Academy of the Sacred Heart, Grand Coteau
Encyclopedia
The Academy of the Sacred Heart, founded in 1821 in Grand Coteau, Louisiana
, is an independent, Catholic
school for girls in Pre-Kindergarten-3 through grade twelve, with residential accommodations for students in grades seven through twelve. It is operated independently within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette
.
. It is the oldest, continually running member of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools in the world. It is also the oldest independent school in the Acadiana
region.
Founded under the direction of Saint Philippine Duchesne, the Academy has remained in continuous operation through fire, epidemics, and war. Although thousands of Federal troops were encamped in the fields surrounding the Academy during the Civil War
, the school was not touched. Union
General Nathaniel Banks had a daughter in a school in New York run by the Religious of the Sacred Heart, and he was asked to look after the Grand Coteau sisters and their students.
On campus is a small chapel honoring St. John Berchmans
, a Jesuit. St. John Berchmans appeared to a novice
, Mary Wilson and cured her of a fatal illness. This miracle eventually led to the canonization of John Berchmans. It is the only shrine at the exact location of a confirmed miracle in the United States.
, Kansas
, Louisiana
, Mexico
, New Mexico
, Oklahoma
and Texas
enrolling over 44,000 students.
The Academy of the Sacred Heart is member of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools. The network consists of twenty-one educational institutions in the United States and over two hundred schools internationally. All of the network schools are rooted in the philosophy and vision of St. Madeline Sophie and are guided by the Goals and Criteria of Sacred Heart Education.
The Academy is also a member of the National Catholic Education Association.
• a personal and active faith in God
• a deep respect for intellectual values
• a social awareness which impels to action
• the building of community as a Christian value
• personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom
Academic and Prep (grades 5 through 12) students participate in a wide variety of extracurricular activities including athletics, student community governance, performance art, clubs and community service.
Private music lessons are available.
The Academy also hosts many international students in its boarding facilities has an English as a Second Language Program.
The Academy is home to over thirty school-owned and privately owned horses. Sacred Heart Stables, center for the SSH equestrian studies division, features a fourteen stall barn in addition to the unique six stall barn that was built in 1886. The facility also includes two cement wash racks, two lighted, locking tack rooms, over 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) of fenced turn out, a round pen
, and two fully enclosed riding arenas.
, it hosted the satellite location for Academy of the Sacred Heart of the Rosary
in New Orleans, and its students housed many of the dislocated students from New Orleans.
In 2006, it opened a boys division, Berchmans Academy, for boys in grades PK3-2nd grade. Berchmans Academy currently accommodates boys in PK3 - 9th grade. One grade will be added each year thereafter.
In 2006, the administration decided to rename the institution that runs both the Academy of the Sacred Heart and Berchmans Academy. The new name is Schools of the Sacred Heart, Grand Coteau.
In 2006, Headmistress Mary Burns announced her retirement at the conclusion of the 2006-2007 school year. She was temporarily succeeded by Sister Claude DeMoustier, who was then succeeded by Sister Lynne Lieux in 2008.
Grand Coteau, Louisiana
Grand Coteau is a town in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,040 at the 2000 census. Grand Coteau is on Interstate 49 south of Opelousas and is part of the Opelousas–Eunice Micropolitan Statistical Area. The town is a center for local farming...
, is an independent, Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
school for girls in Pre-Kindergarten-3 through grade twelve, with residential accommodations for students in grades seven through twelve. It is operated independently within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette
Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana
The Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana is an ecclesiastical division of the Catholic Church in the United States. The oldest church in the diocese is the parish church of St. Martinville, dating back to 1756. The diocese was created on January 11, 1918 from the western part of the Archdiocese of New...
.
History
The Academy was established in 1821 and is the second oldest institution of learning west of the MississippiMississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. It is the oldest, continually running member of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools in the world. It is also the oldest independent school in the Acadiana
Acadiana
Acadiana, or The Heart of Acadiana, is the official name given to the French Louisiana region that is home to a large Francophone population. Of the 64 parishes that make up Louisiana, 22 named parishes and other parishes of similar cultural environment, make up the intrastate...
region.
Founded under the direction of Saint Philippine Duchesne, the Academy has remained in continuous operation through fire, epidemics, and war. Although thousands of Federal troops were encamped in the fields surrounding the Academy during the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, the school was not touched. Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
General Nathaniel Banks had a daughter in a school in New York run by the Religious of the Sacred Heart, and he was asked to look after the Grand Coteau sisters and their students.
