Toms River Buildings Named After Nobel Winner, Superintendent

Toms River NJ

06 December, 2021

12:46 PM

Description

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Tom Rivers Board of Education unanimously voted last week to name a downtown building after former superintendent Albert J. Dietrich, and the High School North auditorium after alumnus and Nobel Prize winner Maria Ressa. 54 Washington Street, which houses the district's central registration office and an employee health center, will be named after Dietrich, the Asbury Park Press reports. Dietrich, who died in February, was superintendent of the Toms River Regional School District from 1979 until 1991. During his tenure, Dietrich developed the district's first alcohol and substance abuse program, and the Regional Alternative Learning Center for at-risk students. The High School North auditorium will be named after Maria Ressa, a journalist who graduated from the school in 1982. In October, Ressa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her investigative reporting for CNN in her native Philippines. In 2020, Ressa was convicted of "cyberlibel" for her reporting, and faces up to six years in prison. Related: Nobel Peace Prize Awarded To Journalist With NJ Ties "Without media, you cannot have a strong democracy," said Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which announced the honor. "Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda. The Norwegian Nobel Committee is convinced that freedom of expression and freedom of information help to ensure an informed public," the Nobel Committee said. Ressa moved to Toms River from the Philippines at age 10 in 1973. She attended Silver Bay Elementary School, and High School North. At High School North, Ressa served as class president for three years acted in plays, played in the orchestra, and played basketball and softball, according to a Patch profile. She cited former High School North music teacher Donald Spaudling as someone who helped shape her. She went on to study journalism at Princeton University. Click here for the full report in the Asbury Park Press.