St. Thomas More, 1478 - 1535

Feastday: June 22 • Patron Saint of Lawyers

               St. Thomas More was born at London in 1478. After a
               thorough grounding in religion and the classics, he entered
               Oxford to study law. Upon leaving the university he embarked
               on a legal career which took him to Parliament. In 1505, he
               married his beloved Jane Colt who bore him four children,
               and when she died at a young age, he married a widow,
               Alice Middleton, to be a mother for his young children. A wit
               and a reformer, this learned man numbered Bishops and
               scholars among his friends, and by 1516 wrote his
               world-famous book "Utopia". He attracted the attention of
               Henry VIII who appointed him to a succession of high posts
               and missions, and finally made him Lord Chancellor in 1529.
               However, he resigned in 1532, at the height of his career and
               reputation, when Henry persisted in holding his own opinions
               regarding marriage and the supremacy of the Pope. The rest
               of his life was spent in writing mostly in defense of the Church.
               In 1534, with his close friend, St. John Fisher, he refused to
               render allegiance to the King as the Head of the Church of
               England and was confined to the Tower. Fifteen months later,
               and nine days after St. John Fisher's execution, he was tried
               and convicted of treason. He told the court that he could not
               go against his conscience and wished his judges that "we
               may yet hereafter in heaven merrily all meet together to
               everlasting salvation." And on the scaffold, he told the crowd
               of spectators that he was dying as "the King's good servant -
               but God's first." He was beheaded on July 6, 1535.
               His feast day is June 22nd.

About St. Thomas More School

St. Thomas More Parish was created by Bishop John F. Dearden on June 8, 1953. Bishop Deaden appointed Reverend James P. Logue pastor on June 18th of that year. Religious education classes started shortly thereafter in the month of September 1953. The parish school opened on September 7, 1957 with a new wing in 1958.

The parish school flourished during the late 1950s and early 1960s with the Bishop's
mandate that all Catholics must send their children to a Catholic school. The school
continued to grow during the 1970s though the Bishop's mandate was no longer in
effect. Enrollment began a downward slide in the early 1980s. In an effort to reinforce
the importance of Catholic education, the school staff worked to clarify its position in
the church community & the community at large. In 1988 St. Thomas More School
became the first satellite program for the Diocesan St. Anthony's program for
exceptional children. An elevator was added and the school became the first
handicapped accessible school in the South Hills of Pittsburgh.

During the early 1990s the school experienced a slow growth in enrollment. From
1996 through 1998 the school enrollment increased at an approximate rate of 10%
each year. Fiscally, the school is sound having met the requirements established by
the Bishop for funding Catholic elementary schools.

School Profile
Pastor: Father Mark Eckman
Principal: Mrs. Sheila Riley

Location
A suburban community of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. Students are drawn from
the surrounding communities of: Upper St. Clair, Bethel Park, South Park, Peters
Township, Baldwin Township, City of Pittsburgh, and Chartiers Valley.

Student Population
280 students in kindergarten through grade 8; 18 full day 4 year old preschool students; 60 3 and 4 year old part-time preschool students.

Administrative Structure
Pastor; Principal; School Advisory Board

Professional Pay Scale Range full time teacher
$24,000- $31,000

Catechetical / Diocesan Certification
All full time teachers have PA State, Diocesan and religious certification

“Our Catholic schools are worth the sacrifice and investment on the
part of everyone. They provide the greatest hope for a bright
future for our Church and world.”

~ Father Kris Stubna, Secretary of Education for the Diocese of Pittsburgh