Hey Birmingham, listen up! The yearbook is selling and selling fast. In fact, there are less than 150 left! After the dismal plummet in sales over the past three years, Ms. Kono and the yearbook staff have only ordered a limited amount. “There are less than 150 yearbooks still available for purchase this year,” Ms. Kono stated. For a school with roughly over 3,000 students, 150 yearbooks is an incredibly minuscule number, meaning that only a small amount of students can actually get one.

**Any students who have not already purchased a yearbook can do so at the student store or online at Josten’s.com for $90.**

There are many reasons to buy a yearbook this year. The coolest perk in buying a yearbook this year is that Ms. Kono is hosting a signing party. “We’re having a signing party, where everybody who bought yearbooks can meet up, sign each other’s books, and enjoy some music in the process.” If this was not incentive enough, the actual students and the teacher who worked on the yearbook voiced their reasons why you should buy one. Bethany Graham, the design editor, stated, “It involves the school. It contains everyone’s personality into one book.” Ms. Kono explained, “It’s definitely student-driven. They designed it emphasizing Patriot Pride. It has a golden theme as well, which really encapsulates that feeling of being a Birmingham Patriot.”

Aside from the BCCHS Patriot Pride within the yearbook, the staff stressed how much work they put into it. Ms. Kono stated, “We went through at least five or six revisions for each page to make sure it looked its best. We gave club pages to the actual clubs to make sure all the names and information were correct.” Christian Flores said that, “the whole staff really put in tons of effort into this one.” Jan Joseph Salido, editor-in-chief, of the yearbook stressed that they “focused on things they could not have in previous years like the school improvement page and opening page.” These improvements are due to a surplus of time that yearbook used to complete their project.

This year’s yearbook has nearly 216 pages, and edited with a new software program from Josten’s. “With the help of Josten’s, we were able to ensure that those minor errors were gone. Things like blurry photos are gone. We really edited this book with that sense of coming together,” Ms. Kono replied.

Regardless of what grade your are in, the yearbook is the only thing that truly sums up the whole year. Looking back on an incredible year, on the new friends made, on the crushes you had, on everything about being a Birmingham Patriot, this year’s yearbook is more than a collection of portraits–it is a part of you that will always remain and always be cherished.