Princeton High School (New Jersey)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Princeton High School
Live to Learn and Learn to Live
Location
151 Moore Street
Princeton, NJ 08540
Information
Principal Gary Snyder
Enrollment

1,257 (as of 2005-06)[1]
Faculty 98.8 (on FTE basis)[1]
Student:teacher ratio 12.7[1]
Type Public high school
Athletics conference Colonial Valley Conference
Team name Little Tigers
Color(s) Blue and White
Established 1898
Information 609-806-4280
Homepage http://phs.prs.k12.nj.us

Princeton High School (PHS) is a four-year comprehensive American public high school in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, United States. PHS is a part of the Princeton Regional Schools district, which serves all students in the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township. Students from Cranbury Township also attend PHS as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Cranbury Township School District.

PHS is notable for its high academic standards and strong arts programs that rival many of the nation's private schools. The school consistently ranks within the top three conventional public secondary schools in the state concerning SAT scores, and was ranked second in the state in 2006.[2] The High School Program at Princeton University permits qualified juniors and seniors to take free courses at Princeton University; Students must have exhausted all high school course alternatives within a discipline and receive high school credit only for any university courses successfully completed.[3]

As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,257 students and 98.8 classroom teachers (on a FTE basis, for a student-teacher ratio of 12.7.[1]

Contents

[edit] Overview

This image of PHS from above, with municipal boundaries highlighted, predates the early-2000s construction.
This image of PHS from above, with municipal boundaries highlighted, predates the early-2000s construction.

PHS is located in the Borough of Princeton, across the street from John Witherspoon Middle School (which is in Princeton Township).

PHS offers courses in many subjects and levels, including most of the courses in the Advanced Placement Program. The school also provides the opportunity for students to take free courses at Princeton University provided that they have exhausted all the courses at the school pertaining to that particular subject and have done well enough in those courses.

As of 2008, the school's principal is Gary Snyder, and its assistant principals are Harvey Highland and Julianne Inverso. The school's student activities director (also known as the dean of students) is Angela Siso. The Athletic Director is John Miranda.

Construction has been underway since 2003 as part of an $86 million project to renovate the Princeton Regional School District's school buildings, and is very near completion. At the start of the 2006-07 school year, the new auditorium, science labs, gymnasium, and the bulk of the new wings and staircases in the school opened. The renovated library (which is now located in the former auditorium) opened in May of 2007. During the summer of 2007, finishing touches such as the removal of classroom trailers, installation of tennis courts, repaving of parking lots, finishing of renovations to old portions of the building, and the beginning of work on the new, state-of-the-art fitness center took place. At best, the school will continue to be a work in progress at the beginning of the 2007-08 school year, with full and total completion anticipated in the spring of 2008.

[edit] Awards and recognition

In U.S. News & World Report's December 10, 2007 issue, Princeton High School was the 94th ranked public high school in the nation and the third-highest ranked school in New Jersey.[4]

In Newsweek's May 22, 2007 issue, ranking the country's top high schools, Princeton High School was listed in 208th place, the seventh-highest ranked school in New Jersey.[5] The school was also listed in 133rd place, the third-highest ranked school in New Jersey, in Newsweek's May 8, 2006, issue listing the Top 1200 High Schools in The United States.[6] Princeton High School was ranked as number 212 in Newsweek's 2005 survey .[7] and 113th in its 2004 survey.

The November 30, 2007 issue of [The Wall Street Journal], ranking the country's high schools based on a percentage of 2007 high school seniors sent to eight selective colleges, placed Princeton High School at number 27. [8] PHS was the second highest ranked publicly-funded school, with a total of 31 students matriculating the select eights schools. The eight colleges were Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Pomona, University of Chicago, Johns Hopkins, Swarthmore, and Williams. Princeton High School's rank was aided by the fact that 19 students from the school matriculated to Princeton University, many of whom have faculty as parents working at the University.

Princeton High School was the 13th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 316 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2006 cover story on the state's Top Public High Schools.[9]

[edit] School policy

[edit] Schedule

School is held from Monday through Friday, for a total of 180 days per year. The usual daily schedule consists of eight periods of 44 minutes each, with a homeroom period (12 minutes) between the second and third periods, and a break (25 minutes) between the sixth and seventh periods. There are four minutes between each class period for the students to get to their next class.

