Clifford J Scott High School - Tartan Yearbook (East Orange, NJ)

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THE SENIOR CLASS

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FREEDOM OF SPEECH

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• • • j L A S $ Freshman Year President Jack Maher Vice-President Jann Goehner Secretary Ruth Jorss Treasurer Albert Reynolds Excited, but a little dubious of our wel- come, we walked up tbe broad pavement to Scott for the first time early in September, 1940. The stares of upperclassmen did noth- ing to lessen the nervousness we already felt about everything from our carefully sharp- ened pencils to our new clothes. Our first days at Scott were indeed as strange as we had expected them to be. Lockers puzzled us for several weeks, until we discovered that a gentle tap, applied with the toe at a strategic moment, worked won- ders. The size of the building was another cause of embarrassment. To walk into a class, settle yourself, and then suddenly dis- cover you belonged two doors down, was the height of awkwardness. Yes, we were typi- cal freshmen! But after a few weeks we fell into the pattern and felt we belonged. During the fall we trooped to the football games and cheered lustily for that famous undefeated team and sang loudly, if some- what off-key, all the school songs. More than a little self-conscious at the dances, we performed our repertoire of stum- bling steps, despaired at our clumsiness, and ended by enjoying ourselves immensely. Afterwards, with our parents ' words, ' Be in at eleven, ringing in our ears, we sipped a coke in the modern manner and went home to dream of the senior we had danced with. School performances, such as the Christmas Concert and Bachelor Born , performed late in the Spring, we attended faithfully, and either sang ourselves hoarse or clapped till our hands ached. But these occasions were just the frosting on the cake. For the first time we learned the real meaning of those two words — home work. But when final exams loomed, most of us, because of hard study during the year, managed to take them in stride. With many memories and experiences be- hind us, we set out for summer vacation, half- glad, half-sorry that our freshman year was over. Sophomore Year President Leigh Robertson Vice-President Marian Weber Secretary Owen Kwasha Treasurer Marilyn Derrick September, 1941, and another first day of school was upon us. As sophomores we were in a position to patronize the freshmen and take things with the calm sophistication that marked us as veterans. It took us only a few days to settle down in our designated grooves. But something soon happened that jolted us out of our eozy routine. That something was Pearl Har- bor. At first we were numbed and more than a little unbelieving. But when red, white, and blue became the universal motif and our schooldays were filled more and more with war talk and war work, the realization be- came almost a part of us. We are proud of the contribution we, as sophomores, made to the war effort. We subscribed to the Red Cross one hundred per cent, bought large numbers of war stamps and bonds, and worked in many defense or- ganizations. Most important of all, as Scott students and alumni left for the armed forces, we tried to take over the tasks they had to leave behind. Yet in many ways life did not seem greatly changed. School activities went along their accustomed path; the Christmas and Spring Concert s were given; Foul is Fair and Through the Night were presented by the dramatic department; the usual class dances were well attended. But though we enjoyed ourselves, some- times to the neglect of our studies, a subtle change had come over us. We were less childish, more adult in all our decisions and disagreements. The war, which seemed then so far away, was nevertheless shaping our lives. Witli an older and more experienced eye we awaited the beginning of our junior year. Page Fourteen