West Milford High School


West Milford High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from West Milford, in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary school of the West Milford Township Public Schools. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1968.
As of the 2018–19 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,040 students and 95.4 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 10.9:1. There were 115 students eligible for free lunch and 40 eligible for reduced-cost lunch.

History

Students from West Milford had attended Butler High School for grades 9-12 as part of a longstanding sending/receiving relationship that existed until September 1962, when West Milford opened its own high school. The Butler Public Schools had served students from large parts of Morris and Passaic counties, until soaring local enrollment led the district to notify feeder communities in 1954 that they would have to find alternative education options for their high school students. For some time, Macopin School was the only secondary school in town until the current High School was built.

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 146th-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 163rd in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 185th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. The magazine ranked the school 191st in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 169th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state. Schooldigger.com ranked the school tied for 167th 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.

Academics

Honors

West Milford High School offers Advanced Placement, honors and college preparatory classes to its students. Students are placed in the Honors or AP program based on various criteria. The school offers many Honors and Advanced Placement courses as core classes and electives, including:
History:
Mathematics:
English:
Science:
World Language:
Fine Arts:
AP Capstone:
West Milford High School offers other non-AP and non-honors electives, such as:
West Milford High School offers a variety of afterschool clubs and activities for its students. These clubs are run by the student members under the supervision of WMHS staff members, thus allowing these clubs to truly by student-run. These include clubs, student-government programs, peer leadership programs, honorary societies, and scholastic competition organizations:
;Highlander Marching Band
The West Milford High School Highlander Marching Band and Color Guard has won hundreds of awards and accolades over the years under the direction of Dr. Brian McLaughlin, Matt Gramata and color guard director Pete Shaver. They have earned a reputation as one of the top marching bands in the northeast region of the United States. Recent awards and honors include:
In addition to marching competitively, the Highlander Band holds its annual Tattoo and Military Concert every November. Each year, many bands travel to West Milford to partake in this exciting display of kilts, bagpipes, marching precision, and the show repertoire of both the Clifton High School Mustang Band and the Highlander Band. Recently, the tattoo has been held in honor of local veterans, and volunteer emergency personnel. Over the past few years, guests have included the Queen's Piper and the USMC Leatherneck Pipes and Drums.
;West Milford Color Guard
The West Milford Highlander Color Guard is under the direction of Mr. Peter Shaver. In the Fall, the colorguard performs as a unit with the Highlander Marching Band. Following the conclusion of the marching season, the colorguard performs as a stand-alone unit at competitions across the United States. The West Milford Colorguard has been recognized over the years as both MAIN, Musical Arts Conference and WGI Regional medalists; they have also been a WGI World Championship Semi-Finalist.
In 2019, the color guard won the WGI Philadelphia Regional Championship and Mid Atlantic Indoor Network SA Championships. For several weeks, they were ranked nationally in the top 10 among the Scholastic A Class color guards in WGI and completed their WGI season as a World Championship Semi-Finalist.

Jazz Ensemble

The jazz program at the West Milford Township School District was established in 2010. All bands are created through an audition process that encourages participation regardless of experience in the genre. With a comprehensive study of styles and history, all bands have the opportunity to participate in festivals, concerts and the creation of combos. Recent highlights of the West Milford Jazz Ensemble include six New Jersey State Finals appearances in seven years of existence; including 2nd place finishes at the NJAJE State Jazz Finals in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018. In February 2017, the West Milford Jazz Ensemble participated for the first time, and was awarded 1st place at the Berklee Jazz Festival in Boston, Massachusetts. The Jazz Ensemble was also selected to perform at the National Association for Music Education All-Eastern Convention in Atlantic City.

Indoor Percussion

West Milford Indoor Percussion is an extension of the Highlander Band program that combines the marching arts with the use of percussion instruments. West Milford Indoor Percussion has won numerous awards and honors. In recent years, West Milford Indoor Percussion won two USBands Division 1A Indoor Championships and is a WGI Regional Finalist.

