The Institute of Catholic Theology

Tom began his journey in education as a substitute teacher in 2002 for the Diocese of Phoenix, after a few years in the business world. In 2004, he accepted a full-time teaching position at St. Mary's Catholic High School where he taught theology for four years. In 2008, Tom decided to leave teaching at St. Mary's to pursue a Masters in Theology from Franciscan University of Steubenville. After graduate school at Franciscan, he was a high school theology teacher in Austin for two years. He has also worked for a variety of parishes in different positions. Tom also holds a Masters in Education from the University of Phoenix and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of San Francisco. While attending USF, Tom studied the Great Books of Western Civilization and upon graduation received a Great Books Certificate from the St. Ignatius Institute. Currently, Tom Perna is the Director of Adult Evangelization and Catechesis at Saint Mary Magdalene Catholic Church. In addition to his work at the parish, Tom also writes on his own blog – TomPerna.org, which is often featured on New Advent.org, and Bigpulpit.com