North Kansas City High School - Purgold Yearbook (North Kansas City, MO)

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Bachelorhood made easy INDEPENDENT LIVING - CREDIT: V2 unitj GRADE: 12, PREREQUISITE: No Home Economics in grades 9-11. Course teaches basic cooking skills, minor sewing skills, and skills important to those living alone. Study topics include apartment selection, food preparation, clothing care, social behavior, time management, and money management. This is the course description of the Independent Living class as taught by Mrs. Lynne Beasley. The class is basically an all-male class. The guys learned to sew everything from a rip or a button, to a pair of shorts and backpacks. They also learned how to fend for themselves in the cruel world. Above right: To Rob McConnell, senior, learning how to wash dishes is just part of the class curriculum. In this picture, he doesn't even seem . to be bothered that he might develop dishpan hands. Center: Mrs. Lynne Beasley, Independent Living instructor, seems eager to taste one of the meals prepared by the guys, but Mark Stielow has other ideas for it. Below left: Duke Maddox, another senior guy X I preparing for bachelorhood, expresses the ioys of XS X eating a meal fit for a king that he made himself. g , fr' -fa MMM f t1LJ9.'q91' M ' I A l I 26

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W f' I s Crea tures in va de NK C I enjoy being unique, explained Mr. Gene McClain, art teacher and designer of the various characters that plague many of Northtown's all-school assemblies. The creations included an armadillo, a- turkey, and E.T., the extra-terrestrial being that won the hearts of many Americans. He enjoys dressing up and also having the ability to create his own outfits to suit the occasion. lt all began when he started making costumes at Halloween time for his children. Then people at school began asking him to appear in various assemblies. It is almost a tradition at Northtown for Mr. McClain to appear at certain assemblies during the year like Thanksgiving and the fall and winter sports assembly. Most of the creatures are made of paper mache and cardboard. lt takes Mr. McClain anywhere from one to four hours to complete a costume. He gets most of his ideas from current trends, and movies dealing with science fiction and the future. He also likes to do something nobody else would think of. He has also done some rock and pop stars. Top left: Mr. McClain shows his true identity as one of Northtown's art teachers. Center: the lion is one of the many characters that is portrayed by Mr. Gene McClain. Bottom left: Mr. McClain shows off one of his most creative and popular creature - E.T. Bottom right: Frankenstein was one of many masks made by Mr. McClain for a Halloween costume. Q iff .fl ff as

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l 1 1 i l i Y :ima A!!Q H- ' ,t - 1.5-:www l l WV ' W With the coming of inflation, budget cuts had to be made. Every department was affected, including the Driver's Education department. The major problem with the budget cuts to the department was the cars that were used to teach students proper driving techniques had to be stricken from the curriculum. When asked about the effect this would have on the classes, Mr. Leland O'Dell, driving instructor, replied that more time would be devoted to classroom projects and more time would be spent driving the simulators. Other activities, such as outside speakers and training films, would also be used to fill class time. 4 When asked what some of the students thought of the cars being eliminated from the class, senior Kim Hutsell replied, Without actual driving, it's not as good. Above left: Blake Scott, junior, finds that driving in the simulators in Driver's Education class is a very stimulating learning experience and listens intently for the next directions. left: The Driver's Ed. students wonder if driving a real car is as much fun as dodging the pedestrians in the training film, as Mr. Leland O'Dell reassures them that their time is coming soon. Above right: Classroom work is part of the curriculum for these young drivers. This experience includes making a complete report on buying a used car on a fixed income, and financing it for a year. A different approach to driving 27