After hearing from mom that dad went to Central Avenue Elementary School, I thought I'd check to see if there was any documentation of the history of the school on the web.
I was amazed to find a large
article on Wikipedia.
It turns out that even more is posted at the end of the Wikipedia article, because there was an
application made to the National Register of Historic Places (and I think that all such applications, or maybe those that are approved, are posted on the web). The application has a good bit of history, and several
pictures. The building was in pretty sad shape when the pictures were taken, but you could still get a sense of some of the exterior and interior features of the building. (The application is a PDF file, which means you need to have Adobe Reader loaded on your computer to pull up the linked article.)
I shared this information with Uncle Don, and asked him to confirm that all of George and Della's children attended school there. Here's a couple of emails he sent in return:
Yes, we all attended Central Ave and the grades were from kindergarden thru the 8th grade. The school was about 6 blocks from our Walnut home and of course, we all walked to school. The floors were wood and can remember the janitor, Mr Wood, sprinkling a "floor sweep" material on the floors prior to sweeping them with a large broom. The material contained an oily base which reduced the amount of dust. The main thing that I remember about the building was not the physical structure but the teachers who taught there. The men wore suits and ties and the ladies dressed like they were going to a dance. They were all outstanding teachers and they certainly molded our later lives in a very positive way. Yes, the teachers used paddles in those days and you could hear the resulting sound throughout the building. Needless to say, discipline wasn't a major problem since the teachers had total control but did not abuse this activity. I remember all of the teacher's names and the teachers remain as outstanding individuals in my memories.And also:
Mother was very active for several years in the PTA at Central Ave school as many parents were in those days. It was also amazing how many parents knew each other compared to today.The mention of my grandmother's involvement in the school PTA gives me a new view of her role in the community. The only organization that I have ever heard of her being involved with was the church and her church circle (ladies group). I'm sure she would have been a worker, and with four kids in the school, she would have known most of the teachers.
It's good to hear Uncle Don talk about the teachers with such complimentary remarks. I might share his comments with some friends back home to let them share with new teachers how much impact they can have on children and how long the impact lasts. The comment about their professional dress is something that school leaders keep stressing to new teachers, sometimes to no avail. Being dressed better than is required is a good thing for many jobs that involve interaction with people and where there isn't a uniform in use.
I have to admit that paddling is something that has pretty much gone by the wayside, although it is still allowed in my old school district. I paddled junior high students in the early 80's but stopped when I was a principal and I did not recommend that new administrators use that tool. When I was principal, one of my most trusted friends and colleagues (and one of my AP's at the time) was almost charged with child abuse when he paddled a young man (with advanced parental consent, even though it wasn't required) and he left bruises. I had seen him paddle other children, and there was a witness who was very trustworthy. The only thing that saved him, and a brilliant career in school administration, was my relationship with the investigator (she was our first landlord in Okeechobee, and a former Director of our Special Ed department in the school system) and her relationship with the family (who were very supportive generally of the school district).
However, I must point out to younger readers that paddling was very much in effect when the baby boomer cousins were in school in the 60's and early 70's. Although the quality of teachers was a mixed bag... they were hiring anyone who could walk and chew gum at the same time... paddling was still an institution as several of my friends and relatives can attest. Personally, the only time I was paddled was in first grade, when I was standing on the seat of my desk to retrieve something that belonged to me and fell out of the chair onto the classroom floor.... screaming and crying as should be expected. Instead of the expected sympathy, I got a ping pong paddle on the backside.
In high school, just the sound of some paddlings gave you enough sense of caution that you did not think about serious misbehavior... and never thought about being blatantly disrespectful... unless the teacher was a complete nutcase like Mr. Turner or inept like Mr. Lay. Jay can describe high school paddlings... and I have $10 that says Kent and Todd did not escape Highland without getting a few whacks!
I advanced to the level of Assistant Superintendent of Schools at a young age because I had two skills directly attributable to two teachers at Highland. I could give speeches... because I took Ron Clark's Speech class one semester at HHS. And I could write... thanks to the composition course (part of English III) taught by his wife Sandra. My former boss, a pretty sharp guy, could do both but didn't like doing either. After passing on a large group of candidates, all of whom were more senior to me as principals, he came and offered the job to me. I had not applied.
Update:
Uncle Don sent me an email with a link to a new Anderson Herald article describing the conversion of the old Central Avenue Elementary building into an apartment complex for seniors:
http://www.theheraldbulletin.com/local/local_story_088202434.html
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