Freehold Regional High School District

Infobox School District
name = Freehold Regional High School District
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grades = 9 - 12
superintendent = James Wasser
students = 11,440 (as of 2005-06)
teachers = 781.9 (on an FTE basis)
location = 11 Pine Street
Englishtown, NJ 07726
contact number = 732-792-7300
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website = [http://www.frhsd.com District web site] The Freehold Regional High School District is a public regional school district serving students in grades 9-12 from eight communities in western Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The district, consisting of six high schools, is the largest regional high school district in the state of New Jersey. [Kocieniewski, David; and Somothers, Ronald. [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/nyregion/11crash.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin "Three Students and Van Driver Die in Fiery Crash in New Jersey"] , "The New York Times", January 11, 2007. Accessed April 25, 2008. "The deaths sent shock waves through the school, which has 1,400 students and is part of the largest school district in New Jersey."] The district serves students from Colts Neck Township, Englishtown, Farmingdale, Freehold Borough, Freehold Township, Howell Township, Manalapan Township and Marlboro Township. [ [http://education.state.nj.us/rc/rc07/narrative/25/1650/25-1650-000.html Freehold Regional High School District 2007 Report Card Narrative] , New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 28, 2008. "Freehold Regional High School District, the largest high school district in New Jersey, has six high schools with almost 12,000 students and over 1,500 employees.... District members include the Townships of Colts Neck, Freehold, Howell, Manalapan, and Marlboro, and the Boroughs of Englishtown, Farmingdale, and Freehold."]

As of the 2005-06 school year, the district's six schools had an enrollment of 11,440 students and 781.9 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 14.6. [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch/district_detail.asp?Search=2&details=1&ID2=3405610&DistrictID=3405610 District information for the Freehold Regional High School District] , National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed July 25, 2008.]

Six Specialized Learning Centers for students who are highly motivated and talented are located throughout the District; all students from the region are eligible for enrollment, admission is competitive. The Specialized Learning Centers include the areas of Business Administration at Marlboro; Humanities at Howell; Contemporary Global Issues at Freehold Township; Medical Sciences at Freehold; Science and Engineering at Manalapan; and Law and Public Service at Colts Neck.

The District also offers a Culinary Arts/Hospitality Management Academy and a Computer Science Academy at Freehold Boro High School; a Fine and Performing Arts Academy at Howell; a Navy Junior ROTC Character and Leadership Development Academy at Colts Neck High School; an Automotive Technology Academy at Manalapan High School; and Animal and Botanical Sciences at Freehold Township High School. Every effort is made to keep special education students in district; a variety of in-class support, resource center, and self-contained programs are conducted.

No Child Left Behind

On October 21, 2005, the New Jersey Department of Education announced that the Freehold Regional High School District had for the second consecutive year failed to meet the minimum education standards promulgated under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. If the district failed again in 2006, it would be subject to sanctions that may include requiring the district to provide students with the opportunity to attend public schools in other New Jersey school districts no later than the 2007-2008 school year.

The FRHSD announced that five of our six high schools have achieved Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) on 40 of 40 categories established by the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) for 2006. The five schools are Colts Neck, Freehold, Howell, Manalapan, and Marlboro High Schools. Freehold Township High School made AYP in 39 of 40 indicators.

The assessment of proficiency in language arts and mathematics is required by NCLB during 11th grade. In addition to the total school population, all sub-populations such as Students with Disabilities, Limited English Proficient Students, Economically Disadvantaged Students, and Ethnic groups must attain these AYP standards. The subgroups of students must take the same set of tests and meet the same AYP standards as the regular student population.

Under NCLB, students in each group must meet state-established proficiency goals in both language arts and mathematics in order to make AYP. If one group in one subject area (language arts or mathematics) at a school does not meet the targeted proficiency goal, then the school does not make AYP for that year. All students will be expected to pass the state-administered tests by 2014.

If a school misses AYP in any one of the 40 indicators after having achieved AYP in prior years, it is placed on the Department of Education’s "Early Warning" list. If a school does not make AYP two years in a row, it is placed on the NCLB “Schools in Need of Improvement” list. Schools must make AYP two years in a row in order to be removed from either the “Early Warning” or “Schools in Need of Improvement” list.

