Palmyra High School (New Jersey)

Infobox_School
name = Palmyra High School


imagesize =
motto =
established = 1895
grades = 9 - 12
district = Palmyra Public Schools
type = Public high school
principal = Christine Vespe
viceprincipal = Mark Pease
enrollment = 600 (as of 2005-06)
faculty = 45.2 (on FTE basis)
ratio = 13.3
nickname = Panthers
conference = Burlington County Scholastic League
colors = Red and white
publication =
location = 311 West 5th Street
Palmyra, NJ 08065
information = 856-786-9400
website = [http://www.palmyra.k12.nj.us/highs.html School website]

Palmyra High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Palmyra in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, as part of the Palmyra Public Schools. High school classes began shortly after the completion of the Spring Garden Street School in 1895; this building is on the National Register of Historic Places. [Cooper, et al, "Life on the Delaware - A History of Palmyra, New Jersey" 1976.] With increased enrollment, the school was moved to a former girls school, Berkeley Hall, in 1907, and to its own building in 1909. A large addition was completed in 1922. The 1909 structure was destroyed by fire in 1957, and after a vote that narrowly defeated establishing a regional high school, additions were made to the building in 1958 and 1961.

Students from Beverly and Riverton attend the district's high school as part of sending/receiving relationships. [ [http://www.burlco.lib.nj.us/test/new/schools/hsdistricts.shtml High School Sending Districts] , Burlington County Library System. Accessed January 24, 2008.] In past years, students from Cinnaminson, Delran, Riverside, Delanco, and the Delair portion of Pennsauken had also attended Palmyra High School [Cooper, et al, "Life on the Delaware - A History of Palmyra, New Jersey" 1976.]

As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 600 students and 45.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 13.3. [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3412390&ID=341239001188 Palmyra High School] , National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed January 24, 2008.]

The school was the 224th-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 275th 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.]

Athletics

Palmyra High School competes in the Freedom division of the Burlington County Scholastic League (BCSL), a sports association operating 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 school mascot is currently the "Panther," but from the time of the school's inception through the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, the school's team name was the Pals. The school colors have remained the same: red and white.

Students competed in track and field as early as 1903, and in football by 1908. The Palmyra/Burlington City High School football rivalry, begun in 1908, is one of the oldest in South Jersey. [Cooper, et al, "Life on the Deleware - A History of Palmyra, New Jersey" 1976.]

The girls basketball team won the South Jersey, Group I state sectional championship with a 46-37 win over Wildwood High School in the tournament final. [ [http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=202578&tclass=South%2C%20Group%20I 2007 Girls Basketball - South, Group I] , NJSIAA. Accessed July 18, 2007.] The team won their semifinal game in the Group I State Championship tournament, defeating Highland Park High School 49-43, before falling to University High School in the championship game. [ [http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=202578&tclass=Public%20Group%20Semis%2FFinals 2007 Girls Basketball - Public Group Semis/Finals] , NJSIAA. Accessed July 18, 2007.]

The 2006 girls soccer team won the South Jersey, Group I state sectional title with a 1-0 win against Woodstown High School in the tournament final, the team's first-ever title. [Rimback, Tom. [http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_docid=116E313180573050&p_docnum=7&p_queryname=NaN&p_product=NewsBank&p_theme=aggregated4&p_nbid=N57V4CFDMTE4NTg0NzQ0OS4yODY4NjU6MTo3OnJhLTE4ODg "4 county teams earn S.J. soccer titles Shawnee executes perfectly; Palmyra captures first crown"] , "Burlington County Times", November 11, 2006. Accessed August 18, 2007. "Chelsea Grace took a pass from Rachel Minton and scored from 25-yard out to give the Palmyra Panthers all the offense they would need to secure their first South Jersey Group 1 girls soccer crown. Palmyra (14-4-3 record) went on to beat Woodstown."] [ [http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=186262&tclass=South%2C%20Group%20I 2006 Girls Soccer Tournament - South, Group I] , NJSIAA. Accessed August 18, 2007.]

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are: [ [http://www.palmyra.k12.nj.us/highs.html Home page] , Palmyra High School. Accessed August 13, 2008.]
*Christine Vespe - Principal
*Mark Pease- Vice Principal

Notable alumni

* Deron Cherry (born 1959), Class of 1977, played in the NFL for the Kansas City Chiefs 1981-1991. Six time Pro Bowler at Safety. [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=CHERRDER01 Deron Cherry] , Database Football. Accessed January 24, 2008.] Was named to the 1980s All-Decade team.Fact|date=January 2008
* Derek Holloway (born 1961), Class of 1979, retired football player, who was a wide receiver in the NFL for the Washington Redskins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=HOLLODER01 Derek Holloway profile] , database Football. Accessed August 6, 2007.]

References

External links

* [http://www.palmyra.k12.nj.us/highs.html Palmyra High School]
* [http://www.palmyra.k12.nj.us/index.html Palmyra Public Schools]
* [http://www.sjsports.com/highschool/palmyra/ South Jersey Sports: Palmyra HS]
*NJReportCard|05|3920|0|Palmyra Public Schools
* [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3412390 Data for the Palmyra Public Schools] , National Center for Education Statistics
* [http://www.PalmyraAlumni.net Online Alumni Community]