Columbus East High School - Altis Yearbook (Columbus, IN)

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Under construction: no ordinary Monday! Another Monday morning, sleepily you walk up into the clut- tered Commons and sit in your clique of friends. Everyone talks loudly and obnoxiously about their weekend. This could be like any other Monday, but it is not that ordinary. Glancing upward you see a massive pile of boards and a huge metal monstrosity used for construction work. As your friends slip into an endless conversa- tion, you realize they are completely unaware of the men in the white uniforms. The construction workers sit quietly and chat, ignoring the fact that they are surrounded by hundreds of Olympi- ans. It was not the usual school year. Walking up to your old home- room on the third floor, you discover with amazement that the room has vanished, without a trace. Then you carefully walk down to the resource level and discover that many new rooms had been built during the summer. Things have definitely changed. Surely there must be something that hasn't changed, perhaps the gym. You venture back down- stairs and pass three safety ramps; wasn't that where the sopho- more commons used to be? Strange. You get your courage up and head towards the gym. You pass what used to be the huge empty space between the two commons. Mow a new structure stands spanning to the ceiling. This will be the new library; you are told. You continue your adventure towards the gym. After reaching the destination, you look in dismay only to see the gym floor is gone. Months passed and the construction continued. Maybe you started getting used to the construction workers and the clanging hammers, or maybe you didn't. Senior Julie Byrd said. The noise was distracting, and sometimes the workmen and their equipment were in the way.’’ If you agreed with her then it is no surprise. Many times during a large group session you would hear the sounds of drills and of hammers. Wonder where the P.E. classes had gym, since no one was allowed in the gym? They had to sacrifice a little sweat for a little restful viewing. They watched television down in the Commons. What about the athletic teams; where would they practice with- out a gym? The volleyball team had a tough time of practicing. Mot having a gym floor was certainly a drawback at first. We always had to find another place to practice, captain of the team, Beth Sylvester said. We probably weren’t in as good as condition as last year, but not having the gym pulled us together as a team. They managed okay. After all they went to Semi-State. The cross-country team also went to Semi-State. They had a successful season by finishing with the acclaimed title of best team ever. According to runner, Mike Settle they could have gone all the way to State. We were very inexperienced but we did have a really good chance for State, but Wisch (John Wischmeier) was sick that day. You realize that the year's great sporting achievement was the swim team's State championship. You remember the thrill of hear- ing that four women represented East and came home with the title. Those four were Dale Etnyre, Tiff Forbes. Pam Hayden, and Chelle Richardson. They were the underdogs, but they won the championship. Etnyre summed up her feelings, We knew that we would qualify, but we weren't sure about winning. Forbes noted that they weren't favored, We only had four people, and Anderson had ten. It really felt good to beat everyone. You also remember the hysteria of the school knowing that we were the best in the state. What a way to put East on the map to show it’s what's inside that counts. by Carla Bowen Junior Yun Hui Percifield models a stylish leopard outfit for Punk Rock Day. Homecoming Week changed the fashions of students with a different spirit theme each day. Seniors Dawn Harris and Jill Carter took advantage of the excuse to wear hats on Hat Day. Junior Kim Dobson humored friends by sucking on a pacifier while hugging her bunny friend. Her costume was worn for Character Day of Homecom- ing Week.

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While construction continued inside and outside of the school, studies con- tinued as usual. With drilling noises as background music. Junior Beth Dar- ragh reads while munching on crackers for lunch. Walking towards the library construction, Juniors Lisa Katchka and Laurie Flaherty pass construction workers. During the semester workers, equipment and scaffolds were expect- ed parts of the environment.

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Student success: proving is believing “Fantastic! was the word that Counselor Harry Miles used to describe a new program this year fittingly named. Student Suc- cess. The program was an original and East was one of the first schools to try this new approach to student relations. Last spring Principal Philip Houston and Superintendent Law- rence Heyerdahl contacted Miles and Mrs. Diane Holdeman and asked if they would be interested in starting up this new program. Both agreed readily, and the training began. A group of 20 people met and trained together for six months. The members consisted of five teachers, five students, five staff members, and five community members. Sessions consisted of members and any other interested persons. After finishing training Mrs. Holdeman and Miles set out to bring this unique program to the students at East. The results were predictably good. Mrs. Holdeman explained why the program was so successful. Others had wanted a change a long time ago, but they weren’t organized. They were afraid to set up anything because they thought it wouldn't do any good, she said. Another vital fact to add to Student success' aptitude was that it was begun last spring. We started working last spring, while others waited until the school year had already begun, Mrs. Holde- man added. We just kept building up while others were losing their momentum. The general atmosphere of Student success was to have every- one feel like they belonged, Miles explained, It really gave the students a chance to have a meaningful realm besides sports and academics. There has been a change in the atmosphere at East, Mrs. Holdeman said. The kids feel more united. Since the juniors and the seniors are working with the sophomores they feel more like a team. Mike Nelson, senior, agreed, I think this program is really bene- ficial because the sophomores get to be friends with the upper classmen, and this helps them feel more at ease. Sophomores agreed it was a beneficial program. It (student success) made a lot of things clear to me that wouldn’t have normally been clear. Instead of just bringing us in and saying Good Luck,' we had someone there to help us, Amy Brougher said. Another sophomore, Mike Buchanan agreed, “You were able to find things about the school and the way it’s run from the people who have already been through it. Activities that student success have done includes everything from postermaking to sophomore orientation. Cluster meetings were scheduled approximately once a week. In these meetings the student counselors discussed with the parents what was going on at East. The cluster meetings were also set up to help the sophomores decide what classes to take. One sophomore, Sam Hau, said, The cluster meetings helped the students understand the various fields and partially plan their schedules for upcoming years. Teachers from the various departments came and told the students about what they had to offer; thus, hopefully making it easier for the sophomores to decide their schedule. Senior student counselor. Jane Kutch, commented. It has helped the sophomores become more prepared for the following year. It also helped them become familiar with the classes they need to take if they are considering college. Planning, one of the main objectives of student success, includ ed everything as a group activity. Mrs. Holdeman explained, Our process of planning takes a lot more time because we think every- one snould have a part in the planning of the school if it is going to affect them. The decision is better if we do it this way, instead of having one person just decide what is to be done. One decision that was made was to have a peer tutoring pro- gram next year. Miles expressed enthusiasm towards this idea, We think that students relate better to students; it's just easier to talk to someone your own age. The program is still on the drawing board, but it should be in practice next fall. by Carla Bowen It’s what's inside that counts Senior Karla Van Zant answers ques- tions before sophomores begin giving ESA speeches. Sophomore Jeff Ei- chen’s homeroom helped him cam- paign with signs at the convo. Sopho- mores met in the auditorium as a class for elections and in smaller groups for curriculum cluster meetings.