Nostalgia

I've been spending time reminiscing with former students from North Charleston High School where I began my teaching career. At first I found Lily on Facebook and enjoy being in touch with her. Then I discovered a message on her "wall" from another student I had in forensics (speech & drama) but not in class. Anyway, now I'm in touch with three of them - Lily, David, and Reggie - and also found a NOCHAS group that's been so much fun. One thing led to another, and I finally found my yearbook from the last year I was there and scanned a few photos from it to the group and to my FB photos. This is what I've been doing while some of you were at the DDBW and others were outside enjoying the pretty weather.

One thing I remember the most is what an amazing student council they had there. They actually did something. The officers had responsibilities and were leaders. There was a Hall Patrol who caught students running, shoving, walking in the wrong lane, chewing gum, etc. If they broke a school rule, the Hall Patrol wrote them up, and they were automatically guilty. The Honor Council ruled on those infractions as well as cheating and meted out punishment. Mostly they did janitorial work, but cheaters had to attend some meetings, I think. It was effective to have their peers deal with some of this. Additionally, they had a Safety Council, Devotions Committee, and Public Relations Group. I tried to convince the principal where I taught here to implement some of these responsibilities, but he wouldn't relinquish any control over to the students. It worked there, and these students became outstanding citizens. People usually rise to the expectations we have of them.

Something really funny that Bob and Larry did was to make up quotes for the Quote of the Week. They had real ones and worked those in, too. They made up names for the authors of these quotes and presented me with a booklet of these quotes when I left. My son Brian was born in September, 1969, so the spring of the 1968-69 year was when I left. My husband (ex now) was in the Navy and got out the next spring, so we moved back to TN. Brian and I came back in January and stayed with my parents and flew to Charleston to meet him when his plane brought him back from his last patrol on the submarine. Brian was seven months old, and we made the trip pretty well, even changing planes in Atlanta with a short layover.

This is how I looked when I taught there. I was 25 in this picture that I scanned from the yearbook and enlarged. That's when hair pieces and falls were in style. Wish I had some pictures of me in those! It's the only way I could have long, straight hair.


Y-Teens I helped sponsor. Wish I were still that size! I'm on the front row on the left in the bottom picture and second from the right standing in the top one. You can click to enlarge, and I was Mrs. Cooksey then.


Well, yes, they wrote in my yearbook. I made that dress I had on in these.