Celebrating 150 Years of CPS

In 1873 the Columbia community elected the first six-member board.

This is now the site of Jefferson Middle School.

The building was located on the southeast corner of Ash and Third streets, on land bought by a black Baptist church.

Celebration of the first graduating class from Columbia Public Schools, marking a significant academic achievement.

Laying the foundation for the district's sports culture.

Columbia high school received ap­proval of its course of study on November 11, 1895. High school in Columbia began simply. Students were divided into courses of study: Classical, Scientific, En­glish-Latin and English. Although there were 177 days in the school term, the average days attended by students attended about 120.

The building was located at the corner of Hodge and Ripley, named Benton.

High school students wanted extracurricular activities and established a literary society in 1898. A choral union and orchestra followed in 1899.

In 1899 Columbia built its first high school, Columbia High School, the present-day site of Jefferson Junior High School. The building was formally opened in Janu­ ary, 1900 and was ex­ pected to handle growth for eight to 10 years but was outgrown in half that time.

The school was named Lee School. On the opening day of classes, September 13, 1904, there was an enrollment of about 160 pupils for the four teachers.

Columbia high school introduced basketball as the first school-sponsored sport.

To prevent the spread of contagious diseases, the district forbade a sick child and all of his brothers and sisters from attending school until a physician certified that it was safe for them to return.

This was due to limited finances from the addition of new teachers.

Grant is the oldest existing school in Columbia and cost $17,500 dollars to build. Grant School opened in January 1911. There was no Kindergarten, only first through sixth grades. “At that time there were only six teachers and the 6th grade teacher was the principal.

These clubs were the beginnings of Parent-Teacher Associations.

The yearbook, which was named the Cresset, was published for the first time in 1912.

This practice continues today.

At one of the first basketball games in December 1913 one of the school secretaries placed her Kewpie doll in the center of the court, and the entire game was played around it without it being broken. This was somewhat remarkable since the dolls were very fragile. Because it survived the game and brought a victory, it was thereafter considered the good luck mascot. The prior mascot was a Trojan.

This was to accommodate growth in the community.

A teacher training course began in 1914. The course gave students a two year teaching certificate which allowed them to teach in rural schools.

This is now the home of the district's Center for Gifted Education.

Meta Eitzen had served as assistant principal to E. B. Cauthorn for several years. When he resigned in 1916, no replacement was selected, and Miss Eitzen was given an increase in salary to take charge of the high school; however, her title was not changed. For the following year C. B. Brightman was elected to the principalship. Miss Eitzen resigned in 1919, and her position as assistant to Brightman was taken by Saidee Stean, history teacher.

This began on October 7, 1918, and schools remained closed through November 11. The severity increased and the board of health closed schools for the remainder of the 1918-19 school year.

This year teachers have been paid on a salary schedule and teachers earn raises for each additional year of experience. This practice continues today.

The first woman candidate, Ella Victoria Dobbs, ran third in a race among six persons in April 1920. The two incumbents were re-elected over her.

In 1920 the first issue of the Purple & Gold came out. Many students did not support the idea of a school paper because they thought it would take resources away from the Cresset, the yearbook. The P&G is still around to­day and there are some similarities between today's P&G and that of the original.

In 1920, Saidee Stean, Columbia High School history teacher, was elected first "acting principal" for the 1920-21 school year and midway through the year she was given the formal title "principal.'"

The field was named in honor of Mr. E.B. Cauthorn, a former principal of Columbia High School.

In 1921, Mrs. L. W. St. Clair Moss, president emeritus of Christian College, was a candidate in a field of three. Incumbent C. W. Loomis and W. J. Palmer were the other candidates. The term of C. B. Miller expired, and he did not seek re-election. Mrs. Moss and Palmer were elected. She served one term.

