Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School

Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School
Address
667 Westfield Road
Scotch Plains, NJ 07076
Information
Type Public high school
Established 1957
Principal Dr. David Heisey
Faculty 110.8 (on FTE basis)[1]
Enrollment 1,558[1] (as of 2013-14)
Student to teacher ratio 14.1:1[1]
Campus Suburban, 29 acres
Color(s)      Royal Blue and
     White[2]
Athletics conference Union County Interscholastic Athletic Conference
Team name Raiders[2]
Publication Muse
Newspaper The Fanscotian
Yearbook Culmen
Asst. principals Timothy Donahue
Brooke Esposito
Ryan Miller
Website School website

Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School is a comprehensive regional four-year public high school in Union County, New Jersey, which serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from the Township of Scotch Plains and the Borough of Fanwood, operating as the lone secondary school of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Regional School District. The facility is located in Scotch Plains. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1932.[3]

As of the 2013-14 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,558 students and 110.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.1:1. There were 67 students (4.3% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 39 (2.5% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]

In order to qualify for graduation, students must complete 120 credits of course work. Over 80% of students participated in clubs, athletics, service organizations, and music programs in 2008. In the class of 2008, there were ten National Merit Commended Students. In the class of 2003, 21 students were named Edward J. Bloustein Distinguished Scholars. There were 289 Advanced Placement (AP) examinations administered in 21 subject areas; 71% of the students received a score of 3 or better giving them exemption from certain required courses at various colleges and universities. 98% of the class of 2003 was enrolled in the college preparatory course of study. A total of $2,407,154 in scholarship money was awarded to graduates for their academic achievements.

Awards, recognition and rankings

In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 918th in the nation among participating public high schools and 69th among schools in New Jersey.[4] In the 2011 "Ranking America's High Schools" issue by The Washington Post, the school was ranked 42nd in New Jersey and 1,349th nationwide.[5]

The school was the 54th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 339 schools statewide in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2014 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", using a new ranking methodology.[6] The school had been ranked 60th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 62nd in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.[7] The magazine ranked the school 69th in 2008 out of 316 schools.[8] Schooldigger.com ranked the school tied for 86th out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (a decrease of 14 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (88.6%) and language arts literacy (96.3%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).[9]

SPHFS's quiz bowl team, founded in 1982, won the New Jersey state championship of the Rutgers University-run College Bowl competition in 1988 [10]

Publications

The school is host to an annually published literary magazine, Muse, which features poetry, stories and art by the students. The school's newspaper, The Fanscotian, was ranked by the GSSPA as the best newspaper in New Jersey. The school's yearbook is called Culmen.

Music

Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School is host to an extensive music department. The department is home to multiple choruses, including concert choir and five auditioned groups: Select Choir, Men's Choir, Women's Choir, Chamber Choir, and the Sensations a cappella group. The instrumental music program is made up of a plethora of groups. Non-auditioned groups include Freshman Band, Symphonic Band, Percussion Ensemble, two jazz lab bands, as well as the SPF Raiders Marching Band. Auditioned groups include the Wind Ensemble, RhythmSense, SPF Jazz, and the Moonglowers.

Scotch Plains-Fanwood is also home to the Repertory Theatre program, which in the past few years has put on such shows as Footloose, Les Misérables, West Side Story, 42nd Street, Once Upon a Mattress, Urinetown, Guys and Dolls, Curtains, Hairspray, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood garnering a number of Rising Star Award nominations from the Paper Mill Playhouse, including one win for Outstanding Student Orchestra, for 42nd Street in 2006.[11]

SPF Moonglowers

SPF's top level ("A") jazz band, the Moonglowers, is the oldest continuously operated high school jazz band in the state of New Jersey. It was formed in 1942 to play contemporary big-band songs during lunch periods and at the high school's senior prom. Beginning in 1979, the Moonglowers started competing in the New Jersey International Association of Jazz Education (now the North Jersey Association for Jazz Education) jazz band circuit. Since then, the Moonglowers have won a McDonald's National Jazz Band title and 10 New Jersey State titles. Since 2007, when the NJIAJE reformed into the New Jersey Association for Jazz Education, the Moonglowers have competed in Division II.[12] Notably, in 2008, both the Moonglowers and SPF Jazz, SPF's second tier ("B") jazz band, competed together at the New Jersey State Final festival, and SPF Jazz took first place. This is the only time in the 21-year competition history of the school that SPF Jazz scored higher than the Moonglowers in competitions.