Model United Nations

The award-winning West Milford High School Model United Nations team has achieved success in New Jersey and around the northeastern United States, and is widely regarded as a highly successful program in the state and this region of the country. The team, which is advised by the Supervisor of History & Social Sciences, Mr. Oliver Pruksarnukal, has attended conferences at various premier locations, including Princeton University, United Nations Headquarters, Yale University, the Historic District of Philadelphia, Saint Peter's College, Bergen County Academies, and Passaic County Law Day. The team was recognized at the 2007 United Nations Association of the United States of America International Conference with award winners for Outstanding Delegation and Honorable Delegation.
At the 2006 Princeton University Model UN Conference, West Milford won the overall team championship.
At the 2007 UNA-USA UN Headquarters International Model UN Conference, West Milford students won four awards and the team won second place overall. Two of these were for Outstanding Delegation, while the other two were for Honorable Delegation.
At the 2008 Yale University Model UN Conference, out of 50+ schools, only four of which were public, West Milford's Model UN team placed highly and enjoyed great success, taking home third place overall. West Milford won five honorable delegate awards at the conference.
West Milford students also won seven awards at the 2008 Bergen County Academies Model UN Conference, with the team taking home Outstanding School Delegation for winning the overall championship.
West Milford's Model UN team won the overall championship at the Saint Peter's College High School Model United Nations conference for the third year in a row in 2008, taking home 10 individual awards, including four for best delegate.
At the 2009 Philadelphia Model United Nations Conference, West Milford won the overall team championship and Outstanding School Delegation, while taking home six awards for individual student delegations. Two delegations won Best Delegation, two won Outstanding Delegation, and two won Distinguished Delegation.
West Milford dominated the Saint Peter's College High School Model United Nations conference for the fourth consecutive year in 2009. The team won eleven awards overall, which was nearly double the next-highest team's total, with five individual students winning for their individual delegate performance, five pairs of students winning for their delegation, and one pair winning for their position paper.
West Milford's Model UN team coordinated, hosted, and moderated the first student-run Board of Education debate in New Jersey history on April 9, 2009. The four members of the Executive Board were the four moderators, with the other club members serving in other capacities, including timekeepers, ushers, and concessions workers. The debate featured the five candidates for the three available Board of Education seats. The candidates were asked questions ranging in topics from the school cafeteria program to gifted education programs to how to curb substance abuse among district students to what they would want their legacy to be once their time on the Board has ended. The event was met with great praise and acclaim from the public and gave the voters of West Milford an opportunity to learn where the candidates actually stood on the critical issues affecting the students of the district.

Athletics

The West Milford High School Highlanders compete in the Big North Conference, following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. With 866 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2015–16 school year as North I, Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 786 to 1,074 students in that grade range. In the 2009-10 school year, the school competed in the North Jersey Tri-County Conference, which was established on an interim basis to facilitate the realignment. Prior to the realignment, the school had participated in the Skyline Division of the Northern Hills Conference, an athletic conference that included private and public high schools located in Essex, Morris, and Passaic Counties.
The school offers 28 varsity sports during the fall, winter, and spring seasons:
Fall sports offered are:
Winter sports offered are:
Spring sports offered are:
The field hockey team won the North I Group IV state sectional championship in 1985 and the North I Group III title in 2011. In 2016 and 2017, they won the Passaic County tournament to become back-to-back county champions.

Softball

The Highlanders softball team is widely regarded as one of the top programs in the state of New Jersey and as the top public school program in the state. The program has won seven Passaic County championships, along with 24 conference championships and eight state sectional titles in North I, Group III and North I, Group IV. Varsity Head Coach Jim Dransfield has a career record of 496–103 during his 20-year tenure, ranking him among the winningest coaches in the state and the winningest all-time in North Jersey. Dransfield became the winningest softball coach in North Jersey with a 6–1 win over Hawthorne High School, giving him 471 for his career and moving him past former Clifton High School coach Rich LaDuke for the most all-time. The softball team has won at least 20 games in each of the last 20 seasons.
The softball program has produced two of the top ten winningest pitchers in New Jersey history: Karin Kolatac and Corinne Reiser, who won 79 and 87 games during their high school careers, respectively. Kolatac was an All-American in 1996. The program also boasts two-time FP Magazine All-American catcher Jen Pawol and DH Laura Remia, the all-time leading home run hitter in the history of NCAA Division III college softball.
In 2003, the softball team won the North I, Group IV state sectional championship, edging Clifton High School 1–0 in the tournament final. The 2004 team repeated the title, after a shift to Group III, with a 4–2 win over Ramapo High School.
In the 2007 season, the softball team won the Northern Hills-Skyline championship with a 2–1 win over Mount Saint Dominic Academy, and won the Passaic County championship with a 3–1 win over Clifton High School, the eventual state Group IV champions and the #2-ranked team in New Jersey in the final The Star-Ledger polls. The Highlanders finished the season ranked #13, after reaching as high as #2 during the regular season.
The 2008 softball team was ranked first by The Record in its preseason poll for North Jersey. The team won its second-straight county title by capping off its tournament run with a 5–2 victory over Hawthorne High School, after the team defeated rival Lakeland Regional High School by a score of 11–0 in the semi-final round. It has competed in the Mount Saint Dominic Academy Invitational tournament, and won the conference championship for the second-straight year, after beating Mount Saint Dominic Academy by a score of 4–0, Millburn High School by a score of 7–1, and Mount Saint Dominic Academy again by a score of 2–0. The team finished the season with a record of 22–8, making it the team's 19th consecutive 20-win season.
The 2009 softball team was ranked #3 by The Record in its preseason poll for North Jersey and was ranked as high as #2 in that poll. The team was ranked as high as #6 in the Star-Ledger Top 20 poll and won 20 games for the 20th consecutive season. The team finished with a record of 20–5.

