Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School (or SPFHS) is a comprehensive regional four-year public high school in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from the Township of Scotch Plains and the Borough of Fanwood, operating as the lone secondary school of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Regional School District.Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District 2015 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 2, 2016. "We are indebted to the communities of Scotch Plains and Fanwood: for their support, involvement, and constant commitment to educational excellence."About Our District, Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools. Accessed May 28, 2024. "Scotch Plains-Fanwood is a regional school district comprised of students in Grades Preschool-Grade12 from the Township of Scotch Plains and the Borough of Fanwood. The district has five elementary schools (Preschool-Grade 4), 2 middle schools (Grades 5-8), and one comprehensive high school (Grades 9-12)." The school is accredited until January 2031 and has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1932.Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools. Accessed December 22, 2024.
As of the 2023–24 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,551 students and 115.9 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.4:1. There were 55 students (3.5% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 17 (1.1% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.School data for Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
History Designed to accommodate a maximum enrollment of 1,350, the facility is located in Scotch Plains and opened for 1,080 students in September 1957 after delays due to a series of strikes."New High School Opens for 1,081", Courier News, September 24, 1957. Accessed May 1, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "An estimated 1,081 pupils began classes here this morning with the opening of the new Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School. The two-story, ultra modern design building, located in Westfield Rd., was scheduled originally to be opened Sept. 9. Construction was delayed, however, by carpenters and electricians strikes.... The new high school has a functional student capacity of 1,082. Its maximum capacity is 1,352." Originally, the high school was located in another part of town on Park Avenue, which currently houses Malcolm E. Nettingham (formerly Park) Middle School. That building was constructed in 1926.Local Government Budget Review: Scotch Plains-Fanwood Regional School District, New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Accessed December 22, 2019. "The first of the present-day school buildings was opened in 1926 as a high school.""A historical tour of Scotch Plains-Fanwood", Courier News, January 25, 2000. Accessed February 9, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "1925: Park Junior High School is built in Scotch Plains."
Awards, recognition and rankings In its listing of "America's Best High Schools 2016", the school was ranked 210th out of 500 best high schools in the country; it was ranked 33rd among all high schools in New Jersey and 16th among the state's non-magnet schools.Staff. "America's Best High Schools 2016" , Newsweek. Accessed November 11, 2016.
In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 918th in the nation among participating public high schools and 69th among schools in New Jersey.Streib, Lauren. "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast, May 6, 2013. Accessed May 9, 2013. In the 2011 "Ranking America's High Schools" issue by The Washington Post, the school was ranked 42nd in New Jersey and 1,349th nationwide.Mathews, Jay. , The Washington Post. Accessed September 9, 2011.
The school was the 54th-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 60th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 62nd in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed September 12, 2012. The magazine ranked the school 69th in 2008 out of 316 schools.Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed August 10, 2011. Schooldigger.com ranked the school tied for 86th out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (a decrease of 14 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (88.6%) and language arts literacy (96.3%) 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 1, 2012.
As of 2024, Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School was ranked 70th among high schools in New Jersey, 181st in the New York City metropolitan area and 1,435th nationwide."Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School", U. S. News and World Report. Accessed September 30, 2024. "All Rankings #1,435 in National Rankings #70 in New Jersey High Schools #181 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools"
SPHFS's quiz bowl team, founded in 1982, won the New Jersey state championship of the Rutgers University-run College Bowl competition in 1988 "Raiders trample Redskins for State Championship!", p.1 & 23, The Times (Scotch Plains, NJ), Vol. 31, No. 24, June 16, 1988 and embarked on creative televised fundraising in order to afford the travel costs to the many regional and national competitions where they were invited."Quiz Bowl alumni gather for meeting of the minds", p.2, The Times (Scotch Plains, NJ), June 8, 1989
Publications The school is host to an annually published literary magazine, Muse, which features poetry, stories and art by the students. The school's newspaper, The Fanscotian, was ranked by the GSSPA as the best newspaper in New Jersey. The school's yearbook is called Culmen.
