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| Schools are part of the fabric of life
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| Despite several changes, the importance of schools in society is still strong
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 | | | steve.swisher@crookcounty.k12.or.us |
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It seems as if summer has just begun, but the "back to school" ads are hitting the newspapers and air waves. As the week of the Fourth of July passed, it was a time of reflection and memory for me as well as one for some rest and relaxation.
Last weekend, we attended a family reunion in Klamath Falls for my wife's side of the family. An elderly aunt about to turn 90, for whom my wife was named, made it out from Cordell, Okla., with her son and his wife. Two other aunts form the Ocean Side and Vista areas of California, who are in their late seventies, also were able to attend, in addition to a myriad of cousins and their families spanning four generations that live in Oregon and Washington.
One thing that struck me was that most of the conversation at all age levels was somehow connected to the children's summer activities and the preparation for the upcoming school year. Many of the younger generation were involved in baseball or other sports activities. These programs were all somehow connected directly or indirectly to school programs. The merits of year-round activity in one sport versus participating in several sports and how it would lead to better high school teams were vigorously debated among the elders while the youngsters participated in a game of touch football.
As the touch football game continued, one of the cousins gave to Novella (my wife) and her sister an old eighth grade math book published in 1933 that the cousin had found when cleaning out old storage areas in her parents home. The book had belonged to Novella's father when he was in school in Delta, Colo. in 1936. The retail charge to the student was printed on the back cover as 39 cents. His name was written in the back and there were many calculations on the note pages in his handwriting. Upon reviewing the contents, I noted the arithmetic and basic Geometry problems, but I was also interested to see lessons on how to write and endorse a check as well as how to keep a check register. In 1936 only about 25-30 percent of people went beyond the 8th grade to finish high school so those were important skills and information for students to learn in what may likely have been their last year of formal education.
The conversation quickly drifted to the difference in the world today and how everyone needs to finish not only high school, but needs further education after that level. The younger mothers were talking about who their children's teachers would be next fall among interspersed conversations about the weather and a few neighborhood and extended family scandals.
The weather was warm, the food good, and the homemade ice cream was the big hit for all. I'm sure this scene was replicated around the communities of state and country with many family gatherings and other celebrations around the Fourth of July week.
It was good to relax a bit and just be a family member. However, all of that school talk reminded me that our schools are part of the fabric of our family and community life. It also reminded me that my short break is over and it is time for our schools to get ready again for our returning students and the many students that will be new to our community this fall.
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