High Technology High School, or HTHS, founded in 1991, is a four-year Magnet public high school for students in ninth through twelfth grades, located in the Lincroft section of Middletown Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, operated as a cooperative effort between the Monmouth County Vocational School District (MCVSD) and Brookdale Community College. It is a pre-engineering academy, offering courses such as Introduction to Engineering and Design, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, and Principles of Engineering. It is a member of the National Consortium for Specialized Secondary Schools of Mathematics, Science and Technology. The school has been accredited since 1995 by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools.
In its listing of "America's Best High Schools 2016", the school was ranked 20th out of 500 best high schools in the country; it was ranked seventh among all high schools in New Jersey. In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 16th in the nation among participating public high schools and 1st among schools in New Jersey. According to 2011 Newsweek statistics, High Technology High School students registered an average SAT score of 2145, the highest of any U.S. high school; overall, Newsweek ranked HTHS 18th nationally and the top high school in New Jersey. In 2011, HTHS was ranked Number 1 for Best High Schools for Math & Science in U.S. News & World Report, and in 2013, the school was ranked the twelfth best high school overall in the United States by U.S. News. In its 2015 rankings, Niche.com, Inc. ranked High Technology High School the best public high school in America.
The school opened its doors in 1991 with a sophomore class, later adding a freshman class in the fall of 1995. The student population is kept relatively small, with typically 60-75 students per class year, allowing the school to maintain a low studentâ€"teacher ratio.
As of the 2014-15 school year, the school had an enrollment of 292 students and 21.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a studentâ€"teacher ratio of 13.6:1. There were 5 students (1.7% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 3 (1.0% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.
Mission
"The administration, faculty, staff, and parents, aided by leaders from local businesses, industry, and colleges, form an integrated community with the intent of developing future leaders who have the desire, skills, and preparation necessary to be life-long learners. Faculty members act as facilitators, assisting students in acquiring the communication and information access skills they will need to function as productive citizens in an increasingly technological world. Students are taught to be prudent risk-takers and creative problem solvers in a global society. Achievement of these goals will result in their becoming socially and ethically responsible adults."
A broader knowledge base and appreciation developed through exploring the interconnections among science, mathematics and the humanities elicits higher level thinking skills. To foster this development, the High Technology High School will offer opportunities for the students to explore not only these connections, but also a wide range of subjects and interests.
Academics
High Technology offers a full high school education, with emphasis on math, science, and technology. Students take college courses during their junior and senior years, and seniors are required to take a mentorship course for one semester.
Class scheduling works around "block" scheduling. All classes are 69 minutes long, and there are 5 periods in a day. All students eat lunch at the same time, between 11:15 and 12:00 PM. Most classes are held three times a week. Physical Education is held two periods per week. AP science classes have "double labs" which are two periods (138 minutes) long, while AP Calculus classes meet one extra period per week. The foreign languages taught at High Technology High School are Latin, French and Spanish. Junior and senior technology electives - Project Lead the Way (Digital Electronics, Civil Engineering and Architecture, and Engineering Design and Development), and Brookdale Community College courses (C++ and Game Design) - are held twice a week for three periods (210 minutes).
Both the faculty and the student body have found this schedule to be to their advantage. For students it means more time to get things done in class and more time to do homework. For the teachers it means longer uninterrupted blocks of time to instruct students.
High Technology seniors participate in a mentorship one day a week for a full semester. Students work side by side with an engineer, scientist, or researcher, doing real-time research in a technological field. At the conclusion of the mentorship, each student delivers a multimedia presentation in a colloquium of peers and mentors. This summarizes all the formal and informal learning at the conclusion of the senior year.
Many of the courses offered at HTHS are taught by teams of teachers with expertise in their respective fields. The sci-tech program, humanities program, and the sophomore technologies program integrate multiple disciplines to enhance subject matter for students. Students work in teams which are assessed by exhibition as well as traditional methods.
Awards and recognition
- Business Insider ranked High Technology High School at the top of its 2014 list of the "25 best public high school in the United States".
- For the 2003-04 school year, High Technology High School received the National Blue Ribbon Award from the United States Department of Education for the second time, the highest honor that an American school can achieve.
