St. Scholastica Monastery

About the Monastery

St. Scholastica Monastery is a community of Benedictine Sisters in Fort Smith, Arkansas, whose beginnings trace to 1878 when sisters migrated south from Ferdinand, Indiana, to plant a motherhouse in Arkansas. Following the 6th-century Rule of St. Benedict, the sisters seek God through common prayer, private prayer, lectio divina, and work assigned by their elected prioress. They are members of the Federation of St. Gertrude of the Order of St. Benedict (OSB). Their mission statement, adopted August 1990 and amended July 2000, commits them to hospitality, simplicity, and reverence for one another and all creation.

• Founded 1879 (migration from Ferdinand, Indiana, 1878)
• Part of the Federation of St. Gertrude (OSB)
• Current community: ~15 members including one novice and one in temporary profession
• Led by an elected Prioress

History of the Monastery

The community's first home was at Shoal Creek, Arkansas (now New Blaine), where they opened St. Joseph Academy. By 1900, about 70 sisters were teaching in roughly 15 elementary schools in Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, and Oklahoma. Lack of water, poor roads, and inadequate healthcare at the rural site prompted the move to Fort Smith, beginning in 1924. The Gothic Revival monastery designed by F.W. Redlich of Oklahoma City opened in 1925 and housed St. Scholastica Academy, a boarding and day school. Following the 1970s decline in religious vocations, the community gradually closed its institutional ministries of schools and hospitals and refocused on its monastic core. The 1925 building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. Ground was broken for a new, smaller, eco-friendly one-story monastery on the same 66 acres on May 10, 2017; the new building was dedicated October 7, 2018, and the sisters moved in February 2019. The old monastery was demolished in 2022.

• 1879 — Founding at Shoal Creek, Arkansas
• 1900 — ~70 sisters teaching in ~15 schools in 4 states
• 1924 — Move to Fort Smith begins
• 1925 — Gothic Revival monastery opens (architect F.W. Redlich, Oklahoma City)
• 2006 — Old monastery listed on National Register of Historic Places
• 2017 — Ground broken for new monastery
• 2018 — New monastery dedicated October 7
• 2019 — Sisters move into new monastery (February)
• 2022 — 1925 monastery demolished

The New Monastery Building

Since February 2019, the sisters have lived in a one-story, eco-friendly monastery on the same Fort Smith grounds. Although the interior incorporates modern amenities, it deliberately honors the old monastery: the stained-glass windows from the former chapel are reused in the chapel, the dining room, and as a memorial art piece in the entrance; large paintings and antique mailboxes from the old building have been repurposed throughout. The result is a comfortable, efficient home that maintains a nostalgic connection to nearly a century of prayer and work that preceded it.

Benedictine Life & Daily Rhythm

The sisters balance prayer, work, and leisure as a holistic Benedictine lifestyle. Common prayer, private prayer, and lectio divina (holy reading) constitute a significant part of each day, alongside the monastic work assigned by the prioress. By vows of stability, fidelity (conversatio morum), and obedience, the sisters promise to remain faithful to their Benedictine tradition and to be a Christian community where each person is reverenced in their uniqueness and diversity.

• Ora et Labora — prayer and work
• Daily Liturgy of the Hours in community
• Daily Eucharist
• Lectio divina
• Three vows: stability, fidelity (conversatio morum), obedience

Liturgy & Prayer Schedule

Guests are always welcome to pray the Liturgy of the Hours and celebrate the Eucharist with the sisters. Prayer times are subject to change, especially on feast days and special days, so the monastery asks visitors to call ahead to confirm.

• Sunday: 7:30 AM Morning Praise; 9:15 AM Mass; 11:50 AM Noon Praise; 5:00 PM Evening Praise
• Monday: 7:30 AM Morning Praise & Eucharist; 11:50 AM Noon Praise; 5:00 PM Evening Praise
• Tuesday–Friday: 7:00 AM Morning Praise & Eucharist; 11:50 AM Noon Praise; 5:00 PM Evening Praise
• Saturday: 11:30 AM Morning Praise; 5:00 PM Evening Praise
• Daily: Rosary for vocations (afternoon)
• Daily: Eucharistic Adoration before Evening Praise

Community Members

The community of about 15 sisters is led by Prioress/President Sr. Kimberly Rose Prohaska, OSB (professed June 24, 1993), with Sr. Cecelia Marie Brickell, OSB serving as Subprioress and Vice President. Sisters serve in formation, music, development, Hispanic Ministry, hospice, university fellowship, postulancy, the oblates program, and more. Sr. Siena Fisk was temporarily professed on August 15, 2022.