When not competing, the Moonglowers play old time big band swing songs for various community events and organizations. From community concerts to retirement homes, the Moonglowers play songs from the golden age of jazz for those who remember them. Since 2007, the Moonglowers have headlined the Susan G. Komen for the Cure race in New York City in early September.

SPF Raiders Marching Band

The marching band's 2006 program was entitled "Mystic Journey" with selections from Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings movies. The band competed in the USSBA NJ State finals, and won with a score of 86.6. It also competed in the USSBA All State finals, and won second place, with a score of 90.1.

The marching band's 2007 show was entitled "Quest: Visions of a Dream" with selections from Zorro and Man of La Mancha. The SPF Raiders Marching Band competed at the USSBA Yamaha Cup in Giant's Stadium and took second place. At the USSBA New Jersey State Finals, the Marching Band took first place for the second year in a row while also receiving the award for best percussion for the third year in a row. Moving on to the All-Eastern Finals in Allentown, P.A., the band received the award for second place as well as the caption award for best percussion.

The 2008 program was entitled "Destiny: Past, Present, And Future". For the first time in the band's history, it competed in USSBA Group VI Open, the most prestigious of all USSBA groups. The show included large props, actors, and narration. At the 2008 All Eastern Finals, Scotch Plains-Fanwood took 7th place with a historic score of 94.375.

The 2010 show, entitled "Generation Millennium", featured selections of music from Epcot's IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth fireworks show. The band competed in the USSBA NJ State Finals in Union, NJ and was named the state champion of Group VIA. At the All-Eastern Finals in Allentown, PA, the band received 3rd place but received the caption awards for best color guard and best music.

On November 11, 2012, the Marching Raiders went into the USBands National Championships (Groups 2 Open & 4 Open PLUS 3A &6A) Sunday, at MetLife Stadium, with a show entitled "On The Brink Of Change: Gold Rush To A Better Tomorrow". They ended the competitive marching band season ranked 2nd place, with a score of 95.8 in group 6A, with a caption award of Best Effect.[13]

Athletics

The Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School Raiders[2] compete in the Union County Interscholastic Athletic Conference, following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).[14] With 1,152 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2014-15 school year as North II, Group IV for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 1,087 to 3,896 students in that grade range.[15] Prior to the 2010 reorganization, the school had competed in the Watchung Conference, which consisted of public and private high schools in Essex County, Hudson County and Union County in northern New Jersey.[16]

The boys baseball team won the Group IV state championship in 1977 vs. Piscataway Township High School.[17]

The boys soccer team won the Group III state championship in 1987 vs. Wall High School, in 1989 vs. Bridgewater-Raritan High School, in 1991 vs. Lacey Township High School, in 1992 vs. Wall Township High School, in 1995 as co-champion with Ocean City High School, in 1997 vs. Brick Memorial High School and in 1998 vs. Delsea Regional High School.[18]

The boys basketball team won the Group III state championship in 2008, defeating Timber Creek High School in the tournament final.[19]

The football team won the North II Group III state championship in 1990.[20]

The Scotch Plains Fanwood Swim Team won their first state championship title in 2011 against Princeton High School with a score of 90-80. The Lady Raider Swimmers also defeated Princeton 100-70 to win the 2015 Group B state championship.[21] The ladies finished their 2014-2015 season with a 17-0 record.

