With its family focus and community emphasis, it's not surprising that public education takes a front seat in St. Joseph.

The St. Joseph Public School District is one of the few districts in Missouri that serves an entire city. With 11,817 students and 1,058 certified staff members, this large district lists 18 elementary, four middle schools and three high schools. The district also operates the Hillyard Technical Center as an option for career-oriented students.

The district's excellent educational reputation begins at the top. Last fall, Dr. Dan L. Colgan, Superintendent of the St. Joseph School District, was named the 2002 "Missouri Superintendent of the Year" by the Missouri Association of School Administrators. St. Joseph has three Missouri Science Teachers of the Year and two Missouri Counselors of the Year. St. Joseph is the only district in Missouri to have three instructors selected as Missouri State Teacher of the Year.

The philosophy that targets these achievements is found throughout the district as well. In figures compiled in 2001, St. Joseph schools out-performed the state averages in a number of areas. The previous year, the district earned 10 rankings on the state's "highest performers" schools list based on the MAP test results.

St. Joseph graduates succeed in both vocational and college programs. The district offers a number of options to prepare students, ranging from advanced placement, honors level classes, dual credit classes and articulated programs. St. Joe was the first district in Missouri and the second in the nation to "guarantee" its graduates.

A major reason for the district's achievements is the strong community support, including financial. More than $1 million in scholarships are awarded each year to district seniors, and a state-of-the-art fiber optic network connects every classroom to the Internet.

St. Joseph boasts a high level of educator experience, with the average tenor of certified staff of 14 years. In the critical area of student/teacher ratios, St. Joseph maintains a 1:21 ratio in kindergarten through Grade 12.

The district doesn't ignore modern safety issues, either. St. Joe is one of only a handful of Showcase Districts designated by the Missouri Center for Safe Schools. Efforts in this area include the Police Partners program, which includes regular officer visits to area schools.

St. Joseph boasts a healthy parochial school network as well, including Bishop LeBlond High School, founded in 1960 by the Benedictine Sisters of Atchison, Kan., and a Diocesan compre- hensive school. Students attend Bishop LeBlond in grades nine through twelve.

Four Catholic elementary schools offer programs for students preschool through grade eight. St. Joseph Catholic schools are affiliated with the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese.

More than a dozen independent schools and academies are located in St. Joseph, representing more than five religious denominations.

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graphic content without permission is prohibited. | Destination Saint Joseph is a supplement to Ingram's Magazine