Matthews High School
1947- 1954
(Wallace E. "Scott" Waters, 1-31-94)
As the soldiers of World War II were being discharged from the services, the Veterans' Training Program was enacted by Congress. The students were paid about $100.00 per month to attend
these classes. The class size was 25 students for each full-time instructor. The class was supervised by the High School Vocational Agriculture, Department.
The Matthews High School had burned in 1945 and a Vocational Agriculture Department was planned for the new High School building and it's new class program.
.As I was finishing my classes for a B.S. degree in Agriculture at the University of Missouri, I was hired as a Veterans Instructor by Mr. Lynn Twitty, Superintendent of Lilbourn High School, during my visit home for the Thanksgiving holiday. I completed my degree in February 1947.
Under the arrangement of providing educational opportunity for the returning veterans, I was to teach the students of the Matthews area in the Lilbourn Vocational Agriculture facility. The number of students grew until we had two classes--50 students from the Matthews area attending classes at Lilbourn each Saturday morning from 8 am - 12 noon. We had a laboratory or special project meeting of. 4 hours each month from 1- 4 pm.
As the new school building was being completed and the ,Vocational Agriculture Department was approved by . the State Department of Education, the Veterans' Program was transferred to
the Matthews Vocational Agriculture Department. As the classrooms were not completed, our two classes were assigned to the two temporary classrooms constructed from soybean storage houses on the campus north and west of the gymnasium. An improvement though, was the Vocational Agriculture Farm Shop, located in 'the basement of the new building with an access ramp for larger tools and tractors to be worked on and studied.
History of Matthews High School: 1906-19.76 Benton B. and Glenda W. Conrad, January 1976 Additional information added February 1994 by Bonnie Conrad Nelson, 2nd information added November 2005 by Steve Waters
A veteran was eligible for training in agriculture for the same length of time as he had served in armed services. If he had 48 months in service, then he had 48 months in the program. As we
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History of Matthews High School: 1906-19.76 Benton B. and Glenda W. Conrad, January 1976 Additional information added February 1994 by Bonnie Conrad Nelson, 2nd information added November 2005 by Steve Waters
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