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Education

The Village of Mt. Zion, located approximately 5 miles southeast of Decatur, has a population of 4,845 (2000 Census). The Mt. Zion School District includes an area of 68 square miles with a population of over 14,000. Mt. Zion School District #3 serves a highly capable student population in kindergarten through twelfth grades. The student population is approximately 2,450. There are 150 certified staff members within the district in addition to 110 non-certified staff.

There are two elementary schools, with one Pre-K-3 building and another K-3 facility. The Mt. Zion School District offers both all-day and half-day kindergarten options to all parents. Grades 4-6, with an enrollment of approximately 560, are housed in a new facility at the Mt. Zion Intermediate School. The Junior High School, grades 7 and 8, has approximately 420 students, and the Senior High School has approximately 815 students.

The curriculum of the School District is designed to challenge students' abilities at all levels. The elementary school program is strong in reading, language arts, math, science, and social studies. The areas of music and physical education are taught by specialists. Formal gifted programming extends throughout the District. Computers are available to students in all elementary classrooms.

Mt. Zion is certainly a leader in technology-related curriculum throughout Central Illinois. All computers in the District are connected by a WAN (Wide Area Network) and are connected to the Internet. The Intermediate School offers outstanding facilities and programs, including daily band, vocal music, and physical education. The Intermediate also has an instrumental strings program. Keyboarding is taught to all fifth and sixth graders. The school has over 90 IBM PCs located in classrooms and two dedicated computer labs.

The Junior High School is housed in a recently constructed and air conditioned building. The pupil-teacher ratio is one teacher per twenty-two students. Industrial arts, foreign language, art, home economics, and a wide variety of other courses are offered, including excellent instrumental and vocal music programs. The Junior High School has over 90 networked IBM PCs throughout the facility.

The Senior High School offers a wide variety of both vocational and college preparatory courses. Courses in the Mathematics Department include advanced algebra, trigonometry, calculus, and advanced calculus. The Science Department offers several courses including medical science, biology, physics, advanced chemistry, and botany. A wide variety of courses are included in the English Department, along with an accelerated program. High School students can enroll in college courses prior to graduation and receive dual credit for certain classes.

The Music Department has several fine programs, including a Band and Show Choir. In fact, the Mt. Zion School Show Choir has won numerous State and National competitions and performs across the country. The Marching Band competed in Orlando, Florida. The Vocational Department has over fifty students enrolled in work co-op programs. In addition to this program, seventy students are bused daily to the Area Vocational Center located in Decatur. The High School has over 175 IBM PCs networked throughout the facility.

Interscholastic sports for boys are offered in football, soccer, cross-country, golf, basketball, track, tennis, wrestling, and baseball. Girls participate in basketball, volleyball, track, softball, golf, tennis, cross country, and soccer.

Universities that serve Mt. Zion and the immediate area include the following: University of Illinois (at Champaign), Eastern Illinois University (at Charleston), Illinois State University (at Normal), and University of Illinois at Springfield. Millikin University and Richland Community College are both located in the City of Decatur. All of the above schools are within a fifty-mile radius of Mt. Zion.