Matawan Regional High School is a four-year regional public high school located in Aberdeen Township, United States, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District. Serving students from Aberdeen Township and Matawan, it is one of Monmouth County's largest schools. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools since 1951.Matawan Regional High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools, backed up by the Internet Archive as of March 15, 2012. Accessed March 26, 2015. The school mascot is a husky.
As of the 2024–25 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,038 students and 87.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.9:1. There were 279 students (26.9% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 74 (7.1% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.School data for Matawan Regional High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed January 15, 2026.
Awards, recognition and rankings The school was the 139th-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.Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014. In 2016, the school moved up to 114. The school had been ranked 92nd in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 126th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed December 2, 2012. The magazine ranked the school 111th in 2008 out of 316 schools.Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed April 5, 2011. The school was ranked 115th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which surveyed 316 schools across the state."Top New Jersey High Schools 2008: By Rank", New Jersey Monthly, September 2008, posted August 7, 2008. Accessed August 19, 2008.
Schooldigger.com ranked the school 253rd out of 376 public high schools statewide in its 2010 rankings (a decrease of 38 positions from the 2009 rank) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the language arts literacy and mathematics components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA).New Jersey High School Rankings: 11th Grade HSPA Language Arts Literacy & HSPA Math 2009–2010, Schooldigger.com. Accessed January 17, 2012.
History When the State of New Jersey mandated graded school systems replace district schools in 1894, Matawan Township and Matawan Borough constructed an eight-room brick school building at the corner of Broad Street and South Street, which was completed and occupied in 1895.Federal Writers' Projects: Matawan, 1686–1936, pp. 70–71.
A 1913 graduate described the school as having four rooms on the first floor, and four rooms and a long, wide hall on the second floor. There was no indoor plumbing until a major addition was made to the building about 1910, so outdoor toilets were used for about fifteen years. Sanitary facilities were added in the basement. The Class of 1913 consisted of 34 eighth graders, most of whom were expected to go to work after they finished school.Donnell, Genevieve. "When American Legion Hall Served as School", Bayshore Independent, March 13, 1973, contained in booklet entitled Matawan Memories.
By 1923, the school was so overcrowded that it was running double sessions to teach its students in 12 rooms, so the township voted to build a new high school next door.
The first Matawan High School was completed and occupied in 1924 on at the corner of Broad Street and South Street. The -story brick building of Georgian design was constructed at a cost of $175,000 (equivalent to $ million in ). It contained 13 classrooms, a study hall, a cafeteria, an auditorium seating 527, and a gymnasium with capacity for 300. The school had 388 students and 14 teachers in 1936; 76 seniors graduated with the Class of 1936. The school had recently taken in students from Laurence Harbor, effectively doubling the graduating class between 1933 and 1936. The school, which included some middle school students in 1957, had 540 high school students and their 28 teachers.Tiemann, Alice M., Township of Matawan, 1857–1957, p. 35 After it was replaced in 1962, consideration was given to making the old high school an elementary school but it was eventually demolished.
Matawan Regional High School was built to deal with sharp population growth due to the construction of 2,300 new housing units in the area. Population nearly doubled between the 1960 census figure of 12,456 and the 1965 estimate of 21,177. Constructed at a cost of $2.5 million (the value of $ million in ), the school opened in September 1962 with nearly 1,200 students in grades 7–12."First Students Introduced To Matawan Regional High", Asbury Park Press, September 18, 1962. Accessed June 15, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "The first day school at the new Matawan Regional High School came off without a hitch yesterday, although it was nearly two weeks late. "Things went along very smoothly," John V. Caracciolo, principal of the 58-room school, said after the last of some 440 7th and 8th graders left. They had attended the first of three orientation days to be held in the building, which is still not completed. Today about 400 9th and 10th graders will come to school or orientation while the other classes stay home. Tomorrow an equal number of 11th and 12th graders will attend.... But as the school opening neared, the Board realized it could not have the $2.47 million building ready in time, and the opening was deferred two weeks." The school had 1,780 students and 102 teachers in the 1964/1965 school year. The 62 rooms included 33 classrooms, two gymnasiums, an auditorium, a cafeteria, two music rooms, two industrial arts shops, eight science rooms, and two fine arts rooms.League of Women Voters, Know Your Town: Matawan Borough and Township, 1965, pp. 40–46
The school underwent a $13.3 million renovation project completed in September 2004 which included a new facade, new chemistry and oceanography laboratory classrooms, a new art wing, including a kiln, computer labs, as well as a new greenhouse.Matawan Regional High School Expansion/Retrofit, SchoolDesigns.com. Accessed January 17, 2012. The sports department received a renovated artificial turf football field and stadium lighting. Streetside saw a new electronic sign.
