John F. Kennedy Memorial High School (New Jersey)

John F. Kennedy Memorial High School
Location
John F. Kennedy Memorial High School
John F. Kennedy Memorial High School
John F. Kennedy Memorial High School
200 Washington Avenue
Iselin, NJ 08830
United States
Coordinates 40°34′23″N 74°18′22″W / 40.57311°N 74.306177°W / 40.57311; -74.306177Coordinates: 40°34′23″N 74°18′22″W / 40.57311°N 74.306177°W / 40.57311; -74.306177
Information
Type Public high school
Established 1964
School district Woodbridge Township School District
Principal Michael A. Cilento
Faculty 109.5 FTEs[1]
Grades 9-12
Enrollment 1,328 (as of 2015-16)[1]
Student to teacher ratio 12.1:1[1]
Color(s)      Dartmouth green and
     white[2]
Athletics conference Greater Middlesex Conference
Team name Mustangs[2]
Accreditation Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[3]
Newspaper The Torch
Yearbook Camelot
Vice principals Steve Caroscio
Sherry Wandras
Website School website

John F. Kennedy Memorial High School (J.F.K.) is one of three four-year comprehensive public high schools that serve students in ninth through twelfth grades from Woodbridge Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Woodbridge Township School District. The other two high schools in the district are Colonia High School and Woodbridge High School. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1968.[3]

J.F.K., like the other two high schools in the district, uses block scheduling, instead of the conventional eight periods a day.

As of the 2015-16 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,328 students and 109.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.1:1. There were 449 students (33.8% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 115 (8.7% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]

History

Originally intended to be named Iselin High School, the school was constructed in time for the 1964–65 school year to alleviate overcrowding in the district's high schools that had 5,600 students in double sessions during the 1962–63 school year.[4] After President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, the Board of Education voted to change the name of the school from Iselin High School to John F. Kennedy Memorial High School at their meeting on November 26, 1963. The school opened in September 1964.[5]

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 129th-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 132nd in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 146th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.[7] The magazine ranked the school 171st in 2008 out of 316 schools.[8] The school was ranked 142nd in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state.[9] Schooldigger.com ranked the school 63rd out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (a decrease of 5 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (91.2%) and language arts literacy (96.4%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).[10]

Athletics

The John F. Kennedy Memorial High School Mustangs[2] compete in the Greater Middlesex Conference, which includes public and private high schools located in the greater Middlesex County area, operating under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).[11] With 982 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2015-16 school year as North II, Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 778 to 1,062 students in that grade range.[12]

Together with Woodbridge High School, the school participates in a cooperative ice hockey program with Colonia High School as the host school / lead agency, under an agreement that expires at the end of the 2018-19 school year.[13]

The boys' baseball team won the Group III state championship in 2009, which is the only group state title in the school's history.[14]

The boys' soccer team won the 2005 Central Jersey Group II state sectional championship with a victory over Roselle Park High School, the first soccer state title in the school's history, and earning Ed Bobal honors from the Home News Tribune as its coach of the year.[15]

The softball team won the 2007 North II Group III state sectional championship with a 2–1 win over South Plainfield High School.[16] The team repeated as the 2008 North II Group III state sectional champions with a 5–0 win in the tournament final over crosstown rival Colonia High School.[17]

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:[18]

  • Michael A. Cilento, Principal
  • Steve Caroscio, Vice Principal
  • Sherry Wandras, Vice Principal

Notable alumni

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 School data for John F. Kennedy High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 12, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 John F. Kennedy Memorial High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed April 9, 2016.
  3. 1 2 John F. Kennedy Memorial High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools. Accessed February 8, 2018.
  4. ↑ Staff. "Middlesex; More Crowding Expected", The New York Times, September 3, 1963. Accessed July 6, 2012.
  5. ↑ via Associated Press. "List Of Memorials To JFK Still Grows", Eugene Register-Guard, February 6, 1964. Accessed July 5, 2012. "Iselin, N.J. - New high school to open next September will be called John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial High School."
  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 August 28, 2012.
  8. ↑ Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed September 7, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.
  10. ↑ New Jersey High School Rankings: 11th Grade HSPA Language Arts Literacy & HSPA Math 2010-2011, Schooldigger.com. Accessed February 27, 2012.
  11. ↑ League Memberships – 2016-2017, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed January 10, 2017.
  12. ↑ General Public School Classifications 2015-2016, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, as of July 8, 2014. Accessed October 25, 2014.
  13. ↑ 2017 - 2019 Co-Operative Sports Programs, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 12, 2018.
  14. ↑ Layton, Shawn. "JFK plays its way to a state baseball title", Brick Township News, June 24, 2009. Accessed April 24, 2017. "The John F. Kennedy High School baseball team wrapped up the 2009 season in style by winning its first state championship in school history. Led by a historic tournament run by senior hurler Brian Schroeder, the Mustangs ended their quest with a 5-2 victory over Shawnee in the NJSIAA Group III final."
  15. ↑ Staff. "Coach of the Year; Bobal getting better as years go by", Home News Tribune, December 10, 2005. Accessed September 7, 2011. "Ed Bobal's 25th year as the head boys soccer coach at J.F. Kennedy High School in Iselin may have been his finest. The Mustangs ended the 2005 campaign with a 17-3 record which tied the all-time school mark for victories and winning percentage. They also captured the first sectional title in school history scoring a 1-0 shootout victory over Roselle Park for the Central Jersey Group II championship."
  16. ↑ 2007 Softball - North II, Group III, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed June 8, 2008.
  17. ↑ 2008 Softball Tournament - North II, Group III, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 31, 2008.
  18. ↑ Administration, John F. Kennedy Memorial High School. Accessed March 11, 2018.
  19. ↑ Staff. "Pro Wrestler Robbie E.", Living In Media, September 21, 2016. Accessed September 17, 2017. "Some people laughed because I was thin and only 160 pounds when I was at John F. Kennedy High School in Iselin."
  20. ↑ Senator Vitale's Legislative web page, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed April 24, 2017.
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