Paramus High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school, located in Paramus, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Paramus Public Schools. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 2006.Paramus High School, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools, backed up by the Internet Archive as of March 30, 2012. Accessed March 28, 2015.
As of the 2024–25 school year, the school had an enrollment of 1,153 students and 102.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.3:1. There were 194 students (16.8% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 27 (2.3% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.School data for Paramus High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed January 15, 2026.
Course offerings include Advanced Placement courses available in 26 subjects.Program of Studies 2019-2020 , Paramus High School. Accessed July 19, 2019.
History Historically, Paramus shared many municipal services with the township of Rochelle Park, including schooling. In 1922, the school situation was the hot topic of discussion. Residents felt that the schools were too far away and wanted to make sure that their children were safe when they went to school. It was because of this that Paramus decided to become a borough of its own.PHS Renovation Update , Paramus High School. Accessed June 30, 2011. "The new main office and fitness center are a welcome addition to the high school which was originally built in 1957."
With a growing population, Paramus officials were notified that students could no longer be accommodated at Hackensack High School or Ridgewood High School. In a 1956 referendum, more than 95% of residents approved the construction of a high school that opened on Spring Valley Road in September 1957 with 900 students in grades 6–10.The Making of a Classic, 2008. Accessed July 9, 2025. "Its school population grew enormously and soon Ridgewood and Hackensack gave notice that they could no longer accommodate Paramus high school age students. In a grand display of cooperation, Paramus residents on January 10, 1956 voted by a margin of 20:1 to fund the building of a high school.... The opening of Paramus High School in September of 1957 created a new sense of community for many of the residents of Paramus.... That first year PHS housed 900 students in grades 6-10, and 50 faculty members, and the overall population of Paramus was 7,000."
The school's 50th anniversary was celebrated in 2007.Fabrikant, Mel. "Mayor & Council Meeting 3-27-07" , The Paramus Post, March 28, 2007. Accessed April 11, 2012. "Further into the future will be the 50th anniversary of Paramus High School kicking off with a Football Game under the lights at 7 PM versus Barringer High School."
Awards, recognition and rankings For the 1988–89 school year, Paramus High School was awarded the National Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education,National Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982 Through 2019 (PDF), United States Department of Education. Accessed September 1, 2024. the highest award an American school can receive."CIBA cited as one of the best by Education Department", Journal Inquirer, November 16, 2006. "The Blue Ribbon award is given only to schools that reach the top 10 percent of their state's testing scores over several years or show significant gains in student achievement. It is considered the highest honor a school can achieve.""Viers Mill School Wins Blue Ribbon; School Scored High on Statewide Test", The Washington Post. September 29, 2005 "For their accomplishments, all three schools this month earned the status of Blue Ribbon School, the highest honor the U.S. Education Department can bestow upon a school."
The school was the 57th-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. The school had been ranked 111th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 98th 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 77th in 2008 out of 316 schools.Staff. "2010 Top High Schools" , New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed February 8, 2011. The school was ranked 45th in the magazine's September 2006 issue, which included 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 tied for 124th out of 381 public high schools statewide in its 2011 rankings (a decrease of 44 positions from the 2010 ranking) which were based on the combined percentage of students classified as proficient or above proficient on the mathematics (83.3%) and language arts literacy (97.0%) components of the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA)., Schooldigger.com. Accessed March 4, 2012.
In the 2011 "Ranking America's High Schools" issue by The Washington Post, the school was ranked 50th in New Jersey and 1,527th nationwide.Mathews, Jay. , The Washington Post. Accessed September 9, 2011.
In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 705th in the nation among participating public high schools and 54th among schools in New Jersey.Streib, Lauren. "America's Best High Schools" , The Daily Beast, May 6, 2013. Accessed May 9, 2013.
Athletics The Paramus High School SpartansParamus High School , New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. compete in the Big North Conference, which is comprised of public and private high schools in Bergen and Passaic counties, and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.League & Conference Officers/Affiliated Schools 2020-2021 , New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed October 20, 2020. The school had participated in the North Jersey Tri-County Conference in 2009–10.League Memberships - 2009-1010, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, backed up by the Internet Archive as of July 24, 2011. Accessed September 30, 2014. Until the NJSIAA's 2009 realignment, the school had participated in Division A of the Northern New Jersey Interscholastic League, which included high schools located in Bergen, Essex and Passaic counties, and was separated into three divisions based on NJSIAA size classification.Home Page, Northern New Jersey Interscholastic League, backed up by the Internet Archive as of May 9, 2009. Accessed December 15, 2014. With 894 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 football team competes in the Patriot 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.Cooper, Darren. "Here's what we know about the new Super Football Conference 2020 schedule" , The Record, July 23, 2020. Accessed March 22, 2021. "The Super Football Conference (SFC) is a 112-team group, the largest high school football-only conference in America, and is comprised of teams from five different counties."Cooper, Darren. "NJ football: Super Football Conference revised schedules for 2020 regular season" , The Record, July 23, 2020. Accessed March 22, 2021. "The Super Football Conference has 112 teams that will play across 20 divisions." The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Group III North for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 700 to 884 students.NJSIAA Football Public School Classifications 2024–2026, New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, updated September 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024.
The school participates as the host school / lead agency in a joint ice hockey team with Hackensack High School and Lyndhurst High School. 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 baseball program has won more than 800 games since its inception in 1960, which includes four state championships, a county championship, and 13 league championships. Many players have gone on to graduate and continue to play baseball at the collegiate level, several of which played at the NCAA Division 1 level or professionally.Paramus High School , The Baseball Cube. Accessed February 5, 2013. Former head coach Joe Cervino, who managed the team for 30 seasons from 1982 to 2011, was one of the most successful coaches in Bergen County history, one of only four coaches to win more than 500 games.Farrell, Brian. "Coach Cervino reflects on 500 wins", NorthJersey.com/sports, April 28, 2010. Accessed August 23, 2011. "'It's not about me; it's about the team and the program and all the quality athletes that I've been fortunate to coach at Paramus High School,' says Joe Cervino, now among only five head baseball coaches in Bergen County history to have achieved 500 wins in a career."
The boys track team won the Group IV spring / outdoor track state championship in 1965.NJSIAA Boys Spring Track Summary of Group Titles , New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed May 1, 2023.