Long Branch High School

Long Branch High School
Address
404 Indiana Avenue Long Branch , Monmouth County , New Jersey 07740 United States
Coordinates	40.291915°N 73.993512°W / 40.291915; -73.993512
Information
Type	Public high school
Established	1899
School district	Long Branch Public Schools
NCES School ID	340894003904[2]
Principal	Vincent Muscillo Jr. (Lead Principal) Adrian Castro (School of Leadership) Vanessa Giammanco (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) Kristen Circelli (Visual and Performing Arts)[1]
Faculty	122.0 FTEs[2]
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	1,515 (as of 2023–24)[2]
Student to teacher ratio	12.4:1[2]
Color(s)	Green and   white[3]
Athletics conference	Shore Conference[4]
Team name	Green Wave[3]
Rivals	Neptune High School,[5] Shore Regional High School,[6] Red Bank Regional High School
Accreditation	Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[7]
Newspaper	The Trumpet[8]
Website	www.longbranch.k12.nj.us/Domain/15

Long Branch High School is a comprehensive, four-year community public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades in the city of Long Branch, in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as part of the Long Branch Public Schools. LBPS, one of 31 special-needs Abbott districts in the state,^[9] serves the city of Long Branch. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1928.^[7]

As of the 2023–24 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,515 students and 122.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.4:1. There were 901 students (59.5% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 178 (11.7% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.^[2]

History

The city's first secondary school was called Chattle High School, named for Thomas G. Chattle, who served as the school district's superintendent from 1857 to 1889. Constructed at a cost of $78,000 (equivalent to $2.9 million in 2023), the school opened to students in October 1899 and the four-story building remained in use as a junior high school after a newer facility was completed, until it was destroyed after a fire in 1966. The current high school building was completed in 1927 and built for $683,000 (equivalent to $12 million in 2023).^[10][11] Constructed at a cost of $72 million under the auspices of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority, a new school covering 283,000 square feet (26,300 m²) of space with 75 classrooms and a 2,000-seat gym opened in September 2007 with a capacity for 1,200 students.^[12]

The high school was the original home of Monmouth University, then known as Monmouth Junior College, from 1933 to 1956 until Monmouth moved to Shadow Lawn in West Long Branch.^[13]

Students from Monmouth Beach, Oceanport, Sea Bright, and West Long Branch left the high school in September 1962 with the opening of Shore Regional High School, alleviating overcrowding that had forced the school to conduct double sessions.^[14]

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 228th-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.^[15] The school had been ranked 167th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 206th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.^[16] The magazine ranked the school 246th in 2008 out of 316 schools.^[17] The school was ranked 290th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state.^[18]

Athletics

The Long Branch High School Green Wave^[3] compete in Division A North of the Shore Conference, an athletic conference comprised of public and private high schools in Monmouth County and Ocean County along the Jersey Shore.^[4][19] The conference operates under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).^[20] With 1,146 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.^[21] The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group IV South for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 890 to 1,298 students.^[22]

The boys track team won the Group III spring / outdoor track state championship in 1933-1938, 1949 and 1967. The six-year streak of consecutive titles in the 1930s is tied for the fourth-longest streak in the state.^[23]

The boys' bowling team won the overall state championship in 1958, edging Bloomfield High School by 20 pins to take the NJSIAA's first state tournament in the sport.^[24]

The boys track team won the Group III indoor track state championship in 1967, 1975 (as co-champion) and 1982.^[25]

The boys' basketball team won the Group III championship in 1970 (vs. Orange High School in the final game of the playoff tournament), 1977 (vs. Ridgefield Park High School), 1980 (vs. Weequahic High School) and 1998 (vs. Parsippany High School), and won the Group II title in 1997 (vs. Dwight Morrow High School).^[26] The team finished the 1970 season with a 26-0 record and won the Group III title, the program's first, with a 90-74 win against Orange High School in the tournament final.^[27] The 1977 team finished the season with a 30-0 record after winning the Group III title with an 81-62 victory at the Jadwin Gymnasium against Ridgefield Park in the championship game.^[28] The 1980 team finished the season with a 26-3 with a 35-31 win against Weequahic in the Group III playoff finals.^[29]

The girls spring track team was the Group III state champion in 1980.^[30]

The boys' track team won the Group III state indoor relay championship in 1982-1984.^[31]

The girls bowling team was overall state champion in 1983.^[32]

