Linden High School is a comprehensive community

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

located in Linden in Union County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, serving students in

ninth In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second. Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...

through

twelfth grade Twelfth Grade (also known as Grade 12, Senior Year, Standard 12, 12th Standard, 12th Class, or Class 12th or Class 12) is the twelfth and final Educational stage, year of Formal education, formal or compulsory education. It is typically the final ...

s as the lone secondary school of the Linden Public Schools. The school has been accredited by the

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, also referred to as the Middle States Association or MSA, is an accreditor in the United States. Historically, it has accredited schools in the Mid-Atlantic states region of the northeas ...

Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1928. As of the 2023–24 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,882 students and 131.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

student–teacher ratio The student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio refers to the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers or staff in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that ...

of 14.4:1. There were 891 students (47.3% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 203 (10.8% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.School data for Linden High School

National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the principal federal agency responsible for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data on education in the United States. Established under , it operates within the Institute of Education S ...

. Accessed December 15, 2024. Linden High School has been an IB World School since July 2001, offering students the

IB Diploma Programme The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry int ...

History

Linden High School opened for start of the 1910-11 school year, with a graduating class that included three students. The high school had been located in School No. 1 until a standalone high school building opened to students in 1925, with expansions made to the original building in 1931 and 1960. A plaque in the school honors Lida M. Ebbert, who was the school's principal from when it was established in 1910 until she retired in 1952.

Awards, recognition and rankings

The school was the 253rd-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 339 schools statewide in ''

New Jersey Monthly ''New Jersey Monthly'' is an American monthly magazine featuring issues of possible interest to residents of New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United St ...

'' magazine's September 2014 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", using a new ranking methodology. The school had been ranked 326th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 284th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. The magazine ranked the school 299th in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 293rd in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state.

Athletics

The Linden High School TigersLinden High School

New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) is an association of hundreds of New Jersey high schools that regulates high school athletics and holds tournaments and crowns champions in high school sports. State championsh ...

. Accessed October 20, 2020. compete in the Union County Interscholastic Athletic Conference, which is comprised of public and private high schools in Union County and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the

(NJSIAA). With 1,202 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. Prior to the 2010 realignment, the school had participated in the

Watchung Conference The Watchung Conference was a high school sports association under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). The conference consisted of eleven public high schools covering Essex County, Hudson County ...

, which included public high schools in

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudson Rodrigues dos Santos, Brazilian f ...

and Union counties. The football team competes in Division 4 of the Big Central Football Conference, which includes 60 public and private high schools in Hunterdon,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, Union and

Warren Warren most commonly refers to: * Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits * Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named Warren may also refer to: Places Australia * Warren (biogeographic region) * War ...

counties, which are broken down into 10 divisions by size and location. 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. The boys track team won the Group III spring / outdoor track state championship in 1941. The boys' baseball team won the Group IV state championship in 1979 (against

Middletown High School South Middletown High School South is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as one of the two secondary school ...

in the final game of the tournament), and won the Group III title in 1981 (vs. Moorestown High School) and 1982 (vs. Freehold Township High School).Baseball Championship History: 1959–2024

, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024. The 1979 team finished the season with an 18-6 record after winning the Group IV title with a 2-1 victory on a run scored in the bottom of the ninth in the championship game against Middletown South. The football team won the North II Group III state sectional title in 1985 and the North II Group V title in 2014. In 2014, the team defeated Elizabeth High School by a score of 27–20 in the tournament final to win the North II Group V championship. The school's rivalry with Union High School, with games played on Thanksgiving Day (or the day before Thanksgiving) for more than 75 years, was listed at 13th on

NJ.com NJ.com is a digital news content provider and website in New Jersey owned by Advance Publications. According to ''The New York Times'' in 2012, it was the largest provider of digital news in the state at the time. In 2018, comScore reports that ...

's 2017 list "Ranking the 31 fiercest rivalries in N.J. HS football". Union leads the rivalry with a 37–32–5 overall record as of 2017. The boys' bowling team won the overall state championship in 1988 and the Group III title in 2020. The girls' basketball team won the Group IV state title in 1992 (vs. Piscataway High School), 1993 (vs. East Brunswick High School) and 1994 (vs. Washington Township High School).Girls Basketball Championship History: 1919–2024

, updated March 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024. The 1993 team won the Group IV title with a 71-55 win against East Brunswick in the championship game. The 1994 team won the Group IV title with a 58-52 win against a Washington Township team that came into the championship game undefeated. The boys' basketball team won the Group IV state championship in 2000 (defeating

Bridgewater-Raritan High School Bridgewater-Raritan High School (commonly abbreviated as BRHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school. It is the lone secondary school of the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District serving students in ninth through twelfth grade ...

in the tournament final), 2004 (vs. Atlantic City High School), 2007 (vs. South Brunswick High School), 2014 (vs. Trenton Central High School), 2016 (vs. Atlantic City High School) and 2017 (vs. Shawnee High School). Coached by Phil Colicchio, the boys' basketball team won the 2006 North II, Group IV sectional championship with a 64–38 win over Plainfield High School. In 2007, the team won the Group IV NJSIAA state championship, edging

Passaic County Technical Institute Passaic County Technical Institute (also known as PCTI, Passaic County Tech, Wayne Tech or simply Tech), is a vocational public high school in Wayne, that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from all of Passaic County, in the U.S. ...

57–56 in the semifinals and defeating South Brunswick High School 63-54 for the title. The team won the program's fourth Group IV title in 2014 with a 66-53 win against Trenton Central in the finals of the tournament.

Administration

The school's principal is Charles Koonce. His administration team includes five vice principals.

Notable alumni

* Roger Chanoine (1976–2016),

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...

who played in the NFL between 1998 and 2002, primarily for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

John Charles William John Charles (27 December 1931 – 21 February 2004) was a Welsh association football, footballer who played as a centre-forward or as a centre-back. Best known for his first stint at Leeds United F.C., Leeds United and Juventus FC, Ju ...

(1944–2019, class of 1962), former American football cornerback and safety who played eight seasons in the National Football League * Jerome A. Cohen (born 1930), professor of law at

New York University School of Law The New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest survivin ...

and an expert in Chinese law * Danny Dias (–2017), activist and reality television personality * Tamecka Dixon (born 1975, class of 1992), former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player who played in the WNBA for the

Los Angeles Sparks The Los Angeles Sparks are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference. The team plays its home games at Crypto.co ...

Houston Comets The Houston Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. They are one of two ...

and

Indiana Fever The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Fever compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was founded for ...

Waliyy Dixon Waliyy Dixon (born February 27, 1974), better known by his streetball nickname "Main Event", is an American professional basketball player. He was born and raised in Linden, New Jersey. Early life Dixon spent his youth honing his streetball skill ...

(born 1974), aka "Main Event" on the

AND1 Mixtape Tour The AND1 Live Tour, formerly known as the AND1 Mixtape Tour, was a traveling basketball competition and exhibition that existed from 1998 to 2008. It was presented by ''B-Ball and Company'' and the basketball apparel manufacturer AND1. A group of ...

; one of the original players on the famous AND1–sponsored

streetball Streetball (or street basketball) is a variation of basketball, typically played on outdoor courts and featuring significantly less formal structure and enforcement of the game's rules. As such, its format is more conducive to allowing players ...

tours * Carolyn Dorin-Ballard (born 1964, class of 1985), one of the top female ten-pin bowlersSchneider, Jeremy
"The Votes Are In: Who made it to Linden's Mount Rushmore?"
NJ Advance Media for

, July 11, 2017, updated May 15, 2019. Accessed February 24, 2020. * Calvin Duncan (born 1961), pastor and retired basketball player * Stanton T. Friedman (1934–2019, class of 1951), nuclear engineer and

ufologist Ufology, sometimes written UFOlogy ( or ), is the investigation of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) by people who believe that they may be of extraordinary claims, extraordinary origins (most frequently of extraterrestrial hypothesis, extrate ...

who broke the story of the 1947

Roswell incident The Roswell Incident started in 1947 with the recovery of debris near Roswell, New Mexico. It later became the basis for conspiracy theories alleging that the United States military recovered a crashed extraterrestrial spacecraft. The debri ...

* Oscar Givens (1922–1967),

Negro league baseball The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

in the 1940s who played for the

Newark Eagles The Newark Eagles were a professional Negro league baseball team which played in the Negro National League from 1936 to 1948. They were owned by Abe and Effa Manley. History Formation The Newark Eagles were formed in 1936 when the Newark ...

