by Rick Wise

In January 1973 I had just finished student teaching and accepted a teaching position at L-S. Little did I know what I was walking into!
There were 2,000 kids, an open campus, no study halls, dress codes, or hall passes. There were student smoking areas in the building and some staff offices. Plus, lunch blocks were non-existent. The cafe was open from 10:30am to 12:30pm for lunch. Classes were scheduled in 20 minute blocks called mods. Some classes were two or three mods, others were four or five mods.
Scheduling was done by hand picking your classes. Students would be waiting at a teacher’s door in the morning just to be sure they got into a class. Electives followed a similar pattern except that there were tables set up in the Gym and everyone scrambled to get their choices for electives. It was called Arena Scheduling. It was more like a three ring circus. Most freshmen required therapy after their first scheduling experience.
I was hired to start the new automotive program. My department head, Mr. Pacenka, handed me a list of equipment to buy and said I could spend $25,000. He wished me luck and said he would be around to help. I was clueless, but we got through it!
As Senior Prank Advisor in the mid 1970’s, I was responsible for redirecting bad ideas and helping them evolve into something less controversial. My direction usually got us to the flag pole. One time it was loaded with tires and another time it was equipped with a Volkswagen Beetle!
The auto courses flourished well into the 1980’s. I was teaching four different levels of automotives and was having a ball doing it. Then the L-S population started dwindling fast and I found myself in the precarious position of losing my job to declining enrollment.
Two of the more popular teachers at L-S were about to lose their jobs...me and Ms. Belcher. The students at L-S staged a walkout for us one morning and got television and newspaper coverage. It worked! We were both saved, but not for long. The student population was down to 900 and we were the least senior members of our departments. I outlasted Ms. Belcher by a year or so, but then, she found her way back before me.
In 1989, I left L-S and landed at Arlington High. In August of 2001, I received a phone call from L-S to see if I was interested in returning. Dr. Ritchie told me if I accepted the position he would build a new high school for me. How could I refuse?
Coming back to L-S was like coming home. The last seven years have been just as rewarding as the first sixteen.
I helped design and develop Engineering classes and rebuild the automotive program. Of course, I also worked with Mr. Carpenter as the faculty advisor to the L-S Robotics Team, but let’s save that story for another time! Right now, I have to go work on straightening out my slice. After all, I am retiring!