Notes from Cardigan (February, 1973)

Notes from

Cardigan

Nonprofit Orpnization

U.S. POST AGE PAID Canaan, N.H. Permit No. 1

Cardigan Mountain School Canaan, New Hampshire 03741

Issue No.

4

February 1973

The academic standing of a school is largely determined by what happens in the classroom. The flavor of a school, however, is created by the kind and variety of activities going on outside of classroom hours. Our club program gives boys an opportunity for informal man-to-boy contact with a teacher with whom they share a common interest. There are nine active clubs going this Winter ranging through the following variety of interests: astronomy, auto mechanics, chess, drama, electronics, fly-tying, magic, models and science. lt 1 s difficult to say how many boys are involved since participation by both students and faculty is purely voluntary - which is one of its advantages.

The Science Club is a group of boys working on various science-type projects with Mr. Crowell 1 s help and guidance. One boy is building a parabolic reflector to catch bird sounds.

Another is working on an underwater microphone for recording underwater sounds. As soon as the ice is out, they are planning a visit to the beaver dam to see if they can discover whether beavers make sounds underwater. One boy is building a hot air balloon from wood and tissue paper. Hopefully, this will be ready for launching by the time Spring breezes are noticed on campus. Another project started last Fall was to chart the lake bottom by taking and recording soundings. Work on this will resume after the ice is gone. When this is completed we will have an up-to-date contour chart of our lake. About a week ago, on a very cold Sunday afternoon, a small group was gathered around a rocket launching site on the ice about 100 yards offshore. Suspense and excitement were high as an igniter was inserted, a rocket placed on the pad, electrical connections made and the countdown started. Countdown was chiefly for the benefit of Mr. Rudd and an assistant who were stationed at some distance with a transit to measure the height of ascent of each shot. Despite some difficulties, caused no doubt by the biting cold, there were several spectacular shots. What a sight they were, streaking straight up into the sunny winter atmosphere, reaching their apogee, then the slow turn and ever-faster descent climaxed by the opening of a bright red or orange parachute which permitted the descent of the rocket safely for its next shot. Not an activity for everyone, but very wonderful for those boys who were interested.

Those of you who visited us during Parents• Weekend will perhaps remember the hand-tied fishing flies that were part of the faculty crafts exhibit. As a result of this faculty hobby, there are now seven boys who meet with Mr. Heath to learn fly-tying. Starter tying kits include a small hobby vice and an initial supply of feathers, thread, tinsel and hooks. Even beginners can tie a simple streamer in about 15 minutes. With a 1 ittle practice, they will soon be making $1.25 flies which cost them only 10¢ for materials - plus time, patience and effort.

It's been such a mild winter that we have had to utilize a number of neighboring ski areas in order to keep boys on skis every day. We've been to Ragged Mountain and to Whaleback several times. Recently one of the coaches took his cross-country team to Hanover to practice on the Dartmouth course at a time when ours wasn't useable. They also had a chance to watch the Dartmouth team racing on the same course.

Lest you believe that the cultural side of life is neglected here in the hills, we report that over seventy boys saw one of the touring productions of Godspell at Dartmouth's Hopkins Center early in January. Groups from Cardigan were present at afternoon and evening performances for two days. The Drama Club was treated to an evening on the other side of the footlights recently when they saw Hanover High School 1 s production of Bad Seed. Filled with

the fresh inspiration this provided they plunged with renewed vigor into rehearsals for another one-act play - Refund - which will be mounted just before Spring vacation .~spite the obvious inadequacies of our auditorium in Hinman - no front curtain, poor lighting, no back or side fliers - the Drama Club is alive and well and continuing to attract new recruits.

Art classes toured an exhibit at the Hopkins Center earlier this month. On display were paintings, etchings, ancient pottery and contemporary sculpture. We took boys by bus and by van afternoon and evening in small groups so they could see the exhibits at their leisure. We're certainly fortunate in having this center so close.

Early in the Fall, prep school admissions directors start visiting us to look over our seniors and to talk and show pictures about their schools. The following 1 ist will give you an idea of the schools who are interested enough in Cardigan boys to pay us a visit: Blair Academy, Buckingham Academy, Cambridge School, Cushing Academy, Deerfield Academy, Dublin Academy, Fountain Valley School, Gould Academy, Hebron Academy, Hoosac School, Hyde School, Kent School, Kimball Union Academy, Millbrook Academy, Northfield-Mt. Hermon Schools, Peddie School, Salisbury School, Suffield Academy, Vermont Academy, White Mountain School, Williston Academy, Wooster Academy. In add i tion, Mr. Rich and other faculty have taken several boys around to visit several schools in New England.

Cardigan's School Council has managed the coke machine for the past several years and this has been their chief source of income. The snack bar they opened this Fall has been a most welcome addition to school 1 ife and adds additional revenue to their funds. It has become increasingly obvious that the school record player Mr. Finkbeiner is using for his music classes has simply outlived its normal period of service. Even non-musical boys were not pleased with the extra noises it was making. At their last meeting, the Council voted to buy a new sound system for the Music Department and after it had been purchased, they presented it to Mr. Finkbeiner at dinner one evening. It had been a well-kept secret and he was surprised and overwhelmed. It is a music-lovers delight - all components, and on a wheeled cart so it can be stored in safety. It's hard to remember when any action by the School Council has had more unanimous approval by the entire student body.

Most of us think Cardigan is such a wonderful place for boys to learn and grow that we ' are surprised there is no waiting list of applicants. The chief reason seems to be that we are not old enough to be well-known all over the country. To remedy this situation, for next Fall as well as for the future, Headmaster and Mrs. Wakely are touring our fair land telling the Cardigan story to groups of educators, parents and friends. Meetings have been arranged with the help of the Enrollment Committee in Cleveland, Louisville, St. Louis, Kansas City, Denver, Houston, Austin, New Orleans, Coral Gables and Sarasota . Those of us who are left behind are tempted to label this a junket, but in all honesty we have to admit they are covering a lot of ground in only four weeks.

On the serious side, our annual guess-the-number-of-jellybeans-in-the-jar contest ended in time for winners to be announced on Valentine's Day. This year's jar contained 530 jellybeans, according to the official count; first prize went to John Row l and with Bruce Kelly a close second. Rumor has it that they haven't quite finished them all yet.

Notes from Cardigan is published monthly by Cardigan Mountain School.

Second class postage paid at Canaan, N.H. 03741