International Education Network
Compa in Brazil and worldwide
Compa has a history that, although it goes back four centuries, it's fascinating and uplifting. Reading it allows us to understand its always current and innovative proposal and, therefore, its permanence in time.
In Europe at the beginning of the 17th century, when integral education was not even considered, especially when it came to women, Joan of Lestonnac, born in 1556, in Bordeaux, France, felt uneasy in the face of that reality and, from its experience of faith, she feels called by God to carry out the mission of educating girls and young women. From her hands and her passion for education, the first school dedicated specifically to the education of women was born, with a Project that has lasted until today. For this, Joana faced obstacles of all kinds, starting with the prejudices of the time in relation to the education of women.
In her mind and in her heart, the project of a Religious Congregation was also born, approved on April 7, 1607, by Pope Paul V, as the first female religious order dedicated to education.
Born into a family with a Catholic father and a Calvinist mother, Joan learned at an early age about dialogue and respect for diversity of thought and belief. Niece of the humanist philosopher Miguel de Montaigne (1533-1592), she inherited the best of Humanism and printed the values of Christian Humanism in the Educational Project.
Joan's passion for teaching, her enthusiasm for life and culture, and her deep spirituality continue to inspire the Society of Mary's institutions in the 26 countries where it is located.
Joan of Lestonnac was canonized in 1949 by Pope Pius XII.
The Companhia de Maria started its presence in Brazil in 1936, com um grupo de religiosas vindas da Espanha. A fundação do Colégio da Companhia de Maria de Rio do Janeiro (Compa RJ) ocorreu em 1937, estabeleceram-se na Rua Marechal Jofre, número 35 e 40, começando com 15 alunas.
Em 1941, compraram uma casa na Av. Engenheiro Richard e começaram a obra do Colégio que foi inaugurado solenemente em 1942.
The Company of Mary was expanding. In the different countries and cultures in which it finds itself, like Joana de Lestonnac, it faces the challenge of adapting to each time and place. With a true passion for education and for young people, Joana often said that she wanted “to have a thousand lives to put them at the service of the educational mission”. Today, the Sisters of the Company of Mary, together with thousands of lay educators around the world, in harmonious partnership, are the "a thousand lives" that St. Joan of Lestonnac desired.
- Colleges: 86 units with a total of approximately 62,000 students.
- Social Works: 31 units with approximately 10,500 people served.
- Social Projects: 34, serving approximately 275,000 people.
- University residences: 11, which serve close to 600 university students.
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