I sent the following email to the faculty/staff at school today.
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I hope that you’re all doing well, staying safe & healthy during this craziness. I wanted to let you know that yearbooks are still on sale.
The theme for this year is “We’ve Got This,” which we selected in July 2019. Just like “As One” was the perfect theme for the 2018 book, I can’t think of a better theme for the 2020 book.
The yearbook editors, staff & I haven’t stopped working on the book since leaving campus on 3/13. We’ve had countless Zoom calls & texts amongst ourselves, lots of late night work, along with reaching out to students, faculty & staff for help.
I know that we, as teachers, all working hard to make sure we’re ready for the last marking period. I just wanted to let you know how fantastic the 33 Aerie staffers are, and that they haven’t strayed from the high expectations I have for them – even through quarantine & social distancing.
Please let your students know that books are still available. Distribution will, of course, depend on when we go back to school. Every student who orders a book online by 5/18 will receive their book.
I borrowed the message below from another adviser, who posted it on Facebook. It applies to us. We’ve made a yearbook under unimaginable circumstances before & we’ll do it again.
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While high school athletes and musicians are keeping up their craft and continuing their rehearsals and workouts at home, journalism students are, as well. The quarantine hit directly in the middle of yearbook deadline season for almost every school in the country. While many of their peers are sleeping in and binge watching tv, yearbook staffs everywhere are using a variety of technologies to finish their yearbooks from their homes.
They are struggling to contact classmates and coaches to fill canceled spring sports pages and reaching out over every platform available in hopes of getting those quotes they are missing.
They’re fighting slow internet connections.
They are sitting in their school parking lots to access photos on servers.
They are being ghosted by peers and adults alike.
They are adding last minute content to cover the virus and the effects of the quarantine on their school.
BUT…
They. Are. Determined.
They are finishing the yearbook for THEIR school and THEIR classmates, because there will only be one history book made about THEIR campus this year.
They know that banquets and prom may not happen, spring sports are canceled, and graduations may not be the celebration seniors have always dreamed of. But their school WILL have a yearbook.
Help your child remember the GOOD times of this year. Order your kid a yearbook today.