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October 20, 2009 - Father Thomas O’Hara, C.S.C., president of King’s College was selected for inclusion to the inaugural list of 100 education leaders in the United States that are of Irish descent. The list appeared in a recent edition of the “Irish Voice,” a New York-city based weekly newspaper published by Irish Tribune, Inc. The eight president of King’s and the College’s first alumnus president, O’Hara is from Hazleton. His ancestors came from the counties of Mayo and Sligo in Ireland. “I am very proud of my heritage and the fact that it mirrors that of King’s College,” said O’Hara. “King’s was established to educate the working class of our local community and particularly the sons of coal miners. The parents and grandparents of many of King’s original students were immigrants who came to the United States with a strong work ethic and a desire for a better life for themselves and their children. I’m proud that King’s has been able to provide the educational component of that dream for generations of students, many of whom are the first in their family to attend college. “King’s has also been very active in supporting the multitude of ethnic heritages present in Northeast Pennsylvania, through programs like the Ethnic Community Outreach, the annual Irish Teachers Program, and most recently the College’s Hispanic Outreach initiative” O’Hara added. An editorial in the issue announcing the inaugural list read in part, “The Irish are wonderful educators, as our first ever Irish Education 100 list proves. They are natural teachers, individuals who are unselfish in motive and who love giving back to younger generations.”
Father Thomas O’Hara, C.S.C. King's College is a Catholic College sponsored by the Congregation of Holy Cross. |
