Dec. 16, 2011 insert

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1990.1991.1992.1993.1994.1995.1996.1997.1998.1999.2000.2001.2002.2003.2004.2005.2006.2007.2008.2009.2010

2011

West High Project

02 INSERT

PAGE DESIGN BY//ADAM CANADY

Peter Feldstein didn’t begin the Ox-ford Project with a grand vision, just the view through his camera lens. What he and co-author Stephen Bloom ended up with was a profound and nationally-acclaimed portrait of Amer-ican life; more specifically, a series of portraits of 97 Oxford residents. Feld-stein and Bloom published the Oxford Project book in 2008, composed of a compilation of side-by-side photos of each Oxford resident in 1984 and then in 2005, along with the stories of their lives in the 20 years in between.

Feldstein moved to Oxford, Iowa, in 1978 when he bought a storefront with studio space in the small town and began teaching art at the University of Iowa.

“One of the sayings in Oxford is that you’re a stranger here for 25-30 years before you become part of the com-munity. I don’t really believe that, but it compelled me to do the project,” he said.

After originally dismissing the town as Hicksville, Feldstein quickly realized the Oxford residents were not only worth knowing, but worth capturing on film. He was inspired by photog-

raphers like Douglas Huebler, who set out in the 70s to photograph every person in the world, though Feldstein aimed a little smaller.

“The concept [of photographing ev-ery person alive] was intriguing to me because, number one, it was impos-sible but, number two, it was sort of imaginable. … I thought maybe I could photograph everyone in Iowa City, and then I thought, ‘No, but I could photo-graph everyone in Oxford,’” he said.

So he put up a sign outside his store-front, attracting children on their way to school, then wary adults and fi-nally families. In a matter of months, Feldstein had pho-tographed 670 of the 676 residents – democratically letting everyone stand in front of the camera and present themselves as they were. He had finished and he had no plans to do anything more.

Until Bloom, a friend and journalism professor at the University of Iowa, saw his work and convinced him to do

it again. Feldstein agreed on one con-dition: Bloom had to come along and interview each person. So they started again, just over 20 years later – enough time for the Oxford residents to de-velop their life stories, tracking down the residents that remained from the first portraits.

“People really want to tell their sto-ries. People really have a longing to

make meaning out of their lives and there aren’t many good listeners out there. … I wanted to show that the people of Oxford are like the people of New York City or Chicago or Paris or London or Mexico City. … Everyone has heartache, ev-eryone has jubila-tion, everyone has been betrayed, ev-

eryone has been rewarded by children or parents or some achievement. …These people are a microcosm of all the people in the universe,” Bloom said.

One microcosm Feldstein has come to appreciate.

“What I found out here was, it’s very

strange, but I love Oxford, and I really love the people here, even the people I don’t like. They’re interesting, they’re colorful, they another. …There are some families that have been here for two or three generations and they’re all here, the parents the grandparents, the kids. … You could make a connection from one family to any other family. It’s not inbreeding, it’s that they’re all con-nected, it’s amazing. You wouldn’t find that in Iowa City,” he said.

Feldstein’s favorite story belongs to Jim Hoyt, a World War II survivor of Buchenwald concentration camp who has since passed away. For Bloom, the stories are like good friends – he likes them all for different reasons.

The nation seemed to be similarly captivated after the book’s release, as Bloom and Feldstein were profiled in major newspapers like The New York Times and The Washington Post and aired on NPR.

“This [reaction] was quite a surprise and it’s very strange because it’s just something I did the first time on a lark almost,” he said.

Feldstein is currently doing abstract print-making and in the rough stages of two documentaries. Bloom is teaching at the University of Michigan this year.

The Oxford projectBY ELEANOR [email protected]

West High School is who we are – collectively as a student body, of course, but also individually. It’s where we find our friends, broaden our horizons and hone our beliefs. And although they walked these

hallowed (or at least crowded) halls in years past, the West High alums featured in this special insert are also a part of this school, and this school is a part of them. Inspired by The Oxford Project (see below),

we gave these past graduates time to find their life stories and then checked back in – tracing both West’s and their own histories, and the places where they intersect. This is the West High Project.

EVERYONE HAS

HEARTACHE, EVERYONE HAS

JUBILATION,EVERYONE HAS BEEN

BETRAYED

““

-Stephen Bloom, Oxford Project writer

1984 2005

There were thousands of

bodies piled high.

I saw hearts that had been taken from

live people in medical experiments.

PHOT

OS U

SED

WIT

H PE

RMIS

SION

FROM

// TH

E OX

FORD

PRO

JECT

-Jim Hoyt, Sr. World War II veteran

From The Oxford Project:

WEST HIGHPROJECT:

THE

03 INSERT

PAGE DESIGN BY//KATIE MONS

Stroke of geniusWest High graduate, Jacob Soll, received a MacArthur Fellow-ship for his in-depth research of early modern Europe. Find out how his perspective has changed since high school.

