Bishop George Ahr High School

Bishop George Ahr High School
Address
1 Tingley Lane
Edison, NJ, (Middlesex County), 08820
Coordinates 40°34′41″N 74°22′35″W / 40.57806°N 74.37639°W / 40.57806; -74.37639Coordinates: 40°34′41″N 74°22′35″W / 40.57806°N 74.37639°W / 40.57806; -74.37639
Information
Type Private, Coeducational
Religious affiliation(s) Roman Catholic
Established 1969
School district Diocese of Metuchen
Principal Sr. Donna Marie Trukowski[1]
Vice principal Brian Brogno[1]
Asst. Principal Harry Ziegler[1]
Faculty 52.9[2]
Grades 912
Enrollment 759[2] (2013-14)
Student to teacher ratio 14.3:1[2]
Color(s)      Scarlet and
     White
Athletics conference Greater Middlesex Conference
Team name Trojans
Accreditation Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[3]
Publication Reflections (literary magazine)
Newspaper Satoma
Yearbook Insight
Tuition $11,500 (2013-14)[4]
Athletic Director Michael Wolfthal[1]
Website http://www.bgahs.org

Bishop George Ahr High School, also known as Bishop Ahr or BGA, is a four-year, private, college preparatory, and coeducational Roman Catholic high school located on a campus covering 36 acres (15 ha) in the northern section of Edison, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The school operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen.[5] The school opened in 1969 as St. Thomas Aquinas High School, and was renamed for Bishop George Ahr in 1984.

As of the 2013-14 school year, the school had an enrollment of 759 students and 52.9 classroom teachers for a student–teacher ratio of 14.3:1.[2] Students attend the school from Middlesex, Union, Monmouth, and Somerset Counties in Central New Jersey.

The administration and teaching faculty are composed of Felician Sisters and lay people. All 70 faculty members hold a B.S. or B.A. degree; a significant percentage have M.A. degrees and some hold a Ph.D. Bishop George Ahr High School is overseen by the New Jersey Department of Education and has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1977.[3]

Clubs and organizations

Clubs at Bishop Ahr include:[6]

Drama Book Club Concert Band Hope-4-Animals Latin Club Peace & Justice Club Polish Club Select Choir Symphonic Band
Ahr Choice Relay For Life Club Concert Choir In Harm's Way Liturgical Singers Liturgical Band Pro Life Club Spanish Club Thespian Society
Ahr Star Chinese Club Dance Club The Remnant Insight (Yearbook) Marching Band Pep Band Reflections (Literary Magazine) Varsity Club
Anime Club Christian Social Action Club Future Lawyers Club Italian Club Medical Explorers P.I.N.K. Green Club (Environmental Awareness) Student Ambassadors MSG Varsity
Asian Club Chorus Gaming Club Jazz Band Model UN Pit Band Satoma (School Newspaper) Peer Tutors Science Club Student Council

Honor societies

Latin Honor Society, French Honor Society, National Honor Society, Chinese Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, Italian Honor Society, Tri-M (Music Honor Society)

Athletics

The Bishop George Ahr High School Trojans compete in the Greater Middlesex Conference, which includes public and private high schools located in the greater Middlesex County area and operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.[7] Sports offered for men include: baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, tennis, wrestling, and winter and spring track. Women's sports include: basketball, bowling, cheerleading, cross country, golf, gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, volleyball, and winter and spring track. Bishop Ahr added lacrosse as a spring sport for both men and women prior to the 2013 Spring season.[8]

For three consecutive seasons between 1984 and 1986, the football team was the Non-Public South A sectional champions.[9][10] The football team was champion of the Middlesex County Blue Division in 2005, 2007, and 2008.[11]

The wrestling team won the 2007 Non-Public South B sectional championship with a 46-27 win over Holy Cross.[12] Their baseball team won the 1996 Greater Middlesex County Tournament with a win over rival Edison High School, and the 2006 team won the Non-Public South A sectional championship over St. Augustine, 16-15.[13] The school's swimming team won the Greater Middlesex Conference in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2011. In gymnastics, the team captured yearly state titles from 2003 to 2007.

The softball team took the 2009 Non-Public South A Sectional title, shutting out both Holy Spirit High School and Camden Catholic High School, and won the tournament final over Gloucester Catholic High School to win the team's first sectional title for nine years.[14] The team were runners up for the Non Public A State Tournament to Immaculate Heart Academy, losing 5-4 after IHA tied the game with three runs in the bottom of the 7th and each team scored a single run in the 10th, before IHA won the game with an 11th-inning run.[15]

Fine arts

Bishop Ahr High School gives students access to all art forms commonly at the disposal of high schools including a full-studio Art department (drawing, sculpture, and design), an award-winning Drama Department, and an award-winning Music department.[16]

The Drama department performs an average of three full show runs per school year. Usually this includes a late-Summer play, a Fall play, and a Spring Musical. The Drama department has competed and won awards at the Bucks County Playhouse, among many other events.[17]

The Music Department includes a Full Symphonic Concert Band, a Concert Chorus, and elevated-ability groups including a Jazz Band and an a cappella Pops Choir.[18]

