Jacob Ogles
Vice President Mike Pence will visit Ave Maria University on Thursday, the Southwest Florida school announced.
“Vice President Pence will tour the newly dedicated Mother Teresa Museum located in the Thomas & Selby Prince Building before speaking to students, faculty and staff in the O’Bryan Performance Hall,” the school announced on its Facebook Page.
“This is an AMU campus event and not open to general public.”
Ave Maria University President Jim Towey feels excited to host to conservative figure.
“I have long admired Vice President Pence’s record of public service and how he seeks to live his Christian faith in the public square,” Towey said in a news release.
“I am sure that his remarks to our students will be both thoughtful and inspiring.”
Pence visited the school before, but under different circumstances. He went to the campus in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.
Towey said he will be excited to show Ave Maria in normal operations during this visit, according to NBC2 News.
“It is truly an honor for our young university to have the privilege of welcoming Vice President Pence to our campus to share his thoughts with our students,” Towey said.
Ave Maria University was founded in 2003 by Domino’s Pizza founder Tom Monaghan, and serves as the center of the Ave Maria community.
The school in recent years acted as a magnet for leaders of socially conservative causes.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos gave a commencement address at the school last year.
U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski, an Illinois Democrat and co-chair of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, will deliver a commencement in May.
“Vice President Pence will find himself among friends when he comes to our campus next week,” said Chairman of the Board of Trustees Michael Timmis in a press release.
The Naples Daily News reports Pence frequents Southwest Florida, particularly Sanibel Island, during his private time.
