"I have learned the different facets of leadership: how to deal with different personalities and how to understand them. I've learned to look for the good not the bad in a person. This experience has helped me get along with others and to understand how to live better in any field."

That was the answer Rick Lucente gave when he was asked what he has gained by being president of his Senior Class.

Besides being the president, he was also the parliamentarian of Student Council. He gained this position by taking a test on the constitution and parliamentary procedure of the Council. He must make sure that all business matters of the Student Council are done according to the constitution.

Rick's other activities include V‑Show, the Senior Class play, School Improvements Committee, football, and wrestling.

His hobbies are water skiing, sky diving, and flying his father's plane.

Rick said that he was responsible for organizing the many activities of the Senior Class. He helped with Homecoming, the Senior play, "Out of the Frying Pan," Senior Play‑Nite, the Senior Prom, and Senior Week, and the Graduation Exercises.

Rick plans to attend Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Since he has just received his pilot's license, he would like to major in aviation.

When asked if he has any advice for the president of next year's Senior Class, he said, "Don't try to run the whole show. Help is needed from everyone on Class Council."


Hans Wahl, vice-president of the Senior Class, is somewhat of an individual. Though his 6-foot, brown-haired, and blue-eyed frame cannot be considered unusual, his comments reveal some deep thinking.

Hans feels very strongly about the Senior Class. "Most seniors where they want to be individuals," he commented. "As I see it, this makes them better human beings. As far as the seniors themselves, I have never been associated with a more wonderful group of people."

Besides being a Senior Class officer, Hans has also been active in Ski Club, Pep Club, Spirit Senate, Internation Simulation, Brotherhood Society, and Thespian Society. He was this year's V‑Show coordinator, has been on the honor roll, and was in the Senior Class play and the musical.

Maine plays a big part in Hans' life. "Maine has many, good qualities. It is academically outstanding and has some of the best teachers available. It does have its share of bad qualities, however. The administration tries to play both sides and the middle. It attempts to please both sides without really giving either of them anything."

Classes for this year include College Algebra, physics, English IVW, government, and German II. Needless to say, Hans has quite a busy schedule.

Hans has some good advice to give to the students. "As far as school activities go, I would like to encourage everyone to find something that interests him and follow through. I feel that the two things most needed in the world are tolerance and understanding. If more people possessed these two qualities, the world would be a much better place."

Hans plans to attend Iowa State University where he will major in engineering or political science. His hobbies include skiing, swimming, and sailing.

Being treasurer of this year's Senior Class has proven to be a rewarding experience for Nancy Rower. Her main job as treasurer was to keep the class informed on the financial situation. Nancy added, "Mrs. Noramae Ralph was the biggest help to me this year."

This 5'5" blond, blue‑eyed senior has been quite active in her past years at Maine West. She is a member of Student Council, Brotherhood Society, and Class Council. Nancy was also elected to the Homecoming court this year.

Her past activities include: Spirit Senate, V‑Show, Pep Club, Concert Choir, honor roll, and she was also the recipient of a service award.

Nancy's courses this year were English IV W, psychology, government, economics, and Spanish V. After graduation, she plans to attend Western Illinois University and major in special or elementary education.

Concerning graduation, Nancy stated, "The saddest thing is leaving your friends that you've become so close to, knowing you'll never even see some of them again. But you can always try to keep in touch with the kids that you want to."

Her pet peeve is related to friendship, also. "The student resentment toward fellow students at the end of the school year is something I've really hated to see. It seems so foolish to waste the last few months of school not talking to kids," commented Nancy when asked to relate the thing that she didn't like at Maine.

The only advice that Nancy has for underclassmen is "Start studying now! Once you're a senior, it's really too late. You'll never realize how important studying is until it is too late."


"Maine offers such a wide variety of activities that each student should find something which interests him, if he only takes the time."

This is the advice of Sue Dixon '89, who was this year's Senior Class secretary. She feels that the Class Council was quite successful this year in getting students and sponsors involved and in planning Senior Week.

"Senior Week was great; a lot of students participated, and it really helped unify the class," she said. Being class secretary gave Sue the opportunity of meeting many different people and communicating her ideas.

"As secretary, I have learned to work with people in various type of situations." Besides Class Council, Sue has been involved in PAR Seminar and National Honor Society. In other years she participated in Pep Club, Class Council, and V‑Show. Sue is an honor roll student.

Her courses this year consisted of Spanish IV Ace., law, government, English IV E, and psychology.

Sue plans to attend the University of Illinois in Champaign this September. Her planned major is Special Education. "I would also like to join the Peace Corps if at all possible," she emphasized.

Sue gave a detailed analysis of Maine West. She said, "I like the teachers who really care about the students and take a genuine interest in them outside as well as during school. I wish there were more of them. The students at Maine (especially the seniors) are really outstanding. Friendliness between students and teachers is really impressive.

"One grievance I have is that our school is too conservative. Too many things have to be approved by too many people. Our school shouldn't be so afraid to be the first to try out new ideas. I think the PAR program has been successful. Students need to accept more responsibility in high school. Too many students enter college with no self‑discipline at all."