John F. Kennedy Educational Complex (or John F. Kennedy High School) is a four-year publichigh school in Paterson, United States, that serves the western section of Paterson. Kennedy High School, which serves students in ninth through twelfth grade, is a part of the Paterson Public Schools. 93% of the students are of minority races, and a majority of them speak either a non-English language at home or are very limited in English. The school uses the Infinite Campus school management system for tasks such as student attendance and grading, and full online grade access is available online.
In 2011, the school was split into theme schools, with four smaller academies operating within the high school, in order to give students a choice in areas they wanted to pursue.[3] These schools are:
The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1928.[4] It has suffered low rankings when it comes to official lists of top public schools in New Jersey, as well as accusations of violence and poor conduct by the school's instructors and the Paterson Education Association.
As of the 2022–23 school year, the school had an enrollment of 2,053 students and 141.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.6:1. There were 1,035 students (50.4% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 25 (1.2% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]
History
The school was constructed at a cost of $7 million (equivalent to $65 million in 2022) and named in memory of President John F. Kennedy. The school opened with an enrollment of 2,800 and could accommodate up to 3,500 students.[5]
Demographics and achievement
Kennedy High School is 54% Hispanic of various Latin American nationalities, 34% Black, 7% White American, and 5% Asian. 35% of the school speaks Spanish in their homes, 3% speak Bengali, 2% speak Arabic, 2% speak Turkish, 0.2% speak Italian and 0.1% speak Albanian. There are also limited English proficient students or LEPs who compose 11% of the school. Limited English Proficient students cannot speak, read, or write in English. 50% of the students participate in the free or reduced price lunch program.[6] The average class size is 25 students, excluding special education. The school's ratio of computers to students is 7 to 1 while the state average is 4 to 1.
Based on data from the 2010 New Jersey School Report Card, on the Language Arts section of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA), 2010 graduates scored 43.3% proficient and 55.6% scored partial. On the Math section of the test, 28.5% scored proficient and 69.4% scored partial. The average SAT score is 1139 out of 2400. The Advanced Placement (AP) participation rate is 4.6%. The average attendance rate is 87.2%. As of the 2010 school year, Kennedy High School had a suspension rate of 47%. 71.1% of John F. Kennedy High School seniors graduated. Roughly 20.0% of the graduating seniors planned to go on to four-year colleges and another 49.3% of the graduating seniors go on to two year colleges.[7]
The student to faculty ratio is 7.3 to 1. The faculty gets paid $56,733 a year while the state average is $61,840. The administrators get paid $108,105 as the state average is $117,895.[7]
The school is in a "special needs" or one of the Abbott Districts.[8] The district receives 82% of its budget from the state and spends an average of $16,575 per pupil.[7]
The school is home to the JFK Robotics/College Prep Team. To join, one must have a GPA of 3.5; have a desire to go to college, be motivated and most of all respectful to teachers and fellow students, though less than 1% make it into the team. The sole purpose of the program designed by teachers and staff is to get every child to college. While its membership is limited to only high achievers in terms of grades and merit, the team recruits from every academy in the school. Numbering around 25 students the team is filled with children that are given extra educational work and enrichment programs to boost their chances in getting into college, with the opportunity to participate in Upward Bound programs, to college credit classes at Passaic County Community College.
Athletics
The John F. Kennedy High School Knights[2] compete in the Big North Conference, which is comprised of public and private high schools in Bergen and Passaic counties, and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.[9] For the 2009–10 season, the school competed in the North Jersey Tri-County Conference, an interim conference established to facilitate realignment.[10] Prior to that, the school had previously participated in Division C of the Northern New Jersey Interscholastic League (NNJIL), an athletic conference consisting of public and private high schools located in Bergen County and Passaic County.[11] With 2,478 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group IV for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 1,060 to 5,049 students in that grade range.[12] The football team competes in the Liberty Blue division of the North Jersey Super Football Conference, which includes 112 schools competing in 20 divisions, making it the nation's biggest football-only high school sports league.[13][14] The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group V North for football for 2022–2024, which included schools with 1,313 to 5,304 students.[15]
The football team won the North I Group IV state sectional championships in 1987 with a 13–7 win against Bayonne High School, finishing the season undefeated for the first time.[16][17] Kennedy plays an annual Thanksgiving Day football game against Eastside High School. The days leading up to the game are filled with school spirit as the Knights and Ghosts prepare to face off. Not only do the football players practice, but so do the band, cheerleaders, and color guard of both schools. In 2011, Eastside won the 87th annual match-up between the two schools by a score of 17–12.[18]NJ.com listed the rivalry at 21st on its 2017 list "Ranking the 31 fiercest rivalries in N.J. HS football", with Kennedy leading the series by a 43-42-7 margin.[19]
