Magdalen College Warner, New Hampshire www.magdalen.edu Overview In the early 1970s, several Catholics were interested in supporting the call of the Second Vatican Council for the education of lay Catholic leaders. They approached then-Bishop Ernest Primeau, the ordinary of the Diocese of Manchester, to receive an endorsement to establish a college within his diocese. The college recounts that the bishop, who had been active in Vatican II deliberations, said to them, “You have my blessing and approval, now let us see how well you laymen will conform to your apostolate.” What they have created over the past 35 years has been very much in conformity to their goal and to the Church’s mission. The relatively tiny college, named for patroness Saint Mary Magdalen, has been a beacon of fidelity to Catholic teaching and a forceful witness to faithful Catholic higher education. It also has firmly established a classical liberal arts program that exposes students to an interrelated Program of Studies focusing “on the great questions of life.” The first-year class in 1974 met in a motel in Bedford, New Hampshire, a town that hosted the college for the next 17 years. The campus was then relocated to its present 135acre site in the small central New Hampshire town of Warner. Bishop Primeau’s successor, Bishop Leo O’Neill, blessed the new campus on the Feast of St. Mary Magdalen in 1991. The college is located about 18 miles from the state capital of Concord and is a 90-minute drive from Boston. But it draws a student body from 23 states and several other coun- quick facts Founded: 1973 Type of institution: Very small liberal arts college Setting: Small town Undergraduate enrollment: 65 (2008–09 academic year) Total undergraduate cost: $20,500 (tuition, room and board for 2009–10) Undergraduate majors: One key Points 1. Lay-controlled board with dedication to Ex corde Ecclesiae. 2. Provides a liberal education through a distinctive Program of Studies. 3. Grants every qualified graduate an Apostolic Catechetical Diploma. 4. Views its small size as a charism. 5. Has a unique vocal music program which includes all students, every year. The Newman Guide 165 Magdalen College tries. The 13 graduates of the Class of 2008 included students from the Bahamas, California, Texas and Illinois; only three were from New England. To accomplish its objectives of individual attention and fostering a sense of community, the college will continue to be small. In 20082009 there were 65 students enrolled, and the maximum number is pegged at about 85–90. More than half were homeschooled, and 97 percent were Catholic. “Our charism is our size,” President Jeffrey Karls told us. “Our size is something that at first might put people off, but we intentionally keep it small because we want our students to have a very significant experience of community, of living the faith in community.” Magdalen students take four years of studies in Catholic doctrine, leading to the Vatican’s Apostolic Catechetical Diploma. We are not aware of any other institution that does this at the undergraduate level. The discipline of catechetics is distinct from theology, which assumes knowledge of Catholic doctrine; Magdalene acknowledges the reality that few students today are well-prepared for college-level theology. Such a program supports Magdalen’s goal of cultivating leaders for the Church. Nearly one-third of Magdalen’s students have gone on to graduate study, and about 10 percent of the college’s graduates have become priests or other religious. The college announced in May 2007 the acquisition of a property known as Durward’s Glen in Caledonia, Wisconsin, about a half-hour from the state capital of Madison. The property, purchased from the Order of Camillus Servants of the Sick, is used for retreats, other programs and eventually a second campus. Bishop Robert Morlino of the Diocese of Madison has blessed Magdalen’s expansion into his diocese. From the Financial Aid Office “Magdalen College students are now eligible to receive Pell Grants and Stafford Loans through the Federal Student Aid Program (Title IV). Because the college has a limited amount of institutional aid available for students, the Board of Trustees is committed to keeping tuition and room and board costs affordable. At Magdalen College, students save more than $9,100 as compared to the average private college in New Hampshire.” Magdalen received full accreditation from the American Academy for Liberal Education in 2004. It is currently pursuing regional accreditation through the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, and Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston participated in a “launch” for that effort in January 2009. Attending college in New England can be pricey, but not at Magdalen College. The tuition rate is less than half the typical private-college tuition in New Hampshire, with a total cost of just $20,500 for tuition, room and board in 2009-10. The bargain prices more than make up for somewhat smaller financial aid packages, although the college recently took the steps necessary to make students eligible for federal Pell Grants and Stafford Loans. Governance Magdalen College is governed by a board of trustees comprised of nine lay Catholics and two additional emeriti members. All make a Profession of Faith. The president also must be a Catholic. Karls, the third and current president, is an alumnus of the college and served as ex- 166 The Newman Guide Magdalen College ecutive vice president before assuming the presidency in 1998. