West Orange Public Schools
Encyclopedia
The West Orange Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district serving students in Kindergarten through 12th grade in West Orange
in Essex County
, New Jersey
, United States.
As of the 2008-09 school year, the district's 11 schools had an enrollment of 6,462 students and 598.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE
basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8.
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education
as being in District Factor Group "GH", the third highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.
The district currently consists seven elementary schools, three middle schools and one high school. In the 1990s, the district was ranked among the top 1% of schools in the nation by The Washington Post
.
Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education
, the highest award an American school can receive.
NAMM named the district in its 2009 survey of the "Best Communities for Music Education", which included 124 school districts nationwide.
) are:
Elementary Schools (grades K–5)
Middle Schools (grades 6–8)
High School
West Orange, New Jersey
West Orange is a township in central Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 46,207...
in Essex County
Essex County, New Jersey
Essex County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the United States 2010 Census, the population was 783,969, ranking it third in the state after Bergen County and Middlesex County; Essex County's population has declined from 786,147 as of the bureau's...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, United States.
As of the 2008-09 school year, the district's 11 schools had an enrollment of 6,462 students and 598.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE
Full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent , is a unit to measure employed persons or students in a way that makes them comparable although they may work or study a different number of hours per week. FTE is often used to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or to track cost reductions in an organization...
basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8.
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education
New Jersey Department of Education
The New Jersey Department of Education administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered in Trenton.The Department is responsible for ensuring that...
as being in District Factor Group "GH", the third highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.
The district currently consists seven elementary schools, three middle schools and one high school. In the 1990s, the district was ranked among the top 1% of schools in the nation by The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
.
Awards and recognition
During the 2008-09 school year, Hazel Avenue School was recognized with the Blue Ribbon SchoolBlue Ribbon Schools Program
The Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States government program created in 1981 to honor schools which have achieved high levels of performance or significant improvements with emphasis on schools serving disadvantaged students. The program centers around a self-assessment conducted by the...
Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
, the highest award an American school can receive.
NAMM named the district in its 2009 survey of the "Best Communities for Music Education", which included 124 school districts nationwide.
Schools
The schools in the district (with 2008-09 school enrollment data from the National Center for Education StatisticsNational Center for Education Statistics
The National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States...
) are:
Elementary Schools (grades K–5)
- Gregory Elementary School – 522 students
- Michele Thompson, Principal
- Hazel Avenue Elementary School – 329 students
- Edwin Acevado, Principal
- Mount Pleasant Elementary School – 391 students
- Michael Schiavo, Principal
- Pleasantdale Elementary School (includes pre-Kindergarten) – 430 students
- Joanne Pollara, Principal
- Redwood Elementary School – 529 students
- Barbara Kivlon, Principal
- St. Cloud Elementary School – 358 students
- Adam Geher, Principal
- Washington Elementary School – 430 students
- Marie DeMaio, Principal
Middle Schools (grades 6–8)
- Thomas A. Edison Central Sixth Middle School – 458 students in sixth grade
- Xavier Fitzgerald, Principal
- Liberty Middle School in grades 7-8 – 543 students
- Robert J. Klemt, Principal
- Roosevelt Middle School – 470 students in grades 7-8
- Lionel O. Hush, Principal
High School
- West Orange High SchoolWest Orange High School (New Jersey)West Orange High School is a comprehensive four-year public high school, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from West Orange in Essex County, New Jersey. WOHS is currently the only high school serving the West Orange Public Schools...
– 2,002 students- Arthur J. Alloggiamento, Principal
Defunct school facilities
- Three schools have occupied the same location on Gaston Street. The first was the original West Orange High School, built in 1898. It burned down in 1913, was rebuilt, and linked by a shared auditorium to Fairmount Avenue Elementary School. In 1912, the elementary school had been built behind the high school with its entrance on Fairmount Avenue. (At that time, Fairmount Avenue ran parallel to Gaston Street but it no longer exists.) In 1922, when a new high school was constructed on Northfield Avenue (now Seton Hall Prep), the old high school was transformed into Gaston Street Junior High School. Fairmount Avenue Elementary School remained the same. In the 1950s, Gaston Street Junior High School closed, and the building was transformed once again, this time into the Board of EducationBoard of educationA board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....
offices. In 1972, Fairmount Elementary School dropped the "Avenue" from its name and it was moved to a new building on the corner of Northfield and Gregory Avenues (now the Solomon Schechter Day School Lower Campus). The Board of Education offices remained on Gaston Street and took over both old school buildings. In the late 1970s, both buildings were demolished and the Board of Education offices were relocated to Eagle Rock Avenue School. The Gaston Street/Fairmount Avenue land parcel became the site of the Fairmount House (now the John P. Renna, Jr.) Senior Citizens Housing Complex. A small portion of the land became an extension of the parking lot for the adjacent Town Hall. - Eagle Rock Avenue Elementary School – Converted into new Board of Education offices.
- Fairmount Elementary School – Sold and became Solomon Schechter Day School Lower Campus (Jewish).
- West Orange High School (Northfield Avenue) – Sold and became Seton Hall Preparatory SchoolSeton Hall Preparatory SchoolSeton Hall Preparatory School, generally called Seton Hall Prep, is a Roman Catholic boys' high school located in the suburban community of West Orange in Essex County, New Jersey, operating under the supervision of the Archdiocese of Newark...
(CatholicCatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
). - West Orange Mountain High School – Built in 1960 as a second high school, located behind Abraham Lincoln Junior High School with its entrance on Conforti Avenue. It became the "new" West Orange High School when the two high schools merged in 1984.
- Abraham Lincoln Junior High School – On Pleasant Valley Way, it was adjacent and connected to West Orange Mountain High School through a shared auditorium. Later, when West Orange Mountain High School became the "new" West Orange High, Lincoln was closed and the building absorbed by the "new" high school in order to enlarge it.
Administration
Core members of the district's administration are:- Dr. Anthony Cavanna, Superintendent
- Mark Kenney, Business Administrator / Board Secretary
External links
- West Orange Board of Education / Public Schools
- West Orange Public Schools, National Center for Education StatisticsNational Center for Education StatisticsThe National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States...