Woburn High School - Innitou Yearbook (Woburn, MA)

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JAMES RODOLFOS Our hearts, our hopes, are all with thee Our hearts, our hopes, our prayers, our tears Our faith triumphant o ' er our fears Are all with thee, — are all with thee! — Longfellow The Yearbook Staff is happy to present this issue in the name of an out¬ standing member of the Class of 1954, a boy who showed promise of achieve¬ ment and success in high school. An unfortunate accident has taken him from our class and forced an interlude in his studies However, we remember his willing spirit and his cooperative attitude. We admire his courage in the face of adversity. Proudly, we dedicate THE INNITOU for 1954 to James Rodolfos, cur Class President.

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ENTER TO LEARN — GO FORTH TO SERVE

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THE GROWTH OF OUR HIGH SCHOOL At its annual meeting in April, 1852, the town of Woburn voted to establish a high school, and placed the sum of twelve hundred dollars at the disposal of the Committee to enable it to carry that vote into execution. After examining various places, the Committee hired a room in Knight ' s building on Main Street and fitted it for the accommodation of the High School. A lease was obtained from Mr. Knight at the rent of one hundred dollars for one year, with the privilege of having the lease renewed for three years later, if the town so desired. A course of three years was selected because it was similar to those almost universally adopted in other places for a course of study. Such a program was planned and the school was opened on September 6, 1852, with Mr. William A. Stone as principal and with an enrollment of thirty-four students. In 1854, the town of Woburn voted to build a high school. This new high school, a wooden building, now forming the rear of the present Hanson School, was constructed at a cost of $11,701.99. The first graduating class held its exercises in this building December 8, 1855, after completing a three years ' course. This first graduating class had an enrollment of ten girls and one boy. During the year 1873-1874, the brick structure in the front was added, thereby completing Woburn ' s first high school. As Woburn ' s population continued to grow, Superintendent Emerson, in his report for 1897, first recommended the erection of a new high school. The School Committee finally requested the City Council in 1898, 1899, and 1900 to appropriate funds for the site and the building. The present site on Montvale Avenue was selected by the City Council, approved by the School Committee in 1900, and purchased in 1903. The ioundation was laid in 1905, and the construction was started on April 1, 1906. The building was formally opened on May 15, 1907. This new building provided additional opportunities for high school students and a wider service to the community. The old high school curriculum had catered to the tastes and training of those who would enter the various colleges and normal schools. The new program offered various courses which prepared students for vocations in the home and society, and for entrance into fields in connection with trade, commerce and manufacturing. After the passing of a few years, even the new building was found to be inadequate. In 1922, a portable annex was purchased from the adminis¬ trators of Saint Charles School, was added to the rear of the building, and housed two classrooms. This afforded temporary relief for the increased enrollment. Classes were taught here until a hurricane in 1925 destroyed this annex. These classes were then held in the auditorium with a cloth screen for a partition. In 1926, the first year students of the High School were obliged to take all their classes in the afternoon, as the school adopted the two-platoon system. Two wings were added to the central building and in September, 1930, the present building was opened for Senior and Junior High classes. The high school curriculum has progressed from a very narrow type of instruction in the classics, mathematics, and sciences to a very broad program of studies which still prepares students for advanced training in the universities and colleges, but also provides instruction and preparation for necessary progress in the various businesses and trades, and in modern homemaking and leisure time pursuits. Today, a wide program of studies and extra-curricula activities is offered in keeping with the interests, aptitudes, and abilities of all students in all fields of concentration.