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St. Joseph's High School
Location
Metuchen, NJ, USA
Information
Religion	Roman Catholic
President	Mr. Lawrence Walsh
Principal	Mr. John Anderson
Faculty	72
Student:teacher ratio	17:1
Average SAT scores (2007)	562 critical reading 583 math 542 writing
Type	Private, day
Campus	70 acres (284,000 m²)
Athletics	13 sports
Athletics conference	Greater Middlesex Conference
Motto	Where excellence is a habit, not a goal.
Mascot	The Falcon
Color(s)	Green and White
Yearbook	Evergreen
Newspaper	The Falcon
Established	10 November 1901
Enrollment	835
Homepage	http://www.stjoes.org

St. Joseph High School is an independent Roman Catholic college preparatory school located on a 70-acre tract in Metuchen and Edison, New Jersey. It draws students from a wide geographic area encompassing over forty school districts and over seventy grammar schools in Middlesex, Somerset, and Union Counties, as well as other outlying areas. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen.

St. Joseph is conducted by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, who have been active in American education since their arrival from Lyon, France in 1847. From 1901 to 1961, St. Joseph’s served as a center for training and educating Brothers prior to their apostolate in Catholic education. The current faculty includes both lay and religious educators.

The main school building was dedicated in the spring of 1963.

Contents 1 Mission statement 2 History of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart 3 History of St. Joseph High School 3.1 The Early Years 3.2 Founding of the High School 4 Athletics 4.1 Baseball 4.2 Basketball 4.3 Bowling 4.4 Cross Country 4.5 Golf 4.6 Gymnastics 4.7 Hockey 4.8 Lacrosse 4.9 Soccer 4.10 Spring Track 4.11 Swimming 4.12 Tennis 4.13 Volleyball 4.14 Winter Track 5 Notable alumni 6 References 7 External links

St. Joseph High School exists to provide a college preparatory, liberal arts education for young men. In response to the gospel message of hope, the teachings of the Catholic Church, and the traditions of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, the school endeavors to meet the needs and promote the development of each student. The faculty and staff strive to enable each student to cultivate the knowledge and skills he will need to become an active member of society as well as to imbue each student with the values and convictions characteristic of enlightened Catholics.

The school's academic program provides a systematic approach to developing overall intellectual, emotional, physical, and spiritual skills while encouraging critical and creative thinking commensurate to intellectual ability. This program emphasizes the active role of the student in the learning process and his responsibility, along with that of his teacher, to develop his talents and skills. Working together, their goal is a St. Joseph graduate with a sense of self esteem, an integration of religious truths and academic principles, and an eagerness to assume the challenges and responsibilities of adult Christian life.

Brothers of the Sacred Heart is a congregation founded in 1821 by Pere Andre Coindre, of the Diocese of Lyons, France. Its constitutions were modeled upon those of St. Ignatius, based upon the Rule of St. Augustine. Members bind themselves for life by the simple vows of religion. There are no priests in the congregation, the objective purpose of which is the Christian education of boys in asylums, parochial and select schools, and commercial colleges. The growth of the congregation was slow. At the period of its origin the political condition of France was very unfavorable. It was a day of political agitation and revolution. Lyons, the cradle of the congregation, suffered sorely in these revolutions. But a more hampering difficulty to its growth lay in the ill-defined government imposed upon the congregation. Pere Andre Coindre was the superior-general and continued as such till his death in 1826. Pere Vincent Coindre, his brother, succeeded him in this office.

In 1840 Pere Coindre assembled the general chapter of the congregation. During the discussions of the chapter, opinion among the Brothers was unanimous that it was necessary for the success of the congregation that its temporal affairs should be in the hands of the Brothers themselves, and that one of their number should be superior-general. The question was referred to Msgr. de Bonald, Archbishop of Lyons, who, after an exhaustive examination, judged it advisable that Pere Coindre should resign the office. On September 13, 1841, Brother Polycarp was unanimously chosen by the Brothers as their superiorgeneral. He reconstructed the government of the community and gave it stability and permanency. At the time of his death in 1859, there were in France alone 73 establishments, an increase of 60 during his administration. He had, moreover, in 1846 opened up in the United States, in Mobile, Alabama, a new field of labor for the institute. In 1872 the province of the United States extended its schools into Canada, and in 1880 transferred its novitiate from Indianapolis to Arthabaskaville, P. Q., Canada. The growth of the congregation was so rapid that it was deemed advisable to erect the establishments in Canada into a separate province. This was effected by a decree of the general chapter of the society held at Paradis, near Le Puy, France, in 1900. About the same time, a house of studies for postulants and a novitiate for the United States province was established at Metuchen, New Jersey.