The girls' basketball team won the Group IV state championship in 1988 (defeating Neptune High School in the tournament final) and 1990 (vs. Toms River East High School).[20] The 1988 team became the first girls team from the county to win a state title and finished the season with a 31-0 record after winning the Group IV championship game by a score of 65-55 against a Neptune team that came into the finals without a loss.[21] The 1990 team won the Group IV title with an 80-49 win against Toms River East in the championship game[22] and advanced to the second annual Tournament of Champions as the top seed, defeated fourth-seed Sterling High School by 75-49 in the semis and went on to win the championship with a 70-47 win against second-seeded and previously unbeaten St. John Vianney High School in the finals at the Rutgers Athletic Center to finish the season with a record of 31-2.[23][24] The team won the 2001 North I, Group IV state sectional championship with a 61–50 win over Bayonne High School in the tournament final.[25]
The boys soccer team won the 1996 North I, Group IV state sectional championship against Wayne Hills High School 4–5 on penalties and won the league and county titles in 1997.[citation needed]
The academy programs offered (with their administration listed) are:[28]
School of Architecture and Construction Trades (ACT):[29] Dewitt Evering (Principal), Kenrick Ramdath (Supervisor), Renee McMillan (Vice Principal)
School of Business, Technology, Marketing & Finance (BTMF):[30] Pamela Powell (Principal), Judith Rhodes (Supervisor), Jorge Osorio (Vice Principal)
School of Education and Training (SET): Nicolette Thompson (Principal), Dr. Chanie Peterson (Vice Principal)
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): Dr. Dante Petretti (Principal), Benjamin Suro (Vice Principal)
Criticisms
In 2014, The Record writer Hannan Adely wrote that, since John F. Kennedy High School is an inner city school, it has faced problems of violence and other unmonitored hallway misbehavior from students.[31] Accusations about mayhem at the school have come from not only its teachers and students but also representatives at the Paterson Education Association, including its former president, Peter Tirri,[31][32]
On February 14, 2008, John F. Kennedy instructors and the Paterson Education Association filed a complaint against the school to the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development's Office of Public Employee Safety, citing lack of discipline on students using vulgar language towards personnel, physically assaulting teachers, urinating in non-bathroom areas, and protesting the school's schedules by pulling fire alarms.[32] In 2014, Ted McNulty, a former metal shop teacher who retired from the school in July 2014, has expressed his testimonies through interviews by sources such as the talk show Chasing News and education reform news service Choice Media;[33] and a book he wrote and self-published on January 11, 2017 titled RUINING a NATION and Nobody Cares.[34] Superintendent officials have denied McNulty's claims.[33]
The school has been in the very bottom of lists ranking New Jersey's top public schools. In New Jersey Monthly magazine's yearly lists of the state's "Top Public High Schools," the school has been ranked 304th out of 328 schools in 2012,[35] 290th out of 322 schools in 2010,[35] 314th out of 316 schools in 2008,[36] and 306th out of 316 schools in 2006.[37] Schooldigger.com ranked the school 375th out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2010-11 rankings which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the language arts literacy and mathematics components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).[38]
^Brody, Leslie. "Paterson to split JFK high school into four academies", The Record, March 7, 2011. Accessed November 14, 2011. "Paterson school officials will split the troubled John F. Kennedy High School into four smaller academies so that starting next fall, all public high school students in the city will be enrolled in a 'choice' magnet school."
^Sotnick, Bart. "Called Paterson Milestone; 1,000 See Kennedy High Dedicated", The Morning Call, June 2, 1965. Accessed April 7, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "The immense John F. Kennedy High School was dedicated yesterday at ceremonies attended by an estimated 1,000 persons. The $7-million school, at Totowa and Preakness Avenues in Westside Park, was called a milestone in the City's history.... Graves noted the school will open with 2,800 students in the fall, and has a capacity of 3,500 students without expansion."
^Harvin, Al. "School Sports; Adams Captures Title, 20-17", The New York Times, December 6, 1987. Accessed August 28, 2019. "Paterson Kennedy High School defeated Bayonne yesterday in the North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 final at Hinchliffe Stadium in Paterson, N.J. The victory gave the school, which was once called Paterson Central, the first sectional football championship in its 63-year history. It also ended the school's first undefeated season. Paterson Kennedy's record was 10-0-1."
^Staff. "Paterson Kennedy (12) at Paterson Eastside (17) - Football", The Star-Ledger, November 24, 2011. Accessed January 2, 2012. "Cequan Wharton and Jaron Addison each scored first-half touchdowns for Paterson Eastside, which held off a late rally to defeat Paterson Kennedy, 17-12, yesterday in Paterson. The Eastside victory evened the Thanksgiving series at 40-40-7."
^Stypulkoski, Matt. "Ranking the 31 fiercest rivalries in N.J. HS football", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, October 27, 2017, updated May 15, 2019. Accessed December 1, 2020. "21-Paterson Eastside vs. Paterson Kennedy Kennedy have played 92 times as part of a Thanksgiving Day tradition since 1925 in Silk City, with Kennedy holding the narrowest of edges, leading the all-time series, 43-42-7."
