Edmond Memorial High School’s yearbook staff has dominated at state once again. Yearbook left the competition with 32 individual awards, including Designer of the Year, Photographer of the Year and the award for Social Media Strategy. Additionally, it was named one of the top three yearbooks in the state after being awarded highest honors and the All-Oklahoman award.
“The staff was incredible this past year,” writing editor Danica Triplett said. “We had a group of people who were so hard working and dedicated to the book. You can really tell how much love and care went into the book.”
The yearbook staff works year-round to put together an amazing several-hundred-page yearbook that perfectly recaps the entire year. Everything from Homecoming Week to Swine Week and to individual clubs have dedicated pages in the yearbook so that students can relive their year in a single book. In addition, every book has a different theme each year.
“After ‘Revive’ [the 2021-2022 yearbook], which was recovering from the effects of COVID-19, we wanted to show the identity of people within the school,” yearbook adviser Elanna Dobbs said.
The theme of the yearbook last year (the one that competed at state this year) was “Identity.” The theme was incorporated throughout the book by including hundreds of students at EMHS and their individual personalities and interests.
For their “Identity” yearbook, the 30 staff members won 32 awards including the Designer of the Year, which was awarded to Ryley Watkins and the Photographer of the Year, awarded to Brittney Newsom.
“Overall I think everyone was very passionate about the book,” photography Co-Editor Jacie Scott said. “It really shined through in our writing, design, photography and spread as a whole.”
At the state competition, the yearbook staff had the opportunity to attend workshops to help them improve their skill, whether it be writing or designing. The schedule also allowed for time to have fun as well, for example, the staff had the chance to eat lunch on the Oklahoma University campus and explore the campus while they were there.
“We usually spend most of the time at state working on deadlines, but this year we all attended a workshop for the first time in several years,” Triplett said.
As for what is in the works for this year’s yearbook, the theme is kept under tight wraps and will only be revealed to the student body when they receive their yearbooks at the end of the school year.
“Our theme this year is epic, and I honestly think it will be carried out through the book very well,” Dobbs said.
The staff is so excited for what is to come this year, especially after their win at state. They perfectly represented the talent at EMHS by sweeping the competition with their incredible yearbook.
Contact Macey Thaxton at [email protected]