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:[22]

Notable alumni

Government & public service

Sports

Fine arts

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 School Data for Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  3. ↑ Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools. Accessed August 10, 2011.
  4. ↑ Streib, Lauren. "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast, May 6, 2013. Accessed May 9, 2013.
  5. ↑ Mathews, Jay. "The High School Challenge 2011: Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School", The Washington Post. Accessed September 9, 2011.
  6. ↑ Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
  7. ↑ Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed September 12, 2012.
  8. ↑ Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed August 10, 2011.
  9. ↑ New Jersey High School Rankings: 11th Grade HSPA Language Arts Literacy & HSPA Math 2010-2011, Schooldigger.com. Accessed March 1, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Raiders trample Redskins for State Championship!", p.1 & 23, The Times (Scotch Plains, NJ), Vol. 31, No. 24, June 16, 1988
  11. ↑ PAPER MILL PLAYHOUSE RISING STAR AWARDS 2006 AWARD RECIPIENTS, presented June 13, 2006
  12. ↑ 2011 Finals, The New Jersey Jazz Ensemble Festival. Accessed February 2, 2012.
  13. ↑ USBAnds National Championship November 11, 2012, United States Scholastic Band Association, November 11, 2012. Accessed November 14, 2012. "6 A Scotch Plains Fanwood HS (NJ) 95.8 Best Effect"
  14. ↑ League Memberships – 2015-2016, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  15. ↑ 2014-2015 Public Schools Group Classification: ShopRite Cup–Basketball–Baseball–Softball for North II, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, as of July 8, 2014. Accessed October 23, 2014.
  16. ↑ Home Page, Watchung Conference, backed up by the Internet Archive as of February 7, 2011. Accessed December 16, 2014.
  17. ↑ History of the NJSIAA Baseball Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  18. ↑ NJSIAA 2015 Soccer Championship Program, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  19. ↑ NJSIAA Group Basketball Past Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  20. ↑ Goldberg, Jeff. NJSIAA Football Playoff Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 19, 2015.
  21. ↑ Dzenis, Brian. "Princeton girls swimming loses numbers game to Scotch Plains-Fanwood in Public B final", The Trentonian, February 22, 2015. Accessed February 7, 2016. "Despite taking first place in seven on the 11 events, the No. 2 seed Little Tigers lost the battle of unbeatens with No. 1 seed Scotch Plains-Fanwood, 100-70, in the Public B championship at The College of New Jersey."
  22. ↑ Overview, Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School. Accessed February 7, 2016.
  23. ↑ Thompson, Clifford. "Carol Bellamy", Current Biography Yearbook, p. 53. H. W. Wilson Company, 1999. ISBN 0-8242-0988-5. Accessed August 10, 2011. "Bellamy acted in student productions of musicals at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, from which she graduated in 1959."
  24. ↑ DiFulco, Pasquale. "Senate president has eye on new job", Courier News, June 1, 1999. Accessed July 1, 2011. "DiFrancesco was popular enough at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School to be elected senior class president."
  25. ↑ Staff. "Linda Stender", Manual of the Legislature of New Jersey, p. 205. Skinder-Strauss Associates, 2005. ISBN 1-57741-216-8. Accessed August 10, 2011. "She attended elementary schools in Union County, and graduated from Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School."
  26. ↑ O'Gorman, George. "Rutgers' Bill Austin to be honored by NJ Sportswriters", The Trentonian, January 24, 2011. Accessed October 1, 2015. "Now 74 years old and living in Camarillo, Calif. Austin is still a football legend in New Jersey, and especially on the banks of the Raritan.... Austin, a Fanwood native who earned high school stardom at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High, earned All-American honors in two sports at Rutgers as a senior."
  27. ↑ Goodman, Jeff. "Heralded recruit struggles with expectations", USA Today, November 16, 2005. Accessed November 30, 2007.
