Worcester State University - Oak Leaf Yearbook (Worcester, MA)

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Class History 1941 Dear Class of 1941: It doesn t seem possible that we are at the end of our college days, for time has sped by on winged feet, leaving us breathless and just a bit dazed, f wonder if you can feel this too, this sense of an onward rush of things, of events eagerly awaited and now a thing of the past. It is such a pleasant th.ng to unlock our memories and fondle each treasure one by one. Go back with me to that September of 1937 and gently live again the rich, full life that has been ours for the past four years. I suppose we must have appeared awkward and gauche with the mannerisms of adolescence still about us, but we didn’t feel that way, did we? As I looked at you, my classmates, I saw something of pride, something of determination, and something of hope in your eyes. You were all so eager then, wanting everything, and yet not daring. That first vear was a bit hazardous, wasn’t it? Remember our first introduction to that vast, mysterious, and awe-inspiring field of education? But it was made pleasant by our “sharing” in Miss West’s class. Those first five minutes of each class brought us closer together, made us know each other, and provided that psychological reaction called “breaking the ice”. By our choice of poetry, hv our various experiences that we told, and by our reactions to current literature that we had read, we combined to delineate personalities and individuals from the sea of faces that was the Freshman class. Our Freshman reception made us feel right at home. We were introduced to Dr. and Mrs. Aspinwall and the faculty, and their heartfelt show of welcome made us feel that we were an integral part of the school at last, that we weren ' t North High School, Ludlow High School, or Essex High School, but Worcester State Teachers College. There were so many things to learn, so many books to read, so many lessons to prepare; but we got through, didn’t we? As 1 look back at it now, it doesn’t seem so difficult after all, but there were times when the date of the founding of Rome, the Group Study Plan, and French phonetics were hopelessly tangled in our minds with no organization whatsoever. But it wasn’t all study. I remember what a good time we had at the Junior-Freshman Hop. It was our first experience with committees. And how we did work! I have always felt that working together like that taught us a lot more than any text could have done. We learned the meaning of cooperation and what it takes to make a dance run smoothly. Then came Spring, and with it our first May Day. Didn’t we look naive in our quaint peasant costumes as we danced around the May Pole? Our attendants were Grace Murphy and Dorothy Eastman, and they d ' d look lovely. We were very proud of them. With Spring, came the inevitable exams, and then be- fore we knew it, our first year was over; we had become Sophomores. Do you think we were any different the next September? I do. As I look back at the beginning of our second year, I seem to see a little more poise, a little more savo : re-faire, a bit wider point of view, and the gradual development ol that attitude toward education that we all possess todav. As you remember the Fall of that second year, what stands out in your mind? I think of Biologv. Such trials and tribulations. But wasn’t it worth it? Another new world opened for us with the mvsteries of living things brought within our focus. What else do you see? Perhaps the Senior-Sophomore Hop at the Grand View Country Club. We couldn’t have picked a worse night. There was snow and rain and ice. and all along the road there were cars stopped, and the least little rise sent the wheels spinning. It was a gay party, though we did arrive late. Sixteen

