West Morris Mendham High School

West Morris Mendham High School (also known as Mendham High School) is home of the Minutemen, and is a four-year comprehensive regional public high school that serves students in ninth though twelfth grades as part of the West Morris Regional High School District. Established in 1970, the school is located in the heart of Mendham Borough, New Jersey, United States.[3] Students hail from the surrounding Morris County school districts of Chester Borough, Chester Township, Mendham Borough and Mendham Township (including the areas of Brookside and Ralston).[4]

West Morris Mendham High School
Location
West Morris Mendham High School
West Morris Mendham High School
West Morris Mendham High School
65 East Main Street
Mendham, NJ 07945

United States
Coordinates40.7777°N 74.5913°W / 40.7777; -74.5913
Information
TypePublic high school
Established1970
School districtWest Morris Regional High School District
NCES School ID3417550[1]
PrincipalSteve Ryan
Asst. principalsJoseph Geddes
Anne P. Meagher
Faculty95.3 FTEs[1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,222 (as of 2018–19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio12.8:1[1]
Color(s)     Red
     White and
     Navy Blue[2]
Athletics conferenceNorthwest Jersey Athletic Conference
Team nameMinutemen[2]
RivalsWest Morris Central High School
Delbarton School
Chatham High School
WebsiteSchool website

As of the 2018–19 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,222 students and 95.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.8:1. There were 9 students (0.7% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 1 (0.1% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]

Its sister school, West Morris Central High School, is located in Washington Township. Students from Washington Township attend West Morris Central. The two schools maintain an athletic rivalry, which has survived decades of conference and schedule changes for all sports. Mount Olive High School was broken off from the original three-school district in 1977[5] and along with its sister school West Morris Central is one of two public high schools in New Jersey to offer both the IB Diploma and Career Programs.

Mendham was certified to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma in January 1998.[6] The school was one of only 16 schools in New Jersey to offer the IB program in 2007.[7]

Awards, recognition and rankings

In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 284th in the nation among participating public high schools and 22nd among schools in New Jersey.[8] In the 2011 "Ranking America's High Schools" issue by The Washington Post, the school was ranked 5th in New Jersey and 246th nationwide.[9] The school was ranked 562nd, the 13th-highest in New Jersey, in Newsweek magazine's 2010 rankings of America's Best High Schools, with 2.224 AP/IB tests taken per graduating senior.[10] The school was ranked 474th in Newsweek's 2009 ranking of the top 1,500 high schools in the United States and was the 11th-ranked school in New Jersey; The school was ranked 751st nationwide in 2008.[11] In Newsweek's 2007 ranking of the country's top 1,200 high schools, Mendham High School was listed in 390th place, the fourteenth-highest ranked school in New Jersey while Central was ranked 117th in the nation and 3rd in the state.[12] The school was listed in 148th place, the fifth highest ranked school in New Jersey, in Newsweek magazine's May 8, 2006, issue, listing the Top 1,200 High Schools in The United States.[13]

In New Jersey Monthly's September 2018 rankings, West Morris Mendham was ranked 7th public high school in New Jersey out of 339 schools statewide in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2014 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", using a new ranking methodology.[14] The school had been ranked 45th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 26th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.[15] The magazine ranked the school 38th in 2008 out of 316 schools.[16] The school was ranked 29th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which included 316 schools across the state.[17]

In 2017, the Washington Post ranked West Morris Mendham High School as the most challenging public, non-charter high school in New Jersey and ranked 217th in the nation. Schooldigger.com ranked the school 61st out of 409 public high schools statewide in its 2017 rankings (a decrease of 5 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (93.4%) and language arts literacy (98.3%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).[18] Newsweek named the school #180 overall among the nearly 30,000 public high schools in the U.S. in their rankings of "America's Top High Schools 2015" released in August 2015; The school was ranked 38th in New Jersey and 22nd among comprehensive schools in the state.[19]

Athletics

West Morris Mendham High School[2] offers over 30 athletic teams ranging in level from freshman to varsity, competing in the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC), following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.[20] With 1,029 students in grades 10–12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2015–16 school year as North II, Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 778 to 1,062 students in that grade range.[21] Prior to the NJSIAA's 2010 realignment, the school had competed as part of the Iron Hills Conference, which was made up of public and private high schools in Essex County, Morris County and Union County.[22]

Softball

The softball team won the Group III state championship in 1985, defeating Collingswood High School in the tournament final.[23]

Cross Country

The girls' cross country team won the Group III state championship in 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2015; the boys' cross country team won the Group III state title in 2011, 2017, 2018, and 2019.[24][25]

