About Our School

St. Theresa Catholic Annual Report

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St. Theresa Catholic School Mission

We educate the individual child within our Catholic faith by providing excellent academic experiences and dynamic faith formation.

School History

St. Theresa School opened in September, 1952. Sr. Miriam Therese Foley, Sr. Mary Yvonne Jordan, and Sr. Andre Sailor, sisters of the Congregation of the Humility of Mary held class for 100 children in grades one through six. Sr. Miriam Therese was the first principal. Classrooms were located in the lower level of the original school which is now home to first and second grades.

St. Theresa Catholic School was created and continues to exist in order to assist parents in educating their children. Professional educators and over 300 children experience together what it means to live a life of prayer, personal responsibility, and freedom reflective of Gospel values. Teachers open the world of knowledge and pursue the intellectual development of each child; and believe that each child is a unique creation of God, and thus requires individual attention.

Quick facts about our school:

  • St. Theresa Catholic School is a preK- 8 parish school community with an average class size of 16 students.  We celebrate a diverse student body comprised of over 15 cultures from 23 zip codes.
  • We have been recognized locally, nationally, and internationally for our STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math) curriculum.  Our students presented at STEM Day at the Iowa Capitol, were a stop on the Governor’s STEM Tour of 8 schools, and are published in Creating a STEM Culture for Teaching and Learning by Jeff Weld.
  • ALL students pre-K through 8th grade work with our STEM curriculum.
  • Our students work with passionate teachers who bring faith into every classroom.  Teachers meet each student at their level achieving substantial growth year to year and preparing them to be leaders in high school and their community.  Classes attend a weekly school Mass.
  • We devote an entire week annually to Social Justice.  Students are engaged in activities and speakers to open their eyes to the needs of our greater world.  Our school’s social justice week has been featured twice in Venture Magazine published for 4th grade Catholic Students.
  • We are called to serve one another.  We work together as a grade level, as a class, and individually to serve our school, parish, and community.  Our students provide over 3000 recorded hours of service.

Principal’s Letter

Dear Families,

I am delighted you have chosen to partner with St. Theresa Catholic School. For the last 64 years, our parish school has provided an outstanding education in faith formation and academics. We are a community built on service to others. With education as the mission of our parish, the strongest assets within our growing community remain the children we serve. Evident by the achievements of our outstanding alumni who go on to become leaders in business, medicine, education, law and ministry, we continue to extend our hands. We are all part of this St. Theresa family working together to produce optimistic, independent, compassionate, life-long learners and leaders in our faith.

I pray in thanks each day for the energetic and talented employees of St. Theresa. Our wonderful staff members embody the spirit of St. Theresa in the smallest daily sacrifice and by putting in the extra effort it takes to get the job done so our children have a better experience. Our teachers support the partnership between parents as primary educators. They enliven each child’s natural curiosity with enriching lessons and sensory experiences. With seamless integration of technology our students are prepared for twenty-first century communication. And most importantly, faith integration is ongoing as our teachers lead by example guiding students toward developing strong moral compasses.

Finally, to you, the parents: thank you for your generosity in time, talents, and resources. The volunteer hours you spend in the classroom, the donations of supplies and food preparation, and charitable gifts you make both to the school and to the community at-large do not go unnoticed. I speak for the entire St. Theresa staff in saying we would not accomplish what we do without your help. Thank you for entrusting us with the gifts your children bring each day – for entrusting us to mold and sculpt their minds and enrich their souls in the image of Christ. I am humbled.

With Prayers,

Gretchen Watznauer