Whiz Kids: Yearbook Staff Wins Prestigious Award

Name: 2011 yearbook staff

School:

Accomplishment: Putting together a yearbook that will serve as a worthy keepsake decades after high school graduation is a long, sometimes difficult task, but one Dearborn school seems to have down to an art.

That’s why Walsworth, the company that publishes the Edsel Ford High School yearbook, awarded the publication staff with its Excellence Award for 2011.

Sue Beck, the teacher who oversees the publication of the yearbook, said receiving the award was a tremendous honor for her small staff, which works year-round to publish the yearbook.

“The students work so hard,” she said. “They meet several deadlines, and they take all of the pictures, write the stories and captions, and take care of the layout. It’s so much more than a class.”

The staff members for the 2011 yearbook are Cailee Drizinski, co-editor-in-chief and Student Life section editor; Emily Richards, co-editor-in-chief and Sports section editor; Porjia Tucker, Academics section editor; Taylor Kerrigan, Underclassmen section editor; Cortney Downing, Senior section editor; Kaitlyn Drabing, staffer; Paige Lacasse, staffer; Jamila Mothana, staffer; Justin Alvey, staffer; and Brenna Celmers, staffer.

Nora Guiney of Walsworth said the award is given to fewer than five percent of the yearbooks published by the company.

“The layout and the theme for their yearbook was great,” she said. “The final product was beautiful.”

Key to awesomeness: The theme of the 2011 yearbook was “Unique but United.”

The Award of Excellence is provided to a yearbook staff that has designed a book with a unique theme, a compelling design, well-written text and clear and concise photographs–which for the 10-person staff, all must be handled in-house, said Beck.

But the work doesn’t stop there. The staff must sell advertising space to teachers, parents, community groups and businesses to help finance the yearbook. The 2011 book had 270 color pages–one of the biggest books produced at the school. The staff was able to raise more than $50,000 in funds to produce the book.

Cailee Drizinski, who is now a student at Alma College, said what she remembers most about her time on the yearbook staff was the hard work and the camaraderie of the staff.

“What I enjoyed most working on the yearbook was the friendships I made,” she said. “I had the chance to meet a group of truly passionate and talented individuals ... all of us worked on weekends, holidays and some night until four in the morning until a deadline was met.”

But there were some obstacles, Drizinski said.

“Getting businesses to buy ads to support our yearbook is difficult,” she said. “With the economy how it is, every bill was a close call, but we pulled them all off!”

Taylor Kerrigan said she learned a lot as a staffer.

“Being editor in chief has helped me decide what I want my career to be later on,” Managing a staff as I have for the past two years has led me to realize I have a passion for management. I have decided to enter business management once I enter the career world.”

She also gave props to Beck for her leadership.

“I could never thank Ms. Beck enough for all she has taught me,” Kerrigan said. “She has pushed me to explore my designing capabilities and never accept anything but my absolute best.”

Nora Guiney said that the Edsel yearbook lived up to its theme.

“The students did a wonderful, wonderful job,” she said. “The stories they wrote, the pictures they took will last a lifetime.”

Know of a student who is doing great things–inside or out of the classroom? Email your Whiz Kid nominations to Editor Jessica Carreras at Jessica.carreras@patch.com. Please include the name, age, school, achievement and key to awesomeness, as well as a photo. Then come back every week for our Whiz Kid spotlight. You never know who may be smiling at you from the computer screen.