By Anne Marie Amacher
DAVENPORT — On May 22 the last of Dave and Tish Haut’s five children graduated from St. Paul the Apostle Catholic School. For the past 26 years at least one, and as many as three Haut children at a time, have attended the school.
The couple’s oldest, Michael, started kindergarten at St. Paul in 1986 and the youngest, Hannah, graduated last month.
The Haut children represent the third generation to attend St. Paul’s. Their dad, Dave, graduated in 1967 and their grandmother (Tish’s mom) graduated in 1948.
Principal Julie Delaney has taught or served as principal to all of the Haut children: Michael, now 32; Bobby, 31; Jennifer, 29; Molly, 20; and Hannah, 15. Delaney said she taught science to the older siblings and was principal to the youngest.
Dave and Tish Haut showed school memorabilia dating back to 1948 to Delaney on Hannah’s graduation day. Tish brought her mom’s autograph book from her 1948 graduation, and trading cards from the 1990-91 school year. Delaney said students received trading cards for doing good things. The Hauts also brought pins from Catholic Schools Week, which were made for several years and sold as a fundraiser, and yearbooks from various years that the Haut children attended St. Paul’s.
The couple showed a tuition bill from the 1988-89 school year when tuition was $470 per student with an $80 registration fee. Today tuition is $2,540 per student with a $75 early registration fee or $100 after deadline, Delaney said.
Dave Haut recalled that when he attended St. Paul’s, students went home for lunch. “You had to go home. If your mom wrote a note you could stay at school or if you lived far away.” Today students eat at school. He noted that the boys wore ties and if they forgot their ties, Sister made them rent one. “Our classroom had 70-plus kids in it. And that wasn’t the whole grade. At the end of the day we lined up in the halls and Sister put on marching music. We had to march out of school.”
The uniform has changed throughout the Haut children’s attendance. Tish Haut said in the early years it was a solid top and solid slacks. Later it changed to red, white, light blue and dark blue tops with navy slacks and in the higher grades the option to wear khaki slacks.
Over the course of 26 years, Tish Haut said the biggest change she has seen is technology. The couple recalled that when the school first received computers there were six or eight total, all in one room.
“Now there are computers in the classrooms and whiteboards,” Dave said. They also noted there was no Internet. Now the “in thing” is tablets, he laughed. “Electronics have completely changed every aspect of life.”
The couple said the number of sports and other extracurricular activities has also grown.
Tish Haut said she is not sure what her mornings will be like now that she doesn’t have to drive a child to St. Paul’s. “I think my car knows the route itself.”
