The full record
Read our full history
Behind every milestone is a story of faith, learning, and community. Explore the people and moments that helped shape St. Joseph Marquette over the last 150 years.
Mission & History
The first school in the Yakima Valley
In 1875, Mother Joseph of the Sacred Heart founded St. Joseph Marquette to educate Yakima families in faith and learning. Nearly 150 years later, generations of families continue to trust us with that same mission.
Our mission
Faith, community, and excellence
Our mission has not changed in 150 years: "It is the Mission of Saint Joseph Marquette Catholic School to build a vibrant Catholic community and educate the total child in values consistent with the teachings of Jesus Christ." Everything here, how we teach, how we treat one another, and how students grow, flows from those words.
A vibrant Catholic community: Families, faculty, and parish move through the year together. No one is anonymous here.
The whole child: We teach the mind, but also character, faith, and heart, because a real education forms a whole person.
Rooted in Christ: Faith is not a class period. It shapes how we treat each other and how we ask students to live.
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Our history
150 years in the Yakima Valley
From a single classroom opened by the Sisters of Providence in 1875 to the school we are today, St. Joe's has grown alongside this valley for nearly 150 years. These are the moments that shaped us.
1875
A school is born
The Sisters of Providence opened St. Joseph, the first school in the Yakima Valley.
1918
Marquette joins the story
The Jesuits founded Marquette, the name St. Joseph still carries today.
1947
A school for every family
St. Joseph Grade School opened as a co-educational Catholic school.
1985
The name we know today
St. Joseph and Marquette became St. Joseph Marquette.
1989
Built to last
The Sister Rebecca Berghoff Foundation was established to support the school for generations to come.
1999
Faith through hardship
A fire destroyed St. Joseph Church, and the community carried on, celebrating Mass together in the school gym.
Today
150 years strong
St. Joe's serves 363 students Pre-K through 8th, with the same spirit of academic excellence its founders instilled.
Memorial card for Reverend Mother Joseph of the Sacred Heart, 1902. A photographic portrait shows her seated in her dark habit and white coif, wearing a cross.
The card reads:
"Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." (Apoc. 14:13)
In your charity, pray for the repose of the soul of Rev. Mother Joseph of the S.H.
Born at St. Martin, P.Q., Canada, April 17, 1823. Entered the Novitiate of the Sisters of Charity of Providence, at Montreal, Dec. 26, 1843. Professed at Montreal, July 21, 1845. Founded the missions of the northwest, at Vancouver, Wash., Dec. 8, 1856. Died at Vancouver, Wash., Jan. 19, 1902.
"She has loved, O Lord, the beauty of thy House and the place where thy glory dwelleth." (Ps. 25:8)
"She was the comfort of the poor who were in tears, and of the fatherless who had no helper." (Job 29:12)
"She was loved by God and men and her memory is in benediction." (Eccl. 45:1)
Grant to her, O Lord, eternal rest, and let perpetual light shine upon her. R.I.P.
Admissions · 2026–27 enrollment open
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Discover why generations of Yakima Valley families have chosen St. Joseph Marquette and continue to call it home.
