About St. Monica’s College of Education

The history of St. Monica’s cannot be told without mentioning the pioneering role of the Order of the Holy Paraclete (OHP) Sisters. The Order of the Holy Paraclete (OHP) is an Anglican Religious Community with its headquarters situated at Sneaton Castle, Whitby- England.

The history of religious orders in most cases is associated with personal stories of its founder. The OHP began in 1915 under the leadership of Margaret Cope (1886-1961), who was Prioress until her death in February 1961.

The involvement OHP in missionary work in Ghana is described as a love affair by accident. Their initial plan was to work as missionaries in the Third World and most especially in India where little children would be taught under shady trees about Jesus. However in 1925, they had an invitation by the then Bishop of Accra Diocese, Rt. Rev. John Aglionby to come to Ghana (Cape Coast).

In October 1926, the three pioneer Sisters: Sister Lillan, Sister Dorothy and Sister Gertrude arrived in Accra and were accompanied by Mother Margaret who is the Founder and first prioress of the Order.

After their arrival the sisters settled in Cape Coast and established a Teacher Training College. The College was named after a Saint of Africa; a type of faithful Christian Motherhood. The Patron Saint of the institution chosen was St. Monica.

Early in 1930, Nana Agyemang Prempeh I, Asantehene, made a passionate appeal to Bishop Aglionby for the establishment of an institution of higher learning for women in Ashanti. In response, the College moved out of Cape Coast the same year with the entire population of fifty (50) students to Mampong Ashanti to form the nucleus of the then Teacher Training College. Land was made available for the establishment of the College by Nana Osei Bonsu I.

College Name

When the founders of the College were deciding on a Patron Saint to name the College after they unanimously chose Saint Monica of Hippo. St. Monica who is a symbol of motherhood was born North Africa in the year 331 AD in port city of Hippo and died in 387 AD. Her parent brought her up as a dedicated Christian.

She gave birth to three children, two males and a girl. The last is St. Augustine. The girl was called Perpetual.

Married to a Northern African man, St. Monica encountered a lot of challenges in her marital life. Through her patience and tolerance and dedicated prayer life (30 years) she was able to convert her pagan husband and wayward child, St. Augustine.

She is an exemplary woman who never gave up hope and her faith in God among all tribulations in her family life.

What Constitutes St. Monica’s Complex

St. Monica’s Complex is a cluster of schools situated at Daaho, a suburb of Mampong-Ashanti. The enclave consist of five schools namely, St. Monica’s Primary School (Infant Junior), St. Monica’s Junior High School, St. Monica’s Senior High School, St. Monica’s College of Education, the Mampong Babies Home and the Midwifery and Health Assistant Training School.