Oak Park High School - Cambia Yearbook (Kansas City, MO)

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ith the more alert young people, the growth of one student toward his involvement with others went further than the average person. Politics and social problems affected the school in several ways. The Moratorium and the death of Dr. Martin Luther King were acknowledged by many students, Discus- sion groups in family life, contemporary issues, history, and other courses provided a chance for the involved individual to become more well- informed as well as a chance to express his opinion and ideas on life. Concerned not just with life at school but life and death occurring around the world from war, the destruction of nature, and man-made threats to our ecology students worked avidly to do their best to correct these tragic sides of life. In honor of those graduates who died in the Viet Nam war, a plaque inscribed with their names was presented in a cere- mony. Tornado destruction rampaged through the Oak Park woods, leaving behind a scarred memory of the place the living had been. Not only death and destruction spurred the involved student, but the environmental hazards to be confronted in the future stirred many to action. N, , , , 'I K ,,f , f iw : IS, ,wif X 4 7 I f 2,34 , , ' fit, c , 4, ,X 2 ga? ff x 'Q , ,f.f,y, 1 Q, Z, I ,- -. ,, ,N aw Wt 1 , f, , gf Zag W , rf! . , , ,, , win gl- WW ,I ,W , f,, , ff fi ggwfy, Zwowi-'-f fi Vffavfg WW it ,M ' A-,mf cf- 'M a'.f1f,, - -Q, Y

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s the year progressed, one became accus- tomed to the bustle and chaos of changing mods and the cafeteria rush. After discovering the uses of the media center, the resource centers, and the conversation areas, the student adjusted and felt a part of Oak Park. Contributing to the feeling of be- longing, the weekly class, sophomore orientation, aided the sophomores in learning about school or- ganizations and classes. Encouraging companionship and friendship among students and teachers, extra-curricular events offered the opportunity for becoming better ac- quainted with other members of the school. Clubs, athletics, intramurals, and after school help in studies were a few of these profitable activities. Even though feeling himself to be an Oakie, the student needed to exert his individuality. The pride and security of being one of the Northmen became important, but so did the individual's right to be his own person. This right remained intact as he found each person had his own specific personality, tal- ents, and ambitions. He comprehended the fact that, as in a tree each leaf contributes to the beauty and grace of the whole being, he, too, was an integral part of the life and success of the school year. Dur- ing the time of conversion from a loner to an active participant, one decade was ending and a new age beginning. Changes, not just in educational methods, but in areas of social practices and hair and dress styles evolved for students and faculty alike. For example, the mini and maxi skirt appeared on the Oak Park scene while wigs, wiglets, and long curls spiced hair fashions. The males, not excluded from the transition of styles, grew long side burns, mus- taches, and beards. Music brought its message for progress, change, and the betterment of society. Songs from groups such as Simon and Garfunkel and the Beatles underwent analysis in a special class developed just for that purpose. The Oakie was now one of many involved in making school active and alive: yet he had recognized that his individuality, like a snowflake, though one of many, differs from its neighbor. Even as the oak tree changes with the seasons and environment, so does the student. Expressions of this change evolved in a variety of ways. Innova- tive teaching techniques involving various sized groups from possibly 500 for lecture periods to 15 for discussion groups developed. Unscheduled mods gave the student the opportunity to explore the stu- dies and interests he desired and to be creative. Some teachers, realizing the need for creativity, would often allow class to be held in the courtyards or in the park near the school. This informality often led to more fruitful discussions than the enclosed classroom would have encouraged.

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