As the school year approaches, parents of soon-to-be college freshman prepare for that inevitable moment after the

car is unpacked and the dorm room is organized when they must leave their child in unknown territory and return to a slightly emptier house. Apparently, this late-summer ritual doesnt get much easier as subsequent children depart, eventually leaving the nest, as they say, completely empty. So then why did Kathy Sinnott, *******, put herself through this process not just once but six times and choose to compound her financial and emotional hardship by sending the majority of her nine children to study in the United States? Because she, and her children, were enamored with the faith and educational quality of the college and universities listed in the Newman Guide. Initially, Mrs. Sinnott came across the Newman Guide while researching faithful Catholic colleges online. She said that, It was great to see a complete list as I only knew about a few and did not know of the other colleges. This particular benefit of Newman Guide is reflected in her childrens enrollment pattern. While some attended well-established Catholic colleges like Christendom and Franciscan, others attended more recent additions to the constellation of Catholic colleges, such as Ave Maria University (founded 2003) and John Paul the Great Catholic University (also founded 2003, but first accepted students in 2006). Despite their varying degrees of name recognition, Mrs. Sinnott observed that all Newman Guide colleges, are faithful to the Magesterium, take the spiritual, moral and intellectual development of their students very seriously and offer a real Catholic community for the student. Mrs. Sinnott noticed that the children who graduated from or are currently attending Newman Guide colleges have matured both spiritually and intellectually. She says that the growth in faith has been particularly obvious in my children because they come from Ireland where the current culture, media and education system mitigates against faith in young people. When they live and study in a Catholic community with an educational environment dedicated to truth, fidelity and excellence and mature in their faith, it can only be the Grace that comes from that college situation. The two of her children who already graduated also found success in the workplace; one works as an IT professional and the other as a behavior analyst. Those still completing their undergraduate degrees are optimistic about their chances of finding employment after graduation. When asked if she had any advice for Catholic parents who are helping their high schooler select a college, Mrs. Sinnott said, Without hesitation, I recommend that they confine their choice to one of the colleges on the Newman guideI would ask them to consider the importance of faith development and intellectual formation. Even if a child is interested in a major or field not offered at the Newman Guide schools, Mrs. Sinnott advises that, the parents encourage their child to attend a Newman guide college for the first years of college and benefit from the Catholic core curriculum and any preliminary courses related to their career choice, transferring only in junior or senior year when they must take specialized coursed not available in the Newman Guide college. Despite the financial sacrifices and those infamous freshman year goodbyes made all the more poignant by distance- Mrs. Sinnott highly recommends that parents use the Newman Guide as a core

tool during their childs college search. Her only regret about encouraging her children to attend these prestigious Catholic institutions? That they did not all go.