Vernon Township High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Vernon Township, in Sussex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school opened in 1975 and serves students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Vernon Township School District. The school has gone through expansions over the years including a new wing with several classrooms; the gymnasium was doubled in size. In April 2007, renovations were started on the auditorium and outdoor fields.
As of the 2023–24 school year, the school had an enrollment of 912 students and 75.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.1:1. There were 140 students (15.4% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 55 (6.0% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.School data for Vernon Township High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
History In the face of "badly overcrowded conditions" at Franklin High School, voters in Vernon approved in 1972 the construction of a new high school for township students that was expected to cost $6.5 million (equivalent to $ million in )."Voters in Sussex Approve 2 of 3 School Referendums", Paterson Evening News, November 29, 1972. Accessed November 18, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "High school youngsters from all four municipalities plus Vernon, are now attending Franklin High School under badly overcrowded conditions.... In Vernon, the vote was 3 to 1 in approving a $6.5 million high school to house township students new attending Franklin High School." The school, constructed on a site and a maximum capacity of 1,150, opened in September 1975 with an enrollment of 850 students. Seniors could choose to complete their education at Franklin High School or switch over to the new high school.Sullivan, Ann Marie. "Sussex Highlights", The News, September 24, 1975. Accessed April 17, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "The official dedication of the new Vernon Township high school has been set for Nov. 9. the school opened its doors a week later than most schools in the county this September, but open the doors they did."Sullivan, Ann Marie. "They're Proud At Vernon High", Paterson News, October 30, 1975. Accessed April 17, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "In spite of the fact that the opening date of the high school was postponed for a week this past September because of construction difficulties, the 830 students In the first year's enrollment felt at home immediately in the new environment.... Seniors were given an option at the end of last year either to continue and graduate with their class at Franklin High School (for which Vernon was a sending district) or become part of the first graduating class at VTHS.... Initially built to house 1,150 students, the school was constructed to provide for future expansion facilities for a 12-classroom addition, with the cafeteria already built with expansion in mind, and no need to be made any larger, Musco said. Construction, on this district's first high school was begun in 1973 on a 65-acre site, itself a small mountain with a sweeping view of the surrounding countryside."
Since the 2010–11 year, the school has offered a parent-student portal, which provides parents and students access grades online any time they want. It also shows attendance and where a student stands academically.Home page, Vernon Township High School. Accessed September 3, 2012.
Awards, recognition and rankings Peggy Stewart was recognized by the New Jersey Department of Education as the New Jersey Teacher of the Year for the 2004–05 school year. Stewart, a history, social studies and enrichment teacher, has been on the faculty of Vernon Township High School since 1991.Sussex County Educator Named 2004-05 New Jersey Teacher of the Year, New Jersey Department of Education press release dated October 6, 2004. Accessed March 4, 2008.
The school was the 134th-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.Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014. The school had been ranked 108th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 152nd in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed September 3, 2012. The magazine ranked the school 156th in 2008 out of 316 schools.Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed February 26, 2011. The school was ranked 124th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state."Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008. Schooldigger.com ranked the school 162nd out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (an increase of 7 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (80.5%) and language arts literacy (94.6%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).New Jersey High School Rankings: 11th Grade HSPA Language Arts Literacy & HSPA Math 2010-2011, Schooldigger.com. Accessed March 6, 2012.
In the 2013–14 school year, Vernon Township High School ranked fourth in Sussex County out of nine other public high schools in SAT scores.Vernon Township High School 2013-14 School Performance Report, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 22, 2015.
