ST. JOSEPH operates 22 public schools serving 10,568 students, placing it in the mid-size range in Missouri. The school portfolio breaks down into 10 elementary, 5 other, 4 middle, 3 high schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage before they move, rent, or enrol. Aggregated across those campuses, enrollment totals 10,315 pupils using the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2022-23 release, and the district is geographically located in Buchanan County County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $13,485 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, which aggregates every revenue and spending line reported under federal accounting standards. The funding mix is 50.8% local, 30.4% state, and 18.8% federal — a breakdown that matters because districts leaning heavily on local revenue are more exposed to property-tax swings, while higher federal shares typically track Title I concentration. Average teacher compensation clocks in at $62,098 per NCES F-33, a signal of the district's ability to recruit and retain staff against neighbouring districts. The district's equity score — 45/100, ranked #257 of 433 in Missouri against a state average of 50 — measures how evenly funding reaches schools within its boundaries.
Academic infrastructure includes 3 of 22 schools offering Advanced Placement (23 AP courses district-wide), a 357.2:1 student-counselor ratio, above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 25.1% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 62.2% White, 13.9% Hispanic or Latino, 6.2% African American across the district's schools.
Central High accounts for 16.8% of all ST. JOSEPH student enrollment
That concentration — well above the 8.4% national median for largest-entity share — means ST. JOSEPH-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
ST. JOSEPH school enrollment varies 133× across entities
ST. JOSEPH school enrollment ranges from 13 students (lowest) to 1,733 students (highest), a spread of 1,720 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme enrollment heterogeneity — the district operates both small specialty programs and large comprehensive campuses inside a single budgeting unit. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
ST. JOSEPH has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 77.0% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility — including this one — receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
ST. JOSEPH student-counselor ratio is 357:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment — districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
ST. JOSEPH chronic absenteeism rate is 25.1% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason — illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within ST. JOSEPH is typically wider than the ST. JOSEPH-aggregate figure suggests.
ST. JOSEPH has 22 schools, including 3 high, 10 elementary, 5 other, 4 middle. Total enrollment is 10,568 students.
How much does ST. JOSEPH spend per student?
ST. JOSEPH spends $13,485 per student. The district has an equity score of 45/100, ranking #257 in Missouri.
What is the average teacher salary in ST. JOSEPH?
The average teacher salary in ST. JOSEPH is $62,098 per year, according to the NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey.
What is the average rent near ST. JOSEPH?
The HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom in Buchanan County County is $N/A/month (2026). This affects housing affordability for families in the district.
What is the demographic composition of ST. JOSEPH?
ST. JOSEPH students are 62.2% White, 13.9% Hispanic or Latino, 6.2% African American, 1.8% Asian, averaged across 22 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for ST. JOSEPH?
ST. JOSEPH has an equity score of 45/100, ranking #257 out of 433 districts in Missouri. This score measures resource distribution fairness across schools in the district.