Middletown High School (New York)

Middletown High School
Address
Gardner Ave. Ext.
Middletown, NY, 10940
Coordinates 41°27′06″N 74°23′54″W / 41.45167°N 74.39833°W
Information
School type Public, high school
School district Enlarged City School District of Middletown
Staff 140[1]
Grades 9-12
Enrollment 2,179[1] (2005[1])
 • Grade 9 562[1]
 • Grade 10 602[1]
 • Grade 11 570[1]
 • Grade 12 445[1]
Language English
Color(s) Blue and white         
Team name Middies
Communities served Middletown
Town of Wallkill (part)
Town of Wawayanda (part)
Feeder schools Twin Towers Middle School, Monhagen Middle School
Website About Our School

Middletown High School serves 9th through 12th grade students in the Enlarged City School District of Middletown, which covers that city as well as adjacent portions of the towns of Wallkill and Wawayanda in Orange County, New York, USA. It is located on Gardner Avenue in a small outlying area of the city, near the county fairgrounds on a small rise south of NY 211.

The school, formerly Anthony Veraldi Junior High School, built in 1959, replaced the building now known as Twin Towers Middle School as the district's high school in 1976 after a major expansion. It has been expanded at least four times since then.[2]

2000s controversies

The school has been at the center of a number of controversies in the last several years. When former district superintendent Robert Sigler was investigated and convicted in 2003 for sexually abusing a male student, then-principal Bernard Cohen was suspended by the school board (with pay) and barred from school-related events for allegedly not doing enough to prevent it, and other allegations against him. These included under reporting violence and complaints at the school (involving students, teachers and him), falsifying records in a corrupt manner, putting students who dropped out or got expelled under the "transferred schools" category, and last but not least, unethically accepting money and/or other bribes and favors in return for getting students diplomas who didn't meet NY state requirements. He claimed it was retaliation for his testimony before the county grand jury investigating the abuse and that he was being scapegoated.[3] Students claiming to be sympathetic to him organized a protest walkout, spoke in his behalf at board meetings and then helped campaign during the ensuing elections, in which two incumbents were defeated, Cohen denied having anything to do with this.[4] Four years later, the school district settled with Cohen for $425,000.[5]

The 2005 school year began chaotically when many students received incorrect class schedules or none at all due to problems implementing a new computer program, (some called it Cohen's revenge as he still had influence at the school) [6][7] and continued as ongoing construction did not run smoothly and disrupted the school.[8] Students again staged a walkout over a number of their concerns that they believed were not being taken seriously by the district administration, such as overcrowding and safety issues.[9] Cohen's replacement, Larry Ashley, resigned three months into the school year, citing health problems.[8]

Later that month, the district sought to fire tenured art teacher Peter Panse, who had offered his senior students a nude figure drawing class taught off-campus as a way to improve their portfolios and chances for scholarships at art schools. Very few of his students supported him, but many claimed they had felt pressured into taking the class. The district argued Panse had a conflict of interest, since he personally profited from the students taking the class. After lengthy litigation, in January 2007 a state administrative law judge ruled that he should have been suspended for only 15 days and ordered him reinstated.[10] The beginning of the 2007-08 school year also saw some more scheduling problems, with new textbooks ordered only the week before school opened and many teachers not knowing their own schedules. It should also be noted that among the technical faults within the school, the fact that the clocks don't work seems to stand out. Not as much so as the fact that the air conditioners don't provide any relief whatsoever, often spewing out cold air during the cold months. The same can be said for the hot months, either that or no air is provided, all of which is due to the construction that often takes place.[11]

Recent years

The 2007-2008 school year started off rough. However, the MHS community came together to overcome the obstacles of the past and had the largest graduating class in 10 years. In 2008 the school opened state of the art athletic facilities, Faller Field, and opened the brand new stadium with the Erie Bell game in which Middletown was victorious over Port Jervis. The turf field is Class One FIFA approved and IAAF-certified.

Student Body

Current enrollment at Middletown High School is 2,146 students (as of 2012), though this number is expected to increase in the comng years. The student body is one of the most diverse in the state, with 946 Hispanic students, 650 black students, 489 white students, 52 Asian students, and 9 students of two or more races. The school is classified as an inner city district and high poverty district, with 63.6% of students registered for free or reduced lunch. Middletown has 142 full-time teachers, with a student-teacher ratio of 15 to 1. Average class size at Middletown is roughly 24.

Athletics

Middletown fields teams in a variety of varsity sports. Middletown's boys basketball team is highly regarded in the state, and during the 2011-2012 school year the team went to the final four of the state playoffs. The basketball team has produced a few star players, such as Kendrick Ray who received a scholarship to Quinnipiac University or Nick Smith who is the NCAA Division II scoring leader. In addition, Middletown's track and field team is nationally recognized and has produced a number of successful college athletes and state and national qualifiers. The school's athletic facilities are among the finest in the nation.

Alumni

Aaron Tveit- actor

Chris Palko- rapper, known by his stage name Cage.

Mike Avilés- baseball player with the Cleveland Indians

Benjamin A. Gilman - former U.S. Congressman and Chairman of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs

Kevin Ool- former minor league baseball player

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 New York State School Report Card, Accountability and Overview Report for Middletown High School PDF (521 KiB)
  2. ↑ McCulloch, Roberta (April 8, 2001). "Middletown High School searches for space". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  3. ↑ Doucette, John-Henry (April 1, 2003). "New Middletown target: high school principal". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  4. ↑ Cahn, Dianna (June 20, 2004). "School of Hard Knocks". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  5. ↑ Murphy, Doyle (September 27, 2007). "Middletown school district settles last suit". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-27.
  6. ↑ Cahn, Dianna (August 18, 2005). "The computer ate the school schedule". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  7. ↑ Cahn, Dianna (October 1, 2005). "High school schedule still a big headache". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Cahn, Dianna (December 2, 2005). "Principal resigns amid school unrest". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  9. ↑ Baxter, Tracy (November 29, 2005). "Student walkouts". Cable 6. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  10. ↑ Wells, Kristina (January 24, 2007). "Middletown art teacher Panse will return to classroom". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  11. ↑ Murphy, Doyle; Kristina Wells (September 8, 2007). "Middletown school has rocky opening". Times-Herald Record. Retrieved 2007-09-11.

External links

Coordinates: 41°27′06″N 74°23′54″W / 41.4517°N 74.3984°W