Washington Township High School
Encyclopedia
Washington Township High School, colloquially referred to as "Township," is a four-year public high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

 located in Washington Township
Washington Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey
Washington Township is a township in Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States. In the 2010 United States Census, Washington Township's population was 48,559, having grown from 47,114 in the 2000 Census....

, in Gloucester County
Gloucester County, New Jersey
Gloucester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 288,288. Its county seat is Woodbury....

, 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...

, United States, operating as part of the Washington Township Public School District
Washington Township Public School District
The Washington Township Public School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in kindergarten through twelfth grade from Washington Township, in Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States....

. It is the largest public high school in South Jersey
South Jersey
South Jersey comprises the southern portions of the U.S. state of New Jersey between the lower Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean. The designation is a colloquial one, reflecting not only geographical but perceived cultural differences from the northern part of the state, with no official...

. The school building itself is just over a quarter of a mile long. It is located at 509, 519, and 529 Hurffville-Cross Keys Road.

Washington Township High School is the home of the TD Bank Arts Centre, which is a 2,500-seat performing arts center
Performing arts center
Performing arts center, often abbreviated PAC, is used to refer to* A multi-use performance space that is intended for use by various types of the performing arts, including dance, music and theatre....

 located at the center of the school. Most of the school's concerts and events are held there, and many notables have performed in this center, including the Barenaked Ladies
Barenaked Ladies
Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian alternative rock band. The band is currently composed of Jim Creeggan, Kevin Hearn, Ed Robertson, and Tyler Stewart. Barenaked Ladies formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario, then a suburban municipality outside the City of Toronto...

, Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....

, Wayne Brady
Wayne Brady
Wayne Alphonso Brady is an actor, singer, comedian and television personality, known for his work as a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway?, and as the host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show...

, George Carlin
George Carlin
George Denis Patrick Carlin was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, actor and author, who won five Grammy Awards for his comedy albums....

, David Copperfield
David Copperfield (illusionist)
David Copperfield is an Emmy Award-winning American illusionist, and was described by Forbes as the most commercially successful magician in history. Copperfield's network specials have been nominated for 38 Emmy Awards and won a total of 21 Emmys...

, Bill Cosby
Bill Cosby
William Henry "Bill" Cosby, Jr. is an American comedian, actor, author, television producer, educator, musician and activist. A veteran stand-up performer, he got his start at various clubs, then landed a starring role in the 1960s action show, I Spy. He later starred in his own series, the...

, BB King, Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...

, Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...

, Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...

, Jessica Simpson
Jessica Simpson
Jessica Ann Simpson is an American recording artist, actress, television personality, and fashion designer whose rise to fame began in 1999. Since that time, Simpson has achieved many recording milestones, starred in several television shows, movies, and commercials, launched a line of hair and...

, Lewis Black
Lewis Black
Lewis Niles Black is an American stand-up comedian, author, playwright, social critic and actor. He is known for his comedy style, which often includes simulating a mental breakdown, or an increasingly angry rant, ridiculing history, politics, religion, trends and cultural phenomena...

, and "Weird Al" Yankovic
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...

.

As of the 2009-10 school year, the school had an enrollment of 2,775 students and 202 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 13.74.

The school was the 175th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 322 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly
New Jersey Monthly
New Jersey Monthly is a monthly glossy publication featuring issues of possible interest to residents of the United States state of New Jersey...

magazine's September 2010 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", after being ranked 149th in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 150th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state.

11-12 Wing

Construction on what is now the 11-12 wing of the high school began in 1962. WTHS opened in September 1963, serving grades 6-9 while parts of the building were still under construction. Each successive year, all of the grades incremented by 1 (1964 was 7-10, 1965 was 8-11 and 1966 was 9-12) In 1966 the first High School Class of WTHS graduated. In the early 1970s, the school became overcrowded (a problem that would plague the school on and off through 1998). In the fall of 1968, the 7th grade was sent to the new Birches Elementary School, occupying 1/2 of that facility. For the 1969/70 school year, the 7th grade returned to WTHS which operated an AM and PM session, staggered over 4 lunch periods. The 9th through 12th grades taking the morning session and the 7th and 8th grades, the afternoon. In the 1970-71 school year, the 7th and 8th grades were sent to Wedgewood Middle School and WTHS operated a traditional single session. Starting with the 1971-72 year, the school operated split sessions with grades 10-12 attending from 7:30 AM to noon and grades 7-9 attending 12:30 PM to 5:00 PM. As a result, a two-story addition was opened in September 1976, to the right side of the building, as well as an additional gym and a new library. The school continued to serve students in grade 7-12 until the 1979-1980 school year. As a result of this overcrowding and moving of grades, the Class of 1975 was the youngest class as 7th graders, then again the youngest class as 8th graders, then again the youngest class as 9th graders, and finally, with split sessions, the youngest class in their session, as 10th graders.