Boys' basketball

The Highlanders boys' basketball team has won four conference titles, in 1973–74, 2003–04, 2007–08, and 2008–09, and has been to three sectional championship games, in 2005–06, 2007–08, and 2008–09. The 2003–04 team went 23–3, going 16–0 in conference play, and advanced to the state sectional semi-finals where they lost to Teaneck High School. The 2005–06 team advanced to the state sectional finals before losing to Northern Valley Regional High School at Old Tappan by two points. The 2007–08 team finished with a 21–6 record and captured its third conference championship. It received the #1 seed in the state sectional tournament but lost to Wayne Valley High School in the sectional finals, 48–45. The 2008–09 team finished with a 20–7 record and captured its fourth conference championship overall and second in a row. The team made its second consecutive appearance in the sectional finals and third in four years, but lost to Teaneck High School 58–51 in overtime.

Girls' basketball

The Highlanders girls' basketball team defeated Washington Township High School in the tournament final to win the Group IV state championship in 1995 before losing to St. John Vianney High School in the finals of the New Jersey Tournament of Champions.

Boys' cross country

The Highlanders boys' cross country was the Passaic County Championship winners in 2007 and 2017.

Girls' cross country

The Highlanders girls' cross country team won State titles from 2005–2008.

Wrestling

The wrestling team won the North I Group IV state sectional title in 1996, 1997 and 2003.
The Highlanders wrestling program has won many conference, county and district championships. Most notable of the seasons was in 2001–2002, when longtime wrestling Coach Mike Blakely led the Highlanders to the Northern Hills Conference, Passaic County and state district championships. The following two seasons the Highlanders continued as Northern Hills Conference & Passaic County Champions. In the 2007–08 season, the Highlander wrestling team won the Passaic County Championship.

Ice hockey

The Highlanders ice hockey program has won the county championship in the 2001–02, 2003–04, and 2006–07 seasons. During the 2008–2009 season, the team won the Nardello Cup by defeating Nutley High School 2–0 in the championship game. In the 2009–2010 season, the team went the farthest into the state tournament in school history. The team defeated Number one seed and 2009 state champions, Ramsey High School, by a score of 4–2. As of the 2018-19 season, West Milford High School and Pequannock Township High School play for the same combined team.

Football

The Highlanders football team went 10–1 in the 2003–04 season, making it to the state semi-finals before losing to Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest. The team won the conference, going 9–0 in league play. This marked the second time in school history and the first time in 16 years the team won the conference. The most monumental win of the season came against the Delbarton School Green Wave, 28–15, a parochial powerhouse that hadn't lost a conference game in five years. Delbarton hadn't lost to West Milford since 1995. The team was led by the 2003 Passaic County defense of the year, which posted four shutouts, including three consecutive, and never gave up more than 18 points in a game.

Highlander Day

This school-wide carnival occurs annually at the end of the school year, from 11:30am until the end of the school day outside on the back field at West Milford High School. Booths are run by individual clubs and groups, with all students being invited to participate in the festivities. Some of the booth themes have included "Win a Gold Fish", a hot dog eating contest, a taco eating contest, a dunk tank, pie throwing, face painting, pictures with friends in costumes, and more. A local band, called Time For Plan B, with members such as the now graduated Chas Vulcano, played live throughout the afternoon's festivities in 2009. This event is coordinated and run by the Student Council with assistance from many other school clubs.

Distinguished Scholars Recognition Awards Reception

On April 20, 2009, the school and district administrators held the first annual Distinguished Scholars Recognition Awards Reception in the high school cafeteria. This event recognized the top fifteen ranked students in each of the four graduating classes in the high school.

Notable alumni

Core members of the school's administration are: