Howell High School (New Jersey)
Howell High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades located in Howell Township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, operating as one of six secondary schools of the Freehold Regional High School District. The school serves all students from Farmingdale and those from some portions of Howell Township. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1970. Although located in Howell, the school has a Farmingdale mailing address.
As of the 2018–19 school year, the school had an enrollment of 2,147 students and 139.4 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 15.4:1. There were 131 students eligible for free lunch and 34 eligible for reduced-cost lunch.
Awards, recognition and rankings
The school was the 107th-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 187th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 174th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. The magazine ranked the school 159th in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 181st in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state. Schooldigger.com ranked the school 67th 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.General information
- The Howell High School mascot is the Rebel, a confederate soldier with white hair and a gray uniform. The mascot was selected due to the school's original name, "Southern Freehold Regional High School," which lasted until the district expanded to three schools in 1968. As of June 2020 petition to change the mascot as inappropriate began circulating.
- Blue and gray are the school colors, although originally all schools in the district had blue and gold as the school colors at least until the late 1970s. This was originally done so the district could attempt to realize some cost savings on uniforms for extracurriculars.
- The school hosts the Fine & Performing Arts Center and the Scholar's Center for the Humanities.
Fine and Performing Arts Center
Humanities Learning Center
The Humanities Program consists of a wide variety of students, who take part in advanced classes on history, art, literature, computer applications and philosophy. Their history class, English class and elective are exclusively for Humanities students. Courses that can be taken are: Honors Literature and Arts I and II, Process Skills I and II, AP English Literature and Composition, Honors Modern American Cultures, Honors Topics in Philosophy, AP US History, Honors Modern Art in America, Honors US History and Cultures, Honors World Cultures, and AP English Language and Composition.Athletics
The Howell High School Rebels compete in the Shore Conference, an athletic conference made up of private and public high schools centered at the Northern Jersey Shore. All schools in this conference are located within Monmouth County and Ocean County. The league operates under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. With 1,659 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2015-16 school year as South Jersey, Group IV for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 1,082 to 1,934 students in that grade range.The boys' soccer team won the Group III state championship in 1972, defeating River Dell Regional High School in the tournament final.
The 2007 football team won the Central Jersey, Group IV state sectional championship with a 46-13 win over West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South in a game played at Rutgers Stadium. The win was the first sectional title in team history.
The wrestling team won the Central Jersey Group IV state sectional championship in 2014. In 2017, the wrestling team won the overall Group V state championship, the program's first, with a 28-27 win against Hunterdon Central Regional High School, earning the team a ranking of fifth in the state in the final season rankings by the New Jersey Wrestling Writers Association.
Administration
The school's principal is Jeremy Braverman, whose administration team includes three assistant principals.Other high schools in the district
Attendance at each of the district's high schools is based on where the student lives in relation to the district's high schools. While many students attend the school in their hometown, others attend a school located outside their own municipality. In order to balance enrollment, district lines are redrawn for the six schools to address issues with overcrowding and spending in regards to transportation. The other five schools in the district with their attendance zones for incoming students are:- Colts Neck High School - 1,358 students from Colts Neck Township, Howell and Marlboro.
- Freehold High School - 1,422 students from Freehold and Freehold Township.
- Freehold Township High School - 2,043 students from Freehold Township, Howell, Manalapan.
- Manalapan High School - 1,882 students from Englishtown and Manalapan.
- Marlboro High School - 1,822 students from Marlboro.
Notable alumni
- Jay Alders, fine artist.
- Bonnie Bernstein, ESPN sports reporter.
- Biggie Biggs, professional wrestler.
- Tom Fitzgerald, News Anchor WTTG Fox 5 News, Washington D.C.
- Lindsey Gallo, middle-distance runner.
- Karl Girolamo, actor, writer and producer.
- Bill Hill, former cornerback who played in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys.
- Chris Hill, soccer defender who currently plays for Harrisburg City Islanders in the USL.
- Kevin Interdonato, actor who appeared on several episodes of the HBO series The Sopranos.
- Brian Jude, filmmaker, producer of Under the Raven's Wing and other feature films.
- Joanne Nosuchinsky, actress and beauty pageant titleholder.
- Tom Pelphrey, actor, Guiding Light, Ozark and Daytime Emmy Award winner.
- Kal Penn, actor who attended the Performing Arts program at Howell but transferred to and graduated from Freehold Township High School.
- Frankie Perez, mixed martial artist specializing in Brazilian jiu-jitsu who has competed in Ultimate Fighting Championship.
- Amy Polumbo, Miss New Jersey 2007.
- Denny Walling, Major League Baseball player in the 1980s who played predominantly for the Houston Astros.