John T. Hendrickson Jr. John T. Hendrickson Jr. (January 30, 1923 – September 25, 1999) was an American politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from the 9th Legislative District from 1982 to 1989. He served as Mayor of Eagleswood Township, New Jerse ...

(1923–1999), politician who represented the 9th Legislative District from 1982 to 1989 *

George Hudak George Hudak (March 10, 1935 – November 4, 1996) was an American politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from the 20th Legislative District from 1986 to 1994 and as mayor of Linden, New Jersey from 1983 to 1987. Born in Linde ...

(1935–1996), politician who represented the 20th Legislative District in the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

from 1986 to 1994 and was mayor of Linden from 1983 to 1987 *

Eddie Kasko Edward Michael Kasko (June 27, 1931 – June 24, 2020) was an American infielder, manager, scout and front office executive in Major League Baseball (MLB). Kasko was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and raised in nearby Linden. He graduated fro ...

(1931–2020), former infielder, manager, scout and front office executive in Major League Baseball *

Thomas Lanigan-Schmidt Thomas Lanigan-Schmidt (born 1948) is an American artist who took part in the 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City, which was a historic turning point in the movement for Gay liberation and LGBT rights. He is on the faculty of New York City's ...

(born 1948, Thomas R. R. Schmidt), artist and veteran of the

Stonewall riots The Stonewall riots (also known as the Stonewall uprising, Stonewall rebellion, Stonewall revolution, or simply Stonewall) were a series of spontaneous riots and demonstrations against a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of ...

Derek Luke Derek Nathanial Luke (born April 24, 1974) is an American actor. He won the Independent Spirit Award for his big-screen debut performance as the titular character in the 2002 film '' Antwone Fisher'', directed and produced by Denzel Washingto ...

(born 1974), actor who won multiple awards for his big-screen debut performance in the 2002 film ''

Antwone Fisher Antwone Quenton Fisher (born August 3, 1959) is an American director, screenwriter, author, and film producer. His 2001 autobiographical book '' Finding Fish'' was a ''New York Times'' Best Seller. The 2002 film '' Antwone Fisher'' was writt ...

'' *

Vincent Obsitnik Vincent Obsitnik (born 1938) was sworn in as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Slovak Republic on November 9, 2007, and served in this role until January 20, 2009. Prior to his current appointme ...

(born 1938), diplomat who served as

United States Ambassador to Slovakia Until 1992 the Slovak Republic had been united with the Czech Republic as the nation of Czechoslovakia. Following World War II, a U.S. consulate was established in Bratislava, but the consulate was closed on May 27, 1950, on the order of the C ...

* Mike Pringley (born 1976, class of 1994), former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

who played in the NFL for the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

and

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

Jon Rua Jon Rua (born Jonathan Rua) is an American actor, singer, and choreographer, best known for his roles in Broadway musicals such as ''Hamilton'', '' In the Heights'', '' The SpongeBob Musical'', and '' Hands on a Hardbody''. Rua was the choreog ...

(born 1983, class of 2001), actor, singer and choreographer who appeared in the Broadway hit ''

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

'' * Troy Stradford (born 1964, class of 1982), former professional American football running back who played for six seasons in the NFL * Craig Taylor (born 1966, class of 1984), former

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

for three seasons for the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

* Chester A. Weidenburner (1913-1985, class of 1931), lawyer and judge who served as

U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey The U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey is the chief federal law enforcement officer in New Jersey. Since March 24, 2025, Alina Habba has served as acting U.S. attorney. The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey has jurisd ...

and as a Judge of the

New Jersey Superior Court The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with statewide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The New Jersey Constitution of 1947 establishes the power of the New Jersey courts: under Article Six of the State Consti ...

* Muhammad Wilkerson (born 1989, class of 2007),

who played for the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

Notable faculty

* John J. Fay Jr. (1927–2003), history and economics teacher from 1958 to 1978, who served in the

and the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate is the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232,225 (2020 figure ...

Martin, Douglas
"John J. Fay Jr., 76, Ombudsman For the Elderly of New Jersey"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', October 29, 2003. Accessed July 7, 2010.

References

External links

Linden High SchoolLinden Public Schools
*
School Data for the Linden Public Schools

{{Authority control 1910 establishments in New Jersey Educational institutions established in 1910 International Baccalaureate schools in New Jersey Linden, New Jersey Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools Public high schools in Union County, New Jersey