Seton Hall University has released a new mini-documentary examining the life and legacy of St. Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, the first American-born person to be canonized a saint and widely recognized as the founder of Catholic education in the United States.
The film, produced by the university’s communications team, highlights how Seton’s story continues to resonate on campus and beyond, more than 200 years after her death.
Drawing on historical archives, interviews with students and faculty, and reflections from religious scholars, the documentary connects her legacy with the enduring challenges of faith, education, and service.
Seton Hall, located in South Orange, New Jersey, was founded in 1856 by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley — Seton’s nephew — who named the institution in her honor. While the university has grown into one of the largest Catholic institutions in the country, its spiritual and historical connection to Elizabeth Ann Seton remains foundational.
A life
Born in 1774 into a prominent Episcopalian family in New York, Seton was widowed at 29 and left to care for five children. Her conversion to Catholicism in 1805, following a deep personal and spiritual journey, was met with suspicion in Protestant-dominated early America. Just four years later, she established the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph’s, the first religious community of women founded in the United States. From Emmitsburg, Maryland, she opened schools and orphanages that laid the groundwork for the Catholic parochial school system.
Canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1975, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is now honored as a patron saint of Catholic schools, widows, and converts. Her role as an educator and religious leader has become increasingly relevant amid renewed debates about the identity and mission of faith-based institutions in modern society.
A film for universities
Seton Hall’s film release comes at a time when many Catholic universities are re-examining their roots and responsibilities. The mini-documentary not only honors Seton as a historic figure, but engages students and viewers in thinking about the values she embodied — particularly in times of crisis and uncertainty.
While the documentary centers on Seton Hall’s patroness, its themes speak more broadly to Catholic educators and institutions across the country. In linking one woman’s 19th-century struggles to contemporary questions of vocation, purpose, and resilience, the film places Elizabeth Ann Seton not simply in the past but also in the present conversation.
The mini-documentary is available through the university’s official media channels, its YouTube channel included, and is expected to be used as a teaching resource in Catholic schools and pastoral programs nationwide.
