Academy for Performing Arts

The Union County Academy for Performing Arts is a full-time four-year public magnet high school located in Scotch Plains, in Union County, New Jersey, United States, on the Union County Vocational Technical Schools Campus. Its first year was the 2008–2009 school year. While the school originally offered two majors; theatre and dance; a program in technical theatre was added in the 2015–2016 school year. The school is part of the Union County Vocational Technical Schools (UCVTS), which serves students in all of Union County. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 2017.[3]

This article is about the magnet school in New Jersey. For other uses, see Academy for Performing Arts (disambiguation).

Academy for Performing Arts
Address
1776 Raritan Road

Scotch Plains
,
Union County
,
New Jersey
07076

United States
Coordinates40.6170°N 74.3595°W / 40.6170; -74.3595
Information
TypeMagnet public high school
School districtUnion County Vocational Technical Schools
NCES School ID341804003009[1]
PrincipalKelly Douglas-Jackson[2]
Faculty13.6 FTEs[1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment234 (as of 2021–22)[1]
Student to teacher ratio17.2:1[1]
Color(s)Black, White, Silver
   
AccreditationMiddle States Association of Colleges and Schools[3]
Websitewww.ucvts.tec.nj.us/domain/301

The students are on the Union County Vocational Technical Schools Campus for the first three years of high school, while their senior year is spent at Kean University. While attending Kean, their courses follow the program for the first year in the performing arts concentration.[4]

As of the 2021–22 school year, the school had an enrollment of 234 students and 13.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 17.2:1. There were 8 students (3.4% of enrollment) eligible for free lunch and 1 (0.4% of students) eligible for reduced-cost lunch.[1]

Recognition and rankings

In 2016, the Academy for Performing Arts was one of ten schools in New Jersey, and one of two high school programs in the state, recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School by the United States Department of Education.[5]

In its 2013 report on "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast ranked the school 962nd in the nation among participating public high schools and 71st among schools in New Jersey.[6] In Newsweek's listing of "America's Best High Schools 2016", the school was ranked 203rd out of 500 best high schools in the country; it was ranked 32nd among all high schools in New Jersey.[7]

Partnership with Kean University

In addition to attending APA the first three years of high school, students are sent to Kean University during their senior year and are eligible to receive one full year of college credits on a Kean University transcript.[8]

References
  1. School data for Academy For Performing Arts, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 1, 2022.
  2. Principal's Message, Academy for Performing Arts. Accessed February 12, 2022.
  3. Union County Academy for Performing Arts, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools. Accessed February 12, 2022.
  4. Overview, Academy for Performing Arts. Accessed November 8, 2020. "The culmination of the program allows students to complete their senior year by taking college-level courses and receiving college credit at Kean University."
  5. 2016 National Blue Ribbon Schools All Public and Non‐Public, National Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Accessed November 13, 2016.
  6. Streib, Lauren. "America's Best High Schools", The Daily Beast, May 6, 2013. Accessed May 9, 2013.
  7. Staff. "America's Best High Schools 2016", Newsweek. Accessed November 11, 2016.
  8. Academy For Performing Arts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed November 13, 2016. "An articulation agreement is in place with Kean University whereby students will spend their high school senior year at Kean University taking a full freshman college course load which includes a concentration in their Performing Arts major."
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