Flying under the radar here at West Orange High School is arguably one of the most important electives in the whole building: Yearbook.

Run by Ms. Megan Kiczek, Yearbook is a senior elective journalism class that works to produce the entire book. From the theme, to the pictures, to every last detail, the class works to create a lasting memory that your entire senior class can enjoy forever.

I spoke to Ms. Kiczek who specified, “You do not have to have prior journalism experience, but you will need to apply and be selected to the class. The application is a Google Form along with teacher recommendations that helps me get to know if you have the skills and work ethic to be on the team.”

The elective itself does not count as an English class, and in order to be on the staff for the yearbook you must actually be in the class. Most of the work towards the book is done while in class, not afterschool.

Ms. Kiczek also mentioned the importance of the application process, “We can only have the most motivated, excited, hard-working students on our staff. The application ensures that you have what it takes to be in Yearbook. This is not meant to be intimidating– you might still be selected even if you don’t have specific yearbook-related skills– just the effort you put into the application itself is a testament to your work ethic.”

In addition, Ms. Kiczek highlighted some important skills necessary for the course, “We need people who are strong with photoshop, InDesign, and any other computer and/or graphic design skills. We need photographers and we need writers and editors. We need people who are great at communicating with teachers, coaches and/or businesses. We need people who are not afraid to ask for money. And we need social people, who know everyone’s names and are committed to getting every last person’s photo into the book.”

The application for current members of the class of 2021 is due February 3rd 2020 in order to be considered for next years yearbook staff.