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Institute on Religious Life and the Sedes Sapientiae Foundation, which supports the Benedictine Monastery of San Benedetto in Norcia, Italy. No stranger to the needs of Catholic families, he and his wife Julie have nine children. Public Identity In its founding document known as the Articles of Agreement, Magdalen pledges “to form the students in the life long pursuit of universal truths; the growth of their baptismal Faith; the adherence to precepts and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church; and the living of the special vocation of a Catholic layman and laywoman in such a way as to benefit society, especially through the family.” Appropriately, then, the college’s seal includes the phrase Gaudium et Spes (“Joy and Hope”), the name of the 1965 Vatican II constitution on the Church in the modern world. President Karls continually weighs in on these issues. In the spring 2006 issue of The Magdalen Newsletter, for example, he wrote: “In order to maintain and safeguard our Catholic identity, we must sustain our commitment to be faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church; we must provide courses for students on Catholic moral and religious principles and their application to critical areas such as human life and other issues of social justice; and we must care pastorally for the students, faculty and staff.” The Newman Guide Magdalen lives up to those purposes in all aspects of its public life. We are aware of no speakers or events that run contrary to Church teachings. Many campus appearances have come about through the H. Lyman Stebbins Colloquium. One of the recent speakers in the series was Dr. Robert Royal, president of the Faith and Reason Institute, who spoke on Dante, his academic specialty. In April 2007, Chris Graveline, an alumnus and U.S. army prosecutor, spoke about the Abu Ghraib prison controversy and other legal issues. Bishop Michael Cote of the Diocese of Norwich spoke on the papal document Spe Salvi in April 2008. As part of the 35th anniversary celebration, Dr. Brennan Pursell, a DeSales University history professor and author of Benedict of Bavaria, spoke during parents’ weekend in October 2008. The year-long commemoration also included the visit of former Vatican official Cardinal Francis Arinze in April 2009. Festivities concluded in July 2009 with visits by musician Tony Melendez and Dr. Robert Moynihan, editor of Inside the Vatican. The college launches its school year with an Academic Mass of the Holy Spirit, usually celebrated by Bishop John McCormack of the Diocese of Manchester. The board of trustees, faculty and staff take the Oath of Fidelity at this Mass. The celebrant of the end-of-year Baccalaureate Mass in 2008 was Bishop Morlino of Madison, and in 2009 it was Bishop Louis Gelineau, Bishop Emeritus of Providence, Rhode Island. 167 Magdalen College All of these speakers and, of course, students and others are reminded of the college’s Catholic identity by passing by the Mary Magdalene Shrine at the entrance of the chapel and a nearby Immaculate Heart of Mary Shrine. Spiritual Life Our Lady, Queen of Apostles Chapel is at the center of the campus and campus life. Mass is offered daily by the college chaplain, an African priest of the Religious Missionary Congregation of the Apostles of Jesus. Most students attend. On Sundays, visitors swell the chapel to capacity. Masses are reverent and traditional. All students are part of the choir, which sings motets, polyphony and traditional hymns for the liturgy. President Karls said in a 2009 InsideCatholic.com interview, “Singing is at the heart of our life at Magdalen College.” Message from the President Dear Parents and Prospective Students: If you desire a college where faith plays a vital role, a campus life that fosters lasting friendships and an academic program that challenges your mind—visit Magdalen College. If you are looking for a Catholic liberal arts education that will strengthen your faith in Christ and enable you to freely and vigorously pursue the truth with the greatest authors in history, then Magdalen College is the right choice for you. Visit our beautiful New Hampshire campus; observe students who are taking on the real challenges to live life well, and witness our committed faculty and staff generously offer individual attention to each student. When I had the privilege of attending Pope Benedict XVI’s meeting with Catholic college presidents, he made the following statement on Catholic education: “Education is integral to the mission of the Church to proclaim the Good News. First and foremost every Catholic educational institution is a place to encounter