Pinelands Regional School District
Encyclopedia
- "Pinelands Regional" redirects here. For the high school located within the district, see Pinelands Regional High SchoolPinelands Regional High SchoolPinelands Regional High School is a three-year regional public high school that serves students from four communities in tenth through twelfth grade from Ocean County, New Jersey, operating as part of the Pinelands Regional School District, which serves students from Bass River Township,...
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Pinelands Regional School District is a regional school district in Ocean County
Ocean County, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 510,916 people, 200,402 households, and 137,876 families residing in the county. The population density was 803 people per square mile . There were 248,711 housing units at an average density of 151/km²...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, serving students from Bass River Township
Bass River Township, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 1,510 people, 548 households, and 409 families residing in the township. The population density was 19.9 people per square mile . There were 602 housing units at an average density of 7.9 per square mile...
, Eagleswood Township
Eagleswood Township, New Jersey
Eagleswood Township is a Township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the township population had increased to a record high of 1,603....
, Little Egg Harbor Township
Little Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey
Little Egg Harbor Township is a Township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population had increased to a record high of 20,065....
and Tuckerton Borough
Tuckerton, New Jersey
Tuckerton is a Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, named for founder Ebenezer Tucker , and was a port of entry, but not the third Port of Entry as commonly believed, in the United States As of the 2000 United States Census, the borough population was 3,517.Tuckerton was incorporated as a borough...
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As of the 2009-10 school year, the district's two schools had an enrollment of 1,848 students and 187 classroom teachers (on an FTE
Full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent , is a unit to measure employed persons or students in a way that makes them comparable although they may work or study a different number of hours per week. FTE is often used to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or to track cost reductions in an organization...
basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 9.88. Both schools are accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association dedicated to educational excellence and improvement through peer evaluation and accreditation...
and the New Jersey Department of Education
New Jersey Department of Education
The New Jersey Department of Education administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered in Trenton.The Department is responsible for ensuring that...
.
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education
New Jersey Department of Education
The New Jersey Department of Education administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered in Trenton.The Department is responsible for ensuring that...
as being in District Factor Group "B", the second lowest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.
In 7th grade, the students are divided into three "teams": The Green, White, and Gold. Each "team" has a certain circuit of teachers for that year, but then abandoned once 8th grade comes.
History
Pinelands Regional High School officially opened on September 5, 1979 as a Junior-Senior High School, originally housing grades 7-12 from Tuckerton, Little Egg Harbor, Bass River, and Eagleswood. Prior to the opening of the school, students from those towns attended Southern Regional School DistrictSouthern Regional School District
The Southern Regional School District is a regional public school district in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in grades 7–12...
in Manahawkin.
The building originally held grades 7-8 on the third floor, 9-10 on the second, and 11-12 on the first. The building featured an experimental "Open classroom
Open classroom
An open classroom is a student-centered classroom design format popular in the United States in the 1970s. In its most extreme form, entire schools were built without interior walls, which made teaching loud and disruptive in worst case scenarios - for most schools this has not been as big a...
" design, where a large group of students of varying skill levels would be in a single, large classroom with several teachers overseeing them; and contained no interior walls. However, this format didn't last long, and in the 1980's, the rooms were walled off, and separated by floor-to-ceiling folding partitions.
In 1991, Pinelands Middle School opened across the street for students in grades 7-8. Also in the 90s, a new building was completed next to the high school, which houses a daycare center called "Rainbow Express". Students taking Child Care classes go to class in this building to help with the daycare kids. In 2002, the Middle School was expanded and the 9th grade was moved there. When the expansion was completed at the Middle School, it was renamed "Pinelands Regional Junior High School" while the High School was renamed the "Senior High School", although this name is rarely used.
Most of the High School is centered around a "Commons" area, which is a two-story open court with skylights, benches, and planters. The commons is home to many of the school's events, such as the Junior Prom, Semi-formal, and Jazz & Java Art show. Most of the commons feeds into a 3-story mall-like hallway where most of the classrooms are off of. Most elective classes, such as Art rooms, Shop classes, Auto tech, etc. are located in the one-story "D-wing" away from the rest of the classrooms, surrounding the Auditorium. This wing also houses remedial and self-contained classes, causing the remedial students to be called "D-wingers". Some of these classes have since been moved to a new off-site building built near the Athletic fields that opened in 2009.
Most of the school, especially the Commons area, has remained unchanged since its 1979 opening. Elements from the decade, such as globe lighting, planters, and earth tones are present. Recent major improvements to the school include renovated science labs and locker rooms, expanded parking lot, permanent lighting for the football field, and repainting of the lockers, which were formerly painted in a 70s-esque repeating orange-yellow-red-brown pattern were painted a dark green.
In 2010, severe budget cuts resulted in the removal of several teachers and programs, including Freshmen sports and the 3-day Pinelands Experience, which was held annually at the school since the opening.
Schools
Schools in the district (with 2009-10 enrollment data from the National Center for Education StatisticsNational Center for Education Statistics
The National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States...
) are:
- Pinelands Regional Junior High School: 899 students in grades 7-9. Opened in September 1991.
