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Pope John Paul II awarded the 2001 Pontifical Academies' Prize to Pia Francesca de Solenni, a 1993 graduate of Thomas Aquinas College.
De Solenni, 29, received the distinguished award - which came with a $30,000 prize - for the defense of her doctoral thesis at the University of the Holy Cross in Rome. The thesis is an analysis of feminist theories in light of St. Thomas Aquinas' philosophy.
Deemed outstanding for its original scientific and cultural contribution rooted in Christian thought, her work underlines the equality of men and women as made in the image and likeness of God. Their basic vocation, she argues, has a strong intellectual component, that of knowing God.
In presenting the award on November 8, Pope John Paul said the annual prize is designed to "encourage the commitment of young scholars, artists and institutions who dedicate their activity to the promotion of Christian humanism."
Miss De Solenni, a native of Crescent City, California, lives in Washington, D.C.