As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of 19 schools, had an enrollment of 10,596 students and 887.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.9:1.[1] It was the state's twelfth-largest school district in 2011 and is one of the largest suburban districts.[4]
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "GH", the third-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.[5]
History
In May 1954, with enrollment exceeding the school's target of 1,000, the Haddonfield Public Schools notified the Delaware Township School District (since renamed as the Cherry Hill Public Schools) that its students would no longer be accepted at Haddonfield Memorial High School after June 1956. While there were 420 Haddonfield students at the high school, there were a total of 760 students as part of sending/receiving relationships, including about 200 from Delaware Township (now Cherry Hill).[6]
Constructed on a 40-acre (16 ha) plot of land, Delaware Township High School opened in September 1956 for students in grades 7–9.[7][8] Completed at a cost of $1.6 million (equivalent to $17.4 million in 2023), dedication ceremonies were conducted in November 1957 for the complex, which was built in four separate sections.[9]
Due to delays in the construction of the new school building, the entering class of 450 students at Cherry Hill East began the 1966–67 school year attending split sessions at the original Cherry Hill High School building.[10] Constructed at a cost of $4 million (equivalent to $37.6 million in 2023), the school building opened in January 1967 as the township's second high school facility.[11] The district's original secondary school, which had been renamed as Cherry Hill High School, became Cherry Hill High School West.[12]
Awards and recognition
For the 2001–2002 school year, Cherry Hill High School East received the National Blue Ribbon Award of Excellence from the United States Department of Education, the highest honor that an American school can achieve.[13] During the 2009–10 school year, Rosa International Middle School was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence.[14] Joseph D. Sharp Elementary School was honored by the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program in 2019, one of nine schools in the state recognized as Exemplary High Performing Schools.[15]
Three of the district's schools have been named as "Star Schools" by the New Jersey Department of Education, the highest honor that a New Jersey school can achieve. Cherry Hill High School East was recognized for the 1999–2000 school year,[16]
Thomas Paine Elementary School in 2002-2003[17] and Clara Barton Elementary School was honored with this award in 2003–2004.[18]
Joyce Kilmer and Thomas Paine Elementary Schools were recognized by Governor Jim McGreevey in 2003 as two of 25 schools selected statewide for the First Annual Governor's School of Excellence award.[19]
In addition, the district has three New Jersey Department of Education Governor's Schools of Excellence, and five Best Practices Award Winners. SAT scores far exceed state and national averages. In 2005, the graduation rate was nearly 100% and more than 97% of graduates are continuing their education at two- or four-year colleges.
Controversy
In April 2012, the parent of an autistic student released a video as evidence that his son was the subject of emotional abuse by an aide at Horace Mann Elementary School. The parent had wired his son before sending him to school and told reporters that "he caught his son's teachers gossiping, talking about alcohol and violently yelling at students", which led to one of the aides involved being fired after officials listened to the tape.[20]
Cherry Hill Education Foundation
Along with awards and honors of the school district, the Cherry Hill Education Foundation was established in 1998. The Cherry Hill Education Foundation is an all volunteer, non-profit organization that helps support innovative and educational programs in the Cherry Hill School District that cannot be funded by the District Budget. Since November 2007, the Foundation has funded over $207,000 in grants to various schools throughout the district. The Cherry Hill Education Foundation raises funds from individuals, public and private grants, and corporate sponsorships, and by hosting a variety of fundraising events.
The Cherry Hill Education Foundation is an all volunteer organization that was founded in 1998 as a non-profit organization and has raised over $200,000 to aid schools since 2007. The foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that has a primary mission to support the Cherry Hill School District and to encourage community involvement and awareness of the schools, the students, and student programs. The foundation aims to recognize the accomplishments of the district, the students, the teachers, and the community. Since 1998, the foundation has had three objectives:[21]
To promote student development through enriched programs and activities, and recognition of student accomplishments.
To encourage creativity among employees by supporting unique growth opportunities, providing resources for creative teaching ideas, and recognizing employee accomplishments.
