After countless hours of designing, photographing, and writing, the yearbook is officially done and sent to be printed. Now would be the time for the staff to finally relax, but there’s never a break in Room 1134.
Despite the work, there are moments in the class that make the experience worth the all-nighters and mental breakdowns. Planning and designing the yearbook began before the school year even started when a few staff members attended a Gloria Shield’s Summer Workshop. There, they came up with the theme and the critical design elements.
The official 2025-2026 yearbook is to be delivered around the first week of May.
“The theme ‘This is the Whole Point’ covers all of the Whys,” Editor Rei Ngo said. “Why do we care? Why are you here? Why do you persevere? All of the answers to the Whys are the main point of our theme.”
Taking inspiration from a silly TikTok trend, the theme highlights the purpose behind student opinion and life.
“I feel that [the theme] shows our experiences and all of the things that we do, not just what we get out of it,” Yearbook Editor-in-Chief Aaron Dann said. “It’s not material things.”
The joy behind the theme is that it’s subjective. Interpretation upon the statement is up to how the individual sees it.
“I liked that we highlighted groups and topics that aren’t really talked about,” first-year staff Hope Harper said. “It was really fun to cover the 30th anniversary because you get to look back at the first series of the school and see how it’s changed or stayed the same since then.”
One of the key principles behind journalism is capturing and bringing light to hidden stories and unique perspectives.
“Some challenges would be the amount of coverage and making sure that we got absolutely every organization, sport, club, as possible,” Editor-Assistant Brissa Espiracueta said.
Because the yearbook captures the whole essence of the year, it is a crucial component of student life.
“Everything has to go through a whole process,” first-year staff Kaitlyn Narro said. “Editing is one of the hardest things to do. It’s so difficult to learn, the website we use is so confusing.”
Beyond computer screens and microphones, the yearbook staff have a community within its own corridors. Staff members guide their peers through the tedious process of journalism and photojournalism.
“The chief editors were great mentors throughout the year,” Harper said. “Sometimes I feel bad because they work really hard to help everyone, but they are amazing.”
