Ave Maria University

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ave Maria University


Established	2003
Type	Roman Catholic
President	Nicholas J. Healy, Jr.
Provost	N/A
Undergraduates	375
Location	Ave Maria, Florida, USA
Website	www.avemaria.edu

Ave Maria University is a new Catholic university in Southwest Florida, founded in 2003 by Domino's Pizza founder and part-owner Tom Monaghan. The permanent campus is under construction, and classes are currently held in a temporary campus in Naples, Florida. The permanent campus will be situated in the planned town of Ave Maria, east of Naples, Florida. Monaghan calls Ave Maria the first Catholic university established in over 40 years. His goal is to create a Catholic University faithful to the magisterium of the Catholic Church. The expected undergraduate enrollment of the school for 2006-2007 is 450 students.

1 Academic degrees
- 1.1 Undergraduate programs
- 1.2 Graduate programs
2 Campus
3 Misc
- 3.1 Quotes
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Academic degrees

Ave Maria University currently offers one graduate and ten undergraduate degrees. The university also offers a Pre-Theologate program, which prepares young men for the major seminary. Undergraduate students must complete all courses in the core curriculum, with more than 10 required courses, including a full year of Latin, courses in philosophy, theology, literature, science, math, history and political science. The theological emphasis of the school is on Thomism.

[edit] Undergraduate programs

Students can major in:

Biology
Classics and Early Christian Literature
History
Economics
Literature
Mathematics
Music (with an emphasis on sacred music)
Philosophy
Politics
Theology

Additional courses are also offered in:

[edit] Graduate programs

M.A. in Theology
Ph.D. in Theology

[edit] Campus

[edit] Residential life

Male and female students live in separate buildings. Quiet hours are enforced by Residence assistants and the Residence director. Students’ apartments are closed to members of the opposite sex, except during Open Hours. Chapels are located in each living quarter and contains an altar for Holy Mass, as well as a Tabernacle housing the Eucharist perpetually. Clergy live within the men's dorms, as well as sisters in the women's dorms. Televisions are only permitted in common areas. Varied social life on campus, includes such activities as intramural sports, drama productions, talent shows, excursions, dances, etc. Students are encouraged to organize and participate in wholesome social and recreational activities.

[edit] Liturgy

Traditional liturgical actions are encouraged, including kneeling for communion, appropriate dress, and the use of Latin.

[edit] Location

The temporary campus is in Naples, until the Fall 2007. The university will be located in Collier County, along Camp Keais Road. The new development is approximately 5 miles south of Immokalee, a farming community. Several more master-planned communities are planned for the surrounding area, primarily to the north and west.

[edit] Provost Controversy

On March 21, 2007 the provost of the university, Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., was asked to go attend a private meeting with founder Thomas Monaghan. He was unexpectedly informed that he was fired and was to leave the campus premises immediately. The sudden and unexpected firing was, as stated by Ave Maria University, to have arisen due to "irreconcilable difference over administrative policies and practices." About 100 students held a protest and prayed outside the student union building. However the next day AMU offered a position to Fr. Fessio not as provost but a triple position of theologian-in-residence, being a member of the theology faculty, and also head of the university's abroad program. ^[1] Fr. Fessio accepted and although there appears to be tension it seems good relations will continue.

[edit] Misc

[edit] Quotes

His Excellency Most Rev. John J. Nevins, D.D., Bishop of the Diocese of Venice

"It is exciting to think that our diocese will include what will someday become the Notre Dame of the South"

Former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush

"As a Catholic, I am very proud that students will be able to obtain an education with the highest academic standards and with a firm grounding in religious and moral values."

Founder Tom Monaghan