Paramus High School - Delphian Yearbook (Paramus, NJ)

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nd ph|Mcjlly lit ik ' l Faculty Members at P.H.S.

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Fan Mail • • Frank L. Ryerson Former Music Director Congratulations to P.H.S. for twenty-five years of excellent service to the people of Paramus, both educationally and charac¬ teristically. In the past few years I have received letters, phone calls and have personally met many former students from all parts of the country. Each and every one spoke of the wonderful training, education and guidance they received during their years at P.H.S. It has been most gratifying and rewarding to hear this unsolicited praise. So, here’s to another quarter-century of the tradition on which P.H.S. has been built. Frank L. Ryerson The ebb and flow of the number of students in the High School has moved dramatically from some nine hundred students (grades 7-10) in 1957 to more than two thousand students in the early seventies, to some eight hundred at this quarter-century anniversary. The quarter-century period was dotted with many educational changes (improvements?) dic¬ tated by the Federal and State governments, and society at large; some that come most readily to mind are: 1. Improve the Math and Science programs. 2. Institute a program for foreign language study by using language laboratories. 3. Develop a program to improve the quality of English studies, particularly in writing. 4. Federal and State governments direct that all curricula be modified to permit more students to receive a diploma and access to institutions of higher learning. 5. The present demands by the Federal and State governments, a student generation later, direct educators to provide for tougher, more demanding courses for all students. Education now must be meaningful. 6. In the interim period, the computer and resultant ancillary equipment enter the scene. Will it help or hinder? Nevertheless, it is here to stay. With the changes in education and the shifting demands of society, the student, like “Old Man River,” just keeps rolling along, receiving a fine education in our Paramus High School that is a result of dedicated teachers in the classrooms, administrative personnel, and an entire structure that makes up a good school system. The basic Paramus philosophy is to provide “the best education possible for every Paramus student.” Student awareness, involvement, desire and determination to learn has, in my opinion, changed little over the past twenty-five years. A fine education and any number of activities are, and have been, available to those who will partake. Wesley Van Pelt Business Administrator-Secretary 1955-1982 Retired. My memories of Paramus High School tend to center around teachers, students, and events in the turbulent period of the sixties and early seventies. It was a difficult time to be a high school principal. It may have been a more difficult time to be a teacher. More and more students asked why they had to study a given subject or concept, and teachers found themselves justifying the material they taught. Some found it an uncomfortable experience. Standards of dress, behavior, and marking systems were challenged. “Relevance” was the key to reaching the “alienated.” Music was the language of youth and their common bond. It was the time to challenge the “establishment.” Paramus High School also experienced its share of change and tumult. Concerns which now appear somewhat naive were very real then. Blue jeans made their appearance provoking calls for a dress code. An underground newspaper appeared in the high school. Students staged an outdoor protest against the war. They asked for representation on the curriculum committee and for monthly meetings with the Board of Education. It was indeed a period of ferment and change. The teaching staff was not immune to all this activity. ACT made its appearance as a teacher organization. STEP was introduced as a means of establishing better relations between teachers and students. The Board and teachers engaged in negotiations on salary and teaching conditions. The earlier, stable relations among teachers, Board members, and administrators were falling apart. In retrospect, it was a most exciting decade. At the time, I could have done with a bit less tension but now I am glad to have been a part of it. Wesley Van Pelt Former Business Administrator, Secretary 15

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Over the Past 25 Years! 17