Octave Gréard was a noted French educator.

Gréard was born in Vire

Vire

Vire is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.- History :In 1123, Henri I Beauclerc, King of England and Duke of Normandy, had a redoubt constructed on a rocky hill top, which was surrounded by the Vire river...

, Calvados

Calvados

The French department of Calvados is part of the region of Basse-Normandie in Normandy. It takes its name from a cluster of rocks off the English Channel coast...

, educated at the École Normale Supérieure

École Normale Supérieure

The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...

, and had a long career in education. He was largely responsible for the establishment of schools for girls and played a significant role in reforming the baccalauréat

Baccalauréat

The baccalauréat , often known in France colloquially as le bac, is an academic qualification which French and international students take at the end of the lycée . It was introduced by Napoleon I in 1808. It is the main diploma required to pursue university studies...

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Gréard was elected member of the Académie des sciences morales et politiques in 1875 and the Académie française

Académie française

L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...

 in 1886. A college bearing his name is located in the VIIIe arrondissement

VIIIe arrondissement

The 8th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the right bank of the River Seine and centred on the Opéra, the 8th is, together with the 1st and 9th arrondissements and 16th arrondissement and 17th arrondissement, one of Paris's main...

 of Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

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Selected works

• L'Enseignement secondaire des filles (Secondary education of girls)
• L’Éducation des femmes par les femmes (Education for women by women)
• Étude sur les Lettres d'Abélard et d'Héloïse (Review of Letters of Abelard and Heloise)
• Nos adieux à la vieille Sorbonne (Our farewell to the old Sorbonne)