St Ladislaus High School - Torch Yearbook (Hamtramck, MI)

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RECORDED EXTENSIONS on Elaine Vertel's completed work sheet created a problem. The bookkeeping quartet, Patricia Kijek, Dennis Sieczkowski, Myron Rutkowski and Gerald Blaszak, examining the paper expressed conflicting opinions on Elaine's method of handling the extensions. SPEED, THE KEY TO SUCCESS in typing, is gained by building fast finger action. Ambitious beginning students worked con sistently on pace drills to increase their speed. Jacqueline Les- czhik, Steve Browarski, Edward Malczewski ond Geraldine les- czhik typed these exercises hundreds of times to become proficient at the keyboartd. It was tedious and gruelling work but well worth the effort when speed rates ran into 40 ond 50 words a minute. 25

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We Gained Skills, Business Training The tap, tap of the typewriter keys, the click of the adding ma- chine, the rhythm of Gregg records fascinated us from our freshman year. This land of mystery and romance was forbidden territory, how- ever, until our junior year. How well we remember the first day in typing class. We never realized we were all fingers until then. What was worse, we couldn't make them strike the right keys. Yet, our typewriters always made the mistakes not we. Eventually we mastered the typewriter and sped away at 60 words a minute. Then there was that undecodable sign language of curves, loops, hooks and lines. Before long, these shorthand symbols told their own business story. In our second year, not only could we read and write shorthand, but we could take it at 120 words a minute. Some of us did even better than that in Transcription. This was excellent training for our transcribed notes had to be perfect. We knew the business world could not use inaccurate stenographers. Bookkeeping appealed to those of us who like numbers. Neatness and accuracy were essential in this class. We soon knew the debits from the credits, the journal from the ledger. We were ready for a job. TRANSCRIPTION demanded seriousness for the attainment of its twofold purpose: speedwriting and production of mailable transcripts which Nancy Ferenc, Shirley Margiewicz and Patricia Peck exemplified. TESTING, MORE TESTING followed by drills to correct weaknesses, helped Seniors Carol Cameron, Hermaine Potter, build enviable speed in Typing II. 24 THE HALLMARK OF SHORTHAND I was intensive preparation by the juniors for each class. Lorraine Wozniak read from her notes as Carolyn Luka- sik, Cynthia Iwanski and Carol Dekowski checked her.

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••• We Elected Can't we have any fun in school? Yes, and we did in some of the elective courses. In art we painted, sprayed, cut, glued, stencilled, built and carved. We were good in some and hopeless in others. We enjoyed art because we were creating something like the soap figures, the mobiles, the modern houses. Clothing gave us even more satisfaction for we could wear what we made. We sewed aprons, skirts, blouses, pajamas, house coats and dresses. Some of us didn't know how to thread a needle when we began but today we can make our own wardrobes. We sang to our hearts content in Glee Club. We selected from the classics, oper- ettas, popular music—the things we enjoyed. SKETCHING MODEL Sandra Stopa in bold mov- ing lines took considerable skill. Judith Borucki watches Donald Burzynski's progress as Theresa Los and David Angel study the model. STITCHING, PRESSING, verifying patterns comprised part of the Clothing I class work. Having a pattern was one thing but making it work out so that the finished product was an attractively sewed garment demanded skill. Lucille Pelc reached the stitching stage. Sandra Boguslawski who had not begun, watched Mary Mlodzianow press her fabric. Whether the pattern was the correct size troubled Patricia Szuba who had Carol Wadino check it. 26