As the third largest city in Minnesota, Rochester is home to several schools, at all levels. Rochester Public Schools enrolls more than sixteen thousand PK-12th grade students in twenty-three primary and secondary schools, arranged into three public high school attendance zones.
Additionally, the city is served by a number of private and religious schools, including Rochester Lourdes High School, a grade 9-12 Catholic school, as well as Shaeffer Academy, Rochester Central Lutheran School, and other smaller facilities.
Operate through the public school system, Rochester STEM Academy focuses on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, which are integrated throughout the school's curriculum. The STEM Academy takes the place of the former Studio Academy, a fine-arts focused charter school that closed its doors in 2011.
In the southeastern part of the city, Rochester Community and Technical College shares a campus with a branch of Winona State University, and the University of Minnesota Rochester opened in downtown Rochester in 2007.
Mayo Clinic operates several schools of medicine in Rochester, and elsewhere. These include the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Research Training, the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, the Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education, the Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences, and the Mayo Clinic School of Continuous Professional Development.
Rochester has had a long commitment to education. Soon after the community was founded, a log school building was built at the corner of 2nd Avenue and 3rd Street Southeast. Rochester's first public school teacher was Mary Walker, and the log schoolhouse served the community until 1858. As the Civil War postponed the construction of a large permanent school, the school moved to different locations for a few years, then found a home in the basement of the 1866 Olmsted County Courthouse until the Old Central School was built in 1868.
The Old Central School served until 1926, with Miss M.C. Bateman serving as its first principal. In its first year, the school enrolled seven hundred students. After ending its days as a school, the Mayo Clinic opened a medical museum there for a few years before demolishing it in 1950, and building the Mayo Building in its place.
In 1877, the Franciscan Sisters organized a Catholic school that became known as the Academy of Our Lady of Lourdes, which included residential quarters. The following year, the school purchased the nearby Saint John's Church Hall, moving it to the academy in 1882, where it became Saint Mary's Hall. The school later moved to Winona, and the Academy buildings were razed in 1955.
Originally Old Central School housed Rochester High School. By 1895, the student population had grown to the point where the primary and intermediate schools needed to be separated from the high school. It was decided that the younger grades would remain in the Old Central School, while the high school would move to another location.
As a temporary solution, the high school was housed in a building that had once housed the Darling Business College, which had operated there for eight years. In 1910, the Darling Business College building was razed, and the Rochester High School building was built in its place. An addition was built in 1917, and another building was constructed in 1927 and given the name New Central School, at which time the Old Central School was vacated. A new high school campus was built in northwest Rochester in 1958, and Rochester High School became John Marshall High School. In 1966, the city added the Mayo High School.
Shortly after the 1868 Central School was built, Rochester built four ward school to meet the needs of its growing student population. These were the First Ward School, the Second Ward School, Hawthorne School, and Holmes School.
In 1876, the Northrop School was built to serve the Third Ward. Located on the corner of 7th Street and 2nd Avenue Northwest, it was a two-story structure. Mrs. Sadie V. Keith and Miss Mary Johnson were the school's first teachers. A cyclone completely destroyed the building in 1883, but it was rebuilt the following year. In 1891, the new building was badly damaged by fire and repaired. A new building was built in 1915 but at a different location. Now known as the Northrop Community Service Center, it is located at 2nd Avenue and 8th Avenue Northwest.
The First Ward School became Phelps School, but was destroyed by fire in 1915.
Over the years, several other schools served the city of Rochester, Minnesota. These have included private and religious preschools, PK-12th-grade schools, vocational, trade, and technical colleges, and an assortment of higher education facilities.
