RE Log Fall 2018

10 Ransom Everglades LOG )$// “Had I never gone to college, I would have been better educated than most people – that is how intense it was,” said Moore Houston. Miami families immediately embraced this progressive school. By the time Swenson Kahan graduated, the number of faculty had more than quadrupled and the student body exceeded 125. 0DULH 6ZHQVRQ ZDV D FRQVWDQW ¿JXUH RQ campus, and her love for the school and leader- ship of the board drove the school’s direction. “She was so smart and had so much ability,” her daughter recalled. “She was powerful in her de- termination, but also a person of great humility.” Others saw those very traits in Katherine, who served as the president of the student government and Glee Club, and editor of the Sandpiper . The 1961 yearbook deemed her “Most Enthusiastic” and an “incurable optimist.” “Every award that could be given to some- body, she deserved – and got,” Moore Houston said about Swenson Kahan. “She was smart and popular, one of those people who makes you say, ‘Wow!’ And she was so modest about it.” Early days at Everglades The Everglades School for Girls opened in ad- vance of the feminist movement of the 1960s. Swenson Kahan and nearly two dozen peers arrived with open minds, eagerness to learn, intelligence and youthful energy, and they left with a determination to seize every opportunity. With administration approval, the girls designed the school uniform: square-necked jumpers with collared shirts or blouses underneath and saddle shoes. They contrib- uted to the Sandpiper literary magazine, ran the Everglades Echo newspaper, performed in plays in the Dell, created “Egret” and “Ibis” sports teams and formed a student government. “It was a very exciting and creative time for us as students,” Swenson Kahan said. “We set the traditions. We were encouraged to create the life of the school. We shared something we thought of as ‘Everglades spirit.’ It was by pulling together, teamwork and sharing the adventure that we were all involved in. At the same time, we were all given opportunities to develop leadership skills.” Student life was fun; the academics, rigorous. (YHUJODGHV FRPPHQFHPHQW 3LFWXUHG OHIW WR ULJKW 0DULH 6ZHQVRQ KHU PRWKHU -HVVLH +RRG %DVVHWW DQG Katherine Swenson ’61