Meet Our Staff
Sacred Heart Catholic School is blessed to have a group of gifted faculty and staff members. All faculty members hold an Oregon Teaching License. Professional development is ongoing. The staff of Sacred Heart Catholic School is a dedicated and talented group of educational professionals. The faculty is collegial and enjoys sharing their creative talents. The administration, faculty, and staff are a cohesive team committed to educational excellence and modeling Gospel values.
Father Ron Nelson - Pastor
Father Nelson was born and raised in SE Portland. He entered the seminary in 1998; he spent four years at Mt. Angel Seminary and five years in Rome where he received his Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) in Spiritual Theology from the Teresianum University. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 9, 2007.
Mrs. Lucy Shawn – Principal
Lucy Shawn started at Sacred Heart Catholic School in July 2005, after spending fifteen years at St. Mary Catholic School in Stayton, Oregon. Mrs. Shawn taught for nine years, teaching self-contained second and fourth grades and departmentalized sixth through eighth grade math classes. From August 1999 until June 2005 she was the principal at St. Mary.
Mrs. Shawn grew up in Scio, Oregon and graduated as valedictorian of her class of fifty-five from Jefferson High School. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Oregon State University and Master of Science in Education: Policy, Foundations and Administration from Portland State University. She recently completed the post masters courses for her Continuing Administrators License.
Mrs. Shawn has three grown children. Jeremy is a journeyman HVAC installer, Crystal is a registered nurse in the NICU at Sacred Heart in Eugene, Oregon, and Stefani is a registered nurse in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Mrs. Karen Nys – Secretary
Mrs. Nys began working at Sacred Heart Catholic School in August 2005. Prior to then she was the school secretary for four years at St. Joseph School in Salem. She loves working with children and enjoys being of service to the school staff and to the parents. Mrs. Nys has been a parishioner of Sacred Heart parish for over fifteen years; she sings in the choir, is an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, and a Lector.
Ms. Amanda Van Dyke – 7th and 8th Grade
Ms. Van Dyke is originally from the Woodburn/Gervais area and attended Gervais High School. She received a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Communications from the University of Portland. After graduation she entered the Peace Corps and served on the island of Grenada as a Community Development volunteer working with an after-school program and an HIV/AIDS non-profit. She recently received her Master of Arts in Teaching from Lewis & Clark College. Ms. Van Dyke is excited to begin her teaching career in the area she grew up in and looks forward to being a member of the Sacred Heart community. Outside of school Ms. Van Dyke enjoys spending time with family, photography, and being active in the outdoors.
Mrs. Mariana Hill – 5th and 6th Grade
One of three children, Mrs. Hill was born in Valley City, North Dakota and grew up in Unalaska, Alaska. She received her Bachelors Degree in Studio Art and her Masters Degree in Elementary Education from Willamette University. She is in the process of completing Willamette’s ESOL program. After graduation her first teaching job was at Hoover Elementary in Salem teaching fifth grade until accepting a job at Sacred Heart Catholic School teaching 5th and 6th grade. She believes that students learn by doing and in the importance of developing leadership and collaboration skills, and independence. Mrs. Hill loves to play the piano and create art. In the past, she had played for several children’s plays and accompanied many fellow students. Currently, she is developing an etched alphabet book.
Mrs. Amy Lear – 3rd and 4th Grade
Mrs. Lear and her husband have three children, two of whom attend Sacred Heart Catholic School. She feels blessed to teach where her children go to school. The Lear Family belongs to Sacred Heart/St. Louis Parish. Mrs. Lear went to college at the University of Portland where she earned both her Bachelors in Elementary Education and later her Masters in Educational Leadership. She appreciates the opportunity to share her faith every day with the students.
Mrs. Lucia Ries – 1st and 2nd Grade
Mrs. Ries graduated from the University of Portland with a Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education, and is completing a Reading Endorsement. She loves working with children of all ages and takes pride in sharing her love of teaching with her faith. Outside of school she enjoys spending time with family, gardening, hiking, fishing, and drawing.
Mrs. Corina Espericueta – Kindergarten
Mrs. Espericueta holds a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education, a bilingual endorsement which allows her to teach Spanish and an ESOL endorsement which allows her to teach English as a Second Language. She also has 45 hours of graduate credits in related courses. In accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act, she is registered as a “Highly Qualified Teacher.” Mrs. Espericueta enjoys the family atmosphere that exists in the K-8th grade setting.
Mrs. Judy Adams – Technology Teacher
Mrs. Adams has a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Masters in Journalism. She teaches computer skills to all students for one hour a week. In addition to keyboarding skills, Mrs. Adams works on writing skills and introduces students to programs such as Power Point, Publisher and web making which are used for projects for the classroom. She also supervises a Newspaper Club at the school and several times a year the The Sacred Heart Independent newspaper publishes an edition with student articles and informational pieces coupled with great photography.
Mrs. Adams loves to travel and also takes a special interest in digital photography.
Mrs. Lisa Juhring – PE Instructional Assistant
Mrs. Juhring and her husband, John, have four children. They are active members of St. Louis/Sacred Heart Parish. Two of their children attended Sacred Heart Catholic School before continuing on to Blanchet and two are still currently enrolled at Sacred Heart Catholic School. Mrs. Juhring is enthusiastic about her job and is a dedicated and hard worker.
Each grade level at Sacred Heart Catholic School receives three hours of PE instruction a week. The children participate in a variety of sports and exercise and a special emphasis is placed on good sportsmanship and fair play.
Mrs. Marion Zellner – Librarian
Mrs. Zellner is a retired certified librarian, elementary teacher and is now our Library Media Specialist. She has been a “volunteer” at Sacred Heart for almost a decade. She was involved in originally setting up the library for our school and has led the way in analyzing and selecting new books and expanding the library sections. Library skills are taught to all students on an on-going basis. Mrs. Zellner integrates her lessons with the classroom teacher curriculum. The annual Book Fair is organized and run by Mrs. Zellner.
Mrs. Sally Cady – Piano Teacher
Private piano lessons are available for all students during the school day. Mrs. Cady has taught piano at Sacred Heart Catholic School for over fifteen years and is a valuable part of the school community. Piano students perform during lunch time concerts in the spring and often play during the Mass and for graduation. Special programs, such as our annual Christmas Program, are made more special by Mrs. Cady’s accompaniment. The family atmosphere at Sacred Heart provides a wonderful, caring environment for learning and performing piano skills, and also provides Mrs. Cady with the privilege of meeting students’ parents, grandparents and siblings.
Mr. Clifford VanLoo – Maintenance
Mr. Clifford VanLoo began working for Sacred Heart Catholic School in September 2008. He and his wife Carolyn have been members of Sacred Heart Parish for fifteen years. He enjoys outdoor activities such as fishing, camping and hunting. He volunteers at the food bank and helps to coordinate parish landscaping projects. He also volunteers his time working with the high school formation program and sings in the parish choir.
