The École Normale Catholique (ENC), also known as the Lycée Blomet, is a

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

founded in 1906 by teacher Louise Desrez. Since 1933, it has been located at 5 rue Blomet, in the

15th arrondissement of Paris The 15th arrondissement of Paris () is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ('the fifteenth'). The 15th arrondissement, called , is situated on the Rive ...

History

Foundation (1906–1952)

The École Normale Catholique was born in the context of

anti-clericalism Anti-clericalism is opposition to clergy, religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historically, anti-clericalism in Christian traditions has been opposed to the influence of Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secul ...

which marked the start of the 20th Century in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The law of 7 July 1904 introduced by

Émile Combes Émile Justin Louis Combes (; 6 September 183525 May 1921) was a French politician and freemason who led the Bloc des gauches, Lefts Bloc (French: ''Bloc des gauches'') cabinet from June 1902 to January 1905. Career Émile Combes was born on 6 ...

meant the dissolution of Catholic religious houses, forcing them to move to other European countries. In this atmosphere, there also came the

1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and the State The 1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and State (French language, French: ) was passed by the Chamber of Deputies (France), Chamber of Deputies on 3 July 1905. Enacted during the French Third Republic, Third Republic, it establishe ...

, leading Mlle Desrez, teacher, and friend of Madeleine Daniélou, to decide in 1906 to create a normal school to fill the gap in girls' education and to teach Christian teachers. It was located at 90 rue de Rennes, initially for

primary education Primary education is the first stage of Education, formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary education. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first schools and middle s ...

, but its development led to growth, and the ENC moved to 159 rue de Sèvres. From its origin, Louise Desrez surrounded herself with teachers and trainees, mostly from the

Institut catholique de Paris The Institut catholique de Paris (, abbr. ICP), known in English as the Catholic University of Paris (and in Latin as ''Universitas catholica Parisiensis''), is a private university located in Paris, France. History: 1875–present The Institut ...

or the

Collège Stanislas de Paris The Collège Stanislas de Paris (), colloquially known as Stan, is a private Catholic school in Paris, situated on " Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs" in the 6th arrondissement. It has more than 3,000 students, from preschool to '' classes préparatoir ...

. In 1922, Mlle Marguerite Eymard succeeded Mlle Desrez, after working as her assistant. Due to the precarious lease on the building in rue de Sèvres, the construction of a new building was decided upon.

Jean Verdier Jean Verdier, PSS (; 19 February 1864 – 9 April 1940) was a French Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Paris from 1929 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1929. Biography Jean Verdier was bor ...

archbishop of Paris The Archdiocese of Paris (; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is one of twenty-three archdioceses in France. The original diocese is traditionally thought to have been created i ...

inaugurated the new school on 20 December 1934. The ENC also built an annexe on rue Olivier-de-Serres in 1939: the école Saint-Jean was born.

The Jesuit era (1952–present)

In 1952, the headteacher, Mlle Marguerite, appealed to the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

, to ensure the sustainability of their work. The ENC specifically worked with the Society of Jesus Christ, a

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

teaching congregation who already ran the écoles Chevreul in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

and

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

and who practiced Ignatian

pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

. Mlle Deshaires took over the running of the school. In 1988, the establishment, then equipped with a college and a lycée, started to offer

classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles Class, Classes, or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used d ...

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

. In 2003, the Society of Jesus Christ joined with the

Sisters of the Company of Mary, Our Lady The Sisters of the Company of Mary, Our Lady are the members of a Roman Catholic religious order founded by Jeanne de Lestonnac (1556-1640) in France in 1607. The Order's mission is education, focused on the person in all their uniqueness. The ...

. In September 2015, a new

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

stream i
preparatory class D1
was opened in partnership with the université Panthéon-Assas, mostly preparing students for the ENS Cachan but also for

civil service entrance examination Civil service examinations are examinations implemented in various countries for recruitment and admission to the civil service. They are intended as a method to achieve an effective, rational public administration on a merit system for recruit ...

s, and allowing them to access

law studies Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

at university.

