The Volunteer, 1980

The 1980 edition of The Volunteer seems like a different yearbook entirely.

It’s a big book – 222 pages in all – and flashy. Whereas earlier yearbooks simply presented the names and faces of students and faculty, this volume ushers in a new era and purpose for The Volunteer. For the first time, the yearbook seems to be a space for the graduating class to reckon with the world around them and express their place in it. It’s a thoroughly modern yearbook created by a new generation that feels familiar – even though more than 40 years have passed since its publication.

Journalistic writing abounds through this volume; the first few pages look back on the previous decade with a critical and assessing eye. Faculty pages contain candid photos accompanied by biographies written with literary flair. Senior pages reveal individual personalities through interview-style biographies and candid photos. Baby/childhood pictures appear for the first time; this trend will gain in popularity as the years progress. Now, just about every graduating senior has a cute baby photo somewhere in the yearbook. 

Middle and lower school pages feature individual student photos and candids that reveal the energy and joy of these younger students. Honors & organizations, clubs, and sports all have photos of student participants and summaries of the experience. The yearbook ends with Features, which are more extensive write ups of events from the school year that feel like news stories.

Taken all together, the 1980 Volunteer seems to be a harbinger of a new age, where USN students are savvy participants in the world around them, creating their own identities and carving out a place for themselves to thrive.