PAGE 2 — THE COUGAR CRY, OCTOBER 7, 1974
LRC — BIG ATTRACTION
Throngs Turn Out
For Open House
Wilkes Community College
observed Open House on Sun
day, September 22, 1974 from
2:00 to 5:00 p.m. John V. Idol,
Vice President for Student
Services, served as chairman
for the activities. Many faculty
and staff members were on
hand to greet the public. Rep
resenting the students were
John Cashion, President of the
Student Government Associa
tion, and Linda Shaffner, Pres
ident of the Sophomore Class.
Many special activities reveal
ed to the commimity opportuni
ties available at Wilkes Com
munity College.
The Division of Learning Re-
souces was turned into the
Land of Wiz, featuring the fol
lowing characters: Dorothy,
Kate Anthony; Scarecrow, Bon
nie Bauguss; Tin Man, Debbie
Cleary; Tasteful Lion, Linda
Shaffner; Witch of Ignorance,
Barbara Stone; Wizard of Wiz,
Ray Bauguss.
James Larkin Pearson, Poet
Laureate of North Carolina,
visited the library during Open
House.
In the Student Commons, the
Division of Continuing Educa
tion displayed arts and crafts,
featuring beaded flowers, cop
per tooling, and luthier craft.
A sculpture display and the
Adult Basic Education display
were also set up in the Com
mons.
The Division of Business and
Commerce provided visual
media presentations on banking,
industry, and insurance. They
presented a preview of the sec
retarial stenotrainer and dem
onstrations of the new elec
tronic calculators. The Hotel-
Motel students prepared and
served punch and cookies.
The Division of Physical
Sciences provided a Basic and
Advanced Physics display. In
dividual instruction in the areas
of surveying-drafting house
plans and Radio Broadcasting
were available.
Coming Soon To WCC:
^Inherit The Wind’
By Virgie Church
Mr. Mayes, director-producer
of INHERIT THE WIND, offers
us a glimpse of his upcoming
fall production.
INHERIT THE WIND was
written in 1955 by Jerome Law
rence and Robert E. Lee. The
play is a fictionalized dramatiza
tion bom of the events that took
place during the John F. Scopes
“monkey” trial of 1925. Al
though the dialogue of the play
was, by the authors’ choice, not
taken from the actual tran
scripts of that famous trial, the
characters are authentically rep
resented.
Even though the trial took
place in Dayton, Tennessee, it
was not the intention of the
authors for the play to repre
sent a particular place or a par
ticular time. The playwrights
suggest the program read, “The
Place: A Small Town, The Time:
Not Too Long Ago.” The auth
ors wrote, “It might have been
yesterday. It could be tomor
row.”
The collision of Bryan and
Darrow at Dayton over the
teaching of Darwin’s tiieory of
evolution in public schools re
sulted in the writing of millions
of words about the “money
trial.” It was from these writ
ings and from the recountings
of personal reminiscences and
experiences that the play was
written.
Mr. Mayes says the cast will
be large and will be taken from
the college and the community.
It will include children and,
hopefully, a real live monkey.
The set design will be by Henry
Church, commercial artist for
Lowe’s Hardware. The dates of
the production are November 1,
2, 7, 8, and 9.
After he has selected his cast,
Mr. Mayes will give us another
glimpse of his upcoming pro
duction as an appetizer. In the
meantime, we might tuck our
napkins into our shirt collars
and prepare ourselves for a
spectacular main course.
The Division of Life Sciences
presented displays in the areas
of Biology, Food Service Man
agement, Horticulture, Practi
cal Nursing, Early Childhood
Education, Counselor, and So
cial Services Associate pro
grams. Mrs. Nancy Triplett
served cookies and fudge pre
pared by the Food Service Man
agement students. Apples were
given away to hungry visitors
as they toured the Chemistry
Lab.
Mr. Jay Anderson of the Gen
eral Studies Division gave a
slide presentation, the early his
tory of Wilkes County. Across
the hall, the Walt Disney movie
TOOT, WHISTLE, PLUNK,
AND BOOM was presented.
From 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.. Dr.
Robert Mayer and the Wilkes
Community College Symphony
Orchestra presented a concert
in the Teaching Auditorium,
and a bluegrass group perform
ed in the Commons.
