Glen Ridge High School (GRHS) is a comprehensive six-year public middle school / high school serving students in seventh through twelfth grades from Glen Ridge, in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary school of the Glen Ridge Public Schools. The school is accredited by the New Jersey Department of Education.
As of the 2024–25 school year, the school had an enrollment of 799 students and 74.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1. There were 3 students (0.4% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 0 (0.0% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.School data for Glen Ridge High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed January 15, 2026.
The school's standardized test scores exceed both the state and national averages. The Class of 2013's average SAT scores were 575 on the math section, 579 on the critical reading section and 565 on writing, totaling 1719 on the three sections combined (compared to a New Jersey averages of 495 math, 521 reading and 496 writing for 1512 overall). Among students taking the SAT, 69% of students met or exceed the combined score of 1550 considered by the College Board to indicate likely college success, vs. 44% statewide.Glen Ridge High School 2013 School Performance Report, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 14, 2011. The graduation rate for the class of 2013 was 97%, with 91.2% of students passing the New Jersey High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).
History After Glen Ridge was established as a borough in 1895 and an independent school district was formed, students in grades 9-12 were sent to attend Montclair High School on a tuition basis. Constructed in 1900, the Glen Ridge School served students in all 12 grades; the building, as expanded, became Glen Ridge High School in the 1920s. A 1966 referendum approved the construction of a new high school building, which was completed at a cost of $2.8 million (equivalent to $ million in ) and opened in November 1968, at which point the old building was repurposed as Glen Ridge Middle School.Education, Glen Ridge Historical Society. Accessed March 28, 2022.
Awards, recognition and rankings The school was named one of America's Most Challenging High Schools by the Washington Post, ranked 16th in New Jersey and 508th nationally.School Performance Reports for Glen Ridge High School , New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 27, 2022. It was also named one of the Best High Schools by U.S. News & World Report, 14th in New Jersey and 317th nationally. The school was ranked 30th Best Public School in New Jersey by Niche.com, while the school's teachers were ranked 10th best in the state. The school had been ranked 12th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 4th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed November 6, 2012. The magazine ranked the school 5th in 2008 out of 316 schools.Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed June 14, 2011. The school was ranked 10th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which included 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 tied for 113th out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (a decrease of 21 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (87.9%) and language arts literacy (94.0%) 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 4, 2012.
In the 2011 "Ranking America's High Schools" issue by The Washington Post, the school was ranked 37th in New Jersey and 1,193rd nationwide.Mathews, Jay. , The Washington Post. Accessed August 17, 2011. The school was ranked 452nd in Newsweek's 2009 ranking of the top 1,500 high schools in the United States and was the 10th-ranked school in New Jersey, with 2.219 AP tests taken in 2008 per graduating senior and 30% of all graduating seniors passing at least one AP exam; The school was ranked 751st nationwide in 2008.Staff. "The Top of the Class: The complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools" , Newsweek, June 8, 2009. Accessed June 10, 2009. In Newsweek's 2007 ranking of the country's top 1,200 high schools, Glen Ridge High School was listed in 871st place, the 23rd-highest ranked school in New Jersey."The Top of the Class: The complete list of the 1,200 top U.S. schools" , Newsweek, May 22, 2007. Accessed May 24, 2007.
In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 836th in the nation among participating public high schools and 62nd among schools in New Jersey.Streib, Lauren. "America's Best High Schools" , The Daily Beast, May 6, 2013. Accessed May 9, 2013. The school was ranked 255th in the nation and 24th 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.Staff. "America's Best High Schools 2012" , The Daily Beast / Newsweek, May 20, 2012. Accessed May 24, 2012.
Athletics The Glen Ridge High School RidgersGlen Ridge High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. compete in the Super Essex Conference, which consists of public and private high schools in Essex County and operates under the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. Prior to the NJSIAA's 2010 realignment, the school had competed in the Colonial Hills Conference which included public and private high schools covering Essex County, Morris County and Somerset County in west Central Jersey., Colonial Hills Conference, backed up by the Internet Archive, as of November 19, 2010. Accessed December 15, 2014. With 407 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 75 to 476 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 Ivy White 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 football team is one of the 12 programs assigned to the two Ivy divisions starting in 2020, which are intended to allow weaker programs ineligible for playoff participation to compete primarily against each other.Cooper, Darren. "Super Football Conference creating 'Ivy Division' for struggling programs", The Record, May 1, 2019. Accessed March 24, 2021. "Seeking to restore participation and enthusiasm to high school football programs that have struggled to compete consistently, the Super Football Conference announced plans to start a 12-team 'Ivy Division' in the 2020 season. Teams that compete in the 'Ivy Division' will play exclusively against each other and won't participate in the NJISAA football playoffs.... Twelve schools from Bergen, Hudson, Essex and Morris counties have applied to compete in the Ivy Division: Bergen Tech, Cliffside Park, Dickinson, Fair Lawn, Ferris, Memorial, Dover, Dwight-Morrow, Fort Lee, Glen Ridge, Marist and Tenafly." The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group I North for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 254 to 474 students.NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2024–2026, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024. The mascot is the Ridger (a two-headed zebra).
The school participates in a joint ice hockey team with Verona High School as the host school / lead agency. The 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. The co-op hockey team competes in the NJIHL Kelly Division. Each year the team hosts the Holiday Tournament at the Richard J. Codey Arena in West Orange. The 2004–2005 season saw the team win its first conference championship.Yardley, Jon. 2004-05 New Jersey Scores, High School Hockey Online. Accessed November 19, 2014. The Verona / Glen Ridge co-op ice hockey team won the McMullen Cup in 2009, the Kelly Cup in 2020, 2022, 2024 and the McInnis Cup in 2016.NJSIAA Ice Hockey State Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020. In February 2024, the team outlasted the Glen Rock High School Panthers to win the Kelly Cup in the longest ice hockey game in state history, winning 2-1 in the fifth overtime period.'Verona co-op ends longest ice hockey game in state history with Kelly Cup", NJ Advance media for NJ.com, February 16, 2024. Accessed February 21, 2024. "Jack Budinick drove to the net and slid in a rebound to end the longest ice hockey game in state history. More importantly, it lifted Verona-Glen Ridge to the Kelly Cup title with a 2-1 victory over Glen Rock at Codey Arena in West Orange."
The boys track team won the Group III spring / outdoor track state championship in 1923, 1924 and 1929, and won the Group I title in 1951, 1959-1966 and 1968. The 15 state titles won by the program are the third-most statewide, while the eight consecutive titles won from 1959 to 1966 is the longest streak in the state.NJSIAA Boys Spring Track Summary of Group Titles, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023. As of date accessed, the page lists a nine-year streak from 1959 to 1967, but shows Glassboro as the winner in 1967.