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DEAN

An ecclesiastical official who may be the head of a cathedral or collegiate chapter; a vicar-forane or assistant to a bishop; the representative officer in a modern Catholic college or university; and in some institutions of higher learning the one in charge of student discipline. (Etym. Latin decanus, one set over ten [decem] soldiers or monks.)

All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

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