Saint Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton

Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, born on August 28, 1774, and died on January 4, 1821, was an American Catholic educator who played a pivotal role in the development of Catholic education in the United States. Born into an Episcopalian family in New York City, she married William Seton, with whom she had five children. After her husband's death, Elizabeth converted to Catholicism in 1805 and became a lifelong advocate for the faith. She established the first Catholic girls' school in the nation in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and founded the Sisters of Charity, the first American congregation of religious sisters dedicated to education and charity. On September 14, 1975, she was canonized by the Catholic Church, becoming the first person born in what would become the United States to achieve this honor.