Many times, advisers struggle with identifying their role on a yearbook staff. Most advisers feel that they are a club sponsor and should let the students decide everything, from font selection to ship week of the yearbook. As much as this can lead to student excitement, remember one thing… your role as an adviser is unlike any other sponsor or teacher. Your decision on how to manage your publication can make the difference between a successful yearbook or a yearbook that is over budget and incomplete.
As the adviser, you have been chosen to be the project manager of the publication. As project manager, be aware that your primary responsibilities lie in two areas:
PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT (the creation of the yearbook) and FINANCE MANAGEMENT (the sales and finances of the yearbook).
As a production manager, you will be responsible for the entire creation of the yearbook. Remember that you were chosen by the school administration to fill the position —ultimately, you are the decision maker on all parts of your program, and you report to the school administration. Sure, it is great to get student input on all decisions, and this is highly encouraged, but you must set realistic goals and deadlines for all decisions. This being said, it’s important that you know that you are also responsible for keeping the administration informed on choices, decisions, set backs, advancements, and more. Make sure you ask the administration how much “input” they want to have on the program. Understand that your administration, more than likely, does not want to know which photos you put in the yearbook, unless they are of important events or of questionable
nature. They are trusting you to create a product on time, that is free of problems. If you can do this, your efforts will be appreciated.
When it comes to being a production manager, this usually means you have to do or assign the following tasks to key people to complete within a specified time frame:
• Deciding what is on every page in the yearbook
• Photographing key school events
• Writing headlines, stories, and captions
• Choosing a cover design
• Choosing page designs
• Choosing type/text/font specifications
• Training staff members on production issues
• Page creation of custom pages to meet content elements
• Reviewing/proofreading page designs and stories
• Completing pages in a timely manner (deadlines)
• Completing advertisement pages
• Working with your yearbook representative
• Working with your school photographer
• Working with club sponsors and coaches for photos AND MORE…