Lawrence High School (New Jersey)

Lawrence High School (LHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school in Lawrence Township, Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Lawrence Township Public Schools. The school is located in the Lawrenceville section of the township. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1992.[6]

Lawrence High School
Address
2525 Princeton Pike (CR 583)

Lawrence Township
,
Mercer County
,
New Jersey
08648

United States
Coordinates40.264214°N 74.730573°W / 40.264214; -74.730573
Information
TypePublic high school
Established1966
School districtLawrence Township Public Schools
NCES School ID340840003152[1]
PrincipalDavid J. Adam
Faculty99.2 FTEs[1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,166 (as of 2021–22)[1]
Student to teacher ratio11.8:1[1]
Color(s)  Red and
  white[2]
Athletics conferenceColonial Valley Conference (general)
West Jersey Football League (football)
Team nameCardinals[2]
RivalsNotre Dame High School Hopewell Valley Central High School[3]
PublicationTangents (literary/art magazine)[4]
NewspaperThe Lawrencian[5]
Facilitiesfull gymnasium
auxiliary gymnasium
cafeteria
5 tennis courts
3 park tennis courts
full track
stadium style seating
swimming facility (6 lanes) w/ seating
2 soccer fields
3 baseball/softball fields
2 multipurpose fields
large auditorium w/ stage
Websitewww.ltps.org/Domain/8

As of the 2021–22 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,166 students and 99.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.8:1. There were 190 students (16.3% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 70 (6.0% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]

The school colors are red and white. The school mascot is the cardinal.[2]

History

Lawrence High School opened in 1966 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in the 2016–2017 school year.[7]

Students from Robbinsville Township (known as Washington Township until 2007) had attended Allentown High School exclusively until the start of the 1990-91 school year[8] and switched over to Lawrence High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship which ended with the final graduating class of 2007, after which all students attended Robbinsville High School.[9] Cranbury Township had previously sent students to Lawrence High School before they began a relationship with Princeton High School.[10]

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 102nd-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 305 schools statewide in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2018 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools"[11] The school had previously been ranked in the top 75 and 100 in previous years' rankings.[12]

The music program has been consistently rated one of the best "Communities in the Nation for Music Education" since 2005 by NAMM.[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

Curriculum

Lawrence High School offers numerous honors and Advanced Placement (AP) classes including Biology, Calculus, Chemistry, Economics, English, Environmental Science, European History, Music Theory, Physics, Statistics, Studio Art, United States Government and Politics, and United States History.[21] The school also offers Cisco I and II, a certified networking course from Cisco Systems. LHS also offers many electives such as drafting, design and photography.

Athletics

The Lawrence High School Cardinals[2] compete in the Colonial Valley Conference, which is comprised primarily of public and private schools in Mercer County and operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).[22] With 842 students in grades 10–12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 761 to 1,058 students in that grade range.[23] The football team competes in the Valley Division of the 94-team West Jersey Football League superconference[24][25] and was classified by the NJSIAA as Group III South for football for 2022–2024, which included schools with 680 to 889 students.[26] The school's most successful teams include football, golf, wrestling, soccer, swimming, diving, tennis, softball, cheerleading and cross-country.

The school participates as the host school / lead agency in a joint ice hockey team with Ewing High School and Hightstown High School. The co-op program operates under agreements scheduled to expire at the end of the 2023–24 school year.[27]

The boys' soccer team won the Group II state championship in 1967 (defeating Northern Highlands Regional High School in the tournament final), 1969 (vs. Morris Knolls High School), 1970 (vs. Shore Regional High School), 1971 (vs. Point Pleasant Borough High School), 1973 and 1975 (vs. Garfield High School both years), 1980 (vs. Governor Livingston High School) and 1994 (vs. Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School), and won the Group III state title in 1968 (vs. Glen Rock High School); The nine state championships are tied for eighth-most of any program statewide and the streak of five consecutive titles from 1967 to 1971 is the longest for any public school.[28][29] The program won its first state title in 1967 with a 3–2 win against Northern Highlands in the Group II championship game.[30] The 1968 team finished the season with a record of 15-2-3 after winning the Group III title with a 2–1 win against Glen Rock in the championship game played at Princeton University.[31] A 4–1 win against Garfield in the 1973 Group II championship led the team to a season record of 15-3-1.[32]

