There are 37 elementary schools and 3 high schools in the Diocese of Jefferson City, spread throughout much of the state. While widespread, our schools collaborate in bringing the best practices in education and staff development into the classroom. At St. Joseph Cathedral School, we have placed a strong emphasis on challenging students to engage at higher cognitive levels, especially through our strong writing program.

However, what sets Catholic schools apart is the covenant between parents and the schools. Parents are called to the amazing role as the first and best educators in the lives of their children, as well as the first to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with these young people.

Our Catholic schools partner with parents in this mission. The Catholic school program is rich in prayer and sacramental participation. Students will attend Mass, Benediction, adoration, and other liturgical prayers. Our engaging "Praise and Worship" assemblies punctuate the year with high-energy music and inspirational witness from others in our community.

At St. Joseph Cathedral School, students not only learn the teachings of Jesus Christ and his Church, but they learn how to put these teachings into action through practice and service.

All 40 Catholic schools in the Diocese of Jefferson City operate under the same curriculum, which is updated regularly by a team of educators. These revisions take into consideration local state guidelines and national standards, but also build upon the work of curricula guides that have been successfully implemented in other dioceses.

The curricula for the Diocese of Jefferson City can be accessed HERE. While the curricula is consistent across the diocese, the local level has the autonomy to make textbook and program selections that meet the curricular standards.

Our diocesan standardized test is the Iowa Assessment of Basic Skills. Administered in the fall, this test provides data that guides resource selection and professional development. While the diocese does not provide ranking from school-to-school, St. Joseph Cathedral School consistently performs in the top tier among mid- to large-sized schools in the diocese.

Our Ambassador family program matches new families (K-8) with established families. These Ambassadors can be a handy resource when new families have questions or need guidance, but this program also matches up families to make it easier to navigate school/parish social events. Ambassador families often have a student in the same class as the new family. This program is also available to preschool families upon request.

In addition, as of the 2020-2021 school year, our new families take part in the Dedication/Orientation/Invitation program, which guides them through the year with support in fully participating in school and parish programs and culture. 

St. Joseph Cathedral School offers more options for preschool than most other local programs. All of our programs have low class sizes and both a teacher and aide.

Students who are two by August 1st can take part in our part-time "Mother's Morning Out" program, focused on socialization, basic skills, and constructive play.

Students who are three years old by August 1st have a full-time option, as well as options for five mornings a week and three full days a week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday).

Students who are four-years-old by August 1st have the same options as the three-year-olds, but are enrolled in our pre-kindergarten program.

Contact Mrs. Gina Bailey at gbailey@sjcsmo.org for more information on preschool options or enrollment.

Our summer camp is very popular and filled with engaging activities and energetic staff.

The camp runs one session throughout the month of June. Contact the director, Mrs. Camie Phillips, at camp@sjcsmo.org for more information.

Before-school care is offered from 7:00-7:30 a.m. until the start of school daily for a one-time fee of $100.

After-school care runs from dismissal until 5:30 every day. ASC allows time for homework and supervised play. Snacks are provided, and tutoring is sometimes available.

In addition to the $50 registration fee, ASC is $110/month for full-time enrollment, with siblings, discounted to $90/month. Part-time students can also be charged daily at $10/day. 

Contact office@sjcsmo.org for more information.

Preschool

For our "Mother's Morning Out" preschool class, enrollment is capped at 8 students with a teacher and aide.

For preschool (3-year-old by August 1st), enrollment is capped at 14 students with a teacher and aide.

For prekindergarten (4-years-old by August 1st), enrollment is capped at 18 students with a teacher and aide.

K-8

Our policy aims for 20 or fewer students per class. In kindergarten, this includes a teacher and an aide. Should class sizes exceed 20, considerations are made for a paraprofessional (often with a teaching background) or an additional session to decrease the student/adult ratio.

Families can apply for enrollment at any time!

Contact the school at (573) 635-5024, by email at office@sjcsmo.org, or using the CONTACT US link in the menu on the left of this page.