- High Technology High School was twice named a "Star School" by the New Jersey Department of Education, the highest form of recognition for a New Jersey school, in both 1994-95 and 2001-02.
- 1996 Founding Principal Dr. William J. Pollock, was awarded NJ, NASSP MetLife Principal of the Year.
- Best Practice Award (1997 & 2002)
- The Star-Ledger Scholar Award 2002
- Nineteen National Merit Scholarship Program Finalists in the Class of 2001 & Class of 2002
- 61% of Graduating Class of 2008 National Merit Commended Scholars
- 42% of Graduating Class of 2004 National Merit Commended Scholars
- 40% of Graduating Class of 2003 National Merit Commended Scholars
- 44% of Graduating Class of 2002 National Merit Commended Scholars
- Three National Merit Scholar Award 2003
- One National Merit Scholar Award 1997
- Four HTHS Juniors earned a perfect 2400 SAT score in October 2010
- Three time champions of High Tech Academic Bowl Tournament (2007, 2008, 2009)
- Three time champions of Bridgewater-Raritan Invitational Tournament of Excellence (2003, 2004, 2008)
- American Design Drafting Association (ADDA) Curriculum Certification
- Governor's School of New Jersey Appointments (2 in 1997, 4 in 2002, 5 in 2004)
- Two United States Military Academy (West Point) Appointments (1997 & 2002)
- Two United States Naval Academy (Annapolis) Appointments (2010 & 2011)
- HTHS was ranked as Number 90 in Newsweek Magazine's recent listing of "America's Best High Schools" in the August 5, 2005 issue.
- High Technology High School was recognized by Newsweek magazine in its May 28, 2007 issue covering America's Best High Schools, as one of its 21 Public Elites, a group of consistent high performers excluded from its rankings because of the number of students with SAT (or ACT) scores well above the national average.
- HTHS was cited as a "Public Elite", one of 22 such schools recognized nationwide in Newsweek magazine's listing of "America's Best High Schools" in the May 8, 2006 issue. Newsweek described the school as "A pre-engineering academy with topnotch humanities"
- In 2005-06, HTHS averaged a 2039 combined SAT score, the highest average combined score statewide.
- HTHS was ranked as Number 7 in US News and World Report's listing of "America's Best High Schools" in 2008.
- In the 2008 NJ/Eastern PA Regionals for the National Science Bowl, HTHS's A and B teams took 1st and 4th place, with the A team advancing to the National Finals on May 1â€"6, 2008.
- Schooldigger.com ranked the school as one of 16 schools tied for first out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (unchanged from the 2010 rank) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the language arts literacy (100.0%) and mathematics (100.0%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).
MCVSD
There are four other career academies in the Monmouth County Vocational School District. These are referred to as sister schools.
- Marine Academy of Science and Technology (MAST) in Sandy Hook
- Academy of Allied Health & Science (AAHS) in Neptune Township
- Communications High School (CHS) in Wall Township
- Biotechnology High School (BTHS) in Freehold
Extracurricular Activities
High Technology High School offers a wide variety of clubs including:
- Academic Team
- Book Club
- Chess Club
- Computer Club
- American Computer Science League
- Creative Arts Club
- Environmental Club
- Experimental Research Group
- Key Club
- Math League
- Model United Nations
- National History Bee and Bowl
- National Honor Society
- Newspaper
- Performing Arts Club
- Drama
- Jazz Band
- Ping Pong Club
- Robotics Club
- Science Bowl
- Science Leagues [Biology, Physics I, Physics II, Physics C, Chemistry, Environmental Science]
- Student Government Association
- Technology Student Association
- Various religious interest groups
- Yearbook
Notable alumni
- Brian Christian (born 1984, class of 2002), author of "The Most Human Human".
- Julie Shah (born 1982, class of 2000), MIT Professor named one of the world's top 35 innovators under 35.
- Akash Modi (born 1995, class of 2013), alternate for the 2016 USA Olympic Team.
References
External links
- High Technology High School (official site)
- Monmouth County Vocational School District
- High Technology High School's 2015â€"16 School Performance Report from the New Jersey Department of Education
- School Data for the High Technology High School, National Center for Education Statistics
- Greatschools.net
- Project Lead the Way