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Malcolm X Shabazz High School
Shabazz HS SW jeh.jpg
Address
80 Johnson Avenue

, ,
07108

United States
Coordinates 40°43′08″N 74°11′30″W / 40.718974°N 74.191804°W / 40.718974; -74.191804
Information
Type public high school
Motto Home of the Bulldogs
Established 1912; 112 years ago (1912)
School district Newark Public Schools
NCES School ID 341134002198
Principal Atiba Buckman
Faculty 28.0 FTEs
Grades 9–12
Enrollment 272 (as of 2022–23)
Student to teacher ratio 9.7:1
Color(s)      Black and
     gold
Athletics conference Super Essex Conference (general)
North Jersey Super Football Conference (football)
Team name Bulldogs
Rival Weequahic High School

Malcolm X Shabazz High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in Newark in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, as part of the Newark Public Schools. Founded as South Side High School in 1912, the school was renamed in 1972 in memory of Malcolm X. The school is a candidate for accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools.

As of the 2022–23 school year, the school had an enrollment of 272 students and 28.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 9.7:1. There were 195 students (71.7% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 17 (6.3% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.

Rankings

The school was the 310th-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. The school had been ranked 291st in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 314th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed. The magazine ranked the school 296th in 2008 out of 316 schools. The school was ranked 312th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state. Malcolm X Shabazz has scored 20.4 and 46.1 in the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) test results in the subjects of math and language arts respectively.

Athletics

The Malcolm X Shabazz High School Bulldogs compete in the Super Essex Conference, which comprises public and private high schools in Essex County and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). Before the 2009 restructuring, the school had previously participated in the Watchung Conference, which included high schools in Essex, Hudson and Union counties in northern New Jersey. With 334 students in grades 10–12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group I for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 75 to 476 students in that grade range. The football team competes in the National 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. The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group I North for football for 2022–2024, which included schools with 184 to 471 students. Varsity sports include basketball, volleyball, track and field, football, soccer, wrestling, golf, baseball and softball.

The boys' basketball team won the Group III state championship in 1979 (vs. Long Branch High School), 1995 (vs. Rancocas Valley Regional High School), 1997 (vs. Steinert High School), 2001 (vs. Camden High School) and 2005 (vs. Camden), and the 2010 Group II title (vs. Pequannock Township High School); as South Side High School, the boys' basketball team won the Group III title in 1962 (vs. Neptune High School), 1965 (vs. South Plainfield High School), 1969 (vs. Lincoln High School) and 1971 (vs. Ocean Township High School). Lonnie Wright led the 1962 team to the Group III title with a 72–52 win against a Neptune team that came into the championship game with a 25–0 record. In 1995, the team won the Group III state title on a basket scored with just over three seconds left in the game to defeat Rancocas Valley by a score of 60–59 in the championship game. The team won the 2001 North II, Group III state sectional title with a 56–45 win against Cranford High School. The team won the 2005 Group III state championship, defeating Ramapo High School, 64–59, in the semifinals and Camden High School, 76–58, in the championship game. The team won the 2006 North II Group III state championships. In the Group III state tournament, the team knocked off North I Group III champion Northern Valley Regional High School at Old Tappan, 77–68, in the semifinals, before falling to Hamilton High School 66–34 in the Group III championship game at Rutgers University.

The girls' basketball team won the Group III state championship in 1983 (vs. Sterling High School), 2003 and 2004 (vs. Willingboro High School both years), 2006 (vs. Monmouth Regional High School), 2008 (vs. Ocean City High School), 2009 (vs. Neptune High School), the Group II title in 2010 (vs. Chatham High School), 2011 (vs. Pascack Hills High School), 2012 (vs. Point Pleasant Borough High School) and 2013 (vs. Willingboro High School), and won the Group I title in 2014 (vs. Haddon Township High School); the 11 state championships and 14 appearances by the girls' basketball program in title games are the most of any public school in the state and the five consecutive titles from 2010 to 2014 is tied for the longest streak by a public school program. The girls' basketball team won the 2003 Tournament of Champions, defeating Marlboro High School 48–45 in the tournament final. After four consecutive titles in Group II, the team won the 2014 Group I title with an 80–49 win against Haddon Township in the championship game.

The football team won the North II Group I state sectional championship in 2014, 2017 and 2023. The team defeated Dunellen High School by a score of 14–6 to win the program's first championship and the first title for a Newark high school since 2007. In 2017, the team defeated the top-seeded Weequahic High School by a score of 35–0 in the North II Group I state sectional final played at Kean University, in a rematch of the 2016 final that had been won by Weequahic. The 2023 team won the program's third sectional title with a 40-13 win against Butler High School in the tournament final. 2009 marked the return of the Thanksgiving Day game called the "Soul Bowl" between Weequahic and Shabazz High School, which had last been played in 1993 and had been in abeyance due to the two schools being placed in different athletic conferences. The 2011 game was the 29th between the two teams, ending in a 27–20 win for Weequahic, which won its fifth consecutive defeat of Shabazz. The intra-district football rivalry with Weequahic was ranked third on NJ.com's 2017 list "Ranking the 31 fiercest rivalries in N.J. HS football". Shabazz leads the series with an overall record of 35–28–6 through the 2017 season.

The boys track team won the Group I spring / outdoor track state championship in 2018.

The Future Project

According to Ted Dintersmith and Tony Wagner, the authors of the book Most Likely to Succeed: Preparing Our Kids for the Innovation Era, Divine Bradley of The Future Project and the school's principal, Gemar Mills, worked together to address what they described as one of the "country's most troubled high schools". The school was being considered for closure, and when Mills joined in 2011 there had been four principals in as many years. The city's schools had been part of an unsuccessful $100 million effort to improve the schools.

According to Dintersmith and Wagner, Shabazz High School students are being prepared to be successful through innovative methods. Divine reaches out to students on an individual basis and asks, "What's something big and bold you'd like to do with your life to make your world better? I'm here to help you." Dintersmith and Wagner state that "Most students have never been asked about life goals before. As a result of this kind of engagement, students at Shabazz rise to challenges, take on ambitious projects, and approach education and life with newfound purpose." School attendance has improved and students participate in programs during lunch, and outside of school hours, like classes that develop writing, communication, and collaboration skills.

Administration

The school's principal is Atiba Buckman. Her administration team includes two vice principals.

Notable alumni

See also (related category): Malcolm X Shabazz High School alumni

Notable faculty

  • Divine Bradley (born 1982), youth mentor, motivational speaker and community leader, who has worked at the school as Dream Director as part of the Future Project
  • Donald M. Payne (1934–2012), politician represented New Jersey's 10th congressional district from 1989 to 2012 after working as a teacher and football coach at South Side High School
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