Rosemary Landreneau Dufour – Health & Physical Education, 1943

Rosemary Landreneau Dufour

1943 – Health and Physical Education

                My maiden name is Rosemary Landreneau. I married Ralph Dufour who was also a graduate of  SLI. I enrolled at SLI in the fall of 1939 and graduated with a BS degree in 1943 in the College of Education majoring in Health and Physical Education.

                My years at SLI were indeed memorable ones. I lived in the dormitory for four years, first as a freshman at Declouet Hall, then later at Evangeline Hall and Foster Hall. During World War II, the Navy’s V12 program at SLI took over Foster Hall and we had to move out.  We traipsed across the campus with all of our belongings to Harris Hall and spent the rest of that semester in the basement of Harris Hall. We looked like scenes from the “Grapes Of Wrath” walking across the campus.

                Room, board and laundry were $28.50 per month. Just about everyone ate at the “Dining Hall” as it was then called. No one had transportation so our lives were confined to the campus. If I recall correctly, one person had a car during my senior year.

                We had to conform to the dormitory rules, such as signing in and out when we went to the library at night. We had to be in the dormitory at 10:00 P.M. on week nights. The housemother made her rounds to all of the rooms every night to be sure we were accounted for.

                All of our classes were on the main campus. We respected our professors; in fact, we were in awe of some. We dressed conservatively. We wore dresses and/or skirts and blouses, but not short pants. Jeans and overalls were only worn in the cotton and cane fields.

I was a member of the “Red Jackets”, which was an organization to promote school spirit. We attended all home football games, sometimes performing during halftime. It was an honor to be selected to that organization. During my freshman year, there was an excursion to one out- of-town football game. We went by train to La Tech if I remember correctly. I don’t remember the outcome of the game, but the trip was great fun. All of the home games were played in McNaspy Stadium.

There was no chapel on campus, so on Sundays we walked to the Cathedral or to the chapel at Most Holy Sacrament on St. Mary Street for mass.

I was a member of Delta Epsilon Nu Soroity.  There were no sorority houses, so our meetings rooms and socials were held in private residences off campus.

After graduation I started my career in the teaching profession. I did most of my teaching in Lafayette at Northside High School. I was Department Head and also a Supervisor of  Student Teachers. When I retired in 1986, after 40 years of teaching, I had 302 unused sick leave days and by law I was paid for only 25 days.

The rewards of teaching were certainly not monetary. I feel that in some way, I had a positive influence on the lives of many of my students and that is the greatest reward.