Regis Penn ‘25

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Did you know that Mr. Tommy Romano no longer works at Strake Jesuit? That is because he is now Dr. Tommy Romano.

One of Strake Jesuit’s longest-serving faculty members has embarked on a new chapter of his career. After completing 32 years working in education, 31 of them at Strake Jesuit, Dr. Romano earned his doctorate in education from St. Louis University in August of 2023. Pursuing an Ed.D is something “I had always been interested in,” Dr. Romano said. 

Dr. Romano began his Ed.D studies in Catholic School Leadership after St. Louis University began offering a doctoral program specifically for teachers at Jesuit schools. “This experience gave me a better understanding of how Catholic schools work,” Dr. Romano said. 

Dr. Romano wrote and defended his dissertation on “Catholic School Culture and Teacher Burnout: A Study of Catholic Secondary Schools in Texas” a topic he discovered had been severely under-researched.  

“There is a lack of research on the perception of Catholic secondary school teachers in Texas regarding their experience of burnout in the mid-to post-Pandemic era,” Dr. Romano wrote in his dissertation. Based on his extensive research, his findings were quite significant. “There is a strong negative correlation,” Romano said. “As culture goes up, teacher burnout goes down.”

Juggling the demands of earning a doctoral degree while teaching full time at Jesuit did present its challenges. “It was tough,” Dr. Romano said. “Every weekend and weeknight for two years went to study and research.” 

Despite the challenge, Dr. Romano strongly encourages more educators to pursue doctoral studies, emphasizing that it gave him a “whole new insight in the overall workings of a school.” 

For Dr. Romano, earning an Ed.D proved to have benefits beyond those initially anticipated. 

“It gave me more ways to help Strake Jesuit outside of the classroom,” Dr. Romano said.. “I also gained valuable connections and resources,” 

Dr. Romano expresses the deepest gratitude for such an invaluable experience. “I give lots of praise to St. Louis University’s program,” Dr. Romano said. “It was everything I expected and more.”