On some Wednesdays, (termed "short Wednesdays" or "one-thirty-nine Wednesdays") and on some other days when special events are planned, the school day is shortened. As of the 2006-07 school-year, every Wednesday is a short day. On short Wednesdays, school ends at 1:39 pm. Short Wednesdays exist to permit the operation of the Peer Group program (which is mandatory for freshmen) between 1:39 and 3:00. This period of time is also used for community service group meetings for sophomores, other optional extracurricular activities, and school-wide events, such as pep rallies, the Oktoberfest (now usually held in November), and Spring Fling bake sales.

[edit] Lab days

The school days are assigned letter labels, cycling from A through G. This is done to accommodate double periods for science classes, which are scheduled such that there is a gym class the preceding or following period. For two out of these seven days (either A and E, B and F or C and G depending on the class, so that D day is normal for everyone) the science class meets two periods in a row to give the class opportunity for a lab experiment. The gym class does not meet on these days. As a result, when a student has no science class on his or her designated lab day, he or she has a free period for that day. Some science classes, such as Genetics, only have one lab day per cycle, leaving the other as a free period.

One unanticipated result of this scheduling is that students take gym only with those in their science class (and others who have a science class during the same period that they do), contributing to the stratification of the school along academic lines.

[edit] Graduation requirements

Each year-long class counts for 5 credits; each semester class counts for 2.5. Science classes that have two lab periods, however, count for 6.4 credits (because of the lab cycle), and gym class counts for 4. A student must complete 120 credits to graduate (about 24 courses). Additionally, each student must have completed 50 hours of community service to graduate. These community service requirements are usually completed during students' sophomore years. Students must also pass the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA 11).

Required courses include English I and English II (which must respectively be taken in the first two years) and two more years of English. Other requirements include: three years of science, including biology and chemistry; one year of a foreign language; three years of mathematics; four years of gym; two years of United States History; one year of World History; one year of Visual/Performing Arts; and one year of Practical Arts.

PHS has a policy of revoking credit for a student's course if he reaches a certain amount absences in a class. 18 absences from a year-long course, 9 absences for a semester course, and 5 absences for a marking period course will lead to credit revocation. Starting in 2005, tardiness has been counted as one-third of an absence for the purposes of revoking credit. However, students can appeal if they are denied credit; credit can be restored from an appeal if approved by a school administrator or can be re-obtained through summer school.

[edit] Extracurricular activities

Princeton High School offers many extracurricular activities, including clubs, publications, competitive teams, and other organizations. Chartered organizations include The Speech & Debate Club, Operation Smile Club, the Anime Club, Asian American Club, Dance Club, the PHS Amnesty International organization, A.R.T.E: Artistically Reviving the Earth, Badminton Club, the Chess Club, the Cricket Club, the Environmental Club, the Indian Club, the Ivy (a literary magazine), the Latin Club, the Math Team, the Mock Trial Team, the Numina Gallery group, the Prince (the yearbook), the Republican Club, the Robotics and Computer Club, the Science Bowl Team, the Science Olympiad Team, the Statistics Club, and The Tower.

[edit] Project Timeline

Princeton High School's student run club, A.R.T.E: Artistically Reviving The Earth will be painting a mural in the new 2007 addition. The mural will celebrate 110 years of PHS.

[edit] Mock Trial Team

The PHS Mock Trial team has been one of the best in the region. Their regular practices is what makes them such a successful team when they compete in the County Mock trial Competition. Following the County Competition is the Regional Competition, and following that is the State Competition. Mr. Baxter, the Mock Trial coach who first founded the team and continues with the position, prepares the students to become first-rate attorneys and witnesses.

[edit] Athletics

The Princeton High School Little Tigers participate in the Colonial Valley Conference, which includes high schools from Mercer, Middlesex and Monmouth Counties.

