# A school anniversary display that lasts long after the celebration

> Build a school anniversary display your committee can work on together: a timeline, every class, alumni memories and photos from the celebration itself.

Source: https://history-showcase.com/use-cases/school-anniversary-display · HistoryShowcase · Updated 2026-10-26

Your anniversary committee gathers decades of photos and memories for one weekend. Put that work on a touchscreen that opens at the celebration and stays in the lobby afterward.

## What is a school anniversary display?

A school anniversary display presents a school’s history, classes and alumni memories for a milestone such as a 50th, 75th or 100th year, usually at the celebration and then in a lobby. With HistoryShowcase, a committee builds it together in a private draft, publishes it before the event and adds photos from the celebration afterward.

- Made for: anniversary committees, principals and alumni directors
- Where schools put it: The gala or open house, Front lobby, afterward, Invitations and the school website
- Layouts: Timeline, Honors ledger, Profiles, Photo gallery
- Visitors can filter by: Decade, Year
- Cost: Free to use. No payment details required.

## A year of work shouldn’t end up in a closet

Anniversary committees do a year of work for one weekend. They dig through boxes, borrow photos from alumni, write captions and print poster boards for the gym. After the celebration, the boards go back into a closet, the borrowed photos go home, and the next committee starts over from scratch twenty-five years later.

A school anniversary display gives that work a lasting home. The committee builds it together in a private draft, publishes it in time for the event, and leaves it running in the lobby afterward. Photos from the celebration become its newest chapter, and alumni who couldn’t make the trip can open the same site from wherever they live.

## How does a school anniversary display compare with poster boards?

| What matters | Poster boards | HistoryShowcase |
| --- | --- | --- |
| After the event | Usually packed away in a closet | Keeps running in the lobby |
| Building it as a committee | Boards passed from member to member | Editors work in one shared private draft |
| Borrowed alumni photos | Pinned up, then taken back home | Scanned, returned and still shown |
| Alumni who can’t attend | See it only if they travel | Open the web address from anywhere |
| Look and feel | Handmade and personal | School colors set in the design editor |

## What to include in an anniversary display

- **A timeline of the years.** The founding, the buildings, the firsts and the turning points, one story per milestone.
- **Every graduating class.** Each class year in its own row, so every alumnus at the celebration can find their place.
- **Alumni memories.** Short reflections from graduates of different decades, each with a photo from their time at school.
- **Then and now.** Old and current photos of the same classrooms, fields and front steps.
- **Leaders and longtime staff.** Principals, beloved teachers and the custodian who stayed forty years, with what they meant to the school.
- **The anniversary itself.** Photos from the gala, the open house and the assembly, added after the event as the newest chapter.

## How to set up an anniversary display

Give each collection to a committee member. A timeline carries the history; profiles hold the memories; a gallery saves the celebration.

Site: Our Anniversary

- **Our years** (Timeline): Key events from the founding to today, one story per milestone.
- **Every class** (Honors ledger): Each graduating year in its own row, with the class motto or a highlight.
- **Alumni memories** (Profiles): One profile per graduate who shares a memory, with their class year.
- **The celebration** (Photo gallery): Photos from the anniversary weekend, added after the event.

Visitors can filter by: Decade, Year.

## How do you prepare a school anniversary display?

1. **Divide the work by collection.** Add each committee member as an editor and give them one collection to fill, such as memories or the class list.
2. **Gather alumni photos early.** Ask graduates to lend photos well ahead of the event, scan or photograph them, and return the originals.
3. **Publish before the doors open.** Look over the whole site on the touchscreen in the private draft, then publish it ahead of the celebration.

## Where should an anniversary display go?

- **The gala or open house.** In the middle of the room, where alumni gather to find their year.
- **Front lobby, afterward.** It keeps running after the decorations come down.
- **Invitations and the school website.** Share the web address so alumni can explore before and after the event.

## School anniversary display questions

### When should our committee start?

As soon as it forms. Collecting photos from alumni takes the longest. You can publish an early version and keep adding, since nothing changes on the screen until someone with publishing access publishes.

### Can the whole committee help build it?

Yes. Add members by email as editors, publishers or viewers. Editors work in the private draft, and only people with publishing access can make changes go live.

### What happens after the anniversary?

The display stays. Add photos from the event as a new collection and leave it running in the lobby. Archive any stories you no longer want shown; archived stories stay hidden.

### Can we start from something ready-made?

Yes. Add the School History or Events & Traditions example pack to see a finished layout, then replace the examples with your own stories. Examples are never published automatically.

## Related

- [School History Timeline Display](https://history-showcase.com/use-cases/school-history-timeline): Founding to last spring in one chronological line, each event with its year, its story and its photos.
- [Class Reunion Display](https://history-showcase.com/use-cases/class-reunion-display): Yearbook pages, senior portraits and then-and-now photos for every class coming back for its reunion.
- [School Founders Display](https://history-showcase.com/use-cases/school-founders-display): The people who started your school: founding families, first faculty, first class and original documents.
- [Homecoming Display Ideas](https://history-showcase.com/use-cases/homecoming-display): Ideas for a homecoming touchscreen: past courts, old floats, the big game and the classes back for reunions.

Make the anniversary last past the weekend Free to use. No payment details required. Start building, no account needed: https://history-showcase.com/start