BY ANNA [email protected]

Earlier this year on a dreary September day, Jacob Soll ’87, half-

brother of Ben Soll ’13, was trudging through the rain on the way to the fine arts library at the University of Pennsylvania to work on his book. He was grumpy and was thinking about how he could possibly continue to finance his research. Then Soll got a call that changed his outlook completely. The call came from the John D. and Cath-erine T. MacArthur Foundation, and it informed Soll that he had received a MacArthur Fellowship, nicknamed the genius award, which would provide him with a $500,000 grant over a five year span.

“I went into a sweat and I had to take off my coat,” Soll said. Filled with dis-belief, Soll says he Googled the number on his phone and called back several times in an attempt to verify the news. Then Jacob called his father, David Soll, a professor of Biology at the University of Iowa.

“I was on my way to George’s tavern when [Jacob] called. He was at an in-tersection in downtown Philadelphia, semi-catatonic,” David said. “I wasn’t surprised [that he had won a MacAr-thur Fellowship], given his work was lauded as original, and ground-break-ing. He had just won the Guggenheim Award.”

Hold it right there. Re-wind about twenty-four years and stop…now! The year is 1987. Jacob is a student at West High and a self-proclaimed punk rocker. He’s the school board represen-

tative for student government and his favorite subjects are History, German and English. Every morning his math teacher throws a trash can across the room to get the class’ attention, which works pretty well. One day during Bi-ology, his friend Jeff Cooper puts a fish preserved in formaldehyde in Jacob’s backpack. Jacob doesn’t discover it un-til Algebra.

Jacob describes his high school career as “not wildly successful” and says he didn’t know what he wanted to do in the future. He says he wishes he had spent more time in high school learn-ing Greek and Latin.

“At one level, I didn’t do very well and it marked me. Now, I am a highly competitive person to say the least,” Jacob said.

David describes Jacob’s high school self as “argumentative, creative person-ally and academically, a risk-taker and far from a brilliant student.”

Jacob says things changed for him when he went to France during his ju-nior year and afterwards started spend-ing his summers in Europe.

Now, Jacob is examining Europe through a different lens: the same lens that earned him a MacArthur fellow-ship. Jacob, currently a professor in the Department of History at Rutgers Uni-versity, Camden, received the award for his studies involving early modern Europe. Jacob says he plans to spend a lot of time traveling and working on his two books in progress: one about libraries and why they’re essential to Democracy, and another about ac-counting and politics.

After winning the fellowship, things have changed for Jacob.

“Every door opens and the New York Times suddenly thinks your work is in-teresting,” Jacob said. “[The MacArthur Fellowship] will allow me to continue taking intellectual risks and being a free-thinker.”

Jacob Soll, West High graduate of 1978, won a MacArthur Fel-lowship grant that will allow him to continue his research of early European society. He was one of twenty-two recipients of the 2011 award given to individu-als working in all fields who are nominated for their creativity and potential to make contribu-tions in the future.

PHOTO BY//ABBIE SKEMP

PHOTO COURTESY OF//JACOB SOLL

Ben Soll ’13

Ashley Merrick ’13

Kate Thorne ’14

PAGE DESIGN BY//ZORA HURST

I’m big, you’re little

Thomas Sparks ’14

What are some words of wis-dom you wish you had heard when you were in kindergarten?

BY JULIANN SKARDA AND AMELIA [email protected] [email protected]

“

“

“

“

I WOULD TELL

THE HARDERYOU WORK, THE LUCKIERYOU GET.

MYSELF

I WOULD TELL MYSELF

NOT TO TAKENAP TIME FOR GRANTED BECAUSE IN HIGH SCHOOL YOUWILL DEFINITITELY MISS IT.

I WOULD TELL MYSELF IT’S OKAY TO BE FRIENDS WITH BOYS

AND ENJOY FREEDOM BECAUSE THE OLDER YOU GET,

THE LESS TIMEYOU HAVE TO JUST HAVE FUN.

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM// ASHLEY MERRICK

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM// THOMAS SPARKS

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM// KATE THORNE

05 INSERT

Apoorva Raikwar ’14

Harin Lee ’13

PAGE DESIGN BY//ZORA HURST

“

“

ACTUALLY NAP DURING

NAP TIME.AND NOT ALL BOYS HAVE COOTIES.

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM// APOORVA RAIKWAR

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM// EMILY BELDING

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM// HARIN LEE

“

“

ONCE... I WORE BOXERS

TO SCHOOL. I THOUGHT THEY WERE

REALLY COOL PANTS.WEAR PANTS TO SCHOOL. “

“

SO I WOULD TELL MYSELF JUST TO

I WOULD TELL MYSELF TO

FOCUS ON BUILDING A GOOD RELATIONSHIP

WITH MY SISTER SO WE COULD BE FRIENDS BEFORE SIBLINGS.

