About Our School
by Bobbi Williams
USD493 is located in Cherokee County in the far Southeastern county of the state of Kansas. It borders Missouri on the east and Oklahoma on the south. The District serves eight municipalities, fourteen townships, and the 3,326 residents of Columbus. USD493 encompasses 354 square miles. It is classified by the Kansas County Health Profile as a "densely settled rural" county. USD493 serves approximately 1200 students.
Central Elementary and Junior High School has students in grades 4-8. Although students in grades 4-6 may also attend Scammon Elementary within the District's borders, all District seventh and eighth graders attend Central.
Central School has a population of approximately 420 students with 35 full or part-time certified teachers, one counselor, and two administrators. The school also has a support staff consisting of para-educators, custodians, cooks, and secretaries.
Because Central teachers are allowed to specialize through departmentalization, students will rotate to different teachers for core subjects. Students also have special teachers for music, physical education, media center skills, and technology. Junior high students are also enrolled in vocational classes which expose them to the opportunities they will have in high school.
Central campus has 42,548 square feet of classroom space with two gymnasiums, three desktop computer labs, two portable computer labs, one FACS classroom, and a media center.
