council of major superiors of women reli

What council of major superiors of women reli does

The Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit religious organization founded in 1992 and headquartered in Washington, DC, that serves as the national coordinating body for major superiors of Catholic women religious congregations in the United States. CMSWR represents and supports more than 100 member communities, convening 120-170 major superiors annually at its National Assembly and providing formation, fellowship, and shared resources across the membership. Its operational footprint includes a national headquarters office in Washington, DC, a House of Studies (Domus Sanctae Mariae Guadalupe) in Rome, and an event-driven programming model that spans formation workshops, regional workshops, discernment retreats, and vocation outreach.

The organization's core offerings are programmatic rather than technological. These include the annual National Assembly and Formators Workshop for leadership and formation training; the Domus House of Studies in Rome (offering sabbatical, Santa Croce, Angelicum, Winter, and Summer programs); the annual Vocation Directory distributed to schools, colleges, parishes, and dioceses; the Women Religious mobile app on iTunes and Google Play; the 'For Love Alone' documentary; the GIVEN Catholic Young Women's Leadership Forum; the Spanish-language 'Esposas de Cristo, Hijas de la Iglesia' theological course for Hispanic sisters; the Called by Love vocation program; and the quarterly Consecrata newsletter. CMSWR also publishes books including 'The Foundations of Religious Life' and symposium proceedings.

CMSWR is funded entirely through donations and operates as a non-commercial entity. Revenue streams include one-time gifts, monthly recurring donations, annual recurring donations, stock gifts, planned gifts/bequests, workplace giving with matching gifts, IRA charitable rollovers, and passive contribution through the Amazon Smile program. An annual appeal campaign funds educational programs, the National Assembly, the Formators Workshop, the Domus House of Studies in Rome, vocation resources, and outreach staff. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors and Advisors (announced October 2020) and is a member of the National Catholic Development Conference. There is no parent company, no external institutional investment, and no equity instruments; CMSWR is led by Mother Anna Grace Neenan, O.P., who has served as President delivering Presidential Addresses from at least 2021 through 2025.

Name

council of major superiors of women reli

Legal name

Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious

Website

https://cmswr.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CMSWR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 1992 that serves as the national coordinating body for over 100 Catholic women religious congregations in the United States, providing formation programs, annual assemblies, vocation resources, and a House of Studies in Rome.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Organization Membership Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (81311), Religious Organizations (8131)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAJAC

Religious Orders & Monastic Communities (Monasteries, Convents)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

SECONDARYBPAGAJAB

Denominational & Ecclesiastical Governance Bodies (Dioceses, Synods, Conferences)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

SECONDARYBPAGAJAD

Faith-Based Education & Formation (Seminaries, Religious Schools, Catechesis)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

Keywords

• Religious life formation
• Vocation discernment
• Women religious communities
• Religious education programs
• Non-profit Catholic services

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: CMSWR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that relies on donations from benefactors. The organization mentions various giving options including online donations, telephone donations, mail donations, stock gifts, planned gifts (bequests), workplace giving with matching gifts, and IRA charitable rollovers. Donors can make one-time, monthly recurring, or annually recurring donations.
2. Annual Appeal: The organization conducts an annual appeal campaign to support its mission of advancing religious life. The appeal supports educational and training programs, National Assembly, Formators Workshop, Domus House of Studies in Rome, vocation resources, and staff to support national outreach.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit membership organization that coordinates support, formation, and vocational resources for over 100 women religious communities in the United States. It delivers an annual National Assembly, a Formators Workshop, the Domus Sanctae Mariae Guadalupe House of Studies in Rome, vocation directories, discernment retreats, and publications (including the Consecrata newsletter and the 'For Love Alone' documentary) to serve major superiors, sisters in formation, and women discerning religious vocations.

