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About
Fidelity & ExcellenceThomas Aquinas College is unique among American colleges and universities, offering a faithfully Catholic education comprised entirely of the Great Books and classroom discussions.
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A Liberating Education
Truth MattersTruth, and nothing less, sets men free; and because truth is both natural and supernatural, the College’s curriculum aims at both natural and divine wisdom.
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A Catholic Life
Under the Light of FaithThe intellectual tradition and moral teachings of the Catholic Church infuse the whole life of Thomas Aquinas College, illuminating the curriculum and the community alike.
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Admission & Aid
Is TAC Right for You?Do you enjoy grappling with complex questions? Are you willing to engage in discussions about difficult concepts, with the truth as your ultimate goal?
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Students & Parents
Mind, Body & SpiritThere is always something to do at TAC — something worthwhile, something fulfilling, and something geared toward ever-greater spiritual and intellectual growth.
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Alumni & Careers
What Can You Do with a Liberal Education?Nothing speaks more to the versatility of the College’s academic program than the good that our alumni are doing throughout the Church and the world.
Speed with Grace: Rose Carlman (’17) on Running the Boston Marathon
“I just felt like setting some goals,” says Rose Carlman (’17), thinking back to her freshman and sophomore years, when she first took up running in a serious way. “So I decided to run a marathon.”
She ran her first, in Van Nuys, California, on Valentine’s Day, 2015. Having thus achieved her goal, she set her sights on another — Boston, the world’s oldest and most prestigious annual marathon, which is open only to top runners who have posted qualifying finish times elsewhere.
To prepare, she ran the Los Angeles Marathon on March 15, 2015, just a month after Van Nuys. Six months later, she ran her third marathon, this time in Ventura, completing the race in only 3 hours and 11 minutes, a full 24 minutes below the Boston qualifying time for women in her age group.
On the second weekend of this past April, Miss Carlman flew to Boston, accompanied by her father, where she was joined by her sister and cousins who live on the East Coast. On the morning of April 18, she lined up with 27,486 fellow runners and, with her family cheering on, completed the race in 3 hours and 9 minutes, a new personal record.
“There was no stress, like there was when I was trying to qualify,” she says. Instead she felt only excitement. “There are people cheering you on every step of the way, from the starting line in Hopkinton to the finish in Boston.” Already, she is making plans to run Boston again next year.
Training for the marathon, Miss Carlman says, was challenging, especially given her studies and her service scholarship job of preparing experiments in the College’s natural-science laboratories. “I often would wake up at 5:00 a.m. and run on the treadmill before work-study and then class,” she recalls. “But I’m not someone who can sit still for a long time — I need to be moving — so running in the morning helps me stay focused later when I am sitting in class.”
For her, the training was as much a spiritual exercise as a physical one. “I pretty much always pray the Rosary and the Chaplet while I’m running,” she says — offering prayers all 26.2 miles of the way.