Del Campo High School - Decamhian Yearbook (Fair Oaks, CA)

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1976 will be a big year, Not only is the bicentennial at hand, but this is also the year for the 1976 Olympics games. Joe Cavallero, one of DC's wrestling coaches, and a teacher of social studies, plans to go to the summer Olympics in Montreal to get a first hand glimpse of the worlds best amateur wrestlers. Before coming to Del Campo six years ago, Mr. Cavallero had an unusual job. He was a guard at the Juvenile Center in Sacramento for eight years. lmagine a snow covered chalet in the crisp, clear mountains of Switzerland. Barbara Potter, an ex-French teacher, would have liked to have lived in that chalet in the French quarter of Switzerland, if she had a million dollars. What she really wanted to do was become a high school librarian because she did not like to judge students work, but did like the students and the high school atmosphere. Mrs. Potter believed the best word to describe the past year at Del Campo was: nostalgia. The students are back in the 1950's. They aren't interested in a cause. Now they are much more conformists, afraid of being criticized by their peers, she went on to say. A fifteen year veteran of the San Juan District, Kathryn Mac Hale spent her first year at DC as a counselor to all grade levels. She found the students socially mature, and was impressed by the level of responsibility they assumed. Mrs. Mac Hale believed that not all people are able to fully develop within today's social structure. She hopes one day to help people to help themselves. One way to achieve this goal would be to set up outdoor survival programs, where the student would be forced to rely solely upon himself for all his needs, thus building self confidence and self esteem. Although she has only been at Del Campo for two years, Connie Holloway was here long enough to notice the drastic change in school spirit. Last year there was very little Homecoming involvement. This year the effort was remarkable. She credited most of this enthusiasm to the earliness of the Leadership council. lt usually is held so late in the year that the kids don't get anything started until January. When offered the chance to change anything involved in her work, Mrs. Holloway would do away with all the paperwork. One goal she had was to travel extensively, anywhere and everywhere! Because he has an ear for good music, Paul Merriam smiles at the delicate sounds made by the Del Campo orchestra lil. Stepping up with the new sounds of the jazz band at the Christmas concert, is Larry Gilliland l2l. Toli Kozielski, Kathryn McHaIe and Connie Holloway are enthralled by the excitement at Sports-a-Rama l3l. During this year's Sports-a-Rama, Joe Cavallero takes a breather with a young spectator l4l. Barbara Potter and her husband Gene smile radiantly at the 1975 Sports-a-Rama l5l.

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The musicianship of the students is much higher this year, proclaimed Paul Merriam and the kid's attitudes are great! He contributed this positive atmosphere to the fact that students involved in the music department were there because they wanted to be, not because of requirements. Mr. Merriam was the Jazz Choir, Concert Choir, and guitar instructor. Along with teaching music, he also performed in a Jazz Band as a trumpeter, and wrote music, some of which the DC Jazz Choir used. Some other relaxing activities included bicycling, playing tennis. and girl-watching. In the past few years Mr. Merriam became interested in health and nutrition. He disclosed. l'm becoming a health nutl Some other goals he had were, To better myself as a teacher, l've got a lot to learn. and. to live a long, full. and happy life, and I'm starting tomorrow! When offered a million dollars, he decided to travel. Go new places, meet new people, and have new experiences. lf he could do anything at all in the classroom, would any of his teaching methods change? Yes! retorted Larry Gilliland, DC band instructor. If at all possible I'd have more time to work with students in small groups, and individually. Another improvement would be buying more instruments, those oddbaIIs lFrench horns, oboes, and bassoonsl that round out a band. While his wife worked on her Masters degree, Mr. Gilliland did most of the cooking. I make the best Irish spaghetti around! he boasted. During his vacations, he liked getting out, and getting away from people. His camper, and Yamaha motorcycle enabled him to enjoy the deserted ghost towns and isolated mines of the high Sierras, the plains of Arizona, and northern Nevada. If he had a million dollars, Mr. Gilliland would put most of it in several banks, and very cautiously decide what to do with the rest. It would not change my lifestyle at all . . . not immediateIy. The spirit at Del Campo is good. More people are involved with the school. The students are proud of their classes, which is important. Sport-a-Rama was very impressive. The spirit is brought out more when the students can get together, and can work together. These were the opinions of Toli Kozielski, R.O.P. co-ordinator assigned to DC. In just three years, Mr. Kozielski worked with hundreds of students in the R.O.P. program, and watched attitude changes evolve among the students concerning higher education and career plans. He elaborated, Before the students thought only of going on to college after high school. Now they are branching out and looking for the many opportunities available to them. As for future plans, Mr. Kozielski would like to be the Vocation Director for the San Juan Unified School Distric. He claimed he was a realist, which would explain his unique reply when asked what he'd do if he had a million dollars. I have never thought about it because I know I will never have a million doIlars. 232

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A man of varied abilities, photography teacher, Barry Steel, enjoyed snow skiing, sailing, and good food in his time off. An relaxes between classes l3l Val Himes gets down to from the photographer s camera l6l He performed in plays like The Crucible during his college years. He'd like to get involved in films, either as a director, or a writer. Another goal he had was to receive recognition for his photographic art work, Mr. Steel also coached the J.V. soccer team, and organized the DC ski club. The teacher of the opportunity class, Don Blankenship would like to see other teachers participate in this program. He described it as a school within a school. Mr. Blankenship taught students Math, English, and P.E., on a four period schedule. ln his spare time he enjoyed fishing, golfing, and ping-pong. He and his partner, Eli McCullough, made up the champion doubles team of the DC coaches ping-pong rivalry. The only chemistry teacher at DC for five years, Roger Riley led the DC chemistry team to victory in the American Fliver Chemistry contest for high schools, five out of five times. He believed that a teacher must have a good relationship with his students , and good communication . He defined the DC students as very eager towards chemistry . lf he had the time to return to school, Mr. Riley would like to get his Masters degree in Bio-Chemistry and teach at a junior college. This idea is far off, he said, because he really found a lot of gratification in his teaching here at DC. Mr. Riley expressed some concern over the faculty lounges, arguing that l hardly know some of the teachers because of the separate lounges. He added that bringing the teachers together in one lounge would be just one more way of unifying the school. Warner Seargeant served as the Freshmen-Sophomore Vice Principle. He felt that the spirit of the DC students was excellent as compared to previous years. Homecoming was a huge success this year because of all the student effort. The spirit at Del Campo is great, especially in Student Government. The students have a willingness to risk involvement, and their commitment to their fellow students. An English teacher, Wayne Geri doubled as the swim coach for DC, and the Glen Oaks Swim and Tennis Club. He dreams of developing an Olympic swimmer, and sending him to the games. A disciple of golf and bridge, Mr. Geri split up his time between these two activities. With a Masters Degree in both English and Philosophy, he wanted to get a Ph. in Philosophy. Mr, Geri commented on DC's spirit, saying that, This year the spirit of the students is amazing. It exceeds my wildest expectations. 4