DAYTON — Much about modern marriage has changed since the Rev. Norbert Burns started teaching Christian Marriage in 1963 at the University of Dayton.

The divorce rate has skyrocketed, young people are waiting longer to get married — "and let's not get started on premarital sex," Burns said.

But Burns' ability to engage his students, and make the class a defining moment during their senior year did not change.

For 44 years, the Marianist priest used the same enthusiasm and talk-show style to get straightforward debates going about sex, parenting, communication, fidelity and trust.

It came to an end Tuesday, when Burns, at 82, greeted his Christian Marriage students for the last time. He's walking away from the classroom, having missed only a few days of class since he started teaching in 1945.

UD officials estimate that Burns has taught the marriage course to 27,000 students — about one-third of all alumni of the Roman Catholic university that traces its history to the 1850s.

Burns graduated from UD in 1945 and was ordained as a Marianist priest in 1953.

"We had Father Burns for counseling, and all five of our kids have come to UD and taken his marriage class," said Fred Sills of Centerville, who came to class Tuesday with wife, Helen, for the class send-off. They have been married for 47 years.

Josh Murray, one of 120 graduating seniors in the class, took it because of its reputation as a fun class that can be surprisingly open.

"I never thought much about parenting or anything before, and it's overwhelming when you're a graduating senior and facing the rest of your life," Murray said. "But then again, it's really necessary. It forced me to think about how I feel about some big issues."

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7404 or sirwin@DaytonDailyNews.com.