The board assigned the high school coach to develop a physical education program for the elementary grades. Herbert Blumer had that responsibility for the 1922-23 school year .'i Blumer's elementary program required the classroom teacher to be the physical education supervisor .' ' Blumer provided a list of calisthenics and playground games for the recess periods. He also formed school teams-football and basketball for boys, volleyball and basketball for girls -and these teams competed with other schools in the city

The building was named in honor of John C. Ridgeway, the first Boone County soldier killed in World War I. A series of material shortages and construction delays postponed the opening of the six-room building until September 1923.

In September 1923 when the seventh grade classes from each of the elementary buildings were transferred to the Jefferson School and an eighth year was added to the course of study. A total of 143 pupils graduated from the new junior high school the first year.

In 1924 a second woman took a seat on the board. Mrs. J. 0. VanHorn was appointed for the unexpired term of W. M. Dinwiddie, who resigned August 18, 1924, when he moved his legal residence from Columbia to rural Boone Coun­ty.'' Mrs. VanHom was a member of the board until 1932.

On April 17, 1925 Columbia voters approved of the site of what is now Hickman High School. The name Hickman was selected not just because David H. Hickman owned the land, he was also a legislator who supported the bill to create public second­ary schools in Missouri.

In the fall semester of 1926 workmen used steel, bricks, mortar, and concrete to erect the new classrooms and the gymnasium-auditorium at the Douglass building. An official dedication was scheduled for the week of January 2, 1927." Seven nights of activities were arranged for the celebration of the addition. The Board of Education also provided a new athletic field for the Douglass High School

Beginning in 1926, the board agreed to a suggestion from Dean M. G. Neale to place "ap­prentice" teachers in various other classrooms in the district."' The University paid the full-time teacher $50 for undertaking the work with an apprentice. Similar arrangements also were made for education students from Stephens and Christian Colleges.

The district permitted the University staff to conduct elementary summer school programs in Lee School, inviting pupils who had experienced difficulty with the subjects in the regular school year to enroll. Experienced teachers conducted the classes and education students were on hand as observers.

The new Benton School was more than twice as large as the first Benton School. Through its periodic purchases of land near the school the board had obtained about four acres for the Benton site. 0 The new structure was located on the northeast corner of the site at Ripley and Hinkson Avenues. Construction began in the summer of 1926 on the 12-room building and a gymnasium­audi1orium. In late March 1927 an open house program was conducted, u and a formal dedication of the Benton building occurred September 23, 1927.

1927: A need for additional classroom space accelerated the opening of HIckman High School. The David H. Hickman estate provided 40 acres for the construction of the new high school

The junior high school was expanded to a three-year program in the fall of 1927, when Hickman High School was opened and the upper three grades of the high school moved to Hickman. The seventh and eighth grades were moved into the former high school building with the ninth grade class, creating Jefferson Junior High School. During the same period a junior high school division was established in the Douglass School for the black children of the district.

The first formal approval of funds for such testing in the Columbia Public Schools came On Oc­tober 15, 1928, the board authorized ''the use of standard tests and measurements and ... the necessary expenditures for this purpose.” With the appointment of the elementary supervisor, the testing program became an established feature of the education program in the district.

A landmark achievement as the first graduating class of Hickman High School proudly received their diplomas in May. This graduation marked not only academic success but also the beginning of a rich tradition, laying the foundation for future generations to thrive in education at Hickman High School.

First special education teacher, Helen Gromer, hired at Benton Elementary

In September, the Missouri State Department of Education is set to initiate an experimental transportation program for rural students in Boone County. Thirty-two pupils from the northwest part of the county will be transported daily to attend David H. Hickman High School in Columbia, facilitating access to education for these students.

Under the chairmanship of Dr. J. I. Smith, the dentists checked the children's teeth and urged them to go to their family dentist to have problems corrected. The in-school inspections were undertaken by the dentists statewide, "to carry on an educational campaign so that boys and girls may know the importance of a clean, healthy mouth." n 1937, the school board hired Dr. H. I. Bragg to work half time as the school dentist.

