Bergenfield High School | |
---|---|
Address | |
80 South Prospect Avenue , , 07621 United States | |
Coordinates | 40°55′31″N74°00′21″W / 40.925371°N 74.005964°W |
Information | |
Type | Public high school |
Established | 1940 [1] |
School district | Bergenfield Public Schools |
CEEB code | 310090 |
NCES School ID | 340150000268 [2] |
Principal | Robert Ragasa (acting) |
Faculty | 106.1 FTEs [2] |
Enrollment | 1,224 (as of 2022–23) [2] |
Student to teacher ratio | 11.5:1 [2] |
Hours in school day | 7 hours |
Color(s) | Red and Black [3] |
Athletics conference | Big North Conference (general) North Jersey Super Football Conference (football) |
Team name | Bears [3] |
Rivals | Dumont High School |
Accreditation | Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools |
Yearbook | Crossroads |
Website | bhs |
Bergenfield High School is a four-year, comprehensive public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Bergenfield, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as part of the Bergenfield Public Schools. Bergenfield High School is accredited by the New Jersey Department of Education until July 2028 and has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools since 1945. [4]
As of the 2022–23 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,224 students and 106.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.5:1. There were 273 students (22.3% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 154 (12.6% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch. [2]
The school's CEEB code is 310090.
The original high school building was constructed at a cost of $370,000 (equivalent to $7.7 million in 2023) as an addition to an existing school, and dedicated in ceremonies held in April 1941. [5] The current building was constructed at a cost of $3,625,000 (equivalent to $37.9 million in 2023) and opened in 1959 on South Prospect Avenue to accommodate the post war Baby Boom and replaced the combination junior/senior high school (formerly called Warren J. Harding) on the corner of Clinton and Washington Avenue, which become a middle school. [6]
The school was the 122nd-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. [7] The school had been ranked 139th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 136th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. [8] The magazine ranked the school 234th in 2008 out of 316 schools and 192nd in the 2006. [9] [10] Schooldigger.com ranked the school tied for 163rd out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (an increase of 52 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (80.5%) and language arts literacy (94.5%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA). [11]
Bergenfield High School offers a wide range of courses in the areas of art, business and marketing, English, health and physical education, industrial and technological education, mathematics, music, science, social studies, and world language. Class levels range from modified to Advanced Placement. Full- and half-year electives are also offered, and health classes are offered as a quarter-year elective within all gym classes.
Advanced Placement (AP) courses include AP Studio Art, AP Art History, AP English Language and Composition, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Calculus, AP Computer Science, AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics, AP United States History, AP United States Government and Politics, AP Music Theory, AP Psychology AP Spanish Language and AP European History.
Bergenfield High School offers medical-field based classes where the students have an opportunity to receive college credits from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). Classes include Medical Terminology, Anatomy and Physiology, Dynamics of Healthcare, Emergency and Clinical Care.
The school is producing its own television station called Bears On Air that is available to all Cablevision customers. This channel will feature special events, such as college fairs and other events at BHS; InTune, a special program that will showcase the Bergenfield Music Department; Bears Den, a program showcasing rich athletic programs at Bergenfield; and In Reel Time, which will offer movie reviews. The channel is available for Cablevision customers on channel 77.
Bergenfield is well known for its now over 190-member marching band, whose uniforms loosely resemble those of the British Foot Guard Regiments. Bernard T. Baggs took direction in 1950, and the band has since worked with other notable names, such as Donald Angelica, Frank Levy, Bobby Thompson, Fred Sanford, Jack Meehan, and Dennis Delucia. [15] The musicians currently work under the direction of Brian P. Timmons and the color guard under Michael DeLucia. [16]
The band marched in the Super Bowl XLVIII Halftime Show and performed at the NFL Media Day festivities at the Prudential Center in Newark. [17] Some of the many locations the band has performed includeDisney World, Yankee Stadium, New Meadowlands Stadium, Jets and Giants football games, Foxboro Stadium, Devils game at Prudential Center, United Nations, Broadway on Broadway, and the Annual North Jersey Marching Band Festival 65 times. [18] The Record placed the band's image on the front cover of the November 2007 issue of its Sports Magazine. [19]
Bergenfield hosts the annual USSBA Bergen County Invitational Band Festival, which has a roster of up to 16 bands per year. [20] Although the band doesn't formally compete, they have received consistent gold and superior ratings at festivals such as the NJMEA State Marching Band Festival.
TV and film appearances
The Bergenfield High School Bears [3] compete in the Big North Conference, which is comprised of public and private high schools in Bergen and Passaic counties, and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. [25] Before the 2010 realignment, Bergenfield was one of the 12 schools participating in the North Bergen Interscholastic Athletic League (NBIL/NBIAL). [26] With 847 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 761 to 1,058 students in that grade range. [27] The football team competes in the Patriot Red division of the North Jersey Super Football Conference, which includes 112 schools competing in 20 divisions, making it the nation's biggest football-only high school sports league. [28] [29] The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group IV North for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 893 to 1,315 students. [30] Tom Curry is Bergenfield's athletic director.
