Perth Amboy High School
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Perth Amboy High School (or PAHS) is a four-year public high school in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, United States. PAHS, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Perth Amboy Public Schools.
The current Perth Amboy High School was built in 1971, to replace an earlier building that opened in 1881. Today more than 2,030 students currently attend the school, which was originally built to accommodate 1,600 students, resulting in overcrowding. Perth Amboy High School is the only public high school in Perth Amboy other than Middlesex County Vocational High School. The school mascot is the panther.
Since the school is a “special needs” or Abbott District, it receives almost 80% of the money from the state. The total cost per pupil in the school district is $14,075.
The student to faculty ratio is 12 to 1. The faculty gets paid $46,350 a year while the state average is $52,563. The administrators get paid $103,562 as the state average is $102,755.
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[edit] Demographics
PAHS is 87% Hispanic, 7.5% Black, 4% White, and 1.5% Asian.[1] In addition, most of the students belong to working class families. 68% of the students participate in the free or reduced price lunch program. 71% of the school speaks Spanish in their homes while another 1% speaks another language that isn't English at home, mainly Portuguese, Polish, Vietnamese, or Cantonese. There are also Limited English Proficient (LEP) students, who compose 15% of the school. Limited English Proficient students cannot speak, read, or write in English and are placed in "bilingual" classes.
The average class size is 22 students, excluding special education. The school's ratio of computers to students is 12 to 1 meanwhile the state average is 4 to 1. The school day is longer than the state average. The instructional time is 7 hours whereas the state average is 5 hours and 52 minutes.
[edit] Student performance
On the Language Arts section of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA), 58% scored proficient and 39% scored partial. On the Math section of the test, 45% scored proficient and 48% scored partial. The average SAT score is 849 out of 1600. However, these results are offset by the high number of bilingual students resulting in lower than average test scores in the school itself. The Advanced Placement Program (AP) participation is 11%. The average attendance rate is 90%. As of the 2004-05 school year, PAHS had a suspension rate of 44%. 91% of PAHS seniors graduated. 33% of the school graduated via the SRA process and 12% graduated through the Limited English Proficiency SRA process. Roughly 54% of the graduating seniors go on to two-year colleges, particularly Middlesex County College. However, another 29% of the graduating seniors go on to four year colleges.
[edit] Extracurricular activities
Extracurricular activities include Gear Up and School Based Youth Services Program. Gear Up is sponsored by Kean University and the Perth Amboy Board of Education. The School Based Youth Services Program is designed to concern the social issues and health needs of students, and is sponsored by the Jewish Renaissance Foundation and the Perth Amboy Board of Education.
[edit] Athletics
The Perth Amboy High School Panthers 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.
[edit] Feeder patterns
All Perth Amboy Public Schools elementary and middle schools feed into PAHS.
[edit] Notable alumni
Notable alumni of Perth Amboy High School include:
- Vida Guerra, model
- Ken Isaacson, mystery author
- Chad Kinch professional basketball player.[2]
- Brian Taylor (1969), former NBA basketball player.[3]
- Bruce Taylor, former cornerback who player for the San Francisco 49ers.[3]
The Rodriguez and Boyd Brothers Baseball, 6 notable baseball and football players who have gone on to play collegiate and professionally.
- Alex Loza (Fine Artist) Go to www.alexloza.com to learn more about PAHS 1996 Alumni.
[edit] References
- ^ National Center for Education Statistics data for Perth Amboy High School, accessed June 7, 2006
- ^ Chad Kinch, 35, Ex-Basketball Star, The New York Times. Published April 8, 1994.
- ^ a b "THE ULTIMATE NEW JERSEY HIGH SCHOOL YEARBOOK: T-Z AND ALSO...", The Star-Ledger, June 27, 1999. Accessed August 4, 2007.