The Little Tigers have had many successful seasons in ice hockey, cross country, tennis, swimming, track, lacrosse, soccer, and golf over the years. The Golf Team went 5 for 5 in its 2007 Tournaments, including the Group 3 State Championships, the Mercer County Tournament, Sectional Championships, the Bunker hill Tournament, and the Cherry Valley Tournament, and has gone 47 and 2 in its last 2 years.

The Girls' Swim Team won the 2007 NJSIAA Central - B state sectional championship with an 87-83 win over Ocean Township High School.[10] They also beat Ocean Township High School in 2008 for the second year in a row, claiming their 6th consecutive NJSIAA Central - B sectional championship. In 2007, The Princeton Girl's Team lost to Haddonfield Memorial High School in state finals, and in 2008, lost to Haddonfield in state semi-finals.

In 2007, the Boy's Swim Team progressed to and lost in state finals, and in 2008, lost to Lawrence High School in the state semi-finals.

In 2007, the Boy's Soccer Team achieved an undefeated regular season record, won counties, but lost in the first round of sectionals.

[edit] The Tower

The Tower is a newspaper which was founded in 1911 as the Observer. In 1925 it was renamed the Blue & White. It was renamed to its present title four years later at the suggestion of Stryker Warren (a 1930 graduate of PHS) to commemorate the construction of what was then the new building and what is now the oldest building, with the famous tower. The Tower has throughout its life varied enormously in its content and style. As of 2006, the Tower funds itself through the selling of subscriptions and advertisements to local organizations & businesses, and through subsidies from the Princeton Regional Schools.

In its very first incarnation it was published fortnightly in a format somewhat smaller than 8.5 by 11 inches and was advised by a teacher of the era, Mrs. M. A. Dick. The Tower has published continuously since that time, assisted by different local publishers, most recently for the last few decades, the Princeton Packet. At one time, typesetting was done separately from publishing for the Tower by another local paper, Town Topics.

The Tower's masthead has varied tremendously—when the present name first was bestowed upon it, the logotype was a pencil drawing of a sun rising above a tower with the school's motto and The New York Times-style lettering, but since then the image of the architectural feature has been removed and reinserted multiple times by zealous editors throughout the decades. Throughout the forties and fifties, the Tower's logotype was very plain, consisting only of serifed capital block letters, with no additional style or imagery. The current masthead dates to the eighties.

A well-known feature of the Tower is the propensity of the editors to publish joke issues: in recent years, it is generally done at the boundary between years, around the same time when the entire editorial staff is replaced wholesale. The first example of this was in the late 1920s, when one issue was published on blue paper and carried the title "Black & Blue." The humor in that printing consisted largely of printing some of the text backwards or upside down. More recent joke issues have somewhat more vivid humor, such as a mid-2000s issue alleging that a giant condom had been placed on top of the school, or an early-eighties issue stating that the Tower had been converted into a pornographic racket (with pictures to support the point).

Of course, like many of the running aspects of the Tower, such as the monthly quotes section, exemplars decades ago may be seen not so much as "first instances" as much as spiritual precursors-- there has been constant flux at the Tower over the decades. Features such as the Vanguard (a two-page topical opinions/forum spread) frequently are born, killed, resurrected, and killed again in a cycle that takes place over twenty or so years, as new enterprising editors-in-chief try to imprint their own mark upon the publication as soon as they can before their very brief tenure expires and that mark again fades into history. Ironically, the Tower is one of the few clubs at PHS (if not the only one) which has much of a history to speak of. This follows from having an inherent running month-by-month record of its activities going back to its founding: the newspapers themselves.

For a glimpse into the newspaper's history, a series of front pages from the Tower archives has been on display in the lobby of the new arts wing at Princeton High School since the wing opened in the spring of 2007. This exhibit shows the consistently professional layout of the paper as well as its coverage of period-defining events. It also celebrates that the newspaper is not only one of the only clubs at PHS with a significant known history, but also that the newspaper's history has generally exemplified good journalism, strong leadership, and the sort of excellence for which Princeton High School is known.

