Yearbook adviser Kevin Oliver joins TALON editors to show off their Best of Varsity Yearbook prize, celebrating the staff’s national recognition. Oliver led the yearbook staff to win a Pacemaker Award from the National Scholastic Press Association this April.

If there’s one thing unforgettable about our time in high school, it’s TALON Yearbook Adviser and Coach Kevin Oliver: our loving, supportive and often-hilarious mentor. 

We met Oliver on our first day as “yearbookers,” where with bright eyes, he introduced himself in a series of entertaining anecdotes about his life before Harker, combating our nerves with spectacular displays of extroversion. Brimming with excitement and a touch of anxiety, we could barely remember how to write a caption, let alone decipher the infinite secrets of Adobe InDesign, the software used to create yearbook pages. 

It was a shock at first to learn that our new adviser had been a lawyer in his past with little experience with yearbooks. In many ways, he too, was the bright-eyed student, learning alongside us. It seemed we would make this trek into the unknown together.

Without missing a beat, Oliver started telling stories, about his childhood friend Bubba, about his dog Fargo, about his life as a patent lawyer. In just one period, our fear began morphing into confidence. As we got to know each other further, he asked questions, welcomed feedback and wasn’t afraid to say, “That’s my bad, guys” or “I don’t know, let’s search it up.” 

Director of Journalism Whitney Huang mentored Oliver in teaching and became a close friend. She admires his determination to tackle new challenges and to be the best teacher possible.

“He puts his all into everything,” Huang said. “I’ve really, really felt that, and I hope the students have felt [it] too. He brings such a wonderful, bright and effusive personality constantly to every single day of class.”

As we advanced, so did Oliver. His dedication to Harker’s journalism program led to growth in both tangible and intangible ways. 

There were tough times, as to be expected on a small but mighty yearbook staff. Our largest challenge from day one has been timeliness, and so Oliver sometimes had to break out his ‘bad guy’ side to put us back on track. But it was always clear: he didn’t enjoy being strict. He just cared deeply about helping us do our best.

By senior year, TALON became a National Scholastic Press Association Pacemaker Award-winning yearbook, one of the most prestigious yearbook awards in the country. He’s found his groove in delivering hard-hitting lines like “process over results” and “everyone wants to be you,” phrases that became the lifeline near stressful deadlines and long work days. 

Despite everything — the fast-paced nature of it all with the cutthroat deadlines and rapid crack of the starting gun — Oliver remained kind. When deadlines were looming and the red numbers of overdue days became overwhelming, he continued to be the dinosaur-party-hat wearing, dancing and singing adviser, never afraid to laugh loudly and live boldly. 

“In journalism, there are late nights, and it is a year-long process that requires buy-in from a lot of different people,” Oliver said. “You can’t get through that without enjoying it. I don’t feel a lot of guilt about the fact that we take time to laugh probably every class, or we have the music and the jokes, and to me that’s all just as important.”

He lifted our spirits, building a classroom culture that fostered intrinsic motivation to tell the stories of our communities. 

Outside of TALON, Oliver was heavily involved in coaching Cross Country and Track and Field as the head coach of Cross Country starting his second year and head coach of Track and Field this year. As a yearbook student and an athlete, sophomore Samaara Patil experienced both of Oliver’s roles at Harker. 

“He taught me to believe in myself, just be okay with who we are and be a little silly every now and then,” Samaara said. “On the track, he’s taught me to believe in myself through injuries, and when I feel like I can’t do it, and I’m not capable of it. He’s always there to tell me I can do it.”

Oliver excelled at bringing out the best in all of us and always found a way to make every student feel seen, respected and empowered. He believed in our potential even when we missed a deadline. Or two. Or three. 

Through every stressful Saturday Work Day and chaotic distribution preparation classes, he kept us grounded. Encouraged us to breathe. Laughed with us and found ways to make every moment one to be remembered.   

It’s easy to view the past with rose-tinted glasses, yet every part of our three years with Oliver as an adviser was perfect. We often describe him in class as goofy and silly, but he’s so much more than that. He was deeply thoughtful. He listened. He would remember smallest details, from our favorite stress-relieving snacks to deadline night discussions about RuPaul’s Drag Race.

The time we’ve spent with Oliver is, in reality, very short. But in the few years that our lives have run parallel, he’s become a constant in the chaos. Oliver is a rare, one-of-a-kind person who never made us feel like just students: he made us feel like teammates. Like we mattered.

We will miss you so much, Mr. Oliver. We know you’ll do amazing things in whatever you do next, and that some lucky individuals will get to laugh at your jokes and hear your stories. But with your departure, an integral part of the soul of TALON goes with you. Your advice, your support and your iconic line “everybody wants to be you” will stay with us long after graduation. 

Your smiles and humor echo in every memory we made in Manz 70. Thank you for everything.