William L. Dickinson High School Explained

William L. Dickinson High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school located in Jersey City, Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as part of the Jersey City Public Schools. Dickinson occupies a prominent location on Bergen Hill overlooking lower Jersey City and the New York Harbor. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1929.^[2]

As of the 2022–23 school year, the school had an enrollment of 2,024 students and 124.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 16.3:1. There were 1,143 students (56.5% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 58 (2.9% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.^[3]

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 304th-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.^[4] The school had been ranked 302nd in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 308th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.^[5] The magazine ranked the school 295th in 2008 out of 316 schools.^[6] The school was ranked 291st in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state.^[7]

In 1999, student Samir Kapadia placed fourth at the Annual Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for his project "Identification and Targeting Multiple Myeloma Cancerous Tumors."^[8]

In 2002–03, students Juliet R. Girard and Roshan D. Prabhu won the team competition of the Siemens Westinghouse Competition for "Identification and High Resolution Mapping of Flowering Time Genes in Rice." The duo shared a $100,000 scholarship with their victory.^[9]

In 2007, Abdullah Anwar, a student was recognized as a semi-finalist in the 2007 New Jersey Business Idea Competition conducted by Fairleigh Dickinson University.^[10]

History

Originally named Jersey City High School, ground was broken in 1904 and the new building opened on September 6, 1906, in an attempt to relieve overcrowding in the city's public schools.^{[11] [12]} It was the first public secondary school in the city. When the school opened, it housed a 2,000-seat auditorium that saw extensive public use, and hosted such events as a lecture by Helen Keller and political rallies for United States Presidents Taft, Wilson, and Roosevelt. The original school was expanded with the construction of a second building in 1912 to further industrial skills education. This building contained a foundry, print shop, and vocational classrooms.^[13]

In 1913, the school was renamed William L. Dickinson High School for the superintendent who had advocated for creation of the school during his term from 1872 to 1883.^[11] The school was expanded again in 1933 with the addition of an annex containing a swimming pool, cafeteria, and gymnasium.^[13] That same year, Lincoln High School was opened as the second high school in the district, as part of an effort to provide additional capacity outside of Dickinson.^[14]

The rear of the building is the site of a late 1800s-era cannon mount built to protect the Hudson River shoreline from early invaders. Given the location of the cannon and the associated technology of the time, it is doubtful that the cannon would have ever been effective as a defensive emplacement. While the cannon has since been removed, the original mounting was reused as the site of a black-granite monument to the victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

In 1946, students went on strike to protest a proposal by the city's board of education to extend the end of the school day from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm, with striking students arguing that the longer school day would interfere with their part-time jobs.^[15]

Athletics

The William L. Dickinson High School Rams^[16] compete in the Hudson County Interscholastic League, which is comprised of public and private high schools in Hudson County and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).^[17] With 1,342 students in grades 10–12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group IV for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 1,060 to 5,049 students in that grade range.^[18] The football team competes in the Ivy Red 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.^{[19] [20]} 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.^[21] The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group V North for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 1,317 to 5,409 students.^[22]

In 1930, Walt Singer (as an end) and his identical twin brother Milton (at running back) led the Dickinson football team to a 9–0 record as it became the second-ever Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic Association champion.^[23]

The Dickinson Rams football team had been led by head coach Rich Glover who had played as a defensive lineman for the New York Giants.

In February 2010, the Jersey City Public Schools cut funding for interscholastic sports and ended the football program at Dickinson.^[24] The Dickinson football team was re-established in 2012 after a few years in hiatus; the varsity was scheduled to be back for the 2014 season.

The boys indoor track team was the state public school champion in both 1937 and 1938, and won the Group IV state championship in 1966.^[25]

The boys' cross country team won the Group IV state title in 1948 and 1955.^[26] The team won the North I Group IV state championship in 1967.^[27]

The boys' baseball team won the North I Group IV state sectional championship in 1966, the only time that the team has won a state title in the post-1958 playoff era.^[28]

The boys track team won the indoor relay championship in Group IV in 1966 and 1967^[29]

The boys' basketball team won the 2000 North I, Group IV sectional title, edging Memorial High School 43–41 in the tournament final.^[30]

