Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District

The Bridgewater–Raritan Regional School District is a regional public school district serving students in kindergarten through twelfth grade from the municipalities of Bridgewater Township and Raritan Borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States.[3] All of the school facilities are in Bridgewater, except for John F. Kennedy School, which is in Raritan.[4]

Bridgewater-Raritan Regional District
Address
836 Newmans Lane
Bridgewater, NJ 08807
United States
Coordinates40.602991°N 74.568287°W / 40.602991; -74.568287
District information
GradesK-12
SuperintendentRussell M. Lazovick
Business administratorPeter Starrs
Schools11
Students and staff
Enrollment8,603 (as of 2017-18)[1]
Faculty782.8 FTEs[1]
Student–teacher ratio11.0:1[1]
Other information
District Factor GroupI
Websitehttp://www.brrsd.org
Ind.Per pupilDistrict
spending		Rank
(*)		K-12
average		%± vs.
average
1ATotal Spending$17,61439$18,891−6.8%
1Budgetary Cost14,4395014,783−2.3%
2Classroom Instruction9,227748,7635.3%
6Support Services1,954272,392−18.3%
8Administrative Cost1,495591,4850.7%
10Operations & Maintenance1,465331,783−17.8%
13Extracurricular Activities26056268−3.0%
16Median Teacher Salary65,1285364,043
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending.[2]
*Of K-12 districts with more than 3,500 students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=103

As of the 2017-18 school year, the district and its 11 schools had an enrollment of 8,603 students and 782.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.0:1.[1] One of the largest suburban districts statewide, the district is the largest in Somerset County.[5]

The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "I", the second-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.[6]

Awards and recognition

During the 1999–2000 school year, Bridgewater–Raritan High School received the National Blue Ribbon Award of Excellence from the United States Department of Education, the highest honor that an American school can achieve.[7]

For the 1997-98 school year, Bridgewater–Raritan High School was named a "Star School" by the New Jersey Department of Education, the highest honor that a New Jersey school can achieve.[8]

BRHS is one of only three high schools in the state to have received both awards.[9]

Bridgewater Middle school students qualified to participate in NJ State and National Mathcounts for 2012 and 2013.

Bridgewater Middle School students placed first in the National Science Bowl 2013 New Jersey regional competition held at Princeton Plasma Lab; Science Bowl is a science competition sponsored by United States Department of Energy, involving general, physical, life, earth and mathematics.[10]

The Bridgewater Middle School Academic team won the A.T.O.M.S tournament for six of eight years, in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015[11] and 2017.

In 2015, BRMS swept all of the 30+ schools during the Music in the Parks Festival and came in first in Jazz band, wind ensemble, orchestra, and girls choir.[12]

In 2013, The BRHS marching band placed the highest of any New Jersey marching band at the Bands of America national championships, and the second New Jersey band to make it to semi-finals.[13]

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2017-18 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[14]) are:[15][16][17]

Primary schools
  • Adamsville Primary School[18] (569 students; in grades PreK–4)
    • James Singagliese, Principal
  • Bradley Gardens Primary School[19] (294; PreK–4)
    • Barbara A. Binford, Principal
  • Crim Primary School[20] (383; PreK–4)
    • Margaret Kerr, Principal
  • Hamilton Primary School[21] (507; K–4)
    • Daniel Fonder, Principal
  • John F. Kennedy Primary School[22] (397; K–4)
    • Joseph T. Walsh, Principal
  • Milltown Primary School[23] (427; PreK–4)
    • Matthew J. Lembo, Principal
  • Van Holten Primary School[24] (416; K–4)
    • George Rauh, Principal
Intermediate and middle schools
  • Eisenhower Intermediate School[25] (770; 5–6)
    • Joseph P. Diskin, Principal
      • Cathleen Filippello, Assistant Principal
  • Hillside Intermediate School[26] (574; 5–6)
    • William Ferry, Principal
      • Marc Hungarter, Assistant Principal
  • Bridgewater–Raritan Middle School[27] (1,411; 7–8)
    • Christina Steffner, Interim Principal[28]
      • Megan Corliss, Assistant Principal
      • Jacqueline Loughridge, Assistant Principal
High school
  • Bridgewater–Raritan High School[29] (2,882; 9–12)
    • Charles Ezell, Principal
      • Roy Dragon, Assistant Principal
      • Michael Godown, Assistant Principal
      • Kristia Greenberg, Assistant Principal
      • Laura Zamrock, Assistant Principal

Former and converted schools

From the early 1960s to the early 1990s, the Bridgewater–Raritan district had two high schools, known as "East" and "West." The current unified high school is on the "West" site, and the former "East" building is now the Middle School.