In the summer of 1902, Brothers Stanislaus Florent and Louis Fabian took up residence in a three-story roadhouse owned by Mr. Thomas Allen. Their task was to see that the hotel was made suitable for occupation and outfitted as a training center for novices. As the guests of Thomas and his wife, Louise Allen, the Brothers found the inn comfortable, but when the former proprietor left, the hardships began. They took with them all the tools, furniture, utensils and provisions, leaving the Brothers without the bare necessities. Due to the cost of property maintenance, the Brothers had little to spend on outfitting the house. Brother Stansislaus showed a great capacity for thrift and efficiency in maximizing the funds of the novitiate to obtain supplies.

As Brother Stanislaus tried to make the home hospitable, Brother Fabian worked at making it presentable. He graded the land to the right of the inn and turned it into a recreation yard for the novices. The large pine and elm trees that border the grassy plain were planted by his hands, as was the small vineyard.

The community had purchased the property in hopes of opening a novitiate; however, finding willing recruits proved to be difficult. Few people had heard of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart and despite Brother Stanislaus’s best efforts, the response was less than enthusiastic. However, by the start of the first session, the Brothers had managed to gather ten postulants. In November of 1902, Saint Joseph’s tenure as a training center began. The arrival of the additional personnel fueled the already growing support for the construction of a new building that could serve as both a dormitory and classroom.

The Brothers, eager to expand, set aside a large plot of land for the project. However, in June of 1903, a fire destroyed Saint Stanislaus College and with it the hopes for the new building. With a new financial strain on the Province, the Brothers were forced to make do with what they had and could afford to make only patchwork repairs. This not only meant that plans for new buildings be terminated but also that the old farm equipment be cared for. The financial burdens of the time forced the Brothers to assume the roles of blacksmiths and carpenters in order to repair damaged equipment.

Frugality forced the Brothers to adopt several cost-cutting measures, one of which involved the heating of the various buildings. In order to conserve coal, only the furnace in the main building would use the ore, the stoves in the carriage house and other buildings were fueled by railroad ties that had been obtained from the Reading and Lehigh Valley railroads. However, it was the task of the novices to transport and cut the ties into useable lengths during their precious leisure time. Using simple simple handsaws, they cut timber which in many cases reached bridge length. The greatest asset to the novitiate was the farm. The community could afford only things such as meat, bread, coffee and sugar. The rest had to be grown. The novices and postulants worked on the farm both on their free time and scheduled work rotations. A common recreational activity of the residents was fishing on nearby Woodburn Pond.

The arrival of the sixteen novices from France created a problem that plagued the novitiate. Overcrowding became a fact of life at Saint Joseph’s with more and more novices and postulants. It had long been the desire of the Brothers living here to construct a building that would suit the place. Due to the community's budgest restraints, they were forced to improve on their facilities in piecemeal fashion. Living quarters would be remodeled and other buildings pressed into service.

The first true expansion of the novitiate occurred in 1907 when the main house was renovated. It was determined that a new chapel was needed in order to handle the ever-growing number of inhabitants. Since the community could not afford to construct a separate building, it was decided that a new wing be added instead. Three years later, the main house underwent another refurbishment. The top floor was refitted as a dormitory, while dining and recreation rooms were added to the lower level. Outside, the carriage house that held the novices was moved and a small cottage was placed adjacent to the main building.

Not all the changes, however, were strictly practical. The community was always concerned about the way the grounds looked. After the addition of the new wing in 1907, a large marble statue of Saint Joseph was hoisted into place in front of the mansion. The 1400 lb. figure was a tremendous source of pride for all those who attended the novitiate, who saw it as adding to the dignity of the facilities. Despite the renovations, the community still longed for a building that would suit the place. During the early 1920’s, various fund-drives provided the necessary capital to begin construction of a proper chapel. Building began on October of 1921 and continued into May of the following year. A month later on June 28th, the chapel was formally dedicated. Inside, marble statues from Italy stood in solitude.

At the dedication ceremony, the Bishop of Trenton, Thomas J. Walsh, made a startling announcement. He requested that the Brothers of the Sacred Heart assume control of the Cathedral High School in Trenton, their first high school in the Diocese of Trenton. Inside the small chapel, applause filled the air! While the addition of the chapel may have served as a source of pride for the community, it did little to solve the question of overcrowding but an answer was on the horizon.