In 2009, the boys soccer team went on to the state tournament, losing to Ridge High School by a score of 2–0 in the tournament final, finishing with a record of 17–8–0 and marking the first time in Dickinson history that the boys varsity soccer team made it to the state sectional championship.^[31]

Administrators

The school's principal is Gekson Casillas. His core administration team includes four vice principals.^[32]

Notable alumni

• Akon (born 1973), recording artist.^[33]
• Paul Berezney (1915–1990), offensive tackle who played in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers between 1942 and 1944.^[34]
• Pete Berezney (1923–2008), tackle who played two seasons in the All-America Football Conference with the Los Angeles Dons and Baltimore Colts.^[35]
• Bob Bessoir (1932–2020), college basketball coach who spent his career at the University of Scranton, where he won 552 games and two NCAA Division III national championships.^[36]
• Al Blozis (1919–1945), player for the New York Giants killed during World War II.^[37]
• Nate Borden (born 1932), defensive end for the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFL from 1955 to 1962.^[38]
• John Matthew Cannella (1908–1996), offensive lineman for the New York Giants, later United States federal judge.^[39]
• Richard Conte (1910–1975), actor in more than 100 films.^[40]
• Dominick V. Daniels (1908–1987, class of 1925) politician who represented New Jersey's 14th congressional district from 1959 to 1977.^[41]
• The Duprees, 60s group formed by students from the school.^[42]
• Edward I. Edwards (1863–1931), attorney, banker and politician who served as Governor of New Jersey and represented the state in the United States Senate^[43]
• Michael P. Esposito (1913–1988), politician who served five terms in the New Jersey General Assembly.^[44]
• Bayard H. Faulkner (1894–1983), Mayor of Montclair, New Jersey, and chairman of the 1950 Commission on Municipal Government that created the Faulkner Act, named in his honor.^[45]
• Dom Flora (born 1935), basketball player for Washington and Lee University from 1954 to 1958 who graduated as NCAA Division I's fifth–highest scorer.^[46]
• Ed Franco (1915–1992), played football on the 1936 Fordham University team as one of the "Seven Blocks of Granite".^[47]
• James J. Galdieri (1900–1948), served in the New Jersey General Assembly.^[48]
• Jason Genao (born 1996), actor.^[49]
• Archimedes Giacomantonio (1906–1988), sculptor who was best known for his busts of noted figures.^[50]
• Don Holder (1928–2015, class of 1946), gymnast who competed in eight events at the 1952 Summer Olympics.^[51]
• Johnny Kucks (1932–2013), MLB pitcher for the New York Yankees and Kansas City Athletics.^[52]
• George McAneny (1869–1953), newspaperman and municipal reformer, who served as Manhattan Borough President from 1910 to 1913 and New York City Comptroller in 1933.^[53]
• Lillian Morrison (1917–2014), poet, author and librarian.^[54]
• Mary Teresa Norton (1875–1959), served 13 consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives, from 1925 to 1951.^[55]
• Ralph Peduto (1942–2014), film, theater and television actor, who was inducted into the Dickinson High School Hall of Fame in 2000.^[56]
• Randolph Perkins (1871–1936), politician who represented New Jersey's 6th congressional district from 1921 to 1936.^[57]
• Mary Philbrook (1872–1958), first female attorney in New Jersey.^[58]
• Eliu Rivera, politician who served on the Hudson County Board of Chosen Freeholders.^{[59] [60]}
• Michelle Rodriguez (born 1978), actress who dropped out in ninth grade, later calling Dickinson "a terrible school!"^[61]
• Eddie August Schneider (1911–1940), pilot who set the transcontinental air speed record in 1930 for pilots under the age of 21.^[62]
• Alexander Simpson (1872–1953), politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature.^[63]
• Walt Singer (1911–1992), end for the New York Giants of the NFL from 1935 to 1936.^[64]
• Joe Sulaitis (born 1921), running back for the New York Giants of the NFL from 1943 to 1953.^{[65] [66]}
• Kenneth A. Walsh (1916–1998, class of 1933), United States Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and a Medal of Honor recipient.^[67]
• Alex Weyand (1891–1982), college football player, Olympic wrestler, United States Army officer and sports historian.^[68]
• Henry Wittenberg (1918–2010), Olympic gold (1948) and silver (1952) medalist in freestyle wrestling.^[69]