Emily Belding ’12

06 INSERT

PAGE DESIGN BY//OLIVE CARROLLHACH

and NowThen

It’s hard to imagine West High School with any principal besides Jerry Argan-bright, but once upon a time, when West first opened, another administrator led the school. You may remember Ed Barker as the donor of $270,000 towards the new soccer fields. And he remembers West as a very different place. At the school’s opening in 1968, Barker said there were approximately 1,000 students enrolled in grades 7-12, compared to 1,800 in 9-12 currently.

Before West was born, Barker began as a teacher in the small town of Sharps-burg, Iowa, in 1950.

“There were 20 students in grades 9 through 12. I taught half of the subjects and the superintendent taught the other half. My teaching included typing, social studies and one mathematics course. I also coached boy’s basketball, directed the school play and sponsored the news-paper. It was more like a community news sheet than a school paper. At the end of the first semester, I was drafted into the United States Army, serving two years with one year in Japan,” he said.

Barker returned to the classroom in 1955, teaching in Stanhope, Iowa, be-fore serving as principal in various Iowa towns.

He was hired as West’s first principal and began planning for the grand open-ing in February of 1968, including hiring faculty and building extracurriculars. The school opened the next fall.

Unlike current tension surrounding the transfer of students from West to City High, the students once migrated across town in the other direction.

“We needed to establish traditions. … Making the students feel welcome was an important part of our responsibilities. I

knew that it was going to be a difficult tran-sition for the high school students, especial-ly the seniors, who would be transferred from City High to West High,” Barker said.

Barker asked City High’s principal for a list of juniors that held top executive posi-tions and created a planning committee to help inform the formation of West High. Student input was important to Barker, and so was getting it right, he said. The commit-tee met every two weeks, consulting rep-resentatives from Kennedy High School, which opened a year before West. Barker attributes West’s smooth and successful first year to the thorough planning he and his committee undertook.

“Opening a new school in Iowa City was very exciting. … There were two other major challenges. The first was to develop student loyalty to West High School. The second involved the challenges of the early 1970’s when student unrest throughout the nation, especially in major university towns, was at its peak,” he said.

Barker spent 11 years leading West, be-fore retiring. He then began work in his family’s apartment business, where he has been ever since - though he has begun to cut back in recent years. After departing from West, Barker did extensive travelling in all directions, visiting every continent except Antartica. He made 14 trips to the Soviet Union (now Russia).

“Since 1968 I have changed from being an energetic 40-year-old to being an energetic 83-year-old. Our four children graduated from West High. My wife and I have also ac-quired 10 grandchildren. I learned from my experiences that I had the best high school principal’s job in Iowa. The post-West years have treated my family and me well, but I’m just an ordinary guy who enjoys life just as I did in 1968,” Barker said.

Ed Barker at work, 2011

BY ELEANOR [email protected]

High school is a place of constant change. Students grow up and leave, faculty retire and even the walls themselves are rearranged. Yet despite the changes around us, the time spent here at West is always unforgettable. So here’s to remembering.Take a look at who once filled your shoes with the WSS.

Former West principal Ed Barker circa 1969

Scan this with your

visit wsspaper.comto see more then and now articles

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07 INSERT

PAGE DESIGN BY//OLIVE CARROLLHACH

“ As a girl who loved school, it’s no wonder that that Kristin Cannon’s ca-reer is centered on education. Present-ly, Cannon is the principal of Horn El-ementary, which feeds into West High.

Cannon graduated from West High in 1992 from a class of about 250 peo-ple. Twenty years ago, when Cannon was enrolled at West, things were very different. The recently built ninth grade center, band wing, and auditorium that students now take for granted were non-existent. While West High was short one auditorium, Cannon still par-ticipated in swing choir.

“I loved performing,” said Cannon. “I really enjoyed being in a tight knit group of students from all grade levels. I loved every opportunity I could have to be social,” Cannon said.

Cannon said that when her senior year drew to a close, she “was excited to go on to college, but I was sad I was graduating.”

Cannon still keeps in touch with her high school friends, and some of their children currently attend Horn El-ementary.

As close to her friends as she was, Cannon said the person she remembers most from high school is principal Jerry Arganbright.

“I just remember him always walking the halls and talking to us, and that was fun,” Cannon said.

BY BRENNA [email protected]

When Chuck and Connie Hippee, the parents of Cami Hippee ’13, graduated from West High School in 1974, they hadn’t exactly set a date for the wedding. In fact, they weren’t even dating. Although they have known each other since they both attended sixth grade at Roo-sevelt Elementary School; it was only in 1986 when they were both living in Des Moines, that they were reintroduced by a mutual friend and eventually started a relationship.