Pearl Kern was the nurse, hired at $80 per month.Jo She was also given the responsibility of the district's attendance officer. The school physician was Dr. R. S. Battersby, hired for $50 per month. u In 1936 the board hired a second nurse, Willa Mcclanahan, 10 work at the Douglass School.

A historic moment at Columbia High School as they crown their inaugural Homecoming Queen on October 28, 1933. This event marked the beginning of a cherished tradition, celebrating school spirit and community unity through the selection of a distinguished Homecoming Queen.

Money from Federal Public Works Project funded addition to Ridgeway Elementary.

Another program was designed to give work to unemployed teachers. With this money the school district organized adult evening classes in a wide variety of subjects. Nearly 400 persons enrolled for an eight-week program which began January 4, 1934. Federal money was provided for a second session during the 1933-34 school year. The enrollment in the second session of the night school was slightly larger than the first session; however, despite the need and the in­terest, when the federal money to hire the teachers was exhausted, the adult program was discon­tinued.

The program was implemented for the 1934-35 school year when Fred Dixon, who had been teaching social studies at Jefferson Junior High School, was transferred to Hickman High School to es1ablish the program and to serve as director of guidance for the distric1.10 There were 14 boys enrolled in the first cooperative employment program. Girls were accepted into the program begin­ning in its second year.

WPA workers built the Hickman stadium, leveled the football field and worked to grow vegetables which launched the hot lunch program in Columbia.

The new Lee Elementary (now Locust Street Expressive Arts Elementary School) opened, along with additions to Douglass and Jefferson

A remarkable chapter in history unfolds as future retail magnate Sam Walton is elected Student Council President.  

Helen D. Williams eliminated the separate courses in debate and public speaking in favor of a single course in speech. The major emphasis in the course was on choral and solo reading of classical and contemporary poetry. Activities in debate and public speaking became extra-curricular activities for the students who wanted to participate in them. From the best of the speech students Mrs. Williams established a Verse Speaking Choir. The choir was in demand for performances in many parts of the state, regularly traveling to other cities for programs. It was established in the fall of 1935 with 35 members." The number grew each of the next several years until it was past 100.

In the winter of 1936, the ground froze 36 inches deep and ­gas pipes in downtown Columbia froze.

In the late 1930s, Columbia Public Schools provided a room and the PTA financed the cost of the programs, charging tuition to the families of the children who attended.

Barnes first undertook a money-raising effort in the Ridgeway district to provide a "milk and graham cracker" fund. He then joined Boone County School Superintendent Noah Heller to provide noon meals for the neediest children. The program began in February 1940 at Ridgeway and ten rural schools in Boone County. In the fall of 1940, Douglass and Benton joined the lunch program and in the next two years the other elementary schools were added-Field, Grant, Lee, and the Sacred Heart Catholic school. Food for all schools was prepared in a central kitchen at the Ridgeway building and was taken by truck in late morning to the other schools. Iva Nichols was in charge of the Ridgeway kitchen. About 20 other persons assisted her in preparing the food and serving at the other buildings. Most of the vegetables for the lunch program were grown on a 26-acre garden site at West Boulevard.

This was the start of yearly musical productions in the district.

C. M. Stookey, a music instructor wrote "Kewpies on the March" in 1944.

The first guidance and counseling department was at the Hickman High School. he following year, the district established guidance programs at Hickman, Douglass, and Jefferson Junior High Schools.

The start of the 1948-49 school year was delayed for two days to permit the elementary teachers to attend a reading workshop conducted by Steryl Artley," the nationally recognized reading specialist on the University of Missouri Education faculty.

In 1949, the district hired another specialist for the 1949·50 school year also. James I. Lore was employed as a speech correctionist.

Standardized tests developed by the State Department of Education and nationally standardized achievement tests replaced the locally developed courses of study and achievement tests starting in the 1949-50 school year.

