Pages of the past: High school yearbooks remain popular in a digital age

We all know teens are heavy consumers of everything internet, but despite being bombarded by that instant gratification on a daily basis, they still appreciate the intrinsic value of something as simple and old-fashioned as a school yearbook.

“Our sales are pretty consistent … we have about the same number of kids that are buying yearbooks now that we did 20 years ago,” Lewis and Clark High School teacher and yearbook adviser Michael Lee said. “We are so used to seeing them interact digitally. That one day that the books come out, everybody’s like pulling out pens and writing on pages … that piece (of history) has been around forever and has not gone away with this new generation.

“It’s still thriving,” Lee said.

And what’s not to like about that retro, autograph-friendly format?

While the images on a phone can be here and gone in a matter of seconds, the photos in a yearbook are permanent, nondeletable and best of all … your own exclusive property.

“If you search it up online, anyone can get it, but a hardback, that’s your book, no one else gets that certain book,” said Lewis and Clark sophomore Lucy Piskel, who assists with yearbook layout.

It is that tangible aspect of these childhood journals which resonates with people of all ages.

In a world brimming with fleeting information, yearbooks remain vital time capsules of school memories, milestones and friendships.

“They’re easy to pull out 20 years from now at a reunion and reflect back easily without having to put something (electronic) in or rely on any other kind of technology,” Ferris High School teacher and yearbook adviser Tim Cox said. “It’s really the only historical representation of a high school year.”

The construction of a 300-plus page school encyclopedia is no small task.

“The kids put the whole thing together,” Cox said.

Students in yearbook class learn applicable career skills in the fields of graphic art, photojournalism and photography.

“There are a lot of aspects to it, which makes it a lot of work,” said Ferris junior Rowen Wittwer, who serves as yearbook editor. Wittwer noted the importance of photo and text edits along with attention to overall continuity and the creation of a uniform yearbook appearance.

The students who tackle these jobs enjoy being a part of something epic.

“I feel like yearbook is kind of the beacon of the school … it really ties everybody together,” Lewis and Clark senior and yearbook designer Ella Kizziar said.

As busy teens flip through the pages of a high school yearbook, it is often the first introduction they have to social groups and activities.

“When you get the book you kind of realize, this school is so much bigger than just what I’ve been doing … You kind of just get a very holistic perspective of the school,” said senior Lauren Lubbe, who works as Lewis and Clark yearbook editor-in-chief.

Lubbe has enjoyed meeting and mingling with other students through her position.

“You get to know more people and you just feel way more connected to school,” she said.

Browsing through the pages of old yearbooks can offer insights to family genealogy along with a nostalgic glimpse at past hairstyles, fashions, music and societal trends, but over the years these precious companions often become lost or misplaced.

Lewis and Clark High School Assistant Principal Theresa Meyer has spearheaded an online effort to connect LC alumni with past yearbooks. A former Tiger , Meyer said the school often has many extra copies due to overorders and donations. Funds raised from the sales help provide yearbooks to current students who cannot afford one.

“My husband went here in the ’80s. My dad went here in the ’40s. LC runs in my blood,” she said. “It’s really cool to be able to give them something that meant so much to them that was just sitting in an archive room.

Additional information is available on the Lewis and Clark website.

As local students await that highly anticipated spring yearbook reveal, Cox is preparing for his own retirement at the end of this school year. He will leave behind a lasting legacy at Ferris with Senior Salutes, an idea he fostered which has provided parents with an avenue to give graduating kids a shout-out in the yearbook, while also raising funds for school activities.

While Cox reflected on his decades of work with Spokane area students, he skimmed through the pages of his all-time favorite Ferris Exeter yearbook – the 50-year anniversary edition which detailed a complete timeline of the high school.

“At the end of a math teacher’s school year, they’re grading finals, but at the end of my year … it’s kind of like I get birthed with a book. It’s exciting to see the print and see the finished product,” he said.