In May 2012, Bishop Ahr's Music Department competed in the 2012 Music Showcase Festival in Busch Gardens, VA. The Jazz Band won 1st place overall Jazz ensemble. The Concert Band won 2nd place overall Concert Band. The Jazz Choir won 1st place overall jazz Choir. The Concert choir won 1st place overall mixed choir. The concert choir also won the grand championship trophy for the highest overall competition score among all vocal groups.[18]

Technology

Bishop Ahr High School provides computer equipment, services and internet access for students and staff to access information. Since the school deems some sectors of the Web inappropriate for students, the school may set limits on the use of technology to educational purposes.[19]

Coach firing

In 2009, an assistant coach of the school's girls swim team was fired after she pleaded guilty to criminal sexual misconduct with a 17-year-old girl on the team and was sentenced to almost a year in jail and five years of probation.[20][21] The Metuchen Diocese had informed local police about the incident and stated in December 2009 that it was "shocked and saddened to learn of these allegations."[22]

Notable alumni

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Staff". Bishop George Ahr High School. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 School Data for Bishop George Ahr High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 1, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Bishop George Ahr High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools. Accessed October 3, 2011.
  4. "Family Tuition Payment Plan". Bishop George Ahr High School. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  5. "Bishop George Ahr High School". diometuchen.org. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  6. Clubs and Activities, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  7. League Memberships – 2012-2013, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed September 27, 2012.
  8. Bishop Ahr High School.
  9. Franklin, Paul. "OVERTIME: A LOOK BACK AT THE WEEKEND GMC showed some muscle", Home News Tribune, November 24, 2003. Accessed October 3, 2011. ""Bishop Ahr director of athletics Mike Wolfthal points out that in a recent article about Middlesex County schools that have won state sectional championships over the years we forgot the parochials". So let it be noted that Bishop Ahr won South A championships in 1984, 1985 and 1986."
  10. Goldberg, Jeff. NJSIAA Football Playoff Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 19, 2015.
  11. Haley, John. "MIDDLESEX COUNTY FOOTBALL BLOG: All-time GMC champions chart", The Star-Ledger, November 4, 2009. Accessed October 3, 2011.
  12. 2007 Team Wrestling Tournament - Non-Public, South B, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 28, 2007.
  13. 2006 Baseball - Non-Public, South A, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 28, 2007.
  14. Iezzi, Bill. "Plate call pulls plug on Rams' hopes", The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 3, 2009. Accessed October 3, 2011. "Ahr (24-2), the second seed, won its first sectional trophy since 2000, when its coach, Missy Magyar, was a junior playing shortstop for the Trojans.... The Trojans, who shut out Holy Spirit, 13-0, and Camden Catholic, 2-0, to advance to the final, demonstrated that they could get their bats on the ball one through nine."
  15. Staff. "Immaculate Heart 5, Bishop Ahr 4", The Star-Ledger, June 7, 2009. Accessed October 3, 2011. "Carly Piccinich, who sent the game into extra innings with a steal of home in the top of the seventh, drove in the go-ahead run with a groundout in the 11th to lift IHA, No. 1 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, to a 5-4 victory over unranked Bishop Ahr in the championship game of the NJSIAA/Blue Ribbon Awards Non-Public A tournament at Toms River East."
  16. Home page, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  17. Drama Announcement and News, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  18. 1 2 Joseph Cullinan, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  19. Technology Policy, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed May 13, 2012.
  20. Serrano, Ken. "Former Bishop Ahr swim coach gets jail, probation for sex with student", Courier News, September 30, 2010. Accessed October 16, 2012. "A South Plainfield woman who served as swim coach at Bishop George Ahr High School in Edison was sentenced Thursday to 364 days in jail and five years probation for having sex with a female student and asking her to withhold information from the police."
  21. Newman, Dan. "Bishop Ahr girls swim coach arrested on sex assault charges", Sentinel, December 9, 2009. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  22. Staff. "Edison high school swim coach accused of having sexual affair with 17-year-old student", The Star-Ledger, December 2, 2009. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  23. Biography, Ed Kalegi. Accessed December 24, 2011. "Some years later, Ed’s acting abilities were first cultivated at Bishop George Ahr/St. Thomas High School in Edison, NJ during the early 1980s under the tutelage of Drama Director Gordon Inverno."
  24. Mets sign RHP Kevin Mulvey, Major League Baseball press release dated August 9, 2007. Accessed June 12, 2007. "Mulvey, 21, is a native of Parlin, N.J., and graduated from Bishop George Ahr High School in New Jersey."
  25. Junior, Chris M. "Edison native on brink of stardom", Courier News (New Jersey), March 2, 2001. Accessed March 22, 2011. "Sosa, a 1994 graduate of Edison's Bishop George Ahr High School, found out about Popstars through her agent Gary Krasny."
  26. Staff. "DARRIN A. WINSTON, 42, of Clarksburg in MILLSTONE TOWNSHIP", Asbury Park Press, August 17, 2008. Accessed September 4, 2008. "Winston, who was 42, starred at Bishop Ahr High School in Edison before moving on to Rutgers. "

External links

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