Ministries of the School Sisters

Ministries

At the time of the foundation of the School Sisters of Notre Dame in 1833 in Germany, political and religious circumstances had created a desperate educational situation. The suppression of many convent schools had made it virtually impossible for young girls to receive even a basic education. Our Foundress Blessed Theresa of Jesus Gerhardinger resolved to found a religious community which would help remedy the social situation through education. Her vision for the renewal of society depended on the Christian family in which the mother, the first educator, had a key role.

The newly founded School Sisters of Notre Dame met the needs of their time by educating girls, principally in elementary schools but also in orphanages, day nurseries, and industrial schools. They trained future teachers and pioneered the development of kindergartens. For girls who were factory workers, they established homes and provided night schools where these girls could receive basic education.

Today we are still called to transform the world by making Christ visibly present in our ministry of education. We are dedicated to our ministry of education as teachers, missionaries, justice and peace advocates, social and parish workers. Our goal is to enable persons to reach the fullness of their potential as individuals created in God's image and assisting them to direct their gifts toward building the earth.

The Nun Study
Through participation in this landmark study on aging and Alzheimer's disease, our sisters continue to teach in their later years as well as in death.

Because of The Nun Study, the sisters are the focus of the book, Aging with Grace, by Dr. David Snowdon. The study continues to be featured in the national media such as the National Geographic and TIME Magazine. For more information visit http://www.mc.uky.edu/nunnet/.