Click Here To Download the 2025 Nomination Form

During the initial year of the award, nominations were sought from the high school faculty.  In subsequent years, nominations were sought from other school and community groups.  Requests were sent to all elementary schools in the town, to more than twenty-five community groups, and to local newspapers.  Information about this award is also mentioned at school reunions.  As a result, responses have come across the United States; the nominees span many career areas.  A simple nomination form is used, which asks that the nominator supply as much background information on the candidate as possible.

The general criteria used in selecting the honoree include the following:

1.    Honoree must have graduated from Rutherford High School at least ten years prior to nomination.

2.    Honoree’s achievement must reflect significant accomplishment in his or her career.  No restrictions are placed on types of careers.

3.    Honoree’s outstanding contributions must have achieved national, state, or local recognition.

The selection committee includes the following people:  high school principal (chair); supervisor of planning, research and testing; vice president of the student government; social studies supervisor; and National Honor Society advisor.  Committee chair receives and responds to nominations, asks for additional information when necessary, and distributes all materials to committee members before a meeting is scheduled to discuss the nominations.  After discussion, committee members vote on the nominations to select the honoree.

A permanent recognition plaque in the high school contains the names, career fields, and graduation dates of all honorees.  In addition, the honoree visits the high school to address a large group of students.  A lunch reception follows, and the honoree will meet with smaller groups, if appropriate. This visit by the inductee is an important part of the project, since students are able to hear directly from someone who shares part of their background and experience.

All nominations will be kept on file, but in order to be considered for the 2025 award, please return this form and all information to CGearity@rutherfordschools.org or Mrs. Carol Gearity, Rutherford High Schoo, 56 Elliott Place, Rutherford, NJ 07070. The deadline for nominations is May 2, 2025.

Click Here To Download the 2025 Nomination Form

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RUTHERFORD HIGH SCHOOL ANNOUNCES THE SELECTION OF

Ramy Youssef
Actor/Writer/Director
CLASS OF 2009

AS THE RECIPIENT OF THE 2023 DISTINGUISHED GRADUATE AWARD

Mr. Ramy Youssef graduated from Rutherford High School in 2009.

Mr. Youssef is an award-winning Egyptian American creator, actor, producer, director, and comedian. He created, produces, directs and stars in the hit Hulu show “Ramy,” inspired by his own experiences as a first-generation Egyptian-American Muslim growing up in Rutherford.

In 2020, Ramy Youssef won the Golden Globe for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy.” He has been nominated for numerous awards including two Emmy Awards for “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series” and “Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series.”  Additionally, the series was honored by the Peabody Awards for Excellence in Storytelling.  In March of 2024, Ramy hosted Saturday Night Live

Mr. Youssef was also nominated for a Critics’ Choice Award and a Writers Guild Award for his one-hour HBO comedy special “Ramy Youssef: Feelings.“

Ramy Youssef is also the co-creator and executive producer of Netflix’s new series “Mo,” which won the Gotham Award for Best Breakthrough Series Under 40 Minutes, and was recognized by AFI as one of their Top Television Programs of the year.

Youssef also starred alongside Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe and Mark Ruffalo film POOR THINGS  which will made its debut in 2023.

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The post 2021 Distinguished Graduate Award appeared first on Rutherford High School.

LAURA BATTISTA
US ARMY PRODUCT DIRECTOR
CLASS OF 1990

AS THE RECIPIENT OF THE 2019 DISTINGUISHED GRADUATE AWARD

Ms. Laura Battista graduated from Rutherford High School in 1990. She graduated from New Jersey Institute of Technology with a Bachelor and Master’s Degree.

Working for over twenty years as an engineer for the US Army at the Picatinny Arsenal, Ms. Battista currently manages weapon systems for the Army including .50 caliber machine guns and chain guns.  She is also directly responsible for developing, testing, training and fielding soldiers with new, safer systems and providing increased capabilities needed to maintain superiority and ensure success on the battlefield.

Ms. Battista holds an Army patent (patent number 7,244,500) on a Smart Coatings System which is a next generation of coatings able to sense, analyze, and react to their surrounding in real-time. She received the New Jersey Research and Development Council’s Thomas Alva Edison Patent Award for this patent.

Ms. Battista currently lives in Sparta, NJ with her husband, Vincent Harris.  She also has two children, Luke (age 19) and Lorelai (age 5).  Her mother, Nancy Battista, and two sisters, Silvia Torino and Adriana Coppola, live in Rutherford with their families.  Her brother, Jerry Battista, and family live in Bloomingdale, NJ.

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2017 Distinguished Graduate

Class of 1978

Mr. Patrick Fletcher graduated from Rutherford High School in 1978. He
graduated from Lafayette College with a BA in Government and Law in 1982,
Seton Hall with an MA in Educational Administration in 1988, and became a
CPA in 2000.

Mr. Fletcher was the Research Assistant to the Superintendent for the
Rutherford Board of Education, a Business Administrator/Board Secretary for
the Closter and Englewood Cliffs School Districts, and the Assistant
Superintendent and Superintendent in the Glen Rock School District. In 2006
he became the Superintendent of the River Dell Regional School District.

Mr. Fletcher has developed a comprehensive special education program that
allows disabled students to access the full range of academic, athletic, and
artistic programs offered by the district. He was also instrumental in
establishing the Bergen County Flight Team, which helps schools deal with
tragedy and grief all over the county and across the state.

As a strong supporter of education, Mr. Fletcher believes in life-long learning
as well as volunteering and community service.

2017 Distinguished Graduate

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During the initial year of the award, nominations were sought from the high school faculty.  In subsequent years, nominations were sought from other school and community groups.  Requests were sent to all elementary schools in the town, to more than twenty-five community groups, and to local newspapers.  Information about this award is also mentioned at school reunions.  As a result, responses have come across the United States; the nominees span many career areas.  A simple nomination form is used, which asks that the nominator supply as much background information on the candidate as possible.

 The general criteria used in selecting the honoree include the following:

 1.    Honoree must have graduated from Rutherford High School at least ten years prior to nomination.

 2.    Honoree’s achievement must reflect significant accomplishment in his or her career.  No restrictions are placed on types of careers.

 3.    Honoree’s outstanding contributions must have achieved national, state, or local recognition.

The selection committee includes the following people:  high school principal (chair), research assistant, vice president of the student government, social studies supervisor, National Honor Society advisor.  Committee chair receives and responds to nominations, asks for additional information when necessary, and distributes all materials to committee members before a meeting is scheduled to discuss the nominations.  After discussion, committee members vote on the nominations to select the honoree.

A permanent recognition plaque in the high school contains the names, career fields, and graduation dates of all honorees.  In addition, the honoree visits the high school to address a large group of students and to meet with smaller groups, if appropriate.  A reception follows, at which the honoree is presented with a suitable memento of the occasion (a sandstone bulldog, the school mascot, with a brass nameplate around its neck).  This visit by the inductee is an important part of the project, since students are able to hear directly from someone who shares part of their background and experience.

The post Distinguished Graduate appeared first on Rutherford High School.