Boys soccer

The boys' soccer team won the North II Group III state sectional title in 1988, before losing to Steinert High School in the Group III state championship game. In 2015, the Minutemen defeated Toms River High School South by a score of 4-0 in the Group III title game, winning the first state championship in the program's history.[26][27]

Football

The football team under head coach Richard Attonito (1971–1988) won three Colonial Hills Conference titles (1975, 1982, 1983) and matriculated future NFL linebackers Jim Collins and Carl Zander. In 1975, the team won the NJSIAA North Jersey II Group I state sectional championship.[28]

Boys lacrosse

The varsity boys' lacrosse team was crowned sole state champions in 1994, winning the New Jersey Tournament of Champions against Ridgewood High School. The team won the Group II state championship in 2010 with a win against Princeton High School.[29]

Girls lacrosse

The girls' lacrosse team won the 2007 Group II state championship with a 17–4 win vs. Hopewell Valley Central High School.[30][31] The team won the 2008 Group II title, again defeating Hopewell Valley, this time by a score of 8-7 in the championship game.[32] In 2010, the team defeated Shawnee High School 12–6 to become the Group III state champions.[33][34]

Girls volleyball

The girls' volleyball team was runner-up in the state in 2007. In 2013, the team went on to win the Morris County Tournament, and in 2014, the team was the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference champions.[35]

Boys basketball

The team won the Group II state championship in 2000 (defeating Haddonfield Memorial High School in the final game of the tournament) and won the Group III title in 2010 (vs. Kingsway Regional High School.[36]

In 2010, the boys won the Group III state championship with a 44–41 victory over Kingsway Regional, but fell short to University High School in the quarterfinal round of the Tournament of Champions.[37][38]

The team won the 2011 final to give the program its ninth title in the 42-year history of the tournament, more than any other school.[39]

Jim Baglin coached the team from 1979 until 2016, accruing 685 victories and 9 Morris County Tournament titles. He was inducted into the NJSIAA Hall of Fame in 2017.

Ice Hockey

Mendham Ice Hockey won the Halvorsen Division title in 2009, 2013, and 2014.[40]

Girls basketball

The team won the Group II state championship in 1998 and 1999, defeating Sterling High School in the tournament final both years.[36]

In 1998, the girls' basketball team finished first in New Jersey with a perfect 32–0 record, winning the Tournament of Champions over previously undefeated Columbia High School by a score of 67–62, making Mendham the first public school to take the title since 1990.[41]

Girls soccer

The girls' soccer program won the Group II state championship in 1992 (defeating Cinnaminson High School in the tournament final), 1993 (vs. Moorestown High School), 1998 (as co-champions with Gloucester Catholic High School) and 1999 (vs. Delran High School).[42] The team has won the Iron Hills Conference Championship. In 2007, the girls' soccer team won the North II, Group III state sectional championship with a 2-0 win over Scotch Plains High School in the tournament final.[43]

Boys tennis

The boys' tennis team won the Group II state championship in 1981 (defeating Gateway Regional High School in the tournament final) and 1982 (vs. Hopewell Valley Central High School).[44]

Girls tennis

The team won the Group III state championship in 2004 (vs. Northern Highlands Regional High School) and 2012 (vs. Princeton High School).[45]

Fencing

Both the boys' and girls' fencing teams annually place at the top five in the state. In 2011, the girls finished second in the state, and the boys finished fourth. 2009 graduate Emilee Kovolisky placed 4th at the international fencing competition in Barcelona during the summer following her senior year. In 2012, the Mendham Boys won the state championship, defeating Columbia High School, which had won the state title the previous two years and had been riding a streak of 49 consecutive dual match victories.[46]

Field hockey

The field hockey team won the North II Group III state sectional championship in 1975 and the North II Group I title in 1993.[47]

Wrestling

The wrestling team won the North IV Group I state sectional championship in 2017, defeating rival school West Morris Central High School.[48]

Academics

The West Morris Regional High School District offers four different levels of classes.

Each of the four levels in classes differs in the level of rigor, with studies being the least rigorous and Honors/AP/IB being the most rigorous. Students and their parents are free to decide the level of the students classes.

