Passaic High School

Infobox_School
name = Passaic High School


imagesize =
motto =
established =
grades = 9 - 12
district = Passaic City School District
type = Public high school
principal = Carlist Creech
enrollment = 2,818 (as of 2005-06)
faculty = 218.1 (on FTE basis)
ratio = 12.9
nickname = Indians
conference = Northern New Jersey Interscholastic League
colors =
publication =
location = 170 Paulison Avenue
Passaic, NJ 07055
information = 973-470-5600
website = [http://www.passaic-city.k12.nj.us/education/school/school.php?sectionid=31 School website]

Passaic High School is a four-year community public high school, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Passaic, in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States, as part of the Passaic City School District.

As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 2,818 students and 218.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 12.9. [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3412540&SchoolPageNum=2&ID=341254004836 Passaic High School] , National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed January 28, 2008.]

The school was the 312th-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 310th 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

Passaic High School's first graduating class, in 1873, was made up of eight students, who attended the Acquackanonk District School. The first Passaic High School was constructed in 1886-87 at the corner of Lafayette Avenue and Bloomfield Avenue (now Broadway). The district's second high school was built in 1910 across the street from the original building on Lafayette Avenue. The present high school on Paulison Avenue was completed in May 1957. [ [http://www.passaic-city.k12.nj.us/education/school/schoolhistory.php?sectiondetailid=397&sc_id=1166370991 Passaic City Schools: School - School History] , accessed December 17, 2006]

Athletics

The Passaic High School Indians compete in the Northern New Jersey Interscholastic League (NNJIL) which comprises public and private high schools located in Bergen County and Passaic County, New Jersey. The NNJIL is separated into three divisions, according to the classification they are given from the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, with Passaic High School playing in Division B.

Between 1915 and 1924, Ernest Blood coached Passaic High School to a remarkable 200-1 record. Passaic was unbeaten for more than five seasons, a feat which is considered to be the longest winning streak in amateur sports history, [ [http://www.hoophall.com/halloffamers/blood.htm Ernest Blood profile] , Basketball Hall of Fame. Accessed December 17, 2006.] challenged only by the 151-game winning streak of the De La Salle High School football team.

The boys basketball team won the 2001 North I, Group IV state sectional championship, edging Teaneck High School 64-62 in the tournament final. [ [http://www.bracketmaker.com/scripts-bracketmaker/tmenu.cfm?tid=3354&tclass=North%20I,%20Group%20IV 2001 - North I, Group IV] , NJSIAA. Accessed July 16, 2007.]

Extracurricular activities

Passaic High School hosts one of the largest Navy Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (NJROTC) programs in the country. In 2004 the unit was awarded the Navy's Unit Achievement award, in 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 school years the Distinguished Unit Award. Also in 2006 and 2007 the unit's Color Guard drill team won First Place at the National JROTC Championship in Daytona Beach, Florida. Also in 2007 at the National Drill Championship in Daytona Florida Senior Yasser Acosta earned a Fourth Place trophy for Platoon Armed. In 2008, the unarmed exhibition team under the command of Senior, Anthony Palma, came in a strong sixth place finish on a national level in Daytona Beach, Florida. This second only to Karla Ramos 4th place trophy earned in 2004.

In 2006, at the USSBA National Championships at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland, Passaic High School was recognized with the Best Percussion National Championship title and the Best Color Guard National Championship title in Class V. [ [http://www.marchingbandplanet.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=71&Itemid=32 USSBA National Championship Titles] , United States Scholastic Band Association (USSBA) press release dated November 14, 2006.]

