Munster High School - Paragon Yearbook (Munster, IN)

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FAR LEFT: Hiding behind the closed door anonymous students quickly light up and catch a smoke between classes. LEFT: Excessive vandalism and smoking caused the girl ' s washroom in the cafe- teria to be closed and pad-locked by Mr. James Bawden, assistant principal, dur- ing the lunch mods. BELOW: Investigat- ing his school records, senior Chris Mor- fas discusses the information with Mr. Bob Speelman, guidance counselor. located in the cafeteria during the lunch mods. Due to excessive van- dalism and smoking, the washroom ' s main door was pad-locked. Any stu- dent found vandalizing was either suspended or expelled depending on the extent of the damage. Evacuating the building for fire alarms posed a problem. Students and teachers filed out into the ice cold air and waited until school per- sonnel were able to locate where the alarm went off. After several episodes of fake alarms, the administration as- signed faculty to positions in the hall- ways near fire alarm boxes. Tamper- ing with fire alarms is a federal offense. Thus, anyone involved with the pulling of fire alarms could auto- matically be expelled. Although some rights were gov- erned by suspensions, students were allowed of her free choices. Ri ghts in- cluded school officials not dictating the length of students ' hair or the growth of mustaches and beards. Stu- dents may publish newspapers with no restraints beyond normal journalis- tic standards with the consent of the superintendent. A federal law known as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 allowed students and parents to view records kept by the school. All in all, while students have not been afforded all the legal privileges of adults, positive action has been taken to insure the protection of stu- dent ' s rights. Student Rights 29

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SKUIDIWTI Another Monday morning . . . it ' s just like any other school day, regular dull schedule, boring teachers, and the usual faces pushing and shoving through the halls. My parents really have been down on me about grades and school in general; it ' s a wonder I just don ' t leave school and never come back. Hey! That sounds great . . Oh yea. I ' m not 16. Well, the building itself hasn ' t changed any over the weekend. Looks like the vandals were up to their usual kicks. The janitors just re- ABOVE: Taking advantage of the right to free dress and growing a beard are se- niors Norm Levenberg and Joe Wollack. placed that door last Thursday and it ' s already smashed. I wonder if the washrooms are back in working con- dition . . gosh it ' s cold in here. I ' m glad I only have to comb my hair, if I took any longer I ' d choke on the smoke. Just for us non-smoker ' s sake, I wish there was a lounge for smokers. I never really heard the reason for not setting one up . . just some rumor that they are against state law. I bet a smoking lounge would lax the num- ber of suspensions save the non- smoker ' s health, plus I would not smell like a truck stop diner when I go to class. Today during sixth hour I think I ' ll investigate my school records, I ' ve been hearing about the new law that has been passed. Besides, I ' d like to see what some of those long forgot- ten teachers had to think of me. I wonder if I ' ll have any chance left for a happy future. Can I see your pass please. I don ' t have one. I ' m just on my way to guidance. I ' m going to check out my records. Who let you out of class anyway? Sorry, I will have to report you. Name? John Doe. Did you know your name was on the announcements, you were to go to the office this morning. The assis- tant principal wanted to see you. I suggest you be on your way there. Good afternoon, sir. You wanted to see me? Yes, come in and sit down. You weren ' t in school on Wednesday or Thursday sixth hour, and you did not have an early release either day. John, you are considered truant for those two days . . you now have a three day suspension. . . Gee, Monday certainly did turn out to be a rotten day. Most students could identify with the preceeding story at some time. Students were subject to rules and regulations which limited their privi- leges. According to the Supreme Court decision in 1969, Tinker versus Des Moines, STUDENTS HAVE RIGHTS. Therefore, the School Town of Munster established the Student Due Process Code — Public Law 162 (1972) as amended in 1973. This code outlined student rights and the pun- ishments incurred for breaking rules. Suspensions played an important role as a means of punishment. Stu- dents who were caught ditching or excessively tardy, smoking or drinking at any school-related activity, plagia- rising or cheating, and parking any ve- hicle on school property without school permission were subject to a three to five day suspension. Vandalism rose to alarming levels. Broken windows, doors and plumb- ing resulted in $7700 of damage from August 1974 to January 1975. Girls were denied the use of a washroom 28

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Capturing a kingdom, executing a strike were ways students spent leisure time To help students develop the social aspects of fair play, cooperation, and competition, the Bowling Club continued this year. Along with their sponsor, Mr. Jeffrey Craves, the members gathered every Mo nday at Munster Lanes Bowling Alley to compete, in their own four member teams, in three games. The individual bowlers contended for the weekly prize of a hamburger, fries, and a soft drink. This prize, which was awarded by the bowling alley ' s cafeteria, was presented to the bowler with the most pins knocked down over his average. At the close of the year an awards banquet was held where trophies were given to the best season bowlers. To raise money to pay for the banquet and the trophies, 15 cents was withdrawn from the two dollars each member paid to bowl, and put into the treasury. United in the interest of promoting the game of chess, 15 people made up the Chess Club. The members met every Wednesday af- ter school in room 122 to challenge their wits playing chess, and to increase their skill and strategy. With the help of their sponsors, Mr. Bryan Young and Mr. Craves, the club formulated a point system. This point system gave mem- bers a chance to improve their scores and club standings. The Chess Club participated in the Valparaiso and the Northwest Indiana Chess Conference Tournaments. Paying a 25 cent entry fee at the beginning of the year, the new candidates had to meet the approval of the previous years ' members before they were allowed to join. This money and the money they got from a paper drive went towards purchasing new chess equipment. Through these two pastime activities, stu- dents spent time after school perfecting skills along with having fun with their friends. By competing weekly, the chess club standings changed while the bowling averages fluctuated. ( Capturing kingdoms, r[ght up your alley) 30