The football team was undefeated in 1973. The 1974 football team, featuring future NFL quarterback Scott Brunner, was overshadowed by a defensive unit that had eight shutouts and only allowed six points all year, with a record of 8-0-1, as part of a three-year undefeated stretch from 1972 to 1974 in the pre-playoff era where the team won 21 games and had one tie.[33] The football team won the Colonial Valley Conference titles in 2004, 2005 and 2006. In 2006, the team made it to the state playoffs as the top seed, only to be knocked off by 8th-seeded Moorestown High School at home 19–14 in the first round of the tournament.[34] In 2007, the team made it to state playoffs once again but were defeated by Middletown South at home in the first round, 16–6. The football team won the WJFL Patriot division title in 2013, made the state playoffs and defeated Allentown High School and Carteret High School to advance to the Central Jersey Group III Championship where they were defeated by Hopewell Valley Central High School.[35]

The girls spring track team was the Group II state champion in 1979.[36]

The boys track team won the Group II indoor track state championship in 1984 (as co-champion). The girls team won the Group II state title in 1987.[37]

The boys swimming team won the Public Central B sectional title in 2000 and 2008. The girls team won the Public Central A title in 2006.[38] The Lawrence boys' swim team won the Colonial Valley Conference in 2005 and 2007 with a 16–1 record both seasons. They were also the Mercer County Tournament Champions in 2005 and 2007 and Central "B" Division State Champions in 2008. The girls swim team followed this success in 2006 by winning the Central "A" Division State Title with a 91–79 win against West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South.[39] Both the boys and Girls Team won the Patriot Division in the 2010–2011 season. In 2012 the boys won the Patriot Division again and was runner up in the Central New Jersey Group B State Finals.

The wrestling team was the CVC Valley Division champions most recently in the 2003–04 season.[40]

The boys' track and field Team was the CVC Patriot Division champions in 2010, 2011 and co-champions in 2013. Lawrence Girls track and field team were the 2014 CVC Patriot Division Co-Champions.[41]

In 2012, the softball team won their first state sectional title in program history, winning the Central Jersey Group III title with a 3–2 win over Manasquan High School.[42]

In 2019, the tennis team won the Group II state championship with a 3–2 win against Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest in the tournament final.[43][44]

Extracurricular activities

Lawrence High features clubs such as the Lawrence High School Theater Company, LMTI, Model Congress, Model UN, International Alliance, Yearbook, Student Ambassadors, Teen PEP, Peer Leadership, The Lawrence High School Gay-Straight Alliance, a student newspaper, and Operation Smile. Lawrence High School also has a DECA chapter and is active in the New Jersey Science Olympiad. The school's Debate team won the county championship in 2008. In 2017, a Game Design Club and an Engineering Club were founded by students. These clubs wrote a co-grant and received $8,437 for their grant to build computers and engineer a go-kart.

Lawrence High School's mock trial team, led by history teacher Mark Rowe and local attorney Steve Goodell, has won 11 Mercer County Competitions and six Central Jersey Championships. The team also finished third in the state three times and second in the state three times over the past 14 years.

Lawrence High School's performing arts department includes instrumental and choral groups, a jazz band, and a marching band, the Red Scare.

The theater program is run by director Lorie Baldwin, also the educator in charge of theater classes.

"Red Scare" marching band

The Lawrence High School "Red Scare" Marching Band is the school's marching band, which provides entertainment at school football games, local parades, competitions and in cities across the country. The "Red Scare" was established in September 2001 by Eric Haltmeier and Lee Neamand. The band is under the direction of Michael Drobish. For the 2017–18 season, the band added a color guard to the band for the first time since 1989. The band is currently in the process of evolving into a traditional marching band, with new uniforms set to be added to the band for the 2018–19 season. The band competes in USBands as a Group IA band.

