New Athens High School - Vespa Yearbook (New Athens, IL)

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Table Contents ANNIVERSARY 4 DEDICATION 6 ADMINISTRATION 7 CLASSES 15 SPORTS 29 ACTIVITIES 37 SENIORS 65 ADVERTISEMENTS 77 NEW ATHENS COMMUNITY HIGH SCHOOL NEW ATHENS. ILLINOIS VOLUME XXV 3

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Foreword The Staff Cheryl Thies, Assistant Business Manager Sue Ann Roth Diane Rohr Cynthia Schneider Mary Stutz, Editor Mrs. Kathryn Canning, Advisor Carter Strassman, Photographer Don Woodward, Photographer Peggy Kinzinger Mary Reinhardt, Business Manager Presents The 1965 Vespa High School students are constantly searching for the keys that will unlock the doors to knowledge, popularity, and success in scholarship, athletics, and leadership. The student himself is the master key. If he utilizes all of his God-given gifts - his own talents, abilities, and determination - he can successfully unlock the doors for a bright and productive future. Come! review the year, just past, in the 1965 VESPA. Through the use of both written and pictorial record, the VESPA shows students unlocking the first of these doors to a successful future.

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Over the Years . . . This year marks the 25th anniversary of the yearbook publication. We would like to take you back in time to review the history of our school and its publications. A HOUR-YEAR HIGH SCHOOL in New Athens became a reality when a proposition to establish it was adopted in the summer of 1920. That fall. New Athens Community High School, District 68, opened in the building which still stands on the corner of Market and Belsha Streets. In so doing. It became the first four-year high school in New Athens. However, as early as 1907, one year, and later two years, of high school education had been offered to students. During this first year the enrollment totaled 39. Mr. H. W. Krohn was employed as principal, with Mr. George Fiedler serving as assistant principal. Two other teachers were employed at the time. Attempts were made in 1922 and 1924 to discontinue the high school, but the attempts failed. In 1931 the present school building was completed and classes were resumed in the new building in the fall. The gymnasium was added in 1938, and in 1951 the cafeteria was completed. In 1941 the bus service was established. In 1953, the agriculture and home economics programs were improved and enlarged and a completely equipped industrial arts department was added. In 1954, the high school and grade school were consolidated to form Unit District 60. With the addition of the new grade school building in 1957, the high school was furnished with a new and larger gymnasium and music department. THE FIRST SCHOOL PAPER to be printed was The Athenian, whose publication was supervised by the Senior Class of 1932. Copies of it were issued monthly. The following year the school paper occupied a page in The New Athens Journal each week instead of being printed by the staff. The school paper later adopted the name Spotlight. It was printed by Fischer Publications before acquiring its present mimeographed form. THE YEARBOOK of New Athens High School has been published intermittently since 1929. The first yearbook, The N.A. of 1929, was published for a student body of less than a hundred and a faculty of five. The 91-page yearbook had few pictures and contained such things as the history of the school and the music department. Rosella Ruhl, the editor, headed a staff of fifteen. The N .A. was dedicated to Professor H. W. Krohn, the principal. The cover was tan paperback with the words, “1929” and The N.A.” in red lettering. It cost only $1.50. The Vespa has changed in many ways. There had been other titles for our yearbook, such as The Memoir of 1931 and The Graduate of 1943. In 1946, the name Vespa was chosen because it is the Latin word for Yellow Jacket, the school’s mascot. These books were at first bound in paperback covers, later in hardback, and more recently in padded covers. Yearbooks were originally published only in alternate years because it was felt that they were too expensive to be published yearly. The Vespa has come a long way from The N.A. of 1929, and we hope that during the next 25 years our Vespa will continue to flourish and grow. The staff would like to express its appreciation to Sondra Sue Schopfer and any others who helped compile this history. 4