San Francisco Coll

He entered the Seminary of Vic, where he stood out for his piety and dedication to his studies. From a young age, he showed great apostolic zeal and a special sensitivity toward those most in need.

“Preaching and teaching were always the two wings with which Francisco Coll flew toward holiness.”

In 1856, he founded the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata, dedicated to the Christian education of young people, especially girls from poor families. This work was the culmination of his apostolic zeal and his commitment to evangelization and education.

The Saint Francisco Coll Institute, established by the Congregation to promote the spirituality of its founder, shares his writings, letters, and testimonies among the educational communities connected with the Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata. His writings reveal a man of profound prayer, capable of preaching with simplicity and touching the hearts of very different people: farmers, artisans, middle-class families, and clergy.

Francisco Coll’s educational vision anticipated by more than a century what the Second Vatican Council would later call the “preferential option for the poor.” When, in 1856, he decided to found a congregation devoted exclusively to providing free education for girls without financial resources, in a society that systematically marginalized female education, he acted out of a clear Gospel conviction: access to knowledge is a form of dignity. Today, more than 3,000 religious sisters formed in his charism carry this legacy forward in schools and institutions in Spain, Brazil, Portugal, and several mission countries. To learn more about his story, you can also consult our guide to the life of Saint Francisco Coll.

The first Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata opened their classrooms with very limited resources, in borrowed premises, relying primarily on their vocation and on the formation that Father Coll himself provided during his regular visits to the communities. Over time, the schools of the Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata achieved an academic standard recognized by the civil authorities and became pioneers in incorporating scientific subjects and civic education into educational programs for girls.

He never separated his inner life from service. For Francisco Coll, prayer, preaching, and education were all part of the same mission: those who truly prayed could not remain indifferent to the suffering of others, especially to the reality of children and young people without access to education.

Saint Francisco Coll i Guitart (1812–1875) was a Dominican priest, apostolic missionary and founder of the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata.

His entire life was marked by a deep passion for Jesus Christ, love for the Church and a desire to proclaim the Gospel with closeness, hope and truth. He dedicated his ministry to the preaching of the Gospel, Christian formation and education, and accompanying others, especially those most in need of education, consolation and a new opportunity to grow in faith.

He was born on 18 May 1812 in Gombrèn (Girona, Spain) into a deeply Christian family. From a very young age, he felt called to the priesthood and to preaching, a vocation he lived with faithfulness, dedication and a profound missionary spirit.

For more than thirty years, Saint Francisco Coll devoted his life wholeheartedly to priestly ministry and the preaching of the Gospel. After beginning his ministry in a local parish, he became an itinerant missionary, travelling throughout several dioceses in Catalonia.

Little by little, his reputation as a preacher spread. His words, both accessible and profound, and his charisma drew large crowds who were deeply moved by his preaching.

His main mission was to share the Word of God with simplicity and passion, helping those who listened to him experience a true inner conversion and renew their Christian faith.

During his travels, he encountered a reality that deeply concerned him: many children and young people did not have access to an adequate education.

He understood that education was one of the most effective ways to transform society through the values of the Gospel.

For this reason, he founded the Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata in 1856, entrusting the sisters with a mission that remains alive today.

The new congregation was founded with the aim of sharing the Christian message, especially through education.

Saint Francisco Coll dreamed of an evangelizing presence capable of reaching towns, cities and places where the Church needed an educational and pastoral response.

That dream lives on today in the different countries where the Dominican Sisters of the Anunciata carry out their mission.