Back to school

On June 13th, approximately 100 women from Marianopolis College's university years and some of their former teachers gathered to get a sneak peek of the new Westmount campus, at 4873 Westmount Avenue. Marianopolis operated as a university from 1908 to1969, when the government introduced the CEGEP system in Quebec

The occasion’s purpose was to reach out to alumni across many generations, and attracted former education minister, Paul Gérin-Lajoie, who was in office when Quebec’s CEGEP system was introduced.

The event included a tour of the newly-renovated facilities, speeches, and a 5 à 7 champagne and strawberries cocktail reception. Barbara Handfield Barbeau, co-president of the Marianopolis Alumni Association and TMR resident, describes the evening’s outcome. “The university years’ alumnae are alive and well, and looking forward to coming home to our former campus.” The College’s new site officially opens its doors in August 2007.

Former education minister Paul Gérin-Lajoie arrived at the reception to represent his great aunt, Marie Gérin-Lajoie, who was Quebec’s first woman to receive a Bachelor of Arts degree, in 1911. He spoke to the crowd about education and the importance of equality. It was his grandmother who fought for a woman’s right to higher education, and whose efforts enabled a group of nuns to establish Notre Dame Ladies College, in 1908. Further illustrating the crowd’s connection to the Westmount campus, a member of the event’s organizing committee, Marie-Claire Paré-Holland, revealed that her grandfather was the architect of the original Westmount avenue campus.

(Source: Marianopolis College)