One of the most nostalgic parts of the school experience is flipping through the yearbook and looking back on memories from the school year. What we don’t see in the yearbook is the group of students who work together every day to put together a book of memories.
This year the yearbook class meets every day during second period in room 242. The class is led by adviser and English teacher Sidney Wollmuth as well as the three editors-in-chief, seniors Nikki Cohen, Abby Needleman and Brooke Zweig. During class time students work on spreads that showcase student life, sports teams, as well as events such as Senior Planning’s Putting on the Hits (POTH) and Thursday Night Live (TNL). “We generally decide where things go in the yearbook based on when they happen in the year. We try to keep it chronological but we always section together school life and sports, but we section it off by fall and winter,” Needleman said.
Every day the class starts with Wollmuth giving a presentation on upcoming due dates and deadlines as well as telling the class what spreads need to be done for the day. Then students get to work. They use Jostens publishing software called Yearbook Avenue to make and design their spreads. The editors-in-chief’s main job during class is being responsible for keeping members on task and making sure that they are making good progress on their spreads. “Our main focus is to edit their spreads and give them feedback,” Zweig said.
The yearbook staff only meets once a day, therefore collaboration is important during class time to help everything get done. Every year the staff make a theme that they follow throughout the spreads. The staff works together to ensure that the spreads not only match the theme but also fit and flow together. “The hardest part of the yearbook is making sure everything matches and the book is consistent with its design,” Zweig said.
During the class, students get time to create their spreads, conduct interviews with other students and make content for their social media, like their TikTok account. “When we are creating spreads I go over what I expect for the spread but it’s a lot of independent work time,” Wollmuth said.
The yearbook is a student-run publication, meaning most of the work is delegated by student editors-in-chief. They come up with theme ideas for the yearbook and put together a slideshow with each idea and inspiration pictures to share with the class. The editors are also in charge of advertising the year book which is done through their social media as well as flyers that are put up around the school. “They are the ones who delegate tasks and check all of the spreads. They decide how they want to format the class to look. It is a student-led publication so I am mainly here to set up a structure,” Wollmuth said.
