3:00 p.m. EST featuring keynote speaker Dr. Erwin Lutzer, Pastor Emeritus of The Moody Church in Chicago and famed writer and speaker.

WHERE:

Northfield Campus
231 Main Street
Northfield, Massachusetts 01360

WHEN:
May 2, 2017
11:15 a.m.
– Signing Ceremony and Press Conference in Olivia Hall 
3:00 p.m. –  The Northfield Celebration in The Auditorium

WHO:

Thomas Aquinas College was established in 1971 and has developed a solid reputation for academic excellence in the United States and abroad. It is highly ranked by organizations such as The Princeton Review, U. S. News, and Kiplinger. At Thomas Aquinas College all students acquire a broad and fully integrated classical liberal arts education through study of the Great Books. The academic life of the college is conducted under the light of the Catholic faith and flourishes within a close-knit community, supported by a vibrant spiritual life. Contingent upon approval from the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education, the college will open a branch campus on the Northfield property in the fall of 2018.

The National Christian Foundation is a nationwide organization helping givers simplify their giving, multiply their impact, and experience the joy of sending more to their favorite causes than they ever dreamed possible. Founded in 1982 with a mission to mobilize resources by inspiring biblical generosity, NCF has become America’s largest sponsor of donor-advised funds for Christian givers with over $7 billion to more than 40,000 churches, ministries and nonprofits.

The Moody Center is a 501c3 nonprofit organization with a purpose to preserve the legacy of D.L. Moody at Northfield and to continue his evangelistic mission. The Center will develop a museum that will collect and preserve archives to honor the heritage of Moody. The campus will serve as an event center and host scholarly programs for Christian organizations.

 

MEDIA DETAILS:

Media representatives are invited to attend both the signing ceremony and press conference as well as the celebration service. Representatives will also available to provide tours of the property and interviews.

The signing ceremony and press conference will be live-streamed at: https://livestream.com/accounts/10616561/events/7290578

The celebration service will be live-streamed at: https://livestream.com/accounts/10616561/events/7290595

Photos are available upon request.

To RSVP or to request an interview, please contact Anne Forsyth via aforsyth@thomasaquinas.edu or 805-525-4417.

 

BACKGROUND:

Nineteenth century evangelist Dwight L. Moody originally founded the Northfield property in order to advance education and evangelism. It was home to the Northfield Mount Hermon School, which was founded as two institutions, Northfield Seminary for Young Ladies in 1879 and Mount Hermon School for Boys in 1881. The schools became a single coeducational institution in 1971 and consolidated to the Mount Hermon campus in 2005.

The Northfield Campus occupies more than 500,000 square feet and contains 40 primary buildings including dormitories, academic and administration buildings. Thomas Aquinas College will occupy the majority of these buildings, allowing the institution to expand its more than 45-year history of excellence in Catholic liberal education to the east coast. The school plans to begin welcoming students in the fall of 2018.

The Moody Center will be restoring many historic parts of the campus, including the Homestead as well as the Moody Auditorium, which seats 2,200 and is the home of Moody’s famous revivals. It will also build a Moody museum, which will be open to the public, and house a repository of archives that have historical significance to the evangelist’s life and legacy.

Both entities are committed to upholding the vision and mission of education and evangelism on which Moody originally founded the property.