Bernards High School

Awards, recognition and rankings

In its listing of "America's Best High Schools 2016", the school was ranked 88th out of 500 best high schools in the country; it was ranked 18th among all high schools in New Jersey and fifth among the state's non-magnet schools.

In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 235th in the nation among participating public high schools and 18th among schools in New Jersey. The school was ranked 169th in the nation and 12th in New Jersey on the list of "America's Best High Schools 2012" prepared by The Daily Beast / Newsweek, with rankings based primarily on graduation rate, matriculation rate for college and number of Advanced Placement / International Baccalaureate courses taken per student, with lesser factors based on average scores on the SAT / ACT, average AP/IB scores and the number of AP/IB courses available to students.

In the 2011 "Ranking America's High Schools" issue by The Washington Post, the school was ranked 6th in New Jersey and 288th nationwide. The school was ranked 198th in Newsweek's 2009 ranking of the top 1,500 high schools in the United States and was the fourth-ranked school in New Jersey, with 3.023 IB tests taken in 2008 per graduating senior and 49% of all graduating seniors passing at least one IB exam. In 2008, the school was ranked 518th nationwide. In Newsweek's May 22, 2007 issue, ranking the country's top high schools, Bernards High School was listed in 218th place, the sixth-highest ranked school in New Jersey. The school was listed in 141st place, the fourth highest ranked school in New Jersey, in Newsweek's May 8, 2006, issue, listing the Top 1,200 High Schools in The United States.

The school was the 15th-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 11th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 32nd in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. The magazine ranked the school 36th in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 50th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which included 316 schools across the state. Schooldigger.com ranked the school 52nd out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (an increase of 16 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (92.3%) and language arts literacy (97.4%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).

Athletics

The Bernards High School Mountaineers compete in the Skyland Conference, which operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). Bernards joined the Skyland Conference in the 2006–07 school year, after having been in the Colonial Hills Conference for many years. With 628 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2015-16 school year as Central Jersey, Group II for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 498 to 750 students in that grade range.

The school operates as the lead agency for a cooperative ice hockey program with Somerville High School that expires at the end of the 2016-17 school year.

The football team won conference champs and the boys cross country team won a sectional title during the 2005–06 school year. More recently, the school's fencing team finished 1st in 2006 (Boys), 1st in 2007 (Girls, defeating Columbia High School by a score of 16-11), and 1st in 2008 (Boys again). All three State Fencing Team Championships achieved by a program created seven years ago. Also during the 2006–07, Catherine Carr scored her 2,000th point. Junior Shane Painter scored his 1,000th point.

The school is also known for its girls' track team. The team dominated in the 1980s, but was dismantled in 1989 because of budget deficits. The program was resurrected in 2000 and the team has won multiple conference titles and championships. They won the Indoor NJSIAA State Group I Relays along with the Indoor NJSIAA North I Group I Sectional Championships and the Indoor NJSIAA State Group I Championships in 2009 and 2010, the seventh group title won by the program in its history. The girls' track team had four All-Americans in 2010, with its 4x800 team taking 5th place at the New Balance Nationals track meet, with the 7th fastest time in the nation, breaking the Somerset County record and was the fastest time in New Jersey that year.

The 2006-07 Bernards boys soccer team won the Skyland Conference championship in their inaugural year there. The team won the Group II state championship with a 2–1 win over Ramsey High School in the semifinals and a 3–2 win against Haddonfield Memorial High School in the finals.

Extracurricular activities

In the second semester of 2006–07, the Bernards Mountaineers Marching Band was invited to travel to New Orleans to perform in a Mardi Gras parade for Houma, Louisiana, a town that was devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

History

The following historical synopsis derives from Among the Blue Hills...Bernardsville...a History, published by the Bernardsville History Book Committee, 1991. "On January 26, 1926, a Citizen's Committee was chosen to work with the Board of Education.....The Committee reported that the two existing buildings contained sixteen classrooms, for two classes of each of the eight grades. It was believed that this would be adequate for some time. In order to provide for the special equipment and facilities needed for a high school program, the building of a new high school would be the logical solution....The building was completed and occupied in 1927."

From the school's certification in February 2002 until the end of the 2008-2009 school year, the school offered students the opportunity to participate in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IB), a comprehensive two-year curriculum pursued by students during junior and senior years. Students took a course of studies in six academic areas. Successful completion of an IB Diploma could lead students to earn college credit. Enrollment was highly selective and honors credit was earned. Students had to take a variety of internal and external assessments. The school had to end the program due to the incoming budget cuts in the next fiscal year from the then new governorship of Chris Christie. According to NJ.com, many residents were satisfied with the budget cuts. However, others felt the budget decisions were painful, and then-superintendent Peter Miller said, "I feel like I'm getting the rug pulled out from underneath me," and that the school "had the money available." The school was one of only 16 schools in New Jersey to offer the IB program at the time. Advanced Placement (AP) courses are still offered, which may also lead to college credit.

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:

Notable alumni