Our office staff can answer any questions you have by email or phone, but we would love to set up a tour and an opportunity to discuss how St. Joseph Cathedral School can be your best support system for guiding your children to discipleship and citizenship.

St. Joseph Cathedral School

2025 2026 Fee Structure

Active parishioner families are not charged tuition for enrollment at St. Joseph Cathedral School. Under this model, the parish supports the education of children whose families are committed to the active practice of the Catholic faith.

The school is the largest of those ministries available to active parishioners. Being an active parishioner means fully embracing the "all-in" attitude of parish engagement. This includes:

• A commitment to share one's talents and skills with God by filling out the Time and Talent card;
• A commitment to share one's treasures with God by sacrificially supporting the operations of the parish and school;
• A commitment to share oneself with God by faithfully participating in the sacraments, including every Sunday (or Saturday evening) and every Holy Day of Obligation;
• A commitment to sharing one's children with God, including by guiding them in learning and practicing the faith and ensuring they receive the proper sacraments.

Our special education program serves children who are identified as having a learning disability or who have other identified challenges to learning. We cooperate with the Jefferson City public schools for resources related to tutoring, speech, and math/reading remediation. However, we also have our own in-house program, which includes pull-out instruction and intentional differentiation in the classroom. 

St. Joseph Cathedral School set the bar in mid-Missouri for assistance to students with dyslexia. Using a Susan Barton program, staff and volunteers give dedicated attention to helping students learn skills to be successful and confident at learners.

For our gifted students, we also cooperate with the local public schools to allow our students in the 95th percentile to participate in the E.E.R. enrichment program. In addition, students who are strong in math have the option to take accelerated classes in junior high.

Our teachers have gone through training on differentiating instruction in the classroom.

Our school has been on the frontlines of responsibly incorporating technology in the classroom. In the past couple years, all of our SMARTBoards have been replace with interactive flat panels, which move away from projector-based displays, while still allowing students to interact with programs on the screen.

Our 3rd through 8th grades are one-to-one with Chromebooks, though students still have sufficient hands-on and pen-to-paper instruction. Our goal is to use technology as a tool, but not replace skills that go beyond the screen.

Chromebooks, computers, and tablets are readily available to students through other grades, as well, and students in 3rd grade and higher use Google Classroom for many class assignments.

In addition to our strong technology, our facilities provide many other resources for teaching outside the box. Students learn to work with clay, having their projects fired up in our newly-restored kiln. Our green-screen studio and editing software allows students to create engaging video presentations. Our outdoor classroom takes instruction outside the school building on nice days. We also have one of the largest campuses among area schools, and our teachers use this space for a variety of activities, from physical education to preschool gardening.

Our state-of-the-art gymnasium and performing arts center support our athletic program and our popular spring musical.

In order to help form the whole child, St. Joseph Cathedral offers a wide range of athletic and extracurricular activities, including participation in our amazing Spring musicals, as well as choir and band, on our new stage. The junior high students also have the opportunity to pick an elective class of their choice during the 7th hour of the day. Elective choices include book club, creative writing, art, computers, study skills, life skills, lifetime sports, living saints, holidays, Spanish, creation station, culinary 101, etc.

New clubs for the 2025-26 school year include the Spanish and crochet clubs, which meet twice a month. The school also partners with scouting organizations. Our student council offers opportunities for students to explore new challenges, and the Hope Squad (new in 2024) offers peer education on finding the warning signs on mental health issues among their classmates. Our partnership with the public school also provides an enriched gifted program for students. In athletics, our school was a frontrunner in developing an archery program, and we regularly send students to state and national competitions. School-sponsored sports also include volleyball, basketball, cross-country, and track.

Parent involvement is welcome and strongly encouraged!

Parents are always welcome to join their students for assemblies or worship events and lunch, checking in at the school office.

In addition, many volunteer opportunities, such as room parent or cafeteria help, allow parents to make a stronger home-school connection for their children. The Home and School organization coordinates many school-based volunteer opportunities, but parents can always contact the main office to inquire about other ways to be involved.