Paramus High School is an American, four-year comprehensive public high school, located in Paramus, New Jersey, as part of the Paramus Public Schools. Historically Paramus shared many municipal services with the township of Rochelle Park, including schooling. In 1922, the school situation was the hot topic of discussion. Residents felt that the schools were too far away and wanted to make sure that their children were safe when they went to school. It was because of this that Paramus decided to become a borough of its own, and it built the High School on Spring Valley Road in 1957[citation needed]. The 50th Anniversary was celebrated on September 28 and 29, 2007. Paramus High School offers a wide range of course offerings to its students. Advanced Placement courses are offered in from ten to fourteen subjects. Paramus High School has been recognized as an outstanding secondary school in the state of New Jersey. As of the 2006-07 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,412 students and 99 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.3.[1] [edit] Awards and recognition For the 1988-89 school year, Paramus High School was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education[2], the highest award an American school can receive.[3][4] The school was the 77th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 316 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2008 cover story on the state's Top Public High Schools. The school was ranked 45th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which included 316 schools across the state.[5] [edit] Administration Core members of the school's administration are:[6] - Kurt Karcich, Principal
- Dr. Michael Pilacik, Vice Principal - Grades 10 & 11
- Mrs. Lina Guidelis, Vice Principal - Grade 9
- Louis Natalo, Dean of Students - Grade 12
[edit] Trivia - Part of the 1993 Saturday Night Live spin-off movie Coneheads took place here. Michelle Burke's character "Connie Conehead" was a member of the school's swimming team (though Paramus High School did not have a swim team until the 2003-2004 season and ironically, continues to not have a swimming pool on campus to this day) and cheerleading squad while Dan Aykroyd's "Beldar Conehead" character served on the school's PTA and oversaw a fireworks display at one of the school's football games.
[edit] Notable alumni Some notable Paramus High school alumni include: - Joe Benigno (born 1953), talk show host on WFAN in NY. Was originally a caller who won the only contest for listeners to get their own show on the station. He used to do the overnights but has been doing the Midday show from 10-1 for the last couple of years. Joe's known for his rants about his favorite sports teams who seem to lose year in and year out.
- In 1965, Colette Daiute won Miss Teenage America in Texas.
- David Olsen, class of 1997, who won Season 4 of Beauty and the Geek in 2007.
- Mark Fields Executive Vice President, Ford Motor Company; President, The Americas, Class of 1979
- Dean Friedman (born 1955), musician: One-hit wonder, a top 20 tune "Ariel" in 1977. The only top 40 song to ever include the word "Paramus" in the lyrics.
- David Brock (born 1962), Arch-conservative fanatic turned gay arch-liberal fanatic. Author of "The Real Anita Hill" attacking the veracity of Anita Hill. Author of "Troopergate" detailing Bill Clinton's use of state troopers as Arkansas governor to gain sexual favors from Paula Jones among others. Now turned gay liberal fanatic he heads the web site Medial Matters attacking conservative leaning journalists.
- Matt Ghaffari Olympic silver-medal wrestler. Two-time Olympic team member and a 1996 Olympic silver medallist. Only wrestler with 4 World and Olympic Medals. Four-Time World Cup Champion. Seven-Time Pan-American Champion. Class of 1979.[7]
- Jamie Gold (born 1969), class of 1987, won the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event.[8]
- Lloyd Levin, Class of 1976. Film producer and executive
- Paul S. Rotella, Esq., (Class of '76) President and CEO New Jersey Broadcasters Association; Film Producer; Council President Borough of Paramus; President PA Realtors Education Foundation
- New York Post entertainment columnist Michael Starr (the Starr Report), graduated in 1979, and the paper's op-ed columnist and associate editorial page editor, Eric Fettmann, graduated in 1971.
- Elaine Zayak (born 1965), won the 1979 U.S. Figure Skating Championships with an injured leg. Her foot was severed in a lawn mower accident.[9]
- Spero Dedes, radio announcer for the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers since 2006.
[edit] Notable faculty - Bill Pascrell Jr., a social-studies and psychology teacher at the school from 1963 to 1973, was elected mayor of Paterson in 1990 and then as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996.
- Frank L. Ryerson (1905-1995) American trumpeter. Ryerson played trumpet with such big bands as Glen Gray and the Casa Loma Orchestra and Jimmy Dorsey. He also co-wrote the Dorsey hit "Blue Champagne" written in 1941 and covered by The Manhattan Transfer in 1975. He also wrote the stirring "Lament in D Minor". Ryerson wrote the Paramus High School, New Jersey alma mater lyrics (sung to the tune "Aura Lee" or for the Elvis Presley fans out there, "Love Me Tender") and was instrumental in bringing the big band sound to the Jazz ensemble.
- Michael Groveman former president and CEO of bill blass LTD.
[edit] References - ^ a b c d Paramus High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 14, 2007.
- ^ Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982-1983 through 1999-2002 (PDF), accessed May 11, 2006.
- ^ CIBA cited as one of the best by Education Department, Journal Inquirer, November 16, 2006. "The Blue Ribbon award is given only to schools that reach the top 10 percent of their state's testing scores over several years or show significant gains in student achievement. It is considered the highest honor a school can achieve."
- ^ Viers Mill School Wins Blue Ribbon; School Scored High on Statewide Test; The Washington Post. September 29, 2005 "For their accomplishments, all three schools this month earned the status of Blue Ribbon School, the highest honor the U.S. Education Department can bestow upon a school."
- ^ "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.
- ^ Administration, Paramus High School. Accessed June 13, 2008.
- ^ Robbins, Liz. "OLYMPICS; Wrestler Two Victories From Dream", The New York Times, June 24, 2000. Accessed October 17, 2007. "To advance, Ghaffari had to pull out a trick he first used two decades ago at Paramus High School in New Jersey.... At 38, and a loss away from retirement, Ghaffari is still crafty and accomplished, compiling more Olympic and world championship medals than any other Greco-Roman wrestler with four."
- ^ Former Hollywood Talent Agent From Malibu Takes Texas Hold 'Em, PCH Press, August 16, 2006.
- ^ "Miss Zayak Happy to Be Back in School; Miss Zayak Has Fun In School Impressed by Her Conduct", The New York Times, March 11, 1981. p. A19
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