Social Influence through Education
The St Martin Primary and Vocational School now known as the St Martin Secondary where young girls were taught primary education by the sisters of the Faithful Virgin and young women were taught skills such as cooking , sewing and typewriting in the vocational section of the school after they had finished the primary school, if they did not get into the Convent High School.Educating those from early as infancy and even establishing a system of early childhood education on the Island, they have open a number of 5 primary schools on the Island in a time in which the Island had a limited amount of primary schools and introduced the First and oldest Secondary School on the Island which was created essentially in order for the young women of the Island to be educated.
In order to aid the Island in this time of need, the first nursing tutor on the Island was an ICM sister named Sister Susanne Vermuelen not only did the sisters aid in nursing but also the first female surgeon practitioner on the Island was an ICM sister whose name was forgotten to be recorded. The first female Prime Minister in Dominica and in the Caribbean at the time whose party was in power from 1980-1995 Dame Mary Eugenia Charles had a very close relationship to the Catholic Church during the Independence of the Island the church played an integral role of the acceptance of the Dominican culture in the celebration of national day of prayer and the Bishop's attendance to national parades was as important to the Dominican community as the Premier and later on Prime Minister's attendance since at the time about 80% of the Island population belonged to the Roman Catholic Faith.