  28. ↑ Dunleavy, Ryan. "Rashan Gary commits to Michigan as No. 1 recruit in nation", Asbury Park Press, February 3, 2016. Accessed February 7, 2016. "Gary spent the first two seasons of his career at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School before transferring to state powerhouse Paramus Catholic in the summer of 2014. Gary's move sparked always ready-to-flare tensions between public and non-public schools in the state over alleged recruiting."
  29. ↑ Frezza, Jr., Harry. "Central Jerseyans chase their Olympic dreams", Courier-News, August 12, 2004. Accessed February 2, 2012. "Swimmer Scott Goldblatt, a 1997 Scotch Plains-Fanwood High graduate and a silver medalist at the 2000 Games in Sydney, Australia, who is returning for his second Olympiad."
  30. ↑ Olson, Drew. "Rich brew: Hammonds breaks bank of Brewers", Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, December 22, 2000. Accessed December 13, 2007.
  31. ↑ Professional Donation, The Westfield Leader, February 10, 2005. Accessed July 3, 2007. "Former Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School football star Nathan Jones, now playing for the Dallas Cowboys, donated his jersey to the school."
  32. ↑ Staff. "Hawks hosting NEC soccer tournament After clinching sixth straight regular-season crown", The Hub, November 11, 2010. Accessed February 2, 2012. "“Winning the regular-season championship has become a tradition here, and I’m glad that we can keep that going,” added fellow Hermann Trophy candidate Bryan Meredith (Scotch Plains, Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School)."
  33. ↑ Konecky, Chad. "Player Profile: Cordera Jenkins (Dickinson, Texas)", RISE Magazine, March 29, 2006. Accessed July 3, 2007. "In 1977, Scotch Plains-Fanwood High (N.J.) senior Renaldo Nehemiah, who later won a Super Bowl ring as a San Francisco 49ers wideout, ran a computer-timed 12.98 in the 120-yard (110 m) high hurdles, which remains the fastest finish over an equivalent distance in scholastic history."
  34. ↑ "Honoring Former High School Greats", The Times of Scotch Plains-Fanwood, November 13, 1997. "Mayor Connelly presented a plaque to Mr. Scarpati, who lettered in football, basketball and track for the Raiders and served as the captain of the football team in 1959. Mr. Scarpati went on to play as a defensive back for the Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints professional football teams, and was the holder of the record-setting 63-yard (58 m) field goal kicked by Tom Dempsey in 1970 during the game between the Saints and the Detroit Lions."
  35. ↑ Carino, Jerry. "Lance Thomas' work ethic pays off", Courier News, April 1, 2010. Accessed July 1, 2011. "Six years ago, as a sophomore at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, Lance Thomas filled out Duke University's recruiting questionnaire and faxed it in, hoping he could catch the attention of his dream college basketball program."
  36. ↑ "Congratulations to The Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School Graduating Class of 2008", The Westfield Leader and The Scotch Plains – Fanwood TIMES, July 3, 2008. Accessed January 20, 2013.
  37. ↑ "YMC Entertainment Official Website"
  38. ↑ "Winners from the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards", On November 30th, Mnet hosted its ‘2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards‘ (‘MAMA‘) in Hong Kong, attracting stars and performers from both Korea and around the world, November 30, 2012. Accessed January 20, 2013.
  39. ↑ "Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman perform benefit for Brook Arts Center", BroadwayWorld.com, March 8, 2004. Accessed July 3, 2007. "Mr. Shaiman was only 13 years old and a 9th grader at Scotch Plains High School at the time."
  40. ↑ La Gorce, Tammy. "A Gift of Life and Music: Musician David S. Ware, of Scotch Plains, recovered from a kidney transplant...with a little help from his fans.", New Jersey Monthly, December 14, 2009. Accessed August 9, 2011. "David S. Ware, 60, a tenor saxophonist from Scotch Plains, got more than support. He got a new kidney.... Having regained his health, Ware, a graduate of Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, is planning to release an experimental jazz album this spring."

External links

Coordinates: 40°39′09″N 74°23′05″W / 40.652403°N 74.384843°W / 40.652403; -74.384843

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