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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.
Meet the Summer Program Prefects: Anna van Wijk (’24)
We continue to meet the prefects for the 2022 California Summer Program, without whom the program’s wheels would not go around! Today’s prefect is sophomore Anna van Wijk.
Like her fellow prefect Hope, Anna hails from distant shores — though in her case, from a wholly different hemisphere. “I am from Auckland, New Zealand, the biggest city in New Zealand,” Anna tells us. “But my mom is from Minnesota, so I’m half-American.”
This American connection would prove central to Anna’s encountering Thomas Aquinas College. When she was 12, her grandparents first learned about TAC and were eager to share the discovery. “We were visiting my grandparents in Minnesota, and they said, ‘You should check out this college, it’s supposed to be really beautiful!’” Intrigued, Anna and her family found time to visit the California campus before they embarked on the long flight home across the Pacific Ocean. “We went to Mass and were given a tour, and even then I was thinking, ‘This is so amazing! I really want to go here!’” Her family was so enamored of the school that, the next two times the van Wijks visited Minnesota, they made detours to see it. “We were actually kind of like TAC stalkers!” Anna laughs.
When she was old enough, Anna again returned to campus as an attendee on the 2018 Summer Program. “It was just the most incredible experience,” she says. “The Summer Program was great because it allowed me to meet people who were my age, but still interested in the same things that I was, and who were really trying to be good people.” As a result of her many visits and the Summer Program, Anna returned definitively as a student the following year. “I couldn’t imagine going anywhere else,” she says with a smile.
Given the influence of the Summer Program in her own discernment, Anna is understandably excited to be a part of it this July. “I’m honored! It’s so cheesy to say, ‘Oh, it was life-changing,’ but that’s definitely true for me.” She hopes it will be for this year’s attendees, as well.
One aspect of the program that especially affected Anna was the Discussion Method used in the classes, and in particular the centrality of asking questions. “TAC has taught me that there’s so much I don’t know,” she says. “I would encourage everyone on the program to be at peace with not knowing things, and to be willing to wonder and ask questions.” Anna looks forward to hearing and discussing those questions with the friends she will make this summer.