Holy Cross College

This chapter analyzes the educational aims of Holy Cross College (HCC). Similar to the last chapter, it explores how HCC grappled with changes taking place in the Catholic Church and in Bangladesh and how those changes in turn shaped its mission. HCC has aimed at developing and empowering Catholic women by providing college education, offering aspirant nuns the opportunity to help in establishing their self-supporting and self-governing church. It has also focused on spreading the Christian spirit through Catholic education. However, HCC has gone through major changes over time, reshaping its aim, nature, and policies. The chapter consists of three sections. First, it examines political and educational shifts between 1947 and 1961, including the founding background and aims of HCC and the steps it took to realize its goals. Second, it discusses how HCC approached the recommendations of Vatican II (1962–65) and other political and educational changes from 1961 to 1970. Finally, it explores how HCC responded to the birth of Bangladesh in 1971 and more recent changes. Data used in this chapter comes from archival research as well as oral history interviews.