MAGAZINE RANKS CITY SCHOOLS 5TH IN STATE

Cape Girardeau's public schools provide an asset to the community's business recruiting efforts, says a nationwide business magazine.

The magazine, Expansion Management, rated 600 school districts nationwide for educational quality. Data from the magazine's annual Educational Quotient is used by chief executive officers of companies preparing to relocate or expand into new territory. The educational quotient is also used by Money magazine for its annual "Best Places to Live" survey.

Cape Girardeau was one of 15 Missouri school districts included in the rankings. Districts are rated on a scale of 50 to 150. A score of 100 is about average; a score over 125 is exceptional.

Cape Girardeau scored 116.7 and tied with Kansas City for fifth place in the state. Chesterfield, with a score of 137.1, ranked 10th in the nation and first in the state.

"This is a positive sign," said Dr. Tom Niggle of the Cape Girardeau public schools. "Anything that gives us some indication of the school being well received in the community is good news."

Niggle said the results allow the school district to see that it has a "clear vision" of the education needs in Cape Girardeau.

Researchers evaluate schools on the following criteria to arrive at the rating for each school:

--High school graduation rate.

--Average college board scores (ACT or SAT).

--Average teacher salary.

--Amount of money spent per pupil on instruction only.

--Student-to-teacher ratio.

--Surrounding community's average level of education.

--Surrounding community's average income level.

The magazine said companies on the move look to expand or relocate in communities with the best-educated potential work force. Companies don't want to devote time and money to bringing workers up to speed in reading, writing, math and problem-solving skills.

Mitch Robinson, executive director of the Cape Girardeau Area Industrial Recruitment Association, said quality of schools comes up in nearly every recruitment effort in which he is involved. Company leaders are interested for both personal and business reasons.

"If they are coming in themselves or their employees are moving in with family members, they want to find a good school system for their own children," he said. "Then, when they are looking for employees, they want people with good basics: reading, writing and a knowledge of mathematics."

In days past, companies focused on building sites, infrastructure or taxes. "Now the quality-of-life issues are as important for a lot of companies," Robinson said. "They want to know what type of community they would be moving in to."

An outside ranking or accreditation goes a long way to convince corporate leaders of quality, he said.

Missouri school district ratings

District Education Quotient

1. Chesterfield 137.1

2. St Charles 123.6

3. Columbia 118.2

4. Jefferson City 117.9

5. Cape Girardeau 116.7

Kansas City 116.7

7. Blue Springs 116.5

8. St. Peters-Ft. Zumwalt 116.4

9. Independence 114.8

10. Lee's Summit 114.7

11. Mehlville 110.1

12. Springfield 109.8

13. Joplin 97.2

14. St. Louis 90.4

15. St. Joseph 89.9

Source: Expansion Management magazine