The Board of Trustees for Ave Maria University in Ave Maria, Florida, voted on June 9 to appoint their local bishop, Most Rev. Frank Dewane of the Venice Diocese, as an ex officio member of the board. Bishop Dewane was notified earlier of the board’s plan, which also reserves the board seat for his successors.

“It is the essence of Pope John Paul II’s apostolic constitution Ex corde Ecclesiae that Catholic universities should maintain a close relationship with the local bishop,” said Patrick J. Reilly, President of The Cardinal Newman Society. “By reserving a seat for the Bishop of Venice on the university’s board of trustees, Ave Maria has reaffirmed to prospective students and all who currently have a stake in the university its extraordinary commitment to a robust Catholic identity.”

In addition to Bishop Dewane, the Ave Maria Board also appointed Adam Cardinal Maida, former Archbishop of Detroit, as a trustee. Michael T.O. Timmis was elected as chairman of the board, succeeding John F. Donahue.

Ave Maria University is recommended to parents and students in The Cardinal Newman Society’s Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College: What to Look for and Where to Find It. The second edition of the Guide will be published this summer. The Newman Guide is available online as a free resource at TheNewmanGuide.com.