Monsignor Donovan High School

Monsignor Donovan High School
Address
711 Hooper Avenue Toms River, New Jersey (Ocean County), 08753
Coordinates	39°57′40″N 74°11′19″W / 39.96111°N 74.18861°W / 39.96111; -74.18861Coordinates: 39°57′40″N 74°11′19″W / 39.96111°N 74.18861°W / 39.96111; -74.18861
Information
Type	Private, Coeducational
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	1962
School district	Diocese of Trenton
Director	Rev. John Bambrick
Principal	Edward Gere
Vice principal	Kathleen D'Andrea
Asst. Principal	Eileen McCullion
Chaplain	Father Patrick McPartland
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	888 (as of 2009-10)[1]
Color(s)	Blue and White
Athletics conference	Shore Conference
Team name	Griffins
Accreditation(s)	Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[2]
Dean of Discipline	Kim Sandomierski
Student Activities Director	Donna Milana
Athletic Director	Dennis Toddings
Website	www.mondonhs.com

Monsignor Donovan High School (often referred to as simply MonDon) is the only Roman Catholic High School in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States, and operates under the supervision of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton.^[3] Located in the coastal community of Toms River Township, the school originally opened in 1962 as St. Joseph High, but was renamed after its founder, Msgr. Lawrence Donovan in 1983. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1977.^[2]

As of the 2009-10 school year, the school had an enrollment of 888 students.^[1]

The school mascot is the Griffin. In the 1960s, the school (then St. Joseph High School) sponsored a contest to name the mascot. Finalists were chosen by the faculty from the submissions, and then the students voted on the finalists.

Academics

MDHS has created an Enhanced Learning Community (ELC) though the educational vehicle known as block scheduling. This model, implemented in the fall of 1998, includes two eighteen-week (Fall and Spring) terms. Terms may be divided into quarters depending on curriculum needs. Students take four courses each term. Each course meets for approximately twice the standard instructional time than is offered under the traditional schedule. In order to graduate, students must complete four years of religious studies, have completed seventy hours of Christian Service, and have taken twenty credits of English, ten credits of United States History, five credits of World History, fifteen credits of Mathematics, fifteen credits of Science, ten credits of the same Foreign Language, three credits of Fine and Practical Arts, and ten credits of Physic and Health/Driver Education.

Monsignor Donovan offers a variety of Advanced Placement courses; English Literature and Composition, United States History, World History, Psychology, Calculus AB & BC, Biology, Environmental Science, Chemistry, and Physics.

Students who excel in Monsignor Donovan and who meet particular standards of academics, service, leadership, and character may apply for entry to the National Honor Society.

Dress Code

Students are required to wear uniforms. Girls may wear navy knee socks or tights, navy plaid pleated skirt or kilts, or khaki pants. They may also wear white dress shirts or blue golf shirts. Sweaters are optional. The boys wear khaki pants, belt, black dress shoes, dress shirts with a tie, or blue or white golf shirts. Sweaters are optional. Also, if a boy's hair is longer than his collar, it must be pulled back into a ponytail.

The school usually provides a casual dress down day once a month to students to wear casual clothes instead of the school uniforms. The students donate about three dollars for the day to wear the casual clothes. Each dress down day is dedicated to a particular charity or worthy cause and the funds collected are donated to that cause. Faculty members also pay to wear casual attire on dress down days.

Athletics

The Monsignor Donovan High School Griffins compete in the Shore Conference, an athletic conference made up of private and public high schools centered at the Northern Jersey Shore.^[4] All schools in this conference are located within Monmouth County and Ocean County. The league operates under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).

The athletic teams compete in the following sports: football, soccer, powerlifting, baseball, hockey, basketball, swimming, gymnastics, cheerleading, softball, lacrosse, tennis, golf, wrestling, track and field, volleyball, sailing, bowling, ping pong, chess, and cross country running.

The Monsignor Donovan Sailing Team has won the NJ State High School Sailing Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2007, they have also won the CT State High School Sailing Championship in 2005 and 2008. In a period of six years, the M.D.H.S. Sailing Team has qualified for the Inter-Scholastic Sailing National Championship four times.