Comments from visitors, fa
culty, and staff were very fav
orable.
Dan Patterson, a student at
Forsyth Technical Institute, ob
served, “It’s very interesting.
There is a good cross section of
interests and activities.”
John Cashion expressed his
opinion this way; “Watching
people become aware of the
areas this college covers, and
the lives it touches was a real
trip. Everywhere you could
hear people saying, ‘Why, I
didn’t know you could leam
this here.’ It’s like they have
discovered an unexplored land.
I think Open House should be a
semi-annual affair.”
Dr. Howard Thompson, Presi
dent of Wilkes Community Col
lege, commented, “Open House
was extremely successful in
that different areas of North
west North Carolina were rep
resented by visitors—and WCC
is a regional institution. Then,
too, students and staff had more
items of interest for visitors
than ever before. It was per
haps our most successful Open
House.”
Judging by reaction of the
public, this year’s Open House
was indeed a learning experi
ence for everyone involved.
— Aletha Baker
Business
Dept. News
Dr. Lewis
On September 26-27, Dr.
Lewis attended an Insurance
Curriculum Conference. The
major purpose of the Confer
ence was to discuss ways of ex
panding and developing the in
surance curriculum at the com
munity college level.
Hotel-Motel
Tuesday the Hotel-Motel Res
taurant students entertained an
evening meeting of business in
structors at WCC. Proceeds
from the meetings and lunch
eons will be used for an edu
cation excursion to New York.
New Courses
An evening course in elec
tronic data processing has been
introduced into the curriculum.
It’s been several years since an
evening course was offered.
Of special interest is a new
course entitled Chartered Prop
erty and Casualty Underwriters
I. Local insurance agents are
now attending classes.
This course is an excellent
example of curriculum which
directly enhances our conunun-
ity.
Tom Toliver
Mr. Tom Toliver is a new ad
dition to the WCC staff. He is
well qualified in related busi
ness areas.
In a future issue we will give
more information about Mr.
Toliver.
Speakers Set
For Class
In Government
Mr. Jay Anderson, history in
structor, has scheduled the fol
lowing speakers for his class in
State and Local Government:
—Police Department of North
Wilkesboro, Officer David Felts
and Chief Kyle Gentry.
—Town of North Wilkesboro,
Jim Bentley, Town Supervisor.
—Education’s Problems in
County Government, C. B.
Eller, former County Superin
tendent.
—^How Bills Become Laws,
Jeter Haynes, Member of
North Carolina House of Rep
resentatives.
—^From Welfare to Social
Services, Jack Elledge, Director
of Wilkes County Social Serv
ices.
The class meets at 2 p.m.
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
in Room 313, Hayes Hall. For
those who might wish to attend,
notices of times and speakers
will be posted prior to class
meeting.
JAMES LARKIN PEARSON
Tm Already Old’
Sunday, September 16th was
the birthday of North Carolinas
Poet Laureate, James Larkin
Pearson. Wilkes Commimity
College paid tribute to the
ninety-five year old poet with
a birthday party in the student
commons at two P.M.
As Gary McNeil and John
McCann set up video and audio
recorders, mikes, and cameras;
the crowd began to pour in.
Personal friends, admirers and
school children who had only
heard of the man gathered to
hear this giant among North
Carolinas literary figures. Mr.
Pearson read selections from
his book “My Fingers and My
Toes” which was published in
1971 and dedicated to Mr. J. J.
Anderson and Faye Byrd,
whom we all know well.
Janet Brookshire and Kay
Ford paid tribute by singing
three selections and then lead
ing everyone in singing happy
birthday to the honored guest.
Miss Brookshire and Mrs. Ford
cut a record recently with vari
ous selections of Mr. Pearson’s
work, including his most famous
work “Fifty Acres.” Both the
record and the book “My Fing
ers and My Toes” were on sale
all afternoon.
Of the 150 or so persons
present, there were no curiosity
seekers and no one who just
dropped in due to lack of any
thing else to do. The reason
coming was to see, to hear
and to experience the man
. . . James Larkin Pearson.
The Cougar Cry staff would
like to be the hrst to wish
happy 96th to the man who
commented “1 am not growing
old, I am already old.”