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:[49]

  • Steve Ryan, Principal
  • Joseph Geddes, Assistant Principal
  • Anne P. Meagher, Assistant Principal

Notable alumni

References
  1. School data for West Morris Mendham High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 1, 2020.
  2. West Morris Mendham High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 30, 2015.
  3. "West Morris Mendham High School Enters its 43rd Year". TAPinto.net. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  4. West Morris Regional High School District 2015 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 4, 2016. "Established in 1958, the West Morris Regional High School District operates two schools, West Morris Central High School and West Morris Mendham High School. The regional district serves the students of five Morris County communities: Chester Borough, Chester Township, Mendham Borough, Mendham Township and Washington Township. Students from Washington Township attend West Morris Central High School, and students from the Chesters and the Mendhams attend West Morris Mendham High School."
  5. Staff. "Students learning, living with rebuilding process", Daily Record (Morristown), December 20, 2005, backed up by the Internet Archive as of March 29, 2017. Accessed November 9, 2018. "Mount Olive has remained largely untouched since its original construction and break from the West Morris Regional High School District in 1977."
  6. West Morris Mendham High School, International Baccalaureate Organization. Accessed May 24, 2007.
  7. Find an IB World School—results Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine, International Baccalaureate Organization. Accessed May 24, 2007.
  8. Streib, Lauren. "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast, May 6, 2013. Accessed May 8, 2013.
  9. Mathews, Jay. "The High School Challenge 2011: West Morris Mendham High School", The Washington Post. Accessed July 22, 2011.
  10. Staff. "America's Best High Schools: The List", Newsweek, June 13, 2010. Accessed March 26, 2011.
  11. Staff. "The Top of the Class: The complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools", Newsweek, June 8, 2009. Accessed June 10, 2009.
  12. "The Top of the Class: The complete list of the 1,200 top U.S. schools" Archived 2007-05-23 at the Wayback Machine, Newsweek, May 22, 2007. Accessed May 24, 2007.
  13. Top 1,200 High Schools in The United States, Newsweek, May 8, 2006.
  14. Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
  15. Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed August 28, 2012.
  16. Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed March 26, 2011.
  17. "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.
  18. New Jersey High School Rankings: 11th Grade HSPA Language Arts Literacy & HSPA Math 2010-2011, Schooldigger.com. Accessed February 26, 2012.
  19. "America's Top High Schools 2015", Newsweek. Accessed September 3, 2015.
  20. League & Conference Affiliations 2016-2017 Archived 2012-11-09 at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed January 10, 2017.
  21. General Public School Classifications 2015-2016, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, as of July 8, 2014. Accessed September 18, 2014.
  22. Home Page, Iron Hills Conference, backed up by the Internet Archive as of February 2, 2011. Accessed December 3, 2014.
  23. History of the NJSIAA Softball Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 27, 2017.
  24. State Group Team Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 27, 2017.
  25. "Jack Jennings, Mendham boys cross country triumph at Groups", Daily Record (Morristown), November 16, 2019. Accessed November 16, 2019. "Jennings was first, with teammates Ryan Kear sixth and Zach Hodges seventh as Mendham won Group III for the third year in a row, this time 48 to 69 over West Windsor North."
  26. Olivero, Antonio. "Boys Soccer: Mendham nabs 1st-ever Group 3 title with dominant 4-0 win over Toms River South", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, November 22, 2015. Accessed December 24, 2016. "Heading into Sunday's Group 3 state championship game, Mendham may not have been able to watch much film on South Jersey Group 3 champion Toms River South, but two elements of the Minutemen's pregame preparation helped to get the Morris County side plenty ready to put forth a resounding 4-0 80-minute championship effort."
  27. 2015 Soccer Championships Program, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, as of December 15, 2015. Accessed January 21, 2017.
  28. Goldberg, Jeff. NJSIAA Football Playoff Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 19, 2015.
  29. History of the NJSIAA Boys' Lacrosse Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed December 22, 2016.
  30. 2007 Girls Lacrosse - Group Finals, NJSIAA. Accessed June 5, 2007.
  31. O'Gorman, Joe. "Great season ends in a flash for Hopewell Valley", The Trentonian, June 2, 2007. Accessed December 21, 2016. "After spotting the Mercer County Tournament champs a one-goal lead early, West Morris Mendham scored nine straight and eased to a 17-4 win in the NJSIAA Group II final at Hunterdon Central's Stewart Field before plenty of Hopewell fans."
  32. Wilson, Dennis. "Mendham High Roundup — Minutewomen gain lacrosse NJSIAA Group II title", Observer-Tribune, June 4, 2008. Accessed December 21, 2016. "Mendham edged Hopewell Valley 8-7 on Friday on the campus of Robbinsville High School in Mercer County to claim the NJSIAA Group II girls' lacrosse championship banner."
