History

The roots and traditions of our dorm date back to the nineteenth century, when the Ursulines first came to Tarnów. In 1877, they opened a boardinghouse near a women’s college. A fun fact is that one of the first people to live in the boardinghouse was the granddaughter of Duke Eustachy from Gumnisk and Duchess Izabela from Bilcza Złota- Teresa Sanguszko, later to be known as Duchess Leonowa Sapieha from Bilcza Złota. Over the years, the Ursuline’s school and boardinghouse developed successfully, but it really bloomed during the years 1918-1939. After the Second World War, the political situation in Poland caused many Ursuline schools to be closed by the contemporary government of Poland (the Elementary School in 1949, and the High School in 1953). They also suspended the activity of the boardinghouse.

To ensure the continuity of the Christian way of raising children, the nuns actively participated in the Oasis Movement, held Youth Days of Focus, and other kinds of apostolic activities.

The next stage began in 1981, when the political situation in Poland changed, allowing the Ursulines to once again open a dormitory for girls attending High Schools in Tarnów. Our dormitory has functioned ever since. At first it was called “The Private Girls’ Dormitory Led by the Ursuline Nuns of the Roman Union in Tarnów”, but it changed it to “The Dormitory Led by the Ursuline Nuns of the Roman Union in Tarnów”.

Despite the different names it went by, whether it be boardinghouse or dormitory, its goal always remained the same: to allow girls access to education by guaranteeing them a caring environment outside their homes and supporting their Christian development.

Some images of our history: