We were now Sophomores, thinking ourselves much more mature than the mere Freshmen that we had been only a year ago. Although our world was still very small, we mostly didn't realize it. Mrs. Geneva Helm continued as our home room teacher.

For most of us our subjects were

• English II (Mrs. Ruth Carpenter)
• Algebra II (Miss Ruth Mobley)
• Latin II (Mrs. K. Lyle Stengell)
• Biology (Mr. Harold Hunter)
      

      

  Mrs Ruth Carpenter, Mrs. Kay Lyle Stengell, Mr. Harold Hunter, Mrs. Hazel Carver

We didn't exactly know this at the time, but we were fortunate to have Mrs. Piper and Mrs. Carpenter as our English teachers. They were demanding. We were to be acolyte grammarians in the endless catacombs of words and rules that form the English language. We were to know how to construct a sentence, understand participles and gerunds, and be experts at diagramming sentences. That formed a solid basis for much of our English education that followed. Mrs. Stengell's standards in Latin were equally high, and even though no one speaks Latin today, we found in later years that Latin complemented our studies of English in ways that we could not begin to understand at the time. Many of us remember the biology lab, a dingy room in the basement of the classroom building where we dissected foul-smelling earthworms and frogs. It was an introduction to the complexities of biological science.

Many of us were involved with extracurricular activities such as football (Coach Hunter) or basketball (Coach Weaver),or musical pursuits such as Marching Band (Mrs. Hazel Carver) or Glee Club (Mrs. Carver). Some were in the Future Teachers of America organization (sponsored by Mrs. Rector), Allied Youth, or Future Homemakers of America (sponsored by Mrs. Nell Wheat).

On February 10, 1956 the Sophomores sponsored a sock-hop in the gym. The dance lasted from 8 till 11 p.m. Entertainment was provided by "The Great Eight" with vocalist Gretchen Upton. Mr. George Duncan called some square dances which were enjoyed by all. Vivian Page and Gish Arrnold were crowed King and Queen of Hearts. Proceeds of $25.38 went to the Heart Fund.

The photos below of the Sophomores are from the 1956 Panther yearbook.