On campus is a small chapel honoring St. John Berchmans
John Berchmans
Saint John Berchmans was a Jesuit seminarian and is a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. He is the patron saint of altar servers.-Early life:...
, a Jesuit. St. John Berchmans appeared to a novice
Novice
A novice is a person or creature who is new to a field or activity. The term is most commonly applied in religion and sports.-Buddhism:In many Buddhist orders, a man or woman who intends to take ordination must first become a novice, adopting part of the monastic code indicated in the vinaya and...
, Mary Wilson and cured her of a fatal illness. This miracle eventually led to the canonization of John Berchmans. It is the only shrine at the exact location of a confirmed miracle in the United States.
Accreditation and Memberships
The Academy is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest (ISAS) and Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). ISAS is a voluntary membership association of private schools. The Association was founded in 1955 and incorporated not-for-profit in 1970. The membership of ISAS consists of 81 schools located in ArizonaArizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
enrolling over 44,000 students.
The Academy of the Sacred Heart is member of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools. The network consists of twenty-one educational institutions in the United States and over two hundred schools internationally. All of the network schools are rooted in the philosophy and vision of St. Madeline Sophie and are guided by the Goals and Criteria of Sacred Heart Education.
The Academy is also a member of the National Catholic Education Association.
Goals and Criteria
As a member of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools, the Academy commits itself to educate to the following goals:• a personal and active faith in God
• a deep respect for intellectual values
• a social awareness which impels to action
• the building of community as a Christian value
• personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom
Curriculum
The Academy offers a strong, diversified curriculum. Primary students (grades Pre-K3 through 4th) study art studio, music, guidance, and art appreciation in addition to the more traditional subjects.Academic and Prep (grades 5 through 12) students participate in a wide variety of extracurricular activities including athletics, student community governance, performance art, clubs and community service.
Private music lessons are available.
The Academy also hosts many international students in its boarding facilities has an English as a Second Language Program.
Notable alumnae
- Lucille May GraceLucille May GraceLucille May Grace, a.k.a. Mrs. Fred Columbus Dent, Sr., , was the first woman to attain statewide elected office in Louisiana. A Democrat, "Miss Grace," as she preferred to be called, became Register of the State Land Office in 1931 on appointment of Governor Huey Pierce Long, Jr...
(Class of 1919), Louisiana Register of the State Lands, 1931-1952; 1956-1957 - Salma HayekSalma HayekSalma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez de Pinault is a Mexican film actress, director and producer. She received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Frida Kahlo in the film Frida.-Early life:...
, actress
Equestrian program
The Academy has an equestrian program with a barn available for students wishing to bring their own horses.The Academy is home to over thirty school-owned and privately owned horses. Sacred Heart Stables, center for the SSH equestrian studies division, features a fourteen stall barn in addition to the unique six stall barn that was built in 1886. The facility also includes two cement wash racks, two lighted, locking tack rooms, over 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) of fenced turn out, a round pen
Round pen
The round pen sometimes called a bullpen is a round enclosure used for horse training. They range in diameter from a minimum of to a maximum of , with most designs in diameter. Footing is usually sand or other soft dirt...
, and two fully enclosed riding arenas.
Facts
After Hurricane KatrinaHurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
, it hosted the satellite location for Academy of the Sacred Heart of the Rosary
Academy of the Sacred Heart (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Academy of the Sacred Heart is an all-girls private, Roman Catholic high school in New Orleans, Louisiana. The school was founded in 1886. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans and is part of the network of Sacred Heart Schools...
in New Orleans, and its students housed many of the dislocated students from New Orleans.
In 2006, it opened a boys division, Berchmans Academy, for boys in grades PK3-2nd grade. Berchmans Academy currently accommodates boys in PK3 - 9th grade. One grade will be added each year thereafter.
In 2006, the administration decided to rename the institution that runs both the Academy of the Sacred Heart and Berchmans Academy. The new name is Schools of the Sacred Heart, Grand Coteau.
In 2006, Headmistress Mary Burns announced her retirement at the conclusion of the 2006-2007 school year. She was temporarily succeeded by Sister Claude DeMoustier, who was then succeeded by Sister Lynne Lieux in 2008.