To encourage school-community partnerships by promoting community awareness about school programs, providing ways for individuals and organizations to share resources with the school to enhance learning, and facilitating cooperative ventures among the foundation, community groups, and the school district.
Lynn E. Shugars, assistant superintendent, business administrator and board secretary[48]
Board of education
The district's board of education is comprised of nine members who set policy and oversee the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type II school district, the board's trustees are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year held (since 2012) as part of the November general election. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the district's day-to-day operations and a business administrator to supervise the business functions of the district.[49][50][51]
^Cherry Hill Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Cherry Hill Public Schools. Accessed February 11, 2020. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-Kindergarten through twelve in the Cherry Hill School District. Composition: The Cherry Hill School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Cherry Hill Township, Camden County, New Jersey."
^"Haddonfield High To Drop Pupils of Delaware Twp.", Courier-Post, May 21, 1954. Accessed March 13, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "Delaware Township High School, pupils will not be accepted in Haddonfield Memorial High School after June, 1956.... Reynolds said 761 pupils now attending Haddonfield Memorial High School are from sending districts, as compared to 423 from Haddonfield.... Reynolds produced a table he said represents the breakdown of sending pupils in the high school at present. Listed are: Delaware Township, 205; Evesham Township, 75; Gibbsboro, 20; Gloucester, 272; Haddon Township, 90; Lawnside, 2; Voorhees Township, 89; Woodlynne, 1; and private, 7."
^"Opening Set At Dela. Twp. High School", Courier-Post, August 9, 1956. Accessed March 13, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "The first section of the new Delaware Township High School on Church rd., will be ready for classes at the beginning of the Fall term, according to Robert E. Hansen, principal.... The school, situated on a 40- acre tract of land on Church rd., was originally planned to be completed in stages with the final date set for sometime in January, Hansen said. The entire school plant is divided in four sections. The part which will be ready in the fall contains 22 classrooms and laboratories."
^A Brief History, Cherry Hill High School West. Accessed January 21, 2016. "In September of 1956, across from the peach orchards on Chapel Avenue, a new school opened its doors to seventh, eighth and ninth graders. Its students were drawn from across Delaware Township. The founding of Delaware Township High School marked the emergence of the township as a burgeoning South Jersey community."
^"Rites to Mark Dedication of High School", Courier-Post, October 30, 1957. Accessed March 13, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "The dedication and cornerstone laying exercises for Delaware Township's new high school on Chapel ave. will be held Sunday at 2 p. m. Built at a cost of $1,632,000, the school opened for 7th, 8th and 9th grade pupils in the fall of 1956, and for 10th graders this fall. The entire school plant is divided in four sections: A, the industrial arts wing; B, for administration and business education, and C, auditorium, gymnasium, music room and cafeteria and kitchen areas. All these are of one-story construction, with block D, the academic wing, of two- story design."
^"One Class Split - 1700 Cherry Hill Students Diverted Until 3 Schools Are Finished", The Philadelphia Inquirer, August 21, 1966. Accessed April 26, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Three Cherry Hill schools under construction will not be ready for the Sept. 7 opening, officials said Saturday.... Edward V. Cook, assistant superintendent of schools, said double sessions would be held at Cherry Hill High School for freshmen who would have entered Cherry Hill East. Those 450 students will attend either the morning session, 7:45 to 12:15, or afternoon, 12:15 to 4:45."
^"Cherry Hill To Open New School", Courier-Post, January 26, 1967. Accessed April 26, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "The new Cherry Hill High School East will open its doors Monday for 466 ninth grade students now attending classes at Cherry Hill High School West. A staff of 31 teachers and three secretaries will administer educational activities at the $4 million school on Kresson Road between Springdale and Cropwell Roads."
^Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the Cherry Hill School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2023. Accessed April 9, 2024. "The Cherry Hill Township School District (hereafter referred to as the 'District') is a Type II district located in the County of Camden, State of New Jersey. As a Type II district, the School District functions independently through a Board of Education. The Board is comprised of nine members elected to three-year terms. These terms are staggered so that three members’ terms expire each year. The purpose of the District is to educate students in grades kindergarten through twelfth at its nineteen schools."