Extracurricular activities
Sports The Vernon Township High School VikingsVernon Township High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. participate in the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference, which includes public and private high schools in Hunterdon, Sussex and Warren counties and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).Home Page, Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference. Accessed August 27, 2020. "The Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference prides itself on being one of New Jersey's premier high school conferences and is comprised of 39 high schools located in Northwest New Jersey."League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. The school had participated in the Sussex County Interscholastic League until the SCIL was dissolved in 2009 as part of the NJSIAA realignment.Home Page, Sussex County Interscholastic League, backed up by the Internet Archive, as of February 4, 2012. Accessed November 19, 2014. With 751 students in grades 10–12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group II for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 486 to 758 students in that grade range.NJSIAA General Public School Classifications 2019–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020. The football team competes in the Patriot Blue division of the North Jersey Super Football Conference, which includes 112 schools competing in 20 divisions, making it the nation's biggest football-only high school sports league.Cooper, Darren. "Here's what we know about the new Super Football Conference 2020 schedule", The Record, July 23, 2020. Accessed March 22, 2021. "The Super Football Conference (SFC) is a 112-team group, the largest high school football-only conference in America, and is comprised of teams from five different counties."Cooper, Darren. "NJ football: Super Football Conference revised schedules for 2020 regular season", The Record, July 23, 2020. Accessed March 22, 2021. "The Super Football Conference has 112 teams that will play across 20 divisions." The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group II North for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 484 to 683 students.NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2024–2026, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024.
The school participates as the host school / lead agency for a joint wrestling team with Wallkill Valley Regional High School. This co-op program operates under agreements scheduled to expire at the end of the 2023–24 school year.NJSIAA Winter Cooperative Sports Programs, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed December 1, 2020.
In early 2021, plans were made for the high school to renovate the football field and surrounding track through FieldTurf. It is expected to be approved on May 1, 2021.
Since the school has begun participating in league sports throughout the county and state, the Vernon Vikings have received numerous awards and championships.
Two such teams are the boys' and girls' cross country; Ray Morris and Brian Cummins have been in charge of the teams, winning many championships. In the 2007 season, the boys' team was third in the S.C.I.L. and moved on to rank second in Group IV Sectionals at the Garret Mountain course in West Paterson, during the season being ranked as high as 7th in the state. In the 1980s, Doug Castellana led the team to a number of SCIL championships. In 2009, coaches Jim Shenise and girl coach took over and in 2010, they led the girls' team to take 3rd at the New Jersey Group IV sectionals. The school's legacy of success in cross country dates from the 1978 season, when the team was undefeated and won the S.C.I.L. championship.
The field hockey team won the North I Group II state sectional championship in 1980, the North I Group IV title in 1988–1991, 1995 and 1996, and the North I/II combined Group IV title in 1993.History of NJSIAA Field Hockey Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.
The boys' wrestling team won the North I Group IV state sectional championship in 1995 and 2002.Boys Wrestling Championship History: 1934–2025, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated February 2026. Accessed March 1, 2026.
The ice hockey team won the McMullen Cup in 2005 with a 5-3 come-from-behind win against Ridgewood High School in the championship game played at South Mountain Arena.NJSIAA Ice Hockey State Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020."Maroons can't hold the lead", The Record, February 27, 2005. Accessed February 24, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Dan Colvin scored the tie-breaking goal with 5:14 remaining in the third period as Vernon rallied for a 5-3 victory over Ridgewood on Friday at South Mountain Arena to win the McMullen Cup. Ridgewood scored two unanswered goals in the sec- ond period to take a 3-2 lead.... Tim Shortman tied the score for Vernon (20-4-1) with 13:12 left in the third period."
The girls' varsity ski team won the 2009 New Jersey Interscholastic Ski Racing Association (NJISRA) overall state championship.Staff. "Carroll sparks Ridge to boys' team title; Vernon girls' have Merritt (High school Boys Skiing news)", The Star-Ledger, February 28, 2009. Accessed July 22, 2011. "A high level of competition during the regular season carried over for Vernon's Haley Merritt, as she captured the girls' individual title in 2:15.42 while sparking Vernon to the girls' overall team title. Merritt posted the top times both days of competition, with a first-place 1:08.86 in the Giant Slalom on Thursday and 1:06.56 to capture the Slalom yesterday."