9-10 Wing

In the late 1970s, construction on what would be the township's first middle school began. In September 1980, WTMS opened, serving 7th and 8th graders. Because of its location right next to WTHS (at the time, what is now the location of the Core was just a parking lot), the two schools would often share facilities.

Despite a new rather large school to house 7th and 8th graders, and more room in the high school, the township was exploding in population at the time, and both WTHS and WTMS were overcrowded only a few years after the middle school opened. In the mid-1980s, planning for yet another new middle school was underway. This time, however, because WT's elementary schools also faced overcrowding, the school district went ahead and built two schools, which would enroll grades 6 through 8, thus relieving all the elementary schools in the district from 6th graders (they also were relieved of all kindergarteners, thanks to an addition at Grenloch Terrace Early Childhood Center). In fall of 1989, Chestnut Ridge Middle School
Chestnut Ridge Middle School
Chestnut Ridge Middle School is a school located in Washington Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey, in Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States. It is part of the Washington Township Public School District. The school opened in 1989. The principal is James Barns.The school's mascot is a...

 and Orchard Valley Middle School opened for grades 6-8. The former WTMS became part of the high school complex, renamed as the 9/10 Building (as it served mostly students in 9th and 10th grade), while the original HS was also renamed as the 11/12 Building.

The transition wasn't smooth, however. Both CRMS and OVMS weren't finished in time for the new school year. As a result, the newly formed WTHS complex started its first month with split sessions. High school students would have class starting early in the day, while all middle school students would have class in the late afternoon/early evening. During this time period, the high school students also had to share their lockers with the temp middle school students.

Core Building

Washington Township's population continued to grow, and before the district knew it, they needed to expand the high school yet again. Under a $50 million district wide improvement program , a third building was to be built on the site between the 11/12 and 9/10 buildings. The Core building would physically connect the two existing buildings and would include a 2500-seat auditorium (formerly known as Commerce Bank Arts Centre
Commerce Bank Arts Centre
The TD Bank Arts Centre is a 2,500-seat theatre located in Washington Township, in Gloucester County, New Jersey that is one of South Jersey's major entertainment venues....

, now known as the TD Bank Arts Centre), administrative and guidance offices, a new Media Center (library), new cafeteria (for 9-10 wing students) and more classrooms.
Construction on the core building began in the summer of 1996. Parts of the building opened in 1998, and some classes were moved immediately from both the 11/12 and 9/10 buildings.

The new WTHS

The entire building was completed before the 1998-1999 school year. WTHS was now one building for the first time since the 1988-1989 school year. The three parts of the building were renamed the 11/12 wing, core, and 9/10 wing, and hallways were renamed to integrate the building. Since the new building featured a new library, a united guidance office, and cafeteria for the 9/10 wing, the old libraries and guidance offices in each of the wings as well as the old 9/10 cafeteria were able to be renovated for other uses.

Athletics

The Washington Township High School Minutemen/Minutemaids compete in the Olympic Conference
Olympic Conference
The Olympic Conference is an athletic conference consisting of public and private high schools located in Burlington County, Camden County and Gloucester County, New Jersey. The Olympic Conference operates under the aegis of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.-Participating...

, which consists of nineteen public and private high schools
Secondary education in the United States
In most jurisdictions, secondary education in the United States refers to the last six or seven years of statutory formal education. Secondary education is generally split between junior high school or middle school, usually beginning with sixth or seventh grade , and high school, beginning with...

 located in Burlington County
Burlington County, New Jersey
There were 154,371 households out of which 34.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.70% were married couples living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.70% were non-families. 22.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.50% had...