The football team won the Central Jersey Group III state sectional championship in 1986 and 1999, and the Central Jersey Group IV title in 2017 and 2018.^[33] In 2017, the team won its third sectional championship with a 43–42 overtime win against Freehold Borough High School in the playoff final of the Central Jersey Group IV state sectional tournament, played at High Point Solutions Stadium.^[34][35] The team repeated as Central Jersey Group IV champion in 2018 with a 21-1 win against Brick Township High School.^[36] The 2018 team went on to win the inaugural Group IV Central-South Jersey Bowl Game with a 20-17 win against Shawnee High School, to finish the season with a 12-1 record, the program's first 12-win season.^[37] The team has had an ongoing Thanksgiving rivalry with Red Bank Regional High School, with Long Branch winning the 99th game in the series in 2022 to bring the overall record to 64-32-3.^[38]

The field hockey team won the Central Jersey Group III state sectional title in 1998.^[39]

The wrestling team won the Central Jersey Group II state sectional title in 2008-2011 and 2013; the team won the Group II state title in 2008–2010^[40] The school wrestling team won the 2008 Group II team state championship, its first ever, finishing the season with a perfect record of 26–0.^[41]

Administration

Core members of the school's administration are:^[1]

• Vincent Muscillo Jr., Lead Principal
• Vanessa Giammanco, Principal of STEM Academy
• Adrian Castro, Principal of Leadership Academy
• Jeremy Martin, Principal of School of Social Justice
• Kristen Circelli, Principal of Visual and Performing Arts Academy
• Kristine Villano, Principal of Alternative Program Academy

Notable alumni

See also: Category:Long Branch High School alumni

• John Beake (born 1938, class of 1957), retired American football executive who served as general manager of the Denver Broncos of the National Football League from 1985 to 1998.^[42]
• Alex Bradley (born 1959), former professional basketball player who played in the NBA for the New York Knicks.^[6]
• S. Thomas Gagliano (1931-2019, class of 1949), politician who served in the New Jersey Senate from 1978 to 1989.^[43]
• Elizabeth Gorcey (born 1962), filmmaker, actor and writer, best known for her leading role in the 1984 film Footloose.^[44]
• Mamie Johnson (1935–2017), professional baseball player who was one of three women, and the first female pitcher, to play in the Negro leagues.^[45]
• Raja Feather Kelly (born c. 1985), choreographer best known for his work on Off-Broadway shows which combine "pop and queer culture".^[46]
• Tom Kerwin (born 1944), former professional basketball player who played one season in the American Basketball Association for the Pittsburgh Pipers.^[47]
• Connie Lawn (1944-2018), independent broadcast journalist who, at the time of her death, was the longest-serving White House correspondent.^[48]
• Sigurd Lucassen (1927–2001), carpenter and labor leader who served as president of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America.^[49]
• Sam Mills (1959-2005), former professional football player for the NFL.^[50][51]
• John Montefusco (born 1950) former professional baseball player.^[52]
• Denise Morrison (born 1954), business executive who served as president and chief executive officer of Campbell Soup Company from 2011 through 2018.^[53]
• Bill Palmer (1938–2020, class of 1955), swim coach^[54]
• George R. Pettit (1929–2021), chemist and researcher in the field of natural anticancer compounds.^[55]
• Robert Pinsky (born 1940), Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1997 to 2000.^[56]
• Paris Qualles (born 1951, class of 1970), screenwriter and television producer.^[57]
• Jim Quirk (born c. 1945, class of 1963), NFL on-field official from 1988 to 2008.^[58]
• Melanie Safka (1947–2024), singer-songwriter.^[59]
• John W. Slocum (1867–1938), lawyer, President of the New Jersey Senate, and judge^[60]
• John Strollo (born 1954), college football coach.^[61]
• Yvonne Thornton (born 1947), physician and best-selling author.^[62]
• Army Tomaini (1918–2005), American football tackle who played for the New York Giants in 1945.^[63]
• Johnny Tomaini (1902–1985), professional football player who played in the NFL for the Orange/Newark Tornadoes and Brooklyn Dodgers^[64]
• Clinton Wheeler (born 1959), former professional basketball player.^[65]
• Maggie Wilderotter (born 1955, class of 1973), former chief executive officer of Frontier Communications.^[66]

Notable faculty

• Gerry Matthews (born 1941), 30-year college basketball coach who coached the Long Branch High School basketball team.^[67]