Administration

The school's principal is David J. Adam. His core administration team includes three assistant principals and the director of athletics.[45]

Noted alumni

Notable faculty
  • Teller (born Raymond Joseph Teller in 1948), silent half of Penn and Teller taught English, Latin, and Greek at the school.[57]

References
  1. School data for Lawrence High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 1, 2022.
  2. Lawrence High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  3. Rossi, Ray. "Thanksgiving Day NJ High School Football Rivalries". Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  4. 2021-2022 Clubs, Activities and Academic Teams, Lawrence High School. Accessed March 28, 2022.
  5. Lawrencian, Lawrence High School. Accessed March 28, 2022.
  6. Lawrence High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools, backed up by the Internet Archive as of March 15, 2012. Accessed March 26, 2015.
  7. Dauer, Gillian; and Vanaprthi, Roja. "Fiftieth Anniversary of L.H.S.", p. 7, The Lawrencian, Fall / Winter 2016.. Accessed December 31, 2020. "The 2016-2017 school year marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of Lawrence High School. Since 1966, Lawrence High School has been educating and preparing students. The school has put on several events to honor the 50th anniversary."
  8. Moslowski, Lee Anne. "Washington students adjusting easily to Lawrence school", Messenger-Press, February 7, 1991. Accessed May 8, 2023, via Newspapers.com. "The first year in the transfer of Washington Township students from Allentown High School to Lawrence High School is going smoothly, according to school officials in both districts. In September, Washington's ninth-graders began attending Lawrence as part of a phased withdrawal from Allentown that will be complete in 1993-94. Washington students attending Allentown before the current school year will remain there until they graduate.... Enrollment figures from December show 32 Washington freshmen attending Lawrence, with 48 sophomore, junior, and senior students still at Allentown. There are also a few students in grades 10, 11, and 12 who were sent to Lawrence this year for various reasons. Projections for next year indicate there will be 29 students at Allentown and 72 at Lawrence."
  9. Nussbaum, Debra. "A Number Story", The New York Times, September 29, 2002. Accessed June 4, 2012. "In Washington Township, Mercer County, voters approved a bond issue in 2001 to build a high school in the district, which now sends its students to nearby Lawrence High School."
  10. Kilby, David. "Cranbury: HHS alumni recalls how school used to be", CentralJersey.com, June 24, 2011. Accessed October 3, 2017. "Cranbury stopped sending its students to HHS in 1965, then it began sending its students to Hightstown-East Windsor High School. Cranbury students soon would go to Lawrence High School, then to Princeton High School, which is where they go today."
  11. "The Top New Jersey Public High Schools 2018". New Jersey Monthly. September 4, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  12. Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed September 11, 2012.
  13. "Nationwide Survey Finds the 'Best Communities for Music Education' in U.S.", NAMM, April 16, 2009. Accessed March 19, 2013.
  14. "NAMM Foundation Survey Reveals 'Best Communities for Music Education' In the United States", NAMM, May 5, 2010. Accessed March 19, 2013.
  15. "2016 Best Communities for Music Education Districts | NAMM Foundation". www.nammfoundation.org. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  16. "2017 Best Communities for Music Education | NAMM Foundation". www.nammfoundation.org. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  17. "2018 Best Communities for Music Education Districts | NAMM Foundation". www.nammfoundation.org. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  18. "2019 Best Communities For Music Education Districts | NAMM Foundation". www.nammfoundation.org. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  19. "2020 Best Communities For Music Education Districts". NAMM Foundation. March 25, 2020. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  20. "2022 Best Communities for Music Education Districts". NAMM Foundation. March 21, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  21. Lawrence High School 2011 New Jersey School Report Card, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 4, 2012.
  22. League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  23. NJSIAA General Public School Classifications 2019–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.
  24. Lawrence Cardinals, West Jersey Football League. Accessed May 1, 2023.