In July of 1923, construction on what is now known as O’Neil Hall began. The Annex, designed by the same architect who had created the chapel, was intended to provide both classrooms and living space for the ever-growing number of postulants.

Completed in the Spring of 1924, the Annex provided the space the Brothers had long wanted. The basement housed recreation rooms, lockers, and furnace rooms. Upstairs, the first floor was home to kitchens and dining rooms. On the second floor were science labs and several classrooms. Above was a large dormitory capable of handling the increasing number of members in the community.

In 1951, a proposal was made to move the novitiate to Blairstown. This plan was rejected, however, when proper funding could not be obtained. Yet the initiative to relocate wasn’t completely laid to rest. Ten years later, the idea to move the novitiate to another locale resurfaced when a large estate in Belvidere was purchased by the community. There were two advantages of this plan. First, the move would solve the problem of overcrowding. Second, the novitiate that the Province had originally wanted could be established. In Metuchen, both the novice and postulant programs had coexisted, which was not the original intent of the Province. So, in 1961 the novitiate was officially moved to Belvidere.

With the newfound space, the Brothers decided to establish a high school and in the fall of 1961 admitted 150 ninth grade students — St. Joseph’s first class. A high school grew out of the old postulant program, which had existed for some time at Saint Joseph’s. Essentially, it was a regular high school program for those considering a vocation. The curriculum consisted of six subjects a year, though these varied between classes. All four grades adhered to a core curriculum of Religion, Mathematics, and English. To this base, Freshmen added French, Civics, and Speech. Sophomores continued with French and Speech, but added American History to their schedules. Third-year students were required to take Chemistry, World History and Typewriting, while seniors took Physics, Typewriting, and either Latin or Spanish. Construction on the main school building began in 1962, built on the land occupied by Brother Fabian’s vineyard that had been planted some sixty years before. Construction was completed in 1963 at the cost of one million dollars. The school started developing high academic standards for itself shortly after its founding. The class of 1965 had two national merit semi-finalists and the school has had students in this elite group ever since. In 1964, the debate team represented the Diocese of Trenton in a national debate in Colorado. In 1972, four students represented Saint Joseph High School on “It’s Academic”, a television game show similar to Jeopardy that aired on NBC. The school won, securing a set of encyclopedias for the library.

In 1963, Saint Joseph’s established the first varsity teams — track, basketball and baseball — followed by varsity soccer a year later. These teams have since won many titles in their respective sports throughout their histories and are competitors on both the state and local levels. The swim team was added in 1968 by Brother Aldric and has since gone on to dominate in state competition.

In 1963, the school paper, The Falcon, had a literary contest and published their winners in a special edition. This contest continued to be held under the auspices of the newspaper until it grew into the current school literary magazine, The Vignette, which has established quite a reputation for itself and the school by winning various awards and receiving national recognition. Another outgrowth of the arts program was the Drama Club, established in 1963 by Thomas Ryan, who served as the group’s director. Since their first production of Stalag 17, the Drama Club has continued to produce plays and musicals every fall and spring for the school community.

The St. Joseph High School Falcons compete in the Greater Middlesex Conference, comprising 32 public and private high schools located in the greater Middlesex County area. The league operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.

St. Joseph High School fields teams on the freshmen through varsity levels in various sports including cross country, soccer, basketball, bowling, ice hockey, swimming, winter track, baseball, golf, lacrosse, spring track, tennis and volleyball.

St. Joseph is a perennial powerhouse in swimming, winning state championships in 1980-91, 1993-97, 1999, 2002-04 and 2006, as well as winning every county championship in the sport since its inception, 29 in total. While St. Joe's has had great success in swimming in particular, the school has also enjoyed success in its other sports. St. Joe's has won state titles in cross country, soccer, track, tennis, and most recently in 2006 volleyball.

Although no longer offered, St. Joe's once had a competitive gymnastics program, winning state championships in 1992 and 1993. Along with gymnastics, the school once offered teams in water polo and wrestling, but unfortunately all three programs ended due to a lack of student interest.

