Michael Hoban, bishop of Scranton, Pennsylvania, invited Maryknoll to establish a school in the city. In 1913, "Maryknoll Preparatory Seminary" was founded on Clay Avenue and students attended classes at St. Thomas College. Raymond Lane, who made his profession that year in the inaugural class, wrote that the success of the venture was greatly due to residents of Scranton who supported the new seminary with meals, transportation, and donations. In 1915 the lease expired and the students joined the community outside Ossining for a year. In 1916, Walsh, after some difficulty, acquired 179 acres in Clarks Summit, PA and a school set up in an old farm house on the property. It became known as "the Venard" for Théophane Vénard. Price took charge of the Venard its first year, taking one of the Teresians to assist the new community.