সেন্ট যোসেফ উচ্চ মাধ্যমিক বিদ্যালয়
St. Joseph Higher Secondary School
Established in 1954
97 Asad Avenue, Mohammadpur, Dhaka - 1207
Early history
North building of St. Joseph College in 1964
On March 19, 1954, Brother Jude Costello, an American missionary member of Congregation of Holy Cross working under the Catholic Archdiocese of Dhaka, who was also headmaster of St. Gregory's High School then, founded the school as the "St. Joseph English Medium School" at Monir Hossain Lane, Narinda, in the current old part of Dhaka. The institution had a General Certificate of Education (GCE) based education structure. Classes were taught in the parlour for the first year. The following year, a single story building was constructed by Brother Andrew at Shah Shaheb Lane in Narinda. In 1960, a second roof was added, as the enrolment of the school rose to 269.
In 1963, nine years after opening, the school was sufficiently developed to enable two major accomplishments to take place. In October 1964, to accommodate increasing enrolment, Brother Fulgence, Superior of the Brothers, began work on a new school complex in Mohammadpur. In November of that same year, the first class of boys from St. Joseph sat for the Cambridge Examinations.
In July 1965, all the classes shifted from Narinda to the Mohammadpur compoyears. The new school was very modern and unfinished, leaving students in early years to deal with active construction in their environment.
Liberation War and ensuing history
St. Joseph during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971
Following the War of Independence, Principal Br. Ralph Baird departed from his teaching role, engaging actively in the nation's reconstruction efforts. He contributed significantly to the country's relief, and rehabilitation, and championed human rights initiatives through non-governmental development organizations. Concurrently, students from St. Joseph College, accompanied by teachers, ventured to remote regions in support of relief and rehabilitation endeavours on behalf of the institution.
Construction of St Joseph Higher Secondary School in 1974
In 1998, when the school was two and three storied building combined.
After the liberation and independence of Bangladesh, the school grew and developed with the new country. The medium of instruction changed to Bangla, and the school registered with the Dhaka education board. In 1973, the last of the Cambridge groups took their examinations. During the ten years of Cambridge, 233 boys took the overseas examination and 98% passed with over 60% in the first division. In 1974, the first batch of boys took the SSC Examination; 32 of the 33 boys passed and one of them placed first in the combined merit list.
Current status
Garden of St. Joseph College
The school was initially named "St. Joseph High School". In 2001, Higher Secondary Education (equivalent to college) was introduced in Saint Joseph, and the name of the institution was changed to "Saint Joseph Higher Secondary School".
The institution celebrated its Golden Jubilee at the campus in 2004, and on 19 March 2024, it celebrated its 70th anniversary of establishment. In the later 21st century, St. Joseph has continued to expand in student body and faculty size, and has seen the establishment of several research centers and programs.
Religious affiliation and ethos
Saint Joseph, after whom the college is named
The college is Roman Catholic and the Congregation of Holy Cross exercises responsibility over it through a Governing Body whose chairman is the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Dhaka, His Grace Most Rev. Msgr Bejoy N. D. Cruze, OMI. The institution is named after Saint Joseph, a Christian saint and the legal father of Jesus. The college seeks to give an all-round formation, inculcating both human and spiritual values. It gives special consideration to Roman Catholics and also Buddhists and Ethnic minority (under the minority rights enshrined in the Constitution of Bangladesh) for whose education the college was founded.