  25. Home Page, West Jersey Football League. Accessed May 1, 2023. "The WJFL is a 94-school super conference that stretches from Princeton to Wildwood encompassing schools from the Colonial Valley Conference, the Burlington County Scholastic League, the Olympic Conference, the Tri-County Conference, the Colonial Conference, and the Cape Atlantic League. The WJFL is made up of sixteen divisions with divisional alignments based on school size, geography and a strength-of-program component."
  26. NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2022–2024, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.
  27. NJSIAA Winter Cooperative Sports Programs, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed December 1, 2020.
  28. NJSIAA History of Boys Soccer, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed January 1, 2022.
  29. Greco, Richard; and Deakyne, Brian. "Which N.J. boys soccer programs have the most state titles?", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, October 24, 2019, updated June 14, 2020. Accessed December 31, 2020. "T7-Lawrence: Number of titles: 9; Championships: 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1980, 1994; Final appearances: 13"
  30. "Highlanders Lose, 3-2, To Lawrence In Group 2", The Record, November 18, 1967. Accessed December 31, 2020, via Newspapers.com. "Unbeaten Lawrence broke out to a 3-0 lead yesterday and then held on to score a 3-2 win over Northern Highlands for the Group 2 State soccer championship"
  31. "Glen Rock Bows In Group 3 Tilt", The Record, December 1, 1968. Accessed December 31, 2020, via Newspapers.com. "Glen Rock was bounced from the finals of the State soccer tourney Friday, 2-1, as Lawrence copped the Group 3 championship at Princeton University. The loss was only the second of the year for the Rockers, who won 15 games and tied one. Lawrence closed with a 15-2-3 mark."
  32. Simka, Red. "Community Pressbox; Soccer Team Loses Finale - Lawrence 4, Garfield 1", The Messenger, November 29, 1973. Accessed January 14, 2021. "A 'Hearty Toast' to coach Nick Perrapato and his Boilermaker soccer team for their fine efforts on behalf of Garfield in the recently concluded state soccer tournament for Group Two schools. Garfield was a 4-1 loser to Lawrence High School in the finals of the tournament.... Lawrence, which had a season mark of 15-3-1, was appearing in the finals for the seventh consecu tive time."
  33. O'Gorman, George. "Lawrence enjoying playoff success", The Trentonian, November 23, 2013. Accessed January 25, 2015. "Brunner was quarterback for the legendary Ed Shirk whose Lawrence teams from 1972-73-74, went 21-0-1. But there were no NJSIAA playoffs in those days, so the 8-0-1 team of '73 that posted eight shutouts, never got to play for a state title like these Cardinals will next month."
  34. 2006 Football Tournament - Central, Group III, accessed November 14, 2006.
  35. 2007 Football - Central, Group III, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 10, 2008.
  36. NJSIAA Girls Spring Track Summary of Group Titles, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.
  37. NJSIAA Indoor Group Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.
  38. NJSIAA Boys and Girls Team Swimming History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.
  39. 2006 NJSIAA Girls Team Swimming - Central - A, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed March 30, 2012.
  40. Franklin, Paul. "The mystery that is Mercer County high school wrestling goes back 75 years. With the recent successes and raising of standards, the area as a whole is .... Seeking A Reversal", The Times, February 11, 2013. Accessed March 19, 2013. "Last March Ray Bethea of Trenton High School won the county's second individual state title in Atlantic City. Mark Savino of Lawrence had won the first in 2004."
  41. Federovith, Barry. "Track & Field Sectional Championships Roundup: Nothing flukey, Princeton High girls roll again", The Times, May 27, 2012. Accessed March 19, 2013. "Lawrence (36.5) had to settle for seventh, but had two individual winners: Robert Jean-Pierre in the long jump (22-2.75) and Ed Carrington in the shot (53-2.75)."
  42. Lewin, Joe. "Softball Roundup: Lawrence High captures sectional title", The Times, June 1, 2012. Accessed March 19, 2013. "Yesterday in Manasquan, the Cardinals continued their run through the state tournament with a 3-2 victory over third-seeded Manasquan to claim the sectional title, the first in the history of the program, which dates back to the 1970s.
  43. "Lawrence continues program's historic run, wins Group 2 state title (PHOTOS/VIDEO)", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, May 22, 2019, updated August 22, 2019. "The first of the program-firsts for Lawrence's boys tennis team came long before the team arrived at Mercer County Park for the NJSIAA group semifinals and finals on Wednesday, but why stop? On the same day that the Cardinals clinched their first state-final appearance in program history, Lawrence, No. 16 in the NJ.com Top 20, took a step further in the afternoon by defeating Demarest, No. 15 in the ranking, 3-2 to take the Group 2 state championship for the program's first state group title."
