World War I brought changes to Columbine
High School,
although much of the curriculum remained the same until
Hickman High School was built. During World War I, the
German Club was removed from the list of extracurricular
activities in 1915 and a Current Event Club was established in
1918. In 1917, students over 14 years of age were excused from
attending school to be farm workers as a part of life.
The 1930s brought the Depression
to Columbia, and the school
district felt the economic pinch. For the first time, the district
operated with a deficit; however, the high school building was
expanded, thank to low interest loans and the Works Progress
Administration. While the district's special education program
was eliminated, Hickman's first counselor arrived on the scene.
On-the-job training and employment for credit were added to
the curriculum, an d Hickman's verse speaking choir performed
throughout the state. Kewpie wrestlers garnered three state
championships during this decade. In 1938, Hickman's first
marching band's first uniforms in the early 1940s. Hickman's
first operetta, 1944's Tune In, began an annual tradition.