MHS’s yearbook class has brought back senior quotes for the class of 2021 after removing them last school year and has implemented new guidelines for senior portraits, due to distance learning and the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the website of MHS’s yearbook, known as The Saga. The Saga is relying on MHS students to submit photos for the yearbook more than ever and trying out new formats and layouts, yearbook Co-Editor-in-Chief Hailey Plummer said in an email interview.
Yearbook returned to doing senior quotes out of fairness to the class of 2021, but also added new guidelines for them, Plummer said. According to The Saga website, senior quotes are only available to students who contribute usable photos to the yearbook. The Google Form to turn in senior quotes also stated that they are due Feb. 14 and can be found on the website.
“We first threw out the quotes [last year] because the previous yearbook staff had received many inappropriate jokes and was having trouble filtering them out,” Plummer said. “Honestly, I feel like it wasn’t the best idea to take them away from the next senior class. They are a completely different group of people.”
When asked about the likelihood of senior quotes remaining for the years to come, Plummer said that she cannot promise that they will remain, but is hopeful.
“I’m super glad we got to have our quotes this year,” Plummer said. “I’m also hoping that the future classes prove their solidarity and submit good quotes so that we don’t have this issue again.”
New guidelines have also been put into place for senior portraits, Plummer said. According to The Saga website, portraits no longer have to be taken by Prestige Portraits, but they still have to be taken professionally and submitted by Feb. 15. Additional photo guidelines are also available on the website for third party photographers. Another change stated on The Saga website is that portraits can also be taken outdoors and in students’ own clothing, if appropriate.
“The strict [portrait] guidelines have been lifted because during shelter-in-place we need to be more cautious of the people we interact with,” Plummer said. “Being able to take it outside and in your own attire… is safer for students. I personally love outdoor photography, and so I think this is a great opportunity to take a photo surrounded by nature!”
Plummer also stated that she is not concerned about the lack of uniformity in this year’s senior quotes.
“Even though the senior portrait pages will not look very traditional, nor will the rest of the book, I know that change is fun and healthy,” Plummer said. “So, I’m excited to see how the pages turn out.”
This year has been full of new experiences for yearbook, Plummer said. Although online school and the pandemic has affected yearbook in many ways, some of these changes are positive, Plummer stated. Plummer also mentioned that new designs are being tried out for this edition of The Saga.
“Our yearbook staff hasn’t gotten to meet together in person, and I miss that the very most,” Plummer stated. However, she added, “Working from home, it’s been very efficient to use my personal computer for my designs. Other changes have been to replace pages with new ones and try out different layouts. There are more changes, but I can’t spoil the surprises.”
When asked about how COVID-19 has affected yearbook sales, Plummer responded that she believes there has been a drop in sales for the senior class, but she is unsure about other grade levels.
“I haven’t been able to monitor sales of the previous years, but I know that there is only about 10% of the senior class that has purchased a yearbook so far this year,” Plummer stated. “It’s likely that students changed their minds about buying one because they assumed there wouldn’t be any photos in it. However, having seen the pages myself, I disagree. This is a great year to buy a yearbook to see what everyone else was doing during the school year.”