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Education in Columbia

A high value has been placed on education in the Columbia community, which is comprised of a top-rated public school system, several outstanding private and parochial schools and three excellent institutions of higher education.

Continuously recognized for its excellence in education, and having received the highest possible rating in the state, Columbia Public Schools provides nearly 17,000 students with exemplary education, readying them for both post-secondary opportunities and the workforce. The substantial school system consists of 19 elementary schools, three middle schools, three junior high schools and four senior high schools.

The average student to teacher ratio of 22 to 1 aids in a more personalized learning environment in the classroom. What’s more, up to 85 percent of students who have graduated within the Columbia Public Schools system venture on to colleges and universities. Alternatives to the public school system are available for students in search of private education. Private and parochial schools in Columbia serve students from pre-Kindergarten through secondary education, providing for a more personal educational experience with smaller classrooms and a lower student to teacher ratio.

Columbia Montessori School offers private education for children four weeks to six years in age, while Stephens College Children’s School affords half-day and full-day pre-Kindergarten and elementary education with a child to teacher ratio of 10 to 1.

One of the newest private institutions is Good Shepherd Lutheran. Opened in 2002, the school offers excellent education to 80 students in Kindergarten through seventh grade. Another outstanding school is Christian Chapel Academy. The academy is a pre-Kindergarten through eighth grade private school comprised of 213 students and 20 teachers. Both schools allow for a smaller class size, offering students more personalized attention from teachers.

Serving 290 students from pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade, the Christian Fellowship School welcomes students from all religious backgrounds and boasts an average ACT score of 24.4 for graduating seniors. Independent education for Kindergarten through 12th grade is available at the Columbia Independent School, a college preparatory day school. With 192 students and 30 full-time and part-time teachers, the student to faculty ratio is 9 to 1. The average ACT score among students stands at 28, a great feat for any educational institution.

Dubbed “College Town USA,” Columbia is the locale for the state university and two private colleges. All three institutions are major contributors to the area’s economic environment, as well as its social and cultural climate.

The University of Missouri–Columbia, also called “Mizzou,” stands as the first public site for higher education on the west side of the Mississippi River. Known as one of the country’s top universities, Mizzou offers more than 280 degree programs and has earned top rankings in many of its programs, including Journalism and Family and Community Medicine. Affording Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and Law, Mizzou hails as one of just six universities in the U.S. to offer all three on one campus. The institution has attracted its biggest enrollment ever in 2006 with 28,253 undergraduate, graduate and professional studies students from all over the world.

Columbia College, a four-year private liberal arts and sciences college, was founded in 1851 as the two-year institution of Christian Female College. The name was changed to Columbia College in 1970 after becoming a four-year, coeducational facility. Offering associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, the college serves more than 1,000 students on campus during the day, 3,000 on its campus during the evening and over 12,000 on its online campus.

Columbia’s first private college, Stephens College, has been providing exemplary education to the area since 1833. This four-year private institution is the second-oldest women’s college in the nation, and is the only four-year women’s college in Missouri. Stephens College offers undergraduate studies for women and graduate and continuing education studies for both women and men.


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