Volunteering
becomes graduation mandate
Saturday, December 17, 2005 •
BY JOHN MOONEY • Star-Ledger
Staff
A few hours of good deeds will soon be a
high school graduation requirement in 30 districts from
Somers Point to High Point.
Acting Gov. Richard Codey yesterday
announced the schools that volunteered for a three-year
pilot program, which will mandate graduates complete at
least 15 hours of community service.
The order will start for next year's
juniors and demand they work with a state-approved
community, nonprofit or public institution. The work also
must be on their own time, outside school hours.
Codey, who signed the program into law
this fall after first proposing it in 1991, has said he
hopes it will eventually be a statewide requirement. New
Jersey would join Maryland as the only two states with such
mandates.
South Hunterdon Regional High School in
Lambertville was among those signing up.
"Community service is an important part
of any educational experience," said Principal Donald
Woodring. "It was something we had been thinking about, and
when this came up, it was a great opportunity to get
involved.
"There may be some (student) hesitation
at first, but I can say from personal experience they get a
lot out of it," said Woodring, whose son completed a similar
requirement in a Pennsylvania school by coaching a Little
League team.
A handful of the districts already have
service rules in place and will share their experiences as
part of the pilot, officials said. Jersey City's high
schools, for instance, will for the first time require that
each of this year's graduates complete at least 50 hours of
community service.
Among the other northern and central New
Jersey schools participating, by county, are:
- Bergen: Hasbrouck Heights High School, Hasbrouck
Heights; Bogota High School, Bogota; Memorial High
School, Elmwood Park.
- Essex: West Orange High School, West Orange.
- Hudson: Hudson County Tech Career School, Jersey
City.
- Hunterdon: Hunterdon Poly Tech, Flemington.
- Mercer: Emily Fisher Charter School, Trenton;
Princeton High School, Princeton.
- Middlesex: Dunellen High School, Dunellen.
- Monmouth: Manasquan High School, Manasquan.
- Morris: Mountain Lakes High School, Mountain
Lakes.
- Passaic: Clifton High School, Clifton.
- Somerset: North Plainfield High School, North
Plainfield; Ridge High School, Basking Ridge.
- Sussex: High Point Regional High School, Sussex.
- Union: Abraham Clark High School, Roselle; Union
County Magnet High School, Scotch Plains.
- Warren: North Warren High School, Blairstown.
© 2005 The Star-Ledger. Used by NJ.com with
permission.
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