The school participates with Dumont High School in a joint ice hockey team in which Fair Lawn High School is the host school / lead agency. The co-op program operates under agreements scheduled to expire at the end of the 2023–24 school year. [31]
The school's wrestling program has been successful over the last 40 years. Former coach Sal Cascio is in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in Stillwater, Oklahoma. [32]
Most sports have Varsity, Junior Varsity, and Freshman teams, but some only have the top one or two tiers. Note: Sports marked with an asterisk (*) usually practice and compete with each other, but they are two separate teams and officially compete and are scored separately. Interscholastic sports offered by the school include: [3]
The boys basketball team won the Group I state championship in 1945 (defeating Hightstown High School in the tournament finals) and won the Group III state championship in 2015 (vs. Ewing High School). [33] The 1945 team finished the season with a 22-2 record after winning the Group I title with a 53-40 win against Hightstown in the championship game played at the Elizabeth Armory. [34] In 2015, the team won the North I Group III state sectional championship with a 71–69 win against Teaneck High School [35] and went on to win the Group III state title with an 80–72 win in overtime against Ewing High School to earn their first state championship since 1945 and their first appearance to the Tournament of Champions in school history. [36]
The football team won the North I Group IV state championship in 1974 and 1976, and won state titles in North I Group III in 1982, 1986 and 1987. [37] The 1974 team finished the season with a 9-1 record after winning the first North I Group IV sectional title of the playoff era with a 36-0 victory against John F. Kennedy High School in front of 7,000 fans. [38] [39] The 1976 team defeated Bayonne High School in front of a crowd of 10,000 spectators at Giants Stadium by a score of 19-8 to win the North I Group IV sectional title. [40] A 35-0 win against Vernon Township High School in the 1982 North I Group III sectional championship game gave the team an 11-0 final record. [41] The 1986 team finished the season with a record of 11-0 after winning the North I Group III state sectional title with a 52-8 win against Hoboken High School in a game that was ended early due to a brawl between the two teams. [42] With a 14-0 victory against Wayne Valley High School, the 1987 team won the program's second consecutive North I Group III state sectional title and finished the season with a 10-1 record. [43]
The boys bowling team won the overall state championship in 1978. [44]
The wrestling team won the North I Group III state sectional title in 1983. [45]
The school's acting principal is Robert Ragasa. His administration team includes the assistant principal. [46]
Northern Highlands Regional High School (NHRHS) is a regional public high school and school district in Allendale, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Allendale, Ho-Ho-Kus, Saddle River, and Upper Saddle River. Students from Saddle River have the option of attending either Northern Highlands or Ramsey High School, as part of sending/receiving relationships with the two districts. The high school is the only facility of the Northern Highlands regional High School District.
New Providence High School is a comprehensive public high school in the borough of New Providence, in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school in the New Providence School District, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades. New Providence High School opened on September 8, 1958, with its first graduating class on June 23, 1960. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1965 and received probationary accreditation in 2012. The school opened on September 8, 1958, and had its first graduating class of seniors in June 1960.
West Morris Mendham High School is home of the Minutemen, and is a four-year comprehensive regional public high school that serves students in ninth though twelfth grades as part of the West Morris Regional High School District. Established in 1970, the school is located in the heart of Mendham Borough, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Students who attend the school come from the Morris County municipalities of Chester Borough, Chester Township, Mendham Borough and Mendham Township.
Harrison High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades, located in Harrison, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Harrison Public Schools. Students from East Newark attend Harrison High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the East Newark School District, though the East Newark district has sought to switch to sending students to Kearny High School, citing potential cost savings.
Madison High School is a four-year public high school serving students in ninth to twelfth grades in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as part of the Madison Public Schools. The school is located entirely in the borough of Madison. Students from Harding Township attend the school as part of a sending/receiving relationship.
Ramsey High School, established in 1909, is a four-year comprehensive community public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Ramsey, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Ramsey Public School District. Students from Saddle River attend the district's middle school and then have the option of attending either Ramsey High School or Northern Highlands Regional High School as part of sending/receiving relationships with each of the respective districts.
Mahwah High School (MHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students from Mahwah in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the only secondary school of the Mahwah Township Public Schools. The school is accredited by the New Jersey Department of Education and has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1962.
Pompton Lakes High School (PLHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school in the borough of Pompton Lakes in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Pompton Lakes School District. The school serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Pompton Lakes and Riverdale, in neighboring Morris County, whose students attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship. The high school is accredited by the New Jersey Department of Education.
Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest (NV/Demarest) is a comprehensive four-year public high school serving students from several municipalities in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The high school serves students from the suburban communities of Closter, Demarest, and Haworth. The school is one of two high schools that are part of the Northern Valley Regional High School District, the other being Northern Valley Regional High School at Old Tappan, which serves students from Harrington Park, Northvale, Norwood, and Old Tappan, along with students from Rockleigh, who attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship.
Chatham High School is an American four-year comprehensive public high school in Chatham Township, in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as part of the School District of the Chathams and serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from both Chatham Borough and Chatham Township. The school is accredited by the New Jersey Department of Education.
Mountain Lakes High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Mountain Lakes, in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Mountain Lakes Schools. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1940.
Cresskill High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Cresskill in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Cresskill Public Schools. The infrastructure is shared with Cresskill Middle School, which serves Cresskill students in sixth through eighth grade.
Hawthorne High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in 9th through twelfth grades from Hawthorne, in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.The school operates as the lone secondary school of the Hawthorne Public Schools.
Dumont High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Dumont, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Dumont Public Schools.
Lyndhurst High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Lyndhurst, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Lyndhurst School District.
New Milford High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from New Milford in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the New Milford School District. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1964.
Palisades Park High School is a six-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in seventh through twelfth grades from Palisades Park, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Palisades Park Public School District.
Westwood Regional High School is a four-year comprehensive regional public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Borough of Westwood and the Township of Washington, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Westwood Regional School District. Beginning in the 2019–20 school year, students in eighth grade who had previously attended the then junior-senior high school began attending the new Westwood Middle School.
Pequannock Township High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Pequannock Township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Pequannock Township School District.
Egg Harbor Township High School is a comprehensive community public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Egg Harbor Township in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Egg Harbor Township Schools.