ICTE

Learning Continues at the Casa O’Toole

JOSHUA HILL ‘23, DIOCESE OF BISMARCK

Despite the fluctuating regulations surrounding the various demands of the pandemic, the Institute for

Continuing Theological Education (ICTE) at the Casa O’Toole (COT) has steadily remained a house of learning.

Rather than being a place of learning for priests on sabbatical, it has served as a distance-learning classroom for those of us in our second year of theological studies at the Angelicum.

Indeed, online classes are not the preferred method of long-term academic formation. However, I very much enjoyed distance learning at the COT this past semester, for it had more than enough resources to accommodate our academic needs.

A major benefit during these recent periods of communal lockdown, in which cabin fever can quickly form, was that the COT, while remaining on the College grounds, still provided us with a healthy sense of “getting out of the house.” Additionally, instead of a forty-five-minute commute to class, we grew to enjoy our five-minute commute! This time-saving difference

Students from the Class of 2023 attend online Angelicum lectures at the Casa O'Toole.

gave us the opportunity to pray before and/or after class without having to rush back to the College in the midst of the Roman traffic. This balance of close proximity, while remaining far enough removed, was both refreshing and conducive to distance learning.

Another delightful feature of taking classes on-site was the fully serviced COT kitchen, which proved very helpful during our class breaks. The kitchen is equipped with a couple of American-style coffee makers and an assortment of snacks. This provided us with the fuel needed to engage in a full morning of theological studies.

All things considered, thanks to the resouces of COT and the gracious welcome of the ICTE Director, Fr. Edward Linton, OSB, we were able to stay consistently and effectively engaged in our distance learning, despite the distractions of the fluctuating regulations and circumstances of the pandemic. n

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