St. Joseph High School (Metuchen)
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St. Joseph High School is an independent Roman Catholic college preparatory schoollocated in Metuchen, New Jersey. It bears the seal of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, who have been active in American education since 1847.
St. Joseph High School is a private Catholic all-boys college preparatory school located on a seventy-acre tract of land in Metuchen and Edison, New Jersey. It is conducted by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, who have been active in American education since their arrival from Lyons, France in 1847. From 1901 to 1961, St. Joseph’s served as a center for training and educating Brothers prior to their apostolate in Catholic education. The main school building was dedicated in the spring of 1963. The faculty is comprised of competent lay and religious educators. The vision guiding St. Joseph High School is that of the gospels and Catholic tradition. The school draws students from a wide geographic area encompassing over forty school districts and over seventy grammar schools in Middlesex, Somerset, and Union Counties, as well as other outlying areas.
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[edit] Mission Statement
St. Joseph High School exists to provide a college preparatory, liberal arts education for young men. In response to the gospel message of hope, the teachings of the Catholic Church, and the traditions of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, the school endeavors to meet the needs and promote the development of each student. The faculty and staff strive to enable each student to cultivate the knowledge and skills he will need to become an active member of society as well as to imbue each student with the values and convictions characteristic of enlightened Catholics. The school's academic program provides a systematic approach to developing overall intellectual, emotional, physical, and spiritual skills while encouraging critical and creative thinking commensurate to intellectual ability. This program emphasizes the active role of the student in the learning process and his responsibility, along with that of his teacher, to develop his talents and skills. Working together, their goal is a St. Joseph graduate with a sense of self esteem, an integration of religious truths and academic principles, and an eagerness to assume the challenges and responsibilities of adult Christian life.
[edit] Philosophy of St. Joseph High School
In response to the gospel message of hope and the mission of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, St. Joseph High School provides a college preparatory education for young men in the traditions of the Catholic Church. In the context of a dynamic community, with the vision of faith that fosters justice, students are helped to maximize their God-given abilities, and to become witnesses of love through a practical concern for others.
Each student’s faith-life is developed and nurtured by a dedicated faculty and a spirited student body. Together, they form a community that seeks to understand the Christian truths revealed for our salvation. By religious instruction, authentic in doctrine and vital in Catholic formation, students are challenged to grow in both personal responsibility and a freedom reflective of Gospel values. Through campus ministry, the religious program, and school-sponsored organizations, students are offered frequent opportunities to grow in awareness of Christian service in practice. The Eucharist, related worship opportunities, and spirituality days help students grow in their faith and their relationship with God. The academic program is designed to provide a systematic approach to the holistic development of the individual. The college preparatory education emphasizes training in basic skills, and encourages critical and creative thinking with an emphasis on the active role of students in the learning process. Working together with parents and teachers, the school encourages students to become mature adults with a healthy sense of self-esteem. The integration of religious truths and academic principals is stressed along with an eagerness to pursue the challenges and responsibilities of an adult Christian life.
St. Joseph High School offers a curriculum with a strong foundation in the liberal arts and sciences through required and elective courses, where students learn to understand and integrate the skills necessary to support comprehension and effective communication. In the humanities, students strive to develop an appreciation of social evaluation through the study of history, literature, language, and cultures. By means of a sequential program, they acquire literacy in the physical sciences and learn the skillful application of mathematical and scientific methods. A professional guidance program enhances the classroom structure and supports the family in its role as the primary educator of the student.
The school endeavors to create a positive climate that cultivates a spirit of affirmation within a structure of order, wherein student commitment toward personal and group responsibility is fostered. With the strong support of faculty advisors, students are encouraged to strengthen leadership skills and develop interpersonal relationships to prepare them to pursue college life and future careers. The school’s commitment to the overall well being of the individual is further enhanced by quality interscholastic athletic and school-wide activities programs that provide an atmosphere of healthy competition and respect for the individual. An essential aim of St. Joseph High School’s diverse programs is to assist young men to face the perplexities and complexities of life with a dynamic spirit, a humane Catholic perspective, and a determined fortitude. As they navigate their way through life, students learn to marshal and incarnate the broad and noble teaching disseminated at St. Joseph High School, so as to live judiciously and wisely, and thereby bring honor and grace to themselves, their families, and the human community.
[edit] Athletics
The St. Joseph High School Falcons compete in the Greater Middlesex Conference, comprised of 33 Public and private high schools located in the greater Middlesex County area. The league operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.
St. Joseph High School fields teams on the freshmen through varsity levels in various sports including cross country, soccer, basketball, bowling, ice hockey, swimming, winter track, baseball, golf, lacrosse, spring track, tennis and volleyball.
St. Joseph is a perennial powerhouse in swimming, winning state championships in 1980-91, 1993-97, 1999, 2002-04 and 2006, as well as winning every county championship in the sport since it's inception, 29 in total. While St. Joe's has had great success in swimming in particular, the school has also enjoyed success in its other sports. St. Joe's has won state titles in cross country, soccer, track, tennis, and most recently in 2006 volleyball.
Although no longer offered, St. Joe's once had a competitive gymnastics program, winning state championships in 1992 and 1993. Along with gymnastics, the school once offered teams in water polo and wrestling, but unfortunately all three programs ended due to a lack of student interest.
Contrary to popular myth, St. Joe's never had a football program. As rumor has it, the school once fielded a football team but canceled the program following the death of a student playing. This rumor, along with all of its variations, is completely false. St. Joe's never established a football program, instead opting to devote funding towards academics and other programs, while also allowing other sports (such as soccer) to flourish. For the many students who wish to play football, St. Joe's offers a highly-competitive, much-participated program in flag football program during the fall.
[edit] Notable Alumni
- Andrew Bynum - Class of 2005 basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers
- Jon Bon Jovi, musician, actor and lead singer of the band, Bon Jovi.(Attended for only two years)[1]
- Pat Lepore - politician, who has served on the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders since 2004
- Jim McGreevey - former Governor of New Jersey (2002-2004).[2]
- Bobby Savulich - swimming 2004 Summer Olympics Trials Qualifier
- Jay Williams - Class of 1999, Duke University guard and 2002 NBA Draft #2 pick.
- Ed. Fern, Class of '72 - (Track and Field) - Summer Olympic Trials Qualifier, 1976, 1980, 5 Time Atlantic Coast Conference High Jump Champion (Clemson University), Author - Ed. Fern's Flight School (1989), Jumps Coach, New Zealand from 2002.
[edit] References
- ^ Jon Bon Jovi remarks, American Music Awards, November 14, 2004. "In the fall of 1977, I was just another sophomore at St. Joseph's High School in New Jersey."
- ^ An Affair To Regret: He wanted to clean up politics in the Jersey capital. It didn't work out that way. A series of scandals, and a gay secret life, cut James McGreevey's career short., Newsweek, August 23, 2006. "At St. Joseph's High School, he didn't sit at the cool kids' table or the jocks' table but with the bookworms, says one of his teachers, Jerry Rabadeau."
