Iona University Launches New Pilot Campus In Ireland

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The Gaels from New Rochelle now have a home in County Mayo, Ireland and classes will start soon.

Iona University announced it will launch the new campus pilot in County Mayo, Ireland. School leaders said the new venture will help connect the university to its Irish Catholic heritage and expand opportunities for students to engage even more deeply abroad.

The pilot campus is in the historic Westport House estate along the Atlantic coast and classes are set to begin in the summer of 2024.

"Iona University’s legacy in Ireland dates back many centuries," Iona University President Seamus Carey explained, announcing the big news. "From St. Columba in 563 A.D. to Blessed Edmund Rice in the early 1800s to the Christian Brothers who opened our doors in New Rochelle in 1940, this is a legacy we proudly carry forward to this day. To return to our spiritual homeland is not only extremely rewarding; it is also full of potential."

This week also marks Iona’s 83rd birthday and it was on this day, just one year ago, that Iona announced it was no longer a college, but a university. But the school isn't resting on its laurels. In 2021, Iona nearly doubled its footprint in Westchester by acquiring a new 28-acre campus in Bronxville, which is primarily home to the NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Health Sciences in addition to newly renovated performing arts spaces and athletic fields.

The school also announced that new student enrollment has grown by nearly 30 percent since 2019.

The university is celebrating its recognition in several new national rankings, elevating its previous status on regional lists. The Princeton Review, for instance, just included Iona in its highly influential ranking of "The Best 389 Colleges" nationwide. The Wall Street Journal/College Pulse recently ranked Iona as the 66th "Best College in America" and listed Iona among the Top 10 Catholic schools nationwide.

"It’s always a great day to be a Gael, but now more than ever, especially as we continue to expand opportunities both inside the classroom and beyond, the energy across campus is infectious," Kevin O’Sullivan, senior vice president for Enrollment and Student Affairs, said. "Iona’s Irish heritage plays such an integral role in our identity and inspires us every single day. I cannot wait to see how our students flourish abroad. It is sure to be a transformative experience with memories that will last a lifetime."

The Westport House estate is a popular point of interest along the 1,600-mile "Wild Atlantic Way," which is one of the longest coastal routes in the world. Westport House is described as "breathtakingly beautiful." The estate has a reputation as an attraction that is deeply committed to building a sustainable future. The estate’s majestic, waterside location provides a stunning view of Croagh Patrick, a holy mountain where St. Patrick is said to have banished the serpents from Ireland.

"Westport House and its environs have so much to offer every visitor – steeped not only in Irish history and Celtic mythology, but with an enviable heritage spanning over 400 years and going back as far as the famous 16th century pirate queen, Grace O'Malley," Westport Estate CEO Barry O’Connor said in a statement, welcoming Iona. "Our biodiverse estate lands are right now embarking on a new journey rooted in sustainable and restorative nature practices. Westport House is a wonderfully rich, diverse and varied environment to visit and to learn in and we very much hope this is the beginning of an exciting new and lasting collaboration with Iona University."

Westport House is within walking distance to the center of the town of Westport, which has been voted the best place to live in Ireland by the Irish Times newspaper.

"Westport House has a bold vision for the future — and we are excited to be a part of it,” Carey said. "We look forward to bringing this program to full fruition. The fertile seeds we have planted in Westport are borne out of the spirit developed over many centuries for us as Gaels. We look forward to growing with the people, land and communities of Westport for generations to come."