A Catholic University in Florida will be setting up an outreach campus in County Waterford, WLR understands.
A video has been posted showing that Ave Maria University - which aims to restore Catholic higher education amid an age of secularism - is looking to invest in the former Cistercian monastery of Mount Melleray near Cappoquin.
[embed]http://youtu.be/-PF3MNHUUG8?si=FOJAAlFmGbvOrLtl[/embed]
The You Tube video states the University will be establishing a Mount Melleray Abbey Campus as part of the Ave Maria University family.
The Ave Maria university has been contacted for comment but so far there has been no response.
However, WLR understands that a statement confirming the plan will be issued in the coming days.
The University website states their goals include building the foundation of a truly Catholic university "that would form future generations of truly Catholic men and women faithful to the Magisterium of the Church."
After an initial $250 million donation from their founder Tom Monaghan (who was also the founder of Domino's Pizza) and a generous land donation from the Barron Collier Family in Southwest Florida, a permanent campus was set up in Florida in 2007
Annual undergraduate fees are in excess of thirty thousand US dollars.