St. Thomas Aquinas High School (New Jersey)

St. Thomas Aquinas High School, formerly known as Bishop George Ahr High School, is a private four-year college preparatory and coeducational Roman Catholic high school for students from ninth through twelfth grades. It is located on a campus covering 34 acres (14 ha) in the northern section of Edison, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The school operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen.[6]

St. Thomas Aquinas High School
Address
1 Tingley Lane

Edison
,
(Middlesex County)
,
New Jersey
08820

United States
Coordinates40°34′41″N 74°22′35″W
Information
TypePrivate, Coeducational
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic
Established1967
School districtDiocese of Metuchen
NCES School ID00866669[1]
PrincipalDonna Marie Trukowski[2]
Faculty69.6 FTEs[1]
Grades9–12
Enrollment739 (as of 2017–18)[1]
Student to teacher ratio10.6:1[1]
Color(s)  Scarlet and
  white[3]
Athletics conferenceGreater Middlesex Conference
Team nameTrojans[3]
AccreditationAdvancED[4]
PublicationReflections (literary magazine)
NewspaperSatoma
YearbookInsight
Tuition$14,500 (2020-21)[5]
Websitewww.stahs.net

As of the 2017–18 school year, the school had an enrollment of 739 students and 69.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.6:1. The school's student body was 55.5% (410) White, 16.6% (123) Asian, 14.5% (107) Hispanic, 8.1% (60) Black and 4.7% (35) two or more races.[1] Students attend the school from Middlesex, Union, Monmouth, and Somerset counties in Central New Jersey. The administration and teaching faculty are composed of Felician Sisters and lay people. All 72 faculty members hold a B.S. or B.A. degree; a significant percentage have M.A. degrees, and some hold a Ph.D. degree. St. Thomas Aquinas High School is overseen by the New Jersey Department of Education and is accredited by AdvancED.[4]

History

The school opened in 1969 as St. Thomas Aquinas High School and was renamed Bishop George Ahr High School in 1983.[7]

In 2015 Cardinal McCarrick High School closed, and Ahr High accepted its former students; Ahr and the former McCarrick had the same tuition prices.[8]

On July 1, 2019, the school reverted to its original name.[9]

Athletics

The St. Thomas Aquinas High School Trojans[3] compete in the Greater Middlesex Conference, which is comprised of public and private high schools in the greater Middlesex County area and operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.[10] Sports offered for men include: baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, tennis, wrestling, and winter and spring track. Women's sports include: basketball, bowling, cheerleading, cross country, golf, gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, volleyball, and winter and spring track.[3] The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Non-Public Group III for football for 2018–2020.[11]

The football team won the Non-Public A South state sectional championship in 1984, 1985 and 1986.[12] The 1984 team won the Parochial A South state sectional title with a 17–0 victory against Holy Cross Academy in the championship game.[13] The team was champion of the Middlesex County Blue Division in 2005, 2007, and 2008.[14]

The girls' gymnastics team has won the team state championship in 1992, 1994, 1995, 2003–2007, 2010 and 2013; the 10 titles are the second-most of any school in the state.[15]

The boys bowling team won the overall state championship in 1995.[16]

The girls swimming team won the state Non-Public A South sectional championship in 1996, 1997 and 1998.[17] The school's swimming team won the Greater Middlesex Conference in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2011.

The baseball team won the 2006 Non-Public South A sectional championship over St. Augustine, 16–15.[18]

The wrestling team won the Parochial B South state sectional title in 2007 and the PArochial A South title in 2011.[19] The team won the 2007 Non-Public South B sectional championship with a 46–27 win over Holy Cross.[20]

The softball team took the 2009 Non-Public South A sectional title, shutting out both Holy Spirit High School and Camden Catholic High School, and won the tournament final over Gloucester Catholic High School to win the team's first sectional title for nine years.[21]

The girls soccer team won the Non-Public A state championship in 2013 with a 1–0 win in the tournament final against Immaculate Heart Academy, which came into the game ranked fourth in the state by The Star-Ledger.[22][23]

The varsity cheerleading team won the National Championship and best overall Grand Champion in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on March 11, 2017.[24]

Fine arts

St. Thomas Aquinas High School offers students a wide range of creative options, including art courses in a full-studio art department, graphic design courses, video production, a drama department, and a music department.[25]

The Drama Department performs three full show runs per school year with a fall Shakespeare play, a fall drama production, and a spring musical. The Drama Department has competed and won awards at the Bucks County Playhouse, among many other events.[26]

The Music Department includes a marching band, a symphonic band, a concert choir, a liturgical band, a jazz band, and music theory courses.[27]

In May 2012, the school's Music Department competed in the 2012 Music Showcase Festival in Busch Gardens, VA. The jazz band won first place overall jazz ensemble. The concert band won second place overall concert band. The jazz choir won first place overall jazz choir. The concert choir won first place overall mixed choir. The concert choir also won the grand championship trophy for the highest overall competition score among all vocal groups.[27]

Technology

St. Thomas Aquinas High School provides an array of technology courses and options to its students. Teachers have at their disposal a number of technology options that they can call upon depending on the nature of their lesson. In addition to three computer labs, teachers also have access to laptops, iPads, and Chromebooks they can use to enhance their instructional offerings. To round out these offerings, the school has a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy that allows teachers the opportunity to infuse technology on-the-fly, allowing them to incorporate technology in a real world manner and to capitalize on teachable moments.[28]

