San Dimas High School - El Santo Yearbook (San Dimas, CA)

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s4 utc 0£ 76e ' PccUcne 76 uwy6, Tittiequcred (2Ca44e Just because everyone took math, history, English, P.E., and a foreign language didn ' t mean that students were limited to those subjects. In fact students were required to take some electives in other fields. Some elective classes were taken to fill the vocational education or fine arts requirement, or just for fun, but many took them for an opportunity to try a skill they might want to pursue in the future — right after high school, or to enhance a career after college. Senior Tammy Munson enrolled in Fashion and Fabrics because she might want to be a fashion buyer: I ' m trying to get my feet wet in this area before I go to college, she said. Intending to become an executive secretary, senior Jodi Crandall took office occupations and note-taking. Cabinet making interested junior Derek Johns who wanted to be a carpenter. He said, It provided skills that helped me use and work with industrial carpentry tools. Some got career ideas from the academics. After taking the class required most, four years of English, senior Denise Hladek had decided she wanted to be an English teacher. In order to become an engineer, senior Robert Ko took advanced math, and drafting as well. Some liked to kick back, but most students used their elective classes to investigate different ideas and media to gain a better idea of how they would fit into working society. Office occupations students juniors Silvina Militello. Veronica Militello. senior Wendy Christensen. junior Michelle Snow and seniors Kari Friedman, Jodi Crandall and Jennifer Aston practice using a variety of abbreviated forms to take notes. In studying various aspects of relationships, juniors Julie Paine, Leslie Scappatura and seniors Patti Figley, Desiree Miranda and Denise Hladek look over a worksheet before a class discussion. In second period cabinet making junior Derek Johns uses a power sander to smooth a piece of wood for a future project. f30 s4e uU iUc4

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7U PcUa, 7U fyica The foreboding initials A. P. found before certain class titles meant different things to different people. The official designation for these Calculus. U.S. History. American Government and Economics, and English IV classes used by teachers and administrators was advanced placement, but to those students who had firsthand experience, A. P. stood for advanced pain! Although the advanced class offered valuable opportunities for more extensive study in a subject, it also provided the aspiring student With many challenges. They quickly discovered that A. P. teachers meant business. More was expected and iess was put up with. Junior Yu- Chien Kuo said, It ' s a lot more work to do and a lot less time to do it in. An enormous amount of -esponsibility was imperative. An abundance of work was assigned all at once and often never mentioned again until the due date. Teachers expected that the A. P. student didn ' t need to be reminded of everything. Senior Peter Brown said. You don ' t have teachers pushing you all the time to do your work. Teachers were less concerned with whether or not homework had been completed, and more with test and project results. It was always evident who had done his homework. Because of the amount and complexity of material, late night cramming before a test was virtually impossible. Many sacrifices were made in order to excel. Countless hours of sleep were lost due to late night studying. A. P. U.S. History students continued the tradition of spending lunch and break in the library to finish an essay or study for a test. One could always tell when something was due by how crowded the library was. Junior Dale Geurts said, I ' ve had to give up a lot of my lunches and breaks to get help on history essays. This resulted in less time for food and friends. Along with time, money was also invested in the $53 A. P. fee for the test offered in the spring. Despite all of this. A. P. students agreed that the hard-work paid off. Junior Keith Gallina said. It ' s worth it because it prepares me for college. The writing and studying skills I have learned will hopefully make college less of a shock. A. P. tests, in many cases, went to good use. Some universities gave credit, and college classes were waived if the score was high enough. Another bonus was that more topics were covered and in greater detail. Referring to U.S. History, junior Shannon Booth said. I like the way we get more into the subject and find out about a lot of different people and events. Other benefits were smaller classes made up of hardworking students. The privilege of being in an A. P. class was not taken lightly. Junior Thanh Bui said. You ' re surrounded by students who are above-average, and this creates an atmosphere which provides the ideal learning environment. Perhaps the most appreciated aspect of A. P. classes was that students could see improvement and they realized that, through their hard work, they had learned a lot. Senior Elizabeth Mondragon said. I got a really low grade on my first English essay: now I ' m getting much better grades. I ' ve learned to condense my thoughts and not put in worthless ideas. Although the prices paid were painful, the prizes were something to be proud of. An outward sign of achievement was an added grade point to serve as a reward and to help boost grade point averages. The inward indication of accomplishment was the feeling of fulfillment the brave students that completed an A. P. course had. They knew that they had succeeded and that the knowledge and experience gained would help carry them through their collegiate endeavors and. more importantly, through life in general. Perplexed over a difficult Calculus problem, senior Steven Huang lifts his hand in a gesture of confusion. In their close-knit A. P. American Government and Economics class, seniors Jason Hignite and Ricky Engel carry on a friendly conversation. s4dva tced Pe ce tte4tt f29

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At the show put on before Christmas by third period Introduction to Art Students, sophomores Farah Jiwani. Michelle Barnett an Kristine Graham admire the pop art grapes of seniors Ernesto Consencino. Mustafa Jaafri and junior Shannon Magallanes. Interested in life as a marine, senior Chris Maynard. who has already enlisted, and freshman Anthony Martin talk to a recruiter at lunch. StecUve ?3f