“We knew of each other and in seventh grade met at a dance, held hands and danced but hardly ever spoke to each other. We were both painfully shy then. That relationship did not last long. We did not hang out at all in high school, but we both had some of the same friends. I probably would not have been ‘cool’ enough for Chuck in high school, and he was probably not really my type either,” Connie said.

Connie recalls being a quiet, easy-going and somewhat studious high school student. She played on the varsity tennis team at West for three years and ran varsity track her se-nior year – although she said there were fewer opportunities for girls to participate in sports at that time.

Chuck was similarly shy and studi-ous, though he was known for his

sense of humor. He was a member of band and the Speech team, do-ing extemporaneous speaking. His parents owned a small business, and Chuck spent much of his time in high school working.

“I remember spending a lot of time with my friends. We would go to movies in downtown Iowa City which had three theaters at the time. Music was a big part of my life and it was always a thrill to get the latest album that was re-leased. At that time, I liked a lot of different musicians, the most no-table being Neil Young, the Roll-ing Stones, David Bowie and Lou Reed,” Chuck said.

While Chuck still follows cur-rent music and has kept his mis-chievous streak – playing practical jokes on co-workers at Hills Bank rather than classmates, he said he has gained confidence since high school. The same is true for Con-nie.

“I am probably a lot more seri-ous than I was in high school and a lot more confident as well. I cared way too much about what people thought of me when I was young. I am much more worldly now - seeing the beauty of diversity in cultures and different types of people and places. I am a lot more

BY ELEANOR [email protected]

Kristin Cannon‘92[

[

Connie and Chuck Hippee‘72 [

[

FormerStudents

FormerStudent

sensitive to the needs [and] feelings of people that I did not necessarily hang out with in high school. I have also learned to ‘let things go,’” she said.

She said that West, too, has changed much since her gradua-tion. When she and Chuck attend-ed, there were no honors classes and only one AP class: English.

“Certainly, there was not the rigor or the opportunity for rigor as there is today. I would say that [Principal Jerry] Arganbright has hired an incredibly talented staff at West in all areas. … [In addition], there was no diversity. If you re-moved all ethnic groups out of West High, that would be what it was like in the early ’70s,” Connie said.

Chuck said he is similarly struck by the increase in diversity between his West years and those of his daughters: Cami, Anna Hippee ’11 and Alaine Hippee ’09.

“Each of our girls has a broad base of friends that would have been un-thinkable when I was there. It’s in-credible to see all of our girls having so much respect for their principal and the teachers. That says the most to me. …Can I re-enroll?” Chuck said.

High school sweethearts Connie and Chuck Hippee, pictured in highschoool in 2011Ph

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Photos courtesy of// Kristin Cannon

West grad and Horn principal, pictured in 1970 and 2011

Letters to my future self

Kap Mueller ‘11 To: My senior self

Kap Mueller ’11

I do remember some of what it was about. I told myself that I would be a chemist (very different from the invest-ment banker or consultant that I want to be now). I also told myself that I would probably be rich from having a brilliant idea by the time I graduated from high school. I’m not sure if I was being serious with myself or not on that one.

Ben Fick ‘12 To: My senior self

Ben FIck ’12

Mainly I talked about what classes I was in and how I ran an 18:26 5k as a freshman and how I hope I’m still run-ning, in band, playing piano, and getting good grades. I also left thumbprints on the paper which is kinda creepy...

Ryan Rumpf ‘11 To: My senior self

Ryan Rumpf ‘11

I don’t think I have the letter anymore, but the most meaningful quotes or parts was that when I was a fresh-man I wrote “I hope my future self gets a scholarship to play D1 baseball somewhere” and when I opened the let-ter on the last day I was kind of shocked. I forgot I even wrote that and I was shocked that it even came true. An-other thing I remember about my letter is that I wrote “when you get this I hope you have a girlfriend”. I didn’t.

Log on for more photos and exclusive web coverage .

WWW.WSSPAPER.COM

COMPILED BY ZORA [email protected]

I TOLD MYSELFTHAT I

WOULD BE ACHEMIST.

“

“

I HOPE I’M STILL

RUNNING

“ “

‘I HOPE YOUHAVE A

GIRLFRIEND’.I DIDN’T.

“

“

check out wsspaper.com to submit letters

At the beginning of every year, each student in Ann Rocarek’s freshman English class writes a letter to themselves, not to be opened before graduation. The WSS tracked down recent graduates and broke the seal on the sage, or just silly advice.

Dec. 16, 2011 insert

Documents

Transcript of Dec. 16, 2011 insert