The College Choice: What Matters Most and What Comes Next
January 9, 2027 @ 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm CST
6:00pm Wine & Cheese | 7:00pm Keynote
Featuring Keynote Speaker Dr. Peter Kilpatrick
How do we calculate the value of college amidst rising tuition costs? How does time at a university uniquely prepare adolescents for adulthood? How can we prepare our children to navigate the modern challenges of academia, from free speech to AI?
Join Dr. Peter Kilpatrick, President of The Catholic University of America, for an evening devoted to the questions that matter most in preparing for college. Dr. Kilpatrick will draw on his experience as a university president and educator to offer a holistic perspective on the college decision, the formation of the whole person, and the opportunities and challenges that accompany the college years.
About the Speaker
Peter Kilpatrick is the 16th President of The Catholic University of America. He and his wife, Nancy, have four adult children and three grandchildren in whom they take every chance to delight.
Before taking office as President of CUA, Peter served as Provost at Illinois Institute of Technology, as Dean of Engineering at the University of Notre Dame, and as a long time faculty member at NC State University.
President Kilpatrick enjoys lecturing on both scientific topics and on the integration of faith and reason, especially on themes such as the meaning and purpose of a Catholic university, beauty in science, and Catholic social teaching and innovation. Most notably, President Kilpatrick’s leadership is shaped by his own conversion to Catholicism. Attending Mass at his wife Nancy’s urging after the birth of their first child, Peter experienced an encounter that awakened a conviction he has carried faithfully for more than four decades. He brings that same zeal for the faith into his leadership, grounding his work in daily prayer, devotion to family, and the belief that true evangelization begins with genuine friendship and love.