  44. History of Boys Team Tennis Championship Tournament, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 1, 2020. Group III participants for 2019 are incorrect.
  45. Meet the Administrators, Lawrence High School. Accessed February 28, 2023.
  46. Staff. "Author Ifa Bayeza Comes 'Home' At Library Reading and Book Signing", Town Topics, March 27, 2013. Accessed November 6, 2017. "Ifa Bayeza had a homecoming of sorts at Princeton Public Library on Friday night, March 22. The author, artist, playwright and professor, who was born in Trenton and graduated from Lawrence High School, read a selection of her latest book Some Sing, Some Cry, to an audience that included"
  47. Staff. "Brackett Making Impact As Nittany Lions Receiver", Centre Daily Times, September 4, 2008. Accessed October 10, 2012. "Now the fourth receiver in an offense that routinely utilizes four-wide sets, the redshirt sophomore from Lawrenceville, NJ, poses a big problem for opposing defenses... Brackett threw for 46 touchdowns and ran for 23 more during his career at Lawrence High School...."
  48. Schaefer, Beverly. "Former Giants QB Scott Brunner helps open new PEAC turf facility in Ewing", The Times, January 26, 2015. Accessed December 18, 2017. "The Millburn resident played football at Lawrence High School and the University of Delaware and played for the Giants from 1980 to 1983."
  49. "Lawrence singer Luke Elliot returns to local roots", Community News, February 28, 2018. Accessed January 10, 2020. "From an early age, Elliot found a love for creating music. He started taking piano lessons at eight years old and started writing songs at 13. A Lawrence High School graduate, Elliot went on to study English and literature at Mercer County Community College but left to pursue a career in music."
  50. Morgan, Scott. "Ex-drummer and Lawrence native Pete Maloney settles into art career", Community News, July 28, 2017. Accessed October 3, 2017. "Maloney also grew up good friends with fellow Lawrence High School graduate Dan Lavery, who went on to play bass in the band Tonic (of 'If You Could Only See' fame) and get nominated for two Grammys."
  51. Soccer time at Moochie's fields Town to honor noted player, The Times, November 12, 2006, accessed April 21, 2007. "Myernick played soccer at both Slackwood Elementary and Lawrence High School. At Lawrence, he earned All-American honors and led his soccer team to three state championships."
  52. Jandoli, Ron. "The Century's Best -- boys Soccer: Top 10 Players of each decade", The Star-Ledger, November 7, 1999, backed up by the Internet Archive as of January 10, 2003. Accessed September 11, 2008.
  53. Vrentas, Jenny. "Miami Dolphins draft former Monmouth tight end John Nalbone in the fifth round", The Star-Ledger, April 26, 2009. Accessed March 28, 2011. "Nalbone, a graduate of Lawrence High School, was a four-year starter for Monmouth and a Division I-AA All-American. His stock rose after he impressed in his Pro Day workouts with a 40 time in the 4.6 range, and he was hoping to sneak into the Draft's final rounds."
  54. Patricia Russo: Lucent's Best Hope?, Business Week, May 29, 2003. Today, with an optimism that's reminiscent of her days as captain of the cheerleading squad at Lawrence High School in New Jersey, Lucent's CEO contends that she can return the company to growth."
  55. Johnson, Greg. "Lawrence High grad John Schneider rising in Blue Jays’ system as a manager", The Trentonian, April 10, 2018. Accessed December 5, 2018. "During John Schneider’s sixth season as a prospect in the Toronto Blue Jays organization, his career in professional baseball took a twist.... Schneider, a 1998 Lawrence High graduate, is in his first season managing the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, who are in town until Wednesday to play the Thunder."
  56. Comic Jon Stewart to host benefit for former teacher, Princeton Packet by Helen Pettigrew, April 17, 2001. "Jon Stewart, the Lawrence High School alumnus who hosts the Comedy Central hit The Daily Show, will return to his alma mater April 28 as special guest host for a benefit concert honoring Selma Litowitz, his former English teacher who is afflicted with Parkinson's disease."
  57. Filichia, Peter. "At Red Bank production of "Macbeth," there will be blood", The Star-Ledger, January 21, 2008. Accessed June 19, 2011. "Ironically, Teller likens his professional marriage to the Macbeths. He says of his 6-foot-6 partner -- who makes his own 5-foot-9 frame look minuscule -- 'Penn is my Lady Macbeth. I was here in New Jersey, teaching Latin at Lawrence High School (in Lawrence Township), when a mutual friend introduced us.'"
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