The week of Jan. 26 through Feb. 3, has officially been proclaimed “Catholic Schools Week” in Cullman by Cullman City Mayor Woody Jacobs. On hand, Wednesday, Jan. 22, to accept the proclamation from Jacobs on behalf of Sacred Heart Catholic School was teacher Jennifer Arndt.

Catholic Schools Week is celebrated throughout the country beginning on the last Sunday in January through the following Saturday. It is an annual celebration of Catholic education.

“Sacred Heart Catholic School in Cullman has been around almost as long as Cullman has,” Jacobs said. “Throughout their history, Sacred Heart school has played a vital role in shaping our community, and they continue to do so.”

Sacred Heart Catholic School began in December of 1878 by the Notre Dame Sisters from Milwaukee as a school for Catholics and non-Catholics. By January 1879, the attendance numbered 100. The school, then known as Mary Help School, was staffed by the Notre Dame Sisters for twenty years, from 1878 through 1898. Once the Sisters were asked to return home to Milwaukee, Abbot Benedict and the monks at St. Bernard Monastery began to look for a community to take over the school. In September 1898, a group of five Benedictine Sisters from San Antonio, Florida, arrived to staff the school. In June of 1902, eight Benedictine Sisters from St. Walburga Convent, Covington, Kentucky, joined the group and the name of Mary Help School was changed to Sacred Heart School.

Over the years, the original wooden frame church and the first two-story wooden school building were replaced with the present stone structures. Sacred Heart School received State Accreditation on January 22, 1973, and was the first church school in Alabama to be accredited. Two years later, accreditation was received from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Throughout the many changes the school has seen over the years, its primary purpose has remained the same: “To provide an instructional program with a Catholic Christian atmosphere of love and guidance.”

“We are thankful for the folks at Sacred Heart School and we appreciate all they do for the youth of our community,” Jacobs said. “We also appreciate Sacred Heart School and Church for all they do to make Cullman a better place live, worship, and raise our families.”

The national theme for this year’s Catholic Schools Week is “Catholic Schools: United in Faith and Community.” Sacred Heart Catholic School will celebrate this week with Masses and other events and activities for its students, families, parishioners and community members focusing on the role that Catholic schools play in the Church’s evangelizing mission.

During Catholic Schools Week, Jacobs urges all residents to recognize the influence and impact Catholic education has on our society and to celebrate the success of Sacred Heart School and its many contributions to our community.

To learn more about Sacred Heart School, visit their website at shscullman.com. To find out more about National Catholic Schools Week, visit the National Catholic Educational Association’s website at ncea.org/CSW.