THE BLACKBIRD
Published by the Joumalism Class of Rocky Mount Senior Hiffh School
VOL. XXXVin-No. 5
ROCKY MOUNT, N. C.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1967
Hi-Noc-Ar Announces
Outstanding Seniors
OUTSTANDING SENIORS—Shown above are
the 12 outstanding seniors for this year. From
left are (FRONT ROW) Doug Bradham, Bobby
Thompson, Stephen Draper, Benjie Smith,
Stephen Battle, Hatcher Kincheloe; (SECOND
ROW) Charlotte Looney, Woody Bobbitt, Mary
Jo Sheridan, Penny Hicks, Margaret Winstead
and Fran Warren. (Photo by Killebreve.)
RMSH Welcomes New Exchange Student,
Jorge Jose Ortiz Of Medellin, Colombia
Jorge Jos€ Ortiz, exchange
student under the International
Fellowship Inc. program, ar
rived. November 30 and will be
here until July.
Jorge is from Medellin, Co
lombia, the same city from
which Luis li'ernaiMlo Suarez
came last year. For the next
seven months, he will stay with
the family of Mr. and Mrs. C.
R. Langley.
Jorge’s father is general
manager of a clotidng manu
facturing industry in Colombia.
Jorge, who is 18, is one of five
boys and seven girls.
While he i» here, he will tal:e
Class Of ’68 Adopts Child
To Follow Senior Tradition
RMSH’s Senior Class has
adopted a little boy from Viet
nam for the school year 1967-
68 under the Foster Parents
Plan.
Past senior classes have been
foster parents for many years
now, and the Cla^ of ’68 will
continue the tradition. To adopt
a child under the PLAN, the
class donates $180, which is
sent to the child’s family in
monthly installments; each
payment is worth $1300 in Viet
namese money. The money is
used to help educate the child,
to buy his clothes, and to help
pay the medical expenses of hia
family.
Pham Van Hieu
The little boy is Pham Van
Hieu, a fourth grader whose
mother peddles to eam a living
for her family. Both his pa
rents are iJJ much of the time,
for Hieu writes in bis March
15, 1967 letter, “My father has
got seriously ill and has taken
many injections but he doesn’t
feel better yet . . . If my mo
ther had not to look after us
she would have been in the
hospital for some time —” His
June letter lends a note of en
couragement: “My father’s
condition is 30 j>ercent improv
ed. aixd my mother is feeling
better.” He is very grateful to
the Senior Class.
Vietnamese children usually
have three names — the last
name, which is given first, fol
lowed by Van for males and
Thi for females, and the first
name. Their age is calculaited
by tiie lunar calendar; at birth,
a child is 1 year old, and he
adds a year ait each lunar new
year regardless of his actual
birth date. Birthdays are not as
important as in the U.S., and
many Vietnamese children nev
er celebrate a birthdiay.
Education
Schooling is not compulsory
in Vietnam. Education in most
institutions is based on rote
learning. The government is
trying to modernize methods,
train teachers, and build new
schools as quickly as possible,
for the demand far exceeds
available facilities. For this
reason there are many private
institutions — Hieu is now at
tending one of these. Public
schools are more desirable,
however, because their training
helps the student pass govern
ment exams.
Elementary school consists of
five grades. To enter public
secondary school, one must pass
a highly competitive examina
tion. Uusually only 10-20 per
cent succeed — Uiere is not
room for more. Most Foster
Children are not within this
group and musit attend private
schools. To go on to high school,
the child must again pass a
highly competitive national
exam; it is rare that a Foster
Child passes this test. If he
should succeed, he atitends high
school for 3 years ami receives
a Baccalaureate Degree upon
graduation.
EngUsh, Modern Algebra II,
technical drawing, physics, U.S.
history, public speaking, and
gym. In Colombia, physics,
chemistry, geometry, trignon-
metry, English, Spanish,
French, philosophy, psycho
logy, religion, democracy, phy
sical education, and economics
are only a few of the subjects
taught.
Jorge’s future occupation is
architecture. He hopes to con
tinue liis education in Bogota,
Colombia.
Jorge is interesited in all
sports. He plays basketball and
soccer and enjoys dancing.
The Rocky Mount Adult lead
ers of the International Fellow
ship program are Mrs. C. E.
Deans of Red Oak, and Mrs;
Russell Sorrell of Rocky Mount.
