The Institut catholique d’études supérieures (in English, Catholic Institute of Higher Studies), also called “Catholic University of the Vendée”, founded in 1989, is a small private university located in Vendée department of western France. ICES has utilized the concept in higher education, introduced by its first Director, Hervé Grollier, of the “University School”: a blend of the French Grandes écoles and the traditional state university.