The Ursuline Education Foundation:
Securing the future of Ursuline Education in the United States.
“Never cease to cultivate this vine which has been entrusted to you.”
- St. Angela Merici
Our Vision
The vision of the Ursuline Education Foundation is to ensure the continuation of Ursuline Catholic Education in the United States.
Our Mission
The mission of the Ursuline Education Foundation (UEF) is the sponsorship of the educational institutions as entities operating in accordance with the charism and traditions of the Roman Union of the Order of St. Ursula (“Ursuline”) and the legislation and teaching of the Roman Catholic Church. The UEF is directly accountable to the Vatican and maintains regular communication with the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
As the Canonical Sponsor, UEF pledges to work collaboratively with school leaders in careful stewardship to ensure fidelity to the Catholic Ursuline Identity of its schools - striving to always develop and nurture the mission to honor the legacy of St. Angela Merici and the Ursuline Sisters of the Roman Union.
Background of the UEF
Throughout history, the impact the Ursuline Sisters have had on young Catholic women is profound. Their influence began in the United States before the country was founded, following St. Angela Merici’s call to cultivate the vine entrusted to them and to engrave on their hearts all those they serve. The Ursulines first arrived in America in 1727 to pursue a specific mission: to nurture and educate young women in the new world. They poured out their hearts and dedicated their lives to those women in their care, building out a network of schools across the continent. For most of these schools’ histories, Ursuline Sisters were the administrators and teachers for all of the students.
Several decades ago, as the demographics in America began to shift and the number of Ursulines began to decline, the leadership of the local schools was gradually passed on to strong, faith-filled lay leaders who continued to carry the torch of Ursuline Education. These school leaders have been true servants to the mission, keeping the spirit of St. Angela and the legacy of the Ursuline charism alive while the Ursuline Sisters continued to sponsor the schools. As the Order recognized the need to develop a strategy for sustaining Ursuline Catholic Education in the United States, they began working closely with the leaders of their schools to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of various options.
Following this thorough process, they established the Ursuline Education Foundation (UEF). The Ursulines petitioned the Vatican to transfer sponsorship responsibility to the UEF, and in 2022 the Vatican gave the UEF official permission to sponsor Catholic schools. Sponsorship is a call to have responsibility for and to be accountable to the Catholic Church for the development and maintenance of the mission and ministry of the sponsored work. Sponsorship is the responsibility to advance the love of God manifest in Jesus and the ministry of the Church. It is a unique relationship through which the sponsor, in the name of the Church, directs and influences a ministry to further the mission of Jesus.
In the sacrament of Confirmation, the sponsor of the one being confirmed is responsible for ensuring that the Catholic faith is passed on in a deeply authentic way. The Ursuline Sisters who have had the true privilege of nurturing the legacy of Ursuline Education handed the torch of sponsorship to the Ursuline Education Foundation. UEF’s responsibility is to ensure the sponsored schools provide quality Catholic Education in an environment that challenges students to grow in faith,
knowledge, and respect for self and others, in service with compassion, joy, and charity.
The shore of Lake Garda in Desenzano, Italy -
St. Angela Merici’s birthplace.