Katherine Johnson Education Center, Saint Cloud MN

Original Research by School Decision on Katherine Johnson Education Center

Katherine Johnson Education Center is a special education school serving students from kindergarten through twelfth grade within the St. Cloud Area School District 742. Its very purpose is to provide a specialized learning environment for students with disabilities whose needs are best met outside a general education setting. This is a school designed for a specific population, not a neighborhood school with open enrollment for all students in its attendance zone.

The school is relatively small, with an enrollment spread thinly across grade levels, as is typical for a specialized program. A substantial share of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals. The racial and ethnic composition is diverse, with Black students making up the largest group, followed closely by White students, and a smaller share of students who identify as two or more races, along with a small number of Hispanic students.

Because this is a special education school, the standard measures of academic performance used for most public schools tell an incomplete story and should be interpreted with caution. State assessment data was reported, but the proficiency rates in math and reading across most tested grades were very low, and in many grade levels, the reported rate was zero. In one grade level for reading, the proficiency rate was below ten percent. Science results were similarly low in the grade where data was reportable. These numbers are consistent with the school's mission: it serves a student body for whom grade-level academic standards are often not the primary or immediate goal. A parent should look into the school’s individual education plan (IEP) process and its focus on functional, behavioral, and life skills to understand what growth and progress look like for students here. Overall proficiency across all tested subjects and grades placed the school in the bottom quartile relative to districts across Stearns County, a comparison that reflects the school’s specialized, rather than comprehensive, academic mission.

No graduation rate data was available, and no information on chronic absenteeism, staffing ratios, or course access was found in the available records.

The school is located in Saint Cloud, a mid-sized regional city about an hour northwest of the Twin Cities. The city is home to St. Cloud State University, a major hospital system, and a mix of manufacturing and logistics employers. The downtown area includes a historic commercial district, the Paramount Theatre, and the Great River Regional Library. The city has a growing immigrant population, and the local school district reflects that diversity. Housing in the area is generally more affordable than the state average.

The district itself did not provide any publicly reported recent changes or initiatives that would be directly relevant to a parent considering this school.

For a family considering Katherine Johnson Education Center, the central question is whether the student's special education needs require the kind of contained, specialized setting this school provides. Test scores from state assessments will look very different from those of a typical public school, and they are not a useful proxy for the school's quality or its fit for a particular child. The school is a program of last resort in some ways, and a lifeline in others, depending on the student's circumstances. Any parent in the district exploring this school should be working closely with the district’s special education department to understand whether this placement matches their child’s IEP goals and what the school’s specific approach to instruction, behavior support, and transition planning looks like.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 30%

School 0% · District 35% · ▼ 35 pts below district

▼ 55 pts below state median · ▼ 40 pts below county median

Grade 40%

School 0% · District 33% · ▼ 33 pts below district

▼ 51 pts below state median · ▼ 55 pts below county median

Grade 50%

School 0% · District 22% · ▼ 22 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 35 pts below county median

Grade 60%

School 0% · District 21% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 27 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 70%

School 0% · District 21% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 24 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 80%

School 0% · District 20% · ▼ 20 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 30%

School 0% · District 32% · ▼ 32 pts below district

▼ 42 pts below state median · ▼ 36 pts below county median

Grade 40%

School 0% · District 29% · ▼ 29 pts below district

▼ 41 pts below state median · ▼ 38 pts below county median

Grade 50%

School 0% · District 38% · ▼ 38 pts below district

▼ 54 pts below state median · ▼ 48 pts below county median

Grade 60%

School 0% · District 38% · ▼ 38 pts below district

▼ 46 pts below state median · ▼ 39 pts below county median

Grade 70%

School 0% · District 35% · ▼ 35 pts below district

▼ 36 pts below state median · ▼ 29 pts below county median

Grade 89%

School 9% · District 32% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Science

Grade 810%

School 10% · District 10%

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

This schoolST. CLOUD PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.