On Saturday, October 26, Brian Fitzmaurice will set foot on the St. Thomas University campus for the first time in 15 years.
Back when he last visited STU in 2009, there was no Gus Machado College of Business.
There were not over 900 students living in STU dorm rooms.
And not only did STU not have a football field with a modern scoreboard and a new turf field, but there was also not even a football team.
In other words, Fitzmaurice – part of STU’s Class of 1984 – might be in for a bit of a shock when he sees what has become of his once-sleepy and quaint college.
“I’ve seen pictures,” Fitzmaurice said of STU’s modern look. “But I’m ready and excited to arrive on Saturday to see what it looks like in person.”
Saturday, of course, is STU’s Homecoming, which will feature a number of events.
As part of the festivities, STU will host two sporting events, both against Webber International – the women’s soccer team takes the field at 11 a.m., and the football squad plays at 6 p.m. There will also be tailgating prior to the football game.
Aside from athletics, there is a luncheon at 12:30 p.m., and STU President David A. Armstrong, J.D., will give a “State of the University” talk two hours later.
Sarah McKenney, who in April became STU’s Director of Alumni and Donor Engagement, said there are new twists to this year’s Homecoming event.
Namely, there will be program-specific gatherings for alumni. For example, the MBA alums have a panel discussion prepared, and the College of Nursing has a “meet and greet” planned.
“Homecoming is a terrific way for alums to come back to STU,” McKenney said. “It’s also a great way to support our mission.”
McKenney said that this year’s Homecoming will also feature “Biscayne Day.”
In essence, STU will pay homage to the university when it was known as Biscayne College.
Don Dresback, who is on STU’s board of trustees, is one of those Biscayne College graduates, circa 1969.
Dresback, who at age 77 still works at Beacon Group, the insurance agency he co-founded in Boca Raton 45 years ago, remembers when STU was really small.
“There were only 42 graduates that year,” Dresback said. “I was the only math major.”
The changes Dresback has seen in STU over the years are astronomical.
When he was a student, Biscayne College featured no athletic fields. In fact, what is now the area for sports, was, back then, a stable with a few riding horses.
In addition, Biscayne College had to outsource some of its courses to Barry University and vice versa.
“I met my wife (Patricia) over a bridge table at Barry,” Dresback said. “We recently celebrated our 55th wedding anniversary.”
Besides his wife and family, STU is no doubt another one of Dresback’s great loves, and he urges all alums to come back for Homecoming.
“For people who haven’t been on campus in a few years, they will be amazed by what is happening,” Dresback said. “A six-story dorm-room building is going up, for example.”
Dresback and Fitzmaurice have something in common beyond STU, and it is that they both arrived here from the northeast.
A native of Erie, Pennsylvania, Dresback said he chose his alma mater because he was looking for a Catholic college “some place warmer.”
Fitzmaurice, a 62-year-old native of Washington D.C., went to high school at Archbishop Carroll. He was taught in the Augustinian tradition, and he wanted to continue that at STU.
After learning he qualified for an academic scholarship, Fitzmaurice was off to Miami – the first time he had ever boarded a plane.
He was also part of another first.
“Biscayne College became St. Thomas University in 1984,” Fitzmaurice said, “and that was the year I graduated.”
Fitzmaurice, who majored in Political Science, was prepared well by STU. After graduating from STU, he earned his Master’s degree at American University back in D.C., and he then landed at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Decades later, he is still there, and his current title is: Senior Program Advisor for HUD’s Homeless Office.
“I got a wonderful education at St. Thomas,” Fitzmaurice said. “I was part of the first STU class to go to Spain (for a study-abroad program).”
Fitzmaurice, who will be coming to Miami this weekend along with his wife Jennifer, said he will be happy to escape D.C.’s mid-40’s weather.
Beyond that, he is hoping to see some of his classmates so that he can fully revel in all the progress being made by his alma mater.
“President Armstrong is doing an incredible job,” Fitzmaurice said. “I’m really impressed with how he is growing the school, especially at a time when a lot of universities are contracting.”