Last week thci Hi-Noc-Ar staff
annoiunced the selection
twelve outstanding seniors, six
girls and six boys, voted on by
the senior class on the basis
of outstanding service and con
tribution to the school. They
are:
Mary Wood Bobbitt is a var
sity cheerleader. Treasurer of
her junior class and a member
of the Junior-Senior Invitation
Committee, Woody was runner-
up in this year’s Homecoming
Queen contest.
Marian Elizabeth Hicks
is head varsity cheerlead
er and a member of the presi
dent’s cabinet. She is the 1967
homecoming queen. Penny was
chosen Rotary Girl of the Month
and was a member of the
beauty court.
Charlotte Anne Looney 5s
the Student Organization
treasurer. She was a nominee
for the Governor’s School and
a comimencement marshal.
Charlotlte was a Miss. Print
runner-up and a member of
the Beauty Court.
Mary Jo Sheridan is the
president of the National Honor
Society and a National Merit
semi-finalist. She was a Gover
nor’s School nominee and an
Elk’s Leadership Contest nomi
nee.
Frances Adelle Warren
is a member of tiie National
Honor Society and the Varsity
cheerleader squad. Fran is
frequently listed on the A and
B honor rolls.
Margaret Bell Winstead,
is co-editor of the Hi-Noc-Ar
and a member of the presi
dent’s cabinet. She is a member
of the National Honor Society
and was selected D.A.R. Good
citizen and Rotary Girl of the
Month.
, Stephen Shackelford Battle
of is Field Service Student com
mittee chairman. Last summer
he traveled abroad to Germany
as the AFS foreign exchange
student. He has played junior
varsity and varsity basketball
and was president of his sopho
more class and vice-president
of his junior class.
Dougl'as Donaldson Bradham,
is co-editor of the Hi-Noc-Ar
He is a member of the NatioLjI
Honor Society and has been on
the A and B honor rolls. He was
a Morehead alternate and win
ner of the Civitan Citizenship
Award.
Stephen Brantley Draper is
president of the senior class.
He is a member of the Nation
al Honor Society and is an
Eagle Scout. He has played
junior varsity and varsity
football and has been on the
golf team. Stephen is president
of the Monogram Cluh.
Hatcher Byrd Kincheloe, Jr.,
is a member of the National
Honor Society. Hatcher was
chosen as a National Merit
Scholarship semi-finalist and
was named Optimist IVpical
Youth. He was president of ’,iis
junior class.
William Benjamin Smith is
the president of the Student Or
ganization. He was the junior
class president and ,^the eh!''
man of the fire drill
He was a Morehead iioii..
and was chosen Kiwanis Boy v
the Month.
Robert E’letcher Thompson,
Jr. is the vice-president of
the Student Organization and
secretary rf the Radio Broad
casters Club. He was co-chair
man of the Junior-Senior enter
tainment committee and was
chosen as Rotary Boy of the
Month.
Board Honors Mr. D. S. Johnson
The Rocky Mount School
Board, at its monthly meeting
Monday, November' 27, paid the
greatest tribute in its power to
Mr. D. S. Johnson, retired su
perintendent of city schools, by
renaming Fairview Elementary
School D. S. Johnson School in
his honor.
Commenting on the decision,
Mr. John.'on said, “I feel high
ly honored that the School Board
named a school in my honor. 1
am delighted: that my name
wiU be perpetuated within the
school system because the
schools of Rocky Mount are my
first love and will continue to
be. There will be a special spot
reserved in my heart for the
D. S. Johnson School.”
Fairview School is one of the
newest elementary schools in
Rocky Mount and is located
near itlie new School Admini
strative Building.
Mr. Johnson is a native of
Burgaw. He was educated at
Trinity Ciollege (now Duke Uni
versity). He taught at Thomas-
ville High School and in Dur
ham and was principal of the
Masonic Oxford Orphanage
School and of Oxford High
School before he came to Rocky
Mount in 1944 to be principal of
Rocky Mount High School.
He served in this capacity un
til April 1, 1949, when he was
appointed superintendent of city
schools following Superintendent
R. M. Wilson’s death. He ser
ved as superintendent for 17
years before, his retirer "'nt
July 1, 1966. He is now serving
as part-time administrative as
sistant to the dean of situdents
at N.C. Wesleyan College.
IVffi. D. S. JOHNSON, retired superintendent of Rocky Mount
City Schools, has elementary school named after him