Orange High School (New Jersey)
Orange High School | |
---|---|
Location | |
Information | |
Type | Public high school |
Established | 1869 |
School district | Orange Board of Education |
Principal | Dr. Kalisha Morgan Jason Belton |
Faculty | 75.0 (on FTE basis)[1] |
Grades | 9 - 12 |
Enrollment | 809[1] (as of 2012-13) |
Student to teacher ratio | 10.79:1[1] |
Athletics conference | Super Essex Conference |
Team name | Tornadoes |
Website | School website |
Orange High School is a three-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in tenth through twelfth grades from Orange in Essex County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Orange Board of Education. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1928.[2]
As of the 2012-13 school year, the school had an enrollment of 809 students and 75.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.79:1. There were 588 students (72.7% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 83 (10.3% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]
Awards, recognition and rankings
The school was the 305th-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.[3] The school had been ranked 232nd in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 315th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.[4] The magazine ranked the school 308th in 2008 out of 316 schools.[5] The school was ranked 276th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state.[6]
History
The current building housing Orange High School is the fourth site used for the school, in three different parts of the city. The first, dedicated on September 13, 1869, was located next to the First Church of Orange (Presbyterian). The second site was located at Main and Cleveland Streets. The third is now being used as Orange Middle School. The fourth, and current site, was dedicated on October 7, 1973, after opening to students on September 5 of that year.
Athletics
The Orange High School Tornadoes compete in the Super Essex Conference, following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).[7] With 820 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2014-15 school year as North II, Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 758 to 1,061 students in that grade range.[8] Prior to the 2010 realignment, the school had been in the Skyline Division of the Northern Hills Conference, an athletic conference that had consisted of private and public high schools located in Essex, Morris and Passaic County counties.[9] The school colors are orange and black.
In 1994, the boys basketball team captured their first Tournament of Champions trophy by defeating Tim Thomas and heavily favored Paterson Catholic High School, giving the Tornadoes a No. 1 ranking in NJ, and national rank of No. 11 in USA Today.[10] The team was coached by fellow alum and former standout athlete Al Thompson.
Music
Orange High School is home to the Mighty Marching Tornadoes marching band and Award winning elite choir, Voices in Harmony, in addition to local musical rap group by the name of the SoundBox Banditz who were noticed for writing a song about an Orange High School teacher who had been laid off due to New Jersey's educational budget cuts in 2010.[11]
Administration
Core members of the school's administration are:[12]
- Dr. Kalisha Morgan - Co-Principal
- Jason Belton - Co-Principal
- Mohammed Abdelaziz - Vice Principal -Athletic Director
- Dana Gaines - Vice Principal
- Stefanie Matthews - Vice Principal
Notable alumni
- Jay Alford (born 1983), former defensive tackle for the New York Giants drafted in the 3rd Round of the 2007 NFL Draft (81st overall).[13]
- Cory Boyd (born 1985), running back for the Edmonton Eskimos.[14]
- Pete D'Alonzo (1929–2001), American football player.[15]
- Beatrice Hicks (1919–79), founder of the Society of Women Engineers in 1950.[16]
References
- ^ a b c d School Data for Orange High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed March 29, 2015.
- ^ Orange High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools, backed up by the Internet Archive as of April 14, 2012. Accessed March 28, 2015.
- ^ Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
- ^ Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed August 27, 2012.
- ^ Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed March 30, 2011.
- ^ "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.
- ^ League Memberships – 2014-2015, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 23, 2014.
- ^ 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 November 23, 2014.
- ^ Home Page, Northern Hills Conference, backed up by the Internet Archive as of May 9, 2009. Accessed November 23, 2014.
- ^ Narducci, Marc. "Orange Drops Paterson Catholic To Win Tournament Of Champions The Tornadoes Prevailed, 64-55. The State Group 3 Champions Went Home With The Overall Title.", The Philadelphia Inquirer, March 21, 1994. Accessed August 30, 2011. "The Tornadoes became the first team not seeded first or second to win the Tournament of Champions boys' title, defeating top-seeded Paterson Catholic, 64-55, yesterday at Princeton University. Orange finished 25-3, losing all three games to Clifford Scott, a team the Tornadoes also beat once this season. Paterson Catholic, which hadn't lost to a New Jersey team all season, finished 26-3."
- ^ Bondy, Halley. "Students record tribute to Orange teacher being laid off", The Star-Ledger, May 13, 2009. Accessed August 30, 2011.
- ^ Administration, Orange High School. Accessed November 23, 2014.
- ^ Giants Select Penn State DT Jay Alford in Third Round, New York Giants, April 28, 2007. Accessed May 1, 2007.
- ^ Cory Boyd profile, South Carolina Gamecocks. Accessed October 30, 2007.
- ^ Pete D'Alonzo, profootballarchives.com. Accessed March 28, 2015.
- ^ Beatrice Alice Hicks, 1919-1979, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Accessed December 18, 2007. "After graduating from Orange High School in 1935, she enrolled in Newark College of Engineering, later renamed the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT)."