Dwight-Englewood School

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox school The Dwight-Englewood School (D-E) is an independent coeducational college-preparatory day school, located in Englewood in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school teaches students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade in three functionally separate schools. The Lower School, formerly known as the Bede School, serves students in pre-kindergarten through 5th grade in Drapkin Hall. The Middle School, which used to be in Umpleby Hall, is now in the new middle school building which was finished in 2019, serves students in 6th through 8th grade. The Upper School serves grades 9 through 12, and it houses its administration in the Leggett building and the Campus Center. Other buildings are the Hajjar STEM Center, Swartley Arts Center, the Imperatore Library and the Modell Sports Complex.

As of the 2019–20 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,040 students (plus 28 in PreK) and 125.9 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.3:1. The school's student body was 49.4% (514) White, 24.4% (254) Asian, 11.5% (120) Black, 9.0% (94) American Indian/ Alaska Native, 5.1% (53) Hispanic and 0.5% (5) Native Hawaiian/ Pacific Islander.<ref name=NCES>School data for Dwight-Englewood School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed March 10, 2022.</ref>

Dwight-Englewood is a member of the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools<ref>Dwight-Englewood School, New Jersey Association of Independent Schools. Accessed January 31, 2017.</ref> and has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1999.<ref>Dwight-Englewood School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools. Accessed March 16, 2022.</ref>

Awards, recognition and rankings

Dwight-Englewood was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education, the highest award an American school can receive, during the 1986-87 school year.<ref>National Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982 Through 2019 (PDF), United States Department of Education. Accessed September 1, 2024.</ref>

History

In 1889, the Dwight School for Girls was founded as a college preparatory school by Euphemia S. Creighton and Ellen W. Farrar. The name is chosen to honor then-president of Yale University, the Rev. Timothy Dwight V, whose educational philosophy they admired. The Englewood School for Boys was established in 1928 as a college preparatory school. In 1973, the two schools formed a nonprofit corporation known as Dwight-Englewood School. In 1993, Dwight-Englewood School and The Bede School merged to add students in Pre-K through sixth grade.<ref>Lurie, Maxine M.; Mappen, Marc. "Dwight-Englewood School", Encyclopedia of New Jersey, p. 227. Rutgers University Press, 2004. Template:ISBN. Accessed September 2, 2011. "Dwight-Englewood joined with the Bede School in 1993 to create an independent day school that included children from preschool through the sixth grade."</ref>

Campus

The school's campus consists of 15 buildings totaling Template:Convert. The campus covers Template:Convert.<ref name=Campus>Visiting Campus, Dwight-Englewood School. Accessed November 3, 2017. "At the Dwight-Englewood School, we recognize that a campus and its buildings and grounds are a significant factor in shaping the overall experience of our students. Our 45-acre campus features learning spaces that reflect the collaborative model of our community."</ref> The principal educational facilities are:

Leggett Hall - 21 Upper-School Classrooms - Middle School Drama & Latin Classes - Headmaster's Office - Upper School Principal and Deans Offices - Hulst House - Wireless Internet Access

Campus Center - Hajjar Auditorium - Shenck Auditiorium - 9 General Classrooms - Student Coop and Bookstore - Cafeteria - Student Lounges - Bells Classroom - Choir Room - Arts Display Spaces - Wireless Internet Access

Hajjar STEM Center - Wireless Internet Access- 8 Science Labs with Fume Hoods, Chemical Working Surfaces, etc. - 7 classrooms - Math and Science Department Offices- Massoud Steps Meeting Area- Robotics Lab

Imperatore Library - 35,000+ Volumes - Computer Workspaces - Student Lounge - 4 Language Classrooms - Taub Technology Center - Wireless Internet Access

Swartley Art Center - Photography Studio - Ceramics - Art History - 2 Studio Arts Classrooms - Music Practice - Art Gallery - Printmaking Facilities - Wireless Internet Access

Khubani Performing Arts Center - Theatre - Music Instruction Rooms - 1 Sound and Lighting Booth - 1 Projection Booth

Modell's Sports Complex 2 Gymnasiums - Dance/Aerobic Studio - Weight Room - 2 On-Campus Fields - 2 Additional Fields - 5 Tennis Courts