[edit] Spectacle Theatre

Spectacle Theatre is Princeton High School's drama club. Every year there is a fall play (generally in November) and a spring musical (generally in March). In addition, every year after the musical the Senior Directed Plays take place (short plays directed by members of the graduating class). Spectacle Theatre is directed by Pat Wray.

[edit] Choir

One of the more selective extracurricular activities at PHS, the PHS Choir was founded in 1944, and is nationally and internationally known as one of the top high school choirs in the world. The choir is composed of between sixty to eighty students every year, with auditions conducted every spring. Students in grades 9-11 may audition at the end of each academic year for entry in the following year. Students who are not accepted during their first audition may try again the following year. The Choir tours internationally once every two years. Europe is the typical destination, with the choir having recently toured Germany and the Czech Republic in 2005, and Sweden in 2007, adding to its rich touring history.

The choir has been directed by Dr. Charles "Chuck" Sundquist (also known as "Sunny"), sometimes referred to by students as "Sunny," since 1993. The choir performs its annual winter concert in the Chapel of Princeton University. Since its humble beginnings, the Winter Concert has become one of the prides of the high school and an important community event; the Chapel is generally packed to capacity with over 1,200 attendees.

PHS Choir is technically not an extracurricular activity because it is a course at the high school. Student must audition and if admitted, receive credit for the class. Part of PHS' rich music tradition stems from the significant amount of money, time, and value placed on music and the arts; its programs are unmatched by most public high schools and on par with some of the most elite private schools.


A Capella

PHS also is home to four, acclaimed, student-run a capella groups. There are two all-girl groups called Cat's Meow and Cloud 9, one all-male group called Testostertones ("Tones"), and one co-ed group called Around Eight. The four talented groups perform at various school and non-school related events year round, singing songs arranged by current and former members. They all hold weekly, student-run rehearsals. The a capella groups hold auditions each school year and admit only a small number of new members. Admission into each one of these groups is very selective, however some groups are more selective than others. Cat's Meow and Around Eight tend to be the more selective groups because they only admit members from within PHS Choir, but selectivity varies annually.

[edit] PHS Studio Band

The band program at PHS is not by technicality an "extracurricular" activity, as it gives credits and is considered a course.


Band Program

Princeton High School has several levels of bands to accommodate all levels of playing from beginning to professional skill. Tiger I&II, Nassau, Prep, and Studio Band are the 5 bands by order of pure playing ability. Students are assigned to their respective band level according to skill, and factors such as upperclassmanship are put aside.

The Princeton High School Studio Band, currently co-directed by Joe Downey and Joe Bongiovi, is the most rigorous and selective of the five jazz bands at Princeton High School. It selects its members by audition only. All Studio Band members are expected to excel in sight-reading, master finger positions, and be familiar with all techniques that apply to their instrument (i.e. Trombone F-attachment). They are also expected to attend all rehearsals both during and after school. During the band's preparation for competition, ensemble rehearsal can be over 12-20 hours combined over 1 week.


Band History

The original director and founder of the Studio Band was Dr. Anthony Biancosino. Known as Dr. B by his students, Biancosino was the director of the Studio Band for 26 years. During those years the Studio Band had many great successes, including playing at the inaugural balls of both Presidents Reagan and Bush Senior.

When Biancosino died in December of 2003 his brother, Joseph Downey, took over as director of the Studio band. Under his direction the Studio Band continues to play and compete at the same high standard set by his brother. In 2007 the Studio Band took first place at the prestigious Berklee College of Music High School Jazz Festival. Prior to performing, Downey dedicated the set to Dr. B. The set consisted of three complex pieces: Whiplash, Of Another Time, and Cherokee; the same set the Studio Band had played when they won previously at Berklee under Biancosino's direction.


Facts

The Studio Band is known to play a wide variety of genres arranged for Big Band. Almost every month throughout the school year, the Studio Band hosts dances known at Princeton High School as Big Band Dances. The big band dances, which are held about one Friday evening each month, are very popular and attract people from many different age groups.

Visit the Band Website for sample recordings and competition information.

[edit] Student body

During the 2005-2006 school year, Princeton High School had 1253 students [1].

5% of students qualified for free or reduced lunch.

