Colleagues and students remember Dr. Thomas O’Sullivan

On Tuesday Feb. 2, we lost a wise teacher, generous spirit and, too many of us, a kind friend, Philosophy and Religious Studies professor Dr. Thomas O'Sullivan. As to whether or not he'll be moving on to another life is a topic Dr. O'Sullivan would have been glad to discuss. He made it his life's work to enter, guide and create discourse on the larger questions in life.

Cycling through many positions within the Philosophy and Religious Studies department, Dr. O'Sullivan always served as an educator, encouraging many students to develop their own beliefs and philosophies, careful not to convert students with his own.

Dr. O'Sullivan started his academic career at St. John's University as an undergrad after graduating High School in California at 16. Completing his doctorate at Columbia University in three years, Dr. O'Sullivan also published his dissertation as a full-length book, apparently a rare event in Academia. This dissertation then won the competition for best dissertation in the northeast. The book is "The De Excidio of Gildas: Its Authenticity and Date," published in 1978 as part of the Columbia Studies in the Classical Tradition series. Gildas was a 6th century Welsh monk whose work is one of the forerunners of the Arthurian legends.

University alumnus and current graduate student at The New School, Ian Morlan commented on how Dr. O'Sullivan had always intended to write on the Arthurian aspect of De Excidio, but first felt he should deal with the disputed dates and authenticity of the books. "180-odd pages later, he suddenly looked down and realized he had a full dissertation in front of him and decided that he should probably stop there, or he'd be at it for years," Morlan said.

Dr. O'Sullivan was an avid fan of opera and in particular, 19th century composer Richard Wagner. O'Sullivan wrote of Wagner while he served as an encyclopedia editor. He also produced an independent manuscript which was published in a peer reviewed journal for music studies."Some of his greatest achievements lie in his students. They are a testament to his greatness as a teacher and scholar more than anything else," Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Michal Klincewicz said.

Within his department, Dr. O'Sullivan was a greatly respected man who acted as chair for several years. The present chair, Dr. Harold Brown found him to be a helpful colleague to have around. He shared the fact that with Dr. O'Sullivan being a night owl and he a morning person, between the two of them "the philosophy department is at work 24/7."

Another student of Philosophy and Religious Studies, junior Jake Jackson, was working on an independent study with Dr. O'Sullivan. "He taught me everything I know about the bible, aesthetics, mythology, and, perhaps controversially, ethics," Jackson said. Jackson also said he was one professor whose humor proved "an academic's mind did not have to be out of the gutter." Finally sharing that most importantly, "He was a compassionate professor, who lived the best life he could imagine."

Another colleague, associate Philosophy professor Dr. Ilan Safit, noted that in one of the final conversations he had with Dr. O'Sullivan, he said he felt he had done everything he had wanted in life. While no one can truly see their death, it appears he had accepted its possibility and was a genial individual to the very end.

Director of the Honors College and Political Science professor Dr. Christopher Malone, wrote of Dr. O' Sullivan's willingness to always volunteer to teach a University 101 course. He remarked how when Tom was put in a classroom full of eager bright students he "could rest assured that indeed something special would happen."

Dr. O'Sullivan was fond of teaching Freshman Learning Communities and other Interdisciplinary (INT) courses. This reporter can remember watching the hilarious interaction between Prof. Ronald Frank and Dr. O' Sullivan during their Freshman Learning Community class, The Sacred and the Secular in East Asia.

Dr. Helane Levine-Keating of the English Department cherished having Dr. O'Sullivan as her teaching partner during their INT course, Mythology, Mysticism, and Modernity: Interrelationships of Religion and Literature. With a smile on her face, she professed "teaching with Tom was a joy…a real delight," remarking on the complete lack of logistical difficulties sometimes present in INT courses. Saying how their teaching styles were "seamless and organic," she noted they were even known to finish each other sentences.

During the time he spent at this University, Dr. O'Sullivan served as a mentor to many students. His frequent availability at TJ Byrnes, the University's local pub, offered an informal setting for students to discuss philosophy, politics or just voice their anxieties to a welcoming ear.

Between pearls of wisdom, Dr. O'Sullivan always had a perfectly relevant quote up his sleeve, an unpretentious display of the wide breadth of knowledge he had to offer. One such mentee, junior Philosophy and Religious Studies major, Anthony Dallegio, shared how Dr. O'Sullivan served as his "mentor, role model and close friend." He also stated Dr. O'Sullivan was an "angel before he died."

The passing of Dr. O'Sullivan marks the loss of a grand mind for the University and good soul for our community.