Lower School Building 15 Classrooms - Cafeteria - Gymnasium - Library - Computer Room - Wireless Internet Access

Umpleby Hall - 28 Middle-School Classrooms - 2 Science Labs - Wireless Internet Access

Graham House - Admissions Office - Alumni Office - Business Office - Development Office

Middle School Building A Template:Convert Middle School facility was built, replacing the Library Circle area of the campus and the now-demolished Generoso Pope Science Hall.<ref name="northjersey.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

There are also plans for a Template:Convert multi-story auditorium to be built on campus to replace what is currently Umpleby Hall.<ref name="northjersey.com"/>

Organization

Internally, the school has Principals for the lower, middle, and upper schools, as well as deans of students. The overall executive position which oversees all three schools is that of the Head of School. Within the schools, there are departments for Math, English, History, Science, Language, Physical Education, Technology, Human Development, and Arts. Each department has a department chair. Additionally, each grade in the middle and upper schools has a class dean who helps the students in their grade and manages certain grade-specific activities. Some class deans also teach various subjects at school aside from their role as class dean.

Athletics

The Dwight-Englewood Bulldogs<ref name=NJSIAAprofile>Dwight-Englewood High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.</ref> participate in the North Jersey Interscholastic Conference, which comprises small-enrollment schools in Bergen, Hudson County, Morris County and Passaic County counties, and was created following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).<ref>Mattura, Greg. "Small-school NJIC may debut its own league championship", The Record, January 9, 2017. Accessed August 30, 2020. "The small-school North Jersey Interscholastic Conference may debut its own boys basketball tournament this season, one season after introducing its girls hoops championship. The NJIC is comprised of schools from Bergen, Passaic and Hudson counties and the event offered to the 36 boys teams would serve as an alternative to likely competing against larger programs in a county tournament."</ref><ref>Member Schools, North Jersey Interscholastic Conference. Accessed August 30, 2020.</ref><ref>League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.</ref> Prior to the realignment that took effect in the fall of 2010, Dwight-Englewood was a member of the Bergen County Scholastic League.<ref>New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association League Memberships – 2009-2010, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, backed up by the Internet Archive as of July 24, 2011. Accessed December 15, 2014.</ref> With 388 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Non-Public A for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 381 to 1,454 students in that grade range (equivalent to Group I for public schools).<ref>NJSIAA General Public School Classifications 2019–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.</ref> The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Non-Public Group III for football for 2018–2020.<ref>NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2018–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, finalized August 2019. Accessed October 20, 2020.</ref> The school has many athletics programs, including boys' lacrosse, girls' lacrosse, boys' baseball, girls' softball, boys' football, coed golf, girls' field hockey, boys' basketball, girls' basketball, girls' volleyball, boys' tennis, girls' tennis, coed spring and winter track, coed cross country and coed ultimate frisbee.

