Willingboro High School

Infobox_School
name = Willingboro High School


imagesize =
motto =
established = 1975
grades = 9 - 12
district = Willingboro Township Public Schools
type = Public high school
principal = Teresa-Anne Lucas
asst principal = Lori Binczewski
Ellis Brown
Nython Carter
enrollment = 1,272 (as of 2005-06)
faculty = 95.0 (on FTE basis)
ratio = 13.4
teamname = Chimera
conference = Burlington County Scholastic League
colors = Navy blue, scarlet and white
publication =
location = 20 JFK Way
Willingboro, NJ 08046
information = 609-835-8801
website = [http://www.willingboroschools.org/schools/WHS/whs.htm School website]

Willingboro High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Willingboro Township in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, as part of the Willingboro Township Public Schools.

As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,272 students and 95.0 classroom teachers (on a FTE basis, for a student-teacher ratio of 13.4. [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3418000&ID=341800001264 Willingboro High School] , National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 12, 2007.]

The school was the 247th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 316 schools statewide, in "New Jersey Monthly" magazine's September 2008 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools". The school was ranked 300th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state. [ [http://njmonthly.com/articles/towns_and_schools/highschoolrankings/top-new-jersey-high-schools-by-rank.html "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank"] , "New Jersey Monthly", September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.]

History

The high school was opened in 1975 as a response to the overcrowded student population at John F. Kennedy, then the only high school in Willingboro, located just down the road on Kennedy Way. For a short time, residents were having a difficult time in deciding what to call the new Willingboro high school; some sought to name the new high school "J.F. Kennedy High School - East" while others debated on naming the school, "Robert F. Kennedy" after the recently-decease Attorney General and senator from New York and President Kennedy's brother. A vote was taken and it was decided that the only appropriate name would be what the school is called today, "Willingboro High School." The school colors are navy blue, scarlet and white - which are the slight opposite of the school's former sister school, J.F.K. (which were scarlet, navy and white). The mascot is the "Chimera", a mythological monster with the head of a lion and body and wings of an eagle, opposite of the former sister school, which was a "Gryphon."

The two schools were merged at the start of the 1989-90 school year, with all students attending what is now Willingboro High School. [Quinn, Laura. [http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=PI&s_site=philly&p_multi=PI&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB95FA7B431FB88&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM "WILLINGBORO GIRDS FOR SCHOOL MERGER"] , "The Philadelphia Inquirer", August 28, 1989. Accessed October 8, 2008.]

Athletics

Willingboro High School competes in the Liberty Division of the Burlington County Scholastic League (BCSL), sports association under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). The league consists of public and parochial high schools covering Burlington County, Mercer County and Ocean County in central New Jersey.

The girls basketball team won the 2007 Group III State Championship, defeating South Plainfield High School 53-46 for the title. [Graves, Jody. [http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_docid=0FD881222D919E04&p_docnum=12&p_queryname=NaN&p_product=NewsBank&p_theme=aggregated4&p_nbid=K5CH50PHMTE4NTg0NzQ0OS4yODY4NjU6MTo3OnJhLTE4ODg "Willingboro wins fourth quarter, captures Group 3 championship"] , "Courier-Post", March 7, 2000. Accessed August 19, 2007. "With the score tied at 29 to start the fourth quarter, the Chimeras,ranked No. 3 in the Courier-Post Top 20 Poll, went on a 12-2 run toput the game away en route to a 49-35 victory over Pemberton."] [ [http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=202578&tclass=Public%20Group%20Semis%2FFinals 2007 Girls Basketball - Public Group Semis/Finals] , NJSIAA, May 9, 2007.] The team won the South, Group III state sectional championship in 2000 with a 47-35 win against Pemberton Township High School. [ [http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=325&tclass=South%2C%20Group%20III Public Sectionals - South, Group III] , NJSIAA. Accessed August 19, 2007.]

Notable alumni

* Crystal Langhorne (born 1986), women's basketball player for the University of Maryland and national champion in the 2006 NCAA Women's tournament. Langhorne was recently drafted by the Washington Mystics.
* Carl Lewis (born 1961), track and field legend, winner of ten Olympic medals, including nine gold medals. [Strauss, Robert. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C00E1D9113DF931A35751C1A9679C8B63 "WORTH NOTING; Carl Lewis Takes Honors, But Not at His Home Track"] , "The New York Times", December 2, 2001. Accessed March 29, 2008. "Mr. Lewis, who graduated from Willingboro High School in 1979, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in Mobile, Ala., along with three fellow Olympians from the 1984 Games -- the marathoner Alberto Salazar, the steeplechase runner Henry Marsh and Larry Myricks, a long jumper."]
* Kareem McKenzie (born 1979), National Football League offensive tackle. [Eisen, Michael. [http://www.giants.com/news/eisen/story.asp?story_id=5854 "Giants Sign OL Kareem McKenzie: Signing is second major addition in two days for Big Blue"] , new York Giants, March 4, 2005. Accessed May 25, 2007. "McKenzie played only two years of football at Willingboro High School, but was still named an All-America by USA Today. He was All-State and All-Burlington County. McKenzie competed in the discus and shot put on the track team, serving as captain for two seasons."]
* Shaun Phillips (born 1981), National Football League outside linebacker. [ [http://chargers.com/team/roster/shaun-phillips.htm Shaun Phillips player profile] , San Diego Chargers. Accessed July 20, 2007. "Shaun grew up in Willingboro, New Jersey, not far from Giants Stadium where the New York Jets play their home games....all-state, All-South Jersey and all-city at Willingboro High School in Willingboro, New Jersey"]

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are: [ [http://www.willingboroschools.org/schools/WHS/staff.htm Faculty and Staff] , Wilingboro High School. Accessed August 14, 2008.]
*Teresa-Anne Lucas, Principal
*Lori Binczewski, Assistant Principal
*Ellis Brown, Assistant Principal
*Nython Carter, Assistant Principal

References

External links

* [http://www.willingboroschools.org/schools/WHS/whs.htm Willingboro High School]
* [http://www.willingboroschools.org Willingboro Township Public Schools]
*NJReportCard|05|5805|0|Willingboro Township Public Schools
* [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3418000 Data for the Willingboro Township Public Schools] , National Center for Education Statistics