Viroqua's population is just over 4,300 according to the last census, but the small city boasts five high schools.

There's Viroqua High School, Laurel School, Youth Initiative High School, Better Futures High School and Cornerstone Christian Academy.

In an area where people thrive on having separate, yet connected communities; education, traditional and alternative, is thriving in Viroqua.

The evolution of these educational choices is a natural outgrowth of people migrating here for other reasons like medicine, job opportunities or lifestyle choices, or was it the other way around? It is difficult to tell what came first, the educational opportunities that have attracted so many here, or the education that grew up because of those who came here.

Viroqua has always had a sound foundation in education with a high quality public school system. Dr. David Johnston assumed the district administrator position in 2002 and set about revamping the district in terms of facility and curriculum. Johnston had previously been in retirement, having served as an administrator in the La Crosse School District.

He came out of retirement and came to the Viroqua district after there had been some political turmoil. He focused on getting staff working together to make the district one of the best in the state.

As Johnston finishes his career at Viroqua, he's retiring again as of June 30, he said he feels good about what was accomplished in his time here. Johnston said the remodeling of the district facilities, which had fallen into disrepair was one his main accomplishments, but he is also proud of guiding the district through four consecutive years of budget cuts due to falling enrollment without compromising the quality of education for the students in the district.

While some in public education might see the abundance of educational opportunities as a threat, Johnston sees the chance for public schools to get better and meet the challenges of today's educational demands.

The Viroqua School District also offers some alternative educational choices of their own with Laurel High School and Better Futures High School. Both of these schools are an attempt offer different educational settings for students while still within the control and funding of the public school system.

Laurel is modeled after the multi-age "one-room school" concept with students from grades nine-12 co-mingling. The school is designed for "self-motivated" learners that help design and implement their own coursework. There are currently 16 students attending Laurel High School.

Better Futures is designed for students who have some difficulty in their academic career and focuses on helping those students take responsibility for their future. This school has had a history of helping students with a high degree of success.

Beyond the public schools, parents and students have other choices as well. For the elementary age students there is the Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School, English Lutheran School and Cornerstone Christian Academy.

Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School (PRWS) offers K-8 education based on the Waldorf curriculum. The Waldorf curriculum is based on the teachings and philosophy of Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner. Steiner founded the first Waldorf school in 1918 and there are currently about 900 Waldorf schools worldwide.

The rural setting is unusual for a Waldorf school and that setting has made the school here in Viroqua attractive to many who come to escape urban life and still have the benefit of a distinct educational philosophy.

Mary Christenson came here with her family from Berkley, Calif., in the early 1990s for that very reason and has helped administer the school ever since. Christenson said the school gets about 75-100 calls a year, mostly from outside the area, from families interested in relocating here.

Christenson said she thinks it is the strong sense of community along with the ability to still have a vibrant social life that makes the area so attractive to outsiders. Despite going through the growing pains many small rural communities have, the strong commitment to community is what Christenson saw in this area.

"The opportunity was there to bank with a locally-controlled banking institution," Christenson said. "The hospital seemed like a community hospital. The fair board still operates like a locally-controlled community fair board. That spirit of preserving community was still there. That is really the first rung of what is alternative here."

Christenson said the school, with nearly 200 students, attracts students and families for its own reasons now, but initially grew out of a few parents who had come for the organic movement that was taking root. The school opened in 1980. The two parts of the community have grown hand-in-hand over the years, Christenson said.

The English Lutheran School offers K-8 education and was started in 2004 partly in response to the closing of Liberty Pole public elementary school, which was the Viroqua School District's last rural school.

English Lutheran enrolls about 35 students. The school is associated with the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS).

The Cornerstone Christian Academy is a K-12 school that offers a nondenominational Christian education to area students. Formed in 1993 the school is located just north of Viroqua in a rural setting.

For high school students looking for an alternative education outside of the public school there is Youth Initiative High School. The school was formed in 1996 by a group of students and parents who wanted to create a high school that would carry on some of the Waldorf philosophy from the Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School.

Jacob Hundt, who helped found the school, graduating in 1998, eventually returned to help run it and teach there in 2004. Hundt said the school uses self-governance principals and a wide variety of course offerings to empower students to take control of their educational future.

Hundt said the school draws heavily from the local community for teachers in specialty areas and is designed for the "self-motivated" student. Youth Initiative currently enrolls about 54 students.

Hundt is also the author of a paper that was used in his master’s thesis entitled "Potluck Schools: Alternative Education and Civil Society in Viroqua, Wisconsin" that examined the reasons behind the wide variety of alternative schools in the area.

Hundt, like Johnston, said the wide variety of educational offerings makes everyone better and allows specialization that gives students the chance to find the educational program that fits their learning style.

Viroqua is also home to a local campus of Western Technical College, where students can take a number of courses and study several degree programs.

Also, two years ago the Driftless Folk School was started offering educational classes in homesteading skills. More than 40 classes were planned for the spring and summer of this year. Course titles included such diverse subjects as making lye soap, blacksmithing, cheese making and wild food workshops.

The wide range of educational institutions and philosophies in the region is certainly unique and sets the region apart from other communities.

The diversity in educational fits hand-in-hand with the philosophy of the region that has pushed the boundaries in so many areas. Educational diversity is one more thing that makes the Vernon County region unique and wonderful.