Product overview

The Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR) is not a technology company but a religious organization serving approximately 120-170 member communities of women religious. CMSWR offers a unified portfolio of formation, vocation, and communion services rather than a technology product platform. The core offerings include: the annual National Assembly and Formators Workshop for leadership development; the Domus House of Studies in Rome providing educational programs (sabbatical, Santa Croce, Angelicum, Winter/Summer programs); the annual Vocation Directory and Women Religious mobile app for vocational discernment; the documentary 'For Love Alone' and various books for education; the Consecrata newsletter for ongoing communication; and the Esposas de Cristo Spanish-language theological course for Hispanic sisters. The GIVEN Institute Forum and Called by Love program support young women's leadership and vocation discernment respectively.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• For Love Alone: A 12-minute documentary showcasing the life of women religious, released in August 2015.
• Consecrata Newsletter
• Domus Sanctae Mariae Guadalupe
• Esposas de Cristo, Hijas de la Iglesia

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 member communities supported annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Institute on Religious LifeminorOthersCMSWR provides a link to the Institute on Religious Life website as a resource for those interested in religious life information.
• Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life (CICLSAL)minorOthersCMSWR provides a link to the Vatican congregation responsible for oversight of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life.
• The Holy See (Vatican)minorOthersCMSWR provides a link to the Vatican website as a resource for Church information.
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)minorOthersCMSWR provides a link to the USCCB website as a resource for Catholic Church information in the United States.
• National Catholic Development ConferenceminorOthersCMSWR is a member of the National Catholic Development Conference, an organization supporting Catholic charities and organizations with fundraising and development resources.
• Amazon SmileminorOthersAmazon Smile program allows shoppers to support CMSWR with 0.5% of eligible purchases donated to the organization.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR): LCWR is the parallel national coordinating body for major superiors of women religious institutes in the United States. It serves a similar member-community constituency and overlapping formation/leadership mission, making it the most directly comparable organization to CMSWR.
• Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM): CMSM serves as the national coordinating body for major superiors of men's religious institutes in the US, with a parallel mission to CMSWR but for brothers and priests. Its governance, programming, and member-services model is structurally identical.

Broad incumbents

• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB): USCCB is the national coordinating body for Catholic bishops in the US, analogous in function to CMSWR but at the diocesan-episcopal level. Both organizations convene national leadership, publish guidance, and liaise with the Vatican on behalf of members.
• National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA): NCEA is a national membership organization serving Catholic schools and educators. While broader in scope, its membership-association governance model and convention/formation programming parallel CMSWR's structure for women religious communities.
• Catholic Charities USA: Catholic Charities USA is a national membership organization for diocesan Catholic Charities agencies. While focused on social services rather than religious life, it operates a similar membership-nonprofit structure and competes for Catholic donor dollars.

Emerging players

• Institute on Religious Life (IRL): IRL promotes and supports religious life across both men's and women's institutes in the US, with an overlapping member base and complementary vocation-promotion mission. It is already linked as a resource partner on CMSWR's website.
• Council of Major Superiors of Men Religious (analogous canonical bodies) — Religious Formation Conference: The Religious Formation Conference supports formation for both men and women religious in the US, addressing an adjacent (but overlapping) audience of formators and sisters-in-formation. Its mission overlaps CMSWR's Formators Workshop domain.
• National Religious Vocation Conference (NRVC): NRVC supports vocation ministers for religious life across institutes of men, women, and mixed congregations. Its mission around vocation promotion directly overlaps CMSWR's Vocation Directory and discernment-event offerings.

Others

• Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA): CARA at Georgetown University is a research center that studies US Catholic demographics, including trends in religious vocations and the membership of institutes like CMSWR's. It is a key data partner for any organization working in religious-life analytics.
• National Catholic Development Conference (NCDC): NCDC supports fundraising and development for Catholic charities and non-profits, and CMSWR is a member. While not a direct peer, NCDC operates in the same ecosystem and shares the same donor-base dynamics relevant to CMSWR's revenue model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/council-of-major-superiors-of-women-religious-cmswr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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