DePaul Catholic High School is a Catholic high school in Wayne, Passaic County, New Jersey, that operates under the auspices of the Diocese of Paterson. It was founded in 1956 by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth.
The school is accredited by AdvancED and in the 2023–24 school year had an enrollment of 475 students.
Contents
History
DePaul Catholic was established in 1956 by the Diocese of Paterson and the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth of Convent Station, New Jersey. While construction ensued on Alps Road in Wayne, New Jersey, the second floor of Holy Spirit Elementary School in Pequannock Township served as the campus of DePaul. Msgr John P. McHugh supervised the completion of the school. A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place in Wayne in late fall 1957 as DePaul Catholic welcomed its first 200 students.
Academics
The program of studies offered at DePaul Catholic High School seeks to equip college-bound students with a foundation for the pursuit of academic excellence while emphasizing a curriculum tailored to individual differences. Students learn to apply their knowledge and training toward the ongoing development of the Whole Person.
DePaul Catholic is a college preparatory high school offering advanced placement, honors, college prep, and foundations levels of study. In the Class of 2015, 98% of graduates are attending colleges and universities. Graduates in the Class of 2015 were awarded over $10.5 million in academic merit-based scholarships, and 99% of the graduates have gone on to colleges, universities, and technical schools.
All students and faculty use Tablet PC laptop computers/notebooks connected using a wireless Internet system.
Athletics
The DePaul Spartans competes in the Big North Conference, which consists 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. Before the NJSIAA's 2010 realignment, the school had competed in the Northern Hills Conference an athletic conference consisting of public and private high schools located in Essex, Morris and Passaic counties. With 381 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Non-Public A for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 381 to 1,454 students in that grade range (and the equivalent of Group I for public schools). The football team competes in the United White 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. The school was classified by the NJSIAA as Non-Public Group B (equivalent to Group I/II for public schools) for football for 2024–2026, which included schools with 140 to 686 students.
There are over 20 varsity sports for boys and girls in the school. The athletic director is John McKenna . The mascot is the Spartan and the colors are green and white. The sports teams that are available include: Boys - baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, swimming, track and field, winter track, volleyball, wrestling; Girls - basketball, bowling, cheerleading (football), cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, skiing, swimming, track and field, volleyball, dance team, wrestling, flag football, and winter track. 23 varsity teams for boys and girls and 30 extracurricular activities are offered.
The school participates as the host school/lead agency for a joint cooperative skiing team with Morris Catholic High School. The co-op program operates under agreements scheduled to expire at the end of the 2023–24 school year.
The football team was awarded the sectional championship by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association in 1962 and 1972 (as co-champion). Since the playoff system was introduced in 1974, the team has won the Non-Public A North sectional title in 1975, the Non-Public B North state sectional championship in 1992, won the Non-Public II state title in 2013-2015, and won the Non-Public III title in 2017 and 2019. The 1975 team finished the season with a 9-2 record by winning the Parochial A North sectional title after a 7-7 tie in regulation with Bergen Catholic High School was settled in overtime under a system in which each team ran four plays and the winner was the team that gained the most yardage; DePaul was declared the winner based on a margin of 16 yards gained. The 1992 team won the Parochial B North title with a 28-21 win against six-time defending champion Pope John XXIII Regional High School, which came into the playoff finals unbeaten in its previous 24 games. The 2013 team finished the season with a record of 10-2 after winning the Non-Public Group II state title with a 35-16 victory against a Holy Spirit High School team that came undefeated into the championship game played at Rutgers University. In 2017, facing a third-seeded Saint Joseph Regional High School team that had won the previous 13 games between the two teams, top-seeded DePaul won the Non-Public Group III state sectional championship by a score of 7–3 in the tournament title game played at Kean University's Alumni Stadium. The team won the Non-Public Group III in 2019, the program's fifth title in a seven-year span, with a 27–25 win in the finals against Mater Dei High School. The 2024 team ended their season 11–1 after beating Pope John in the Parochial B title game by a score of 33–21.
Stand Tall
85% of students and staff are members of "Stand Tall", DePaul's voluntary drug prevention program, which offers voluntary and school-sponsored, drug testing for students and staff.
Notable alumni
Michael Dwumfour (born 1998), American football defensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns
C. J. Hanson (born 2001), American football guard for the Kansas City Chiefs
Ronnie Hickman (born 2001), American football safety for the Cleveland Browns
Vyto Kab (born 1959, class of 1978), American football tight end who played in the NFL for the Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit Lions and New York Giants
Eric Klenofsky (born 1994), soccer player who has played for Richmond Kickers of the United Soccer League on loan from D.C. United of Major League Soccer
Charley Lang (born 1955), actor, director, psychotherapist and professor of psychology
Gene Mills (born 1958), freestyle wrestler and wrestling coach
Alyssa Oviedo (born 2000), footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Dominican Republic national team
Jazlyn Oviedo (born 2002), footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Dominican Republic women's national team
Tara Palmeri (born 1987, class of 2005), journalist
Ta'Quan Roberson (born 2000, class of 2019), college football quarterback for the Buffalo Bulls
Andre Sayegh (born 1974, class of 1992), politician who has served since 2018 as the Mayor of Paterson
Tommy Vigorito (1959–2025, class of 1977), American football running back and punt returner who played in the NFL for the Miami Dolphins