Recommended Resources
The educational center serves Muslims and the Rochester, Minnesota community at large. Its curriculum draws largely from the Holy Qur'an and Sun'nah of the Prophet Muhammad, and includes an emphasis on handwriting, Qur'an recitations, book reading, and languages, particularly Arabic, as well as Quranic memorization, Islamic studies, and the study and memorization of the Hadith. Its guiding principles are discussed, and a map shows the location of the center.
http://www.rochesteric.org/
Located on Viola Road NE, in Rochester, Minnesota, the school serves students in grades nine, ten, eleven, and twelve. Its academic programs, work experience programs, and world languages programs are highlighted, along with its athletic programs, support services, administrative contacts, and schedules. Other resources include a course registration guide, breakfast and lunch menus, and registration data.
http://century.rochester.k12.mn.us/
Offering a curriculum for students in grades six, seven, and eight, the school is located on 17th Street NE in Rochester, Minnesota. Its grade-specific programs, arts. communication arts, world languages, health, and physical education, technology, and gifted student programs are highlighted, along with its student government, community education, athletics programs, and support services.
http://kellogg.rochester.k12.mn.us/
Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science
Previously known as Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, MCCMS is a private research university based in Rochester, Minnesota, where it trains physicians, scientists, and allied health professionals. Its academic programs, residencies, fellowships, and health sciences education programs are defined, and its admissions requirements, tuition, and financial aid options are acknowledged, with an overview of the campus.
https://college.mayo.edu/
The family owned and operated program offers driving instruction in Rochester, Minnesota, including thirty classroom hours teaching driving rules, regulations, and skills for driving in Minnesota, and its behind-the-wheel instruction uses a parent-student partnership, which is to include a minimum of six driving hours throughout the permit period. Class materials, a class schedule, and a map showing the location of the facility are acknowledged.
https://www.drivingschoolrochester.com/
Rochester Alternative Learning Center
Rochester ALC includes the APEX Recovery School, designed to meet the needs of youth struggling with addiction, as well as a BRIDGE program for students who are in the 9th grade or for those who have earned less than six credits, the RALC Day School for students in 10-12th grades who have earned more than six credits and have been referred by the guidance counselor, a Success Lab, the ALC Night School, and a special education program.
http://rochesteralc.rochester.k12.mn.us/
Enrolling students in grades PK-12th, the Catholic school program includes the Nest Early Learning Academy, Holy Spirit Catholic School, St. Francis of Assisi School, St. John the Evangelist / St. Pius X School, and Lourdes High School. Supporting parishes, its accreditation status, a strategic plan, system calendar, and a history of Catholic education in Rochester are given, along with its admissions policies, fees, and a parent-student handbook.
https://www.rcsmn.org/
Rochester Central Lutheran School
RCLS is a private, Christian PK-8th-grade school in Rochester, Minnesota. Its history, core values, and admissions policies and fees are put forth, including its extended school day and summer care programs, a faculty and staff directory, and administrative contacts. Its academic foundational learning, differentiated instruction, and whole-child education principles are tendered, and its partnerships are acknowledged.
https://www.rcls.net
Rochester Community and Technical College
RCTC is a public two-year college in Rochester, Minnesota. Enrolling more than eight thousand students each year, the college was founded in 1915, and today offers more than seventy programs and one hundred and thirty credential options, as well as a partnership with Winona State University. Its academic programs, admissions policies and requirements, costs, and financial aid options are presented.
https://www.rctc.edu/
Rochester Public Schools is organized into three public high school attendance zones, John Marshall, Mayo, and Century, and operates more than twenty primary and secondary schools as well as specialty facilities and programs. Information or links to each of its schools are posted, its community education programs, along with schedules, a school calendar, and employment opportunities. A course registration guide is included.
http://www.rochester.k12.mn.us/
The Christian school was established in 1993 by a group of families in Rochester, Minnesota who wanted a private school that was both Christian and classical in nature. Currently enrolling students in K-12th grades, the academy was named for Dr. Francis Schaeffer. Its history, a profile of the school, educational video, and information and access to some of its publications are featured, and its academic, athletic, and academy life programs are defined.
http://www.schaefferacademy.org/
University of Minnesota Rochester
UMR is a campus of the University of Minnesota system, currently offering two bachelors degrees in health science. Its admissions policies, undergraduate and graduate programs, its center for learning innovation, community programs, and a university catalog are featured. Academic services, student resources, and student life resources are defined, and faculty biographies, curriculum data, and a faculty and staff directory are posted.
https://r.umn.edu/