• Sr. Kimberly Rose Prohaska, OSB — Prioress/President
• Sr. Cecelia Marie Brickell, OSB — Subprioress; Spiritual Director; Archivist
• Sr. Dolores Vincent Bauer, OSB — Development; Director of Temporary Professed
• Sr. Regina Schroeder, OSB — Director of Postulants & Novices; Baker
• Sr. Hilary Decker, OSB — Oblate Director
• Sr. Laura Cathcart, OSB — Oblate Coordinator
• Sr. Maria Goretti DeAngeli, OSB — UA Fayetteville University Fellowship
• Sr. Rosalie Ruesewald, OSB — Social Awareness; Hispanic Ministry; G.E.M.; Music

Hospitality, Tours & Grounds

St. Scholastica Monastery sits on 66 scenic acres with walking paths through gardens, past grottoes, shrines, and gazebos where visitors can sit, reflect, and meditate. The grounds feature an eleven-circuit Chartres-style labyrinth built with the help of the Friends of the Center, with four quadrants modeled on the Chartres Cathedral labyrinth of c. 1200. Visitors are welcome to walk the grounds during the day; interior tours of the monastery can be arranged by calling (479) 783-4147 at least one day in advance.

• 66 scenic acres
• Walking paths, gardens, grottoes, shrines, gazebos
• Eleven-circuit Chartres-style labyrinth
• Interior tours by appointment: 479-783-4147

Hesychia House of Prayer (New Blaine, AR)

Hesychia House of Prayer is the monastery's hermitage retreat ministry in New Blaine, Arkansas, begun in 1981 as a collaboration between the Benedictine Sisters of St. Scholastica and the Sisters of Mercy. The name comes from a Greek word meaning "resting in God." Nestled within 200 acres of woods and pastures, the property includes a main house/chapel and four private hermitages where guests of any faith may stay from a single day to a couple of months. The sisters staff it — currently Sisters Louise Sharum, Andrea Loran, and Ethel Marie Sonnier, OSB — and offer spiritual direction to retreatants. Hiking trails and country roads invite further contemplation.

• Address: 204 St. Scholastica Road, New Blaine, AR
• Phone: (479) 938-7375
• Email: [email protected]
• Four individual hermitages
• Suggested donation: $50/night first week, $35/night thereafter; $20 day visit
• Established 1981 in collaboration with Sisters of Mercy

Oblates of St. Benedict

The Oblate program extends the Benedictine charism to lay women and men of any religion or denomination who wish to associate themselves formally with the monastery in prayer and good works. Oblates pray a shortened form of the Divine Office in union with the sisters, attend monthly Oblate Sundays (held every 2nd Sunday from September to May immediately after the 9:15 AM Sunday Mass, with Zoom option), and follow a one-year preparation process beginning with four months of introductory formation. The program is currently coordinated by Sr. Laura Cathcart, OSB, with Sr. Hilary Decker, OSB as Oblate Director.

• Monthly meetings 2nd Sundays, September–May, after 9:15 AM Mass
• Zoom option available
• One-year preparation: 4-month intro + meetings January–May
• Directors: Sr. Hilary Decker, OSB and Sr. Laura Cathcart, OSB
• Email: [email protected]

Outreach & Ministries

Beyond their monastic life of prayer, the sisters maintain a portfolio of outreach ministries. The G.E.M. program sponsors a scholarship for girls facing poverty in Esquipulas, Guatemala, enabling them to attend the Benedictine school Colegio San Benito. Sisters serve in Hispanic Ministry in the Fort Smith area, provide spiritual direction, volunteer with hospice and other local nonprofits, and advocate for immigrants through Know Your Rights meetings with area churches and visits to local detention facilities. Sr. Maria Goretti DeAngeli, OSB, supports Catholic students at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.

• G.E.M. Guatemala scholarship — Colegio San Benito, Esquipulas
• Hispanic Ministry
• Spiritual Direction (Sr. Cecelia Marie Brickell)
• University Fellowship, UA Fayetteville
• Hospice volunteering
• Immigrant advocacy & Know Your Rights
• Mission Border Hope (Eagle Pass/Piedras Negras area)

Virtual Cemetery (Find a Loved One)

The monastery's online cemetery database lets families search for and visit the memorials of sisters, chaplains, and others interred on the grounds. Records include birth and death dates, date of interment, grave type, cemetery section, and veteran details where applicable.

• Online burial search at stscholastica.cemsites.com
• Includes veteran service information

Become a Sister / Vocations

Women discerning a Benedictine vocation are invited to explore life at St. Scholastica through the monastery's website. The formation process is overseen by Sr. Regina Schroeder, OSB (Director of Postulants & Novices) and Sr. Dolores Vincent Bauer, OSB (Director of Temporary Professed).

• Director of Postulants & Novices: Sr. Regina Schroeder, OSB
• Director of Temporary Professed: Sr. Dolores Vincent Bauer, OSB

Visiting & Contact

The monastery welcomes day visitors to walk the grounds and labyrinth, and welcomes guests to join the sisters for daily prayer and Mass. Call ahead to confirm prayer times, especially on feast days.

• Address: 1315 S. Albert Pike Avenue, Fort Smith, AR 72903
• Phone: (479) 783-4147
• Email: [email protected]
• Website: stscho.org
• Tours by appointment (call at least one day ahead)