Notable faculty

• John C. White (born 1975), the Louisiana state education superintendent since 2012, taught English at Dickinson from 1998 to 2001.^[70]

See also

• Five Corners, Jersey City
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Hudson County, New Jersey

External links

• William L. Dickinson High School
• Jersey City Public Schools
  • Data for William L. Dickinson High School, National Center for Education Statistics
• DHS January 1955 48th Reunion Web Site

Notes and References

1. Web site: National Register of Historic Places Listings. February 25, 2010.
2. https://www.msa-cess.org/school-profile/?oId=0065e00000B8SBc&typ=school-profile William L. Dickinson High School
3. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3407830&ID=340783002780 School data for William L. Dickinson High School
4. Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
5. Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed August 26, 2012.
6. Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed December 29, 2011.
7. http://njmonthly.com/articles/towns_and_schools/highschoolrankings/top-new-jersey-high-schools-by-rank.html "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank"
8. http://steiner.math.nthu.edu.tw/disk6/intel-isef/1999/99-2.html "Special Awards presented to Finalistsof the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair"
9. http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0932593.html Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science, and Technology
10. http://view.fdu.edu/default.aspx?id=4927 2007 New Jersey Business Idea Competition
11. http://www.njcu.edu/Programs/jchistory/Pages/D_Pages/Dickinson_High_School.htm Dickinson High School
12. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/25109d24-42f3-4d9c-a240-75c7e5f714d6 Nomination Form for William L. Dickinson High School
13. Goodnough, Abby. "Once Upon a Time, When High Schools Were Palaces", The New York Times, October 6, 1996. Accessed August 20, 2014. "Ninety years ago, an enormous Beaux Arts building went up on a hill overlooking the Hudson River. It had Corinthian columns, terrazzo floors and a vestibule lined with English marble. It could have passed for a palace, or at least a palatial estate. But it was neither. It was, in fact, William L. Dickinson High School, the first public secondary school in Jersey City."
14. https://njcu.libguides.com/lincolnhigh Lincoln High School
15. Staff. "School Strikers Increase Ranks; 400 of Dickinson High School, Jersey City, Join Others in Protest on Hours", The New York Times, December 18, 1946. Accessed September 15, 2020. "The ranks of striking high school pupils here were enlarged today when 400 pupils of the William L. Dickinson High School left their classes in sympathy with the 1,000 of Henry Snyder High School who walked out yesterday protesting a proposed lengthening of school hours."
16. https://www.njsiaa.org/schools/william-l-dickinson-high-school William L. Dickinson High School
17. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2020-10/2020-2021-lc-officers-schools.pdf League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021
18. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2020-11/general-classifications-2018-2020.pdf NJSIAA General Public School Classifications 2019–2020
19. 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."
20. 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."
21. 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."
22. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2024-08/football-2024-2026.pdf NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2024–2026
23. Hague, Jim. "Moments of Gridiron Greatness The history of football in Jersey City", The Hudson Reporter, October 14, 2007. Accessed August 20, 2014. "Coached by Charlie Witkowski, an All-American performer at Villanova who later became the mayor of Jersey City, the Dickinson football team of 1930 became the second-ever champion of the Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic Association, then defeated a highly regarded Passaic team to win what was known as the Tri-County title. The Rams were 9–0 that season and led by lineman Ed Franco, halfback Al Barabas and standout twins Milt and Walt Singer."
24. Hague, Jim. "Scoreboard: 02-14-2010 The end of an era Jersey City Board of Education pulls the plug on Dickinson football", The Hudson Reporter, February 14, 2010. Accessed December 29, 2011. "The Jersey City Board of Education convened last week to address budgetary problems, and the powers-that-be decided to slice the entire athletic budget in half, cutting 50 percent of the entire budget that was set aside for athletics. Among those cuts included the complete elimination of high school football at Dickinson High School."
25. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2024-01/Boys%20Indoor%20Track%20%26%20Field_0.pdf Boys Winter Track and Field Championship History: 1922-2023
26. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2021-12/21-xc-group-team-champions_0.pdf NJSIAA Boys Cross Country Group State Group Champions
27. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2021-12/21-north-jersey-1-xc-sectional-champs.pdf NJSIAA North I Sectional Cross Country Championships
28. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2024-02/Baseball.pdf Baseball Championship History: 1959–2024
29. https://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2020-12/20-relay-history_0.pdf History of the NJSIAA Indoor Relay Championships
30. http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=323&tclass=North%20I%2C%20Group%20IV 2000 Public Sectionals – North I, Group IV
31. Staff. "Ridge 2, Dickinson 0", The Star-Ledger, November 13, 2009. Accessed November 30, 2011. "Phil Welsh assisted Jake Hotz seven minutes into the first half and then scored off a feed from Zach Brody two minutes after the break to lead Ridge, No. 14 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, to a 2–0 victory over Dickinson in the NJSIAA/Investors Savings Bank North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 final yesterday in Basking Ridge."
32. https://wdhs.jcboe.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1535620&type=d&pREC_ID=1666641 About Us
33. Lin, Jonathan. "Akon stops by his Jersey City home away from home", The Jersey Journal, November 17, 2013. Accessed August 20, 2015. "Akon said Costa helped keep him out of trouble during his rougher days in Jersey City, when he attended Dickinson High School on Palisade Avenue."
34. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BerePa20.htm Paul Berezney
35. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BerePe20.htm Pete Berezney
36. https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.28870421 "Press Release: Bessoir appointed head basketball coach"
37. [Robert McG. Thomas Jr.|Thomas Jr., Robert McG.]
38. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BordNa20.htm Nate Borden
39. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/C/CannJo21.htm John Cannella Stats
40. News: Stevenson. L.L.. Lights of New York. Valley Morning Star. January 30, 1951. 4. Newspapers.com. June 10, 2015.
41. https://books.google.com/books?id=kMdDzVXjW-kC&q=dominick++daniels+%22dickinson+high+school%22 The Story of New Jersey
42. Nelson, Jennifer L. "You, Me, & The Duprees", New Jersey Monthly, January 2008. Accessed June 23, 2008.
43. https://books.google.com/books?id=63t16z146LEC&pg=PA68 Official Congressional Directory
44. https://books.google.com/books?id=riVMAAAAMAAJ&q=%22dickinson+high+school%22 Fizgerald's Legislative Manual, State of New Jersey, Volume 194, Part 2; Volume 195, Parts 1-2
45. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119778288/mayor-bayard-h-faulkner-of-montclair/ "Former Mayor Faulkner Dies"
46. Via Associated Press. 'Dream Comes True For Flora Tonight", The Free Lance-Star, December 12, 1957. Accessed August 20, 2014. "Many of the basketball fans who helped vote Flora Jersey City's 'Mr. Basketball' in his junior year at William Dickinson High School will be on hand."
47. "Ed Franco came from Dickinson High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, to Fordham."
48. Staff. "James J. Galdieri; Ex-Assemblyman From Hudson County Dies in Home at 47", The New York Times, April 28, 1944. Accessed May 20, 2009.
49. Mota, Caitlin. "Jersey City high school grad hits the big screen with role in 'Logan'", The Jersey Journal, March 8, 2017. Accessed April 15, 2018. "A potential Oscar still may be a ways off, but the 20-year-old Dickinson High School graduate made his silver screen debut Friday for a role he played in the new X-Men movie Logan, which stars Hugh Jackman."
50. https://njcu.libguides.com/columbus Statue of Christopher Columbus Journal Square
51. Gutting, Bob. "FSU Gym Champs, Holder, Ireland, Elected Co-Captains", The Florida Flambeau, November 12, 1954. Accessed July 25, 2019. "Don began his gymnastics career at Dickinson High School in Jersey City, N.J. After graduating in 1946 he entered competition for the famed Swiss Gymnastics Society of Jersey City."
