“It’s funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back, everything is different” – C. S. Lewis.
Yearbooks serve as snapshots of our school years, preserving memories that students can revisit many years later. Agoura High School has produced a one-of-a-kind piece this year that stands out to me as the pinnacle of yearbooks. Quixotian 2026’s design, theme, and messages on every page are coordinated to remind us students: we have what it takes.
Beginning with perhaps the biggest improvement from last year’s edition is the theme. It is ever-present and each word carries power. Every page serves as a reinforcement to the central theme. Instead of the sports pages being titled “Varsity Football” or “Varsity Water Polo,” it’s “We Have Scored Again” and “It Takes Waves To Win.” Keeping each page united with one unique and motivating message makes the yearbook flow like a story rather than individual sections.
Another strength of the new edition is the introduction. Last year students were first greeted with the staff who made the yearbook. While this is very understandable, it takes the spotlight from the real main character of this book–the school. This year, the yearbook greets students with every reason for why Agoura is great and among the best. This introduction serves as a great way to establish a sense of community and pride regarding the school before moving on to the table of contents and then the rest of everything.
The cover is also top-notch. The letters have lines extending outside the main cover, and there is a thunderbolt to represent the school’s mascot: Big Daddy Bolt. It’s an edgy title, making one’s eyes instantly attracted to it. The longer one looks, the harder it is to take their eyes off the pristine beauty. The letters are written in a multitude of colors, but an “A”, “H”, and “S” are colored yellow to show the school’s name in its famous gold color. This is a professional masterpiece that signifies that this yearbook is just dying to be opened and looked inside of!
This yearbook was almost going to be the first without senior quotes. Given the lack of participation in previous years, it’s been proposed that this year there would be no more quotes. Instead, it was proposed that seniors say something they hope to remember from their time in high school. Fortunately, student backlash led to the idea being scrapped and senior quotes proceeding as they always have been. For more information regarding the topic, see “What’s the Deal with Senior Quotes” by Noah Mayer.
Ultimately, the tremendous success of this year’s publication is the result of countless hours of collaboration, writing, editing, photography, disagreements, and stress of all kinds. To all the yearbook staff, I deeply respect your commitment to this cause and I congratulate you all for the masterpiece you produced this year. May the 2026-2027 school year yield similar works of incredible artistry! Years from now, students will be able to look inside and remember not only what happened, but what made it all be put on paper for all to see forever after.