Notable alumni

Notable alumni of Passaic High School include:
* Craig Heyward (1966-2006), a running back who was a Heisman Trophy candidate in 1987 and played for the New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, St. Louis Rams, and Indianapolis Colts in an 11-year National Football League career. [Idec, Keith. [http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk1NzEmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTY5NDU5MTEmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk5 "Heyward remembered fondly at memorial service"] , "Herald News", June 9, 2006. Accessed July 12, 2007. "Heyward played 11 NFL seasons for five franchises and was a Heisman Trophy candidate his junior season at Pitt. But it is what he did during his remarkable run at Passaic High School that they remember most fondly."]
* Dennis Johnson (born 1951), former NFL defensive tackle. [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=JOHNSDEN01 Dennis Johnson] , database Football. Accessed January 28, 2008.]
* Augie Lio (born 1918), football player, who was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979. [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=LIOAUG01 Augie Lio profile] database Football. Accessed August 7, 2007.]
* William J. Martini (born 1947), United States district court judge who represented New Jersey's 8th congressional district in Congress. [ [http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=M000207 William J. Martini biography] , United States Congress. Accessed July 13, 2007.]
* Bill Mokray (1907-1974), basketball historian and statistician enshrined to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1965 as a contributor to the sport. [ [http://www.hoophall.com/halloffamers/bhof-bill-mokray.html William G. "Bill" Mokray enshrined as a contributor in 1965] , Basketball Hall of Fame. Accessed July 13, 2007. "Mokray's romance started while a student at Passaic High School during the era of the 'Passaic High School Wonder Teams.'"]
* John Roosma (1900-1983), captain of Ernest Blood's "Wonder Teams" who became the first college player to total 1,000 points for his career while at the United States Military Academy. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9404E4DF1239F937A25752C1A965948260&scp=1&sq=%22John+Roosma%22 "Col. John Roosma Dead at 83; Basketball Star at West Point"] , "The New York Times", November 14, 1983. Accessed January 11, 2008.]
* Sonia Rosado, first Hispanic elected to the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders. [ [http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.passaiccountynj.org%2Ffreeholders%2FFreeholder_Bios%2Fsoniarosado.htm&ei=z_-XRraqCYbMebD0iacK&usg=AFQjCNGz5CAAvx6rDu1x0CU9ejksGojGbA&sig2=5D8MAcPaj8YzUgOfPhsQdA Sonia Rosado Freeholder profile] , Passaic County, New Jersey. Accessed July 13, 2007.]
* Víctor Santos (born 1976), starting pitcher who played most recently for the Cincinnati Reds. Santos played for the Detroit Tigers (2001), Colorado Rockies (2002), Texas Rangers (2003) and Milwaukee Brewers (2005). [ [http://milwaukee.brewers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mil/news/mil_news.jsp?ymd=20040804&content_id=819191&vkey=news_mil&fext=.jsp Santos makes most of opportunity: Non-roster invitee enjoying breakthrough season] , MLB.com, August 4, 2004. "One the pitches Santos offers, his fastball, was nowhere to be seen when he graduated from Passaic High School in New Jersey in 1995.]
* The Shirelles, the first major female vocal group of the rock and roll era and the first girl group to have a number one single on the Billboard Hot 100. [Beeson, Ed. [http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkzNTkmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTY2NTgzODUmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkz "The Shirelles set the standard for female pop singers"] , "Herald News", February 25, 2005. Accessed July 12, 2007. "The Shirelles got their start in Passaic's Speer Village public housing, where the four girls, all 16 and 17 at the time, would rehearse their vocals. They took their voices to a talent show at the then newly opened Passaic High School, where they attended."]
* Tyronne Stowe (born 1965), former NFL linebacker. [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=STOWETYR01 Tyronne Stowe Past Stats, Statistics, History, and Awards] , databaseFootball.com. Accessed February 19, 2008.]
* Jack Tatum (born 1948), former American football defensive back who played ten seasons from 1971 to 1980 for the Oakland Raiders and Houston Oilers in the National Football League. [ [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=TATUMJAC01 Jack Tatum player profile] , accessed December 17, 2006]

References

External links

* [http://www.passaic-city.k12.nj.us/education/school/school.php?sectionid=31 Passaic High School]
* [http://www.passaic-city.k12.nj.us/ Passaic City School District]
*NJReportCard|31|3970|0|Passaic City School District
* [http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3412540 Data for the Passaic City School District] , National Center for Education Statistics