The boys tennis team won the Non-Public B state championship in 1991 (defeating Moorestown Friends School in the final match of the tournament), 2008 (vs. Sacred Heart High School), 2010 (vs. Moorestown Friends), and won the Non-Public A state title in 2000 (vs. Christian Brothers Academy), 2002 (vs. St. Augustine Preparatory School).<ref>History of Boys Team Tennis Championship Tournament, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.</ref> The boys' tennis team won the 2002 Non-Public B state championship and was the runner-up to Holmdel High School in the Tournament of Champions, falling by the score of 3-2 in the finals.<ref>Boys' Team Tennis - Tournament of Champions, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed June 21, 2011.</ref> In spring 2008, the boys' tennis team finished with a record of 21-1 and won the Bergen County Groups 1-2, North Jersey Group B Sectional, and Non-Public B state championship with a 5-0 win over Sacred Heart.<ref>Whittaker, Celeste E. "C.H. East just misses", Courier-Post, May 23, 2008. Accessed June 21, 2011. "Sacred Heart's bid to win a Non-Public B championship ended at the hands of Dwight-Englewood, which got the easy 5-0 victory in the title match."</ref> The team's only loss was in the Tournament of Champions semi-finals to ultimate runner-up Westfield High School by the score of 3-2.<ref>Staff. "Westfield 3, Dwight-Englewood 2", The Star-Ledger, May 29, 2008. Accessed June 21, 2011. "Justin Snyder and Graeme Stahl gutted out a 6-3, 7-5 victory at first doubles to clinch a 3-2 victory for top-seeded Westfield, No. 1 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, over fourth-seeded and No. 5 Dwight-Englewood yesterday at Mercer County Park in West Windsor."</ref> In 2010 the boys' team won the North Jersey Group B sectional, knocking off tournament favorite Newark Academy 3-2, and won the Group B title once again, against Moorestown Friends 4-1,<ref>"NJ Boys Tennis: Dwight-Englewood wins Non-Public B title", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, May 27, 2010, updated August 26, 2019. Accessed March 9, 2021. "Riding the momentum of its biggest victory of the season, Dwight-Englewood powered past Moorestown Friends, 4-1, in the final of the NJSIAA/Star-Ledger Non-Public B final at Mercer County Park in West Windsor yesterday. Dwight-Englewood topped perennial power Newark Academy of Livingston, 3-2, in the final of the North Jersey, Non-Public B final on Tuesday. Newark Academy was considered a contender for the Tournament of Champions crown."</ref> before falling in the Tournament of Champions semifinal to Westfield, 3Template:Frac-1Template:Frac, t finish the season with a record of 26-4.<ref>Schutta, Gregory. "D-E's journey comes up a little short", The Record, June 3, 2010. Accessed March 9, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "It's a long drive from Mercer County Park to Dwight-Englewood. But for the Bulldog tennis team Wednesday, the ride was probably not long enough. For the second time in three years, the Bulldogs came within a hair of reaching the State Tournament of Champions tennis final only to see their hopes dashed at the last moment by Westfield, 3Template:Frac-1Template:Frac, in the semifinal."</ref>

The ice hockey team won the McInnis Cup in 1994.<ref>NJSIAA Ice Hockey State Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.</ref>

The wrestling team won the Non-Public Group B state championship in 1999.<ref>NJSIAA Wrestling Championship History 1980–2023, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed February 1, 2024.</ref>

The girls tennis team won the Non-Public A state championship in 2001 (vs. Red Bank Catholic High School).<ref name=NJSIAAGirlsTennis>Girls Tennis Championship History: 1971–2023, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated November 2023. Accessed September 1, 2024.</ref> The girls' varsity tennis team won the Bergen County Small Schools title in 2010, finishing the season with a record of 18-1 and earning Courtney Baiardi Stasi recognition by The Star-Ledger as its Coach of the Year for the season.<ref>Guthrie, Charles. "NJ Girls' Tennis: North Jersey season review, 2010", The Star-Ledger, December 17, 2010. Accessed September 2, 2011. "Coach of the year: Dwight-Englewood's head coach, Courtney Baiardi Stasi, has gone 33-2 in her two years at the helm. This year, Dwight-Englewood finished 18-1 and won the Bergen County Small Schools championship."</ref>

Robotics teams

The Dwight-Englewood Upper School robotics teams compete in FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC), an international robotics competition for students in grades 7-12. The Dwight-Englewood varsity robotics team, Critical Mass (FTC 207), was founded in 2005. D-E's Junior Varsity and Freshman teams (FTC 13048 Absolute Zero and FTC 13663 Quantum Smashers, respectively) were founded in 2017.

The Varsity team has competed at state, regional, and international levels. In the 2014-2015 FTC season, Critical Mass competed at the East Super-Regional Championship Tournament, and in the 2016–17 season, the team won the Vermont FTC Championship and placed 13th in the Edison division at the FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship. In 2017–18 season, the team won the New Jersey FTC Championship<ref>"D-E Varsity Robotics Team, Critical Mass - FTC Team 207, Wins FTC NJ State Championship!", Dwight-Englewood School, press release dated March 6, 2018. Accessed September 2, 2022.</ref> and went on to place 18th in the Edison division at the world championship.<ref>Team 207 - Critical Mass (2020), FIRST Tech Challenge. Accessed September 2, 2022.</ref>

The Fifth-Grade opera

In fifth grade, students compose and write an original opera. They form an opera company and go through all the steps necessary to stage a full production—script writing, libretto, costumes and makeup, set design, lighting, and publicity. This project is part of the Metropolitan Opera's program, "Creating Original Opera." 2022 will be the 33rd year of opera production at the Lower School, as the 2020 Opera was unable to be completed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Student government

The Dwight-Englewood Student Government is divided into many initiatives. There are three groups of initiatives, which include a Curriculum, Facilities, and Life/Spirit Group. Within each group, there are multiple initiatives. Each initiative focuses on a certain issue such as workload or the Coop. There is also a President and a Vice-President, along with a Head for each Group and Initiative. There is also the position of Class Coordinator within each grade.