Demographics +Enrollment Trends by GradeGrade2021–229320102691124412275 +Enrollment Trends by Student GroupStudent Group2021–22Female49.6%Male50.4%Economically Disadvantaged Students25%Students with Disabilities15.1%English Learners1.0%Homeless StudentsXStudents in Foster CareXMilitary-Connected StudentsXMigrant StudentsX +Enrollment by Racial and Ethnic GroupRacial and Ethnic Group2021–22White60.8%Hispanic17.6%Black or African American12.2%Asian6.2%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander0.3%American Indian or Alaskan Native0.2%Two or More Races2.8% +Enrollment Trends by Full and Shared Time StatusEnrollment Status2015–162016–172017–18Full Time Students9819831,005Shared Time Students626064Full Time Equivalent1,0121,0131,037 +Enrollment by Home LanguageHome Language% of StudentsEnglish94.5%Spanish2.9%Other Languages2.7%
Sports The Matawan High School HuskiesMatawan Regional High School, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. compete in Division B North of the Shore Conference, an athletic conference comprised of public and private high schools in Monmouth and Ocean counties along the Jersey Shore.Shore Conference Realignment for 2018–2019 and 2019–2020, Shore Conference. Accessed November 15, 2020.Member Schools, Shore Conference. Accessed November 15, 2020. The league operates under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA).League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020–2021, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. With 797 students in grades 10–12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Group III for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 761 to 1,058 students in that grade range.NJSIAA General Public School Classifications 2019–2020, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed November 20, 2020. The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group III South for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 695 to 882 students.NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2024–2026, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024.
The school participates in a joint ice hockey team with Howell High School as the host school / lead agency. The co-op program operates under agreements scheduled to expire at the end of the 2023–24 school year.NJSIAA Winter Cooperative Sports Programs, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed December 1, 2020.
The Matawan High School baseball team (63–2) won the Central Jersey championship three consecutive years from 1922 to 1924 under Coach Benjamin W. Davis. Matawan's African-American pitcher Henry Schanck was edged out by Keyport High School in a 16-inning match in 1924. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) added a sports field at the high school in 1936. The 1959 Huskies baseball team, coached by George Deitz, won the Shore Conference championship and competed in the Group I state championships, losing in the first round. Their star pitcher, Carl Stephens, threw three no-hitters that season and was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers, playing in their minor league system until an arm injury ended his career. The team won the Central Jersey Group II state sectional championship in 1960.Baseball Championship History: 1959–2024, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024.
The Matawan Catfish swim team competed against the Laurence Harbor Eels at nearby Lake Lefferts in spring 1936.
The boys track team won the spring / outdoor track title in Group I in 1955–1958 and won the Group II championship in 2013.NJSIAA Boys Spring Track Summary of Group Titles, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.
The boys' bowling team won the overall state championship in 1969.History of NJSIAA Boys Bowling Championships, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed August 1, 2022. The boys' team won their division back-to-back in 2017 (tied with Keansburg as co-champion) and 2018. The 2018 season saw the boys team achieve an undefeated season in divisional matches going 45–0.