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PERSONALITIES

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Betty DeWitt wrote and directed our skit for the Senior Carnival. That was the year Ferdinand the Bull attained his greatest popularity, but I insist his fame rests secure on the appearance he made on our stage that night. Barbara McQuade and Maxine Hale made a very engaging Ferdinand in spite of their most amusing lack of coordination between parts. Margaret LaBossiere was a very gallant matador, and the villains were most picturesque. The hig event of our Sophomore year was the May Day that we planned and directed our- selves. Alice Delaney and Mary Coolaghan were attendants that year. They were stunning and proved that our class was not lacking in pulchritude. In retrospect, don’t you think that those two years were but the beginning, because it wasn’t until our Junior year that we made a name for ourselves? That’s the year we went out on our first apprenticeship. Let’s admit we viewed it with some trepidation, but it wasn’t long before we felt that we were well on the road to becoming well-rounded teachers. Who will ever forget her first lesson? Do you think that first class of yours ever realized the work and worry that went into that lesson? That first day out in the schools was a definite milestone in our lives, for it marked the transition from mere student to student-teacher. In April, 1940, we made our debut as a class. Let’s stop a moment and recall that Monday morning. Led by Maxine Hale, our class president, and the other class officers, we marched into the auditorium and assembled on the stage for our opening exercises. Everyone remarked how dainty we looked in our pastel dresses of blue, rose, and green. We sang our class song written by Sara Pressman and sung to “Aloha”. Our Monday program was a dramatization of the life of Madame Curie; Virginia Forkey, as Madame Curie, gave a superb performance that brought tears to our eyes. The theme changed for our Wednesday program, for here was all laughter and gaiety. We wanted an old-fashioned melodrama, and Barbara McQuade filled the order for us with her Nell’s A ' Poppin ' ”, We all had a good time rehearsing, for the dialogue was so cleverly written that we looked forward to its presentation. I was little Nell; and Paula Casey, the handsome book salesman from the city with whom I fell hopelessly in love until his wife, Anna Skorupski, with her brood appeared upon the scene. We all remember Mary Cashen’s down east twang as Luke, the hired man, Betty DeWitt’s raucous tones as Maw, Alice Delaney’s down-on-the-farm attitude as Phoebe, the hired girl, and Mary Kearns’ New England common sense with a certain touch of dry humor as Paw. Our Friday program was the crowning touch to our Junior Week, and we all feel that it was the best we ever did. Again it was our versatile Betty DeWitt. who planned and directed a program intended to portray to the audience the horror and utter futility of war. There were sorrow and pathos there, and the message it conveyed will long remain with us. The Junior Prom was the biggest social function of the year, and I remember how lovely we all looked. It was a great success, and we feel that it will always be a bright spot in pur college days. I had the honor of being chosen Queen, and so the Prom will always have a special significance for me. We all worked hard to make the Gym appear beautiful, and under the capable direction of Kitty George, it was transformed into a veritable world of black and white sophistication. Our May Day was held indoors that year, and Paula Casey and Barbara McQuade represented our class as attendants. I believe we viewed with regret the end of our Junior year, for it was so full of events. Through the experience gained from Junior Week, we acquired the leadership necessary to con- duct just such events in our future teaching. June. 1940, saw us a little more poised, a little more sure of ourselves, and a little better satisfied that we were doing our work well. Now we come to the final stage in our college life, and our memories are still too fresh to be locked away. This last year sped by the most quickly of all. and we soon found ourselves on the threshold of Commencement. Our first experience as seniors was last Fall with the assignment of our Freshman sisters. We were only too happy to assist them in their adjustment to their new environment, for it seemed only yesterday that we, too, were Freshmen. As college seniors, we acquired a new dignity, a new conception of what was expected of us, and the full realization of what being a teacher means. Because of these new qualities, our Senior Week in November, 1940, was characterized by a more simple and more quiet note. It marked the official donning of caps and gowns, and emphasis was placed on that rather than on the programs. After assembling on the stage in cap and gown, we opened Senior Week with the presentation of a choral reading under the direction of Frances Feingold. For Wednesday, Mary Cashen directed “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”: on Friday, we presented to the student body and faculty three short plays representing comedy, tragedy, and farce. Our one dance of the year was a Senior Sport Dance held in the Gym last November. Another dance, the Senior Prom, was the climax of our years here at college. We had our Senior Carnival on April 25. This year it was organized around a nautical motif, and it was a huge success. Then, too, there was Class Day with all its color and tradition. It was a day that will always stand out in our memories. We place new significance upon our senior apprenticeship, and we feel that we are ready to assume the careers for which we have been trained. I know that you all feel the same as I when I say that our four years here at Worcester State Teachers College have enriched our lives and opened new vistas that otherwise would probably have remained closed. We owe the devel- opment of our personalities and character to our training; and as we stand ready to graduate and leave forever our student days, we wish each other success and happiness. Sincerely yours, Irene T. Morrison Seventeen