Did you know?
SHAS has an amazing Preschool.
Openings for ages 3, 4, and 5!
Scholarships are available as well.
Contact SHAS today!
Preschool Updates!
Dear Sacred Heart School Community,
I am delighted to share some exciting news with you all! As we prepare for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year, we are blessed to welcome two exceptional educators to our Sacred Heart Preschool team.
Please join me in extending a very warm welcome to Ms. Shelby Brusewitz, our new Preschool Teacher, and Mrs. Tammi Walz, who will serve as our new Preschool Program Director. Both Ms. Brusewitz and Mrs. Walz bring a wealth of experience and passion for early childhood education. Mrs. Walz, in particular, brings over 45 years of leadership experience in preschool education—a true testament to her dedication and love for nurturing young minds.
These two wonderful educators will be joining our already outstanding preschool team, working alongside Mrs. Audrey Brill, to continue fostering a joyful, faith-filled, and enriching environment for our youngest students. We are confident that their talents and commitment to Catholic education will further strengthen our mission of spiritual and academic formation.
As we welcome them to our Sacred Heart family, let us also pray for a blessed and successful school year. May the Holy Spirit guide and inspire Ms. Brusewitz, Mrs. Walz, Mrs. Brill, and all our educators as they nurture the hearts and minds of our precious children.
We look forward to an incredible year ahead, filled with growth, learning, and the love of Christ.
Georgina Perez, Principal
Press Release from Father Aaron
SHAS Families,
Sacred Heart Area School in Staples, Minnesota is happy to announce the hiring of Georgina Perez as Principal, beginning in July. Georgina is a faithful Catholic from the great state of Texas and has been a teacher of 8th grade English Language Arts and Reading in West Texas (2002-2015), a two-term member of the State Board of Education (2017-2022), and has loved working with students in juvenile probation settings within public school classrooms all of her career. She is eager to grow our school under her leadership. She is known as a teacher of teachers and an advocate for the education of young people, especially those in underprivileged situations. She has a degree in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of Phoenix (2003), and she has won the Texas State Teachers Association Super Hero Award (2019), along with several recognitions for her humanitarian service.
Of course, everyone is wondering: why our school, why move from Texas to MN? Georgina, who also runs a family ranch inherited from her grandparents in West Texas, is passing on her responsibilities to her adult son and would like to give him space to be in charge without her getting in the way. Because of her love for teaching, she looked for a school to be a principal in a rural setting much like her own, where she could help teachers and students to grow in faith while increasing academic standards. She did a national search and found us. After making a visit, she fell in love with our community and is now eager to join us. This will be her first time as a principal and belonging to a non-public school, but with Father Aaron’s mentorship and the assistance of a group of parents & teachers to aid in her adaptation to rural MN culture, we expect she will settle in well, especially to our warm summers.
The teachers of Sacred Heart will have a formal gathering with Georgina and the school board on Wednesday, July 17th, 5:30 pm, at SHAS, in the rectory office. Food provided by Fr. Aaron.
An open house for school families and the parishes will be organized for sometime later in July to get to know Georgina before the school year. More details to come.
Welcome Georgina! And, may the Lord Jesus bless all our endeavors and plans.
That in all things God may be glorified,
Father Aaron Kuhn - Pastor/Superintendent of SHAS
On behalf of the members of SHAS School Board
Summer Academy
We are excited to invite you to our Summer Academy Program to be held at SHAS again this summer. The program will start on June 3rd and will wrap up on August 16th. There will also be a week off the week of July 1-5th. This year, we are able to offer our program for children aged 5-12 and it will continue to run under the direction of Ms. Azure Hogate. Ms. Audrey Brill will assist again this summer.
The program will review reading and math skills with a weekly theme. Each day will consist of approximately 1.25 hours of math/reading work, multiple weekly art projects, plenty of outside play time (approx. 3 hours/day), and a weekly excursion/field trip. An anticipated schedule of the day will be provided. There is no homework or grades for this program, but the structed learning time will be instrumental in helping prevent the “summer slide”. We will continue to emphasize a lack of “screen time” with some exceptions made for educational purposes or in the case of inclement weather.
Parents are welcome to choose a full day ($30/day) or half day ($20/day) option. Invoices will be sent out a week in advance and payment must be made the week ahead of time. The payment for week 1 will be billed out the last week of school (May 20th-24th) and must be paid before the last day of school (May 24th). You can arrange to have your invoice sent out for the entire month or entire summer if you prefer. Contact Miss Jessi in the office if you would like to arrange a different billing plan.
Registration form is required with a $10 registration fee before April 12th to secure your spot. More information will be sent out to those that register. If for some reason our registration numbers are below the needed amount to make this program viable, we will cancel the program not later than May 8th.
We did it!!!
