The feast day of St. Thomas Aquinas is a holiday at the Santa Paula liberal arts college that bears his name --- insofar, at least, as there are no classes.

So on this bright-blue-sky Jan. 28 morning, Michael McLean is a bit more relaxed than usual as he greets a visitor in his upper floor office at St. Thomas Hall. Except that it's hard to imagine this genial administrator with the Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Notre Dame --- and the very professorial salt-and-pepper beard --- ever looking anything but relaxed or genial.

This is his 33rd year, after all, at Thomas Aquinas College, a unique institution in so many ways --- its far-flung locale in rural Ventura County (nearly hidden from Highway 150 between Santa Paula and Ojai); its extraordinarily small and geographically diverse student body (345, from 44 states and five continents); and its unwavering commitment to a liberal arts curriculum that assesses the Great Books in classes filled with discussion, led by faculty "tutors," to foster growth and to seek truth within the Catholic intellectual tradition.

It is a program and process to which McLean --- a former Peace Corps volunteer and U.S. Coast Guard officer --- remains deeply committed, as was his close friend and former St. Mary's College classmate, Thomas Dillon, who served as Thomas Aquinas' president from 1991 until his untimely death last April in an automobile accident.

That tragedy --- barely a month after the dedication of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Chapel, a $23 million crown jewel in the college's ambitious and ongoing development plan --- is still all too fresh in the minds of the close-knit Aquinas community, McLean admits. Yet the college has moved forward, he adds quickly, drawing inspiration from Dillon's lifelong commitment to the principles and values embodied in the mission of the college.

On Feb. 13, Dr. Mclean will be officially inaugurated as the college's president in a ceremony with Cardinal Roger Mahony presiding. On the college patron's feast day, the 62-year-old parishioner of St. Sebastian Church in Santa Paula discussed the college with the Tidings.

Q: How has the college moved forward from the death of Dr. Dillon?
A: Tom's death was certainly a blow, a shock, to the entire community. To lose a CEO, our chief inspiration and a dear friend has been a real trauma for everyone. But the faith life here is very strong, and that has seen the school through this time. And Tom's family has been a real inspiration.

We were fortunate to have Peter DeLuca (a founding faculty member and veteran administrator) serve as interim president until the board of governors selected a permanent leader. Peter's leadership provided continuity and stability that we needed. And now that I have been selected, there is no question of any radical change in course or direction. My task is to maintain the college's fidelity to its founding mission: to offer a broad education, rooted in Catholic tradition; and to inspire our students to a love of wisdom.

Q: After the completion of the chapel, what else is left for the college to build?
A: We are nearly complete, but we will be adding another classroom building, then a lecture/concert hall, and finally a gymnasium. And for that there is still fundraising to be done, as well as some funds needed to complete the chapel's cost. Our benefactors have been extremely generous and supportive, as have our alumni and students.

Q: The economic downturn has hit education at all levels very hard. What have been the effects here?
A: We have not been immune. We've seen an increase in the financial needs of students and their families. About 70 percent of our students are receiving some sort of financial aid, whether through loans, grants, on-campus employment or other means. And while we are considered a bargain among private colleges at $29,000 a year for tuition, room and board, it is still a challenge. We've had to increase our budget for the current fiscal year to account for the increased need.

That's why we need to build up our endowment, so that we can offer families financial aid as needed. For next year, we are freezing the tuition, room and board costs, and we'll continue to do all in our power to provide aid as needed.

One indication of the effects of the economy is the freshman recruiting class process. We have 102 spots open for freshmen, and we used to be filled by November for the following school year. This year, we are still looking to fill those spaces (for 2010-11), and I am confident that we will, but it shows that families are thinking very carefully about the costs of private versus public education.

Q: Have the demographics of the college changed, in terms of nationality or home state?
A: It's still very much as it always has been, with 60 percent or more of our students coming from outside California, and I don't see that changing.

Q: What are some of the perceptions, even misconceptions, that some people have about Thomas Aquinas College?
A: (Smiling) Well, some think we're a seminary or a monastery. And others ask if we are co-ed. (The current student body is 54 percent female.) Then there are those in academia who have a difficult time understanding the fully required character of our educational process.

We have always believed that most young people, as they enter college, do not have a clear picture of what they want to do with their lives, so we offer a broad and rigorous program based on the Great Books in all areas --- literature, philosophy, history, science, and so on. In our curriculum, the authors of these books --- Shakespeare, Dante, Plato, Newton --- are the real teachers, and the faculty are really tutors who are, in reality, learning along with the students as they guide and moderate the discussions.

That means we expect our tutors, including myself, to teach in all areas of the curriculum, including those outside their expertise, as witnesses to the integration of the program. There are times I have to work really hard to prepare for a math or science class, to master material that I'm not as familiar with. And the notion that one can teach outside one's specialty is hard to grasp by those in education who do specialize. But because we look upon ourselves as learners along with the students, we feel it sets a great example for our students, that you continue to learn regardless of age, status, position.

The students help in the learning process, whether by explaining a point, or asking good questions, or simply through their active participation in discussions. And that is why we keep our class sizes at 15 to 18 students. It also keeps the classes fresh; a tutor may have the same class in the morning and afternoon, but find that because of the discussions they are completely unique.

Q: Some would call Thomas Aquinas College a very conservative, maybe even stodgy institution. How do you respond?
A: (Laughing) Well, that's true, to a degree. We certainly have strong convictions on what we teach, which is based on what our founders believed was a response to what they saw happening in the 1960s --- that some Catholic colleges were losing their commitment to the Catholic intellectual tradition. They believed that it was essential to emphasize the importance of that tradition, as exemplified by the work of St. Thomas Aquinas as an intellectual leader.

On the other hand, our educational process allows for discussions and quests for truth that are anything but narrow. Our students are required to read works by natural scientists and modern philosophers, some of whom are quite critical of Catholic tradition. It is a fixed but hardly narrow curriculum that encompasses a breadth of intellectual diversity.

It is true that most of our students are from serious Catholic families that believe in Church teaching. We hope to teach a principled and intelligent respect for what our country stands for, what our Church stands for. And as a Catholic college with a serious commitment to the faith, we are bound by doctrinal and moral commitments in how we operate. We have a curfew, a dress code, a ban on alcohol. And in our context, that makes sense --- not as a way to crush freedom and spontaneity, but to facilitate intellectual growth. The students who enroll here come voluntarily, and they understand what is expected --- and they see the value of the program, so they commit themselves to that.

We also celebrate most Masses here in Latin, not because we are against using English, but because it is part of preserving the liturgical tradition of our Church. It makes sense, too, since our students study two years of Latin.

Q: What does your inauguration mean for you?
A: In my view, it's not about me, but rather a chance to reaffirm the mission and tradition of the college. It's a process that's been accompanied by a great deal of prayer and support, and I feel very honored and blessed to have received this responsibility.