- F. Eric Pschorr - Junior High School Principal
- James Garibaldi - Junior High School Assistant Principal
- Pinelands Regional High SchoolPinelands Regional High SchoolPinelands Regional High School is a three-year regional public high school that serves students from four communities in tenth through twelfth grade from Ocean County, New Jersey, operating as part of the Pinelands Regional School District, which serves students from Bass River Township,...
: 931 students in grades 10-12. Opened in September 1979.- Thomas Normile - High School Principal
- Alfonso Cirulli - High School Assistant Principal
Both schools are located directly across the street from each other near the Little Egg Harbor - Tuckerton border on Nugentown Road.
Board of education
The Board of Education is composed of nine citizens elected to serve terms of three years each. Representatives are elected on the basis of constituent population: six from Little Egg Harbor Township, and one each from Bass River Township, Eagleswood Township and from the Borough of Tuckerton.WCAT
WCAT is a Television station on local channel 21 for the area that the district serves. Most of the cast and crew is made up of students who take the class as an elective. The channel shows live morning announcements at 7:32am daily, followed by a commercial or short skit made by members of the WCAT class. Throughout the day, especially during lunch periods, other school programs or past school events are shown on the channel, usually shown on TVs in the cafeteria. Throughout the rest of the day, however, the channel is composed of school or community announcements typical of public-access televisionPublic-access television
Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...
cable TV networks.
Pinelands Experience
The Pinelands Experience was a 3-day program for 7th graders entering the district, usually held in mid-October. Student chaperones from 9th grade and up were also involved, to chaperone groups. It was formerly an overnight camping trip that lasted several days, but was eventually scaled down to in 2002 due in part to hazingHazing
Hazing is a term used to describe various ritual and other activities involving harassment, abuse or humiliation used as a way of initiating a person into a group....
performed by upperclassmen, as well as budget cuts.
The three "color teams" were divided into sub-groups, and do 3 activities:
- Bass River State Forest Trip
Students go to the BRSF to go canoeing, a treasure hunt, and a pond ecology lesson, where students go into a lake to catch fish and other organisms.
- Ropes Course
Students go to the ropes course at the High School, which includes a rock wall and a zip-line. Although the course itself isn't used in the Pinelands Experience (It is used by the High School students), students participate in many activities, including obstacle courses.
- Character Counts
The students stay at the Junior High, but learn a variety of lessons, including a geocaching
Geocaching
Geocaching is an outdoor sporting activity in which the participants use a Global Positioning System receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", anywhere in the world....
"treasure hunt", using a GPS.
In 2010, after severe budget cuts, the Pinelands Experience will not return for the 2010-2011 school year, with the 2009 event being the last year.
Paw Prints
There used to be painted-on Wildcat footprints on Nugentown Rd. leading into the driveways for both schools, and were paved over in mid-2006 but were re-painted around mid-summer 2007. A few years back, Weird NJWeird NJ
Weird NJ is the title of a semi-annual magazine and two paranormal travel guides that chronicle local legends, hauntings, ghost stories, folklore and anything considered "weird" in the U.S. state of New Jersey....
magazine printed an article featuring many photos of paw prints that closely resemble the Pinelands ones, painted in random places throughout New Jersey. That caused many to think that the other findings were connected to the school, but aren't.
Notable Alumni and Faculty
- Aronicimo RichottiAronicimo RichottiAronicimo Carl Richotti is an American boxer.-Early life:Born on January 9, 1979 in Rahway, New Jersey. Attended high school at Holy Spirit High School in Absecon, New Jersey and Pinelands Regional School District in Tuckerton, New Jersey. Attended college in Atlanta, Georgia...
(born 1979), heavyweight boxer. - Lemmie Eastburn - member of Discovery ChannelDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
TV series SwordsSwords (TV series)Swords: Life On the Line is a documentary television series produced by Original Productions for the Discovery Channel. The series documents the events aboard New England fishing boats fishing for Swordfish. See Longline fishing....
. - Lily McBethLily McBethLily B. McBeth is an American transgender teacher from Tuckerton, New Jersey. She was born William B. McBeth and as part of her transition underwent sex reassignment surgery in 2005. Her actions were hailed as a model of tolerance and acceptance of transgender Americans. She has three grown...
- former transgender substitute teacher at the school who made national news after she underwent a sex-change operation - Saraan Kraushaar - former vice-principal of the school, who was the mistress of murderer Robert O. MarshallRobert O. MarshallRobert O. Marshall is a former Toms River, New Jersey, businessman who in 1984 was charged with the contract killing of his wife, Maria....
, whose slayings inspired the bestselling book Blind FaithBlind Faith (book)Blind Faith is a bestselling 1989 true crime novel by Joe McGinniss, based on the 1984 case in which American businessman Robert O. Marshall was charged with the contract killing of his wife, Maria...
, and was later a film with the same name, in which a character based on Kraushaar and a fictional incarnation of the school is featured.
Administration
Core members of the district's administration are:- Dr. Daniel Loggi, Interim Superintendent
- Stephen Brennan, Business Administrator / Board Secretary
External links
- Pinelands Regional School District
- Data for the Pinelands Regional School District, National Center for Education StatisticsNational Center for Education StatisticsThe National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States...