References

1. Student / Parent Handbook 2023-2024, Long Branch High School. Accessed February 24, 2024.
2. School data for Long Branch High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
3. Long Branch High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020.
4. Shore Conference Realignment for 2018-2019 and 2019-2020, Shore Conference. Accessed November 15, 2020.
5. Kelly, Chris. "Hungry Long Branch team looks to continue tradition", CentralJersey.com, September 6, 2002. Accessed January 12, 2023. "Long Branch will open their season against an old rival, the Scarlet Fliers from Neptune, Sept. 14 at 1:30 p.m. Long Branch hasn’t faced the Fliers in three years, when they defeated their long-time foes for the Central Jersey Group III state championship."
6. Cieri, Kevin. "The best ever", Asbury Park Press, May 19, 2014. Accessed December 5, 2017. "During the winter of 1976-1977, back when I was a senior at Shore Regional High School, a lot of buzz was going on coming out of crosstown rival Long Branch High School. The Green Wave had a phenomenal basketball team that winter, going undefeated during the regular season and winning the NJSIAA Group 3 state championship - an overall 30-0 record.... The team was headed up by two players who later went on to play in the NBA - Alex Bradley and Clinton Wheeler."
7. Long Branch High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools. Accessed April 28, 2020.
8. Program of Studies 2021-22, Long Branch High School. Accessed March 31, 2022.
9. Abbott School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 15, 2016.
10. Kelly, Greg. "Long Branch Schools Through the Years", Monmouth Beach Life, February 1, 2023. Accessed March 8, 2023. "The ultimate historical account of Long Branch — the 1940 bio-book Entertaining a Nation — gives 'praise to the city’s three fighting superintendents' for guaranteeing the city’s educational heritage. They being: Thomas G. Chattle (1834-1889), Christopher Gregory and Charles T. Stone (1874-1942). Thomas Chattle: 'Father of LB Education.' With 'dedication and courage,' Dr. Chattle led the city’s school system from 1857 to 1889, Gregory was boss from 1889 to 1921 and Stone was the super from 1921 to 1936.... Chattle High School, 1919. The $78,000, four-story brick building opened in October 1899.... Chattle High School, early 1900s. Opened in 1899 and closed in 1966.... LBHS, 1937. The building was dedicated in October 1927. Final construction cost was about $700,000."
11. Entertaining a Nation; The Career of Long Branch, p. 165. Accessed March 8, 2023. "It had been the dream of the crusaders in the 1870's to erect a building exclusively devoted to secondary schooling. Not until 1899 was this realized by the opening of a building on Morris Avenue, which cost $78,000. For Long Branch the event meant far more than a new school building, for the high school was to be called the Chattle High School, after the man to whom the entire city felt indebted almost for its proficiency in reading and writing.... The cornerstone was laid for the impressive $683,000 building of red brick and simplified white classic decorations. It was opened in 1927, offering general, commercial and college preparatory courses."
12. Williams, Carol Gorga. "Long Branch unveils new school", Asbury Park Press, September 21, 2007. Accessed March 8, 2023, via Newspapers.com. "The new $72 million high school was introduced to city residents and officials Thursday, capping a years-long building program funded by $200 million in state aid to build elementary schools, a new middle school and the new home for the Green Wave.... A new athletic complex at the school features a new gym that can fit 2,000 spectators.... The new high school is 283,000 square feet and has 75 state-of-the-art classrooms.... The project's official funding agency is the renamed New Jersey Schools Development Authority, which provided money to house 1,200 students in grades 9 through 12 at the Indiana Avenue site."
13. Monmouth’s Timeline, Monmouth University. Accessed March 8, 2023. "In 1933, Monmouth officially opens as a junior college, offering classes at the Long Branch Senior High school under Dean Edward G. Schlaefer.... After acquiring the property deed from Dr. Eugene H. Lehman for $350,000, Monmouth relocates to the Shadow Lawn estate in 1956."
14. "Single Sessions at Long Branch", Red Bank Register, September 5, 1962. Accessed April 2, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "An estimated 1,560 students are scheduled to enroll at Long Branch High School Friday when the school returns to its first single session program in more than five years. The student population figure will be about 500 less than last year when the school was operating on double sessions schedule. The enrollment reduction is due to the planned opening of Shore Regional High School this September, which will house the ninth, 10th and 11th grade students from Monmouth Beach, Oceanport, Sea Bright and West Long Branch who have attended Long Branch High School on a tuition basis."
15. Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
16. Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed December 2, 2012.
17. Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed April 4, 2011.
18. "Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.
19. Member Schools, Shore Conference. Accessed November 15, 2020.
20. League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May September 1, 2020.
21. NJSIAA General Public School Classifications 2019–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.
22. NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2024–2026, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024.
23. NJSIAA Spring Track Summary of Group Titles Boys, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed September 1, 2021.
24. History of NJSIAA Boys Bowling Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed August 1, 2022.
25. Boys Winter Track and Field Championship History: 1922-2023, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated November 2023. Accessed February 1, 2024.
26. NJSIAA Boys Basketball Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.
27. Elfand, Sam. "Woodrow Wilson or Branchers - Who's No. 1?", Asbury Park Press, March 23, 1970. Accessed November 26, 2020. "This year the challenger has to be Long Branch, 26-0 and the Group III champion by virtue of an easy 90-74 romp over Orange Friday night."
28. "Bradley's 35 + Long Branch's 30 - Group 3 Title", New York Daily News, March 20, 1977. Accessed January 3, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Behind a career best 35-point effort by Alex Bradley, Long Branch strengthened its claim as the No. 1 team in the state by rolling past Ridgefield Park, 81-62, for the state Group 3 championship and a perfect season at Princeton's Jadwin Gym. 'Alex is by far the best player I've ever coached,' said Long Branch coach Gerry Matthews after his troops had convincingly sealed the lid on a perfect 30-0 season."
29. Graham, Tony. "Patient Long Branch captures state crown", Asbury Park Press, March 22, 1980. Accessed January 15, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "As the Long Branch High School basketball team filed out of the Thomas Dunn Sports Center last night, Mrs. Louise Young planted a kiss on the cheek of Green Wave coach Gerry Matthews.... 'It's raining but it is a nice night,' said Matthews after Mrs. Young's son, Ronald, scored 14 points and nailed two jump shots down the stretch, and Ken Brown added two clutch free throws with eight seconds to play leading the Green Wave to a gripping 35-31 victory over Weequahic in the 1980 NJSIAA Group III championship game at Elizabeth High School.... The Green Wave had won the title in 1977 with a 30-0 team led by Alex Bradley and Joel Dobrin and lost in the finals last year to Malcolm X. Shabazz of Newark, 63-54."
30. NJSIAA Girls Spring Track Summary of Group Titles, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.
31. History of the NJSIAA Indoor Relay Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed December 1, 2020.
32. History of NJSIAA Girls Bowling Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020.
33. NJSIAA Football History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed January 1, 2022.
34. Deakyne, Brian. "Football: Long Branch completes epic comeback to stun Freehold Borough in OT", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, December 2, 2017. Accessed December 4, 2017. "Long Branch coach Dan George took Worthy out of the equation and put his season in the hands of his seniors as he elected to go for the game-deciding two-point conversion in the second half of the first overtime in Saturday night's Central Jersey, Group 4 sectional final at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway. The result was well worth it: quarterback Juwan Wilkins connected with Elijah Sherin to deliver one of the biggest wins in Long Branch history. Long Branch 43, Freehold Borough 42 in an unforgettable sectional final."
35. "Football - 2017 NJSIAA Central, Group 4 Playoffs", NJ.com. Accessed December 4, 2017.
36. Edelson, Steven. "NJ football playoffs: Back-to-back championships signals Golden Era for Long Branch", Asbury Park Press, November 16, 2018. Accessed October 14, 2020. "On a bitterly cold, windy evening inside Bresett Stadium, a pair of Jersey Shore high school football programs steeped in history met for the first time in 45 years, as Long Branch and Brick played to decide the NJSIAA Central Group IV championship.... A year after a dramatic overtime victory over Freehold at Rutgers in this game, and two years after going 2-8, Long Branch scored a pair of touchdowns in the opening six minutes of the third quarter to break a 7-7 halftime standoff, rolling to a 21-14 victory."
