Founded in 1960 by Monsignor Facundo Castillo, Sacred Heart College is a grant-aided high school owned and managed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belize and Belmopan. In 2007, the school was incorporated and its corporate powers are invested in a Board of Governors whose responsibility is to determine policies for the efficient and responsible management of the institution.
Sacred Heart College opened as the first high school in the Cayo District. The school was the brainchild of Bishop Robert Hodapp who sent Fr. Martin Avila to recruit volunteers to become teachers at the high school. Mr. Harry Martin, Papal Volunteer, became the first principal. Fr. Facundo Castillo was the most instrumental person in the formation of the college and is recognized as the founder of the school.
On the 1st of July of 1960, Sacred Heart College opened its doors for the first time at a building owned by Mr. & Mrs. Espat at the site where "Courts" is presently located.
The college was housed for one semester at its original location and then moved under the then famous Stork Club owned by the Escander Bedran family. As remarked by one of our former pastors, "this must have been the only college in the world housed next to a bar.
In 1961, through the efforts of then Area Representatives, Hector David Silva for Cayo North and Santiago Perdomo for Cayo South, (they lobbied Mr. Wahib Habet who provided all materials from the San Luis Sawmill Co.) two buildings were constructed on the hill near the Sacred Heart Church.
It was not until 1972 through the initiative of Fr. Osmond Peter Martin (Bishop), that a permanent location consisting of seven acres was acquired from the Government for the construction of what is today the permanent home of Sacred Heart College.
In 1985 an initiative taken by Bishop Osmond Peter Martin formed a Board of Governors for the College. The responsibility of the Board was to set policy, give direction and assist in the overall development of the institution.
Sacred Heart College campus was extended by another five-acre block in June 1990.
The Junior College opened in September 1999 and has grown from an initial enrollment of 90 students to over 600 students in 2019. The JC started as a night school sharing the same facilities as the high school. It has grown out of a community college model. Environmental Science, Marketing, International Business, Tourism and Computer Science were the original Associate Degree programs that we started with. –At that time they were some of the most innovative programs that brought students from all over the country.
In 2007, the school was incorporated and its corporate powers are invested in a Board of Governors whose responsibility is to determine policies for the efficient and responsible management of the institution.
In 2014 the Sacred Heart Junior College moved to the western portion of the campus and started catering for students wishing to study during the day.
15th of February 2019, a mile stone in the life of Sacred Heart Junior College was witnessed. The first building that is built for the sole use of the Junior College. Named the Bishop Lawrence S. Nicasio Hall. It is equipped with 10 class rooms and male and female bathroom facilities in both level.