Many of those images and words come from a student publication that long predates the digital era. The Leonid, Lovett’s official annual yearbook, published its first edition in 1959. Its staff consists of Upper School students working under the direction of a faculty advisor. Alongside headshots of every student from kindergarten through 12th grade (Forms I-VI for older graduates), the book includes sections dedicated to faculty, clubs & student organizations, athletics, fine arts, and more. Staff members are assigned to individual sections, and the Head Editor is responsible for ensuring those sections work together to tell the school’s story for that academic year.

Before the digital era, putting the yearbook together was an arduous task. Pages were laid out on graph paper, with every element measured in picas and careful attention paid to avoiding the dreaded “trapped white space.” Photos taken by student and professional photographers were shot on film and developed in either the school’s darkroom or a professional one, then cropped with grease pencil markings rather than on a screen.

Some challenges, though, span every era of the publication. Staff members have always faced strict deadlines and seemingly impossible tasks, such as gathering every student organization at the same time for a group photo. Their work has always required approval from both the Head Editor and the faculty advisor before going to print. Much of that work was traditionally finished during “yearbook weekends,” when the entire staff would gather for marathon sessions to finalize each section of the book.

One thing that has not changed in the Leonid’s 67 years is the excitement surrounding the book’s release. Students scan its pages for photos of themselves, see the school from a fresh perspective, and relive the year. Just as cherished is the tradition of classmates signing each other’s books, leaving behind silly inscriptions and doodles that alumni still enjoy rediscovering decades later.

By Lloyd Brown ’75