Externado San José

Externado is a private, Catholic primary and secondary school run by the Society of Jesus in San Salvador, El Salvador.^[1]

Brief history

Founded in 1921, San José operated as a school for boys until the 1970s when it began admitting girls. It is academically selective; its students have ranked highest in the Learning and Academic Aptitude Test scores (PAES) since its inception in 1997. Externado San José was long considered a school for the elites, but after the Second Vatican Council and the Conference of Latin American Bishops at Medellin in the 1960s the Jesuits and staff determined to make education more accessible to the poor. They initiated a sliding scale for tuition, based on family income.^[2] No longer seen as elitist, the school nonetheless has maintained high admission and performance standards. Very low grades at the secondary level can lead to expulsion. At the same time, Christian Formation courses took on the goal of forming men and women devoted to serving their society. This included some elements of Liberation Theology which would bridge the deep social divide in El Salvador.^[3] At the time many upscale families withdrew their children from the school.

Externado San José still operates with this system of differentiated quotas, and remains coeducational. Many graduates have become prominent Salvadoreans, for example: ex-presidents Armando Calderón Sol and Mauricio Funes, internationally acclaimed poet Roque Dalton, and the prominent spiritual leader in Guatemala Marta Leticia Bernal.

Mascot

The mascot is usually taken as a green Parrot.^[4]

External links

• Official website/

Footnotes

Coordinates: 13°42′27.32″N 89°12′28.89″W / 13.7075889°N 89.2080250°W / 13.7075889; -89.2080250