Before, the Student Government was divided into four Committees, Life, Spirit, Facilities, and Curriculum. The Student Life committee focused on things such as social events, and student privileges. The Spirit Committee concurrently worked with the life committee on social events, and they also hosted Spirit Week, Coffeehouse, and the MAGIC field day. The Facilities Committee addressed needs that include mending infrastructure around campus, and Maintenance Appreciation Day.

Controversies

2021 allegations

In May 2021, the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) sent a letter to the school criticizing their lessons on gender identity and race. FAIR said that lessons at the school taught students that teach young children that people are in danger because of whiteness, that racism is exclusively associated with whiteness, and say without qualification that white people have more opportunities than "non-white" people. FAIR also criticized lessons on gender identity and pronouns, claiming that they were age-inappropriate and that asking students to share their pronouns or use other schoolmate's pronouns may violate their religious rights.<ref name="Hirsh">Template:Cite news</ref>

In June, FAIR started a campaign to support Dana Stangel-Plowe, who resigned from the Dwight-Englewood School due to what she called "essentialist, racialist thinking". In her resignation letter, which was published by FAIR, she stated "this year, administrators continue to assert D-E's policy that we are hiring 'for diversity,' D-E has become a workplace that is hostile toward educators based solely on their immutable traits."<ref name="Cagnassola">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Mayer">Template:Cite news</ref>

Head of School's 2022 resignation

On May 2, 2022, a little over a month before the end of the school year, the Dwight-Englewood community was informed that Head of School Dr. Rodney De Jarnett had resigned "effectively immediately."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In an email to parents and students, Board President Robert E. Miller stated, "Dr. De Jarnett's resignation follows conduct inconsistent with Dwight-Englewood School's values and standards of behavior."

Notable alumni

Template:Category see also School alumni include many honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award:<ref name=Distinguished>Distinguished Alumni Award, Dwight-Englewood School. Accessed June 14, 2018.</ref>

  • Robert A. Agresta (born 1983, class of 2001), corporate lawyer and investor<ref>"Elections 2008: Englewood Cliffs, Northern Valley Suburbanite, October 29, 2008. Accessed January 26, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "Robert Agresta, Republican: Twenty-five year old Robert Agresta has lived in Englewood Cliffs his entire life. After graduating from Dwight Englewood in 2001 and Fordham University in 2005, Agresta attended the National Automobile Dealers Association Dealer Academy for a one-year executive management program."</ref>
  • Liam Aiken (born 1990; class of 2008), actor<ref name=Ledger2004/>
  • Bob Bakish (born 1963, class of 1981), Former CEO of Paramount Global<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Notable faculty

  • Peter Balakian (born 1951), poet and author<ref>Balakian, Peter. Black Dog of Fate: A Memoir, p. 135. Basic Books, 2009. Template:ISBN. Accessed May 30, 2011. "One day a few years later, when I was teaching high school English at Dwight-Englewood School, I picked up a copy of The Anaïs Nin Reader off the desk of one of my colleagues and began reading."</ref>
  • Bruce Smith (born 1946), poet<ref>Jones, Christopher. "Interview: Peter Balakian" Template:Webarchive, The Cortland Review, Issue 22, February 2003. Accessed December 27, 2012. "TCR: Let me ask you about two of your contemporaries. You dedicate this volume to the poets Bruce Smith and Jack Wheatcroft? PB: In a world as small and intense as poetry, one's comrades are dearer than ever.... Bruce Smith and I met in 1974 at Dwight Englewood School in Englewood, New Jersey, where we were both teaching English and coaching football."</ref>

See also

References

Template:Reflist

Template:Englewood, New Jersey Template:Bergen County, New Jersey High Schools Template:New Jersey Prep Template:NJIC Template:NJAIS Template:Authority control

Retrieved from "https://wiki.sarg.dev/index.php?title=Dwight-Englewood_School&oldid=746386"