Margaret Bourgeoys

Born in Troyes, France, Marguerite Bourgeoys arrived in New France in 1653 to teach there, and later founded the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal. She dedicated herself to the Christian education of girls and Indigenous children and to assisting settlers, and she pioneered in Canada a secular religious life without cloister, all while living in poverty and adapting to the realities of the New World. She is an emblematic figure in the founding of Montreal and Canadian education.