ENGLEWOOD, N.J.—On Saturday afternoon, June 22, Dwight Morrow High School (DMHS) alumni had a smoking good time.
The school’s Alumni Educational Alliance (AEA) hosted its annual barbecue fundraiser from noon until 4 p.m.
Some 200 former students, teachers and coaches, some dating as far back as the class of 1947, gathered in the cafeteria and surrounding grounds where they enjoyed an afternoon of fun, food and fond memories.
The celebration also included an awards presentation to Shirley Smith, former member of the Englewood Board of Education, and para-professional in the Englewood School System for 25 years and to Coach Terrell Amos, retired physical education teacher and track and field coach.
Speaking about the fundraiser goal of the barbecue, Shirley Edmonds, a AEA board member, said, “The vision of the AEA is to fund initiatives for new or expanded academic activities and facilities that are submitted by administrators, teachers and students. We support and organize other educational activities and work to strengthen alumni ties to DMHS.
“While our primary focus is DMHS, we also encourage Academies@Englewood faculty and students to submit grant applications and to participate in our funded programs,” Edmonds said.
(Note: Academies@Englewood is a school of choice that offers career academies for students of exceptional merit. There are five focuses: law and public safety, information systems, pre-engineering, bio-medicine and finance.)
This year, a AEA’s grant of $5,000 funded a field trip led by DMHS chemistry teacher Jorge Luis Valcarcel. During the alumni barbecue, he spoke about this exciting project.
“I brought 46 sophomore students to a facility used by several pharmaceutical companies,” said Valcarcel. “The students worked in a lab where they were given a hypothetical cholesterol fighting drug and were asked to test and evaluate it. It was a wonderful educational experience.”
The June 22 alumni barbecue was organized by Edmonds and hosted by Rev. Dr. Stephanie Harper. The huge turnout of alumni attests to the popularity of the event.
Beginning at 12:30 p.m., the DMHS Marching Band performed upbeat music as alumni shared stories of their favorite teachers and classes as well as their youthful escapades.
David Forman, an alum from the Class of ’74, said Dwight Morrow High School was great.
“I mostly remember the teachers and the friends,” said Forman. “The school itself is a stunning building with grounds like a park. What’s not to like?”
Barbara Ann Corbett, a 1947 Alum, added, “I was there during the war years, and although we came from many different backgrounds, everybody was close. The teachers were wonderful, the students were attentive and I don’t think we even had detention.”
Steve Mintz said, “I had a fantastic class. We all got along, we all went to parties on the weekend and we all watched the school’s sports teams’ games.”
When football star Bruce Harper, a DMHS graduate, was asked what he liked most about his alma mater, he exclaimed, “The people! The people! We were like a family. I actually get choked up at these reunions, because they bring back such great memories!”
Teachers also had great recollections.
Bob Sellner, who taught painting for 31 years, recalled, “Students called us by our first name, so I was known as ‘Bob.’ The art department had an excellent program that included all the disciplines, such as painting, enamel, art history, etcetera. So, the kids would load up on all the different classes!”
AEA, a nonprofit, was founded in 2005 and is staffed by volunteers. It provides funds to DMHS teachers and administrators to create and implement new academic activities that the school district cannot fund. Grants are awarded on a rolling basis in amounts up to $1,500, with occasional exceptions for special projects. Since 2009, they have awarded 56 grants totaling $70,853.
AEA raises its funds through entertainment events, direct-mail campaigns, website donations. They also conduct sales of alumni t-shirts and solicit cash donations at the annual barbecue and at class reunions.
The annual barbecue is one of the organizations most important fundraisers.
Rev. Dr. Harper, who has been hosting the event since it began 12 years ago said, “This is important so that the kids who go to Dwight Morrow High School can look at us and see that we are role models, and that they, too, can do all of the wonderful things that we do to ensure that they receive a high quality education.”