West Boulevard Elementary School opened in November 1950. On opening day, there were many things still unfinished in the building, including electricity. To summon the children to class and to announce change of class periods, the principal swung an old-fashioned farm dinner bell. The teachers invited parents to an open house at the school that first week "so that they would understand the problems. The finish work and the class work went on side by side in the building until the Christmas vacation.

In 1953, ninth graders came from the junior highs to practice football with the upperclass­men.

On September 16, 1960 the two schools, Judy School and Murry School came together and formed the Two Mile Prairie PTA.

A significant academic milestone as Hickman High School introduces an honors program, providing an enriched educational experience for high-achieving students.

1962 building program added classrooms to the Grant and Field buildings and brought the number of classrooms at Russell Boulevard School to 26, which the board had established as the maximum for an elementary building.

A moment of academic distinction at Hickman High School as David Wheeler earns the prestigious title of the school's first Presidential Scholar.

The first seven room units of the Blue Ridge and Fairview Schools were constructed as part of the 1964 building program. The buildings were expanded to 26 rooms each with additions in 1966, 1968, and 1970. Both Blue Ridge and Fairview opened for classes in the fall of 1966.

In 1966, Hickman was designated as an area vocational school, and students from other schools without vocational programs began enrolling in classes at Hickman.

The Rock Bridge elementary district joined the Columbia Public Schools in 1967.

The first eight rooms at Shepard Boulevard School were constructed as part of the 1966 building program. The school opened in September 1968 and added another six-room addition was included in the 1969 construction program.

Female students were given the opportunity to compete in athletics in 1972 and the first girls volleyball team began playing in 1974.

A pivotal moment in the expansion of the Columbia Public School District as Two Mile Prairie integrates into the district.

A momentous occasion as Columbia Public Schools joyously commemorates its centennial, marking 100 years of steadfast commitment to education excellence. This milestone celebration reflects a century of dedicated service, educational achievements, and a lasting impact on the Columbia community.

In September 1973, with the completion of the second portion, Rock Bridge was considered "complete enough" to open and had a class of 583 students, mostly sophomores and juniors. This high school was the second centrally air-conditioned school built in Columbia after Oakland Junior High School north of town. However, the air-conditioning system was prone to failure and the school was difficult to keep cool in warm weather due to the fact that the windows were not designed to be opened.

A groundbreaking moment in the history of Hickman High School as Joan Lowenstein makes history by becoming the first female student body president.

The Planetarium had a 90 person capacity and featured a state-of-the-art star ball. A full-dome projection system was later added with the advent of newer technology. The Planetarium is still in operation today.

A significant expansion for Rock Bridge High School as its first addition opens, signaling a commitment to accommodate a growing student body.

Initial courses included Computer Programming in COBOL and RPG-II on an IBM System/34 computer and Data Entry.

Hickman High School again received this award in 1994-96.

A historic moment as President Ronald Reagan visits the Columbia Public School District.

The addition opened between and north of the east and west wings and portions of the existing building, especially the west wing, were renovated, effectively doubling the size of the building. This project added twenty-five general-purpose classrooms, seven science classrooms, expanded performing arts facilities, a new media center, three new computer labs (since converted to classrooms), and several new office spaces.

The 39,021 sq. ft. gym and classroom addition at Hickman High School includes a competition gym, a 2,200 seat football grandstand, and a two-story building housing classrooms for vocational studies including Agricultural Mechanics, Welding, Small Engine, Wood, Culinary, Computers, Intro Engineering and Marketing.

A new era in education begins as Muriel Williams Battle High School opens its doors, welcoming students to a state-of-the-art learning environment.

A landmark year for education in the Columbia Public School District as John Warner Middle School opens its doors.

A momentous milestone as Columbia Public Schools joyfully celebrates 150 years of educational excellence, community engagement, and dedication to fostering the growth and success of generations of students.