The Monsignor Donovan boy's bowling team succeeded in the winter of 2006-07, finishing with a 34-11 record and taking home the titles of divisional champions, Shore Conference tournament champions and South Jersey Group II state sectional champions all in a single season.^[5] The Boy's and Girl's varsity bowling teams both took 1st place in the Shore Conference in the 2009-10 season, and the Boys took 2nd place in the Sectionals Tournament, and in the States tournament, took 2nd place in their group

The Monsignor Donovan girl's swimming team won the Ocean County Championship for the first time in school history during the 2007-08 season, a first for a non-public school, then repeated in 2008-09.^[6]

In 2008, the men's track and field team won the State Championship.^[7]

Extracurricular activities

The school's mock trial team won the Ocean County tournament in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.^[8]

Notable alumni

• John Cudia (born 1970, class of 1988), Broadway actor.^[9]
• Page Falkinburg (born 1956, class of 1974, but transferred to Point Pleasant Boro High School before graduating), wrestler.^[10]
• Scott Palguta (born 1982, class of 2001), professional soccer player.^[11][12]
• Mike Straka (class of 1988), Fox News journalist.^[13][14]
• Glenn Taranto (born 1959, Class of 1977), actor and screenwriter.^[15]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Monsignor Donovan High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed June 22, 2011.
2. ^ ^{a b} Monsignor Donovan High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools. Accessed June 22, 2011.
3. ^ School Listing: Monsignor Donovan High School, Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton. Accessed June 22, 2011.
4. ^ School Info, Shore Conference. Accessed March 9, 2008.
5. ^ Sauer, Justin. "COACH JOE ROMANO, Monsignor Donovan, boys bowling", Asbury Park Press, March 24, 2007, accessed April 13, 2007
6. ^ Manley, Matt. "Formula for success", Asbury Park Press, January 19, 2008. Accessed June 22, 2011. "Donovan won two relays and scored key secondary points throughout the meet to capture its first Ocean County Championship, topping second-place Point Beach 316.5-295 and ending a 10-year title run by Toms River North."
7. ^ Shanker, Jared. "NJSIAA TRACK AND FIELD: GROUPS III, NON-PUBLIC A, NON-PUBLIC B Bardhan gives Trojans third gold medal; Falcons' Schubiger claims pole vault", Courier News, May 31, 2008. Accessed April 15, 2010.
8. ^ Apruzzese, Andrea. "Monsignor Donovan H.S. wins county mock trial championship", Asbury Park Press, February 19, 2009. Accessed June 22, 2011. "For the second consecutive year the Monsignor Donovan High School Mock Trial Team has captured the Ocean County Championship."
9. ^ Staff. "Monsignor Donovan High School Announces Hall of Fame Inductees, The Toms River Times, July 30, 2008. Accessed July 17, 2011. "St. Joseph / Monsignor Donovan High School alumni being honored for their distinguished professional careers and community / public service include Jack Brogan, Raymond Marzarella Jr., Robert Taylor, Elisabeth Fontenelli and John Cudia."
10. ^ Davies, Ross. Diamond Dallas Page, p. 20. The Rosen Publishing Group, 2001. ISBN 0823934934. Accessed July 17, 2011. "By ninth grade, he was a starter at St. Joseph's High School in Point Pleasant, New Jersey. In tenth grade, he made the varsity team."
11. ^ DiVeronica, Jeff. "Palguta back after MLS tryout", Democrat and Chronicle, April 12, 2007. Accessed July 17, 2011. ""He also spent part of his offseason coaching high school basketball something he has missed since his three varsity seasons as a shooting guard for Monsignor Donovan High." Palguta coached the freshman squad and assisted with the varsity the past two years."
12. ^ Scott Palguta, Rochester Rhinos, backed up by the Internet Archive as of February 1, 2009. Accessed July 17, 2011. "Palguta earned a school-record 11 varsity letters at Monsignor Donovan HS (four in soccer and track, three in basketball)"
13. ^ Richani, Fred. "TSC Interviews: HDNet's Mike Straka", TheSportsCourier.com, September 25, 2010. Accessed July 17, 2011. "Q. Where did you grow up? A. I grew up in Barnegat, New Jersey. Q. Did you have a good childhood? A. I had a great childhood. Dad was a UPS man. Mom was a nurse's aid. I went [to] Monsignor Donovan High School in Toms River (home of UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar), where I wrestled."
14. ^ Interview with Mike Straka. Accessed December 21, 2006.
15. ^ Staff. Griffin Network Today, Spring 2010, Volume 10: Issue 2, p. 15. Accessed July 18, 2011. "Glenn Taranto, an accomplished character actor, is now a successful screen writer. His film, Stolen, starring Josh Lucas and Jon Hamm is being released by IFC."

External links

• Monsignor Donovan High School website
• Monsignor Donovan High School, National Center for Education Statistics