Notable alumni

References
  1. School data for Bishop George Ahr High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed September 1, 2020.
  2. Principal's Welcome, St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Accessed September 24, 2020.
  3. Bishop Ahr High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  4. St. Thomas Aquinas High School, AdvancED. Accessed September 24, 2020.
  5. Tuition and Financial Aid, St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Accessed September 24, 2020. "The tuition for St. Thomas Aquinas High School for the 2020-21 school year is $14,500."
  6. School Finder, Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen. Accessed September 24, 2020.
  7. "St. Thomas Aquinas High School". www.stahs.net. Retrieved August 1, 2019. As of July 1, Bishop George Ahr High School will once again be known as St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Bishop Ahr was founded as St. Thomas Aquinas High School in 1969, and although the name was changed to Bishop George Ahr High School in 1983, we have always proudly remembered the school’s beginnings.
  8. "McCarrick Catholic school to close". Asbury Park Press. May 21, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  9. Tufaro, Greg. "Bishop Ahr High School renamed St. Thomas Aquinas again", Courier News, Jul 1, 2019. Accessed September 24, 2020. "he leadership of Bishop George Ahr High School announced Monday that the diocesan school will return to its original name, St. Thomas Aquinas High School, effective immediately. A co-educational college preparatory school within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen, St. Thomas Aquinas High School, founded in 1969, was renamed Bishop George Ahr High School 14 years later."
  10. League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  11. NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2018–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, finalized August 2019. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  12. NJSIAA Football History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  13. Viggiano, Bob. "Bishop Ahr rolls to convincing win over Holy Cross", Courier-Post, December 2, 1984. Accessed February 2, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "It didn't take Bishop Ahr High School football coach Tony Aschettino long to figure out that a break or two was going to decide yesterday's South Jersey Parochial A championship game. For the first 24 minutes Bishop Ahr and Holy Cross slugged it out toe to toe. with neither giving an inch. But the second half was a different story as the visitors took advantage of a couple of breaks and rolled to the championship with a convincing 17-0 victory."
  14. Haley, John. "Middlesex County Football Blog: All-time GMC champions chart" Archived October 11, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, The Star-Ledger, November 4, 2009. Accessed October 3, 2011.
  15. History of NJSIAA Girls Gymnastics, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  16. History of NJSIAA Boys Bowling Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  17. NJSIAA Boys and Girls Team Swimming History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed September 1, 2020.
  18. 2006 Baseball - Non-Public, South A Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 28, 2007.
  19. NJSIAA Wrestling Team Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  20. 2007 Team Wrestling Tournament - Non-Public, South B Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 28, 2007.
  21. Iezzi, Bill. "Plate call pulls plug on Rams' hopes" Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 3, 2009. Accessed October 3, 2011. "Ahr (24-2), the second seed, won its first sectional trophy since 2000, when its coach, Missy Magyar, was a junior playing shortstop for the Trojans.... The Trojans, who shut out Holy Spirit, 13-0, and Camden Catholic, 2-0, to advance to the final, demonstrated that they could get their bats on the ball one through nine."
  22. NJSIAA History of Girls Soccer, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
  23. "Girls soccer: Unranked Bishop Ahr knocks out No. 4 Immaculate Heart, 1-0, for first Non-Public A title", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, November 20, 2013, updated August 25, 2019. Accessed September 24, 2020. "Sophomore Jill Vassallo scored in the 47th minute and Foster made sure it stood up as the game winner with five saves and countless other defensive stops as unranked Bishop Ahr topped Immaculate Heart, No. 4 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, 1-0, to win the first ever NJSIAA/Sports Authority Non-Public A title in program history on Wednesday at The College of New Jersey in Ewing."
  24. Content, Submitted (March 22, 2017). "Champs - Bishop George Ahr High School Cheerleaders". Greater Media Newspapers. Archived from the original on March 23, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  25. Fine Arts, St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Accessed September 24, 2020.
  26. Drama Announcement and News, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  27. Joseph Cullinan Archived August 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed October 16, 2012.
  28. Technology Policy, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed May 13, 2012.
  29. Biography Archived February 9, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, Ed Kalegi. Accessed December 24, 2011. "Some years later, Ed's acting abilities were first cultivated at Bishop George Ahr/St. Thomas High School in Edison, NJ during the early 1980s under the tutelage of Drama Director Gordon Inverno."
  30. "Woodbridge Mayor Challenges BGAHS" Archived April 28, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, Bishop George Ahr High School. Accessed April 26, 2017. "Mr. John McCormac, the mayor of Woodbridge Township, also happens to be a BGA/STA Class of 1976 alumnus."
  31. About Mayor McCormac Archived July 4, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Woodbridge Township, New Jersey. Accessed July 4, 2018. "After graduation from St. Cecelia's grammar school in Iselin and St. Thomas Aquinas High School (class of 1976) Mayor McCormac went on to earn a BA in Accounting from Rutgers University and a Master’s Degree in Finance from St. John's University."
  32. Staff. "D.C. Law Firm Names Morrisey as Partner" Archived July 5, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, The Westfield Leader and The Scotch Plains - Fanwood Times, March 11, 2004. Accessed July 4, 2018. "The former Westfield resident grew up in Edison, where he graduated from Bishop Ahr/St. Thomas Aquinas High School."
  33. Mets sign RHP Kevin Mulvey Archived January 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, Major League Baseball press release dated August 9, 2007. Accessed June 12, 2007. "Mulvey, 21, is a native of Parlin, N.J., and graduated from Bishop George Ahr High School in New Jersey."
  34. Staff. "Darrin A. Winston, 42, of Clarksburg in Millstone Township", Asbury Park Press, August 17, 2008. Accessed September 4, 2008. "Winston, who was 42, starred at Bishop Ahr High School in Edison before moving on to Rutgers."
  35. Sullivan, William J. "Former Rutgers baseball star Darrin Winston dies of leukemia" Archived July 4, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, The Star-Ledger, August 16, 2008. Accessed July 4, 2018. "Winston, a product of Bishop Ahr High School in Edison, has six children and one grandchild."
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