The student body at Princeton High is also diverse from a socioeconomic standpoint.

[edit] Alma Mater

Princeton High School's Alma Mater is traditionally sung at the Fall Pep Rally by the Cat's Meow, the oldest all-female a capella group at PHS. It is also sung by the student body at the Gold Key Service Award Ceremony in the spring, as well as at the annual graduation ceremony, led by the ladies of the Cat's Meow.

Now stand and sing with heart and voice
Our Alma Mater's praise!
Let all who know thy guiding hand
To thee, the chorus raise.
Our friendships hold in memory
Thy tow'r against the sky
And evermore our hearts will sing
In praise of Princeton High!

[edit] Achievement gap

PHS has been considered a case study of the achievement gap in elite high schools. The gap between different groups in academic progress received greater attention in 2005, after the school failed the No Child Left Behind Act. The New York Times ran an article entitled "The Achievement Gap in Elite Schools," by Samuel G. Freedman on September 28, 2005, [11] which essentially accused Princeton High School of neglecting its responsibility to educate minorities. While the cause may be due to socioeconomic status rather than racial segregation, many students in the overwhelmingly white-and-Asian-populated advanced classes can spend most of their high school career without sharing but a few classes with their Hispanic or African American peers.

The issue has not received as much attention as some would wish it to prior to 2005. According to Freedman's article, "In the early 1990s, an interracial body calling itself the Robeson Group—in homage to Paul Robeson, the most famous product of black Princeton—mobilized to recruit more black teachers and help elect the first black member to the school board."

In 2003, the school became part of the Minority Student Achievement Network, a network of 21 different schools across the country, that share Princeton High School's achievement gap problem. MSAN gathers high achieving minority students, to address and help fix the growing achievement gap, in their schools.[12]

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d Princeton High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 1, 2007.
  2. ^ Fessenden, Ford. "THE WEEK; Your School's SAT Scores Fell? You're Not Alone"", The New York Times, February 11, 2007. "The top conventional school was Millburn High School, with an average of 1864, followed by Princeton High School and Tenafly High School."
  3. ^ 2006 Students Handbook: High School Program at Princeton University, Princeton High School, p. 52. Accessed November 1, 2007.
  4. ^ "America's Best High Schools", U.S. News & World Report, November 29, 2007. Accessed December 9, 2007.
  5. ^ "The Top of the Class: The complete list of the 1,200 top U.S. schools", Newsweek, May 22, 2007. Accessed May 24, 2007.
  6. ^ The Complete List: 1,200 Top U.S. Schools, Newsweek May 8, 2006.
  7. ^ America's Best High Schools, Newsweek, August 5, 2005.
  8. ^ "How the Schools Stacked Up", "Wall Street Journal", November 30, 2007. Accessed December 3, 2007.
  9. ^ "Top Public High Schools in New Jersey", New Jersey Monthly, September 2006, backed up by Internet Archive as of April 29, 2007. Accessed March 5, 2008.
  10. ^ 2007 Girls Team Swimming - Central - B, NJSIAA. Accessed June 4, 2007.
  11. ^ "The Achievement Gap in Elite Schools" by Samuel G. Freedman, in The New York Times September 28, 2005.
  12. ^ About MSAN, Minority Student Achievement Network. Accessed November 4, 2007.
  13. ^ Biography for John Lithgow, Internet Movie Database. Accessed November 27, 2006.
  14. ^ Handelman, Louise. "Stories of the former world: John McPhee bridges worlds of science and humanities", Princeton Packet, April 6, 1999. Accessed September 16, 2007. "After graduating from Princeton High School, he did a post-graduate year at Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts before matriculating to Princeton University."
  15. ^ Guest Artists: Bebe Neuwirth, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Accessed November 27, 2006.
  16. ^ 2004 Olympic Athlete Bio: Andy Potts, accessed January 8, 2006.
  17. ^ Week 10: "Hacking", North Carolina State University. Accessed October 23, 2007. "Shimomura was born in 1964 in Nagoya, Japan.... He got into an antiestablishment group at Princeton High School and got expelled for it, even though he had won a local math/science contest."

[edit] External links