Triennial meetings of the Conference on the History of Women Religious have convened at the College of St. Catherine (1989); Marymount College in Tarrytown, New York (1992); Cardinal Stritch University (1995); Loyola University Chicago (1998); Marquette University (2001); the Atchison Heritage Conference Center in Atchison, Kansas (2004); the University of Notre Dame (2007); the University of Scranton (2010); (2013); Santa Clara University (2016); and Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, Indiana (2019). Since 2022, the conference has been hosted at the University of Notre Dame.
Since 1989, these triennial conferences have sought to enhance networking while recognizing outstanding research in the field. For over three decades, scholars have gathered every three years to share their research on vowed women—nuns and sisters—drawn from several religious traditions. In addition to plenary and concurrent sessions, conferences have featured magnet groups, forums, roundtables, film screenings, dramatic performances, art exhibits, book displays, and archival tours.
Learn more about past triennial conferences:
2025
Lives and Archives
Thirteenth Triennial Conference
2022
Diversity and Dignity Across Time and Place
Twelfth Triennial Conference
2019
Commemoration, Preservation, Celebration
Eleventh Triennial Conference
2016
Whither Women Religious: Analyzing the Past, Studying the Present, Imagining the Future
Tenth Triennial Conference
2013
Women Religious Through the Ages: Managing Individual and Institutional Realities
Ninth Triennial Conference
2010
Confronting Challenges: Women Religious Respond to Change
Eighth Triennial Conference
2007
Local Cultures/Global Church: Challenge and Mission in the History of Women Religious
Seventh Triennial Conference
2004
Crossing Boundaries: Comparative Perspectives on the History of Women Religious
Sixth Triennial Conference
2001
Individuals in Community: Women Religious and Change–Past, Present, Future
Fifth Triennial Conference
1998
Through Multiple Lenses: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the History of Women Religious
Fourth Triennial Conference
1995
Beyond Convent Walls: Women Religious in Historical Context
Third Triennial Conference
1992
Women Religious and the Social Fabric
Second Triennial Conference
1989
First Triennial Conference
1987
Cushwa Center Colloquium on the History of Women Religious
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