High schools

Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics [ [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3405610 Data for the Freehold Regional High School District] , National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 25, 2008.] ) are:
*Colts Neck High School - 1,766 students from Colts Neck and portions of Marlboro.
*Freehold High School - 1,385 students from Freehold Borough and portions of Freehold Township.
*Freehold Township High School - 2,144 students from portions of Freehold Township, Howell and Manalapan.
*Howell High School - 1,949 students from portions of Howell and Farmingdale.
*Manalapan High School - 1,973 students from portions of Manalapan and Englishtown.
*Marlboro High School - 2,241 students from portions of Marlboro.

pecialized learning centers

*Science/Engineering - Manalapan H.S.
*Medical Sciences - Freehold H.S.
*Business Administration - Marlboro H.S.
*Humanities - Howell H.S.
*Contemporary Global Issues (formerly International Studies and Global Language and Cultures) - Freehold Township H.S.
*Law and Public Service - Colts Neck H.S.

Academies

*Law Enforcement and Public Safety Academy - Manalapan H.S.
*Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Academy - Freehold H.S.
*Computer Science Academy - Freehold H.S.
*Fine and Performing Arts Academy - Howell H.S.
*Animal and Botanical Sciences Academy - Freehold Township H.S.
*Navy ROTC Character and Leadership Development Academy - Colts Neck H.S.

Communities

Effective for entering Freshman as of September 2007 and September 2008:
*Colts Neck Township students attend Colts Neck High School
*Englishtown students attend Manalapan High School
*Farmingdale students attend Howell High School
*Freehold Borough students attend Freehold High School
*Freehold Township students attend Freehold Township High School or Freehold High School
*Howell Township students attend Howell High School or Freehold Township High School
*Manalapan Township students attend Manalapan High School or Freehold Township High School
*Marlboro Township students attend Marlboro High School or Colts Neck High School

Board of Education

*Patricia Horvath - President: Manalapan Township 1.45 vote
*Diane Cappiello - Vice President: Englishtown Borough .4 vote
*Bunny Hammer - Freehold Borough .8 vote
*Kathie Lavin - Farmingdale Borough .4 vote
*Ronald Lawson - Howell Township 1.05 vote
*Joan Leimbach - Howell Township 1.05 vote
*Christopher Placitella - Colts Neck Township .8 vote
*Katie Goon - Marlboro Township 1.6 vote
*Tom Caiazza - Freehold Township 1.45 vote

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are: [ [http://www.frhsd.com/mambo/frhsd_uploads/curr_docs/Curriculum%20Guide%202008.pdf 2008-2009 Course Catalog] , Freehold Regional High School District, p. 2. Accessed July 23, 2008.] [ [http://liberty.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/education/directory/directory1.pl?string=co_code25&maxhits=1000 New Jersey School Directory for Monmouth County] , New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed July 23, 2008.]
*James Wasser - Superintendent of Schools [ [http://www.frhsd.com/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=26&Itemid=52 Our Schools] . Freehold Regional High School District. Accessed July 31, 2008.]
*Patricia Emmerman - Assistant Superintendent: Student Services
*Sean Boyce - Assistant Superintendent: Business
*Dr. Suzanne M. Koegler - Assistant Superintendent: Curriculum & Instruction
*Frank J. Tanzini - Assistant Superintendent: Human Resources

Controversy

In July 2008 the "Asbury Park Press" reported that superintendent Wasser, assistant superintendent Evangelista, and a retired district administrator had received tuition reimbursement for enrolling at the unaccredited and unlicensed Breyer State University, described by the newspaper as "an institution ... deemed an 'apparent diploma mill' by education officials in its home state of Alabama," and had been given salary increases based on doctoral degrees from Breyer State. This was stated to be a violation of a New Jersey law against the professional use of titles and degrees earned from unaccredited institutions. The superintendent stated that he did not intend to seek an accredited doctoral degree, but he planned to continue using the title "Dr." [Joshua Riley, [http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008807170543 Schools chief's doctorate reviewed] , "Asbury Park Press", July 17, 2008.] [ [http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080720/OPINION01/807200347/0/OPINION Wasser, et al., BSU alumni] , "Asbury Park Press", July 20, 2008.]