Schools that have been closed since the 1980s include:

  • Valley School (now the Harmon V. Wade Administration Building, school district headquarters)
  • Finderne School (now the Peoplecare Center for non-profit community services)
  • Green Knoll School (now part of the Bridgewater Township Municipal Building complex)
  • Martinsville School (now occupied by private offices)
  • Washington Middle School in Raritan (converted to Somerset County offices)

Adamsville School, now an elementary school, was a middle school until the 1980s. Eisenhower and Hillside Schools, now intermediate schools, were both middle schools until 1995.

District governance

Board of Education

The district's nine-member Board of Education is apportioned by population between Bridgewater and Raritan. Since the early 1990s, Bridgewater has elected eight of the board members and Raritan has elected one. Board members serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three members up for election each year. For 2020, the board president is Jackie Barlow and the vice president is Jill Gladstone, both of Bridgewater.[30]

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are:[31][32]

  • Russell Lazovick, SuperintendentSuperintendent's Message, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.</ref>[33]
  • Peter Starrs, Business Administrator / Board Secretary[34]

References
  1. District information for Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 1, 2019.
  2. Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  3. Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District 2014-15 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed January 23, 2020. "The Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District is a suburban school district located in Somerset County. We serve students from the Township of Bridgewater and the Borough of Raritan. The district is comprised of eleven schools and 3 ancillary buildings, with 1200 staff members serving 9000 students in grades pre-kindergarten through 12."
  4. Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living In/Bridgewater, N.J.; Where the Downtown Is a Shopping Mall ", The New York Times, December 29, 2002. Accessed October 5, 2014. "Among the newer residents, Mr. Cirianni said that he and his wife, Rita, were drawn by the 8,550 Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District, which the township shares with the 6,000-resident borough to its south."
  5. About Us, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed November 8, 2016.
  6. NJ Department of Education District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed October 5, 2014.
  7. Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982-1983 through 1999-2002 (PDF) Archived 2009-03-26 at the Wayback Machine, United States Department of Education. Accessed June 27, 2013.
  8. Bridgewater-Raritan High School 1997-98 entry in the Star School database, New Jersey Department of Education, backed up by the Internet Archive as of December 18, 2006. Accessed June 27, 2013.
  9. 2015-2016 School Profile, Bridgewater-Raritan High School. Accessed November 8, 2016.
  10. O'Brien, Walter. "Bridgewater-Raritan places first in N.J. Science Bowl, heads to nationals", NJ.com, February 26, 2013. Accessed November 8, 2016. "A team of five middle school students who took first place in the state Science Bowl competition will now head to the national competition in the nation's capital.Rob Ambrose, an eighth-grade earth science teacher at Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School, has been working with a team of students who Friday beat 15 other teams to take first place in the New Jersey Regional Science Bowl at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory in Princeton."
  11. 2015 A.T.O.M.S Finals Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine, Bridgewater-Raritan Education Association. "On Thursday, April 16, 2015 the final round of A.T.O.M.S was held between Crossroads Middle School and Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School. After three rounds of play, Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School was named the champion."
  12. Blumberg, Audrey. "BRMS Students Score Big at Music in Parks", TAPintotheBreeze, July 15, 2015. Accessed October 7, 2015. "The wind ensemble earned 95.30 points for the Overall Concert Band Award; the jazz ensemble earned 94.00 points for the Overall Jazz Band Award; the studio orchestra earned 97.30 points; and the select women's choir earned 95.50 points for the Overall Choir Award." Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  13. Staff. "Bridgewater-Raritan band places highest in history at Band of America Grand Nationals", The Messenger-Gazette, January 4, 2013. Accessed July 11, 2016. "The Bridgewater-Raritan High School marching band was recognized by the board of education Tuesday for placing higher than any other New Jersey bands in history at the recent Band of America Grand Nationals in Indianapolis."
  14. School Data for the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 1, 2019.
  15. Our Schools, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed November 26, 2017.
  16. 2018-2019 Somerset County Public School Directory, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  17. New Jersey School Directory for the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.
  18. Adamsville Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  19. Bradley Gardens Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  20. Crim Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  21. Hamilton Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  22. John F. Kennedy Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  23. Milltown Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  24. Van Holten Primary School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  25. Eisenhower Intermediate School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  26. Hillside Intermediate School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  27. Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  28. Board of Education Appoints Interim BRMS Principal, TAP into Bridgewater-Raritan, May 23, 2019. Accessed July 25, 2019.
  29. Bridgewater-Raritan High School, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
  30. Bridgewater-Raritan Board of Education, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020. "Welcome to the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District Board of Education. We are a 9-member board with 8 members elected from Bridgewater and one member elected from Raritan. Members are elected to three-year terms on the November general election day."
  31. Staff, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed November 26, 2017.
  32. New Jersey School Directory for Somerset County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.
  33. Deak, Mike. Bridgewater-Raritan Appoints New Superintendent, MyCentralJersey.com, January 27, 2016. Accessed January 23, 2020. "Russell Lazovick, the superintendent of schools in Nutley, will become the superintendent of the Bridgewater-Raritan School District on July 1."
  34. Business Office, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District. Accessed January 23, 2020.
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