CUA Cover Winter 2004 final (Page 2) - Columbus School of Law

A L T E R N A T I V E C A R E E R SREV. THOMAS CURRAN, O.S.F.S. ‘92THE WATCHFULSHEPHERDTHE “DEAD POETS SOCIETY” LIVES ON – AND NOT ONLY IN THE HEARTS OF NOSTALGIC MOVIEGOERS. SUCH SCHOOLSSTILL EXIST TODAY, INSTITUTIONS THAT IMPART MORAL PRINCIPLES AND VALUES AS THE BEDROCK UPON WHICHKNOWLEDGE MUST RIGHTFULLY REST.The Salesianum School of Wilmington,Del., is such a place. Proudlybilling itself as a “different” kind of highschool, it has been educating young menfor more than 100 years, producing morethan 13,000 graduates so far. Compared tomany high schools today, Salesianum iscertainly a world apart.A Catholic school operated by theOblates of St. Francis de Sales, theSalesian spirit forthrightly calls upon its students to“direct all of our actions to, with and through God.”Not content with merely prepping its students for theright colleges, the school places equal emphasison character building, working to instill the traits ofindividual responsibility and discipline that will helppropel its young students to positions of leadershiplater in life.“In a society that often [lacks] civility,Salesianum’s mission is more critical than ever,”observes school president, the Rev. Thomas B.Curran, O.S.F.S.Improving society by civilizing its members is aserious mission for Rev. Curran. Following a briefpost-law school clerkship with a PennsylvaniaSuperior Court judge, he moved directly into education,serving as the first president of NortheastCatholic High School. He earned a master’s degreealong the way to sharpen the essential skills in finance,enrollment, and marketing/planning that any savvyschool administrator must possess. In1997, he was selected to be the secondpresident of Salesianum School. FatherCurran quickly displayed his flair. For theschool’s 100th anniversary he oversaw thelargest capital expansion in nearly 50years. A new $7-million science centerwas constructed, and other upgrades andrenovations were launched. Students nowbenefit from a state-of-the-art sciencebuilding, a fine arts center, a renovated athletic facilityand fields, a technology corridor, memorial chapeland a conference center.“I am most grateful for my law degree andmy CUA experience,” says Father Curran. “I usemy legal education and background to monitor everythingfrom contracts, to taxation matters, totax-exempt financing, to torts, to exercising ‘duediligence’ in all engagements and undertakings forthe school.”The Salesianum School’s 100th anniversaryalso created a sort of spin-off: the establishment ofa new, faith-based, tuition-free middle schoolin Wilmington for at-risk fifth- and sixth-grade boys.The Nativity School is a kind of academic bootcamp for middle schoolers, aiming to right younglives before they go seriously astray. It also is overseenby Father Curran, and under the tutelage of oneof the Columbus School of Law’s most talentedlawyer-educators, it is sure to be a success.Winter 2004 / C UALAWYER 17