At the 9/22/2008 BOE meeting, Mr. Wasser in replying to a question from a concerned citizen said "I don't work for you, you don't pay my salary" His answer has set the tone for the entire meeting

Cell Phone Controversy

Starting in the 2008-2009 school year, the FRHSD enacted a new policy stating that cell phones will be confiscated if found, and that the administration will look through the cell phone for inappropriate material. This includes: pornographic images and drug deals. This new rule has upset the students and students have started a website and a Facebook group protesting this. [ [http://www.brettjurgens.com/frhsd/ Protest Website] Website protesting new cell phone policy, accessed September, 2008] [ [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=27930667876 Facebook Group] Facebook group protesting new cell phone policy, accessed September, 2008]

Notable alumni

*Bonnie Bernstein (Howell HS) - ESPN Sports Reporter. [ [http://newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2006/0920/Front_Page/054.html Down Memory Lane] . "Farmingdale News Transcript", September 20, 2006]
*Scott Conover, Former Detroit Lions offensive tackle (1991-96) [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=CONOVSCO01 Scott Conover at databaseFootball.com] ] [http://www.injersey.com/day/story/0,2379,234904,00.html Freehold High's honor roll: Tim, Bruce, Danny] , "Asbury Park Press", December 16, 1999]
*Karl Girolamo, has a recurring role on the daytime soap "As the World Turns" as Kevin Davis. [ [http://www.soapoperadigest.com/features/atwt/interviews/karlgirolamo/ Seven Minutes With Kevin] , "Soap Opera Digest", accessed December 19, 2006. "I'm originally from Staten Island, NY, and then I moved to Howell, NJ, when I was 12 years old. I went to Howell High School and took acting classes there. "]
*Dan Klecko (Marlboro HS) - NFL football player and son of Joe Klecko. [ [http://www.colts.com/sub.cfm?page=bio&player_id=426 Indianapolis Colts player profile: Dan Klecko - Defensive Tackle] , accessed November 29, 2006]
*Danny Lewis, Former NFL player
*Craig Mazin, screenwriter, director and producer
*Jim Nantz (Marlboro HS) - sports commentator for CBS Sports. [ [http://www.coxcharityclassic.com/headliner9.html Cox Clasic Headliners] , accessed November 29, 2006]
*Tom Pelphrey (Howell HS) - actor, "Guiding Light". [ [http://www.dailytargum.com/media/storage/paper168/news/2004/10/05/InsideBeat/Meet-Tom.Pelphrey-741931.shtml?norewrite200612050057&sourcedomain=www.dailytargum.com Meet Tom Pelphrey: Kristen Hamill chats with the Mason Gross graduate, who now can be seen on The Guiding Light] , "The Daily Targum", October 5, 2004]
*Kal Penn (Freehold Twp. and Howell HS) - actor, "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle", "The Namesake"
*Tim Perry (Freehold HS) - Former NBA Star. [http://www.injersey.com/day/story/0,2379,234904,00.html Freehold High's honor roll: Tim, Bruce, Danny] , "Asbury Park Press", December 16, 1999]
*Darrell Reid (Freehold HS) - Current Indianapolis Colts Defensive End [ [http://newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2006/0621/Front_Page/100.html Colts' Reid returns home with plan to help youths] , "News Transcript", June 21, 2006]
*Gregg and Evan Spiridellis (Marlboro HS) - two brothers who launched the internet media company JibJab. [ [http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/TheNote/story?id=151902 The Note: First Source for Political News] , transcript from "The Note", October 8, 2004]
*Bruce Springsteen (Freehold HS) - musician.
*Jade Yorker (Freehold HS) - Actor.
*Amy Polumbo (Howell HS), Miss New Jersey 2007
*David Dejesus (Manalapan HS) MLB player on KC Royals

References

External links

* [http://www.frhsd.com/ Freehold Regional High School District Official site]
*NJReportCard|25|1650|0|Freehold Regional High School District
* [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3405610 Data for the Freehold Regional High School District] , National Center for Education Statistics