Elkhart Memorial High School - Monolith Yearbook (Elkhart, IN)

Page 21 text:

? fad of embroidery floss bracelets initely did not pass Memorial by. Beverly lips makes multi-colored bracelets at locker to sell. A Pac-Man eating “Blazers” was one of the options of the new computerized sign in the cafeteria. Students and organizations donated money for its purchase. hat makes EMHS special The caring nature of the teachers towards the students stands out in my mind. That makes this a special place. Another thing is the number of activities offered and made available to the students to help them learn leadership skills and accept respon- sibilities. | also think that the students take an awful lot of pride in the school. These things are what Memorial is all about.—Mr. Ben Karasiak, assistant principal We've got great spirit and a great (spirited) atmosphere. The spirit week was great. We had dif- ferent activities everyday throughout the week, and for the Central Memorial game we were so fired up.—Crystal Clark | think Memorial is very special in the way the activities are treated and that there is a ‘‘central clear- ing house’’ (the activities office) through which all things pass. This way conflicts are avoided, dates can be cleared by one person, and things can be promoted better.—Mr. Michael Wade, choir director | like the fact that the people here aren't real superficial; they are basically themselves. And there aren't very many stuck-up people either. Usually, if you're nice to so- meone here, you're treated nice in return.—Kim Oprea

Page 20 text:

‘Special’ aspects make Memorial stand out From the outside Memorial might have seemed to be a very conser- vative school. Memorial had no pep rallies, no crowning of kings and queens at any school dances, and, forthe past 15 years, had no Homecoming. The school al so had slightly stricter dress codes than other-area schools, which outlawed such: things as sweat pants, sun glasses, shorts, and half-shirts. But from the inside, people might have felt otherwise. Principal Miss Carolyn Cook described the mood of the school as ‘‘conservative strengths mixed into a contemporary atmosphere.”’ The open lunch privilege is a very contemporary aspect of the school. The privilege was almost lost two years ago when freshmen were add- ed to the building, but the SSAC Superintendent's Student Advisory ouncil) worked toward and suc- ceeded in keeping the lunches open. Elkhart was a forerunner in the SSAC program, which enables stu- dent representatives from Memorial and Central to meet with Superinten- dent Dr. Frederick Bechtold once a month to advise him on the opinions of students. Memorial students had the advan- tage of easy access to the Elkhart Area Career Center. Over 260 Memorial students attended the Career this year. Students also utilized Cooper’s Outdoor science lab, a forest area behind the school donated by Mr. George Cooper in 1978. The lab was used by the science department to study natural life as well as by the physical education department to ex- ecute the ‘Project Adventure Pro- grams’ where students were to figure out how to get their group over “the wall,’ among other group activities. WOSS (Work Orientation for Selected Students) was yet another asset in Memorial's academic pic- ture. Through the program, students with learning handicaps or students who were having trouble competing academically in the high school at- mosphere had the opportunity to gain work experience in school. Memorial was the only school in the Elkhart area with such a program. In addition, Memorial was assign- (continued on page 18) The young as well as the old were able to enjoy Memorial’s mascot at games. Memorial was one of the few area high schools that had a live mascot. Many students took advantage of the open lunch policy by eating out for lunch. Fast food and pizza from Nappanee Street were among the most popular foods to munch.

Page 22 text:

‘Special’ aspects make Memorial stand out (continued from page 16) ed a new program for students in wheelchairs that enabled them to be mainstreamed into the high school while still receiving the extra atten- tion needed. Because this program was new, restrooms, a drinking fountain, and a few lockers located near their classroom had to be adapted during the summer for wheelchair accessibility. The academic curriculum also had plenty to offer to the “‘accelerated”’ student in the form of AP (Advanced Placement) classes, enriched level Classes, independent study pro- grams, and classes for college credit. Only 41 schools in Indiana of- fered college credit. Despite the strong academic pro- grams, life at Memorial was not necessarily all work and no play. Memorial offered over 360 student activities, according to Miss Alice McKeehan, activities director. Being only 15 years old and the newest school building locally, ac- cording to Miss Cook, brought with it advantages. ‘When people walk in, they are impressed by the building,”’ said Miss Cook. ‘‘When the school was built, it was (built to be) one of the most colorful buildings around.” Computers play an important role in the building from the computeriz- ed announcement sign in the cafeteria to the computer oriented assignments that every math class was required to do. With three com- puter labs available for student use, almost every subject used com- puters at some time. The counselors utilized computers to make schedul- ing easier. Taking advantage of their four MacIntosh computers, GENESIS typed all of their stories and most of their advertisements on the computer. Once one stopped to take a look, even those things that seemed to make the school conservative were actually very contemporary ideas. The administration was aware of the fact that some coaches preferred not to have pep rallies for their teams. Pep rallies, for the most part, though, were compensated for by noon-time activities in the Student Center that promoted spirit. Homecoming is an ‘‘old- fashioned” tradition that was decid- ed to be done away with when the school opened, according to Miss Cook. Although Elkhart Central High school has revived the tradition, Miss Cook points out that the Memorial Central football game serves the same purpose as Homecoming with the student body being united in spirit and past students returning to watch the “big game.” Miss Cook also defended the school dress code by saying that most schools who allowed shorts to be worn did so because they did not have air conditioning as Memorial does. She pointed out that Memorial does allow students to wear T-shirts with alcoholic beverages printed on them, while many other schools did not. According to Miss Cook, all of these accomplishments did not go unnoticed. ‘‘Students have always been impressed by our ‘class.’ They come up to me and say ‘Hey, we've really got class’ or ‘We're a step above.’ ” -¢- Although “sweats day” during Spirit Week made them legal, language arts teacher Mr. Larry Pio jokes with Lisa Stack that she can- not wear sweat pants at school.