Carrollton's Foundation
Carrollton's History
Sacred Heart Education Comes to Miami
The current Archdiocese of Miami was formed in 1958 when a decision was made to divide Florida, and the newly formed diocese was to be Miami. Bishop Coleman Carroll was named the first bishop. Bishop Carroll invited several religious congregations whom he knew to make foundations in Miami, and The Religious of the Sacred Heart were among those invited. Simultaneously, as the situation in Cuba worsened, the leadership of the Society of the Sacred Heart in Rome began to plan for the probable loss of schools and the subsequent need to re-locate the Religious.
As alumnae from Cuba began to arrive in Miami, it was a question of time when their desires for a school would unite with the desires of the American alumnae and begin to tug at the hearts of the Religious of the Sacred Heart.
All of these factors converged when the schools in Cuba were finally confiscated and the religious escaped to Florida. Greeting them was Reverend Mother Agnes Barry who represented the Vicars and Superior General of the Society of the Sacred Heart. Bishop Carroll echoed the requests of alumnae that a Sacred Heart School be founded in Miami as soon as possible. And so as all of these people united in prayer, Mother Barry agreed to send a formal request to the Mother House in Rome and the return telegram on July 13, 1961 simply said "Oui."
El Jardin becomes Carrollton's Home
El Jardin became the absolute choice when Mother Barry saw the poem carved in the arches above the pool..."One is nearer God's Heart in a garden than anywhere else on earth." Finally on November 1, 1961 the City Commissioners unanimously agreed that the El Jardin estate on Main Highway could become the site of Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart. Classes opened in El Jardin in January.
Carrollton Today
Since that time Carrollton has mirrored the growth and evolution of Miami.
Today we enjoy a multilingual, multicultural community of students, parents and faculty from all over the world.
Like all of the other Schools of the Sacred Heart across the world, Carrollton focuses on the total education of the student. Her spiritual, intellectual, physical, and emotional growth remains at the center of the educational mission.
Once housed solely in the original estate home, El Jardin, the school now boasts two complete campuses, Barat and Duchesne. The second campus was acquired in 1991. The Upper School Grades 7-8 has seen additions, which include science labs, state-of-the-art classrooms and an assembly space. The Barry Building at Barat was added in 1969; it underwent a renovation which included adding an elevator and remodeling bathrooms as well as adding classrooms and a new facade more in keeping with the historic buildings. The Upper School Science/Technology Library building known as Cooke Hall has now been in use since 2007. The placement of this new building has created a view corridor to El Jardin from the gatehouse on Main Highway. The Lower School Grades 4-6 Science/Math Pavilion opened in 2009. The Wellness Center opened in November 2014. The final phase of the Master Plan, a Convocation Center to replace the current all-purpose room in the Barry Building was completed in March 2018.