  33. Moretti, Mike. "Mendham 12, Shawnee 6 (High school Girls Lacrosse scores and results)", The Star-Ledger, May 28, 2010, updated August 28, 2013. Accessed December 21, 2016. "Messinger led Mendham, No. 4 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, past No. 2 Shawnee, 12-6, in the NJSIAA/New Balance Group 3 championship game yesterday at Ridge High in Basking Ridge."
  34. History of the NJSIAA Girls' Lacrosse Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed December 21, 2016.
  35. "MGVB Home Page". www.hometeamsonline.com. Retrieved 2016-11-11.
  36. Public Past State Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 23, 2017.
  37. Kitchin, Mark. "Mendham boys win Group III state crown", Daily Record (Morristown), March 15, 2010. Accessed July 22, 2011. "Junior forward Tore Vicarisi scored 19 points and senior guard Caleb DeMoss added 13 to lift Mendham to a 44-41 victory over Kingsway Regional in the Group III final at the Louis Brown Athletic Center on the campus of Rutgers University on Sunday."
  38. Kitchin, Mark. "Boys Basketball: Mendham's run comes to an end", Daily Record (Morristown), March 17, 2010. Accessed July 22, 2011. "Derrick Hunter scored 13 points and Brandon Waiters added 11 for University (28–4) advances to play Trenton Catholic in the semifinal of the TOC on Friday at Rutgers University."
  39. Reilly, Sean. "Roxbury (27) at Mendham (34)", The Star-Ledger, February 26, 2011. Accessed July 22, 2011. "None of those contests, however, were quite like Mendham's game last night against Roxbury for the 42nd MCT title. Vicarisi scored 17 points when third-seeded Mendham defeated eighth-seeded Roxbury, 34-27, at County College of Morris in Randolph. It was the lowest-scoring final in the history of the tournament. Mendham won its fourth consecutive MCT. No other school has won more than two in a row. It was also its ninth overall, which moves coach Jim Baglin's program past Morristown for most all-time."
  40. "NJSIAA Ice Hockey State Championship History" (PDF). Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  41. Narducci, Marc. "Freshman Steals Show As Mendham Girls Win", The Philadelphia Inquirer, March 25, 1998. Accessed July 22, 2011. "West Morris Mendham's Kelley Suminski, who was dominating grade-school players a year ago, turned the Tournament of Champions girls' basketball final into her personal showcase last night. Suminski, a 5-foot-7 freshman, scored 29 points and was named the game MVP as fifth-seeded Mendham held off a furious rally to defeat top-seeded Columbia, 67-62, at Rutgers. Mendham, which beat Sterling by 58-40 for the Group 2 state championship, finished its season 32-0, while Group 4 champion Columbia ended 30-1. It was the first time in the tournament's 10 years that two teams entered a final undefeated.... Mendham became the first public school to win the girls' Tournament of Champions since 1990, when JFK-Paterson beat St. John Vianney, 70-47."
  42. 2015 Soccer Championships Program, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, as of December 15, 2015. Accessed January 19, 2017.
  43. 2007 Girls Soccer - North II, Group III, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 15, 2007.
  44. History of Boys Team Tennis Championship Tournament, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 27, 2017.
  45. History of Boys Team Tennis Championship Tournament, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 27, 2017.
  46. Dar, Erik. "Mendham stuns Columbia to win state team championship", The Star-Ledger, February 29, 2012. Accessed June 20, 2012. "Led by a 3-0 showings from Alex Andriatis and Adam Campos Mendham, No. 2 in The Star-Ledger Top 10, defeated top-ranked Columbia, 14-13, in the NJISSA/Bollinger Championships at Morris Hills in Rockaway."
  47. History of the NJSIAA Field Hockey Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 23, 2017.
  48. NJSIAA Wrestling Team Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed August 30, 2019.
  49. 2019-2020 School Profile West Morris Mendham High School. Accessed April 28, 2020.
  50. Pastime Club, Inc. - Athletes the Club Helped, accessed April 23, 2007. "Jim Collins attended Mendham High School 1972-1976, where he competed in Football and Baseball."
  51. New York Liberty Select Five In WNBA Draft, New York Liberty, April 25, 2003. Accessed June 5, 2007. "Creamer (21), a West Morris Mendham, New Jersey High School graduate, averaged 27.1 ppg and 4.3 rpg during her senior year at Bucknell University."
  52. Garber, Phil. "After A Break, Flame Still Burning Brightly For Mendham's Maggie Doyne", Observer-Tribune, September 6, 2013. Accessed December 1, 2013. "The innocent edge is gone from Maggie Doyne's face. No longer the 18-year-old Mendham High School graduate who set out to change the world, Doyne is a woman who has achieved more in eight years than most do in 88 years."
  53. Matt Flanagan, Pitt Panthers football. Accessed July 11, 2019. "Hometown: Chester, N.J. High School: West Morris Mendham"
  54. Ed McKirdy's Band-to-Band Profile. Accessed January 14, 2008.
  55. Daniel Tamburello, PollVault. Accessed September 18, 2014. "Education: West Morris Mendham High School (NJ), 2003 [sic]"
  56. Carl Zander player profile Archived 2007-04-11 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed April 23, 2007.
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