Vol. 19, No. 2 - Winter 2003

Letters to the editor

I am a graduate of the (then) College of Education (B.S., ’51; Ph.D., ’67), a life member of the UMAA, and a huge fan of all things maroon and gold. I retired in 1991 after 40 years in education. I am writing to congratulate you on the Link. It is an excellent means of keeping the “old timers” current on the happenings of the college. I particularly enjoyed the article about Carol Johnson (Fall 2001)—a truly remarkable leader. Thank you so much for the excellent job you do in preparing educators for the schools of this state, country, and the world. And thank you for keeping your alumni well-informed.

—Roger M. Adams, ’51, ’67

Hello back there in Gopherland! Greetings from San Diego, Calif. We received the “New Look” Link this week, and enjoy the full-color model greatly. The 90-year-old teachers’ story was the best. (I have a short way to go yet, to get there myself.) It’s 64 degrees here now.

—Lowell Van Tassel, ’52, ’62

The Fall 2002 article, “Back to the Future,” brought to the fore past memories. The [creation of the] fledgling Roseville school district resulted in my fourth-grade class being moved to Gibbs School. The one-room school had been operating quietly for years with a small group of students. Imagine the dismay of the teacher when twice as many pupils were assigned to the classroom. We had students in every grade one through eight except seventh. We children were not aware of the difficulties this presented. Our teacher met the challenge in good spirit and with remarkable competence.

I remember being teacher’s helper, sitting around a table in the cloakroom listening to the first- and second-graders recite their reading lessons. The music teacher came once a week. We learned songs and how to play the Tonette. For me, this was the beginning of a life-long commitment to instrumental music. Physical education was outside in all weather, swings, cottonwood trees, plenty of space, and a good fence. The pictures of the classroom are familiar except for the potbellied stove. We learned.

The positive attitude and high expectations of the teacher were key. Thanks for the memories.

—Jean McCurdy, B.A., ’58; M.A., ’62, physical education

The cover pictures of the Winter 2002 and Summer 2002 issues were very interesting for me. The 1940s classroom (Winter 2002), identified as from Richfield was actually from Annandale. It was “teacher-student exchange day”! The students were seventh-graders and the teacher, Miss Lucille Larson (Forsland). The “teacher” for the day was Nancy Kuhnley. I learned many points for living in that room as a student under the teaching of Miss Larson. She was my mentor in that I went on to the U of M, graduated in home economics education in 1951 and taught for 32 years. Twenty-six of those years were in Hutchinson which brings up the second cover picture (Summer 2002) featuring Lindsey Whalen, a Hutch grad of 2000 and U of M basketball star now.

—Doris (Knickerbocker) Horsewell, ’51

Link welcomes correspondence from all of its readers. Send letters to:

Link
Communications Office
105 Burton Hall, 178 Pillsbury Dr. S.E.
Minneapolis, MN 55455
E-mail: rader004@umn.edu
Fax: 612-625-2404

Please note that letters may be edited for clarity and space.