Music Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School is host to an extensive music department. The department is home to multiple choruses, including concert choir and five auditioned groups: Select Choir, Men's Choir, Women's Choir, and Chamber Choir. The instrumental music program includes a plethora of groups. Non-auditioned groups include Freshman Band, Symphonic Band, as well as the SPF Raiders Marching Band. Auditioned groups include the Wind Ensemble, RhythmSense, SPF Jazz, and the Moonglowers.
Scotch Plains-Fanwood is also home to the Repertory Theatre program, which in the past few years has put on such shows as Footloose, Les Misérables, West Side Story, 42nd Street, Once Upon a Mattress, Urinetown, Guys and Dolls, Curtains, Hairspray, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood garnering a number of Rising Star Award nominations from the Paper Mill Playhouse, including one win for Outstanding Student Orchestra, for 42nd Street in 2006.Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Awards 2006 Award Recipients, Paper Mill Playhouse. Presented June 13, 2006.
SPF Moonglowers SPF's top level ("A") jazz band, the Moonglowers, is the oldest continuously operated high school jazz band in the state of New Jersey. It was formed in 1942 to play contemporary big-band songs during lunch periods and at the high school's senior prom. Beginning in 1979, the Moonglowers started competing in the New Jersey International Association of Jazz Education (now the New Jersey Association for Jazz Education) jazz band circuit. Since then, the Moonglowers have won a McDonald's National Jazz Band title and 10 New Jersey State titles. Since 2007, when the NJIAJE reformed into the New Jersey Association for Jazz Education, the Moonglowers have competed in Division II.2011 Finals , The New Jersey Jazz Ensemble Festival. Accessed February 2, 2012. Notably, in 2008, both the Moonglowers and SPF Jazz, SPF's second tier ("B") jazz band, competed together at the New Jersey State Final festival, and SPF Jazz took first place. This is the only time in the 21-year competition history of the school that SPF Jazz scored higher than the Moonglowers in competitions.
When not competing, the Moonglowers play old time big band swing songs for various community events and organizations. From community concerts to retirement homes, the Moonglowers play songs from the golden age of jazz for those who remember them. Since 2007, the Moonglowers have headlined the Susan G. Komen for the Cure race in New York City in early September.
SPF Raiders Marching Band The band competes and performs regularly. In 2012, the Marching Raiders went into the USBands National Championships (Groups 2 Open & 4 Open PLUS 3A &6A) at MetLife Stadium, with a show entitled "On The Brink Of Change: Gold Rush To A Better Tomorrow". They ended the competitive marching band season ranked 2nd place, with a score of 95.8 in group 6A, with a caption award of Best Effect.USBAnds National Championship November 11, 2012, United States Scholastic Band Association, November 11, 2012. Accessed November 14, 2012. "6 A Scotch Plains Fanwood HS (NJ) 95.8 Best Effect"
In 2014, the show was entitled Il Cuore Di Romano: The Heart of the Roman Empire. The band had an undefeated season and were Group VIA NJ State and Group VIA National Champions, winning all captions at the latter.Staff. "Scotch Plains-Fanwood H.S. Marching Band wins Group 6-A Yamaha Cup Competition", Suburban News, November 3, 2014. Accessed November 19, 2017. "The Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School Raiders Marching Band took first place in Group 6-A at the annual Yamaha Cup competition, held Saturday, Nov. 1, at MetLife Stadium. The musicians and color guard performed their Roman Empire-themed 2014 show, "Il Cuore di Romano," on the home field of the football Giants and Jets. The event came one week after Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School won the US Bands Group 6-A New Jersey State Championship at the Rutgers University stadium in Piscataway."Staff. "Scotch Plains-Fanwood H.S. Marching Band wins USBands National Championship", Suburban News, November 10, 2014. Accessed November 19, 2017. "The Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School Marching Band capped an undefeated competition season on Nov. 8, by sweeping the awards in Group 6A at the US Bands A Class National Championships show at J. Birney Crum Stadium in Allentown, Pa. With an overall score of 92.875, the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Raiders band took first place in Group 6A, plus the awards for Best Color Guard, Best Percussion, Best Music, Best Visuals and Best Overall Effect."
Athletics