AIRAN SCRUBY
News Editor
Nostalgic adults sometimes turn to dusty yearbooks from high school and college to see pictures of old friends, to remember the teams they played on and their favorite clubs.
After this year, Pepperdine students will no longer have this opportunity. The yearbook, “Impressions,” will no longer be published, according to Director of Student Journalism Dr. Michael Murrie.
Murrie said the yearbook was being discontinued because the program had been losing thousands of dollars each year and because of a lack of student interest.
“All of these things seem to be part of a national trend,” Murrie said. “It’s not unique to us.”
Murrie said part of the reason for the loss of the yearbook is that the university administration wants the printing costs of “Impressions” to be funded through sales. Rather than raising student fees to pay for publication costs and scholarships for students.
“Most colleges who have yearbooks have them supported by student fees,” Murrie said.
Assistant Director of Student Journalism Elizabeth Smith said that while the university believes in the program, they want the yearbook to be able to support itself.
“For the past three years we’ve tried to find alternate funding from the university, and it’s just not materialized.”
Self-funding is not practical for the yearbook, according to Smith. She said the yearbook’s approximate production cost for the year was $75,000, while it is likely that only 500 yearbooks will sell at $85 each, for total earnings of about $40,000.
“We spend a heavy part of fall and summer marketing,” Smith said.
Yearbooks are primarily sold to parents through letters sent to students homes, but are also marketed to students. The Alumni Office and admissions also use them as a tool to show what the school is doing and what life at Pepperdine is like.
Murrie and Smith both said they feel this will be disappointing to those affiliated with Pepperdine.
“It’s likely to be the loss of a tradition that many held dear over the years,” Murrie said. “That’s a significant loss.”
Smith said she believed the effects would be long term.
“I think the effects of not having a yearbook will be felt 10 years from now,” Smith said.
Murrie said plans have been made to replace “Impressions” with a DVD or Web-based substitute, which would be funded with a portion of the money that would have gone to the yearbook.
“A yearbook in its traditional form is not working on a college campus,” Smith said.
Smith said the 2006-2007 school year would be a chance to regroup and consider bringing “Impressions” back, and in what form.
“I hope the yearbook does come back,” Smith said. “The sad part about it is that this is one of the best yearbooks we’ve had.”
Those who worked with the “Impressions,” including editor Emily Montgomery, saw it as a positive experience. “The yearbook is a great way to look back on some of the favorite memories from the year,” said senior Ben Young, photo editor for “Impressions.”
The last edition of “Impressions” costs $85 and is being sold in the bookstore and the Student Publications office.
04-13-2006
