Shakopee Public Schools Furthers Commitment to Cardiac Safety

Shakopee Becomes Minnesota's First Heart Safe Certified School District with Project ADAM

Issued August 8, 2023

Shakopee Public Schools is the first public school district in Minnesota to be certified as a Heart Safe School by Project ADAM Minnesota. The district unveiled the official Heart Safe banners that will hang outside the schools on Tuesday, August 8, 2023.

Two high school students, Maddie Hoyd and Marian Mohamed, supported efforts alongside the Shakopee Police Department and district Health Services team to get all Shakopee schools (10) certified as Heart Safe. The district received hands-on guidance,advice and support from Nathan Neis, RN, DNP and Dr. Andrew Schneider from Children’s Minnesota – an affiliate of Project ADAM. The Health Science Academy within the Academies ofShakopee, which is supported by Academy Champion St. Francis Regional Medical Center, also played a role in real-world learning efforts related to the project.

If you would like to donate to Shakopee’s AED initiative, donations (check) to Shakopee Project AED can be sent to 1200 Shakopee Town Square, Attention: Ed Zeimet/Project AED. If you're interested in helping support general AED needs, please contact Janni Hennes, community volunteer, below.  Any donation amount will help support required maintenance needs and funds are deposited into a dedicated account within the district budget. 

What is Project ADAM and a Heart Safe School?

Project ADAM is a national program which strives to assist schools and communities in establishing a practiced plan torespond to a sudden cardiac arrest. Project ADAM has saved the lives of more than 200 children, adolescents and adults who went into sudden cardiac arrest

A Project ADAM Heart Safe School is one that has successfully implemented a practiced plan to respond to sudden cardiac arrest, including awareness, training and effective emergency response to promote a safe environment for students, visitors and staff. These schools have AEDs, or automated external defibrillators, in place and have a dedicated team made up of the school nurse and building staff who have been trained to quickly respond when a cardiac emergency may arise.

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is the leading cause of death in young athletes. Though these events are very rare, when they d ohappen it can have a profound impact on a community.

 “The dedication of the students and district staff to achieving Heart Safe status has been incredible. Having the right equipment and training to respond to sudden cardiac arrest can save lives. This is the goal of Project ADAM Minnesota. We look forward to helping more Minnesota schools become Heart Safe.”

- Dr. Schneider, Children's Minnesota

District AED Efforts

The certification also positively builds upon volunteer efforts that previously led to district-wide AEDs in the Shakopee school community. In the spring of 2018, a district-wide AED effort was initiated and has resulted in 50+ AEDs being installed throughout the district, both inside the school buildings and onsite at outdoor fields. 40+ of the AEDs noted have been donated by community members. Shakopee Public Schools worked directly with Advanced First Aid, Inc. to place the HeartSine 360P fully automatic AEDs throughout the district and continue to manage testing, training and maintenance efforts. 

AED Volunteer Contact:

Janni Hennes, 952.456.1094, rjhennes@aol.com

Click here to view additional details on the district's Project AED and community support.