Administration

Head of School

* 1906-1923 : Louise Desrez * 1923-1952 : Marguerite Eymard * 1952-1956 : Mlle Deshaires * 1956-1975 : Mlle Guérin * 1975- ? : Mlle Roch * ?-1987 : Melle Marin * ?-? : Melle Deveaux * ?-2006 : Mme Moeller * 2006-2013 : Philipe Cléac'h * 2013-2018 : Gonzague de Monicault * 2018-2019 : Michel Belledent * 2019-2022 : Anthony Bardoux * since 2022 : Alexis Molio

Teaching

Preschool and primary school

École ENC Blomet

The école Blomet is one of the two

preschool A preschool (sometimes spelled as pre school or pre-school), also known as nursery school, pre-primary school, play school, is an school, educational establishment or learning space offering early childhood education to children before they ...

(called ''maternelle'') and

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

(called ''élémentaire'') of the ENC. It has around 400 students, girls and boys split into 4 kindergarten and 10 primary classes.

École ENC Saint-Jean

There is also a separate site on rue Olivier-de-Serres, in Paris, the école Saint-Jean is still part of the ENC. Saint-Jean is the second preschool and primary school of the ENC. The school has close to 350 students in 13 classes.

Secondary school

Middle school (''Collège'')

The ENC's

middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

(called ''

collège In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

'') 700 secondary students at the establishment are in 6 classes for each level, 24 classes in total. The college is ranked 2nd nationally by Le Figaro in 2022; 1st in 2023.

High school (''Lycée'')

The ENC's

highschool A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

(called ''

lycée In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

'') has close to 500 students in 15 classes with 5 classes per level. The lycée prepares students for the baccalauréat général and teaches seven specialty courses : *

Mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

* Life and Earth Sciences (biology) *

Physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

Humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture, including Philosophy, certain fundamental questions asked by humans. During the Renaissance, the term "humanities" referred to the study of classical literature a ...

and

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

History History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

geopolitics Geopolitics () is the study of the effects of Earth's geography on politics and international relations. Geopolitics usually refers to countries and relations between them, it may also focus on two other kinds of State (polity), states: ''de fac ...

and

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

* English and Contemporary World *

Economic An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...

and

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

science It is also important to note that the high school has a

European Section European, or Europeans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe and other West ...

Classes Préparatoires aux Grandes Écoles

The preparatory classes (

Tertiary education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

) of the ENC are composed of around 200 students in 3 streams: * The

Khâgne (), officially known as , is a two-year academic program in the French “” (≈undergraduate) system, with a specialization in the humanities (A/L) or social science (B/L). It is one of the three main types of (CPGE, informally ), contrasting ...

: ** 2 classes of hypo

khâgne (), officially known as , is a two-year academic program in the French “” (≈undergraduate) system, with a specialization in the humanities (A/L) or social science (B/L). It is one of the three main types of (CPGE, informally ), contrasting ...

(first year) : class HK1 (

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

option) and class HK2 (

art history Art history is the study of Work of art, artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Tradit ...

option) **

(2nd year) * The preparatory classes :

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

business studies Business studies, often simply called business, is a field of study that deals with the principles of business, management, and economics. It combines elements of accountancy, finance, marketing, organizational studies, human resource manageme ...

(1st and 2nd years), in partnership with the Université Panthéon-Assas ; * The preparatory classes :

(1st and 2nd years), a licence in

international relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

and

modern languages A modern language is any human language that is currently in use as a native language. The term is used in language education to distinguish between languages which are used for day-to-day communication (such as French and German) and dead clas ...

which is a double diploma with the

Université Laval (; English: ''Laval University)'' is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university traces its roots to the Séminaire de Québec, founded by François de Montmorency-Laval in 1663, making it the oldest institutio ...

Québec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...

, offered in part at Blomet, to prepare for courses at Celsa, Dauphine,

Instituts d'études politiques Instituts d'études politiques (; ), or IEP's, colloquially referred to as Sciences Po, are ten publicly owned institutions of higher learning in France. They are located in Aix-en-Provence, Bordeaux, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Paris, Rennes, Strasbou ...

, etc. The preparatory classes at Blomet since 2017 have moved to a new location at 3 rue Barthélémy, in the

. It is attracting a growing number of students, and is in an attractive location close to the Breteuil, and preparing for literary or D1 classes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:École normale catholique (Paris) École normale catholique École normale catholique École normale catholique École normale catholique Stanislas Stanislas Educational institutions established in 1906 1906 establishments in France