By Amy White
The Texas Catholic
Roots run deep at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School for Sara Casner, whose mother, brother, aunt, multiple cousins, and two children all received their education at the school — as did Casner herself, having spent her elementary and middle school formation on the campus. So, when she was appointed principal of the STA Upper School this year, she said, it felt like being home.
Some of Casner’s earliest memories at St. Thomas Aquinas are from tagging along with her mother, a kindergarten and preschool teacher at STA. On campus with her mom before the school day began, after it ended, and during the summers, Casner discovered the quirks and tucked-away corners of the grounds — and she learned something profound about herself too.
“Watching my mom teach for all those years,” Casner said, “I think I just kind of knew this is what I wanted to do. I loved working with children. I loved being in the classroom.”
After graduating from St. Thomas Aquinas, Casner attended Bishop Lynch High School, where an especially impactful math teacher solidified her passion for education. She continued her schooling at Texas A&M University, pursuing interdisciplinary studies, an education track at the school, before earning a Master of Education in curriculum and instruction in 1995.
Casner spent five years as a public school teacher. After stepping away from the position to stay at home with her young children, she returned to the classroom — this time at her old stomping ground: St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School. There, Casner has spent the last 21 years as a teacher; and for the past 10-plus years, she has also shouldered the responsibilities of serving as STA’s fourth-grade team lead and math department chair.
“I think some of my greatest memories were students that really learned about their faith,” said Casner, who taught math, science, and religion. “Math, science is my forte, and then religion is my passion … I got to intertwine my faith and their faith in every nook and cranny of education.”
As a teacher, Casner brought positivity, levelheadedness, and academic excellence into her classroom, according to Marisa Hunzinger, a teacher at St. Thomas Aquinas who previously attended both STA and Bishop Lynch alongside Casner.
“She brings her nurturing side of being a mother into the classroom, and she’s very fair but firm with them, and she’s just so knowledgeable in her subject,” Hunzinger said. “She is a phenomenal teacher.”
An open door
When offered the opportunity to take on the principal role at the Upper School, Casner was thrilled at the prospect of leading a community she knows so well.
“God opened the door, and I just felt moved that this is where I’m called to be,” Casner said. “I’m surrounded by so many amazing people. We all work together and uplift each other, and I know them all from being here 21 years. I know how they behave and how they work. So, there’s a lot of comfort walking into this job … When you walk in the front door here, it just feels like home.”
As she takes on this new job — or “vocation,” as she prefers to call it — she will lean on the support of her closeknit school community and on a firm foundation of faith.
“I’m a strong believer in prayer,” Casner said. “I think when you ask the Holy Spirit to sit in on a meeting, especially when you’re with parents, it brings a sense of calm … I lead with faith.”
She plans to pull from her years of experience in the classroom too, the principal added.
“I believe how I ran my classroom as a community is going to be the biggest strength I take into being a principal,” she said. “In my classroom, every child was heard. They knew they were loved. They knew it was a safe space … If I build a strong network and community, and everyone feels loved and cared for and trusted and respected, then I’ve built an amazing school.”
Hunzinger agreed, saying that Casner’s longtime connection to the St. Thomas Aquinas community will help her to be a principal who truly listens to students, parents, teachers, and every person within her school.
“She’s going to be in our corner, just supporting us, helping us,” Hunzinger said. “Our school has grown; our church parish has grown significantly in the last few years; but I think she’s going to be a perfect leader to keep us on that straight, upward path.”
As the new academic year begins, Casner’s time as principal commences, and she once again returns to the sounds and smells of her alma mater, the new administrator said she is “busting at the seams” to welcome students into the long legacy of faith and family at St. Thomas Aquinas.
“I just feel like being a principal, being a teacher — all of that is a vocation,” she added. “I’m blessed and honored each day that I get to do what I do.”
Cutline for featured image: Sara Casner, principal of the Upper School of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, is pictured on the school campus on July 21. (AMY WHITE/The Texas Catholic)