the living God who in Jesus Christ reveals his transforming love and truth.” Students at Magdalen College experience this encounter on a daily basis. As you begin your College search, I urge you to consider visiting Magdalen College. Yours in Christ, Dr. Jeffrey Karls 168 The Newman Guide Magdalen College He added, “Singing gets the students out of themselves, helps them to be creators of harmony and beauty, and it nurtures their sense of wonder. That is part of the reason that joy permeates our campus.” Holy days are observed with administration offices closed and classes suspended so, as another college official said, “the entire community can celebrate together.” In addition, generally there is a banquet, skit or some other special activity to set the day apart. There also are special observances to denote liturgical seasons. For instance, there are daily reflections and events associated with the Easter Triduum. On May 1, there is a May Crowning for the Blessed Mother. Throughout the academic year, the Rosary is prayed daily in the chapel or residence halls. Adoration is available daily in the afternoons. Benediction takes place on Sundays at 4:30 p.m. There also are annual retreats offered separately for men and women, directed by priests or sisters. Academics There are no electives and no majors at Magdalen; all graduates receive a Bachelor of Arts degree. Magdalen’s academic program is based on the Program of Studies that was adopted in 1998. It is an integrated curriculum in which students participate in required tutorials, most of which are based on the Socratic method, and that build on each other. All students need to take the four-year program in sequence so that transfer students, regardThe Newman Guide less of their previous academic standing, start with the freshman regime. An example of this integrated approach is seen with the study of catechetics. In the freshman year, the tutorials cover the basics of faith. Subsequent tutorials then build on that foundation by focusing on such things as historical and biblical timelines, the Official Catechism of the Catholic Church and encyclicals. Seniors take a marriage preparation class. This intensive, fouryear religious training allows students to receive the Apostolic Catechetical Diploma. It ties back to the college’s apostolate as well as to its goal of providing a well-rounded education. “Our mission,” President Karls told us, “is to educate the lay people, to provide the foundations of faith so that they will sanctify whatever they do in the future. They will have had the catechesis in faith and learned about living the faith.” He added, “Many of our graduates do go out and teach CCD, either as volunteers at a parish or in full-time, paid teaching positions. With the Apostolic Catechetical Diploma they receive from Magdalen, they are recognized by those who appreciate the certification as well-prepared catechists.” All tutors request the mandatum in front of the bishop and the college. The admissions director said of the faculty: “They all have various degrees and specialties, but all in their own way represent the faith in the classroom as well as in their personal life.” Another staff member called President 169 Magdalen College Karls “an exemplary father and a friend.” Yet another said of tutor Mark Gillis: “He is an example for all to follow. He practices what he teaches. His family life, academic life and spiritual life all sum up an exemplary Catholic example.” Gillis, who is the catechesis coordinator, also has established the Don Bosco Boys Camp in nearby Concord and teaches in the Diocese of Manchester’s “Called to Discipleship” program. All 12 tutors received high marks in our interviews. They teach philosophy, geometry, logic, Latin, English, music and singing, philosophy, astronomy, Newtonian physics, biology, modern science, drawing, comparative writing, comparative cultures, classical literature and other subjects. Seniors need to complete a thesis tutorial now known as a Quaestio. Music, particularly singing, occupies an important place in the curriculum. Every student is in the choir and takes music all four years. The reason, according to one staff member: “We learn so much about the Mass, the feasts and seasons of the liturgical year and the teachings of the Church through learning the musical traditions of the Church.” A sign of Magdalen’s commitment to music as part of a serious liberal arts program, it announced a new academic dean in June 2009: Dr. George Harne, who holds a Doctorate and Master of Fine Arts in Musicology from Princeton University, as well as a Masters in Liberal Studies from St. John’s College in Annapolis. Dr. Harne has launched a new Honors Program including advanced courses in Geometry and Reasoning, Latin and English composition. Honors students complement the Program of Studies with topics of study such as modern cinema, Dante’s Divine Comedy, and the twentieth century German Thomist, Josef Pieper. They also research and write an Honors Thesis known as a Quaestio. A rather unique aspect of the Program of Studies is that students are evaluated at the end of