^Kurland, Bob. "Kennedy win stars Johnson", The Record, March 13, 1988. Accessed March 19, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "La-Tonya Johnson and her Kennedy teammates wrapped up a dream season Saturday night by whipping previously unbeaten Neptune, 65-55, to win the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Group 4 girls basketball championship. 'This was a team of destiny,' Lou Bonora said. And who could argue with the coach whose 31-0 team became the first Passaic County representative to win a state basketball title since 1946 and the first girls team."
^Fox, Ron. "This time, the Kennedy girls get it Wright", The Record, March 11, 1990. Accessed December 16, 2020, via Newspapers.com. "That taken care of Saturday, the Kennedy girls took the title that should have been theirs a year ago. Led by the Wright twins, Falisha and Lakeysha, they drove to the State Group 4 championship with a resounding rout, 80-49, of South Jersey champion Toms River East."
^Mayer, John. "Kennedy completes mission", The Record, March 19, 1990. Accessed November 30, 2020. "Kennedy fulfilled a season-long mission to prove it was the best girls basketball team in the state Sunday by cruising to a 70-47 victory over previously unbeaten St. John Vianney in the Tournament of Champions final at the Rutgers Athletic Center."
^Yannis, Alex. "Lions Top L.I.U. in Soccer, 3-2", The New York Times, November 7, 1984. Accessed March 19, 2021. "It was a play that only gifted players could finish, and Acosta, a freshman, showed his worth. He scored 34 goals in his senior year for John F. Kennedy High School in Paterson, N.J."
^Grove, Lloyd; and Berselli, Beth. "The Reliable Source; In the Eye Of the Hurricane", The Washington Post, January 7, 2000. Accessed August 28, 2019. "John Artis was a 19-year-old former high school track star driving Carter's automobile that summer night in 1966, when Paterson, N.J., police pulled them over on suspicion of murder.... 'I was a hurdler at Paterson Central High School, and my coach had arranged for a track scholarship at Adams State College in Colorado.'"
^"Seton Hall's Echeverry named to All-America team", Daily Record, January 10, 1992. Accessed March 19, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Sophomore forward Gerson Echeverry was named third-team All-America by the National Soccer Collegiate Athletic Association.... The former scholastic all-stater at Paterson Kennedy High School was named the Big East's 'Offensive Player of the Year.'"
^Allee, Rod. "The soul of an artist; Creativity helps Paterson native cope with wife's death", The Record, January 14, 2000. Accessed May 20, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Shotsie is an only child of 48 years. He grew up in Peterson's Brook Sloate housing project and in an apartment near it.... Shotsie graduated from JFK High in '69, was denied his father's support to attend art school, and was pushed into a phone company job, one with a pension after a quarter of a century."
^Idec, Keith. "Holt bigger favorite this time around", Herald News, July 5, 2008. Accessed March 19, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Kendall Holt lost their first bout, but he is a bigger favorite over Ricardo Torres entering their rematch tonight than he was when he initially challenged Torres in the champion's native Barranquilla, Colombia.... Holt, a Kennedy High School alum, was born in Paterson and lived there most of his life until he moved to West Paterson earlier this year."
^"How hit show This Is Us is connected to NJ — NO spoilers, scout’s honor!", WKXW, February 23, 2017. Accessed February 17, 2018. "First, the cast includes New Jersey native, Ron Cephas Jones. The Paterson native who plays William (Randall's biological dad) graduated John F. Kennedy High School and then attended Ramapo College in Mahwah. Jones also has had recent roles in Mr. Robot & Luke Cage."
^Pat Kramer, National Park Service. Accessed March 19, 2021. "Kramer attended School No. 20 and Central High School, now John F. Kennedy High School."
^"First Tampa Bay Devil Rays owner Vince Naimoli dies at 81", WFTS-TV, August 26, 2019. Accessed August 28, 2019. "One of four children of a second-generation Italian immigrant who worked for the New York subway system and became a self-taught stationary engineer, Naimoli graduated from Notre Dame in 1959 out of Paterson Central High School."
^Dr. Frank Napier Jr., Paterson Public Schools. Accessed August 28, 2019. "Born and raised in Paterson, Dr. Frank Napier Jr. attended Public School Number 4 and Paterson Central High School before moving on to receive his Bachelor and Masters degrees from William Paterson Teachers College."
^Parrillo, Vincent N.Diversity in America, p. 15. Pine Forge Press, 2009. ISBN9781412956376. Accessed August 28, 2019. "When I reached Paterson Central High School—through classes, sports, and other extracurricular activities— my social world expanded to include many African American and Jewish students, along with many other second-generation White ethnic students."
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