Highland High School - Shield Yearbook (Highland, IN)

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PROBLEMS AND OPINIONS... Problems and opinions ... It seems like nobody has found a way to escape that one little thing that we call a problem. Parents are forever worrying about their kids, the bills, or unexpected accidents. Teachers are concerned about that certain student or class. Doctors can ' t get that patient out of their minds and college students fear they won ' t find a job. High school students as well as these other people have their special kinds of problems. School pressures, after-graduation decisions, being accepted by the crowd— these problems are a part of virtually every teen ' s life. What is the number one problem of High- land High students today? According to Wendy Aumiller, the main problem is cliques. She feels that too often people are stereotyped. Dave Garner goes along with this idea stating, everybody feels that they have to be like everyone else. They ' re afraid to be individuals. Michelle Dijak and Paulette Kaptur agree that a major problem is disinterest in school. Doesn ' t anybody care?— a common ques- tion among students. School is boring and monotonous, stated one student. That ' s why people are so disinterested! Other opinions about problems ranged from teachers hassling you to the well- known problem of drugs. Most of the stu- dents felt that people took drugs because they just couldn ' t take all the pressures— school, dating, parents, and just growing up! Have current problems, such as inflation, affected high school people? In most cases, the answer was a definite yes. The cost of jeans has really gone up, said Mary Klim- esewski, and I can only buy one record a month now. It ' s hurt my whole family because of the cost of gas, added Paulette Kaptur. Unemployment has also hurt a few stu- dents. One boy feels that he can ' t buy a lot of the things he wants because he can only find crummy jobs. Students graduating at THE SAME OLD THING. School is just one of the many pressures facing a teenager today. Homework, tests, extra-curricular ac- tivities— they all seem to add up. Art Booth takes a few minutes to look over his music before testing in choir. ■■p f 28 Problems, Opinions

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MAN ' S BEST FRIEND. Pumping gas with one hand and keeping Fido happy with the other is Ron Williams, as he keeps the cus- tomer satisfied! ' JUST ' JEANS? Price tags soared this year, as Highland ' s students bought items locally to boost the economy. Christmas shopping hit students especially hard. $MONEY, MONEYS. Michelle Michalek works part time at the Highland Pharmacy Just for the love of money . Jobs 27 You have a job? Some students find that trying to earn money in a public place is a good way to get started out on their own in the world. Others simply like to have the extra money around. Where would the Pharmacy be with- out young girls to wait on people at the counter? Or what would the grocery stores do without their carry-out boys? While students work in the business world, the community does its part for the students. Junior Women ' s Club formed a group known as the Juniorettes for teenage girls interested in that type of activity, but who are too young for the main club. They planned various activities following in the footsteps of their founders, including a dance to raise money and publicity. Kiwanis continued its reputation of the fine pancake breakfasts they serve this year. It also had a luncheon every Thursday at which students were guest speakers.

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the semester had a really tough time finding good jobs. On the other hand, several kids felt that high schoolers shouldn ' t have to worry about unemployment. They felt that students should enjoy and take advantage of the high school years while they could. You ' re in high school for fun, said Frank Zabarte. I feel that a student should be active in extra- curricular activities. Having a job takes away from this. Many people agreed with Frank and added that with a job, you don’t even have time to study, much less extra-curricular activities. Of course, students have opinions about things other than problems. One of their favorite and most common things to talk about is music. Elton John got the most votes as being the best performer. His unique and fresh, new style scored highly with teens and teachers alike. Chicago was named again and again as the best group. Students felt that their mu- sic was moody and the lyrics were mean- ingful and original. Other groups men- tioned were Black Sabbath ( I like their vibes ), Stones (They get better as time goes on), Carpenters (I love soft rock and easy listening), and even the Platters (I ' m a nostalgia nut). Around Highland, most students felt that movies, games, and parties were the main sources of entertainment. The Sting was the most popular movie, with The Longest Yard and Trial of Bil- ly Jack following close behind. Classics such as Gone With the Wind and Romeo and Juliet were also well attended by High- land guys and gals. Problems and opinions ... I guess that it ' s only through these little things called problems that we learn to grow and un- derstand ourselves and the world around us. And I guess that it ' s only through things like opinions that we learn to express our- selves and communicate with others. Problems and opinions . . . to melt all those pressures and problems away. Takin g a try at announcing, John Simmons proves that Homecoming is one of these times.