Karan Carpenter asks Terry Fraley to show her how to do her homework.
Wise Up
“Studying is going over material for a test or doing homework,” defined Vickie Hileman. “When I study I get off and get the material I need and study until I’m really tired,” she continued.
Don Carter and Laura McKinnon had a different view of studying, one that was perhaps more typical.
“Learning new material the night before the test is my approach,” said Don.
Laura preferred to “go back and put together the material that I’ve learned.”
While Vickie chose to study in a secluded place where she could be alone, some students preferred background music from a radio or stereo. Others chose the library and a friend to quiz them.
How much did most students study? Don Carter summed it up when he said, “Never enough!”
Annie Sullivan, played by Leslie Lane, and Kate Keller, played by Sylvia Blyholder, aid Helen Keller, played by Charlene McKee, as she struggles in her dark world, from “The Miracle Worker.”Vicki Hileman applies Sean Harrison’s make-up while finished product Mike Smith puffs on a cigarette.Annibel, played by Becky Segers, exclaims over the condition of the house while Kimber, played by Mike Smith, hangs on to his suspenders in the beginning of “George Washington Slept Here.”Rick Bashor and Theresa Smith pass the time playing chess during a scene from “George Washington Slept Here.”
Playing Around
The theatre darkened, the curtain opened and the play entertained the audience for a little while.
What they saw was the finished product of many weeks of work. The actors were only the beginning; sets had to be built, costumes and props acquired, make-up created, lights and sound coordinated.
Behind the scenes of three plays was Mrs. Pat Collier, directing members of the Drama Department. “George Washington Slept Here,” a comedy, was presented in the fall. “American Names,” a Bicentennial program given in February, included scenes from three famous American plays, “The Devil and Daniel Webster,” “Our American Cousin” and “The Miracle Worker.” The senior play was planned for late spring.
Out of the footlights, members of the Creative Drama classes went to local elementary schools where they involved children in the basics of drama by having them tell a story with pantomime and sound effects.
Competitively, drama students went with the Debate Squad to the University of Arkansas tournament where they performed the Reader’s Theatre “Johnny Pye and the Fool Killer.” They also took “Star Spangle and Company” to state.
Summing up the year, senior Sylvia Blyholder said, “It was a lot of hard work, but it was worth it.”
Front row, from left: Perry Thomas (sponsor), Sharon Ammons, Sylvia Blyholder, Nina Rolloff (secretary), Helen Messner (treasurer), Hee-Young Kim, Nicky Gyles (president), Sue Stockton (vice-president), J.D. Hobbs, Mike Brooks, Melissa Upchurch, Jana Janzen. Second row: Liz Adam, Karan Carpenter, Betsy Stewart, Sandi Coffin, Laura Larr, Sheila Barbee, Nancy Stanberry, Lisa McConnell, Betsy Perkins, Bev Kreie, Susan Stephenson, Jody Tyson. Third row: Susan Herrington, Luanne Smart, Vicki Hileman, Debbie Adam, Diane Bell, Pat Bryan, Judy Goff, Pam Sills, Lisa Lashley, Terry Miller, Laura McKinnon, Donna Moore, Karen Jones. Fourth row: Sherman Smith, Alan Hepler, Steven Yancey, Dianne Cross, Teresa Fields, Teensy Kirby, Cathy Huff, John Horn, Soren Kraemer, Tom Coker, Kathy Bell, Janis Reed. Fifth row: Marc McGuire, Bob Storey, Gary Striegler, Jeff Ward, Brian Holt, Rick Turner, Don Carter, Greg Thoma, Daniel Wickliff, Cecile McKee, Linda Langham. Back row: Phyllis Kelly, Mark Springer, Bill Watkins, Jeff England, Samuel Steel, Theresa Smith, Dotty Neely, Terry Reed, Becky Riggs, Nathan McKinney, Robert Meyer.
One of the highest academic honors a student could receive was becoming a member of the National Honor Society.
The membership was composed of seniors with a maintained grade average of 3.25 or more. There were two elections in which the faculty voted on the eligibility of the candidates with each student judged on a one to five scale. Those receiving the highest rating were formally initiated.
The first group of seniors (pictured) were initiated in the spring of their junior year. Those initiated this fall were Sharon Ammons, Debbie Atto, Keith Banks, Robert Cate, Jody Tyson, Randall Hughes, Gail Davis, Anna Leichner, Brian McGreevy, Deanna Eden, Bob Storey, Melissa Upchurch, Jana Janzen, Cheryl Clinehens, Billie Bacha, Jerry Cox, Duane Dunn and David Evans.
NHS’s money making project for 1975-76 was the sale of candy canes at Christmas time. This project was headed by President Nicky Gyles. The other officers were Sue Stockton, vice-president; Helen Messner, treasurer; Nina Rolloff, secretary; and Hee-Young Kim, reporter-historian.
NHS members Sue Stockton and Judy Goff serve refreshments following fall initiation.
During the 1975-76 school year, university students in the creative writing program at the University of Arkansas taught elementary and secondary students across the state about poetry and various approaches to writing poems. The outreach program was known at Poetry in the Schools, or PITS for short.
From the writing, several poems from each school were chosen for publication, including more than a dozen written by seniors in the Class of 76. The attached PDF only contains the forward, introduction and poetry from FHS and the PitStop School in Fayetteville.
Today, the program is known as Writers in the Schools, or WITS, and continues to foster creative writing in schools across the state.
Along with the Fayetteville High School honors and scholarships listed, we included the Livestock Report, illustrating the difference between Fayetteville and Springdale in terms of what the Northwest Arkansas Times deemed worth reporting.
Fayetteville Class of 76 