Being a boss and friend with your yearbook staff can be a tough balancing act that can take a couple of tries to get down. Because you have likely worked with some members before you were editor and others may be new to staff, each member will need something a little different from you. You may need to work on …
If you’re reading this, chances are you’re a go-getter, an ambitious busy bee and a passionate leader. Your yearbook experience is what makes you a prized catch in the sea of college applicants. Some believe yearbookers are future scrapbook moms, but your job as a college prospect is to stand out. You know that the hours you spent measuring the …
Despite not going into a field related to journalism and print media, my experience on the yearbook staff, including a year as editor-in-chief, at Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, Md., has helped me succeed in my career as a software engineer. Just as I would edit and write copy then, now I edit code through code reviews and write using code.
Yearbook staff members need to feel as important to the production of the publication as the editor is. I did this by empowerment, which enabled my small staff to produce the 2006 Spartonian yearbook for Hempfield Area High School in Greensburg, Pa.
Anyone who has been on the yearbook staff probably knows that it is not all fun and games. It is highly unlikely that any staff has not endured those long days – and sometimes nights – filled with coffee, food, the occasional tear and, of course, utter chaos. Therefore, in addition to overseeing the publication of a however-many-page chronicle of the year, it is the responsibility of the editor to make sure yearbook includes activities to lighten the experience and unify the staff.
Text is the most important aspect of the yearbook. While pictures will be admired first, it is the body copy and the cutlines that accomplish the book’s final goal by capturing the tone of the year. Time and time again, I have had to deal with poorly written copy, whether it is riddled with grammatical mistakes or lacks the interest that draws in the reader. Cleaning up the text is an easy process, with a few basic tips.
If you want something done right, do it yourself, right? Too bad the world of yearbooks doesn’t work that way. However, an effective use of your editorial staff can help you to be well on your way to a great publication – done right.