their sophomore year to determine whether they are making satisfactory academic and community progress. They are required to reapply to the college through a process known as the Junior Re-admittance Procedure. Any student who finishes the first two years is eligible for an Associate of Arts degree. Approximately 88 percent of sophomores return for their junior year. For the overwhelming majority who do move on to the junior year, there is the opportunity to study in Italy for four weeks in the summer. After visiting Rome, students move on to the Umbrian town of Norcia, where they live in a one-time convent, interact with Benedictine monks at a nearby monastery and study The Rule of Saint Benedict and several writers from Aristotle to 20th-century writer Luigi Barzini. Students conduct themselves with pride: Men wear a coat and necktie and women wear 170 The Newman Guide Magdalen College a dress or skirt and blouse to class. Prospective students can sample Magdalen College life through visitor weekends; there were four such opportunities in the 2008-2009 academic year, two in each semester. There also are two two-week sessions of a Summer Youth Program for 15- to 18-yearolds. third consecutive year that the entire student body journeyed to the nation’s capital for the March for Life. Residential Life There are two residence halls: St. Joseph’s for men, which has eight students to a large room, and St. Mary’s for women, with four to a room. Televisions and radios are not allowed in order to encourage community life. Each hall has a small chapel with a tabernacle. There is no inter-residence visitation. One alumna and current staff member told us, “Chastity is definitely encouraged, especially by the students. They are willing to become involved in a situation if they feel it necessary. We stress respect for the whole person in all areas, and this fosters healthy relationships beyond college.” All students are also required to participate in the Campus Service Program to provide various chores around campus. This program is considered a natural and integral part of community life. Student Activities As noted previously, a key part of student activities is the mandatory Magdalen College Choir, which has twice-weekly practices in anticipation of Sunday Mass. Select students participate in the Performance Choir, Polyphony Choir or the chant and psalm schola. The choir performs at St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Manchester, other churches, nursing homes, an orphanage and the local town hall. They have recorded five CDs since 1999. The St. Genesius Players, a drama group, performed Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie in March 2009. Among other activities are an intramural sports program, an Outing Club and a social club that organizes various indoor, outdoor and cultural activities. The Leisure Activities Program generates informal intellectual and cultural opportunities. The H. Lyman Stebbins Colloquium sponsors visits to concerts and historical sites in Boston and other New England cities. Students also participate in pro-life activities, attending marches both in Concord, the state capital, and the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. Indeed, 2009 marked the The Newman Guide The Community Warner is a quaint New England town of 2,800 in the New Hampshire Lakes Region that traces its history back to 1735. One popular local event is the Fall Foliage Festival, held every October since 1947. The campus is on Mount Kearsarge, almost 3,000 feet high, which provides abundant hiking opportunities. The winters are long and snowy, making skiing a popular local pastime. The area is quiet and relatively crime free. 171 Magdalen College The nearby city of Concord, with state government offices and a population of 42,000, provides additional services to the Magdalen community. The major metropolitan area is Boston, about 90 miles away, which offers many cultural, sports and entertainment opportunities. Some out-of-town college students may arrive at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, which is about 45 minutes from Warner. Boston’s Logan International Airport is another option about 90 minutes from campus. For those traveling by highway, Interstates 89 and 93 intersect at Concord. They have succeeded well. In the process, they developed a broadranging classical curriculum that provides students with the intellectual reservoir to be well-read, productive citizens and parents. But they never forgot the human dimension: An important component of their program has been to integrate students together to foster a sense of community. Adding to the appeal of living in rural New England for four years, Magdalen College offers many attractions for the Catholic high school senior who is looking for both a solid education and an enhanced spiritual formation. The Bottom Line Magdalen College is part of the wave of small, orthodox colleges that were spawned after Vatican II. Its founders had a vision that they could create an institution that would train new generations of leaders for the Church. 172 The Newman Guide