52. https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/62c4f56e Johnny Kucks
53. http://dla.library.upenn.edu/dla/pacscl/detail.html?id=PACSCL_PRIN_MUDD_MC091USNjP George McAneny Papers
54. Gomez, John. Legendary Locals of Jersey City, p. 57. Accessed January 13, 2018. "Lillian Morrison Born in 1917, Lillian Morrison grew up in the Jersey City Heights, graduated from Dickinson High School, and worked in the New York Public Library system for over 50 years."
55. http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=N000153 Mary Teresa Norton
56. Staff. "Ralph Peduto", Santa Cruz Sentinel via Legacy.com, May 31, 2014. Accessed August 20, 2014. "As a child Ralph was part of a rich and textured life in Jersey City. He attended both Ferris High School and Dickinson High School where in 2000 he was inducted into Dickinson's Hall of Fame for achievement in performing arts."
57. Staff. "randolph perkins, legislator, dead; Jersey Member of Congress Had Served Since 1920 Recently Renominated. long active in politics Also Prominent as a Lawyer, Had Been an Assemblyman and Mayor of Westfield.", The New York Times, May 26, 1936. Accessed July 1, 2019. "He was educated at the Jersey City High School and in 1893 he was admitted to the New Jersey bar."
58. http://www.njcu.edu/Programs/jchistory/Pages/P_Pages/Philbrook_Mary.htm Mary Philbrook, 1872–1958
59. http://www.hudsoncountynj.org/freeholders/hudsoncountyfreeholders/Eliu Rivera.htm Freeholder Eliu Rivera – District 4
60. Sullivan, Al. "Loss of a Latino icon Eliu Rivera passes away at 74", The Hudson Reporter, October 8, 2017. Accessed July 1, 2019. "He attended local schools, graduated from William L. Dickinson High School in Jersey City and continued his education at Rutgers University and Saint Peter’s College."
61. Foreman, Jonathan. "Slugging It Out Over Girlfight: Studios Hot For B'klyn Teen Tale", New York Post, January 26, 2000. Accessed January 21, 2020. "Born in Texas and raised mostly in New Jersey, but also in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, she dropped out of Dickinson High ('a terrible school!') in Jersey City in the ninth grade, though she was good at English and science and later earned a GED"
62. News: Biography of Eddie August Schneider (1911–1904) written to accompany his papers deposited at the George H. Williams, World War I Aviation Library at the University of Texas at Dallas. Eddie Schneider was born October 20, 1911 on Second Avenue, and 17th Street in New York City. Later his family moved to Red Bank, New Jersey where he attended grade school. From there his family moved to Jersey City, New Jersey and he graduated from Dickinson High School. ... . Gretchen Hahnen (1902–1986) . 1948.
63. https://www.nytimes.com/1953/07/21/archives/a-simpson-fi6ijre-in-hallmills-ase-prosecutor-in-jersey-murder.html "A. Simpson, Figure in Hall-Mills Case"
64. Harrigan, Will. "Dickinson, Hudson County's oldest football program, returns", The Jersey Journal, July 22, 2014. Accessed August 20, 2014. "The golden generation of Rams football graced the gridiron from 1928 to 1931. Those teams featured the likes of Ed Franco, one of Fordham's famed 'Seven Blocks of Granite,' who played alongside Vince Lombardi, as well as other all-time greats like Al Barabas and twin brothers Milt and Walt Singer. Walt was also a starting center for the New York Giants who later went on to coach Dickinson in the 1940s."
65. Richardson, William D. "Giants Vanquish Boston Yanks, 31–0; Paschal Leads Ground Attack for 113 Yards With Cuff and Calligaro Aiding Strong Tallies 7 Points Boots 4 Placements and Field Goal – Petrilas Scampers 66 Yards for a Score", The New York Times, November 6, 1944. Accessed July 26, 2012. "The new Giant backfield combination of Joe Sulaitis, former Dickinson High School star; Bill Paschal, Ward Cuff and Len Calligaro worked out fairly well."
66. http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=SULAIJOE01 Joe Sulaitis
67. http://www.marinemedals.com/walshkenneth.htm Kenneth A. Walsh
68. http://www.njsportsheroes.com/alexweyandfb.html Alex Weyand
69. [Richard Goldstein (writer born 1942)|Goldstein, Richard]
70. Meyer, Peter. "The New Superintendent of Schools for New Orleans; Education Next Issue Cover: A conversation with John White", Education Next, Fall 2011. Accessed August 20, 2014. "TFA sent White to Jersey City, to 3,000-student Dickinson High School, overlooking the Holland Tunnel, where he taught English for three years and learned that 'there are a lot of challenges and we shouldn't kid ourselves....'"