Needham High School - Advocate Yearbook (Needham, MA)

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1865 classroom enacted by members of the class of 1965. Page of a. nineteenth century grammar book. 'lxnuwne tm AxA.LYlI8.', 'i o-L' 1 ii summons wmr Apxunmi. if t wa, mt- W iVsg..t......'fisi' Nuu,.e,y'lhen?uq,-pangs K ,.7- . , ,, naomsu 454,34 to W-I?-32 07 , - -. Quad. Concerning what in an exertion hm mah' Am. Concerning resources, What in alerted of resouxeefl A. Resources are developed. Wluu resources are developed! A. Muioru1l resources. ' 5 WI-44 national resources! A. Our national reeoux-ws. Hou are our national ruouroes developed! A gBy an ia:-rural culture Qf'ul6M1lg'Pl ' yulual cu Cure! A. By earnest culture. Wh! urnest cultural A. An earnest culture. Wm .mu mmm A.Qu1t1ue Hqfthc arts qfpelos' Ol aim! nm V , A. 41776113525 uvpnxl g ,gr I Education in the 1860's contained few extras or frills, and the curriculum of Needham High School was a strictly academic or useful one. Algebra, geometry, French, botany, and natural, moral, and mental philosophy were the subjects taught by Professor Silas Bundy Rawson and later by Albion Cate, an undergraduate at Harvard. Latin also was included in the curriculum, although one member of the school committee strongly disapproved of permitting girls to study Latin. Students who Wanted to attend high school had to be serious about their studies, for they had to pass an examination in order to be admitted. They had to achieve 8072: on their mathematics examination and similarly high scores on their other examinations. In 1890, of thirty-tive students who took the examinations, twenty-three passed the tests and were approved, four were conditionally approved, and eight failed. When the school was combined with Oakland Hall under Jonas B. Clarke, a larger number of courses were offered, but since the high school was at Oakland Hall only two terms, no important change occurred. When the school moved back to Parker Hall, Mr. W. E. Skillings, the next teacher, continued the original rigid curriculum with, perhaps, the addition of grammar.

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ws, 361. , an - 1 il! ,fQFgVB N' X' . g,.l5f r.:M4.f - ' .g5,fgj.g1.5 ' 2 Y A 1 The school then moved to the Kimball Building factually still Parker Hall. It burned in 1884 and was rebuilt as the Kimball School, since classes had been held in it for over ten yearsb with Mr. C. S. Hamilton as teacher. The many changes of location and teacher were unsettling, but despite these problems, in 1871 Needham High School had two more graduates, Miss Emma Hatch and Miss Annie Moseley, the first students to receive diplomas from the school. The school remained at the Kimball building until 1898. During the later 1880's the school committee presented a motion that Dover students be allowed to attend Needham High School for fifty cents a week. In 1896 the size of the school had increased so that a larger school building had to be considered. Mr. John Moseley gave the school a lot of land next to St. J oseph's Church for the site of the new high school. The school was built at a cost of 533,000 and completed in 1898. This school, later named the Emery Grover after Judge Emery Grover of the school committee, was the first school building built purposely for a high school. By 1920 the number of students exceeded two hundred. The school was becoming crowded, and when in 1922 the enrollment was three hundred and nineteen, necessitating double sessions, obviously a new building was needed. The town meeting voted in favor of a new school, and one was built on the next lot. This school had a gymnasium, which none of the previous schools had had, as well as a lunchroom. Again, however, the number of students increased, and this school, too, became overcrowded. Once more the town meeting voted in favor of a new school, and the present school was built on the hill above Memorial Park, which had been recently constructed by the townspeople. This school was completed in 1930. Because of increasing numbers an addition, which included a new gymnasium and cafeteria as well as classrooms, was built in 1952. Now in 1965, the school is again reaching capacity and another addition is planned.

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In the l87O's, however, the school committee began considering new subjects, and one member suggested the addition of music to the curriculum. They voted not to spend any money on music, but in 1877 Mr. Tilden was permitted to give instruction in music in the schools without expense to the town. The attitude toward such subjects as music grew more liberal, and in 1887 the town authorized the buying of fifty copies of the New High School Music Reader for instruction in music. At this time the school was occupying the Kimball Building and was having fewer changes of teachers and buildings. Greek and German were now part of the curriculum as well as music, and students could choose from three programs of study, the classical course, the business course, and the modern language course. In 1885 the school committee suggested the study of subjects such as temperance, physiology, and hygieneg but these motions were rejected. One member voted against the addition of such new subjects because he felt that the schools were already cumbered with too many studies and should hesitate to introduce another. Throughout the next thirty to forty years the curriculum gradually changed and enlarged with such subjects as chemistry and mechanical drawing. In 1923, with the opening of the High School on Highland Avenue next to the Emery Grover Building, domestic science and manual training were offered, and for the Iirst time physical education was officially part of the curriculum. In 1930 another new building, the present one, allowed the addition of such subjects as biology. Since then, many new courses, such as Russian and calculus, have been added to the curriculum g and the program of accelerated and advanced placement courses has been established.