37. Fonseca, Brian. "NJ football playoffs: Long Branch storms back to win bowl game", Asbury Park Press, December 1, 2018. Accessed October 14, 2020. "Long Branch found itself in unfamiliar territory on Saturday night — facing an early deficit. The Green Wave, who entered Saturday standing at 11-1, were down 17-0 to Shawnee early in the second quarter of the first ever NJSIAA Group IIII Central-South Jersey Bowl game.... Then a switch flipped. Long Branch stormed back, scoring 20 unanswered points, and won 20-17 in the final New Jersey high school football game of the year.... The victory pushes Long Branch to a final record of 12-1, the first time the program reached the 12-win mark in its history."
38. Falk, Steven. "Long Branch football concludes successful first season under head coach Chad King with win", Asbury Park Press, November 24, 2022. Accessed January 12, 2023. "Long Branch concluded the first-season of the post-George era Thursday morning with a hard-fought 35-28 win over Red Bank Regional in the 99th renewal of the holiday rivalry. Long Branch extended its lead in the series to 64-32-3."
39. History of NJSIAA Field Hockey Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.
40. NJSIAA Wrestling Team Championship History, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2021.
41. Adelizzi, Joe. "Dan George, Long Branch, wrestling", Asbury Park Press, March 29, 2008. Accessed August 14, 2008. "George was the driving force behind a Long Branch team that finished the year undefeated and won four championships, including the NJSIAA Group II championship and the Shore Conference Tournament title. Long Branch, which won its first state group team championship; its first sectional title and its first SCT championship, earned the No. 1 ranking in the final Asbury Park Press Top 10 and was ranked No. 2 in the final Gannett New Jersey Top 20."
42. John Beake, Pro Football Archives. Accessed May 14, 2023. "Born: December 20, 1938 Long Branch, NJ; High School: Long Branch (NJ)"
43. "Gagliano, S. Thomas, Age: 87, Red Bank", The Two River Times, April 19, 2019. Accessed June 30, 2019. "Tom was born and raised in Long Branch and graduated Long Branch High School in 1949, where later he would be inducted into the High School Scholastic Hall of Fame. He lived in Holmdel and Rumson before moving to Red Bank in 2001."
44. Beecroft, George. "Personalities; She skipped the prom", Asbury Park Press, August 17, 1984. Accessed March 31, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "'I've been to more proms in movies than I've been to in real life,' said actress Elizabeth Gorcey, a Long Branch High School graduate currently appearing in the film Grandview, U.S.A. with Jamie Lee Curtis and C. Thomas Howell."
45. Frank, Noah. "Mamie 'Peanut' Johnson, baseball pioneer, dies at 82", WTOP-FM, December 19, 2017. Accessed April 25, 2021. "The first woman to ever pitch in the Negro Leagues, Long Branch High School graduate and youth sports advocate Mamie 'Peanut' Johnson died Tuesday at the age of 82."
46. Burke, Siobhan. "On the Rise: Raja Feather Kelly", Dance Magazine, May 31, 2016. Accessed June 30, 2019. "Training: Jazz, tap, modern, musical theater and competition dance at Long Branch High School, NJ; theater at the Governor's School of the Arts, NJ"
47. Edelson, Stephen. "Jersey Shore's greatest basketball players: the 1960s", Asbury Park Press, January 25, 2016. "Tom Kerwin, Long Branch (1962) — The 6-6 forward was the Green Wave's high-scoring leader through the early part of the 1960s, earning All-Shore honors twice."
48. Lawn, Connie. "Long Branch Day For Connie Lawn", Huffington Post, December 14, 2016. Accessed April 5, 2018. "What does one do with a key to a city? I am not certain, but my profound and humble thanks go to my home city of Long Branch, New Jersey and to Molly McCluskey of my beloved National Press Club in Washington, D.C.... Hope I don’t have to march in any parades or ride on any floats, as I did during my days in Long Branch High School!"
49. Dillon, Mark. "New carpenters' president, from Long Branch, nails down praise from labor and management",Asbury Park Press, March 27, 1988. Accessed September 6, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "Lucassen, a 60-year-old, long-time Long Branch resident, rose through the ranks when New Jersey's economy was in the pits.... Lucassen started his carpentry career working for Hurley Construction Co. after graduating from Long Branch High School."
50. Sam Mills Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, database Football. Accessed October 25, 2007.
51. Smith, Timothy W. "Mills at 37: The Little Linebacker Who Could", The New York Times, January 9, 1997. Accessed October 14, 2020. "Going back to the Long Branch playgrounds, to Long Branch High School, to Montclair (N.J.) State College, to the Philadelphia Stars of the United States Football League, to the New Orleans Saints to the Panthers, not many people have been able to knock Sam Mills down."
52. John Montefusco statistics, Baseball-Reference.com. Accessed April 25, 2021.
