The Tenafly Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Tenafly, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States.
As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of six schools, had an enrollment of 3,582 students and 305.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.7:1.
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "I", the second-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.
Students from Alpine attend Tenafly High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship.
Awards and recognition
Tenafly High School was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award, awarded by the United States Department of Education at a special assembly to the Tenafly High School Community on September 20, 2005. Tenafly was the only high school in New Jersey and one of 38 public high schools in the U.S. to be recognized with the award that year.
The district's high school was the 17th-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, and had been ranked 3rd in the state of 328 schools in 2012. Tenafly High School was the 3rd-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 322 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2010 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", after being ranked 3rd in 2008 out of 316 schools. The high school was the 2nd ranked public high school in the state out of 316 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2006 cover story on the state's Top Public High Schools.
The Tenafly Middle School 8th grade string orchestra, conducted by Erika Boras Tesi, won first place in the American String Teachers Association's National Orchestra Festival in 2006, earning the title of number one public middle school orchestra in the United States.
Schools
Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are: Malcolm S. Mackay Elementary School with 344 students in grades K-5 Heidi Chizzik, principal Ralph S. Maugham Elementary School with 364 students in grades K-5 Jennifer Ferrara, principal J. Spencer Smith Elementary School with 350 students in grades K-5 Daryl George, principal Walter Stillman Elementary School with 334 students in grades K-5 Gayle Lander, principal Middle school Tenafly Middle School with 889 students in grades 6-8 John Fabbo, principal High school Tenafly High School with 1,231 students in grades 9-12 James O. Morrison, principal
Administration
Core members of the district's administration are: Michael Ben-David, superintendent of schools Victor Anaya, school business administrator and board secretary
Board of education
The district's board of education is comprised of nine members who set policy and oversee the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type II school district, the board's trustees are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year held (since 2012) as part of the November general election. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the district's day-to-day operations and a business administrator to supervise the business functions of the district.