Manual High School - Mirror Yearbook (Peoria, IL)

Page 15 text:

ADMINISTRATION The tree-crowned bluffx guard the riuer well Like .fentinelf grim they .rtund- What muwelouy tale: there hill: could tell Of water, and men, and the land! -Mary E. Gillin.

Page 17 text:

A Review of the Past Year T HE present school year opened on September eighth, nineteen hundred thirty-one, with the largest enrollment ever known in the history of Manual Training High School. Seven hundred ninety-five boys and seven hundred eighty girls entered school during those hot days of last September. In the ensuing months only one hundred forty-eight of these were obliged to discontinue their studying for a while or moved to other districts and left our school. In january, at the beginning of the second semester, we welcomed one hundred sixty more from the grade schools by graduation and from the high schools by transfer. In September all of last year's teaching staff returned with the exception of two, Miss Patterson and Mr. Yuhause. Miss Patterson, whose loss all have felt keenly and whose cheery presence has been missed all year, was taken from us by death during last August. To help take care of the increased number of students several teachers were added to the faculty: Miss Aitchison in the Home Economics Department and Miss Rothwell for English. Mr. Waugh came for classes in the Manual Training Department, while Mr. Baxter took the position of assistant coach in place of Mr. Yuhause, who went to Peoria Central High School. At the beginning of the second semester Miss Hession and Mr. Fuller also joined the faculty. Miss Hession teaches English, while Mr. Fuller teaches mathematics. During the summer vacation many repairs and changes had been made about thc building, and we found that the Sheet Metal Department had been removed from the first floor to a new room next the lathe room on the second floor, while the former quar- ters of this department had been transformed into a long, light room for art classes, thus bringing the entire art department into one part of the building with a small supply room between the two classrooms. The fact that all of these rooms open into each other and are used every hour of the day has done much to make that end of the building more attractive and the hours spent there much more pleasant and profitable to art students and the school in general. Another splendid improvement was made in the classroom of the Public Speaking Department. This was brought about by building a stage across the west end of the room and installing forty new lecture chairs. This change has added also to the comfort and better work of all of these classes as well as of the various' organizations who are priv- ileged to use this room for their monthly meetings. In addition to these changes two other rooms have been opened for classes in academic subjects. Room 112, formerly a drying room for the wood shop, and room 128, in which art classes had met, are now being used for English classes. At the close of last year three new pictures were given to the school by the Senior Class, Senior Boys' Club, and Senior Girls' Club. These are beautiful water colors, orig- inals, by Clayton H. Staples. They are The Alhambra, The Toledo Bridge, Spain, and Scene on the Mediterranean. During the year the Student Council purchased another picture, Washington at Valley Forge. These originals and the Wasliington print, with two other prints purchased from the general fund, have added greatly to our line collection in the halls and classrooms. The past year we have had a full time music program. Glee Clubs met oftener than formerly and the special music classes every day. Band and orchestra met and practiced every day, and the orchestra was provided with new tympani by the Student Council. All of these changes have produced a corresponding betterment of class work and have augmented the prevailing spirit of goodwill and co-operation that has always been such an outstanding feature of the Manual student body and faculty. Alumni are quick to notice and comment on these changes and extol the high quality of work of the student body as well as the increasing attractiveness of the building, -GERTRUDIE REINHARD.