Weehawken High School


Weehawken High School is a six-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in seventh through twelfth grade from Weehawken, in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Weehawken School District. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1928.
As of the 2018–19 school year, the school had an enrollment of 569 students and 44.5 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 12.8:1. There were 170 students eligible for free lunch and 27 eligible for reduced-cost lunch.

History

The campus, located across the Hudson River from New York City, just west of Boulevard East atop the New Jersey Palisades, consists of a three-story brick structure located in a residential area completed in 1940. The building includes three computer labs; a science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics lab; an ITV room, a modern library/media center, science labs, an auditorium that can accommodate 800, and a newly renovated gymnasium with a seating capacity of 1,200. The facility has been used by Hudson Theatre Works, a non-profit regional performance group based in Weehawken.

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 189th-ranked 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. The school had been ranked 91st in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 104th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. The magazine ranked the school 119th in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 109th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state. SchoolDigger.com ranked the school 170th out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics and language arts literacy components of the High School Proficiency Assessment.

Curriculum

Students are offered Advanced Placement classes in many subjects, including AP United States History, AP Statistics, AP Calculus AB, AP Macroeconomics, and AP Spanish Language. College preparatory classes throughout high school, as well as electives offered in conjunction with St. Peter's College in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Weehawken allows Juniors to take a free Princeton Review SAT prep class either Monday or Wednesday afternoons.

Extracurricular activities

Marching band

In 2012 and 2013, the Weehawken High School Marching Band, under the direction of Michael Lichtenfeld and his band staff, ranked first in the state of New Jersey winning the USBands Group 1A state championship title.. In November 2013, the band won the USBands Group 1A National Championship title.
In 2015, under the direction of band director Natalie Kerr and the band staff, the band won the USBands Group 1 Open Class New Jersey State Championships. Also under Band Director Natalie Kerr, the Weehawken marching band competed in Tournament of Bands Group 1A in 2016, going undefeated and winning the NYC Metro Regional Championships as well as defeating 25 other bands for the ACC Group 1A championships. The band's score was above 95, and helped promote them to Open Class for the 2017 season.
Returning to USBands competition for the 2017 season, the band completed an undefeated competitive season under the direction of Minesh Shah, including capturing the USBands Group 1A State Championship and Group 1A National Championships. The following season, now under the direction of Ryan Gorman, the band won another Group 1A State Championship and finished 3rd at National Championships, winning the caption award for Best Music. In 2019, the band membership increased to approximately 50 performers, and the band moved up to the USBands Group 2A class. The band won their 3rd consecutive NJ State Championship in October of 2019, their first as part of Group 2A.

Athletics

The Weehawken High School Indians compete in the North Jersey Interscholastic Conference, which includes private and public high schools located in Bergen County, Passaic County and Hudson County, operating under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. With 245 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2015-16 school year as North II, Group I for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 73 to 487 students in that grade range. Prior to realignment that took effect in the fall of 2010, Weehawken was a member of the Bergen County Scholastic League National Division.
Interscholastic sports teams offered at the school include:
The boys' basketball team won the Group III state championship in 1933 and 1938, and won the Group II title in 1942, 1943, 1946, 1953, 1954 and 1955. The eight group championships won by the program is tied for seventh-most among all schools in the state and the third-most among public schools.
The boys' soccer team was awarded the Group II state championship in 1951 and 1952.
In 2020 the name of the teams and their mascot came under question.

Clubs

Extracurricular clubs offered include:
Core members of the school's administration are:
Notable alumni include those inducted into the school's hall of fame.