Glen Ridge, New Jersey

From Freepedia

Glen Ridge is a borough located in Essex County, New Jersey, USA. It is a residential community of about 7,000. Glen Ridge's public school system is one of the top-ranked in the state.

Of the many legacies left to the town by its founders, the one that has become its trademark is the gaslight. With only 3,000 gaslights remaining in operation in the entire United States. Glen Ridge has 666 lamps lighting its streets.

Contents

Geography

Glen Ridge is located at 40°48'18" North, 74°12'17" West (40.804950, -74.204700)1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 3.3 km² (1.3 mi²). 3.3 km² (1.3 mi²) of it is land and none of it is covered by water. It is bounded by Bloomfield, Montclair, Orange and East Orange.

Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there are 7,271 people, 2,458 households, and 1,978 families residing in the borough. The population density is 2,193.2/km² (5,695.0/mi²). There are 2,490 housing units at an average density of 751.1/km² (1,950.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough is 89.18% White, 4.98% African American, 0.15% Native American, 3.34% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.99% from other races, and 1.36% from two or more races. 3.45% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 2,458 households out of which 46.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.9% are married couples living together, 8.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 19.5% are non-families. 16.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.0% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.95 and the average family size is 3.33.

In the borough the population is spread out with 30.7% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 38 years. For every 100 females there are 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 89.3 males.

The median income for a household in the borough is $105,638, and the median income for a family is $120,650. Males have a median income of $91,161 versus $51,444 for females. The per capita income for the borough is $48,456. 3.0% of the population and 1.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 3.3% of those under the age of 18 and 4.1% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Government

Federal, state and county representation

Glen Ridge is in the Eighth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 34th Legislative District.

New Jersey's Eighth Congressional District, covering the southern portion of Passaic County and northern sections of Essex County, is represented by Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D, Paterson). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken) and Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park).

The 34th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Nia Gill (D) and in the Assembly by Peter C. Eagler (D, Clifton) and Sheila Y. Oliver (D, East Orange).

Essex County's County Executive is Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. The executive, along with the Board of Chosen Freeholders administer all county business. Essex County's Freeholders are Freeholder President Johnny Jones, Freeholder Vice President Patricia Sebold, Freeholder-At-Large Blonnie R. Watson, Freeholder-At-Large Albertus Jenkins, Freeholder District 1 Samuel Gonzalez, Freeholder District 2 D. Bilal Beasley, Freeholder District 3 Carol Y. Clark, Freeholder District 4 Muriel M. Shore and Freeholder District 5 Ralph R. Caputo.

History

Glen Ridge traces its beginning to 1666 when sixty-four Connecticut families led by Robert Treat bought land from the Lenni Lenape Indians and named it New Ark to reflect a covenant to worship freely without persecution. The territory included the future towns of Bloomfield, Montclair, Belleville and Nutley. When Bloomfield seceded in 1812, Glen Ridge was a section "on the hill" composed mostly of farms and woodlands with the exception of a thriving industrial area along the Toney's brook in the Glen. For most of the nineteenth century, three water-powered mills produced lumber, calico, pasteboard boxes and brass fittings. A copper mine and a sandstone quarry were nearby.

With the arrival of the Newark and Bloomfield Railroad in 1856 and the New York, Montclair and Greenwood Lake Railroad in 1872, Glen Ridge began its transition to a suburban residential community. Stately homes slowly replaced orchards and wooded fields.

Residents "on the hill" became unhappy with their representation on the Bloomfield Council. In spite of repeated requests to Bloomfield officials, roads remained unpaved, water and sewer systems were nonexistent, and schools were miles away. In 1895, the stage was set for succession by several men on the third floor of Robert Rudd's home on Ridgewood Avenue. They marked out the boundaries of a 1.45 square mile area to secede from the adjoining town. At the February 12, 1895 election, the decision to secede passed by only twenty-three votes. Robert Rudd was elected the first mayor of Glen Ridge.