, Camden County
Camden County, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the 2010 Census the population of Camden County was 60.28% Non-Hispanic white, 18.45% Non-Hispanic black, 1.12% Hispanic blacks, 0.17% Non-Hispanic Native American, 0.15% Hispanic Native Americans, 5.07% Non-Hispanic Asian, and 0.14% non-Hispanics reporting some other race...

, and Gloucester County
Gloucester County, New Jersey
Gloucester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 288,288. Its county seat is Woodbury....

, 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...

. The Olympic Conference operates under the aegis of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association
New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association
The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association is an association of hundreds of New Jersey high schools that regulates high school athletics and holds tournaments and crowns champions in high school sports.-State championships:...

.
  • The boys cross country team captured the program's first ever South Jersey Group IV Sectional crown in the fall of 2005.
  • The boys baseball team won the 2007 NJSIAA Group IV Baseball State Championship, defeating Steinert High School
    Steinert High School
    Steinert High School is a four- year comprehensive public high school, one of three secondary high schools that are part of the Hamilton Township School District, located in Hamilton Township in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States...

     9-3 in the semifinals and Randolph High School
    Randolph High School (New Jersey)
    Randolph High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students in grades nine through twelve from Randolph, in Morris County, New Jersey, operating as part of the Randolph Township Schools. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and...

     15-7 in the group final.
  • In 2007, the boys soccer team won the South Jersey Group IV state sectional championship with a 1-0 win over Lenape High School
    Lenape High School
    Lenape High School is a four-year regional public high school located in Medford Township in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. It is the oldest of the four high schools that comprise the Lenape Regional High School District, which serves students from Evesham Township, Medford Lakes,...

     in the tournament final.
  • Their non-sanctioned ice hockey team are back-to-back champions of the South Jersey High School Ice Hockey League.
  • 07-08 Boys Track Team had the nation's top time in the 4x800 with a time of 8:06.95.
  • The 08-09 Boy's Indoor Track team won the New Jersey State Relay Championship.
  • The 08-09 Boy's Outdoor Track Team won the large high school division in the 4x800 at the Penn Relays
    Penn Relays
    The Penn Relays is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...

    .
  • The 08-09 Girls Varsity Lacrosse team won the South Jersey Group IV championship, beating division rivals Cherokee High School
    Cherokee High School
    Cherokee High School may refer to one of several high schools in the United States:*Cherokee High School *Cherokee High School *Cherokee High School *Cherokee High School...

     10-9 in the section final to take the program's first state sectional.
  • The 10-11 Girls Varsity Lacrosse went undefeated (8-0) as the Olympic Conference Champions and won the South Jersey Group IV Championships, beating Lenape High School, another division rival, by a score of 14-7 in the sectional final.

Extracurricular activities

Washington Township is home to the NJ 932nd Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps.

Music program

The Washington Township High School Orchestra is under the direction of Judy Barnett. On April 22, 2011, the Orchestra participated and played at Carnegie Hall in the National Invitational Band and Orchestra Festival.

The Washington Township High School Minutemen Marching Band is a regionally and nationally recognized band. Under the direction of James Beyer, the band grew to over 225 members in 1997, the same year they achieved a 94.40 at the ACC Championships, a school record that still stands today. Later that season they participated in the 1998 Tournament of Roses Parade
Tournament of Roses Parade
The Tournament of Roses Parade, better known as the Rose Parade, is "America's New Year Celebration", a festival of flower-covered floats, marching bands, equestrians and a college football game on New Year's Day , produced by the non-profit Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association.The annual...

 in Pasadena, California
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...

 and became the first band to be decorated in 5,000 live flowers and seeds, creating the first ever “Marching Musical Float”. Designed by Todd Marcocci, this unique concept and design approach received tremendous support from all major media around the world. The band has also participated in the 1995 and 1997 Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade, the 2004 Gator Bowl
Gator Bowl
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Held continuously since 1946, it is the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised nationally...

 in Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...

, the 2005 Holiday Bowl
Holiday Bowl
The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I-A college football bowl game that has been played annually at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, since 1978. Beginning with the 2010 playing the bowl will officially be known as the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl after...

 in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...

 and the 2008 Outback Bowl
Outback Bowl
The Outback Bowl is an annual New Year's Day college football bowl game played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The event was originally called the Hall of Fame Bowl from 1986 to 1994 until being renamed in 1995 for its new title sponsor, Outback Steakhouse...

 in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....