Another successful Catholic United Financial raffle is in the books! With the support of our families and friends we were able to raise $32,551 for the SHAS! Every dollar stays at the school and will be put to good use.
THANK YOU!!!!!!
All Saints Day
11/1/2023 - Students at SHAS were invited to dress as their favorite Saint to celebrate All Saints Day!
Guest Speaker
On 10/11/23, SHAS staff and students had the pleasure of hosting guest speaker, Tasha Schuh. She has an amazing story and is an inspiration. Her purpose is to equip youth and educators to be resilient for their mental and emotional health. The four components of her speech, PATH (purpose, attitude, team, and hope), helped Tasha be resilient after her life changing theater accident at the age of 16. This accident left her paralyzed from the chest down. She now lives a vibrant, fulfilling life with her husband and manager, Doug.
Work-a-thon 2023
The 10th annual Sacred Heart Area School Work-a-thon took place on October 18th. This benefits both the students and the Staples community. Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade students and families picked up debris and raked leaves in parks, yards and businesses in Staples. 3rd - 6th grade did clean up of debris and raked leaves at Evergreen Cemetery. The preschoolers cleaned up school grounds.
As Christians, we are called to serve God and His people which we are fulfilling at our Work-a-thon.
New Board Members
Here’s your chance to meet our newest board members for the 2023-2024 school year!
Zachary Brusewitz
I was born and raised in Staples. I graduated from SMHS in 2013 and am married to a SHAS Alumni, Kelsey Brusewitz. We have 3 children that will all be attending SHAS this year. I work at Michel’s Pipeline as an equipment operator. When not working, I enjoy time with my family, hunting, fishing or cooking on the grill. I am looking forward to being on the school board and helping better SHAS.
Brandon Pearson
For those who do not know me, I have been a part of the Staples Community my entire life. My sons are the third generation in our family to attend Sacred Heart School. My wife, Kristine and I have four sons, Bentley (10), Beckham (7), Haesten (3) and Graham (9 mo). I have been employed with the City of Wadena for nearly 17 years. In my spare time, I enjoy most anything outdoors. I appreciate the opportunity to be on our school’s Advisory Board, and I am looking forward to our fast approaching 2023-2024 school year.
Come join our team!
We are looking for a preschool Aide to work in the younger preschool room (3-4s) with Teacher Ann. This position would be full time from 7-330pm M-F.
We also need a Afterschool care teacher. This position would be M-F from approximately 3-530pm. Great job for a college student!
Please send Mr. William Liedl your resume or to inquire at principal@sacredheartareaschool.org
CUF Raffle
We did it!!!! Thank you to all that purchased a raffle ticket and thank you to Catholic United Financial for sponsoring this! All ticket proceeds stay with SHAS and our students earned some awesome prices too!
Inclement Weather
Inclement Weather and School Closures: In the event of a delayed start or school closure due to the weather, these are the notification options that will be used. Please contact the school office if you do not receive the public school Skyward phone calls or SHAS all school emails.
Skyward automated calls through the public school
All school email
Facebook post on the school’s page
Veteran’s Day Program 2022
Today and everyday, we are grateful for our military service personnel, past and present, and the families who support them.
We are very proud of our students and their performances on 11/11/22 to honor our Veterans. The hard work of the Staff and Students to prepare for this shown through the entire program.
Included in the program was:
Posting of Colors - Grade 6
Pledge of Allegiance & National Anthem
Greeting - Grade 6
Veteran’s Day Poem & “I’m in the Lord’s Army” - Kindergarten
“Thank You Soldiers”, Veterans Acrostic Poem - Grade 1
Armed Forces Medley - Grade 2
Tribute to Branches - Grade 3
Guest Speakers - Father Aaron Kuhn and Deb Weishalla
“You’re a Grand Ole Flag”, Veterans Day Poems, “Today, Tomorrow, Forever” - Grade 4
“God Bless the USA” - Grade 4 & 5
Thank You Letters, “This Land is Your Land” - Grade 5
Wounded Warrior Project (3rd Grade Class Project) - Grade 3
History of Veterans Day, “God Bless America” - Grade 6
Taps and Retiring of Colors
Workathon 2022
Sacred Heart Area School’s annual Work-a-thon took place on Wednesday, October 19, 2022, starting at 11:30am and ending around 2:00pm. The Work-a-thon benefits both the Staples community and Sacred Heart Area School, while providing a service experience for our students. This is also one of the major fundraisers for SHAS. The 1st & 2nd grade students and families picked up debris and raked leaves in parks and yards in Staples. The 3rd—6th graders cleaned up plots and raked at Evergreen Cemetery in Staples. The preschoolers and kindergarteners stayed on school grounds and picked up debris around the buildings.
As Christians, we are called to serve God and His people which we are fulfilling at our Work-a-thon. Thank you to our students and families for making this years cleanup and fundraiser a success.