• Current Head Coach: Paul Esposito
• 2007 Record: 16-13
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public South A), GMC (Red Division)
• Sectional Championships: 1989, 2007
• County Championships: 1968, 2004, 2006
• Home: On campus

• Current Head Coach: Dave Turco
• 2006-07 Record: 20-9
• Levels: Freshmen (2 teams), JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public South A), GMC (Red Division)
• Sectional Championships: 1992, 98, 99
• County Championships: 1993, 98, 99
• Home: Vincent Maglio Gymnasium on campus

• Current Head Coach: Wayne Fischer
• 2006-07 Record: 13-9
• Levels: Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Group III), GMC (Red Division)
• Sectional Championships: 1991, 99
• County Championships: 1991, 2001, 04
• Home: Brunswick Zone (North Brunswick)

• Current Head Coach: Gary Trojanowski (Class of '72)
• 2007 Record: 4-3
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public A), GMC (Red Division), NJCTC
• State Championships: 1973, 74
• County Championships: 1964, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 86, 96, 97, 98
• Home: On campus

• Current Head Coach: Ryan Lechner
• 2007 Record: 14-3
• Levels: Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public South A), GMC (Red Division)
• Sectional Championships: 1999, 2000
• County Championships: 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002
• Home: Metuchen Golf & Country Club (Edison); Hyatt Hills Golf Course (Clark)

• No longer in existence
• State Championships: 1992, 93

• Current Head Coach: Ryan Carter (Class of '91)
• 2006-07 Record: 9-11-2
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public), NJIHL (Red Division)
• State Championships: 1991
• Home: Woodbridge Community Center (Woodbridge)

• Current Head Coach: Marc Moreau
• 2007 Record: 12-8
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public A), GMC
• County Championships: 2002, 03, 04
• Home: On campus

• Current Head Coach: Mike O'Boyle
• 2007 Record: 6-11-1
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public South A), GMC (Red Division)
• State Championships: 1971, 73, 76, 78, 88, 94, 95
• County Championships: 1983, 88, 89, 91, 2003
• Home: On campus

• Current Head Coach: Gary Trojanowski (Class of '72)
• 2007 Record: 5-3
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public A), GMC (Red Division), NJCTC
• State Championships: 1972, 76, 98
• County Championships: 1966, 67, 69, 70, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 80, 81, 83, 84, 86, 91, 92, 97, 98
• Home: On campus

• Current Head Coach: Steve Whittington (Class of '92)
• 2006-07 Record: 14-2
• Levels: JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public A), GMC (Red Division)
• State Championships (NJ record for most in a single sport): 1980, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 99, 2002, 03, 04, 06
• County Championships (longest streak of titles in a single sport in NJ): 1979, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 2000, 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07
• Home: Middlesex County College (Edison)

• Current Head Coach: Jarrett Dewelde (Class of '96)
• 2007 Record: 3-15
• Levels: Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public South A), GMC (Red Division)
• State Championships: 1987
• Home: Middlesex County College (Edison)

• Current Head Coach: Miguel Cabrita (Class of '91)
• 2007 Record: 25-10
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (North), GMC
• Sectional Championships: 2006
• State Championships: 2002, 06
• County Championships: 1999, 2002
• Home: Vincent Maglio Gymnasium on campus

• Current Head Coach: Gary Trojanowski (Class of '72)
• 2006-07 Record: 2-0
• Levels: Freshmen, JV, Varsity
• Membership: NJSIAA (Non-Public A), GMC (Red Divison), NJCTC
• State Championships: 1972, 73, 77, 98
• County Championships: 1965, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 84, 86, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 97, 98
• Home: On campus

• James E. McGreevey - Class of 1975, former Governor of New Jersey, the first openly gay governor in United States history.^[1]
• Andrew Bynum - Class of 2005 basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers.^[2]
• Jon Bon Jovi, musician, actor and lead singer of the band, Bon Jovi. Attended for only two years^[3]
• Ed. Fern, Class of '72 - (Track and Field) - Summer Olympic Trials Qualifier, 1976, 1980, 5 Time Atlantic Coast Conference High Jump Champion (Clemson University), Author - Ed. Fern's Flight School (1989), Jumps Coach, New Zealand from 2002.
• Pat Lepore - politician, who has served on the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders since 2004
• Bobby Savulich - swimming 2004 Summer Olympics Trials Qualifier.^[4]
• Jay Williams - Class of 1999, Duke University guard and 2002 NBA Draft #2 pick of the Chicago Bulls.^[5]

• St. Joseph High School Website
• Brothers of the Sacred Heart Website
• St. Joe's Sports Blog on NJ.com
• St. Joe's HighSchoolSports.net Page