Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts - Mohawk Yearbook (North Adams, MA)

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and realized that we were at college to become teachers. Up to this point we couldn ' t picture each other as such, but we soon changed our minds. Observation and participa- tion became part of our curriculum as we made the long walk down to the straining- for-training school. It must have been open season on constitutions that year, because through the instigation and work mainly of our class, a considerable number of campus constitutions were written, re-written, or completely revised. Some of our class members could have qualified in a minor in constitutions. Part of the school was glamorized when the Koffee Korner was opened in the M.A.A. room. Now we had a place to get our coffee without having to travel into town and visit Mean Mike ' s or The Grill. A lot of hard work went into the planning and fixing of the room, but with the juniors leading the way the mission was well accomplished. We were afraid the social hall of the dormitory would be raided during our Winter Carnival when we set up gambling tables and played with paper money. Our fears were groundless, however, because it just proved to be one of many enjoyable events that week-end. The elements didn ' t help us out any, but everyone had fun just the same. Come spring Tom Bernard played a beautiful but dumb brunette in a novel interpretation of Little Red Riding Hood at Stunt Night. In the year ' s production of Bell, Book and Candle, Arnie and Mary made riotous witches and Bob made an excellent drunken authority on witchcraft. Four of us decided the school needed a weekly newspaper; HELL-O came into existence. It quickly became a looked-for part of our college life. That spring we solemnly helped the senior class don their caps and gowns. We knew only too well that soon it would be our turn and our college years would be over. Some of us came back to school early our senior year. We were members of the Freshman Orientation Committee, which had been formed in the spring of our junior year, and which directed the first Freshman Week-end in the history of the college. Everyone on the committee enjoyed the week-end even if it did serve to exhaust us for the rest of the year. The new faculty face on the campus was Mr. Patashnick ' s. Our president, Arnie Bartini, led half of the class on the long walk from the back of the schoolrooms in training school, where we had spent much of our time last year, up to the front of the room. Yes, at last we had begun our training. It wasn ' t as bad as everyone ahead of us had told us. In fact, it didn ' t even put a halt to our mad social rounds. We found that we could combine work and pleasure. We sponsored a Game Night and an all-senior smorgasbord our first half. A frightening thought hit us toward the end of the first semester of our senior year. We had to find jobs for next year and work for a living. Daily we began checking the training bulletin board for positions. Someday we were going to be teachers ! Always we would be graduates of S.T.C.N.A.

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Class History On September 15, 1953, we took our first of four long walks and entered into a world of wonder and strange faces at S.T.C.N.A. The mad whirl of teas, receptions, and picnics — to say nothing of classes — kept us busy the first week. We hardly had time to notice that we numbered more than the rest of the school combined. We found ourselves soon in the midst of a political race for the presidency. It was for the class of course, and Mary Richards came out on top. Mr. Flagg became our advisor and we settled down to the work of making the Freshman Halloween Dance a rousing success. Soon the call was out and the freshmen responded. Rehearsals for the operetta, Patience, by Gilbert and Sullivan were in full swing and the freshmen held leads and made up the chorus. We found the operetta was just the beginning. Our class was to shine throughout its four years. That winter the queen and one member of her court for the Winter Carnival were members of our class. Our artistic talent was shown when we won the snow sculpturing contest with our Old Mother Hubbard entry. Histrionics seemed to be our strongest point, however, as we found in our first Stunt Night version of Today and in the Drama Club play Dangerous Corner, in which Arnie and Mary had their first of many college roles. The last class to take part in the hither-to traditional stepping up ceremony on Class Day, we finished our year happy but tired. Studies, picnics, parties, and other extracurricular activities had taken their toll. Our sophomore year was to prove as exciting as our freshman year — if not more so. When we returned to the campus, we found the familiar face of Miss Weston replaced by that of Miss Haresign, who was to become our fast friend. The second year was a trying one from a scholastic view point. The long walk to the third floor and physical science class was quite a strain. Dr. Semon and Mr. Luddy were nemeses for many of us, but we loved them just the same. Once again Mary led the class. Shortly after Christmas, President Bowman retired to be succeeded by Dr. Freel. The inauguration of the new president was a highlight of the year. Running a close second was the first Parents ' Day in the history of the college. It took a lot of work and planning but everyone was proud to have his parents at this affair. At that affair the Science Show, which was highly successful, was almost purely a sophomore project. The Drama Club performance that night naturally again featured sophomore talent. Five of the nine characters were played by members of our class, including Don, Carol, Barb, and the usual duo. We temporarily lost our advisor when he took his sabbatical to journey to Europe, but Miss Haresign held us in check until his return. Needless to say, our Sophomore Prom was tops and quite different. What other class would think of having a carnival theme complete with weirdly colored animal posters, papier mache pink elephants, and a carousel for the orchestra. We didn ' t bog down in social activities though. We found time to have six members elected to the Honor Society. Many more were finding out that the President ' s List was not some unattainable obj ect. As a result of the nation-wide tests, we finished the year high in the all-over rank, and, triumphantly, as the top sophomore class of the Massachusetts teachers colleges. We then became what has been traditionally termed the Jolly Juniors. Once again we returned to campus to find a new face among the faculty. Dr. Schrickel had come to fill the vacancy made when Dr. Crowley left. John Ryan was our president and we finally began in earnest learning about teaching. Terms such as the whole child, core, and varied experiences became everyday language in our lives. We learned about the merits of Burton and the theories of Gestalt. We suddenly looked about us

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Why Teach? It has become a fad in recent years for important leaders, educators and others, to draw up detailed lists of reasons for not entering the teaching pro- fession. The time seems ripe for us to protest. As we enter the field of educa- tion we do not seek pity or sympathy: we seek only acceptance and hope for some iota of respect. It is necessary to remind a practical, prosperous nation that the teaching of youth is a task requiring four years of college preparation, that prosperity cannot be maintained without educated minds, and that educated minds are not produced on conveyor belts. The term education has inspired more jargon than the term freedom, but in the final analysis teaching is something of an art. Any art will attract only a handful of followers. This is natural. The world can and often does starve its artists, but they cannot destroy the dignity of art. When allying education with art I am speaking of the devoted teacher, not the type who corrects papers by day and dreams of being an industrial executive by night. Believe it or not, there still are fine minds in education. There still are people who are perfectly satisfied with the profession and who take medi- ocre pay willingly. From a practical viewpoint, what other job offers a two month vacation with pay and opportunity for travel? We have heard these arguments a thousand times, yet we conclude that none of us is entering edu- cation for these reasons. The joy of teaching transcends explanation; it is a purely spiritual joy. We dare not become sentimental, for the teacher cannot be a sentimental creature. He must pose as far as possible as a businessman in the business of teaching, though the devoted teacher knows that he would give his all for the youths in his charge. Teaching being spiritual, few teachers can be truly happy without religious faith. A life of dedication is never satisfied by material reward. All of the great prophets and saints were in one sense or another teachers. Without some real- ization of the guidance by God, teaching becomes stagnant and purposeless. We are teaching God ' s children, not mechanical brains, irresponsive until stimu- lated. Indeed, it has often been stated that there is no more sacred career in God ' s sight outside of clergy than that of instructing our youth. Whether the subject be man ' s spiritual heritage of principles of mathematics, another characteristic of the devoted teacher is a vivid interest in the subject matter which he teaches. This interest must be passionate and must be con- stantly re-enkindled. There is a tendency in our day and age to belittle knowl- edge of subject matter in favor of instilling more generalized concepts and abstract mental qualities. However, it is obvious that none of us would trust