R. L. Yates remembered

Chuck Warwick is, in my opinion, an accomplished writer whose stories deserve attention. I will be printing more of his stories in the future. I am deeply indebted to his gratitude for allowing me to publish his articles.

In return I would like to publicize a short book that he wrote and which was published by his children as a present for his 50th wedding anniversary. The title of the book is "The Kids, The Cook, and The Coeds". It is a short 162 page story of his experiences in running a boarding house for women at the University of Illinois in the late 1950's. He also discusses his experiences while living in Minonk. Those of you who remember Mr. Warwick I am sure would enjoy reading the book. The price of the book is $12.95. Whether you buy the book or not, I know that Mr. Warwick would enjoy hearing from his friends and former students. His address is 1102 E. McHenry St., Urbana, IL 61801. Incidentally, the new Miss America lives two blocks from his house.

Chuck Warwick's essay on R. L. Yates who was the Superintendent of MDR during Warwick's stay was very amusing and very accurate. Already, this website has received letters giving testimony to Mr. Warwick's description of Bob Yates.

I also fell under the iron hand discipline of R. L. Yates. One day when I was in high school, someone rang the fire bell during class break. Yates heard someone yell, "Uphoff rang the bell". He immediately sought me out and when he found me, he dragged me into the nearest empty classrom. He then initiated his interrogation by grabbing my long hair( I had hair then) by his large hands and pulling my head back over the chair and demanded that I admit that I rang the firebell. I kept screaming to him that I didn't do it but he didn't believe me. Finally, someone came in and yelled, "You've got the wrong Uphoff, his brother did it." Upon hearing that, Yates let go of my hair and walked out of the room without uttering a word.

Many of you have commented that R. L. Yates' brand of discipline would never be allowed into today's classrooms. Unfortunately, I have to agree. I knew that Bob Yates meant business and while I may not always have liked him, I always respected him. He would never hurt your physically but he would use physical force when he had to in order to make sure you knew that he meant business.

In the past 40 years, our children have been brought up in the environment of Dr. Spock, working parents, the 1960's permissiveness, and eager lawyers ready to help you sue at the drop of a hat. I am sure that it is harder for teachers nowdays to discipline children. If we have an nation of unruly and undisciplined children, it is our fault. Children's behavior is influenced by the family unit.

Nature made children naturally rebellious and adversive to discipline so that they can make a break away from their parents and their past. I know that when I was a child I couldn't wait to grow up and get out of the house. Sometimes it is necessary to reign in out-of-control teenagers who are too eager to express their independence. Hardball discipline by guys like R. L. Yates taught me that the life ahead is not going to be a bowl of cherries and I had better prepare to be a disciplined and responsible person when I get out in the real world. You are going to have to deal with a boss and a spouse someday who will test your interpersonal skills. I don't think it is a coincidence that job turnover rates and divorce rates are higher now that what they were years ago.

In my high school days, teachers didn't have to deal with unruly students. They would just send them to R. L. Yates for a lesson in humility. The buck stopped at Mr. Yates' desk. So while we students occassionally hated him, we also respected him and it served us well in the lesson of life. As the old saying goes, "Too soon old, too late smart". R. L. Yates understood what that meant.