53. Makin, Cheryl. "N.J. companies more likely to tap women, study finds", Home News Tribune, January 29, 2014. Accessed September 6, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "A self-professed 'Jersey girl,' Morrison was raised in the Elberon section of Long Branch and graduated from Long Branch High School."
54. Sullivan, Jim. "Shore Aquatic Club Coach Palmer May Go to Olympics", Asbury Park Press, March 14, 1971. Accessed April 21, 2024, via Newspapers.com. "He was born in West Long Branch, where he still lives. He was graduated from Long Branch High School in 1955. He played guard on the football team the first two years; but shifted to track as a shot putter his senior year."
55. "Pettit Pens Work For Chemists", Asbury Park Press, August 26, 1973. Accessed January 5, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "Dr. George R. Pettit, professor of chemistry at Arizona State University, has written a book to offer a tabular survey of synthetic nucleotides and methods of synthesis.... The author is a graduate of Long Branch High School. He attended Monmouth College when it was a two-year college."
56. D'Amato, Anthony. "Jersey: 'The Most American State?' - What does a three-term United States Poet Laureate have to say about growing up in New Jersey? Find out in this month's Q & A with Robert Pinsky.", New Jersey Monthly, May 7, 2010. Accessed September 6, 2011. "My aunts and uncles and cousins and parents all attended Long Branch High School, as did my brother and I."
57. Jackson, Chanta L. "TV movie combines work of 2 local writers", Asbury Park Press, February 22, 1997. Accessed September 6, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "The film is an adaptation by screenwriter Paris Qualles of a book written by Dr. Yvonne S. Thornton, both Long Branch High School graduates."
58. "NFL official Jim Quirk proud of his Long Branch roots", Atlanticville, June 28, 2001, backed up by the Internet Archive as of January 29, 2006. Accessed December 5, 2017. "Jim Quirk is one such person. A National Football League umpire since 1988, Quirk looks back on his beginnings at Long Branch with reverence, and remains thankful for the experiences he had as a member of the Green Wave's program. After graduating in 1963, Quirk served a two-year stint at Fort Monroe, Va., as a first lieutenant in the Continental Army Command Headquarters Honor Guard Company, while attending George Washington University in the evening to earn a master's degree in personnel administration."
59. Voger, Mark. "Melanie recalls Red Bank High ('miserable') and Woodstock ('incredible')", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, July 27, 2014, updated March 29, 2019. Accessed January 9, 2022. "As to why she needs to make peace, well, it's a story Melanie tells without sugarcoating, a story about a girl from Astoria, Queens, whose family relocated to Long Branch, where she was pegged as an outsider at Long Branch High School."
60. Nelson, William, ed. (1913). Nelson's Biographical Cyclopedia of New Jersey. Vol. I. New York, N.Y.: Eastern Historical Publishing Society. pp. 437–438 – via Google Books.
61. John Strollo, Duke Blue Devils football. Accessed April 28, 2020. "A native of Long Branch, N.J., and graduate of Long Branch High School, Strollo earned a degree in education from Boston College in 1976."
62. Staff. "Clip: Q&A with Yvonne Thornton", CNN, March 6, 2012. Accessed November 18, 2014. "Brian Lamb: Go back to the beginning, your whole college. Where did you graduate from high school? Yvonne S. Thornton M.D.: I graduated from Long Branch High School."
63. Army Tomaini, Pro-Football-Reference.com. Accessed December 15, 2020. "Born: February 5, 1918 in Long Branch, NJ... High School: Long Branch (NJ)"
64. Johnny Tomaini, Pro-Football-Reference.com. Accessed December 15, 2020. "Born: July 19, 1902 in Long Branch, NJ; High School: Long Branch (NJ), Asbury Park (NJ)"
65. Clinton Wheeler Archived April 3, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, database Basketball. Accessed October 1, 2007.
66. "11 chosen for Long Branch High School Hall of Fame", Asbury Park Press, January 20, 2004. Accessed September 6, 2022, via Newspapers.com. "Those chosen, their fields and the year of their graduation are:... Maggie Wilderotter, business communication, 1973"
67. Politi, Steve. "Gerry Matthews, N.J.'s all-time winningest college hoops coach, to retire from Stockton", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, August 24, 2016. Accessed December 4, 2017. "Before moving to the college level, he compiled a 228-98 record and won two state championships in 13 years at Long Branch and Rumson-Fair Haven."

External links

• Long Branch High School
• Long Branch Public Schools
• School Performance Report for Long Branch High School, New Jersey Department of Education
• School Data for the Long Branch Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics
• DigitalSports Long Branch Homepage