. Since its inception in 1973, the band has placed in the top 10 at the Tournament of Bands
Tournament of Bands
The Tournament of Bands is one of the largest competitive band organizations in the United States and is one of several major circuits in the mid-Atlantic states . TOB was founded in 1972 by the National Judges Association and currently has 439 member bands...

 (TOB) Atlantic Coast Championships 16 times, and was Chapter One Champions for 16 straight years from 1985 to 2000, winning the Group 3 title from 1985 to 1987 and the Group 4 titles the subsequent 13 years.

In recent years the band has undergone many changes, including becoming a separate ensemble (no longer a required part of the concert band program) and a director change in 2003. In 2004, the Minutemen band became the first South Jersey band to compete in a Bands of America
Bands of America
Bands of America , a division of Music for All, Inc., is an organization that promotes and organizes marching band competitions for high school students. Competitions include both Regional and Super Regional Championships as well as the Grand National Championships...

 (BOA) Regional at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...

, part of the nation's top marching circuit. The band competes in class IV-A of the United States Scholastic Band Association
United States Scholastic Band Association
The United States Scholastic Band Association was formed in the Fall of 1988 to provide high school band programs with a competitive circuit featuring top judges from across the continent and a venue for the US Scholastic Band Championship....

 (USSBA) and was host to the 2007 USSBA New Jersey State Championships for Open class bands and the 2008 USSBA New Jersey State Championships for A class bands and will also be the host again in 2009. The current director is Casey Corigliano.

The 2009-10 school year was a historic one for the Minutemen band as they were named the 2009 USSBA Northern States Group 3A Champion. This was the band's first championship of any kind since the 16 year Chapter Championship streak was broken in 2001. The band was also named the 2010 Cotton Bowl Music Festival Grand Champion while participating in the Cotton Bowl Classic festivities in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...

. By being named grand champion, the band had the honor of playing their show "Journey of Man" during pre-game in front of 78,000 fans. The WTHS Drumline also received first place and won the honor to play their cadence to bring all of the bands onto the field for the mass half time show at the 2010 Cotton Bowl.

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:
  • Joseph Bollendorf, Executive Principal
  • Ann Moore, Executive Assistant Principal 9-10 Wing
  • Theresa Pietrowski, Executive Assistant Principal 11-12 Wing

Notable alumni

  • King Kong Bundy
    King Kong Bundy
    Christopher Alan "Chris" Pallies is an American professional wrestler, stand-up comedian and actor, better known by his ring name, King Kong Bundy.-Personal:...

     (born 1957), former WWF wrestler.
  • Ryan D'Imperio
    Ryan D'Imperio
    Ryan D'Imperio is an American football fullback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League. . D'Imperio was selected by the Vikings with the 237th overall pick in the seventh round of the 2010 NFL Draft...

     (born 1987), fullback drafted by the Minnesota Vikings
    Minnesota Vikings
    The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...

    .
  • Linda Fiorentino
    Linda Fiorentino
    Linda Fiorentino is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in the films Dogma, Vision Quest, Men in Black, After Hours and The Last Seduction.-Personal life:...

     (born 1958), actress, from Dogma
    Dogma (film)
    Dogma is a 1999 American adventure fantasy comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, who also stars in the film along with an ensemble cast that includes Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Linda Fiorentino, Alan Rickman, Bud Cort, Salma Hayek, Chris Rock, Jason Lee, George Carlin, Janeane Garofalo,...

    , Men in Black
    Men in Black (film)
    Men in Black is a 1997 science fiction comedy film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, starring Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith and Vincent D'Onofrio. The film was based on the Men in Black comic book series by Lowell Cunningham, originally published by Marvel Comics. The film featured the creature effects...

    , The Last Seduction
    The Last Seduction
    The Last Seduction is a neo-noir 1994 film directed by John Dahl.The movie features Linda Fiorentino as the femme fatale, Peter Berg as a small town man whose one night affair turns into more than he wanted, and Bill Pullman as Fiorentino's husband who is chasing her and running from loan sharks at...

    .

External links

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