Yearbooks sell out on first day
For students who neglected to pre-order one, yearbooks were a hot commodity this year. Even though order numbers were similar to last year, pre-orders left only 22 yearbooks available for general sale.
Joshua Eby, principal, and the administration decided to sell the extra yearbooks on the morning of Monday, June 1, until they sell out and then take a waiting list in case any pre-ordered yearbooks were not picked up.
On the evening of June 3, the 248 students who had still not picked up their pre-order were informed through an all-call that if they did not pick up their yearbook by the end of Friday, June 5, their money would be refunded and their books sold to someone on the waiting list.
Last year, the Pawprint ordered about 1,300 yearbooks. In the end, 52 were left over, which amounts to $5,200. Based on these numbers, as well as the early pre-orders for this year, the publication ordered 1,250 yearbooks for the 2014-2015 yearbook. “We knew we had so many left over (last year) and that was a huge blow in the yearbook’s budget,” said Camila Wise, junior and incoming yearbook Co-Editor-in-Chief. “We wanted to make sure we didn’t have that same problem again.”
The total order of yearbooks must be submitted to the publisher at the end of November, when the covers are printed. Unfortunately, large numbers of late pre-orders in December and January meant that many students who didn’t pre-order were left without one, since more orders cannot be added after November. Freshman Matthew Duenas was among those who didn’t receive one. “I was really looking forward to having a big book that I can look back on to see all of my freshman year memories,” said Duenas.
Some were more upset than others, with many seniors extremely disappointed that they were not able to have their last high school yearbook. “I sold (my yearbook to) my friend who is a senior … because I felt bad,” said Julia Bagan, junior. “I didn’t really care that much because I am a junior, but I think it is worth it if you are a senior because it’s your last year.”
This isn’t the first time that yearbooks have run out. “We’ve run out of yearbooks before,” said Susan Boxberger, school bookkeeper. ”Whenever you run out of yearbooks, it’s going to cause anger because people are disappointed. Usually when this happens, the following year, people are much more diligent about purchasing them early.”
Eby said that the administration as well as the yearbook staff have been trying their best to respond to the many complaints that they have received. The Pawprint has considered ordering more, but it would cost about $14,500 (not including shipping, handling, and tax) for 100 since the yearbook takes five months to print, and is printed in four parts. “We don’t have the money to front that,” Michelle Saremi, yearbook adviser, said. The order would have to be paid upfront, requiring 100 people to commit. Furthermore, they would not be available until the end of September, even on a rush order. “We’ve tried to work with Josten’s on some alternative options like getting a new print, but we know that that’s going to be really costly to parents and they’re also going to have to get their book really late,” Eby said.
Eby urges students and parents to be patient and to pre-order in the future. “We’re just trying to problem solve and work the best we can, but we go back to the fact that pre-ordering is the best way to go,” said Eby. “It is the cheapest price and it’s the way to ensure that you are going to get a book. We do feel bad for those who didn’t get it, but at some point we can’t have 200 books lying around.”