Public Schools

Glen Ridge's Public School system is highly-ranked in the state of New Jersey and a key attraction to new residents. The system consists of two elementary schools (Linden Avenue School and Forest Avenue School), an upper elementary School (Ridgewood Avenue School), and a high school (Glen Ridge High School).

Glen Ridge High School houses students in grades 7-12. Excellence in academic preparation is valued in both the school and community cultures. Standardized test scores far exceed both the state and national averages. More than 98% of our graduates from the Class of 2004, went on to study at some of our country's finest four or two year colleges and universities. The remaining graduates continue their education in trade or technical schools or in our armed services, while others find employment. Recent graduates have attended schools such as University of Pennsylvania, The United States Naval Academy, Tufts, Georgetown, Duke, University of North Carolina, and Rutgers, as well as other extremely competitive colleges. The Class of 2004 average SAT scores were 583 on the math section and 591 on the verbal section. (Compared to a NJ average of 514 math, 501 verbal and USA average of 518 math, 508 verbal.) Over the past four years the graduation rate has been approximately 99%, while 100% of students pass the New Jersey HSPT and HSPA. The success of the students is due in a large part to rigorous academic programs, a committed professional staff, a serious about learning student body, strong instructional leadership and parental involvement and support. Glen Ridge High School has often been cited as a top school in New Jersey and the country. We are accredited by the Middle States Association and have been cited for our excellent curricular and co-curricular programs. Additionally, our students are well known by the town police and the surrounding area to often spend their weekends in a state of constant intoxication. High School students often indulge in excrssive binge drinking, as well as the use of other recreational drugs. Students at Glen Ridge High School are notorious for their drinking, and yet receive excellent grades and are accepted into top universities and colleges. The town has consistantly been able to maintain its pretigious image with a "work hard, party hard" ethic.

Ridgewood Avenue Upper Elementary School houses students in grades 3-6. In addition to a rigorous academic curriculum in the major disciplines of language arts literacy, mathematics, social studies, and science, students are exposed to art, instrumental and vocal music, physical education, health, library skills and Spanish. Students in grades five and six move through the stations of the Synergistics Lab, solving real world problems through the study of mathematics, science, and technology. Teachers take pride in displaying student work through creatively designed bulletin boards, which not only beautify the school, but also enhance the learning environment.

Approximately 288 students attend the Linden Avenue Elementary School. The major goal of the Linden Avenue Elementary School is to provide all students with a love of learning in a stimulating, caring, safe educational setting which will ensure that each child meets his/her fullest potential. Students are taught by a group of caring professionals who teach the whole child. Well versed in the rigorous core curricular offerings, teachers use the Rigby balanced literacy program for reading and language arts and the Everyday Mathematics program created at the University of Chicago. Both programs have been well researched to provide students a sound foundation in both reading and math.he academic program in the primary school is comprehensive and enriched with instruction in developmental reading, mathematics, language arts, social studies, and science being implemented by the self-contained classroom teachers.

Forest Avenue School is an early childhood learning community serving the needs of over 250 children in grades pre-kindergarten through second. Our school philosophy embraces each child entering school and recognizes his or her unique needs, abilities, aptitudes and interests. A creative, caring, and competent professional staff encourages every child to learn, grow and flourish within a challenging, yet supportive environment. Children develop positive self-esteem coupled with a love for learning, acquisition of knowledge, and problem-solving skills. We begin this development for our four year-old students who experience an active and exciting inquiry approach to learning in a well-planned, stimulating classroom as part of our half-day pre-kindergarten program. Through many hands-on experiences the children begin on a path of learning through discovery about their environment. They also begin developing an understanding of how numbers and letters help them to communicate. Our full-day kindergarten program highlights emergent literacy and language arts development as well as beginning skills in mathematics, science, and social studies through learning centers and hands-on activities

External links

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