Who We Are
Inspired by the life and vision of John Baptist de La Salle, the Patron Saint of Teachers of Youth, the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools is an international Roman Catholic order of lay Religious Brothers, who — together and in association with their Partners in mission — strive to provide "a human and Christian education to the young, especially the poor, according to the ministry entrusted to them by the church."
In God’s Providence, De La Salle and the first Brothers established the Christian and Gratuitous Schools (now called Lasallian Schools) as a visible instrument of the reign of God, making education accessible to the young, especially those who are impoverished and marginalized.
History of the Brothers of the Christian Schools
Since the Institute’s beginning at one parish school in Rheims, France, in 1680, its educational ministry has grown into a worldwide network of students, educators, parents, benefactors, and alumni. With close to 1,000 schools and educational centers at every level, as well as children and family services programs in 80 countries with nearly 1 million students, the Brothers of the Christian Schools is the largest religious order of Brothers in the church dedicated solely to the mission of Christian education.
The District of Eastern North America — one of four Districts in the United States & Toronto Region — is comprised of the former Baltimore, Long Island-New England, New York, and Toronto Districts, tracing their roots in Eastern North America back to the mid 1800’s.
In 1845, the first US citizen, John McMullin (who became Brother Francis), completed his novitiate in Montreal, Canada, where the Institute was first established in North America. Upon his return to Baltimore, he founded Calvert Hall in 1845, which became the first permanent Lasallian School in the United States.
In 1848, four French Christian Brothers took over St. Vincent’s parish school in New York, also creating an independent secondary academy, De La Salle Institute.
In 1851, the first Lasallian school opened in Toronto, Ontario — the start of 158 years of Lasallian education in English-speaking Canada.
As part of a worldwide Institute, the District of Eastern North America continues doing the work of Jesus in the spirit of De La Salle — with over 350 brothers and over 3,500 lay partners, priests and religious men and women from other religious communities.
What makes this new District unique is the diversity of its educational ministries:
- elementary
- secondary
- higher education
- programs for adjudicated youth
- children and family service programs
With over 28,000 students served in more than 50 schools and other centers of education, the District of Eastern North America (now the largest District in the United State & Toronto Region) covers a geographic area spanning from Toronto to Washington, D.C., and from Detroit to Providence.
Throughout the history of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, the Institute has, with faith and zeal, forthrightly addressed the needs of those entrusted to their care through a remarkable process of renewal. Today, the faith and compassion that Saint La Salle exhibited in his life not only lives through the Brothers of the Christian Schools, but also with thousands of partners and laypeople, dedicated to a human and Christian education to the young, especially the poor. Lasallian ministries continue to renew themselves and to finds ways to respond to the urgent educational needs of young people today. |
