St. Joseph School (signed as St Joseph’s School) is a private school run by the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Hilo Hilo () is the largest settlement in and the county seat of Hawaii County, Hawaiʻi, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaiʻi, and is a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. I ...

, the second largest city in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

. It serves about 300 students in preschool through 12th grade.

History

In 1869, a small parish school of 42 students was established in Hilo, Hawaii by Reverend Charles Pouzot, under the direction of Fr. Patrick O'Reilly. It was chartered by King Kamehameha V to teach English to Native Hawaiian and immigrant children. Over the years, the school's enrollment increased to the point that it was necessary to build a new school on Waianuenue Avenue. This school for both boys and girls was dedicated on October 10, 1875 and called ''Maria Keola''. Ten years later, three

Marianist The Society of Mary (, abbreviated S.M.) is a clerical religious congregation of Pontifical Right for men (brothers and priests) commonly known as the Marianists or Marianist Brothers and Priests. Members append the post-nominal letters "S.M. ...

Brothers took over the operation and used the name of St. Mary's School. It was blessed on October 25, 1885. In 1900 the Sisters of St. Francis began staffing St. Joseph School for Girls on Kapiolani Street. The

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

Sisters of Syracuse (Blessed Mother

Marianne Cope Marianne Cope, O.S.F. (also known as Marianne of Molokai; January 23, 1838 – August 9, 1918) was a German-born American Religious Sister who was a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Syracuse, New York, and founding director of its St. ...

’s congregation) arrived in 1900 to assume teaching and administrative responsibilities for the girls. In 1948, St. Mary's and St. Joseph's were consolidated into a new co-educational institution built on the present site at the intersection of Ululani and Hualalai Streets. Some 963 students were enrolled the first year. In 1951, the Marianist Brothers were reassigned to new teaching posts, and were replaced with a larger staff of nuns and lay teachers. The opening of the new school year in 1951-52 marked the beginning of St. Joseph as a complete co-educational school directly under the Pastor of St. Joseph Parish, part of the

Diocese of Honolulu The Diocese of Honolulu () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese for the state of Hawaii in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of San Francisco. The mother ...

Academics

High school

St. Joseph has a variety of educational opportunities for students. The school has six

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...

classes, including European History, English Language and Composition, English Literature and composition, Chemistry, Calculus, and US Government and Politics.

Elementary

Athletics

St. Joseph School is a member of the Big Island Interscholastic Federation. In 2010, the St. Joseph Cardinals boys basketball team defeated Pahoa High School's Daggers, 51-39 to win the D-II BIIF Championship. The St. Joseph tennis team was able to gain the #2 and #5 seeds at the HHSAA state tournament. In 2016, The No. 3 seed Cardinals overcame an 18-point deficit and upset No. 1 Honokaa 51-50 in the BIIF Division II boys basketball championship, clinching their first league title since 2010.

Notable alumni

* Edgar Barclay (2016), baseball player in the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

organization

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Joseph Junior/Senior High School (Hilo, Hawaii) Catholic secondary schools in Hawaii Private K–12 schools in Hawaii County, Hawaii Educational institutions established in 1869 Buildings and structures in Hilo, Hawaii Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu 1869 establishments in Hawaii Education in Hilo, Hawaii