By VDC staff

Evangelist Tommie Zito has completed his purchase of the former Green Mountain College campus in Poultney, clearing the way for his plan to open a Christian college called Z University.

The closing marks a major step for a project Zito first announced this summer. According announcements circulated this past weekend by both Zito and supporters on Facebook, the financing was disclosed, documents were signed and the keys to the campus were transferred this week. 

Supporters described the acquisition by saying the property had been transferred “to the Kingdom of God” and expressing hope that the university could contribute to a new Christian awakening.

The purchase price has not yet been publicly disclosed. Earlier this summer, Zito said he was buying the property from entrepreneur Raj Bhakta at what he described as a “fair price.” Zito also said he had received a $1 million donation toward the acquisition.

Bhakta purchased the 115-acre campus for about $4.5 million in 2020 after Green Mountain College closed in 2019 amid financial and enrollment problems. He pursued several redevelopment plans before announcing earlier this year that he wanted the property to return to a Christian purpose.

Zito, a Florida-based Pentecostal evangelist, plans to make the Poultney property the first campus of Z University, which he describes as a Christ-centered institution focused on education, leadership and spreading the Gospel.

Plans announced this summer called for programs in evangelism, leadership, business, government, digital media, communications and global missions. Zito has said he hopes eventually to establish similar institutions in other countries and expects the first students in Poultney in August 2027.

“This is about far more than reopening a college,” Zito said in a July announcement. He said the goal is to develop leaders, strengthen churches and spread the Gospel in the United States and abroad.

The closing also answers one of the largest questions surrounding the proposal. When Zito unveiled the plan, the sale had not been completed and questions remained about financing the purchase and operating the large campus.